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  That tone, as if pinching Cao Zhi to death was as insignificant as pinching an ant to death. Even Yuan Shao, who was one of the four most powerful warlords and controlled four states in northern China at that time, did not dare to speak with such arrogance when facing the still weak Cao Zhi.

  However, this young man in his thirties dared to.

  Liu Bei and Xu Shu, as well as the many generals from Jiangdong who were sitting beside them, all had a hint of surprise flash across their faces. At this moment, Liu Bei must have been secretly amused by the young man's bold words.

  Among all, only Liu Feng's mood was the calmest, because he was the only one who clearly knew that this beautiful Zhou Lang in front of him was not a paper tiger or a boastful talker. He dared to utter such arrogant and grand words because he indeed had extraordinary abilities beyond ordinary people.

  "Haha, Gong Jin is indeed impressive, with such confidence, I can rest assured."

  Liu Bei first used a respectful tone to flatter, then suddenly changed his words and stroked his beard, saying: "However, Cao Cao is indeed cunning and treacherous. To be honest, he has some military talent. I have been dealing with him for over ten years and deeply understand his tactics. Now he is coming with the momentum of forcing Jingzhou to surrender, with elite northern troops on land and Jingzhou naval forces on the river, advancing simultaneously on both water and land, making it a very powerful force. So I think we should adopt a more conservative strategy."

  Liu Bei was tactfully advising Zhou Yu not to be too aggressive, but rather to stay in Xiakou with a weak mentality and prepare for a desperate battle to defend Xiakou.

  Zhou Yu smiled: "Lord Guan, have you forgotten? One of the reasons we thought an alliance between our two families could defeat Cao Cao was that his army had a weakness in naval warfare. Since this is the case, why should we be timid and fearful? We should take advantage of this strength to launch a surprise attack and capture Cao Cao."

  Zhou Yu's tone became more and more arrogant, not only did he want to take the initiative to attack Cao's army, but also planned to bring down Cao Cao's head along with it.

  Cao Cao's weaknesses were that the Jingzhou naval forces had just surrendered and the people's hearts were not with them, the northern army was exhausted from their long journey, and they were unaccustomed to the humid and cold autumn and winter weather of the south. If one insisted on adding more points, it could also be said that the Guanxi Ma Han had yet to surrender, and the various states in the north were not wholeheartedly submitting.

  But even with all these weaknesses, Cao Cao's current situation is still not as precarious as it was during the Battle of Guandu. And how strong can the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei be? Can they surpass the invincible Yuan Shao of old?

  All kinds of pros and cons, Liu Bei had long been clear in his mind, but he really couldn't figure out where this Zhou Yu in front of him came from with that almost arrogant self-confidence.

  Only Liu Feng, who knew the truth in his heart, couldn't wait to end this meaningless debate and sit back to watch Zhou Yu put on a good show. However, he couldn't say much more, so he could only cooperate with Liu Bei, pretending to be shocked and surprised as he watched the debate unfold.

  Liu Bei saw that he could not persuade Zhou Yu, so he secretly winked at Xu Shu and made eyes at him, hinting that he should hurry up and take the stage.

  His eyebrows furrowed into a knot, at this moment Xushu's attention seemed to be not on the debate in front of him. Those deep eyes were staring absent-mindedly at the large map hanging on the cabin wall. Liu Feng, who was familiar with Xushu, saw that he was now immersed in some kind of contemplation.

  Liu Feng's gaze also shifted to the map, which was a map of Jingzhou. It was different from what Liu Feng had seen before. On this map, the cities, mountains and rivers were marked in great detail, even the seemingly insignificant tributaries of the Yangtze River were clearly reflected on the map.

  'Liu Bei has been in Jingzhou for so many years, but the map in his hand is far less detailed than that of Eastern Wu. It seems that Eastern Wu has a thorough understanding of Jingzhou's situation, and it appears that they are determined to take it.'

  Liu Feng sighed at the same time, Xu Shu suddenly came back to his senses from his trance, and in that instant, a certain kind of enlightenment seemed to flash through his eyes.

  "Director Zhou, if I'm not mistaken, you said that we should take the initiative to go upstream of Xiakou to meet and defeat Cao's army. Is there any unavoidable reason for this?" Xu Shu asked instead of persuading Zhou Yu.

  Zhou Yu's handsome face moved slightly, and he smiled faintly: "It seems that Mr. Xu is indeed not a vain name, but I would like to hear what Mr. Xu thinks is my inevitable place."

  Everyone present, including Liu Feng, was suddenly curious.

  Xu Shu stood up and walked to the large map, raised his arm, and pointed with his index finger at a location on the map: "The Governor is in such a hurry to go west along the river, probably because he wants to rush to Cao Cao before him and occupy this place."

  More than a dozen pairs of eyes turned to the map, following Xu Shu's finger as they scanned it intently, and saw two words - Lukou.

  "What's so special about the terrain of this land, I must go and argue with him?" Zhou Yu's words obviously acknowledged Xu Shu's judgment, but he still had a strong interest in hearing his reasoning.

  Looking at the land mouth on the map, listening to Zhou Yu's words "terrain", Liu Feng suddenly remembered a passage from Sun Tzu's Art of War: The terrain is an aid to the army. To measure the enemy and win, to calculate the danger and distance, this is the way of the general. Those who know this and use it in battle will surely win, those who do not know it but still fight will surely lose.

  According to the annotation in that mysterious note, this passage can be translated into plain language as follows: Terrain is an auxiliary condition for using troops. Correctly identifying enemy situations, formulating winning plans, studying the ease or difficulty of terrain, and calculating the distance of roads are all the responsibilities of generals. Those who understand these principles to guide battles will necessarily win, while those who do not understand these principles to command battles will necessarily lose.

  Terrain is crucial for the outcome of a battle, even if it's not decisive.

  Liu Feng's gaze returned to the map, and the brown pupils reflected the two words "Land Mouth". He was repeatedly thinking in his heart that the inconspicuous small place had what special features, which made Zhou Yu willing to leave Dafang's support behind, and willing to extend the supply line, rushing long distances, and advancing upstream to confront Cao Ren head-on.

  Suddenly, Liu Feng's attention shifted from the land mouth to the thin line painted in green beside it, which represented a river on Zhou Yu's map.

  "In Xia Kou there is the Han River, in Fan Kou there is the Fan River. So for Lu Kou, it should be the mouth of the Lu River entering the Yangtze, this Lu River seems a bit special."

  When Liu Feng saw the point of the gate, Xu Shu's tightly locked eyebrows unfolded, and he smiled: "Lukou is the mouth of Lukou River entering the river. If Cao Jun occupies this place, it can go upstream along the Lukou River, cross the southern bank of Mangshan Mountain, and walk on land to reach Chaisang. Even if Cao Jun does not take Chaisang, he can attack Xia Kou from behind through Xiangpao Corridor via Lukou. This is a crucial place, and if it is occupied by Cao Jun, the consequences will be unbearable. Commander, this is the real reason why we should occupy Lukou."

  One remark made everyone present suddenly enlightened, and even Zhou Yu's face showed a look of surprise.

  However, Zhou Yu's surprise only lasted for a moment, and he immediately got up and walked towards the map, laughing loudly: "Mr. Xu, you have finally opened my eyes today! Indeed, what Mr. Xu said is in line with the geographical advantage of the Art of War, but this time I'm going upstream to compete with Cao's thief, it's not Lukou, but here."

  The fingertips as white as jade lightly touched the map, and Liu Feng's heart moved slightly as he searched along his fingertips.

  What he pointed at was written in two small characters - Red Cliff.

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