Burning food supplies is not such an easy task! Ah-Liang, you are still young, do not be impatient! Let us draw the tiger away from its mountain!

Utilizing waste?

Breaking Liu Biao's forces by using Zhang Yun's hand?

Especially the latter sentence made Liu Bei's eyes light up.

Earlier, scouts had sent back urgent reports that Liu Biao was personally leading his main force northward along the Yu River, marching aggressively toward Yuyang.

Clearly, the battle of Rangyang had deeply infuriated this master of Jingzhou, who was now rushing to seek revenge and wash away his disgrace.

Liu Biao possessed immense resources and a deep foundation, a fact of which Liu Bei was painfully aware.

In the battle of Rangxian, although Xiao Fang had severely defeated Zhang Yun, achieving the impressive results of killing three thousand enemy soldiers and capturing five thousand, it had not shaken Liu Biao's core strength.

Liu Biao still commanded over thirty thousand troops, which was two to three times the size of Liu Bei's current forces.

As for the captured Jingzhou soldiers, though their numbers were not small, there had not yet been enough time to digest, absorb, and reorganize them into his own ranks.

Although the gap in troop strength had narrowed, it could still be described as a disparity.

At this moment, while rejoicing over the great victory at Rangxian, old Liu was naturally also worried about Liu Biao's massive impending assault.

Hearing the tone of Xiao Fang's words, as if he possessed a strategy to defeat Liu Biao's main force in one fell swoop, how could Liu Bei not be instantly invigorated?

"If we can defeat Liu Jingsheng's main force, we can instantly reverse the strategic situation, shifting from defense to offense!"

"Jinglüe, what brilliant scheme do you have this time?"

Suppressing his excitement, Liu Bei immediately asked.

The curious gazes of everyone present instantly converged upon Xiao Fang, all of them erecting their ears to listen quietly.

"I previously mentioned that compared to Liu Biao, the Lord's greatest weakness is a lack of troops."

"If we engage in a direct head-on clash, even though our army is brave and elite, we do not necessarily have a guaranteed path to victory."

"Furthermore, if we fight a frontal war of attrition, even if we win, it will undoubtedly be a tragic victory where we lose eight hundred for every thousand enemies killed."

"Liu Biao has vast estates and immense wealth; if he loses, at worst he can simply retreat back to Xiangyang, relying on the natural barrier of the Han River to defend."

"Even though the Lord wins, the losses will be heavy, and for a time we will lack the strength to cross the Han River and seize Xiangyang."

"At that time, wouldn't we simply be handing an opportunity to Cao Cao?"

Xiao Fang raised his hand and pointed toward the north:

"Right now, Cao Cao is sitting on the mountain watching the tigers fight, waiting for the Lord and Liu Biao to tear each other to a state of mutual exhaustion."

"Once the Lord achieves a pyrrhic victory and your vitality is damaged, Cao Cao will inevitably seize the vulnerability to launch a massive southward invasion."

"How can a tired army exhausted from a bitter victory withstand Cao Cao's wolf-and-tiger soldiers?"

"At that time, wouldn't the Nanyang territory that the Lord worked so hard to conquer simply become wedding attire for Cao Cao?"

Hearing this, Liu Bei could not help but shiver.

It felt as though Cao Cao was standing right behind him at that very moment, those cold, knife-like eyes staring intently at his back.

"Jinglüe's words are extremely reasonable; Cao Cao must be guarded against!"

Deeply convinced, Liu Bei nodded heavily.

Xiao Fang took a sip of wine, and his cup turned back to point toward the south:

"Therefore, in our battle with Liu Biao, we must not only win, but also minimize casualties as much as possible to preserve our strength."

"Under such circumstances, our only option is to win through unexpected maneuvers!"

Beginning to understand, Liu Bei asked:

"Then, according to the military adviser's plan, how should we achieve victory through the unexpected?"

Just as Xiao Fang was about to speak, he noticed Zhuge Liang meditating on the side, seemingly having already brewed some thoughts in his mind.

"A-Liang, how do you think we should execute an unexpected maneuver?"

Xiao Fang swallowed the strategy that had reached his lips, intentionally giving his brother-in-law an opportunity to shine.

He also wanted to use this opportunity to see how far Zhuge Liang currently was from reaching the realm of the Crouching Dragon.

The gazes of everyone shifted once again to Zhuge Liang.

Zhuge Liang was not timid. Seeing that his brother-in-law was giving him a chance to show off his competence, he naturally intended to seize it firmly.

Thus, he calmly stood up, retrieved the map, and spread it out before Liu Bei and Xiao Fang.

"My understanding of winning through the unexpected is to strike the enemy at their fatal weakness!"

"As the saying goes, before troops and horses move, grain and forage go first. I believe that for any army, strong or weak, their common fatal weakness is always their food supply."

"My Lord, Brother-in-law, please look here."

Zhuge Liang raised his hand and pointed to a spot on the map:

"I heard previous intelligence reports from secret agents stating that after the grain and fodder of Liu Biao's army move north from Xinyang, they are all stockpiled at a place called Xiyangju, and then transported northward along the Yu River to the Yuyang encampment."

"I boldly guess that my brother-in-law's strategy for defeating the enemy must be to ask the Lord to send a diversionary elite force to detour behind enemy lines, raid and destroy Xiyangju in one fell swoop, and burn down Liu Biao's grain depot."

"Once the grain and forage are lost, and their fatal weakness is struck, no matter how numerous Liu Biao's troops are, they will inevitably fall into chaos without even needing to fight!"

Pointing his finger at the characters "Xiyangju," Zhuge Liang calmly and confidently articulated his judgment.

Everyone's eyes lit up brightly.

Old Liu was even more invigorated, springing abruptly to his feet, his gaze locked tightly onto the location of Xiyangju.

"Raiding the enemy's grain camp and burning their provisions is indeed a brilliant scheme to win through the unexpected..."

Liu Bei praised admiringly, turning his gaze to Xiao Fang:

"Military Adviser Jinglüe, is this your strategy?"

Without answering, Xiao Fang cast an approving look at Zhuge Liang and nodded slightly.

At less than sixteen years of age, to be able to comprehend warfare not merely as soldiers clashing in close combat, but extending to logistics and grain supply, and to conceive such a supreme strategy of subduing the enemy without fighting, proved he was truly worthy of his potential as the Crouching Dragon.

Zhuge Liang's growth exceeded his expectations, which naturally made him very gratified and satisfied.

However, being satisfied did not mean he fully endorsed Zhuge Liang's plan.

"Grain is the enemy's fatal weakness, and for you, A-Liang, to think of burning the enemy's grain is indeed commendable."

Xiao Fang first offered high praise, then his tone shifted as he asked in return:

"But have you considered, A-Liang, that Liu Biao is no fool; will he not set up heavy defenses around such a vital grain depot?"

"Furthermore, along the road from the Yuyang encampment to Xiyangju, will Liu Biao not station patrols and picket guards to prevent our army from launching a sneak attack?"

"Even if the cavalry dispatched by the Lord manage to pierce through the enemy defense line, deceive Liu Biao's eyes and ears, and successfully arrive at Xiyangju, can they conquer it swiftly?"

"If the siege drags on without success, Liu Biao's reinforcements arrive, and our army finds itself attacked from both front and rear, what should we do?"

"Or, what if Liu Biao takes advantage of our Yuyang garrison being empty and dispatches troops to fiercely attack Yuyang? How should we respond then?"

Xiao Fang responded to old Liu's previous question with a series of rhetorical questions.

In truth, he had not failed to consider the strategy of burning grain.

After all, with the Battle of Guandu and Cao Cao's historical burning of Wucao as ready-made examples, it was not entirely impossible to emulate and borrow from it.

Yet, after pondering it carefully, Xiao Fang had rejected the plan.

The core reason Cao Cao succeeded in burning Wucao was the defection of the insider Xu You.

It was precisely the intelligence brought by Xu You that allowed Cao Cao to bypass Yuan Shao's checkpoints and sentries, cross seventy miles of enemy-occupied territory, and miraculously appear outside Wucao.

Even more miraculously, with an army of five thousand, Cao Cao actually managed to break through Wucao—defended by ten thousand heavily entrenched troops—before Yuan Shao's reinforcements could arrive.

Therefore, in Xiao Fang's view, Cao Cao's success in burning Wucao relied on luck for at least seventy percent.

If old Liu wished to successfully raid Liu Biao's grain depot without the help of an insider, the component of luck would likely have to account for at least ninety percent.

Naturally, Xiao Fang would not present such a low-probability strategy to old Liu.

"The military adviser's words are entirely correct; a vital grain depot is something Liu Biao will undoubtedly guard with extreme strictness."

"Wanting to raid and conquer Xiyangju is by no means an easy task."

Nodding in agreement, Liu Bei watched the excitement on his face gradually fade away.

As a seasoned veteran of the battlefield, old Liu's practical combat experience surpassed most warlords of the era, and he immediately grasped the profound meaning behind Xiao Fang's words.

Zhuge Liang also experienced a sudden realization, a trace of shame flashing across his face as he cupped his hands toward Xiao Fang:

"My plan indeed lacked thorough consideration and bordered on talking on paper about warfare. Thank you, Brother-in-law, for the correction; I have learned a valuable lesson."

Waving his hand dismissively, Xiao Fang remarked unconcernedly:

"Talking on paper is not necessarily a bad thing. At your age, being able to analyze warfare on paper already sets you apart from ordinary people."

"What you need is simply practical combat experience. Do not be impatient; there will be plenty of opportunities."

Gaining sudden insight, Zhuge Liang hurriedly retrieved his knife and bamboo slips to carve and record what Xiao Fang had said.

"I get it now! It just means the odds of successfully raiding the enemy grain camp aren't very high, right?"

"Military adviser, didn't you say you were going to use Zhang Yun's hand to break Liu Biao? How did you circle around for so long without mentioning a single word about Zhang Yun?"

Zhang Fei finally caught on and could not help shouting out.

Liu Bei was also startled, turning his head to look at Xiao Fang with a puzzled expression.

With a smile, Xiao Fang finished the remaining wine in his cup and calmly said:

"Although A-Liang's strategy of raiding the enemy grain camp is unfeasible, we can *pretend* to launch a raid on their grain supplies, inducing Liu Biao to deploy heavy reinforcements to garrison Xiyangju in a vain attempt to ambush our army."

"That way, the enemy's main camp will be left lightly defended, allowing the Lord to commit our entire force and shatter their main camp in a single stroke."

"As for that Zhang Yun, he is simply the bait we will use to make Liu Biao take the hook!"