"Now that was close!" Cao Cao suddenly burst into laughter. "Though it may be somewhat disrespectful to Brother Benshi to put it this way, we have him to thank for taking the disaster meant for me. Otherwise, at Xuzhou, perhaps I was the one Wang Xuan had originally been targeting!"
Whenever he imagined being attacked simultaneously from four directions—Xuzhou, Mount Tai, Henan, and Nanyang—Cao Cao still felt a lingering fear.
The most crucial issue was the speed of the campaign. It had been far too fast, especially with Gan Ning seizing two commanderies along the waterways in the blink of an eye. It had truly been impossible to guard against. Of course, that method of occupation had been somewhat haphazard. If Liu Bei had not defeated Yuan Shao's main force in one stroke, those cities could have defected on the spot at any time.
"Your Lordship is worrying too much." Xun Yu slowly raised his head and shook it at Cao Cao.
"Oh? Wenruo, what do you mean?" Cao Cao turned to look at him.
"Since Wang Xuan first emerged, all his efforts have been focused on developing Qingzhou internally. Judging from the strength he has displayed over the past month, if he had wanted to expand his influence, he could have attacked his four neighbors long ago. Looking at the situation now, if Tao Qian had not suddenly given up Xuzhou this time, Wang Xuan would probably still have been hiding in Qingzhou instead of coming out."
"I agree with my father-in-law." Chen Qun nodded in agreement. "Do not be fooled by Liu Bei's powerful, well-equipped army. His forces themselves suffer from a serious fatal flaw. Otherwise, why would he have continued hiding away as before even after Zhang Ji, Lu Bu, and Gongsun Zan pledged allegiance to him?"