My lord, let us borrow the power of the heavens and seal our victory with a single blow!

"Ah?"

Xiao He was stunned.

Looking at the expectant gazes of Liu Bei and the others, it was clear they assumed he already had a brilliant strategy in mind to defeat Cao Cao's 150,000-strong army.

He had merely made a casual sigh of emotion; he certainly hadn't patted his chest claiming to possess any master plan...

A slightly troubled expression appeared on Xiao He's face.

"Bowen's words are most wise. Since Cao Cao is determined to continue this war even if it risks inciting a popular revolt, we truly have no other choice left except to crush Cao Cao's 150,000 troops."

Xu Shu nodded heavily in agreement, though a look of shame soon crossed his face.

"It is only that my wits are limited. I truly cannot think of any master stroke that could accomplish our entire goal in a single battle. Bowen, your strategic calculations are divine; if you have already mapped out a comprehensive plan, pray share it so that we may deliberate upon it."

The gazes of Guan Yu, Sun Qian, Ma Liang, and the other civil and military officials all converged upon Xiao He.

Those piercing stares practically pinned all hopes of turning the tide of the world squarely upon his shoulders.

Xiao He suddenly felt an immense pressure weighing down on him.

"My lord, grant me a moment to ponder. Allow me to ponder..."

With no other option, Xiao He had no choice but to brace himself and shoulder this colossal burden.

There was no helping it; his surprise raid on Deng County had already cemented his persona as a divine strategist beyond any doubt.

At a critical juncture like this, if you didn't shoulder the pressure, who would?

Moreover, if he failed to crush Cao Cao's 150,000 troops, he himself would be done for. Even just to save his own skin, whatever brain cells needed burning would simply have to be burned.

Dead silence filled the grand tent.

Liu Bei and the others held their breath, none daring to exhale loudly, simply gazing quietly at Xiao He.

Xiao He stood up, stared fixedly at the map on the folding screen, and overclocked his brain, frantically searching his "database."

Pitter-patter! Pitter-patter!

The sound of rain striking the tent suddenly echoed in his ears.

A gust of wind blew open the tent flap, and raindrops the size of beans surged inward. Another autumn rain had arrived abruptly.

Chen Dao, standing guard nearby, hurriedly stepped forward to pull the curtain shut.

"Shuzhi, wait!"

Xiao He barked a command to stop Chen Dao and strode in a few steps right out of the tent entrance.

Chen Dao was startled for a moment, then hastily held up an oiled umbrella to shield Xiao He from the rain.

Raising his gaze into the distance, Xiao He beheld the cascading downpour and the churning waters of the Han River afar.

Watching those roaring river currents, Xiao He fell into deep thought.

Liu Bei and the others exchanged glances before rising to their feet one after another and walking over to the tent entrance.

"My lord, ever since the battle of Deng County, this autumn rain has been falling intermittently for several days, and the water level of the Han River has risen considerably."

"In this Xiangyang and Fancheng region, does this happen every year, or is it only this year?"

Xiao He pointed toward the heavy rain and the Han River before him as he asked.

"This..."

Liu Bei looked slightly awkward and was forced to turn his gaze toward Yi Ji, Xu Shu, and the others.

Though they had resided as guests in Jingzhou for eight years, their troops had previously been stationed solely in Xinye, and they had only been called back to garrison Fancheng for a single year. Regarding the climate of Xiangyang and Fancheng, they still had to defer to veterans like Yi Ji and Xu Shu.

"Every year in Xiangyang and Fancheng, prior to September upon the arrival of autumn, a spell of autumn rain falls, and the Han River also experiences its autumn flood at this time, causing the water level to rise dramatically."

Yi Ji glanced at the Han River and continued:

"It's just that this year there is somewhat more rain, and the autumn flood appears larger than in previous years, with the Han River's water level rising quite a bit higher than it did last year."

Hearing Yi Ji's description, the look in Xiao He's eyes became all the more lucid.

He then returned into the tent, instructed Chen Dao to fetch the layout map of Cao Cao's encampments in Fancheng on the northern bank, and spread it out across the low table.

"My lord, among the locations where the Cao forces have pitched their interconnected camps, which areas have relatively low-lying terrain?"

Xiao He pointed at the map of Cao Cao's encampments and inquired once more.

This time, Liu Bei had no need to consult Yi Ji; he was crystal clear on the topography around Fancheng.

"The Cao army has established a chain of seven camps near Fancheng. Among them, Tuanhepu, Zengkouchuan, and Yujiagang are the areas with the lowest terrain."

Liu Bei pointed to the layout map, rattling off the names as if reciting family treasures.

Xiao He nodded slightly and asked again:

"Then roughly how many Cao troops are stationed across these specific encampments?"

After performing a silent mental calculation, Liu Bei replied:

"These particular Cao camps garrison approximately thirty percent of Cao Cao's total forces, numbering at least over forty thousand men."

Thirty percent of their forces!

Xiao He lightly rubbed his chin with his fingers, his eyes narrowing slightly.

In warfare involving cold weapons, once a military force's casualty rate exceeds five percent, their morale generally collapses.

Even the most elite troops will experience a total collapse of their entire army once casualties reach a maximum of ten percent—that is, one-tenth.

If thirty percent of their forces were wiped out in a single battle, no matter how elite the Cao army might be, they would inevitably crumble to dust.

Xiao He's furrowed brows gradually smoothed out, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Bowen, what kind of brilliant strategy have you actually thought of to defeat Cao Cao in one fell swoop?"

Liu Bei's gaze remained blank, unable to deduce the slightest trace of a clue from Xiao He's rapid-fire questioning.

Xu Shu, however, suddenly experienced a jolt in his demeanor and asked in shock:

"Brother Bowen, could it be that you intend to borrow the power of the heavens to defeat Cao Cao's 150,000-strong army in one stroke without expending a single soldier or arrow?"

A bright gleam lit up in Xiao He's eyes as he clicked his tongue in praise:

"Yuanzhi truly lives up to being Master Shuijing's premier disciple. I merely asked a few questions, and you've already guessed it."

Having received Xiao He's tacit confirmation, Xu Shu grew visibly excited and hurriedly swept his gaze across the map.

Liu Bei and the rest, however, still wore blank expressions, failing to catch the underlying drift of their conversation.

"Yuanzhi, you said Bowen wants to borrow the power of the heavens to defeat the Cao army—what does that mean?"

Xu Shu took a deep breath, desperately striving to calm his surging emotions.

"The so-called borrowing the power of the heavens means utilizing the timing of nature. The timing of nature for Brother Bowen here is none other than the autumn flood!"

"Right now, the autumn flood has arrived, and the water level of the Han River has surged drastically. This is a heaven-sent opportunity."

"Bowen's strategy is that we can seize the moment of the flood's peak to breach the embankment on the northwest side of Fancheng. Utilizing the roaring torrent, we can sweep away and crush all of Cao Cao's outer encampments around Fancheng in one fell swoop."

"Our army can then ride boats along the floodwaters, charging all the way through. Would this not mean defeating Cao Cao's 150,000-strong army effortlessly and completely in one battle?"

Pointing at the map, Xu Shu deduced and laid out Xiao He's entire strategy.

Liu Bei's expression surged with excitement as he abruptly stood up, his pleasantly surprised gaze locking onto the map.

Everyone inside the tent was instantly thrown into a state of boiling excitement.

"When Cao Cao first invaded Jingzhou, everyone from his commanding strategists and generals down to the rank-and-file soldiers were northerners. They knew nothing whatsoever of the timing and terrain of our Jing-Xiang region."

"Otherwise, he would never have stationed forty thousand troops in the low-lying areas on the northern bank during this autumn flood season, thus committing a cardinal taboo of military strategy!"

"Bowen, this strategy of yours—borrowing the power of heaven's timing to flood Cao's camp—is truly a heaven-shaking masterstroke that accomplishes the entire war in a single campaign!"

Guan Yu, whose standards for evaluation were notoriously high, overflowed with excitement and heaped lavish praise upon Xiao He.

He even used phrases as grand as "heaven-shaking masterstroke."

"General Yunchang flatters me; I am unworthy of such praise..."

Xiao He hastily offered a modest refusal, though a trace of awkwardness was faintly concealed within his smile.

He could gladly accept the praise and flattery of others, but Guan Yu's specific commendation made him genuinely somewhat sheepish.

After all, the inspiration for this strategy originally stemmed from the Lord of the Magnificent Beard himself.

Back during the Battle of Fancheng in history, the timing also coincided with the autumn flood season, and Yu Jin had similarly camped in a low-lying area. It was precisely by utilizing the sudden rise of the Han River that Guan Yu flooded the Seven Armies and shook the empire.

Cao Cao today had committed the exact same mistake that Yu Jin had made back then.

The identical location, the identical timing, and the identical mistake.

Xiao He had naturally matched it with this very same strategy for defeating the enemy.

"As a strategist, one must understand the timing of heaven above and recognize the geography below. I have lived long in Jingzhou, yet failed to think of utilizing heaven's timing to defeat Cao's army. I am truly ashamed!"

After a moment of self-deprecating laughter, Xu Shu bowed deeply to Xiao He:

"Today I finally realize that Brother Bowen's military wisdom surpasses mine tenfold. I am utterly and wholeheartedly convinced."

The remaining strategists, Ma Liang and Yi Ji, expressed their boundless admiration with clicks of their tongues.

"My lord, it appears Yuanzhi and the others likewise endorse my strategy. I wonder what my lord's opinion might be?"

Xiao He had no choice but to hastily pivot the topic, turning his gaze toward Liu Bei.

"Bowen's strategy is truly a master plan that settles the outcome with a single hammer blow!"

The fog in Liu Bei's eyes had parted to reveal the bright moon, yet a shred of apprehension remained:

"However, once this strategy is put into effect, won't it end up submerging Fancheng as well as the villages and towns of the surrounding countryside along with the common folk?"

Liu Bei remained deeply concerned about collateral damage to the common people.

Xiao He, however, wore a faintly satirical expression as he smiled and replied:

"Does my lord forget that ever since Cao Cao's forces arrived at the gates of Fancheng, he forcibly marched all the common folk residing near the Han River northward?"

"As for Fancheng, my lord can issue advance notice to Huo Zhongmiao, ordering him to relocate the populace and soldiers to the higher sections of the city walls beforehand. Afterward, if we provide the people with sufficient funds and silk for relief, how could the common folk harbor any lingering resentment?"

Liu Bei experienced a sudden flash of enlightenment, and his final trace of misgiving vanished completely.

Smashing his hand down onto the table, he threw back his head and laughed heroically:

"Good, good, good! We shall adopt Bowen's strategy: borrow the timing of heaven and flood Cao's camp!"