A Frozen Fortress Built in a Single Night(Three Kingdoms 68)
Cao Cao's Campaign against Ma Chao 3
Previous Chapter ：How Close Was Ma Chao to Killing Cao Cao?
Previously, Cao Cao had already sent Xu Huang徐晃 to lead his troops across the Yellow River via the Puban浦坂 Ford and establish a firm battalion on the western bank. After narrowly escaping death, Cao Cao was certain to next lead his main force across the river at Puban and enter Guanzhong.
Seeing this, Ma Chao马超 said to Han Sui韩遂, "Our army can hold our position north of the Wei渭 River. In less than twenty days, Cao Cao’s provisions will run out, and he’ll have no choice but to withdraw."
But Han Sui disagreed. "Why go to such trouble? It’d be far simpler to wait until Cao Cao crosses the Wei River to the south, then strike him mid-crossing and crush him in one blow!"
At Han Sui’s insistence, the Guanzhong coalition forces did not cross to the north bank of the Wei River. Instead, they stationed themselves near the southern bank’s river mouth, waiting for Cao Cao’s army to attack.
When Cao Cao later learned of Ma Chao’s strategy, he sighed and said, "If Ma Chao does not die, I will be the one left with no place to be buried!"
This remark showed that Cao Cao was genuinely afraid of a prolonged standoff with the coalition forces. After all, he was fighting on their home turf—their supply lines and food reserves were far superior. Initially, Cao Cao had hoped for a quick victory.
But in the end, his fears proved unnecessary.
Once Cao Cao’s forces crossed the Yellow River, their provisions began to be supplied by Hedong河东 Commandery to the north. And by this time, Du Ji杜畿—renowned as "the finest governor in the realm"—had already been in office for years. Under his administration, Hedong’s granaries were overflowing with wealth.
In fact, when Cao Cao later returned victorious from quelling the rebellion, Hedong still had over 12,000 tons of grain in reserve.
With Hedong Commandery alone, Cao Cao could have starved the Guanzhong warlords into utter exhaustion. So even if Ma Chao’s strategy had been implemented, the one left "with no place to be buried" would have been Ma Chao himself.
After crossing the Yellow River at Puban, Cao Cao constructed covered passageways using carts and timber to guard against enemy cavalry raids while slowly advancing south along the riverbank.
The Wei River, a tributary of the Yellow River, connects precisely at the 90-degree bend of the Yellow River, forming an inverted "T" shape with the eastern and northern stretches of the Yellow River. Though the Wei River is the Yellow River’s largest tributary, its flow is gentle—far from a natural barrier—with many possible crossing points.
Upon reaching the northern bank of the Wei River, Cao Cao dispatched multiple decoy units to divert Ma Chao’s attention. Secretly, he ordered a fleet of boats moved from the Yellow River into the Wei, and within a single night, a pontoon bridge was erected. Under cover of darkness, Cao’s army crossed and began constructing fortifications on the southern bank.
The riverside was all soft sand, lacking timber or stone for building materials. Compounding the difficulty, Ma Chao repeatedly sent cavalry to harass them, making it hard to complete the battalion.
Adviser Lou Gui娄圭 said to Cao Cao, "The weather is frigid now. We can first build walls with packed sand, then pour water over them. Once frozen, they’ll become as hard as iron or stone!"
Cao Cao adopted the suggestion,he ordered soldiers to work over the night. By morning, a sturdy ice-and-sand fortress stood on the Wei’s southern bank.
When Ma Chao attacked again, not only did he fail to breach the walls, but he also fell into an ambush, suffering heavy losses. With the path cleared, Cao’s main force crossed the Wei River unimpeded.
Realizing he was outmatched, Ma Chao sent envoys offering to cede lands west of the river in exchange for peace. Cao Cao refused.
By September 211, Cao’s entire army had crossed the Wei River. Though Ma Chao repeatedly challenged them to battle, Cao Cao held firm behind his defenses.
At this point, Cao held a critical advantage: abundant supplies. In contrast, the Guanzhong coalition had been mobilizing since March when Cao Cao first ordered the campaign against Zhang Lu. Over half a year later, their 110,000-strong force faced staggering daily consumption. With civilians already fled and farmland abandoned, the region’s agriculture lay in ruins.
As winter approached, the coalition found no means to requisition grain, teetering on the brink of starvation.
In desperation, Ma Chao and Han Sui sent another peace delegation, this time offering not only territory but also family members as hostages.
Uncertain, Cao Cao sought Jia Xu’s贾诩 counsel.
Strategies divide into "overt schemes" (阳谋)—winning through honorable means by creating favorable conditions, as exemplified by Zhuge Liang诸葛亮, Xun Yu荀彧, and Lu Su鲁肃—and "covert schemes" (阴谋)—deceptive tactics like provocation, sowing discord, kidnapping, assassination, bribery, or feigned surrender to exploit opponents’ mistakes.
As Sun Tzu said, "All warfare is based on deception." Masters of covert schemes included Guo Jia郭嘉, Chen Gong陈宫, and Sima Yi司马懿. But none surpassed Jia Xu—a man of few words yet ruthless precision, the prime instigator of Guanzhong’s years of turmoil, later nicknamed "the Venomous Advisor" .
When asked about Ma Chao and Han Sui’s proposal, Jia Xu advised pretending to accept.
Puzzled, Cao pressed for details.
Jia Xu replied succinctly: "Just drive a wedge between them."
Understanding dawned. The two exchanged a cold smile.
With that chilling laughter, the already fragile trust between Ma Chao and Han Sui would soon vanish entirely.
To be Continued.
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