Ji Han Liu Zhang

"Public platform!!!"

"Public platform!!!"

Anxious calls were heard, but the person being called did not even turn back or stop walking forward, leaving so resolutely, as if he had made up his mind long ago.

"Gongtai!!!" Cao Cao suddenly stood up from the bed. His expression was trembling and cold sweat was on his forehead. He had just woken up from the dream and shouted out the words in the dream continuously.

There was a noise in the room, and Dian Wei, who was on guard outside the room, immediately came to the door. He shouted through the door, "Ming Gong, do you have any instructions?"

When Zhang Xiu was recruited by Liu Zhang, Dian Wei, the ancient villain, was not killed by Zhang Xiu during the anti-pornography and illegal publication campaign as in history. Instead, he continued to perform his duties as a personal guard and stayed by Cao Cao's side day and night.

"nothing."

As Cao Cao's voice was heard in the room, Dian Wei responded with a yes, and then continued to guard outside the door with two short spears to protect Cao Cao's safety.

At this moment in the house, a look of sadness appeared on Cao Cao's face. He was mourning for the dead Chen Gong.

A few days ago, on the White Gate Tower, Cao Cao was in a very proud mood. Relying on Song Xian and Wei Xu's betrayal of Lu Bu, he captured Xia Pi and captured Lu Bu and Chen Gong.

At that time, Cao Cao was the first to recruit Chen Gong. He wanted to see Chen Gong's depressed and regretful look. Chen Gong, who had abandoned him to follow Lu Bu, should regret following Lu Bu in the face of the current situation.

What Cao Cao did not expect was that there was not a trace of regret on Chen Gong's face. Instead, there was a calmness and composure as if he was determined to die. Chen Gong did not regret leaving him to follow Lu Bu, which made Cao Cao feel a little annoyed and discouraged.

However, Cao Cao did not intend to kill Chen Gong because of Chen Gong's attitude. He was waiting for Chen Gong to give in. Even if he offered a harder way out, he would be willing to spare Chen Gong's life.

However, what upset Cao Cao was that Chen Gong was resolute in his attitude and only wanted to die. He had no desire to live. Even though Cao Cao tempted Chen Gong with his old mother, wife and children, Chen Gong still went to the execution ground without hesitation.

"Gongtai, why did it come to this?" Cao Cao thought about what happened that day and sighed deeply.

After this dream, Cao Cao lost his sleep. He put on a coat, opened the door, and planned to go out for a walk to relieve the depression and sadness in his heart.

Dian Wei, who was guarding outside the door, heard the door open and saw Cao Cao walk out. He said nothing, but just planned to follow Cao Cao silently as he walked, fulfilling his duties and responsibilities as a personal guard.

After pushing open the door, Cao Cao first looked up at the sky. Although the moon tonight was not very round, it was at least 70% full. After all, today was the 17th, and only two days had passed since the full moon.

Cao Cao raised his foot and stepped out of the door, but he didn't know where to go for a moment, so he simply moved in the direction of his feet and walked to the right. Dian Wei followed him silently.

As the Sikong of the Han Dynasty and the CEO of the Cao Group, Cao Cao thought about the current situation and also wanted to get rid of the sorrow of Chen Gong's death, so he turned his attention to other things.

He had sent out his troops in June of this year and it had lasted for half a year. He had finally conquered Xia Pi and beheaded Lu Bu by the end of the year, without dragging the war in Xuzhou until next year, when the army would be short of food and grass.

Conquering Xuzhou was a small achievement for Cao Cao.

However, when Cao Cao thought of his two powerful enemies at the moment - Yuan Shao in Hebei and Liu Zhang in Guanzhong, the sense of accomplishment in his heart disappeared in an instant.

Upon hearing the news from Hebei, Yuan Shao personally supervised the battle. His generals including Qu Yi, Yan Liang, Wen Chou, Zhang He, Gao Lan and others gathered together and launched a fierce attack on Yi County which was defended by Gongsun Zan. Gongsun Zan was left with no chance to catch his breath and had to ask for help from the Black Mountain bandits.

However, the letter asking for help was intercepted by Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao, who knew the appointment between Gongsun Zan and the Black Mountain bandits, set an ambush and defeated Gongsun Zan and the Black Mountain bandits. He forced Gongsun Zan to burn himself to death on a high tower in Yijing, making Gongsun Zan a typical example of a person who built a tower to tie himself up.

As soon as Gongsun Zan left, Yuan Shao unified Hebei, eliminated internal troubles, and was about to head south to fight for the world.

As for Yuan Shao's southward movement, Cao Cao, who was in Yanyu, was very worried about it. Cao Cao knew that the road southward from Hebei was a smooth one. After all, Yanyu was located in the Central Plains with convenient transportation. There were no natural barriers or fortresses that could stop Yuan Shao from eyeing the Central Plains.

As he walked, Cao Cao saw the room where Guo Jia was. There was a faint yellow candlelight on the window lattice. He moved lightly and walked towards Guo Jia's room.

When Cao Cao stepped in front of Guo Jia's door, before he could knock on the door to ask questions, he saw the two doors suddenly opened inwards. Guo Jia, wearing a fur coat and holding a bamboo scroll in his hand, smiled faintly and bowed to him, saying, "Mingsir."

"Fengxiao, you really have the ability to predict the future." Cao Cao teased, "I just stepped into the door and you opened it to welcome me. Did you guess that I would come here tonight?"

Guo Jia shook his head and said with a smile: "It's not that mysterious. I just heard your footsteps, so I opened the door at the right time."

"Not many people can remember my footsteps. You are one of them, and Wen Ruo is another." Cao Cao praised.

Guo Jia waved his hands and denied it, saying, "How can I be compared with Lord Xun Lingjun? You are too kind to praise me."

As Cao Cao spoke, he stepped forward and took the main seat, and Guo Jia sat down close to Cao Cao. As for the open door, Dian Wei dragged it from the inside to the outside and closed it, and then Dian Wei stood guard at the door.

"My lord, why are you unable to sleep so late at night? What are you thinking about?" Guo Jia put down the military book in his hand, slightly straightened his face, and asked Cao Cao.

Facing Guo Jia, his confidant and the young man he admired, Cao Cao did not shy away from expressing his concerns: "Now Yuan Shao has conquered Gongsun and driven away Heishan. All the people north of the Yellow River have submitted. In addition, Yuan Shao is lenient and benevolent, and has won the hearts of the Qiang and Hu people. The Xiongnu in Bingzhou, Youyan and Wuhuan are all helping him... The situation is huge and difficult to control, and it is extraordinary. Therefore, I am deeply worried and I cannot sleep peacefully."

"Although Xiang Yu was strong and defeated Emperor Gao repeatedly, he was ultimately defeated by Emperor Gao. Why? Because Emperor Gao valued both wisdom and strength, while Xiang Yu only loved strength." Guo Jia said calmly to comfort Cao Cao. "Although Yuan Shao is strong now, with thousands of good generals and counselors, he only knows how to respect the wise and does not know how to use people. He has wisdom but cannot use it, and is good at making plans but cannot make decisions. He can handle it in normal times, but if he encounters a disaster, Yuan Shao will inevitably fall into a dangerous situation and find it difficult to cope with the complex situation."

"But you are different. You rely on wisdom and strength, and you win when faced with an opportunity. Your talents are ten times better than Yuan Shao's. Although you are not as powerful as Yuan Shao now, if the two armies confront each other, Yuan Shao cannot match you."

"Hmm." After hearing Guo Jia's compliment, Cao Cao did not utter a word of refusal, but accepted it. He had known Yuan Shao for a long time, and as for now, he was somewhat indifferent to Yuan Shao, a nobleman who had three generations of officials as ministers. However, Yuan Shao was now very powerful, so he had to stay away from him.

"That being said, Yuan Shao has conquered Hebei, but in the Central Plains, the Taishan bandits Zang Ba, Sun Guan and others have not been pacified, and Huainan Yuan Shu is still lingering. They are all a threat to us. What do you think?"

Strategically, Cao Cao despised Yuan Shao, but when it came to specific tactics, he still valued Yuan Shao very much. After all, Yuan Shao was very powerful and extraordinary.

Guo Jia heard this and expressed his opinion on the current situation: "The Taishan bandits Zang Ba, Sun Guan and others have been rampant in Qi and Lu for more than ten years. They are deep-rooted and difficult to be eliminated in a short time... I think you can borrow the emperor's order and use the remaining power of defeating Lu Bu to subdue Zang Ba, Sun Guan and others, and order them to defend the Haidai area and compete with the Qingzhou governor appointed by Yuan Shao."

"What Fengxiao said is consistent with my opinion." Cao Cao stroked his beard and nodded, expressing his agreement. As for how to deal with the bandits in Mount Tai, his original intention was roughly the same as Guo Jia's suggestion.

There are more than ten groups of bandits in Mount Tai. If we spend time to eliminate them one by one, it will not only waste time, but also reduce manpower. It would be better to subdue this group of powerful bandits in Mount Tai and use them for our own purposes. This is a win-win situation.

"As for Yuan Shu." Guo Jia chuckled. "Yuan Shu abandoned Shouchun, lost Jiangdong, and many of his subordinates rebelled. He is no longer a powerful force. Next year, when you are free, you don't need to lead the army in person. Just send a general to fight him, and we will surely be able to defeat him."

Guo Jia's words were full of contempt for Yuan Shu, the local warlord. After all, Yuan Shu had a good hand at the beginning, as he first occupied Nanyang, a city with a population of one million. However, Nanyang was governed by Yuan Shu in a mess, and Yuan Shu had no choice but to flee to Huainan. Now Huainan has been messed up again by Yuan Shu. At the same time, under the repeated attacks from Cao Cao and Sun Ce, Yuan Shu is now in a slump and has no possibility of recovering.

"Yuan Shu is not something I should worry about." Cao Cao nodded. After Guo Jia's analysis, which confirmed his own thoughts, he was no longer worried about the Taishan bandits and Yuan Shu.

Time flies and the world changes. After pacifying Xuzhou, Cao Cao left his trusted confidant Che Zhou as the governor of Xuzhou instead of Liu Bei, who was more popular among the people of Xuzhou. He took Liu Bei and his two brothers back to Xudu.

Xudu, Sikong Mansion.

The first thing Cao Cao did after returning to Xu Du was to have the heads of Gongsun Zan and his chief secretary Guan Jing brought to him for review. After Yuan Shao conquered Yi County, he brought the heads of Gongsun Zan and Guan Jing to Xu Du as trophies to show off his military prowess. Cao Cao had no reservations about this and he wanted to take a look at them.

When Cao Cao saw Gongsun Zan, who used to be handsome, but whose head was burnt beyond recognition by the flames of the self-immolation, he felt sad. He bowed to Gongsun Zan's head and said, "General Gongsun, how are you?"

Cao Cao was both disappointed and respectful of Gongsun Zan for his fate. He was disappointed that Gongsun Zan was defeated so quickly, but he also admired his heroic act of burning himself to death instead of being captured.

Turning his head, Cao Cao looked at the head of Guan Jing, the chief secretary of Gongsun Zan. Cao Cao's expression was a little complicated at this moment. He had heard about Guan Jing's character. Guan Jing was born a cruel official and had no strategy, but he had a good skill of flattery, which enabled him to gain the closeness and trust of Gongsun Zan.

However, Guan Jing, who was a villain, rode his horse and charged towards Yuan's army without hesitation when Gongsun Zan set himself on fire in the Yijing Tower, seeking death and being buried with Gongsun Zan.

"You are still a righteous man." Cao Cao gave his evaluation of Guan Jing's life, looking at Guan Jing, who had a bad character but was willing to die for his lord.

Looking at Guan Jing, Cao Cao inexplicably thought of Chen Gong who bravely died in Xia Pi City. With a feeling in his heart, Cao Cao ordered: "Build suitable wooden bodies for General Gongsun and Guan Changshi, and bury them together with their heads."

"Yes." A clerk from the Sikong Mansion accepted the task.

After dealing with the heads of Gongsun Zan and Guan Jing, Cao Cao began to take care of his affairs. He marched east to Xuzhou and focused on attacking Xia Pi. He did not have a detailed understanding of what happened in Hebei and Guanzhong, but now, taking advantage of the free time in winter, he must get a deeper understanding.

First of all, let’s talk about the situation in the Three Rivers. Now, Hedong is obtained by Liu Zhang, Henei is obtained by Yuan Shao, and only Henan is in the hands of Cao Cao.

In addition, when Liu Zhang and Yuan Shao clashed over the ownership of Sanhe, Cao Cao was aware of the details of the war through documents submitted by Zhong Yao and Cao Ren.

"Great." Cao Cao praised. He was happy to see Yuan Shao and Liu Zhang fighting each other, because this way he would have time to recuperate and accumulate strength. At the same time, he could take advantage of the time when Yuan Shao and Liu Zhang were exhausted from fighting and do something cool to benefit himself.

However, Cao Cao did not have high hopes. After all, Yuan Shao and Liu Zhang were both heroes of the time, and they would probably not leave him alone. The two families would fight to the death, leaving him no chance to exploit.

Cao Cao continued to look through the documents and suddenly exclaimed "what a pity". He saw that Yang Chou had murdered Zhang Yang, the governor of Henei, and intended to submit to him. However, Gao Gan and Sui Gu, the general of Henei County, seized Henei first, causing him to lose the good opportunity to take Henei.

Otherwise, if Yang Chou surrendered and Cao Ren successfully entered Henei and took control of this important place, his left wing would be much safer and it would be easier for him to manipulate the situation.

As he continued reading, Cao Cao seemed to have witnessed the war that had broken out in Hedong not long ago, the great battle between Yuan's army and Shu's army outside Anyi city, the battle in which Yuan's army was defeated and Shu's army advanced.

"Gao Gan is incompetent in commanding troops." After comparing the strength of Yuan's army and Shu's army, Cao Cao complained about Gao Gan, because Gao Gan was defeated by the Shu army, which had fewer troops, despite having a superior force, and he was indeed not a good commander.

Although there are many cases of defeating a larger force with a smaller one, the ability of the commander who was the defeated side with more troops would definitely be questioned and denied.

'Ma Chao.'

At the same time, Cao Cao remembered the name of the commander-in-chief of the Shu army. He also took the opportunity to learn about the life of Ma Chao from the documents. He knew that Ma Chao was the son of Ma Teng, but a young man. He did not expect that Ma Chao had such bravery and military strategy, and could defeat Gao Gan with a smaller force.

"The heroes of the world are like the crucian carp that passed by." Cao Cao sighed at the young Ma Chao, and also sighed at Liu Zhang's courage to use people and promote young people to serve as the governor of Hedong to coordinate the war in Hedong. (End of this chapter)