Battle Royale of the Sinners

After the meeting had ended and everybody left, Cao Cao's serious expression turned into a wicked smile.

All nobles agreed to transfer all of their private troops and some supplies to Cao Cao.

He did not use Diao Chan's edict or Wang Yun's influence to convince these people as it might damage his reputation. Cao Cao wanted to appear like an honest patriot that tried to solve everything with a peaceful method.

Cao Cao played as a hero in the chaos.

That night, Xun You and Wang Yun visited Cao Cao's courtyard to report about the completion of their tasks.

Wang Yun swallowed his pride and bowed, "We gain another 30,000 soldiers, 20,000 labor slaves, 350,000 gold, and 500,000 stones of food."

Xun You did not speak. He passed the contracts that all nobles had signed to Cao Cao.

"Very well. Next task, I want the little girl to issue another edict for me."

Wang Yun's eyebrows twitched, yet he nodded, "What do you want to do next?"

"First, instead give the titles that Zhang Tong demanded, I want to make Zhang Jiao the Regent of the North and Zhang Tong as the Viceroy of Ji and Bing Province."

Wang Yun frowned as he did not understand the meaning behind to titles.

However, Xun You smirked and commented, "This is a vicious scheme. Zhang Tong will be furious once he receives the title."

The title of the Viceroy of a Ji Province contained a trap that could damage Tong's reputation and the relationship between Yuan Shao and the Yellow Turban.

Cao Cao sniggered, "Secondly, leak an intel to Dong Zhuo. Tell them that Lu Bu is at odd with the Yellow Turban because he tried to take over the army authority from Zhang Tong. While you're at it, send that 100,000 stones provision that Zhang Tong gave us to Dong Zhuo instead. Tell him that it's a tribute from his grandson-in-law wanting to restore the relationship between them."

Wang Yun's face pale. If the tribute convoy reached Dong Zhuo, all warlords would believe that Tong really pledged allegiance to Dong Zhuo instead of Diao Chan.

Cao Cao had not finished yet, "Also another task. Dispatch an envoy to Yuan Shao to negotiate for an alliance treaty. Tell them that we want to eliminate Dong Zhuo and the bandits, and I meant [Bandits]."

Xun You laughed, "A wordplay? Well, I think I'll have to take the task myself. I don't think I can entrust anyone else with this job."

"Suit yourself. Hahaha!"

Wang Yun's face was already red from anger. He glared at Cao Cao, "You said you did everything for the sake of peace. Why are you causing harm to Zhang Tong? You said it yourself in the meeting that the Yellow Turban is a righteous force! They already showed the sincerity with the tribute and they wanted to disband their forces!"

"Ah, that. You have to be stupid enough to believe in Zhang Tong's surrender promise. What kind of a surrendered person demanding several titles for his subordinates and asking to maintain their territory authority? He's just pretending and spreading the news that he's a part of us so that he can ditch the imposters and deny all responsibility that the bandits caused. Also, I have to leave some room so I can recruit the Yellow Turban remnants into my army. Their officers, generals, and strategists are all talented, you see?"

Cao Cao showed three fingers, "Three possible scenarios. First, there is a likely chance that Zhang Tong will be destroyed by Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan. If this happens, I can poach all Zhang Tong's officers, claiming that I understand their situation and troubles and I'm willing to continue their legacy. Then, I'll absorb the Yellow Turban into my force."

"The second scenario, if the Yellow Turban and Yuan Shao won't fight each other or they unify the north, the Yellow Turban will be looking at Luo Yang next. By making Dong Zhuo having a good impression on Zhang Tong, Dong Zhuo will let his guard down and thought that the Yellow Turban armies are his underlings. This will create an opening within their ranks, and Zhang Tong's strategists will not miss that opportunity. We can have Zhang Tong and Dong Zhuo fighting each other while we are busy unifying the central plain."

"Third scenario, Zhang Tong and Jia Xu are smart enough to not wage another war with any force for a few years. This is the most troublesome situation since they will be stronger the next time they show up on a battlefield. However, we can sow discord between the Yellow Turban and other forces by having them think that they are hypocrite lackeys of Dong Zhuo. When that time comes, I will form a coalition with all lords in our land to fight against Dong Zhuo and Zhang Tong."

Xun You shook his head, "I can think of the fourth scenario. Zhang Tong won't wage war for three to four years, but he will defeat Yuan Shao and absorb Gongsun Zan forces in the next two years after he comes out from his hibernation. Then, he will go into another hibernation for another three to five years again to digest all the new territories he acquires. Afterward, he will come for us and demand us to surrender with the strength that none of us can resist him."

Cao Cao's smile disappeared, "That won't happen. I won't allow him."

"You will become the villain if you continue to stop them. Since you are trying to make them look like a righteous force, you can't betray them in the open. All lords are not stupid. They will detect your schemes and frame you in return."

"I don't mind being a villain … as long as this country can be united as one under my rule, that is."

"I hope you won't be the next Yuan Shao or Dong Zhuo."

"I'll never sit on the throne, Gongda. You and your Xun Clan can rest assured."

Wang Yun listened to the two with a heavy heart. He thought of Diao Chan, who was under house-arrest by Cao Cao as a hostage.

'To think that there will be a day that I have to pray for the rebel army. Zhang Tong, if you are really like what my daughter described, please don't die.'

…

June 17th.

Three more decrees from Diao Chan were issued.

One of the edicts declared that Cao Cao would replace Xuchang Governor as he was promoted to a regent of the new Capital.

The next decree was the recruitment that shocked the locals. Hundreds of minor officials were busy distributing announcement flyers to merchants, scholars, and nobles.

[If you have talents, I have the use for you. We are accepting exceptional people to help us eradicating rebels, bandits, and false emperors! It doesn't matter if you are commoners, slaves, merchants, or fugitives from other cities.]

[If you have talents, I have the use for you. We are looking for talented officials. If you think you are good at farming, finance, or you have the confidence as a fighter, we have a job for you!]

[If you have talents, I have the use for you. We want you in the military! All scholars and stratagem masters are welcome. You will be handsomely paid if you join us now.]

The flyers were the advertisement for the available jobs as officials. From the first glance, it seemed Diao Chan did not care about the family background of her potential employees, which impressed all Xuchang locals. Thus, it boosted her reputation as the new Empress of the country.

Many scholars and greedy merchants rushed to Xuchang City Center to apply for a job, which more than half of the job-seekers were employed in a day.

However, the last decree shocked the nobles who donated their private soldiers to Cao Cao.

Diao Chan demanded that all private soldiers under Cao Cao had to be transferred to serve her as royal guards, which was a massive promotion for the ordinary soldiers.

This also stripped the nobles of their authority over the soldiers as none of them had the right to command the troops again.

The nobles wanted to protest, but they could not as it was the direct decree of the Empress. If they were to resist, they and their entire family would be executed.

In conclusion, Cao Cao and Diao Chan simply stole their soldiers and forced them to agree to it without them realizing it.

.

On top of the city wall, Cao Cao stood tall, watching the commotion within the city.

Behind Cao Cao, a young teenager sat on the battlement, patting a white polar bear and a brown grizzly bear beside him which were sleeping. He had a soldier cut hairstyle and the face of a westerner. His skin was paler compared to Cao Cao and the natives in this country. However, the depth of his eyes was pitch black as if it was an endless abyss. Even Cao Cao avoided making eye contact with this young man.

"Now that Gongda is away. Do you have to confident that you can replace him in his duty in the meantime?"

Listening to the question of Cao Cao, the young man glanced at him, "It isn't about my confident right now. It's about the status of the city treasury. With all your projects, you will run out of gold soon. You can't simply hope that you can get the help of an immortal and you'll make it through the crisis. You are expanding too fast. Don't you think it's too hasty to rush all of these projects?"

"We don't have much time. Zhang Tong is trying to buy a few years to recover from the last war while we can't even pacify a city. Unless I rush it, we won't catch up with their development."

The young man shook his head, "You can't hope to match their development. From the last intel, Te Langpu has betrayed Yuan Shao and joined Zhang Tong. The new weapon that Te Langpu invented is under their hands. You can expect more unthinkable weapons in their next war. This doesn't include their economic development since Te Langpu is also a finance expert."

"I still have you. With your brain and power, can't we catch up to Zhang Tong? You said you have better knowledge and worldly experiences than Te Langpu and Zhang Tong, right?"

Shook his head again, "My power has limited use. If it's only one small city, I can make it as flourish as Julu. But by that time, all of Zhang Tong's domestic would have been strengthened further. We are lacking both in talented officers and immortals."

"If we can solve the gold issue, can you make it?"

"I need 1,000,000 gold and half a year to make this city surpass the current Julu. I'll also need a thousand of minor officials, and I want to write the laws of our new country."

"We have less than 600,000 gold at the moment. Will it do for the next 3 months? I'll get more within 3 to 4 months."

"The project will be a bit slower, but I can manage," The young man passed a scroll to Cao Cao, "In this scroll, there is a detail about talented individuals on the central plain. Send someone to recruit them into your force before Zhang Tong do. Also, there is the gunpowder formula that Te Langpu used, but I improved it. Have your men search for the required materials and stockpile them. We'll also develop cannons and guns."

Cao Cao laughed, "See? I knew you can do it. By the way, your name is too hard to pronounce. Can you repeat your surname again? Va-la-de-meh what?"

The young man sighed, "Just call me Pu Jing. This is what Chinese called me in the past."