My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 63 The Chancellor of Xiapi
When he heard about the drastic measure of cutting off supplies, Cao Bao felt a cramp in his legs.

This kid in front of me is only ten years old, yet he can come up with such a vicious and ingenious scheme.

Cao Bao's face flushed red and then turned pale. He was both terrified by the other party's trickery and secretly pleased that he was the little guy's future father-in-law. But then he worried that Liu Feng might have some other ulterior motive when he came to visit.

For a moment, Cao Bao felt as if a furnace had been placed under his buttocks, and the scalding heat made him unable to sit still.

"Then...nephew, now that the magistrate has given his approval, what can your uncle do to help you?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Feng was greatly puzzled: "Uncle, why do you say such a thing?"

"After my father approved my plan, the first person I thought of was my uncle. I wanted to get my uncle involved so that he could make a great contribution to my father and the state. Would my uncle be unwilling?"

Liu Feng looked at Cao Bao with surprise and suspicion: "Could it be that Uncle is unwilling to serve my father..."

"Absolutely impossible!"

Cao Bao sternly stopped them, and said righteously, "I am not an ungrateful person. I am deeply grateful to the magistrate and the young master for their willingness to form a marriage alliance with my family. I am willing to serve the magistrate and the young master with utmost loyalty."

"That's good."

Liu Feng smiled with emotion: "I thought that if I rashly sought an opportunity for my uncle to make a name for himself, my uncle would blame me for being too meddlesome."

You are indeed being a bit nosy.

Cao Bao managed to hold back his words and not blurt them out.

"Uncle, please do not take this matter lightly."

Liu Feng's expression turned serious again: "If this matter succeeds, my uncle will make great contributions in the war, and my father can then seek a transfer for him. Whether it is the governor of Guangling Commandery or the prime minister of Xiapi, it is very possible."

hiss……

Cao Bao was tempted.

Although the generals of the central army, the prime minister, and the prefect all had a salary of two thousand shi (a unit of grain).

Strictly speaking, the nominal status of the Lieutenant General was slightly higher, because in peacetime, only the central government had such a high-ranking military officer.

The prefecture government was neither qualified to appoint a Lieutenant General nor had the authority to do so.

Therefore, the title of General of the Central Army is far more prestigious than that of an ordinary prime minister or governor.

But how could Cao Bao, this Lieutenant General, not know what kind of person he was?
This was a self-proclaimed statement by Tao Qian, which was, frankly, just for his own amusement, and even the locals of Xuzhou didn't really believe it.

The position of Lieutenant General was only able to be given to Cao Bao because of the support of those 20,000 Danyang soldiers.

Therefore, Cao Bao was still very insecure, wanting a powerful official position but also fearing the loss of his military power.

The phrase "caught between a rock and a hard place" perfectly describes Cao Bao's predicament, and it is also one of the fundamental reasons why he was willing to submit to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei is the current governor of the province. As long as Liu Bei is willing to acknowledge Cao Bao's status as a general, even if all of Cao Bao's Danyang soldiers desert, he can still retain the treatment of a general.

Others won't work because their promises don't have that effect.

Now that Liu Feng is offering him the position of Chancellor of Xiapi or Governor of Guangling, it's even more tempting.

"Nephew, did Magistrate Liu really say that?"

"Absolutely true!"

Liu Feng nodded emphatically without hesitation: "Uncle, you have shown us father and son kindness with a peach, so why should we be stingy in repaying you with a precious jade?" "After this is accomplished, you may choose either the position of prime minister or the position of prefect!"

Liu Feng added with feigned seriousness, "In my humble opinion, it would be more prudent for you, Uncle, to be elected Chancellor of Xiapi."

Cao Bao became curious. He originally thought that Liu Bei would prefer him to go to Guangling so that he could defend against Yuan Shu.

Unexpectedly, Liu Feng said that Liu Bei preferred him to go to Xiapi, which made him curious and ask, "Oh, why is that?"

Liu Feng, with an air of righteous indignation, retorted, "Uncle, why do you ask a question you already know the answer to?"

Cao Bao looked completely bewildered. Why did I ask a question I already knew the answer to?

Liu Feng continued, "Xiapi is the hometown of Chen Gongcao, who was my father's trusted advisor."

Cao Bao nodded; this was something everyone already knew.

Liu Feng then changed the subject: "Uncle is an important general in Xuzhou. Our two families are about to be united by marriage. Uncle must be a trusted confidant of my father and a general in the military. My father told me that he hopes Uncle can resolve his old grudges with Chen Gongcao as soon as possible, and work together to help my father and protect the people of Xuzhou."

Cao Bao's eyes widened, and his mouth even opened unconsciously.

Liu Feng hurriedly continued, "After much thought, I've finally come up with a plan: I'll appoint you, Uncle, as the Chancellor of Xiapi, to guard the city. Then, you'll only need to govern by doing nothing, following the established rules, and you'll surely win the praise of the elders of Chen Gongcao's hometown. At that time, Chen Gongcao will be moved by your magnanimity, and the two will turn from enemies to friends, creating a beautiful story!"

Cao Bao's mouth was agape, unable to close it. He couldn't believe that being the prime minister could bring such benefits.

"Moreover, Guangling County is located on the front line of the Huai and Si Rivers, and is attacked from two sides. Yuan Shu is to the west and Wu Jing is to the east. It is surrounded by Yuan Gonglu's power. There are many rebels in the county who do not submit to the county government and the state government and are close to Yuan Shu. The situation is complicated and quite dangerous."

Liu Feng analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of the two commanderies and kingdoms for Cao Bao. Xiapi was praised to the skies, while Guangling was fraught with danger and peril.

Cao Bao had actually been completely persuaded by Liu Feng.

He began to truly believe that Liu Feng and his son were kind to him and were reliable lords who cared about him.

This trust is impulsive and will gradually fade in the future, but the seeds of trust sown earlier have begun to sprout. As long as Liu Feng and Liu Bei can be consistent in their words and deeds, this trust will surely grow stronger.

"However, Uncle, you still need to make contributions to achieve all this."

Liu Feng looked troubled: "Uncle, as you know, although my father took over the governorship from Tao Gong, he actually relied heavily on the efforts of the Prefect, Uncle, and the Chief Clerk. How can his power be compared to that of Tao Gong?"

"Therefore, only by making meritorious contributions can my father rightfully recommend my uncle as prime minister."

Liu Feng humbly yielded, and also included Cao Bao in the conversation.

Cao Bao had no merit in supporting the emperor's ascension; he was more of an obstacle at the time.

Since Liu Feng had praised him so highly, Cao Bao was naturally happy to agree.

This time, Cao Bao did not hesitate and asked frankly, "How do you need my cooperation this time? Please speak frankly, my dear nephew."

Liu Feng was overjoyed and quickly revealed his plan: "Uncle, the most important thing for this operation is secrecy. You must not leak even a little bit of information, otherwise the operation will not succeed."

"There isn't much that Uncle needs to do. Uncle can continue selecting troops step by step, using the selection as an excuse to get the troops ready to set off."

"Once the operation begins, Uncle can lead his troops directly without informing his subordinates of the details of the operation. He only needs to follow the official road and head straight for the walls of Kaiyang City!"

Cao Bao nodded repeatedly, feeling that Liu Feng's plan was quite sound and that there was indeed no need to say anything to his subordinates.

(End of this chapter)