Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Cao Rui nodded silently, and after a long silence, he looked at Guanqiu Jian and said:
"Zhong Gong has served as my commander of the central army for many years. Does he have any requests for this attack on Wu?"

Guanqiu Jian shook his head: "I am the Commander of the Central Army, Your Majesty's personal guard. I only ask to be able to stay by Your Majesty's side and protect you."

Cao Rui laughed and said, "They all compete and want to do things, but Zhong Gong doesn't want to do anything?"

"I do not think so," Guanqiu Jian replied calmly.

Cao Rui said casually, "I think that the more people ask of me, the more I should give to them. Zhonggong is a talented general, but I will not personally go to the front lines when I am in battle. It would be a waste for Zhonggong to stay by my side."

"Moreover... if everything goes smoothly, the war to destroy Wu will be the largest war in the next few decades. Everyone else is taking responsibility, hoping to earn some titles for their families in this war, so why is Zhonggong so aloof?"

"I have made my decision." Cao Rui turned around and patted Guanqiu Jian's shoulder forcefully: "The three armies of Yangzhou will consist of one naval force, commanded by General Lu Xun, the General Who Conquers the East. The Guangling force will be supervised by Zhong Gong. The remaining force will be supervised by the Grand General, and I will also be stationed in the Grand General's army."

"Your Majesty..." Guanqiu Jian was momentarily moved and looked up at Cao Rui. He instinctively wanted to decline, but the emperor's sincerity made him unable to say it.

The two stared at each other for a few moments, and Guanqiu Jian's expression gradually became resolute. He bowed and said, "Your subject Guanqiu Jian obeys the decree. I will fight valiantly in Guangling and live up to Your Majesty's great kindness!"

It seems that before making any decision, one is always tormented, but once the decision is made, everything goes smoothly and naturally.

Cao Rui had already made arrangements for the subsequent personnel appointments, so he felt increasingly at ease staying in the camp. With some free time, Cao Rui fulfilled his duties as emperor by constantly stirring up trouble for Sun Quan across the river.

There is no doubt that Sun Quan was in Dantu.

Cao Rui was in Guangling, a fact that Sun Quan could confirm. Although the two had never met, they were familiar with each other's handwriting and official seals.

The correspondence between the two increased at a rate of one letter exchanged daily, until November 6th, when Sun Quan had received five letters from Cao Rui.

On the afternoon of November 6th, when Sun Quan's letter was delivered to Guanqiu Jian's army by the garrison commander of Guangling, Cao Rui opened it and read it, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"This is truly amusing," Cao Rui said with a smile. "I invited Sun Quan to cross the river to meet me, and Sun Quan also invited me to cross the river to visit him. We talked repeatedly, and in the end, he even said that he wanted to take a boat to the riverbank and drink with me from afar."

"It's really interesting."

Guanqiu Jian, standing nearby, advised, "Your Majesty, Sun Quan is cunning. I fear he intends to attack Your Majesty from the ship."

Cao Rui's face showed a hint of disdain: "He thinks he can attack me?"

“However, since Sun Quan is so obsessed with me, my purpose in staying here for so many days has been achieved.” Cao Rui pointed to Guanqiu Jian: “Zhonggong, my ceremonial guards and banners will remain here. Anyway, Sun Quan can’t see my face and clothes clearly. You can communicate with Sun Quan from the army.”

Guanqiu Jian was somewhat puzzled: "Then Your Majesty intends to..."

Cao Rui said, "I will take a thousand cavalry back to Shouchun first. Zhong Gong can stay here. In addition, I have already spoken with Wang Ling and Xiahou Xian yesterday, and also sent a letter to Hu Zhi, telling the three of them that I intend to appoint you as the General of the Army and the commander-in-chief of the Guangling route. Wang Ling and Xiahou Xian have already expressed their support, saying that they will put you in charge in everything and will not cause any trouble. I think Hu Zhi will not say anything either."

"Zhonggong, I entrust this battle to you. The thousand cavalrymen I took from you will be sent back later. Five thousand from the Central Army camp, five thousand from Yangzhou cavalry, ten thousand from the Central Army Guard, and five thousand from Yangzhou County soldiers, totaling twenty-five thousand. After I return to Shouchun, I will reinforce you here as needed. Do not fail my expectations."

Guanqiu Jian immediately knelt down and kowtowed, solemnly agreeing.

However, Cao Rui glanced at Zhong Yu, who was standing in the tent, and a thought occurred to him. He asked, "Zhong Yu!" "Your subject is here," Zhong Yu replied quickly.

Zhong Yu served as a Gentleman Attendant to Cao Rui at the age of fourteen. He was in mourning for a while, but returned to his position as Gentleman Attendant.

Zhong Yu was the son of Grand Tutor Zhong, and came from a top-ranking family in the Great Wei. He often accompanied the emperor, so much so that Dong Zhao and other first-generation cabinet ministers once joked that His Majesty was raising Zhong Yu as his own nephew.

Zhong Yu, who was only fourteen years old and would blush at the slightest teasing from Cao Rui, is now in her twenties.

Cao Rui asked, "Can you learn my handwriting?"

Zhong Yu was somewhat flustered and didn't understand the emperor's meaning, but he still honestly replied, "Your Majesty's handwriting is too much for me to imitate."

Cao Rui shook his head: "I know that you come from a family with a long tradition of learning. At just over twenty years old, your calligraphy is already among the best in the world. You spend your days drafting edicts and organizing documents for me. If you say that you can't learn my handwriting, then that would be a joke."

Zhong Yu hesitated for a moment, then said, "If...if Your Majesty orders me to learn, I think I can imitate about three-tenths of it."

“No.” Cao Rui deliberately put on a stern face: “Learning three parts is not enough, you must learn at least ten parts.”

“Your Majesty…” Zhong Yu was speechless for a moment.

Cao Rui said, "When I return to Shouchun, you don't need to come with me. You can take on the position of chief clerk in Zhonggong's army, as the chief clerk of the general."

"Besides that, I have another task for you," Cao Rui said with a smile. "Write him a letter every two days using my handwriting and signature, and simply quote old articles from Emperor Wu and Emperor Wen."

Zhong Yu asked, "Then what exactly should I write?"

Cao Rui waved his hand casually: "To put it bluntly, I want you to create ambiguity here, to keep Sun Quan in the dark. The more profound the meaning, the more incomprehensible he will be. You can quote whatever you want, as long as you don't directly criticize him."

Zhong Yu suddenly realized that the emperor had first left behind the ceremonial banner and then ordered him to imitate the emperor's handwriting here, all to deceive Sun Quan into believing that the emperor was here.

and……

Moreover, the emperor's appointment of him as the chief clerk of the general at such a time was almost a blatant attempt to give him credit and allow him to achieve some military merit in this great battle.

Being the emperor's confidant is indeed a desirable position.

“Your Majesty, I understand your meaning.” Zhong Yu bowed and said, “Your Majesty, rest assured, I will send someone to deliver the document I wrote to him back to Shouchun the next day.”

Cao Rui waved his hand: "No need, just handle it yourself. If you don't write well, I will punish you."

"Your subject obeys the decree..." Zhong Yu sighed helplessly; the emperor still liked to tease him like this.

Little did he know that such closeness to the emperor was something countless people, both inside and outside the court, dreamed of.

"I will lead the army back to Shouchun tomorrow morning," Cao Rui said casually. "After I return to Shouchun, the formal appointments from the Cabinet and the Privy Council will be issued. Zhonggong, do your best!" (End of Chapter)