Three Kingdoms: Fusion of Entries, Change of Destiny

Chapter 56 Zi'an, you come to debate with the scholars

Cao Cao and Bao Xin galloped towards each other on horseback.

When the distance between them was less than twenty steps, they tightened the reins, slowed down their horses, and then dismounted.

The two held each other's arms and smiled.

When he was in Luoyang, Bao Xin felt that the short black man in front of him was extraordinary.

Dong Zhuo was in chaos and the court was in turmoil. When Yuan Shao formed an alliance of princes to fight against Dong, Bao Xin felt a sense of familiarity with Cao Cao and firmly supported him.

Bao Xin actually followed Yuan Shao at the beginning, but later he gradually became dissatisfied with Yuan Shao.

I still remember that year when Dong Zhuo led his old subordinates to Luoyang for the first time, and their foundation was not yet solid.

Bao Xin rushed back to Mount Tai that night, and within a day he had gathered three thousand brave and skilled men.

At that time, he advised Yuan Shao to get rid of Dong Zhuo, but Yuan Shao felt that the timing was not right and finally decided to keep his troops in place.

At that moment, Bao Xin was filled with disappointment and returned to Jibei.

Yuan Shao's reluctance to get rid of Dong Zhuo was simply due to his personality. He was suspicious and indecisive by nature, and always hesitated when faced with problems.

Besides, he actually hoped that there would be chaos in the world so that the Yuan family could take advantage of the situation.

But he was unwilling to do it himself, so Dong Zhuo's arrival just met his wish.

Either way, it's not enough for people to follow.

But no matter what the considerations and reasons were, Bao Xin felt that Yuan Shao was not worth continuing to follow.

Although Bao Xin was optimistic about Cao Cao, Cao Cao suffered a great defeat in Xingyang and became dependent on Yuan Shao, so he did not immediately join Cao Cao.

Later, Cao Cao took over Yanzhou Dongjun with his own strength and became the legal governor of Dongjun, which finally gave Bao Xin hope again.

Afterwards, Cao Cao introduced a variety of refreshing policies during his rule, which allowed Dongjun, which had experienced war and was lifeless, to recover its vitality in a very short period of time.

Although some of Cao Cao's actions seemed extremely rebellious to the aristocratic families,
But Bao Xin knew clearly that

Cao Cao's measures were aimed at restoring people's livelihood and rallying people's hearts.
His target must be more than just one county or one state!
This made Bao Xin determined to serve Cao Cao and help him achieve great things!
After the two of them looked at each other for a while, Bao Xin said with some concern, "Brother Meng De, all the major aristocratic families and gentry in Yanzhou have come. I'm afraid they have bad intentions!"

Cao Cao remained calm, showing no fear at all. Instead, he consoled Bao Xin, saying, "We have been planning this for a long time and anticipated this day. It would have been fine if they hadn't come, but since they have, let's treat them well."

"Brother Meng De, you can't do that! If you use force against them, it might provoke a rebellion!" Bao Xin misunderstood Cao Cao's intention and was so scared that he hurriedly tried to persuade him.

Cao Cao patted the back of Bao Xin's hand and said, "Yuncheng, you misunderstood me. The show is about to begin. Just sit back and watch."

"Not killing anyone?" Bao Xin asked.

"How could I, Cao Mengde, kill innocent people indiscriminately?" Old Cao replied calmly.

Bao Xin then breathed a sigh of relief.

……

The two men arrived at the door of the county magistrate's mansion, and Cao Cao saw a man as tall as an iron tower at a glance.

He was guarding the steps outside the main entrance of the lobby. I guess he was a guard arranged by his family.

"What a strong man!" Cao Cao exclaimed in his heart. Unable to suppress his inner admiration, he hurried forward and asked, "What's your name?"

"My name is Dian Wei, and I am the personal bodyguard of Cao Zhonglang." Dian Wei glanced at Lao Cao and answered truthfully.

He had never seen Cao Cao before, so naturally he didn't know that the person in front of him was Cao Yan's elder brother, Cao Cao.

"Zi'an's guard?" Cao Cao was stunned when he heard this, then asked, "Would you like to follow me?"

"no."

"..."

Cao Cao was frustrated, but he couldn't get angry. After all, he was the one who wanted to poach people, which was not fair.

Zi'an is a man with a sharp eye. How could the person he uses as a personal bodyguard be just an ordinary person?
For example, Zhao Yun, who was specially recommended by Cao Yan.

Now he has the potential to become the most powerful general in Cao's camp, and even the brothers Xiahou Yuan and Xiahou Dun often go to him to ask for advice on martial arts.

The key is that he is only sixteen years old, and Boss Cao almost loves him to death.

Now, not long after, another man who looks like a fierce general appeared.

What’s so abominable is that you, Cao Zian, didn’t even tell your brother and ate it all by yourself???
Cao Cao felt a little unhappy and planned to have a good talk with his younger brother after the meeting.

Such a thing as eating alone should not happen to these two brothers.

At the end of the stairs, another guard, Li Dian, stood at the entrance of the lobby.
Seeing Cao Cao coming, he hurried forward and said, "My lord, you are finally back."

Dian Wei and Li Dian were waiting at the door early in the morning.

Listening to the sarcastic and sharp words of those celebrities and gentry in the hall, I was already filled with anger. Damn, these sour Confucian scholars, how could they understand Cao Gong's good intentions?

Without people, who will plow the fields?

Without people, where can we recruit soldiers?

There are hundreds of thousands of Yellow Turbans!

Even if the old and weak are eliminated, at least tens of thousands of people can be selected to form an army.

Those scholars knew nothing and could only scream.

Cao Cao pulled Li Dian aside and asked softly, "Mancheng, what are they discussing in the hall?"

"Apart from accepting the surrender of the Yellow Turbans, they are more discussing the measurement of arable land and the re-compilation of household registration." Li Dian replied respectfully.

But Cao Cao immediately saw that Li Dian was hiding something, so he asked again, "What else is there? Don't hide it."

"And...and some people are scolding your background..." Li Dian replied.

The eunuchs left behind a scandal,

This is a word that was mentioned repeatedly by Bian Rang and others.

This is also the thing that Cao Cao is most despised by them.

Hearing this, Cao Cao's face darkened, "No wonder Zi'an is so determined to discipline the Yanzhou gentry and wealthy families.

Now that the Yellow Turban Rebellion has not yet completely subsided, they can't wait to jump out and show their power to me.

No wonder Liu Dai was willing to take risks to defeat the Yellow Turbans; it turned out he wanted to intimidate these scoundrels!"

However, Lao Cao never knew how to write the word "give up". How could a mere clown disrupt my determination?

Moreover, Cao Yan has already taken the first step in his plan to overthrow the ruling power of the aristocratic families, and there is no turning back!

For the sake of justice,

In order to continue the Han people's dream of ten thousand years,

Cao Cao can only fight to the end with the gentry and celebrities!

Cao Cao's mind was filled with thoughts.

At this moment, a guard came hurriedly and reported, "My lord, in the hall, the famous scholar Bian Rang is cursing again!"

After hearing this, Cao Cao felt a throbbing pain in his head.

The famous scholar "Bian Rang" was very good at sophistry and his words were very sharp.
But he has a very high reputation among the scholars and cannot be easily touched.

"Lead the way." Cao Cao ordered immediately.

"Here!" The guard turned around and led the way, calling out, "General Cao is here!"

Cao Cao is here!

With this shout, the hall instantly became quiet.

Even the extremely arrogant and boastful Bian Rang subconsciously shut his mouth and turned to look at the gate.

quickly,

Cao Cao and Bao Xin appeared at the entrance of the lobby.

Although Cao Cao was dressed in ordinary Confucian robes, the aura he exuded made people feel an invisible oppression.

Cao Cao strode to the main seat and sat down.

He scanned the crowd with a cold gaze before speaking, "What were you discussing just now? Keep talking!"

"..."

Bian Rang was leaning against a vermilion lacquer pillar. Behind him, several young men from noble families, wearing tall hats and wide belts, had sparkling eyes and were eager to try.

It was obvious that they had received instructions long ago and were just waiting for the order to launch the attack.

After a moment's silence, a young man behind Bian Rang came out as expected.

He first bowed to Cao Cao, then performed all the necessary formalities to the surrounding celebrities and gentry before asking, "The Yellow Turban bandits have wreaked havoc on Yanzhou, yet General Cao is now accepting the surrender of these bandits. Aren't you afraid of nurturing a tiger that could become a threat?"

Everyone was waiting for Cao Cao's response.

Cao Cao suddenly looked at Cao Yan, who was sitting in the first seat on the lower left, and said:
"Zi'an, come and explain it to them."

"???"

(End of this chapter)