The Three Kingdoms: Hindsight is 20/20, and the Three Revivals of the Han Dynasty

Chapter 45 Fate's Mandate: The "Meeting" of Two "Prime Ministers"

Little Peixi.

Feng County, the county government office.

The officials held their breath; you could hear a pin drop.

The magistrate of Feng County knelt down and kowtowed, trembling with fear.

The seat that should have been occupied by the magistrate of Feng County was now occupied by a seven-foot-tall general with narrow eyes and a long beard, who was leaning against a table, carefully examining the handover order in his hand.

When his gaze fell upon the seal bearing the inscription "General Sima Guan Yu of the Left" on the handover order, the officer's eyes, like those of a phoenix, clearly changed.

The general was none other than Cao Cao, the Minister of Works who held the emperor hostage and commanded the feudal lords!

A few days ago.

When Cao Cao learned of Liu Dai and Wang Zhong's defeat, he was filled with regret and resentment.

He regretted not heeding Guo Jia's advice and letting Liu Bei leave Xudu, and he hated Liu Bei for being ungrateful and insisting on going against him.

Fearing that Liu Bei might incite Xu Yu and other forces to either rebel or remain neutral, Cao Cao overruled the objections of others and dispatched elite troops eastward to Xiaopei.

One purpose was to capture Liu Bei, and the other was to intimidate the forces of Xu and Yu, so as to prevent them from taking advantage of the situation during the formal battle with Yuan Shao.

Cao Cao committed numerous killings in the provinces of Yu and Xu, and thus made many enemies.

If Cao Cao is powerful, the forces in Yu and Xu will lie low and wait for an opportunity; if Cao Cao is weak, the forces in Yu and Xu will definitely take advantage of his misfortune.

Historical records state that after Liu Bei raised his banner in rebellion against Cao Cao, he received support from Chang Xi and other officials from Yu and Xu prefectures who were not loyal to Cao Cao. After Liu Bei entered Runan to open a second battlefield under Yuan Shao's orders, he received support from Liu Pi, Gong Du, and former officials and students of the Yuan family in Runan.

It can be seen.

"Click rub rub —"

Xu Chu entered, clad in armor.

Xu Chu glanced at the kneeling magistrate of Feng County out of the corner of his eye, then respectfully bowed to Cao Cao and reported, "Minister Cao, the Imperial Secretary Cao has returned."

Cao Yilang is Cao Ren.

After Cao Cao welcomed the emperor to Xuchang, he appointed Cao Ren as the governor of Guangyang.

Because Cao Cao valued Cao Ren's martial prowess and courage, he did not appoint Cao Ren to guard a prefecture, but instead appointed him as a consultant to command the cavalry.

Upon hearing of Cao Ren's return, Cao Cao's phoenix eyes narrowed, and he had a bad feeling.

Cao Ren was skilled at commanding cavalry.

When they were campaigning against Tao Qian and Lü Bu, they were familiar with the geography of the counties in Xuzhou.

Cao Cao's military order to Cao Ren was: enter Xiaopei, cross the East Sea, pass through Langya, and enter the North Sea. The purpose was twofold: first, to capture Liu Bei, and second, to intimidate the Six Generals of Mount Tai.

Cao Ren will not easily return unless there is a special reason.

Now that you've returned, there must be a significant reason.

Looking at the handover order in his hand, Cao Cao then turned his gaze to the seal bearing the inscription "General of the Left, Military Advisor and General of the Central Army, Zhuge Liang".

This was the second time Cao Cao had heard of Zhuge Liang.

Last time, Liu Dai brought back Zhuge Liang's letter, which gave Cao Cao a preliminary impression of Liu Bei, the newly recruited military advisor: he was good at scheming and full of lies!

Zhuge Liang's words could fool Liu Dai, but they could not fool Cao Cao, nor could they fool the strategists under Cao Cao's command.

In addition, the special position of "Military Advisor General" clearly imitated the "Military Advisor Chief" and made Cao Cao even more curious about Zhuge Liang.

What kind of great talent could make Liu Bei think that he was comparable to his own strategist Guo Jia?

After arriving in Feng County.

Cao Cao then obtained a copy of the "Han Left General's Office Transfer Order" from the magistrate of Feng County. Upon seeing the contents of the transfer order, Cao Cao felt his blood pressure rise several degrees.

If Wang Zhong hadn't been in Changlu, Cao Cao would have had Xu Chu drag Wang Zhong to him and question him: Are you stupid?
A plausible reason to capture Liu Bei and bring him back to Xuchang, and to intimidate the various forces in Yu and Xu, was turned into a "misunderstanding" by the handover order signed and stamped by Wang Zhong.

Moreover, Cao Cao learned from the magistrate of Feng County that Zhuge Liang was using a handover order signed and stamped by Wang Zhong to collect weapons and armor from various counties, while simultaneously clarifying the "misunderstanding."

Even more shamelessly, they claimed: "General Wang has already 'gifted' weapons and armor. If you don't 'gift' them, where will General Wang put his face? The martial world isn't just about fighting and killing; it's also about human relationships and social interactions."

Thinking of the various counties successively "donating" weapons and armor, Cao Cao felt a headache and irritation: a bunch of fools!
After a while.

Cao Ren entered and first asked Cao Cao to dismiss the magistrate of Feng County and others, then presented Zhuge Liang's letter.

Upon seeing the line in the letter, "Yuan Shao secretly dispatched Guo Tu, Chunyu Qiong, and Yan Liang, intending to attack Baima," Cao Cao was alarmed and demanded an explanation from Cao Ren:
"Zixiao, who delivered this letter?"

Cao Ren said in a stern voice, "It is Zhuge Liang, the military advisor and general under Liu Bei!"

It's Zhuge Liang again!
Cao Cao's phoenix eyes instantly became silent and terrifying.

As the saying goes, there are three encounters in life: the first is "by chance," the second is "inevitable," and the third is "destiny."

Cao Cao's initial curiosity about Zhuge Liang gradually turned into fear.

He defeated Liu Dai and Wang Zhong without killing them.

On the one hand, he ordered Liu Dai to send a letter to Xuchang, emphasizing that Liu Bei was wronged and went north, not that he had wronged Cao Cao.

On one hand, he signed a handover order with Wang Zhong, emphasizing that the conflict with Wang Zhong was a misunderstanding, and on the other hand, he obtained weapons and armor for Liu Bei.

now.

Zhuge Liang then secretly informed Cao Cao of the intelligence that "Yuan Shao secretly sent Guo Tu, Chunyu Qiong, and Yan Liang to attack Baima," emphasizing once again that Liu Bei had not betrayed Cao Cao!

Considering that after Che Zhou's death, rumors circulated in various counties that "Che Zhou held a banquet to murder the Left General, who then submitted a memorial requesting to resign and return to Zhuojun to teach," Cao Cao couldn't help but suspect that this was also a scheme devised by Zhuge Liang for Liu Bei.

Do you know where Zhuge Liang is now?

Cao Cao's tone was noticeably more hostile.

"When I arrived at Xiaopei, Zhuge Liang had already been gone for three days."

"Originally, Zhuge Liang intended for the magistrate of Xiaopei to deliver this letter, but the magistrate of Xiaopei abandoned the city and fled with his wife and children overnight."

"There was also a thief named Xue Liang who was unwilling to leave with Zhuge Liang, so he delivered a message for Zhuge Liang."

"I also learned from Xue Liang that when Liu Dai and Wang Zhong's troops approached Xiaopei, Zhuge Liang only had two hundred capable soldiers by his side, while the other three hundred able-bodied men were all newly recruited soldiers who did not even have complete weapons and armor."

"Unexpectedly, Liu Dai and Wang Zhong were both captured by Guan Yu single-handedly, and most of their two thousand soldiers were also taken prisoner."

Cao Ren then truthfully reported to Cao Cao the information he had learned from Xue Liang regarding Zhuge Liang.

Upon hearing that Zhuge Liang's forces were few and far between, Cao Cao couldn't help but curse Liu Dai and Wang Zhong as "useless."

Upon hearing that Guan Yu had single-handedly broken through enemy lines and captured Liu Dai and Wang Zhong alive, Cao Cao couldn't help but feel envious and sighed inwardly: "Yun Chang is brave and valiant; I greatly admire him."

After Cao Ren finished speaking, Cao Cao suppressed his envy and asked about Yuan Shao's plans: "Zixiao, how credible do you think Zhuge Liang's secret message in the letter is?"

Seeing that Cao Ren hesitated to speak, Cao Cao said again, "It's alright, you can speak your mind if you have any thoughts."

Cao Ren considered for a moment and said, "Logically speaking, it would be impossible for Zhuge Liang, who is far away in Xiaopei, to know about Yuan Shao's strategic plans."

"I am more inclined to believe that Zhuge Liang deduced Yuan Shao's possible next military action based on the available intelligence."

There was a pause.

Cao Ren advised again, "Minister, this place is not safe to stay for long! Even if Zhuge Liang's prediction is accurate, Liu Yan, who is stationed at Baima, will not be able to stop Yan Liang and his men."

　At the beginning of the month, I'm asking for monthly votes. [My book dropped off the new book chart, I'm heartbroken.]

　　
　
(End of this chapter)