I am a commoner, but I will lead the empress to unify the world

The next morning.

Wei State early morning court.

"The Emperor has arrived!"

"Long live my emperor! Long live!"

The ministers kowtowed, Cao De sat down wearily, and said weakly,

"Everyone is safe."

He didn't sleep all night last night, thinking about this matter and making a difficult decision.

Should he die with dignity and sacrifice his life for his country, or should he surrender weakly, be captured by the Yan army, and be sent back to Shengjing under house arrest?

He couldn't make a decision, so he wanted to listen to the opinions of his ministers in the court.

"My dear ministers, yesterday, Minister Huang went on a mission to the Yan army camp and met with that Lanling King, Shen Changgong.

Shen Changgong is a tyrannical and overbearing person who has rejected all of our Great Wei's peace proposals.

He gave us only one choice, and that was...

Huang Aiqing, please speak."

This matter was so humiliating that Cao De couldn't bring himself to speak it out.

Huang Tao stood up and recounted what had happened.

Of course, he didn't mention the last two options.

As soon as these words were spoken, the court immediately exploded, and the ministers whispered to each other.

Many people were filled with righteous indignation and angrily denounced the State of Yan for going too far.

The Prime Minister stood up and said,

"Your Majesty, the Yan thieves are shameless, and Shen Changgong is even more untrustworthy and inconsistent.

Back then, Yan, Liang and Qi were allies and agreed to attack Kun together.

After the success, Yan State occupied half of Kun State in the north, and Qi and Liang State divided the eighteen counties in the south.

As a result, after Kun State was destroyed, Yan State monopolized 33 counties, leaving only three counties for the two countries to divide. It deliberately sowed discord and gave all the land to Liang State, causing Qi and Liang to fight against each other.

He also promised Liang that as long as Qi invaded Liang, Yan would definitely help Liang as quickly as possible.

However, Xingqing Prefecture of Liang State was surrounded, and Yan State was still reluctant to mobilize its troops.

After mobilizing troops, instead of rescuing Liang, they went south to invade the territory of Qi, their former ally.

This eventually led to the destruction of the Liang State, and the Yan State took over the territories of the Qi and Liang States.

Shen Changgong is a fickle, cunning and vicious person. You must never trust him!

Your Majesty, please think twice."

Hearing this, Cao De's heart began to beat fast.

Yes, Shen Changgong’s reputation is not very good.

What if I surrender and then get killed by him?

If that happens, wouldn't both my life and reputation be lost?

He hesitated and listened to the opinions of others.

The general stood up and said,

"Your Majesty, this is a different time. Yan State broke its promise to Qi Liang. It has ulterior motives and is deliberately provoking a war between the two countries in order to reap the benefits.

But we are different. If we surrender, the entire territory of Wei will belong to Yan State, and we will have nothing for him to plot against.

Why did he go to such lengths to harm the Emperor? Was he simply going to be branded as someone who broke his word?

It doesn't cost much to support the emperor, and it can also gain a reputation for integrity. It can set an example for the remaining countries, allowing the emperors of other countries to see that surrendering to Yan State will have a good end.

In short, if the Yan people kill the emperor, it will do more harm than good.

It is a hundred benefits and no harm for the Yan people to raise the emperor.

And you can also gain a reputation for being benevolent."

Hearing this, Cao De hesitated again.

Yes.

Shen Changgong is not a fool, he is a very shrewd politician.

So why do this kind of thing?

So, the Yan people can still be trusted?

Of course, Cao De couldn't say this openly. As the emperor, he couldn't surrender before his subjects did, right?

He looked at the civil and military officials in the court who were arguing in a mess, sighed, and wanted to find a backbone, so he looked at Cao Xiang.

Whether to fight or not, you should listen more to the opinions of the military commander.

"Prince Jin, what are you going to do about this?"

Cao Xiang raised his head and saw two huge dark circles under his eyes, which scared Cao De.

Looking at the other person's dark circles and tired bloodshot eyes, Cao De said with some distress,

"My dear, what's wrong with you? Didn't you get enough rest last night?"

Cao Xiang nodded and said,

"I was looking at the defense map last night and haven't slept for two days and two nights."

In fact, he tossed and turned and couldn't sleep, constantly thinking about what decision to make.

Cao De sighed,

"My dear, please take care of your health. You are now the pillar of our Wei.

If you fall, there will be no need to discuss whether to surrender or not. I will just give my head to Shen Changgong.

After the court is dismissed today, you are not allowed to go to the barracks. You must go home and sleep. I will send someone to watch you. You are not allowed to go out without sleeping for a whole day and a whole night!"

Feeling Cao De's concern, Cao Xiang said with emotion,

"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I will have a good rest."

"So, what do you think about this matter? I want to see your attitude."

Cao Xiang originally wanted to say that he would rather die than surrender and would fight to the death.

But seeing the emperor caring about him so much, he felt a little bit reluctant and didn't want to see the emperor die.

But he didn't want to persuade the emperor to surrender. He knew that his words were too important and could directly affect Cao De's attitude.

So he said,

"I will leave it entirely to the Emperor. If the Emperor wishes to fight, I will be his vanguard, defending Luoyang to the death.

If Your Majesty wishes to surrender, I am willing to serve you every day, chopping wood, fetching water, and cooking for you."

"Alas, my dear is still the most loyal."

Cao De sighed.

No matter when, Cao Xiang is the one he trusts the most.

Cao Dezhen said,

"I! I can't just think about myself. I have the Prince of Jin, my family, and all my beloved ministers.

If the Yan people only spare my life but want to kill all the civil and military officials in the court, then I would rather not surrender and fight the Yan bandits to the death.

How about this, Mr. Huang, you go to the Yan army camp again and talk to Shen Changgong in detail.

If we all surrender, what should we do with my concubines, children, and the families of all the civil and military officials in the court?

While we still have an army of 200,000 and can still defeat the Yan people, we should strive for as many benefits as possible.

If the Yan people are stubborn and unyielding, we can fight them to the death and bleed them, making the battles they will fight in the future more difficult."

Hearing that Cao De cared so much about them, all the civil and military officials in the court were deeply moved and bowed their heads to express their gratitude.

After the court was dismissed, Cao De indeed sent a eunuch to supervise Cao Xiang's sleep.

Huang Tao also sighed and winked at his subordinates, asking them to take this opportunity to win over and instigate a few generals to rebel.

He himself got on the carriage and headed towards the Yan army camp under the escort of guards.

This time, he didn't know how the talks would turn out.

Although Shen Changgong had a good attitude, he was also very arrogant. There were at least tens of thousands of royal relatives, powerful officials and their families in Luoyang City.

These people are expensive to support, but they are unwilling to kill Emperor Wei. What should we do?