The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

As the most powerful weapon of public opinion in the Han Dynasty, newspapers quickly spread far and wide, even reaching Cao Wei.

Upon seeing the newspaper, the Han Dynasty was naturally overjoyed and their confidence soared. This surge in confidence also gave the court greater support. All levels of society became law-abiding and content, no longer harboring any wild thoughts. Even Sun Quan sent a letter of congratulations, completely abandoning his illusions and deciding to actively support Liu Bei's Northern Expedition.

In contrast, the situation was quite different in Cao Wei. When the local gentry saw the newspapers, they were all thrown into panic, and their morale began to waver.

The pseudo-Han dynasty only sent Shen Yi and a few spies to capture the two generals Wen Ping and Tian Yu. If the Five Tiger Generals and the Twelve Tiger Ministers of Jiangdong had attacked together, would Cao Wei still have a chance of winning?

Since there's no chance of winning, shouldn't we start planning for the future?

Under these circumstances, the news traveled all the way north and soon reached Luoyang.

Luoyang City, the Imperial Palace.

As time went by, the new furniture of the Han Dynasty gradually spread to Cao Wei, and Cao Pi's imperial study was also equipped with the same mahogany desk as Liu Bei's.

At this moment, Cao Pi looked at the crumpled newspaper that his subordinate had just brought, which he had crumpled into a ball, and then helplessly unfolded it on the table, his eyes filled with confusion.

Suddenly a gust of wind blew by, and Cao Pi shivered violently from the cold. He subconsciously shrank into the chair, stretched out his hands to hug his legs, and curled himself into a ball. He looked just like an orphan who had been abandoned by his parents, relatives and even the whole world, and his whole body exuded a sense of despair and helplessness.

Upon receiving Tian Yuwenpin's memorial, he immediately mobilized a large army to support Jiangxia. However, Shen Yi was so ruthless that he blocked all the passages into Jiangxia, causing tens of thousands of troops to be trapped and unable to pass through.

What made Cao Pi even more desperate was that Liu Bei's reinforcements arrived too quickly. He ordered Zhang Fei to advance with light cavalry, and together with Shen Yi, they easily wiped out Wen Ping and Tian Yu's tens of thousands of troops.

The losses of Wen Ping's 30,000 to 40,000 border troops, Zhou Tai's 20,000 surrendered troops, and Xiahou Chong's 5,000 cavalry lent to Tian Yu were too heavy.

What pained him even more than the loss of his army was Jiangxia. Jiangxia was too important. If Liu Bei occupied Jiangxia, he could cross the Sui-Zhang Corridor to the west to attack Nanyang, enter Runan to the north to threaten Xudu, and cross the Dabie Mountains to the east to spy on Hefei. This meant that he had completely seized the strategic initiative.

On the other hand, if Jiangxia is lost, three to five times the number of troops will be sent to garrison Nanyang, Runan and Hefei. Where will I get so many troops?

This is just Jiangxia; if you look at the whole country, the situation is even more hopeless.

With Liu Bei occupying the Longxi highlands in the west and eyeing Chang'an, Liu Bei also controlled the natural barrier of the Yangtze River in the south, and even the seas in the east were filled with Liu Bei's warships. In addition, Gongsun Yuan was entrenched on the Korean Peninsula. Cao Wei was essentially surrounded by Liu Bei on three sides. How could they possibly win?

Cao Pi grew increasingly desperate as he thought about it. Overwhelmed by the pain, he couldn't catch his breath and began to cough. Unexpectedly, the coughing became more and more severe, and the pain made him instinctively reach out to cover his mouth. When he finally stopped coughing and looked up, he found his palm covered in blood.

Looking at the bright red blood in his palm, Cao Pi smiled bitterly and muttered to himself, "Liu Bei, it seems I not only can't defeat you, but I might not even outlive you..."

Thinking of this, Cao Pi shouted outside, "Someone, convey my decree, ordering Grand Tutor Zhong and the others to return and continue to gather supplies and troops according to the original plan, striving to fight Liu Bei in a decisive battle by the end of the year. Our life or death will depend on this battle."

At the same time the newspapers entered the palace, a group of important officials, including Zhong Yao, Liu Ye, and Sima Yi, also entered the palace to meet the emperor, but Cao Pi did not receive them.

Things have come to this point, what's the point of meeting with high-ranking officials other than joining in the cursing?

Cao Pi did not grant them an audience, so Zhong Yao, Liu Ye, and the others could only wait outside the palace. Unexpectedly, after waiting for so long, Cao Pi told them to go back.

After chasing away the annoying old men outside the hall, Cao Pi took out the letter that Cao Cao had left for Liu Bei from the drawer.

He had read this letter countless times, to the point that he could recite it by heart. Now, he took it out not to read it again, but to reminisce over it.

He misses his dad!

Only now did Cao Pi truly understand the hardships Cao Cao had faced back then. The resentment he felt towards Cao Cao for suppressing him for so many years vanished. Looking at the letter, he murmured to himself, "Father, if you were me, could you break through this predicament with Liu Bei like this?"

Cao Cao naturally couldn't give him an answer, so Cao Pi had no choice but to put the letter back in the drawer, grab the armrest and struggle to get up, then went to Empress Dowager Bian's palace in a daze.

Cao Pi's decision to bring all of his father's concubines into the harem greatly displeased Empress Dowager Bian, leading to a strained relationship between the mother and son recently. As soon as Cao Pi entered the room, Empress Dowager Bian said sarcastically, "Hey, Your Majesty, why aren't you enjoying yourself in the harem today? What are you doing here?"

Cao Pi did not refute, but instead, like a child who had been wronged and finally saw his parents, he whispered with tears in his eyes, "Mother..."

The Empress Dowager's heart skipped a beat at the sound of Cao Pi calling her "Mother." She stared at Cao Pi with a complicated expression for a long time before finally sighing, "Zihuan, what's wrong?"

No matter how wicked Cao Pi was, he was still her own son. How could a mother really turn against her son?

Cao Pi walked up to Empress Dowager Bian, squatted down, and rested his head on her knees, saying in a wronged tone, "Mother, let me lean on you for a while."

Lady Bian did not refuse. Instead, she glanced at the newspaper on the table, reached out and stroked his head, and sighed, "What is destined to be yours will be yours, and what is not, you cannot force. This throne originally belonged to the Liu family, and it is only right to return it to them. So, Zihuan, just do your best and leave the rest to fate. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

"When you took Liu Bei's two daughters into your harem, I had some reservations. But now it seems it might not be such a bad thing. If you can get them to have a child, our Cao family will have a successor."

Although Empress Dowager Bian knew that Liu Bei was benevolent and righteous, and that he would most likely not exterminate the Cao family, who could say for sure?

Rather than placing all hope on Liu Bei's benevolence and righteousness, it would be safer to have Cao Pi give birth to a grandson for Liu Bei.

Cao Pi did not answer, but simply hugged Empress Bian even tighter.

Empress Dowager Bian didn't say anything more, but gently stroked Cao Pi's head as she had when he was a child, remaining silent even as her legs went numb from being pressed down.

After lingering in this tender moment for an unknown period of time, Cao Pi finally composed himself, rose to his feet, and regained his imperial demeanor. He bowed to Empress Dowager Bian and said, "Mother, rest assured, I know what to do. I will go see the General (Cao Ren) first, and then we will have dinner together when I return."

After being enlightened by Empress Dowager Bian, he came to a realization: do your best and leave the rest to fate. Whatever the outcome, just accept it calmly and leave the rest to destiny. At worst, he would end up like Wang Mang, with his head separated from his body. How much worse could things get?

With this mindset, Cao Pi's mood improved considerably. He left Lady Bian's palace and set off directly for the residence of General Cao Ren.

After Cao Cao's death, Cao Ren's health deteriorated, and recently he has been bedridden. Cao Pi had no choice but to urgently summon Hua Tuo to treat him.

Upon arriving at the General's residence, Cao Pi dismissed the servants who were about to announce his arrival and went straight to Cao Ren's bedroom. Cao Ren instinctively tried to rise and bow when he entered, but Cao Pi quickly ran to the bedside, pressed him down, and said, "Uncle Zixiao, there's no need for formalities. Today we are uncle and nephew, not ruler and subject. How is your illness? What did Physician Hua say?"

Cao Ren lay down and sighed, "That's just how it is. I suffered too many injuries when I was young, and now that I'm older, all sorts of illnesses have come to me."

As a general who fought for many years, his diet and daily routine were completely disrupted, and he was often injured. When he was young, his body was strong enough that he didn't have any problems, but as he got older, all sorts of problems came to the fore.

This shows that illness is a bully that preys on the weak and fears the strong, only targeting the elderly.

Cao Ren asked, "I heard that Sun Lang has rebelled in Runan. How is the battle going?"

Cao Pi was worried that his illness would keep him from learning about the war, so Cao Ren was unaware of the recent situation in Jiangxia.

Although the specific details of the battle are unknown, Cao Pi's visit at this time must have been due to something bad. If it were something good, why would Cao Pi remember his uncle?