Chapter 21 deal with traitors

In December of the fourth year of Jian'an (199 A.D.), there was a sense of murder in Xudu City, and the northwest wind blew snowflakes across the streets and alleys.Groups of Cao Jun soldiers with helmets and armour, armed with knives and guns, patrolled back and forth in the hazy snow curtain.In these two days, everyone, regardless of whether they are scholars, farmers, businessmen, or businessmen, must stay at home honestly. Even if there is a big thing, it can't continue until the storm is over. Cao Cao was wearing a fox fur and sitting crookedly in the big tent, holding the hilt of his sword tightly in his hands, his emotions seemed a little excited, his eyes were piercingly looking at the flickering flames in the charcoal basin, but his face was expressionless .Standing beside him was Xu Chu, captain of Wumeng, with a sword in his uniform and a big iron spear in his hand, with a ferocious expression on his face; Guo Jia seemed to be worried, and his fair and handsome face was filled with a bit of unhappiness, and his usual laughter was gone. Scolding Gu Pan for his flying spirit, drooping his eyelids, he glanced at Mao Jie sitting across from him with his ashen face and bags under his eyes from time to time.Xiahou Dun was wearing armor inside and a war robe outside. He was sweating coldly in this tent that was burning with charcoal fire and leaking air. He stared at the thick curtain with his only eye.The other subordinates and generals also held their breath, stood, sat, and leaned on each other, like clay idols, not daring to move.Only Shu Zuo Fanqin held the inkstone in his hand, and from time to time leaned over to warm up in front of the charcoal basin, lest the ink freeze and cause trouble.Captain Duan Zhao and Ren Fu held their sabers in their hands, and tightly held the lifeless tent, not allowing anyone to come in casually.But just separated by a curtain, there are layers of soldiers outside, and there are many soldiers and members of the Cao family. Xiahou Dun's army Sima Han Hao and Liu Ruo personally supervise the guards, standing in the wind and snow without moving...

After being silent for a long time, it was Cao Cao's brother-in-law Bian Bingxian who broke the silence: "Master, it's getting late, you should have something to eat first." Cao Cao shook his head: "I can't eat it." "Is it possible to stay up all night? In two days, the army will be raised. What if I get sick at this time?" Cao Cao rubbed his face, showing a little tiredness: "After this happened, how can I swallow it even if there are delicious delicacies?" Everyone secretly touched their stomachs, seeing that it was almost Haishi, and the lamps were in their palms for a long time. If you don't eat, others can't eat.

Bian Bing looked left and right, and stood up: "It doesn't matter if we don't eat, the wife and children are still in the back camp, they must eat, right? I'll go take care of them and ask the cook to get them something to eat After saying that, seeing that Cao Cao had no objection, he stepped out. "Wait!" Cao Cao called to him, "The camp is too simple, and Chong'er, Xuan'er, and Jun'er are all young, so it's inevitable to cry. Ask your sister to take care of her, and entrust all the family affairs to her It's gone." Cao Cao knew in his heart that his wife, Ding's temper became more and more surly, and she couldn't count on anything, and Bian had to act as the hostess at critical moments.

"Don't worry, brother-in-law." Bian Bing had figured out when he was called the lord and what was called brother-in-law. "I'll come as soon as I go, and I will ask the chef to stew some squid soup. If you don't want to eat, you can drink some of that." It's done." After speaking, he lifted the curtain slightly with his own hands, and walked out sideways. As soon as Bian Bing left, the big tent fell silent again.Cao Cao leaned sideways on the handsome table, resting his right arm on his head, and sighed repeatedly.The situation for more than half a day is like a dream!He was fine when he left the palace in the afternoon. He was full of thoughts of "serving the emperor and not being a subject", and fought Yuan Shao with the justice of the court. But since Zhao Da informed him, everything changed... Che Qi General Dong Cheng, General Pian Wang Zifu, Changshui Xiaowei Zhongji, and Yilang Wu Shuo have already hatched a conspiracy under his nose. Cao Cao is almost in a situation of doom, and the most chilling thing is in their hands. He even holds the emperor's secret edict!I really don't know when Liu Xie became dissatisfied with his arbitrariness. Although he lived in the palace and was not free, he still came up with such a sinister method to sew the secret edict into the jade belt and bestow it on an inconspicuous little man.

Yilang Wu Shuo is also an old minister who returned from Longdong, but when he was in Chang'an, he flattered Li Jue and was even impeached by the imperial censor. Because he made some credit for escorting him when he returned from the east, he was lucky not to be classified as a criminal minister. .Living in Yilang has neither achievements nor positions, but he only relies on coaxing the emperor to be happy, and no one has put him in his eyes. Hearing that he was bestowed with a jade belt, anyone's reaction will only be disdainful .However, the fact is so unbelievable that Wu Shuo not only took the jade out of the palace swaggeringly, but also handed it over to Dong Cheng.Dong Cheng also found his confidant Zhong Ji, and the prince whose heart was more poisonous than a snake and a scorpion, and a coup plan to control Xudu came into being...Cao Cao couldn't imagine that if when he raised his troops to go north, These villains entered the palace in rebellion, manipulated the edict of the emperor, murdered Xiahou Dun, and declared themselves to be usurpers of the world. What would be the result?I am afraid that even if the soldiers in Guandu have not dispersed, they will be buried under Yuan Shao's swords and guns in panic!It's only two days before Cao Cao's departure from Beijing, it's scary to think about it!

But the embankment of a thousand miles was destroyed by ant nests, and Zhao Da, a gossiping villain, ruined the whole plan.In order to curry favor with Cao Cao, Zhao Da often contacted Dong Cheng's subordinates consciously and tried his best to find their weaknesses.There was a servant named Lu Hong beside Dong Cheng, who had a good relationship with Zhao Danai, and inadvertently revealed the whole story.The two conspired in private that instead of taking risks with Dong Cheng, it would be better to sell him in exchange for food, clothing and wealth, so they chased after Cao Cao's eagerness to show their favor, and confessed the whole plan.In order to prevent Dong Cheng and Liu Fu from fighting with trapped beasts, Cao Cao didn't even dare to go back to the shogunate. He immediately went to the Xingyuan tent to summon his subordinates, sent troops into the city to guard the palace, and moved all his family members here. Then he ordered the arrest of "traitors" .

Cao Cao crouched there, both angry and sad.His biggest asset is to obey the heavens to ask for disobedience, and now the emperor thinks that he is disobedient, what qualifications does he have to call himself the king, what qualifications does he have to deal with the hearts of the world, and what qualifications does he have to fight Yuan Shao... "The three adults are back!" There was a commotion outside, Duan Zhao and Ren Fu lifted the cotton curtain, and a fierce cold wind blew in.Ding Chong, Captain of Sili School, Yin Dongzhao from Henan, and Guang Luxun Xi Ji walked in, with snowflakes hanging on their heads and bodies.

Everyone was startled, Cao Cao immediately sat up straight: "How is it?" The three of them saluted together, and Dong Zhao reported, "The four traitors Dong, Liu, Wu, and Zhong have all been taken down, their families are all detained in the mansion, and all five hundred soldiers under their command have been disarmed. The four chief criminals were handed over to Xu Duling." The Manchurians interrogated, the three officials listened, and Zhao Da and Lu Hong confronted each other." It stands to reason that such a big case should be handled by Tingwei himself, but it involved the emperor's secret edict, how could Tingwei dare to stand out?Only three assistant officials, Dali Zheng, Dali Ping, and Dali Zuo, were sent to assist Cao Cao's confidant Xu Duling Manchong.

Cao Cao finally breathed a sigh of relief, and cursed, "These four diabolical bastards!" Xi Xi added: "The guards in the palace have all been replaced, and the servants are also being investigated, but no clues have been found, and it seems that no one is conspiring." From the perspective of his duties, the fewer people involved The more terrifying things are, it shows that the secret edict came from the emperor's heart, and he couldn't find a few scapegoats for the crime of "confusing the saints and alienating the ministers". Ding Chong's face was as gloomy as a dead man's. He took out a thin piece of silk from his pocket and carefully put it on the handsome case, and said in a low voice, "I brought this thing back..." He couldn't admit that it was an imperial edict, because once Recognition means that it is the meaning of the emperor, and now we have to put all the charges on Dong Cheng, Liu Fu and other four people, and try our best to maintain a harmonious face between the monarch and his subjects, so I have to say "this thing".

Cao Cao waved his hand: "I don't want to see..." Ding Chong swallowed his saliva and said, "Let's see, there is another person you can't think of participating." "Huh?" Cao Cao was baffled, patiently and apprehensively lifted the jade belt, and what he saw at a glance was dense blood.The emperor wrote this imperial edict with blood, what a hatred!Looking at the soul-shocking handwriting and the words of hatred and hatred, Cao Cao's hands still couldn't help shaking, his eyes were in a trance, his mind was blank, he couldn't see anything clearly, only the last sentence was deeply remembered." Punish this mad and rebellious minister's ear!" The word "ear" at the end is stretched vertically, and there are drops of blood dripping underneath.

He couldn't help closing his eyes to stabilize his mind, and covered the handwriting with his sleeve, only looking at the signatures at the bottom.Just between Wu Shuo's soft and boneless signature and Liu Fu's domineering signature, there is another participant—Left General Liu Bei! "Ah..." Cao Cao yelled, "Big-eared thief! I will tear your skin and cramps into pieces!" He yelled and threw the silk silk away, but the light thing refused to leave. After two rolls, it slowly fell back to the Shuai case. "My lord, calm down." Everyone fell to their knees. Cao Cao took a few breaths while resting his hands on the table, and the remaining rationality reminded himself to be calm, and he paused for a moment before saying, "Everyone get up... come here, let the three adults have seats." Duan Zhao and Ren Fu personally took the stools for the three of them, and some soldiers brought some lamps, and the three of them sat down after some courtesy.As soon as Dong Zhao's butt touched the stool, he immediately got to the point: "Since moving the capital to Xu County, Mr. Cao has served the king conscientiously, established the ancestral temple, challenged Yuan Shu, promoted Tuntian, and flattened Lu Bu, and made great contributions to the court. Today's emperor also trusts You Jiaduo has favored you, and regards Duke Cao as the Duke of Zhou and Yi Yin.” He changed his subject and became stricter, “Thinking of that thief minister Dong Cheng, who was originally a Xiliang rebel minister Dong Zhuo’s party, but seeing that my lord is a rare commodity to live in. Pretending to be hypocritical and pretending to be loyal and good. All evils and prostitution are the first, regardless of deeds; one hundred goodness and filial piety are the first, regardless of deeds. It is Cao Gong who is magnanimous, thinking that Dong Cheng is a foreign relative, and puts his heart in the rain and dew, hoping that he can curb his arrogance. However, Dong Cheng has no intention of repenting, and he rebelled wantonly in the dark room..." As he spoke, Dong Zhao suddenly pointed at the silk on the commander's case , "Collude with the same party to forge blood edicts! To deceive people and kill loyal and good people, and want to do the old evils of Yan Xian and Liang Ji. Not only deceive the emperor and plan mischief, but also want to drive a wedge between the emperor and Duke Cao, he is really the most vicious and treacherous person in the world !" Dong Zhao's grand thesis can be said to be the final word, insisting that the secret edict was forged and turned all the facts upside down.Everyone present understood what was going on, but they all nodded in agreement.They are all members of Cao Cao's boat, not only for the master, but also for their own wealth and life!Guo Jia glanced at Dong Zhao with a strange look—it's a good thing he made up such an "awe-inspiring" statement so quickly!Thinking about not wanting to be left behind, he also said loudly: "Dong Yinjun is right, and Wu Shuo and Zhong Ji are shameless villains. Liu Fu, as a clan, actually helps the tyrant. Please, Mr. Cao, put all these rebellious officials and thieves to death!" When he yelled like this, the others also yelled, aggressively and excitedly.Only Ding Chong, Xi Xi, Mao Jie, He Kui and a few more traditional people remained silent: Dong Cheng and Liu Fu are certainly black, but Cao Cao is not necessarily white. There is absolutely no distinction between good and evil in a scandal involving monarchs and ministers fighting for power. Cao Cao's waist stiffened, and he breathed a sigh of relief: "You are right. After the matter is judged, we will punish the traitor and traitor together!" Dong Zhao added: "It is a felony to conspire to cause chaos and kill the three princes. Please also punish them by annihilating their entire family." "That's right!" Cao Cao's words were just right for him, and he had to get rid of the roots. Xi Xi sat there frowning, there was something he wanted to mention all the time, but he hesitated to say it several times, now seeing that he could not bring it up, he got up and bowed, "Then Guiren Dong..." After only four words I don't know how to word it. But with just a few short words, the tent immediately became quiet.Dong Guiren is the daughter of Dong Cheng, if the whole family is going to be destroyed, is she one of them?Dong Zhao didn't even hesitate and said: "It's fortunate for the son of heaven to have Shunde. The Dong family has such a rebellious father. How can they serve the king and be executed together." In his mouth, Dong Guiren has been demoted to the Dong family. Xi Ji glanced at him, and thought to himself——the world can't write two characters of "Dong" in one stroke, you are really ruthless.Thinking of this, he cupped his hands again and said: "Mr. Cao, Mrs. Dong is certainly guilty, but she has been pregnant with the dragon seed for eight months. Shouldn't we deal with her after she is born?" Dong Zhao secretly laughed at his ignorance, how could such a disaster be left behind?He also retorted: "Master Xi is really a woman's benevolence. Since ancient times, in the palace, sons are more precious than mothers. Don't say that the prince has not been born, even if he was born, he should be punished for such madness." Without giving Xi Xi a chance to distinguish, he knelt down in front of the commander-in-chief, "Your nobleman is the son of the emperor, and he cannot be punished unless he is allowed by the emperor. I beseech you to call on the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty to kneel at the gate of the palace, and beg the emperor to uphold justice and cut off love!" A group of officials knelt down and begged, if the emperor ordered the killing of nobles, it would have nothing to do with Cao Cao, and there would be no blood stains. Cao Cao nodded again and again: "Very well, Mr. Yin can go." "No." Dong Zhao stood up, looked at Xi Xi and Ding Chong, and said, "My lords, come with me. Let's go separately and inform the ministers." Xi Xi swallowed his saliva and had no choice but to follow him.Ding Chong took out a wine gourd from his bosom, he couldn't change his hobby even if he was a great official, so he took a sip before following him out. The three of them stepped out, and before the curtain fell, they saw Xu Duling Manchong hurrying over, Cao Cao was surprised: "Is the interrogation over so soon?" Man Chong, who had always been stern and steady, had a look of embarrassment on his face at this moment, knelt down and said: "There are twists and turns in this case, and the lower officials dare not be self-reliant." He said and handed over a bamboo slip, "This is the confession of Dong Cheng and Liu Fu." Cao Cao didn't even look at it: "What's the matter?" Man Chong lowered his head: "This is not just a case of murdering a minister, but also treason." "Treason?!" Cao Cao cheered up. "Dong Cheng and others will make Liu Fu, the prince of Liang, the emperor after their plan is completed!" The people present were all dumbfounded, and they didn't expect that there would be unexpected gains.Cao Cao quickly picked up the confession and took a closer look: Dong Cheng recruited Prince Fu to threaten him with military power, forcing Dong Cheng to make him emperor after the incident, and also revealed the whole situation of the two people's conspiracy in the rainy day; He testified that he only confessed under torture, but he said that Dong Cheng pretended to agree, but in fact he wanted to become a general of his relatives.The two slandered each other and blamed each other, and both blamed each other for more crimes. "Just these two guys still want to fight with me? The emperor just..." The emperor has taken a fancy to these two careerists!This cannot be said.Cao Cao felt both sad and funny, and suddenly let out a strange laugh, which sounded a bit like crying. This matter gave Cao Cao a handle. It is far worse to charge Dong Cheng and others with the crime of "murdering the three princes" than to charge them with a "crime of treason".Now that things have come to this point, it is only natural that the whole family is involved and Dong Guiren is abolished.Seeing Cao Cao laughing terribly, Man Chong cleared his throat and reminded, "It's not easy to handle Liu Fu's identity." Guo Jia and others on the side were terrified when they heard that Liu Fu was the son of Liang Wang Liu Mi. This incident was not only a rebellion by the ministers, but also a rebellion by the clan, which would implicate the King of Liang.Things are getting bigger and bigger, no wonder Man Chong is hesitant.Guo Jia stood up and wanted to remonstrate, but saw Cao Cao suppress his smile, threw the bamboo slips onto the Shuai case, and said to Man Chong gloomily, "Why do you come to ask me with such ironclad evidence? The country has national laws, and the prince of Liang is awarded Just do what you want to do with the sin. You can’t live without doing your own sin. Didn’t you have such a thing beforehand? Why don’t you just do it.” According to the story of this dynasty, the clan kings would lose their fiefdoms if they misbehaved, and they would definitely die if they were suspected of treason.When Emperor Ming was in power, King Jing of Guangling conspired to seize the throne and was forced to commit suicide; King Ying of Chu made a prophecy to make friends with magicians and committed suicide in fear; when Emperor He was in power, King Suan of Qinghe was falsely accused of treason by Liang Ji, relegated and persecuted, and sealed off the country Abolished; the closest Lingdi Dynasty, King Kui of Bohai was falsely accused of treason by the eunuch Wang Fu and forced to commit suicide. Nearly a hundred relatives died together in prison. The Bohai Kingdom was abolished. All crimes were executed... If this example is followed, Liang Wang Liu Mi must die, and his concubines will not be able to keep.But in this sensitive period, how easy is it to criticize the killing of the clan?As long as this step is taken, everyone in the world will doubt Cao Cao's intentions, and the imminent war will affect the direction of public opinion in the world. Guo Jia, Mao Jie and others all stood up: "Master, please think twice..." Cao Cao waved his hand, not only was there no emotion on his face, on the contrary there was a murderous look on his face, and he said coldly: "I don't hate Dong Cheng at all, who told me to rob him of his power in the first place? But why did Liu Fu Harm me? On the day when he raised the army, he secretly had a heart for self-reliance. Treated him badly? I haven’t enjoyed a day like this myself!” This is true, Cao Cao’s life is extraordinarily frugal, “Not to mention what kind of crime is conspiracy to usurp? He asked for the extermination of the clan. Even if Liang Wangmi didn't know what happened, he can only blame him for raising a good son, and the story of this dynasty will be followed." The truth cannot be said to be wrong, but in this embarrassing period, how many people are staring at him with wide eyes!Even if it is fair, it is not fair, and the infamy of harming the clan cannot escape.Guo Jia and Mao Jie looked at each other, and both wanted to persuade Cao Cao a few more words, but seeing Cao Cao's serious face, he swallowed the words again.Man Chong put his heart to one side, gritted his teeth and said: "I understand, I will definitely handle this case thoroughly!" After saying that, he turned around and wanted to leave. "Bonin wait a minute..." Everyone thought that Cao Cao was thinking about it, but he brought up another matter: "I have appointed Li Tong as a general in the form, and asked him to be stationed in Runan. After finishing this case, I will transfer you to Ru Prefect Nan. Go back and get ready." "No." Man Chong's heart was like a mirror.Runan is Yuan's hometown, and many of his disciples and old officials will meet here. Cao Cao appointed him as the prefect of Runan, and asked him to help Li Tong take care of those people.When Man Chong walked out of the big tent, he had already started planning a plan to suppress the Runan Township Party in his mind... Man Chong had just left for a while, and heard the report from the guards outside: "Xun Lingjun and Old Changbo Liu are here!" The curtain was raised, and Xun Yu, covered in snow, walked in slowly with the help of the old servant Liu Miao. Cao Cao's heart skipped a beat—what kind of trouble is this old man here to cause!