Chapter 3 Lixian Corporal

Xing Yong, a commoner, was pulled by Cao Cao and walked side by side, and all the generals and subordinates had to dodge to the left and right.The victorious teacher sang triumphantly and returned to the camp not long after. The current Cao army is not what it used to be. The old lineage and the newly attached Hebei people, the soldiers are like soldiers and generals, and the generals and officials sent by Cao Cao are like a small court. Recently, many local officials have come. However, there was no room in the Chinese army's tent, so a temporary commander's platform was set up in the camp as early as possible.This platform is more than one foot high, with Baiyan on the left and a yellow ax hanging on the right. There is only one single seat and a handsome desk.

Cao Cao dismounted from his horse and entered the Yuan Gate, and immediately stepped onto the stage, turned around and said: "Add a seat on the handsome stage, Mr. Xing, please rest!" Xing Yong was taken aback, and dared not overstep even more.Dong Zhao, an admonishing doctor, walked out of the side and said with a smile: "Mr. Xing, since you are here, you will be safe. Please go up and rest." Luo Quan bowed and sat on the stool beside him. At this moment, the entire battalion of civil and military personnel are standing, except for Cao Cao, he is the only one who has a seat, how small is this?Xing Yong also gradually let go, looking at the densely packed subordinates below, many of whom were familiar faces, including Wang Xiu, Li Fu, Linghu Shao, etc. under Yuan Shao's tent in the past, Lu Yu, the son of the late Shangshu Lu Zhi, Han Nei, etc. Zhang Cheng, the younger brother of Zhang Fan, a famous scholar, was also among them.These prominent figures in Hebei are now at his feet, and Xing Yong suddenly feels glorious, and his dream of official career that has been sleeping for many years has been completely awakened.

After arranging for Cao Cao to be seated, he saw a middle-aged general with a clean face and long beard kneeling out of the squad, holding a bulging package in his hand: "The last general Jin defeated the rebels in the East China Sea and beheaded the traitor Chang Xi. Please take a look at it, my lord!" Chang Xi was originally the name of Chang Ba bandit, so Yu Jin called it like this, which shows contempt. The soldiers took over the head and put it on the commander's platform. Cao Cao didn't look at it seriously: "I heard that Changxi was out of food and grass, so I surrendered on my own initiative. Why didn't Wen Ze ask my life and behead him privately?"

Yu Jin was respectful and respectful: "My lord has an order, those who besiege the city and surrender later will not be forgiven." Cao Cao twisted his beard with his hand and said: "Although the law of besieging and then surrendering is not pardonable, it is not a violation of orders to send him prisoner. Besides, Changxi and you are from the same hometown of Mount Tai. Several armies besieged the city. He surrendered to you alone. Use your fellow countryman's face to beg for work from this old man. It's good for Wen Ze not to show favoritism, but if you cut it first and play later, won't you be afraid that the world will say that you are mean and ruthless?"

Yu Jin clasped his fists in both hands and vowed: "Following the law and enforcing orders is the most important thing. Although Chang Xi is a fellow villager, how dare the general dare to lose his morals for personal gain? Besides, Chang Xi has a heart of thieves. This is already his fifth rebellion. How can he be forgiven?" Isn’t it the ambition of a long-term bandit? I’m afraid that people in the world will think that the Lord’s law enforcement is lenient, and if things go wrong in the future, they will raise troops to rebel, and when the rebels are defeated, they will surrender and live. When will the world be safe in this cycle?”

Cao Cao naturally understood this truth, but a small Changxi, with only a thousand or eight hundred people under his command, really wanted to take his life and would have taken his life long ago, how could he allow him to rebel five times?Cao Cao was determined to go one step further towards imperial power, so he wanted to show benevolence and justice to win over people; leaving a person who was forgiven for rebelling five times was actually a cover, and he could use this to show the world how broad-minded he is. Although Yu Jin is a military commander, he is as careful as a hair. When he saw Cao Cao's subtle expression, he guessed exactly what he was thinking, and quickly said it comprehensively: "It is true that the lord is kind to the world, and he has the virtue of benevolence and forgiveness. There are always stubborn people in the world. Those who can distinguish right from wrong appreciate the kindness of the lord, while those who don't know the truth may say that we are incompetent in using troops, and that we can't be defeated in five attacks! If this is the case, the last general will take the name of meanness. As long as My lord can wipe out the smoke and conquer the world, but I don't hesitate to smear my heart and brains, why should I be afraid of criticizing and slandering?"

These words are both praiseworthy and loyal, not like what a martial artist said at all. Cao Cao nodded again and again: "Wen is loyal! This matter is neither to blame for the old man's tolerance, nor to blame for the harshness of the text, but to blame Chang Ba Don’t think carefully about the matter. One-way text please surrender, isn’t it fate? The rebellion should be punished, and it is a great merit for the text!” Cao Cao was satisfied, but the other generals were uncomfortable when they heard it, and they all felt that Yu Jin's flattery was too blatant.What are you talking about, you are not afraid of criticism, is it true that other than him, other people are not loyal ministers?Zhang Liao was standing beside Yu Jin. He had old friends with Zang Ba, Sun Guan, and Chang Ba. Good news! Just now I beheaded Liu Yi, the captain of the bandit army, and here is his head!"

Zhang Liao was not as reserved as Yu Jin, he didn't wrap his head up at all, and held it up in a bun for Cao Cao to see.The head had just been severed and it was still hot, dripping with blood.All the literati frowned when they saw this scene, some of them covered their faces with their sleeves, and Xing Yong felt anxious on top; Zhang Liao didn't care, and turned around deliberately, shaking the bloody head in front of Jin's eyes, full of fighting spirit—— Your meritorious deeds are the surrender of others, and you turned your face and slaughtered them ruthlessly. I was cut down by the two armies!

Yu Jin lowered his eyelids with a sneer, and retreated silently without arguing with Zhang Liao.Cao Cao looked up to the sky and laughed: "Okay! The enemy army was in chaos just now, so I guessed that you were the one who made the contribution. The old man heard that Liu Yi had persuaded Gongsundu and his son to pretend to be 'King of Liaodong', so it can be seen that he is also a lawless person. Well done, to Wen General Yuan also made a great contribution." "Thank you, my lord!" Zhang Liao said with a smile on his face, "Although Liu Yi is dead, the pirate Guan Cheng has escaped. Finally, the general is willing to ask for an arrow to capture and kill this thief."

"Wait a minute!" A local official in Qingzhou in the east came out, "I have a lowly position to report." Cao Cao glanced at it—it was He Kui and He Shulong, the prefects of Changguang.Changguang was originally a county, but because Guan Cheng, Liu Yi, etc. made trouble here, they deliberately changed the county to a county to strengthen governance.Presumably what He Kui is going to say is related to the matter of hunting for thieves. Sure enough, He Kui said bluntly: "The humble official wants to ask the Lord to suspend the use of troops." "Why?"

"Coastal islands are scattered here and there, and Guan Cheng has been familiar with the geography for many years. I fear that our army's rash actions will not only fail to capture him, but will cause him to harm others. Moreover, although Guan Cheng's people are pirates, there are many fishermen among them. Yuan Tan exploited the people's wealth for the sake of the government, and forced them to lose their lives before they became thieves. His feelings were very pitiful. There was a county official named Huang Zhen who had a lot of contacts with Guan Cheng in his early years. He asked to send him to sea to lobby Guan Cheng. If you can make them surrender, then the thief will become the people and the coast will be at peace." He Kui said lightly, but his heart was beating secretly, and he couldn't help reaching out to dig into his sleeves—he was from a wealthy family in Yuzhou, and his political philosophy was to make full use of the wealthy family. Try not to intervene if you can, and turn big things into small things to nothing. Although there are some achievements, this is after all contrary to Cao Cao's political style of suppressing local tyrants.He Kui was also a subordinate of Sikong Mansion before he took office, and he knew that Cao Cao was irritable, and if his subordinates did not do things as they wanted, they would often reprimand him.He was also a famous official, and he valued his face more than his life, and he never wanted to be humiliated in front of others, so he carried a bottle of poison in his sleeve. If Cao Cao ordered to be punished, he would immediately drink the medicine and kill himself! Cao Cao thought for a moment, then nodded in approval: "This is a heart of benevolence! If this is the case, the matter of recruiting security will be handled by you." Only then did He Kui let go of the medicine bottle, and let out a sigh of relief: "I obey my orders." This is all that should be dealt with, and everyone has no more words. Cao Cao looks at civil and military affairs all over the place, and said earnestly: "Now Liu Yi and Chang Xi are in command, the strategy of recruiting security and management has been decided, and Zang Ba, Sun Guan and others have also entered Jinan. The rebellion is not long. It will be decided. After Qingzhou is stabilized, the proposal to abolish the eight vassal states can be implemented smoothly!" He already has the heart to usurp the Han and stand on his own. In addition to unifying the world as soon as possible, the abolition of the Han vassal states is also an indispensable step.This time Cao Cao wanted to abolish the eight counties of Qi, Beihai, Fuling, Xiapi, Changshan, Ganling, Jibei, and Pingyuan in one breath. On the surface, no one dared to say anything, but privately, there was a lot of discussion.Today, when I took the initiative to mention this matter, everyone was surprised and lowered their heads to listen quietly. Cao Cao said with a sincere face, "Recently, there have been people in the court and the army talking about it, saying that I have ulterior motives in abolishing the country and making it a county. Gentlemen are magnanimous, and villains often feel sorry for each other. Even if some people don't understand, I will still This should be done. In the past, the reason why Emperor Guangwu divided the princes and kings was not only to treat the clan well, but also to let them defend the court and stabilize the people. The king has done a good job in government affairs... Since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, instead of rising up to save the country, the clan kings have been afraid of the head and tail. When Zhang Jiao rebelled, Changshan King Liu Hao and Xiapi King Liu Yi fled regardless of their country and abandoned their country, becoming the laughing stock of the whole world! Are they still worthy of splitting the land? There are also some princes and kings who have passed away for a long time. The world is in turmoil and they can’t find their descendants, so they have to be abolished. A place without a king is still called a county, and even raises a bunch of useless subordinates. It is a waste of national power and people's wealth!" Having said that, Cao Cao felt that the reason was sufficient, and began to recycle: "Of course, where there is abolishment, there will be establishment. A few days ago, I sent people to investigate and found the son of the late Langya King Liu Rong, named Liu Xi. This man Although he is not the son of Liu Rong, he is respectful, courteous, generous and virtuous. The old man has submitted to the imperial court to order him to be the successor of Langya King and restore the prefecture to inherit his ancestral business. Let the world see that Mr. Cao is fair and selfless and has no intention of overstepping! "There is another hidden story about this matter. Cao Cao abolished eight vassal states at a time. If he didn't set up a symbolic one as a foil, he would probably attract too much criticism; moreover, in the past, he welcomed the emperor to Xudu more than the late attendant. Liu Miao Zhili, Langya King Liu Rong is Liu Miao's elder brother, and Liu Xi is Liu Miao's nephew, so this is reciprocation.How could Cao Cao have such kindness if he changed to another country? Xing Yong had never been an official in the court, so naturally he didn't understand the hidden truth, and he thought that he was just, strict and unafraid of criticism; and in connection with a series of things he saw and heard these days, he felt that Cao Cao was a powerful, moral, wise and brave national pillar. Having made up his mind to help, he secretly laughed at Tian Chou for being too cautious, asking himself to observe and test is really unnecessary... Cao Cao walked up and down, talking eloquently. At the end, he seemed to inadvertently walk up to the military adviser Xun You, and raised his voice: "What should be abolished should be abolished, and what should be established must be established. This is the principle that will never change. What? I know what to do when the time comes. I hope you guys can figure it out too, don’t let us live up to the friendship of our soldiers and horses for half a lifetime... let’s break up the account.” He said for a long time, only the last few words were sincere. "Promise." All the civil and military personnel returned to their respective battalions, and Xun You also walked away with his head down.Cao Cao looked at his back and let out a sigh of relief—Xun Yu, who co-founded his business back then, has now become the biggest obstacle in the court against him stepping on the throne of the emperor. Beating the side drums... I was stunned for a moment before I remembered that there was another person sitting on the stage!Looking back, Xing Yong had already come down, and gave him a deep salute: "Minggong's actions have opened my eyes. I expected the enemy's decisive victory, and I was a corporal, and I clearly judged rewards and punishments. I am worthy of being a good minister of the dynasty." "Why is there such a ridiculous praise, sir? I am ashamed of myself." Cao Cao waved his hands repeatedly. Xing Yong was overwhelmed with admiration, and was fascinated by his courtesy. He had already made up his mind to reveal his intentions: "To be honest, I am not here for an ordinary visit, but to conquer Karasuma." "Oh? What a coincidence!" Cao Cao stroked his beard, "I also have the same idea, but the place where Karasuma and Yuan Shang stationed their troops was in Liucheng (now Chaoyang County, Liaoning Province), which is six hundred miles away from Wuzhong County. The mountains and rivers are treacherous. Although our army has no food and roads and no knowledge of the terrain, how should we march? It would be great if someone who is familiar with the road acts as a guide..." Xing Yong took two steps back and paid homage: "If Duke Ming does not give up, I am willing to lead the way!" How can there be such a coincidence in the world?Cao Cao was short of a guide, so a guide appeared by himself?Xing Yong really fell into Cao Cao's trap! The problem lies in the half a month when he settled in Yecheng.When Cao Cao was not in Yecheng, Cao Pi was nominally staying behind. In fact, the military affairs were in charge of Xun Yan, the captain of the military academy, and the government affairs were handled by the chief officer Cui Yan. It can be regarded as allowing him to catch an opportunity to show his courtesy and corporal, so he is very polite and courteous.But after a long time, Cao Pi found that Xing Yong seemed to come with a big purpose, and Liu Zhen, Ruan Yu and other smart people talked with him every day, and found that he would always mention Karasuma, so he already figured out the purpose of coming. Knowing the reason, Cao Pi secretly sent a letter to Cao Ying early on.Cao Cao and Dong Zhao made a plan and made detailed arrangements.That's why when Xing Yong came, he lined up to greet him, to watch the military power, and to go on stage with glory.Even if Xing Yong is famous, how can he have such an honor?In fact, even this handsome platform was built by Dong Zhao just the day before, and Cao Cao's purpose was to get a guide to help the army go to Karasuma. Cao Cao succeeded with all his efforts, but he still pretended not to know, and said with his hands together: "Oh! I didn't expect that the distance is far away, and the master knows the way to Liucheng? You are willing to be a guide, and the old man can't wait for it." "I have lived in Xuwu Mountain for many years, and the road here has already been figured out. If you go out of the mountain and follow the west, pass Lingzhi (now Qian'an City, Hebei Province), pass Feiru (now Lulong County, Hebei Province), and follow the small road along the coast, you will be able to The soldiers arrived at Liucheng. With the army of Ming Gong's soldiers, the prowess of war, and the virtue of gentleness, breaking Karasuma is nothing more than a simple effort." "If this achievement is successful, it's all due to the master's strength!" "Don't dare," Xing Yong said again, "I only know the road a little bit. If you want to defeat the enemy, you need another person. In the past, Youzhou worked in Tianchou and I hid in the mountains together. I know the habits and the inside information of the tribe very well, if I get his help again, it will be ten times better! To be honest, he is the one who asked me to come to see you!" Just because he was happy for a while, he sold Tian Chou too. "Okay!" Cao Cao clapped his palms and laughed, "Could it be Tian Zitai, who travels far outside the Great Wall and presents a gift to Xijing? This old man has known his name for a long time, and I have heard that Yuan Shao and his son have repeatedly refused to follow suit. How should we invite him out of the mountain?" Xing Yong patted his chest: "Wrap it on me." "Sir, be happy!" Everything was as Cao Cao wished, and this hard work was finally not in vain. Dong Zhao watched from the side, and seemed to think that Cao Cao was not polite enough, so he also ran over to make fun of him: "How will my lord treat Mr. Xing?" This sentence reminded Cao Cao, so he went on to say politely: "The banquet is held in the Chinese military tent, and the old man will hold the lamp with the gentleman himself." Dong Zhao chimed in: "Mr. Xing didn't know something. Mr. Cao issued a prohibition order, and he was not allowed to drink alcohol. He made an exception just because you came. Don't let this kindness live up to you! Walk around, let's discuss the use of soldiers while drinking." This matter." He pushed behind, and Cao Cao gave way in the front, coaxing Xing Yong into a happy smile. The three of them were chatting and laughing as they were about to enter the big tent, and saw the school official Zhao Da running over, whispering in Cao Cao's ear: "Lu Hong has sent a secret report from Xu, a few days ago, Chen Qun, the servant of the censor, wrote a letter requesting The imperial court is discussing the reform of the criminal law. The criminal law is the key code of the country, how can it be changed at will? Is there any conspiracy against you? My lord, you must investigate." The school's errand is to monitor the words and deeds of the officials and secretly report to Cao Cao, Zhao Da He just came here from Xudu last night. Hearing that the accounts were scattered, he hurried to make a small report. Cao Cao ignored Zhao Da, lifted the curtain with his own hands, and asked Dong Zhao to accompany Xing Yong to go in first, then turned around and said, "You made a mistake, the old man ordered Chen Qun to do the reform of the criminal law." Zhao Da was secretly startled—the school errands were secretive enough, but Cao Cao had some arrangements that even he didn't know about!He didn't dare to ask any more questions, so he reported the truth: "Chen Qun wrote a letter asking for a court discussion, but Xun Lingjun suppressed it because it was untimely. Somehow the news leaked out, and Kong Rong suddenly mentioned this matter at the court meeting, and then told Xi Xi about it." When there was a commotion in the palace, Xun Lingjun was so angry that he ended the court meeting early." Chen Qun, the official censor, and Kong Rong, a doctor of the Taizhong, had forgotten their old friends, but since they were quickly promoted by Cao Cao, they gradually alienated Kong Rong; Guanglu Doctor Xi Ji and Kong Rong have always been at odds. One is a disciple of Confucianism and the other is an empress of a sage, and they look down on each other. When Cao Cao heard that there was a disturbance at the court meeting, instead of being angry, he gloated: "It's a good trouble! Let them make trouble. Because this kind of incident has caused trouble, I have no time to meddle in the old man's business. You don't have to worry about this matter. We will find out in the future.” If you don't let me control it, what else can Zhao Da say?Backing away, he saluted and said: "My lord is far-sighted and has insight into the details, and I will wait for nothing..." Saying this, he was about to leave. "Slow!" Cao Cao called him back, "I have something to inform you. Yesterday I appointed Gao Rou as the assassination commander. From now on, you and Lu Hong will be counted as his subordinates in name, but important matters are still handled directly." Report to me." Zhao Da was very upset——Cao Cao had promised that he and another school official, Lu Hong, could serve as the assassination commander if they put their heart into it.But Zhao Dasu had always been kind and cruel, and he didn't dare to show any displeasure in front of Cao Cao. He just laughed and said, "I will follow my lord's orders and follow Gao Lingshi to serve the court well." "What did you say?" Cao Cao glared at him. Zhao Da knew that he had lost his words, so he quickly changed his words: "It is to serve the master and do a good job." "Well, that's right. Write a letter to Lu Hong and ask him to keep an eye on Kong Rong..." Cao Cao had just said this, and when he saw Guo Jia leading Hua Tuo over, he quickly stopped talking——Guo Jia That's all, Hua Tuo is not qualified enough to listen to his secrets. Guo Jia bowed to him and smiled: "My lord, Mr. Hua Tuo's wife is ill, and he urgently needs to go back for treatment. You also know that he is an honest man, so I'm sorry to ask you. Let me help to ask for favors, and let him go back to his hometown." Cao Cao smiled: "Why is it inconvenient to speak up? Sir, you have worked hard in recent years, and even cured the old man's headache. Could it be that you can't treat your own family's illness? I will give you a travel expense. Come back to work." "Thank you, Duke Cao!" Hua Tuo saluted respectfully. Cao Cao grabbed his wrist and whispered, "The medicine you prepared for my husband and wife is very good, Mrs. Bian is pregnant again. I didn't expect to be able to conceive after the age of forty. It's really like an old cow giving birth to a unicorn." Lah! Go early and come back early, I can't do without you." After saying that, he greeted Guo Jia, "You came just in time, drink with us." Guo Jia declined and said, "This subordinate has been suffering from spleen and stomach discomfort for the past two days. It would be nice to have Gongren to accompany you." Cao Cao also felt that Guo Jia had lost a lot of weight recently, but he didn't take it too seriously: "It's good to join in the fun without drinking." "The subordinates still don't join in the fun, go back and think about the strategy of using troops." "You! Don't you like the excitement the most? Why did you change your sex?" Cao Cao was used to joking with him, "People who change their sex for no reason will die soon, so be careful! Hahaha..." He looked up big as he spoke Laughing paid off. Hua Tuo was a little embarrassed: "Following the great kindness and virtue of filial piety, the old man will never forget it in this life!" He bowed deeply as he spoke. Zhao Da was still standing on the side, Guo Jia was afraid that he would see something wrong, so he forced a smile on his face: "It's not a trivial matter, sir, pack up your things quickly. In a few days, it will be hard to go when the weather gets cold." "Alas..." Hua Tuo's words trembled a little, "Then I'll go... Be filial and cherish it!" After saying that, he turned his head cruelly. Zhao Da looked at it in a daze: "What's the matter with this old guy? He's saluting and crying, and he's treating other people. I think he's sick himself!" Guo Jia quickly covered it up: "Cough! A small official who treats a disease has never seen anything in the world. I said a few good things for him, so I took me as a benefactor." "Maybe it's because I've been doing this job for a long time. Everyone has problems." "Are you seeing something wrong with me?" Guo Jia glanced at him. "Don't dare, how talented is my virtuous brother?" Zhao Da knew that Guo Jia was a big celebrity that Cao Cao valued, so he didn't dare to provoke him easily. What is the origin of the treacherous order Shi Gaorou, and why is it favored by the lord?" "Favoration?" Guo Jia shook his head and smiled wryly, "There is no favor, I think the lord is deliberately punishing him, right? Gao Rou is the younger brother of a high-ranking official, and when our two expeditions to Hebei were almost destroyed by the high-ranking cadre, how could the lord not hate him? My lord let him be the history of assassination and treachery, he is your leader in name, but he has no real power, but others will blame him for your immoral things, and you will be blamed at every turn, how can life be easier?" Guo Jia looked down on Zhao Da and told him He spoke in a completely contemptuous tone. Zhao Da has long been used to being shameless, so he doesn't care: "So I have to take good care of this Gao Lingshi in the future? Hehe..." "Stop doing immoral things!" Zhao Da covered his mouth and smiled: "If there is no complaint, what does Brother Yu expect to get promoted and get rich? Just now I saw that Hua Tuo's expression was different, and he might escape from the army. If the old man really ran away, wouldn't the virtuous brother intercede for him? Involved? Let me do you a favor and send some people to watch him. What do you think?" Zhao Da wanted to please Guo Jia, but Guo Jia stared at him: "Nonsense! You are not allowed to bite people like a mad dog! Don't talk to me like a 'good brother', we have no friendship! If you dare to say more, I will call the Lord to tear you apart!" Cut your skin! Cough cough cough..." "Yes, yes, yes." Seeing Guo Jia coughing anxiously, Zhao Da quickly ran away in disgrace—Guo Jia was a big celebrity in front of Cao Cao, and he dared not offend his own father even if he offended him!