But it’s already been done, and I didn’t persuade it because I had no choice but to persuade it now. What should I do now?
But now he has to use precious food to feed hundreds of thousands of foreign troops and continue to fight as trapped beasts. Xun Yu firmly opposes this, which has exceeded his bottom line.
Xun Yu, Xun You and others were opposed to nourishing the foreign tribes, while Chen Qun and others were determined to use the foreign tribes to resist the north. The two parties were in a stalemate. Cao Cao finally announced that he would give Cao Zhang a retreat order first, and the foreign tribes matter would be discussed tomorrow.
Sima Yi and all the civil servants withdrew separately, and Guo Jia also withdrew, but came to Cao Cao's study near night.
Cao Cao was half lying on the bed, shaking his head slightly to the music of Lingju's piano. When Guo Jia walked in, Cao Cao said without opening his eyes: "Fengxiao is here."
"Guo Jia pays homage to the Lord."
"No need to bow, I will no longer be your lord." Cao Jia said calmly. Guo Jia raised his head and looked at Cao Jia. After a few seconds, he said in the same calm voice: "My lord has decided?"
Cao Cao took out a letter from under his pillow and handed it to Guo Jia: "Look, this is a letter from my daughter."
"Third Miss?" Guo Jia took it carefully. After reading the letter, he was slightly frightened. He frowned and said to Cao Cao: "Master, do you think Third Miss can persuade Liu Zhang? According to my understanding of Liu Zhang, Liu Zhang will not leave any hidden dangers for himself.
.”
"That's it." Cao Cao stretched out and lay down in a comfortable position: "Now our army is at the end of its rope. Today we have been discussing for a long time, thinking about how to defend and attack the Sichuan army. No one dares to think about it.
So what if we use the Taihang Mountains and foreign tribes to block the Sichuan army? I, Cao Cao, do not want to separate one side from another, nor do I want to divide a piece of territory in the Han Dynasty to become king and dominate. That is meaningless.
It’s hopeless. Even if you try to protect yourself, you probably won’t be able to protect yourself, so why bother?”
Cao Cao smiled and said: "As I said last time, we will be the last stumbling block for the Sichuan army. Although we lost the battle of Hetao this time for no reason, isn't this God's will?
I, Cao Cao, do not want to be a stumbling block or divide the Han Dynasty. If I am destined to be unified by law, then I will unify it with the Sichuan Army. Fengxiao, I have really decided to surrender."
Cao Cao looked at Guo Jia, his face was unusually calm, even with a smile of relief.
Guo Jia was silent. He knew that Cao Cao would not give up if there was still hope and the possibility of unifying the world. Even if he thought Liu Zhang was right, he would not give up.
But now, the Sichuan Army has completely defeated Cao's Army in terms of logistics, military strength, internal unity, and geographical offensive and defensive situation. Cao's Army can only defend, and it still has to rely on foreigners to defend.
Where is the hope of unifying the world?
It is not easy for a king to persist in fighting, but Guo Jia knew that it was not easy for Cao Cao to surrender when he knew that nothing could be done.
Although Cao Cao didn't say it out loud, Guo Jia knew that the strategy of nourishing foreign tribes to defend the north would definitely make Cao Cao feel ashamed.
Before Dong Zhuo's Rebellion, Cao Cao never thought about being able to aspire to the throne of the Han Dynasty. He only thought about attacking foreigners and leaving behind the famous name of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing.
Even at the pinnacle of power, Guo Jia knew that there was never a day when Cao Cao didn't think about shining on the great man.
For such a king, asking him to nourish foreign races and serve as a barrier to the north, what is the difference between this and killing him?
"My lord, have you ever thought about it, if Liu Zhang couldn't shake the sand out of his eyes, would my lord's heirs still have the same fate as those loyal civil and military heirs?" Guo Jiada said.
"Since he is my son, Cao Cao, I will resign myself to fate. As for those civil and military officials, I will hand over all the military power when the time comes and leave nothing behind. Those civil and military officials pose no threat to the Sichuan Army.
If this is the case, Liu Zhang cannot control these civil and military affairs, and still has to rely on killing to solve the problem, then I, Cao Cao, have made a mistake."
Guo Jia breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Cao Cao had made up his mind. At this moment, Guo Jia seemed to feel relieved. In the past, because of his loyalty to Cao Cao, even though he did not want to fight with the Sichuan army at all, he still thought hard about how to deal with the Sichuan army.
Now, I am finally free. No matter what my fate will be in the Sichuan Army, at least I have not reached the last step of stubbornly resisting the government.
"What do you plan to do, my lord?" Guo Jia asked.
"It's a mess, let's start from the beginning." Cao Cao tapped his forehead and said to Guo Jia: "So I'm waiting here for you to come, and you can make up your mind for me."
Guo Jia frowned and thought for a while: "My lord wants to join Liu Zhang. Last time he said that he would kill Sima Yi, Chen Qun and other family officials, but the people of the family would also not agree to my lord joining the Sichuan Army.
If the lord joins the Sichuan Army, this would be a betrayal in the eyes of the clan. It would not only betray their original support, but also push them into the abyss.
In other words, if the lord chooses to submit, not only will the people of the family not succumb, but they will also regard the lord as their mortal enemy.
In other words, if the lord wants to kill them, they will also jump over the wall in a desperate situation.
Therefore, the best way is to notify the Sichuan Army and at the same time plan to capture 100 of the family officials and kill them all."
"How to capture him in one piece?" Cao Cao asked.
"The civil servants of the noble clan will definitely not delay the decision to nourish the foreign tribes, because if they delay for a day, Xianbei Wuhuan will lose food for a day, which is dangerous. In order to protect themselves, the noble tribes will definitely try their best to release food to the foreign tribes.
Tomorrow, if we continue to discuss the matter of foreign tribes, as long as the lord firmly opposes releasing grain to foreign tribes, the family will definitely become anxious, and what will happen if we become anxious? We will definitely force the palace."
"Then you can kill them all?"
"That's right."
Cao Cao nodded slightly: "Okay, let's recruit Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, and Tian Yu immediately."
"Absolutely not." Guo Jia waved his hand quickly: "My lord, Sima Yi is as cunning as a fox. He is extremely scheming and very sensitive to minor changes.
If we suddenly mobilize generals, Sima Yi will definitely notice it. Don’t forget that most of our troops are still clan troops, and we will be in trouble then."
"If Zhang Liao, Xu Huang and others are not mobilized, and Xun Yu, Xun You and others cannot be mobilized, then who else can take on the big responsibility?"
Nowadays, in Cao Ying, the aristocratic family controls most of the sky. The only people Cao Cao dares to use with confidence are Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, Xia Houyuan and other generals, Xun Yu, Xun You, Cheng Yu and other veterans.
However, these loyal people all hold high positions and have long been branded as Cao Cao's confidants. If these people are not transferred, Cao Cao cannot think of anyone else who can be transferred.
"Young Master." Guo Jia slowly said three words.
"Cao Chong?" Cao Cao said in shock, "He is only eleven years old."
Guo Jiadao: "My lord, the young master's intelligence is far beyond what outsiders imagine. Now the civil and military officials only think that the young master is a little clever. However, according to Guo Jia's observation, the young master's leadership and decision-making are definitely no less than the world's first-class counselors, and his marching formations are no better.
Lost to Guo Jia.
The most important thing is that the young master is not taken seriously by outsiders, and the master often summons him without attracting any attention.
As long as we secretly transfer Zhang Liao and Xu Huang's troops into the city through special means such as procurement and transportation, and hand them over to the Young Master, Zhang Liao, Xu Huang and others will continue to act as usual.
When the young master launches his plan, everyone in the family will be surprised."
"Chong'er is too young, will those generals be convinced?"
Guo Jiadao: "This is a problem, but Zhang Liao and Xu Huang's subordinates are all veteran generals of our army and are loyal. As long as Zhang Liao and Xu Huang give instructions, they will know what to do. When the time comes, as long as the army comes out, the overall situation will be decided.
After all the Shi clan were captured, it was time for the third son, Cao Zhang, to lead his army back to Yecheng. By then, together with the Sichuan army in the Heluo land, they would attack the Shi clan's army along the Yellow River from the north and south, and the Shi clan's army would be completely wiped out.
Now that the wealth of the major aristocratic families has been almost emptied, and the army is gone, what ability do the aristocratic families have to resist? The whole of Hebei will be at the feet of the Sichuan Army, so the Sichuan Army should dominate the world, right?"
Cao Cao thought for a long time and found no flaws, so he nodded: "Just execute it like this."
Just as Guo Jia was about to go out, Cao Cao stopped him and said, "Fengxiao, wait a moment." He took out a letter from his arms and handed it to Guo Jia: "Put this away."
Guo Jia took a look at the letter and saw that it was addressed to Liu Zhang. He asked doubtfully: "My lord, is this?"
Cao Cao sighed: "I also thought that although the three girls begged for mercy, Liu Zhang, a person who values the great cause more than his own life, would not keep me.
If I die one day or am killed by Liu Zhang, my sons, Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, Xia Houyuan, Cao Ren and other generals will definitely not give up. Xun Yu, Xun You and others will also have a grudge against the Sichuan army.
When the time comes to cause chaos, if it becomes the general trend, won't it bring chaos to the Han Dynasty?
If it doesn't work, forget about my sons. You and Zhang Liao were all talented people in civil and military affairs and were useful to the Han Dynasty. Wouldn't it be a pity to die like this?
Because of the death of one of my men, Cao Cao, the world was in chaos and a large number of loyal civil and military personnel died. How can I be worthy of you, how can I be worthy of the great man?"
Guo Jia slowly squeezed the letter paper.
Cao Cao seemed to be completely relaxed: "I said in this letter that I, Cao Cao, had already anticipated that day, and Liu Zhang killed me not out of friendship, but out of love and righteousness for the big man, and out of the overall situation.
No one, including the third girl, can get into trouble because of this. Otherwise, not only will they be sorry for me, Cao Cao, but they will also tarnish me, Cao Cao, and be disloyal to the great man.
You hide this letter and publish it after my death. I hope this letter will make the civil and military officials loyal to me, Cao Cao, less angry, and allow Liu Zhang to restrain his murderous intentions."
"Lord..." Guo Jia suddenly felt that his voice was trembling. He had experienced so much pain at the bottom of society in the past thirty years, suffered so many rejections and grievances, and had not shed tears after many inner struggles, as if he was trying hard to rush out of his eyes.
After restraining himself for a long time, the tears did not stay in the end. The tears at this time were a blasphemy for a hero who had come to an end. Guo Jia said in a deep voice: "I hope the third lady can persuade Liu Zhang."
Guo Jia squeezed the letter tightly and left the palace. Cao Cao let out a long sigh and sat down next to Lingju's piano table as if he had completely lost his strength, looking at the scenery in the garden outside the door.
"Lingju, do you know? Before I started the army, Xu Shao, a famous scholar, once commented on me that I am a capable minister who can rule the world and destroy heroes in troubled times.
In these troubled times, I can no longer annihilate heroes. In fact, I really want to be a capable minister in governing the world." To be continued.)