gnovel Chapter 73 Cao Cao's Doubts
Chapter 73 Cao Cao's Doubts
Xiahou Dun's eyes were bloodshot as he charged forward, sword in hand.
The two quickly engaged in a fierce battle!
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Yan Liang launched a frenzied attack!
Cao Jun was unprepared to begin with, and was no match for the two of them at this moment!
that's it.
In less than an hour, Cao Cao's army was almost completely scattered.
Seeing that they were about to be completely defeated, Xiahou Dun made a decisive move, broke free from his entanglement with Wen Chou, and led the remaining men back into Kaiyang City.
Even so, they suffered heavy losses!
Of those who were taken out, only one or two out of ten returned!
Back then...
When he received the mission to guard Kaiyang, he repeatedly assured Cao Cao.
As long as I'm here, there's no way things can go wrong here.
Unexpectedly, they have been defeated by Yuan Shao's men, not to mention the extent of their losses.
If such news were to reach Ye City, it would certainly put Cao Cao in a passive position.
The discussions both inside and outside the court will likely be too much to bear!
After a brief moment of hesitation, reason ultimately prevailed over anger.
He immediately wrote down the situation and had it sent back as quickly as possible.
Then they remained steadfast and did not come out, pretending not to see Yan Liang and Wen Chou's provocations.
Given the enemy's military strength, they cannot forcefully breach this place, at least not now...
……
Ye City.
The Sikong Mansion.
Cao Cao frowned deeply as he looked at the strategists before him, who had their heads bowed and faces grim.
He is now besieged on all sides!
Those old fogies in the court are constantly looking for an opportunity to break free from his control.
Since Li Zhao appeared, his army and the people under his rule have become uneasy.
Because they saw new hope!
In Qingzhou under Li Zhao's rule, people could live in peace and prosperity, eat their fill every day, and didn't have to pay any taxes.
In contrast, it seems that they can't even make ends meet now.
The pressure from all sides was almost suffocating Cao Cao.
Even more unexpectedly, Yuan Shao would make a move without any warning!
Under normal circumstances, why would he take the initiative to attack Kaiyang?
The people they sent out couldn't possibly pose any real threat to Yanzhou.
Could it be that some kind of agreement has been reached with those old guys in the court?
Are you preparing to act simultaneously?
The fact that the Yuan family had produced four generations of high-ranking officials provided Yuan Shao with countless advantages.
If they had to choose between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, the veteran officials of the Eastern Han Dynasty would choose Yuan Shao without even having to think about it!
"Speak up, everyone..." After a long silence, Cao Cao broke the silence.
"Yuan Shao's sudden move this time was definitely not unintentional. What is his purpose, and what other methods he may employ? These are all questions that need to be considered!"
Even the usually quick-witted Guo Jia was stumped by this problem.
No matter how he analyzed it, he couldn't deduce what reason or purpose Yuan Shao had for doing this!
When he noticed more and more eyes turning to him, Guo Jia said helplessly, "After much thought..."
"If we have to explain it, there's only one possibility: Yuan Shao obtained Li Zhao's supplies and wants to initiate war against us!"
"If that is the case, my lord can use the name of the court to classify his actions as treason."
Xun Yu shook his head. "This approach is unlikely to be very effective. We should find the source!"
"Going to war with Yuan Shao now would be extremely disadvantageous for us, perhaps..."
He swallowed the rest of his words.
Swish!
All eyes turned to him, and Cao Cao even narrowed his eyes, as if he had guessed what was to come.
"That's right!" Xun Yu didn't mince words. "To appease the people and fight against Yuan Shao, we must win over Li Zhao!"
"We absolutely cannot use the old methods; we must truly ensure he benefits!"
Cao Cao remained silent; Li Zhao's presence was like a thorn stuck in his flesh.
But now there's no way to remove this thorn.
"Fengxiao, stay here. The rest of you, go out first!" Cao Cao waved his hand.
Not long after.
Apart from Guo Jia, everyone else quickly withdrew.
"Does the lord want me to make a trip to Linzi?" Guo Jia immediately saw through Cao Cao's intentions.
Cao Cao made no attempt to hide his intentions, stating, "I have only one request: bring back as much grain as possible!"
"You can handle the rest yourself; you don't need to report it constantly!"
"I understand..."
Just as Guo Jia was about to turn and leave, Cao Cao suddenly spoke up, "Be extremely careful!"
"Rest assured, my lord, I will certainly not fail in my mission!"
Watching Guo Jia's retreating figure, Cao Cao remained silent for a long time, finally letting out a sigh...
……
Linzi, the Prime Minister's Residence.
In front of Li Zhao was a huge map.
This map was created at great cost, with food as a reward, to encourage many people to personally conduct on-site investigations.
It was much more accurate than the maps we use today!
Due to the era, many maps used by military generals were actually only approximate.
In particular, the accuracy is much worse. Usually, the error is only discovered when you arrive at the destination.
Then, at a great cost, it takes to correct the original mistake.
This causes countless problems, so in order to avoid such issues...
Li Zhao made the most of the characteristics of the refugees!
These people have been to many places. By combining their accounts and then sending people to conduct on-site investigations, we can obtain accurate maps.
Looking at the whole world today, he is probably the only one who can do this.
Because no one dares to use precious food for such a thing!
"That's far from enough..." Li Zhao's finger traced across the map, finally stopping at the location of Kaiyang County.
"What is the lord saying?" Xu Shu's voice came from behind.
He turned around and realized that Xu Shu had been standing there at some point.
"Such methods are far from sufficient to incite a struggle between Yuan Shao and Cao Cao."
"Cao Cao is much more shrewd than Yuan Shao..." Li Zhao did not hide his thoughts.
"That's right, he's already made his move!"
"What do you mean?"
"He sent someone with an imperial edict to wait outside!"
Xu Shu pointed outside, a hint of helplessness in his expression.
They could never gain the upper hand when facing Cao Cao.
This is because the other party can issue orders to them at any time in the name of the imperial court.
If you don't comply, you'll be targeted immediately!
"Who did they send this time?" Li Zhao didn't take it to heart.
Just as he was about to continue pondering his thoughts, he heard a name that greatly intrigued him and remained deep in his memory.
—Guo Jia!
"Guo Jia?" Li Zhao turned sharply to look at him. "Are you sure it really is this person?"
"That's right!"
"Take me to see him!"
Xu Shu was somewhat curious. Judging from Li Zhao's reaction, it seemed that the two of them had met before.
Not long after.
A smiling, refined scholar appeared in his line of sight...