Weird Three Kingdoms

Chapter 3312: Undercurrents, Two Sentences and One Word

"What?!" Cao Pi slammed the table, "What do you mean you can't find it? Can this bandit army go to heaven?!"

After dawn, Yecheng seemed to wake up from a nightmare, and then entered a new nightmare.

  Any trace of Wei Yan's army disappeared twenty or thirty miles away from the city!

Cao Pi stared.

But not only the ordinary soldiers said so, but also the Cao family guards said so, which made Cao Pi feel like he had eaten a mouthful of Olega, unable to swallow it or spit it out.

Wu Zhi watched from the side, glanced at the expressions of several officers, and felt a little worried.

Cao Pi's position as the crown prince is now beginning to shake.

Although Cao Pi was not injured and the damage in Yecheng was not that serious, the only thing that was seriously damaged was the workshop. However, people's attitude towards Cao Pi had obviously changed quietly.

no way.

do not know.

never seen it.

Not sure.

Such and so on have become the best excuses for subordinates to be perfunctory.

In fact, the words reported by these subordinates also showed a certain meaning. Just like saying that there was no trace of Wei Yan and others, Wu Zhi believed that this was not a lie, but was it really impossible to find them? Obviously not, but Cao Pi had to stand up and point out the direction.

Because Cao Pi is a "leader", when his subordinates encounter "difficulties", there must be a clear direction. It cannot be vague, nor can it be completely without a goal and let his subordinates test it at will.

Wei Yan's traces disappeared, so someone must have helped to remove the traces. There are many ways to do this, the simplest of which is a vehicle...

But this involves more and bigger problems.

So it is normal that the soldiers "can't find it".

And Cao Pi obviously hasn't woken up yet...

Of course, it can also be said that Cao Pi is still young, but who makes him the crown prince?

As a child from an ordinary family, at his age, Cao Pi could be ignorant of strategies, ignorant of human nature, and not be good at anything. He could just go with the flow and live one day at a time, but unfortunately he was the crown prince.

There was a commotion last night, and Cao Pi's shortcomings were fully exposed.

As for strategy, I lack it and I don't have enough quick wit.

As for bravery, he lacks blood and energy, let alone martial arts.

Now that there is a problem, the most important thing is to solve the problem first. How to solve the problem inside the city and how to deal with the problem outside the city, instead of focusing on Wei Yan's whereabouts...

Now even my decision-making ability is problematic...

Wu Zhi was really too lazy to talk.

However, the person who "rescued" Cao Pi came.

"Mrs. Bian is here!"

Outside the gate, an attendant shouted loudly.

Cao Pi was stunned, with some embarrassment and helplessness on his face, and a little embarrassed that his parents caught him playing with his phone or tablet, but in the end he lowered his head and walked out the door...

……

……

The afterglow of dusk fell on Cao’s camp.

There seemed to be a bright red wound on the horizon, and the flowing blood soaked the tents and people in the camp.

The color has a bleak golden hue, like the faded spots on a statue.

Cao Pi encountered problems, and problems also occurred here in Cao’s army camp.

On the surface, nothing seemed to have changed. The soldiers in the camp were still busy, moving hurriedly between various areas, carrying food and fodder, or cleaning weapons, and everyone was preparing for the upcoming battle.

But if you observe carefully, you will find that there is some confusion on their faces...

As the sun sank into the mountains little by little, night gradually enveloped the camp.

The light of the bonfire and torches gradually formed a contrast between movement and stillness in the starry sky.

The false banner of righteousness will eventually fall down, and insincere vows will pale in the face of reality.

Before the war began, it was for the righteousness of the world, for peace in the world, for the glory of the Han Dynasty, and for the emperor to conquer the four directions...

Anyway, whatever is awesome Plus comes, but now, the Cao army soldiers gradually revealed this kind of confusion and helplessness, not only because of the upcoming battle, but also because of the unknown outcome of the war, the fragility of life, and the longing for home. These soldiers, wearing armor and holding sharp blades, should have carried the honor of the country and the expectations of their families, and then became more determined, but they suddenly found that some things were not as advertised in Shandong when they went to war.

Lies are lies after all.

No matter how beautiful and clever a lie is, it will eventually be exposed.

And the more exquisite the lie, the uglier it becomes when it is exposed.

It was fine during the day, but at night, the camp inevitably revealed its fragility beneath the usual surface.

The military schools and generals under Cao Cao also sensed this atmosphere to some extent. They walked through the military camps, trying to inspire the morale of Cao's soldiers with firm words and inspiring speeches. But this is an emotion that can only be dispelled by time and victory...

Time and victory happened to be what Cao's army lacked most at the moment.

So classmate Lao Cao is very troubled.

But soon, news that would give him even more headaches and even heartache would follow...

The Han cavalry general was obviously bullying the prime minister's short legs, but Prime Minister Cao could do nothing about it.

Therefore, in this quiet and tense atmosphere, Lao Cao has been thinking about every detail of the decisive battle and pondering every turning point of decision-making. How to use limited resources and troops to deploy the most perfect strategy to deal with various possible variables. Every possible attack route and every enemy deployment must have a clear image and countermeasure in his mind, so as not to be in a hurry and exhausted when the time comes.

In terms of military, Cao Cao's ability in this area is undoubtedly very strong. He not only has a keen insight into intelligence, but also has an accurate grasp of timing.

But he also has something that he can never understand or grasp...

Time seemed to freeze in this intensive thinking, until a slight breeze blew a corner of the tent, slowly bringing Cao Cao back to reality from his contemplation.

Hearing the sound of hurried footsteps, Cao Cao raised his head slightly.

The soldier on duty outside the tent reported in a low voice, "Someone has come from Zhongtiao Mountain with urgent military information."

Cao Cao's expression changed under the oil lamp, and then gradually calmed down. "Send it."

Looking at the pale-faced messenger from Zhongtiao Mountain, Cao Cao's cheek suddenly trembled. An ominous premonition suddenly surged in his heart. His expression became slightly nervous and solemn, as if he had foreseen the impending bad news.

He slowly stretched out his arm and took the sealed urgent message from the guard.

The surface of the sealed bamboo tube was a bit rough, and the sealing wax even spread onto the bamboo tube, so that under the light, it looked like a pool of half-coagulated blood flowing down the bamboo tube.

At this moment, the air in the entire tent seemed to freeze, and the passage of time became abnormally slow.

Cao Cao stared at the bamboo tube in his hand. In his heart, he seemed extremely reluctant to open this urgent report.

He took a deep breath, trying to suppress the turmoil in his heart, then broke the wax seal, pulled out the cloth inside, and slowly unfolded it.

As the scarf was fully unfolded, a few lines of handwriting came into Cao Cao's sight.

Every word was clear and cold.

It was like a needle piercing Cao Cao's pupils, and also like a heavy hammer hitting his heart.

Guo Jia, his most trusted adviser, had died of illness.

Cao Cao's hands couldn't help but tremble.

He lowered his head deeply, and the blue veins on the back of his hands twisted and squirmed in the light, like a greedy insect gnawing on something.

Fengxiao finally left.

As early as a few days ago, Cao Cao seemed to have had this premonition. After receiving the report from Lu Chang that Guo Jia was seriously ill, he hurriedly sent people to express his greetings. However, these somewhat pale greetings could not dispel the disease, nor change his fate.

The messenger from Zhongtiao Mountain, who bowed his head and knelt on the ground, seemed to feel this oppressive terror and could not help but tremble slightly.

Cao Cao raised his head, his eyes revealing a crazy and bloodthirsty look.

At this moment, the guards beside him trembled in their hearts and immediately put their hands on the hilt of the knife.

As soon as Cao Cao gave the order, he would drag the unfortunate messenger down and kill him with a single blow.

Cao Cao's eyes fell on the messenger, and he saw that the helmet and armor on his body were still covered with mud and dust under the light. He turned the order on his lips and said, "Take him away... and keep him under strict guard." The guard was a little surprised, but he quickly followed Cao Cao's order and took the messenger away.

The words on the scarf pierced through Cao Cao's defense like sharp swords and struck the softest part of his heart, but Cao Cao still remained strong.

The departure of Guo Jia was not only the loss of a wise counselor, but also the loss of a comrade-in-arms and close friend of many years. The time they spent together, the hardships they experienced together, and the countless strategies they planned together, all turned into nothingness at this moment.

The attendant took the order and left the tent, leaving Cao Cao alone to face this sudden attack.

Cao Cao looked at the empty tent, and it seemed that only at this moment did he feel the painful loneliness, as if it was piercing his bones.

In this great Han Dynasty, Guo Jia is the only one who truly understands Cao Cao...

Even Xun Yu didn't understand.

It was late at night, and the flickering light of the oil lamp cast Cao Cao's long shadow on the thick military map.

Every ink mark on the military map is like a scar.

He stared at the emblem representing the Hussars.

Cao Cao slid his fingers slowly across the military map. Although his movements were gentle, each one seemed to carry a heavy weight. He was not fighting for Shandong, or rather, not entirely for Shandong. Before, it was for himself, to win. Now, there was another emotion added, also to win.

The paths we choose are different...

His path, Guo Jia's path, and the path of the Cavalry.

It's always different.

Only by winning can he prove that himself and Guo Jia's path are correct.

He walked slowly out of the tent and opened the door curtain. A cold wind blew in his face, making his robe rustle.

"Prime Minister..."

The guards outside the big tent hurriedly paid their respects.

Cao Cao waved his hand, signaling them to leave, and then he did not walk far away. He just stood outside the big tent and looked up at the starry sky.

In the vast night sky, the stars are dotted, twinkling with cold and distant light.

Cao Cao's eyes wandered in the stars, as if he was looking for the meteor that disappeared at that moment. Under the starry sky, he longed to find that familiar soul and to bring a little more light of hope to the night.

However, the vastness and silence of the starry sky only made him feel more lonely and lost.

The night wind howled, blowing the flags on the banners fluttering, sweeping through every corner of the military camp, but it could not blow away the sorrow and pain that shrouded Cao Cao's heart.

After a moment, Cao Cao let out a long breath, the pain in his eyes gradually faded away, and he regained his usual perseverance and determination.

He knew that he had no right to continue feeling sad.

He turned around and went back into the tent. After pondering for a moment, he picked up the pen and issued an order to strengthen the security of the camp.

The matter of Guo Jia cannot be passed on for the time being.

"Someone is coming!" 』

In the end, Cao Cao couldn't bear it any longer and ordered the unfortunate messenger to be beheaded.

After all, only the dead can keep secrets.

Even if this secret is only temporary, for the sake of the overall situation, the sacrifice of some individuals is naturally inevitable.

After we recover, we will give that soldier double the compensation.

After Cao Cao and the other attendants left, he picked up the towel again and read it carefully, word by word, trying to figure out the two sentences and one word that Guo Jia left before his death.

"Qiuqi, similar to Qin?"

Cao Cao repeated in a low voice.

It is almost obvious that the Hussars now have the power of the Former Qin Dynasty. Why does Guo Jia emphasize it again? The Hussars control Guanzhong, graze horses in the north, and control Sichuan and Shu. They are almost the same as during the Qin Dynasty. No, no, they are even more brutal than during the Qin Dynasty...

and many more!

Cao Cao suddenly frowned, repeated these four words several times, and then patted the table lightly, "So that's it, "similar" to Qin! The cavalry is similar to Qin but not Qin!"

Originally, most people in Shandong believed that the Hussar Army was a replica of the Former Qin Dynasty, with an army of fierce and powerful soldiers, and so on. As a result, Guo Jia said that the Hussar Army was only "similar" to the Qin Dynasty, and was not a simple repetition of the Qin Dynasty.

Qin, as a powerful country in history, is famous for its unique political system, military strength and cultural characteristics. The Qin Dynasty also left a deep impression on Shandong, so that when the Qin Dynasty was mentioned, people would change color. However, Guo Jia said that the cavalry was just a "category", which means that the cavalry did have similarities with the Former Qin in some aspects, perhaps in terms of governance, organizational structure or external expansion strategy. However, Guo Jia may want to express that although the cavalry had these similarities with the Former Qin, it was different from the Former Qin in essence, origin or other key aspects.

This is actually a huge trap in thinking.

Cao Cao finally understood that their strategy before the war had been seriously deviated because of this thinking trap. In Shandong, due to the slander and habitual criticism of the cavalry, both officials and the people always felt that Guanzhong was full of harsh policies and the people under the cavalry were living in dire straits.

This kind of talk has been said so many times that even the original maker of the talk himself believes it...

Therefore, even when Cao Cao was marching into Hedong, he felt that the nobles and common people in Hedong would immediately welcome the royal army with food and wine, put order out of chaos, and join the light. They would stand by the official road with tears in their eyes, waving small flags and shouting, "My dears, you are finally here... "

The result was a slap in the face.

The reason is that the Hussars are just a "type" and are not really a replica of the Qin Dynasty.

Therefore, if we still regard the Cavalry as the Former Qin, and use the same means and methods as those used against the Former Qin to deal with things, then it will inevitably end up like the current Hedong area, making the whole situation neither right nor wrong, neither up nor down.

This is not to say that Cao Cao is stupid, nor that Guo Jia is dumb, but it is a pitfall in thinking.

It's like saying every day that China is rich and the dynasty is the Celestial Empire. At the beginning, perhaps the intention was to boost people's morale and unite the people, but as a result, after saying it so much, people really thought that China was rich and the Celestial Empire. And then, when the country was finally pinned to the ground and monkeys, chickens, dogs, pigs, and cows came up to kick them, the morale of the people was really broken, and it took a hundred years to recover.

Well, since the Cavalry is not the "Former Qin", then they naturally cannot use the "Anti-Qin" methods, so what should they do?

Guo Jia gave the second sentence.

"Victory or defeat does not depend on the outside, but on the inside."

Cao Cao took a deep breath and frowned.

He realized that Guo Jia might have been thinking about these two sentences for a long time, but had never said them.

Perhaps it was difficult to say, or perhaps for some other reason, he did not say it until the moment of his death.

  This sentence seems to be still talking about how to deal with the cavalry, but if you think about it the other way around, can it also be used as the best summary of Cao Cao's current situation?

Yes, Cao Cao had already sensed that he would lose, but he had been unwilling to face it, let alone admit it. Now that Guo Jia was dying, he spoke frankly.

However, if we just summarize it, we will underestimate Guo Jia.

Does Guo Jia mean to say...

Cao Cao frowned.

In fact, he had discussed his original plan with Guo Jia.

Cao Cao wanted to eliminate some of the population pressure in Shandong, because Shandong was suffering from a severe drought, and a large number of laborers had been withdrawn before, so drought was inevitable. Appropriately reducing the population and reducing the pressure on food and grass would also make the court less embarrassed.

This is one of the benefits. On the other hand, Cao Cao believes that the people of Shandong have never been under a relatively large external threat. He has been bearing the pressure most of the time. Now he should share the pressure with the Shandong people behind him...

In addition, there is another hidden factor, which is to sacrifice human lives at the hands of Fei Qian, and then as long as the propaganda is proper, the people of Shandong can hate Fei Qian like the people of Xuzhou hate Cao Cao.

But now it seems that these problems seem to be external means.

So, if it is a real "internal" tactic, what is it?

Cao Cao focused on the last word Guo Jia said, "sky".

  What is "sky"?

weather?

Weather?

The world?

world?

Emperor?

Angel?

Natural disasters?

sky……

There are so many possibilities.

As he was thinking, Cao Cao's brows suddenly jumped.

Cao Cao suddenly thought of something.