Weird Three Kingdoms

Chapter 3569: Central Palace General

In the second month of the tenth year of Taixing.

The night is as cold as water.

Cao Cao sat alone in the hall, the candles swaying in the wind, shaking Cao Cao's figure into an unrecognizable form.

On the desk were piles of bamboo slips of reports sent from various places.

There is no good news.

On the topmost bamboo slip, the shocking words "empty granaries" were written in cinnabar. The ink was so heavy that it almost looked like blood solidified on it.

He put out his hand and pressed his swollen temple. The bronze animal-head lamp cast a heavy shadow on his cheek. The anxiety of the past few months had left many frost marks on the temples of this hero.

Cao Cao spent his entire life gambling almost from beginning to end.

Cao Cao’s personal ambition was certainly a factor, but the collapse of the Eastern Han system also gave Cao Cao room for his lavish gamble.

During the reigns of Emperors Huan and Ling of the Eastern Han Dynasty, land annexation intensified, eunuchs and relatives took turns to monopolize power, and the Yellow Turban Rebellion completely tore apart the imperial ruling system. When He Jin and Dong Zhuo successively caused the collapse of imperial power and the failure of the traditional bureaucratic system, it objectively provided space for this tyrant to rise.

Of course, this was also an inevitable change in Cao Cao's political survival, and this change occurred when Cao Cao first held an important local position, "Jinan Xiang". Logically speaking, during Cao Cao's tenure, "politics and education were carried out, and the county was peaceful", which should be a good thing, and his political performance should be evaluated very well. However, on the contrary, Cao Cao was excluded by the powerful and collectively put pressure on the Cao family, so Cao Cao had to claim illness and resign.

Cao Cao blocked the paths of those powerful and corrupt officials. Cutting off someone's financial resources is like killing their parents. So Cao Cao could understand why those powerful and corrupt officials turned against Cao Cao, and he didn't think there was anything to be angry about. But what Cao Cao didn't expect was that he had done so many things for the people of Jinan, risking his personal political life and even the possibility of being assassinated by powerful and corrupt officials. As a result, when the people of Jinan heard that Cao Cao was the descendant of a eunuch, they immediately turned against him and followed those powerful and corrupt officials to laugh at and even insult Cao Cao.

The common people were excitedly discussing Cao Cao's lower three ways, and were talking about Cao Cao's length and shortcoming. Would he be castrated like other eunuchs? Even if Cao Cao deliberately grew a long beard, it was still useless. Some people would still say that it was glued on with other people's hair. How could a normal person have such a long beard? Some people also discussed that if Cao Cao's thing was gone, how could his wife give birth to a child? Was it someone else who did it for him?

Then there was a burst of laughter, very happy.

But they forgot that they were able to stop and talk about this and laugh at that while working because Cao Cao reduced labor service and lowered taxes in Jinan State.

Of course, most people are kind and will not participate in discussions, but they are the silent majority. These silent people have essentially encouraged the arrogance of the discussants, allowing them to make comments recklessly, control public opinion, and continue to influence others. In the end, even the silent people were deceived by the rumors and began to doubt them.

When Cao Cao left Jinan, not many people who had benefited from his political achievements in Jinan came to see him off. Some even said that Cao Cao was trying to gain fame and told them not to be fooled by the eunuchs.

When faced with Chen Lin's manifesto "listing all his crimes", Cao Cao laughed and said "it's getting worse". Although he seemed open-minded, he was actually deeply inferior.

This kind of personality trauma, on the one hand, was transformed into the reform of his employment policy in history. He issued the "Edict to Seek Talents" three times in an attempt to break the concept of family background of the children of the aristocracy and to use the common people to build a new power base. On the other hand, it also aggravated Cao Cao's heart disease. After taking over the legacy left by Yuan Shao, he could not get along with the Jizhou aristocracy, which eventually led to the separation of Jizhou and Yuzhou.

Cao Cao killed Bian Rang, Xu You, Kong Rong, and other famous scholars from the aristocratic families. This also exposed Cao Cao's morbid psychology, his deep fear of the aristocratic public opinion, and his inability to do anything about it. He could only use killing to shut people up...

Cao Cao was unable to learn from all the political means and strategies of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.

It doesn't look like a wall hanging...

Personal ideals collide and shatter in the face of cold reality, and the ambitions of youth sink and degenerate in the cold world.

When Cao Cao once again faced these helpless but unsolvable problems, his habitual solution once again prevailed...

Take another gamble!

"Report——!"

The personal guards bowed in the hall.

Amid the clanging of armor, Cao Cao caught a glimpse of the sweat on the heads of his personal guards and fled in panic.

When he withdrew his gaze, the latest document was presented to him. Just yesterday, there was news that the warehouses and granaries in Yuzhou were to be counted. Tonight, three warehouses were "accidentally" flooded and caught fire, and the granaries were burned down.

"The order is as follows..." Cao Cao picked up his pen and wrote on the document, "Anyone who burns the granary will be..."

Cao Cao was writing when he felt the tip of his pen tremble slightly. A drop of cinnabar fell onto the text. He was slightly startled, and then he began to write along the dripping cinnabar, "Behead!"

The word "斩" was written with exceptional sharpness, and the last stroke was like a sharp blade with blood, which made the eyes hurt.

Throwing down his pen and watching the clerk hurried away, Cao Cao felt aggrieved in the hall, so he put on his cloak and went up to the city wall.

The night breeze blew, and Cao Cao's headache seemed to be a little better...

Faced with the control of public opinion and political challenges from the aristocratic families in the late Han Dynasty, and the stupidity, ignorance and indifference of the common people, Cao Cao tried to reconstruct power and find a balance between iron-blooded tactics and political wisdom.

He established the Shogunate of Poor Family Members and put the policy of "selecting talents based on merit" into practice. Many of his military advisors and counselors came from poor families. He also made the titles of the samurai nominal, allowing middle and low-level military officers to receive certain promotions. He also adjusted the so-called samurai celebrities to more "noble" positions, stripping them of their actual administrative power.

Military settlements were set up in the aristocratic heartlands such as Yingchuan and Yanzhou, and the General of Agriculture was used to directly control land output, so that Cao Cao's economy would not be completely dependent on the aristocracy.

At the same time, Cao Cao also tried his best to reconstruct the ideology, turning the so-called "ugly legacy of a eunuch" into "the mandate of heaven". He opposed the Confucian discourse system of the gentry by declaring the teachings of Zhou Gong and building the Bronze Sparrow Tower in Yecheng.

Although the School Officials were greedy and cruel, they were also directly under Cao Cao's secret monitoring system, with cruel officials such as Man Chong and Zhao Da as the core, to monitor the big families...

All these means are certainly nothing in the eyes of keyboard warriors, but at least in history, they are a unique, innovative and revolutionary thing belonging to Cao Cao.

It’s not that Cao Cao is weak now, but that thousands of years of historical experience have brought about a dimensionality reduction attack. Who can withstand it?

Let alone thousands of years, even ordinary people, when they are older, if they have the opportunity to go back to the past and face their foolish and stupid selves in the old times, would they also have the urge to slap them in the face to wake them up? Why were they so foolish, stupid, and dumb back then?

Historically, Cao Cao cultivated new military landlords through the military farming system in the economy, gradually replacing the traditional Confucian classics families; culturally, he reconstructed the narrative of destiny with prophecies and divinations, eliminating the dilemma of the origin of "eunuchs and ugly people" and forming the preset anchoring psychology of Zhou Gong; in the political system, he formed a dual-headed system of "shogunate plus Han court", paving the way for possible peaceful abdication in the future.

What a pity...

Then there was the unexpected incident of Fei Qian.

At the darkest hour before dawn, Cao Cao stood on the city gate tower of Xu County with his sword in hand.

In the military camp far outside the city, there were many fights.

How many years has he been leading the army in battle?

The once boiling blood, the burning bamboo horses and wooden swords, the chopped-off heads, the prostrating crowds...

But now, all this seems to be coming to nothing.

"Ming Gong. "

Xun Yu's voice came from the corridor on the city wall.

Cao Cao turned his head and saw that Xun Yu's clothes were covered with night dew.

This originally handsome and dashing man has now been beaten by the wind and frost and looks exhausted.

Cao Cao suddenly laughed, his laughter still hearty and friendly. He stepped forward, took Xun Yu's hand, and patted it twice, "Hey, Wen Ruo, you have worked hard over the years!"

Xun Yu's hand was colder than the night wind, like a piece of jade dipped in a cold spring.

"Hey!" Cao Cao felt the chill and his heart trembled. "Wen Ruo, why are you wearing so little!"

Cao Cao immediately took off his cloak and put it on Xun Yu without saying anything.

Cao Cao's guard beside him also hurriedly asked someone to get the cloak, and gave his own cloak to Cao Cao.

Xun Yu thanked Cao Cao and gave a wry smile, "I came in a hurry..."

Cao Cao used the light of the torches on the top of the city wall to see the ink stains on the other party's sleeves. "But what's the news?"

Of course it’s not good news, otherwise Xun Yu wouldn’t be so anxious.

Of course, Xun Yu had been arranging matters and gathering military rations almost day and night these days...

The news of Pingyuan's fall that came a few days ago was even more chilling than Fei Qian's troops pouring out of Hangu Pass.

Which one is more terrifying and hateful: an internal traitor who takes advantage of the situation to rob others or a brutal and ferocious foreign enemy?

Different people may have different answers, but without exception, the destruction of order caused by internal thieves far exceeds that caused by external enemies. Historical experience shows that the destruction caused by endogenous crises often presents chronic and fatal characteristics, just like organ failure in the human body, while exogenous shocks are similar to acute trauma, amputation, or even fatal wounds.

But what is really scary is the resonance effect between the two.

When internal corruption encounters external pressure, the civilization system will face the risk of systemic collapse.

This is how the Han Dynasty was. Now Cao Cao also deeply felt the stench of this decay.

The two stood on the edge of the battlement, facing the endless darkness.

"The Chen family of Yingchuan escaped at midnight." Xun Yu took out a scroll of silk from his bosom. The silk surface was slightly damp from the dew.

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes, "I guess...it has something to do with the granary?"

Xun Yu nodded.

The wind blew up the jade pendant on Xun Yu's waist, and it hit the bricks and stones of the city wall, making a clear sound.

A gentleman is like jade.

However, no matter how strong the jade is, it may not be able to withstand repeated impacts and forging.

The torches on the city wall cast entangled shadows behind the two men, which looked like two intertwined swords.

Cao Cao took a deep breath.

Chen Qun was in Yecheng, guarding Cao Cao's secondary capital.

During Cao Cao's heyday in history, he had five "capitals", but now he only has three.

Oh, three and a half.

Now that half will soon be gone.

If Chen Qun...

Doesn’t that mean Yecheng is also in danger?

"Changwen has been away from home for a long time and has no time for the clan. It is inevitable that there are some villains and incompetents." Cao Cao said in a deep voice, "Changwen always knows the importance of the matter... Severely punish Chen's son, no need to worry."

"My lord..." Xun Yu wanted to persuade him again.

"No need to say more!" Cao Cao understood Xun Yu's worries, but he still made this decision.

If we don't deal with Chen's son, then there's no need to deal with the others either.

For a moment, both of them were silent.

The night wind howled, blowing up the dust outside the city and bringing with it the unique earthy smell of mud and dust.

The sky was like a canopy. Although there were stars, they looked like the star paintings above the tomb chambers. Even the light seemed fake.

For some reason, Cao Cao suddenly remembered the dirt and stones thrown at him by the people who were deceived and instigated by the nobles when he left Jinan State. They seemed to be just as smelly. Those deceived people pushed down and smashed the monument of good governance that Cao Cao had finally erected. Those who had previously praised his benevolence were now throwing dirt and stones at his vehicle.

The moment the curtain of the car was smashed down, he saw several young men in brocade clothes in the crowd clapping and laughing.

Cao Cao was furious, but he held back because he knew that the nobles and dignitaries wanted him to be furious and then have their guards kill and beat the people...

This seems to be the case now.

Stealing is not a one-time thing, but at this moment, it was suddenly revealed!

There was no doubt that the people in Chen Qun's family were involved in the case, but how could these few people in the Chen clan be able to resell the granaries? There must be other people involved.

A camel locust emerged from the cracks in the battlements and crawled cautiously from one brick to another. It was unclear whether it was trying to eat the moss on the bricks or looking for oil stains on the next one.

Cao Cao was too lazy to pay attention and looked away.

There are insects everywhere...

And when you see an insect, it's not just the one in front of you.

Cao Cao remembered that after he returned home on sick leave, he knelt down in the Cao Clan Ancestral Hall. He saw insects crawling out of the cracks in the blue bricks beside him, accompanied by his father's voice echoing in the hall, "You bastard! How dare you criticize the Ten Eunuchs! If it weren't for the Ten Eunuchs' rescue this time, you would have died without a burial place!"

The Ten Eunuchs are not just ten people.

The official positions sold by the Ten Eunuchs are not limited to eunuchs.

Xun Yu's cough interrupted his recollections.

The Adam's apple of this Yingchuan Yulang slid slightly in the light of the fire, as if he had swallowed a bitter fruit with thorns.

"Ming Gong..." Xun Yu's voice seemed to have become hoarse because of this bitter fruit. "Regardless of success or failure... after this battle, I'm afraid that at least half of the Han nobles... will be wiped out..."

This is not only true in Yuzhou and Jizhou, but also among the nobles in other states and counties.

Faced with such a large group, Xun Yu couldn't help but feel the fear of the unknown.

"Wen Ruo, do you know..." Cao Cao raised his head slightly, looking into the distance, his fingers unconsciously stroking the dragon pattern on the hilt of his sword, "When the people of Jinan threw stones at my chariot, they were much more open-minded than the sons of the noble families now... I would rather let these thieves fight with swords and spears in front of me than be bitten and devoured by these insects in the future!"

"Wen Ruo," Cao Cao turned around, "this big man is already ill... If you and I still have more time, perhaps we can slowly eliminate the evil and restore the good, and replenish our vitality... But now... Now we can only be the villain again... Even if this time, the people will still throw stones and curse at us, but we have to..."

Cao Cao sighed, "The way of the cavalry is indeed extraordinary... but this way of the cavalry is not the way of the Han Dynasty! I did something similar in Jinan... and how did the people of Jinan treat me? I heard that the cavalry treated the people well in Chang'an, but what would happen to the people after the cavalry left? What is the difference between the people of Jinan and the people of Guanzhong? When they get the benefit, they smile, but when they don't, they yell and scold, and throw dust and stones! "

Cao Cao looked up at the morning light that appeared on the horizon, and murmured, "Dark clouds obscure the sun, yellow sand covers the sky, the carriage staggers, leaving for Jinan. I hold the reins and hesitate, mourning for this city wall. The common people are in a state of confusion, and the dust rises when I throw stones."

"I once hung a bright mirror in the government office to reflect the lungs and intestines of corrupt officials. I destroyed three thousand lewd temples and stained more than a hundred embroidered robes with blood. Who knew that jackals and tigers were not extinct, and foxes and rats followed them. Filling the granaries, but feeding tigers and wolves; tidying the fields, but turning them into graves. No one can argue, a baby turns into a demon, mistaken for the blue sky, the changes are unpredictable."

"Bo Yi died on Mount Shouyang, how could Zhou Su's grain pollute his heart? Qu Yuan drowned in Miluo River, the belly of a fish was better than cauldron of broth. The ignorance of the people is not the fault of the people, but the greed of the officials is the disaster of the officials. Suddenly I remembered the day when Guan Zhong shot the hook, and Bao Shu took off his clothes to treat the wound caused by the arrow. Who in the world knows the true courage? Only the pen of history can record it. "

"The wind and thunder are rising, the clouds are flying, where can I find brave warriors to guard the four directions? The rivers are muddy and the stars are dark, when will the sun and moon shine again? Even if rubble hits my car, my heart is clear and cannot be hurt. One day when I pass Jinan Road again, I will look at the vastness from Phoenix Terrace..."

Xun Yu was speechless.

It’s not that they don’t understand what Fei Qian is doing, but they don’t believe that Fei Qian can succeed.

In Chinese history, a new emperor chooses his own ministers!

This "minister" is not necessarily limited to those "ministers" in the court!

Just like the United States in later generations, which originally promoted how awesome blue-collar workers were, how happy the middle class was, how good the welfare was, how good the medical care was, and how worry-free the future would be. But what happened later? When all these original promises became invalid, were the people of the United States angry? Angry, of course, but who was the target of their anger? The previous mayor who took the blame, or some middle- or low-level official, that's all.

president?

That must be a deception!

So, can Fei Qian's approach be successfully implemented in Shandong?

Cao Cao didn't believe it.

Xun Yu also didn't believe it.

The night slowly fades away and a new day begins.

The originally lifeless Xu County seemed to have come back to life.

The sounds of the city's business drifted in with the wind.

Amid the shouts of the food vendors, wooden spoons and clay jars clinked against each other, making the sound of clinking bells.

Cao Cao listened and watched, his brows gradually relaxed.

Amid the hustle and bustle of the city, Cao Cao heard a rhythm more moving than "Guangling San". It was the sound of a new order breaking ground on the corpse of the old dynasty.

Maybe it's his, maybe it's Fei Qian's, but no matter who it belongs to, it's new.

New sounds, new energy.

It is the power that brings this rotten, grave-like man back to life.

Cao Cao listened attentively, then laughed. He suddenly drew his sword, inserted it into the crack in the city wall, and crushed an insect that tried to crawl back into the crack into powder.

When the sword hummed and reflected the first rays of the morning sun, Cao Cao saw his own reflection and Xun Yu's profile overlapped on the sword's spine, like the pattern of some newly cast bronze mirror, engraved with the inscriptions of the Han Dynasty for nearly four hundred years...