With Cao Cao by my side, what do I have to fear from the world?

Chapter 38, Liu Xie meets Zhao Yun

Liu Xie shook his head. "I won't see him. Let him go back!"

I just reprimanded Liu Bei in front of Cao Cao yesterday, so I should leave him out for a few more days so that Cao Cao can have a good look at him.

"Ugh!"

Zhang Yu sighed, turned around and walked out.

Upon learning that His Majesty was unwilling to see him, Liu Bei frowned and sighed repeatedly, feeling extremely conflicted.

Zhang Fei snorted, "So what if I don't want to see her? What's the big deal?"

Liu Bei and Guan Yu both glared fiercely at Zhang Fei.

"Third brother, you mustn't act rashly."

Looking at Zhang Yu again, Liu Bei said respectfully, "If Your Majesty does not see me, I will kneel here forever. Please trouble you to inform him again."

Liu Bei knelt upright in the main hall, and Guan Yu knelt down without saying a word.

Zhang Fei stared anxiously, muttering, "Brother, why bother?"

"Stop your nonsense. If we don't sincerely apologize, how can His Majesty forgive us? What are you standing there for? Kneel down now."

"Alright, kneel down. My eldest and second eldest brothers have both knelt down, so I'll kneel down too."

Muttering resentful complaints, Zhang Fei also knelt on the ground.

Zhang Yu shook his head and had no choice but to turn back and deliver the letter to Liu Xie again.

Meanwhile, Cao Cao was also discussing matters. He glanced at everyone and said, "Gentlemen, Li Dian, Han Hao, and others have been relocating a large number of refugees to Yuzhou in recent days. The land reclamation project is now on track, and the first batch of cultivated land will yield results next year."

Cao Cao attached great importance to the land reclamation project, and this time, he also gained a promising young talent, Li Dian (Li Mancheng).

Despite being only seventeen years old, Li Dian was already promoted by Cao Cao and trained as a key figure.

Cao Cao not only valued talent but also knew how to be grateful. In the past, he and Lü Bu fought for control of Yan Province, and the two sides attacked each other, resulting in a long stalemate.

The powerful Li family of Cheng clan provided both labor and supplies, greatly assisting Cao Cao. However, many members of the Li family lost their lives in the process.

The root of the historical discord between Li Dian and Zhang Liao lies here.

Many members of the Li family died under Zhang Liao's sword!
The relationship between Li Dian and Zhang Liao is similar to that between Gan Ning and Ling Tong; they are both colleagues and enemies!
Xun Yu said, “My lord, Yuan Shao is in the north, and his military power is strong. We should not fight him for the time being, but continue to appease and win him over. Lü Bu of Xuzhou has just defeated Liu Bei, so it is not advisable to fight him. Liu Biao of Jingzhou has the support of the prominent families of Jingzhou. Although Liu Biao is not good at making advances, he is quite good at defending his territory. In my opinion, my lord should take Zhang Xiu of Nanyang first.”

Cao Cao nodded. "Wenruo is right. Lü Bu, Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, and others are all quite powerful. We need to plan this carefully. As for Zhang Xiu of Nanyang, he is just a remnant of the Liangzhou rebellion. He has only been in Nanyang for a short time and his foundation is not yet stable. We can take advantage of his unstable foothold to remove this stumbling block and test our strength!"

Of course, you should pick the softest persimmons first!

Cao Cao's biggest worry right now is Yuan Shao. In order to keep Yuan Shao in check, Cao Cao generously bestowed titles and rewards upon Yuan Shao once again.

"He's the Marquis of Yangxiang now, so I'll promote him another rank and make him the Marquis of Ye. I'll give him all the honorary titles I can, and let him be vain!"

Guo Jia laughed and said, "Not long ago, Yuan Shao sent people to Xuchang to ask for the titles of governor for his three sons and one nephew. Now Yuan Shao really doesn't take us seriously at all."

Cao Cao sneered, "Yuan Shao appointed Yuan Tan as the governor of Qingzhou, Gao Gan as the governor of Bingzhou, Yuan Shang as the governor of Youzhou, Yuan Xi as the governor of Jizhou, and himself as the Grand General. What a grand gesture! It's as if the whole world belongs to the Yuan family."

Guo Jia stood up with a smile. “Three sons and one nephew, all holding prominent positions, are brothers of the same clan, yet each of them controls a prefecture. Doesn’t this mean that Yuan Shao wants them to fight each other? Even if Yuan Shao is very powerful, you don’t need to worry. Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu have turned against each other, and now Yuan Shao’s sons have formed a tripartite balance of power. It’s really interesting.”

Hearing Guo Jia's words, everyone burst into laughter, and Cao Cao felt much more at ease. He glanced at his eldest son, Cao Ang, standing to the side, and felt quite gratified.

Cao Ang was handsome and dignified, seemingly making up for all of Cao Cao's shortcomings.

Cao Cao was short and unattractive, while Cao Ang was tall and handsome.

Cao Cao was cunning and treacherous, but Cao Ang was well-educated, polite, and had an extraordinary demeanor.

Cao Ang not only made up for Cao Cao's shortcomings, but he also inherited Cao Cao's strengths.

At a young age, he was both literate and martial, brave in battle, proficient in military strategy, kind to people, and tolerant.

Unlike Yuan Shao, Cao Cao would favor and focus on cultivating any particular son he had chosen.

Unlike Yuan Shao, who treated all his sons well, resulting in each of his sons being dissatisfied with the others and vying for the right of succession.

After discussing the plan to send troops, Cao Cao started talking about Liu Bei.

"Your Majesty is still quite childish, holding a grudge against Liu Bei. I was worried that Your Majesty was getting too close to Liu Bei and didn't want them to have contact too early, but I didn't expect that Your Majesty's anger hasn't subsided even now."

Man Chong is the magistrate of Xudu, and he knows everything about the city, big and small.

He immediately replied, "Liu Bei and the other two knelt all morning today, but His Majesty still did not see them."

Cao Cao burst into laughter, "Let Liu Bei taste what it's like to kneel for a long time. I've been holding a grudge ever since Liu Bei seized Xuzhou."

In the afternoon, Liu Xie brought Xu Huang to Hongyun Restaurant.

Behind the restaurant, there is a small courtyard where Wang Cai's family and the shop's employees usually live. Zhao Yun has also been staying here for the past two days since he arrived.

Zhao Yun was feeding the horses in the courtyard when Liu Xie arrived.

Liu Xie stood aside and watched for a while without making a sound to disturb Zhao Yun. When Zhao Yun finished his work, he turned around and saw two people standing not far away.

A young and handsome man with bright eyes, dressed in a plain-colored robe, stood there with a unique air of refined elegance.

The other man, dressed as a guard, had thick eyebrows, fierce eyes, broad shoulders, and a very burly appearance. His weapon was also unique; he carried a gleaming mountain-splitting axe.

"You are?"

Zhao Yun had never met the emperor before and found him unfamiliar.

Liu Xie smiled and said, "You must be Zhao Yun of Changshan, Zhao Zilong. My surname is Liu."

"Surname Liu?"

Seeing Liu Xie's friendly smile and extraordinary demeanor, Zhao Yun was suddenly startled, "Could it be that you are...?"

Although he had guessed it, Zhao Yun still dared not confirm it.

Liu Xie smiled and said, "Indeed, I am the Emperor. Zilong, I am truly delighted that you have come to Xuchang."

Liu Xie walked over with a smile. Just as Zhao Yun was about to kneel, Liu Xie grabbed his hand. "No need. This isn't the palace. There aren't so many rules here."

He glanced back at Xu Huang, who understood immediately and stood guard outside.

(End of this chapter)