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

Chapter 95, General Wu Anguo (Iron Hammer)
Liu Xie continued, “So many people have served me and been loyal to the Han Dynasty. I have always kept them in my heart. For example, Cao Cao first assassinated Dong Zhuo alone, then rallied the masses to attack Dong Zhuo, and then personally rescued me, allowing me to have a place to stay in Xuchang. I will never forget these things. Xun Yu has also worked hard and made great contributions. He has always been diligent and devoted to his duties.”

"I have made my decision. Once the Lingyan Pavilion is completed, you and Lord Cao will definitely be in the two most important positions!"

Xun Yu had even less reason to object. Who wouldn't want a good reputation? With the emperor personally helping him to make a name for himself, what reason was there to refuse?

After parting ways with Xun Yu and walking quite a distance, Zhao Yun said, "Your Majesty, Xun Yu is still standing there, not moving. Although he is Cao Cao's man, it seems that the Lingyan Pavilion has bound him to it."

Liu Xie smiled confidently and said, "I am vindicating the loyal and righteous, and no one will object. Loyalty, filial piety, benevolence and righteousness are an invincible sword. Now that the truth is out in the open, I will do it openly and honestly. Moreover, they know that I am doing this for their own good and I hope that they can become better."

I hope you can be a good person, and I'll help you be a good person. You won't object to me, will you?
Call it moral blackmail or whatever, in any case, Liu Xie was helping Xun Yu and Cao Cao, wanting them to become loyal subjects of the Han Dynasty!

Looking at the distant, continuous rows of pavilions, Liu Xie said meaningfully, "In this world, who doesn't want to be a loyal minister? And who would refuse to be a loyal minister?"

"There has been no reply to the letter sent to Taishi Ci. It seems that His Majesty will be disappointed."

Zhao Yun sighed. He was genuinely worried for Liu Xie. The emperor himself had written a letter to recruit him, but Taishi Ci hadn't come. It was quite disheartening.

This shows that many people were still unwilling to believe in or follow the emperor.

Liu Xie was not surprised. Instead, he advised Zhao Yun, "Zilong, over the years, I have traveled among many warlords. I spent two years with Dong Zhuo and four years with Li Jue. In Xuchang, everything is just beginning. My biggest feeling is that if you want to change something, the most important thing is to have patience."

"Perhaps it's easy for others to do something, but what I have in abundance right now is patience. If one letter doesn't work, I'll write a second one, and a third one. To me, it's just a matter of wasting some paper and ink, it doesn't matter!"

Zhao Yun shook his head helplessly. His Majesty is having a tough time.

Liu Xie continued, "The world has changed a long time ago. As the saying goes, only the fittest survive. We shouldn't rush to change the world, but rather change ourselves and adapt to it first!"

The second letter was written by Liu Xie in front of Kong Rong and Mi Heng at Qingshui Lake.

After finishing writing, Liu Xie handed the letter to Kong Rong, let him take a look, and then said, "Wenju, you should be familiar with Taishi Ci, right? Speaking of which, you have been kind to him, and he has been loyal to you."

Kong Rong nodded. "Yes, we were trapped in Beihai before, and we were fortunate to have this man. He is very capable and has the demeanor of a chivalrous hero. However, I really did not expect that he would refuse Your Majesty's recruitment."

Looking at the busy figures of the farmers in the distance, Liu Xie suddenly asked, "These recruited people work so hard every day, do they get paid?"

Kong Rong shook his head. "They are all refugees who have fled from war. They are already very grateful to be given two meals a day."

At the end of the Han Dynasty, most people lived on a two-meal-a-day system. Liu Xie shook his head with worry, "They are all a group of poor people. We should take some of their wages from the treasury and change their two-meal-a-day system to three-meal-a-day system. The weather is getting colder every day. They have to fill their stomachs after doing this kind of hard work."

Kong Rong said with difficulty, "Your Majesty, the treasury has no surplus funds at all. Since the capital was established, the expenses in the palace have been very tight. Minister Cao is also spending money everywhere. I'm afraid this matter will be difficult to handle."

"Go directly to Lord Xun and ask him to come up with a solution. I will also appropriately reduce the amount of money in the palace."

"Your Majesty, why must you humiliate yourself? Everyone in Xudu knows that Cao Hong has plenty of money. Why not have him advance some of it?"

Liu Xie shook his head. "Cao Hong's money belongs to Cao Hong himself. If anyone should manage it, it should be Cao Cao. We should just ignore it."

"By the way, since you and Taishi Ci are old friends, why don't you write a letter to persuade me as well, and send it over with someone?"

Kong Rong immediately did as instructed, while Mi Heng watched quietly from the side. Since Cheng Yu was eliminated, Mi Heng had become much calmer.

Taishi Ci did not respond. Mi Heng noticed that Liu Xie was very patient, neither disappointed nor angry, and still took it seriously.

After Kong Rong finished writing the letter, Liu Xie suddenly remembered someone else. "I remember when the princes were attacking Dong Zhuo, Wenju also participated. At that time, there was a general by your side who wielded a hammer and was able to fight Lü Bu for more than ten rounds at Hulao Pass."

Kong Rong quickly replied, "I didn't expect Your Majesty to remember this person. His name is Wu Anguo, and he is known as the Iron Hammer General!"

Of all the heroes of the Three Kingdoms, only a handful could last more than a dozen rounds against Lü Bu.

At Hulao Pass, besides the three of Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei who joined forces and had a spectacular duel with Lü Bu, there were two other people who also had fierce battles with Lü Bu: Gongsun Zan and Wu Anguo.

Liu Xie hurriedly asked with concern, "Wenju left Beihai and came to Xudu. I wonder where this brave man named Wu Anguo is now?"

Kong Rong said with some regret, "His left wrist was severed. He felt that he had become a useless person, so he asked me to resign and return to his hometown." Liu Xie expressed his deep sympathy and said, "Although he lost a wrist, he is not a useless person. He returned to his hometown and wanted to be an ordinary person. This not only buries his skills, but he will also probably suffer ridicule from his fellow villagers and neighbors."

Going from a general to a cripple, in any era, would inevitably invite ridicule and sarcasm.

It's like a big boss who suddenly goes bankrupt and has to work as a bricklayer; he'll definitely be ridiculed and looked down upon by many people.

"In that case, I will personally recruit him and bring him to Xuchang to serve as my personal guard."

Kong Rong knew Wu Anguo's address, and Liu Xie immediately picked up his pen to write a letter. Mi Heng couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, there are so many heroes in the world, why are you so concerned about a man who has lost an arm?"

Liu Xie looked at him calmly, "Does Zhengping think I am a snobbish person who only treats those who are of great use to me well? No, I treat the world with sincerity and do not have any extravagant desires. As long as I follow my heart and act according to my nature, that's enough. Why care so much?"

As he spoke, Liu Xie gave a very simple example: "For instance, if an elderly man comes along and I offer him my seat, do I expect him to give me some reward afterward? In Zhengping's eyes, Wu Anguo may not be as good as Lü Bu, Liu Bei, or anyone else, so why waste energy recruiting him? He's just a useless person. But in my eyes, I simply want to help him, it's that simple!"

Mi Heng immediately looked embarrassed and was at a loss for words, not knowing what to say.

Liu Xie wouldn't indulge him, and said, "Take Zhengping for example. You have unparalleled talent and ambition, but you haven't done anything for me. Yet I still treat you well and drink and chat with you face to face. Does everything I do have to have some purpose?"

This made Mi Heng even more embarrassed.

He originally thought that it was perfectly reasonable for the emperor to know and appreciate him, given his talent and reputation.

But after hearing Liu Xie's words today, I realized that I am nothing.

Because you did nothing, you are nothing!
Kong Rong felt this deeply; he had come to a realization: no matter how talented he was, what good was it if he hadn't done anything for the emperor?

Seeing Mi Heng's pale face and twitching lips, Liu Xie retorted, "The reason I said all this is simply to say that whatever we do, we should just follow our own hearts. You two are both very talented, but I am not with you because of your talents."

Mi Heng was very clever, but he couldn't quite grasp the situation at first. He felt that he had just mocked Wu Anguo, but in the emperor's eyes, he seemed to be utterly worthless.

Kong Rong quickly advised, "Zhengping, His Majesty was just giving an example; he wasn't targeting you. Don't take it to heart."

Mi Heng shook his head, mustered his courage and looked at Liu Xie, "Your Majesty's words are thought-provoking. I am ashamed. I have indeed never shared Your Majesty's burdens, because Your Majesty has not given me the opportunity to serve."

Liu Xie pointed to his chest and said jokingly, "So it's my fault? In that case, I apologize to Zhengping for neglecting such a talented and virtuous person as you."

Mi Heng remained silent, but his eyes were still fixed on Liu Xie. Kong Rong nudged him with his elbow to remind him not to be rude.

Mi Heng ignored Kong Rong and continued to stare at Liu Xie.

"I have always wanted to serve Your Majesty, but Your Majesty has not given me the opportunity. Your Majesty's situation may seem peaceful on the surface, but it is actually turbulent beneath the surface. It is precisely because of people like Wenju and me that Your Majesty needs to share your burdens."

Mi Heng looked anxious and sincere, but Liu Xie shoved him away and let out a disdainful sneer.

Kong Rong was stunned, and Zhao Yun, who was standing next to him, was also stunned.

However, Zhao Yun maintained the vigilance expected of a top-notch guard, his eyes constantly scanning his surroundings.

Cao Cao didn't care much about Qingshui Lake. Kong Rong and Mi Heng, those two big mouths, were left there. They had no real power and no armored soldiers under their command. In Cao Cao's eyes, what could they possibly do?

Cao Cao's attention was focused on people like Prince Chen, Guan Yu, Liu Bei, and Lü Bu. Even Dong Cheng was considered ten times more dangerous than someone like Kong Rong in Cao Cao's eyes because Dong Cheng was a military general with troops under his command.

But Liu Xie did the opposite. He approached people who had no military power, and he didn't really care about those who had some military power.

Dong Cheng was a General of Chariots and Cavalry, and Zhong Ji was a Colonel of the Changshui Army. Both of them commanded troops, but Liu Xie rarely had contact with them.

Liu Xie knew very well that anyone with military power was already on Cao Cao's list of people to be closely monitored. After Cheng Yu's death, even Liu Xie himself was on the list. Therefore, Cao Cao would definitely become more suspicious if Liu Xie got close to Dong Cheng and Zhong Ji!

(End of this chapter)