The Three Kingdoms: The entire Cao Cao camp thought I was weak and frail.

This question was like an invisible slap in the face to everyone.

Yuan Shu was so embarrassed by the dancer in his arms that his face turned bright red, and he was about to retort.

Cao Cao gave him no chance, raising his voice even higher as he bitterly declared, "Sun Wentai was defeated before us, and instead of thinking about how to rescue him, we're holding this grand gathering! Dong Zhuo is entrenched in the capital and has not yet been executed, yet we're already fighting amongst ourselves! How are we any different from traitors to the state!"

He strode to the center of the tent, pointed westward toward Luoyang, his voice filled with suppressed anger and righteous indignation.

"I, Cao Cao, have few soldiers and generals, but I know where the greater good lies! My mind is made up; tomorrow I will mobilize all my troops and march west to Hulao Pass!"

"If you gentlemen are willing to follow me, we will fight side by side to punish the traitors! If not..."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Yuan Shao's ugly face, over Yuan Shu's mocking mouth, and finally settling on the distance.

"I, Cao Cao, will go alone!"

His words were powerful and decisive, shattering the false peace within the tent.

Yuan Shao's face turned pale and then flushed, a mixture of embarrassment and anger. He had been publicly humiliated, yet he couldn't find a single word to refute him.

Yuan Shu and his men, no longer holding back, directly made sarcastic remarks.

"Lord Mengde, you're quite arrogant. Have you had too much to drink?"

"With your few thousand men, going to Hulao Pass? You're just handing your lives to Lü Bu!"

"Overestimating themselves, they're practically throwing their lives away!"

Laughter and murmurs rose again, and Xun Hao and Guo Jia exchanged a glance.

Guo Jia's lips curled into a very faint smile. He leaned close to Xun Hao's ear and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear: "Finally, someone dares to cause trouble in this play."

Xun Yu's gaze was fixed on the man who stood alone in the center of the tent, his back straight and solitary.

He looked at that figure who was willing to be an enemy of all the warlords in the world and forge ahead alone. In him, Xun Yu saw something he had never seen in Yuan Shao or any of these scions of powerful families.

Although there are tens of millions of people, I am going.

It is a resolute determination that disregards success or failure, seeking only to have a clear conscience.

He picked up the untouched cup of wine in front of him, faced Cao Cao's retreating figure, and drank it all in one gulp.

The atmosphere inside the tent became incredibly awkward after Cao Cao's departure.

Yuan Shao snorted heavily, then abruptly flung his sleeve and roared, "You ungrateful wretch! Men, play the music! Keep playing the music!"

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, the Suanzao camp presented two distinct scenes.

On one side was the still lazy and quiet camp of the allied forces of the feudal lords. Most of the tent curtains were still closed. Occasionally, a few soldiers who were still hungover would yawn and lazily go to the river to fetch water.

Meanwhile, in Cao Cao's camp, troops were being mobilized, creating a tense yet orderly scene of activity.

Generals Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren, and Cao Hong were sternly directing their soldiers to inspect weapons, feed their horses, and distribute rations. Every soldier's face bore the solemnity of impending battle, yet without the slightest fear. Their lord was going to fight Dong Zhuo, and they would follow; it was that simple.

This army was the core group that Cao Cao had built up from scratch; they were his true family and brothers.

In an unassuming tent, Xun Yu stayed up all night.

Without alerting anyone, Xun Yu arrived at Cao Cao's camp alone.

Cao Cao was assigning tasks when he was surprised to see Xun Yu arrive.

"Mr. Wenruo?"

Xun Yu did not answer, but straightened his clothes, walked up to Cao Cao, and bowed solemnly, performing the grand gesture of a subordinate paying respects to his lord.

Cao Cao was greatly alarmed and quickly stepped forward to help him up, saying, "Mr. Wenruo, you mustn't do this!"

Xun Yu insisted on completing the entire ceremony before straightening up. He raised his head, his gaze clear, and his tone more resolute than ever before.

"Lord Mengde has the world in his heart and the Han Dynasty in his mind; he is incomparable to the likes of Yuan Shao. I am willing to follow my lord and restore the glory of the Han Dynasty!"

The word "My Lord" made Cao Cao's body tremble. He held Xun Yu's arm tightly, looked into the other's sincere eyes, and felt a surge of heat well up in his eyes, his voice even changing slightly.

"With Wenruo's assistance, Cao Cao will be like a tiger with wings! What worries could he possibly have about failing in his great undertaking!"

Xun Yu then took out a scroll of bamboo slips from his sleeve and presented it with both hands: "This is a map of the marching route that I drew overnight, as well as a few humble opinions on how to defeat the enemy. Please take a look, my lord."

Cao Cao took the bamboo slips and, after just one glance, knew their value. He understood Xun Yu's deeper meaning and nodded emphatically: "Wenruo's thoughts are thorough. Cao Cao understands."

As the two were talking, footsteps came from outside the tent.

Xun Hao and Guo Jia walked in one after the other.

Guo Jia yawned, looking languid and as if he hadn't slept enough, and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Cao Cao: "Lord Cao, would you be willing to take my brother and me along?"

Xun Hao followed behind, bowed to Cao Cao without saying a word, but his presence spoke volumes.

"You two brothers?" Xun Yu looked at his younger brother and Guo Jia who had suddenly appeared, his questioning gaze seeming to say, "Where do you place me?"

He had just made up his mind and made the most important choice of his life when, as soon as he turned around, his most troublesome younger brother and his most unreliable cronies followed him.

It felt like I had just accomplished something great, only to be dragged back to reality by my whole family.

Guo Jia, seemingly oblivious to Xun Yu's almost fiery glare, walked over to Xun Hao and casually straightened his collar, which had been ruffled by the morning breeze, muttering, "It's windy this morning, why didn't you wear an extra layer?"

Xun Hao let him do as he pleased, only giving his elder brother an innocent look.

Cao Cao looked at this one, then at that one, his earlier excitement and emotion fading considerably, replaced by amusement. He cleared his throat and tried to smooth things over, saying, "With Fengxiao and Yanruo accompanying us, our chances of success on this trip are much greater."

Xun Yu took a deep breath, suppressing the complex emotions in his heart. Well, they'd already come all this way; he couldn't just send them back. He simply glared fiercely at Guo Jia, his eyes clearly saying: Keep an eye on my brother. If anything happens to him, I'll hold you responsible.

Guo Jia responded with a dashing and unrestrained smile.

In the early morning mist, a force of several thousand men quietly departed from the massive Suanzao Allied Army camp. There was no farewell, no war drums, only the rhythmic sound of footsteps and horses' hooves echoing across the silent wilderness.

This lone army, like a small boat sailing against the current, resolutely headed towards the most dangerous whirlpool when everyone else chose comfort.

Behind them, in Gongsun Zan's tent, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei stood on high ground, watching the small group of soldiers disappear into the distance.

"Brother, Cao Mengde is really gone!" Zhang Fei clenched his fist, his tone filled with admiration. "That's a true man! What are Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu compared to him!"