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

Guo Jia's face darkened completely. He was being so serious here, and this ungrateful brat was still laughing? Did he even know what he was concerned about?

Just as Guo Jia's patience ran out and he was about to turn and leave, Xun Hao straightened up, stepped forward, and opened his arms to hug him.

Xun Hao recalled that in *Dream of the Red Chamber*, Lin Daiyu had cautiously asked a similar question: "Is this just for me, or do all the other girls have it?"

Although Guo Jia in front of me is completely different from Lin Daiyu, his sensitive and calculating demeanor does bear a striking resemblance.

Guo Daiyu?

The thought flashed through Xun Hao's mind, but he dared not laugh again, lest the other party become truly angry.

Xun Hao rested his head on Guo Jia's shoulder, his voice still carrying a lingering smile. He thought to himself that just as Lin Daiyu had hoped for a positive answer back then, Guo Jia now also desired that special treatment.

Friendships can be exclusive, let alone the fact that I and Guo Jia are the closest confidants in the world.

He hugged Guo Jia tighter and whispered clearly in his ear, almost with a sigh, "Yes, this belongs solely to you; no one else has it."

All of Guo Jia's grievances and bitterness vanished in that one hug and those words. He turned and hugged the person in his arms back, and the long-empty space in his heart was filled to the brim.

In the stillness of the night, only a dim oil lamp was lit in Xun Hao's bedroom.

Guo Jia lay on his side on the bed, propping his head up with one hand, watching Xun Hao sit under the lamp, slowly and methodically untying his hair ornament.

Her long, jet-black hair cascaded down like a waterfall, making her already fair face appear even more lustrous, like jade, under the lamplight.

"You just said that I am your confidant?" Guo Jia's voice carried a questioning tone.

Xun Hao paused, untying his hair ribbon, and looked at the person on the bed through the bronze mirror. "Isn't it?" he countered.

"Yes," Guo Jia answered quickly, but he knew in his heart that what he wanted was far more than just a confidant.

But he couldn't say it yet. This man seemed intelligent, but he was as oblivious as a block of wood when it came to emotions. If he spoke too soon, he might scare him away.

Xun Hao put down the wooden comb, blew out the oil lamp, and groped his way to the bedside to lie down. A familiar warmth came from beside him, and he subconsciously moved closer to the source of heat.

In the darkness, Guo Jia saw that he was motionless and assumed he had fallen asleep, so he stopped talking. He quietly held the person in his arms, listening to the other's steady breathing, and felt a sense of peace in his heart.

He thought, this is fine too.

The next morning, Cao Cao adopted Xun Hao's suggestion and went to the post station to visit Zhao Yun early in the morning.

Zhao Yun was a humble man, and when he saw Cao Cao coming in person, he quickly went out to greet him.

"General Zilong, did you rest well last night?" Cao Cao warmly took Zhao Yun's hand and inquired about his well-being.

"Thank you for your concern, General. Everything is fine."

The two men sat down, and Cao Cao got straight to the point, explaining his purpose. He earnestly stated that he wanted to replenish the White Horse Cavalry's mounts, but white horses were hard to find and would take several days to arrive.

Zhao Yun was unwilling to accept the gift, but he could not refuse it on behalf of his subordinates. After considering it for a moment, he said, "In that case, thank you, Lord Mengde."

The atmosphere was just right, so Cao Cao suggested that they take a walk around Dongjun City so that Zhao Yun could see the local customs and culture.

Zhao Yun walked beside Cao Cao, his posture upright like a pine tree, his steps steady. Sunlight shone on him, making him seem to glow.

He would occasionally turn his head to answer Cao Cao's questions, his attitude neither humble nor arrogant, his words and actions revealing a magnanimous and open-minded demeanor.

He is a hero.

Looking down from the teahouse, Guo Jia had to admit to himself that this was true.

Three days passed, and Zhao Yun became anxious to return to Youzhou. His subordinates who did not have white horses also said that Dongjun was not like Youzhou, and that General Gongsun had his own pastures, so they could go back and exchange their horses for white horses.

Zhao Yun ultimately decided to take his leave.

He was an upright man who received Cao Cao's favor and replenished his supplies. Although Cao Cao tried his best to persuade him to stay and spoke earnestly, he was determined to leave.

"Lord Mengde, I am deeply grateful. If there is ever a need for me, I will go through fire and water for you." Zhao Yun bowed solemnly to Cao Cao in front of the prefect's mansion.

Cao Cao grasped his arm, his face full of regret, and was about to say something more when a scout came tumbling and crawling over.

"My lord! Urgent report! The Yellow Turbans of Qingzhou, boasting an army of a million, are marching towards our Dongjun! Their vanguard has already captured Fan County, leaving nothing but devastation in their wake!"

One sentence chilled everyone present to the bone.

A million! Even if that's just a figure of speech, Cao Cao still couldn't withstand it.

With Dongjun newly pacified, everything was in need of rebuilding, and Cao Cao had less than 10,000 soldiers capable of fighting at most.

"This..." Cao Cao's face drained of all color. He staggered and was supported by Xiahou Dun beside him.

Zhao Yun's hand, which was about to take the reins of his horse, froze in mid-air. He turned around, looking at the crowd in the courtyard that had suddenly become chaotic, and then at Cao Cao, whose face was ashen. A struggle flashed in his clear eyes.

"My lord has a grudge against Alliance Leader Yuan. I am a subordinate of General Gongsun and should not..." he muttered to himself, but his feet seemed to be rooted to the spot, and he could not take that step no matter what.

He recalled the peaceful smiles that had just appeared on the faces of the people he had seen along the way, as they reclaimed the wasteland. Was all of this about to be destroyed?

He is not an indecisive person.

Zhao Yun turned and strode back to Cao Cao, kneeling on one knee. His voice was firm and resolute: "In this time of national crisis, we stand united! Though I am unworthy, I am willing to lead my five hundred White Horse Cavalry to fight alongside you against the Yellow Turbans and protect the people of this region!" Cao Cao grasped Zhao Yun's hand tightly. "Zilong, your righteousness is truly admirable! On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of people of Dongjun, I thank you, General!"

Zhao Yun said solemnly, "Since I have made a promise, I will not go back on it. Since the military situation is urgent, I will go and organize the troops and then await further orders."

"Good! Good!" Cao Cao responded repeatedly, personally escorting Zhao Yun to the courtyard gate. Only when the figure in silver armor and on white horse disappeared around the corner of the street did the emotion on his face recede like a tide.

He turned around, waved his sleeve, and there was no trace of the panicked look he had just had.

"All generals, listen to my command! Let's hold a meeting in the main hall!"

"Here you go!"

Guo Jia quietly leaned close to Xun Hao's ear and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear: "My lord's acting skills are becoming more and more superb. If we hadn't been waiting here for a quarter of an hour, I would almost have believed it."

Xun Hao didn't even lift his eyelids, but inwardly he was thinking, "Not only you, but I was almost fooled too."

Seeing Zhao Yun hurriedly come to say goodbye, he specifically instructed the scout who had already reported once to rush in and report again, so that Zhao Yun would not be able to leave Cao Cao at his most difficult time with a clear conscience.