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

Chapter 175, Liu Xie's letter to Xun Yu

Liu Xie had some understanding of Gan Ning, and now, hearing him recount the past in person, he gained an even more detailed understanding.

Liu Xie had always thought that Gan Ning was just robbing some wealthy households, but he never expected that he not only robbed, but also regularly levied taxes on those rich merchants, and on a considerable scale.

He was completely different from other mountain bandits and outlaws; strictly speaking, Gan Ning was more like a member of the underworld during the Three Kingdoms period!

Using his reputation, his methods, and his sound management, he made those wealthy merchants obediently pay up and submit to him!
In the Three Kingdoms period, Gan Ning collected protection money and lived a very successful and carefree life, even more so than the heroes of Water Margin.

After listening, Liu Xie said, "Xingba, I am quite gratified that you can tell me about your past without any concealment. In this chaotic world, many things are done out of necessity. For example, you must have initially thought of joining the army to serve the country and the court, but you had no way to serve your country and your ambitions could not be fulfilled. This was due to the local prefectures and counties, as well as the court. I do not deny that when the late emperor was on the throne, he favored the Ten Attendants and did many things that disappointed the people."

Emperor Ling is very famous in later generations. His incompetence may not be as great as that of King Zhou of Shang, but he did do a lot of heinous things, both big and small.

The most typical example is the sale of official positions. Emperor Ling treated the sale of official positions as a business to make money. All official positions, big and small, were clearly priced, and he even held promotional events to lower prices from time to time!
For example, Cao Cao's father, Cao Song, spent 100 million coins to buy the position of Grand Commandant, but only served for half a year.

Cui Lie was lucky; he caught a big sale and spent five million coins to buy a Situ.

Compared to Cao Song, the five million taels of silver for the position of Grand Commandant is an absolute bargain, costing only one-twentieth of the price of Cao Song, the Grand Commandant.

Emperor Ling also built a nude swimming pool and set up a market in the palace, where palace maids and eunuchs pretended to be street vendors, creating chaos and disorder... In short, Emperor Ling was on the path of self-destruction, constantly causing trouble and making the world unstable.

Gan Ning was surprised that Liu Xie would take the initiative to take responsibility and bravely admit the late emperor's mistakes.

"Xingba, let bygones be bygones. The fact that you are here by my side now shows that you are willing to trust me. If I do anything wrong in the future, you can stand up and criticize me at any time. I will also take the mistakes of the late emperor as a warning and keep them in mind."

Forgetting the past means betrayal.

We must remember the lessons of our predecessors and always be vigilant.

Logically speaking, what Emperor Ling did had nothing to do with Liu Xie, but who made Liu Xie the heir to the Han Dynasty?
"Xingba, summon all the brothers who followed you in your early years. I want to have a word with them."

Before long, everyone had arrived. Most of them were around twenty years old, and they were all burly and strong, exuding a rough and rugged air.

Everyone looked at Liu Xie with curiosity. Liu Xie walked over and walked past everyone in a friendly manner.

Liu Xie would occasionally reach out and pat people on the shoulder encouragingly, and sometimes he would ask them their names.

After making his rounds, Liu Xie nodded in satisfaction and praised, "You are all excellent, loyal and righteous, and have followed Gan Ning all this time. I admire you and respect your loyalty."

Everyone felt proud to be praised by the emperor, and they unconsciously puffed out their chests, their faces showing the same expression as Wang Tong's.

This is Liu Xie's unparalleled advantage in winning people's hearts.

He was the emperor, and when the emperor praised others, one sentence from him was worth ten or a hundred.

After a while, Liu Xie continued, "You are now serving the court, and the title of 'Jinfan Bandits' is not worthy of your status. However, I think the title 'Jinfan' is very impressive and worth commemorating. Therefore, I have decided that from this day forward, all of you will be officially reorganized into the Jinfan Battalion."

"Jinfan Camp?"

The chanting quickly grew louder, and someone shouted, "Long live the Emperor!"

The others joined in the shouting, and even Gan Ning's eyes welled up with tears.

Gan Ning immediately knelt on one knee and shouted, "Brothers, from now on, we have a new name!"

The crowd cheered in unison, and following Gan Ning, they all knelt down on the ground.

Liu Xie nodded with satisfaction. "I hope that in the near future, the Jinfan Battalion will be famous throughout the world. Once the enemy hears your name, they will be terrified and filled with fear! Cao Cao has the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry by his side, which is an invincible iron cavalry. But you, who once roamed the rivers and mountains, are also valiant men. I look forward to your performance in the future."

For these people, having a name means having a legacy, a sense of belonging, and a sense of honor!

Gan Ning led the shouts: "We swear to serve you to the death and will certainly live up to His Majesty's high expectations!"

The crowd shouted in unison, "We swear to serve you to the death and will not fail His Majesty's high expectations!"

Next, Cao Cao decisively sent people to relocate the city's residents in batches. Once Cao Cao decided to do something, he never hesitated, which was what Liu Xie admired most about him.

Execution is decisive and resolute!
We'll do whatever we say!
…………

After a busy morning, Xun Yu took a break and strolled around the Ministry of Personnel for a while, stretching his body as he went. He didn't know when it had started, but this had become a habit.

The construction of Baima Temple is progressing rapidly. Xun Yu has visited it several times in his spare time. The people of the whole city strongly support this project, and Xun Yu himself is also very supportive of it.

"Lord Xun".

As he passed by Lingyan Pavilion, someone called out to him. Xun Yu turned his head and saw Hua Xin walking out from inside.

Hua Xin was dressed in fine clothes and was tall. Unlike Xun Yu, who was steady and composed, he was more like a warrior. He acted straightforwardly and spoke in a loud and bold voice.

Not long after Liu Xie set out on his campaign, Hua Xin and Wang Lang accepted the summons and came to Xudu.

"What's wrong, Ziyu?"

Hua Xin shook her head repeatedly and pointed to Lingyan Pavilion. "These past few days, I've visited almost every corner of Xudu. It's truly baffling that Cao Cao allowed His Majesty to build the White Horse Temple and Lingyan Pavilion."

"Hmm? Is there something wrong with this?" Xun Yu frowned slightly, feeling somewhat displeased.

Xun Yu had a vague idea of ​​what Hua Xin was going to say next.

Xun Yu was not only intelligent, but exceptionally intelligent. It wasn't that Xun Yu didn't want to go on the expedition with Cao Cao, but rather that he was Cao Cao's chief steward.

All matters, big and small, in Xudu are inseparable from Xun Yu.

Xun Yu's position was irreplaceable. Even though Guo Jia was Cao Cao's most valued strategist, his position was far inferior to Xun Yu's.

It was precisely because of Xun Yu, such a pillar of strength, that Cao Cao was able to confidently launch his campaigns.

Cao Cao and Xun Yu, one was in charge of internal affairs and the other was in charge of external affairs.

Xun Yu helped Cao Cao secure his rear, ensuring that Cao Cao wouldn't be distracted by other matters. For Xun Yu's position, intelligence alone was far from enough; he also needed to be steady, diligent, and able to effectively coordinate relationships with various parties.

If he and Guo Jia were to switch places, Xun Yu could do just as well as Guo Jia, but conversely, Guo Jia might not be able to do what Xun Yu could.

Hua Xin did not notice the dissatisfaction on Xun Yu's face. He sighed and said, "Lord Cao is wise and brave, and has great ambitions. With his abilities, he will pacify the world in no time. Your Majesty built the Lingyan Pavilion and the White Horse Temple to convey to the public the image of Lord Cao as loyal to the emperor and supporting the Han Dynasty. It is obvious that Your Majesty did this intentionally, deliberately using his reputation to bind Lord Cao and put him in shackles early on."

Xun Yu had to admit that Hua Xin was indeed very insightful; he had only been in Xu for a few days when he had figured out the emperor's thoughts.

Xun Yu countered, “Ziyu, a ruler is a ruler, and a subject is a subject. Countless people dream of achieving Cao Cao’s current fame and status. Isn’t it good to be a loyal subject?”

Hua Xin shook his head. “Lord Xun, I didn’t say that being a loyal minister is bad. What I mean is that Cao Cao should decide for himself what to do, rather than having others decide for him.”

"Look at the Lingyan Pavilion. His Majesty has portraits and comments on everything. Everything is decided by His Majesty alone. Who has contributed to the Han Dynasty is decided by His Majesty. Who is loyal and who is treacherous, who is good and who is bad, is also decided by His Majesty."

Hua Xin stepped closer to Xun Yu and said in a low voice, "Lord Xun, don't you think this is terrifying?"

"What do you mean?"

Hua Xin sighed, "Actually, Baima Temple and Lingyan Pavilion should never have appeared in Xuchang. His Majesty can leave everything to Cao Gong."

Xun Yu forced a smile and went straight back to the Ministry of Personnel.

Cao Cao might be pleased with Hua Xin's attitude, but the emperor would definitely be very disgusted.

Xun Yu felt that he had oversimplified the problem, mistakenly believing that the emperor was easy to control. If the emperor found out what he had just said, then things would be troublesome.

Xun Yu felt a strange sense of worry for Hua Xin. In Xudu, you could offend anyone, but you absolutely could not offend the emperor.

Although Hua Xin had not yet met Cao Cao, he was always adept at currying favor and planned to make his intentions clear to Cao Cao in advance.

By deliberately criticizing the emperor and expressing his dissatisfaction, he was essentially pledging his loyalty to Cao Cao.

Soon after, Xun Yu received a letter from Liu Xie. He quickly opened it, and the letter began with greetings. Liu Xie inquired about the family, Xun Yun's health, and his studies. Since the child was still growing, Liu Xie also offered suggestions, such as encouraging Xun Yun to go out more often and make friends with other children his age…

Liu Xie explained in great detail and even inquired about Xun Yue.

Xun Yue was Xun Yu's cousin. He was recruited by Cao Cao to Xuchang a few years earlier. At first, Cao Cao wanted to give him an important position because of Xun Yu's reputation, but after some contact and testing, Cao Cao had no choice but to give up.

Because Xun Yue's stance was more direct and firm than Xun Yu's; he stood entirely on the side of the Han Dynasty.

During the reign of Emperor Ling, Xun Yue lived in seclusion. When Liu Xie came to Xuchang, Xun Yue accepted Cao Cao's summons and served as a Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate, and later as a Palace Attendant. He had a good relationship with Kong Rong.

His greatest ability was translating complex doctrines. Even at a very young age, he was able to explain the Spring and Autumn Annals. No matter how obscure or difficult the classic text was, he could interpret it in the simplest and clearest way.

Previously, in order to lower Cao Cao's guard, Liu Xie did not pay much attention to Xun Yue and others, but in this letter, Liu Xie expressed his concern for Xun Yue.

Xun Yu remained silent for a long time after reading this. He could sense that Liu Xie seemed to be different from before.

In Xun Yu's memory, Liu Xie used to seem to pay little attention to many people, but now he showed concern for Xun Yue, whose stance was completely different from Cao Cao's.

Xun Yu was conflicted. He realized that Liu Xie was changing and trying to be a real emperor.

Moreover, Xun Yue was a member of the Xun family, and deep down, Xun Yu was happy for Xun Yue, finally someone understood him.

Next, Liu Xie gave a brief account of what had happened at the front in the letter. Yan Liang had been killed, Baima City was temporarily safe, and Liu Xie did not even hide the plan to have Guan Yu surrender the city later.

After reading the letter, Xun Yu breathed a sigh of relief and was also pleased with the emperor's performance.

"Lord Xun, why are you so happy?" Man Chong couldn't help but ask when he saw the smile on his face.

Guo Jia instructed Man Chong to keep a close watch on the movements throughout the city and to closely monitor both inside and outside Xuchang. Man Chong did not slack off in the slightest, but he did not make any progress.

Xun Yu glanced at him and replied, "His Majesty wrote that Yuan Shao's general Yan Liang has been killed, and everything is going smoothly now."

Man Chong really wanted to take the letter and read it himself, but he knew that it was written by the emperor to Xun Yu. He could search other people's letters, but he was not qualified to look at Xun Yu's letter.

Xun Yu sighed and said, "Since Cao Cao launched his campaign, many officials in Xuchang have been discussing it privately, and many people are pessimistic about this war."

Soon, Xun Yu made a decision: "I plan to share the latest news about the war at the front with everyone at tomorrow's court meeting in order to reassure the people."

With the emperor absent, court assemblies became meaningless.

Whether they were Han officials or Cao officials, everyone felt a sense of emptiness, wondering what was happening at the front.

…………

Soon, Wen Chou led his army across the Yellow River and arrived outside Baima City with a force of 50,000.

Cao Cao immediately climbed the city wall, and sure enough, his forces were twice as large as Yan Liang's.

Wen Chou rode his horse, spear in hand, clad in black iron armor. With a square face, high nose, thick eyebrows, and fierce eyes, his robust body exuded a wild and savage aura.

The 50,000-strong army was gleaming with armor and weapons. The Yuan army was vast and mighty, forming a square formation. At a glance, the weapons were as dense as a forest, flashing with a terrifying metallic light.

Yuan Jun's banners fluttered in the wind, displaying a powerful and imposing military presence that exuded an intimidating aura.

Cao Cao had to admit that Yuan Shao's army was indeed superior to Cao Cao's. More than half of Cao Cao's soldiers were not equipped with armor, but almost every Yuan Shao soldier had a set. The tens of thousands of soldiers gathered together were awe-inspiring and truly astonishing.

Cao Cao didn't care about such superficialities. He believed that fighting was about real battles, the fearless struggle of his soldiers, strategy, and courage.

It's not about how many fine suits of armor or how many fine weapons one has.

Cao Cao fought on the battlefield for many years, starting from scratch. His confidence was built up little by little from the battlefields where corpses piled up and blood flowed.

(End of this chapter)