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

Chapter 86, The Game Between Cao Cao and Liu Xie

Cheng Yu still held some hope, "Then let's just replace all the palace guards with our own people and let His Majesty stay in the palace forever!"

Cheng Yu spoke with conviction and force.

Guo Jia looked at Cheng Yu expressionlessly and said, "In that case, His Majesty will be forced to abdicate again. Before we can even destroy Yuan Shu, others will be attacking us."

Guo Jia's gaze gradually hardened. "Zhongde, are you truly acting in my best interest, or are you deliberately trying to harm him? Regardless of whether my actions will bring me infamy, just consider this: if Yuan Shao and his allies use this as an excuse to launch an attack on us, how should we respond?"

“Yanzhou and Yuzhou are located deep in the Central Plains, a place of constant warfare. There are no natural defenses or barriers around them. If that happens, our situation will be far worse than that of Dong Zhuo in the past.”

Man Chong, Xun You, and the others remained silent, all agreeing with Guo Jia's statement.

"If we use the Emperor card well, he will be our talisman; if we use it poorly, he will be our death warrant. I know Zhongde means well and wants to control the Emperor as much as possible. But I think you have seriously underestimated the Emperor's role. Your Majesty's hegemony has only just begun. Whether you can unify the Central Plains depends not only on wisdom and military strength, but also on the Emperor card, which accounts for at least half of the success!"

Despite his usual lazy and carefree lifestyle, and his penchant for sensual pleasures, few could rival Guo Jia when he got serious.

Guo Jia shook his head, sighed, and slowly closed his eyes, no longer looking at the indignant Cheng Yu.

Cao Cao remained silent for a long time. After a while, he gritted his teeth in anger and said, "I have said before that we cannot tolerate him again and again. Last time, I already made concessions, but Your Majesty has resorted to the same old tricks again."

The thought of his disheveled appearance in the palace just now made Cao Cao even angrier.

He felt that Liu Xie was a bit tactless and disobedient!
Cao Cao was angry, but he was just bottling up his anger. Once he vented it, he would naturally understand.

Having just been completely suppressed by Dong Cheng, Zhao Yun, and others, Cao Cao barely escaped death, so it's understandable that he was angry.

Xun Yu and Guo Jia were both right, and Cao Cao himself understood this. He hadn't even eliminated Zhang Xiu yet, so it was definitely not the time to turn against Liu Xie.

Sure enough, after a while, Cao Cao's anger subsided considerably, and he muttered to himself, "His Majesty is very clever; he probably guessed it too. I dare not do anything to him now."

Amidst his resentment, Cao Cao inexplicably felt a sense of respect for his opponent.

Cheng Yu's heart sank, his eyes widened, and he said, "So, you're going to punish me, sir?"

Cao Cao stood up and, with a heavy heart, approached Cheng Yu. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Cao Cao bowed deeply to Cheng Yu.

"My lord, what is this?" Cheng Yu seemed to have guessed.

"Zhongde, I'm sorry, I'm afraid you'll have to suffer this time."

Cheng Yu stared at Cao Cao for a while, as if to confirm something. Suddenly, he laughed, a somewhat sad laugh. "My lord, Cheng Yu is at your disposal. I only hope that you will treat my family well."

"Don't worry, I'll tell His Majesty later that you've been locked up in the North Temple prison. Once His Majesty's anger has subsided, I'll release you."

After saying this, Cao Cao looked at Man Chong and nodded to him.

Man Chong understood immediately and took Cheng Yu away.

As they walked, Man Chong reassured him, "Zhongde, don't worry. Since Lord Cao said it's nothing, there shouldn't be any major problems. Just stay at Beisi Temple for a couple of days, and things will be over."

…………

"Your Majesty, you should have done this a long time ago. You shouldn't have been so polite to Cao Cao just now."

Dong Cheng, who had been holding back for a long time, suddenly became very excited and started talking non-stop like a machine gun in front of Liu Xie.

The thought of Cao Cao kneeling on the ground, half-dead with fear, filled Dong Cheng with excitement.

Liu Xie looked at him calmly, and he did not stop Dong Cheng, even though the eunuchs and palace maids would see it.

Dong Cheng was already dissatisfied with Cao Cao. He was Liu Xie's man in the open, so it was only natural for Dong Cheng to gloat.

"Your Majesty is too lenient; you shouldn't have given in just now."

Liu Xie interrupted him, "Imperial brother-in-law, let's stop here for today."

Dong Cheng sighed helplessly. He so wished that Liu Xie could press his advantage and be more decisive.

Afterwards, Liu Xie went to the training ground. He arranged for Wang Yue to instruct Cao Pi from the side, while he and Zhao Yun sparred alone.

Zhao Yun had been observing from the sidelines these past few days, and occasionally sparring with Wang Yue. His swordsmanship was already very good, and now it had reached an even higher level. He was more than capable of practicing with Liu Xie.

The two got into position and started exchanging blows, occasionally whispering a few words to each other.

"Zilong, this time, a complete rift has formed between me and Cao Cao."

Zhao Yun blocked Liu Xie's attack with his sword and whispered, "Your Majesty, what do you plan to do next?"

"It's not a matter of turning against Cao Cao. I've said before that he's not my enemy, but Cao Cao will definitely hold a grudge against me, which will make things more complicated in the future."

Last time it was abdication, this time it was handing over the imperial seal. In fact, the effect was the same: both scared Cao Cao half to death and made him furious.

Liu Xie sighed, his gaze hardening. "From the very beginning, Cao Cao has wanted to sideline me. I can stay out of politics, but I will never allow myself to leave the palace. If I do, I'm afraid I'll never be able to leave again!" The two exchanged blows, their figures flashing and swords clashing. The eunuchs and palace maids in the training ground couldn't get too close, so there was no need to worry about being overheard.

Although Cao Cao sent people to keep an eye on Liu Xie, it did not go so far as to monitor him closely.

"So, does that mean Your Majesty is determined to have Cao Cao execute Cheng Yu this time?"

Once again, their swords clashed, and their bodies leaned against each other.

A cold glint flashed across Liu Xie's stern face. "Zilong, with such a commotion, Cao Cao is testing my bottom line. Similarly, I am also testing his bottom line. If he wants to resolve this matter lightly, then it can only mean one thing."

"This shows that in Cao Cao's eyes, I am not even as important as Cheng Yu. In that case, he will be even less likely to take me seriously in the future!"

Zhao Yun nodded, agreeing that this was indeed the case.

If Cao Cao wants to downplay the incident and insists on protecting Cheng Yu, then things will get complicated!

The next day, Liu Xie still did not attend court. Xun Yu hurriedly advised Cao Cao, "My lord, this matter cannot be delayed. Chen Deng is still waiting at the guesthouse. If His Majesty does not show up soon, the news will soon spread to everyone."

Cao Cao gritted his teeth, somewhat annoyed, "Fine, then I'll go and invite His Majesty right away."

Although he said he was inviting the emperor, Cao Cao knew that he would have to apologize as before and get the emperor to court as soon as possible.

Just as he was about to leave, Cao Cao seemed to suddenly remember something and hurriedly went to the backyard.

Upon finding Lady Bian, Cao Cao said, "Find me something to pad my knees with."

"Ah? Husband, why is that?" Lady Bian looked at Cao Cao in confusion.

Cao Cao gave a wry smile. "Last time I knelt in the palace for half a day. Stop nagging and go find it for me."

Cao Cao was always poor, and his home rarely contained leather items. After searching high and low for a long time, Lady Bian finally found a tattered leather robe, cut it open with scissors, and wrapped it around Cao Cao's knees.

Cao Cao stretched his knees and nodded. "I don't know how long I'll have to kneel this time. I'm already forty-three, yet I have to kneel before a teenager. Sigh..."

Although reluctant, it was a matter of etiquette, and Cao Cao, as the head of all officials, still had to put on a show.

Lady Bian never expected things to develop to this point, and her dissatisfaction with the emperor grew even stronger.

The ministers had varying opinions on Liu Xie's performance this time; some were expectant, some were happy, and some were worried.

The last time Liu Xie abdicated, it went smoothly and did not have much effect. The emperor and his ministers quickly reconciled. But this time, Liu Xie has not attended court for more than ten days.

Even Mi Heng couldn't help but come to Kong Rong to discuss this matter.

Mi Heng said excitedly, "Wenju, do you think His Majesty did this intentionally? Last time it was to give Cao Cao a warning, and this time, I've heard that His Majesty is very dissatisfied with Cheng Yu."

Mi Heng crossed his legs, looking smug. "I think His Majesty usually keeps a low profile, but this sudden move is quite astonishing."

Kong Rong frowned and replied thoughtfully, "I'm also a little confused. His Majesty has made concessions time and time again, ignoring us all, as if Cao Cao is the only one in the world he can trust. But the truth is, it is Cao Cao who wants to control His Majesty. Yet His Majesty has not obediently given in this time. It seems like a concession, but in reality, it is a strategic retreat."

Kong Rong and Mi Heng were both very intelligent, but they were both big mouths, talkative, and couldn't keep their thoughts to themselves.

Fortunately, Emperor Liu Xie kept Kong Rong away from the court; otherwise, he would have definitely been unable to resist spouting nonsense.

…………

"Your Majesty, Minister Cao has arrived!"

Zhang Yu strode in from outside. Liu Xie put down the half-finished painting and nodded, "Let Lord Cao in."

Before long, Cao Cao strode in, followed by two burly men on his left and right, both with full beards and exuding a heroic and ruthless aura.

One is Dian Wei, and the other is Xu Chu!

This time, Cao Cao was smarter and came prepared, bringing his two strongest bodyguards with him.

He wanted to regain the face he had just lost!
When Dian Wei saw Liu Xie, he gave a simple, honest smile. He was simple-minded and didn't know what Cao Cao wanted to do with him.

Xu Chu, on the other hand, had a cold expression and sharp eyes, showing little respect for the emperor before him.

He only obeyed Cao Cao's orders, and even if Cao Cao wanted him to kill the emperor, Xu Chu would not disobey.

Cao Cao, who was initially very confident, entered the room only to find that Liu Xie was alone; Zhao Yun, Wang Yue, and Dong Cheng were not there.

Just now, Liu Xie had completely suppressed Cao Cao, but now Liu Xie sat calmly, quietly watching him.

This made Cao Cao feel somewhat embarrassed. He was really afraid that Liu Xie would suddenly shout and question, "What is your purpose in bringing people here?"

Cao Cao quickly waved his hand and ordered, "Dian Wei and Xu Chu, you may leave now."

(End of this chapter)