The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 3: Bamboo Pole Dog Tail
"The county magistrate has called for reinforcements! He said he wants to arrest you!"

"What??"

Cao Mao's eyes widened.

That damn county magistrate, does he have the guts to do that?

Before Cao Mao could react, Guo Ze had already walked into the hall. He looked at the people around him blankly, "What happened?"

The warrior hurriedly said, "Many people saw it. They said the county magistrate left the city to meet a large army, all cavalry. The whole city has been put under martial law, and soldiers have been posted to guard the road from the city gate to our mansion. No one is allowed to pass!"

Guo Ze was still a little confused, "Why would the county magistrate do this?"

Cao Mao pursed his lips.

It seems that the matter can no longer be concealed.

He stood up and walked to Guo Ze's side with a sincere face, "Mr. Guo, you don't know, I just had a dispute with the county magistrate."

"Huh? Why? What's the dispute?"

"Don't worry, it's not a big deal."

Cao Mao comforted him.

The Ranger Liu Lu, who came to deliver the message, grinned and shouted, "Right! It's not a big deal. Cao Gong led us to rob the Empress of Shuqu this morning!"

Guo Ze felt a black screen before his eyes and staggered a few times.

Liu Lu hurriedly supported him, but Guo Ze pushed him away. He looked at Cao Mao in front of him seriously.

"County Lord."

"You never listened to my advice and did things that violated etiquette. Although I am heartbroken, I hope you can change."

"But this time, you actually forcibly abducted a woman, raped her, and plundered her. This is absolutely unacceptable to me."

"I failed to persuade and teach well. This is all my fault."

As Guo Ze spoke, he slowly placed his hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist, and his eyes became determined.

Cao Mao grabbed his hand, his expression extremely solemn.

"Mr. Guo, please listen to me first. If you still think I'm guilty after I've explained the whole story, I'm willing to commit suicide with you."

Guo Ze was stunned. Cao Mao frowned and asked calmly, "Do you still remember the family we stayed with when we went to Pan'anli for a visit?"

The image of the family of four quickly appeared in Guo Ze's mind.

The kind old man, the simple and honest farmer, the gentle and virtuous wife, and the shy child.

"I remember."

"The woman who brought us water was raped by Shuqu and then committed suicide. The farmer who insisted on getting some game for us to eat was falsely accused of offering his wife, his reputation ruined, and he jumped into the water to commit suicide."

"There are only one old man and one young man left in that family."

"Today I led my men to rob Shuqu's wife, who had aided the tyrant, and to compel the county magistrate to punish them, and to clear the name of that peasant family."

"You say, did I do something wrong?!"

Guo Ze stared at Cao Mao with a dazed expression. The image of that family appeared in his mind again, and he couldn't help but clench his fists.

"That's right! Of course it's right! He let the county magistrate go! He should be killed as well!"

Suddenly, another person's voice was heard in the hall.

Cao Mao looked over and saw that it was Yang Gong. He had moved into the hall at some point and was still sitting cross-legged with his back against the wall, holding a wine jug in his hand, shouting drunkenly.

Guo Ze ignored him and said seriously, "This is the fault of the Shu family. Don't worry, Mr. Xiang. I will go and talk to them."

"If that Shu family dares to confuse right and wrong, I will personally file a petition with the Three Officials!"

"So you know you can directly submit a petition to the Three Departments?"

"What did the lord say?"

"Oh, nothing."

Guo Ze looked at Liu Lu standing aside and asked, "Tell me, how many people are here? How many cavalrymen are there? What's the situation?"

"It was too far away, so I didn't dare to look closely. I just saw the leader sitting in the car, holding a bamboo pole with a dog's tail hanging on it."

"Dog tail??"

"Yes, there is a dog's tail hanging on the top of the bamboo pole, and the man is shaking it vigorously."

Guo Ze’s vision went dark again.

"That's called the Emperor's Festival Staff, not a Bamboo Pole Dog Tail!!!"

Liu Lu was horrified. "He just robbed a woman, but could he have alarmed the emperor?"

"The emperor's ceremonial staff is being used. Is this an attempt to destroy the country?! That shouldn't be the case. How could it be? Are you sure it's a dog? Are you sure it's a bamboo staff with a yak tail hanging on it?"

Seeing the people around him getting anxious, Cao Mao had a surprising guess in his mind.

Could it be that Emperor Cao Fang was deposed for rebellion?

Not to mention whether the emperor's ceremonial guards are needed to deal with a public official like me, even if they are needed, they can't reach Yuancheng within a day, right?

Is he going to ascend the throne?
Thinking of this, Cao Mao felt cold all over and his hair stood on end.

Of course Cao Mao knew who he was.

The last man of the famous Cao Wei in history.

The first Chinese emperor to be assassinated in the street was Emperor Cao Mao of Wei.

Cao Mao was a man of immense ability, often called the "Emperor Wen of Han who lacked time." Even at a young age, he displayed exceptional intelligence and enjoyed a great reputation.

When he ascended the throne, his rhetoric left his ministers dumbfounded.

After ascending the throne, he continued to win over elites from various factions. A fourteen-year-old boy could even debate with the most outstanding Confucian scholars of the time.

They discussed who was stronger, Shaokang or Liu Bang, and wanted to use public opinion to suppress the Sima family.

He fought battles of wits and courage with the two brothers of the Sima family many times, and when he was fifteen years old, he caught Sima Zhao off guard.

Unfortunately, what he faced was a horrible dead end.

Until the end, the young emperor, realizing that he was powerless to change the situation, led his personal soldiers to launch a final charge against Sima Zhao.

Killed in the street.

With the abilities Cao Mao displayed, it would be unimaginable if he had been born in a peaceful and prosperous era.

You must know that the difficulties faced by Cao Mao were unprecedented.

The Sima family fully absorbed the experience of Cao Cao, Cao Pi and others, and applied that set of things perfectly to the Cao family.

The military and political power fell completely into the hands of the Sima family, and in the end, almost all the ministers loyal to the Wei Dynasty were taken away by Cao Fang.

Sima Shi was an extremely terrifying enemy.

This is why Cao Mao is so confused at the moment.

Even if the two of them were combined into one, familiar with what would happen next, and had the added experience and vision of thousands of years, what could they do in such a predicament?
Become an extremely aggrieved puppet emperor, and finally be forced to abdicate or be assassinated?
Cao Mao could hardly hear what Guo Ze and his retainers were saying.

He sat beside Yang Gong in a daze, his hands trembling slightly.

"Don't be afraid, sir."

"Maybe it's a good thing?"

Yang Gong said drunkenly.

"Maybe so."

At this moment, Liu Lu had already come up with a plan for Guo Ze. "Let Cao Gong climb over the wall and run from the back wall. I am the same height as Cao Gong. Let Cao Gong give me his clothes and I will pretend to be Cao Gong!"

"Then I will lead the brothers to the wall and have them shoot arrows to stop the knights."

"After Cao Gong leaves, we'll set the fire. As long as I'm dead beyond recognition, they'll think Cao Gong is already dead!"

Liu Lu grinned and patted his chest proudly, feeling extremely pleased with his plan.

Guo Ze laughed angrily, ignored the reckless man, and looked directly at Cao Mao.

"Lord Cao, let me go over and ask about the situation."

Cao Mao shook his head, "That's not necessary."

Liu Lu was overjoyed. As expected, Cao Gong still preferred my plan!

"Can the county magistrate fly? He just broke into the county government office this morning, and now he can invite the emperor's flag from the capital?"

"They may not be here to arrest me. Maybe they are trying to change the ban."

"Liu Lu, take your brothers and go first."

"Mr. Cao! We may not have been educated, but we were also born and raised by our parents!"

Liu Lu's face flushed red, as if he had been humiliated.

"There's no reason in the world to accept your kindness and then run away when you're in trouble!"

"When we were desperate, you accepted us without looking down on our background. Now that you've been in trouble, we should repay you with our own deaths!"

"Besides, throughout this year, you have always stood up for the weak and upheld justice. You are the greatest hero in the world in our hearts!"

"It is our blessing to die with you!"

The rest of the unruly scoundrels also stood beside Liu Lu and started shouting.

Cao Mao shook his head and said, "If you continue to stay here, I will get into trouble."

"Don't worry, they are definitely not here to arrest me, but they really can't see you here, otherwise, I'm afraid it will be bad for me."

Liu Lu laughed and said, "That's easy. We can just hide our swords and hide in the mansion pretending to be slaves. If they want to harm you, we can help them."

Cao Mao did not refuse again.

Guo Ze looked at Cao Mao thoughtfully. Cao Mao continued, "If they really come to accuse me, just tell them the truth about what I did. Don't get implicated by me."

Guo Ze shook his head.

"You've changed so much in this year that I almost didn't recognize you, but today I realized that you're still you."

"Only a noble man would do something so reckless for such a matter."

"He is full of passion and youthful spirit, and is willing to help those he meets by chance."

"Those you have saved are willing to live and die with you."

"Can't I, an educated man, die for you? If they ask for punishment, I will take the punishment in your place."

Cao Mao smiled and said nothing.

He looked towards the gate.

The dark clouds outside dissipated at some point, and the sun shone on the ground again, leaving many spots of light.

Cao Mao sat in the shadows of the hall, gazing at the light in the distance.

(End of this chapter)