My father-in-law Guan Yu, I persuaded Liu Bei to launch a surprise attack on Xiangyang at the beginn

Cao Ren was taken aback at first, then his face turned pale with shock.

Cheng Wu, that bastard, is instigating him…

Cao Ren suddenly shivered and said urgently:

"What kind of terrible idea is this? It's absurd, utterly absurd!"

“I, Cao Ren, am a human being, not a beast. How could I commit such a heinous and despicable act?”

"If I really did that, how would the world view me? How would future generations write about me, Cao Ren?"

"Cheng Wu, do you want me to be infamous for eternity?!"

Cao Ren suddenly flew into a rage, waving his hands repeatedly in refusal and launching into a tirade of abuse at Cheng Wu in a fit of rage.

Cheng Wu seemed to have expected Cao Ren's reaction, so he remained silent and let Cao Ren rage.

Only after Cao Ren had finished cursing did Cheng Wu ask a question with a peculiar meaning:
"General of the Flying Cavalry, have you forgotten the events of the Battle of Yanzhou back then?"

"If you, General, will be infamous for eternity if you use my plan, then what about the King's plan when he used his late father's plan?"

Cao Ren stiffened, and memories of the past suddenly surfaced in his mind.

Back then, Chen Gong rebelled and led Lü Bu to seize Yan Province, thus launching an unprecedentedly fierce battle with Cao Cao for control of Yan Province.

At that time, Yanzhou was suffering from a severe drought, resulting in a poor harvest of grain and fodder. Both sides were in dire straits due to food shortages.

At a crucial moment, Cheng Yu, a native of Yanzhou…

It was Cheng Yu's "brilliant idea" that helped Cao Cao overcome the crisis of running out of food, allowing him to receive supplies and troops from Yuan Shao, and ultimately defeat Lü Bu and reclaim Yanzhou.

Now, Cheng Wu, following in the footsteps of his father Cheng Yu, offered Cao Ren the same strategy.

The father and son are truly of the same ilk…

Cao Ren could not possibly misunderstand the deeper meaning behind Cheng Wu's words.

You say that Cao Ren will be infamous in history books for ten thousand years? Doesn't that mean that King Cao Cao of Wei will also be infamous for ten thousand years?
"That's not what I meant at all. Things were different back then, and we can't generalize..."

"What's the difference?"

Cheng Wu interrupted Cao Ren's sophistry and said sternly:

"Back then, when Yanzhou was seized by Lü Bu, the King of Wei was left with only three cities. He had no food or supplies and no reinforcements. He was almost at his wit's end."

"Today, General of the Cavalry and we are trapped in Liyang, also without food or reinforcements, and have been forced into a desperate situation with no way out."

"Back then, King Wei used his father's strategy to survive and for the sake of the Cao family's foundation. Why can't the General of Chariots and Cavalry today follow the same strategy for the greater good, instead of only caring about his own empty reputation in history?"

Cao Ren was speechless.

Full of excitement, he was rendered speechless by Cheng Wu's righteous and assertive questioning.

Cheng Wu is right.

Even as a ruler, Cao Cao disregarded his posthumous reputation and resorted to Cheng Yu's treacherous scheme in order to survive.

You, Cao Ren, are just a subject. What right do you have to care about your empty reputation?
Cao Ren was speechless.

Upon seeing this, Cheng Wu immediately cupped his hands in a gesture of respect and said with righteous indignation:

"General of the Flying Cavalry, do you not know that since ancient times, there has only been one truth that remains unchanged: the victor is king and the loser is villain; everything else is meaningless?"

“If the King of Wei wins in the future, someone will naturally embellish and cover up his achievements in the history books.”

"As a meritorious official and a member of the Cao clan, General of the Cavalry, your actions in Liyang today are out of necessity, and naturally, some people will try to whitewash and beautify them."

“If the King of Wei loses, if my Wei Kingdom perishes, and Liu Bei gains control of the world in the future, he can write whatever he wants in the history books.”

"Even if you, General of the Cavalry, do not use my strategy, they will still record you in history books as an utterly wicked person, fabricating countless unfounded evil deeds for you!"

"This is the law of the victors!"

Cao Ren fell into deep thought, his eyes swirling with intense emotions, clearly indicating a fierce internal struggle was taking place.

Cheng Wu changed the subject and bowed to Cao Ren again:
"The survival of Liyang is related to the survival of our Great Wei, and to whether the General of the Flying Cavalry will become a 'king' or a 'bandit' in the future."

"And the key to the survival of Liyang is its food supply!"

"I urge General Wu to prioritize the survival of Liyang above all else, and not to be burdened by empty fame, lest you regret it in the end!"

Cao Ren stiffened, as if struck by lightning, and suddenly stood up.

The trace of hesitation and worry on his face vanished at this moment, replaced by a cold and resolute determination.

Taking a deep breath, Cao Ren slammed his fist on the table and said in a deep voice:
“You’re right, the victor is king and the loser is villain, that’s an eternal truth. How can I, Cao Ren, let my own empty fame ruin the affairs of the state!”

"My mind is made up. I will defend Liyang at all costs, even if it costs me my life's name!"

"Cheng Zilie, I approve your suggestion. I'm entrusting you with full authority over this matter!"

Cheng Wu breathed a sigh of relief, quickly flattered Cao Ren, and then took his orders and left.

Watching Cheng Wu leave, and as the hall door closed, Cao Ren finally slumped down, utterly exhausted.

The cold and resolute expression on his face vanished in the blink of an eye, and he let out a long, helpless sigh.

"Heaven has eyes, you all see clearly. I, Cao Ren, have come to this point not because I have lost my humanity, but because I was forced into it by that big-eared scoundrel Liu Bei..."

...

Ten days later, in the dimly lit mansion.

Jia Kui, Yue Jin, Cheng Wu, and other high-ranking officers of the Liyang Legion gathered in the main hall.

Everyone looked pale and sickly.

The army's food reserves were exhausted, and the officers' rations were also running low, so they had to halve their original amount.

By this time, they had been starving for more than ten days, and they were all listless and weak.

The only person with a ruddy complexion was Cao Ren, who sat high in his position.

"General of the Cavalry, our army's food supplies will run out in at most two days. I humbly request..." Jia Kui wanted to risk his life to remonstrate and ask Cao Ren to order the city to be abandoned and the city to be broken out.

Cao Ren waved his hand to interrupt, saying confidently:
"I know you think our supplies are exhausted and want to use that as an excuse to persuade me to abandon the city and break out, right?"

"I have gathered you here today to tell you that I have solved your food supply problem."

Jia Kui was taken aback.

The generals, including Yue Jin, also looked at Cao Ren with blank and confused expressions.

How to solve the food and fodder problem?

How do you solve this?

The grain in the granary will be almost gone in two days. Even the poor folks have been scavenged and there isn't a single grain left. How do you plan to solve this?

Can you conjure up food supplies out of thin air?

Everyone was puzzled.

Cao Ren turned his gaze to Cheng Wu and nodded slightly to him.

Cheng Wu understood and clapped his hands lightly.

Footsteps sounded, and squads of guards entered the main hall, bringing in food boxes and placing them in front of Jia Kui and the others.

The food box was opened, and a fragrant aroma wafted out.

Everyone's eyes widened suddenly, their expressions filled with overwhelming joy and surprise.

The food box contained everything imaginable: boiled, baked, steamed...

The hall erupted in a clamor of surprise and delight.

Everyone hurriedly rubbed their eyes to make sure they weren't starving and seeing things.

Once they confirmed that they were not seeing things and that what they were seeing and smelling was real, the hall immediately erupted in jubilation.

"General of the Flying Cavalry, where did these things come from? Could they be horse meat?"

"That's not right. All the warhorses in the city have been killed and eaten long ago. How could there be so much horse meat left?"

Le Jin was both overjoyed and confused, and his gaze immediately turned to Cao Ren.

Cao Ren offered no further explanation, but simply waved his hand and said:

"Why are you asking so many questions? As long as it's edible, just eat it."

Le Jin stopped asking questions and grabbed a piece to devour.

A general of his stature, if not always eating delicacies, at least ate large chunks of meat and drank large bowls of wine; he had never tasted hunger.

These past few months of siege have been like experiencing hunger that would last for generations. Let alone meat, even a bowl of rice would make my eyes light up.

The table full of meat in front of him was a delicacy to Yu Lejin, and he ate it greedily without any regard for his image.

The other generals didn't have time to think much. After swallowing hard, they pounced on the table like hungry tigers and began to eat voraciously.

Jia Kui was dumbfounded.

Originally, he intended to use the pretext of running out of food to risk his life to persuade Cao Ren to abandon the city and break out of the siege.

Unexpectedly, at this critical juncture, Cao Ren suddenly produced so much flesh, effectively silencing Cao Ren's dying remonstrance.

For a moment he stood there, stunned and at a loss.

"Jia Liang said, I have already solved the food shortage problem you were worried about. Are you now going to persuade me to disobey the king's orders and abandon the city to break out?"

Cao Ren stroked his thin beard and questioned with a cold smile, his words clearly containing a hint of sarcasm.

Jia Kui swallowed hard, speechless.

Cao Ren gave a cold laugh and waved his hand, saying:
"Alright, eat it while it's hot. Once you're full, you can focus on fighting to the death to defend the city."

“I have already sent the same things to the soldiers in each camp. Your worry about the soldiers running out of food and rebelling will never happen.”

Seeing that this was the truth, Jia Kui, though still suspicious, dared not say anything more.

He was indeed so hungry that his heart was pounding, so he picked up his chopsticks, trembling as he grabbed a piece and tried to put it in his mouth.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind, causing him to stop what he was about to put in his mouth.

"The number of warhorses in the army is limited. Previously, Kui personally took charge of slaughtering and distributing them to various camps, so it's impossible that there are still so many left."

"General of the Cavalry, where did you get these things from?"

Jia Kui finally realized something was wrong and looked up to ask Cao Ren urgently.

Everyone looked up, their eyes filled with suspicion and curiosity, and turned to look at Cao Ren.

Previously, everyone was so hungry they were dizzy and had no time to think about it carefully. Now that they were full and energetic, their minds started working again. After Jia Kui's reminder, they immediately realized something was strange.

At the same time, they also realized that it didn't taste like horse meat.

Everyone looked at Cao Ren, wanting an answer.

"Zilie, tell them what these are."

Cao Ren knew he couldn't hide it any longer, so he could only glance at Cheng Wu.

Cheng Wu coughed a few times and said:

"All the horse meat in the city has been eaten; what we have now is actually... cough cough..."

Cheng Wu was too embarrassed to say it outright, but his implied meaning was all too clear.

Jia Kui was the first to react, his face changed drastically in horror, and his hand trembled so much that he dropped his chopsticks and the meat to the ground.

"Ah wu——"

Le Jin suddenly bent over and began to vomit violently. (End of Chapter)