I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 332 Why Did His Majesty Surrender First? (Fourth Update)

"..."

After Cao Cao left, the atmosphere in the emperor's palace instantly plummeted to freezing point.

Liu Xie stared at Cao Cao's back, his eyes revealing undisguised disgust and hatred, but in the end, all of this turned into a touch of melancholy.

"What do you mean the emperor didn't kill Cao Cao?"

Xu You pointed to his head in disbelief, then gestured with his hand to form the shape of an axe.

"An axe! An iron one!"

"Head! Fleshy head!"

"Pound the meat with an iron! What's so difficult about that?"

Geng Ji also looked troubled: "His Majesty said that he was afraid of Cao Cao's two bodyguards, namely Dian Wei and Xu Chu..."

So many people!

Xu You has begun to roar!
"So many people! And each one of them carries a sword, surely they can kill two unarmed guards?"

Xu You jumped up and down in a panic!

"Ever since Xun Yu was injured, Cao Cao's mind has been focused on military affairs, which is why he has relaxed his control over the emperor!"

"I finally created this opportunity! But I accomplished nothing because I was afraid of his two guards?"

Later, Xu You simply burst into a tirade of curses: "Useless! Useless! If I had known this would happen, I should have been more decisive back then! Then he wouldn't have become the emperor!"

"Lord Xu!"

Geng Ji glared at Xu You: "Watch your words!"

"Besides, this matter hasn't reached a dead end yet. Didn't Cao Cao not realize it?"

"madness!"

Xu You interrupted Geng Ji's explanation without hesitation!
"I know Cao Cao better than you do!"

"Right now, it's just that he suddenly heard the news of Liu Miao's victory and hasn't figured some things out yet! Once he comes to his senses, neither of us will escape our doom!"

Geng Ji suspected Xu You was making a mountain out of a molehill: "No way..."

Xu You rubbed his forehead, feeling a sharp pain in his head!
That's Cao Cao!
Not some cats and dogs!
As Cao Cao's close friend, Xu You understood best how terrifying Cao Cao was!
Once Cao Cao reacts, everyone will die!
Just when Geng Ji was still unconvinced, a piece of news from the palace shattered his illusions.

[Today, all the imperial guards in the palace have been rotated out!]

Geng Ji, who had just thought Cao Cao hadn't noticed, suddenly felt a chill run down his spine, and his voice trembled slightly: "Cao Cao... he found out?"

"Probably not yet! If he had really discovered it, Dian Wei and Xu Chu would already be leading their troops in!"

Xu You paced back and forth, forcing himself to calm down.

Finally, Xu You suddenly looked up—

"Now we need to contact Yuan's army outside the city, and then take the opportunity to open the city gates and surrender Xuchang!"

Geng Ji was startled: "So urgent?"

"Don't test Cao Cao's guard! Otherwise, we'll both die!"

Xu You cursed the emperor twice in his heart, saying he was more trouble than he was worth! Then he began to prepare a plan.

When Zhang He and Gao Lan outside the city heard that Xu You inside the city had actually contacted them, their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets in shock!

"He's still in Xuchang?"

"Not only in Xuchang, but they actually dared to do these things right under Cao Cao's nose?"

Zhang He and Gao Lan actually looked down on people like Xu You who were greedy for money.

But now, they both had only one thought: Xu You deserved to earn this money!
It was only at this moment that they realized the true value of this man who dared to plot the deposition and installation of the emperor during the Zhongping era!

"How to do?"

Xuchang, after all, was the capital of the Han Dynasty!

Yuan Shao definitely wanted Xuchang.

However, what identity and attitude should one adopt when entering Xuchang is a huge problem!

If things go wrong and someone investigates afterward, it could cost you your head!
In particular, Gao Lan had already learned of Yuan Shao's defeat to Liu Miao at Kunyang, so he was even more hesitant and unsure how to handle the matter.

"How about... we send an envoy to Lord Yuan?"

After a long silence, Zhang He suddenly shook his head.

"By the time Yuan Gong replied, Xu You had already been executed by Cao Cao!"

"Xu You took such a great risk to contact us, he must have felt that the city was dangerous and his life was in danger."

"Xuchang City! This is our only chance!"

Zhang He decided not to wait for Yuan Shao!
"Contact Xu You now and prepare to open the gates of Xuchang!"

"Now that Lord Yuan has been defeated by Liu Miao, if this is not handled properly, he could lose everything, and even have to give up the Central Plains!"

"But as long as we can bring the emperor back to Hebei, then we can never be considered to have lost this battle!"

Hearing Zhang He's impassioned speech, Gao Lan finally agreed with Zhang He.

Zhang He and Gao Lan wrote urgent letters explaining their reasons for acting on their own initiative, admitting their mistakes to Yuan Shao and awaiting his punishment. At the same time, they began to secretly prepare to attack Xuchang.

Because most of Yuan's troops were stationed at the south gate, Cao's troops inside the city also placed a large number of their forces on the south side.

The north side of the city was the palace of the emperor, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack. Moreover, since Yuan's army came in the name of the emperor of the Han Dynasty, they never attacked the north gate, so the north gate was the weakest point in terms of defense.

The breakthrough point that Xu You, Zhang He, and Gao Lan agreed upon was at the North Gate!

Under the cover of night, Zhang He and Gao Lan quietly crept to the North Gate, lay prone on the ground, and waited patiently for their chance.

It wasn't until the third watch of the night, when all things had fallen asleep, that three torches suddenly lit up at the north gate of Xuchang.

This was the secret code that Xu You had agreed upon with Yuan's army outside the city!
When Zhang He and Gao Lan saw the firelight on the city wall, their eyes lit up! They quickly made their way to the city gate and, sure enough, found several sturdy ropes!

"This Xu You is truly remarkable!"

As the Yuan soldiers who had climbed up the city gate opened it, Zhang He and Gao Lan had no more doubts or dissatisfaction, and could only admire Xu You!
"Even if Lord Yuan hadn't said anything, I would still have to recognize Xu You as the one who made the greatest contribution in this battle!"

Zhang He instructed Gao Lan: "You go quickly to welcome the emperor and his ministers out of the city! I will seize the palace and delay Cao Cao!"

"Remember, the emperor must never be lost!"

"Here!"

Thousands of elite Yuan troops quietly made their way towards the capital of the Han Dynasty, and even towards the palace of the Han emperor!

It wasn't until Zhang He led his soldiers to seize a high platform in the palace that the Cao army on it was awakened. They quickly sounded gongs and drums and shouted to the surrounding area: "Yuan army is entering the city! Yuan army is entering the city!" Clang clang clang clang!

The sudden noise shattered the silence of Xuchang, waking countless people from their sweet dreams.

After receiving the axe and halberd as a reward from the emperor, Cao Cao was overjoyed.

For many days, Cao Cao had not been close to any woman due to his worries and stress. Today, he finally managed to sleep with the snow-white Lady Bian, but was awakened by the loud sound of a gong.

"what happened?"

Cao Cao wrapped himself in his clothes, his eyes sharp, and he had already drawn his precious sword from under his pillow!

"What happened?"

Dian Wei and Xu Chu, now fully armored, rushed into Cao Cao's inner chamber.

Upon seeing the two men, Cao Cao felt half at ease.

"Ming Gong!"

But the words spoken by these two towering men sent a chill down Cao Cao's spine!
"Yuan's army has already captured Xuchang!"

"impossible!"

Cao Cao immediately shook his head!

How long had he been defending Xuchang? Wasn't the defense there impenetrable? How could it have been breached overnight?
"It is true, my lord."

Xu Chu said, "It's the North Gate!"

"The north gate has been breached, and now most of the palace has been lost!"

But Cao Cao still didn't believe it!
"How could that be? The North Gate is full of pavilions and palaces. Even if there were fewer troops there, it shouldn't have been lost so quietly, unless..."

Cao Cao was suddenly stunned.

The next moment, a bolt of lightning flashed through Cao Cao's mind!

The emperor suddenly bestowed upon him an axe.

Then Dian Wei said that something was off about those Tiger Warriors.

And tonight, the North Gate, which should have been the least likely to be breached, was suddenly broken through by Yuan's army...

At that moment, Cao Cao understood everything!

"His Majesty……"

That sound was filled with helplessness and heartache.

"Your Majesty!!!"

That sound was shrill and resolute!
Two consecutive sounds triggered Cao Cao's old headache, and this time the pain was more intense than all the previous ones combined!

"Father!"

At this moment, Cao Ang, along with Cao Pi and other sons of Cao Cao who were even younger, also entered the room.

Seeing Cao Cao nearly faint from the pain, Cao Ang quickly stepped forward to support him, while shouting to Cao Pi, "Zi Huan! Go quickly and find a doctor! Go now!"

"No!"

Cao Cao's face was contorted with a headache, but he still managed to squeeze out the word through gritted teeth.

"Put on your armor! I'm heading north!"

"Father!"

"Put on your armor!!"

Cao Ang could not refuse Cao Cao, so he had no choice but to put armor on him and personally guard him.

Cao Cao galloped wildly on the imperial road in Xuchang.

It's actually quite cold in Xuchang tonight.

Even with large areas of skin exposed, Cao Cao still felt no chill at all.

Because at that moment, his heart was colder than the weather!
When Cao Cao arrived at the battlefield, Zhang He and Yuan Shao's army were already close to capturing the palace gates.

However, under the relentless suppression of Dian Wei and Xu Chu, they managed to force Zhang He back, leaving him with no choice but to defend from the high ground.

Cao Cao seemed not to see Zhang He or Yuan's army, and continued his charge towards the Emperor's palace at full speed.

But Cao Cao arrived too late; the emperor was nowhere to be seen.

Cao Cao did not stop, and immediately rushed out of the palace, leaping onto the city wall of Xuchang.

This time, he finally saw the emperor's back, and saw the emperor fleeing in panic from outside the gates of Xuchang.

"His Majesty!"

Cao Cao roared so loudly that his own ears hurt.

Upon hearing the voice, Emperor Liu Xie turned around and stared at Cao Cao with resentful eyes.

Cao Cao stood on the city wall, his horse in motion, facing the emperor.

"We are ready to fight to the death for the Han Dynasty! Why has Your Majesty surrendered to the enemy first!"

"Your Majesty, please do not ruin the Han Dynasty! Do not become a ruler who brings about the downfall of a nation!"

"..."

The emperor took a deep breath and responded to Cao Cao—

"Cao Cao!"

"From the moment you killed my wife and children, I swore an oath to fight you to the death!"

"The Emperor of the Great Han is me! Not you! The fate of the Great Han is none of your business to interfere!"

The emperor was completely delighted at this moment!

The sky is high and the birds can fly freely; the sea is wide and the fish can jump freely!
The caged bird has been freed; now it's time for it to show its skills!
Cao Cao looked at the emperor with a sorrowful expression.

"Your Majesty...do you really think that Yuan Shao won't depose the emperor and usurp the throne?"

"Great Han! Great Han!!!"

With the last two cries, Cao Cao's sobs could already be faintly heard...

　I'll try to post the two chapters tonight before midnight!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)