Tiger Owl

Chapter 314 Cao Jie, the Fourth Daughter
Cheng Yu and Xun Yu withdrew. Cao Cao pondered for a moment, then ordered the eunuch, "Bring me the Eighth Prince!"

The eighth daughter was actually Cao Jie, Cao Cao's fourth daughter.

The information that Gan Ning, the head manager of the trading company, inquired about in Ye City was not very accurate. Cao Cao had more than one daughter of marriageable age, Cao Ya; he also had a fourth daughter, Cao Jie, and a fifth daughter, Cao Xian.

Cao Ya and Cao Jie were both born to Lady Du and were only one year apart in age. In the previous seven-year truce agreement, Cao Ya had been betrothed to Sun Quan, the Marquis of Wu. The marriage process was complete, and only the final step of welcoming the bride into the bridal chamber was left.

Therefore, during the initial negotiations between Jia Xu and Gan Ning regarding the marriage alliance, Gan Ning bluntly pointed out that marrying Cao Ya was tantamount to marrying a widow who had never been married.

Cao Cao was also aware of this problem. He knew that he could no longer marry Cao Ya to Gan Ning and had to find a replacement. So he decided to marry his fourth daughter, Cao Jie, to Gan Ning instead.

Of course, this was not a bad thing for Cao Ya. Cao Ya and her father's adopted son He Yan had been in love since childhood. At Lady Du's request, Cao Cao agreed to marry Cao Ya to He Yan. However, in order to seize Eastern Wu, Cao Cao canceled the promised marriage and decided to marry Cao Ya to Sun Quan. The six rites were completed, and just when Cao Ya was disheartened, the Marquis of Wu was assassinated.

Cao Cao then wanted to remarry Cao Ya to Gan Ning, but Gan Ning refused with the statement that he would not marry a widow.

After many twists and turns, Cao Ya finally married her beloved He Yan, and the lovers were finally united. Her sister, Cao Jie, was chosen to arrange the marriage.

Cao Jie was only fourteen years old and looked a little frail, but she was definitely a little beauty. Historically, she was the second empress of Emperor Xian of Han, Liu Xie. Now she had no chance to enter the palace.

Cao Jie placed a cup of tea on her father's table and performed a full curtsy. "Father, is there something you need from your daughter?"

Looking at his obedient daughter, Cao Cao felt a pang of guilt. "Jie'er, I originally intended for your sister to marry into a powerful family, but she was already betrothed to the Marquis of Wu, so it's not appropriate for her to marry into another family. I can only ask you to make do with this."

Cao Jie knew, of course, that she was not to be married as the principal wife, but as a concubine. Although she was unwilling, she had no choice in her fate. Her father had made the decision, so she could only accept it.

"My daughter is very happy to share her father's burdens!"

Cao Cao nodded. "The ceasefire negotiations are basically complete, and the marriage alliance has been finalized. Your father is considering having you stay at General Gan's residence for a while."

Cao Jie was slightly taken aback. "Father, so fast?"

Cao Cao gave a wry smile and said, "The previous marriage alliance with Jiangdong was in name only and seriously damaged Father's reputation. This time, in order to gain the trust of Western Chu, I have no choice but to temporarily place you in Gan Ning's residence."

Cao Jie nodded silently. She was smart; she knew that her father had arranged everything long ago. He was just telling her to prepare her mentally, but he wouldn't change anything.

"Jie'er, let's set off first thing tomorrow morning!" Cao Cao finally gave his answer.

Cao Jie suppressed her sadness, her voice trembling slightly, "I understand, I'll pack now, we'll leave tomorrow. It's getting late, Father, please get some rest!"

Cao Jie bowed and slowly withdrew.

Cao Cao looked at his daughter's slender back and felt a pang of pity, but it was only fleeting. He had to send his daughter over as soon as possible to solidify the ceasefire agreement.

When he signed the seven-year truce agreement with Sun Quan, he used various excuses to refuse to send his daughter to Jiangdong, rendering the agreement worthless.

Now, quite the opposite is true; Cao Cao is eager to send his daughter there and is doing everything he can to solidify the ceasefire agreement.

Cao Jie returned to her courtyard. She didn't rush into her room, but stood in the courtyard, silently gazing at the cold moonlight in the night sky. Today was the eighth day of the first lunar month, and in seven days it would be the Lantern Festival. Perhaps she would spend the loneliest Lantern Festival of her life in Chaisang, in a strange mansion. A bone-chilling cold gradually seeped into her heart. Darkness, coldness, and boundless expanse.

"Miss, it's cold outside, let's go back!" The speaker was her personal maid, Xiaoping, who was the same age as her and had been with her for five years.

"Xiaoping, pack your things! We're leaving for Chaisang first thing tomorrow morning."

Xiaoping was startled, "Leaving tomorrow?"

Cao Jie nodded. "My father just told me about it."

Cao Jie turned and walked towards the room, with Xiao Ping following behind. She suddenly whispered, "Miss, I heard something today. The Marquis of Chu is also a young man, only in his twenties."

These words brought a faint glimmer of light to Cao Jie's dark and cold heart.

The next day, before dawn, Cao Jie bid farewell to his father and, with his maid Xiao Ping, boarded a fast boat and headed towards Chaisang.

Cao Cao's timely reply via pigeon led to a compromise in the final stage of the negotiations. Western Chu accepted Cao Cao's formal promise that the title of Duke of Chu and General Who Guards the South would require an imperial decree to be officially conferred. Therefore, it could only be a promise for the time being, and under normal circumstances, it could be implemented within two months.

Lu Su placed the official text on Gan Ning's desk. The agreement was in duplicate. Gan Ning slowly pushed open one of the scrolls, and the official text of the agreement, written on white silk, appeared before his eyes. It consisted of three articles and five clauses, with densely packed characters and very rigorous logic.

"This was drafted by me personally, and it has been repeatedly confirmed. The other party has also confirmed it."

Gan Ning nodded. He saw the seals of Lu Su and Chen Qun. As the instigators of the negotiations, both sides had acknowledged the temporary ceasefire agreement.

Gan Ning looked at the validity period of the agreement, which was from the tenth day of the first month of the eleventh year of Jian'an to the ninth day of the first month of the twelfth year of Jian'an next year. Cao Cao had even decided on the era name for next year in advance for this agreement.

"Besides this agreement, is there anything else to add?" Gan Ning asked.

"Furthermore, both sides agreed to establish a liaison office, which was not included in the agreement. I agree to this, and I suggest that Song Kuan serve as the first head of the liaison office."

Song Kuan was the former head of the liaison office stationed in Jiangdong. After the fall of Jiangdong, he also led his men back to Chaisang.

Gan Ning nodded, "Okay, he will be the first chief steward."

After a pause, Gan Ning asked again, "Anything else?"

"As for the marriage alliance, Cao Cao's daughter, Cao Jie, set off the day before yesterday and will arrive at the residence of Lord Chaisang around the thirteenth."

Gan Ning was slightly taken aback. "So soon?" He clearly hadn't expected Cao Cao to be in such a hurry.

Lu Su smiled and said, "This must be a consequence of the seven-year truce agreement! Cao Cao was worried that our lord would not believe in his sincerity in the marriage alliance, so he sent his daughter here first to stay for a few months. When the formal marriage ceremony was held, he sent her back to her brother Cao Zhi in Jiangdong, and we sent a ship to bring her over from Jiangdong."

"I understand. I will take a good look at this agreement and sign it as soon as possible."

Lu Su bowed and withdrew.

Gan Ning carefully reviewed it once, and then had Lu Xun and Ma Liang review it as well. After confirming that there were no problems, Gan Ning officially signed the "Temporary Ceasefire Agreement" in the afternoon.

(End of this chapter)