Overthrowing Wei: Starting with Cao Cao's "I'd rather betray the world than surrender

On the morning of the fifth day after the military exercise, before the prefectural government had even convened, a military order had already been delivered to the west wing.

"According to the Hebei military system, three battalions were set up: the vanguard, the left wing, and the right wing. Each battalion was headed by a deputy commander, who was temporarily appointed by the military supervisor."

The ink was bright red, the wording calm, yet it went straight to the point.

The three characters "副司马" (Deputy Sima) are like inserting a needle into a haystack.

After reading it, Xun You slowly put down the military order and said in a low voice, "He's going to plant his own people."

Lü Ding did not respond immediately. He stared at the military register, his finger pausing on a particular page. That page recorded the six divisions of the Righteous Cavalry and their distribution among the prefectures. If the Deputy Commander was to be acted upon by the Military Supervisor, it meant that the power of command was beginning to shift outward.

"He won't make a move against Xu Huang first," Lü Ding said. "He'll make a move against his deputy first."

Before the words were finished, someone came to report from outside the door—

"The military supervisor invited Commander Xu to the mansion for a meeting and summoned his deputies Chen Fang and Han Xiao to accompany him."

Xun You's gaze darkened slightly. Chen Fang and Han Xiao were the deputy commanders of the Righteous Cavalry and the County Cavalry, respectively.

Lü Ding stood up and said, "I'll go with you."

-

The atmosphere inside the military supervisor's residence was as usual. Cui Jun sat upright in the main seat, his expression gentle.

"Now that the headquarters is established, the organizational structure must be complete." He got straight to the point, "The deputy commanders of the three battalions should be clearly identified and appointed."

Xu Huang remained silent. Chen Fang and Han Xiao exchanged a glance for a moment, then lowered their heads and said nothing.

Cui Jun's gaze swept over everyone: "Two military officers have been transferred from Hebei. They are familiar with the methods of military operations and will temporarily serve as deputy commanders to assist you in overall planning."

This is no longer a test; this is direct implantation.

Lu Ding calmly said, "As the military supervisor said, the expeditionary force operates on a system of mutual consultation."

"Even cross-referencing requires attribution," Cui Jun said calmly. "Without attribution, it's meaningless."

"If it falls under the name of Hebei," Lü Dingdao said, "how will it be recorded in the military register of the prefecture's soldiers?"

Cui Jun smiled and said, "The name of the Deputy Commander's Office is not related to the county or prefecture."

"Now that the command post has been named, whose orders are we supposed to follow?"

The hall fell silent, and Cui Jun's gaze finally hardened: "Of course, I will obey military orders."

Lu Ding looked at him, without backing down. "There are two military orders," he said very slowly, "one from the prefect, and the other from the supervising officer. If you don't understand the primary and secondary orders, who will you listen to in battle?"

This statement made it clear that Cui Jun would no longer smile.

"Hebei controls all the prefectures," he said.

The air seemed to freeze; Chen Fang and Han Xiao caught their breath, and Xu Huang looked up at Lü Ding.

Lü Ding did not immediately refute. He stepped forward, his voice not loud, but extremely clear: "The Runan Army is governed by the Prefectural Governor's Office. The military headquarters are mutually consultative. If the military supervisor considers himself 'superior,' how can the Prefectural Government stand?"

Cui Jun stared at him, remaining silent for a long time.

The wind whistled past the corner of the flag outside the hall.

"Acting Manager Lü," Cui Jun finally spoke, "are you rejecting the Hebei military system?"

"I dare not," Lü Ding cupped his hands in greeting, "but the morale of the army must not be broken."

"Where is the crack?"

"The crack lies in not knowing where to begin."

Cui Jun remained silent for a moment, then suddenly turned to Chen Fang: "If I were to order you to obey the commands of the Deputy Commander of Hebei, would you obey?"

Chen Fang's Adam's apple bobbed. This question required him to stand in the right place in front of everyone. If he answered "yes," it would be seen as demoralizing the troops; if he answered "no," it would be seen as disobeying orders.

Xu Huang's fingers tightened slightly.

Lu Ding spoke up: "Supervisor." He stepped forward and stood in front of Chen Fang.

"This is an inappropriate question."

Cui Jun asked coldly, "Why?"

"Because he's a soldier." Lü Ding's gaze was steady. "Soldiers only obey orders, regardless of their origin. Asking him now is forcing him to choose."

The hall was eerily quiet, and for the first time, Cui Jun's eyes revealed a sharp edge.

"Then I will choose for him," he said. "The deputy commander will be Chen Fang, the deputy commander of the military camp, with Han Xiao as his assistant."

Chen Fang looked up abruptly. This wasn't a transfer of personnel; it was a direct power grab.

Lu Ding did not get angry, but slowly said, "Alright."

Everyone was taken aback, and Cui Jun also paused slightly.

"The Deputy Commander's Office is named," Lü Ding continued, "but the military orders of the office must be filed with the prefectural government and reported every three days. No authority may be overstepped."

He paused for a moment, then said, "If the military supervisor agrees, the prefectural government will issue the document immediately."

Cui Jun stared at him. This was a strategic retreat; the deputy commander's title had fallen from the military camp, but the real power remained in the prefectural government.

"You're quite good at calculating," Cui Jun said casually.

"Just guard," Lü Ding replied.

After a long silence, Cui Jun said, "Report every three days."

-

The atmosphere in the city suddenly became tense.

"The deputy commander has been replaced."

"Deputy Commander of the Military Camp"

"People from Hebei have come in."

Someone in the Zhang family residence whispered, "The moment the military name is mentioned, it means an opening has been made in the Righteous Cavalry Camp."

The Zhao family then relayed a message to the outer county: "The military camp has been established." In the darkness of the outer county, Chen Su listened to the secret report and remained silent for a long time.

"The deputy commander has been replaced," he repeated softly.

This means that a crack has been pried open in the military power of Runan.

"Who will the military supervisor target next?" he asked.

The messenger whispered, "They might register the soldiers."

Chen Su closed his eyes. If military registration were changed, it would mean a complete overhaul of the system.

-

late at night.

The lights in the west wing were still on. Xun You said, "We've managed to stabilize things today."

"It's just that the surface has been stabilized," Lü Ding said.

"What about the substance?"

"The substance has already been altered."

He looked at the military register on the table.

"If the deputy commander is appointed to the military camp, suspicion will arise in the army."

"Whom do you suspect?"

"They doubt whether we can hold out."

Xun You remained silent, but Lü Ding suddenly said, "Starting tomorrow, increase the training by 10%."

"When the morale of the army is high, the worst thing is to be idle."

"What should we do then?"

"tired."

Lu Ding said calmly, "When you're tired, you don't want to think about anything else."

-

Ye City.

Han Zixiu finally received a short letter from the south: "Deputy Commander's Office."

After reading it, his fingers tightened slightly. This was more serious than arresting someone; arresting someone was just a test, while signing his name was establishing a system.

He looked up and saw Yuan Shao discussing military matters in the north hall. Several strategists were talking in hushed tones about the strategy for defending the south. Suddenly someone said, "If the Runan army returns to the main camp, the southern front will be secure."

Han Zixiu heard it clearly.

He suddenly realized that every step the military supervisor took was paving the way for Ye City.

If the morale of the Runan army breaks down, then it is appropriate to replace them.

Late at night, he muttered to himself, "Yunzhong, can you stop the Deputy Commander, can you stop the military registration?"

The north wind outside the window is even stronger.

-

Runan.

A few days later, Chen Fang, the deputy commander of the expeditionary force, stood beside the expeditionary force flag and gave the order for the first time.

The voice was slightly hesitant, but still steady.

The soldiers obeyed the order and continued beating the drums as usual.

But some people began to discern—

"This is the command order."

"Still a prefectural magistrate?"

The distinction is extremely subtle, yet it already exists.

Lu Ding stood on the sidelines, remaining silent.

Only after Chen gave the order did the formation truly stabilize, after he nodded very slightly.

Before the night watchman's drum had finished, a series of rapid hoofbeats suddenly came from the north of the city. The riders came from the north, but did not enter the city gate. They changed horses outside the city and left, leaving behind two messages—one to the military supervisor's office and the other to take a detour and go directly to the army camp.

The following morning, Cui Jun personally entered the prefectural government office, his expression even colder than usual. He uttered only one sentence: "The general command for the southern defense of Hebei has been drafted, and the Runan military camp will be designated as the vanguard."

The moment the word "outpost" was uttered, the atmosphere in the hall tensed. The outpost troops could be transferred, merged, disbanded—or even abandoned.

At the same time, during the roll call of the Xicheng Camp, three people were missing.

The cracks in the morale of the army began to make a sound.