Section 1 New Year’s Eve

On the winter of the 16th year of Jian'an, on New Year's Eve, Yecheng Tongquetai.

In the spacious main hall, there is a huge lacquer table facing you. The black and red phoenix patterns are smooth and graceful, lifelike, but they exudes a simplicity. Dozens of table tables are arranged in sequence on both sides of the lacquer table, and the maids and servants in simple and deep clothes are busy and orderly walking through the table tables, placing delicious foods on them.

In the west side hall, Cao Cao's twenty sons were gathering together, listening to the older Cao Pi, Cao Zhi and others talking about poetry and essays. Cao Pi was full of energy. He returned with a great victory in Guanzhong. He was so popular in Yecheng these days, and his mood was really good. Seeing the majestic bronze croaker platform, he was very excited and of course he splashed ink and wrote a poem on the stage, and wrote a beautiful official script on the snow-white Xiangyang rice paper. His words were like a dragon, which showed great skills. Compared with the previous calligraphy, he added a heroic spirit of golden swords and iron horses. After he finished writing, he stood up, pouted his lips and blew the ink marks, and smiled and handed the rice paper to Cao Zhi who was looking at it with his head on the side: "Zi Jian, justify the axe."

Cao Zhi quickly took the rice paper with a smile, and said while reading, "Brother, this is really a matter of killing me. How dare I argue about your masterpiece?" Cao Pi laughed and stepped forward and hugged Cao Zhi's shoulder intimately: "Zijian, you're just a bit funny. If I said this a few years ago, it would be a bit funny, but now that your posthumous poem is published, the wind in the country is spreading, how dare I be proud of you, a talented man. What I said is true. Don't be too careful, as it seems that our mother and fellow brothers are born."

He paused, deliberately lowered his voice and said, "Our genius brother said that your article is good, who else dares to refute it?"

Cao Zhi's face froze, a little unhappy, but he quickly covered his expression. He chanted in a clear voice. The brothers next to him were listening and talking in a low voice. Some praised themselves secretly, some listened with their ears, and some were amazed.

"The flying pavilion is unique, and the building is strict to inherit the sky. Good, good sentences." Cao Zhi finished reading the full text and praised sincerely: "The whole essay was completed in one go, every word is Zhuji, but to be considered the best, these two sentences are still powerful."

Cao Pi shook his head and chanted softly: "See the vastness of the sky palace, see the new camp of the sage virtue. Build the high halls and the magnificent palaces and float in the Taiqing palaces. Stand the magnificent view of the sky, and connect the flying pavilions to the Xicheng. Beside the long flow of Zhangchuan, look at the prosperity of the fruits. Look at the harmony of the spring breeze and listen to the sad songs of hundreds of birds. Zijian, if you were not in front of your essay, my article might be a good sentence, but with you being beautiful in front of me, I really dare not claim to myself. I always feel that compared with yours, I will become a fly with a horse. This person's talent is indeed born. Ziwen's military power, Cang Shu's talent, and your literary talent are beyond the reach of the world."

Cao Zhi looked at Cao Pi with some surprise and smiled: "Brother, you have been out for two years and have changed a lot, which makes me dare not recognize you."

Cao Pi smiled and said, "Then are you saying I wasn't calm before?" Before Cao Zhi explained, he smiled and said, "I'm going to know the difficulty of going out to do things. Now I deeply understand the difficulty of Cang Shu. Thinking about him leading troops alone at the age of thirteen, my achievements are really not worth mentioning. I have fought many battles with my father in the past. I always feel that I am very familiar with military affairs, but when I lead the troops, I know that there is no stingy distance between them. Zijian, if you have the opportunity, you have to go out for a walk, so that your horizons will be broader and your mind will be broader. The articles you write will definitely reach a higher level."

Cao Zhi didn't understand what Cao Pi meant, so he could only laugh a few times. Cao Pi smiled and said, "Zi Jian, is my father still in the study? It's almost the hour of the year, so it's time to start the meal. You are the closest to your father, should you go in and ask?"

After he said this, the children around him shouted: "That's right, we are all hungry. Brother Zijian, go and ask Ahon when will we have a meal?"

"Why are you quarreling?" Cao Zhang pretended to be a tiger-faced and appeared at the door with a fierce look. He suddenly frightened the little brothers. When he saw the trick succeed, he laughed happily and said loudly: "Don't be anxious. My father is still reading the newspaper in the study. After he finished reading, he will start eating the New Year's Eve dinner. Today is New Year's Eve. I want you to play all night. When will you be anxious?"

"Ziwen, don't scare them. It's not good to be scared during the New Year." Cao Pi put on his brother's airs, blamed Cao Zhang for a few words, and then asked, "Why is there a new Xiangyang monthly newspaper coming?"

Cao Zhang smiled and shook his head: "I don't know. I don't know if I don't read the newspaper, but I don't know if my father is reading the new or the old."

Cao Pi raised his eyebrows slightly, looked at the brothers who were surrounded by bitter faces and covered their stomachs, and then looked at the wives sitting together in the side hall on the east side, turned to Cao Zhang and said, "Zijian, why don't we go see my father together, brothers are all anxious."

Cao Zhi also felt a little strange, nodded, and followed Cao Pi to the back hall. Behind him, Cao Zhang's hearty laughter and the little brothers' chattering laughter came, with one or two screams between them. Cao Zhang, who seemed to be fun, was holding up the children and throwing them into the air to play.

Cao Cao was wearing pinch-nose glasses, looking at the Xiangyang Monthly in his hand with relish. When he heard the footsteps at the door, he glanced at Cao Pi from above the glasses. Cao Zhi glanced at him: "Cang Shu is back?"

Cao Pi's heart sank, and his heart was filled with joy suddenly disappeared. A trace of disappointment flashed through his eyes and was immediately covered by a smile on his face. He quickly smiled and knelt in front of Cao Cao, leaned over and looked at the newspaper in Cao Cao's hand, but found that it was just an old newspaper. The corners of the rice paper were a little worn, and some places were carefully pasted with a piece of paper. It seemed that it had been turned over countless times.

"Father, will Kurasu come back too?"

Cao Cao was stunned for a moment and smiled: "I forgot to tell you. Cang Shu passed the news through a fast horse, saying that he was going to come back for the New Year, but the journey was tight, so I'm afraid he might not have time to come back. I guess that his tiger soldiers were all cavalrymen and should be able to arrive tonight, so I'll wait for him. Why, are you hungry?"

Cao Pi quickly laughed and said, "No, no, my brothers think it's been a while, I don't care. It's common for war in Guanzhong to not eat for two consecutive days. Since Cang Shu is coming back, it's time to wait a little longer."

Cao Cao looked at him, raised his hand to take off his glasses, carefully put them in the brocade box, put them into the sleeve, then picked up the Qiong stick from beside him, stood up, straightened his stomach, pinched his fists, and beat his waist and smiled, "I'm old, I've been sitting for a long time, and my waist is so uncomfortable. Zi Jian, go outside to see if Cang Shu has come back, why do I seem to hear noise outside?"

When Cao Zhi heard this, he responded and walked out of the hall. Cao Pi felt uncomfortable. When he came back from Guanzhong, his father asked about the situation briefly. Cang Shu came back from Jingzhou, but because he waited for him alone, everyone had no feeling. The gap between them was too obvious. He was a little indignant, but he did not dare to show it on his face. He still had a smile on his face, and rushed to support Cao Cao's arm.

Cao Cao looked at him with satisfaction, and gently tapped the bluestone floor with the Qiong Staff in his hand, making a crisp sound. He walked to the corridor and looked at the bright lights and lonely night sky below the stage, he suddenly frowned slightly: "Zihuan, how long does it take for the war in Guanzhong to end?"

Cao Pi suddenly became excited. This was the first time Cao Cao took the initiative to ask about the war in Guanzhong. He thought for a while and said, "Han Wenyou, Ma Mengqi has been defeated now. Their food and grass are very tight. Many people's troops can no longer support it. I guess in another year, I will be able to clear Guanzhong and tie Han Wenyou and Ma Mengqi to their father."

"One year?" Cao Cao looked at Cao Pi with some disbelief.

Cao Pi was a little confused about what Cao Cao meant. Whether it was said that one year was too long or one year was too fast. He thought about it and said tentatively: "Maybe...it won't take a year."

Cao Cao stared at him for a long time, and Cao Pi was furious. Then he turned his head over and looked at Cao Zhi who was rushing towards him, saying, "A year is probably not enough. Now he has defeated the rebels and has not severely damaged its main force. Han Wen's appointment lost Jincheng and became a tree without roots, but it is still difficult for him to completely eliminate him. Ma Mengqi entered Wudu, and he has a high prestige among the Qiang people. I heard that the Qiang people called the Heavenly General, which may be difficult to solve for a while. If you want to completely clear Guanzhong, Xiliang will probably not be able to solve the problem in less than three to five years. Jiangnan is fighting, Guanzhong is also fighting, and all kinds of supplies such as food, grass, and weapons are very tight. Recently, the north is a little unstable, and the Prime Minister's Mansion is really unable to turn around. Look... should you stabilize the front line in Guanzhong first?"

Cao Pi's mood suddenly became very bad. He was fighting and Cang Shu was also fighting. Why didn't his father let Cang Shu stop, but asked him to stop. Is it really as he guessed that his father wanted to establish Cang Shu as his heir, and did not want to make too much contribution to avoid stealing Cang Shu's limelight? I am the eldest son, why did my father give up on himself for Cang Shu?

"Father, the war in Guanzhong is at a critical moment. If you stop, you will be afraid that all your efforts will be wasted. Moreover, the food consumed in the battlefield in Guanzhong is really limited. Even if you stop, you will be afraid that the war in northern Xinjiang will be compensated, and you will lose the big picture because of the small. Cang Shu has a new policy in Xiangyang. I heard that the taxes are abundant, and the Cai Pang tribes have made a fortune. The soldiers in his army can eat meat every day. They should not ask for money and food from their father again, right?" Cao Pi said with a careful sentence.

Cao Cao didn't say anything. He looked at Cao Zhi who was running in front of him and said unhappily: "Why are you running? People see it, and I think something is wrong."

Cao Zhi was stunned. He didn't know why Cao Cao suddenly became angry. He raised his head and looked at Cao Cao who looked unhappy, then looked at Cao Pi who was smiling reluctantly, and quickly explained: "Father, Cang Shu has arrived outside the city, but he can't enter the city."

"Why?" Cao Cao was a little annoyed and his voice suddenly became louder.

"The marquis of the Men said that according to the ban from the Prime Minister's Mansion, he could not enter and exit the city gate after the garrison. It is now the hour of Hai, so..."

"Who is the Jungleman? How dare you stop Cang Shu from letting him enter the city?" Cao Cao was suddenly furious and hit the floor with the Qiong stick in his hand, making a series of sounds, "Cang Shu is also the Jungleman in Zhennan who leads troops to fight. If you can't even enter the gate of Yecheng, what else can you fight? Zhongkang, go and take the Jungleman for me and bring Cang Shu in."

Xu Qian responded and immediately took a few tiger soldiers away. Cao Cao was so angry that he was trembling. He turned around in a few circles under the corridor, as if he was an angry trapped beast. He gasped and stared at his beard, which scared Cao Pi and Cao Zhi to look at each other without saying a word. Not long after, Cao Chong followed Xu Qian and walked in with great strides. As soon as he saw Cao Cao who was spinning in the corridor and Cao Pi and Cao Zhi standing beside him, he strode over and worshipped Cao Cao: "The unfilial son Cao Chong has come late, and has caused his father to be sentenced to death for a long time."

"You fool, you can't even get in the city gate?" Cao Cao raised his hand in anger and hit him with a stick. "Whoever dares to block your way will kill anyone. If you don't know how to do big things in the future?"

Cao Pi's expression changed drastically. He glanced at Cao Cao in horror, quickly lowered his head, pretending not to hear it.

Cao Chong was also surprised. He had heard Xu Feng say on the road that Cao Cao was so angry that he was blocked by a marquis outside the city, and had already driven the marquis home for the New Year, so as not to be killed by Cao Cao. He was already prepared on the way to come, but he didn't expect Cao Cao to get so angry and said such words to kill people. He hurriedly stepped forward and hugged Cao Cao's legs: "Father, don't be angry. Today is New Year's Eve, why bother with small things? Thousands of mistakes are all my fault. Please calm down your anger."

"Hmph, where is that sect marquis?" Cao Cao raised his stick and was about to hit him again. Seeing Cao Chong's raised face, he was a little unable to do anything. He turned his head and said to Xu Qian, "Where is the head of that sect marquis?"

Before Xu Qian could speak, Cao Chong hurriedly said, "Father, it is not appropriate to kill people today. Let me leave this person to deal with."

"You?" Cao Cao glared at him, and it took him a long time to calm his anger: "Okay, since he offended you, let me leave it to you."

Cao Chong then stood up and helped Cao Cao walk towards the front hall. While walking, he talked about the war in Jingzhou. When he said that Liu Bei was beaten by Liu Pan to escape in panic, Cao Cao finally smiled: "This big-eared thief is very bad at fighting, but he is the first-class ability to escape. However, this time he fled to Jiaozhou. I see where he can escape. Do you want to go to the sea to be a pirate? Or do you want to go to Yizhou?"

Cao Chong smiled and said, "Even if he wants to be a pirate, he doesn't have the ability. After the New Year, I will go back to Jingzhou. I must catch him and throw him in front of my father to apologize."

Cao Cao gave him a blank look, shook his head and said, "Cang Shu, can you stop there...?"

Cao Chong was a little surprised, but not much surprise. He thought for a moment and replied: "As long as my father arranges everything."

"Well, Guanzhong is going to fight, and the northern border is unstable. The Wuhuan, Xiongnu, and Xianbei people have been quiet for a few years, and they are very worried about it again. I want Ziwen to go to the northern border, but the food and grass really cannot handle the three-sided wars, so..."

When Cao Chong heard this, he immediately smiled and said, "Don't worry, Jingzhou has a bumper harvest this year, and there is a lot of surplus grain. Even if the three newly obtained counties in Jiangnan and several counties in Yizhou need relief this year, they can still squeeze out some food. It is estimated that it will be fine to send another five or six million stones. After the autumn harvest, I can still draw out thousands of stones of grain to the Prime Minister's Mansion."

Cao Pi couldn't help but interrupt and said, "Cangshu, Chengdu is known as the country of Tianfu, Hanzhong is also a place for grain production, and Jingzhou is also a wealthy place with a household registration of one million. I heard that your soldiers can eat meat every day. Why did your father want to conquer the northern border and you only took out five million stones?"

Cao Chong turned around and looked at Cao Pi, smiled slightly, but did not answer. Cao Cao snorted softly, and did not say anything. He just turned over his hand and held Cao Chong's hand with his big hand and gently pinched it. They joined hands into the hall. The wives who had heard the message had long been heard, and their children surrounded him. They greeted Cao Chong in a lingering manner. Cao Chong let go of Cao Cao's hand and walked to Mrs. Huan who was surrounded by Xun Wenqian and others. He knelt on the ground with three heavy heads. Then he stood up and held Mrs. Huan's hand and cried: "Mother has always been good. My son is fighting outside and can't stand it. I really miss my mother."

While wiping tears happily, Mrs. Huan held Cao Chong's hand and smiled, "Silly child, I have nothing to lack in Yecheng. What are you going to worry about? What tears will shed during the New Year? Your father, brother, your wives are hungry to wait for you. You should toast them a few more cups later."

"That's natural." Cao Chongqiang smiled and helped Mrs. Huan to one side of Cao Cao to sit, and sat next to her. Mrs. Bian sat on the other side. Cao Pi and several brothers sat beside her. The other ladies also took their sons to find their own seats. Cao Cao looked at the hall with nearly a hundred men and women, laughed happily, raised his glasses, and started a lively banquet.

Mrs. Huan drank a few sips of wine and pushed Cao Chong to Cao Cao. She was satisfied that she could be on par with Mrs. Bian now and did not dare to have any extravagance. Besides, she had five beautiful daughters-in-laws, prospective daughters-in-law, and two cute little sons by her side. She was already overcrowded and didn't want to pull Cao Chong by her side anymore. Cao Chong understood and stood up and walked to Cao Cao, toasted Cao Cao with Cao Pi and others, and then began to toast the ladies in order.

Laughing overnight.

The next day, Cao Chong told Pang Tong, Zhang Song and others about Cao Cao's meaning. Pang Tong and others were also surprised, so they asked Shi Kang to find Guo Yi. Only then did they know that something happened in Bingzhou and Youzhou. A few days ago, Cao Cao summoned the prefect of Dai County Pei Qian to the Prime Minister's Office to serve as the director of Cao Zhu. After Pei Qian came back, Cao Cao asked about the situation of Dai County. Pei Qian said that the Wuhuan people in Dai County did not know etiquette and used brute force as the victory. If the lenient ones were arrogant, they would become resentful, and if the newly-departed prefect could not grasp the priorities.

, I'm afraid something might happen. Cao Cao regretted it at the time, but before he could come up with remedies, the Wuhuan people in Dai County rebelled and killed the new Dai County prefect, and together with the Xianbei Lord Kirby, he could have a problem with the border. The border war broke out, and the northern border, which had been quiet for several years, was in chaos again. Cao Cao wanted to send people to quell the rebellion, but because of the tight food and grass, he could not draw it, so he had to temporarily stop the war between Guanzhong and Jingzhou, and at least one of them had to stop to deal with the northern border.

Pang Tong pondered for a long time and asked Cao Chong, "What do you think?"

Cao Chong shook his head helplessly: "Although I really want to take advantage of the situation to pacify the southeast, there is something wrong with the northern border, and the Prime Minister's Mansion is unable to deal with the three-sided war for the moment. This is also the truth. I think Zihuan's intention is that I don't want to give up this credit. Since that's the case, I have to stop first. If it goes well, the war in the northern border will end at most for a year. Jingzhou and Yizhou will have enough food to pay for the war next year. Just stop for a while, and there will be no big impact."

Pang Tong nodded and shook his head again: "General, this matter is not just a matter of the war in Jiangnan. If we only talk about the war in Jiangnan, it doesn't matter if we stop for a year or two. In any case, the possibility of Liu Xuande and Sun Zhongmou turning defeat into victory is too small. This matter also concerns the Prime Minister's view of the general. He got angry that day, did he think that the general was too soft to deal with future struggles? If he had this view, it would be unfavorable to the general. The Guanzhong war and the Jiangnan war are not only related to your military achievements, but also to show your attitude towards governance. You must persist when you should persist and give up when you should give up. You must make the Prime Minister feel that the general can take into account the overall situation, but you cannot make the Prime Minister feel that the general has no opinion and is inferior. The standard of this must be controlled by the general himself."

Cao Chong frowned and thought for a long time, but he couldn't figure out what Cao Cao was thinking. He said that he was too soft-hearted and seemed to be blaming him for not being able to accomplish a big deal. However, if he insisted on fighting, he would be unhappy again. He felt that he only cared about his own interests and did not have the heart to look at the world. Although he now owned Jingzhou and Yizhou, the two richest territories in the Han Dynasty, if he wanted to fight Cao, he was obviously not an opponent. In his current opinion, it seems that it would be better to be obedient.

"I heard that Ziwen went to Dai County. No matter what, I still have to help with this." Cao Chong slowly expressed his thoughts.

Pang Tong and Zhang Song looked at each other and laughed: "The general is right. The prime minister is a person who values ​​love. No matter how great his military achievements are, it is not as important as the family affection between brothers. Mr. Zihuan thought that the prince was valued by the prime minister because of his military achievements. In fact, he was distorted. The general had to stop his war and help the Prime Minister's Mansion to fight against Dai County. This mind should be what the Prime Minister needs most. At this time, the general should still take the Prime Minister's opinion as the leader. He should not do his own thing, and lose the big one because of the small."

Cao Chong smiled, and he thought so too. He was afraid that Pang Tong and the others would oppose his idea for their own interests, but they did not expect that they would come with him. He smiled and said, "Since that's the case, we will do our best to help Ziwen make a great contribution."
Chapter completed!