Chapter 42: Cao Zhi's Mutual Encouragement

  When Cao Zhi saw Guo Jia's expression, his heart skipped a beat, and then he quietly looked at the three of them. He only saw Guo Jia spread out his hands and say: "I also didn't expect that our lord would be so rash."

  Xun Yu and Liu Ye looked at each other without speaking, but it was also true that Guo Jia couldn't be blamed. Although he was good at observing people's hearts, after all, he was a new recruit, and Cao Cao had always been calm and composed, discussing things thoroughly before making a decision. Now looking at Guo Jia's expression, Cao Zhi understood that just now he wasn't encouraging Cao Cao to choose the middle strategy, but rather there were still words left unspoken, and Cao Cao had already made up his mind.

  Liu Ye shook his head slightly and said in a low voice: "Pride arises from success, alas..."

  Upon hearing Liu Ye's evaluation, as well as Xun Yu and Guo Jia nodding silently, Cao Zhi felt a sudden jolt in his heart and secretly thought that things were not going well. These top strategists had submitted to Cao Cao mainly due to his personal charm, but Cao Cao's current behavior was indeed disappointing them. However, Liu Ye's words were also not unreasonable; looking back at Cao Cao's life, he often became stronger when facing strong opponents, but sometimes would be defeated by weaker foes, and this arrogance was one of the main reasons.

  However, as Cao Cao's son, Cao Zhi naturally needed to firm up the determination of the three advisors at this moment. With a turn of his eyes, he continued, "Gentlemen, I have thought of something."

  Three people were discussing Cao Cao's affairs, and when Cao Zhi spoke up, he smiled at his most familiar Guo Jia: "Fourth Master has something to say, don't hesitate to speak directly."

  Cao Zhi smiled slightly, revealing his signature small tiger teeth, and continued: "Sir, I recall the time last year when I went to pick fruit with my three older brothers."

  "Pick fruit?" Upon hearing Cao Zhi's words, the three men exchanged skeptical glances. They had thought that this divine child would have some profound insight, but instead it was a childish matter. As a result, the three men lost interest.

  Cao Zhi didn't mind, and continued to say: "The three gentlemen should know that the fruit tree is tall and big. Although I was young and yearned for the fruit on the tree, I was afraid of its height and didn't dare climb up to pick it. The three elder brothers could have picked the fruit for me, but they didn't do so. I knew that if I couldn't climb the tree myself, I wouldn't be able to eat the fruit. So I mustered up my courage and climbed the tree to pick some. In the end, I managed to pick a low-hanging fruit, which greatly boosted my confidence and made me no longer afraid of the tall tree. After eating that fruit, I still wasn't satisfied, so I decided to climb the tree again. Unfortunately, it was indeed very difficult for me to climb this tree. This time, although I had confidence, not only did I fail to pick any fruit, but I also fell to the ground and got injured. However, this didn't affect my confidence. After recovering from my injuries, I climbed the tree again to pick some fruit. This time, I was more careful and cautious, and with the reminders of my three elder brothers, I successfully picked some fruit again. I knew that picking fruit is dangerous, but if I didn't even have the courage to climb the tree, I'm afraid I would never get to eat any fruit in my lifetime."

  Cao Zhi's seemingly childish words were actually secretly telling the three of them that Cao Cao having a proud heart was normal, and it wouldn't be unexpected if he lost battles. However, he still had an ambitious heart, so even if he made mistakes, as long as his spirit didn't die, and someone reminded him from the side, there would still be opportunities for victory.

  All three were great talents of the time, and they immediately understood. After hearing Cao Zhi's story, they burst out laughing together, and their previous dissatisfaction with Cao Cao was swept away. Guo Jia patted Cao Zhi on the back and said with a smile: "Fourth Master, when will you take us to pick fruit?"

  Cao Zhi touched his nose and said, "As long as Mr. Fengxiao is willing, it can be done at any time."

  Xun Yu and Liu Ye exchanged a glance, and in unison said: "Good!"

  "Hmm..." Cao Zhi's expression paused for a moment, and he nodded: "The three gentlemen aren't thinking of going to pick fruit now, are they?"

  When they saw Cao Zhi, they thought it was really lovely and the three of them burst out laughing. After they finished laughing, Guo Jia dragged a dazed Cao Zhi back to his own military tent.

  ……

  Inside Cao Jun's camp, everything was proceeding in a hurry. After a night of fierce battle, the army needed to be reorganized, and Xiahou Dun and his men were extremely busy. Meanwhile, after the meeting with Cao Cao for an hour, Xiahou Yuan led 20,000 troops towards Xiapi. Xiahou Yuan was known as the fastest general in Cao's camp, and his troops were most skilled at surprise attacks, marching at a speed twice that of ordinary troops.

  The generals in the army were busy, and the officials on both sides were not easy. Mao Jie was already inside Pengcheng, allocating grain and grass to Cao's camp, so that when the army set out tomorrow, the supply of grain and grass could keep up in time. Cao Xiu commanded the civilians to assist with transportation, and his workload was several times more than when he was the head of an army. Only then did he understand the meaning of Cao Cao's words "Grain and grass are the most important".

  Cao Chun, who was in charge of defending Pengcheng, was also not easy. Although there were no enemy troops attacking now, after the war, there would always be some small thieves taking advantage of the chaos to loot. Cao Chun would dispatch 3,000 soldiers to patrol the entire city, arrest those who took advantage of the chaos to loot, and maintain law and order. Xun Yu and Liu Ye were also helping Mao Jie to quickly allocate the army's food and grass. They knew that Mao Jie still had to take over the political affairs of Pengcheng, and those things would probably make Mao Jie unable to finish even if he didn't eat or drink for three days and nights. It can be seen that taking down a city and defending it well is not an easy task.

  Of course, among the busy people, there are always exceptions, and these exceptional people can also be considered regulars. He is none other than Guo Jia, the carefree son, who is holding a feather fan and playing chess with Cao Zhi in the command tent.

  "Sir, you're slacking off again! If Mr. Gongda sees this, you'll be in trouble."

  "Fourth Master, don't talk nonsense. Jia didn't slack off, Jia was ordered by the master to take care of Fourth Master. Moreover, Gong Da and others should be buried under a pile of bamboo slips at this time and cannot come to find Jia."

  "You're really cunning, sir."

  "The four gentlemen are wrong, this is called wisdom! A truly clever person does not do things himself, but thinks of things for other clever people to do."

  Guo Xuan, who was standing by, heard this and rolled her eyes in disdain, casting a scornful glance at the self-satisfied rogue.

  Although Guo Jia's plan was good, the reality was cruel. Before long, a loud and clear voice came from outside the military tent: "Is Mr. Guo present?"

  "Huh? Tevin? Not good..."

  As expected, Guo Jia's voice had just fallen when Tian Wei, with his keen senses, had already heard the sound of Guo Jia's voice from inside the marching tent and directly stepped in. His massive body blocked Guo Jia's path as he continued to speak in his coarse tone: "Master Guo, I've come to invite you on behalf of Gong Da."

  Kuo Chia heard that it was Hsun Yu who had come to ask, the look of alarm on his face gave place to a smile as he said: "I am under orders..."

  Guo Jia had not finished speaking when Dian Wei interrupted, "Lord Cao borrowed me from the lord today. He said that if Mr. Fengxiao is unwilling to go, I must bind him and take him away. Mr. Fengxiao, please don't make things difficult for me."

  "...this..." Just as he said this, Guo Jia's face suddenly turned stern and he snorted: "You listen to Gong Da's words but not mine..."

  Sigh...

  Before Guo Jia could finish speaking, Dian Wei's right hand reached out and with a burst of energy lifted the frail Guo Jia up, saying: "Gongda said that Fengxiao is eloquent, so I shouldn't listen to his nonsense. Instead, I should just tie him up and take him away." After finishing speaking, he didn't care about Guo Jia's protests and directly carried Guo Jia out.

  Faintly, Cao Zhi also heard Guo Jia yelling in a resentful tone: "Xun Gongda, you just wait, I, Guo Jia will take revenge!"

  Sweat...

  In the account, Cao Zhi and Guo Xian simultaneously broke out in a cold sweat. Guo Xian asked with some concern: "Fourth Master, now that Mr. Guo has been taken away, won't something happen to him?"

  Cao Zhi covered his mouth and chuckled: "No harm, no harm, this rogue is bound to receive the punishment he deserves. It seems that Mr. Gong Da has found a way to deal with this rogue, haha...". After finishing speaking, under Guo Xuan's puzzled gaze, he burst into loud laughter.

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