Chapter 6: The Time Has Come!

  Cao Cao, with his grand and heroic emotions, still failed. He was thwarted by Lü Bu, the current chief of police appointed by Dong Zhuo, and had to flee in a hurry. In extreme anger, Dong Zhuo issued a wanted notice, offering a reward of 100,000 coins for Cao Cao's head! Cao Cao's name as a righteous hero spread throughout the land!

  When Li Yu saw the wanted list, he smiled and said to Xu Chu: "The time has come! Let everyone prepare for battle urgently, and we will set foot on the battlefield soon!", "Yes!", A soldier must have a soldier's demeanor, Li Yu had already trained them almost perfectly, with strict requirements in speech and behavior, long-term teaching had made them accustomed to it.

  But it is said that Cao Cao was captured by local soldiers when he escaped to Zhongmu, and who was the county magistrate of Zhongmu? It was Chen Gong and Chen Pubing! He not only did not kill Cao Cao but also helped him continue to escape, all because of a remark made by Cao Cao that moved him.

  Cao Cao: "The more dangerous the situation, the more heroes emerge! Who am I, Cao Cao? I should raise my arm and shout loudly, gather all the brave warriors in the world, form a righteous army to eliminate the bandits, turn the tide of the fallen country, and save the people from water and fire."

  Later, due to a misunderstanding, the timid Cao Cao mistakenly killed his father's sworn brother Lü Boshe and his family. The famous phrase "I would rather betray the world than let the world betray me" was not what he said; his original words were "I would rather be betrayed by people, never let people be betrayed by me!"

  "Your words are more ruthless than a sword! A sword can only kill the Lü family, but your words can destroy the hearts of everyone under heaven! I was really mistaken about you!"

  "Since ancient times, it has been the case that great treachery appears as loyalty and great falsehood appears as truth. Loyalty and evil are not things that can be discerned from the surface; perhaps you misjudged me, Cao Cao, yesterday, but today you have misjudged me again. However, I remain myself, and I have never been afraid of being misjudged by others!"

  Chen Gong wanted to take advantage of the night to kill Cao Cao, but he thought: Yesterday I saved him, today I want to kill him again. Isn't this being inconsistent? Forget it! Let him go! So he left alone.

  Cao Cao woke up in the morning to see the sword standing by his bed, and Chen Gong nowhere to be seen. He sneered: "If you want to kill me, just do it! Why hesitate?"

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  After Cao Cao's assassination attempt on Dong Zhuo failed, he rushed home to explain things to his father, Cao Song. "Father! Now is a great chaos that has not been seen in hundreds of years. In the capital, Dong Zhuo is wreaking havoc on the imperial court, slaughtering loyal officials, arbitrarily deposing and appointing emperors, and violating the dignity of the imperial court. Outside the capital, various regional governors and generals are watching as Dong Zhuo dominates the capital and holds absolute power over the empire. Who among them is not resentful, angry, fearful, and jealous? But it is precisely in such chaotic times that heroes rise to the occasion! I want to raise an army and achieve great things!"

  Cao Song stroked his beard and said worriedly: "My son! The enemy's forces are strong, I'm afraid it will be difficult to defeat them for the time being!"

  Cao Cao: "When my son was in the capital, he once served under Dong Zhuo. In my observation, what Dong Zhuo relied on was just the Xiliang army! Although the Xiliang army is brave and fierce, its leader Dong Zhuo has no vision or wisdom. This man monopolizes Luoyang, holds power over the court, but only knows how to burn, kill, plunder, and loot; he has no great ambition in his heart!"

  Upon hearing this, Cao Song couldn't help but laugh. He was laughing not only at Cao Cao's insight, but also at Dong Zhuo's foolishness: "Son! I have already sold off all of the Cao family's property and obtained 25,000 taels of gold. You can use it to recruit soldiers and manufacture armor and flags!"

  Cao Cao: "Not enough, far from enough. Those who achieve great things cannot be without money, but it's not entirely about the money either. First and foremost, it's about people. Having one heroic talent is worth more than 100,000 pieces of gold and silver!"

  Cao Song: "You can go find Wei Hong of the Wei family in the city to discuss!"

  Cao Cao set up wine and a banquet, inviting the famous wealthy man Wei Hong from Chenliu to his home. He said: "Now the Han dynasty has no master, Dong Zhuo is in power, deceiving the emperor and harming the people, the whole country is resentful; I want to support the state with my strength, but unfortunately my strength is not enough; you are a loyal and righteous scholar, I dare to ask for your help!"

  Wei Hong considered for a moment, and with years of doing business, he still had a good eye for people. In this chaotic world, if families like them wanted to thrive, they would have to make investments. Cao Cao was definitely a good choice: "I've had this intention for a long time, but unfortunately I haven't met a hero yet. Since Meng De has great ambitions, I'd like to offer my family's resources to assist him."

  Cao Cao was overjoyed; he first issued a proclamation, sent rapid reports to the various regions, then gathered righteous soldiers and raised a white flag with "Loyal and Righteous" written on it. In no time, volunteers flocked in like rain.

  One day, a man from Yangping Prefecture named Yue Jin, courtesy name Wenqian, came to surrender to Cao Cao. Another man from Julu in Shanyang Commandery, named Li Dian, courtesy name Mancheng, also came to surrender to Cao Cao. Both were retained as clerks in the front office.

  There was also Xiahou Dun, a man from Qiao in Pei State, whose courtesy name was Yuanrang. He was a descendant of Xiahou Ying and had practiced spear and staff fighting since he was young. At the age of 14, he followed his master to learn martial arts. When someone insulted his master, Dun killed him and fled to another region. Upon hearing that Cao Cao had raised an army, he and his cousin Xiahou Yuan each led a thousand strong men to join him. These two were originally Cao's brothers: Cao Cao's father Cao Song was originally the son of the Xiahou family and had been adopted by the Cao family, so they were of the same clan.

  In a few days, Cao's brothers Cao Ren and Cao Hong each led over a thousand soldiers to assist. Cao Ren was styled Zixiao, and Cao Hong was styled Ziliang: both were skilled in archery and horsemanship, and well-versed in martial arts. Cao was overjoyed, and drilled his troops in the village. Wei Hong spent all his family's wealth on buying clothes, armor, flags, and banners. The number of people from all directions who sent grain to them was countless.

  Cao Cao's military camp was built west of Chenliu City, in front of the Wei family's large courtyard. Looking at the white flag hanging above Cao Cao's military camp, Li Yu's heart was filled with grand ambitions, to establish merit and build a career, it was all going to happen right now!

  "Xǔ Zhū! Bái shān tóu! Hā hā hā!", For a moment, the black language of the Li Yu road was also spoken out, "Ah? What does it mean?" Xǔ Zhū was stunned for half a moment, "Oh! It means to go and pay respects first!" Li Yu withdrew his head from outside the carriage, waved his hand, and the Xu family army behind him moved in unison towards the Cao's recruitment office.

  "Report! A cavalry is approaching!", the little soldier shouted, "What's the big deal? It's just a cavalry, isn't it?", a tall and majestic man with an icy face and awe-inspiring aura roared, he was Xiahou Dun, a military god-like figure in the Cao Group.

  Name in Chinese: Xiahou Dun, courtesy name: Yuanrang, Blind Xiahou, Nationality: China, Ethnicity: Han, Birthplace: Pei State Qiao County (now Anhui Province Bozhou), Date of death: June 13, 220 AD, Occupation: General

  Main achievements: Founding hero of the Wei dynasty, enfeoffed as Marquis of Gaoyang, posthumous title: Zhonghou, famous for: pulling out an arrow and shooting out an eye, era: Late Han to Three Kingdoms.

  "It's not... that team..." The messenger was so anxious that he couldn't finish his words, and Xiahou Dun shouted repeatedly, "Haha! Go take a look!" Cao Cao, who had been in a good mood these days, waved his hand, and several important figures followed him up;

  "Hum! Hum! Hum!" Like a thousand horses galloping, the Xujia army, marching in unison, immediately seized everyone's attention!

  Each of them was eight feet tall, with a waist circumference of five zhang, and although they were not wearing decent armor, they only held a long knife in their hands, giving people an unstoppable momentum and impact force. Especially the leader Xu Chu, who was over eight feet tall, with a waist circumference of ten zhang, and had a nine-ear-eight-ring elephant-nose knife on his back, looked even more majestic.

  "What a fine elite! What a robust warrior!", Cao Cao couldn't help but praise.

  "Halt! Who goes there?" shouted Xiahou Dun in front of the Wei family mansion; "Halt!" Xu Chu raised his hand, stopping the Xu family army, and stepped forward with a bow: "May I ask which is Cao Cao's residence? I've heard that Lord Cao has made a righteous move, and I've brought brave warriors from my clan to come and assist him!"

  "Good! Come, come, come! May I ask where the brave warrior is from?" A loud and clear laugh was surrounded by Cao Cao's smile, "I am Xu Zhu of Qiao County, Xuchu, Xu Zhongkang!" Xu Chu replied in a deep and powerful voice.

  Cao Cao gazed at Xu Chu as if he were a peerless beauty, and the military generals all had a feeling, especially the high-ranking ones like Xiahou Dun, who felt it even more keenly. He had just whispered to Cao Cao: This man's martial prowess is not inferior to mine!

  Who is Xiahou Dun? He is also a well-known figure among the Three Kingdoms warriors. Cao Cao probably knew how formidable his brother was, and he was overjoyed. A brave general like him was priceless. Cao Cao went forward to pat Xiahou Dun's shoulder, but found that due to his height, he could only barely reach his shoulder, so he had no choice but to "attack the chest!"

  "Good fellow!" Cao Cao suddenly bent down, it turned out that Xu Chu's shoelaces had come untied from running, and Cao Cao tied them for him. This moved Xu Chu deeply, as the saying goes: "A true friend is one who knows you".

  "Come on! Follow me in!" Cao Cao held Xun You's hand and walked with him; Xun You said, "I hope Lord Cao will wait a moment, my teacher is still behind!"

  "Oh?" Cao Cao was even more delighted, thinking that he could teach such a brave and fierce person. He thought that the teacher must also be exceptionally brave. Unfortunately, he was wrong, Li Yu taught Xu Chu not martial arts but martial virtues;

  Chenliu and Qiao Commandery are not close, now most of the war horses are under Dong Zhuo's control in Liangzhou and Bingzhou, there are no good horses in Central Plains, even if there were, Xushi didn't have the money.

  Li Yu had no choice but to let these men bring dry rations and some hunted game, running all the way, while he himself could not do so. He was a man like Lin Daiyu, whose body was not very strong, and with the cold weather at the beginning of spring, he caught a chill even when riding in a carriage, and was moving slowly behind them, not far away.