Chapter 6 Destruction Before Reconstruction

  What if you were an emperor?

  The question was so straightforward that there was no disguise at all, and Cao Cao was startled by Liu Xuan's words. Even Cao Pi, who had been quietly attending to him, was shocked into a cold sweat.

  The Emperor, the highest ruler of the Han Dynasty, is the master of the world and the most revered person in this world. Sitting in that position is equivalent to owning this world, with the supreme power to kill or spare anyone's life at will.

  Liu Xuan clearly expressed in front of the two: I want to be the emperor!

  Cao Cao's facial expression changed, and his eyes looking at Liu Xuan were no longer as calm as before, seemingly with a hint of surprise, curiosity, and admiration. However, he didn't say anything, just sat there, and after a while, he calmed down, picked up the water bowl, took a small sip, and then sat quietly as if he hadn't heard anything.

  "Waiting for my next message?"

  Liu Xuanshan muttered a sentence in his heart, and at the same time, he was also thinking about what to say next.

  In fact, he would have said it so bluntly before, and it's not a momentary impulse. He thought carefully and felt that for someone like Cao Cao, playing mind games with him was simply asking for trouble - although he had been practicing for many days, playing mind games was not his forte, otherwise he wouldn't have been outsmarted and almost lost his life.

  Since it will definitely be noticed by the other party, and may even cause Cao Cao's displeasure, it is better to say it out loud and clearly, which makes oneself appear more overbearing.

  Isn't Cao Cao very overbearing? To want to bring someone like that under one's control, you have to be even more overbearing than him!

  It was based on this idea that Liu Xuan would bluntly express his desire to become emperor. Of course, he also had a backup plan; if Cao Cao not only refused to help him but also wanted to oppose him, then he wouldn't mind sending this hawkish hero on his way ahead of time.

  "A hero of this kind, if he cannot be used, should be eliminated as soon as possible, to avoid causing more trouble in the future!"

  In a place where Cao Cao couldn't see, Liu Xuan's hands had already clenched into fists. Although there was no unusual sign on his body, the smoke and clouds formed by the dragon energy inside him had begun to fluctuate violently. As long as Liu Xuan wanted, he could immediately burst out with tremendous power and kill Cao Cao on the spot - this was just the most inferior plan. If it wasn't necessary, Liu Xuan really didn't want to directly take care of Cao Cao.

  Fortunately, Cao Cao didn't say anything, but judging from his expression, he seemed to be thinking and hesitating as well. As long as he didn't refuse immediately, there was still a chance.

  "I heard that Cao Yi's ambition is to sit as the General of Conquering the West? I don't know why?"

  The topic suddenly turned to Cao Cao's ambition, although it was a bit sudden, but it dissipated the awkward atmosphere in the room, even Cao Pi, who was sweating coldly on the side, felt a little lighter and relaxed.

  However, this relaxation immediately felt wrong again, and he hurried to the door, slightly listened, confirmed that there was no one outside, and then let out a sigh of relief - He didn't think that if someone really eavesdropped, they would have been scared away by the previous conversation, and it wouldn't be his turn to investigate.

  So from the very beginning, Liu Xuan secretly released that white crane, in case someone was spying.

  Cao Cao heard Liu Xuan's inquiry and after a brief moment of thought, directly replied: "To eliminate the troubles of foreign tribes and to open up and expand territory for the country!"

  The General Who Conquers the West holds the highest authority over Yong and Liang, facing many ethnic groups in the northwest, stationed in Chang'an. Due to the geographical location of the Han Dynasty, if one wants to expand the territory for the country, the most likely direction is the northwest. Therefore, this General Who Conquers the West is a first-class practical position among military officials.

  At the same time, Cao Cao wanted to be the General Who Conquers the West, which shows that this person at this time liked military affairs more.

  Liu Xuan also knew Cao Cao's ambition, and Cao Cao had mentioned his own ambition when chatting with others before, so he didn't find it strange that Liu Xuan knew about his ambition. On the contrary, he felt that this crown prince was indeed not someone who would come to him on impulse, but rather had done his homework beforehand.

  "What does Cao Yi Lang think about today's situation?"

  As soon as this question came out, Cao Cao immediately shut his mouth and didn't speak!

  If it were someone else asking, he might have been able to discuss his views on the current situation and various strategies at length with others. However, the person in front of him was too sensitive, especially since this person had previously expressed a desire to become the master of the world, and the words in his heart were not pleasant for those in the imperial court to hear.

  Liu Xuan also saw Cao Cao's concern, but instead smiled lightly and said with a nonchalant expression: "Just speak freely, let's just chat like we normally do!"

  Such a plain and dull sentence, seemingly nothing special, but it unconsciously puts oneself in a superior position, Cao Cao was not unaware of it, but didn't think there was anything wrong with it either.

  The Han imperial family, although not as grandiose, even when the emperor met with the three dukes and marquises, had to get up from their seat, wait for the other party to finish paying homage, and then return the courtesy according to the law before they could sit back down.

  Facing Cao Cao, who is not even a high-ranking person, putting on some airs doesn't count for much.

  Cao Cao thought for a moment and finally felt that it didn't matter if he said it, after all, the current situation... The other party couldn't do anything to him, after all, the opponent was just an imperial prince, and still the one with the least presence, the least powerful one - If he knew that Liu Xuan had made preparations to take his life, I wonder what he would think.

  "The bandits are rampant everywhere, causing the people's livelihoods to wither away, this is a sign of great chaos!"

  Liu Xuan listened and knew that he still had a lot of reservations. Was the situation in the world simply that bandits were rampant and people's lives were withering? Due to the Yellow Turban Rebellion, local officials had the power to recruit soldiers and command troops. Later, at the beginning of this year, the Emperor approved Liu Yan's memorial, which restored the state shepherd system, giving local authorities even greater powers - the power of the state shepherd was extremely great, almost equivalent to a regional emperor. This situation of heroes dividing up the land had already begun to take shape.

  At the same time, Cao Cao did not mention the old emperor's shameful deeds over the years - casting coins, selling official titles and other absurd things that had been done repeatedly, let alone the "swimming pool" built in the palace for his own entertainment.

  "What does Cao Yi Lang think is the solution?"

  Cao Cao thought for a moment, and in fact, he had also pondered this issue on ordinary days when he was free. Now that the situation has come to this, what should be done to restore the Han Dynasty to its heyday? Unfortunately, no matter how hard he thought, he felt that this problem was almost unsolvable.

  He had been thinking for half a day and still couldn't come up with an answer. In the end, it was Liu Xuan's one sentence that made him break out in a cold sweat.

  "In my opinion, since it's already rotten to the core, why not just pull out the roots and then rebuild from scratch!"

  Liu Xuan said this as if he were talking about pulling out an old tree and replanting a new one, probably no matter who heard it would not think that he was referring to a vast country.

  "Will it rise again after being broken?"

  Cao Cao was initially startled, and even suspected that the person in front of him might not be the crown prince, but someone else pretending to be. Otherwise, how could he say such things? To know that what is called "destroying before establishing" means destroying everything that exists now, but if so, would the Han dynasty still exist?

  He naturally didn't know that Liu Xuan didn't care about the Han dynasty or orthodoxy; all he wanted was the emperor's position.

  But upon careful consideration, he felt that Liu Xuan's words made a lot of sense, especially in line with his own thoughts. Because often when no one was around, similar ideas would emerge in his mind, but due to his loyalty to the Han dynasty, he would suppress them every time. Now that Liu Xuan mentioned it, this idea could no longer be controlled, and it burst out rapidly, growing into a towering tree in an instant.

  At this time, Cao Cao felt that the Liu Xuan in front of him was very much to his taste. If he could become emperor, it would truly allow the Han Dynasty to regain its vitality and once again become a powerful nation.

  As soon as this idea emerged, he began to seriously consider whether he should really stand together with Liu Xuan and what benefits it would bring to himself.

  "There's no doubt that if the Crown Prince ascends to the throne, I'll at least be a high-ranking official, and my future achievements will not be limited to just being a General who conquers the West!"

  The benefits are obvious, but the trouble is not small either. Cao Cao was not the kind of person who would be blinded by immediate interests, and after a moment of calmness, he knew how much trouble he had to face.

  "Zao Yilang needn't worry, all these troubles before us will naturally be cleared away by someone else!"

  Liu Xuan had been observing Cao Cao's expression, and now he knew that Cao Cao was moved. Although it was not necessarily true that he would take Cao Cao as his younger brother, Cao Cao indeed had the idea of uniting with him. As long as he had this idea, he would not let Cao Mengde go, and as long as he could always suppress him, he was not afraid of having other ideas.

  Now, a proper display of one's abilities can also make Cao Cao have more confidence in oneself.

  "What words are these from the Crown Prince?"

  "What Cao Yilang is worried about is nothing more than the Grand General and Zhang Rang, but those two sides are now like water and fire, it won't be long before they fight to the death, at that time..."

  Cao Cao immediately understood Liu Xuan's meaning: "At the time, take advantage of their mutual wounds to make a big move?" This plan seemed not bad, but Cao Cao felt it wouldn't be that simple.

  Liu Xuan smiled: "It won't be that easy, the palace is now a complex web of power struggles, and we need a villain to eliminate all those messy elements!"

  Cao Cao heard this and was initially bewildered, but in an instant his face changed to one of shock: "The imperial prince wants to lead... foreign troops into the capital?" How could he not be shocked? Because according to normal thinking, most of the forces in the capital were those of the royal family, and the imperial court was most wary of foreign troops entering the capital. Who would have thought that this person in front of him would do the opposite?

  Think again about what he said earlier, "destroy before establishing"... It seems that this prince is going to stir up a storm of blood and rain, with a ruthless heart that is rarely seen in the world.

  However, Cao Cao felt that this was what it took to be a great man.