“Your Majesty, this Cao Cao is so cunning, will he be willing to obey the imperial edict and attack the foreign races with Your Majesty?”

“If he attacks us when we attack the alien race, that would be terrible!”

In an instant, a rather suspicious voice was heard in the hall.

It was none other than Cai Mao.

Now the Cai family is a staunch supporter of Liu Wu.

And it is precisely because the Cai family supports Liu Wu that Cai Mao hopes that Liu Wu can continue to be strong.

As long as Liu Wu is strong, the Cai family will be prosperous.

So, putting trust in Cao Cao, Cai Mao immediately stood up to express his surprise.

“Your Majesty, this matter does require caution.”

At this time, Huang Zu also stood up and said.

If he asks to fight in the north, there is no problem, but if he wants to fight against foreign races together with Cao Cao, we need to be vigilant.

Liu Wu, who was sitting in the main seat, looked at the vigilant expressions of the crowd, but he did not feel angry about being questioned.

Liu Wu was relieved that these people were able to guard against Cao Cao and be cautious of him.

However, Liu Wu was not too worried about what Cao Cao might do as to whether he was willing to put aside the civil war with him and unite against external enemies.

First of all, Cao Cao’s attitude towards foreigners was not so friendly.

Secondly, the emperor is a righteous man and he has issued an edict. If Cao Cao still does not care when the barbarians are moving south and the Han Dynasty is in crisis, his reputation will be completely ruined, and the people under his rule will reject him, and the aristocratic ministers under his command will probably look down on him.

Secondly, even if Cao Cao really had some ulterior motives, Liu Wu was not a man of clay.

He has already occupied half of the Han Dynasty’s territory and has hundreds of thousands of soldiers under his command. It would not be so easy for him to be destroyed by a surprise attack by Cao Cao.

Also, Liu Wu was not afraid that Cao Cao would dare to attack him at this time. If Cao Cao dared to attack him when he was attacking foreign races, Liu Wu would only be happy, because in that case, Cao Cao would be close to defeat.

“How could I not be on guard against Cao Cao? When I lead the troops to go to war, Guan Yu will be the chief commander stationed in Xiangyang, Gan Ning will be the deputy chief commander, and we will mobilize 200,000 troops from several southern states and station them around Xiangyang.”

As soon as Liu Wu finished speaking, Cai Mao and Huang Zu, who had been in doubt just now, immediately shut up.

With an army of 200,000 stationed in Xiangyang and relying on the strong city of Xiangyang, it is enough to make Xiangyang impregnable. Even if Cao Cao has any other tricks, it is impossible to break through the defense of Xiangyang in a short time.

“Your Majesty, I think we should ask Cao Cao to send troops. Cao Cao will not refuse.”

“Gao Gan has always been in conflict with Cao Cao, and this time he led the foreigners south. You should know that after crossing the Yellow River, you will enter Guanzhong. Therefore, Cao Cao will definitely respond to the king and jointly stop the foreigners. In addition.”

Zhuge Liang then bowed to Liu Wu and said:

“Besides, I’m afraid Cao Cao will not give up the opportunity to seize Bingzhou this time.”

Zhuge Liang’s words made everyone look at the map with some helplessness. It seemed that Cao Cao was unlikely to plot any conspiracy in this battle against the alien race.

Because, just as Zhuge Liang said, Gao Gan had conflicts with Cao Cao. Last time Gao Gan ran away and Cao Cao failed to catch him. This time he led the foreign tribes south, passed through Bingzhou, crossed the Yellow River and entered Guanzhong, which was also a threat to Cao Cao’s power. In addition, this was indeed a good opportunity to seize Bingzhou.

At this time, it would be unwise for Cao Cao to risk the wrath of the world and plot against Xiangyang.

On the contrary, what makes Cai Mao, Huang Zu and others quite unhappy now is that their fight against foreign races may help Cao Cao take Bingzhou, which makes them feel disgusted.

“It doesn’t matter. If Cao Cao can take Bingzhou, we will also benefit from it. In this battle, Cao Cao and I will send a total of no less than 400,000 troops. If everything goes well, we can take advantage of the situation to attack the Wuhuan’s lair and the southern grasslands of the desert. If we can take the Wuhuan’s territory and the southern grasslands of the desert, we will make a lot of money.”

Liu Wu suddenly laughed.

“Take the Wuhuan territory and the southern grasslands into your possession?”

All the civil and military officials in the hall were shocked by Liu Wu’s tone.

In fact, the grasslands south of the desert and the territory of the Wuhuan people are not small territories.

Everyone looked at each other.

However, Liu Wu showed great interest in joining forces with Cao Cao.

The southern steppes of the Eastern Han Dynasty mainly included the areas south of the Gobi Desert and north of the Yin Mountains. In later generations, the corresponding areas were roughly the Korqin grassland, Bashang grassland, Yinbei grassland, Qiantao plain, Houtao plain, Xitao plain and Hexi Corridor, which were areas with abundant water and grass.

You should know that these places have a high carrying capacity and can raise a large number of cattle, sheep and horses.

If it is really developed, Liu Wu estimates that it would be easy to handle a million horses.

After all, in the early Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu Chanyu could gather 400,000 Xiongnu cavalry and march south. For long-distance cavalry raids, with three horses for each cavalryman, that would amount to 1.2 million war horses.

It can be seen from this that if we really take control of the southern grasslands of the desert, we can raise a large number of cavalry.

Only if the vast grassland can be turned into a back garden will Liu Wu feel that his trip is not in vain.

“Immediately ask the emperor for instructions and send an imperial edict to Cao Cao. At the same time, mobilize the troops and order Zhou Yu to follow me into battle!”

Liu Wu gave the order directly.

Zhuge Liang bowed to Liu Wu and said, “Yes, I will do it immediately!”

Next, Liu Wu made some arrangements. First, he appointed Zhuge Liang as the Prime Minister of Chu, to be in charge of the military and political affairs of Chu when Zhuge Liang went on an expedition.

Although Cai Mao, Kuai Yue and Huang Zu were envious, they also understood that they could not compare with Zhuge Liang’s talents.

On that day, Liu Wu was about to go on an expedition to the north, and the news of the expedition against the foreign race immediately caused a sensation in Xiangyang City.

When Emperor Liu Xie learned that foreign tribes had invaded the border, Liu Wu wanted to invite Cao Cao to join the expedition. He immediately agreed and issued an imperial edict.

Soon, troops from Xiangyang, as well as troops from Runan, Yuzhou and other places were frequently mobilized.

Sun Shao in Xuzhou, Sun Quan in Yangzhou, and Cao Cao in Luoyang were all shocked.

But soon, Cao Cao in Luoyang confirmed why Liu Wu made such a big move.

……

Luoyang City, inside the hall of Sikong Mansion.

The commander of the Yulin Army read out the imperial edict in person.

Cao Cao, along with his sons Cao Pi, Cao Zhang, Cao Zhi, Cao Chong, as well as a number of civil and military officials, all listened respectfully to the imperial edict.

Seeing Cao Cao’s cooperation, Yulin Army Commander Zhou Yang heaved a sigh of relief and took out the imperial edict and read it aloud:

[Imperial Edict]:
“I have heard the warning from the border beacon. Yuan Xi, Yuan Shang, and Gao Gan, the sons of the Yuan family, dared to collude with foreign races to invade the border counties of Bingzhou and Youzhou of our Great Han. The foreign cavalry trampled on the territory of our Great Han, burned, killed, looted, and committed all kinds of evil, causing the people to be displaced and their lives to be destroyed. This situation is infuriating to both humans and gods, and it cannot be tolerated by heaven and earth.

As the emperor of the Han Dynasty, I am the one who receives the mandate of heaven. How can I sit back and do nothing? I hereby issue this decree, ordering the King of Chu to be the commander of the Eastern Route Army, commanding an army of 200,000 men, to march out immediately, directly attack the lair of the alien race, kill the generals and seize their flags, so as to boost the prestige of the Han army.

At the same time, I also appointed Sikong Cao Cao as the commander of the Western Army, also commanding an army of 200,000 to attack the foreign races. You all must work together to face the national crisis, and be sure to drive the foreign races out of the country and restore peace to the border counties of our Han Dynasty.

You commanders must obey my orders without error. If you disobey, I will not forgive you.

I look forward to your triumphant return to celebrate the victory. The Han Empire will surely become more prosperous because of your contributions. I decree this!”

The voice of the Yulin Army commander resounded throughout the hall, and Cao Cao and everyone else raised their brows.

“Cao Cao respectfully accepts the imperial edict!”

Cao Cao suddenly spoke loudly and respectfully took the imperial edict from the Yulin Army.

“Someone, send the court angel to the post station to rest!”

Cao Cao arranged for people to prepare and send the Yulin Army to rest.

The Yulin Army was quite flattered. They had a bad impression of Cao Cao and thought that this trip would be painful and it was even a question whether they could return.

Who would have thought that Cao Cao would actually treat them quite well.

After the Yulin Army envoys left, Cao Cao sat in the main seat.

Cao Zhang, Cao Pi, Cao Zhang, Cao Zhi, Cao Chong and other sons stood.

Xun Yu, Jia Xu, Xu Chu, Le Jin, Xu Huang, Zhang Liao, Cao Xiu, Xiahou Shang, Cao Zhen, Zhang Xiu, Ma Teng and others all sat down.

“The emperor actually ordered me, Cao Cao, and Liu Wu to attack the foreign tribes together. What do you think?”

Cao Cao looked at the imperial edict, pondered, and asked everyone.

Hearing this, Xu Huang couldn’t help but say:
“My lord, could this be a trick of Liu Wu? Will he suddenly launch a surprise attack on us when we lead our troops north?”

Xu Huang directly asked the questions that were in the minds of everyone, including Cao Cao.

Cao Cao’s character is suspicious, and he is extremely sensitive to the threat of Liu Wu, his great enemy. Liu Wu is his great enemy, and even if Cao Cao proposes to fight against foreign races together, he may not be able to fully trust Liu Wu.

At this time, Xun Yu was a little anxious. The emperor issued an imperial decree, asking Liu Wu and Cao Cao to fight against the foreign race together. Xun Yu was willing to do so.

Xun Yu immediately bowed to Cao Cao and said:

“My lord, I feel that Liu Wu’s move is not a conspiracy. Scouts have already found out that several sons of the Yuan family colluded with Wuhuan and Xianbei to go south. This is enough to show that Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi want to use the power of foreign races. However, the foreign races are ambitious and will not help Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi. I am afraid they are just using them. But no matter what, the foreign races going south is a foregone conclusion, and Liu Wu is in trouble. This is an indisputable fact.”

“Yu does not think that Liu Wu is still thinking of plotting against us when he has two enemies, Wuhuan and Xianbei. If so, Liu Wu is seeking his own death.”

Xun Yu spoke coldly, but his tone was extremely firm.

After hearing this, Cao Cao’s thoughts that he might have bad intentions towards Liu Wu suddenly dissipated, and his suspicion also disappeared.

Jia Xu also bowed to Cao Cao and said:

“My lord, Wen Ruo is right. With a powerful enemy in the north, Liu Wu will not start a war with us at this time.”

Jia Xu also affirmed Xun Yu’s point of view, which made everyone dispel their suspicion that Liu Wu might have bad intentions.

However, at this time, Cao Cao’s third son, Huangxuer Cao Zhang, interrupted and said:
“Father, since Liu Wu has a powerful enemy, it is a weak time. We can take advantage of this opportunity to send troops and severely damage Liu Wu’s vitality.”

Cao Zhang’s words startled everyone in the hall, but some people’s eyes suddenly lit up and they were moved, but more people frowned instantly.

Cao Cao also tightened his grip, but his eyes took in everyone’s expressions.

“presumptuous!”

Suddenly, Cao Cao shouted loudly, and Cao Cao cursed Cao Zhang directly:
“Rebellious son, what bullshit are you talking about? At this time when foreigners are invading the northern border of our Han Dynasty, the emperor issued an imperial decree, ordering me to lead the army as the western army to attack the foreigners. You actually want me and Liu Wu to continue the attack. You are really a rebellious son. Come on, arrest him, arrest him, lock him up, and reflect on yourself.”

Cao Cao seemed quite angry, which made Cao Zhang panic immediately.

He didn’t think too much about it and just said it out loud. Who knew that his father Cao Cao would be so angry.

“Father, I was wrong, I was wrong!” Cao Zhang, the boy with yellow beard, begged for mercy, but Cao Cao was furious and said:
“What are you still standing there for? Take him away and lock him up!”

Xu Chu did not dare to delay and pulled Cao Zhang out.

“What a rebellious son! I’m so angry! How dare you say such a thing?”

Cao Cao sat down again and breathed a sigh of relief.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

But no one understood what Cao Cao’s attitude was now.

However, Cao Cao looked at Jia Xu.

Now, Cheng Yu is in charge of Hanzhong, Guo Jia is recuperating, Xun Yu is inclined towards the Han Dynasty, and Dong Zhao has betrayed him. He feels that the only person he can trust is Jia Xu.

“Wenhe, what do you think we should do?”

Jia Xu listened to Cao Cao’s questions with a wry smile on his face. He knew that bringing Liu Wu down was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. However, Cao Cao understood the importance of the name of righteousness and the foundation of his life, so he did not dare to think about it.

Jia Xu hesitated for a moment, then bowed to Cao Cao and said:

“My lord, Xu believes that Sikong should obey the emperor’s decree and personally lead the army of 200,000 soldiers to Bingzhou to attack the foreign races. On the one hand, this is in line with the expectations of the people of the world. When he has made achievements, the emperor will certainly reward Sikong. Sikong will win the hearts of the people of the world and establish his image!”

“On the other hand, if Gao Gan leads the foreign tribes south, they will be separated from Guanzhong by the Yellow River and will inevitably threaten Guanzhong. This is also an opportunity for Sikong to eliminate his worries.”

“Finally, my lord, you can take advantage of the situation to defeat Gao Gan and take control of Bingzhou.”

Jia Xu quickly told Cao Cao three points about the necessity of sending troops in response to the imperial edict.

When Cao Cao heard what Jia Xu said, he immediately realized that he really needed to attack the alien race.

These three points are very important and indispensable to him.

First, reputation.

Because he had previously used the emperor to control the princes, causing people all over the world to call him a traitor. Now, if he stood up during the foreign invasion, he would be able to wash away his previous bad reputation.

Second, it is also necessary to eliminate the threat from the north.

Third, defeating Gao Gan and occupying Bingzhou would naturally be very attractive to Cao Cao.

“Okay, Wenhe’s words are very much to my liking. It seems that it is inevitable that Liu Wu and I will send troops to attack the foreign races. This is also good. If the foreign races invade our Han territory, how can we not attack them? Immediately reply to the court angel that Cao Cao will lead an army of 200,000 to cross the Yellow River and attack the foreign races. Let the King of Chu not be outdone by Cao Cao, haha.”

Cao Cao laughed loudly, and many civil and military officials in the hall also smiled.

Many people were born in the Han Dynasty and still had a strong xenophobia towards other races. When other races attacked, they would punish them like Wei Qing and Huo Qubing did.

Soon, the news that shocked the world spread.

The emperor ordered the King of Chu to be the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Army, leading an army of 200,000 to attack the foreign tribes from Youzhou.

Cao Cao was the commander of the Western Army, leading an army of 200,000 soldiers to attack the foreign tribes from Bingzhou.

The two armies, totaling 400,000 men, attacked the northern tribes together. When the news spread, the people of the world were excited and there was an uproar. (End of this chapter)