Several days later.
Hanoi County, Zhao word camp.
Cao Cao, accompanied by Guo Jia and Xu Chu, slowly stepped into the gate.
Sweeping the entire camp, their eyes were filled with surprise.
"This camp is quite organized.”
"Although there are few troops, the army is extremely neat.”
"My lord, it seems like this young master Zizhao has some talent.”
Guo Jia clicked his tongue and looked at Cao Cao.
"To be able to reach such a level at such a young age, yes, he's stronger than when I was young.”
Cao Cao nodded and smiled.
The group of people came to the front of the big tent.
It was early summer, and the weather was getting hotter. The few of them were already drenched in sweat.
He lifted the curtain and entered the tent. A cool breeze hit his face, and he couldn't help but feel refreshed.
"Ice!"
"My lord, it's ice!"
Xu Chu's eyes were sharp as he pointed around excitedly.
Cao Cao looked closely and saw that there were indeed many ice cubes piled up in the tent, which was why it was so cool.
"It's such a hot day, where did Young Master Zizhao get so much ice?”
Guo Jia muttered to himself, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"Interesting."
Cao Cao touched the ice block and couldn't wait to see Cao Lie.
At this moment.
The curtain of the tent was lifted, and a strong and valiant young man stepped into the tent.
"Old Meng, what brings you here?”
Cao Lie's eyes were filled with joy as he enthusiastically pulled Cao Cao to sit down.
All these years, Cao Cao had been using the name of Meng. As Cao Cao's trusted butler, he had visited Cao Lie every few years to send him food and money. The two of them could be considered acquaintances.
"This child looks like his mother.”
Cao Cao looked at the handsome face and liked it more and more. He wanted nothing more than to acknowledge his father.
"Don't scare the child. Take it slow.”
His thoughts turned and he suppressed his impulse.
"Zi Zhao."
Cao Cao's expression turned serious as he said,""Zizhao, do you know how much trouble you've caused?”
"Isn't it just slaughtering the Sima Clan? It's no big deal.”
Cao Lie casually poured a cup of Du Kang wine for Cao Cao and added a piece of ice.
"To be able to remain so calm after slaughtering a county's distinguished family, this Young Master Zi Zhao's determination is extraordinary.”
Guo Jia's eyes flickered as he nodded.
"I…My lord asked you to congratulate Sima Yi on his marriage and invite him to be an official. Why did you slaughter his entire family?”
"Do you know how much of a sensation this matter has caused in Xu Capital? How many famous scholars and courtiers have denounced you?”
"The lord sent me here to ask you why you did that. You have to give him a reasonable explanation!”
Cao Cao frowned and his tone became even more severe.
"Sima Yi is sinister and vicious, with wild ambitions. Keeping him alive will sooner or later be the bane of my Cao family, so I naturally have to kill him.”
Cao Lie explained calmly.
"Hmm?"
Cao Cao was startled and said unhappily," Sima Yi is just a scholar. He does have some talent. You're overestimating him by saying that he's the bane of the Cao family."”
Cao Lie was speechless.
He could not give a reasonable explanation.
Could he tell them that Sima Yi would become an important minister of Cao Wei in a few decades and usurp the throne of Cao Wei?
Who would believe that?
"There's nothing to explain."
Cao Lie waved his hand impatiently and said,""I just didn't like Sima Yi, so I destroyed his entire clan. It's that simple!”
"How domineering, you have some temperament of the lord.”
Guo Jia secretly smiled and looked at Cao Cao.
At this moment, Cao Cao had mixed feelings.
His son had his own style, and as a father, he was naturally proud of it. He was secretly happy.
However, how was he going to clean up this mess?
"Young Master Zizhao."
"Back then, my lord killed Bian Rang, a famous scholar from a large family, and angered the scholars of Yanzhou. They all betrayed my lord and served Lu Bu as their master, almost forcing my lord into a desperate situation."
"We have to be careful of the road ahead.”
Guo Jia saw Cao Cao's difficulties and spoke up for him.
"So what?"
Cao Lie said disdainfully," Back then, even my Uncle Meng De was not afraid of those scholars. Now that he has the Son of Heaven under his control, why should he be afraid of them?"”
Guo Jia was speechless.
Cao Cao's eyes flashed. These words ignited his pride.
"This kid is indeed my son!”
"Forget it. For the sake of my son, I'll suppress this matter. Let's see who dares to harm Zhao 'er!”
Cao Cao's eyes lit up with determination.
At this moment.
"My lord isn't afraid of those famous people, but the army is short of food now, and we still need to rely on the large families in the provinces to contribute food.”
"At this critical moment, if this matter affects the support of the great clans for the lord, it will be even more difficult for the army to sustain its rations.”
"How will my lord defeat Yuan Shao?”
Guo Jia spoke of Cao Cao's difficulties.
The lack of food was like a sharp sword hanging over Cao Cao's head.
The aristocrats controlled a large area of land. Without these people to provide food, relying solely on the court to provide food was far from enough to support the decisive battle between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao.
"Hasn't Uncle been promoting the cultivation of wasteland for several years?”
Cao Lie frowned and asked.
"To open up wasteland requires a large number of farming tools and cattle.”
"Now that the national treasury is empty, the lord simply can't take out enough money to fully implement the wasteland.”
"Just relying on the few fields we have now to solve the lack of grain is like using a cup of water to put out a cartload of firewood.”
Guo Jia shook his head and sighed, his eyes filled with helplessness.
Cao Cao also sighed. Guo Jia's words hit the nail on the head.
"I see. This matter is not difficult."
Cao Lie smiled and took out a scroll from his sleeve, handing it to Cao Cao.
"What is this?"
Cao Cao stared blankly at the strange drawings on the scroll.
"This item is called the Quyuan Plow."
Cao Lie smiled and said unhurriedly," Old Meng, take this map back and ask my Uncle Meng De to forge it according to the map. Then, promote it to be used for farming. In less than a year, I guarantee that he won't have to worry about food and fodder anymore!”
"Qu Yuanli?"
Cao Cao's eyes lit up.
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