In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed. Cao Zheng gathered his men and prepared for a meeting.
"Is everyone here?" Cao Zheng asked Cao Zhen.
Cao Zhen checked again. After confirming it, he said,"Everyone is here. We can start."”
"Alright, now I have a few things to announce. The first thing is that our army has taken down the six prefectures of Xu Prefecture in one fell swoop. Moreover, my father has already sent troops to various strategic locations. Xu Prefecture is completely in our hands.”
"Second, I have already written a letter asking my father to send a new provincial governor to take over Xuzhou. I believe that he should be able to reach Tancheng in a few days, so we have to make preparations to return to Xuchang.”
"The third thing is that we confiscated a large amount of property previously. There are gold, silver, jewelry, antiques, calligraphy, paintings, and books. We have to protect these things well.”
"The fourth thing is that the East China Sea produces a large amount of coarse sea salt. I plan to open a saltworks in the East China Sea. If you are interested in investing, you can work with me.”
"The last thing is the navy. I plan to build a port in Langya and then a shipyard to form a navy. Let me know when you've discussed it."
Cao Zheng said a few things in a row without pausing in the middle, which made some people unable to react in time.
"Second Brother, what is a navy?" Xiahou Ba asked curiously.
"The navy, as the name suggests, is an army that gallops across the sea.”Cao Zheng explained.
Cao Zheng had originally planned to make Gan Ning the admiral, but now that Gan Ning wasn't around, he had no choice but to choose one of the few people around him.
"Second Brother, what are the navy mainly used for? Is there a chance to make a great contribution?" Cao Tai asked curiously.
"There is. You don't have to say that the navy should be the easiest military branch to make contributions to because the other dukes don't have such a unit yet. As long as it is formed, it will be a steel lion.”
Cao Zheng drew a big pie and tempted everyone.
"Second brother, who is the navy made up of?”Xiahou Ba asked.
"People from Langya or people like them who live by the sea all year round will be formed. This will be beneficial to the improvement of the combat effectiveness of the army.”Cao Zheng explained.
"Elder brother, in that case, let me do it.”In the end, Xiahou Ba could not resist Cao Zheng's temptation and walked right into the trap.
Cao Zheng was very satisfied with Xiahou Ba. He had already had a plan for this outcome, but he did not expect Xiahou Ba to come up with it himself.
"Good, Zhongquan's courage is commendable. Choose 2000 soldiers from the army to be your first batch of navy. Then, recruit fishermen from the coastal areas.”
Cao Zheng instructed.
"Yes, I accept your orders."
When Cao Zheng was about to continue, Li Wei reported,""Young Master, the new provincial governor has arrived.”
"Alright, got it." Cao Zheng said calmly.
Then Cao Zheng said to the crowd,"Let's go and welcome the new provincial governor."”
Thus, Cao Zheng brought everyone out of the manor to welcome the governor.
Cao Ang was seen wearing black armor and carrying a sword at his waist. He entered Tan City majestically and drove towards the Provincial Governor's Office.
I really didn't expect Cao Zheng to be the new provincial governor.
"Big brother." Cao Zheng shouted from afar.
Cao Ang also saw Cao Zheng at this moment, so he left the group and rushed over alone.
After the two brothers met, they hugged each other like before.
"Big brother, why is it you?" Cao Zheng asked in confusion.
"You ask me, who should I ask? That day, when I was playing with a few children, the imperial servant came to the house and gave me an imperial edict.”Cao Ang explained.
Just as the two brothers entered the residence, a box in the carriage inexplicably opened. Just as everyone was wondering what had happened, a child about eight or nine years old ran out.
After coming out, he shouted to Cao Ang,"Big brother!"”
Only then did everyone notice this little fellow.
At this moment, Cao Zheng also reacted and asked Cao Ang,"Big Brother, why did you bring him here?”
At this moment, Cao Ang was also extremely embarrassed. How would he know where this ancestor came from?
Cao Zheng looked at Cao Zhang's pitiful appearance and could only walk over and ask,""Ziwen, tell me, why are you in the box?”
Cao Zhang said pitifully," I beat up Cao Zhi, and he told my mother, causing me to be punished. I beat him up again, then hid him in a box and followed my eldest brother here."”
This child was a little rebellious, but it was no wonder. Cao Zhang was a famous fierce general in history. He was able to fight fierce tigers before he was twenty years old. When he grew up, he conquered the Wuhuan and defeated the Xianbei. He made an indelible contribution to the stability of the northern Cao Wei.
Cao Zhi, a scholar who recited poems and composed Fu, was no match for him.
" Ziming, help me write a letter to my family. Tell them that Ziwen is with me and not to worry.”
No matter what, he was still a child who was not even ten years old. After being lost for so many days, Madam Bian would definitely be anxious.
Seeing Cao Zheng, his second brother whom he had always admired, Cao Zhang seemed to have found his backbone. He said aggrievedly," Second Brother, I'm hungry. I want to eat…"
Cao Zheng's heart ached when he heard the list of dishes. He could not help but ask,"How many days have you not eaten?"
Cao Zhang replied,"About two days after we ran out of rations."”
"Poor child, follow me in. I'll make you a roasted lamb leg.”
Cao Zheng picked up Cao Zhang with one hand and brought Cao Ang in.
At night, Cao Zheng specially prepared fresh milk and roasted lamb leg for Cao Zhang. Moreover, he personally took care of Cao Zhang's food and drink. After Cao Zhang was full, he asked the maid to send him to bed.
As for himself, he was going to attend the banquet in the hall. This banquet was to welcome Cao Ang's inauguration and also to send Cao Zheng off.
Liu Bei and his two brothers had also come to attend this banquet. However, when the three of them learned that Cao Ang had become the governor of Xu Prefecture, their moods were not very good.
After the banquet ended, Liu Bei specially asked to see Cao Zheng.
This was something that could not be helped. He had been longing for the Governor of Xu Prefecture day and night, but now that the Governor of Xu Prefecture had been appointed by Cao Cao as his eldest son, Liu Bei could only put down his pride and ask Cao Zheng for help.
"Big brother, what does this Cao Cao mean? Xu Prefecture originally belonged to you, but now you let his own son become the provincial governor.”Zhang Fei said indignantly.
"Third brother, shut up. This is the imperial edict of His Majesty.”Liu Bei stopped Zhang Fei from continuing.
Liu Bei felt wronged and thought to himself, You still have the face to say that if you hadn't provoked Lu Bu, that jackal, my Xu Prefecture wouldn't have been lost. Where did today come from?
"General, Liu Bei requests an audience." The attendant came in and said.
"Liu Bei."
"Got it. Tell him to wait a moment. I'll go see him now.”Cao Zheng instructed.
"Yes." The attendant left.
After a while, Cao Zheng changed his clothes and went to see Liu Bei.
"Duke Xuande, sorry to keep you waiting." Although Cao Zheng was the General of the Flying Cavalry, it was his habit to respect others, so he was very respectful to Liu Bei.
"Where, where? General, you are busy. I have disturbed you.”Liu Bei said respectfully.
"May I know why you have come, Duke Xuande?”Cao Zheng asked.
" General, previously, Tao Qian, the herdsman of Xu Prefecture, entrusted Xu Prefecture to me. However, Lu Bu went back on his word and seized Xu Prefecture. Now that General has recovered Xu Prefecture, I think, think…"
At this crucial moment, Liu Bei could not continue.
At this time, Zhang Fei spoke on behalf of Liu Bei," General, what my brother means is that Tao Qian gave Xuzhou to my brother. Later, it was taken by Lu Bu. Now, it has been taken by you. Therefore, I would like to ask you to return Xuzhou to my brother."”
Cao Zheng could not believe his ears.
"Return it to its original owner. I should also return it to Tian Zi. Why should I give it to you?”Cao Zheng said coldly.
It took him half a year to take down Xuzhou with tens of thousands of troops. In order to take down Xuzhou, Cao General Xiahou Dun was shot blind in one eye and thousands of soldiers were buried in a foreign land. Now, Liu Bei was so confident that he wanted to return it to him?
"Duke Xuande, I don't have the authority to make you the Prefecture Overseer of Xu. However, I can take you to Xuchang to meet the emperor. If the emperor agrees to make you the Prefecture Overseer, you can come back at any time.”
Cao Zheng said.
Liu Bei knew that he was not in the right, so he could only accept his fate. When he reached Xuchang, he would trick the little emperor into making him the herdsman of Xuzhou and take back Xuzhou openly.
The next morning, Cao Zhang woke up very early. The three brothers sat around a table to eat.
"Ziwen, Second Brother will be leaving in two days. Are you going home with Second Brother or are you going to stay in Xuzhou?”Cao Zheng said to Cao Zhang.
Hearing Cao Zheng's words, Cao Zhang was instantly unhappy. He knew that his eldest brother was not as good at taking care of people as his second brother. Moreover, his eldest brother would have more things to do in the future and would not have the extra energy to take care of him.
On the other hand, his second brother knew how to take care of others and doted on him. He even cooked delicious food for him. Therefore, Cao Zhang fell into a difficult situation.
If he didn't go back, he wouldn't be punished. If he went back, Mrs. Bian wouldn't let him off.
"Ziwen, what if you go back with me? Second Brother will plead with your mother on your behalf. If you don't go back, you will have to stay in the Provincial Governor's Mansion all day long.”Cao Zheng promised.
Cao Zhang thought for a while and decided to die. He immediately said,"Second Brother, I'll go back with you."
Cao Zheng patted Cao Zhang's head and said with a smile,"Good brother, don't worry. I will definitely do it.”
After the army was ready, Cao Zheng officially ordered the army to return to Xuchang the next day.
When they heard that Cao Zheng was leaving, the commoners walked along the main road for ten miles to see him off. Some people even shed tears.
"Goodbye, soldiers. Take care."
"Goodbye, General."
Cao Zheng was the only one who had truly worked for the people for so many years. However, now that he had left, these people naturally could not bear to part with him.
Cao Zheng was in the middle. The front was made up of 20,000 surrendered soldiers from Zhang Liao, the middle was made up of 20,000 elites from Cao Zheng's three battalions, and the rear was made up of the remaining 30,000 soldiers led by Cao Tai.
In the middle of the army, apart from the sky full of flags, there were also many carriages. One of the carriages was carrying Lu Bu's family.
Liu Bei and his brothers were arranged to be in the middle of the army, while Cao Zhang and Cao Zheng rode on the Lightning White Dragon Colt, leaning against Cao Zheng's chest.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。