Cao Cao was a man of meticulous thought…
He constantly pondered Yuan Shao’s attitude towards the greatest threat in the north.
Just as the Son of Heaven enfeoffed Cao Cao as Great General and Marquis of Wu Ping, Cao Cao specifically requested a position as "Grand Commandant" for Yuan Shao.
In his view, this elder brother, with his illustrious family background and four generations of Three Ducal Ministers, now fifth generation, should be satisfied.
Even when Cao Cao requested the official title for Yuan Shao, Emperor Liu Xie was reluctant to grant it.
The Emperor felt that Yuan Shao was rotten to the core.
He had received imperial favor, commanded a vast army, and controlled a large territory, yet when the Emperor was in distress, he only looked after his own affairs, paying no heed to the Emperor or the court.
Such a person, instead of being demoted, was to be appointed one of the Three Ducal Ministers, the "Grand Commandant"?
It was only after Cao Cao's earnest persuasion that the Emperor set aside his reservations and issued an edict dispatching an envoy to bestow the title of "Grand Commandant" upon Yuan Shao, in addition to enfeoffing him as the Marquis of Ye!
By rights, Cao Cao had been more than considerate. After all, Yuan Shao had previously been a General of Chariots, a position several ranks lower than Grand Commandant. Not to mention the title of Governor of Ye City and Marquis of Ye.
But…
It was precisely this title of "Grand Commandant" that poked the hornet's nest that was Yuan Shao!
"Outrageous! Utterly outrageous!"
With a bang, Yuan Shao slammed his fist on the table, still seething with anger. In his fury, he even disregarded the suggestions of his surrounding advisors.
Grand Commandant, one of the Three Ducal Ministers, sounded quite good at first glance!
But,呵呵, why should he, Yuan Shao, be the Grand Commandant while you, Cao Cao, are the Great General?
In Yuan Shao's eyes, what was Cao Cao?
From the day he entered officialdom, his titles had always been lower than Yuan Shao's. In fact, Cao Cao's later position as one of the Eight Colonels of the Western Garden was obtained through Yuan Shao's memorial to the throne on his behalf…
Now, after thirty years of the east river and thirty years of the west river, Cao Cao, whose territory and troops were far inferior to his, was now riding on his neck!
Yuan Shao was simply petty-minded, and the more he thought about it, the more enraged he became!
"Cao Aman was my follower since childhood. On several occasions in my youth, when he was on the verge of death, it was I who saved him. Today, he welcomes the Son of Heaven but does not think of repaying me, and instead uses the Son of Heaven's name to issue commands to me! I @#&a
In that instant, Emperor Liu Xie's heart was filled with a sense of familiarity and closeness!
The officials were also stunned, their jaws dropping in disbelief…
In fact, it was not only the Emperor and the officials, but even Cao Cao… even the civil and military officials of Cao's camp were astonished. How magnificent, how grand…
Cao Cao couldn't help but stop. In his youth, he had had many connections with the imperial palace and the court!
Now… a palace almost identical to the former Northern Palace lay before him. This brought back memories of the past, of that young, reckless period of his youth.
Everyone's eyes shone with light as they craned their necks to gaze at this palace…
Suddenly, a young noble stood before Chang Le Palace.
If not Lu Yu, then who could it be?
At this moment, Lu Yu clasped his hands in greeting, "Chang Le Palace has been completed. I, Lu Yu, subordinate to the Governor of Cao Prefecture, Commander of the Dragon Soaring Camp, and Attendant Official of the Military Secretariat… respectfully welcome Your Majesty back to the palace!"
His voice was clear, each word sonorous and resonant, echoing in everyone's ears!
Especially the six words, "respectfully welcome Your Majesty back to the palace," which brought tears to Emperor Liu Xie's eyes…
The familiar Chang Le Palace, the familiar scent of the imperial palace. This was no longer a ruin; it seemed that this… was where the Emperor truly belonged.
"Back to the palace… Have I, have I returned to the palace!"
Murmuring to himself, Emperor Liu Xie was overcome with sobs.
Of course, this was only the beginning of his tears today; the moving parts were yet to come!
…
…
"General Cao, General Cao…" Emperor Liu Xie, moved beyond words, quickly called Cao Cao over. "General Cao is thoughtful. General Cao is thoughtful!"
"This Chang Le Palace, this surprise, I like it very much!"
When the familiar palace, the familiar imperial palace, appeared before him, Emperor Liu Xie instantly let go of all his reservations and all his suspicion of Cao Cao!
Would Dong Zhuo build an imperial palace for the Emperor? Would Li Jue and Guo Si?
No…
Let alone an imperial palace, even Chang Le Palace, they would not build it for a puppet emperor or a puppet court.
Cao Cao was different from them… Cao Cao was a loyal minister, a loyal minister indeed!
Liu Xie was deeply moved…
To others, Chang Le Palace might be a majestic palace, but… to Emperor Liu Xie, it was home, the taste of the old capital. What he had not found in Luoyang, he unexpectedly discovered in Xuchang – the taste of his hometown.
Tread, tread, tread…
Emperor Liu Xie, disregarding his imperial dignity, even ran towards Chang Le Palace. Empress Fu Shou and the eunuchs hurried to follow.
As he approached Lu Yu…
Emperor Liu Xie paused, "Say that again… What is your name?"
"Lu Yu! Subordinate to the Governor of Cao Prefecture, Attendant Official of the Military Secretariat, Commander of the Dragon Soaring Camp, Lu Yu!" Lu Yu bowed with clasped hands, his tone exceptionally respectful.
Hoo… Emperor Liu Xie nodded.
He didn't care about the Attendant Official of the Military Secretariat or the Commander of the Dragon Soaring Camp, but… he was deeply fond of this palace. Since Lu Yu stood before him, it must be that…
Liu Xie asked urgently, "Did you build this imperial palace? Did you name this Chang Le Palace?"
"No!" Lu Yu claimed no credit. "This imperial palace was ordered by Governor Cao for me to build, and the name Chang Le Palace was also ordered by Governor Cao for me to use. Governor Cao, remembering Your Majesty's longing for the old capital, and with Luoyang already burned down and unable to be rebuilt, he ordered me and several generals to build a palace in Xuchang that is exactly like the imperial palace!"
At this point, Lu Yu paused and asked, "Your Majesty asks this, do you not like this palace?"
Suddenly questioned by Lu Yu, Emperor Liu Xie was slightly taken aback. He thought to himself, this Lu Yu is quite bold, but… his words were somehow affectionate, filled with goodwill, giving a feeling of spring breeze.
"Hahaha…"
Liu Xie laughed. This was the first time he had laughed on this journey. "I like it. I like this imperial palace and the name Chang Le Palace very much!"
Hearing this, Lu Yu gestured with his hand, making a "please" motion.
"Your Majesty might as well enter the palace to see for yourself. There are many surprises hidden within!"
Hmm… surprises?
Now, Liu Xie was even more curious. He took Empress Fu Shou and Noble Consort Dong, and quickly walked into Chang Le Palace…
Melted away…
The Emperor's suspicion towards Cao Cao dissipated by more than half in an instant!
…
Here, the Emperor and Empress entered Chang Le Palace.
On the other side, Lu Yu descended the steps. He first went to Cao Cao, who now had a face full of smiles…
Lu Yu's earlier statement, "This imperial palace was ordered by Governor Cao for me to build, and the name Chang Le Palace was also ordered by Governor Cao for me to use!"
This greatly reduced Cao Cao's previous melancholy mood!
The rift with the Emperor… seemed to have vanished like clouds with Yu'er's words, leaving only the Emperor's immense gratitude towards Cao Cao!
Cao Cao immediately signaled with his eyes, telling Yu'er to continue.
Since… there was the performance in front of the Emperor, based on Cao Cao's understanding of Lu Yu, this performance was far from over!
Receiving Cao Cao's instruction.
Lu Yu smiled slightly and walked towards the officials.
"Esteemed sirs, Governor Cao specifically instructed me to build residences for all of you dukes and ministers! Your residences are now ready. Please follow these guards to take a look…"
At this point, Lu Yu paused and added:
"If any duke or minister is not satisfied with their residence, feel free to find me directly. I will make the corresponding adjustments… Governor Cao said that all dukes and ministers are pillars of the Han Dynasty, and supporting the Han Dynasty requires the unified effort of all dukes and ministers. We cannot let any of you be wronged!"
Huo…
As these words left his mouth, all the officials looked at each other…
Recalling the hardships and the rough journey from Chang'an to Luoyang, and from Luoyang to Xuchang, suddenly, everyone's eyes turned red, a vast expanse of red.
Tears welled up in their eyes…
After paying their respects to Lu Yu, everyone turned to look back at Cao Cao.
"General Cao is thoughtful, so thoughtful…"
"General Cao remembers us officials… General Cao… General Cao…"
"Thank you, General Cao. After more than a year of rough living, finally… finally, there is a place to live. General Cao's kindness is immense!"
What a scene of grateful tears!
Indeed, compared to the plundering by Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, and Guo Si when they were in Chang'an, that was hell, and this was heaven!
The houses were cold, but living in them was warm!
At that moment, no one spoke ill of Cao Cao or doubted his motives…
In fact, at this point, anyone who dared to slander Cao Cao would be drowned in the spittle of all the officials.
"Ahem…"
This made Cao Cao a little embarrassed…
He glanced at Lu Yu. This was a great gift Yu'er had given him out of thin air. The key was that Cao Cao, who had always been thick-skinned, inexplicably felt a little flushed.
"Haha… Esteemed dukes and ministers, please don't mind. This… this is all within my duty, within my duty!"
"General Cao…" Yang Biao was the first to awaken from his joy!
He suddenly realized, could this be a tactic by Cao Cao to win over people's hearts?
He suddenly thought of something and asked confidently, "General Cao, I heard… two years ago, many stone tablets were discovered within the territory of Yanzhou, inscribed with 'The Yellow Heaven is already overturned, the mandate of Heaven belongs to Cao'?"
This was a test…
It was Yang Biao's deliberate test. Unexpectedly… Cao Cao's reaction was extremely swift, and a hint of anger flashed in his eyes.
"The rumors are spread by the masses. My Lord Grand Commandant, you must not easily believe them!"
Cao Cao's tone became extremely serious. "It is true that many stone tablets appeared in Yanzhou, but the eight characters on them clearly read 'The Yellow Heaven is already overturned, the mandate of Heaven returns to Han!' I, Cao, have always adhered to the guidance of Heaven indicated by these stone tablets, and I am dedicated to assisting the Han Dynasty and rejuvenating the Great Han throughout my life!"
At this point, Cao Cao thumped his chest, appearing exceptionally solemn.
When Lu Yu heard these words…
He subconsciously rolled his eyes. The so-called "An Actor's Self-Cultivation," Cao Cao's acting, his improvisation was superb! If he had been transported back before his transmigration, he would have been a definite Oscar winner!
Compared to Old Cao, these officials were still a few levels below!
It seemed they were all going to be fooled by Old Cao's superficial humility!
No one would have thought that the future Old Cao… would squeeze the Great Han into such a humble, such a minuscule position…
As expected, very foolish and naive people… are easily swayed by appearances!
Old Cao is ferocious, be careful, all of you!
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