In Jizhou, Yecheng, the Yamen.
"Cao Cao? Has he gone mad?"
With a bang, a tall and imposing man, clad in a red cloak, suddenly stood up.
He was Yuan Shao, the eldest son of the Yuan family, famed for its four generations of Dukes. As the current Governor of Jizhou, he had just forced the Black Mountain Army to its knees, singing "Conquer." Now, wielding hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers, he firmly ranked among the top tier of the various warlords.
At this moment, due to a bamboo slip before him, Yuan Shao was furious.
The reason? Cao Cao had accepted the surrender of over a million Yellow Turbans. It was as if your former subordinate, your perceived "tool," your "watchdog," had suddenly become powerful. Naturally, Yuan Shao was displeased.
Of course, Yuan Shao was an arrogant man. Displeasure aside, he felt that Cao Cao's actions were akin to inviting disaster.
"My Lord? What causes such anger?"
His advisors, Ju Shou and Guo Tu, hurried to ask...
"Hmph!" Yuan Shao snorted coldly. "I recommended Cao Cao as the Governor of Dong Commandery. That he managed to seize Yan Province shows some ability!"
"But, within Yan Province, he could have completely pacified the three hundred thousand 'Moths.' Yet, he incorporated them into his ranks! Now, look at this. Over a million 'Moths,' men and women, old and young, have all surrendered to Cao Cao!"
"Hmph, hmph..." Yuan Shao snorted again. "Yan Province, a barren land, has inexplicably gained a million mouths to feed. How can the grain supply keep up? Once the 'Moths' are unable to get food, they will be a band of traitors with no loyalty whatsoever!"
"I am certain Cao Aman will suffer greatly this time!"
After all, he had accepted the surrender of so many soldiers. There was envy, of course. But whether it was envy or criticism, Yuan Shao had always been clear.
"My Lord is wise..." Guo Tu was about to flatter Yuan Shao.
But at that moment, a loud voice called out, "My Lord, I don't think so..."
Yuan Shao raised his eyes and looked closely. It was Ju Shou, his subordinate advisor...
Ju Shou continued, "Cao Cao accepting the surrender of three hundred thousand soldiers and over a million civilians may increase Yan Province's grain burden in the short term, but if they can weather it, in the long run, these million people can farm and raise silkworms internally, and fight valiantly externally..."
"With this as a foundation, in less than ten years, or at most twenty, Cao Cao will develop rapidly and may very well threaten our Jizhou, threaten Duke Yuan!"
Heh heh!
Yuan Shao's eyes fixed, his expression suddenly sank.
Threaten Jizhou? Threaten him, Yuan Shao? He just scoffed...
Who was he, Yuan Shao? A descendant of a noble family with four generations of Dukes! Cao Cao, a descendant of eunuchs, raised by a eunuch, deserved to be mentioned as a "threat"?
In Yuan Shao's view, when he was a child, Cao Cao playing with him was him bestowing favor.
When Cao Cao was down on his luck, he gave him Dong Commandery to reside in, which was a "gift" to guard the southern gate for him. In plain terms, he was a watchdog.
Now, according to Ju Shou, his younger "brother" could actually overturn his elder "brother," and the watchdog dared to bite the master!
Ju Shou, Ju Shou, how laughable! How laughable!
Little Cao Cao, how laughable! How laughable!
Seeing Yuan Shao's indignant expression, Ju Shou frowned and continued to advise, "My Lord, Cao Cao is a man of great ambition, not one to be subjugated. His previous unfulfilled aspirations were because he lacked a strategist to make macro-plans for him! This time, by defeating the Yellow Turbans and accepting their surrender, he has grown stronger, and must have found a 'strategist'."
"In my opinion, we should seize Yan Province under Your Lordship's banner while his wings are not yet strong, take these three hundred thousand surrendered soldiers and a million Yellow Turbans... With this as a foundation, develop production, reclaim wasteland, and within three years, no one in the world will be Your Lordship's opponent. Your Lordship, please reconsider!"
His words were earnest and well-reasoned.
Ju Shou was speaking from his heart...
However, he overestimated Yuan Shao. Offering advice to Yuan Shao required skill, a technique of flattering while advising...
Being so straightforward in his counsel, it was highly likely... it would not be accepted.
"Hmph!"
As expected... Yuan Shao snorted, raised his long arm, and said with a loud tone, "Whoever accepts the surrender of these three hundred thousand 'Moths' is inviting their own doom! There's no need for three years; even now, no one is my match!"
Full of pride, full of arrogance!
This...
Ju Shou wanted to persuade further, but Guo Tu preempted him.
"My Lord is wise, My Lord is mighty!"
"Pacifying the chaotic world and unifying the land is merely a matter of time... A mere Cao Cao, even with a strategist, how much of a storm can he stir? He is of no concern, of no concern!"
Phew... Ju Shou took a deep breath, glaring fiercely at Guo Tu. Foolish, so foolish!
As he was about to speak, Yuan Shao interrupted directly, "This matter need not be mentioned again. Cao Aman, I have never taken him seriously. As for this so-called 'strategist,' it is even more ridiculous. To offer advice that leads Cao Cao to accept the surrender of three hundred thousand Yellow Turbans, thereby inviting his own doom, haha, this is not a strategist, this is a conspiracy to murder the master! Hahahaha..."
With that, Yuan Shao laughed and walked out of the great tent.
Guo Tu fawningly greeted him, "Exactly, exactly! Cao Cao's 'strategist' is indeed a 'conspirator against the master'! My Lord's insight is profound!"
This...
Ju Shou was so angry he stomped his feet in dejection.
A trap, a bottomless pit!
Hearing Yuan Shao and Guo Tu's footsteps gradually recede, Ju Shou sighed, "A strategist is a strategist, where does the notion of conspiracy come from? Foolish words, utterly foolish..."
"Alas... accepting the surrender of the Yellow Turbans, if not handled well, might cause trouble. But if it is handled well? Then Cao Cao will surely rise rapidly and grow into a colossal power!"
"With the help of such a capable person, perhaps even the Yuan family, with its four generations of Dukes, may not be his... his opponent!"
Thinking of this...
Ju Shou's heart was filled with sorrow.
...
...
In Yan Province, Chenliu Commandery, the Cai Residence.
This was the new mansion of Cai Zhaoji and Lu Yu. It was large, extremely large, with seven or eight courtyards in front, behind, left, and right... there were over fifty servants alone.
Notably, among them were seven or eight fair-skinned, beautiful, long-legged maids. Lu Yu heard... these were the legendary "filling-in" maids!
My goodness, for a moment, Lu Yu mused that men in ancient times were truly better.
Having three wives and four concubines was quite ordinary...
The key was that often at the age of twelve, families would arrange for "filling-in" maids to unlock new positions for the young master... Ptooey, rather, to unlock new knowledge!
Speaking of which, Lu Yu was already fifteen. At this stage of physical development, there was naturally some... that.
Furthermore, as he grew older, he couldn't keep clinging to sister Zhaoji to bathe with him anymore, right?
In short, there were only three words: "feeling stifled." He always felt an overwhelming force unable to be released.
Seeing this mansion, seeing these beautiful "filling-in" maids, Lu Yu muttered to himself—You understand me, Old Cao, well done!
Of course, Cai Zhaoji had no objections to these "filling-in" maids.
She had read many books and knew that "filling-in" maids teaching knowledge at night was a perfectly normal understanding. Strictly speaking, this was even related to the Rites of Zhou!
Moreover, Cai Zhaoji pondered... Young brother Lu Yu was already fifteen, and someone always needed to enlighten him on this matter, right?
Otherwise, when he married a beautiful wife in the future, if both of them knew nothing, it would be a laughing matter!
Even if his elder brother Cao Cao hadn't made such arrangements, Cai Zhaoji had intended to personally select some good-looking "filling-in" maids!
Of course...
Not only servants and maids...
Even the name of this mansion, Cao Cao had put considerable thought into.
Originally, this mansion was a reward for Lu Yu...
Plus, Cai Yan was his daughter, and Lu Yu was his son. "The sister's status elevates the brother," it should have been called the "Lu Residence"...
But this character "Lu" always felt awkward to Cao Cao.
Others might not know, but he, Cao Cao, knew best that Lu Yu wasn't surnamed "Lu"; he was surnamed "Cao"!
His son bearing his mother's surname felt strange to Cao Cao. Therefore, Cao Cao compromised and erected the mansion in honor of his deceased mentor, Cai Yong, naming it "Cai Residence," representing Cai of Cai Yong.
Cai Zhaoji was naturally grateful for this. Lu Yu didn't care about such things; they were all superficial...
Houses, money, and girls were the most practical things.
...
That night... in Lu Yu's chambers, under Cai Zhaoji's arrangement, three "filling-in" maids entered gracefully... their steps light and graceful, their figures enchanting, amidst the misty glow of red candles...
Lu Yu understood the rules. He didn't need to ask their names, nor did he need to persuade them to reform. These maids... in this era, they were merely tools.
But... what Lu Yu couldn't understand was, wasn't this learning a foreign language late at night? Why were there three at once?
Learning knowledge in ancient times? Was it always "all three together"?
Who could withstand that!
...
Could it be... that this was Heaven's will!
...
...