"In that case, why doesn't Prime Minister Cao go further?"
Xu Shu's expression that looked like a smile but not a smile made Cao Cao even more uncertain.
For Cao Cao, proclaiming himself king was easy, and there was almost no substantial power to stop him.
But it’s hard to be king!
The difficulty lies in taking the first step, the difficulty in proposing this idea, and the difficulty in Qin Gong Liu Zhang being furious.
As for what Liu Bei and Sun Quan think, Cao Cao doesn't care at all.
After all, Liu Bei and Sun Quan combined are not as powerful as half Liu Zhang.
Now Liu Zhang took the initiative to persuade Cao Cao to go further, which only made Cao Cao more confused.
I couldn’t see through the intention, but I knew that Liu Zhang didn’t have such good intentions!
"It's just that Cao has been a Han official for generations. Calling himself king without authorization goes against the ancestral precepts of the Han Dynasty and will arouse criticism!"
"Furthermore, Cao has no intention of arrogance. After the world is pacified, he will naturally return the rights to His Majesty!"
Cao Cao was full of righteousness and showed an awe-inspiring attitude.
It doesn't matter whether Xu Shu believes it or not.
"Haha, the Prime Minister is a loyal member of the Han Dynasty. This is recognized by the world!"
"If this were not the case, Duke Qin would not let the prime minister ascend to the throne to show his merits!"
Before he could reply to Cao Cao, Xu Shu's attitude suddenly changed.
"Since Prime Minister Cao doesn't want it, then I won't force it!"
As soon as these words came out, Cao Cao was caught off guard.
It's not that he doesn't want to be king, he's just worried about the conspiracy and doesn't dare to make up his mind.
If Xu Shu had a big conspiracy, he would definitely pull and persuade him again and again.
The more he talked, the more Cao Cao became aware of the problems inside.
When the poisonous plan can be solved, Cao Cao will take this step without hesitation.
Unexpectedly, Xu Shu was so happy that he gave up!
Without Liu Zhang as an introduction to this matter, Cao Cao would have needed more time and preparation if he wanted to become king again.
"Well..."
Cao Cao groaned for a long time, but he didn't say a word.
After losing the prince, I felt empty in my heart, as if I had lost a treasure!
Xu Shu's face was calm, but he was laughing secretly in his heart.
He had already seen clearly these little thoughts of Cao Cao.
"Prime Minister Cao, what's wrong?"
"Ahem, nothing happened!"
Cao Cao hurriedly tried to hide his embarrassment and quickly changed the subject.
"I heard that Mr. Xu once served as a commander under Liu Bei. I wonder if this is the case?"
"Yes, I once served as the commander-in-chief of Nanjun."
This is not a secret or confidential, Xu Shu has no reason to hide it.
And inadvertently revealing Liu Bei's situation was also one of the purposes of this trip.
It is most appropriate for Cao Cao to take the initiative to ask now.
"Mr. Xu, I wonder what Liu Bei's strength is now?"
"The big-eared thief has been cheating all day long in the name of a clan member of the Han Dynasty. Cao heard that he had assassinated Liu Biao, the shepherd of Jingzhou!"
"This kind of traitor and treacherous thief, Cao wants to kill him immediately!"
Speaking of Liu Bei, Cao Cao was filled with hatred.
If you raise a dog, you can make it wag its tail. But if you raise Liu Bei for so many years, he will only show his teeth at you!
The thing Cao Cao regretted most in his life was not being cruel to Liu Bei and killing him!
Xu Shu was silent for a while before slowly speaking.
"Liu Bei dominates Jiang and Han, including millions of people in the five counties. His energy is no longer comparable to the same!"
"Now Zhuge Liang is the military advisor, and Guan and Zhang are his minions. In such a hurry...it may be difficult to succeed."
"I know that Prime Minister Cao has great talents and great plans, but you still don't want to set foot in Jingzhou easily, lest...hehehe..."
To avoid what?
Cao Cao couldn't be more clear!
To avoid the hatred between Jiang and Han!
In this regard, Cao Cao could only smile with great disdain.
It was obvious that Liu Bei had just been defeated, and even Xu Shu was captured and then surrendered. Do you really think that Cao Cao is deaf or blind?
Everyone in the world knows that Liu Bei is currently at his weakest!
Cao Cao had a strong desire to capture Jingzhou in one fell swoop.
Only by capturing Jingzhou can Liu Zhang be completely blocked in the northwest.
This time, I asked Xu Shu about Liu Bei's situation to make early plans.
"Mr. Xu, please don't threaten Mr. Cao. If the big-eared thief really has this ability, will Mr. Xu still be under the command of Duke Qin?"
"I heard that Duke Qin defeated the Big Ear Bandit's army of 100,000 men in one battle and captured Guan Yu. Zhang Fei had countless generals and tens of thousands of troops!"
"Is it possible that Duke Qin can hit Big Ear hard, but I, Cao Cao, can't?"
Xu Shu smiled and shook his head.
"Prime Minister Cao misunderstood, that's not what I meant!"
"Qin Gong personally led an army of 100,000 to conquer Jingzhou, but he only occupied the two cities of Yiling and Yidao, and finally reached a reconciliation with Liu Bei."
"Although we have eliminated many of Liu Bei's soldiers, we are still not sure that we can completely capture Jingzhou!"
Xu Shu paused for a moment and let out a breath.
"Liu Bei is a great hero in the world. He possesses the ability to confuse people's hearts. Many people from Jingxiang and Xiangzhou have joined him!"
"If you want to eliminate Liu Bei, you have to take a long time!"
Cao Cao could feel that Xu Shu seemed a little nervous, so he continued to test.
"Mr. Xu doesn't know something. Kuai Liang and Huang Zu from Nanyang County sent people to surrender, indicating that when the imperial army goes south, the families of Jingzhou will rush to serve!"
"No matter how proud Liu Bei is, he is just an outsider. How can he compare to the powerful Kuai and Huang families in Jingzhou?"
Xu Shu's eyes widened, and a look of horror suddenly appeared.
"What!"
The corners of Cao Cao's mouth turned up. This was what he wanted to see.
"Mr. Xu, are you nervous?"
Xu Shu waved his hand quickly, his expression no longer as calm as before.
"Prime Minister Cao has just captured Hebei, and it's time to recuperate!"
"Although Liu Bei was defeated, he still has at least tens of thousands of elite soldiers under his command. If he rushes south, I'm afraid it will be more harmful than helpful!"
As expected by Cao Cao, Xu Shu did everything possible to prevent him from going south!
"Haha, Cao will seriously consider Mr. Xu's words!"
"If there is nothing else, I will arrange for Mr. Xu to go and have a rest, and then we can meet with His Majesty for the meeting tomorrow, okay?"
Xu Shu thought for a while, but finally hesitated to speak.
"Thank you, Prime Minister!"
Cao Cao immediately ordered his servants to arrange for Xu Shu to receive the best treatment, and then returned to the house again.
There was already a small figure standing in the room waiting, it was Cao Chong.
"Chong'er!"
Cao Cao quickly stepped forward and held his youngest son in his arms again.
Love does not need words, it can be fully demonstrated in every word and deed.
"Father, do you want to be king?"
Cao Cao was slightly stunned, not knowing how to answer his son.
Do you want to or don’t want to, there is no best of both worlds answer!
Cao Chong was a kid and suddenly sighed.
"Hey, Chong'er, throughout history, no powerful official like my father has been able to retire after success..."
Cao Chong's childish words sounded like a heavy blow in Cao Cao's mind.
Yes, what a good end for a powerful minister!
Even my eight-year-old son understands this!
"Chong'er, our Cao family is not a famous family. If my father were to become king, I'm afraid he would encounter great obstacles!"
Cao Chong smiled and kept stroking Cao Cao's beard with his little hands.
"Then father will use his merits to silence all those who oppose him!"
