Xuchang's fall was just the beginning. Since Ye Zhao decided to take action, this time, he did not leave any room for Cao Cao. Chenliu, Runan, Jizhou and now Xuchang, Cao Cao's territory can now be said to be completely surrounded by Ye Zhao. Cao Cao at this moment had no choice but to avoid it, and the Central Plains were also within reach for Ye Zhao.

At the beginning of the sixth year of Tai'an, the ice and snow had not yet melted. Ye Zhao sent troops to conquer Xuchang in less than three days and completely occupied Yingchuan. Just two days after the reign of Runan, Zhang Ren led his army northward and took down Chen State in less than five days. Almost at the same time, Ji Ling sent troops from Chenliu, attacked Taoqiu, and followed Xu Rong to cross the river. In less than half a month, almost all the territory of Yuzhou was captured by Ye Zhao, and Liang State was completely surrounded by Ye Zhao.

At this time, Cao Cao had to withdraw from Liang State in addition to resisting stubbornly!

Suiyang, the imperial palace.

"Sikong, why don't we retreat to Shanyang!" Liu Xie sat on the throne, looked at Cao Cao's face, and said in a panic.

No one expected that Cao Ren would lose Xuchang without even defending him for three days. Not only did Xuchang lose him, but his life was even spent on Xuchang.

The ministers looked at Cao Cao and were in panic.

Not only because of the current situation, but also because of Cao Ren's death, they were worried that Cao Cao would be unable to think about it at this moment and go to a tough fight with Ye Zhao. Facing Ye Zhao now, let alone the civil officials, even those generals were a little reluctant to fight.

Cao Cao looked at the ministers and suddenly laughed and said, "Your Majesty, I want to retreat, but now Ye Zhao has captured Yuzhou. Where can we retreat even if we retreat? Today, as Your Majesty said, we still have a place to retreat, but will Ye Zhao stop there? Even if we retreat to Shanyang and Taishan County, when Ye Zhao leads his army back, will we still have a way out?"

Qingzhou has been taken down by Guo Jia, and even Sun Ce cannot protect the land of Xuzhou Huaibei. If he retreats again, Cao Cao might have to take Liu Xie to Sun Ce.

When Liu Xie heard this, he said in a panic: "What should we do according to Sikong's opinion?"

Although his life was not very smooth with Cao Cao, it was probably even worse for Ye Zhao. His emperor is now the emperor supported by Ye Zhao. If Ye Zhao really caught back to Chang'an by Ye Zhao, he would definitely be the deposed emperor. That life would definitely be worse than now.

"Fight!" Cao Cao took a deep breath and smiled: "Don't worry, your majesty, although the troops in Guanzhong are strong, they are not invincible. The strong Qin army was so strong that it was the best in the world, but it was ultimately difficult to escape the fate of defeat. Now, no matter how strong Ye Zhao's soldiers are, they may not be stronger than the strong Qin army. Our army is weak, but it is the source of justice. The winner will be the court in the end. Please rest assured that you should fight Ye Zhao personally."

At first glance, it seems to be that truth, but in fact, most people who know that history know that the reason why the strong Qin Dynasty perished was that it was because it lost the people's hearts. The war was everywhere in the territory. No matter how powerful the Qin army was, it would only end up exhausting when putting out fires from all directions. Ye Zhao now, not to mention that in Yanzhou and Qingxu, but under Ye Zhao's rule, the people's will be the will of the people and can go outward. Faced with such a force, Cao Cao's chances of winning in this battle are really not much.

Cao Cao also knew this truth, but others could be afraid or depressed. However, as the actual pillar of the Suiyang court, Cao Cao could not show any depression. Even if Cao Ren's death did make him feel extremely heartbroken, he still had to look confident in this court.

Liu Xie had no idea at this moment. Although he had given Cao Cao a lot of trouble before, at this moment, he really hoped that Cao Cao could defeat Ye Zhao. He knew very well that he and Cao Cao were grasshoppers on the same rope at this time. If Cao Cao defeated, he would still be the emperor. If Cao Cao was defeated, he would be able to save his life in Chang'an in the future.

Although this emperor is a bit cowardly, he always has some power. Liu Xie does not want to pay homage to his elder brother who had been deposed. He said warmly: "In this way, everything will be free from Sikong."

Cao Cao bowed and then scattered the court. Cao Cao took Xun Yu, Xun You, and Cheng Yu back to Sikong Mansion. As for Zhong Yao, he was sent by Cao Cao to deal with trivial matters. Since the defeat in Jizhou, Zhong Yao has had other thoughts. Cao Cao knew this very well. Although Zhong Yao's ability is no worse than that of the other three strategists present, it is precisely because of this that Cao Cao dared not let Zhong Yao participate in the core matter.

"Lord, military information comes from the front line. Chengfu, Shansang and Xinyang three cities surrendered without fighting. Now Zhang Ren's army has advanced to Qiao County. In addition, Ye Zhao's army has arrived in Dajixiang. Our army has no danger to defend at this moment. Ye Zhao's army can arrive all the time!" After entering Sikong Mansion and entering Cao Cao's study, Cheng Yu learned about Cao Cao's latest information report. He really dared not say in the court before. People's hearts have already begun to disperse. If those people know that Ye Zhao's troops have attacked the country of Liang, I'm afraid the court will be in chaos today.

Cao Cao leaned against the back of the chair and smiled bitterly: "Xu Ming this time, it seems that he can't wait!"

Xun Yu and others silently heard this. Now Ye Zhao has taken the opportunity to take advantage of the situation. Cao's elite troops have been lost. With Ye Zhao's decisiveness, he will definitely not give Cao Cao a chance to breathe and fight with him. This is a battle of unification. Neither Ye Zhao nor Cao Cao will bring personal feelings in. These two are heroes. Unfortunately... Ye Zhao is not the same as a scholar. Otherwise, if Ye Zhao was willing to let go and give scholars more resources and space, he would not have to be as good as before. As long as there are more than now, the people who defect to Ye Zhao would probably have to be several times more, and there would be no need to fight this battle.

Even now, the Zhong family has begun to secretly contact Ye Zhao, not just the Zhong family. In fact, Xun You and Xun Yu have secretly sent some outstanding children of the clan to Luoyang for consideration, in order to continue the family.

Cao Cao also knew this point, but Cao Cao did not stop it. For Cao Cao, Xun Yu and Xun You were willing to stay with him at this time, which was already a complete righteousness. If you insist on letting everyone take care of the family, it would be unkind.

"I want to fight Ye Zhao to the death. I have followed me over the years and my benevolence and righteousness have been completed. If I want to join Xiuming, Cao can write a letter of recommendation for you. Don't look at me and Xiuming now. However, Xiuming is still concerned about some love, and with the talent of you, it is a pity to follow Cao to die." Cao Cao said with a smile.

"How can the lord say such a disheartening statement? The winner is not decided, how can it be..." Cheng Yu's expression changed and he stood up and said.

Cao Cao waved his hand and signaled Cheng Yu not to speak. Cheng Yu came from a poor family and was not burdened by his family, so he could be more willful. However, Xun Yu's uncle and nephew were different. Cao Cao's words were also for Xun Yu and the other two to listen to.

"The victory or defeat was actually divided as early as Ao Cang." Cao Cao laughed and said, "The general trend of Xiuming has been achieved now. Cao cannot stop it, and Sun Ce cannot stop it. The general trend of the world will eventually be unified. Cao is unfortunate and the great blessing of the world!"

"My lord treats me as much as a mountain, how can I abandon it at this time?" Xun Yu shook his head and said.

Cao Cao nodded with a smile, without saying much, Xun Yu would choose this way. Although it was a bit surprised, it was reasonable and turned his head to look at Xun You.

After hesitating for a moment, Xun You looked at Cao Cao: "Since the lord knows the general trend, why did he choose to fight Ye Hou?"

Cao Cao's eyes flashed with remembrance flashed in his eyes: "Xu Ming and I met Wei Mo. At that time, he was the prime minister of Liang. I was the cavalry commander and obeyed General Huangfu's tent. Xiu Ming was quite restless at that time. Some words were inconvenient to say at the time, so it would be better to tell you now. In order to force the court to lift the party ban, General Huangfu gave in several concessions to the Yellow Turbans to force the late emperor. At that time, Xiu Ming directly used crossbow arrows to General Huangfu and asked him to change his military order."

When Cao Cao thought of the scene at that time, he still remembered it vividly. It was his first time meeting with Ye Zhao. Xun Yu and Xun You had heard of this.

"At that time, I thought it was a passionate boy. Now it seems that Xiuming probably had his own ideas at that time. He wanted to change the world. So when the general, party members and eunuchs competed, he quickly walked into the eyes of His Majesty. Later, he officially met Luoyang. At that time, there was Benchu ​​and Highway. You must have known about Xiuming in Luoyang, but there was one thing you probably don't know."

Xun Yu and the other two looked at Cao Cao curiously when they heard this. It is probably of great significance to be remembered by Cao Cao until now.

"When I was in Hulao Pass, I asked Xiuming, since he knew my ability and had the opportunity to kill me, why did he never take action, but instead helped me several times?" Thinking of the conversation at that time, a sharp look flashed in Cao Cao's eyes: "I thought Xiuming was concerned about friendship and unwilling to kill me, but do you know what he said at that time?"

Xun Yu and the other two did not answer, but obviously, this sentence is the key.

"He said, I, Cao Cao, are just a chess piece in his hand!" Speaking of this, a violent aura flashed through Cao Cao's eyes.

Although I knew that this sentence was probably not a good thing, I didn't expect it to be like this. Cao Cao, if it weren't for Ye Zhao's troops to Guanzhong, I'm afraid that Cao Cao would be the best prince in the world now. His talent and strategy are well known to everyone, but now he is told that such a person is just a chess piece in the hands of someone else.

Cao Cao ignored the shocked expressions of the crowd and smiled, "It's so difficult for him to change the world. You should know what the outcome of Shang Yang's reforms back then. But he wanted to do Shang Yang's work, but he was unwilling to bear the consequences himself. Therefore, it was not only Cao, the late emperor, Li Jue, Guo Si, and even Benchu, Highway, and Sun Ce, who were all his chess pieces. Over the years, you should also see the changes in the world. He has succeeded, but these chess pieces are now going to become abandoned. Cao is unwilling to accept it. Even if he is defeated, Cao wants to fight him!"

The room fell into silence.

Cao Cao stood up and looked at everyone and said with a smile: "Although he is a little selfish, this battle is actually a move to vent his personal anger. Since the defeat is decided, you don't have to walk with Cao. In this last journey, you can just walk by yourself."
Chapter completed!