Without the knowledge of Xi Zhicai and Xun Yu among others, Cao Cao secretly contacted Chen Gong, asking him to ambush and kill Lyu Bu on the way to Zhang Yang. At that time, Biang Rang had not yet died, so Chen Gong still had a good relationship with Cao Cao; moreover, with the favor of supporting him, Chen Gong was also very capable, and Cao Cao actually had a great appreciation for Chen Gong.
That was also why Cao Cao, fully aware that supplying Lyu Bu with provisions was like sending a sheep into a tiger’s mouth, still did so because he had his eye on the Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry as well as the Eight Valiant Generals under Lyu Bu. While he didn’t like Lyu Bu himself, that didn’t mean he didn’t like his men. He was quite satisfied with Zhang Liao, and he was also very satisfied with the wooden Gao Shun; he appreciated others as well, such as Cao Xing, Song Xian, and Hao Meng, not to mention the more than ten thousand Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry which made Cao Cao even more appreciative.
After assessing the situation, Cao Cao thought Chen Gong had a high likelihood of making preparations to kill Lyu Bu successfully. Despite not taking Chen Gong out for a stroll, from Xi Zhicai to Cheng Yu, they all knew Chen Gong was actually very powerful; it was a pity that he was not adept at making quick decisions on the battlefield, and his spiritual talent was rather irritating to others.
If Xun You could be said to be feigning slowness, then Chen Gong was truly slow to react. Alright, he was only slow to react, but not stupid. On the contrary, Chen Gong was very adept at taking things slow. Given enough time, he could even suppress a top civil official or several top strategists, fighting impressively without the situation collapsing, of course within a certain period of time.
Xi Zhicai once attempted to use the talent of Chen Gong but had no choice but to give up in the end, as the talent would actively reduce his Five Dimensions by ten percent after activation, putting him into a state of slow reaction. The reduction of one-tenth of each dimension, which is one percent of the total, would accumulate over time. When needed, it could be called upon...
This was why Chen Gong often kept his talent activated, making himself appear slow-witted, but when real problems arose, Chen Gong would directly activate the positive aspect of his talent and call upon part or all of the accumulated Five Dimensions, enabling him to slaughter gods single-handedly in an instant.
This was also the reason why, when Chen Gong first rebelled against Cao Cao and sided with Lyu Bu and fought against Cao Cao at Puyang, goodness me, Cao Cao with his five strategists and the Cao Family’s great generals and their followers ended up in a stalemate with Chen Gong, with Cao Cao almost being burned to death by Chen Gong. If Lyu Bu hadn’t been confused at that time, not recognizing Cao Cao disguised as a soldier and also forgetting to strike him down with a spear, the Wei Kingdom’s fate would have been sealed then and there.
Think about how fierce Chen Gong was at that time, challenging what was almost the most ferocious group of strategists in the world at that time, ending up in a draw, and even gaining a slight advantage.
However, the strategist group on Cao Cao’s side was no easy prey either. They forcefully made Chen Gong continuously activate his positive talent, depleting his reserves, and eventually rendered Chen Gong useless, turning him from a deity-like prodigy into an ordinary man.
After that, they never gave Chen Gong another chance to accumulate, endlessly provoking Lyu Bu to trouble Chen Gong with trivial matters that required him to stop accumulating his dimensions, to resolve. This made it so that Chen Gong hardly accumulated much of the Five Dimensions all year, and before he could erupt fully, they had him eliminated.
Cao Cao was well aware of Chen Gong’s abilities, so he believed that as long as Chen Gong tried his best, he would definitely make Lyu Bu, who was passing through Yanzhou, not return; and the more than ten thousand Bingzhou Wolf Cavalry along with the eight valiant generals would all become his, instantly making him more powerful.
However, Cao Cao was still worried that this strategy would not be approved by his subordinates. After all, if they were not careful, the hard-won stability of Yanzhou could turn into a mess under Lyu Bu, leading to countless civilian deaths, which didn’t align with the policies of Xun Yu and others, who advocated for cultivating vitality at the rear and clearing the fields at the front.
With so many considerations, Cao Cao would rather pretend to be momentarily foolish and believe Lyu Bu’s words, and complain every day to Xi Zhicai and the others rather than reveal the truth.
After all, this approach of treating the subjects’ lives as nothing was indeed somewhat inhumane, but Cao Cao thought that everything would be fine as long as he won. He believed that once it became a reality and brought significant benefits, Xun Yu and others wouldn’t care about these issues. He trusted that Chen Gong would make it a reality for him and would do it very well.
In the same way, Cao Cao believed that Chen Gong would definitely take the blame himself, even going as far as to create facts of Lyu Bu plundering civilians first and then, he had no option but to fight Lyu Bu, capturing him and so on.
In conclusion, Cao Cao believed that Lyu Bu wouldn’t be able to make waves against Chen Gong in a state of enhancement, and no one would suspect him of any involvement, as he had never shown any signs of being particularly clever.
But quite clearly, Cao Cao, despite all his scheming, couldn’t have expected Chen Gong to suddenly fall wholeheartedly for Lyu Bu, which seemed utterly irrational to him and defied all logic. His trump card was taken away just like that, goodness gracious! Could it be that Lyu Bu had a protagonist’s halo?
"Alright, let’s not discuss what Cao Cao would feel upon realizing that after meeting Lyu Bu, Chen Gong started to think that Lyu Bu was the destined leader for him. Even the plan that Cao Cao thought was foolproof, that he’d have others take the blame for, had already been seen through by someone in Wancheng."
"My lord," Cheng Yu said, not in the embroidered robe of a Confucian scholar but rather clad in the armor of a military general.
His towering figure and solid muscles gave the impression of a strong warrior. Had Cao Cao not known that this was his own strategist, he might have mistaken him for a general under one of his officers. After all, the inner strength that comes from Qi Refining to Gang is not achieved through boasting but through genuine cultivation. As one of the rare talents who had both strategic intelligence and the ability to join the fight on the battlefield, Cheng Yu was among the best.
"What brings you here, Zhongde?" asked Cao Cao, curious. Shouldn’t Cheng Yu be in the rear camp right now, instructing Cao Ren on how to set up the formation?
"My lord, you’re being too anxious. Lyu Fengxian is not so easy to deal with. Chen Gongtai is too straightforward, which might backfire. Although he is also strategic and clever, this kind of thing doesn’t suit him. You should have sent me if you had such plans earlier," Cheng Yu calmly stated to Cao Cao.
For a ruthless person like Cheng Yu, a few deaths were nothing if it meant absorbing all of Lyu Bu’s strength. Historically, he was the first to propose human flesh as military rations and the first to actually do so. For such a harsh person, losing a few lives was merely a trifle.
Cao Cao was momentarily stunned, wondering how his seamless plan could have been seen through. However, a true hero, even if exposed, would not change his expression and continued to look at Cheng Yu with composure.
"Wen Ruo and Gong Da can be considered true gentlemen, Changwen is a bit too pedantic, and Zhicai might have a feeling about it, but it’s not certain. Only I am sure that you must have done it this way," Cheng Yu said, intently watching Cao Cao.
"To be a lord, one must not only be benevolent but also ruthless enough. Sometimes, when the righteous path cannot solve a problem, the evil path can, and it should be used. The world has already come to this stage. To end it, we must have sufficient strength, no matter how we obtain it. Even if we have to walk over corpses, only when we are strong enough to change the era do we have the right to save others. Even if I dirty my hands and stain my heart, even if my virtue is compromised, I will not change my dream of bringing peace to the world!" Cheng Yu said, staring at Cao Cao.
Cao Cao was hearing such words for the first time—words that were so different from traditional etiquette but so shocking. Many of his early experiences came flooding back into his mind.
He had done good deeds with the multi-colored stick but was forced to return to his hometown; if not for his father’s intervention, he would have likely died.
Later, he returned to court, joined the Grand Tutor and others in the eradication of the eunuchs, but unfortunately, it backfired on him.
Then, fighting valiantly against the Yellow Turbans, he became the Chancellor of Jinan, bringing "great governance and peace to the county," only to return to his hometown again soon after.
The Great General Hee Jin summoned outer officials to the capital, he offered counsel, but it was not heeded...
With a forged decree, the Eighteen Feudal Lords campaigned against Dong Zhuo, and after the fire in Luoyang, Cao Cao pursued Dong Zhuo alone. Scene after scene flashed before Cao Cao’s eyes, revealing how many times he had wanted to save the Han Dynasty...
"To end this chaotic era, I must have strength. I may dirty my hands, stain my heart, compromise my virtue, but I will remain unswerving until death! I will end this era of chaos! Even if I am cursed for a thousand years, I will bring an end to these turbid times!" Cao Cao said seriously to Cheng Yu.
"No matter how difficult the road ahead may be, I vow to follow you to the death!" Cheng Yu knelt in submission. (To be continued. If you work, please visit Qidian to vote and offer your monthly support. Your backing is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on .)