Chapter 296: Ru'nan Affairs
Cao Cao was inspecting the Tuntian Duwei area and approached Ruyin.

Man Chong, the governor of Runan County, and Li Tong, a deputy general, were waiting on the roadside, but Cao Cao never showed up.

Some time ago, when Cao Cao encountered a group of tigers in Chenliu during his tour, he ordered the counties and states to clear out the wild beasts.

Runan is mountainous and has more tigers.

Man Chong and Li Tong were in charge of the north and south of Runan respectively, so naturally they did not dare to delay.

Fearing that Cao Cao would encounter a group of tigers or other beasts again, Man Chong and Li Tong could only lead a small number of officials along the Chidao Road to the north.

After traveling for more than thirty miles, they saw Cao Cao's cavalry resting beside a river. The river water, which was originally waist-deep, now barely submerged the knees.

When they arrived, many soldiers were building dams in the river to store water.

The river water accumulates so that these people can soak in it to escape the summer heat; under the dam, the horses drink water here.

Cao Cao rolled up his trouser legs and soaked his feet in the water. Behind him was a tiger warrior holding a green umbrella.

Cao Zhen, who was accompanying him, stepped forward and said, "Father, Man Chong and Li Tong from Runan are here, waiting for the message."

"Let them come."

Cao Cao took off the wet towel on his forehead and handed it to Cao Xiu, who was standing beside him with a grief-stricken look on his face.

Cao Xiu wrung out the water from the wet wipes, then took a few steps forward to wash the wipes upstream repeatedly, and then placed it carefully on Cao Cao's forehead.

Cao Cao tilted his head back, as if only in this way could he feel more comfortable and not so dizzy and nauseous.

Soon, Cao Zhen arrived with Man Chong and Li Tong. The two men came forward to see Cao Cao's appearance.

They looked at each other tacitly, thinking that they had heatstroke.

This May seems to be three times hotter than the midsummer June in previous years.

As a result, the guards who accompanied Cao Cao on his tours were all dressed lightly and no one wore armor.

"Greetings, sir."

The two men greeted each other, and Cao Cao pointed casually, and the two men sat on the stone three or four steps away.

Cao Cao raised his head slightly to look at the two men, then lay back again: "Yesterday, Grand Marshal Black Bear invaded the palace, intending to kidnap the emperor."

Man Chong just blinked his eyes, not thinking that this matter would have serious consequences. If the consequences were serious, how could they sit here and talk?

Li Tong had a blank expression on his face, as if he was continuing to listen.

Cao Cao hesitated for a moment, but decided to tell the more secret military information: "My brother, General Cao Zilian, was not careful enough and was killed by Grand Historian Wengong."

After Cao Ang's death, Cao Hong was promoted from General Li Feng to General Du Hu, which seemed to be miscellaneous titles.

But miscellaneous titles are different from each other, and the implicit meaning of the Protector-General is very obvious.

After being promoted to Protector-General, Cao Hong left the front battlefield in Nanyang and subsequently stationed and fought around Xu Du.

During the decisive Battle of Guandu, Cao Cao led his troops to attack Wuchao. It was Cao Hong who stayed behind in the camp. Cao Hong's decision-making power was even higher than that of the military advisor Xun You.

And now, Cao Hong is dead.

Li Tong showed no emotion when he heard this. When Cao Cao was conquering Zhang Xiu, Li Tong mobilized more than 10,000 young and strong men to supplement Cao's army.

Everyone has a way out, but Li Tong doesn't.

He took so many young and strong people from his hometown with him, and only after three thousand of them were killed was he promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General.

Those who were still alive also had the military rank of sergeant.

Even if only one in ten survives in the future, there will always be a large number of mid-level military officers.

So Li Tong had nothing to regret. He was just mobilizing and calling for action. But the ones who really decided to join Cao's army and gamble their fate were the powerful people and leaders around him.

However, if Cao's army was destroyed, so many people would have died in vain in the early stages.

There will be a backlash on him, but at that point, there are many people who are worse off than him, so what is there to complain about?

It was precisely because of this that Cao Cao trusted Li Tong very much and handed over the frontline areas of Runan and Jiangxia to Li Tong.

The front line is not just about fighting, but also about business, smuggling, etc. Even if he does not participate in smuggling, the salary alone is enough for Li Tong to support an elite group of troops.

Man Chong's case was even simpler. Ever since he tortured Yang Biao, Man Chong had become a mortal enemy of the scholars of Xizhou.

Only by following the Cao family till the end and becoming a noble, can one suppress the backlash of the past.

The aftereffects of torturing Yang Biao were serious. It was not only the scholars in Xizhou who hated and resisted Man Chong, but all the famous people and big families hated Man Chong.

Since Man Chong could kill Yang Biao, he could naturally kill others as well.

This kind of hatred always has the meaning of killing the chicken to scare the monkey. Even if there is no hatred, Man Chong will be beaten to death when the opportunity arises.

Therefore, Cao Cao also believed in Man Chong's loyalty. When the Cao family was destroyed, it would be time for Man Chong and his entire family to die.

Cao Cao felt relieved when he saw that Man Chong and Li Tong remained calm.

He was also thinking in his heart that Cao Pi is sixteen years old this year, and like the black thief, it is time for him to take on important responsibilities.

Whether the future is suitable or not is not important, the current needs must be met first... But the sixteen-year-old Cao Pi looked frail no matter how you looked at him.

He had no reputation as a genius, no sufficient followers and friends, and no powerful in-laws.

As for merits and achievements, there are none at all.

The inheritance of power by powerful officials is so difficult. Before this, Cao Hong was barely qualified. He was a heavyweight and meritorious Han official, and they had a close relationship.

Therefore, Cao Pi was simply unable to shoulder the heavy responsibility and lacked recognition.

Unless a kingdom is established and the civil and military ministers of the Han Empire are allowed to hold part-time positions in the kingdom, Cao Pi can make up for the gap in qualifications and merits as a prince.

The identity of a prince would also help Cao Pi quickly gather a group of followers.

So now, we can only choose one person from other Cao clans.

The first and foremost qualification for this person is seniority and prestige!
The second is ability, and the last is blood relationship with Cao Cao.

If the Cao family cannot choose such a person, they can only choose from relatives and fellow villagers; if they really cannot choose, it means that people inside and outside the family are unstable.

It's fine at normal times, but once it encounters an oscillation, it will collapse!

This question does not need to be weighed repeatedly. Since the moment Cao Cao learned of Cao Hong's death, Cao Ren's figure has repeatedly appeared in his mind.

Since Jian'an, Cao Ren has been the military commander as a counselor, and was called the commander-in-chief in the army, so his status was slightly lower than that of Cao Hong.

After Cao Ren and Cao Chun separated, they moved away from Luoyang and traveled around the Jianghuai area. They had more than 2,000 followers.

Since joining the army, Cao Ren has been good at commanding cavalry, skilled in raids and strong attacks, and has a tough style.

His reputation for being a good fighter is far superior to that of Cao Hong.

Therefore, after seeing the performance of Man Chong and Li Tong, Cao Cao said: "I have ordered the commander-in-chief Cao Ren to rush to Xudu to defend the emperor. I am not worried about Xudu, but Jiangxia."

Li Tong remained silent. He had been the governor of a small county that was temporarily divided, and now he was a professional general. He did not want to be involved in other complicated matters.

Man Chong thought for a moment and said, "What you are worried about, sir, is that Jiangdong is looking for an opportunity to cause chaos?"

"Well, I will devote all my efforts to the south, hoping to conquer Jingxiang in one battle."

Cao Cao raised his head and looked at Man Chong: "Based on my understanding of Sun Quan, this little thief has ulterior motives and has long wanted to rebel against the Han Dynasty and establish his own regime. How can he sleep peacefully when he sees the court recover Jingxiang and occupy the upper reaches?"

Man Chong suddenly realized: "My Lord, are you saying that Sun Quan will attack our three passes of Runan, Wuyang, under the pretext of attacking Jiangxia?"

"hehe."

Cao Cao smiled complacently and looked at Li Tong: "When I send troops to Nanyang, Runan will also send troops to attack Jiangxia to show support. This battle is intended to be a feint to attract the Jiangdong army to help. We must be vigilant against Sun Quan's rebellion and sudden attacks. The army must be on guard, and the three passes of Wuyang must also be guarded."

"Yes, I will finally understand."

Li Tong expressed his position, kneeling on one knee with his hands clasped solemnly: "If Sun Quan dares to rebel against the court, I will know the military force of Runan better than him."

Cao Cao nodded and looked at Man Chong again: "The matter of Runan is handed over to you two. I will not ask about the specific details of the battle."

(End of this chapter)