"Cao Pi has four friends."
Though the gate attendant spoke anxiously, Jia Xu only grew calmer. As Dong Jue began clearing the dishes, Jia Xu settled back onto his mat, lifted a teacup, and sipped leisurely while chatting.
"Chen Changwen enjoys the reputation of an upright scholar. Zhu Yancai is quick with plans and deeply emotional. Wu Jizhong is broadly learned and well read."
"Yet each has his flaws. Chen Changwen prefers silence and avoidance. Zhu Yancai is easily angered. Wu Jizhong is skilled at flattery."
"With those three, if one also had Sima Zhongda, who excels at long-term strategy and controlling change, the set would be complete."
Jia Xu smacked his lips lightly and added,
"Unfortunately, Sima Zhongda went west to Yong and Liang and never returned. Presumably he was captured by the Left General."
Dong Jue only smiled, refusing to confirm anything.
"You give us too much credit, Taizhong. The tribes of Yong and Liang number in the hundreds. Even Han Sui and Ma Chao struggle to control them. Perhaps he was seized and forced to marry a Qiang woman."
Jia Xu nodded thoughtfully.
"Then he is probably dead."
He continued calmly.
"In Cao Pi's camp, Wu Zhi and Zhu Shuo are both men who curry favor upward. Chen Qun cannot restrain them alone. Without Sima Yi to balance matters, the structure falters."
"As for Cao Zhi's side, the Ding brothers are mediocrities. Handan Chun has literary refinement, but the rest are hardly worth mention."
"Only this Yang Xiu, Yang Dezu, stands out. His writing exceeds his judgment. His mind is clever and quick in debate, yet he lacks humility, looks down on others, and often falls into rash arrogance."
At that, Dong Jue understood.
Still, curiosity lingered.
The two brothers had merely gone outside the city to perform ancestral rites, yet now they had drawn weapons on each other.
Was Yang Xiu's tongue truly that sharp?
By then Jia Xu had already risen, clearly having reached a decision.
"The Son of Heaven has likely learned of the disturbance outside the city. The two Cao princes probably have only one path left, southward. In that case…"
He handed over a letter.
"I must trouble you, Gong Xi. Deliver this to Ma Shoucheng."
Dong Jue nodded and wasted no time. After saluting Jia Xu, he set off to find Jin Yi.
Among the great clans of Ye City, Dong Jue himself was relatively unknown. The one most familiar to the local elite was the wealthy merchant of Jingzhao, Jin Yi.
Jin Yi's family background was straightforward. His father Jin Xuan had once served as Administrator of Wuling Commandery before joining their lord. His ancestry could be traced all the way back to Jin Midi, the former Xiongnu prince who became a Han minister under Emperor Zhao. A thoroughly Han lineage, and Jin Yi often called himself a man of Jingzhao for that very reason.
Through contact with their lord, and by trading goods from Liu Xuande's territory such as Shu brocade, cane sugar, and paper, Jin Yi had built a business network that reached widely throughout Ye City. Even the well-known Chaling Tavern, famed for its stir-fried dishes, was part of his holdings.
At this moment, Chancellor Cao was still locked in a struggle with General Yun Chang in Jing and Yu.
The Vice Chancellor Cao, meanwhile, was outside the city fighting his own brother.
Among the two Chief Clerks of the Chancellor's residence, Wang Bi was already dead. The only one left, Xin Pi, with the Emperor's backing, the help of Attendant Geng Ji and Inspector Wei Huang, and the tacit approval of several great clans, quickly stabilized the situation inside the city.
---
Outside the walls, Cao Pi heard the report from the guard and could hardly believe it.
"What do you mean the city gates are closed?"
Before the dust-covered messenger could explain, a refined scholar mounted on horseback in the distance burst into loud laughter.
"Why pretend now, Prince, when your intent to wipe us out is already clear?"
"Six armies outside obey your command, yet the gates are shut against us. My lord is already at the end of the road, and still you refuse to speak plainly?"
Cao Pi flew into a rage.
"I have not conspired with Liu Bei, nor have I envied Zijian. What is there to explain? Why would I need to pretend?"
Before the argument could settle, Zhu Shuo beside Cao Pi angrily stepped forward.
"This Yang Dezu spouts nonsense without restraint. Why waste words? Kill this troublemaker and we can explain everything to the Marquis of Pingyuan!"
Without even waiting for Cao Pi's order, Zhu Shuo led his guards forward to attack.
That allowed Wu Zhi, who had been fighting at the front, to withdraw and catch his breath. After a moment he leaned close and whispered,
"Prince, in this situation it might be better to…"
Cao Pi felt a headache coming on.
Thinking back, the cause of everything was painfully clear.
He had intended to use today's ancestral rites to speak frankly with his younger brother. Instead, Yang Xiu suddenly produced evidence of his private purchases of southern cane sugar, Shu brocade, and fine paper.
I am the Vice Chancellor of the Cao clan. Can I not enjoy a few luxuries?
Yet Yang Xiu had shouted accusations of disloyalty, impiety, and unrighteousness right before the ancestral tablets, scolding him for nearly half an incense stick without pausing for breath. Then the fighting began.
Cao Pi could feel things slipping out of control, yet the momentum of events had already passed beyond him.
Yang Xiu's relentless taunting naturally stirred tempers, and what of the men he relied upon?
Zhu Shuo was quicker to draw a blade than to speak. Wu Zhi had been urging him since last year to strike early.
And Chen Qun?
He always kept silent and stayed aloof from such matters.
If only Zhongda were here…
Cao Pi sighed inwardly.
In the end it was General Liu Ruo, Commander of Jianwu, who arrived with troops and forcibly suppressed both sides, finally halting the clash.
After Liu Ruo briefly explained the situation, Chen Qun, who had seemed almost absent-minded behind Cao Pi for quite some time, finally spoke.
"Our only options now are two. Either we attack and retake Ye City, or we follow General Liu Ruo going to south. In any case, the military situation is urgent. I urge the Prince to decide quickly."
Though he spoke calmly, Cao Pi could not help feeling anger rise in his chest. Had this conflict not broken out, an hour earlier he might have already…
"If Zhu Shuo had not rushed to violence at the slightest word, causing needless losses, we might have returned to the city in time and avoided this—"
Yang Xiu's leisurely remark was cut short when someone tugged his sleeve.
He turned and saw Cao Zhi looking at him earnestly.
"Dezu, perhaps you should say less."
Seeing his younger brother bow toward him again, the words that had already reached Cao Pi's throat, asking Liu Ruo to execute Yang Xiu first, were swallowed back down.
Instead, he turned to Chen Qun.
"What do you mean by going south? Why is going north not an option?"
Chen Qun answered immediately.
"Southward there are two routes. One is toward Hebei, to block Liu Bei from crossing the Yellow River and entering the north, then seek a chance to break Mengjin Pass and move into Luoyang to cut his rear. That would be extremely difficult."
"The other is to go to Yingchuan, unite with the Chancellor's army, and decide the war in one battle against Liu and Guan."
"Going north would abandon the Chancellor. It is the worst choice."
Their rapid exchange steadied Cao Pi's thoughts. He then turned to Liu Ruo.
"General, what is your advice?"
Liu Ruo bowed.
"The army's remaining grain will not last a month."
The meaning was obvious.
If Ye City was not retaken within a month, the army here would collapse on its own.
As Vice Chancellor, Cao Pi knew the city's manpower, armor, and grain stores even better than Liu Ruo. And once news of Ye City spread outward, both the Henan and Shangdang fronts would inevitably be shaken, triggering unpredictable changes.
Vaguely, Cao Pi felt that the foundation his father had gambled everything to build at Guandu had once again reached a moment of decision.
Everyone watched the Vice Chancellor.
Not yet thirty, and having only faced the disaster at Wancheng in his life, the Cao prince's expression twisted several times before he finally issued his order, voice carrying across the field:
"Reorganize all units. March through Xingyang to reinforce Yingchuan. Along the way…"
He paused only a moment.
"Levy grain. Conscribe men. Strike the enemy for the state!"