Chapter 7: The Bravery of an Ordinary Husband

  After hearing the news brought by Xun Yu's messenger, who had ridden a good horse to death, even Cao Cao, who was usually calm and confident, broke out in a cold sweat. The war god Lü Bu, under the instigation of Chen Gong, Cao Cao's arch-nemesis, led his troops into Yan Province, not only defeating Cao Ren, the general left behind by Cao Cao, and forcing him to retreat, but also occupying the strategic location of Puyang City, capturing almost all the cities in Yan Province. Cao Cao's old nest, Yan Province, now has only three cities left: Juancheng, Dong'a, and Fanxian, which are barely holding on and may be attacked by Lü Bu at any time!

  "If Yanzhou is lost, I will have no home to return to!" After being silent for half a day, Cao Cao, who was always optimistic and confident, gritted his teeth and said a depressing sentence.

  "Xuzhou can't be fought again, the lord must immediately return to Yanzhou!" Guo Jia said resolutely: "The five counties of Xuzhou have all suffered from war and fire, and their vitality has been severely damaged. Even if the lord captures Xuzhou, he will not be able to stand firm. It is not worth exchanging Yanzhou for Xuzhou! Moreover, Kong Rong, Tian Kai, and Liu Bei's three supporting armies have already arrived on the battlefield. If our army continues to attack Xuzhou, it will be difficult, and there may even be a possibility of Lü Bu, Tao Qian, Liu Bei, Tian Kai, and Kong Rong forming an alliance to jointly attack our army, which would be disastrous!"

  Cao Cao nodded slowly, acknowledging that Guo Jia's words were not false. The Cao army had avenged Cao Cao's father Cao Song by killing four of the five counties in Xu Zhou, leaving blood flowing like rivers and corpses piled up like mountains. Everyone in Xu Zhou feared and hated the Cao army. When they heard that Lü Bu had entered Yan Zhou, it was likely that they would not let go of this opportunity to beat a fallen man, and might even join forces with Tao Qian's allies Kong Rong and Tian Kai to take advantage of the situation!

  "My lord, since it's come to this, why not grant Liu Bei a favor? Xun Yu suggested, pointing at the letter on the desk from Liu Bei: 'For now, let's make peace with that old man Tao Qian and retreat back to Yanzhou?'"

  Cao Cao's eyebrows rose, just about to respond, but unexpectedly Guo Jia suddenly spoke out to stop him: "No! My lord, this personal favor, absolutely cannot be sold to Liu Bei!"

  "How could Filial Piety say such a thing?" asked Cao Laoda in surprise.

  "Liu Bei is a hero! Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are enemies of ten thousand people!" Guo Jia said seriously: "If the credit for lifting the siege of Xuzhou is given to Liu Bei, the soldiers and civilians of Xuzhou will regard Liu Bei as their reborn parents, be grateful and shed tears. Tao Qian will also try his best to win over Liu Bei at any cost, borrow Liu Bei's strength to prevent our army from coming back, and once Liu Bei gains a foothold in Xuzhou, it will be difficult for our army to take revenge for the master's father as if climbing to the sky!"

  "Cao Cao nodded in agreement, saying: "Liu Bei is good at winning the hearts of the people, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are exceptionally brave, even Lü Bu fears them. If we let Liu Bei establish himself in Xuzhou, given time, he will surely become a formidable enemy!"

  Cao Cao agreed with Guo Jia's opinion, and Xun Yu did not insist. He suggested: "In that case, the lord can behead Tao Qian and show his head to the public, offer sacrifices to Taigong, and then immediately withdraw troops and quickly retreat from Xuzhou."

  "My lord, it's still not permissible!" Guo Jia seemed to have mustered up all his energy today to oppose Xun Yu again. He opened his mouth once more to stop him and uttered something astonishing: "My lord, in my humble opinion, Tao Ying not only should not be killed, but our army's great merit of saving the people by accepting Tao Qian's plea for peace should be entirely bestowed upon him!"

  "Master Fengxiao, why did you say that?" Xun You said in surprise: "Tao Ying is the son of Tao Qian, and has a father-killing feud with our lord! Now that Tao Ying has come to us of his own accord, how can we let him go?"

  "Nowadays, Tao Ying has great use for the lord!" Guo Jia smiled and asked: "Mr. Gongda, have you ever thought that the arrow book that announced Tao Ying's identity was shot from Xuzhou City to our army's scouts by whom?"

  Xun Yu's eyes widened as he suddenly remembered a major issue - who was it that shot the secret letter arrow from Xucheng? Suddenly, Xun Yu exclaimed: "Could it be Liu Bei?"

  "It's not Liu Bei, Liu Bei has just entered Xuzhou and won't dare to shoot the book and expose his ugly face." Guo Jia said confidently: "But the person who shot the book must be under Liu Bei's orders!"

  "It makes sense." Cao Cao slapped the table and said: "If I kill Tao Yung, the hatred between him and Tao Qian will deepen, and old man Tao Qian will inevitably rely more on Liu Bei, which is extremely beneficial for Liu Bei to gain a foothold in Xuzhou and control the power of Xuzhou!"

  "It's not just that, there's another possibility." Guo Jia smiled and said: "Tao Qian is already over sixty years old, weak and sickly. If he hears the bad news about his son again, even if he doesn't die on the spot, his illness will surely worsen. Whether Tao Qian's condition worsens or dies on the spot, only Liu Bei can benefit from it!"

  Cao Cao blinked his triangular eyes and asked, "Is it Fang Huan's intention to drive a wedge between the Táo family father and son and Liu Bei by suggesting that Xu Zhou be handed over to Tao Ying?"

  "As you said, sir. It is indeed the case." Guo Jia nodded in agreement and smiled wryly: "If we were to give the credit for lifting the siege of Xuzhou to Tao Ying, the people of Xuzhou would only be grateful to the Tao family, not Liu Bei. In the eyes of Tao Qian and the people of Xuzhou, the Liu brothers wouldn't seem so important after all. It's likely that they would quietly withdraw from Xuzhou. Once Liu Bei leaves, when you come to attack Xuzhou again, sir, the resistance will be much weaker."

  Cao Cao rose from his seat, clasped his hands behind his back and began pacing around the large tent, weighing the pros and cons as he walked. Guo Jia's gaze followed Cao Cao's movements, speaking calmly: "My lord, I know that avenging one's father is a matter of life and death, but there are differences in status among people, and choices to be made between strong and weak enemies. Liu Bei is a hero of the world, skilled in both literature and martial arts, and adept at winning people's hearts. If he is allowed to gain a foothold in Xuzhou, my lord will have to pay an even greater price to take it back. The Tao family father and son are different, however - Tao Qian is old and ill, his eldest son Tao Shang is weak and incompetent, while his second son Tao Ying only knows poetry and literature, with the bravery of a mere commoner but no strategic thinking or planning. They are far easier to deal with than Liu Bei."

  "Mr. Guo Jia, I think that Tao Ying's young son is quite bold and talented, why do you say he has only the bravery of a common man, but lacks strategic thinking?" Cao Taigong asked curiously.

  "A man with a good heart, how can he personally come to our military camp to send a letter?" Guo Jia smiled and said: "A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall. Tao Ying, as the second son of Tao Qian, is showing off his bravery, coming alone to our military camp to send a letter, without considering the consequences of this action at all. Isn't this being brave but lacking strategy?"

  Cao Hong suddenly realized and thought to himself, "That's right! The several envoys sent by Tao Qian to negotiate surrender were all beheaded by our lord. How dare this Tao Ying's son come to deliver a message? Unless he has the ability to predict the future, knowing that the letter he delivered to our military camp coincides with Lü Bu's attack on Puyang!

  "Cao laughed and said: 'Let's take advantage of Tao Qian's recklessness. When we release him, give him the letter and let Liu Bei and Tao Qian fight each other!'"

  Guo Jia smiled and nodded, understanding in his heart - Tao Qian was a brave but foolish young man, while Tao Qian was an old fox who could see through the arrow letter and still suspect Liu Bei. Finally, Guo Jia suggested: "Your Excellency, Guo Jia thinks that releasing Tao Qian's son would be a waste, I have a plan to make Tao Qian's son famous in Xuzhou City, making Liu Bei's son feel ashamed to stay in Xuzhou, and even part ways with Tao Qian."

  "What clever plan is this? Speak quickly!" Cao's face lit up with joy: "The more famous Tao Yingxue becomes in Xuzhou, the easier it will be for me to take the city next time I come to attack!"

  ……………

  After a while, the Cao army's camp, which had been calm for a period of time, suddenly became active. The various units and troops of the Cao army poured out of their camps and formed up in large numbers outside the gate. Cao Cao himself mounted his horse and led the way, leading tens of thousands of Cao soldiers to surge towards the north gate of Xuchang. Our poor Deputy Director Tao was also dragged out by the Cao army officers, had his arms tied behind his back, and was taken along with the Cao army as they marched south.

  Cao Jun suddenly launched a surprise attack, and the defenders of Xuzhou naturally did not dare to slack off. Cao Biao, Cao Hong, and Tao Ji led the Xuzhou army to rush to the city walls, making preparations for defense. Liu Bei's troops, who had entered the city less than half a day ago, also quickly climbed onto the city walls and joined the defenders. A large number of civilians from Xuzhou also spontaneously rushed to the inner city walls, carrying stones and wood to transport defensive weapons for the army, helping the military defend the city.

  Tao Ying's father, Xu Zhou Mu Tao Qian, also climbed up to the city wall. Upon hearing the news that Tao Ying had personally gone out of the city to Cao's camp, as a father, he was so frightened that he fainted on the spot. However, after being rescued and awakened, Tao Qian unexpectedly refused Liu Bei's request to send troops to rescue Tao Ying, requiring the Xu Zhou army and Liu Bei's army to defend the city firmly and not allow any soldiers to leave the city. The reason given was that the Cao army was too powerful, and whoever went out of the city would be sending themselves to death. All the officials in Xu Zhou were in tears, and Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun in Liu Bei's army were also deeply moved, feeling that Tao Qian was indeed a rare loyal and kind-hearted old man who could consider others. Although Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun were all powerful warriors, it was still an impossible task to charge into Cao's heavily guarded camp to rescue someone.

  When Tao Qian was helped by his attendants to climb up the city wall of Xuzhou, Cao Cao's army had already stabilized its formation in the open space outside the north gate of Xuzhou. Long shields were placed at the front, strong bows and crossbows were hidden behind them, and they also set up deer horns to prevent cavalry charges. The tactics were very cautious. At the same time, what made Tao Qian and Liu Bei puzzled was that Cao's army actually built a large earth stove in front of the formation, lit a fire under the stove, and finally placed a large iron pot on the fire.

  When Cao's soldiers poured green oil into the iron pot, Tao Qian and Liu Bei finally understood Cao Cao's vicious intention - it was clear that the notorious ruthless Cao was going to publicly fry Tao Ying to death with boiling oil!

  Understanding this, Tao Qian was as pale as death, with tears streaming down his face. Liu Bei, on the other hand, was filled with righteous indignation and shouted loudly: "Tao Qian, please give the order to open the city gate! I will personally lead the troops out of the city, no matter the cost, to rescue the two young masters!"

  "Cao Cao is a treacherous villain, what's the point of bullying little kids?" Zhang Fei also shouted loudly on the city wall with his eyes wide open, "If you have any skills, come out and fight me, old Zhang, for 300 rounds!"

  Tao Qian was extremely hesitant. Of course, Tao Qian did not want his son to be publicly deep-fried by Cao Cao, but he was even more aware that relying on the two or three thousand ragtag troops in Liu Bei's hands and the defeated soldiers in Xuzhou City, it would be as difficult as ascending to heaven to rescue his beloved son from the wolf-like army of Cao Cao. At the same time, he would also lose the last bit of his assets! However, if he didn't go out to rescue him, his son Tao Ying, who had just been looked down upon by Tao Qian, would also be deep-fried into human jerky in public!

  At this time, Tao Ying, wearing a Confucian long gown, had been pushed to the front of the formation and taken to the side of the large oil cauldron. At the same time, Cao Cao, wearing a pure white mourning dress, also emerged from among a large group of Cao army braves, riding his horse at a small gallop until he was outside the range of the Xu State city walls, whereupon he raised his voice and bellowed: "Tao Qian, old man, come out and answer!"

  Tao Qian's tears flowed freely as he trembled and walked to the side of the arrow wall, shouting with difficulty: "My lord, Tao Qian is here."

  "Old matchmaker, you have a good son!" Cao Cao raised his whip and roared with a fierce smile: "You dare to disguise yourself, change your name and surname, and sneak into my camp by pretending to deliver a letter! After being discovered, you still have the nerve to say that you are willing to die for the people of Xuzhou, and willing to trade one death for my retreat. How audacious!"

  A burst of exclamations rose from the city wall, and the people of Xuzhou, both military and civilian, were shocked by Tao Ying's righteous proposal to sacrifice his life in exchange for Cao Cao's request! Only Liu Bei secretly laughed and cursed: "What Zi Zhong said is not false, Tao Qian's sons are indeed stupid like pigs and dogs!"

  Tao Qian wept aloud and bowed his head to Cao Cao on the city wall, saying: "Sir, I am ignorant and have spoken recklessly. I hope you will forgive me. I have committed a crime against heaven, causing Xuzhou to suffer this great disaster. I have long been prepared to die. I beg of you, sir, to spare my son and the people of Xuzhou. I am willing to trade my life for theirs!"

  "Hahaha!" Cao Cao burst into loud laughter, pointing at Tao Qian with his whip and shouting: "You old scoundrel, stop your flowery words! If you really can die for Xuzhou, why didn't you kill yourself earlier? Why wait until I capture your son?! Today, I won't kill you first, I'll kill your son first!"

  "My lord......" Tao Qian wept, unable to speak.

  "Listen up, old man!" Cao shouted: "Today, I will pierce through your father-son's hypocritical face of being afraid to die! Your son Tao Ying is not willing to sacrifice himself in exchange for my retreat? Fine, I'll give him the opportunity. I've set up a pot of boiling oil and if he dares to jump into it himself, I'll immediately withdraw my troops and leave Xuzhou, without fail! If your son doesn't dare, I'll first cut off his four limbs, dig out his heart and liver while he's still alive, then attack the city!"

  "Your Excellency!"

  "Good brother——!"

  "Older brother——!"

  Taoyue let out a mournful cry, and Taoshang and Taogitang also cried out in unison. However, Cao Mengde didn't give the Tao family father and sons any chance to plead for mercy, turning his horse's head around and leaving immediately. The city walls of Xuchang were once again filled with the sound of people shouting, the soldiers and civilians of Xuchang either crying out in shock or gritting their teeth in anger, some even showing a joyful expression, hoping that Tao would jump into the oil pot himself, in exchange for Cao Mengde to retreat his troops and leave Xuchang - Cao Mengde was still somewhat reliable when it came to keeping his promises.

  "My lord, please open the city gate quickly and let me lead the troops to rescue the young master!" Liu Bei shouted loudly with his eyes wide open, his expression both angry and frantic. Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun also volunteered, expressing their willingness to lead the army out of the city to rescue Tao Ying.

  "Hear me, people on the wall!" Tian Wei, who was following behind Cao, turned around and bellowed in a voice no less than Zhang Fei's: "From now on, if anyone dares to take one step out of the city, our army will immediately execute Tao Yingxiao!" Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun were instantly speechless, unsure of what to do.

  At the same time, Tao Deputy Director, who was pushed to the side of the oil pot, heard Cao's words and his still somewhat handsome small face turned whiter than a dead person. In his mind, there was only one thought left: "Damn it! How could Cao be so treacherous as to come up with such an evil plan? He can use boiling oil to kill me and then go back to rescue Yangzhou with a clear conscience, saving both face and reputation!"

  "Taoying Xiaor, donate his body to respond to the national crisis, look at death as if returning home!" Cao Lao laughed loudly and patted the horse to walk closer, swung a whip towards Taoying Xuer, laughing and said: "Your chance to donate your body has arrived, you also heard my words just now, if you dare to jump into the oil pot by yourself, I will immediately withdraw my troops, absolutely not eating my words!"

  "Director Tao, since ancient times who has not died, leaving behind a red heart to shine on the blue sky, this is your excellent phrase." Guo Jia also walked up coughing and smiled at Deputy Director Tao: "Today I, Guo Jia, want to see if Director Tao, who can recite such an excellent phrase, can really do it."

  "This guy is Guo Jia." Tao Ying took a look at Guo Jia, making an effort to remember the ugly face of this scoundrel, then turned his head to look at the large pot filled with boiling oil. At that moment, Deputy Director Tao's legs felt like they were cramping - damn it, how did the oil in the pot boil so quickly?

  "Let him go!" Cao Da ordered the soldiers holding Tao Ying to release him, and then had someone bring a wooden stake and place it next to the cauldron. Finally, he shouted at Tao Ying: "You little brat, choose for yourself - do you want it to be just you, or all the people of Xuzhou?"

  Deputy Director Tao's face turned ashen and he didn't dare to respond - jokingly, Deputy Director Tao had already been in a car accident once, how could he still dare to jump into the hot oil pot himself?

  "My lord, since you have the heart to test the second young master, then let's bet bigger." Guo Jia smiled and came up with an even more sinister idea. "If Tao Gongzi doesn't dare jump, please my lord first release him back to Xuzhou City, then my lord leads the troops to attack the city, killing all the soldiers and civilians of Xuzhou to avenge his father. If Tao Gongzi jumps into the oil cauldron himself, then my lord will keep his promise and retreat from Xuzhou!"

  "Good, let's do it this way!"

  Cao Cao applauded and cheered, casting a glance at the tent of General Wei, who understood his intention. He immediately rode back to the city wall and shouted out in a voice no less loud than Zhang Fei's, announcing Cao Cao's new terms: if Tao Qian was afraid to jump into the cauldron, Cao Cao would release him immediately; after Tao returned to the city, they could continue the siege; but if Tao jumped into the cauldron, Cao Cao would withdraw his troops and spare the lives of all soldiers and civilians in Xuzhou - at least for the time being.

  After hearing Cao's new terms, Taishi Ci and his two brothers Tao Shang and Tao Ji on the city wall were crying loudly, not knowing what to do. The soldiers and civilians of Xuzhou were discussing and arguing with each other, while Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and others shouted loudly, "Young Master! Come back! We will defend Xuzhou to the death and never let Cao's army break into the city!"

  "Hey kid, did you hear my new terms?" Cao turned to Tao Ying with a sly smile and said: "If you're afraid of death, you can leave now. I won't kill you for the time being!"

  As a member of the excellent system in the 21st century, Deputy Director Tao was naturally afraid of death and loved to protect his own life. So when he heard Cao Lao's new conditions, Deputy Director Tao almost subconsciously lifted his leg to run away. But as soon as his leg moved, Deputy Director Tao, who had slightly relaxed, suddenly discovered an abnormality - in the air, there seemed to be a strange smell.

  Deputy Director Tao sniffed carefully again and finally distinguished the strange smell and its source. The strange smell was a strong sour smell, coming from that pot of boiling oil.