It was late at night, and the swaying light of the oil lamp casted the long shadow of Cao Cao and reflected on the heavy military map.

On the military map, every ink mark is like a scar.

He stared at the logo representing the cavalry.

Cao Cao slowly slid on the military map with his fingers. Although his movements were smooth, every time he moved, it seemed to carry a heavy load. He did not fight for Shandong, or rather, it was not all for Shandong. He used to win for himself, and now he added another emotion, and he also wanted to win.

The path chosen is different...

His road, Guo Jia's road, and the road of the cavalry.

It's always different.

Only by winning can you prove that you and Guo Jia’s path is correct.

He slowly walked out of the tent, lifted the curtain, and a cold wind blew towards him, wrapping his robe and making noises.

『Prime Minister…』

The guards outside the tent quickly met.

Cao Cao waved his hand and signaled them to retreat, but did not go far, but just stood outside the tent and looked up at the stars.

In the vast night sky, stars shine with cold and distant light.

Cao Cao's eyes were parading the galaxy, as if looking for the meteors that disappeared at that moment. Under the stars in the sky, he longed to find that familiar soul and a little more light of hope in this night.

However, the vastness and silence of the starry sky only made him feel more intense loneliness and loss.

The night wind whistled, blew the vassals above the flag and swept through every corner of the military camp, but could not blow away the sorrow and pain that Cao Cao shrouded in his heart.

After a moment, Cao Cao let out a long breath, and the pain in his eyes gradually faded away, and he regained his usual perseverance and determination.

He knew that he was not qualified to continue to be sad.

He turned around and returned to the tent. After pondering for a moment, he picked up his pen and issued an order to strengthen the guards of the camp.

The story of Guo Jia cannot be passed on for the time being.

『Come!』

After all, Cao Cao couldn't help but order the unlucky messenger to behead him.

After all, only dead people can keep secrets.

Even if this secret is only temporary, for the sake of the overall situation, the sacrifices of individuals are naturally inevitable.

After the rush, you will give the soldier double the pension.

After Cao Cao left, he picked up the silk again, carefully looked at it word by word, and pondered the two sentences and one word left by Guo Jia before his death.

"Chief, like Qin?"

Cao Cao murmured and repeated.

The cavalry now has the power of the Former Qin Dynasty, which is almost obvious. Why does Guo Jia emphasize again? The cavalry is in Guanzhong, sheds horses and north, and controls Sichuan and Shu. It is almost the same as the Qin Dynasty, no, even more cruel than the Qin Dynasty...

etc!

Cao Cao suddenly frowned, and said these four words back and forth several times, then gently patted the table, "So that's it, "like" Qin! The cavalry is like Qin, not Qin!"

Originally, most people in Shandong believed that the cavalry was a replica of the Former Qin Dynasty, and had a tiger and wolf army. Then, in this way, Guo Jia said that the cavalry was just "like" Qin, not a simple repetition of the Qin Dynasty.

Qin, as a powerful country in history, is famous for its unique political system, military power and cultural characteristics. The Qin Dynasty also left a deep impression on Shandong that when talking about Qin, it was terrified. However, Guo Jia said that the cavalry was just a "category", which means that the cavalry did have similarities with the Former Qin in some aspects, which may be similar in governance methods, organizational structures or strategies for external expansion. However, Guo Jia may want to express that although the cavalry has these similarities with the Former Qin, it is different from the Former Qin in essence, origin or other key aspects.

This was originally a huge trap of thinking.

It was not until this moment that Cao Cao had completely understood that their strategic direction before the war was finally severely deviated because of this trap of thinking. In Shandong, because of the slander of the cavalry and the habitual criticism of the cavalry, both in the official and the civilian areas, there was always a feeling that the land of Guanzhong was full of various harsh policies, and the people under the cavalry lived in dire straits.

If you say such remarks too much, even the maker of the original remarks himself believes...

So even when Cao Cao marched into Hedong, he felt that the gentry and people in Hedong would immediately welcome the king's army, make things right, abandon the darkness and turn the light, and stood in tears beside the official road, shaking the small flag, shouting, "Relatives, finally here, ahhhhhh..."

The result was a slap in the face.

The reason is that the cavalry is just a "class", and after all, it is either really a copy of the Qin Dynasty.

Therefore, if the cavalry is still considered as the Former Qin and use the means and methods of dealing with the Former Qin back then to cause trouble, it will inevitably make the whole thing seem like the current Hedong land, making it seem like it is, and it will not go up or down.

This is not to say that Cao Cao is stupid or Guo Jia is stupid, but a pitfall in his thinking.

It’s like saying that China is rich every day, and the dynasty is the country of the heavenly dynasty. At the beginning, it might have wanted to boost the people’s hearts and unite morale, but after saying too much, I really thought that China is richer than China. Then when someone finally knocked to the ground, all monkeys, chickens, dogs, pigs and cows came up and kicked, the people’s spirit was really broken and they couldn’t be completely packed up for a century.

Since the cavalry is not the Former Qin Dynasty, then naturally they cannot use the method of "anti-Qin", so what should they do?

Guo Jia gave the second sentence.

"Victory and defeat are not outside, but inside."

Cao Cao took a deep breath and frowned.

He realized that Guo Jia might have thought about these two sentences for a long time, but he had never said them.

Maybe it's hard to say, or maybe it's because of some other reason, it was not until the moment of death that it was said.

This sentence seems to be about how to deal with the cavalry, but if you think about it, can it be used as the best summary of Cao Cao's current situation?

Yes, Cao Cao had already had a premonition that he would lose, but he had been unwilling to face it, and even more unwilling to admit it. Now that Guo Jia was dying, he pointed it out with blunt words.

However, if it is just a summary, it would be a slightest bitch of Guo Jia.

Does Guo Jia mean...

Cao Cao frowned.

His original plan was actually discussed with Guo Jia.

Cao Cao wanted to eliminate some population pressure in Shandong, because Shandong is now suffering from severe drought and has previously drained a lot of labor, so drought is inevitable. Appropriately reducing some population and reducing food and grass pressure can make the court less embarrassed.

This is one of the benefits. On the other hand, Cao Cao believes that people from Shandong have never suffered a relatively large external threat. Many times, he is fighting against the pressure. Now he should also allocate the pressure to these people from Shandong behind...

In addition, there is another hidden factor, which is to destroy human lives in Fei Qian's hands. Then, as long as the publicity is properly promoted, the people of Shandong can hate Fei Qian like Xuzhou people hate Cao Cao.

But now it seems that these problems seem to be "external" means.

So, what is the real "inside" tactic?

Cao Cao set his sights on the last word Guo Jia said, "Heaven".

What is "Heaven"?

weather?

Time?

The world?

world?

Emperor?

Angel?

Natural disaster?

sky……

There are too many possibilities.

As he thought about it, Cao Cao's brow suddenly jumped.
Chapter completed!