As the capital of the Han Empire, Luoyang was not only the political center of the country, but also the economic center of the country. The industrial and commercial areas in the city not only include the gold market in the city (located between the southwest of the North Palace and the northwest of the South Palace), the south market in the southern suburbs, the horse market in the eastern suburbs, and the Li City was also established in the east of the city during the period of Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty. These markets are the natural result of the development of the commodity economy, and they are also the foundation for Luoyang to become a prosperous city in the country and even the world.

Among them, the gold market, as the largest commodity circulation and trading market in Luoyang, has become the first choice for merchants to gather because of its excellent geographical location in the city. Even after the war and various natural disasters, it did not affect the prosperity of the place in the slightest.

In this commodity trading market with a length of three or four miles from north to south, the sound of selling, quarrelling, and bargaining is endless. Cao Cao and Bao Xin are both people who have lived in the capital for a long time, and they don't feel anything new about the surrounding environment when they walk through this bustling flow of people.

It's just that Bao Xin has decided to leave Luoyang, and he has nothing to do, so he is naturally interested in the bustling and lively gold market. And Cao Cao, who still wanted to stay, was worried about the increasingly erosive situation in Luoyang, and he didn't care much about the excitement around him.

The two were chatting and walking one sentence at a time, when a strong northern man with thick eyebrows and big eyes blocked their way. To be precise, it stopped Bao Xin's footsteps.

"Can this strong man take a look at the villain's Hundred Refining Divine Weapons?" The strong man raised a saber and handed it to Bao Xin.

Cao Cao had something on his mind, and he was not too interested in the door-to-door sales of strong men. Besides, the other party was not aiming at him, so he just glanced at the delicately engraved scabbard in the strong man's hand, and walked away.

Bao Xin was ready to go back to Mount Tai to recruit troops, and he was naturally quite attentive to weapons and the like. He stopped and took the strong man's saber and drew it.

The weapon is not bad, Bao Xin said with a sigh in his mouth: "It's also a good knife." Don't know how much money you want? ”

"5,000 money." The strong man made an offer.

Generally, the price of a hundred refining saber is mostly between 9,000 and 15,000 yuan, and the other party's offer of 5,000 yuan is also very cheap. Bao Xin was moved, so he looked more carefully at the saber in his hand, and the distance between him and Cao Cao unconsciously widened.

When Cao Cao found that Bao Xin had not kept up, he looked back and saw that he was already far behind him. Just as he was about to call him over, he suddenly noticed that two men seemed to be pulling a woman into a remote alley.

Cao Cao once served as the lieutenant of northern Luoyang, and was also good at detecting and arresting thieves. Although I didn't see the woman's face, I saw her back struggling constantly, as if I wanted to call for help, so I suspected that the two men were villains and wanted to pull the woman into the alley to do evil.

Suspicious in his heart, Cao Cao did not call Bao Xin to follow the alley alone.

As soon as I walked inside, I heard the cries of women and the lewd laughter of two men from the depths of the alley.

Cao Cao was even more sure at this time that the two were either traitors or thieves, and he was already in a bad mood, and his personality was jealous and hateful, and he couldn't help but be angry. The government is chaotic and the situation is unstable, and there are more and more adulterous and adulterous people like this, and now they have developed to the point of committing murder in the daytime.

Cao Cao had nothing to do with Dong Zhuo, who was arrogant and domineering, and he transferred his anger to those two people at this time. Running quickly into the depths of the alley, I saw two men surrounding a woman who was hiding her face and crying.

Cao Cao roared and said, "Who is a madman, who dares to commit adultery during the day, and really doesn't take Wang Fa in his eyes?" ”

The two men didn't seem to expect someone to rush in, they were stunned at first, and one of them reacted quickly, and scolded: "Where did you come from, the straight thief, take care of ......"

Before he could finish speaking, Cao Cao's iron fist had already smashed into his face with the wind.

The man broke the bridge of his nose and covered his nose and screamed, and his nose bleeded all over his mouth.

The other wanted to make a move, but Cao Cao flew up and kicked him against the wall.

Knowing that they had encountered a hard stubble, the two of them didn't dare to stay any longer, and escaped from the alley like a burning butt.

Watching the two of them hugging their heads and running around, Cao Cao's heart was happy, as if he was driving Dong Zhuo away. and did not pursue them, but stretched out his hand to lift up the woman who was still weeping on the ground.

"This eldest sister, the gangster has been driven away by me."

Cao Cao tugged at her arm and tried to lift her up. The woman turned her head to reveal her face, and Cao Cao almost exclaimed.

The woman had thick eyebrows and big eyes, a bloody mouth, a full beard, and heavy makeup, like a monster.

As soon as the thought of Zhongji flashed in Cao Cao's mind, the man dressed as a woman suddenly made a grimace at him, and with a wave of one hand, a ball of flour spilled into his eyes.

His eyes suddenly became unable to see, and then he felt that someone was covering him with a sack, and about four or five people had put him down. Despite his struggles, he couldn't stand up to their outnumbers and subdued him.

I don't know who reached out to untie his belt, thinking that the other party was going to take off his pants, Cao Cao was scared for a while, and subconsciously clamped his buttocks.

It's just that the other party took off the belt and just tied his hands upside down, and didn't do anything else, which made Cao Cao feel a little at ease. With a sack on his head, he was pushed and put into a carriage, and it took me an unknown amount of time before the carriage stopped, and Cao Cao was taken into another room.

At this time, the sack on his head was taken down, and Cao Cao blinked his eyes that were first shining, and looked at the surrounding situation.

There are gray walls all around, there are no windows, only a curtain hangs on the wall. This is supposed to be a secret room.

Three men, including the man dressed as a woman, stood side by side in front of him, looking at him with a grin. One of them was very familiar, and after careful recollection, he remembered that the person was actually Chen Haonan, the shopkeeper of Diaoyutai Restaurant. I met him a few times when I came to Diaoyutai for a drink.

Chen Haonan smiled and untied the belt that bound his hands, handed it back to him, and said apologetically: "My master wants to discuss confidential matters with Captain Cao, and I am afraid that it will be leaked, so I have made a decision to invite Captain Cao to come and hope that Captain Cao will bear with me." ”

The head of the house? Cao Cao looked at Chen Haonan suspiciously, guessing in his heart who the head of the family he was talking about.

Shocked in his heart, he suddenly thought that there were rumors that Diaoyutai Restaurant had a lot to do with Shang Fang Ling Wei Yi, and now Wei Yi was very close to Dong Zhuo and other Xiliang troops, could it be that Dong Zhuo wanted to use Wei Yi's hand to get rid of himself, so as to weaken the strength of the Jingcheng Shidafu Group?

But looking at Chen Haonan's innocent expression, Cao Cao didn't feel like it. Puzzled, he asked coldly, "Who is your master?" ”

Chen Haonan replied: "I don't dare to mention the name of the head of the family. ”

Cao Cao was stunned, and mocked dissatisfiedly: "Hiding his head and showing his tail like this, I think he is also a shameless rat!" ”

As soon as the words fell, there was a hearty laugh outside the house, and a young voice said: "Meng De said this, I really want to be ashamed of myself. ”

The curtain was raised, and the first person to come in was a short-bearded man with clear eyebrows and a superb demeanor. Cao Cao saw that it was Xun Yu and Xun Wenruo, who guarded the palace.

Cao Cao met Xun Yu several times and admired his talent. However, I was still very confused about his unexpected appearance here, the voice just now was definitely not Xun Yu, it seemed to be......

Xun Yu entered the room and lifted the curtain, and invited the person who followed him into the house.

Cao Cao saw that it was the white-clothed young man in the past, and today's Ninety-Five.

When Chen Haonan and the others saw Liu Wei coming in, they immediately knelt down and saluted. Cao Cao was stunned for more than ten seconds before he realized that he had lost his manners, and just as he was about to salute, Liu Wei helped him up.

"Meng Degong doesn't have to be so polite, in order to avoid people's eyes, I invited you in this way, it should be me who apologizes to you!"

Cao Cao said in fear: "The minister doesn't dare." ”

Liu Wei said to Chen Haonan and the others: "Haonan, the pheasant, and the nest skin, you will go out first to take care of me, and no one is allowed to approach this secret room." ”

"No!"

Chen Haonan moved in three chairs, and went out with Zhao Shanhe and others to check the wind.

Liu Wei ordered Cao Cao to sit on two chairs with him, and pointed to the other chair and said to Xun Yu: "Wen Ruo also sits." ”

Xun Yu hurriedly thanked him and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty." ”

Looking at Xun Yu's respectful appearance, Cao Cao was very curious. The scholars of this era have always been very stylish, not because you are the emperor and bow down to you, how many people can't be recruited against the emperor's order, and these people are still praised by others as a high wind and bright festival.

In his previous dealings with Xun Yu, Cao Cao learned that he was a person with great ambitions and outstanding talents. If you don't vote for the master, you won't succumb to the powerful just because the other party is the emperor. And now he is willing to devote himself to Liu Bian, which proves that Liu Biao must indeed be outstanding. Thinking of Liu Wei's long-term insight when he was in the grass pavilion, Cao Cao began to become more and more curious about this rumored little emperor who did not abide by the law and was frivolous.

Liu Wei didn't know what Cao Cao was thinking, but he smiled and said: "I haven't seen Meng De Caoting for a long time, and after Meng De returned to Beijing, there have been many changes in the capital, so I really don't have time to talk to Meng De in detail." ”

Cao Cao hurriedly said: "I don't know Your Majesty's identity that day, and I am rude to do it, I hope Your Majesty will forgive me." ”

Liu Wei waved his hand to show that it didn't matter, and then said: "The matter is urgent, and I don't want to beat around the bush with Meng De." Today, I secretly invited Meng De to come, not just to talk about the past, but to ask for something. ”

Cao Cao heard Liu Wei say this, bluffed him up from the chair, bowed to the ground in fear and said: "Your Majesty's words are serious, the ministers eat Han Li, for the Han Chen, the emperor has been tired for generations, Your Majesty has something to order, the minister will go to the soup and go to the fire, and he will not give up." ”

Liu Wei helped Cao Cao up, nodded at him, and said, "I can trust Meng De's loyalty." Otherwise, I wouldn't want Meng De to do this for me. ”

"I wonder if Your Majesty has anything to do?"

Liu Wei stared at Cao Cao and said word by word: "Dong Zhuo is arrogant and domineering, and he threatens the imperial court with strong soldiers, and I want to get rid of him!" ”

Cao Cao was stunned by Liu Wei's sudden murderous words.

Liu Wei continued: "Dong Zhuo is extremely ambitious, this kind of person will inevitably split the country if he is placed in the locality, and living in the capital will definitely cause trouble to the imperial court." The first emperor was very protective of him, and recruited him to Beijing many times, but he was repeatedly pushed by him. Because he was in charge of the region, his soldiers were strong and strong, so the court had no way to deal with him at that time. Now that he has come to the capital, he is weak, and it is a good opportunity to get rid of him! ”

Liu Bian's words entered Cao Cao's heart, although he was surprised that Liu Bian, who was usually silent, would have a calculation for Dong Zhuo, Cao Cao still said excitedly: "Your Majesty's words are exactly what the minister thinks on weekdays. Dong Zhuo was in chaos, and the ministers thought about how to get rid of this thief day and night, but they didn't expect His Majesty to have a plan. It's just that Dong Thief still has a strong army in the city, and His Majesty should be more vigilant against this. ”

Liu Wei nodded appreciatively: "Meng De is thoughtful, and the minister is very pleased. Dong Thief's soldiers and horses are not to worry, when I want to make a move, that army will definitely not be by Dong Zhuo's side. ”

Liu Bian's words made Cao Cao suspicious for a while, and he really couldn't think of how Liu Biao could keep Dong Zhuo's soldiers and horses from being by his side. However, looking at Liu Bian's confident expression, it didn't look like he was talking big, so he had to press the doubts in his heart and ask, "Then how does Your Majesty want the ministers to do it?" ”

Liu Wei said: "At that time, when the time comes, there will inevitably be chaos in the capital, and in order to prevent the young people from taking the opportunity to make trouble, I want Meng De to help me control the situation in the capital and take care of all forces." ”

Cao Cao just wanted to speak, but Liu Wei continued to emphatically say: "Especially Yuan Shao's forces. ”

Cao Cao was stunned, in fact, he just opened his mouth to recommend Yuan Shao to Liu Wei, after all, Yuan Shao had the greatest military strength in the capital. Unexpectedly, Liu Wei not only didn't want to use Yuan Shao's power, but also wanted to guard against him.

Cao Cao couldn't help but hesitate about Liu Wei's request. At this time, the relationship between him and Yuan Shao was not the two who were hostile to each other due to the struggle for power a few years later, but a good friend who had played since childhood and grew up.

Cao Cao found it difficult to deal with Yuan Shao, but he also understood that it was a rare opportunity to be favored by Liu Wei, and perhaps this was the key to his ambitions on the road to power.

Power or friendship, Cao Cao is faced with a cruel choice.

After thinking about it for a while, Cao Cao still tried to ask: "Your Majesty, Yuan Benchu, the lieutenant of the Chinese Military Academy, was born in a family, and the fourth and third princes of the fourth family were tired of the emperor's favor, and his soldiers were strong and strong, and the soldiers were brave. If Your Majesty unites the original to do things together, it will be easier to get things done. ”

Cao Cao's reaction was also expected by Liu Wei, and he was even prepared to do it once Cao Cao rejected him.

Kill Cao Cao!

A fierce light flashed in Liu Wei's eyes, but then dimmed again.

For Liu Wei, Cao Cao's threat was even greater than that of Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shao. After all, he is the overlord of the final unification of the north, a generation of traitors portrayed by history and countless literary and artistic works. Liu Wei has always been jealous of him in his heart, and has been thinking about getting rid of him if he can't be used for himself.

After several times of contact with Cao Cao, Liu Wei could feel Cao Cao's fierce loyalty to the Han Empire. Now in his mind, he still wants to be a pillar of the Han Dynasty who wants to be a pillar of Kuangfu Sheji, but in the future history, his power will continue to expand, which makes his ambition bigger and bigger.

But even though his ambitions continued to expand, Cao Cao only wanted to be the king of Zhou Wen until he died, and handed over the usurpation of Han to his son Cao Pi to do. Liu Wei felt that in his heart, he still regarded himself as Hanchen.

Cao Cao's loyalty to the Han Empire can be seen by the sun and the moon, and his own talent through the heavens and latitudes of the world also made Liu Wei very admired. Therefore, Liu Wei seemed hesitant to deal with Cao Cao's problem, and finally Liu Wei sighed and said: "This matter is very important, and I trust it with my life." Yuan Shao is a person who does big things and cherishes his life, and forgets his life when he sees small profits, not the person he entrusts. ”

Cao Cao couldn't help but smile bitterly when he saw Liu Wei commenting on Yuan Shao. In fact, in his heart, he also had a slight feeling that what Liu Wei said was true.

Liu Wei continued: "Now that my Han Empire is in a state of turmoil, I am young and weak, and if I want to eradicate the traitors, I have to fight with my life. If Meng De doesn't want to help me, I don't blame you. However, this matter is very important, and I hope that Meng De will not leak the news to others. I thank you here. ”

Liu Wei said and stood up and bowed deeply to Cao Cao. How could Cao Cao stand this, he hurriedly knelt on the ground, and wept bitterly and said: "Ministers eat Han Li, and they should share their worries for Your Majesty." Your Majesty is killing your subordinates by doing this. ”

Liu Wei also shed tears and helped Cao Cao up.

Cao Cao said: "How to do it, even if Your Majesty commands, Cao will no longer have any worries." ”

Liu Wei wiped away his tears, nodded and said: "The start is between these two days, Meng De is ready early, once something happens, I will send someone to contact Meng De." ”

Cao Cao responded, thought about it again and said: "In order to prevent mistakes, Your Majesty agreed on a token, and then someone will contact the minister with the token." ”

Liu Wei nodded and praised: "Meng De is very thoughtful. ”

Just as he wanted to rummage through the items on his body as tokens, Cao Cao said: "How can the things of the Son of Heaven be with people at will, there is a jade bi on the minister's body, dedicated to His Majesty, and His Majesty can send someone to hold this jade bi to contact the minister." ”

Cao Cao said as he took out a piece of jade from his arms and held it in his hand to Liu Wei.

Liu Wei took the jade bi and looked at it, and couldn't help but be surprised.

"How could this be!"

To be continued