The moon is dark and the stars are sparse, and the clouds are thick.

The night was deep, and the lights were still on in the study in the backyard of Sikong Mansion.

Cao Cao's face was gloomy, and he sat in the middle of the study, with Guo Jia and Xun Yu standing in front of him.

The matter of Princess Wannian was not too difficult to deal with, he entered the palace to explain to Emperor Han Xian, and it was over.

What really made Cao Cao uneasy was the mystery behind Cao Shuo's death.

"What do you think about Wen Ruo, Feng Xiao, the death of Ziqi (Cao Shuo's character) and the framing of Ziwen?" After being silent for a long time, Cao Cao's tightly knit brows relaxed, and he slowly asked.

Xun Yu hesitated for a moment before replying: "This matter involves Sikong's family affairs, and the officials dare not say anything." ”

Guo Jia also did not open his mouth to respond.

Cao Cao waved his hand and comforted the two: "You have all followed me for several years, you all know what kind of temper I have, but it doesn't hurt to say it." ”

Xun Yu then spoke: "Sikong, today's events are actually clear. ”

"Being able to put a poisonous snake into the bedroom of the second prince and poison him, and bribe the inner supervisors, guards and palace maids around the princess to jointly make perjury to frame Ziwen Gongzi, this matter must have been carefully arranged."

"To be able to do this seamlessly, without leakage, it must be someone close to the commonplace to do it." Guo Jia added.

"Who do you think will be the real culprit behind the scenes?" Cao Cao asked.

Xun Yu hesitated, shook his head and said, "Xiaguan can only think of this, who is it, I haven't thought of it for the time being." ”

"The subordinates didn't expect ......" Guo Jia also chose to prevaricate.

"You can't think of it or don't dare to say it?!" Cao Cao's eyes widened again.

Xun Yu and Guo Jia saw Cao Cao angry, and hurriedly knelt down in front of him: "Sikong, the lower officials really can't guess." ”

"With Wenruo and Fengxiao's intelligence, I can't even guess?!" Cao Cao looked at Xun Yu and Guo Jia in front of him with a questioning expression, obviously not believing what they said.

"I can vaguely feel that the murderer is one of several sons, but I really can't tell who it is, so I don't dare to say anything." Xun Yu explained.

"Back to Sikong. Let's think about this from a different perspective. Why was the second son killed, and why did the murderer blame Zhang Gongzi? Guo Jia reminded Cao Cao.

"After Ang'er's death, Shuo'er was the eldest son; Zhang'er is brave and martial, and has always had prestige in the army......" Cao Cao muttered quietly, and then woke up: "The position of the prince?!" ”

"Exactly!" Xun Yu and Guo Jia responded.

Cao Cao nodded slowly: "Makes sense." Then we might as well think about it, if Shuo'er and Zhang'er both die, who is the most beneficial and who is most likely to be the son of the world, then he may be the murderer? ”

"Do you think it's Zihuan (Cao Pi) or Zijian (Cao Zhi)?"

This is precisely where the lower officials dare not assert. Looking at today's performance, Zihuan's eagerness to convict Ziwen seems to be quite suspicious, but if it is understood as the death of his heartbroken brother, it can also be explained. ”

"Zijian Gongzi didn't say a word, it seems that it has nothing to do with this matter, but if it is said to be deliberately covered up, it is not impossible."

"And what makes the next official undecided the most is the performance of today's Ziwen Gongzi." Guo Jia analyzed the performance of the three of them to Cao Cao one by one.

"Yes, Ziwen Gongzi's performance is very different from the past, whether it is to prove his innocence or find out the real cause of the death of the second son, he is meticulous and observant, which surprises me very much."

"I just don't know if Ziwen Gongzi suddenly opened his mind at a time of crisis, or if he had been hiding his edge before." Xun Yu complemented Guo Jia's analysis.

If it is the latter, then he is now vulnerable after being framed? still carefully designed a bitter plan to cover up the truth of his brother's murder, which is also the key to making it impossible for the subordinate to make accurate judgments. Guo Jia expressed his inner concerns to Cao Cao.

Xun Yu: "I also think so, so I can't determine who is the culprit of the three sons." ”

Cao Cao nodded slowly after listening to the analysis of the two, and had to admit that what they said was very reasonable, and the performance of the third son today was extremely scary, and they all had doubts.

"Then do you think Zhao Da can find out the results?" Cao Cao asked the two again.

"How could a person who could have devised such a well-thought-out plan not have a way out for himself? How could he personally arrange and buy these subordinates? ”

"Even if you really check it, I'm afraid there won't be any results." Guo Jia shook his head a little helplessly.

"Wen Ruo, what do you think?" Cao Cao turned to Xun Yu.

Xun Yu didn't answer Cao Cao's question, and asked rhetorically: "Sikong, even if Zhao Da can really find out who the culprit is, how do you plan to deal with it, are you really going to execute him?" ”

As soon as Xun Yu's words came out, Cao Cao's face changed instantly.

Guo Jia immediately guessed the deep meaning implied in Xun Yu's words, and hurriedly lowered his head.

"You've already killed two sons, do you really want to kill the third yourself? Tiger poison does not eat children, and if Sikong really does this, it must be damaged by his reputation. ”

"Especially this third son, he was still killed for killing his brother, and spreading it will also make Sikong lose face."

Although he is open-minded, he doesn't care about the eyes of the world. But now that there are strong enemies on all sides, Sikong needs more people to win in the cracks. ”

"So the subordinates suggested, Sikong decided carefully!" Xun Yu pushed the decision to Cao Cao.

Cao Cao's face was gloomy, he grabbed the bamboo slip on the desk in front of him and threw it out, scolding angrily: "What do you mean, Shuo'er died in vain, right?!" ”

Xun Yu hurriedly bowed his head and kowtowed: "I am speechless, please calm my anger!" ”

Guo Jia also lowered his head vigorously, Cao Cao was already furious, and he didn't dare to say more.

Cao Cao glared at the two people in front of him, gasping for breath, and it took a while before he slowly calmed down.

Although he was very unwilling, he also understood that Xun Yu's suggestion was the most reasonable.

Now that the investigation of Cao Shuo's death and the execution of another son will indeed have a great impact on his reputation, and may even cause civil strife, causing chaos in the situation that has just been stabilized.

What's more, although he loves Cao Zhi the most, Cao Pi and Cao Zhang also have something for him to admire, and if he really wants to kill, of course he is reluctant.

Cao Cao sighed helplessly: "Wen Ruo, you didn't lose your words, what you said makes sense, we really can't afford to toss now." ”

He said a little unwillingly: "I can not deal with this brother killer, but I must know who he is, right?" ”

"My lord, continue to investigate, this person is bound to be cautious, but it is not easy for us to find out. It's better to be loose on the outside and tight on the inside, so that he thinks that the matter has passed, and after a long time, he will reveal his flaws. ”

Guo Jia saw that Cao Cao's attitude had softened, so he raised his head and said his suggestion.

Cao Cao's face softened completely, and he nodded: "It makes sense." Fengxiao, this matter will be handled by you! Cao Cao instructed Guo Jia.

"Whoa!" Guo Jia hurriedly bowed his head and received the order.

Xun Yu also breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that Cao Cao had finally accepted his suggestion.

"That's all for now, I have another matter to discuss with you. Now that there are strong enemies around, I need more people to help me if I want to defeat them once and for all. ”

"Since moving the capital to Xudu, the people's customs are gradually settled, I have the intention to restore the Yuedan evaluation of the year, so as to recruit talents to govern the country and the country, what do you think?" Cao Cao proposed his idea to the two.

"Rebuilding the Yuedan review, allowing the world's celebrities to accept the comments, and selecting talented people to be hired is indeed a good way to select talents." Xun Yu expressed his approval of Cao Cao's proposal.

"It's just that now that Xu Shao has passed away, and Xu Jing has also gone to Jiaozhou, if you want to redo the Yuedan evaluation, you must choose another respected sage to judge." Guo Jia pondered and raised his concerns.

"Feng Xiao is right, I have already thought of a suitable candidate." Cao Cao said with a smile.

"Who is it?"

"Zheng Xuan who lives in Xuzhou!" Cao Cao gave his answer.