Three Kingdoms: Prince of the Great Wei, Prime Minister Cao

Chapter 30: The Confrontation Between the Young Tigers, Cao Pi, and the Gaze of Sima Yi!

In the county government hall, amidst the dispersing crowd, Cao Ju has no intention of bothering with what his cunning father Cao Cao might be planning. He’s even less interested in how the civil and military officials in the hall perceive him as the newly emerging contender.

At this moment, his focus is entirely on the direction outside the mansion, where Zhang Liao and Yu Jin are preparing to gather their troops for departure.

“Generals Yu Jin and Zhang Liao!”

“Wait a moment!”

As he speaks up, it’s as if thunder has suddenly struck a calm field. Not only are Yu Jin and Zhang Liao caught off guard, but others also stop in their tracks, gazing curiously at Cao Ju, their attention fixed on him.

“Sir, what is it?” Yu Jin inquires.

Although he’s known for his strict adherence to military law and his lack of sentiment, he can’t ignore Cao Ju’s words.

After all, Cao Ju has just been recognized by Lord Cao Cao as a contender for succession. Despite Yu Jin’s proud nature, he can’t help but acknowledge this.

As for Zhang Liao, he inwardly sighs. As expected, he couldn’t escape this young master’s “entanglement.” Unfortunately, his rebellious son, Zhang Hu, isn’t by his side right now…

Otherwise…

Zhang Liao thought he needed to give his troublesome son a good lesson. He couldn’t tolerate his son’s idle mingling with anyone, especially his insistence on getting involved with Cao Ju.

Day by day, his son seemed to be stirring up trouble for him.

Did the Zhang family have any right to interact with Lord Cao’s young masters?

However, despite his internal frustration, Zhang Liao respectfully addressed Cao Ju as “young master” and inquired, “Are the two generals preparing to leave the city to assemble the troops?”

“Coincidentally, no!” Cao Ju responded.

“I also have plans to leave the city,” he continued, “How about… the three of us travel together?”

“Since I have a little matter to ask both of you for help, why don’t we discuss it on the way?” Cao Ju extended his hand in invitation.

In the midst of his speech, Cao Ju didn’t give Zhang Liao and Yu Jin a chance to refuse. He had already taken a step forward and was walking ahead of them.

Yu Jin: “…”

Zhang Liao: “…”

After exchanging a glance, they shook their heads and followed Cao Ju.

They weren’t afraid of any misunderstanding from Lord Cao Cao. They hadn’t actively sought out this young master; it was he who had attached himself to them, forcefully inviting them to travel together.

Even if Lord Cao Cao misunderstood…

They were prepared to stand confidently against Cao Ju if need be.

Meanwhile, on the side…

The remaining participants of the military council watched the three who left together for a moment, and then their gazes shifted away from them.

In fact, some of them shook their heads when they looked at Cao Ju’s departing figure.

This suddenly rising young master was too impatient and lacked self-control.

Could the task of recruiting military commanders be carried out so openly in broad daylight?

He dared to do it, but no one dared to respond. A person who lacked subtlety in their actions and resorted to brute force, how could they qualify to be the successor of their Lord Cao Cao?

Some began to entertain two possibilities: Perhaps this young master was intentionally behaving this way to lower the vigilance of his elder brothers.

Or, maybe he was simply incompetent, and Lord Cao Cao had only designated him as a candidate for the position of heir to create pressure on Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, and Cao Zhang.

With these suspicions in mind, they turned their attention to the other two young masters who had participated in the military council today—Cao Pi and Cao Zhang.

They observed that Cao Zhang was happily leaving, chatting and laughing with several military officers, seemingly unconcerned about Cao Ju’s actions. It was as if he didn’t consider Cao Ju’s rise to be a significant matter.

Seeing this, the onlookers couldn’t help but smile. This was the Cao Zhang they were familiar with, after all!

Compared to Cao Ju, the eighth young master who needed to “recruit in public” Zhang Liao and Yu Jin, Cao Zhang, the fourth young master who had a penchant for military affairs and was enthusiastic about combat, had an unmatched advantage in winning the favor of military commanders.

However, when they shifted their gaze from Cao Zhang to Cao Pi, they were left astounded by Cao Pi’s expression.

They never expected that at this moment, when Cao Pi looked at Cao Ju’s departing figure, there would be no trace of relief on his face. Instead, there seemed to be a subtle hint of apprehension.

This was inconceivable!

Unlike the clever individuals like Xun You and Cheng Yu, the shock was overwhelming. Frightened by this unexpected development, those who had intended to approach Cao Pi and Cao Zhang quickly lost interest and left in a hurry.

After a hundred breaths of time passed, the county government hall had become eerily quiet. Except for Cao Pi still standing in the hall, there were hardly any other figures.

At that moment, Cao Pi heard footsteps behind him, and then a figure emerged from the dimly lit hall.

Accompanied by the ominous aura exuding from that figure…

It was like a lurking wolf in the darkness.

“Master, are you worried that Cao Ju’s successful recruitment of Yu Jin and Zhang Liao might pose a threat to you?”

“From my perspective,”

“I see absolutely no possibility of his success!”