$ Chapter 416: Delivering the Message, Playing Chess

Xia Hou, who was originally smiling, suddenly froze on his face, and then anger gradually filled his eyes.

"Success must be attributed to you? Haha, what a big joke. You have been crushed to death. Who can remember that you are so meticulous? Why don't we make a deal? As long as you name three names, I will I guarantee that you will survive, and that you will be prosperous and wealthy for the rest of your life. You can continue to sit in this position of captain, and I will give you a promotion, how about it?"

Xiahou Dun's hypocritical smile stayed on his face, and he just stared at Wang Zhao, as if waiting for his answer. Faced with Xiahou Dun's generous offer, Wang Zhao just smiled disdainfully and did not answer his question. Then he spit in front of him.

"You kill me."

After Xiahou Dun heard Wang Zhao's words, a trace of astonishment appeared on his face, but he quickly covered it up.

"Why? What makes you so loyal to Liu Bei? Even if you risk your own life, what will happen to your parents and family if you die? What makes you so willing?"

Wang Zhao raised his head, as if he was remembering or thinking. After a long time, he said.

"Parents? Family? I have no parents and family for a long time. After the Yellow Turban Uprising, all the princes joined forces, Dong Zhuo entered the capital, Yuan Shao separated the country, and countless turmoils caused my parents and family to die in the troubled times."

Wang Zhao stopped standing, sat down cross-legged, and continued to talk.

"Obviously we live in a small village, there are no important places nearby, let alone any gold and silver treasures, but someone still came to our village with his army and set fire to the entire village. The villagers also suffered miserably. Slaughter, my family members died one by one in front of me, but I couldn’t do anything.”

At this point, two tears fell down Wang Zhao's face, but he suddenly laughed again.

"Just when it was about to be my turn, suddenly an army, like divine soldiers descending from the sky, came to us. They killed all the troops brought by that man. Then, I will never forget that scene. A man came When he arrived in front of me, he stretched out his hand to me. He came towards the setting sun and pulled me out of hell, allowing me to stand under the sun again. "

At this moment, Wang Zhao's face was filled with a bright smile.

"From that day on, I made up my mind to follow him to fight, even to the death. However, I was too stupid and was not even as good as the new recruits who had just joined on the battlefield. So when I learned that someone was needed to join Cao's army, , I recommended myself and came here to do my little bit for the Lord.”

After finishing his words, Wang Zhao raised his head to the sky, closed his eyes tightly, and quietly waited for death to come. However, the death he expected did not come, and what was waiting for him was Cao Cao's voice.

"Since you are so sincere, Liu Bei must have valued you very much. Lock him up and provide him with good food and drink. Then send a letter to Liu Bei and tell him that all the spies placed in Yuzhou and Sili Prefecture, we I’ll pick them out one by one, and what’s his name?”

"Wang Zhao."

Xiahou Dun said softly.

"Oh, yes, Wang Zhao, tell Liu Bei that one life can be exchanged for two hundred horses. This Wang Zhao is so loyal that five hundred Xiliang first-class horses won't matter even if they lose a hair."

"You're dreaming!"

As soon as Wang Zhao heard that Cao Cao was threatening Liu Bei with himself, he roared angrily, took out a dagger from his waist, and stabbed his neck. Xiahou Dun, who was standing next to him, had quick eyes and quick hands and grabbed Wang Zhao's hand. No matter how hard Wang Zhao used his wrist, the dagger could no longer move forward an inch.

Xiahou Dun brushed his big hand, pulled out the dagger from Wang Zhao's hand, and threw it aside. Cao Cao sneered, turned and left, his voice echoing above the school platform.

"Find all the spies for me, all of them! No one can be missed!"

Xun Yu followed closely behind Cao Cao and left. Cao Cao had a sneer on his lips. Originally, he was planning to kill these spies to vent his anger. After Xun Yu reminded him, he made this move. This move was really good. It was too cruel, and Liu Bei was simply in a dilemma.

If he agrees to exchange Xiliang's first-class war horses for these fine works, it will be a huge expense. Several top ranches in Xiliang can only raise a few thousand first-class war horses at most a year. The entire Xiliang A maximum of 20,000 first-class horses can be produced in a year, and as of now, Cao Cao has captured four people and killed two. Based on the price just now, this is 700 horses.

These seven hundred will be enough to arm General Faqiu Zhonglang and Colonel Mojin. By then, the combat effectiveness of these two arms, which are already extremely powerful, will be further improved.

And from the current point of view, there are definitely more than just these few in Xizuo. Cao Cao guessed that there should be several people in the transport camp alone. However, Cao Cao is not worried. As long as they have any contact with Liu Bei, as long as they are in Xuzhou city, then Cao Cao would be confident that he could find them.

The purge has also begun in Sili Prefecture, but Cao Cao has no expectations for that side. There are very few defenders in Sili Prefecture, and there are no generals stationed in Sili Prefecture. It can be said that it is an indisputable place for military strategists. If the previous Kyoto was not in Sili Prefecture, and Sili Prefecture is the location of Dragon Vein, Cao Cao never gave up here, just to allow General Faqiu Zhonglang and Captain Mojin to play their roles.

Cao Cao believed that as long as he could catch enough Xi Zuo, he would have won this battle, because no matter whether Gu Rubing saved him or not, the ultimate winner would be Cao Cao.

If Gu Rubing saves him, he will exchange Xiliangjia and other war horses, two hundred horses for one life, and Wang Zhao's name is more expensive, so five hundred horses are needed.

If Gu Rubing doesn't save him, it will be great news for Cao Cao. The spy he sent out has been caught, but the master is indifferent. If this kind of thing spreads, Gu Rubing will not be able to get away with it. , the virtuous character he has devoted all his efforts to build will collapse.

So no matter whether Gu Rubing saves him or not, Cao Cao is guaranteed to make money without losing money. It's just a matter of making more money or less. Wang Zhao heard the threat in Cao Cao's words, and that's why he wanted to commit suicide with a knife. , I don’t want to leave any trouble for Gu Rubing, but after all, he is just a small scout. He has not yet been transferred to the crossbow school captain, and his combat power is not high. How can he compare with Xiahoudun? Xiahoudun directly took it from his hand. The dagger prevented him from committing suicide.

"Oh, you don't have to waste your efforts. Lord, how can he remember me, a nobody, with five hundred first-class war horses? Not to mention five hundred, I can't even compare to five of them, so don't waste your efforts anymore!"

Wang Zhao shouted loudly in the direction where Cao Cao left, while Xiahou Dun smiled sinisterly behind Wang Zhao.

"The more you say this, the more it means that you and Liu Bei are definitely not just a lord and a subordinate. You must have other relationships. That's why you are afraid, afraid that we will take your life and do something with Liu Bei." Deal, hahahaha, your acting skills are so bad, so bad that people can see through it at a glance.”

Xiahou Dun looked at the struggling Wang Zhao and continued to try to defeat Wang Zhao from his inner defense.

"Or, what you said is right. Liu Bei doesn't know you at all, let alone remember you. Naturally, he won't bring out his most cherished Xiliang first-class war horse."

Faced with Xiahou Dun's provocation and sowing discord, Wang Zhao did nothing at all, and just stared blankly in the direction Cao Cao left.

Seeing Wang Zhao who was finally on the verge of collapse, Xiahou Dun laughed unbridled.

"Hahahaha, what about your bold words just now? Hahaha, I still like you better now."

Three days later, Gu Rubing received a letter from Cao Cao in Qingzhou. Gu Rubing didn't pay much attention to it at first. What could Cao Cao say at this time?

But after he opened the envelope, he immediately stood up. Zhuge Liang, who was sitting opposite him and was playing chess, looked at Gu Rubing with some confusion. Gu Rubing took a deep breath and handed the letter in his hand to Zhuge Liang. After Zhuge Liang took it, his expression became extremely solemn.

"What does the Prime Minister think?"

Gu Rubing's expression was equally solemn. He sat back by the chessboard, holding a black chess piece in his hand and tapping it on the chessboard. His heart was shrouded in haze. He never thought that Cao Cao could win in such a short period of time. Expose all the hidden connections in Sili Prefecture and Yu Prefecture.

"Cao Cao only mentioned the names of four people in the letter. Does the Lord have any impression of these four people?"

Although Zhuge Liang looked solemn, he still cleared up his thoughts for Gu Rubing first, and Liu Bei thought about it for a while.

"This Wang Zhao, I remember, he was once a young man who was rescued by us. Since then, he has followed us to fight everywhere. When the scouts were established, he took the initiative to apply to join the scouts. He is a good candidate to be a scout. , the other two people also have some impressions."

Gu Rubing pointed to the three names on the letter and said, those who can be sent to do detailed work, especially those who go to Cao Cao, without exception, are all elite scouts, some are good at fighting, some are good at disguise, and some are good at disguise. Some have all kinds of amazing skills, and each one of them is one of a thousand, one of a thousand, so Cao Cao has some impression of them, but the last name, Cao Cao has no impression at all.

"Maybe they are new soldiers. I don't have much impression, but it is impossible for new soldiers to be sent to Cao Cao."

"You can call Ziyi over and ask."

Zhuge Liang picked up a white chess piece and placed it on the chessboard. Originally, Gu Rubing had the advantage in the chess game, but it suddenly became Zhuge Liang's advantage. Although the advantage was not big, there was a slight chance of a comeback.

The chessboard at this moment is exactly what Gu Rubing and Cao Cao are at this moment. Gu Rubing holds black and Cao Cao holds white. Before this, it was Gu Rubing's advantage. However, due to the difference of one piece, plus the previous Due to Bai Zi's efforts, there is a hint of slaying the dragon at this moment. As long as Bai Zi takes a few more steps like this, Heizi can be doomed. This chess game is exactly similar to the situation between Cao Cao and Gu Rubing at this moment.

"Um."

Gu Rubing nodded, and then sent someone to call Taishi Ci over. Taishi Ci was more aware and confident about the scouting matter. Soon, Taishi Ci came here.

"My lord, do you have anything to do with me?"

Seeing the solemn expressions on both Gu Rubing and Zhuge Liang, Tai Shici intuitively told him that something must have happened.

"Ziyi, sit down."

Gu Rubing asked Tai Shici to sit down. After Tai Shici sat down, Gu Rubing handed the letter to Tai Shici. While Tai Shici was browsing, Gu Rubing told Tai Shici his doubts. After listening, Tai Shici shook his head firmly.

"My lord, there is absolutely no one like this among the scouts under my command. As for being sent to do Cao Cao's detailed work, it is absolutely impossible. All the brothers who go to Cao Cao are my personally selected brothers. Even if they are captured If I do, I will definitely not expose anyone else.”

After receiving Tai Shici's affirmative answer, both Zhuge Liang and Gu Rubing fell into deep thought, but Zhuge Liang quickly found the loophole.

"Since Ziyi has said that there is absolutely no such person sent to Cao Cao, then there is only one possibility."

"What's possible?"

"The three people who were arrested were not exposed directly, but indirectly exposed Feng, and the clues that led to their indirect exposure also pointed to this person, so Cao Cao and the others mistakenly thought that this person was also sent by us. Therefore, It can be concluded that Cao Cao has only captured these three colleagues. It is not that he has grasped the handle and can uproot them as he said in his letter. This is just Cao Cao intimidating his lord. "

After listening to Zhuge Liang's analysis, Gu Rubing was slightly relieved. If he was uprooted, Gu Rubing would not be able to bear such a loss.

"That's good. According to what the Prime Minister said, there shouldn't be any problems with the others, right?"

"It cannot be said that they have not been exposed, so Lord, you should still think about how to deal with it."

"Don't worry about it, Prime Minister. If they are all arrested, they must be replaced. Even if one of them is arrested, they must be replaced."

Gu Rubing didn't hesitate at all. After sending them to the response place, he didn't give them any support, not even the most basic gold and silver. However, many of them still sat in high positions and gave them a lot. Useful information played a huge role in the war.

Taking a step back, Gu Rubing would save him even if he didn't. The attribute of virtue, while providing him with huge attribute bonuses, also makes his character closer and closer to Liu Bei. Under this situation , Liu Bei's character would never let his subordinates go unchecked, and neither would Gu Rubing.

"That's good."

Zhuge Liang smiled knowingly. Although this account was not worthwhile no matter how he calculated it, they both knew in their hearts that they had to change it no matter what. Gu Rubing looked at the chessboard, thinking about where to put it next, in his hands. However, his hand failed to fall. At the critical moment, Zhuge Liang made a move, and Gu Rubing did not hesitate and made his move.

And it was this child that made the balance that had been tilted towards Zhuge Liang tilt towards Gu Rubing again, just like the decision made by Gu Rubing, the situation between himself and Cao Cao was reversed again.

At this moment, the two of them are like two chess players, interpreting the changes in the world's situation on the chessboard.