Light and Shadow

Chapter 24 - An Opportunity Presents Itself

Cao Cao stood in the middle of his sparsely furnished tent at Guandu. He felt frustrated and was growing discouraged. The sun was slowly rising beyond the horizon, signifying that the early morning sun was upon them. Guo Jia watched from a nearby spot on the floor as the man anxiously paced back and forth around the tent, lost in thought. There has to be a way to overcome these odds. There has to be! Cao Cao thought to himself. His thoughts were interrupted when a solider clad in armor sprint into the tent, his armor rustled loudly as he bowed and addressed the man.

"My Lord, I bring you a letter from Minister Xun Yu!" The messenger exclaimed firmly as he reached behind the chest piece of his armor and produced a bamboo scroll with a soft pink seal. He presented it to the man with both hands.

Cao Cao eagerly walked over to the man and grabbed the scroll with both hands, thanking the messenger for his service. He walked over to a medium-sized table that was positioned neatly in the center of the tent with a map sprawled across the top of it and grabbed a small bag that was seated on top before returning to the messenger and handing it to him. The messenger accepted the bag with both hands and his eyes widened in shock. Such a large amount of money. First the Minister is generous to me, and now the Lord is generous to me as well! This is unreal. I wonder what is in those letters. It must be really important, but that is none of my concern.

"Th-Thank you for your immense kindness, my Lord!" The messenger exclaimed, bowing deeply.

Cao Cao smiled and helped the man back onto his feet.

"There is no need to thank me. You have done me a great service." Cao Cao replied.

The messenger nodded and then exited the tent. Guo Jia laughed after a few moments passed, and Cao Cao turned to look at him.

"My apologies, my Lord. It's just, your actions in that moment reminded me of Minister Xun Yu. I miss being able to spend time with him." Guo Jia stated wistfully.

"As do I, Fengxiao. Don't worry. I am certain that we will be able to resolve things here swiftly, then we can return to Xu and Minister Xun." Cao Cao answered stoically as he attempted to convince both Guo Jia and his self that the conflict would work out in their favor.

Guo Jia appeared to be skeptical but nodded his head regardless. Cao Cao then removed the seal from the scroll and opened it. The sweet scent of lavender wafted over him, seemingly carried safely over the distance of hundreds of meters just to reach him, and it filled him with a sense of calm. He closed his eyes for a moment and fondly recalled Xun Yu's tender presence. He then read the letter's contents and found his dampened spirits rejuvenated. Maybe we do have a chance at emerging victorious from this conflict. Xun Yu believes that it is possible, I can't afford to fail him and the others who follow me. But when will someone from Yuan Shao's force betray him? We can't afford to keep this resistance up for much longer. Our supplies are growing dangerously low, and Cheng Yu has suggested that we resort to cannibalism if things take a turn for the worse. I hope that it does not come to that. A solider then rushed into the tent and bowed.

"My Lord, Xu You has come to us from Yuan Shao's camp. He wishes to speak with you." The soldier stated.

Is this our silver lining? Cao Cao pondered silently to himself.

"Great. Send him in immediately." Cao Cao replied.

The man nodded and rushed outside of the tent to send in Xu You. Xu You walked into the tent and greeted the man with a bow. He had a frustrated and annoyed look on his face as he frowned deeply.

"Yuan Shao is a fool!" Xu You spat. "He refuses to heed my advice and is swayed easily by the forked tongues of those serpents that he keeps close at his heels. I am done attempting to serve such an incompetent Lord. Lord Cao Cao, please allow me to serve under you, I have information that can benefit you."

Cao Cao and Guo Jia exchanged hopeful glances with one another before Cao Cao turned his attention to Xu You.

"It is a pity that Yuan Shao does not heed the advice of one as esteemed as yourself Xu You, especially since you worked diligently to help him build and maintain his realm. I assure you that you will be warmly welcomed into my forces, your advice will be adhered to, and you will receive a generous promotion and pay increase twice that of Yuan Shao." Cao Cao stated firmly.

Guo Jia sat there in silence and watched how his Lord handled Xu You. He nodded his head in approval. Appealing to his desire for fame and money was a wise move since that appears to be one of the primary reasons why he came here. He is not just dissatisfied with how his Lord runs things, but he is also dissatisfied with the demotion that he received for going against his Lord's and other advisors' wishes. This man could be the key to turning the tide of the battle, and our Lord has successfully baited him into revealing what he knows. Xu You's eyes widened in surprise at the man's words and generous offer. He chuckled, flattered by the man's praise and offer for his services.

"Your generosity has impressed me, Lord Cao Cao. I will agree to serve you. Now, allow me to uphold my end of the deal," Xu You began. "As you are aware, Yuan Shao has amassed a massive force in an attempt to crush you and seize control of the north. To maintain a force of that size, well, you can imagine the sheer number of provisions that requires. Most of those said provisions are stored at Wuchao and number at least three dūn(*) in total. A fire attack would be rather devastating and destructive. Don't you agree?"

(* - one dūn is equal to one ton).

"That does sound like promising intel, but how do we know that we can trust you?" Guo Jia interjected thoughtfully.

"I..." Xu You began, sounding somewhat flustered.

"Enough," Cao Cao said coolly as he held up a hand to silence the two. "We do not have a moment to lose. Xu You, I will gather a unit of soldiers immediately, and, under the cover of darkness tonight, you will lead us to Yuan Shao's supply depot at Wuchao; however, if I find out that you are misleading me, then I will throw you and your family in jail. Is that understood?"

"Y-Yes, my Lord." Xu You gushed, bowing as he did so.

He then exited the tent, leaving Cao Cao and Guo Jia alone. Guo Jia smiled and laughed.

"Why did you intervene? I was wanting to see how he would act under pressure." Guo Jia inquired.

Cao Cao shook his head.

"There is no need for that. It is clear that he is not up to par with you, Xun Yu, or our other top advisors. Xu You would perform best as a minor government official, and I will assign him to such a role once we are finished here. Of course, I will keep my word and pay him twice what Yuan Shao paid him." Cao Cao stated stoically.

Guo Jia nodded to show that he agreed with him, then he grinned and laughed. Cao Cao eyed him curiously, wondering why he had suddenly burst into laughter. Although Guo Jia was laughing, Cao Cao could see a glimmer of pain and sadness that lingered behind his eyes; it was as if his playful demeanor was a ruse to conceal something far more sinister.

"Fengxiao?" Cao Cao asked softly as he walked over to the man and crouched down in front of him. "Is everything okay?"

"My Lord, I am fine," Guo Jia replied softly. "I am just overjoyed that we may get to return home soon."

Cao Cao gave him a suspicious look, but his gaze soon softened and he agreed with him.

"Of course, that is something to look forward to. Stay here and rest while I go and make the necessary preparations for tonight." Cao Cao stated, earning a nod from Guo Jia.

Cao Cao then left the tent, and Guo Jia began to cough. I'm glad that he left, I couldn't hold it in for much longer. I think that this illness is getting worse, and I do not think that I will live long enough to see Xu again; however, I will make sure that I live to see the north unified. That will be my parting gift for our Lord. 

--- Hello dear reader, I apologize for the brevity of this chapter. I thought that it would be fun to write something from Cao Cao's perspective, but I got kind of bored halfway through and thought it was pretty bad. Hopefully he will have more exciting parts in the future. The next chapter will be a bit more exciting, and will, hopefully, include some political drama, as well as some paranormal things if it isn't too lengthy. Thank you so much for reading this story, it really means a lot, and I will see you soon with another update. Take care! ---