Man Chong was ordered to go to Chenliu to investigate the case in person. He confirmed that the charred body was the result of suicide by taking poison and then being burned to death. The fire in the inn was caused by the waiter's drunkenness.
Except that he could not prove that the body was Xun Yu, everything else seemed reasonable. He searched the entire Chenliu but did not see any suspicious persons, so he had no choice but to write a letter to Cao Cao to report.
But Cao Cao's decision to execute Xun Yu made the court and the Wei army's civil and military officials feel sad. Cao Cao was suspicious by nature, and he killed countless subordinates for no reason.
Now even Xun Yu, Cao Cao's right-hand man, was to be eliminated for going against Cao Cao's wishes once. Others were walking on thin ice. Even Jia Xu, who had occasionally given Cao Pi advice recently, had closed the door to visitors and was recuperating at home.
Undercurrents were surging in the Central Plains, and everyone's heart was shrouded in an invisible shadow, but Jingzhou was full of joy, and the people were happy and prosperous.
Autumn is approaching, rice fields are growing, wheat waves are rolling, and it is another year of bumper harvest. Three colleges and two hospitals have been established in Nanyang and Changsha. As the imperial capital, Nanyang has also seen a wave of reviving the Han Dynasty.
Liu Qi finally got to eat the bananas shipped from South Vietnam as he wished, and instructed them to be widely planted in Jiaozhou. This banana is now sold by the root in the Central Plains, and is especially loved by ladies of noble families and wives of wealthy families.
On this day, he was studying the wooden ox and flowing horse with Zhuge Liang when Liu Neng came to report that Ma Chao was trapped in Jincheng and sent people to ask for help.
Liu Qi was greatly surprised and came to the government office with Zhuge Liang. Xu Shu and Pang Tong were already receiving the visitor, who was none other than Ma Chao's cousin Ma Le!
Seeing him exhausted and worried, Liu Qi asked, "General Ma has already returned to Hexi, how come he is in Jincheng again?"
Ma Le said angrily: "Han Sui is a cunning thief who tricked my brother into coming to Jincheng for a meeting, but who knew it was a Hongmen Banquet."
Liu Qi was surprised and said soothingly: "Don't worry, what is the specific situation?"
Ma Le sighed, "Brother went back to Hexi to reorganize his troops and prepare to come back for revenge in the autumn. Who knew that the old thief Han Sui was bribed by Cao Cao and turned against us. We fought for several months in Wuwei, consuming our money, food and troops. However, the old thief had Cao Cao's secret support. When we were short of food, the governor of Liangzhou pretended to come to mediate between the two sides, held a banquet in Jincheng, and set up an ambush. Brother led his troops to fight out of the city, and now he is trapped on Yuquan Mountain and urgently needs rescue."
Liu Qi could not imagine that although Ma Chao's fate had changed, he was still in danger of being plotted against. He said helplessly, "General Ma and I are united in fighting the enemy. Now that Meng Qi is trapped, I should rescue him. However, I am thousands of miles away from Jincheng, and I am afraid that distant water cannot save nearby fire."
Ma Le clasped his fists and said, "General, you may not know that there is a five-eyed spring on Yuquan Mountain, which got its name. It is said that when Huo Qubing conquered the Xiongnu, he whipped a spring out, so there have been temples there for generations. The old general admired General Huo's merits and repaired this temple many times and sent a lot of food. The food stored now can last for half a year. My elder brother and his men defended the dangerous place and lowered me from the cliff on the back mountain with vines. I came to ask for help from the general."
Zhuge Liang said with emotion: "General Ma has been loyal and brave all his life. I admire heroes. This can be regarded as a reward for good deeds!"
Liu Qi asked the three men, "What do you think of rescuing Ma Chao this time?"
Previously, everyone was unanimously opposed to rescuing Xun Yu. If it weren't for Zhuge Liang's clever plan to escape, they would never have let Liu Qi take the risk.
Seeing the three men frowning and silent, Ma Le quickly stood up and clasped his fists, saying, "My eldest brother's life is hanging by a thread and he urgently needs rescue. I hope the three gentlemen can help."
He also said to Liu Qi: "My elder brother told me before he left that he has contacts in Longxi and Wudu. If I can get away this time, I will help you pacify Longyou and wipe out Xiliang in one fell swoop. From now on, I am willing to be the vanguard, following the example of our ancestor General Fubo, and help you fight for the Central Plains and restore the Han Dynasty."
Liu Qi's heart moved. At that time, the situation in Xiliang was complicated. Cao Cao had just stabilized Guanzhong, and the military strength in Xiliang was extremely weak. It was much easier than when Zhuge Liang went out to Qishan. It was an excellent opportunity.
There were two important turning points for Shu Han under Liu Bei. One was when Guan Yu flooded seven armies, shocking China and attracting responses from all over the Central Plains. Cao Cao even prepared to move the capital.
If Dongwu had not stabbed him in the back, Guan Yu could at least have taken Nanyang, and the situation would have been the same as his current one, with more soldiers and generals. If Dongwu had attacked Hefei at this time, the situation would have been reversed.
However, the mysterious actions of Sun Quan and Lu Meng caused the fate of Shu Han to take a sharp turn for the worse, and Dongwu never had the opportunity to advance into the Central Plains again.
Another turning point was when Zhuge Liang went out to Qishan for the first time. His first Northern Expedition went smoothly, and he captured Longyou, recruited Jiang Wei, and took Xiliang, thus bringing the entire area west of Chang'an into his control.
They were about to capture Chang'an and restore the capital, but they made the wrong decision by employing Ma Su, and their plan fell through.
The two defeats have caused generations of people to sigh and lament, and Mi Fang and Ma Su were both criticized and nailed to the pillar of shame.
Now that Cao Cao is marching north, the generals of Cao Wei are all in Huainan, with only Xiahou Yuan guarding Guanzhong, and Han Sui in Xiliang wavering between Qin and Chu. Isn't this a godsend opportunity
Liu Qi was about to speak when Pang Tong nodded and said, "This is a gift from heaven to you, General Liangzhou. You must not miss it!"
Xu Shu also said: "That's right. Although General Ma is trapped, his prestige in Xiliang is very high. Saving him is not only a loyalty to the Han Dynasty, but also a way to take Longyou in one fell swoop and take Guanzhong."
Seeing Zhuge Liang nod slightly, Liu Qi said to Ma Leyan, "Don't worry. General Ma and I have already agreed to work together to support the court. Now that he has been killed, I feel deeply sad. Now that Mengqi is in trouble, how can I not help him?"
Ma Le said anxiously: "Reinforcements are needed to put out a fire. Please send the troops immediately. I have already met General Wei in Hanzhong. He dare not act without the general's order."
Xu Shu said, "Hanzhong is a thousand miles away from Jincheng. Moreover, Longxi is where Cao's army is stationed. Even if we mobilize an army of 100,000, it will be difficult to reach Jincheng in a hurry. Hanzhong does not have enough money and food, and the carriages and horses have not moved. We need to be cautious when deploying troops, and we should not alert the enemy."
Liu Qi asked, "What countermeasures does Yuan Zhi have?"
Xu Shu said, "For now, I have no choice but to go to Jincheng myself and try to rescue General Ma from danger first, and then join forces to avenge him."
"This is absolutely not allowed!" Liu Qi waved his hands and said, "Meng Qi has been trapped in Yuquan Mountain and is in a dilemma. If Yuan Zhi goes there again, wouldn't he be like a sheep walking into a tiger's mouth?"
Xu Shu smiled and said, "General, don't forget my origins. When I was traveling around the world, I also had the ability to fly over eaves and walk on walls. Although I haven't practiced it in recent years, I can go wherever General Ma Le can go."
Ma Le was overwhelmed with joy and said on his knees: "If the general and you can save my elder brother, you will be our Ma family's saviors. We are willing to be loyal to the Han Dynasty for generations."
Liu Qi helped Ma Le up, called Xu Shu to the back hall alone, and asked sternly, "Sir, how confident are you on this trip?"
Xu Shu said: "Don't worry, General. Even if I can't save Ma Chao, I have a plan to escape."
Liu Qi also wanted to gather the Five Tiger Generals. Moreover, Ma Chao had two generals, Pang De and Ma Dai, as well as the entire Xiliang territory. He patted Xu Shu on the shoulder and said, "Take care."
Xu Shu smiled and said, "A gentleman will die for his confidant! If the general hadn't taken me in, I would have been nothing more than a prodigal son. A man of honor is lucky to meet a wise master and be able to display all he has learned in his life! I have no regrets in this life!"