Taishi Ci asked hurriedly: "Could it be that my guess is wrong?"
"No!" Yu Fan looked at Liu Qi, clasped his fists and said, "On the Mid-Autumn Festival, the general may encounter great disaster."
"Oh?" Liu Qi's eyes were slightly stern, and he asked, "Sir, are you saying that there might be an ambush in Ganlu Temple to assassinate me?"
"Impossible!" Taishi Ci shook his head and said, "The battle in Huainan severely damaged Jiangdong's vitality, and the Marquis of Wu had no choice but to negotiate peace with Cao Pi. How could he offend General Liu and bring disaster upon himself?"
Yu Fan stroked his beard and sneered, "I expect that they will start the fight during the banquet. By then, the Second Madam and Sun Zhongmou will be there. There is no need to harm the general's life. Instead, we can pin the blame on Cao Wei. This is a plan that kills two birds with one stone."
Liu Qi thought for a moment, nodded and said, "Sir, what you said is very true. They don't need to take my life. As long as they stab me, I will fight to the death to protect them, and I will get a personal favor. When I fight with Cao Pi, they will counterattack him and try to seize Jingzhou. When I am angry and furious, I am afraid I will not live longer than General Sun."
"What a deep plot!" When Taishi Ci mentioned the murder of Sun Ce, he gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice: "I have more than 200 trusted people in the upper reaches of Jiangdong. Why don't we strike first and attack the strong one? We can attack the mansion from inside and outside, capture the mother and son, and interrogate them strictly."
"No!" Liu Qi waved his hand and said, "Although you two are quite famous in Jiangdong, after all, Sun Quan is in power and has won the hearts of the people in Jiangdong. If you act like this, you will be guilty of rebellion and they will bite you back. It will be bad if you can't defend yourself."
Taishi Ci was furious and asked, "Are we going to let these two scheme against us?"
Liu Qi thought for a moment and said to the two, "If they really choose to start their attack at Ganlu Temple, I have a plan that can make this matter clear and the civil and military officials of Jiangdong convinced. I still need your full help."
Yu Fan clasped his fists and said, "General, please give me your orders. I will die for General Sun."
Taishi Ci even knelt on one knee and said: "General, if you can find out the injustice of Bo Fu and make this matter known to the world, I am willing to sacrifice my life for him."
Liu Qi helped Taishi Ci up and said with emotion: "On the day of the banquet, Jiangdong's famous scholars will definitely be present, but the commander-in-chief Zhou is far away in Qingzhou, and the most prestigious person in the army is none other than General Huang Lao. We need to invite him to Ganlu Temple to be a witness to stabilize the morale of the army and avoid causing chaos."
Yu Fan nodded and said, "That's what I was thinking. I will go to Huainan tomorrow and meet Huang Gongfu in secret. He is a veteran minister of Jiangdong for three generations. He is loyal, righteous and brave. I have my own way to invite him to Ganlu Temple."
Taishi Ci said, "According to my secret observation, there is a hidden mechanism in the garden of the second lady in the backyard of the Marquis's mansion. It is extremely secretive and I am afraid that even Sun Quan may not know about it. On the day of the banquet, I will personally lead people to investigate and get to the bottom of it."
Liu Qi smiled and said, "Why should the general personally handle such a small matter? Among my guards, there are people who are good at mechanical devices and hidden weapons. They can assist Master Taishi."
Taishi Ci said anxiously: "This matter concerns the safety of Jiangdong and the reputation of the Sun family. How can I sit idly by?"
"My plan relies entirely on the general's leadership," Liu Qi said slowly, "On the night of the full moon, in Ganlu Temple, the Overlord was reborn, an injustice that will last forever!"
Taishi Ci clasped his fists and asked, "What's the plan?"
Liu Qi said: "More haste, less speed. The general needs to practice a skill before he can act according to the plan. I am afraid that the general is too old..."
"A real man should go through fire and water for his friends. Why fear life and death?" Taishi Ci was displeased and raised his hand to interrupt Liu Qi, saying proudly, "I have been practicing martial arts since I was twelve years old, without stopping every day, so I can master many weapons. General, you can tell me, maybe I have already mastered it."
Liu Qi smiled confidently and asked, "General, do you know how to hang on wires?"
"Uh..." Taishi Ci was startled and frowned, "Don't even mention that you can do it. I've never heard of it before. May I ask what kind of skill it is?"
Liu Qi smiled and said, "This is the art of flying. General, you have never heard of it."
“Fly?” Taishi Ci was shocked, then laughed and said, “I can fight on foot, on horseback, and on water, but I have never flown. If I can learn this skill and redress Bo Fu’s injustice, I will die without regrets!”
Yu Fan frowned and said, "It takes years to learn a skill. Since it is the art of flying, I am afraid it will be difficult to master it in one go. There are only a few days left. General, are you sure?"
Liu Qiyan said: "It may be a little dangerous. You need to master some skills and practice a few times."
Taishi Ci was already eager to try, and said loudly: "Although I am old, my bones are not old, so don't worry!"
As they were discussing their plans, Shi A knocked on the door and said, "Zhang Zhao's son Zhang Cheng is here to visit."
Liu Qi was a little surprised. "I had a disagreement with Zhang Zhao about resisting Cao before, and we had quite a lot of prejudices. Why did you come to visit me today?"
Yu Fan stroked his beard and said, "Most of the scholars in Jiangdong only seek to protect themselves and live in peace. In the past, when Cao Cao stabilized the north and was feared by the world, Zhang Zhao and others did not want to get into trouble, so they naturally opposed sending troops. Now the situation has changed drastically, and Cao is about to be defeated, so they must have come to show goodwill. Now is the time to win people's hearts. If we can get Zhang Zhao's support during the banquet, we will definitely get twice the result with half the effort."
Liu Qi nodded in understanding and said to Shi A, "Mr. Zhang is a gentleman who has come here without bearing any grudges. How can I, as a junior, be rude? Please come to the guesthouse quickly. I will see you off and then come back."
Liu Ji was immediately sent out, and everyone went to prepare, waiting for the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet to solve the mystery of Jiangdong in one fell swoop.
…
While the situation in the south of the Yangtze River was turbulent, the north was able to take a short break after years of fierce fighting. At the same time, news of Cao Cao's victory over the Xianbei and the destruction of Sushen was delivered to Yecheng, which gave Cao's army a shot in the arm.
When the civil and military officials in Cao's camp heard that Cao Cao would be returning to the capital soon, they were delighted. They all offered advice to Cao Pi, reporting to the emperor a reward for Cao Cao's achievements in the northern expedition and urging him to promote him to the title of King of Wei.
Only the Secretary of State Cui Yan strongly opposed it, arguing that Cao Cao's extermination of the alien races was a great achievement that would last for generations. Once he was promoted to a higher position, it would be considered an act of usurpation and would backfire.
"Old man, do you want to frame me for being disloyal and unfilial?" Cao Pi was furious and wanted to put him in prison, but he was afraid of Cui's prestige in Hebei, so he dismissed him and sent him back to his hometown.
Wei Feng, a native of Jiyin and a student of Cui Yan, saw him off. Cui Yan said with emotion: "The way of heaven is clear, but people's hearts are no longer the same. I have seen Cao Pi's heart, and everyone in the world knows it!"
Wei Feng advised: "Sir, you have a strong nature. Although you have done nothing wrong, you will not cause trouble. This is not the way to deal with troubled times! Go ahead without worry. I have my own plan to deal with it."
The next day, Cao Pi reported to the emperor that Cao Cao's achievements in stabilizing the border were comparable to those of Wei and Huo in the distant past, and Ban and Ma in the recent past. He should announce it to the whole country and let all the people sing praises.
The ministers also presented a memorial to Emperor Xian, highly praising the merits and virtues of Cao Cao, Duke of Wei, as being so great that even Yi and Zhou could not match him, and he should be promoted to the rank of king.
Emperor Xian dared not hesitate for a moment. Thinking of Liu Qi's name in his heart, he had no choice but to order Chen Lin to draft an edict, enthrone Cao Cao as the King of Wei, give him a crown with twelve tassels, ride in a golden and silver carriage, driven by six horses, and use the emperor's carriage and royal ceremonies to go out on patrol and enter the imperial carriage.
Cao Pi had the merit of defending the territory, and he also recommended to the king of Wei that Cao Cao be made the heir apparent as the eldest son, and take charge of the affairs of the Wei State. He ordered the construction of the Wei Palace in Handan, so that Cao Cao could manage the affairs of the palace when he returned.
All officials were promoted and rewarded, so it was decided to hold a grand banquet at the Bronze Sparrow Tower on the Mid-Autumn Festival, and on the night of the full moon, congratulate Cao Cao on his success in the northern expedition.