Bang!
A hand still smeared with dried blood slammed heavily onto the solid wooden table.
"Wretches! Wretches!!"
Cao Cao furiously pointed at the air before him, eyes wide and teeth bared, as though someone he utterly despised stood there. Besides Cao Cao, the tent held Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Xiahou Dun, and Xiahou Yuan—all generals who had followed Cao Cao from the very beginning. There was also one young general: Li Shuangmu. They had all just come down from the battlefield, their armor still on and the bloodstains not yet washed away. But none of them had the mood to care about such things now.
No one spoke. Since the matter concerned the current Son of Heaven, "a son does not speak of his father's faults, nor does a subject expose his sovereign's wickedness." Even though they knew the Emperor's judgment had been unfair, they could only swallow their grievances. If word got out, it would only be worse for them all.
Cao Ren said, "Elder Brother, Yuan Shao is clearly framing us. He wants to use Yin Kuang and Wang Yue to falsely accuse us." Cao Cao let out a heavy sigh. "Even you can see the reason behind it. How could others fail to see it? It is only that His Majesty... I, Cao Mengde, believe I have wronged neither His Majesty above nor the common people below. Why must those wretches force me into disgrace? Heh!" Cao Cao gave a desolate, cold laugh. "I fear they saw that our achievements outshone theirs and stole their thunder."
Cao Hong snorted. "There are no more shameless people in this world than them. They do nothing but eat, drink, and amuse themselves in this great camp, never discussing military affairs. Yet when we kill enemies and earn merit, they grow