"Thank you, sir, thank you, general." The old man quickly thanked Wang Han after seeing that he had killed the young man, and then said anxiously, "Gentlemen, you should leave quickly. Now that someone has died, the government troops will be here soon."
"Let one scoundrel die, no need to panic." Wang Han shook his head, not taking the matter of killing the scoundrel to heart at all, and instead asked the old man a completely unrelated question: "Old man, do you know how to farm?"
"Farming?" Cao Cao looked at Wang Han curiously, wondering why Wang Han would ask such a question.
The old man looked at Wang Han, wondering why he would ask such a question, but he still answered honestly: "Sir, my family has been making a living by helping others farm for generations. We don't have any other skills, but we are very good at farming. Unfortunately, now that I am old, no one is willing to hire me to farm anymore. Now, my family has suffered a misfortune. My son and daughter-in-law have both passed away, and now I don't even have a place to live."
As he spoke, the old man couldn't help but shed tears.
"Old man, the deceased has passed away, please accept my condolences. You still have your granddaughter, so there is hope for the future." Wang Han comforted him, saying, "Why don't you bring your granddaughter with you and come work for me on the farm? I'll provide food, drink, and lodging, and I'll even pay you three times the normal wage. How about that?"
"Sir, are you really willing to hire me?" the old man asked excitedly upon hearing this. Fearing that Wang Han might change his mind, he quickly replied, "I don't want triple wages, nor do I need you to provide food and drink. I just want you to give me a shack to live in and some money so that my grandson and I won't starve to death."
"I, Wang Han, always keep my word," Wang Han nodded seriously. "As for the wages, three times is three times."
"I'm willing, I'm willing." Hearing this, the old man knew that Wang Han really wanted to hire him to farm, so he quickly knelt down and thanked him. "Thank you, sir, thank you, sir. I will never forget your great kindness."
"Thank you, sir, thank you, sir." The old man's granddaughter quickly knelt down with him to express their gratitude.
"Get up," Wang Han said, helping the old man to his feet. "Now follow me."
Seeing that the matter was over, Cao Cao said to Wang Han, "Lord Wang, now that this is settled, let's go to my camp for a drink. The remaining matters can be handled by my men." Wang Han was Xi Zhicai's lord, so Cao Cao addressed Wang Han as Lord Wang, treating him as an equal.
"General Cao, please." Wang Han gestured. The group then headed back towards Cao Cao's camp. The old man and his granddaughter quickly followed at the back of the group.
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Upon arriving at the military camp, Cao Cao immediately ordered people to cook food and serve wine, and also had several of his generals invited to drink with him.
After the dishes and wine were served, Cao Cao stood up and said to Wang Han, "Lord Wang, this cup of wine is a toast to you on behalf of the soldiers in our army. If it weren't for Mr. Wang Han's efforts in capturing Hulao Pass and Sishui Pass, we wouldn't have been able to reach Sishui Pass so quickly, and our soldiers would have suffered heavy losses."
The generals Cao Cao had summoned to drink with him also stood up and raised their cups, saying to Wang Han, "Lord Wang, we also toast you."
"General Cao," Wang Han said, standing up with a cup of wine in hand, "The traitor Dong Zhuo has seized the capital, causing widespread resentment and making everyone want to kill him. General Cao and the other lords raised troops to fight against Dong Zhuo, and you generals fought to the death on the battlefield. These are all heroic deeds of loyalty and righteousness. Let's toast each other with this cup of wine."
"Our achievements cannot compare to those of Lord Wang," Cao Cao said. "Please." After saying that, Cao Cao took the lead and drank the wine in one gulp.
"Please." Wang Han also drank the wine in one gulp.
Several of Cao Cao's generals also drank their wine in one gulp.
After refilling the cup, Cao Cao raised it again to Wang Han and Xi Zhicai and said, "Lord Wang, Brother Zhicai, this second cup is for you two. If it weren't for your reminders, I would probably have died at the hands of Dong Zhuo. You two have saved my life, so I'll drink this cup first as a sign of respect."
“Assassinating Dong Zhuo is a matter of loyalty and righteousness. General Cao’s actions are admirable. It is my honor to be able to help General Cao,” Wang Han said, raising his cup with Xi Zhicai to drink their second cup of wine.
After refilling the cup, Cao Cao raised it again to Wang Han and said, "Lord Wang, this third cup is a toast from Cao Cao to you..."
“General Cao, all this back and forth is so pointless, it just makes us seem distant,” Wang Han interrupted Cao Cao, saying, “Why don’t we sit down and have a good drink together, drink from big bowls and eat big chunks of meat? That would be much more enjoyable.”
"What Lord Wang said makes sense. It was my oversight. This does make us seem too distant." Cao Cao put down his wine cup and said, then ordered the soldiers serving him, "Men, take away all the wine cups and bring large bowls instead."
After sitting down again, Cao Cao drank with Wang Han and asked him, "Lord Wang, what is the situation in Luoyang now? What preparations has that scoundrel Dong Zhuo made?"
Upon hearing Cao Cao's question, everyone else pricked up their ears, waiting for Wang Han's answer.
Upon hearing this, Wang Han replied, "Dong Zhuo was killed by me two days ago, and his head was presented to Wang Yun. His Xiliang soldiers also left Luoyang with Lü Bu two days ago."
"Dong Zhuo is dead, and the Xiliang troops have left Luoyang." Upon hearing this, Cao Cao was greatly surprised and quickly asked, "Then what is the current situation in Luoyang?"
“Everything is in ruins and needs to be rebuilt.” Wang Han said, “When Dong Zhuo occupied the capital, he killed many loyal officials. Now that Dong Zhuo is dead and the Xiliang troops have left, only a few soldiers remain in Luoyang. Currently, the city is being guarded and maintained by the servants and guards of many ministers. The defenses are severely weak, and some places do not even have enough manpower.”
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