Zhang He's current state of mind is not because of excitement, but because of fear.

He was afraid of what Cao Pi said to him now, because he was testing him.

In fact, Zhang He understood correctly, Cao Pi was indeed testing him.

After Cao Pi asked Zhang He what he had said, he leaned back on the throne and looked at Zhang He with a scrutinizing gaze.

He was observing Zhang He's reaction after hearing what he said.

While Cao Pi looked at Zhang He with his eyes, he also recalled Zhang He's past in his mind.

"Wei has good generals, and the five sons are the first."

This sentence was a saying that was circulated throughout the Wei army at that time. This sentence represents the five generals with different surnames who made great achievements in the Wei army.

And since Zhang Heneng was rated as one of the five good generals by the armies, his past military exploits are certainly impressive.

Zhang He's earliest military experience can be traced back to the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Today, decades later, few people can possess such military experience.

And not to mention Zhang He's numerous military exploits after following Cao Cao, let's just say that Zhang He was also a famous general who made many military exploits when he was under Han Fu and Yuan Shao.

Originally, Cao Cao should have thought highly of such a famous general when he was alive, but this was not the case.

When Cao Cao was alive, the other four generals among the five good generals all had many instances of acting independently, but Zhang He had almost none.

And the most important thing is that among the five good generals, Zhang He was the last general who was granted the power of falsehood by Cao Cao.

Even the reason why Cao Cao granted Zhang He the power of holiday was not sincere at all. It was a helpless move to stabilize the situation in Hanzhong after Xia Houyuan's death.

It can be seen from this that in Cao Cao's mind, he did not trust Zhang He at all.

However, Cao Cao's distrust of Zhang He was not simply due to Zhang He's status as a surrendered general.

Because Zhang Liao and Xu Huang were both demoted generals, they did not receive such treatment from Cao Cao.

The reason why Zhang He has never been trusted by Cao Cao is because Zhang He was one of the main culprits in Yuan Shao's defeat of Guandu.

During the Battle of Guandu, Cao Cao adopted Xu You's strategy and personally led his army to a surprise attack on Wuchao, burning most of the food and fodder of Yuan Shao's army.

However, the burning of Wuchao would not directly cause Yuan's army to immediately collapse.

According to common sense, there must be enough food and grass in Yuan Jun's camp to last for several days.

Moreover, the main force of Yuan's army was still there at that time.

In this case, even if all Wuchao's food and grass were burned, Yuan Shao could retreat to the city behind under the cover of the main force.

It was precisely because of this last escape route that Yuan Shao adopted Guo Tu's strategy of besieging Wei and rescuing Zhao, and thought of sending Zhang He and Gao Lan to lead heavy troops to attack Cao's camp.

This strategy seemed more like gambling at the time, but Yuan Shao was not a fool. He understood that gambling requires a certain amount of money.

What Yuan Shao didn't expect was that after he handed over the elites of Yuan's army to Zhang He and Gao Lan, these two trusted generals actually led most of the elites of Yuan's army to surrender to Cao's army.

Not only Yuan Shao didn't expect this scene, but Cao Hong didn't expect it either.

So when Zhang He and Gao Lan surrendered, Cao Hong did not dare to accept it at first.

When this news was transmitted back to Yuan Jun's camp, coupled with the impact of the burning of Wuchao's grain and grass, Yuan Jun's morale collapsed, and then Yuan Shao abandoned his army in a panic and fled.

"Shao's generals Zhang He and Gao Lan burned the attack and surrendered, so Shao abandoned his army and fled."

Among the five good generals, Xu Huang and Zhang Liao were also demoted, but at least they did not harm their original masters like this.

Therefore, compared to Xu Huang and Zhang Liao, Cao Cao never dared to entrust Zhang He with too much important responsibilities.

He doesn't want to become the second Yuan Shao.

Similarly, Cao Pi did not want to become the second Yuan Shao, especially when the situation inside and outside Wancheng is still unclear.

While Cao Pi was examining Zhang He's reaction, his fingers kept tapping on the armrest beside him.

When Cao Pi's slender fingers struck the support table, they made a pleasant crisp sound.

But when these sweet and crisp sounds reached Zhang He's ears, it made his mind shake even more.

He knew what kind of stains he had, so he never thought that one day he would gain the true trust of the Emperor of the Cao family.

Fortunately, Cao Cao had made similar examinations of Zhang He many times in the past when he was still alive.

As the saying goes, we take it for granted, so when faced with the current temptation in Cao Pi's words, Zhang He didn't show anything strange on his face.

He raised his head slightly and looked at Cao Pi with an increasingly respectful look.

Under this respectful look, a straight figure gradually curved.

Then a watertight answer came out of Zhang He's mouth.

"Your Majesty is wise, decisive, and transcendent. Everything depends on Your Majesty."

"He is Your Majesty's minister, and a minister's duty is to obey orders. It is not for me to comment on such remarks."

After Zhang He said his answer, not to mention Cao Pi, even Sima Yi who was standing aside couldn't help but raise his head and look at Zhang He.

Zhang He's answer was not the most perfect. If Sima Yi was asked this kind of question by Cao Pi, then Sima Yi's answer would definitely be better than Zhang He's.

But Zhang He's answer was the most suitable for him.

The discussants said that in order to stabilize the situation in Wancheng, Zhang He must be made a general.

Among Cao Wei's current talents, there may not be many who are confident in defeating the Han army.

But it is not difficult to find talents who can stabilize the situation in a county.

Since Zhang He is not the only candidate, of course no one would say such a thing given Zhang He's past.

Therefore, the debater mentioned by Cao Pi is completely fictitious.

What Cao Pi wanted was not Zhang He's answer, he wanted Zhang He's attitude.

So Zhang He clearly stated his attitude in his response.

Zhang He's attitude of being willing to keep his peace was exactly what Cao Pi wanted to hear.

Therefore, after Cao Pi heard Zhang He's answer, a hint of joy appeared on his face, and the scrutinizing gaze in his eyes suddenly disappeared.

Cao Pi, who had already made up his mind, finally gave Zhang He the treatment he deserved due to his status.

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "Qing Zhang, please take a seat."

After hearing Cao Pi's words, Zhang He knew that he had passed Cao Pi's test.

So with a long sigh of relief in his heart, he slowly came to the position pointed by Cao Pi and sat down.

After Zhang He sat down, Cao Pi immediately asked Zhang He: "Our army suffered heavy losses in the Xiangfan battle, and its morale is low. If the rebel army comes to attack Wancheng, does Zhang Qing have a strategy to resist it?"

Although Zhang He's loyalty cannot be completely trusted, Zhang He's ability is recognized.

The question Cao Pi asked Zhang He was what worried him the most at the moment.

When Cao Pi asked about this, Zhang He pondered for a while and replied: "The bandit army is now hoarding in the Xiangfan area. If they come to attack us from afar, they will be eager to fight. For this reason, our army will have the advantage of not fighting."

Zhang He's answer made Cao Pi nodded slightly.

Zhang He was a veteran general, and his views were consistent with those of Liu Ye, Sima Yi and others, which undoubtedly gave Cao Pi a little more confidence.

But Cao Pi was still a little worried.

Cao Pi asked Zhang He again: "If our army sticks to Wancheng without fighting, the enemy may attack other cities. If so, Nanyang will no longer exist."

The reason why Nanyang County has extremely important strategic significance in the world is because the dozens of counties within it are all prosperous counties, and most of them are in critical positions.

Cao Pi was already worried about the surrender of more than ten counties in the south of Nanyang County to the Han army.

So what Cao Pi is now worried about is that the Han army will attack all the other counties except Wancheng while the Wei army is defending Wancheng.

By then, the only county the Wei army would control in Nanyang County was Wancheng, and that was not a long-term solution.

Faced with Cao Pi's worries, Zhang He had already made plans in his mind.

Zhang He cupped his hands and faced Cao Pi and replied:

"The morale of the traitor army is at a high level, so our army should take the principle of not fighting. However, the soldiers are treacherous, so our army should choose another long-term strategy to control them.

The counties near Wancheng know that the army is close by, and the relationship is solid and will not be repeated. If the bandit army diverts and invades the surrounding counties, our army can set up guerrillas, and they will definitely be defeated."

Cao Pi heard Zhang He say that setting up guerrillas could defeat the Han army, and his interest was immediately aroused.

This was the first time he had heard of the term "ranging soldiers".

So Cao Pi looked curious and asked Zhang Hedao: "What are the guerrillas you mentioned?"

Seeing that Cao Pi was interested in the soldiers he mentioned, Zhang He's eyes showed a hint of pride.

The reason why he was able to rise through the ranks despite being jealous of Cao Cao was due to his outstanding military talents.

Moreover, his own military talents are different from those of the other four equally famous generals.

Under Cao Pi's curious gaze, Zhang He slowly raised his hands and replied:

"Wandering soldiers are said to have no fixed presence.

If you want to form a guerrilla army, you must have two preparations: one is a soldier who is sharp and can ride swiftly, and the other is a general who is brave and adaptable.

There are three ways to use Rangers:
To be continued...