The Morning After
The next day was when the real battle began.
I returned to camp amid Cao Cao’s fierce praise and enthusiastic back-slapping.
Just then, Cao Ren and Xiahou Yuan grabbed me by the shoulders from both sides.
“Still burning up inside, aren’t you?”
“A little… yeah, I suppose I am.”
“That’s what happens after your first real fight. Right now the excitement of stabbing and slashing the enemy like a madman is still keeping you awake.”
“Some guys even start seeing the faces of the men they killed and go wild. I hope you don’t end up like that.”
It seemed Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren had stuck close to me after the first battle specifically to look after my mental state.
“Let me give you one piece of advice. Even though your blood is still boiling, you need to sleep deeply. Rest whenever you can.”
“Tomorrow you might be staring straight into hell. You won’t even be able to move your neck, and holding chopsticks will feel impossible.”
I understood exactly what they meant.
Right now I was riding across the battlefield in an extreme state of excitement, barely keeping myself moving.
Once that surge of adrenaline wore off after sleeping, my muscles would stiffen up and lock solid.
Both Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren seemed genuinely worried and kept offering advice.
“Don’t be satisfied with today. You’ll have to keep running beside Lord Mengde for at least another ten years. Think of today as just the first button.”
Cao Ren’s words were sincere.
But Xiahou Yuan was different.
“Hey now, Zixiao, why so serious? At a time like this you should just praise the boy for completing his mission safely.”
“When I first went into battle, who was the one who scolded me for being slow and clumsy even though I barely survived? Which Xiahou was that again?”
“You little brat, you’ve been holding onto that all this time?”
In the middle of all this, the two of them launched into another comedic routine and burst into loud laughter.
Anyway, this kind of atmosphere only appeared because we had won.
We had survived a truly terrifying battlefield, and now my two uncles were comforting me as family and giving me all the advice I could need.
“You did well. Go rest now.”
“Oh, and just in case—if you can’t put your armor on tomorrow morning, tell me. I’ll get you a lighter set.”
“Thank you, uncles.”
Once Cao Ren and Xiahou Yuan returned to their own tents, I quietly walked around the camp.
Now whenever the soldiers saw me they immediately raised their spears in salute.
“Young Master Cao, what brings you here?”
“Ah, I was just… taking a look around… I mean, I am looking around.”
“You may speak casually to us. If a mere soldier like me receives such polite speech from you, our lord will scold us.”
I had already been told this several times, so I decided to speak comfortably.
“So, any problems standing guard tonight?”
“No, sir. After the harsh beating they took, the enemy doesn’t seem to be thinking about a night raid.”
“Good.”
I told the soldier to keep up the good work on watch and continued my rounds through the camp.
Everywhere I went I heard the groans of wounded men receiving treatment, the laughter of soldiers boasting about their feats that day, and all kinds of other sounds.
After making my way around the entire encampment, I finally headed back toward my own tent.
Near my tent, a group of men had lit a campfire and were sharing drinks.
“Your spear work today was magnificent. Let’s have a proper talk about it.”
“Your crescent blade was impressive too. You cut through the enemy like harvesting wheat.”
They were very familiar faces.
Weren’t these the two lieutenants who had fought alongside me today while crushing Yuan Shu’s army?
“You two over there!”
“!?”
“Ah, Young Master.”
I greeted them a little late.
After the intense fighting, they looked just as haggard as I did.
But without them, I would have died several times over today.
“Cao Xiu offers his sincere gratitude to both of you.”
“Young Master, please speak casually. We have been officially assigned to your unit.”
“Ah, so my uncle assigned these two to me!”
“Our lord was very pleased with today’s battle. He said he will entrust you to us again tomorrow as well.”
So Cao Cao had arranged it after seeing what happened.
Of course. When his nephew charged straight into the fray, he would naturally assign the strongest soldiers to protect me.
“Now that I think about it, I never even learned the names of the two officers who performed so brilliantly today. Would you tell me?”
The man who wielded the spear skillfully and had stayed at my side explaining the flow of battle the entire time clasped his hands and introduced himself.
“I am from Shanyang in Yan Province. My surname is Li, given name is Zheng, courtesy name is Bosheng.”
Li Zheng? Not Li Dian?
“May I ask about your family?”
“My father is Li Jian, the magistrate of Juye County in Shanyang. I also have a cousin who only studies literature. His name is Dian.”
Ah… so this was Li Dian’s cousin, Li Zheng. Now I understood.
In the original history, the Li family was a martial clan, and while Li Dian would later become a famous general, as a youth he had avoided martial arts and devoted himself entirely to scholarship.
Hearing about Li Zheng, his older cousin, it seemed the story was accurate.
“I have heard much about your father. He helped my uncle during the Yellow Turban campaign, correct?”
“Yes. He gathered several hundred righteous and chivalrous men to assist Lord Mengde, who was then the magistrate. He currently serves well as the county magistrate of his hometown.”
“For a man like that to serve as my lieutenant with no official rank…”
“Please do not say such things. I too am currently nothing more than a common cavalryman.”
Even though he said that, I made a mental note to remember the general named Li Zheng.
If Li Dian eventually entered service, the two cousins would likely excel—one in martial prowess and the other in strategy.
“Then what about the gentleman who wielded that crescent blade so well?”
“This humble one is from Dong Commandery in Yan Province. My surname is Yue, given name is Jin.”
Yue Jin. So this was indeed Yue Jin!
Just as the records described, he was short in stature, yet through sheer bravery alone he had risen from an ordinary soldier in Cao Cao’s army all the way to general and advisor.
“It is truly delightful to meet two future generals today. I would love to share a drink with you.”
“We already prepared some.”
Li Zheng brought out a fresh jar of wine.
“Our lord commanded that if the young master cannot sleep tonight and seeks wine, we are to give it to him.”
Cao Cao really had me completely figured out.
Thanks to that, I was able to drink with Li Zheng and Yue Jin and talk at length about the day’s battle.
It was only when dawn approached that I finally fell asleep.
The following morning.
Just as Cao Ren and Xiahou Yuan had warned, my entire body ached and my head throbbed, but after drinking a cup of water I immediately headed to the strategy meeting.
Cao Cao and the other generals, seemingly made of iron, had risen early without any issue and were already preparing for the meeting.
Cao Ren in particular looked at me with an expression that clearly said, ‘See? I told you your whole body would hurt.’
“My lord, it seems the enemy general that Young Master Cao personally fought yesterday was quite a big fish.”
“Cheng Yu, what do you mean? Did Wenlie almost take down Yuan Shu himself yesterday?”
“Not Yuan Shu, but he inflicted serious injuries on his son.”
Wait—Yuan Shu’s son was seriously wounded?
The image of the young general who had charged at me yesterday flashed through my mind.
I had been about to strike him when someone shot an arrow that brought down my horse. In that same moment I had stabbed his horse, knocking him to the ground as well.
“Now that I think about it, some of his men were calling him ‘Young Master’…”
“Then the general that Young Master Cao nearly killed yesterday was Yuan Shu’s son? Hah, what a wasted opportunity.”
Cao Hong clicked his tongue and shook his head as if he were the one who had missed the chance.
Indeed. If we had killed not just any general but the commander’s own son while he led a great army, the enemy’s internal chaos would have been uncontrollable.
This would have dealt the enemy a far greater blow than simply killing a famous general.
“If it’s Yuan Shu’s son… would that be Yuan Yao?”
It seemed Cao Cao knew the name as well.
And Cheng Yu, despite our unfavorable situation, reported with a bright smile.
“My lord, this may actually be for the best.”
“We didn’t even kill the enemy general. How is that good?”
“My lord, Yuan Shu is a member of the prestigious Yuan clan of the Four Generations and Three Dukes. His love for family is particularly strong. If Young Master Cao had killed his son Yuan Yao yesterday, he would have flown into a rage and charged at us without regard for anything. But since the boy was only injured and barely survived, is that not better?”
At that moment, even Cao Cao understood.
“So because his son is injured, he won’t recklessly move his army and will instead cower like a turtle in its shell?”
“Given Yuan Shu’s personality, that is highly likely.”
“Hah! What a pathetic man, dragging his own child onto the battlefield and then acting like this? If you lose one son, you can always make another.”
…Um. I could understand if it came from any other general, but why did the words ‘if you lose a son, just have another’ sound so terrifying when Cao Cao said them?
Having heard this, Cao Cao made his decision.
“Good. We’ll give Gongsun Zan another beating and then return to Yan Province tonight.”
“What? Brother Mengde, no matter what, do you really think Yuan Shu will just sit back and watch from the rear?”
“Didn’t you hear Cheng Yu? That coward will probably see us marching past and simply assume we’re retreating. Besides, Tao Qian is holed up inside the city walls. If we just beat Gongsun Zan, that’s the end of it.”
Cao Cao was full of confidence.
When Cao Hong, Cao Ren, and Xiahou Yuan moved to act, he spoke again.
“Today I will lead the vanguard myself.”
“My lord, you intend to take the field personally?”
“Gongsun Zan always boasts that his cavalry is the best in the Han Empire. That northern bumpkin doesn’t understand the world at all. How dare he say such things when I have my prized iron cavalry?”
His competitive spirit had flared up again.
Cao Cao declared that he would personally lead his cavalry and crush Gongsun Zan’s so-called elite horsemen.
“Wenlie.”
“Yes, Uncle.”
“You will be in charge of organizing the main camp today. Pack the baggage in advance with Cheng Yu so that once I return after routing Gongsun Zan, we can head straight back to Yan Province.”
“Uh… yes…”
“What’s with that face?”
Cao Cao looked at me with a strange expression.
“You’re not thinking something blasphemous like ‘What if he loses and comes back? Then we’ll have to unpack all the baggage we prepared for retreat,’ are you?”
“N-no, of course not!”
I received Cao Cao’s next order.
One thing was certain—we would be returning to Yan Province tonight.