If You Follow Me, Everyone Can Live
I wrote two letters and handed them to Dian Wei.
“Deliver these to Lord Cao in Hongnong.”
“Understood, young lord.”
The first letter detailed everything that had happened since I infiltrated Chang’an. That one was to be delivered directly to Cao Cao.
A response would likely arrive from Chenliu within ten days.
The second letter outlined what Dian Wei needed to do once he reached Hongnong. Beyond simply gathering brave fighters, I instructed him to prepare several items I had arranged in advance before entering the capital. These were things that would prove extremely useful if the Emperor attempted to escape.
I had already sketched out the broad strokes of the plan. From here on, I needed to carefully observe the people around me.
“According to the genealogy Lord Cao Song gave me…”
I examined the document for a moment, then folded it again after some thought. When I considered it rationally, the people who would actually accompany the Emperor were something Dong Cheng would arrange himself. He wasn’t the type to charge ahead without any plan, simply rounding up fighters and attempting a blind escape.
Two days later, I received an invitation from Dong Cheng and went to meet him. Today, however, things felt different from before.
“You may not carry weapons. Surrender your sword here.”
“Hmm~”
They hadn’t cared last time, yet now they wanted me to hand over my blade? I knew exactly what this was about. Without needing to see the situation, I simply passed over my sword and stepped inside.
As expected, several men besides Dong Cheng were waiting within. Every one of them had narrow shoulders and anxious eyes. These were not professional assassins or wandering warriors, but Han officials and scholars loyal to the Emperor’s faction.
“This humble one, Jeong Yun from the Wei merchant caravan, greets the lord.”
The moment Jeong Yun offered his greeting, I knew a sword would soon be drawn.
Shing!
They would press it to my throat and shout, ‘You traitor! So you were the one who attacked the government troops and turned Chang’an upside down!’
“You bastard, we’ve finally caught you. You were the one behind the attack on the government forces that threw Chang’an into chaos, weren’t you?”
It was slightly different from what I expected, but close enough.
“M-my lord, why are you doing this? What have we done wrong…?”
“Silence! That man over there with the fake beard is the mastermind who sowed disorder throughout the city!”
Now I had two choices.
The first was to laugh boldly and wildly like characters in historical dramas, intimidating them into submission. The second was to stay silent, and if they actually tried to swing at me, punch Dong Cheng in the mouth, steal a blade, and fight my way out.
The latter was only for when they genuinely looked ready to strike. For now, the former was the way.
“Haha… Hahahahaha!”
“This scoundrel dares to laugh?”
“I thought a few loyal subjects still remained in Han, but it seems everyone here is nothing but a sycophant rubbing their hands like the thieves Li Jue and Guo Si.”
“What did you just say, you wretch?”
Dong Cheng raised his sword toward me. Want to bet? He absolutely wouldn’t swing it.
“I came because I heard a righteous hero who possesses true chivalry had been summoned, yet this is what greets me? I’ve wasted my journey.”
“You bastard!”
Should I have added some ad-libbed flair, like closing my eyes dramatically? As expected, the blade never reached me. It simply clattered to the floor.
“Uhahaha! Hahahahahaha!”
The Three Kingdoms media really were all masterpieces. Copying a scene once and it actually worked perfectly.
“Everyone, behold. A truly remarkable hero of righteousness has arrived.”
“Ohh, what an impressive warrior.”
“Lord Dong, this man can be trusted.”
Good, good. That’s how it should be.
“Forgive this man’s rudeness. I merely wished to confirm whether you were one of Li Jue and Guo Si’s agents.”
“I understand. So what is the reason you have summoned men of my profession?”
Dong Cheng finally began speaking in earnest. To ensure the matter would never leak, he had the mansion’s guards increase their patrols while whispering the details two and three times over.
“We intend to fulfill Heaven’s will here in Chang’an.”
“What is this Heaven’s will?”
“The Son of Heaven… In other words, we will help His Majesty the Emperor escape from Chang’an.”
“Is that even possible?”
When I deliberately asked to hear the plan, Dong Cheng immediately laid out the operation.
“In five days, His Majesty will travel to Hongnong. The official reason is to pay respects at the tomb of King Huai, His Majesty’s elder brother.”
King Huai was the posthumous title of the former Emperor Shao, the older brother of Emperor Xian who had been deposed by Dong Zhuo. So the Emperor would use the pretext of visiting his brother’s tomb to slip out of Chang’an.
“Of course, General of Agile Cavalry Zhang Ji, who controls Hongnong, will lead troops to watch over His Majesty. But we will seize a gap in their surveillance and execute the escape.”
“Do you have a method for the escape?”
“The moment we leave Hongnong territory, new forces will join us.”
“Who are they?”
“That… I cannot say.”
I see. So even Dong Cheng’s faction had made their own preparations for the Emperor’s escape. I had wondered how they planned to shake off Zhang Ji’s army, but it seemed other parties would intervene at that point.
What was certain was that these would not be regular troops. Yuan Shao? He had never recognized Emperor Xian, whom Dong Zhuo had enthroned, and had instead tried to install Liu Yu of Youzhou as rival emperor. Yuan Shu? By now he would have obtained the Imperial Jade Seal and was probably prancing about, deluding himself that he was the true Emperor. Liu Biao? He stayed shut inside Jingzhou acting like the king of his own little realm, despite sharing the Liu surname. Would the Emperor’s presence even appeal to him? Sun Ce? I’d tell him and Zhou Yu to go explore the Jiangdong region. They couldn’t expand their power much further anyway.
In short, even if Dong Cheng helped the Emperor escape, very few warlords could actually be used. I had a rough idea which faction it might be. Since I already knew, I decided not to mention the ‘contingency’ our side was preparing either.
Eventually something would go wrong midway. When that moment came, I would simply move according to my own plan.
“The imperial carriage will move in five days. Coordinate your actions accordingly.”
“Understood. In return, please arrange it so that my group can join naturally.”
“Mmm, very well. However, the details of the imperial procession are strictly confidential. The moment this leaks, everything will be for naught.”
“That goes without saying!”
After confirming the plan with Dong Cheng, I left the residence. On the way back, I went to meet her. Wenji… or rather, at this time she was known as Zhaoji?
I arrived naturally at Cai Yan’s home. The door opened, and she greeted me with a smile.
“Please come inside.”
“Ah, that merchant is here again…?”
“Jeonghui. We have a guest. Bring some tea.”
Cai Lin saw me, muttered something about a “merchant,” and went inside.
Once inside Cai Yan’s room, I got straight to the point.
“Have Li Jue and Guo Si’s subordinates continued to harass you these past days?”
“…”
Cai Yan simply offered a serene, Buddha-like smile without answering. When the tea arrived shortly after, her younger sister Cai Lin asked slyly.
“Did you bring any rare ornaments today as well?”
“Ah, not this time, but I’ll find some for you later.”
She had taken all the valuable gifts meant for her sister last time too. The girl certainly had quite the appetite for fine things. Regardless, I made my proposal to Cai Yan again.
“I will speak directly. In five days, a major event will occur in Chang’an. Would you leave this place with me and use that opportunity to depart together?”
“…”
“What are you saying!”
Cai Lin, who had been handing over the tea, burst out. Cai Yan gently rebuked her.
“If you remain here, those thieves Li Jue and Guo Si will eventually target you. A good opportunity has arisen, and I will protect you. Would you not consider taking shelter with me?”
“You introduced yourself as a merchant at first.”
“I am indeed a merchant. We will move together with the caravan.”
If she accepted the proposal now, Cai Yan would safely escape Chang’an. Her father Cai Yong was originally from Yan Province, and Cao Cao was not the sort of man to overlook that connection. Given Cao Cao’s deep appreciation for literary talent and powerful prose, he would welcome the daughter of the great Cai Yong with open arms.
And honestly… if I did not take her in, this woman’s fate was to be kidnapped during the Southern Xiongnu invasion when Chang’an was razed and become a concubine of a barbarian tribe. I could not possibly tolerate letting such a beautiful woman suffer such a miserable end.
“Merchant, you came here from the beginning targeting my sister, didn’t you?”
“Well, that’s not exactly—”
“They’re all the same. The Grand Marshal of Chang’an keeps leering at my sister so she can barely step outside, and now some merchant from outside is trying to seduce her and spirit her away. Just what are you planning to do with her?”
“Jeonghui.”
“Sister, how can you trust this man and leave with him? What if he has wicked intentions and tries to sell you to some rich patron of his caravan…”
“Jeonghui.”
“Why does everyone keep doing this to my sister!”
This girl… Cai Yan’s little sister.
I understood why she was raising such a fuss, but I couldn’t explain that I was actually planning to have her sister escape alongside the Emperor’s flight. That was confidential information.
Cai Yan looked at her agitated sister, then calmly took out an inkstone and handed it over without raising her voice.
“Jeonghui, could you go fill this with water?”
“This is Father’s inkstone… Yes, I’ll be right back.”
An inkstone. For some reason it made me think of the one back home. I wondered how Chen Gong was doing these days.
While Cai Lin was gone filling the inkstone, Cai Yan quietly brought out a desk, prepared the ink, and took up a brush and bamboo slip.
“To be honest, I am quite confused by your words. Could you write the reason I must leave this place in just one character?”
“Hmm, I’m not much of a literary man. Would two characters be acceptable instead of one?”
“That will be fine.”
Soon Cai Lin returned with the inkstone, gave me one last suspicious look, and left again. I ground the ink, lifted the brush, and wrote the first character.
天
Heaven. The character for the Son of Heaven.
衛
Guard. As in the Wei General who protects the Emperor.
“There. Those two characters.”
“…Indeed. I understand perfectly what you mean.”
“Five days from now, at dawn.”
Cai Yan truly was an intelligent woman with exceptionally quick wits.
“And this…”
“I will keep my sister’s mouth shut. If any dangerous words slip out, I do not usually raise my voice, but for her sake I will do so once.”
Hearing those words, I took her hand.
“…Ah?”
“In five days, let us leave safely together.”
At that moment, Cai Yan gave me a radiant smile and nodded, then saw me off with perfect courtesy once more.
Five days later.
Every citizen in Chang’an prostrated themselves as the imperial carriage of the Son of Heaven emerged. Dong Cheng, the Emperor’s father-in-law and General of the Peaceful Army, led the escort, and our group was among the procession.
A massive man blocked their path. I had never seen anyone fatter than Xi Zhicai of Yan Province. His bulk wasn’t muscle but pure fat; even in armor his belly strained against it, and the way he kept rubbing his gut was utterly unsightly. That was Li Jue. Beside him stood Guo Si, relatively tall and thin, twisting his pathetic excuse for a beard.
“The Emperor is taking his carriage to Hongnong?”
“Grand Marshal, as I have already explained, His Majesty is going to pay respects at the tomb of King Huai in Hongnong.”
“Mmm… Wait! Isn’t that Cai Bojie’s daughter over there?”
“…”
Cai Yan, whom I had brought along, silently bowed her head toward Li Jue.
“Why are you taking Cai Bojie’s daughter with you?”
“T-that is… Was not Lord Cai the greatest calligrapher of Han? His Majesty wishes for a memorial inscription to be written during the visit to his late brother’s tomb, and so he asked that the daughter compose it.”
“Hmmmm?”
“Is not Lord Cai’s daughter also a literary talent despite being a woman?”
Li Jue stared with suspicious eyes, then snorted and waved his hand dismissively.
“All this fuss just to visit a dead man’s tomb. Writing a few words on a grave—how exactly is that supposed to bring blessings to the deceased?”
Wow, listen to how rude Li Jue is. Even so, to speak that way in front of the imperial carriage?
“Never mind that. I told you to come to my house, damn it! General Dong, after the memorial service, the imperial carriage must return quickly.”
“Y-yes, of course. How could it be otherwise?”
“Remember this well. If you entertain any foolish thoughts, Zhang Ji who travels with you will drag you back by the collar.”
“Haha, I have no such thoughts.”
“Be gone!”
After the clumsy excuse, Li Jue simply let us pass. Guo Si merely twisted his beard and gestured. Even as we left Chang’an’s gates, the two continued muttering to each other.
“Guo Si, control your subordinates properly.”
“Come now, Grand Marshal! None of my men did that. On the contrary, your men beat up my boys first.”
“What did you say? Are you suspecting my men now?”
Yes, keep at it. Stay in Chang’an and keep bickering like that, you fools.
And so, traveling with the Wei merchant caravan after spending my time productively in Chang’an, I escorted the imperial carriage and departed for Hongnong.
The moment we arrived in Hongnong, the real operation would begin.