The Entire Cao Clan Escorts the Son of Heaven
“Wenlie!”
“You’ve come at last, my friend!”
Cao Ang’s three thousand cavalry had finally driven off the White Wave Bandits. They rode in triumphantly, trumpeting their victory.
Cao Ang in particular leapt down from his horse and ran straight to me. I was so proud of him that I pulled him into a fierce embrace.
“You’ve done something truly remarkable. Rescuing the Son of Heaven from the traitors in Chang’an and escorting him all the way back to Luoyang… You really are the finest talent in the realm.”
“If you hadn’t come when you did, Zisu, things would have gone very badly.”
“It wasn’t only me. Right now Father, Grandfather, and our entire family are on their way to Luoyang.”
“All of them?”
Come to think of it, of course Cao Cao would come, but so would Lord Cao Song, who was still alive and well. He would pay his respects to the Emperor. Although he had long since retired from official life, he was still the former Grand Tutor.
The ranks of Grand Tutor, Grand Assistant, and Grand Preceptor were the most honorable positions one could hold, the equivalent of senior statesmen who advised the Emperor directly. To people well-versed in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, these were the offices Dong Zhuo had arrogantly claimed for himself, earning the nickname “Dong the Preceptor,” or the title Sima Yi had taken in his later years after rising above Grand General.
Below them were the Three Excellencies—Minister of War, Minister of the Masses, and Minister of Works—the vice-premier level offices. The “Minister of the Masses Wang Yun” famous from the story of Diaochan held one of those posts, and when Yuan Shao or Yuan Shu bitterly recited “the illustrious Yuan clan has produced three Excellencies across four generations,” this was what they meant.
Whether one spoke of the Grand Tutor, Grand Preceptor, and Grand Assistant or the Minister of War, Minister of the Masses, and Minister of Works, these were offices one rose to in due time. What truly mattered now was real military authority.
“I wish to pay my respects to His Majesty as well.”
“Zisu, then you had better remove that armor first.”
“Hm?”
“Have you forgotten? What it means to appear before the Emperor wearing armor.”
“Ah… yes, of course! I must take this off at once. You there, go fetch my court robe.”
“Yes, Left Commandant.”
Left Commandant? A commandant was an officer who handled security and defense under a provincial governor. It seemed the boy had received the post from Cao Cao while I was away.
Cao Ang hurriedly shed his armor, returned his bow and sword, donned his court robe, and neatly fastened his belt before going to meet the Emperor.
“General Dong, this is the eldest grandson of Lord Cao the Grand Tutor and the eldest son of the Inspector of Yan Province.”
“Oh? So the young general who came as our relief force is Lord Cao’s grandson? I shall inform His Majesty at once.”
When Dong Cheng led Cao Ang away for the audience, I finally let out a long breath, feeling as though the immediate crisis had passed.
“So that man is the Grand Tutor’s eldest grandson?”
“Indeed. He is both my friend and my kinsman.”
As Cai Yan nodded at those words, Cai Lin kept staring in the direction Cao Ang had gone.
“Wow…”
“Jeonghui, what is it?”
“That young master earlier… he was really…”
Why was her face suddenly bright red and her heart fluttering like that?
With Cao Ang’s troops guarding the imperial carriage, we were able to enter Luoyang. It was the same ruined wasteland we had passed through once before.
“Luoyang… the capital that Emperor Guangwu chose to last a thousand years…”
Many high officials, including Dong Cheng, shed tears. The Emperor himself wiped his eyes repeatedly with a complicated expression. This was the capital founded by the Han’s first emperor, the great Liu Bang of the early Han, and later rebuilt by Emperor Guangwu, the sixteenth ruler and founder of the restored Later Han.
Now, from Emperor Guangwu down to the current Emperor Xian, this capital had stood for fourteen generations only to be reduced to such ruins.
“Your Majesty, look over there!”
“Hmm?”
What the Emperor saw after drying his tears was Cao Cao’s army, tens of thousands strong. Inspector of Yan Province Cao Cao rode at their head, his crimson court robe fluttering. Riding beside him was the robust old man who could only be Cao Song. Behind them came Xiahou Dun, Cao Ren, and a long train of carriages carrying the entire household.
So the three generations of the Cao clan, along with all the branch families, had gathered?
Cao Song and Cao Cao dismounted and hurried forward, bowing according to proper ritual.
“Your Majesty, your subject Cao Song.”
“Commandant of Cavalry Cao Cao pays his respects to Your Majesty.”
“Ohh, Grand Tutor Cao… and the Commandant of Cavalry.”
The Emperor greeted them with genuine delight. Only then could the many officials and ministers breathe easily again.
“Your Majesty, this disloyal subject has finally been able to show himself before you.”
“Grand Tutor, do not speak so.”
The old man who, at home, spent his days enjoying wine and young concubines now prostrated himself before the Emperor, weeping openly like an untouchable elder statesman. Seeing that, one could truly understand whose son Cao Cao was.
“Your Majesty, your subject, Commandant of Cavalry Cao Cao, wishes to report. I have ordered my men to hastily repair what they could in Luoyang, preparing residences for Your Majesty and tents and quarters for the officials to rest. Though it may be uncomfortable, I shall attend upon you.”
“Do so.”
The imperial palace in Luoyang had long been reduced to ashes and the wells had run dry. In such conditions, the place Cao Cao had prepared for the imperial entourage was an old mansion.
It was reasonably large, and unlike the other burnt-out ruins, it had undergone some repairs. Even so, the work was only temporary; it was not a place one could stay for long.
“What is this place?”
“Your Majesty, this was once the residence where your subject lived with my late father. I ordered my son to prepare it in advance.”
“If you speak of your father… then this mansion belonged to Eunuch Cao?”
Seeing the Emperor’s surprise, Cao Cao simply smiled quietly.
As expected, Cao Cao had prepared meticulously. The temporary lodging he had chosen for the Son of Heaven was none other than the home of “Cao Teng.” Although the eunuch Cao Teng had been a palace attendant, he was the leader of the Polluted Faction, respected even by the Pure Faction, and through his adopted son Cao Song had essentially founded the Cao clan.
In other words, Cao Cao had placed the Emperor in the former residence of his grandfather, the eunuch Cao Teng, the very house where his father Cao Song had lived while serving as Grand Tutor.
“From now on, the armies of Yan Province shall guard Your Majesty. The other officials will also be shown to their quarters.”
“Do so.”
Cao Cao moved quickly.
“All right, everyone. We will pitch new tents around the temporary imperial palace where the Son of Heaven resides. In the meantime…”
Clap. Clap.
At Cao Cao’s two claps, soldiers appeared carrying large cauldrons. Steam rose gently from them—freshly heated food.
Cao Cao offered one cauldron to the Emperor and distributed the rest to the others, lifting the lids. Inside was a rich, appetizing meat stew.
“First we must fill our empty stomachs. Preparing proper resting places comes after that, does it not?”
Once Cao Cao arrived in Luoyang, everything proceeded smoothly.
Later, in one of the tents, a modest but heartfelt banquet was held to celebrate the victory.
“Aman, where is Father?”
“He is attending to greater matters. He said he would stay near the Son of Heaven’s palace together with Imperial Father-in-Law Dong Cheng.”
“So the temporary imperial palace was your grandfather’s old mansion.”
Xiahou Dun chuckled as he drained his cup, then called out to me.
“Wenlie!”
“Yes, Uncle!”
“Hahaha! Well done indeed. When I heard you had rescued the Son of Heaven and brought him here, I wondered if such a thing was even possible.”
It was praise from Xiahou Dun, the man who had saved my life. The Xiahou Dun before me now wore a bandage covering one side of his face, including the eye he had lost.
“Uncle Yuanyang, your eye…”
“Ah, this? The vision is blurry and unfocused, so I simply cover it. It will make aiming a bow easier, no?”
He spoke lightly of closing one eye when drawing a bow, but the wound had been taken to protect me. It still weighed on my heart.
“Still, you have accomplished the feat of saving even the Son of Heaven. If you think about it, my one eye has allowed me to save both the greatest talent of the Cao clan and the Emperor himself!”
“Xiahou Dun, that is an assessment entirely like you.”
Cao Cao slapped his knee and burst into roaring laughter. Then he beckoned me closer, took my hand in a firm grip, and patted it warmly.
“Wenlie, once again I have become known thanks to your merits.”
“Not at all. It was only possible because Uncle drew the larger picture and set things in motion.”
“Mmm, mmm. There is no need for such modesty. I have been thinking about what reward to give you when you returned.”
I was looking forward to that as well.
Cao Cao kept holding my hand as he asked, “Wenlie, are you not close with my eldest son?”
“Yes. Zisu is my friend.”
“From now on it will be different.”
“Pardon?”
“You know my second son, do you not?”
“Is it not Lord Pi?”
“Do you know his courtesy name?”
“I have heard it is Zihuan.”
“Zixiu, Zihuan, Zidan, Ziwen, Zijian…”
All of Cao Cao’s sons used the generational character “Zi” in their courtesy names.
“Wenlie is a fine name, but I have decided to bestow a new courtesy name upon you. From now on, I shall call you Zilie.”
“?!”
“Good heavens, what a greedy fellow for sons. First he adopted Cao Zidan (Cao Zhen), and now he’s making Cao Zilie?”
Just as Xiahou Dun said, Cao Cao had personally granted me a courtesy name using the same generational character as his own sons.
What could this possibly mean?
“Uncle, I am truly grateful that you have bestowed a new courtesy name upon me.”
“I will treat you as my own son from now on. Get along with Zisu like brothers.”
“Yes, Eldest Uncle.”
It was then.
“Father, it is Zisu.”
“Enter.”
When the door opened and Cao Ang saw me sitting close beside Cao Cao, he offered a respectful greeting and immediately made his report.
“Father, we have built a new barracks. We have also prepared quarters there for Mother and the other aunts.”
“Good. Guard that place well for the time being. In Luoyang the voices of women will soon grow louder.”
I had wondered why Cao Cao had brought Lady Ding. By building barracks and housing them there, he intended to gather the wives of high officials among the refugee Luoyang gentry and unite them under Lady Ding’s leadership.
After all, it was not only men who had come. The wives and children of loyal subjects had accompanied them. If Lady Ding embraced them all, it would become a considerable source of strength.
“Zisu!”
“Yes, Father.”
“I have just bestowed the courtesy name Zilie upon this fellow. Do you understand what that means?”
Cao Ang offered me a formal bow as well. Well, whether as friends or as brothers, it was all good. Wine could not be absent from such an occasion, and that night we drank heavily. Because it was a gathering to honor our hard labors, we drank even more.
At dawn Xiahou Dun left first to stand night watch, and Cao Ang went to inspect the quarters where his mother and the rest of the household were staying.
“Zilie.”
“Yes, Uncle.”
“While coming here I learned that you rescued Scholar Cai’s daughters. Is that true?”
“It is. By fortunate coincidence, our fates were linked.”
“Those are fine words indeed.”
Cao Cao was swaying, cup in hand, clearly drunk. It had been a long time since this man had allowed himself to become so intoxicated in a city where the Son of Heaven resided.
“Scholar Cai Bojie was a literary giant of our age. I once even tried to copy his calligraphy with a brush made from his own hair.”
“Yes, I have heard the stories many times.”
“Seeing his eldest daughter Sohui again after so long fills me with fresh emotion. When Scholar Cai met misfortune, I promised that as a fellow native of Yan Province I would become the girl’s guardian. Thanks to you, I have been able to meet her and protect her.”
So there had been such a connection? It made sense; both Cai Yong and Cao Cao came from Chenliu Commandery in Yan Province, so they were from the same region.
“Even as a child she was a clever girl who could tune a zither just by listening to its sound. Yet I cannot fathom why her fate has been so cruel.”
“…”
“She was betrothed to the son of the illustrious Wei clan of Hedong in Sili Province. Who could have known the boy would be so worthless? He died young before they could even live as husband and wife.”
It was a matter recorded in the histories. At fifteen or sixteen the families had arranged the marriage, but the groom had died young.
“She could not even enjoy a proper married life, and then because of that Dong Zhuo bastard her whole family was held captive in Chang’an. She lost her father to Minister of the Masses Wang Yun… Ai, the poor child…”
Suddenly Cao Cao’s eyes grew red. He wiped them with a handkerchief. Here was Cao Cao, drunk, recounting the tragic story of an ill-fated woman with tears in his eyes.
“Zilie, what do you think?”
“Pardon?”
“I am asking whether you like such an ill-fated girl! I mean Sohui!”
“…!”
So this was his true aim.
If that was the case, I could answer at once.
“I like her very much. If you will permit it, I wish to take her as my own.”
“Then go.”
“Pardon?”
“Go find the girl at once. In recognition of your recent labors, I grant you ten days’ leave. Rest comfortably and speak with her at length during that time.”
At that moment I shot to my feet and bowed deeply to Cao Cao.
“Uncle, this unworthy one shall take his leave now.”
“Good! Zilie, I will say it once more. Sohui is truly a remarkable girl!”
With the same eyes that had grown moist earlier, Cao Cao gave me a meaningful wink.
Hah, Uncle. I will make the very best use of these ten days of leave!