Journey to Yan Province
The rain poured down without mercy, turning the world into a blur of silver and crimson.
“Grand-Uncle, I will escort the entire family onto the carriages.”
“W-what in the world is….”
Cao Song still looked dazed as he allowed me to guide him into the nearest carriage. Behind us, his beloved concubines, Cao De, and Cao De’s wife were all loaded aboard as well.
“Was it a bandit raid? Where is General Tao Qian’s army?”
“Grand-Uncle, sir, General Tao Qian’s troops are the ones committing the robbery.”
“What? That bastard Tao Qian!”
Only then did Cao Song grasp the full truth. His face flushed with rage, but it was far too late. I had begged him not to accept Zhang Kai’s escort—why wouldn’t he listen?
“Hurry! We must leave this place at once or we’ll all die!”
“Wait! I don’t see my daughter!”
One of the clan members cried out desperately for his missing girl. He and his wife tried to break away toward the chaos where the wandering swordsmen and Tao Qian’s soldiers were clashing.
“It’s too dangerous!”
“No! My daughter is definitely over there. Just a moment—that’s all I need. Let me go!”
“We’ll all die if you do this!”
“I must save my daughter!”
While I struggled to restrain the stubborn elder and his wife, a loud shout cut through the downpour from behind us.
Xu Shu has returned carrying a child.
“Open the gate!!!”
“!?”
Xu Shu came sprinting through the rain and blood, a young girl clutched tightly in his arms. His clothes were soaked through with both rainwater and gore.
“Father!”
“D-daughter!”
So that was the girl they’d been searching for.
Xu Shu set the child down the moment he reached us. The young girl, barefoot on the muddy road, ran frantically into the arms of her sobbing parents.
“Go! Now!”
I cracked the whip across the backs of the two carriages loaded with dozens of Cao clan members. The startled horses reared, then bolted forward. Cao De took the reins of the second wagon and followed close behind.
The Cao Song family had been ambushed in a small village near Mount Tai. In the original history, they would have been stripped of everything and slaughtered to the last.
But my intervention had pulled them from the jaws of that hell.
I left the rest to Xu Shu and the swordsmen under his and Lu Su’s command and spurred my horse onward.
We rode like madmen through the storm until the horses finally collapsed from exhaustion.
The rain still hammered down relentlessly. My outer robes were drenched and heavy, making every movement a struggle.
“Haa… Is everyone safe?”
At my shout, the carriage door creaked open and Cao Song stepped out.
“Have we escaped those bandits, then?”
“We need to rest the horses first. How are the others?”
“Aigoo, we barely made it out alive.”
Cao Song flapped the hem of his robe and let out a long, exhausted sigh. The inside of the carriage was packed tighter than a jar of bean sprouts. We had crammed dozens of people into just two wagons and fled for our lives; it must have been pure torture.
“Once the horses catch their breath, we’ll move again. I know it’s uncomfortable, but please endure just a little longer.”
“My boy, Xiu.”
Cao Song crawled out of the cramped carriage with great difficulty and approached me.
“Sir, the rain is cold. Please stay inside.”
“No. Before we go any farther, I must understand exactly what is happening.”
Everything was already over, but since he asked, I had no choice but to explain.
“When I first left the capital and came to Langye to find you, I encountered many wandering swordsmen along the way.”
“Y-yes… But those men…”
“We came to escort you and the family, of course. We couldn’t trust the guards sent from Xu Province. Besides, that man named Zhang Kai was never actually one of Tao Qian’s subordinates to begin with.”
“So I was deceived… I thought they were my protectors when they were actually thieves.”
His realization had come far too late. Even if I had warned him that those men looked suspicious, he probably wouldn’t have listened. In the end, all we had managed to save were the lives of the Cao clan members.
“There were over a hundred carts filled with gold, silver, and treasures… Now all that remains are the few trinkets we wear on our bodies.”
Even as rain streamed down his face, Cao Song’s eyes reddened with grief.
“Still, everyone survived. That’s what matters. Let’s head to Yan Province first, seek shelter with the Inspector there, and regroup.”
“Yes… Aman won’t let those bastards get away with this.”
Aman was Cao Cao’s childhood name. In this era, using someone’s childhood name was something only the closest kin or blood relatives could do. Even the fearsome Cao Cao was still called “Aman” in front of his own father.
“Understood. First we reach Yan Province, then we plan our next move.”
I comforted Cao Song, helped him back into the carriage, and we set off once more. We rode through the remainder of the night, whipping the horses without rest, until the sun finally rose. Only then did we reach a small nearby village.
The moment we arrived, dozens of Cao clan members spilled out of the carriages and immediately demanded food. Even though it was nothing more than simple straw mats spread on the ground with bowls of rice and a few chopsticks, they devoured everything in desperate gulps.
“Innkeeper, bring more rice and side dishes!”
“Ah, yes!”
The innkeeper looked at the Cao family with pity, assuming they had encountered bandits on the road.
“Innkeeper, will this cover meals for forty people?”
“Aigoo~ That’s more than enough.”
When I handed him a silver ingot, the innkeeper’s face lit up with a bright smile and he tucked it away. Apparently the amount was quite generous; he brought out all kinds of side dishes and water, distributing them among the forty-odd family members. Only after their bellies were full could they finally breathe easy again.
“My lord! My lord!”
“Hm?”
At that moment, one of the villagers came running toward me in a panic.
“My lord, there are soldiers on horseback in the village. Are they with you?”
“Hm?”
I gripped my sword and rushed over, just in case. Fortunately, it wasn’t Tao Qian’s pursuit force—it was Xu Shu and his group.
“Brother Yuanzhi.”
“Wenlie, you escaped safely.”
Xu Shu’s newly purchased clothes from Xu Province were once again soaked in blood. The swordsmen around him were covered in wounds and gore, but they had somehow managed to survive.
“Is there a physician here? Treat these men immediately!”
The villagers, following my orders, brought hot water, cloth for bandages, and dried medicinal herbs, doing their best to tend to the injured.
Out of the twenty swordsmen, seven had lost their lives. The rest bore wounds both large and small.
“What happened to Zhang Kai’s troops?”
“After we retreated, the carts loaded with gold and silver vanished from Mount Tai. They must have taken them.”
In the end, the Cao family’s wealth had disappeared into someone else’s belly. Still, with the survivors intact, we should be able to reach Yan Province somehow.
“Once we arrive in Yan Province, I’ll settle the accounts. The shares for those who died will be sent separately to Master Lu Zijing.”
“I will make sure it is done.”
The surviving swordsmen agreed to accompany us the rest of the way to Yan Province. After resting in the village for several days, we set out again and finally reached our destination.
From there, everything went smoothly. When we arrived at Puyang in Yan Province looking like beggars, Inspector Zhang Miao greeted us in great haste. He then safely escorted us all the way to Chenliu City where Cao Cao was waiting.
In Chenliu, there stood a mansion even larger than the government offices—an estate so vast it rivaled a royal palace.
“We’re finally alive. I can breathe easy at last.”
Once in Yan Province, Cao Song changed into fresh silk robes, adorned himself splendidly, and entered the mansion with a triumphant air.
He gripped my hand tightly and walked beside me.
“Xiu, I will tell my Aman everything—how you saved our entire clan. He will surely value a talented member of the family like you.”
“Hahaha, thank you, sir.”
By rescuing Cao Song’s family, I had changed history. And since the surviving Cao Song intended to speak of my deeds, I had now firmly stamped my mark in Cao Cao’s eyes.
As we entered the mansion and the inner doors opened, a man came rushing forward.
“Father!!!”
“Ohh, Aman!”
The man who ran forward barefoot, grabbed both of Cao Song’s hands, and knelt deeply was none other than Cao Cao. Though small in stature, his voice carried tremendous presence.
When he lifted his head, I could see his face clearly. It wasn’t strikingly handsome, nor was it ugly. But those sharp, piercing eyes looked terrifying even at first glance, and his neatly trimmed beard gave him a blade-like intensity.
What an imposing presence. So this is the real Cao Cao?
“When I heard that Tao Qian sent men to attack our family in Xu Province, I was sick with worry.”
“Aman, I truly barely escaped with my life. If not for Wenlie here, we would all have become ghosts.”
“This young man…?”
Only then did Cao Cao turn to look at me. Even that slight glance carried overwhelming pressure.
“Aman, he is a member of our clan from Wu Commandery. He is the grandson of the court’s Grand Tutor, making him something like your ninth cousin.”
“…”
Cao Cao stared at me in silence. My heart pounded harder than it had during the river pirate attack or Tao Qian’s ambush.
“This child led a group of wandering swordsmen to protect me. He saved both me and our entire family from those bandits.”
“Ah, is that so?”
Cao Cao approached me immediately. Still seated, he looked me over carefully, then suddenly took my hand.
“Huh?!”
“Haha… Ahahahahahahaha!”
Without warning, Cao Cao grabbed my hand and burst into wild laughter.
“So our family still had such a hidden talent? What an impressive fellow.”
“Aman, this child saved all our lives.”
“Yes, Father. I understand perfectly.”
Cao Cao laughed even louder after hearing his father’s words.
From our very first meeting, I had captured Cao Cao’s profound interest.