The Plan of One Who Knows the Ending
Jian'an Year 3.
Cao Cao had mustered his army to crush the forces of Zhang Xiu in Wancheng, north of Jing Province—the same Zhang Xiu who enjoyed the backing of Liu Biao, Governor of Jing.
Fifty thousand men answered the call, every last one an elite soldier forged in bitter campaigns. While the entire camp threw itself into the frenzy of war preparations, I found myself inside one of the Wei clan's high-end courtesan houses.
I had not come to drink or indulge. I was here to speak with Wei Hong.
“You told the staff you had important matters to discuss with me, yet you haven’t touched a drop of wine?”
Wei Hong’s fingers flew across the abacus on the table, calculating the merchant group’s daily distribution volumes, revenues, and expenditures in real time. I watched her for a moment before speaking carefully.
“I hear the volume of goods your caravans move in a single day is staggering. And your merchants are spread across the entire realm?”
“Haven’t you already seen it for yourself, young lord?”
“Exactly. That’s why I’m asking—could you send additional people to Wancheng…?”
“If that is what you require, the Minister of Works has already dispatched agents.”
Of course Cao Cao had moved first. It wasn’t enough for him to use simple couriers; he had turned the entire Wei merchant network into a vast intelligence apparatus and was receiving separate reports.
Even so, it was not enough.
“Then could you add a few more on top of those already sent?”
“Why do you ask? Is there something urgent you need to know?”
“I must insist. Ideally, the agent should be a woman skilled in cosmetics and familiar with noble ladies’ jewelry—someone who can befriend the wives of the local gentry and the families of the commandery administrators in the Wancheng area and slip in as a spy.”
“May I ask the reason…?”
Wei Hong smiled as she spoke, but I could sense the suspicion behind her eyes. She was wondering whether I was acting independently without reporting to Cao Cao.
“All orders concerning our merchant group are reported to our lord, Minister Cao. Yet it seems you, young lord, are preparing something separately in place of your uncle.”
“Once the battle for Wancheng is over, I will report everything to my uncle myself. Until then, I ask for your discretion.”
“This is… unprecedented.”
Wei Hong pondered for a long while before offering her own compromise.
“Then let us do this. The second caravan, led by Zheng Yun, will soon pass through Jing Province to purchase local specialties—pheasant feathers, bear pelts, and the fine steel used for arrowheads. They will travel by way of Wancheng. I can embed the female spy you described, along with several other informants, within that group. I will also inform our lord that I am inserting a second intelligence cell.”
“Good. Please do so.”
I accepted Wei Hong’s carefully balanced proposal. In this particular matter, the truth was simply too absurd to explain—“you wouldn’t believe me even if I told you”—so this was the only way.
The key was to plant a female agent inside Wancheng who could make contact with Lady Qiu.
“Then I leave it in your hands.”
“As you wish, young lord.”
After entrusting the task to Wei Hong, I left the Wei clan’s courtesan house.
In truth, the upcoming Battle of Wancheng would likely become one of Cao Cao’s most humiliating defeats in the historical records. He would capture the city, accept Zhang Xiu’s surrender, and then grow far too complacent within the enemy’s former stronghold.
He would tour the camp with his ten-year-old son Cao Pi in tow. While Cao Ang, his eldest, and his nephew Cao Anmin stood guard, Cao Cao would hear that Zhang Xiu’s aunt, the widow Lady Qiu, was an unmatched beauty. He would then take her for himself—despite the fact that she was still in mourning, with her husband’s memorial tablet barely cold.
What came afterward was even more outrageous. When Zhang Xiu expressed his fury, Cao Cao would try to silence the surrendered warlord by secretly recruiting his generals. Zhang Xiu would discover the plot first.
Then came the enraged counterattack. Cao Cao would be caught completely off guard in Lady Qiu’s quarters, forced to flee in disgrace. Dian Wei would die holding off the enemy to buy time, while Cao Ang and Cao Anmin would both be slaughtered. The tale would even claim that the ten-year-old Cao Pi, dragged onto a real battlefield for the first time, would be psychologically scarred for life.
In short, Cao Cao would throw a victory banquet inside the enemy camp, seize the family of the man who had surrendered to him, attempt to murder everyone who complained, and end up losing his son, his nephew, and his strongest bodyguard before barely escaping with his life.
No matter how closely I followed the flow of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, I could not allow the tragedy of Lady Qiu and the Battle of Wancheng to unfold as written. That, above all else, had to change.
“For now, I’ll embed the female informants in Wancheng. Next…”
I returned home and sought out Lady Ding in the main courtyard.
I delivered a few carefully chosen words to her.
“Is that true?”
“Zihuan is only ten years old. Taking children to a battlefield under the excuse of ‘early education’ seems rather inappropriate.”
“Hah. You’re telling me my husband is in his right mind? How could he drag such young boys onto a battlefield… No, before that—taking Zisu, Zilie, Anmin, and now even the sons of Lady Bian? What possible use could he have for them?”
“Exactly my point.”
I had simply told Lady Ding the truth.
Lady Ding, my uncle says he’s taking Cao Pi—Zihuan—and Cao Zhen—Zidan—to the battlefield to show them what war is really like.
Of course she exploded with rage. The rest was predictable. That very evening, Cao Cao summoned me at once.
“Zilie.”
“Yes, Uncle.”
“Did you tell Lady Ding that I planned to bring Zidan and Zihuan to the battlefield?”
“Yes, I did.”
For a brief moment Cao Cao’s brows furrowed, but he soon nodded and asked.
“Why?”
“Uncle, showing children a battlefield at such a young age cannot be helped in these chaotic times. Even I understand that. But this particular campaign is different.”
“How so?”
“Not only will Zisu and I be going, but Anmin as well. Adding the sons of Lady Bian on top of that would be far too dangerous.”
“Then why didn’t you speak to me directly? Why go to my wife? Were you hoping she would scold me on your behalf?”
I smiled at him instead.
“Doesn’t this prove that Lady Ding has finally accepted Zihuan and Zidan as her own sons?”
“What?”
“She learned they were to be taken to the battlefield at such a tender age and immediately urged you not to bring them. Is that not the act of the true matriarch of the Cao clan?”
At that moment, the irritation that had been boiling inside Cao Cao after a thorough tongue-lashing from Lady Ding began to melt away. He nodded slowly.
“…Now that you mention it, that does make sense. She has always treated everyone except Zisu as outsiders, which has weighed on my heart. Yet here she is, trying to protect even the younger boys. Hmm…”
It sounded reasonable even to Cao Cao, which left him conflicted. He clearly wanted to snap at me, but because I had framed it this way, his thoughts had grown complicated.
“Tsk. Can’t be helped. I’ll have to wait until Zihuan and Zidan are older before taking them along.”
“A wise decision. At the very least, they should be sixteen before they learn what a battlefield truly is.”
Cao Pi was eleven this year, Cao Zhen fourteen. What possible meaning could there be in dragging boys that young onto a battlefield just to let them watch?
With that, I had successfully prevented female spies from being planted in Wancheng and blocked Cao Pi and Cao Zhen from participating in the campaign.
One more task remained.
“Hu Che’er? Who is that?”
“According to rumor, he is a ferocious general among ferocious generals who can cover eight hundred li in five days and wields an iron staff weighing over eighty jin.”
“Oh-ho! There’s a man like that? He would make an excellent target to offer to our lord.”
Late that night I visited Dian Wei’s residence and informed him that a monster called Hu Che’er existed among the warriors of Wancheng.
“Lately my uncle has been comparing you and Xu Zhongkang as potential chief bodyguards. Honestly, shouldn’t the strongest warrior in the army hold that position?”
“That’s true. That Xu Chu fellow lost to me, after all.”
Ever since Xu Chu had joined the army, Dian Wei had been quietly displeased by the constant comparisons.
“And what about that Guan Yunchang and Zhang Yide? I went out to show that long-bearded fellow I was stronger after our lord kept praising him, but…”
Dian Wei even harbored a strange sense of rivalry toward Guan Yu on top of Xu Chu.
“General Dian, Uncle Guan is…”
“Ah, my mistake. He is also your martial instructor, Zilie. It seems I’ve spoken ill of your master.”
This was exactly why I liked Dian Wei. He appeared direct and brutish, yet underneath it all he possessed a simple, honest heart.
“Anyway, you said his name was Hu Che’er? I will definitely capture that man during this campaign.”
“If we take the vanguard together, let us claim the heads of renowned generals.”
“Now that is a fine suggestion.”
Just then the wine ran out.
“Tsk, already? Oy, Dian Man! Go fetch another jar!”
When Dian Wei called for his son, the boy soon appeared carrying a fresh jar of wine. At fifteen years old, he was already as massive as one would expect from Dian Wei’s bloodline—larger than most adult warriors.
“Care for a cup?”
“No, thank you. Please enjoy yourselves.”
Dian Man bowed politely and withdrew quietly. Dian Wei filled my empty cup.
“Ever since my wife passed from illness, it’s just been the two of us living like this.”
“You are not yet forty, General Dian. Wouldn’t it be good to take another wife soon?”
“Is there any kind-hearted woman willing to feed two bear-like men?”
“From what I understand, you have been paying particular attention to the head maid who manages the upper quarters whenever you visit my uncle’s residence.”
“Hrrrm! That’s only because the girl is exceptionally skilled at cooking. Every time I receive a meal at our lord’s house…”
As soon as the topic turned to the head maid in Cao Cao’s household, Dian Wei began coughing awkwardly, his massive frame trembling.
“That head maid lost her entire family during the chaos of war. Lady Bian took her in. She is already well past thirty and has yet to meet a proper husband.”
“Mmm…”
“After we capture Wancheng and everyone returns safely, I will speak to my uncle on your behalf and ask whether she would be suitable.”
“R-really? Ah, thank you!”
Dian Wei shot to his feet in excitement, then grew embarrassed and sat back down.
“Let us speak of it once Wancheng has fallen and we have all returned alive.”
“You promised!”
If Dian Wei survived that place, he would go on to achieve great things beneath Cao Cao’s banner. Helping him find a good wife was the least I could do.
Thus my third preparation proceeded smoothly as well.