Empty Food Box (1)
Tao Qian was appointed Inspector of Xu Province in recognition of his military achievement of annihilating the Yellow Turban rebels who had invaded Xu Province. When Tao Qian, who, like Sun Jian, had spread his martial fame throughout the land after suppressing countless revolts, was appointed to a provincial post, the local gentry and commoners of Xu Province placed absolute trust in him.
The hero who delivered Xu Province.
Hegemon of Donghai.
In recent years he had shown a disappointing pattern of distancing himself from his close aides while placing sycophants in high office. Even so, the Scholar-Officials and local gentry of Xu Province continued to support Tao Qian's forces without wavering.
"You have traveled far and labored much! I am truly grateful that you rushed here without delay upon hearing of our difficulty!"
Gongsun Zan's reinforcements had arrived.
Inspector of Qing Province Tian Kai.
Major of a Separate Command Liu Bei.
As befitted a power that commanded the north, they entered Pengcheng at the head of cavalry clad in horse armor. Since Gongsun Zan's army planned to use Tao Qian's army as a bridgehead to advance all the way into the Central Plains, they had dispatched an elite corps that would sweep Liu Chong's army away.
Twenty thousand in all.
Reinforcements that were no different from heaven's own host.
Tian Kai and Liu Bei led their subordinates and had an audience with Tao Qian. Their purpose was to discuss how to combine with the grand army mustering at Pengcheng and defeat Liu Chong's forces.
"Sis, Yunchang. Wasn't the Inspector of Xu Province supposed to be a nasty old man on his deathbed? Bullshit, he's a lot more hale and hearty than most men in their prime."
"Quiet."
Tao Qian was clad in heavy armor, as if boasting of his vigor in old age. Though his hair and beard had gone completely white with the marks of time, he exuded a gallant vitality and an overwhelming presence.
He'd been famous since youth for his irascible temperament, or so the stories went.
It had once brought him into conflict with his superiors and almost gotten him exiled to the frontier.
The rumor that he was bedridden with a grave illness was nothing but falsehood. His vigorous complexion and massive frame—the marks of a hundred-battle veteran—seemed to proclaim, "I may have aged, but Tao Qian is still going strong!"
"We greet the Inspector of Xu Province. We have brought reinforcements in haste."
Tian Kai and Liu Bei offered their respects.
At this, the gallant old warrior nodded.
"Treacherous scoundrels from the south have mobilized a great army and are plundering the borderlands! Liu Chong and Liu Seong-hwi are rebels who defied the Imperial House and the Imperial Court despite being Cadet Imperial Clan Members! Should we not smash these heaven-condemned traitors who have invaded Xu Province and recapture Lujiang Prefecture and Jiujiang Prefecture?"
Treacherous ministers and bandits.
Heaven-condemned traitors.
Tao Qian denounced Liu Chong and Liu Seong-hwi in a voice full of righteous indignation.
At the same time, he revealed his ambition to annihilate Liu Chong's army and subjugate every prefecture and county in the south.
"The Inspector of Qing Province's fame has reached my ears often! I hear you spread your martial renown as the vanguard commander in the all-or-nothing decisive battle where the Governor of Beiping eradicated three hundred thousand Yellow Turban rebels in a single stroke! I shall look forward to the Inspector of Qing Province's valiant fighting!"
After seizing Tian Kai's hand and lavishing praise on him,
Tao Qian turned his gaze to the beautiful woman whose long white hair hung loose.
"So you are the progeny of Prince Jing of Zhongshan! I am told you joined the Guandong Coalition Army and dealt a great blow to the rebels at Luoyang!"
"That I briefly aided Liu Seong-hwi, who has fallen to become a treacherous minister and bandit, shames me. If the venerable Inspector of Xu Province will but grant me the chance, I shall prove this girl's innocence—prove the anxious loyalty this girl holds for the Imperial House and the Imperial Court."
Resentment. Regret.
And a cold voice that dripped contempt.
At their eldest sworn sister's voice, which sounded as if her heart had fully turned away, the sworn sisters inwardly showed bewilderment.
"Inspector of Xu Province, am I to understand that gathering the entire army at Pengcheng... means you are preparing for a decisive battle against Liu Chong's army?"
"Indeed. I intend to sweep away the rebels who have invaded Xu Province in one stroke."
Pengcheng was situated on a vast plain with no natural obstacles. It had been established as a center of transport and logistics, not as a fortress built to defend against foreign enemies.
Extremely disadvantageous for a defensive siege.
On the contrary, there was a risk of being encircled by the enemy.
That was why Tian Kai realized Tao Qian's army was preparing for a decisive battle. With the reinforcements that had come down from Qing Province now joining them, they were clearly about to wage a full-scale field battle.
"The cavalry from Beiping will follow the Inspector of Xu Province's orders. Place us at the vanguard."
"The Inspector of Qing Province is valiant indeed."
Among the cavalry forces under the Inspector of Qing Province's command were elite horsemen clad in white, their horses barded in white. They were the White Horse Volunteers, who had served on the Great Wall front and smashed the Xiongnu and Xianbei peoples.
We can win.
He felt certain of total victory.
The only elite cavalry that surpassed the horsemen of Bing Province and Xiliang was the White Horse Volunteers. The martial fame of the White Horse Volunteers, who had turned countless women of the steppe into widows in an instant, was literally that of One-Man Armies.
"I am Tao Shang, the eldest son of the Inspector of Xu Province. It is an honor to meet the brave commanders of the north."
Tao Shang.
Tao Shang, Tao Qian's eldest son, was a young man of respectable appearance.
One day, when his father died, he would inherit the faction that commanded Xu Province. As if proving he had already been designated the successor, he was accompanied by numerous notable figures of Xu Province, including Mi Zhu and Sun Qian.
"A pleasure, Lord Tao Shang."
Liu Bei bowed her head as she offered her respects.
At that, Tao Shang returned the courtesy in kind.
"I-I'm sorry for being late!"
"You worthless wretch! Were you late again because you were guzzling wine in broad daylight?!"
As the figures of Tao Qian's army and Gongsun Zan's army were getting acquainted,
a boy with a youthful face appeared.
Tao Ying.
The second son of Tao Qian, Inspector of Xu Province.
In direct contrast to his neatly groomed elder brother, the second son's appearance was miserable and shabby like a street ruffian. This was clearly not the first or second time, for the notable figures of Xu Province furrowed their brows at the sight of Tao Ying's wretched state.
"We shall take our leave for now. Please send your orders at a later time."
There was nothing to be gained from getting dragged into a family quarrel.
Tian Kai turned his steps after offering his respects.
"Lady Liu Bei."
The moment they exited the headquarters, a woman who had been waiting outside approached.
"How does the war situation stand?"
"Liu Chong's army has already launched a wave offensive. They captured the counties of Xiapi Kingdom in a single breath and are advancing north toward Pengcheng."
Gray hair the color of a wolf's pelt and amber eyes.
Hair disheveled as if it had been shaken loose radiated a wild charm.
The Wolf of Changshan.
A horsewoman of Gongsun Zan's army assigned to Liu Bei's command.
Though originally merely a volunteer soldier attached to Gongsun Zan's army—not even a formally appointed military officer—she had been selected by Liu Bei and come down with the reinforcements.
Zhao Yun.
Her courtesy name was Zilong.
The beautiful woman with her gray hair hanging long followed directly behind Liu Bei like a bodyguard.
"It is a full-frontal offensive. If the offensive continues like this... they will probably reach Pengcheng within three days. The commanders of Tao Qian's army who were defending their cities and fortresses must have done their utmost, but they're still no match for my little brother."
"Your... little brother?"
"I happen to have a very deep, very intense connection with the Southern Heir known throughout the land as the Greatest Archer Under Heaven."
"..."
I don't understand what you mean.
What on earth are you trying to say?
A deep connection with an enemy commander?
Had any other officer heard these words, they would have suspected her true intent.
But Zhao Yun trusted Liu Bei absolutely, for Liu Bei had picked her out when she was nothing more than a volunteer soldier. And so, like a wolf obedient to its master, she merely blinked her sharp eyes and harbored no particular doubt.
Lady Liu Bei is right.
Lady Liu Bei is a superb person of virtue.
So all I have to do is listen to Lady Liu Bei's orders.
Had Liu Seong-hwi witnessed the scene, he would have reacted with skepticism and asked, "Have you been using hypnosis on her or something, elder sister?"
* * *
By the time Gongsun Zan's army arrived at Pengcheng,
Liu Chong's army, having crossed the border, was pressing on with its wave offensive.
Xiaqiu. Suiling County. Qülu.
They captured three counties one after another and were now pressuring even Xiapi City.
Xiapi City was the final bastion defending Pengcheng, the heart of Xu Province. For that reason, unlike the other cities that had crumbled helplessly before Sun Jian's overwhelming onslaught, Xiapi City showed itself holding out stubbornly.
"How long do you expect it to take?"
"The walls of Xiapi City are high and rugged... it seems there will be a delay."
In the Original Timeline, the two Iron Fortresses that had made Cao Cao's army, which would one day conquer the Central Plains, tremble with anxiety were none other than Shouchun City and Xiapi City. So impossible was it to capture Lü Bu's Xiapi City through siege warfare alone that they ultimately had to employ a water attack to breach the gates.
The attack on Xiapi City was dragging on.
So I withdrew the forces encircling its walls.
"It leaves a bad taste, but we have no choice but to set Xiapi City aside for now. Tao Qian's army is massing its main force at Pengcheng for a decisive field battle. Smash every last soldier of the Pengcheng grand army first, and it still won't be too late to return to Xiapi City."
Plunging into a field battle while bypassing a fortress where the enemy was holed up was an extremely risky decision. But the grand army at Pengcheng would move soon, which forced us to abandon efforts against Xiapi City.
We will turn our horses' heads and head for Pengcheng.
Summoning Sun Jian and her daughter Sun Ce, I ordered them to relocate the camp.
"What is all that commotion?"
"Forgive us...! Some mad bastard is throwing a fit, demanding an audience with you, Crown Prince!"
Just as I was pausing to collect my thoughts in contemplation,
a bothersome noise rang out.
It was the sound of an enraged shout coming from outside.
"An assassin? Or a spy?"
"A volunteer soldier from Zhuo Prefecture... that is, he claims to be a deserter who followed the enemy commander Liu Bei."
A food box.
The deserter from Liu Bei's army, without any further preamble, presented the food box he had been clutching in both hands.
Hm.
A food box, huh...
Seeing this humble-looking food box brings the Chancellor to mind.
"I-it's empty...! You son of a bitch! You dare mock His Highness the Crown Prince?!"
Sun Ce examined the food box on my behalf and opened its lid.
It was empty.
Simply an empty food box.
There was nothing inside.
It was both unexpected,
and exactly the outcome I had anticipated.
After confirming the food box, Sun Ce reflexively spat out a curse and kicked the deserter in the face.
Liu Bei's army, where the average chest size ran high.
Everyone, from the army commander to the rank and file, was leading by example.