Anti-Dong Zhuo Coalition (1)
Sun Jian was a peerless general of the age who had crushed every rebel army—and at the same time, a devoted father who longed for his beloved family back home.
Six years.
He had not seen his family once in all that time.
He had gone up to Luoyang burning with ambition to make the name of the Wu Prefecture Sun Clan resound across the realm and achieve glory and advancement. But though he served under General of the Household of the Right Zhu Jun and led countless battles to victory, he ultimately found himself trapped in the unjust shackles of petty offices and empty titles that were little more than vanity.
"It must have been hard, all these years in a cold and indifferent land far from home."
"I am a father of three daughters. I cannot afford to show weakness."
First daughter Sun Ce.
Second daughter Sun Quan.
And third daughter Sun Shangxiang.
Sun Jian was known for a severe and taciturn disposition that did not tolerate idle chatter.
The one moment when that fine soldier became talkative was when he boasted about the daughters under his roof.
Our Ce'er takes after me and is passionate about martial arts.
And our Quan'er takes after her mother and loves scholarship.
Xiang'er was a newborn just starting to babble when I left home. By now she will have grown so much I would not recognize her.
He spoke of his daughters in a fervent voice.
Through it, you could see that Sun Jian truly was a man who loved his family with all his heart.
"What about bringing your household here? If General Who Defeats the Barbarians wishes it, I will arrange wagons. As I understand it, all the officers and men under your command have families in Jiangdong."
"How could I impose such trouble when I have yet to render any worthy service in battle? I will entrust my household to you only after I have repaid even a tenth of the grace the Crown Prince has shown me."
"I see. Then I had best arrange an opportunity for you to distinguish yourself in battle."
"Give me the task whenever you please!"
He would achieve merit in Chen Kingdom first, then entrust his family to them.
That was an answer worthy of Sun Jian.
I shrugged at Sun Jian's temperament—earnest, stubborn, and incapable of compromise.
"Next year... no, starting this autumn, a storm will sweep across the Central Plains."
"I have heard that the feudal lords of the realm are gathering to punish the traitor to the state, Dong Zhuo."
Dong Zhuo.
Sun Jian's face twisted savagely as he spat out the name of the national traitor.
How could he not be enraged?
In the course of suppressing the Xiliang rebellion, Sun Jian and Dong Zhuo had become irreconcilable mortal enemies who loathed each other.
Dong Zhuo had refused to commit his troops because he wanted to preserve his own military forces as intact as possible. When Dong Zhuo, who was supposed to encircle the rebels' rear, abandoned the front line without authorization, Sun Jian was left isolated on the battlefield. Fighting alone against desperate odds, he lost countless officers and men.
A traitor who had cast his Jiangdong brothers into a pit of death.
Even after many years had passed, Sun Jian still hated Dong Zhuo with vivid clarity.
"A letter has arrived from Yuan Shao, who is orchestrating the coalition. She is urging us to join, and it contains an offer to appoint us as Alliance Leader of the coalition if we join with a great army."
"...Is His Majesty the King of Chen considering accepting?"
"We will take part. How can a descendant of the Han Imperial House stand by and watch a traitor's tyranny? For now, we are observing the reactions of the other lords who have joined the coalition."
"I see."
Supplying provisions and armaments alone would suffice.
Han Fu of Ji Province and Tao Qian of Xu Province had already confirmed that they would devote themselves fully to providing material support from the rear instead of dispatching troops.
It was an obvious decision.
Dong Zhuo's army, which had seized absolute power, was far too mighty.
Inspector of Bing Province Ding Yuan had confronted Dong Zhuo after he occupied Luoyang, but Ding Yuan was murdered by the Flying General Lü Bu and all the cavalry under his command were taken. Having absorbed the Imperial Guard, an elite force each worth a hundred ordinary soldiers, Dong Zhuo's army then seized Bing Province's cavalry corps as well, grasping absolute military supremacy.
"General Who Defeats the Barbarians, can feudal lords who are nothing more than white-faced scholars truly defeat Dong Zhuo's army?"
"It will be difficult. I hate to admit it, but Dong Zhuo is strong. Even if every feudal lord in the realm united to attack Luoyang, the odds of victory would be slim."
Fewer than half of the feudal lords had experienced real combat.
Most were white-faced scholars who knew nothing of war.
Worse, some of the lords who had decided to join the coalition were local officials appointed by Dong Zhuo's regime. Once both armies faced off at Luoyang, they would act duplicitously and shatter the coalition's morale.
"Then what if we were to lead the great army of the south and join them, as the lords desire?"
"The unfavorable odds would certainly improve significantly."
"Yuan Shao, who formed the coalition, will be thinking the same. She will reckon that if the undefeated southern army joins them, they can fight Dong Zhuo's forces on even ground."
"The lords of the Central Plains will have to convince His Majesty the King of Chen and the Crown Prince by any means necessary. If they advance on Luoyang as things stand, Dong Zhuo's army will sweep them aside one-sidedly."
In the original history, the Anti-Dong Zhuo Coalition had been able to break through the steep passes and advance on Luoyang solely thanks to Sun Jian's exploits. Sun Jian had shown himself to be a monster who, even while carrying the dead weight of Yuan Shu, routed Commander Hua Xiong and all of Luoyang's elite troops.
An Anti-Dong Zhuo Coalition without the Tiger of Jiangdong.
It was as useless as underpants without an elastic band—nothing but dead weight.
The unsightly future already unfolded in my mind: the lords falling with not the slightest chance of victory against Peerless Under Heaven Lü Bu and the Xiliang cavalry corps. Yuan Shao, who had served as chief advisor under General-in-Chief He Jin, could not possibly be unaware that defeat was looming over the coalition.
"The longer we delay our answer and waste time, the more anxious they will grow."
"Undoubtedly so."
"Then even if we pile on unreasonable demands, they will have no choice but to accept."
"The Crown Prince... wishes to place the Central Plains lords who have joined the coalition beneath his feet."
I needed overwhelming authority to coercively command the Central Plains lords who joined the coalition. I also wanted the power of life and death over them—the right to judge everyone regardless of rank.
In the end, Yuan Shao would have no choice but to accept.
And the lords who had proclaimed their condemnation of Dong Zhuo's army would have no choice but to follow.
From now on, Dong Zhuo's army would keep pressuring the feudal lords of the realm while parading the Emperor before them. And one by one, they would eliminate the heaven-offending seditious elements of Guandong who had risen in revolt.
"General Who Defeats the Barbarians, train the southern elite troops day and night. There are targets aplenty for honing real combat experience. Would it not be killing two birds with one stone to sweep away all the rebel forces and barbarians of the south?"
"I obey."
Summer passed and autumn arrived.
As the year drew toward its close, the lords sent delegation after delegation, urging us to join the war.
The longer time slipped by uselessly, the more the Just Cause proclaimed by the Coalition Army of the feudal lords did nothing but sink. And it began to affect the morale of the troops stationed at Yingchuan Prefecture in Yu Province.
Perhaps it was about time to send an answer.
Just as I was thinking that,
Cao Cao's army, which had been stationed in Pei Kingdom recruiting troops, dispatched a new delegation.
* * *
Just as Liu Seong-hwi had anticipated, when Chen Kingdom's answer was delayed day after day, the Central Plains lords who had joined the coalition showed considerable agitation.
What in the world is happening?
Is His Majesty the King of Chen coming or isn't he?
The feudal lords of the Central Plains were a breed who guarded their own safety with shameless vigilance.
The lords were not brave enough to leap without hesitation into a battle with slim odds of victory. They were closer to a self-interest group of ordinary men who had chosen to join the coalition for their own safety and practical gain.
"Xuande, I need you to go down and persuade the King of Chen. More precisely, the Crown Prince of Chen Kingdom."
The request came from a woman whose lovely black hair flowed like the night sky. She stood out with a beauty as exquisite and elegant as a doll perfected by a master artisan's devoted labor.
Colonel of Valiant Cavalry Cao Cao.
She was serving as the chief advisor of the Anti-Dong Zhuo Coalition.
Cao Cao, in her capacity as the chief advisor commanding the coalition, asked the Guest General Liu Bei to persuade Crown Prince Liu Seong-hwi. Even if Liu Seong-hwi had turned every urging delegation away at the door, Cao Cao thought he would at least receive a fellow relative of the Han Imperial House.
"Me, persuade the Crown Prince...? I am nothing more than a distant branch of the line."
"I will ask Benchu to grant you an official post. Xuande, did you not say you admired the Crown Prince of Chen Kingdom, the one they call the Hero of the South? The success or failure of this Raising of the Army to punish the traitor hinges on whether the Vassal King joins the war."
I understand.
The beautiful woman with the striking long, pointed ears answered.
Faintly shining silver hair.
Red eyes brimming with an exotic gleam.
And she was a beauty with a slender figure that boasted a full bosom and a narrow waist.
Liu Bei accepted the proposal without hesitation—partly to repay the kindness of Cao Cao, who had taken her in as a Guest General, and partly out of admiration for the Crown Prince who was called the Greatest Archer Under Heaven and the Hero of the South.
"If the Crown Prince of Chen Kingdom does decide to join the war... may I lead the Volunteer Army and take part under His Highness's command? Since he is someone I truly admire... I would like to serve at his side, just once."
"That is fine. I gladly grant it."
She wanted to join the war under Crown Prince Liu Seong-hwi's command.
Cao Cao readily granted Liu Bei's request.
Big-eared bitch
Elf Imperial Liu Bei
Consanguineous marriage pending