He'll probably ask for a drink
Cao Song raised the dagger, determined not to become a burden on his daughter's path.
He was about to cut his own throat when—
"M-My lord! C-come here, quickly!"
"Hm?"
His concubine was calling him in a frantic voice.
Cao Song first hid the dagger he had been holding, then asked cautiously,
"What is it that has you so agitated?"
"There! Look over there!"
At her words, Cao Song peered outside through a small gap in the storehouse wall.
And the scene that began to unfold before his eyes was...
—S-s-spare me, please! I-I was only following Lord Tao Qian's orders... guwaaaak!!!
—"You're noisy. A man with such shitty skills—where do you get off running your mouth? Farewell, you bastard Zhang Kai."
Zhang Kai crumpled to the floor, squealing like a stuck pig.
—"Sweep them all away! And find Lord Cao Song at once and bring him to safety!"
The woman general had reduced Zhang Kai to a lump of meat in an instant and was now slaughtering his underlings to the last man. Golden hair and brown skin—Cao Song recognized who she was at a single glance.
"Wha... Could that be Ji Ling?"
His daughter's closest friend and younger sister in all but blood, now the trusted confidante of Yuan Shu, General-in-Chief of the Han. Ji Ling.
She was close to Cao Cao and called her "elder sister," so naturally Cao Song knew her.
'If Ji Ling is here, that means Yuan Shu has sent soldiers...'
How had Yuan Shu known they were in danger?
Most likely it was simple coincidence in the course of dispatching an escort, but even so, as a father, that raised questions he could not quite ignore.
'Don't tell me that boy Yuan Shu has designs on our daughter...? But I heard he was married not long ago... hmm...'
All sorts of odd thoughts began to rise in Cao Song's mind, but he quickly shook his head.
In any case, what mattered was that with the situation unfolding this way, a path to survival had opened for them.
And so Cao Song, who only moments before had steeled himself for death, let out a deep sigh of relief.
There was still something faintly troubling him, but for now he felt a profound gratitude toward Yuan Shu, who had saved his life.
*
Cao Cao had dashed outside the moment she heard the news that Xiahou Dun brought.
She arrived at the spot, having literally run out barefoot,
and stood there frozen, rooted to the spot, her expression blank for a moment.
The person smiling radiantly back at her.
The face of the man she had been certain was dead...
the face she had thought she would never see again.
With her emotions surging, Cao Cao threw herself into his arms.
"Hic... hic-hic... waaaaah... Father... Father..."
"Have you been well, my daughter? I am sorry this old father caused you such worry."
"Waaah... waaaaaaaah! Fatherrr!"
Cao Cao began to weep just like a little child.
As immense as her grief and despair had been, the relief and joy she felt were just as overwhelming, nearly impossible to contain.
She stayed in her father's embrace and shed tears without restraint for a long time.
Offering her heartfelt thanks to the heavens that had bestowed this gift like a miracle.
*
"Truly... how can I ever repay this debt?"
"Oh, don't make it awkward by talking about a debt. Between us, this much is only natural."
The person who had escorted her father here was her close friend and junior sister, Ji Ling.
Gazing at her, Cao Cao bowed her head with sincere gratitude,
and Ji Ling waved her hands to stop her.
"I truly am grateful, Ji Ling. I will repay this debt, whatever it takes."
"Haha, I told you it's fine. Honestly, this cup of drink I'm having right now is more than enough for me. Besides, when you get down to it, this whole matter worked out thanks to my lord's intervention anyway."
"Fufu... well, that isn't exactly wrong either, is it?"
That Ji Ling had ridden all the way to distant Xu Province in the first place was all due to Yuan Shu's foresight.
Thinking, as she always did, that she really had chosen her younger brother well, Cao Cao gazed at the cup filled to the brim with drink, her face flushing slightly.
'It hasn't finished ripening yet... but how am I to resist when it already looks this delicious... my dear Gonglu...'
She knew she had to be patient for the finest flavor, yet her heart still fluttered.
Feeling that ticklish yet sweet sensation make her heart race, Cao Cao downed the cup in her hand in one go to soothe the desire.
"Gulp... gulp... kaaa..."
The sensation of the liquor tracing hotly down her throat.
Feeling herself grow slightly flushed with cheer, Cao Cao's gaze moved to the three female generals who had come with Ji Ling...
And especially toward the eldest among them, a woman with large ears and a large bosom.
The woman who, unmistakably, bore the name Liu Bei.
"Now that I think of it, I owe thanks to you as well. I am deeply grateful for the kindness of General Liu and your sworn sisters, who saved my father."
"Kindness? We merely carried out the orders of General-in-Chief Yuan Shu. Please, such praise is excessive."
"Even if that were so, the fact remains that to me, all of you are benefactors no different from General Ji Ling. Here, please have a cup. I shall pour it myself."
"Thank you, General Cao."
As she filled the cup with her own hands, Cao Cao studied the woman before her with keen attention.
A beauty with an impressive chest, as befitted a descendant of Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang, whose bosom was said to be the finest in history.
But even more than that, what Cao Cao was observing closely were the extraordinary abilities and character this woman possessed.
"I still vividly remember the exploits you displayed the other day, General Liu. The way you captured the vanguard commander Zhang Liao, and even drove off the so-called peerless Lü Bu. You possess a level of skill such that you could well be called a mighty warrior under heaven."
"You overrate my humble talents; I am simply embarrassed."
"Fufu, you are far too modest. Although many lords were present at the time, those who could be called heroes in the way you are could be counted on one hand. That someone like you was merely holding the post of County Magistrate until recently—I cannot help but find it deeply lamentable."
"Haha! General Cao sure knows how to talk! You think my big sister's ability was at the level of some County Magistrate post? If it weren't for those damned Ten Regular Attendants, she'd have worn the title of Governor or General long ago and commanded the realm!"
"Zhang Fei..."
Liu Bei gently chided her younger sister, who was laughing heartily as she spoke.
Watching this, Cao Cao, without losing her smile, quietly assessed Liu Bei.
'Martial prowess that rivals the strongest under heaven, and her two sworn sisters are no ordinary people either. What's more, even among those formidable lords, she never once appeared cowed.'
A woman whose nerve was as sizable as her large chest.
Moreover, observing how she never abandoned her modesty even in the current situation, Cao Cao could tell that the woman before her was no ordinary vessel.
"Fufu, what's the matter? It isn't exactly untrue, is it? Even so, I think it is truly fortunate that this hero has at last come to shine, even if belatedly."
"It is all thanks to the help of General-in-Chief Yuan Shu. Because he went out of his way to secure an imperial edict from Her Majesty, I was able to gain merit and have the opportunity to serve the state like this."
"Oho... so that is what happened?"
Cao Cao had privately wondered how a mere County Magistrate had managed to join that assembly of lords.
Upon hearing that this too had been the result of Yuan Shu's arrangements, her question was finally resolved.
They must have encountered each other by chance while traveling between Ji Province and You Province to deal with the Yellow Turban remnants.
And this fact led Cao Cao to recall yet another possibility.
'Which means... could this woman also...?'
He might have taken care of her purely for her ability... but the woman's chest, which dwarfed even her own, suggested another possibility.
One look at his wife Dong Zhuo made Yuan Shu's tastes obvious.
Although she knew he was not a person whose nature would let a woman's looks sway him, Cao Cao could still tell there was a fair chance Yuan Shu harbored some degree of favorable interest toward this woman called Liu Bei.
Feeling a private interest in that fact,
and also harboring curiosity about what might be going on inside the head of this woman who, even now, merely wore a composed smile.
Cao Cao raised her cup, once more filled with drink.
*
'Haah... what a relief. We weren't too late.'
The letter in my hand.
Right after I confirmed the contents reporting that the Cao Song family had been safely rescued and delivered to Cao Cao,
a deep sigh of relief escaped my lips.
In this life, the man had been safely rescued through the efforts of Ji Ling and the Three Sisters Liu Bei. But in the Original Timeline, Cao Cao's father Cao Song had been brutally murdered by Zhang Kai's hand.
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, this is presented as simply Zhang Kai's independent act of coveting Cao Song's wealth; in Records of the Three Kingdoms, however, there are speculations that Tao Qian may have been behind it.
Cao Cao and Tao Qian were already squabbling rather fiercely around this time to begin with.
And above all, considering the generally underhanded actions the historical Tao Qian repeatedly displayed, the latter possibility was the more likely one.
But, whatever the intent, Tao Qian's act of killing Cao Song brought a staggering calamity down upon Xu Province.
The Xu Province Massacre.
Cao Cao, consumed by vengeance, slaughtered tens of thousands—by the lowest estimates—up to hundreds of thousands of innocent commoners in one of the most monstrous atrocities in all of the Three Kingdoms.
On the later internet, this event is called Xuzhou Great Filial Piety, and it not only drove countless people to their deaths but dealt an enormous blow to Cao Cao's image, eventually becoming one of the factors that would cause her to fail in unifying the realm despite possessing overwhelming power.
Personally, it was one of the incidents I had determined I absolutely had to prevent, alongside the Great Fire of Luoyang.
And so I,
as soon as the angle became clear, urgently mobilized Ji Ling, the Three Sisters Liu Bei, and additionally two thousand cavalry, ordering them to guard—or if necessary, rescue—Cao Song during his journey to Yan Province.
I attached Liu Bei's group simply because they fought well, and because the post of Assistant General put them in a position where I could conveniently use them.
In the end, the incident was resolved without major issues.
After hearing the news, I leaned back against my chair, feeling a profound relief that left me somewhat drained.
That was when.
"Judging by your bright expression, it seems the matter has been settled well, Husband."
"Ah... yes, my lady. Ji Ling handled the matter well."
"Fufu, has she? General Ji Ling..."
Dong Zhuo spoke with a light laugh.
Then she leaned against my side and asked in a quiet voice,
"Then... you must now keep your promise, yes? Just as you discussed with General Ji Ling."
"I fully intend to. Just as she wishes."
Before she left, Ji Ling had asked me to grant one wish if she handled the matter well.
The request had been uncharacteristically earnest for her, but I had accepted it without giving it much thought.
Besides, she was Ji Ling, who had suffered through this and that all this time as my closest confidante.
I had already been thinking the general's rank alone was a bit insufficient for her, so if she wanted something, from my perspective I had no reason not to grant it.
"Still, knowing her, it's probably just going to be her asking for another jar of drink or something anyway."
Figuring as much, I showed a light grin.
But then.
"Drink... you say. Hmm... she will indeed be asking for 'drink,' I'm quite certain..."
"...?"
My wife spoke in a somehow loaded tone.
And at the quiet smile lingering on her lips, I felt a faint curiosity.