Why Are You Here?
Late winter of the third year of Zhongping (186 AD). The three eastern counties of Taishan Commandery—Bonggo, Bak, and Chi—welcomed their new master in a tension as cold as their frozen rice paddies.
The man who had led the Black Mountain Bandits of Taishan, Jang Yeon. Having newly received the title of General who Establishes Righteousness from the court and been granted the three eastern counties of Taishan as his domain.
Ever since the emperor’s edict arrived, the magistrates of each county had been half out of their minds.
“Lord Jang Yeon. We have secured all the account books from the three counties.”
In the administrative office of Bonggo County, now designated as the general’s headquarters, So-yeon bowed her head and presented a bundle of ledgers. Do Eung then stepped forward.
“It was more serious than expected. In Bak County, they had collected taxes at least ten times greater than the reported figures, essentially plundering the people, and the ledgers were filled with all kinds of unreported transactions.”
As soon as Do Eung finished speaking, So-yeon added as if she had been waiting.
“The same goes for Bonggo County. They were collecting taxes at abnormal rates. It appears they gathered at least ten times, and in many cases up to fifteen times more than what was submitted to the court.”
I nodded at the reports from So-yeon and Do Eung.
Damn, they’ve really been gorging themselves.
I slowly tapped my fingers three times.
“Bring those bastards here right now.”
Yu Byeok, who had remained silent until then, went outside. Soon three magistrates entered, their faces pale as death. These were men who had once paid hundreds of thousands of coins to buy their offices and had prided themselves on doubling that value so far. Yet now they stood with bent waists, held their breath, closed their eyes, and knelt.
I opened my mouth toward them in a deliberately slow drawl.
“I may be a general of the court, but making the three of you disappear without a sound isn’t particularly difficult. Do you understand that?”
The magistrates remained in deep silence. It was as if they had stopped breathing entirely.
“The buying and selling of offices.”
I rested my chin on one hand.
“Look, I’m not someone who doesn’t get it. I understand. Even if the people above squeeze you dry, you still need to eat. I know it’s a world where you starve if you don’t exploit. I get it.”
When I offered that small comfort, the magistrates’ shoulders seemed to loosen slightly. But I immediately leaned forward and spat out sharply.
“But. You fucking bastards. This place is my territory now. Got it? It’s land I’m responsible for. Land that I govern.”
I took out three small boxes and held them out.
“Just take these and eat them. Don’t ask too many questions about where they came from. It’ll help you breathe easier, right? In return—”
It pissed me off so much that I had to spend my own money on these bastards that my eyebrows rose on their own.
“Eat in moderation. Don’t rip out the pillars and carry off the entire jar. If all the taxpayers die or run away, it’ll be trouble for you too, won’t it?”
The magistrates couldn’t even raise their heads as they quietly clutched the boxes to their chests.
After the magistrates left, So-yeon, Do Eung, and Yu Byeok gathered before me again. I pushed the organized ledgers aside and slowly spoke.
“Is everything wrapped up now?”
So-yeon frowned slightly.
“The cleanup is finished… but is it really all right to let it go like this?”
Yu Byeok agreed.
“My lord. At this point, wouldn’t it be better to just throw them out and appoint new ones? No matter how you look at it, they have gone too far.”
I burst into laughter, picked up the wine bottle, and filled my cup. I downed it in one gulp before answering.
“Do I have appointment rights? Changing magistrates is outside my authority.”
So-yeon pressed her lips tightly together.
“Then you’re saying we have no choice but to leave them as they are?”
“Not leave them—manage them.”
I set the empty cup down with a sharp clack.
“Whether those bastards bought their offices or not, they are magistrates recognized by the court. Even if I drive them out, the next one who comes will also have bought his office. And that one will exploit the people even more viciously than these current ones.”
Yu Byeok spoke cautiously.
“Even so, leaving men who have embezzled to this degree…”
It was a situation where I was dying for a cigarette, but since cigarettes didn’t exist in this era, I flicked my fingers through the empty air and muttered.
“Hey, fuck. Does blaming individuals solve the fact that the world itself is broken?”
Everyone fell silent. I continued.
“I know it’s wrong too. But those bastards paid money to become magistrates. If you tell men like that not to exploit, they can’t repay the debts they owe the court. Do you know what the court is? It’s a place that sucks money out of people.”
I turned my head to look at the ledgers.
“Still, since this is now our territory, we have to manage it at least to a minimum degree. Even if exploitation continues, we must ensure it doesn’t reach the point where people starve to death. Ha, fuck. If I hadn’t collected money from the merchants, I wouldn’t have come this far either.”
After a brief silence, Do Eung spoke in a heavy voice.
“…The general’s words are correct.”
Yu Byeok and So-yeon looked at him.
“The position of magistrate may sound honorable as an office that governs a county, but in reality the money required to purchase that seat exceeds hundreds of thousands of coins. To prepare such a sum, unless one has generational wealth, one must resort to any means—debt, business, anything.”
Do Eung quietly turned a page of the ledger. The numbers densely recorded there were the scars of plunder.
“Having gone to such lengths to obtain the position, what is the first thing they do once they sit down? They recoup their losses and repay their debts. The common people are nothing more than easy sources of revenue.”
So-yeon let out a small sigh, and Yu Byeok frowned.
“No matter how uncomfortable… that is the reality.”
I looked at Do Eung and filled the cup once more. Twisting the corner of my mouth, I said.
“As expected of General Do’s son, your sense of reality is excellent.”
Do Eung bowed his head and added.
“That is why the measure you have taken, General… is the best among the worst options. We cannot stop their exploitation at its root, but at least they will not exploit so viciously that the people starve to death. What we can do right now… is exactly that much.”
I nodded at his words.
“Yeah. Those lofty bastards in the court would even try to rob a thief’s pocket. We have to be satisfied with this much.”
So-yeon quietly nodded, and Yu Byeok let out a sigh.
“Understood, my lord.”
I picked up the final cup and emptied it.
“Ugh, fuck. This alcohol tastes like absolute shit.”
The liquor in my mouth was bitterly harsh.
Jinan State Office.
“Jang Yeon, huh… His name has been coming up quite frequently lately.”
The man in black official robes slowly set down the letter in his hand. The official standing beside him asked cautiously.
“Lord Jo. That man has received formal recognition from the court. Though his origins were in banditry, it is said that he has greatly reduced the people’s corvée labor, blocked exploitative officials, and that public sentiment is improving.”
Jo Jo gave a faint chuckle and picked up his brush.
“A man of bandit origin protecting the people and blocking corrupt officials… The world truly turns in interesting ways.”
Even as he processed official business on the bamboo slips, the curiosity lurking beneath was razor-sharp.
“If the chance arises, I would like to meet him in person. Jang Yeon… Jang Yeon…”
First month of the fourth year of Zhongping (187 AD), Bonggo County Office.
New Year’s Day.
Kites floated in the skies above Bonggo County, and every village slaughtered pigs and passed around wine. After I, newly appointed as General who Establishes Righteousness, drastically reduced the corvée labor of each county and the magistrates implemented measures to ease exploitation and plunder, warmth finally returned to the villages for the first time in years.
Thanks to that, the public sentiment around the administrative office was gradually settling as well.
But my mind had no leisure to savor such happy news.
I rolled the small pieces across the map with my fingers, muttering.
“Jinan… Jinan…”
Yu Byeok asked from the side.
“My lord, what are you muttering about?”
I answered without raising my head.
“Jo Mengde. That bastard became Chancellor of Jinan.”
“Yes, that is correct. He was appointed for his merit in suppressing the Yellow Turbans of Yanzhou.”
I let out a slow sigh.
“Jinan is practically right next door. If that guy were just an ordinary local official, there’d be nothing to worry about.”
“My lord, aren’t you worrying too much?”
Yu Byeok tilted his head, seemingly unable to understand why I was so concerned about Jo Jo, Chancellor of Jinan.
Ha, fuck. I can’t even complain about this to anyone…
A hero who would crush the heads of countless warlords, seize the Central Plains, and eventually rise to become King of Wei. A man so outstanding in command that he would even write a military treatise in his own name was sitting right next door. It was a massive headache.
Tsk. If I had known this would happen, I would have read the Romance of the Three Kingdoms more seriously back in the modern era. When the hell does this bastard change his post anyway?
While I was groaning in distress, a familiar figure entered.
“Lord Jang Yeon.”
So-yeon entered with graceful poise.
“What is it?”
“Chancellor of Jinan, Lord Jo Mengde… says he wishes to meet with you right now.”
My words caught in my throat.
“…What? The Chancellor of Jinan?”
“He says he is stopping by to pay his respects on his way to his hometown in Peiguo.”
Jo Jo’s sudden visit made my head throb.
Bad luck right from the first day of the new year… Shit…
The door to the general’s headquarters opened, and a man walked in with leisurely steps.
A man wearing neat black armor beneath a navy silk robe. Thin frame, deeply sunken eyes, and a face that suggested few words. Yet the faint smile on his lips carried something that instinctively put people on edge.
“I am Jo Jo, Chancellor of Jinan, courtesy name Mengde. I greet General Jang Yeon of Taishan, the General who Establishes Righteousness.”
His tone was rigid, yet his etiquette was neither excessive nor lacking.
“You have traveled a long way. What brings you here today?”
Jo Jo spoke with a smile.
“Since I was on my way down to my hometown of Peiguo, I wished to pay my respects to General Jang, whose name I have heard so often in rumors.”
Through rumors? That single phrase made my insides itch.
Ah, has this bastard already finished investigating me before showing up? No, if it’s Jo Jo, coming after the investigation is exactly what he would do.
I offered him a seat with a smiling face.
“It is a cold day. Please warm yourself first.”
Jo Jo sat and gave a quiet nod.
“I have heard that General Jang’s forces… have been reorganized to a level incomparable with the past.”
This bastard jumps straight to the main topic on our first meeting?
I poured the wine and replied.
“Well, even banditry requires an organization. Though now we are the court’s army, not bandits.”
“That is true. However, I have heard that the difference between a bandit and a general is no more than a single sheet of paper in terms of justification.”
I tilted my cup and subtly studied his expression.
Is this bastard testing me?
Jo Jo continued with a smile.
“General Jang is truly unique. Most either flatter the court or cast greedy eyes upon the world, yet General Jang… seems to stand somewhere in between.”
I set my cup down and looked him straight in the eye.
“Well, I simply ended up this way while trying to survive. I’m no good at flattery, and the world is too heavy a burden. So I must first firmly protect what is beneath my own feet.”
Jo Jo gave a soft chuckle.
“Wise words. I live by the same principle. However, sometimes… does not the ‘foothold’ you speak of keep expanding on its own?”
I silently held out a wine cup to Jo Jo.
“It is good for the foothold to expand, but excessive greed is never wise. I believe Lord Jo understands that well?”
“Haha, General Jang’s ambition is truly vast. Are you saying that even Taishan and its three counties do not count as greed?”
Jo Jo glanced at me as if measuring my worth, then brought the steaming cup to his lips.
“It would be a lie to say it is not greed. However… the greed I speak of and the greed Lord Jo speaks of are probably somewhat different.”
“How so?”
Jo Jo’s eyes gleamed sharply. I brought the hot cup to my mouth and continued slowly.
“I believe it is enough to ensure that one region does not starve. To keep people from hunger and from dying. That much should be worth attempting, don’t you think?”
Jo Jo pondered for a moment, then nodded.
“Is that why you left the magistrates of the three counties in place?”
“If I could change them, I would have. But I lack the authority, and even if I replaced them, what would truly change?”
I looked Jo Jo directly in the eyes.
“I don’t really understand grand causes or the will of the people. I have never earned a proper living in a legitimate way.”
“Haha, how refreshingly honest. If the entire world were that honest, it would not be so chaotic.”
Jo Jo laughed and took another sip before lightly setting his cup down.
“However, I… think a little differently.”
I tilted my head.
“In what way?”
“Simply preventing the people from dying will not change the world. The world must change so that the people do not have to die.”
Jo Jo’s voice was gentle, yet it carried an unshakable resolve.
“Therefore I intend to change the world. Knowing full well how filthy and ugly it is, I have no choice but to step inside it. To change the world, my own hands may have to become dirty at times.”
I quietly nodded.
“…Lord Jo’s cause is truly lofty.”
“Rather than a cause, it is simply doing what a subject ought to do. If the world changes, will not a peaceful era arrive?”
The confidence that filled Jo Jo’s eyes… had I not known the man called Jo Jo, anyone might have been fooled.
Where is this bastard peddling his snake oil from…
But to me, who already knew the future, it was nothing but ridiculous nonsense.
“Lord Jo’s path is difficult. I lack both the greed and the ability… In the first place, a man like me is satisfied with simply guarding my own rice bowl well, no matter how the world turns.”
At those words Jo Jo smiled with his eyes.
“That is precisely why I find General Jang so interesting. With a man like General Jang present, Taishan will remain at peace.”
“And with Lord Jo who carries such a cause, Jinan will surely be well governed.”
We filled each other’s empty cups and clinked them together.
—Clink. The liquor inside the cups trembled.
The liquor was the same, yet the way it shook was different.
I stared blankly at the seat Jo Jo had vacated for a long time before belatedly setting the wine bottle down.
“Yu Byeok.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Bring some salt. A lot of it.”
A short while later Yu Byeok returned carrying a bundle of coarse salt wrapped in cloth. Without a word I took it and began slowly sprinkling the salt across the floor of the general’s headquarters.
Tap, tap. After scattering it over the door, the threshold, the walls, and the entrance, I finally spoke.
“…Fuck. What terrible luck right from the start of the new year.”
Yu Byeok watched me in silence, then quietly closed the door.