Whoever Touches Little Xinye (1)
About two weeks after the Battle of Jiancheng.
The Battle of Jiancheng had been a routine bandit purge. Cao Cao's forces had crushed the thieves in Henei County with overwhelming might. This skirmish, barely worth a single line in the histories, carried surprisingly profound implications.
"The people of Henei are paying more attention to our army than we expected, my lord."
Cao Cao listened intently as Sun Uk reported, the two of them alone.
"It seems the Sima girl's decision to join our ranks played a big role."
"Mm, she's quite the prodigy. If she'd been born twenty years earlier, she might've ended up just like you or me."
"...It'd be nice if she'd been born twenty years later."
Sun Uk gave a wry smile and shook her head. Cao Cao felt an odd discomfort watching her.
"You alright?"
"Yes. I'm fi... No, I'm not alright. But I am."
"What are you on about?"
"Even if I'm not by his side right now, if I help you bring peace to the realm..."
Sun Uk offered a faint smile.
"He'll surely understand my choice. Choosing your side over his, a man's life over a woman's."
"I see..."
"And watching you, I've realized something fortunate. At least people like us can stay young until the day we die, right?"
"True enough. While others wrinkle up and rage in their deathbeds, we'll live happily to the end and lie in our coffins looking just like this."
"That's why I thought: secure the realm first, then live as a woman afterward."
Sun Uk lifted her head, her face brimming with conviction.
"For the peace he desires, and for unifying the land under Han."
"Of course. Damn right."
Unification of the realm. Cao Cao mulled over Sun Uk's words, lost in thought.
"Unify the realm, and the life we want as women comes that much sooner, eh?"
"Precisely."
"Then we need to clear out the obstacles. Back to the Battle of Jiancheng."
Cao Cao stood and faced Sun Uk directly.
"Is it right for us to exert influence in Henei County, on the road to Ye City in Ji Province?"
"We've been purging the Black Mountain Bandits for years. When you took Puyang and Qing Province, we won the people's hearts by driving out thieves along the way, didn't we?"
"What if the people of Henei reject us?"
"The Cao Cao army then is not the Cao Cao army now. We are the Emperor's army."
Clap! Cao Cao smacked her hands together.
"Right! We're no longer Yuan Shao's pawns. We moved at His Majesty's command. Henei is unequivocally our territory now."
"But there's one big issue: location."
"Yeah, location."
The path from Henei to Yuan Shao's stronghold in Ye was open plains. Stationing troops there would provoke an immediate response. That was why Cao Ren's 10,000 cavalry had purged the bandits, rested briefly in Henei, and withdrawn.
"Sending an Inspector from court would displease Yuan Shao. Sending troops would be seen as war. But leaving Henei alone feels like such a waste."
"Even claiming the people requested protection won't fly. The Black Mountain Bandits from Bing Province number at least 10,000."
"Bolstering to near 10,000 would draw Yuan Shao's ire, even if it's just for bandit suppression."
In the end, Yuan Shao was the problem. Mountains of issues loomed, but no immediate solution presented itself. They could only hope to gradually expand influence starting from Henei via such battles.
"Send a suitable man as Henei Inspector. Someone who can abandon it and flee anytime."
"Understood."
"...Wait, how about this? Pick one from those noisy Qingliu Faction loudmouths."
"...You mean Dong Seung's clique."
"Exactly."
Dong Seung. Unrelated to Dong Zhuo, but as the Emperor's in-law, he'd shone in the escape from Chang'an. Now he resented Cao Cao's unchecked power as Prime Minister.
"Giving them Henei is risky."
"Is it...? Tch, who then? A Henei native..."
"What about Sima Yi?"
"...That's a no."
Cao Cao's face soured at Sima Yi's name. She seemed to have considered it but hesitated to say it aloud.
"...True, sending Sima Yi to a place where the Sima clan is prominent might be awkward."
"Yeah. Sigh. We need a way to avoid angering Yuan Shao, make it hard for him to move, and sap his strength—all at once."
"There's a good method for that. How about that man?"
"That man?"
"Yes. There's a guy lounging under a peach tree, just eating peaches all day."
"Hmm."
Cao Cao twirled a lock of her white hair and grinned.
"Let's review it. The influence if we plant him in Henei. First... among ourselves."
She gestured outside toward Sun Uk.
"Gather the staff. We'll discuss it."
Agenda: "Henei Inspector, Liu Bei!"
Jingzhou, Suyeon Academy.
"Liang, isn't it time to come down? You're not a baby anymore."
"Wah, baby Gongming."
"...Sigh, Pang Tong taught you that, huh."
"Yep."
Zhuge Liang grabbed my head. She was currently riding piggyback, her thighs clamping my sides for balance, while I gripped her legs tight.
How did it come to this? She'd just asked for a quick piggyback ride. Something clicked while tinkering in the workshop—riding piggyback might spark a concrete idea.
"Be careful. You might fall."
Seo Seo watched anxiously, fretting over Zhuge Liang's safety. I was holding on as best I could, but who knew what might happen?
"Liang. Grip tight so you don't fall."
"You okay?"
"Better than... ahem."
Zhuge Liang pressed her lower body firmly against my head. Easier to keep her secure now, but walking got awkward for me.
"Husband, hold on."
She rummaged in her pouch, then started hurling something forward.
Wooden needles? Like arrows, she flung thin wooden pins ahead. They flew much farther than from ground level.
Thuk, thunk. They embedded deeply too.
After peppering the ground with them, she squeezed her thighs to signal.
"This should do it, husband."
"So, inspiration strike?"
"Yes. Great idea. Now let me down."
I knelt carefully, bowing my head. Zhuge Liang straightened her skirt and helped me up.
"Thanks, husband. Sparked something fun."
"What?"
"Mm, later."
"Keeping secrets?"
Zhuge Liang glanced at Seo Seo, who pouted at the exclusion.
"What changes if I know?"
"Might be a lecture topic for you later—I can't spill casually. But a hint."
She took my arm, stacked her hands multilayered.
"Pondering siege ladders."
"Ladders?"
"Yes. For sieges."
"...Doesn't sound right."
Seo Seo sensed it; I did too. Zhuge Liang was onto something else.
"Right. Siege ladders. Foldable normally... the rest when we're alone."
She clearly had ideas, but nitpicking felt off.
"Then, husband, I'll head to the workshop with Seo Seo."
"Fine. Don't torment the kids."
"Torment? They're here to learn."
Zhuge Liang covered her mouth, chuckling behind her sleeve.
"Just making farm tools, after all."
"...Sure."
My condolences to the soon-to-be-ground-down disciples. The workshop bustled with technicians, including Suyeon Academy students who'd studied with Zhuge Liang.
State affairs? Exactly. Suyeon Academy disciples were involved in state projects.
Who oversaw Xinye's development? Mun Bing.
Who managed Xinye's administration under his delegated authority? Zhuge Liang.
Surprisingly, Xinye's chief administrator was Zhuge Liang. And I...
"Master, what should we do here?"
"Building dikes? Ask your senior, Yi Jeok. I already briefed him on flood-prep dikes—he'll know how."
"Got it!"
The young man who'd just asked was a Suyeon Academy disciple—a student. Yet handling Xinye's admin.
Sudden situation? This was part of academy curriculum: official government internship course. Under Xinye Prefect Mun Bing and Jingzhou Governor Liu Biao's approval, talents experienced real bureaucracy firsthand.
Besides fake IDs for pay, this let Zhuge Liang and disciples move openly without suspicion.
We got legit work. Disciples learned bureaucracy pre-office. Parents loved seeing kids polished in Xinye, proving capable. Xinye advanced faster from student brainstorms.
Another year, and Xinye would rival Henei.
A rural county matching a long-developed city near the capital? 'Five years, population hits 200,000.'
Xinye would develop—like Henei. It had to, to fight future foes with less blood.
"...Planned to slip away in a few years."
Roots too deep now. Only option: defend the land.
"Master!!"
A scream-like call from afar. Pang Tong raced over, waving a red flag.
"Honey thieves appeared!!"
"...Ho, persistent bastards."
Xinye.
"Buying up all nearby honey was the right call."
"Not the time for smugness!"
Here too, under bandit raid. Bigger than Black Mountain Bandits.
"Inform Prefect Mun Bing. Prepare to resist."