Palace Battle (3)
After receiving orders from Grand General He Jin to suppress Jian Shi's rebellion, Cao Cao led her forces to surround the Inner Garden. Well-trained elite troops guarded the Inner Garden. The soldiers, realizing they would face the Han dynasty's finest—the Gold Army—showed traces of fear. But seeing Cao Cao's unflinching composure, as cool-headed as ever, they quickly steadied themselves.
"Lady Mengde. The Inner Garden archers are positioned along the palace walls, of course, and they're atop the hall roofs, aiming at our forces."
"As expected of the Gold Army, masters of the palace."
Trouble struck Cao Cao, who had aimed for a swift suppression of the rebellion. It came in the form of the Inner Garden troops' rapid response. Proud of being the Ten Attendants' elite, they had already reformed their ranks. The moment the suppression forces tried to scale the walls and storm the Inner Garden, arrows would rain down from above—that was their intent.
The officers under Vanguard Captain Lee Seong-hwi blanched at the sight of the archers on the halls. "We must set the Inner Garden ablaze. A frontal assault won't work."
While the other officers balked, Lee Seong-hwi—eyes fixed on the Inner Garden barracks swarming with Jian Shi's supporters—proposed a fire attack. Hurl oil jars, then follow with incendiary arrows. The enemy, having prepared in haste, wouldn't have countermeasures for fire. Even the Gold Army couldn't stand against flames, he explained.
"S-set fire to the palace...?!"
"Out of the question. Our goal is swift suppression, but we can't burn the Han palace halls!"
The officers gaped in shock at Lee Seong-hwi's suggestion, shaking their heads as if they'd heard the unthinkable. Absolutely impossible. How could imperial troops set fire to the palace? That was the act of traitors. What difference would it make from the rebels holed up inside? Commit such an atrocity, and the Grand General's office would surely demand accountability.
"Set fire inside the palace?! Are you insane?!"
Cao Hong let out a shriek upon hearing Lee Seong-hwi's plan through the officers—a scream near enough to pierce the throat. It was that radical, bordering on madness.
Xiahou Dun, however, lit up. "That's a killer idea! Let's do it now!"
"My aide's words carry merit. A direct assault would cost us most of our forces and doom the suppression. I won't report defeat to the Grand General, who surely anticipates my failure."
"But sis! Burning the palace is insane! Even if we crush the Inner Garden troops with fire, we'll be branded rebels and executed!"
Cao Hong waved her arms in desperate refusal, ready to throw herself in the way if her cousin accepted the aide's absurd scheme.
"Then, Jiam—do you have a plan to suppress the rebellion swiftly?"
"Ah...! N-no, but...!"
Under Cao Cao's sharp question, Cao Hong averted her eyes, trailing off. She had no answer. She'd already seen the Inner Garden troops' might and concluded suppression was impossible.
"If there's backlash afterward, I'll bear it all."
Lee Seong-hwi spoke up. Cao Cao frowned. "Do you take me for a petty wretch who shifts blame to her subordinates? Even if meant to console me, never speak such words again."
"...I've overstepped, my lady."
"All decisions and actions fall under my command and judgment. Thus, all responsibility is mine."
At Cao Cao's wrathful glare, Lee Seong-hwi admitted his error and apologized at once. His consideration for her had come off as belittling. "Procure oil jars immediately. As many as possible."
"Y-yes... Understood!"
The officers nodded reluctantly at her decision. With Grand General He Jin's orders granting full command to Vanguard Captain Cao Cao, they had no choice.
"If Mengde sis gets hurt because of you... I won't forgive you. Ever."
Cao Hong shot Lee Seong-hwi a venomous glare and a edged warning. He nodded. Her face flushed at his tight-lipped silence—taking it as dismissal—and she stomped the innocent ground.
"Cut her some slack. Jiam's just worried about Mengde."
"I understand."
"Since Mengde's going with your plan, I'll follow suit. Her judgment is my path."
If it was Mengde's order. Xiahou Dun framed it as such, pledging obedience. True to her bold spirit, she feared no death and would lay down her life for Cao Cao's command at any moment. Crescent blade lowered, she stood ready to charge the Inner Garden the instant the word came.
"Don't fret so, officer. Setting fire to flush out the rats hunkered in the palace halls isn't unheard of."
Cao Cao spoke softly to ease Lee Seong-hwi's tense, rigid expression. He nodded. Her reassurance soothed the anxiety gnawing at him over whether his judgment might endanger her.
Upper Army Captain Jian Shi had launched his rebellion. Hearing this, the Ten Attendants rushed to convene in the Jade Hall Palace.
Why did this have to happen now? At news of Jian Shi's revolt, they rolled their eyes, tugged at their beards—visibly burdened by his sudden solo act.
'If Lord Jian Shi fails, we'll all be dragged down... Should we join now?'
'But joining means backing someone with clear guilt. Evidence already exists of plotting to depose the Heir Apparent and enthrone Bohai Wang—what can we even do?'
Eyes turned to Guo Sheng. He was the one who'd informed the Grand General's office of Jian Shi's plot.
Sensing the stares, Guo Sheng cleared his throat, face darkening. "The Grand General's office already knew of the plot!"
He claimed they had prior knowledge and struck first, before Jian Shi could move his Inner Garden troops—thanks to the informant.
A betrayer who'd sold out a fellow eunuch. A faithless wretch colluding with the Grand General's office.
"Mid Army Attendant, why betray Upper Army Captain Jian Shi to the Grand General's office?!"
The Vanguard Captain Cao Cao who stormed the estate had demanded proof of the plot—and surely got it from an insider. How else would they know the conversation's details?
Guo Sheng accused Mid Army Attendant Zhao Chong of selling out Jian Shi, condemning his treachery.
"What nonsense! What grudge would I have to inform on Upper Army Captain?! Guo Sheng—you're the one who betrayed him to the Grand General's office! Handing evidence to Vanguard Captain Cao Cao so readily makes you the suspect!"
Zhao Chong flared in outrage at Guo Sheng painting him a filthy turncoat. How dare he frame him? The traitor who'd personally delivered damning proof to the Grand General's man.
"Vanguard Captain Cao Cao herself said you'd confessed everything! Still denying it?!"
"Deny what?! What am I denying?!"
As Guo Sheng and Zhao Chong glared and shouted, the other eunuchs just watched warily. How to respond? Caught off-guard by the sudden uprising—not pre-planned—they weighed the costs of joining Jian Shi's lone gamble.
"Enough. We're gathered to decide whether to join Upper Army Captain's revolt. This concerns us all. One misstep, and that butcher He Jin drags us down too."
Zhang Rang, leader of the Ten Attendants—emperor's right hand, overseer of all Han affairs—spoke. The wrinkled elder's piercing eyes struck fear into the younger eunuchs.
Guo Sheng and Zhao Chong fell silent. In the hush, Zhang Rang continued. "If Jian Shi dies a traitor, his Inner Garden troops scatter. The palace Gold Army we've cultivated as our limbs will side with the Grand General's office. Lose the Gold Army, and we're playthings for that butcher."
The Gold Army guarded the imperial household and palace—the Ten Attendants' own elite force. Years of investment: key posts to loyal officers, purging the disloyal to the frontiers.
Upon the emperor's death, Grand General He Jin's nephew, Heir Apparent Liu Bian, would ascend. Yet the Ten Attendants thrived because the Gold Army in the palace was theirs.
"Then, my lord... you'll side with Upper Army Captain?"
"But the Inner Garden he's holding is already surrounded by Grand General's forces! Isn't it too late...?"
The eunuchs blanched at Zhang Rang's apparent intent to back Jian Shi. They'd follow the elder, but betting on a cornered rat didn't sit well. With fortunes vast as birds couldn't carry, they shunned the risk.
"My lord, disaster!"
A eunuch burst into the Jade Hall Palace inner chamber where the leaders conferred.
"Black smoke's rising from the Inner Garden now!"
The Grand General's forces had set fire to the Inner Garden where Jian Shi and his troops held out. Black smoke billowed skyward in moments. Crimson flames licked and devoured the grand halls.
The Ten Attendants—and even leader Zhang Rang—reeled at the young eunuch's report. None had expected the Grand General's troops to escalate to total war so soon.