Whack-a-Mole (7)
“Anyway, let’s set my health aside for later. Urgent matters first. Who wants to report?”
“Then I’ll go first.”
In answer to my question, Man Chong, standing just to my lower left, rose and began her report.
“This concerns the follow-up measures for Dong Sheng’s treason that occurred this morning. After recording their statements, we confined everyone in the Xuzhou Dungeon. There was some uproar afterward as several individuals attempted to retract their testimony, but after cross-verifying the original statements with the circumstantial evidence, the majority proved reliable. We will therefore proceed with the appropriate measures exactly as stated and handle the matter according to the law of the land.”
It seemed the effects of the work I had done had worn off over time, causing chaos. Still, it was all too late. Once Man Chong took charge, events would unfold precisely as she described.
“Good. Just don’t let it balloon out of proportion.”
“Of course not.”
Man Chong bowed her head, then Gi Ryeong delivered her military briefing.
“Next are matters concerning the army. After the Cao Cao forces withdrew en masse, we successfully established a defensive perimeter by deploying troops according to plan. Lu Bu has been stationed in Pengcheng and Liu Bei in Xiapi; all requested supplies have been issued. However…”
“However?”
“Lu Bu’s army is separately requesting more horses.”
“Horses?”
“Yes. The previous battle resulted in heavy equine losses, and they wish to replenish the stock as quickly as possible.”
“Can’t we simply purchase them from horse traders?”
“The situation is rather difficult. As you know, horses are normally imported from the Youzhou and Bingzhou regions. Recently Yuan Shao completed her conquest of Qingzhou and stationed troops there, making importation considerably harder.”
“Have they sealed the border?”
“Yes. Small quantities can still be obtained, but the volume we require is substantial. It will be difficult to meet demand through legitimate channels alone.”
“Dealing with Cao Cao is obviously impossible… Why is Yuan Shao doing this?”
“The reason remains unclear. We have dispatched an envoy to sound out her intentions, so a reply should arrive shortly.”
“Then we’ll have to wait for her answer. In the meantime, continue purchasing whatever is available and raise the offered price. Smugglers will move if the profit is high enough.”
“Understood.”
“Next… I suppose it’s Gong Rong?”
I turned toward her. She gave a small nod and began.
“I shall report on internal affairs. The tuntian agricultural system has been fully organized and cultivation by military district has commenced. However, because implementation was delayed and continuous troop mobilizations left few hands available for farming, meaningful harvests will not be possible until next autumn. Financially, the funds transferred from the military division will allow us to draft next year’s maintenance budget, but it is by no means abundant. You will need to exercise caution when allocating expedition funds. Ah, and one more matter.”
“Yes?”
“Court officials have submitted a request. Now that we have secured our foundation across Xuzhou and Yangzhou, they suggest it may be time to consider relocating the capital.”
Relocating the capital. A delicate proposal at a delicate moment.
“Relocating the capital… They mean Suchun, I take it?”
“Indeed. They argue that reusing the facilities Yuan Shu constructed would impose little financial burden. Rather than renovating the temporary palace here in Gongyang, moving the court to Suchun would be preferable in many respects.”
“More likely they’re anxious because the capital sits too close to the border. After Cao Cao’s recent invasion, they’ve grown nervous. I can’t blame them, but I cannot accept a capital relocation. If they object, inform them there will be no move until we recover Luoyang and can properly serve the Emperor there. It is a principled stance; they will have no grounds to argue.”
Of course, that was only the public reason. In truth, shifting the capital southward from Gongyang risked destabilizing public sentiment in Langya Kingdom—the very front line—under the pressure of Yuan Shao, who had already advanced into Qingzhou.
“I will convey your words.”
“Good. If they continue to make noise, send them to me. Anyone else with a report?”
I scanned the room, but no one else seemed to have anything urgent. I therefore brought the meeting to a close.
“Carry out your duties based on what we discussed today.”
“Understood.”
Gi Ryeong, Man Chong, and Gong Rong—now the effective heads of their departments—bowed silently, gathered their respective staffs, and began discussing details. I left them to it and exited the hall first.
I had other work waiting.
I currently wore three different masks, alternating between them as the situation demanded: the face of a court official, the face of a warlord, and…
“Master, information has arrived.”
The face of an inhuman being, detached from ordinary reality. That was the third.
On my way back to my quarters, Zhang Fei had somehow slipped in behind me. I accepted the report and turned my attention to that particular duty.
“Anything useful?”
“Yes. It appears Zuo Ci is truly dead. None of our contacts linked to the Cao Cao army have detected him. They seem genuinely confused by his sudden disappearance, but there are no signs they’re concealing him.”
Given what I had witnessed, this could be taken as fact. I set the dead man aside and moved on.
“What about U Gil?”
“According to the contacts I left south of the Yangtze, she forged ties with the Sun family quite some time ago. Her first appearances as an immortal were even earlier. She has displayed numerous miracles and supernatural abilities—so many that her following has reached the level of genuine faith. The Sun family treats her favorably, especially after the precedent with Sun Quan, though Sun Ce herself was apparently less than pleased.”
“Why?”
“Sun Ce despises such things. She believes they delude the people’s hearts. ‘If men depend on dreams, they become incompetent; if those dreams are the product of illusion, the backlash will be even worse.’ She has attempted to impose restrictions several times, but her mother, Lady Wu, along with other family members and officials, have dissuaded her. So she endures it for now.”
“Hmm…”
That was more surprising than I expected.
“What sort of miracles, exactly?”
“Healing the sick, driving away locusts, bringing rain to drought-stricken lands… that sort of thing.”
“Truly? That goes well beyond anything we can dismiss as rumor.”
A sick person might recover. Pests could be repelled. Rain might fall after a drought. But when every one of those phenomena is tied to a single individual, the story changes entirely.
“We must allow for exaggeration… yet when so many people across such a wide region repeat the same accounts, it’s unlikely they are inventing something that never happened.”
“I see…”
Even taking Zhang Fei’s words with a generous grain of salt, the sheer scale was staggering. And yet a being of that caliber wandered in and out of my bedroom as if it were her own parlor. I shook my head and asked one final question.
“Anything else?”
“There is one more item concerning the Cao Cao army. Recently a renowned physician has appeared. Her name is Hua Tuo. They say there is no illness she cannot cure if she arrives in time. She proved enormously helpful after the recent battle.”
“Is that so? It’s a little suspicious… but anything unusual should be investigated. Place her under surveillance as well, and have our people look into any other notable figures.”
“Understood, Master. But…”
“…?”
“Ehehe…”
Instead of explaining, Zhang Fei began tugging gently at the hem of my robe. I failed to grasp her intent at first, but the mischievous, intent-filled smile and the fact that she was leading me toward a secluded corner soon made her purpose clear. I couldn’t help but panic.
“Hey, you idiot. It’s the middle of the day…”
“It’s fine~ No one’s around.”
After the usual ritual of half-hearted refusal, I let myself be pulled along. Once we reached the deserted spot and confirmed we were alone, she pressed close.
“Can’t be helped, I suppose…”
Now that I thought about it, it had been quite a while since our last encounter. I moved to embrace her, but in the next instant she vanished from my sight. Instead, a heavy weight settled onto my shoulders and around my neck.
“…Zhang Fei?”
“What is it, Master?”
“What exactly are you doing up there?”
“What do you mean? I told you last time. Next time I want a piggyback ride too.”
…Come to think of it, before the clash with Zuo Ci, while I was carrying Zhuge Liang and running, Zhang Fei had indeed said something of the sort. So many things had happened since that I had completely forgotten, but she had remembered perfectly.
Which meant I had been the only one letting my imagination run wild. What an embarrassment. As my face grew hot, Zhang Fei asked in a puzzled voice.
“Huh? Were you thinking of something else, Master?”
“O-of course I was thinking of giving you a piggyback ride.”
“Hmm? Doesn’t sound like it… Were you imagining something naughty?”
“Ahem. I told you it’s a misunderstanding.”
I denied it vigorously, but Zhang Fei had already seen through me. She grinned.
“Really? Then you won’t mind walking all the way to the inner garden like this, right?”
Her words seemed non-sequitur at first—like one of those childish riddles—but with my weakness so neatly grasped, I had no choice but to walk in silence with her on my shoulders.
Fortunately she was light and nimble, but the sheer act of carrying an adult woman piggyback through the palace grounds was mortifying. The few court ladies we passed on the way covered their mouths and giggled before vanishing. I memorized their faces, promising myself I would repay the humiliation later.
Meanwhile Zhang Fei, thoroughly enjoying herself, used my head as a rudder, twisting it left and right to steer.
“That way next!”
“Hey, give me a break. People are going to start coming out soon.”
Whether because of my groaning or because she didn’t want the others to discover this new game, Zhang Fei eventually loosened the grip of her thighs around my neck and slid down.
“How was it? A little fun, at least…?”
“A bit lacking, but acceptable for now?”
“For now?!”
The moment I whipped my head around in shock, she planted a quick kiss on my lips, smiled sweetly, and pulled away.
“Payment for the ride. See you later, Master~!”
“…‘Later’ sounds strangely ominous coming from you.”
With a wry smile and a touch of exhaustion, I watched Zhang Fei skip away, then entered my quarters to receive the final guest.
I had spent more time than expected, so I hurried, but it seemed I was still slightly late.
“Has our guest arrived?”