Sun Qian POV

I left Xu state and made a beeline for Yuan Shao. After about a week of travel, I was able to make it to Yuan Shao’s palace in Nanpi county, Hebei using Yuan Shu, which we were now making our way in under the guidance of her retainers.

Though Yuan Shao belonged to an ill.u.s.trious family, the sheer scale of the palace with its carved railings and jade inlays greatly exceeded the luxury that befitted that of a n.o.ble.

It was clear from this that the Great Han had fallen from its past glory days.

And at this time, my lord’s face came to mind once again. I hadn’t said much when I left, but worry filled my heart.

Was it really alright to leave my lord in Xu state city?

My lord doesn’t know how to deal with official doc.u.ments, how will he handle internal administration? My lord is soft-spoken, who will make a decision when the time comes? My lord has great affinity with women, if he is just a bit more proactive, he will definitely… As my lord’s personal adviser, shouldn’t I be silently by his side at this time?

… But~

I shook my head lightly, hoping to drive away all these unnecessary thoughts.

That’s right, I have a mission at hand. What I must think about now is how to convince Yuan Shao.

Yuan Shao is dogmatic and simple-minded, but she is still an influential person and a hero of this era. Her conflicts with Cao Cao are no mere squabbles and any small mistake will reduce the loser to dust. Would Yuan Shu, who has now occupied You, Qing, Bing and Ji states, be willing to bother with this low return high risk and troublesome alliance?

“Oi, what are you thinking about?” A casual voice came from in front of me, and I looked ahead to see that Yuan Shu was looking at me with eyes that were filled with pride.

“… Nothing.” I moved my sleeve to cover my mouth before continuing slowly, “… How does Lord Yuan Shu intend on convincing your elder sister later?”

For some reason, Yuan Shu began laughing loudly when she heard these words of mine.

“Hahaha, so that’s what you’re thinking about huh.” Yuan Shu looked relaxed as she shook her long and heavy sleeves before tucking her hands behind her head, “If it’s about this, then you need not be worried.”

I wasn’t convinced by Yuan Shu’s show of confidence was difficult but I did not say anything to this, and decided to wait and see what she would do later.

After walking for a while more and crossing 2 large halls, we finally reached the inner most room where Yuan Shao awaited us.

“My lord, Yuan Shu, General of the Left, and Liu Bei’s retainer have arrived.”

“Oh, my little sister is here. Tell them to come in.”

The retainer bowed and gestured with his head to enter before leaving.

Isn’t it common courtesy for one come out to welcome one’s visitors? Even if she doesn’t respect my lord, doesn’t she care about her own little sister?”

“Come on, let’s go in.” Yuan Shu said with a tinge of joy and went ahead. I looked at Yuan Shu who didn’t seem to mind and felt a little sad for her.

After a few flights of stairs, we made it into her room. I looked around silently, and found that whether it was the shelves or the tables, they were all covered with heaps of treasure. The amount in this room was so much that all of Xu state could not hope to compare. It has been said that Hebei was a place rich with many treasures but now I see that it is no exaggeration.

“Big sis~~” Yuan Shu called out and charged for the figure on the right. I turned and saw a n.o.ble lady with flowing long wavy hair wearing exquisite clothing made from silk and satin. When she saw Yuan Shu running over, she put down the teacup in her hands and hugged Yuan Shu who leapt into her arms.

“Aiyo~~ My dear little sister~~” Yuan Shu showed a difficult expression as she rubbed Yuan Shu’s hair and then sniffed her little sister before continuing, “It’s been difficult on you this time huh~~”

“No, it’s nothing. I’ll just take it as experiencing how it’s like to live as an ordinary civilian.” Yuan Shu said as she separated from Yuan Shao, before continuing with an awkward expression, “I don’t have anywhere else to go now, and can only find shelter with big sister.”

“I told you long ago that you should have just stayed with me but you wouldn’t listen.” Yuan Shao said with a helpless smile, before continuing with a kind expression, “Don’t leave me again this time.”

Un?

Why does the feeling that Yuan Shao give me feel so different before… She feels a lot warmer a person. Is it a psychological effect?

“But I really have to be thankful to Liu Yu Zhou huh~~” All of a sudden, Yuan Shao changed the topic and pointed at me as she continued, “If it weren’t for Liu Bei, my little sister would have died on the way here.”

“…” Yuan Shao clearly meant more than what her words seemed to suggest on the surface, and I was at a loss as to what to reply. I took a deep breath, and bowed before replying, “Your little sister is a good person and her life should not end. My lord is also benevolent and deeply respects Lord Yuan Shao, and thus, he has sent me to accompany your little sister on her journey here.”

“That does sound reasonable,” Yuan Shao said as she got up and walked over to where I was, “But if he respects me so deeply, why would he attack my little sister?”

“… My lord was only following the orders of the Son of Heaven of the Great Han. As Imperial Uncle of the Great Han, my lord has no reason not to abide by those orders.”

“From what I can see, Liu Bei is not a loyal servant of the Great Han, but a lackey of Cao Cao’s right?”

“Big sister…”

“Don’t interrupt.” Yuan Shao cut off Yuan Shu’s words and walked over to my side and looked at me with a cold glance as she continued, “I don’t know what Liu Bei sent you here for, but I have no intention of joining with someone who has thrashed my little sister.”

I didn’t think that Yuan Shao would be this sharp. Lord Yuan Shu, I don’t see how I shouldn’t have been worried.

“… Is that so. Then if I were to say that,” I met her glance, “I were here to convince Lord Yuan Shao to attack Cao Cao, what would you do?”

Attack, Cao Cao.

When these 3 words reached Yuan Shao’s ears, I saw her eyes widen slightly.

“Haha,” She then laughed as she replied, “You really know how joke huh. Liu Bei is Cao Cao’s ally, for what reason would he oppose Cao Cao?”

“My lord has had some differences with Cao Cao recently, and before long, the Cao army will be sieging the walls of Xu state city.”

“Oh? There’s actually such a thing huh.” Yuan Shao played with her hair as she put on a smile once more and sat back down on her chair. “Then what you mean is to…”

Yuan Shao was clearly moved. To her, the greatest hindrance to her ascendancy is Cao Cao so all I need to do is continue along this thread.

As I thought about this, I stood up straight and deeply bowed before saying the purpose of my visit, “… An alliance with Liu Bei, against Cao Cao.”

Meng De POV

“All preparations have been made. All that’s left is for my lord to lead the main body.” Xun Yu spoke to me during lunch, from some random corner.

“Has there been any movement by Yuan Shao?” I continued eating as I asked her.

“Yuan Shao moved the bulk of her troops to the border of Bing state and Ji state 2 months ago. There have been no movements since then.”

“How many troops have we gathered?”

“About 50,000 or so.”

“And Yuan Shao?”

“A rough estimate puts her army at 200,000 strong, excluding reinforcements from Xianbei and Wuhuan.”

(TL: Xianbei and Wuhuan are places where the nomadic Mongolian tribes are. The Han Chinese typically considered them as barbarians.)

When I heard this, I couldn’t help but to put down my chopsticks and take a swig from my gourd of wine.

1 to 4 huh…

“Imperial Chancellor!”

Un?

Just then, a middle aged man barged in from outside. He wore the official uniform very properly, and was the perfect exemplar of a Han dynasty official.

“Oh~~ Isn’t this Kong Rong? How is it? Have you gotten used to life in Xuchang?”

Kong Rong, Administrator of Beihai, is a famous scholar. His way of thinking is somewhat outdated but leaving him in Beihai would be a waste of his talent so I got the Son of Heaven to summon him to the capital and serve as Palace Counsellor.

“I heard that Imperial Chancellor wishes to attack Yuan Shao?” He did not bother with niceties or greetings, and cut to the chase anxiously.

“Un, that’s right. I did say that in morning Court.” I gestured with my hands as I said so, “Please sit sir, if you have anything to discuss, we can do so at length.”

(TL: By sir, it’s more of like a t.i.tle. E.g. you call professors by professor.)

“There is no need for that.” He saluted before continuing.

“Please pardon my directness but I think it would be better to seek peace with Yuan Sho.”

“Oh? Peace?”

“Yes.” He straightened his back and began explaining, “Yuan Shao now occupies a large swathe of territory that covers Hebei and Liaodong, and is the bulwark against Xianbei, Wuhuan and Gaoli. If external powers seize the opportunity while we are embroiled in civil war, then that would be disastrous. Moreover, Yuan Shao belongs to the family that held the 3 princ.i.p.al appointments for 4 generations. Yuan Shao herself is loyal to the Son of Heaven. I’m afraid Imperial Chancellor has no legitimate reason for your attack on her.”

(TL: Gaoli is the Chinese name for Korea, which was in the Goryeo dynasty then.)

As Kong Rong said so, he walked toward me and his expression grew more severe with every step.

“That’s right, what sir has said is all correct.” I laughed as I clapped. “But though Yuan Shao is but a mere Governor of Ji state, why has she become the Grand Commandant of 4 states? If she is loyal to the Son of Heaven, why has she not come to see the Son of Heaven at all in Xuchang?”

“This…”

“Sir, I’m sure you and I know what this all means.” I waved and summoned the 2 servants outside, which gave Kong Rong a fright. Only when he saw that they came in to clear my lunch did he heave a sigh of relief. “In this chaotic era, the only ones who are truly loyal to the Han are but 2 individuals. And of them, neither are Yuan Shao or Sun Ce.”

“… Alright, I’ll stop being a wet blanket to Imperial Chancellor.” Kong Rong seems to have been convinced, but he sighed and continued again slowly, “But how does Imperial Chancellor intend to fight this battle? Whether its troops, logistics, or morale, there is not one area in which you have an advantage in.”

His words were on point this time, and were things which I was worried about as well.

I clenched my fist. “I’ve made arrangements for all of these issues. Sir need not worry, I will end this swiftly.”

That’s right, this battle with Yuan Shao cannot drag on, it must end as swiftly as possible.

Only after Kong Rong left did I lower my guard. As a scholar, his skill at debate is top notch indeed. If I am not careful enough, I could find myself convinced by him.

But, 1 to 4 huh…

“Is Xun Yu still around?”

“… Yes.”

“Tell me, are Yuan Shao’s strategists more outstanding than mine? Are her warrior generals braver than mine?”

After a moment of silence, Xun Yu began speaking in a rare, uncharacteristic tone that was filled with scorn. “Our armies are far superior to Yuan Shao’s. Tian Feng is strong but rebellious, Xu You is ambitious but unintelligent, Shen Pei is knowledgeable but ingenuous, Feng Ji is determined but useless. Yan Liang is ferocious but brainless, Wen Chou is brave but naive, and the rest are ordinary people. The ones who are truly talented are former subordinate generals of Han Fu and Zhang Yang who will not die for Yuan Shao.”

When Xun Yu finished, I burt into laughter.

“But my lord,” Xun Yu interrupted, and emerged from behind a flower vase and sat beside me, “You said there were 2 people loyal to the Han. Who is the other one besides my lord?”

“That’s right, who indeed?”

“My lord!”

“Haha~~”

Going by a rough estimate, w.a.n.g Zhong and Liu Dai should have reached by now.

Liu Bei POV

So the ones who should come, came in the end anyway.

“Big brother.”

“Ah, I know.” I stood on the Xu state city walls with my 2 little sisters and looked at the army that came from afar. On its flags, one could clearly see the ‘曹’ emblazoned.

Even if it was a misunderstanding, must the friends of yesterday be the enemies of today?

My heart ached once again.