Chapter 14: The World in Turmoil

  Zhongping 4th year, April.

  AD 187

  I am eleven years old now.

  Since the beginning of the year, I have felt that the atmosphere is not quite right. There are frequent comings and goings of messengers at the mansion, and at first, I thought it was because of the strengthening of vigilance due to the misfortune before the New Year. But soon I realized that something was wrong: those soldiers were actually sent by Han Sui!

  But my old man has not yet become powerful enough to openly win over Han Xi's trusted followers.

  So it can only be Han Sui and Lao Da discussing important matters.

  And I, as the eldest son, did not have the right to know about this matter.

  Who made Ma Teng's eyes dim and unclear, and he didn't even notice that his own son was so wise and powerful!

  To get back to the subject, although I was destined to be a prodigy since birth, I have never done anything that would shock the province or county - but it seems that even if I were to pull off something like Ma Chao giving away pears, this broken and remote place is absolutely on the edge of nowhere, so there's basically no way anyone would help spread the word.

  So I've never been polite with my brothers and sisters since childhood.

  Of course, since both grandpa and dad have some silver and gold in their pockets, there are enough things at home to squander, and it's really not necessary for me to worry too much about whether or not to let go of this fat meat.

  Grandfather Ma Su, a man as his name suggests, is a relatively serious old man. Originally, our old home was near Chang'an and could be considered a member of the imperial capital's gentry. When he was young, he didn't understand things and probably because he didn't know the unwritten rules, he was harmonized by his superiors and had to leave his hometown and flee to this desolate place in the northwest where chickens don't lay eggs and birds don't drop dung.

  He was both literary and martial, but neither was particularly outstanding, just a mediocre person. In the Western Liang, which was a place where ethnic minorities gathered, he relied on his half-baked skills to barely make a name for himself as a local snakehead. As a result, when it came to educating my old man, he emphasized martial arts over literature, and being able to recognize characters was enough. After all, he planned to spend the rest of his life relying on the Western Liang, so practicing martial arts to protect himself and make a living was more important. This directly led to my father becoming a mediocre person with great potential.

  So, education in early childhood is very important, and parents must grasp it well. Perhaps the children are not all-around talents, but they still have to try their best - even if it means increasing the burden on them.

  And because of this, I'm carrying a heavy burden now...

  Later that month on a certain day, after getting up and for the whole day, I didn't see Father's figure. This situation had never happened since I was born, so I felt somewhat uneasy in my heart.

  What made me even more uneasy was that Pang Rou told me that the garrison at the South Gate had been taken away.

  And everyone in Guazang knew that the garrison at the South Gate was the city's elite.

  Ma Teng... took more than 10,000 cavalrymen and went out to do what?

  Won't you go find Han Chuihuo and fire him?

  Grandpa, if you're determined to go, then just go alone and leave the troops with me. Don't throw away the foundation of our Ma family for nothing! If I stay behind, at least there's still a chance for me to turn things around. Although I also know that if Father dies, this army and this city have no inheritance relationship with me whatsoever - although we've lived here for nearly ten years, in name, this city still belongs to the Liu family.

  Han Sui's city is also like this.

  Although the Yellow Turban Rebellion had just passed, the great chaos of Western Liang had not yet officially begun.

  Until dinner was over, I still hadn't waited for Ma Teng to come back.

  So I could only sleep with a heavy heart.

  The next morning, I had just sat down at the dinner table and was about to eat when I received the news.

  "In the fourth month of summer, Liangzhou Governor Geng Bing attacked the bandit Han Sui in Jincheng. Geng's army was defeated, and Sui invaded Hanyang. The governor of Hanyang, Fu Xie, died in battle. Ma Teng from Fufeng and Wang Guo from Hanyang both rebelled and raided the Three Adjacent Regions."

  The news was reported by Zhao Cheng's men, I clenched the chopsticks in my hand tightly, but couldn't say a word.

  Dad has rebelled so quickly?!

  Of course, in my original heart, rebellion should be a matter of time. If Ma Teng didn't rebel, I would also rebel. Otherwise, where would I put myself? And Lao Die was biased towards the loyal minister in my impression (although this impression is extremely unfounded). I also thought that it would lead to deterioration of the father-son relationship in the future, so I had slightly hurt my brain before.

  But Father was so decisive, it truly surprised and delighted me.

  Astonishment? Or perhaps anger.

  I can't stand Ma Teng, and he's actually joining forces with Han Sui?!

  I'm not inflexible, but I just can't tolerate it.

  "Han Sui?!" I raised my voice, "You're saying that my dad and Han Sui are in cahoots?!"

  "I'm afraid that's the case, young master," Zhao Cheng waved his hand to dismiss the soldier. "The whole world already knows, we're all rebels now." Compared to my shock and anger, Zhao Cheng was surprisingly calm.

  "You've known about this all along?" I suddenly turned around, gritted my teeth, "But deliberately kept it from me?!"

  Zhao Chengmo did not make a sound, and from his bosom he pulled out a note and handed it over.

  It's definitely Dad's handwriting; no one else could have written this messy script.

  "The Han rebels are pressing me hard, and I am forced to go along with them for now. My son is hot-headed and has a strong temper, I fear he may not be able to endure."

  Only half a sentence? Although the meaning is already clear, it always looks a bit awkward.

  The two chopsticks in hand broke into four pieces, and the uneven wooden shavings pricked the palm of the hand, making it slightly numb.

  Ma Teng, Ma Teng, aren't you a man of iron? How did you learn to swallow your pride and seek advantage?

  The shame of killing your wife and looting the city is no longer a great hatred in your eyes.

  What I insist on as principles are probably just tedious and childish things to grown-ups. Although, judging by the accumulation of age, I have long been a middle-aged person psychologically.

  But in fact it is not at all.

  It's not as simple as one plus one equals two.

  The experience of a 24-year-old plus the experience of an adolescent for 11 years, how can it compare to the experience and tempering of someone in their mid-30s?

  So, my life experience is still mostly in my 20s.

  I'm still half a big kid, at most I can be considered an adult.

  So I still have the characteristics of a young person: having dreams, having principles; being stubborn and self-righteous.

  It's okay, I also have another characteristic: always like to think positively about things.

  Although many times also thought of going to the bad place.

  So I quickly calmed down and took another look at the note in my hand.

  "The Han rebels are pressing me hard, and I am forced to go along with them for now. My son is hot-headed and has a strong temper, I fear he may not be able to endure."

  What? Korean thieves forcing?

  This thing may be true.

  But Father agreed so easily, perhaps he had other ideas.

  As for what idea it is, I don't know about it anymore.

  Although I couldn't let it go, there was nothing I could do about Father's methods. The weak are always at the mercy of the strong, and if you fall behind, you'll get beaten up - this is an eternal truth. Who would take care of you just because you're weak? A harmonious society doesn't work that way.

  So I spent several more days in anxiety.

  It's alright, old dad is finally back, looking like he didn't suffer any injuries, only with a bit more weariness and dust on his face.

  The looting process was unusually smooth, the three auxiliary places were all good, and the garrison fled as soon as they saw the allied army's horse head. This action can be called a great success, full of gains - of course, all the spoils went to Han Sui.

  Although the object of plunder is the common people.

  The old man's face was full of indifference, but I secretly became worried.

  Although we were forced by Han Jue, our Ma family becoming bandits is an undeniable fact. Once the family's reputation is tarnished, it is difficult to restore it. This is undoubtedly a huge obstacle for my desired action of contending for the world: plundering civilians? Slaughtering the innocent?

  No matter how worried I am at this moment, it can't stop all of this from happening.

  Plundering is being carried out repeatedly.

  The imperial court never sent a regular army to suppress and conquer, was the aftermath of the Yellow Turban Rebellion so severe?

  Indeed, the Yellow Turbans' rebellion continued unabated, and at the same time, strange phenomena appeared:

  "In June, Luoyang gave birth to a boy with two heads and shared body."

  "Zhang Chun of Yuyang, along with Zhang Ju from the same commandery, raised an army in rebellion and attacked and killed the Right North Ping Governor Liu Zheng, Liao Dong Governor Yang Zhong, and Protector of the Wuhuan Commander Gongsui Zhen. Zhang Ju proclaimed himself Emperor and invaded You and Ji provinces."

  What is the life of a person from Luoyang? It's just conjoined twins, but as an unofficial message spread, it caused widespread panic, and then various strange phenomena that had been circulating in previous years reappeared. Who was the mastermind behind this rumor?

  Then someone rioted, and a familiar name jumped out:

  "In the tenth month of winter, Yuanling native Guan Yu claimed to be 'General who Pacifies Heaven' and attacked Guiyang. He was struck down by Sun Jian, the governor of Changsha."

  Sun Jian was swift and decisive, his achievements were remarkable and he was also enfeoffed as the Marquis of Wucheng for his contributions.

  Personnel adjustment followed closely:

  In November, Taiwei Cui Lie was dismissed, and Da Sinong Cao Song became Taiwei.

  The one with the surname Cao... That's right, it was Cao Cao's father.

  The highest military commander in the country.

  The people of other ethnic groups also refused to fall behind and began to stir up trouble, greatly damaging the dignity of the imperial court.

  "In the first month of spring in the fifth year, the Huxian Hu people invaded Xihé and killed the governor of the prefecture, Xing Ji."

  There is an unusual phenomenon in the sky, and the Yellow Turban bandits have risen again:

  "In the second month, there was a comet in the Purple Palace. The remaining Yellow Turban bandits, including Guo Tai and others, rose up in the White Wave Valley of Western River, attacking Taiyuan and Hedong."

  This is indeed Baipo Zei.

  The Xiongnu's momentum did not decrease, and they killed Shi Le, and also united with the Xianbei, no, it was annexation.

  "In March, the Xiongnu Hu attacked and killed Zhang Yi, the governor of Bingzhou. He then joined forces with the southern Xiongnu's left wing Hu and killed their chanyu."

  There were still remnants of the Yellow Turbans bandits:

  "In the fourth month of summer, the Yellow Turbans from Runan and Gebei attacked and overran several counties. The Grand Commandant Cao Song was dismissed."

  Lao Cao was implicated and lost his newly appointed position as Taifu.

  In May, Yongle appointed Fang Ling as the Grand General of the Imperial Guard.

  In June, on the day of Bing Yin, a strong wind blew. The Grand Commandant Fan Ling resigned.

  Actually, Lao Cao served as Taishi for a longer period than the person mentioned above.

  The successive replacement of military leaders also indirectly illustrates the chaos and darkness of the top leadership.

  Western Shu also had losses in the Yellow Turbans:

  "Yizhou Yellow Turbans Ma Xiang attacked and killed Governor Gui Yan, claiming to be the Son of Heaven. He also raided Bazhou, killing Governor Zhao Bu. Yizhou's assistant officer Jia Long struck back at Xiang and beheaded him."

  The Xiongnu who had just been annexed were faithless and disloyal, and continued their advance:

  "In September, Nan Chanyu rebelled and joined forces with the White Wave bandits to raid He Dong. The Emperor dispatched Zhonglang Jiang Meng Yi, along with Qidou Wei Gong Sun Zan, to quell the pirates in Yuyang led by Zhang Chun."

  The imperial court finally sent troops, and for the first time heard of Gongsun Zan's name.

  But it did not dampen the masses' enthusiasm for rebellion:

  "In the tenth month of winter, the Qing and Xu Huangjin rebels rose again and attacked the counties. On the day of Jiazi, the Emperor personally claimed to be the "Supreme General" and displayed his troops at Pingle Pavilion."

  The emperor proclaimed himself a great general and chose his best soldiers... Does he understand military affairs?

  I was originally ridiculing the emperor's pretentiousness, but one after another came good news, and all over the country, whether it was the remnants of the Yellow Turbans or foreign tribes rebelling, were gradually being suppressed.

  Then came the turning point:

  "In the sixth year of the summer, fourth month, on the day of cyclical character bingwu, there was a solar eclipse. The Grand Commandant Ma Rong was dismissed and Liu Yu, the Shepherd of Youzhou, became the new Grand Commandant. On the day of cyclical character bingchen, the Emperor passed away."

  Before you die, you still want to strip others of their dignity, and after you're dead, you'll be cursed by everyone.

  It turns out that Liu Yu was originally a Taishi before becoming a Cishi? Which one is bigger, Taishi or Cishi? I'm a bit confused: did I remember it wrong? Aren't they the same person?

  Time flies quickly, "Young Emperor" Liu Bian has ascended to the throne.

  What kind of emperor was he?

  I don't know either.

  Because he was not only a poor puppet, but also only did it for a short period of time, he didn't have the chance to prove his talent and means to the world, and lost his life and everything.

  Because Dong Zhuo has arrived.