Chapter 43: Offering the Sword

  Dong Zhuo's Taishi Mansion was resplendent with gold and jade, hardly inferior to the imperial palace. Dong Zhuo, Lü Bu, Li Ru, and Li Su were drinking together, while a group of singing girls wearing minimal clothing danced gracefully, their movements elegant, each one stunningly beautiful, with fair skin and handsome features, enough to make any man's heart flutter. These were all collected by Dong Zhuo from various places, solely for his own pleasure.

  Cao Cao walked into the grand hall holding a wooden box. Dong Zhuo hastily beckoned to Cao Cao: "Meng De! Why are you late? Hurry up and sit down!"

  "Thank you, Teacher Xie!" Cao Cao sat in the last position.

  The music ended, and the singing girls retreated in an orderly manner. The few people in the hall kept their eyes fixed on this group of singing girls until they disappeared behind the curtains. Dong Zhuo chuckled: "Look at you, what kind of court officials are you? Haha, if you like them, I'll give them to you!"

  "Thank you, Master!" Several people hurriedly expressed their gratitude.

  "Meng De! I heard that there was an assassin at your mansion last night. Is this true?" Dong Zhuo's twisted face actually revealed a smile, which made several people feel surprised.

  Cao Cao hastily stood up: "Report back to the Grand Tutor, it's not an assassin, just a few thieves!"

  "Oh!" Dong Zhuo nodded.

  Li Su said: "When Old Cao left, he must have left many good things for Cao. Otherwise, why would he attract thieves?"

  "Don't make fun of Meng De!" Dong Zhuo waved his hand repeatedly: "Meng De's ancestors were all high-ranking officials in the imperial court, loyal to the great Han dynasty, what kind of goods would they have? What was in that box just now?"

  Cao Cao slowly took out the wooden box he had brought with him, bent down and held it up to his forehead with both hands: "Taishi, I happened to have acquired a treasure a few days ago, and I've come to present it to you! Please take a look."

  Someone brought Cao Cao's wooden box to the front of Dong Zhuo, gently opened the lid, revealing the seven-star treasure knife inside. Dong Zhuo took it in his hand and examined it carefully. Dong Zhuo was also a veteran of many years on the battlefield, and he naturally knew what a good sword looked like. Looking at the sword shining with a blue light under the lamp, the cloud pattern seemed to be flowing, nodding continuously: "Good sword! It's really a good sword!" With a gentle swing, the corner of the nanmu wood table in front of him was cut off.

  Everyone gasped in shock. Dong Zhuo's face was filled with a smile: "This knife cuts through iron like mud, if I'm not mistaken, it must be forged from the Xuantie Iron of Mount Tianya, a rare thing in this world! Did Meng De come late just to help me find this knife?"

  "No, I obtained this sword a few days ago. The reason I'm late today is that my horse fell ill!" Cao Cao explained.

  Dong Zhuo was so enamored with the sword that his eyes had not left it since he first laid eyes on it. He lowered his head and said, "I've just brought back several fine steeds from Xiliang. Fengxian, you personally go select one to give to Meng De as a gift, which will also serve as my return gift!"

  Lü Bu turned and went down. Li Ru and Li Su were standing beside Dong Zhuo, watching the knife together. After a while, Li Ru's eyes rolled over, and he looked at Cao Cao who was standing below, his mouth moved slightly but didn't say anything. Lü Bu led a fine horse to the front of the hall. Indeed it was a good horse, Cao Cao took a look: "Wenhou, this horse shouldn't be tame, right?"

  Lü Bu smiled: "I don't know about this, why don't Meng De try it and see!"

  Someone saddled the horse and put a halter on it. Cao Cao saw Li Ru constantly looking at himself, and hastily said: "Taishi, this horse is spirited, I'd like to try riding it once, may I?"

  Dong Zhuo didn't even lift his head, and with a wave of his hand, he let Cao Cao go. Cao Cao mounted the precious horse, grasped the reins, clamped his legs together, and the horse whinnied as it galloped out of the mansion. As soon as Cao Cao left, a gate guard came to report that Long Fei and Zhao Yun were seeking an audience. Dong Zhuo had just obtained the precious sword and was eager to show it off in front of others, so he immediately ordered the two men to be let in.

  Lü Bu saw from a distance, let out a cold snort and turned to enter the grand hall. Dong Zhuo smiled and beckoned with his hand, letting the two of them approach. He took out the Seven-Star Treasure Knife and laughed, saying: "You two have come at just the right time, take a look at this precious knife that I've just obtained."

  Long Fei took it over with both hands, pretending to examine it carefully, nodding repeatedly as he looked: "Good sword, good sword! Indeed a good sword! The Seven Stars Treasure Sword is truly one of a kind."

  "Seven Stars Treasured Sword? Is this sword really called Seven Stars Treasured Sword?" Dong Zhuo hastily inquired.

  Long Fei nodded: "Exactly, Taishi please take a look, on the hilt of this knife, according to the position of the seven stars, are inlaid with seven different precious stones, hence the name Seven Star Treasure Knife, only...".

  "What's the big deal?"

  "This sword is the treasured heirloom of Wang Yun, the Minister of Works!" Long Fei exclaimed in surprise: "In the past when I was at the Minister's residence, I had heard about this sword and asked to see it several times, but the Minister refused. Who would have thought that today he would voluntarily present it to you, Taishi? It seems that the Minister holds you in high esteem, even offering up his family heirloom! Congratulations, Taishi - with the Minister's support, your power will be greatly enhanced!"

  Dong Zhuo burst out laughing: "This time you're wrong, this sword was presented by Meng De. He knew I loved swords and specially found one to present to me. It has nothing to do with Wang Yun!"

  "So that's how it is!" Long Fei suddenly enlightened.

  Dong Zhuo put down his treasured sword and suddenly seemed to remember something, asking: "You two are not training soldiers in the Western Garden, what brings you here?"

  Long Fei hastily cupped his hands and said, "Taishi Rong, yesterday night we were patrolling outside the city when we discovered a group of thieves. They were all skilled fighters, so we followed them. Who would have thought that they would climb over the wall into Cao Fu? My second brother and Zhang Liao sent soldiers to capture them, but Cao Cao wouldn't let them in. However, we found this thing outside the back wall of Cao Fu. I've heard that Mr. Li Su is knowledgeable and wise, so I've brought it for him to take a look!" Long Fei pulled out the jade piece from his bosom and handed it to Li Su. Li Su's face turned pale with shock as soon as he saw it.

  "Father-in-law! Cao Cao is going to rebel!" Li Su suddenly blurted out with wide eyes.

  Before the words had fallen, Xu Rong hastily came: "Taishi, Cao Mengde rode out of the city on horseback. The end will see him in a daze and ask him, saying that Taishi made things for him, but did not bring a token, the end general dare not let go, specially come to ask Taishi to decide!"

  Xu Rong's words were not finished, when another urgent report came from outside the mansion. The messenger soldier rushed in: "Taishi, something big has happened, Cao Cao injured a gatekeeper and left the city, his horse ran fast, we couldn't catch up."

  "What's going on here? Why didn't you report it earlier?" Dong Zhuo's anger soared to the sky, and he heavily threw the Seven-Star Treasure Knife onto the ground. The sharp blade pierced into the blue bricks, standing upright.

  "Father-in-law, calm down! Cao Cao has been treacherous for a long time!" Li Su hastily supported Dong Zhuo: "I think Cao Cao didn't come to present the sword today. If we weren't here, Cao Mengde would definitely have disloyal intentions towards you, father-in-law. Please look, this thing brought by Long Jiao is called White Dragon Wall, it's a token used by a mysterious organization called Black Ice in the world today. It's said that Black Ice originated from before Qin, and has survived through Qin and Han without being destroyed. They specialize in taking money to kill people, mostly composed of powerful men and swordsmen, with many skilled fighters, no one dares to contend with them. There's also a legend that Zhang Rang assassinated He Jin by asking these people."

  "Oh?" Dong Zhuo seemed very interested: "Do you know who their leader is?"

  Li Su shook his head: "This organization is very mysterious, even people within the organization don't know how big it is, let alone its leader. No one has ever seen him before. It's said that Hei Bing's leader has exceptional martial arts skills and unparalleled wisdom, known as Bai Long! Bai Long means clear water, and Hei Bing refers to the thin layer of ice on the surface of the water, so I suppose it's derived from this meaning!"

  Most of the people present had never heard of such an organization before. Although Li Su's tone was dull and expressionless, he still managed to captivate his audience. As for Baidi and Heibing, Long Fei had also never heard of them before, and he didn't expect Li Su to be so well-informed. He asked, "So how do they do business? And how did Cao Cao get in touch with them?"

  Li Su smiled slightly: "This black ice is mysterious, but it's not isolated from the world. As far as I know, there are several places in Luoyang that deal with this kind of business. One is Huifeng Grain Store in the west of the city, one is Tailei Building in the north of the city, and another is Ping'an Inn at the entrance of Zhugan Alley. Cao Cao's home is just in Zhugan Alley, no need for him to look for it, as long as he shows a little intention, those people will naturally find him!"

  Xu Rong immediately made a fist to Dong Zhuo and said: "Taishi, this kind of organization that makes money by killing people must not be left. Please Taishi allow me to take people to eradicate these three places now!"

  "Xu Xiao Wei, why the rush!" Li Su waved his hand and turned to Dong Zhuo: "If Father-in-law really wants to find Hei Bing's people, I can go contact them. It's just a matter of money, isn't it? Now that all the lords of Guandong are eyeing us covetously, perhaps this Hei Bing is a sharp sword in our hands!"

  Dong Zhuo did not respond immediately, but instead turned around and looked at Li Ru. Li Ru slightly closed his eyes, twirling his mustache with his fingers. Seeing Dong Zhuo looking at him, Li Ru said: "This Hei Bing has already colluded with Cao Cao to deal with us, if we go find them now, they may not necessarily agree."

  "You're wrong, the principle of Hei Bing has always been not to ask what's right or wrong, as long as who gives more money they'll help whoever!" Li Su smiled slightly: "Speaking of having money, my father-in-law controls the national treasury, if he doesn't have money then there's no one in this world with money!"

  "Absolutely not! The national treasury's money and grain are the lifeline of the imperial court. Giving these to Hei Bing may stir up trouble!" Xu Rong hastily said: "In my opinion, it's better to eliminate Hei Bing as soon as possible, lest calamity befall the world. I implore you, Taishi, to think thrice!"

  "Xu Rong's words are different! Hei Bing only cares about money, not fame! As long as they get the money, they will never interfere with us!" Li Su said: "Hei Bing has been around for hundreds of years, and I've never heard of them rebelling. This is one thing Father-in-law can be at ease about."

  Li Ru said: "Given the current situation, it's not that we can't take money from the treasury, but rather how much money is in the treasury. I went to check a few days ago and found that there's hardly anything left. If we were to take everything out, we wouldn't be able to pay the officials' salaries. As for the eastern regions, they are vast and wealthy, it would be easy to raise some funds. Since we can think of using Hei Bing, the people of Guandong will naturally also think of it!"

  "Then let's borrow again!" Long Fei suddenly interjected: "There are so many high-ranking officials in Luoyang, each of them contributing a little would be a large sum. Although Guandong is rich and prosperous, the common people have been suffering from years of war and won't have much money!"

  "This is indeed a good idea!" Li Su immediately agreed.