Chapter 59, Chariot and Cavalry General

  Just then Gong Sun Zhi asked seriously: "If it is as the young master said, isn't the Taiping Dao a great hidden danger?"

  Sun Yu let out a sigh and said slowly, "I have received reports from various counties in Xuan Tu Prefecture that the number of Taiping Tao followers is increasing day by day. In the past, they would gather once a month to discuss matters and use water divination to diagnose illnesses. Now, however, they are gathering every few days, with a large number of people attending, which is truly worrying. Nevertheless, over the past few years, there haven't been any major incidents in this prefecture. To say that Taiping Tao can stir up turmoil throughout the country, I'm afraid more evidence is needed."

  He paused, seemingly aware of the reactions of those present, and added: "In any case, we must be vigilant against the Huhui bandits invading our territory. If someone secretly colludes with the Huhui to cause trouble, it will be impossible to guard against. This time, the Taiping Dao and the Huhui have communicated with each other, which is a warning in itself."

  Zu Zhaowu didn't think that Gong Sunzhi's words and Chun Yubai's words were the same, Chun Yubai thought that it was still obviously influenced by the local conditions of Xuan Tu County. The population of Xuan Tu County is sparse, and the number of Taiping Taoists is also limited, so the biggest threat is still the repeated border violations by foreign tribes.

  Zu Jue raised his eyes for a moment when Chun Yu Pei spoke, but his face remained stern. Although he didn't express any clear meaning, the feeling he gave was still more biased towards his own grandson.

  Gongsun Zan and Zhang Nan both had different degrees of contemplation. Relying solely on the disturbance caused by a hundred or so bandits, they were about to drag out such a huge hidden danger. It sounded somewhat alarmist, but they couldn't help being interested in Zu Chao's multi-faceted analysis. As for whether the Taiping Way was auspicious or ominous, let's not say for now. Just talking about the recent natural disasters and man-made calamities, the people were struggling to survive, and the dead bodies were everywhere, which indeed showed signs of danger. By drawing lessons from ancient times, one could also know that after a great disaster, a great chaos would inevitably follow, so they couldn't help but be cautious.

  Gongsun Zan had heard earlier that Zuozhao was a fellow student of Lü Zhi, and could be considered his fellow disciple. Even though Zuozhao dropped out midway, the reputation of being a student of Lü Zhi's school still held some weight. As they were both from aristocratic families and fellow students, he still had a high regard for Zuozhao in his heart.

  After a moment, Zhang Nan said calmly: "In fact, this trip, Mr. Hao and Mr. Gong are traveling together, but I came here at the request of the Magistrate of Zhuo Prefecture. Yesterday evening, I entered the city, and only met with you two gentlemen early today to travel together. Zhuo Prefecture is close to Ji Province, and the Taiping Sect originated in Julu, so Zhuo Prefecture has been deeply affected by it. To tell the truth, the Magistrate of our prefecture was worried about the Taiping Sect deceiving people's minds, and just heard about the incident in your honorable place, specially sent me to come and understand the details."

  Zu Zhaolao had expected that Zhang Nan should not have any relationship with Gong Sunyan and Hao Yan, and in terms of official position, he could not even be seated together with Gong Sunyan and Hao Yan. Upon hearing what Zhang Nan said, he felt that the other party should understand the situation of the Taiping Dao.

  At this time, Zu Ju continued Zhang Nan's words and made some additions, saying: "Zhao Er, the Taishou of Gaoyang County, Mr. Wen, is a man of high virtue and prestige. In the past, your father had visited him specially, and he was considered to have some connection with Mr. Wen. In fact, Mr. Wen is also very worried about the chaos among the people, hoping that after understanding the case of Ling Zhi, he can present a book to Shizun, detailing the pros and cons."

  Zu Zhao knew that Zu Ju was hinting at himself, he searched his memory and vaguely remembered that "this Mr. Wen" was named Wen Xun, styled Taiqiao. At the time when his father had dealings with him, Mr. Wen had just taken office as the head of the Imperial Censorate. Later, when his father passed away, the Wen family even sent someone to pay their respects. Wen Xun was indeed a man of great character and reputation, if not for the suspicion of being involved in the Party Purge during that year, he should have been one of the nine high-ranking officials by now. Of course, apart from Wen Xun himself, his son Wen Hui was also a famous minister of the Three Kingdoms period.

  Zhang Nan continued, "To be frank with you all, although there is no major disturbance within the prefecture of Zhuo, there have been frequent minor incidents. Those self-proclaimed masters of the Taoist sect use talismans and water to treat illnesses, claiming that if the patient recovers, it's a miracle, but if they don't, it's because the patient wasn't sincere. They deceive people's hearts and swindle them everywhere. At first, it was still acceptable; they would diagnose and treat illnesses without seeking personal gain. However, as the number of followers increased day by day, there were inevitably those who took advantage of the situation to cheat and deceive, gathering crowds and extorting money. The governor of our prefecture, Wen, is deeply worried about this."

  Zu Zhaoyi said, "Lord Wen has such a far-sighted view, it's truly delightful. This time, if it were just ordinary bandits, that would be fine, but when I led the righteous men of our village to fight against the thieves, we encountered a team of Hu cavalry that was neat and orderly, with strict formation. Even if they colluded with the Hu thieves to start a riot, they should have been ordinary herders, so it makes me feel deeply that there is something fishy about this matter."

  Gongsun Zan and Hao Yan exchanged a glance, both of their faces showing varying degrees of concern.

  Although Zhang Nan didn't think much of Zu Zhao at first, the reputation of "Dragon City's Flying General" made him feel a bit pompous. However, this time he had defeated many bandits and reported to the officials that he had killed over 9 people. At such a young age, having such bravery was truly impressive. After hearing Zu Zhao's words, he furrowed his brow and solemnly asked: "Is it really true?"

  Zu Zhao didn't change his expression and said: "My ancestors' family went together with over a hundred younger brothers, all of whom witnessed it. They absolutely dare not utter even half a big lie."

  Zhang Nan nodded thoughtfully and didn't say anything more.

  Gongsun let out a long sigh and said anxiously: "It's really a troublesome autumn."

  After a while, Zu Zhao said in a serious tone: "I don't know if Lord Hao and Brother Wen Qiao have heard of the Hu people who are good at using black arrows?" He had mentioned this to his grandfather earlier, but he didn't deliberately emphasize the appearance of the black arrow thief that day.

  At this time, Zu Zhao mentioned Hei Jian Zei again. Zu's face turned strange and his eyes stared deeply at Zu Zhao.

  Gongsun Zan, Hao Yan and Zhang Nan looked at each other in dismay, mostly with a look of suspicion.

  After a long while, Hao Yan furrowed his brow and opened his mouth to say: "The black arrow that Master Zǔ mentioned, is it referring to an arrow with its entire body painted black?"

  Zu Zhao replied: "That's right. Has Lord Hao heard anything?"

  Hao Yan's face was hesitant, and he said: "A few years ago when I was in Longyou, I seemed to have heard some legends about painting the entire arrow black, but it didn't seem to be referring to the Hu people. The locals were talking about the Western Liang people. More than a decade ago, anyone with exceptional archery skills would make special marks on their arrows. Some used cinnabar to dye the arrow feathers red, while others used paint to draw patterns on the arrowheads. Painting the entire arrow black was also done before, but unfortunately, I only casually listened at the time and didn't pay much attention, so I don't remember it very well. Is this related to the Lingzhou County case?"

  Zu Zhao nodded, and briefly recounted the story of how his grandfather and Wen Xianyu had encountered the Black Arrow Qiang people in the past. He then told them about his own encounter with the Black Arrow bandits. After finishing speaking, he said: "These barbarians are cunning and elusive, sometimes hiding within Han territory. Currently, there aren't many leads, perhaps we can start from here."

  Everyone who heard this was amazed.

  Gongsun Zan was perplexed and said: "General Zuolao, that was many years ago. How could it be the same Qiang bandit now?"

  Sun Yu Pei also followed up by saying: "Perhaps it's just a coincidence."

  Zu Zhao smiled faintly and said with a bow: "I also only know that I don't speak without knowledge."

  Hao Yanzheng said seriously: "In any case, the Ling Zhixian case is not trivial. We will certainly report the truth to General Zhang."

  Zhang Nan nodded solemnly on the side and said without delay, "When we return to the county, I will report the truth to the lord of our county government."

  Zu Jue said with a smile: "Since that's the case, then I won't trouble you gentlemen anymore. The sky is already dark, why not stay overnight at my humble abode and have dinner together tonight to welcome you?"

  Everyone politely declined at first, but eventually they all agreed.

  Wen Hui (178-223), courtesy name Manji, was a native of Qi County, Taiyuan (now Qi County, Shanxi). He served as the Administrator of Yang Province and later transferred to be the Administrator of Liang Province during the Three Kingdoms period. In the historical book "Records of the Three Kingdoms", Wen Hui is grouped with five other administrators: Liu Fu (Administrator of Yang Province at the end of Han), Sima Lang (Administrator of Yan Province), Liang Xi (Administrator of Bing Province), Jia Kui (Administrator of Yu Province) and Zhang Ji (formerly Administrator of Yong Province). These six administrators were evaluated by Chen Shou as the model among all provincial administrators for being "well-versed in state affairs, possessing both majesty and kindness, thus able to bring order to thousands of miles".