The Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Lu Bu is good at being filial

Chapter 12

＜ The Spring of Luoyang (6) ＞

General He Jin, assassinated.

Though it is unknown how he died, someone is dying because of the news.

“How is the magistrate?”

“Even while coughing up blood, he ordered us to cross the river quickly.”

When asked by the approaching Zhang Liao, he immediately answered about the state of the garden.

“He hasn’t passed away, has he?”

“No. Fortunately.”

“I see. Then that’s good.”

The garden collapsed as soon as he heard the news.

-You, you…!!

At the moment of collapse, the look in his eyes glaring at me was certainly unusual.

-Keuhuhuk!!

-Sir!!

It was as if something major had happened, and he glared at me with eyes that said, ‘Because of that guy.’

He fainted for a while, and now he is in a state where he cannot get up due to his weakened energy.

“An old man like him should not be so angry that he coughs up blood.”

“Isn’t it because of the general?”

“Because of me?”

I was dumbfounded by Huseong’s shifting of responsibility.

“Do you really think that way?”

“That’s how it looks through ‘General Jeongwon’s eyes.'”

Huseong also saw the look in Jeongwon’s eyes.

“Isn’t that right, Jangryo?”

“…The General must be blaming you a lot.”

Even though it wasn’t inside the barracks, everyone, including Huseong, saw the vicious old man glaring at me while being carried by the deputy, spitting blood.

“Was it my fault?”

I asked, looking at each of them in turn.

“Is this my fault?”

“No.”

“Never.”

Both Huseong and Jangryo denied it.

“To determine right and wrong, we must first figure out what was wrong. What do you think your mistake was, General?”

“From Jeongwon’s perspective. This is strictly from Jeongwon’s point of view.”

That old man.

“He must think that because I took the soldiers to suppress the bandits, an accident happened before we could even cross the river properly.”

Surely, he is pouring all his resentment on me because of that accident.

“Although the messenger in black didn’t say much, he clearly mentioned that General Hajin is dead.”

“He also said it was a murder.”

“…Could it be the Ten Attendants?”

Jangryo cautiously raised the suspicion.

“Could it be that the eunuchs, politically cornered, assassinated Hajin?”

“Indeed. It wasn’t just a murder, it was an assassination.”

The suspect who killed the General has already been identified.

And that suspect is likely a eunuch, as Jangryo speculated.

“Then what should we do? If General Hajin is dead, there’s no reason for us to go to the capital, is there?”

“There is. Even if we don’t have a reason, Jeongwon does.”

Although it seems like we might hold the funeral for the General in the capital as soon as we arrive, Jeongwon insists on going to Luoyang even if it means dying there.

“Isn’t he trying to use the Bingzhou army to seize control of the court?”

“……Yes?”

“Isn’t that treason?”

“No, no. If we claim to expel the eunuchs and vow to take bloody revenge on them, it gives us justification.”

He racked his brain.

‘What did I do when the directors fought at the company?’

Although I was in a position similar to a low-ranking employee, the clashes between directors within the company were like wars.

One side’s leader was ousted.

What about those below them?

Did they crawl in with their heads bowed to the ground?

That was the norm.

Those who purged the opposing leader would consider anyone who didn’t join them as ‘traitors’ and would plan to drive them out completely.

‘Become a traitor and get your head cut off, or stand shoulder to shoulder and face them.’

Most did so, but some ambitious ones aimed higher and took the position for themselves.

“This is just my thought.”

Probably.

“Those under Hajin will try to kill all the eunuchs, right? They have to, to survive.”

The high-ranking officials of the court would be employing even more significant political maneuvers than I could.

“So, in the end, it means the conclusion will be reached in Luoyang.”

“What will you do? Will you cross quickly?”

“Crossing is crossing. But….”

I pointed to the ship.

“Cavalry can run fast on land, but they can’t run on water.”

Horses were just beginning to board the ship one by one.

“If we were going to cross the river with cavalry, we should have prepared a large ship in advance.”

While many infantry could board a small ship, it was difficult for cavalry to do so.

Nevertheless, if we wanted to rush to the capital, cavalry was essential. What a contradictory situation.

“Take it easy. It will take time anyway. If it’s so urgent, why don’t you cross the river first?”

The one who was frustrated was Jeongwon.

“We didn’t start early from the beginning, so spending some time clearing bandits in the middle won’t significantly affect the overall situation.”

This, I can say for sure.

“If Jeongwon says it’s late, it was already late from the start.”

A saying from a great sage comes to mind.

“When you think it’s late, it’s already too late.”

But then, the advice to move quickly even now follows.

“If Jeongwon hears that, he’ll cough up blood again.”

“Does that mean I harmed him?”

“If he dies from anger after hearing that, it’s not murder but a natural death.”

“A natural death?”

“At least he won’t experience the frustration of arriving at the court only to find everything already over, right?”

“Everything is over.”

Indeed.

“Even if we try to confirm, it would take at least a day to march to the capital, this is really inconvenient.”

It’s a shame we don’t have modern communication.

“If we could know what’s happening in Luoyang, we could act accordingly right away.”

Perhaps.

As Jeongwon wishes, or even faster, I would run towards Luoyang alone.

“Tsk…”

Beyond the Yellow River, the darkening Luoyang is utterly silent.

“Yes.”

It is indeed late.

But.

“We must go quickly from now on.”

Just because it’s late, doesn’t mean it’s my fault.

I killed the bandits and saved people.

Can saving people dying in front of you from bandits be considered a waste of time?

No matter what grand cause lies ahead.

“What could be more important than a person’s life?”

* * *

At that moment, in Luoyang.

“Now that we’ve killed He Jin, what should we do?”

“Ugh, if I had known he would die so easily, I would have killed him sooner.”

“They are all traitors. They say Hajin also plotted treason, so let’s accuse everyone under Hajin of treason and kill them all.”

Somewhere in the secret chamber of the imperial palace, eunuchs dressed in green are gathered, talking urgently.

“Sigh.”

The old man with white hair, Jangyang, sitting at the head seat, sighs, and the other eunuchs stop talking.

“…We forged an edict from the Empress Dowager, and they believed it and came in.”

Jangyang, the leader of the eunuch group commonly known as the Ten Attendants, lamented and let out a hollow laugh.

“It was a desperate situation. There was no other choice. Yes. If we hadn’t done this, we would all have died like Geonseok.”

Geonseok.

There were nine eunuchs present, and one had already died.

“When Hajin killed Geonseok, we decided not to antagonize him as much as possible. But he gathered all sorts of military factions to pressure us.”

“Are you talking about that lowborn from the Yuan family?”

“Not just his children….”

Jangyang’s white eyebrows trembled.

“The Bingzhou army is in Henei.”

“……!!”

“Wh-why is the Bingzhou army here?! They are soldiers who guard the northern borders…!”

“Jeongwon betrayed us. While sending us all sorts of treasures behind the scenes, he joined hands with Hajin.”

Jangyang covered his face with one hand.

“The watchdog of the north should have quietly guarded the fence.”

“How threatening can the Bingzhou army be?”

“They are dangerous.”

Jangyang tapped his ear with the hand that had covered his face.

“Under Jeongwon, there is a man named Lu Bu.”

“Lu…who?”

“…Tsk. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

Jangyang frowned as he looked at the restless eunuchs, then struck the table with his hand.

“I said it was a desperate situation. We will take control of Luoyang before the Bingzhou army arrives. If my intelligence is correct, the Bingzhou army can mobilize up to ten thousand troops.”

“Ten thousand…!”

“Assume that all the Eight Guards of the Western Garden have defected, and mobilize all the private soldiers to guard the palace. Since we have secured the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, we can forge another edict.”

Jang Yang stood up.

“Dismiss and capture the traitor Ha Jin and his followers. The leader of their group is….”

“Elder!!”

A young eunuch hurriedly entered.

“Run away!!”

With those words, shouts could be heard from outside.

“Yuan Shao has invaded the palace!!”

* * *

“Set the palace on fire! Capture all those wearing green eunuch robes──!!”

Drawing his sword amidst the flames, Yuan Shao stomped into the palace gate with his boots and shouted.

Waaah────!!

The eyes of the soldiers who entered the palace were burning with anger and madness.

The sorrow of losing the commander to whom they had pledged their loyalty.

The anger directed at the eunuchs who were the target of that sorrow.

And-

“They will brand us as traitors and try to kill us! If we don’t strike them, we will die!”

The survival instinct to stay alive in the central government.

“We will rescue His Majesty the Emperor from the hands of the ten traitorous eunuchs and restore righteousness to this country───!!”

Waaah────!!

The soldiers followed and entered the palace.

Yuan Shao slowly lowered the sword he had raised high.

“How ruthless, my friend.”

Behind Yuan Shao, a shorter man walked up and stood shoulder to shoulder with him.

“Is it to restore righteousness, or to seize power?”

“If I, Yuan Benchu, seize power and restore righteousness, wouldn’t that be the right path?”

Yuan Shao gave a low laugh towards the man who approached him.

“Aman.”

“My friend. I am already….”

“Between us, what does it matter.”

Yuan Shao briefly wore a relaxed expression, but the man called Aman stepped back with a disgusted look on his face.

“Alright, Mengde. Tell me. What should we do next?”

“Even though you devised this situation on your own, you want to shift the responsibility to me?”

“Trickery is more your domain than mine.”

“Ha! You’re really making me out to be a schemer. Fine.”

The man stroked his thin beard and pointed to the burning palace.

“You’ve already oiled the bodies of the court officials, haven’t you?”

“…Let’s just say I’ve coordinated with them, shall we?”

“You must have already spoken with your uncle, Yuanwai Gong, and now we just need to gather all the members of the Grand General’s faction. The Qingliu, the elders, and the new generals like us.”

“That’s not what I was asking.”

“Truly, truly noble of you. Making me say these things out loud.”

“Are you mocking me?”

“I’m glad you understand it as mockery. Fine, I’ll do it. I’m used to getting blood on my hands anyway.”

The man stepped forward and drew his sword.

“Zhongjun Jiaoyu Cao Mengde commands───! Kill every single eunuch in the palace───!”

Waaa────!!

“Cao Cao…!”

“What? Whether it’s capturing or killing, we’re going to kill them all anyway, so why pretend to be noble?”

“It’s not about pretending to be noble….”

“If you’ve drawn your sword, you should cut. This is an opportunity, Benchu.”

The man, Cao Cao, was smiling brightly amidst the burning palace.

“Come on! Let’s go! To rescue our Emperor from the clutches of the traitorous faction and to restore justice to this country!”

Puhwa──ak.

A eunuch dies.

Even those not in green robes, if their faces were slender and not masculine, their pants were stripped to check their genitals before being killed.

“…….”

Yuan Shao clenched his fist as he watched the burning palace, the fleeing eunuchs, and Cao Cao advancing through them.

“In front of me.”

Yuan Shao’s eyes trembled.

“Even if the rest of the world doesn’t know, you and that man cannot stand before me.”

Yuan Shao’s eyes were fixed on Cao Cao, who was smiling as he cut down the eunuchs.

“Yes.”

He smirked.

“Watch carefully who gets the emperor. As long as you don’t walk recklessly in front of me….”

Yuan Shao leisurely held his sword and walked forward.

“At least for old times’ sake, I’ll keep you on my right side. As a gesture of friendship-“

“Ah, aaah!!”

Puu──k.

“Oh, dear.”

Facing the eunuch rushing towards him, Yuan Shao thrust his sword forward.

“Ke, Kehk.”

“Suddenly approaching and impaling yourself on my sword.”

Yuan Shao pushed the eunuch’s body away with the back of his hand and pulled out the sword from the eunuch’s heart.

“I almost had to swing and kill you.”

Thud.

The eunuch fell.

“Anyone who stands before me is my enemy, and I will not hesitate.”

Yuan Shao continued to walk through the palace, avoiding the blood flowing from the fallen eunuch.

“Watch from there, my father. Your son… will grasp the world.”

Yuan Shao looked up at the night sky once and quietly closed his eyes.

* * *

“We’re screwed.”

No matter how much I think about it, we’re screwed.

“If I had known this would happen, I would have swum across the Yellow River alone.”

The horse is running at full speed, but no matter how much I think about it, the situation is serious.

“Hey, cavalry commander.”

“…….”

I call out to the cavalry commander running behind me, but he keeps his mouth shut and continues to follow me.

“You don’t talk recklessly during a full sprint? Fine, then just nod in response.”

Nod.

“……..”

I was slightly taken aback by his mere nod, but he had always been like this since he was appointed to Jin Yang-seong.

“Is it wrong that Chief Jeongwon hid the situation from me, or is it wrong that I didn’t try to find out more?”

The cavalry commander stares at me intently.

“Why? Do you also think I was wrong?”

I shake my head, but I bite my lower lip, holding back something I wanted to say.

“Then why don’t you answer… Ah.”

Answer with yes or no.

Question. Is Jeongwon bad, or am I bad?

“Change the question.”

Ahem.

“Right after we crossed the river during the night, Jeongwon told me.”

Currently, it is probably well past midnight.

“After crossing the river and setting up camp near Maengjin Port, we tried to get some rest, but someone sent by Sama Jangyang from the capital reported the situation.”

“Yes.”

Uh.

I answered verbally.

“Yes, saying it like that-“

“When riding a horse, look ahead.”

“…Alright.”

Somehow, he opened his mouth.

“Before crossing the river, we didn’t know the situation in the capital. Only after crossing the river did we learn about it.”

“Yes.”

“The capital is now a sea of blood.”

People are dying in the palace.

“Ha Jin’s subordinates are killing the eunuchs, and the eunuchs have secretly taken the Emperor and the Empress Dowager.”

“…….”

“Are we too late?”

“…No.”

The cavalry commander answers.

“From the moment the general said the enemy was coming, have we rested for even a moment while running like this?”

“No.”

The cavalry commander speaks unusually long.

“Have you acted lazily at all during this time?”

“Except for the time spent traveling on the ship, I pride myself on not resting for a moment.”

“Then, what are you worried about?”

The cavalry commander asks me back.

“Are you worried that the image you show to others might be wrong?”

“…….”

“You already know the answer. Aren’t you asking me because you want to hear it from me?”

“Tsk. You cut off the conversation so it can’t continue.”

Still, well.

“Thank you. For reassuring me that I am not wrong.”

“Then don’t speak anymore, just look ahead and run fast.”

“Now you’re giving orders?!”

“…I’m sorry. But, we are getting close to the capital-“

The cavalry commander stops talking.

I also immediately draw the weapon strapped to my back.

In the dark night.

Several carriages are rushing towards us, followed by a group of soldiers.

It looks like someone is in the carriages, and the soldiers chasing them are pursuing those in the carriages.

The carriages.

“Protect the carriages!”

Even in the darkness, the golden patterns reflected by the moonlight were shining.

Golden, dragons.

＜ Spring in Luoyang (6) ＞ End