Chapter 127: Cao Cao Has Returned

"I am a dignified Shao-fu (Minister of the Imperial Household), why am I not allowed to see His Majesty?"

"You are not allowed, and that is that. The Si-kong (Minister of Works) has issued an order: to prevent rebel factions from bewitching His Majesty, no one is permitted to see the Son of Heaven until the Si-kong returns."

"You!"

At the East Gate of the Xu-du Imperial Palace, on the road paved with bluestone slabs, Kong Rong pointed at the guards at the gate, trembling with rage and unable to speak.

It was early summer in the fourth month, but a light rain fell over Xu-du today. Amidst the drizzling rain, Cao Cao’s guards stood firm beneath the palace gate, gripping their weapons tightly, staring at Kong Rong without saying a word.

They were ready to draw their blades at any moment. If he dared to take another step forward and force his way through the palace gate, these guards would show no mercy, regardless of the fact that Kong Rong was one of the Nine Ministers.

"Lord Wen-ju, let it be, let it be."

Twenty-five-year-old Yang Xiu, standing beside him, pulled Kong Rong backward.

Ever since Ni Heng was sent by Cao Cao to Liu Biao two years ago—only for Liu Biao to use the "borrowed knife to kill" tactic and have Ni Heng executed by Huang Zu—Yang Xiu had become Kong Rong’s only remaining friend in Xu-du.

Pulled beneath their carriage, which featured a bamboo canopy acting as a large parasol against the rain, Kong Rong slammed a fist against the carriage frame in fury and roared: "Cao Cao is truly becoming more and more outrageous. How is this any different from imprisoning the Son of Heaven?"

"Lord Wen-ju, do not speak so recklessly. Let us return first."

Yang Xiu was startled. He glanced guiltily at the palace guards nearby, then hurriedly ushered Kong Rong into the carriage and ordered the driver to return to the Minister of the Imperial Household’s residence as quickly as possible.

Once they returned, Kong Rong spoke privately with Yang Xiu in the backyard: "Shen Chen has sent word to me that he intends to attack Xu-du and welcome the Son of Heaven. I wish to report this to His Majesty and find a way to coordinate from within. What do you think?"

Yang Xiu shook his head and said: "I advise you to abandon this thought, Lord Wen-ju. The more Cao Cao senses danger, the more tightly he will guard the Son of Heaven. With the palace guards firmly controlling the palace, one can neither enter nor leave."

"Abominable!"

Kong Rong was incensed, adding viciously: "That traitor Cao is actually holding the Son of Heaven hostage and bullying the Emperor. If His Majesty had not issued the secret edict hidden in the robe earlier this year, we would not have known that the Emperor’s plight had reached such a point."

Yang Xiu smiled bitterly: "My father was also punished with a caning by Cao Cao under a pretext. Now, he dares not make a single move at home. Cao Cao bullies the Emperor, and we can only harbor anger without daring to speak."

"Alas."

Kong Rong sighed heavily. He hated himself for his blindness in the past, believing Cao Cao’s thick-browed, honest-looking facade and thinking he was truly loyal to the Emperor.

Now that the Emperor was held hostage and Cao Cao held all the power, with his trusted subordinates stationed everywhere inside and outside the city, what could be done?

Both men sighed and lamented; they could offer no help to Shen Chen in Linying.

...

...

Guandu. The day Shen Chen arrived in Linying, Cao Cao had already departed and was heading south.

The information he received was actually delayed; he only knew that Shen Chen might have breached Ye County, not knowing that Shen Chen had taken it days ago and was already nearly at Linying.

However, Cao Cao could not stake his hopes on the enemy not coming. He prepared for the worst, assuming that Shen Chen was likely on the road to Xu-du, or perhaps had already reached Xiangcheng or even Linying.

Therefore, he immediately summoned all his cavalry and led them himself, just as he would later lead the cavalry to Wuchao, galloping through the night toward Xu-du.

Wuchao was thirty-five kilometers from Guandu, while Xu-du was ninety kilometers away. If Cao Cao were on foot, it would have taken at least two days, but as he was with the cavalry, he reached Xu-du in just one day.

Before the Battle of Guandu, Cao Cao had very few cavalrymen—fewer than a thousand.

But he had one person to thank: Wen Chou.

At the Battle of Yanjin, Wen Chou’s entire army was wiped out, providing Cao Cao with five or six thousand horses.

That was why Cao Cao now possessed a force of cavalry.

It was also the reason why, during the Battle of Guandu, he was able to ride thirty-five kilometers in a single night to set fire to Wuchao.

At this moment, as Shen Chen’s forces arrived in Linying, Cao Cao was already on his way back.

Linying County.

Occupying this county was not difficult.

There was almost no defensive force within the city, and he took it with ease.

The Linying of the Han Dynasty was located differently than the Linying of later generations; the latter was due south of Xuchang.

The Han-era Linying was northwest of the later Linying and southwest of Xuchang, situated exactly between Xiangcheng and Xuchang.

This was why, once he occupied Xiangcheng and advanced to Linying, he was already at the doorstep of Xuchang.

To buy time for Cao Cao, Xun Yu ordered Li Dian to lead troops to suppress Shen Chen, insisting that he must not be allowed to reach the gates of Xu-du, as the impact and destruction would be too great for Cao Cao to bear.

Thus, the day after Shen Chen occupied Linying, when he was preparing to set out for Xu-du despite the light rain, Cao-led troops had already appeared outside the northern city walls.

Li Dian did not immediately attack the city. He set up camp outside, clearly intending to use the encampment as a defensive point to block Shen Chen’s advance north.

After all, for both sides, Shen Chen was technically the aggressor, though he was currently inside the city.

"A-Chen."

Amidst the wind and light rain, Gan Ning looked at the Cao troops in the distance, a blade of dogtail grass hanging from his mouth. "They are setting up camp. How about we launch a fierce attack now?"

Shen Chen looked into the distance and said, "I don't think the enemy is foolish enough to set up camp right in front of us. There must be a trap."

"What do you mean?"

"Send someone to probe them, and we will know."

"Good, I'll go."

Gan Ning turned and headed down from the city walls. He felt his blood boiling; he had actually fought his way to Xu-du and was about to see the Son of Heaven.

The city walls of Linying were old and mottled. The city gate opened slowly. Gan Ning rode on his horse; they did not have many cavalry, only about a hundred, but Gan Ning brought over a thousand infantry behind him, moving like a long dragon toward the outside of the city.

There were some hills and slopes outside the north gate. It was early summer, and the vegetation was lush. Li Dian’s army was huddled near a forest, cutting down trees to build an encampment on the spot.

In the drizzling rain, Gan Ning charged like a fierce dragon overturning a river, taking the lead to strike the camp that was still under construction.

Before they even got close, the soldiers building the walls dropped their wood and tools in a panic, fleeing toward the forest like birds and beasts.

Gan Ning keenly noticed that these people were not soldiers at all.

First, their quality was quite low; second, he actually spotted an elderly man with a weathered face, which was nearly impossible for regular troops.

Therefore, as Shen Chen had anticipated, there was indeed a trap.

He soon pursued them, and shadows loomed deep within the forest. Gan Ning could vaguely see the black armor of the Cao troops. He immediately ordered his soldiers to halt at the distance of an arrow shot—about 150 meters—and laughed loudly, "I'm not playing with you anymore. Retreat."

Then he pulled his troops back.

In the forest, Li Dian watched his retreating back with indifference. It was indeed Li Dian’s plan: he knew that building the camp directly would invite an attack, so he had the craftsmen dress in soldiers' clothes to lure the enemy into an assault.

To them, the lives of craftsmen were of no account. Unfortunately, the enemy did not fall for it; had they pursued into the forest, that barrage of arrows would surely have given them a taste of death.

"How was it?"

Gan Ning returned quickly, and Shen Chen stepped forward to ask.

"There is an ambush."

After returning, Gan Ning wiped the rain from his face with a linen cloth and walked under the eaves of the city gate tower to speak to Shen Chen, who had been watching the whole time. "They are hiding in the woods."

"I guessed as much."

Shen Chen nodded.

Gan Ning asked, "What now?"

"The old way."

Shen Chen smiled slightly: "Bypass this place and strike directly at Xu-du. That will force them to come and fight."

Gan Ning gave a thumbs-up: "You are as clever as ever."

Shen Chen looked into the distance, then tilted his head to look at the sky, frowning slightly.

Is the weather helping Cao Cao?

Fighting in the rain had a significant impact in ancient times. A moment of carelessness could lead to illness or fever, which could cost a life.

Therefore, he really could not proceed with the plan at this moment.

Fortunately, it was early summer, and he estimated this was just the rain around the Qingming Festival, so he waited with great patience.

The best way to mobilize an enemy was to attack the points they were forced to defend.

Xu-du was exactly the place the Cao army had to defend.

The reason Yuan Shao could not emulate Shen Chen during the Battle of Guandu was that he came from Hebei, and his supply line was long—unlike Shen Chen, who arrived in the heart of Yingchuan as soon as he left Nanyang, only about a hundred kilometers from Xu-du.

Furthermore, Cao Cao was more wary of him; the road to Xuchang was heavily fortified with checkpoints.

For example, historically, he had placed Zhang Xiu in the Chenliu and Jiyu areas to protect the right flank of Guandu, and Xiahou Dun in the Mengjin and Aocang areas to protect the left flank.

The rear was extremely empty, with the defensive line consisting mainly of Cao Hong and Li Tong in Nanyang and Runan; once one passed them, one reached Xu-du.

Therefore, Shen Chen could bypass the enemy's approaching forces and use the tactic of making a feint in the east to strike in the west, heading straight for Xu-du—a tactic Yuan Shao could not employ.

Time passed minute by minute.

By the afternoon, the sky cleared, and the rain finally stopped.

Over there, Li Dian was still busy digging into his camp. Shen Chen looked at him with a cold smile and said, "Uncle Xing-ba, pass the order. We shall leave from the West Gate. I cannot be bothered to deal with the enemy general opposite."

"Good."

Gan Ning laughed and issued the order.

About ten minutes later, the eight thousand soldiers assembled, and five minutes after that, the troops marched out of Linying in a grand procession.

Li Dian’s scouts outside the city discovered the situation and hurriedly reported it to him.

Learning that the opponent had no intention of confronting him at Linying and was clearly heading straight for Xu-du, Li Dian was terrified. He could not afford to worry about anything else, so he abandoned the construction work and led his troops to intercept them.

The two sides clashed on the banks of the Xun River, about twenty <i>li</i> north of Linying. At that time, Li Dian had nearly ten thousand men, but most were makeshift troops with no combat effectiveness. Under Shen Chen’s on-field command, they were soundly defeated. One of Li Dian’s deputy generals was killed in the fray, four or five hundred enemies were slain, and over a thousand were captured.

Soon, Li Dian’s routed army fled back to Xu-du. For a time, Xu-du was in a state of panic, rumors flew, and everywhere, noble families and officials were busy packing their belongings and fleeing.

Inside the city, many noble families even sent letters to Shen Chen’s camp, secretly seeking to establish ties with him.

And the very next day, Cao Cao returned.

"Brother Shen!"

"Hmm!"

Shen Changqing walked down the road; whenever he met acquaintances, they would greet each other or nod.

But no matter who they were, there was no extra expression on their faces, as if they were indifferent to everything.

To this, Shen Changqing had already grown accustomed.

For this was the Demon Suppression Division, an institution dedicated to maintaining the stability of the Great Qin Empire. Its main duty was to slay demons and monsters, though it also handled other miscellaneous tasks.

It could be said that every person in the Demon Suppression Division had blood on their hands.

When one has seen much of life and death, one becomes indifferent to many things.

When he first arrived in this world, Shen Changqing was somewhat unadjusted, but over time, he had grown used to it.

The Demon Suppression Division was vast.

Those who could remain in the Demon Suppression Division were either powerful experts or those with the potential to become one.

Shen Changqing belonged to the latter.

The Division was divided into two roles: the Suppressor and the Demon Slayer.

Anyone entering the Division began as the lowest-ranking Demon Slayer, then advanced step by step, eventually hoping to become a Suppressor.

The predecessor of Shen Changqing was a trainee Demon Slayer in the Division, the lowest level of Demon Slayer.

Possessing his predecessor's memories, he was very familiar with the environment of the Division.

Without taking too long, Shen Changqing stopped in front of a pavilion.

Unlike the rest of the Demon Suppression Division, which was filled with a murderous aura, this pavilion stood out like a crane in a flock of chickens, presenting a different kind of tranquility amidst the blood-stained Division.

The doors of the pavilion were open, and people occasionally entered or exited.

Shen Changqing hesitated only for a moment before stepping inside.

Upon entering, the atmosphere changed abruptly.

A scent of ink mixed with a faint smell of blood rushed toward him, causing his brow to furrow instinctively, though it soon smoothed out.

The smell of blood on everyone in the Demon Suppression Division was almost impossible to wash away.