Taiheiki

Chapter 256 Looking for trouble
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Outside Xiangyang City.

Thousands of campfires filled the air with a pale, misty haze, and rows of tents stretched for miles. Under the sun, countless spearheads gleamed red, thirsting for blood. Nie Sheng saw rows of spearmen, archers, and cavalrymen; he saw oxcarts carrying provisions and messengers rushing about.

"Lord Nie, do you see that?" The officer who greeted Nie Sheng pointed to the camp in front of him: "How magnificent is the army under General Feng's command!"

“Yes!” Nie Sheng agreed, but his next sentence immediately made the officer’s face turn ugly: “But who does Commander Feng intend to use this army against? The Moth Bandits have clearly been quelled by our adoptive father!”

Fortunately, he didn't need to think about how to answer such a pointed question. A mounted attendant ran over and shouted, "Is Young Master Nie here? The General of Chariots and Cavalry summons you. Go immediately!"

Although Nie Sheng had already been granted the title of county marquis, in terms of official rank, Feng Kun, as General of Chariots and Cavalry, was still far above him. Led by his attendant, he arrived at a huge tent, dismounted, passed through two rows of guards holding spears, and entered the tent. There he saw an old man with gray hair sitting at the head of the table, with a scholar in black robes sitting beside him.

"This humble general pays his respects to General Feng!"

Nie Sheng, who was kneeling in worship, did not immediately hear the order to stand up. He felt more than one gaze on him, so he quickly held his breath and waited carefully to avoid being reprimanded for being rude.

"Truly a heroic young man! Wei Mengde has a fine son; it's truly enviable! Get up!"

It wasn't hard to hear the bitterness of a disappointed person in Feng Kun's voice. Nie Sheng stood up, took out a letter from his pocket, and presented it with both hands: "My godfather has caught a cold and is unable to come. He has sent me with a handwritten letter. Please forgive him, Lord Feng!"

Feng Kun took the letter from the guard but didn't read it. He casually placed it on the table beside him. The scholar in black robes asked, "I heard that Marquis Wei wiped out more than 100,000 moth bandits in Xiakou. Is that true?"

Nie Sheng glanced at the scholar but did not answer. Feng Kun sighed, "Young Master Nie, this is my secretary, Ying Feng. His question is exactly what I want to know!"

Nie Sheng nodded and replied, "That's true. The Moth Bandits are no longer a threat, so Lord Feng can rest assured!"

"What about the bandit leader Liu Xin, the Great Teacher of Virtue, and the fake General of Chariots and Cavalry Zhang Song?" Ying Feng pressed.

"The situation was chaotic during the battle, and many bandits surrendered. It was also summer, so the corpses decomposed very quickly. When I set out, I had not yet found any trace of them!"

Ying Feng snorted coldly: "That's strange. Marquis Wei said that he has wiped out the Moth Bandits, but the bandit leader has not been seen alive or dead. How can there be such a way to quell bandits? Could it be that he falsely reported his achievements in order to seek rewards?"

At this point, even a fool like Nie Sheng would realize something was amiss. This scholar in black was clearly looking for trouble! Ever since he joined the army as a young man, he had served under Wei Cong, achieving victory in every battle. He had never suffered such injustice before. Raising an eyebrow, he retorted, "If Military Advisor Ying doesn't believe me, he can go to Xiakou himself and see for himself the mountains of armor and corpses, and the prisoners. Then he'll know whether my adoptive father exaggerated his achievements! It's just a pity—"

"What a pity?"

"It's a pity you arrived too late. If you had gone ten days or so earlier, you might have been able to capture the bandit leader yourself, saving us from this trouble!"

Having spent decades navigating the treacherous waters of officialdom, Ying Feng was acutely aware that Nie Sheng was mocking him for being cowardly and hiding in the shadows, only to jump out and cause trouble after Wei Cong had wiped out the bandits. However, Ying Feng had already decided to pick a fight today, so he feigned anger and shouted, "So, Nie Sheng, how dare you mock your superior? Do you think that with Wei Cong protecting you, no one will dare to punish you? Guards, seize this fellow and punish him for disrespecting his superior!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than more than a dozen guards rushed in from outside the tent, pinned Nie Sheng to the ground, and dragged him out. Feng Kun coughed and sighed, "Uncle, if we treat a meritorious official like this, I'm afraid it will look terrible in the history books of future generations!"

"Lord Feng!" Ying Feng said with a bitter smile, "Don't you know your predicament? As General of Chariots and Cavalry, leading an army of 100,000, you have fought countless battles without achieving anything, wasting supplies and exhausting your troops, allowing the E'zhai to advance north, their forces reaching Wancheng. The capital is shaken, and the court and the public are horrified. The reason the court didn't punish you back then wasn't for any other reason than fear that if you were removed, there would be no suitable replacement, leading to a disastrous war. Your only way out was to use the great achievement of suppressing the E'zhai to silence the public, but now that great achievement has been taken by Wei Cong. Today you are discharged and return to Luoyang, tomorrow you will be imprisoned and questioned. At that time, at most I will be dismissed from my post and return to my hometown to farm, but what about you?"

Feng Kun was rendered speechless by Ying Feng's words. The military system of the Han Dynasty was quite similar to that of ancient Rome: generals ordered to lead expeditions possessed virtually unlimited power during wartime, but once the battle was over, regardless of victory or defeat, they faced numerous impeachments and accusations. Some of these accusations were true, some were completely fabricated, or, while true, were unavoidable in war. Examples included improper handling of spoils of war, arbitrary actions during military operations, and the massacre and mistreatment of enemy prisoners and civilians.

The outcome of these impeachments and accusations depended entirely on the emperor's attitude. Often, these accusations and impeachments served as tools for the emperor to discipline and weaken his generals. Veteran generals like Feng Kun, appointed by the previous emperor (without a close personal relationship with the current emperor), whose appointments were time-consuming and costly, whose enemies had been defeated but whose achievements were not his own (and who were no longer of use), generally did not have good ends. This is not hard to understand. Given the availability of a young and capable hunting dog like Wei Cong, why keep an old dog like Feng Kun who had lost all his teeth? The Han emperors had a long tradition of being harsh and ungrateful.

Therefore, if Feng Kun did not want to end up facing interrogation by the jailers in Luoyang, he had to find a reason to bring down Wei Cong, or at least seize some of the credit for suppressing the E'er bandits. This was not because he coveted his subordinates' credit, but simply because he did not want to die.

"So what if you take Nie Sheng!" Feng Kun sighed. "He's just an adopted son, not a biological one. With Wei Cong's discerning eye, how could he not see that you're using this as a pretext? Even if he didn't, wouldn't he have advisors around him to remind him?"

"Hehe!" Ying Feng laughed. "Master Feng, it's a shame you were Zhao Yannian's superior for so long. I bet Wei Cong wouldn't stand idly by if he knew his adopted son had been detained!"

"What do you mean?" Feng Kun asked. "Does he mean he'll send troops to attack me? That's impossible, isn't it?"

"I can't say for sure, but he'll definitely do something, and that's our chance!" Ying Feng's eyes flashed with a cold light: "In the end, as long as you are still the General of Chariots and Cavalry, you are his superior. No matter what he does, once you pin a charge of insubordination on him, he won't be able to escape! With that charge, whatever you do will have a legitimate reason!"

"Alright!" Feng Kun sighed helplessly, "Things have come to this point, so we can only let you do it. In the end, it's all my fault for being incompetent. Not only did I fail to defeat the Moth Bandits, but they also drove us all the way to Wancheng, shaking the court. If it weren't for that, how would Wei Cong have had the opportunity to rise to prominence?"
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Despite being captured, Nie Sheng was not treated like a prisoner. In fact, his place of confinement was quite good—the straw mat had clean bedding, a chamber pot, a copper basin for washing his face, and the food provided was decent. Overall, he was being treated as a detained envoy, not a prisoner. Nie Sheng was also aware that his current situation was extremely dangerous; his opponents wanted to use him to attack Wei Cong. The success of their scheme depended entirely on his strength and composure; he could not show any weakness or panic. So he ate his food bit by bit, then carefully observed his surroundings, looking for a possible escape route.

"Perhaps Ying Feng wants me to escape!" A thought flashed through Nie Sheng's mind. He wasn't worried that his adoptive father would fall into Feng Kun's trap, after all, his adoptive father had long been wary of Feng Kun, and Feng Kun must have noticed his arrival. So why would he arrest him? This wouldn't harm his adoptive father at all. Was he trying to provoke him into doing something irrational? Thinking of this, Nie Sheng stood up. This terrible thought made him unable to sit still in the tent any longer, and he paced anxiously in circles.

"No, if I run away now, I'll give Feng Kun an excuse!" Nie Sheng forced himself to calm down. "As for my godfather, he should have heard that I've been detained soon. He definitely knows better than me what to do. What I should do now is sit quietly and wait for the right opportunity!" With that thought, he walked to the straw mat, lay down on his back, and soon began to snore.

Wancheng, the Prefect's Mansion, the Back Garden.

As Yuan Shao walked through the long corridor, he could already smell the sweet fragrance of lemons, vanilla, and other spices in the air. On the walls, painters had skillfully depicted the grand scene of Emperor Guangwu defeating a million enemy soldiers at the Battle of Kunyang. At the far end of the corridor, a loud-voiced attendant announced his arrival: "Cavalry Commandant Yuan Shao has arrived!"

Yuan Shao bypassed the attendants and entered the garden, filled with neatly trimmed trees and stone pillars covered in grapevines, the moonlight tinting the grape leaves a delicate silver. Guests came and went in a constant stream, many of them nobles from Nanyang Commandery. He recognized many familiar faces; many were old acquaintances from Luoyang. Yuan Shao greeted them politely, exchanging pleasantries and engaging in conversation, just as he had in Luoyang.

“Brother Benchu, do you know?” a man in his early thirties whispered to Yuan Shao, “Do you see him? The one talking to Chief Clerk Xu by the pomegranate tree on the right, yes, that’s him, that’s Young Master Dong. His aunt is the Emperor’s birth mother, and she’s here on the Emperor’s orders. She’s an important person!”

Yuan Shao glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and immediately recognized Dong Zhong: "I heard about him before when I was in Luoyang, but it seems there hasn't been much of a commotion!"

"Of course, with the Dou family around, how could he possibly stand out! But things are different outside of Luoyang, since they're now considered relatives of the emperor!"

Yuan Shao remained silent, wanting to observe Dong Zhong further, but his attention was drawn to the tall, bearded man beside him: "Who is that man to Young Master Dong's right? He looks familiar?"

"Deng Zhong from Nanyang! No wonder you didn't recognize him. He hasn't been to Luoyang much these past few years, he's been focused on his family business, keeping a very low profile!"

"Deng Zhong of Nanyang?" Yuan Shao was secretly taken aback. He knew the power of the Deng family of Nanyang. Even a centipede with a hundred legs would not fall down, and they were far beyond the reach of ordinary local powerful clans. "Is he making friends with Young Master Dong?"

"It seems so. I've heard they've been spending a lot of time together these past few days! Look, he's coming this way!"

Yuan Shao quickly turned around and bowed to Deng Zhong: "Yuan Shao of Runan pays his respects to Lord Deng!"

"Benchu, there's no need for such formalities!" Deng Zhong helped Yuan Shao up and looked him up and down. "Indeed, you are the imposing and dignified Yuan Benchu, capable of inspiring people to fight to the death. If it weren't for you, who knows when this eunuch traitor by the Emperor's side would have been eliminated!"

Even though he knew the other party meant it that way, Yuan Shao couldn't help but feel a surge of secret joy when his greatest achievement was mentioned: "I dare not accept such praise. The elimination of the eunuch traitors was the work of General Dou. I was merely a lowly vanguard soldier!"

"You're too modest, too modest!" Deng Zhong laughed. "Now that the eunuch has left and the traitors have been quelled, the court is full of virtuous and wise men, and the emperor is wise and benevolent. This is the perfect opportunity for Yuan Shao to display his talents!"

"I wouldn't dare!" Yuan Shao smiled and tentatively asked, "I heard that the person over there is Young Master Dong from Luoyang."

"Indeed!" Deng Zhong laughed. "He came here on the emperor's orders to inspect Jingzhou, but unexpectedly, the Moth Rebels were quelled as soon as he arrived in Wancheng. He is truly a blessed man!"

"Yes!" Yuan Shao sighed, "I just don't know how the court will handle the suppression of the Moth Rebels this time!"

"Oh? What makes you say that, Primordial?"

"Deng Gong should also know that the greatest merit in suppressing the Moth Rebels should be that of Left General of the Household, Wei Cong, but the one with the highest rank and the most troops is General of Chariots and Cavalry, Feng Kun. If we were to truly reward merit, I'm afraid General Feng would be in a rather unfavorable position!" Yuan Shao asked tentatively.

"Yes!" Deng Zhong sighed, "But as long as the emperor understands the truth and is not deceived, he will handle the matter impartially!"

"What Lord Deng says is true!" Yuan Shao had already understood Deng Zhong's implication and said with a smile, "I have only just met Young Master Dong. Could you please introduce us?"

“Of course!” Deng Zhong laughed. “Benchu ​​is a renowned scholar, and Young Master Dong would certainly be very eager to make his acquaintance with him!”

When Dong Zhong first saw Yuan Shao, he was immediately captivated. Yuan Shao looked only four or five years older than him, but he was dignified and handsome, with a neatly trimmed beard, a high nose, bright eyes, and broad, upright shoulders that supported his scarlet robe. Dong Zhong had never seen anyone who could draw everyone's attention to him like Yuan Shao, as if he were a magnet.

(End of this chapter)