About Cao Cao's reincarnation as the emperor's uncle

Chapter 29 Let's Drink Luoyang Water Together in the Future

Holding Qiaozhu, Liu Fang looked to Xun Yu like an ordinary father or brother comforting a child.

"Lord Yuanyi, there is something I don't understand..."

"Talking as we walk."

Liu Fang raised his chin, indicating a wider stone path ahead, and stepped across the puddles first.

Xun Yu straightened his clothes, finally looking more like a young man, and quickly followed.

Why show these secret edicts to Yu?

Water seeping from the cave walls gathered into a thin stream at their feet, reflecting the intertwined figures of the two.

Liu Fang walked alongside Xun Yu and reached out to touch Xun Yu's thin arm.

Who could have imagined that these arms would one day support the last vestige of glory for the Han dynasty...

I know the doubts in your heart.

Liu Fang's voice deepened, echoing faintly through the stone wall:
"What I have seen today, Xun Lang, should make sense of the seriousness of the matter..."

"How should I answer if someone asks?"

Xun Yu's eyes narrowed, and his fingers tightened suddenly:

"But today I am visiting my father's family and have not been to any other places."

"it is good."

Liu Fang nodded, then suddenly turned to face the boy directly:
"What if one day the mountains and rivers crumble, and heroes rise up..."

"Would you take up another's weapon and help them carve out their own territory and become a king?"

The wind in the culvert suddenly stopped.

"Yu's life..."

The water droplets on the cave wall remained frozen, making their breathing sounds exceptionally clear.

"I only wish to wear a Han crown and a Han sash, and even in death I will never forget the words 'loyalty and righteousness'."

Liu Fang raised his hand to brush the dust off Xun Yu's shoulder:
"Since you have this intention, why can't you let Xun Lang see this imperial edict?"

"But……"

Xun Yu gazed at the burning light in Liu Fang's eyes:

"Yu and you have only just met, and Yu is still young..."

Liu Fang raised an eyebrow, "Young?"

"I have heard that Xun Lang can memorize anything he reads and can discuss profound principles at the age of seven."

"When Zhang Zifang was young, he once attacked the Qin Emperor with a hammer, and did chivalrous deeds."

Liu Fang suddenly raised his eyes and stared at Xun Yu:
“But I think Xun Yu might not be inferior to Zhang Liang in Bolangsha in the future.”

Xun Yu suddenly looked up, and the surging emotions in Liu Fang's eyes made his chest tighten.

It was as if the person before him was not a member of the royal family he was meeting for the first time, but an old friend he had known for many years.

He took half a step forward:
"If I may be so bold as to ask, what is the matter that Lord Yuanyi is plotting..."

Liu Fang stopped and asked, "Has Xun Lang ever seen famine-stricken people everywhere, exchanging their own children to eat?"

"Have you ever seen the Han banners trampled and plundered by the barbarians?"

Liu Fang patted Xun Yu on the shoulder, "There's one more question..."

"Young Master Xun comes from the Xun clan of Yingchuan. Does he know the troubles of aristocratic families?"

Water droplets fell from the crack in the stone above, hitting Xun Yu's shoes with a thud, startling him into a daze.

At this moment, Xun Yu felt his whole body burning up. After stammering for a moment, he finally uttered two words:

“Yu…knows.”

The sound of dripping water in the cave suddenly became clearer, one after another, striking the tense air between the two.

"May I ask, Lord Yuanyi, do you intend to emulate Emperor Guangwu and revive the Han Dynasty three times?"

Just then, Qiaozhu suddenly waved her little arms and repeated in a childish voice:
"Rise...the Han!"

The childish voice crashed against the walls of the culvert.

Liu Fang looked at Qiao Zhu, a slight smile playing on his lips:
"Great ambitions need not be attained by old age; even a young child can distinguish right from wrong..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xun Yu suddenly lifted his wide sleeves, bowed deeply to the ground, and the bamboo hairpin in his hair almost slipped off:
"Although Yu is young, he knows that loyalty and righteousness are of paramount importance. If you do not abandon him..."

When he looked up, his eyes shone with a light unique to "Lord Xun".

"I wish to join your tutelage, study the classics and history, and learn strategy. When I reach adulthood, I will be a vanguard, and I will have no regrets even if I die."

"it is good!"

Liu Fang reached out and placed his hand on Xun Yu's cold hand:
"On the day of your coming-of-age ceremony, I will surely come to greet you with my imperial credentials..."

"Then we shall drink from the waters of Luoyang together and share the sorrows of the Han dynasty, shall we?"

Qiaozhu suddenly repeated in a childish voice:

"Sharing...water..."

Zuo Feng shrank back and secretly placed Qiao Zhu's small hand on the back of Liu Fang's hand as well.

The clear sound of water droplets falling came from the depths of the culvert, one drop after another.

Xun Yu stared at the three people's intertwined hands, feeling his heart pounding like a drum.

These words are an oath as firm as gold and stone!
...The four of them walked quickly through the underground canal, while Xun Yu remained silent for a long time.

Liu Fang recalled Xia Yun shaking his head as he left.

That direction wasn't Duan Jiong's; who was he gesturing to?

Duan Jiong's momentary surprise clearly showed that he hadn't expected Xia Yun to arrive so early.

"arrive!"

Zuo Feng's high-pitched voice interrupted Liu Fang's thoughts.

A crack about a foot wide appeared in the stone wall ahead, and the scent of grass moistened by night dew mixed with the earthy smell wafted out.

Liu Fang stopped and pulled Qiao Zhu closer to his chest:

"You should first escort Xun Lang back to his residence, and tell the gatekeeper that he was delayed on his way home."

"promise."

Just as Zuo Feng was about to reach out to help Xun Yu, a crisp sound of boot soles rolling over puddles suddenly came from deep within the culvert.

The footsteps, mixed with the rhythm of dripping water, drew closer like a death knell.

Zuo Feng suddenly turned around and snatched the sword that had fallen from Xun Yu's hand.

Half a patch of moss still clung to the blade. He held the sword tremblingly in front of him, his voice trembling as he spoke:

"My lord, go quickly! I... I'll cover your retreat..."

Before he could finish speaking, a dark shadow rushed towards him with a whoosh of wind.

Zuo Feng's wrist was struck hard, and the sword clattered into the puddle.

The splashing water soaked half of the trouser leg.

The newcomer knelt on one knee, shaking off the grass from his head to reveal a face covered in mud.

It was Xu Feng who had come all the way to find Liu Fang.

"Pooh!"

Xu Feng spat out the blade of grass from the corner of his mouth, his knee grinding a mark into the moss:
"Sir, you're really good at dodging..."

Zuo Feng hurriedly picked up the sword and patted his chest:
"Hoo... Feng greets Lord Xu."

Liu Fang stepped forward, reached out to brush the grass clippings off Xu Feng's shoulder, and smiled:
"It's not my fault, it's all thanks to Ziyuan."

"Pah... It's not hard work."

Taking advantage of the situation, Xu Feng stood up and said, "My lord, please don't dump me next time."

Liu Fang nodded, his smile deepening.

Approaching him, he handed the bamboo pole to Xu Fenghuai.

Then, with a flick of his sleeve, he looked at Zuo Feng.

Zuo Feng understood, "Young Master Xun, please follow me first..."

Xun Yu looked at Liu Fang, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

Liu Fang reached out and straightened the boy's disheveled clothes:
"Tomorrow, I will send someone to find Xun Lang myself..."

He casually slipped a bronze token into Xun Yu's pocket, saying, "Use this as a token when the time comes."

Xu Feng suddenly coughed softly, and Qiao Zhu was clenching the sword tassel on his chest with her small fist.

This man, known for his cold demeanor, actually managed to force an awkward smile at Qiaozhu.

Liu Fang's smile hadn't stopped since he met Xu Feng. He patted Xu Feng on the shoulder:

"time to go."

Judging from the sky at this time, Qiao Xuan should still be discussing matters in the Henan Prefect's office.

However, we need to speed things up.

The five split up in two directions. Zuo Feng hadn't gone far with Xun Yu when Xun Yu suddenly turned back...

Liu Fang and Xu Feng's figures had already blended into the twilight.

"What are you looking at, Xun Lang?"

Xun Yu first shook his head, but then suddenly bowed deeply in that direction.

Zuo Feng raised his hand and used his sleeve to shield Xun Yu from the oncoming wind, smiling without saying a word.

Once upon a time, when he was young, wasn't he also so impressed by adults...?

　Note:

　　【grown up】

　　It's also mentioned in the notes of Chapter 3, but I'll repeat it here.

　　During the Eastern Han Dynasty, this title was not widely used by subordinates to address their superiors.

　　Although "大人" is mainly used to address elders or seniors.

　　However, since eunuchs in the Eastern Han Dynasty had no heirs, officials often addressed them as "Sir" to show their patronage.

　　Therefore, among eunuchs, "大人" (daren) could also be used to address superiors.

　　This is recorded in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty.

　　Meanwhile, the title "Daren" in the Eastern Han Dynasty could also be used for those who "held a prominent position without holding an official post."

　　
　
(End of this chapter)