I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 8 Ballad
The capital of Jiujiang Prefecture was Shouchun.

Under the flickering lamplight and beneath the crimson silk curtains, Zhou Ang, the governor of Jiujiang appointed by Yuan Shao, leaned against a leopard-skin couch, idly swirling a golden goblet in his hand.

"Liu Miao, has he really arrived in Yangzhou?"

"Exactly."

Yuan Shao's cousin, Yuan Yi, sitting opposite him, picked up a wooden stick and poked at the soft, mushy kumquats on the baking tray.

"At the banquet, he first suddenly burst into tears, expressing concern for the country and its people. Later, when he was drunk, he became arrogant and unruly upon seeing Lu's widow, wanting to take her as his concubine."

Zhou Ang suddenly sat up from the leopard-skin couch: "Marry the widow of the Lu family? Is that really true?"

Zhou Ang then slapped his thigh, revealing a regretful expression!
"She must be the wife of Lu Jun, the former Commandant of Jiujiang! What a pity! What a pity! I met her once several years ago, and she was absolutely stunning! I never imagined that she would be taken away by Liu Miao today!"

"With so many people at the banquet, it's impossible for the message to be wrong."

Yuan Yi flipped a kumquat off the baking tray, placed it to his lips, and gently bit into it. Juice burst out, relieving the spiciness after drinking.

"The world laughs at this, saying that Liu Miao was nothing but a lecher."

"To lust after the beauty of the Lu family, he even claimed that Lu Yi, the son of the Lu family, was an extremely noble person... Ha, what could a ten-year-old child possibly know? It's probably just Liu Miao's excuse to cover up his lust."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ang's arched back slowly relaxed, and he lay back down on the couch.

"So it's just another incompetent fool!"

"Since Dong Zhuo seized power, how many incompetent fools have been appointed as governors and prefects? Now the court has sent Liu Miao, does it really not care about the lives of the people?"

Zhou Ang spoke with righteous indignation, but Yuan Yi, standing to the side, smiled slightly.

"That's not entirely true."

“Since Dong Zhuo seized power, he promoted Han Fu, Liu Dai, Kong Zhou, Zhang Zi, Kong Rong, Ying Shao, Zhang Miao and others to be governors and prefects in various places. Among them were many people who understood the big picture.”

Zhou Ang's eyes darted around, and he immediately realized who Yuan Yi was talking about!
"Indeed! If it weren't for Han Fu, Lord Yuan wouldn't have been able to take control of Ji Province so quickly."

"Now I am also a former official of the Yuan family, and I should naturally guard the land for Lord Yuan to prevent treacherous people from coveting it!"

Hearing Zhou Ang's words, Yuan Yi was also satisfied.

"In that case, I urge the governor to remove the treacherous officials to prevent further trouble in Huainan."

Snapped! ! !
On the baking tray, a kumquat suddenly burst open, making a loud noise!

Zhou Ang's hands trembled involuntarily, somewhat incredulous—

"how so?"

"Didn't Boye say that Liu Miao was nothing but a lecherous and incompetent man?"

"If that's the case, why kill him? You should know..."

"You should know that he is a member of the Han imperial family?"

Yuan Yi's lips curled into a look of disdain.

"What about the Liu family? Can they possibly compare to the Yuan family?"

"Moreover, Prefect, do not forget that it was the current imperial court that appointed him as the Prefect of Jiujiang, the imperial court that fled to Chang'an, and the imperial court that was also held hostage by rebels!"

"Is there any reason not to kill a prefect appointed by the imperial court like this?"

"not to mention……"

Yuan's dying words were full of provocation—

"From what I've heard from the prefect, he also has designs on that widow of the Lu family?"

"If Liu Miao were truly gone, how could this marriage stand? Wouldn't the beauty just willingly fall into her arms then?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ang felt that Yuan Yi's words made sense.

After drinking the wine in his glass, Zhou Ang stood up and stretched his limbs, making crisp sounds from his limbs and back.

"Knowing that I was coming to take up my post, my brother specially gave me three thousand elite soldiers from Danyang!"

"I wonder how many troops Liu Miao brought with him to Jiangdong?" Yuan Yi sat upright, smiling but saying nothing.

"A thousand people?"

"Three thousand people?"

"Liu Miao can't possibly bring ten thousand soldiers with him, can he?"

Seeing that Zhou Ang's guesses were getting more and more outrageous, Yuan Yi burst out laughing.

“The prefect is overthinking it! Liu Miao came to Huainan alone and did not recruit any soldiers.”

one person?
Zhou Ang couldn't believe it: "How dare one person come here? Does he think he's Liu Jing Sheng too?"

Three years ago, Liu Biao entered Jingzhou alone and used his methods to suppress the rebels, making Jingzhou a rare paradise in the chaotic world!
Now that Liu Miao is like this, will he also end up like this?

Yuan Yi immediately waved his hand: "Absolutely impossible!"

"Liu Biao, at such a young age, already had the title of one of the 'Eight Steeds.' In his early years, he was recruited by General He Jin as an aide and served as the commander of the Northern Army. How could a favored minister like Liu Miao compare to him?"

Zhou Ang nodded: "In that case, we should gather our troops and ambush Liu Miao on the main road leading into Jiujiang to kill him in one fell swoop!"

"Of course!"

Just then, a waiter approached from the doorway and whispered in Zhou Ang's ear.

"Governor Chen Wen wants me to go. Boye, would you like to come along?"

When Yuan Yi heard that it was Chen Wen who had come to invite him, he thought for a moment and then shook his head.

"Since you have been summoned, there must be some official business to discuss. I am now just a commoner, and this is not a private meeting, so how can I easily go to the governor's mansion?"

"When we were fighting Dong Zhuo before, Chen Wen gave Cao Mengde's cousin Cao Hong several thousand soldiers. Lord Yuan was also pleased with this, and I hope the prefect will convey Lord Yuan's thanks to the governor."

"nature!"

Zhou Ang put on his coat and went out. Yuan Yi poured him a cup of warm wine and then gestured, "It's already autumn now, and the weather is getting colder. Prefect, why don't you drink some wine to warm yourself up before you go?"

"Haha, no need! I don't think anything serious will happen on this trip. I'll drink this wine when I get back!"

The prefectural government offices of Jiujiang and Yangzhou were extremely close, only a street corner apart.

Once you're on the bike, you can get there in the blink of an eye.

Zhou Ang didn't notice that the children playing on the street were actually singing a nursery rhyme—

"The grass of the Yuan family grows in the corner of the palace; the yellow sparrow flies around the high temple, but does not perch on the branches, gazing at the clouds and tides!"

When Zhou Ang's carriage stopped in front of the governor's mansion, he noticed that a carriage had just left the area in front of him.

"Whose carriage is that?"

"Reporting to the Prefect, it is the carriage of Chen Yu, the Gentleman of the Palace!"

Chen Yu?

Zhou Ang asked a question, then didn't take it to heart.

Chen Yu was the son of Chen Qiu. Although he came from a prominent family, he was politically biased towards Yuan Shu and could not get along with them.

"The mouse is short-sighted!"

Zhou Ang cursed.

"Yuan Gong is the one everyone hopes for! Someone like him will sooner or later become a skeleton in a tomb along with Yuan Gonglu!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Note 1:

Yi, courtesy name Boye, was Shao's cousin. He served as the magistrate of Chang'an. Zhang Chao of Hejian once recommended Yi to Grand Commandant Zhu Jun, praising Yi as possessing "unparalleled virtue and extraordinary talent. His loyalty, integrity, and uprightness are truly a gift from Heaven; moreover, his comprehensive knowledge of history and the works of various schools of thought, his ability to compose poems upon ascending heights, and his ability to recognize the essence of things are unmatched even today." This account is found in Zhang Chao's collected works. The *Records of Heroes* states: Later, Shao appointed Yi as the governor of Yangzhou, where he was defeated by Yuan Shu. — *Records of the Three Kingdoms, Biography of Emperor Wu*

(End of this chapter)