Tiger Owl

Chapter 49 Ganlu Temple Incident
On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Xuchang was still immersed in the festive atmosphere. As night fell, several carriages were parked at the entrance of General Dong Cheng's residence. Several coachmen were chatting together when suddenly a large group of soldiers appeared beside them, frightening the coachmen into kneeling down and begging for mercy.

The coachman was taken away by soldiers, and then thousands of soldiers surrounded Dong Cheng's residence.

At Cao Ren's command, "Break down the gate!"

"boom!"

The gate was smashed open by soldiers with wooden stakes, and hundreds of soldiers stormed in.

In a secluded room within the inner quarters, Dong Cheng was discussing important matters with several key officials.

"I received a secret letter from Sun Ce. After the spring, he will lead an army of 50,000 north to Xuchang. At that time, Cao Cao will be tied down by Yuan Shao, and Xuchang will be undefended. When Wu's army attacks, Cao Cao will be attacked from both sides and will surely be defeated."

Just then, Dong Cheng heard a loud bang. Everyone looked at each other in surprise. Dong Cheng opened the door and ordered his men outside, "Go and see what happened?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the steward came stumbling in, shouting, "Master, the soldiers have entered the mansion!"

An arrow whizzed by and struck the butler squarely in the back. The butler screamed and collapsed dead.

Chaos erupted in the room as everyone jumped up and scattered to escape, but it was too late. Cao Cao's soldiers had already surrounded the council hall, and those who managed to escape were pinned to the ground and tied up.

Dong Cheng was also pinned down by several soldiers and tied up. Dong Cheng struggled desperately and shouted, "I am the father of the Imperial Concubine! You can't treat me like this!"

His mouth was gagged, and everyone was grabbed and dragged out like chicks.

Cao Cao appeared in the courtyard with a long sword at his waist. Soon, Dong Cheng, Wang Zifu, Zhong Ji, Wu Shuo, Wu Zilan and others were brought out and knelt in front of Cao Cao.

Cao Cao sneered, "Discussing important matters on the third day of the first lunar month, are you plotting how to get rid of me?"

At this moment, the soldiers searched the study and found the emperor's edict and signed book. Except for Ma Teng and Liu Bei, who were not in Xuchang, everyone on the list was captured.

At the same time, Cao Cao found a letter written by Sun Ce, which made him even angrier. He sternly ordered Man Chong, the magistrate of Xuchang, "Take them away for a thorough interrogation and arrest all their associates."

"Your subordinate obeys!"

In fact, Cao Cao didn't need Gan Ning's reminder. He already knew that Dong Cheng and others were secretly forming a faction to harm him. He had been waiting for an opportunity, and now he finally took them all down during the New Year period.

Man Chong used cruel methods to interrogate the officials, who could not withstand the pressure and confessed their secrets. After several days of interrogation, hundreds of accomplices were identified. On the ninth day of the first lunar month, Cao Cao ordered the public execution of hundreds of people, and Consort Dong was also poisoned to death with a cup of poisoned wine.

Cao Cao did not take Dong Cheng and others seriously; a scholar's rebellion will not succeed in ten years.

What Cao Cao was truly worried about was Sun Ce. He found Sun Ce's letter in Dong Cheng's study, which showed that Sun Ce was determined to launch a northern expedition. Internal and external constraints were ineffective, which gave Cao Cao a major headache.

That afternoon, Cao Cao had just returned to his study when a soldier came to report, "Reporting to the Minister of Works, Military Advisor Jia urgently requests an audience!"

Cao Cao nodded. "Please invite him to the outer study!"

Cao Cao arrived at the outer study, where Jia Xu, who was waiting there, hurriedly greeted him, "Greetings, Minister of Works!"

"What urgent matter do you have, sir?"

"Reporting to the Minister of Works, my informant in Nanchang County has just sent an urgent report: Yuzhang County has been completely occupied by Gan Ning."

"what?"

Cao Cao was greatly surprised. When Yu Jin reported to him twenty days ago, Pengze County was still fine. Why was it occupied by Gan Ning so quickly?
"What happened?"

Jia Xu took out his subordinate's urgent report and presented it to Cao Cao. Cao Cao quickly opened it and read it carefully. Gan Ning had actually captured four counties—Pengze, Haihun, Nanchang, and Poyang—within ten days, annihilated his own 12,000 troops and Sun Ben's 15,000 troops, captured Sun Fu, drove away Han Dang and Zhou Tai, and occupied Yuzhang Commandery in one fell swoop.

After a long pause, Cao Cao sighed and said, "I underestimated him!"

"Minister Cao, I believe the Yuzhang Incident will definitely affect Sun Ce's Northern Expedition plan." Cao Cao then took out a letter from Sun Ce to Dong Cheng, dated December 27th of last year, while Gan Ning captured Yuzhang County on January 5th of this year.

Cao Cao nodded slightly, "The loss of Yuzhang Commandery should have been unexpected by Sun Ce. I don't know how he will deal with it, but we must keep a close eye on the situation in Jiangdong. The situation in Jiangdong is bound to change drastically!"

Cao Cao paused for a moment and then sighed, "I once promised him that if he could take Yuzhang Commandery within a year, I would appoint him as the governor of Yuzhang Commandery. He actually completed the task I set in half a year!"

Sun Ce also received news of the fall of Yuzhang Commandery. At this time, Sun Ce had just led his army to Jingkou to make final preparations for the Northern Expedition. The first day of the second month was the day of Sun Ce's Northern Expedition.

But the news of the fall of Yuzhang Commandery was like a second arrow shot by Gan Ning at Sun Ce, catching Sun Ce off guard and causing him to be struck by the arrow again.

This incident seriously disrupted Sun Ce's Northern Expedition plan. The Northern Expedition on February 1st was impossible. He had to defeat Gan Ning and retake Yuzhang County. Otherwise, when he launched his Northern Expedition, Gan Ning would inevitably attack Lujiang County and even Danyang County. How could he possibly launch the Northern Expedition with peace of mind?

But unfortunately, not all of his food and logistical supplies have been delivered yet. How long will he have to wait?

The thought of his Northern Expedition being delayed filled Sun Ce with anxiety, yet he was at a loss and extremely frustrated.

That morning, Sun Ce went up Beigu Mountain alone. When he arrived at the cliff, he gazed at the rolling Yangtze River in front of him. Dozens of his personal guards were about a hundred paces away. They all knew that their lord was in a bad mood and dared not get too close to disturb him.

After standing there for an unknown amount of time, Sun Ce finally let out a long sigh, turned around and walked towards Ganlu Temple. Ganlu Temple was very small, covering only two acres, and had a dozen or so monks.

As soon as Sun Ce entered the main hall, a monk came up to him and handed him a plate with a letter on it. "This is a letter for you, benefactor!"

Sun Ce was taken aback. Who wrote this letter?

He had just picked up the letter when a sudden, sharp pain shot through his back. A weapon had pierced his body. The monk in front of him changed his expression, threw down the plate in his hand, and pulled out a dagger, stabbing it fiercely into Sun Ce's neck. Sun Ce cried out, rolled, and rolled more than ten feet away. Just behind him was a monk holding a short spear, the blue tip of which was covered in blood.

Just then, a short spear suddenly and silently pierced out from between the curtains and banners beside him. Without any warning, Sun Ce was unable to dodge, and the spear 'thud!' pierced his left abdomen. Sun Ce endured the excruciating pain, drew his sword, and slashed at the monk hiding behind the curtain. The monk screamed and fell backward.

The other two monks roared, "We are Xu Gong's retainers, here to avenge our master!"

The two men swung their spears at Sun Ce. Sun Ce felt dizzy and unsteady on his feet. He struggled to break open the side door and tumbled into the courtyard, door and all.

His dozens of personal guards walked in just then. When they saw their lord covered in blood, they were all terrified and drew their swords to kill the assassin.

The two monks knelt on the ground, looked up and shouted, "We are Xu Gong's retainers, here to avenge our master. Today our wish has been fulfilled, and we have no regrets even in death!"

The guards were furious and rushed forward to kill them, but the leader of the guards shouted, "Don't kill them! Leave them alive!"

But two bodyguards rushed forward and beheaded the two assassins, each wielding a sword.

When the guards saw that their lord had fainted, they were immediately alarmed. They carried him on their backs and ran down the mountain, shouting as they ran, "The lord has been assassinated! Quickly, find the army doctor!"

When the army doctor arrived, Sun Ce was still unconscious and had succumbed to his injuries. The army doctor was helpless.

The first spear missed his heart, but the fatal blow came from a third spear hidden behind the curtain. The spear pierced Sun Ce's liver, and due to excessive blood loss and the poison on the weapon, Sun Ce could not be saved. He breathed his last in the military camp an hour later.

Inside the tent, more than a dozen generals knelt before Sun Ce's body and wept bitterly. Lü Fan suppressed his grief and said, "Now is not the time to cry. We must first block the news and prevent any trouble. Immediately send the lord's body back to Wu County and ask the old lady for a decision."

Huang Gai wiped away his tears and asked, "Strategist, shall the army also retreat?"

Lü Fan nodded. "Military power must be in the hands of the old lady. The army must immediately withdraw to Wu County, and no one is allowed to leak the news."

Lu Fan's intuition told him something was wrong. His lord's trip to Beigu Mountain was a spur-of-the-moment decision, not pre-arranged. How could three assassins have known about it beforehand, with ambushes already planted inside Ganlu Temple? Something was amiss.

At this moment, the leader of Sun Ce's personal guards rushed over to report, "Reporting to the military advisor, two of Sun Ce's personal guards have committed suicide!"

Lü Fan's expression changed drastically.

(End of this chapter)