Han Ji

Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang were led to the guesthouse. The guesthouse was located east of the prefectural governor's mansion. It was a small courtyard with an old locust tree in the courtyard. The locust tree had just sprouted, and the tender leaves were curled up, not yet unfurled, like clasped hands.

The house was spotless, the kang (heated brick bed) was warm, and the bedding was new. Servants brought in hot food, including meat and fish. Yuan Shang's eyes lit up at the sight of the meat; he grabbed his chopsticks and started shoveling food into his mouth, getting rice grains all over his face. Yuan Xi barely touched his chopsticks. He gazed at the darkening sky outside the window, remaining silent for a long time.

"Second brother, why aren't you eating?"

Do you think Gongsun Kang will help us?

Yuan Shang swallowed the meat in his mouth and wiped his mouth. "He has no choice but to help. We are from the Yuan family. Liaodong is a remote place. If he wants to keep his position as governor, he needs us to help him win over the Wuhuan."

"The Wuhuan are gone," Yuan Xi said. "Tadun is dead, and all three Wuhuan tribes have surrendered to Liu Bei. What can we offer to win them over?"

Yuan Shang couldn't answer. The two brothers stared silently at the food on the table, which gradually cooled, and the oil at the bottom of the plate solidified into a white layer.

Two days later, Gongsun Kang summoned Liu Yi and several trusted generals to the back hall of the prefectural governor's mansion for a meeting.

A map of Liaodong hung on the wall of the back hall. Gongsun Kang stood before it, his finger tracing the lines between Youzhou and Liaodong more than a dozen times. His finger moved from Jixian to the Liao River, and then back again. Tadun's 30,000 cavalry were routed at Bailang Mountain in less than an hour. The total number of troops that Liaodong could mobilize was less than 20,000. They couldn't win.

Liu Yi spoke up. "My lord, Liu Bei has sent an envoy."

"When did you arrive?"

"Last night, we set off from Ji County, taking the coastal Jieshi Road, riding at full speed without stopping. The one who came was Qian Zhao, a subordinate of Liu Bei." Liu Yi paused for a moment. "Qian Zhao is in charge of the special operations battalion under Liu Bei. He was the one who scouted the route to attack Tadun at Bailang Mountain."

Gongsun Kang turned around. "Let him in."

When Qian Zhao entered the prefectural governor's mansion, he wasn't wearing armor, only a dark cloth robe with a short knife hanging at his waist. His face was roughened by the sea wind, and his lips were chapped, but his eyes were bright. He walked to the hall, took out a letter written by Liu Bei from his bosom, and presented it with both hands.

The letter was short. Gongsun Kang opened it and read it. The letter was very straightforward: Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang were traitors to the court and could not be tolerated. If he handed over the two Yuans, the governorship of Liaodong would remain unchanged, and Gongsun Kang could be appointed as the Left General. If he did not hand them over, the army would cross the Liao River.

The letter was stamped with the seal of "General Who Conquers the North, Governor of Yizhou, and Marquis of Wuxiang". The ink was vermilion, and when pressed firmly, the inscription was as clear as if it had been carved with a knife.

After reading the letter, Gongsun Kang placed the bamboo slips on the table. His hand did not tremble, but his fingertips pressed lightly on the table. "I understand the Prime Minister's meaning. Please have Sima rest at the inn for a while, and I will reply tomorrow."

Qian Zhao clasped his hands in a fist salute and withdrew, glancing back at Gongsun Kang as he left. "Prefect Gongsun," he said, "the Prime Minister said Liaodong is a good place. A good place needs a good master."

That night, Gongsun Kang sat alone in his study for a long time. The candles in the study burned one by one and were replaced. The spring night in Northeast China was still cold, and the withered branches of the old locust tree outside the window were blown by the wind and tapped against the tiles.

He remembered his father's dying words: if the Gongsun family of Liaodong wanted to prosper, they had to know when to bow their heads. His father meant that no one could be as tough as a knife.

As dawn approached, he summoned Liu Yi. The Yuan brothers were still asleep in the inn, with two guards left at the gate. They needed to act quickly and finish this before daybreak.

It was the hour of Mao (5-7 AM). The sky was just beginning to lighten. A wind picked up outside the inn, making the withered branches of the old locust tree creak.

Liu Yi led his troops to surround the inn. The soldiers stood in a circle outside the wall, swords drawn, but no one spoke. Liu Yi pushed open the door and entered, followed by four personal guards. Yuan Xi was already up, sitting on the edge of the kang (heated brick bed) putting on his boots. He saw Liu Yi enter and stopped.

"Prefect Liu, so early?"

"Prefect Gongsun requests that you two gentlemen come over."

"Now?"

"Now."

Yuan Xi stood up. He glanced at the figures outside the window; soldiers were moving about in the courtyard, the iron rings on their sword hilts clanging against their armor plates. He understood everything.

He bent down to put on his boots, tightened the laces, and stood up to adjust the hem of his robe. His movements were slow, as if he were doing something very important.

Yuan Shang was still asleep on the kang (a heated brick bed), snoring loudly, the sound shaking the paper windows. Yuan Xi went over and patted his face. "Get up."

Yuan Shang groggily opened his eyes, saw his brother's face, then saw Liu Yi and the guards behind him, and immediately sat up. "What's wrong?"

"Get up," Yuan Xi said again.

Yuan Shang climbed off the kang (a heated brick bed). When he saw the soldiers in the courtyard, his face turned pale, his lips trembled a few times, and he finally pursed them tightly without making a sound.

Yuan Xi said to Liu Yi, "Let's go."

The two brothers were led to the back hall of the prefect's mansion. Gongsun Kang stood in the hall, with a pot of wine and two bronze bowls on the table in front of him. He didn't look at the brothers' faces, only at the pot of wine, which was made of bronze and had a slightly crooked spout.

Yuan Xi stopped. Yuan Shang followed behind him, his legs trembling, his knees hitting each other, causing the hem of his robe to quiver.

"Prefect Gongsun, what does this mean?"

Gongsun Kang remained silent for a moment before speaking. "Second Young Master, Liu Bei has sent a letter. Hand over the two of you, and Liaodong will be safe. If you don't, his army will cross the Liao River. Liaodong only has 20,000 soldiers; they can't win."

Yuan Xi smiled. "So you're going to trade our brothers' heads for your governor's seal?"

Gongsun Kang remained silent.

Yuan Shang could no longer stand; his voice trembled. "Second Brother..."

Yuan Xi turned and glanced at Yuan Shang. This was his younger brother. The younger brother who had grown up with him since childhood. When they were little in Ye City, Yuan Shang stole a jade pendant from him, and Yuan Xi chased him all over the yard until they both fell into the flower bed, covered in mud. Their mother clapped her hands and laughed, saying that these two brothers fought so well together. Their mother was gone now.

He patted Yuan Shang on the shoulder. "It's alright, your second brother is here."

The lobby was so quiet that you could hear the crackling of charcoal in the fireplace under the eaves.

Gongsun Kang took a deep breath, his hand clenching and unclenching repeatedly inside his sleeve. He turned and took the sword from his personal guard, walking behind Yuan Xi. His hand paused for a fleeting moment as he raised the sword, just a second, before it fell.

The blade fell. Blood splattered onto the bluestone bricks. Yuan Xi's head rolled half a circle on the ground before stopping. His eyes were still open, gazing at the gray sky over Xiangping City, the smile on his lips not yet completely faded.

Yuan Shang, kneeling on the brick floor beside him, suddenly felt a warmth on his trouser legs, then a chill. A whimper escaped his throat, and he opened his mouth as if to shout something, but no sound came out. Gongsun Kang's second strike had already fallen.

The two heads were placed into a wooden box. Liu Yi preserved them with lime, and the box was tied tightly with hemp rope. While tying the rope, Liu Yi's fingers were stained with blood that had seeped from the edge of the box, and he wiped them on his robe.

Qian Zhao took the wooden box and weighed it in his hand. "Prefect Gongsun is indeed insightful."

"Please bring Sima back to report to the Chancellor. Gongsun Kang of Liaodong will forever be loyal to the court."

Qian Zhao took the wooden box and left. The horse galloped out of the south gate of Xiangping, and the dust kicked up by its hooves lingered in the morning light for a long time, making the entire official road gray and hazy.

Gongsun Kang stood on the city wall watching Qian Zhao depart, the wind blowing the hem of his robe. Liu Yi stood beside him, shrinking his neck; the wind was cold.

"This battle will continue for a long time, and it's still unknown who will win between Liu Bei and Cao Cao."

"Whoever wins, we'll side with them," Gongsun Kang said. He turned and descended the city wall, touching his neck. Goosebumps rose on his neck from the north wind.