Three Kingdoms: Start by buying a governor.

"Waaah—"

In the crowd, the old woman clutching the old clothes finally couldn't hold back anymore and covered her face, bursting into tears. The soldier next to her quickly offered her a handkerchief, but the old woman waved her hand and just hugged the old clothes even tighter.

Liu Ce's eyes welled up with tears as he watched.

He took a deep breath, his voice becoming more solemn:

"And, dear family members, please rest assured."

"From today onwards, your family's land will be exempt from rent and taxes for ten years! You won't have to pay a single grain of rice!"

"For all the children in the family, regardless of gender, whether they attend the village school or the county or prefectural school that will be established in the future, tuition will be completely free! The school will provide food, lodging, writing materials, and paper, all covered by the prefecture government!"

"If your family lacks food or clothing, go directly to the governor's mansion to get it! I, Liu Ce, am making this clear: anyone who dares to withhold even a little bit, anyone who dares to utter a single difficult word, I'll chop off their hand and skin them alive!"

That was a harsh statement, but no one thought it was excessive.

The family members looked up, their tearful eyes shining with a new light.

Liu Ce turned around, faced the stone tablet, and bowed three times respectfully.

Then he turned towards the coffin and bent down deeply again:

"Brothers."

"You didn't die in vain."

"We've wiped out the Wuhuan strongholds in Liaoxi, Liaodong, and Youbeiping! Not a single one of the more than ten thousand Wuhuan cavalrymen on the Lulong Pass battlefield escaped! The heads of the three tribal leaders are currently in the governor's mansion!"

"From now on, the Wuhuan barbarians will no longer rob and kill people on the borders of Youzhou! Your parents, your wives and children can sleep peacefully! As long as I, Liu Ce, am still in Youzhou, I will ensure they have enough to eat and wear!"

He straightened up, his gaze sweeping over all the soldiers, then suddenly raised his voice and roared:

"Remember this!"

"Our soldiers from Youzhou are not cowards!"

"We fight not for promotion or wealth, but so that our families can have enough to eat and sleep in peace! So that our descendants won't have to live in fear and anxiety! So that our children can go to school and our elders can enjoy their twilight years!"

He pointed to the stone tablet and said:

"Today I erect this monument so that future generations will know—the men of Youzhou dare to fight to the death for peace! They dare to stand up for their brothers!"

"Those buried here today are your comrades! Tomorrow, it could be any one of you! But remember, as long as you shed blood for Youzhou, Youzhou will never let you down! As long as your families are still in Youzhou, Youzhou will always be their home!"

"Those who died in battle are heroes! Those who survive, remember them!"

After he finished speaking, the entire room fell silent.

Then--

"I am willing to follow my lord and protect Youzhou!"

It's unclear which captain shouted first, but immediately afterward, tens of thousands of soldiers shouted in unison:

"I am willing to follow my lord and protect Youzhou!"

"I am willing to follow my lord and protect Youzhou!!"

"I am willing to follow my lord and protect Youzhou!!!"

The sound waves grew louder and louder, causing the leaves to fall in a rustling sound and startling all the birds in the distant woods into flight.

That voice was not an angry roar, nor a fanatical shout, but a heavy, heartfelt vow.

The family members' crying gradually subsided.

They looked up at the stone tablet, at Liu Ce, and at the shouting soldiers. The grief in their eyes slowly transformed into a kind of... confidence.

Yes, confidence.

They knew that their loved ones had not died in vain.

They knew even more that following such a lord was worthwhile!

Looking at the scene before him, Liu Ce felt a heavy weight in his heart, as if a stone were pressing down on it, yet he also felt incredibly at ease.

He turned to the stonemason who had been waiting behind him and said:

"Let's get started."

"Carve the names of all the brothers on it, without missing a single one."

"The characters must be neat and deep. They must not be blurred even if wind and rain damage them."

"yes!"

Several old stonemasons stepped forward, hammers and chisels in their hands. They first wrote seventeen names on the monument with cinnabar—the names, hometowns, and battalions of the fallen soldiers.

"bite--"

The first cut landed on the stone tablet with a crisp sound that carried far in the quiet morning.

Then came the second cut, the third cut...

The "clanging" sound, though slow and steady, struck like heavy blows into everyone's hearts.

It also struck this fertile land of Youzhou.

From this day forward, this "Monument to the Martyrs" outside Zhuoxian City will be the soul of all the soldiers of Youzhou and the root of all the people of Youzhou.

...

At noon, in the governor's prison.

The cell was dark and damp, with only a small window high up letting in a bit of light.

Zhang Chun and Zhang Ju were locked in the innermost single cell. Both were wearing prison uniforms and had disheveled hair. They had been there for more than ten days and had long lost their initial arrogance.

Hearing footsteps, the two looked up. Seeing Liu Ce enter, Zhang Chun instinctively tried to stand up, but her legs gave way and she sat back down.

Liu Ce was still wearing the same plain white robe, but now he had a wooden box in his hand.

"Zhang Chun, Zhang Ju," Liu Ce greeted them with a smile, "Are you settling in alright?"

Zhang Chun spat and said, "Liu Ce! Kill me or torture me, just give me a quick death! Stop with the crocodile tears!"

"Tsk, quite the temper." Liu Ce wasn't angry. He told Lu Bing to put the wooden box on the ground. "I'll show you something good."

Liu Ce didn't speak, but simply nodded to Lu Bing.

Lu Bing opened the three wooden boxes one by one and placed them in front of Zhang Chun and Zhang Ju.

The first box contained the head of Qiu Liju. His eyes were still open, and his face was frozen in the terror of death.

The second box contained the head of Su Puyan.

The third box contained Wu Yan's head.

Three human heads—treated with lime, somewhat deformed, but still recognizable—stood side by side, appearing particularly grotesque in the dim light.

Zhang Chun's face turned deathly pale in an instant, her lips trembled, and she tried to say something but couldn't utter a sound. Zhang Ju was even worse off; he collapsed to the ground, his crotch soaked—he had wet himself in fear.

After a long while, Zhang Chun asked in a trembling voice, "This...this is..."

"Your accomplices," Liu Ce said calmly, "Qiuliju, the chief of the Wuhuan in Liaoxi; Supuyan, the chief of the Wuhuan in Liaodong; and Wuyan, the chief of the Wuhuan in Youbeiping. Oh, and their nephew Tadun—too many heads to bring."

He paused, then added, "All ten thousand of their cavalrymen died at Lulong Pass; not a single one escaped."

Zhang Chun completely broke down.

He slumped to the ground, his eyes unfocused, muttering to himself, "It's over...it's all over..."

After a long while, Zhang Chun finally spoke in a hoarse voice, "You...you killed them all?"

"Otherwise what?" Liu Ce raised an eyebrow. "To keep it for the New Year?"

He crouched down, looking Zhang Chun in the eye: "Zhang Chun, I'll give you another chance."

"Write down the whole story of how you colluded with the Wuhuan. How you met Qiuliju, how you communicated, how you planned it, what benefits you promised them—every detail, without missing a single word."

"It's written. Sign and put your fingerprint on it."