Chapter 21

Xun encountered six Yellow Turban bandits, five on foot and one on horseback. In less than half the time it takes to eat a meal, they had taken down over twenty opponents.

On the side of the young master from Yingling County, more than half had died (including those who were mortally wounded and finished off), leaving only Xun and his brother, Wang Zhong and Wang Zichun, Shen Yuan and Shen Daochu, Zheng Yi and Zheng Yiren, and a servant. After being searched, they were tied together with hemp ropes.

The Yellow Turbans had no casualties; only one was shot in the thigh by Xun, another in the shoulder, and one was beaten into a black eye by a household servant. The servants should have had some fighting ability, but they were only there to help their masters hunt, and half of them only had sticks, while the other half were empty-handed, so they were all taken down one by one.

The strongest and most ruthless was the knight who captured Xun. He had killed more than half of the young master's group and captured three alive. At this moment, riding his horse, he was beaming with pride and satisfaction.

Xun, as a prisoner, could see clearly that this person was indeed a woman, and she was... judging by her face, she was probably around thirteen or fourteen, but by her height, she might be just over ten, barely 1.3 meters tall, with slender arms and legs, and a petite figure... No, Xun dared to glance at her chest, which was tightly bound, revealing two small protrusions—oh, she was starting to develop. It was too early to speculate whether they would be big or small when fully developed.

Ah, what a spit! With death looming, I'm actually still thinking about measuring the size of a female bandit's chest?

But then he thought, since death is imminent, when else would I indulge in such fantasies?

The horses of the young master's group had scattered, and the remaining ones were all gathered by the Yellow Turbans. They all mounted their horses, leading the long string of captives eastward. As they walked, the terrain gradually rose. Xun had heard that there was a mountain called Fuzheng Mountain to the east of Yingling County. Could there be more bandits hiding in the mountains?

Looking around, his companions were all dejected, limping as they walked. Zheng Yi's condition was a bit better, probably due to the strict upbringing by his scholarly father. Despite the difficulties, he maintained the dignity of a scholar. The worst off was Shen Yuan, who was crying and pleading for mercy non-stop.

The Yellow Turbans initially ignored him, but eventually, one of them, annoyed by the constant noise, brandished a large knife at his neck: "One more word, and I'll cut you down here!" Shen Yuan let out a cry and clamped his mouth shut.

"Daochu," Zheng Yi whispered, "If we are to die, why beg for mercy? Besides, they will not spare us."

A gust of wind brushed past Zheng Yi's head as the little girl spoke: "You too, shut up!" Zheng Yi glanced at her, shook his head lightly, but indeed did not speak again.

After entering the mountains, they estimated it was nearly dusk. Turning a corner, they suddenly saw over a dozen Yellow Turban heads appear on the side of the road. The little girl, similar to "Kick-Ass," called out: "Father, we're back."

"How long did it take? Who are these people?" A tall man, about 1.8 meters tall, with a yellow face but a large frame, his shoulders twice as wide as Xun's, asked.

"They should all be wealthy people from Yingling County. Bringing them back, Father can ask about the situation in the country and Kong Rong's plans," the little girl replied.

The tall man sized up the captives and laughed: "They're just younglings, only good for reciting books and walking with a dignified gait. How could they know Kong Rong's plans? Kill them all."

Shen Yuan was terrified and cried out: "My uncle is the magistrate of Jimo, with hundreds of acres of good land and thousands of bushels of fine grain. If you need anything, my family can provide it in exchange for my release!"

The tall man frowned and asked someone beside him: "What did he say?" The person quickly explained: "He said his uncle is the magistrate of Jimo, with plenty of wealth and grain, and can ransom him with it."

The tall man laughed heartily: "I do want the grain, but with just a few of us, how can we dare to ask the magistrate for grain? A small amount wouldn't be worth it, and a large amount we couldn't carry." Suddenly, he kicked Shen Yuan, causing him to fall—dragging Xun and the others down with him—and shouted: "I am Guan Hai, the great general of the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou! When you die, you can report my name to the Eastern Peak God. If the God grants you the right to seek revenge, I'll wait with my neck bared!"

Xun couldn't help but raise his head, thinking, "Oh, another famous person!"

Actually, Guan Hai wasn't very famous. He was only mentioned briefly in the "Records of the Three Kingdoms." It's understandable; unless he had turned over a new leaf like Zhang Yan, how could the ruling class write a biography for a peasant rebel?

In the historical record, Guan Hai led the Yellow Turbans of Qingzhou to defeat Kong Rong and besiege him in Duchang (a name Xun couldn't remember). Then, Taishi Ci brought Liu Bei to rescue Duchang, and Guan Hai, knowing he couldn't win, withdrew. After that, there was no further news of him, and his fate was unknown.

In "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," this was expanded and embellished. It said that Guan Hai besieged Kong Rong, and Kong Rong sent his general Zong Bao to fight, but Zong Bao was killed in a few rounds. When Liu Bei came to the rescue, Guan Hai blocked him, and Guan Yu engaged him, "killing Guan Hai with his Green Dragon Saber in a few dozen rounds"—not a bad feat, considering he could fight Guan Yu for that long.

After Guan Hai announced his name, the Yellow Turbans rushed forward with their weapons, ready to kill the young masters. Xun and Zheng Yi remained silent, but this time, even Wang Zhong and Shi Jun joined in the pleading. Guan Hai waved his hand, ordering his men to step back, then shouted:

"You scoundrels, you only know how to exploit the people, and you call yourselves disciples of the sages, looking down on the people who feed and clothe you! Fine, I can spare you today, but first, you must kowtow to me and shout: 'Long live the Great Virtuous Teacher! The Han Emperor can eat dog shit! I can eat dog shit too!'—speak up."

The surrounding Yellow Turbans laughed and shouted: "Long live the Great Virtuous Teacher! The Han Emperor can eat dog shit! You can eat dog shit too!"

Shen Yuan, a spineless man, immediately knelt down and mumbled the required words. Guan Hai leaned in, cupping his ear: "Loudly, I can't hear you. If I can't hear you, it doesn't count!" Shen Yuan had to shout: "Long live the Great Virtuous Teacher! The Han Emperor can eat dog shit! I can eat dog shit too! Spare my life! Long live the Great Virtuous Teacher! The Han Emperor can eat dog shit! I can eat dog shit too! Spare my life! Long live the Great Virtuous Teacher! The Han Emperor can eat dog shit! I can eat dog shit too!—Hero, spare my life!"

Guan Hai showed a look of disdain, then turned to Xun: "Scoundrel, it's your turn."

In a life-or-death situation, everyone reacts differently: some are scared stiff, some remain calm; some lose their minds, some can still think rationally; some lose all courage at the mention of death, some think, "Since I'm going to die anyway, what's there to fear?"

At this moment, Xun stood up. He thought, if he shouted the required slogans, would these Yellow Turbans really let him go? To survive, he would do anything, even eat dog shit if necessary. But if he shouted "Long live Zhang Jue" and "The Han Emperor can eat dog shit," could he still live among the scholars? Shen Yuan was the nephew of a magistrate, so he might have a chance to get away with it, but what about him? He wasn't even the real son of Shi Yi, just a distant cousin who had only met a few months ago...

What was there to fear in death? In this chaotic era, if he couldn't rise to power, life was meaningless. He had gone to great lengths to infiltrate the scholar class, and was he going to give it all up now? Was he going to return to the poor village, living a life of uncertainty? Oh, heaven, I can't have any hope for you!

In that instant, countless heroes flashed through his mind: Huang Jiguang, Qiu Shaoyun, Dong Cunrui... After much deliberation, he gritted his teeth and made a decision—better to live a miserable life than to die a glorious death. He would shout the slogans!

Compared to these Yellow Turbans, he seemed to be the corrupt class, the reactionary, standing with the feudal landlords, stubbornly resisting the peasant movement... Dong Cunrui would rise from the grave to strangle him...

With his decision made, he was about to open his mouth when a sudden thought flashed through his mind—wait, I'm supposed to be mute... Should I shout or not?

This hesitation caught Guan Hai's attention. Shi Jun, a brave man, quickly stepped in front of Xun: "My seventh brother is still grieving over his father's death and cannot speak."

Guan Hai tilted his head and asked: "What did he say?" Someone explained: "He said his seventh brother is still grieving over his father's death and has lost his voice."

"Can't speak?" Guan Hai laughed, "Interesting, but I don't believe it." He drew his ring-headed saber from his waist and raised it high: "I'll cut off your head and see if you can speak!" The saber, gleaming with a cold light, aimed straight for Xun's neck.

Seeing his head about to be cut off, Xun couldn't help but shout: "Long live the Great Virtuous Teacher! The Han Emperor can eat dog shit! I can eat dog shit too!" But perhaps because he had been pretending to be mute for too long, he only managed to say "Long" before his throat was choked by a sudden breath. He shrank his neck and closed his eyes. Then he felt a cool sensation on the back of his neck, and in a moment of panic, he blurted out: "Screw you!"

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