Chapter 46

If Cao Song was a powder keg, then Zhang Kai was the fuse. According to one account, Tao Qian sent Zhang Kai with a small detachment of troops to escort Cao Song back to Yanzhou. However, when they reached the area between Huaxian and Feixian, Zhang Kai saw that the old man had dozens of carts filled with gold and jewels. Greed overcame him, and he killed Cao Song and stole the treasure, then fled without a trace.

Thus, Cao Cao and Tao Qian became bitter enemies. Cao Cao, under the pretext of avenging his father, led an army to attack Xuzhou, massacring the inhabitants of five counties, causing heads to roll and even blocking a river with the piled bodies.

Of course, this account is somewhat unreliable, and many details are difficult to verify. First, at the time, Zang Ba was stationed in the Huaxian and Feixian area. Why did Zhang Kai wait until he was in a place full of Xuzhou soldiers to make his move? Was he not afraid of being caught quickly? Could there have been a secret agreement between him and Zang Ba?

If Zhang Kai was indeed acting on Cao Hong's secret orders, it would be easier to explain. Perhaps the secret orders only reached him when they arrived at this location, and Zang Ba might have turned a blind eye because of these orders.

Second, Zhang Kai disappeared without a trace after the incident. The murder of his father was a lifelong humiliation for Cao Cao, who later dominated northern China. Even if he wanted to blame Tao Qian, he would not have failed to send people to search for Zhang Kai—Tao Qian would have also wanted to catch Zhang Kai to clear his name. Why is there no further mention of this in historical records?

Finally, the massacre of the five counties is also somewhat unclear. Although I can't recall the specific names of the five counties, it's clear that they couldn't all be around one river. How could the bodies of the people killed by Cao's troops all end up in that river? Usually, such a scenario would only occur if two large armies fought by a river, and one side was defeated, with the fleeing soldiers drowning in the river.

Of course, some people try to exonerate Cao Cao, claiming that the massacre never happened and was a fabrication by contemporaries or later generations. I find this claim laughable. After all, Cao Cao was a warlord in the feudal era, not a Red Army that redistributed land. At the time, he had just recruited tens of thousands of Yellow Turbans from Qingzhou, whose discipline was terrible. Even without an official order to massacre, the widespread killing and looting of civilians was inevitable.

I respect Cao Cao and would like to prevent this tragedy. The key is to prevent Cao Cao from attacking Xuzhou. To do that, his father must be protected or safely escorted back to Yanzhou—once in Yanzhou, if anything happened to him, it would be no one else's fault. So, when I saw the murderer of Cao Song today, I was so shocked that I almost fell off my horse.

Zhang Kai, being quite perceptive, noticed my shock and quickly reached out to steady me. As he did, he saw the stirrups and asked, "What's this thing?"

I took a deep breath, calmed myself, and instead asked, "Are you named Zhang Kai? Which two characters?"

He scratched the back of his head and smiled sheepishly, "I'm a rough man, I don't know how to read. Anyway, I'm called Zhang Kai."

Alright, Zhang Kai it is. In any case, I must not include him in the troops sent to protect Cao Song!

Under Zhang Kai's guidance, I soon met the famous Zang Ba in Huaxian. Among the officials of Xuzhou, Zang Ba is the most renowned in later generations—ordinary Three Kingdoms fans might overlook Chen Deng, but they would never overlook Zang Ba. Chen Deng's highest position was Governor of Guangling, while Zang Ba was entrusted by Cao Cao with the command of Qing and Xu provinces, making him a regional commander.

As for Cao Hong, Cao Bao, Mi Zhu, and Zhao Xu, they were of lesser importance. Even in the obscure corners of historical records, their names are hard to find!

Unfortunately, meeting Zang Ba in person was a disappointment. Despite being one of Cao Cao's top generals, his martial prowess seemed to be around 70, far below the likes of Taishi Ci and Guan Yu. He looked more like Zhang Kai, with only a broader shoulder, and showed no signs of being a warrior. When we met, he was not in armor or military attire but dressed like a scholar, with a tall hat and wide sleeves.

I couldn't help but think maliciously: You must be wearing that tall hat to make yourself look taller.

After a brief greeting and conversation, I found that Zang Ba was indeed a man of refined speech. It made sense; in this era, generals who rose from the lowest ranks were rare. Most were at least from small landowner families and could read and write—Guan Yu loved reading the "Spring and Autumn Annals," Zhang Fei was said to be skilled at painting beauties, and Lü Bu had been a secretary in a state. Someone like Zhang Kai would never rise to such a position. Moreover, as a regional commander, he had to deal with scholars. Without any education, he would be mocked and possibly rebelled against by the cunning and sharp-tongued scholars.

I explained my mission to Zang Ba, and he agreed to provide troops to protect Cao Song. I made a request that the soldiers should be honest and none of them should be surnamed Zhang. Zang Ba looked at me in confusion, and I didn't explain—indeed, I couldn't explain.

In the end, Zang Ba assigned 300 soldiers, led by a strong general named Sun Fan, to accompany me back to Langya. I inquired about the soldiers and found that they were all from Langya, with surnames like Wang, Li, and even a peculiar one named Zhuge, whose hometown was Yangdu. However, he didn't know who Zhuge Gui, Zhuge Xuan, Zhuge Jin, or Zhuge Liang were. The general, Sun Fan, was a cousin of Zang Ba's deputy, Sun Guan.

We traveled east and soon arrived at Haiqu County in Langya. According to Cao Hong's instructions, Cao Song was living in a manor outside Haiqu, quite far from the sea—probably near modern-day Rizhao. My hometown in my previous life was Rizhao, and I felt a mix of nostalgia and the impermanence of human affairs—Rizhao is such a beautiful and prosperous city, but Haiqu County had a mere three-meter-high earthen wall, not even as well-constructed as my old home in Lingqiu.

We camped outside Haiqu for a night, and I visited the county magistrate, enjoying a banquet. The next day, I went to visit Cao Song by carriage, bringing only the few soldiers from Tao Qian, not Zang Ba's troops, to avoid frightening the old man.

When we arrived, the manor was impressive, spanning several acres with a high earthen wall, not much shorter than Haiqu's city wall. Inside, there were several watchtowers, each manned by armed guards. Even though I knew nothing about warfare, I could tell that capturing this manor would be as difficult as capturing Haiqu. With only 300 soldiers, it would take at least three to five days to take it.

I remembered that according to the account where Tao Qian was the mastermind behind Cao Song's murder, Cao Cao had ordered the Governor of Taishan, Ying Shao, to escort his father. When Tao Qian's troops arrived, the Cao family thought it was Ying Shao and let their guard down, leading to their capture. If they had been prepared, Tao Qian's troops might not have succeeded. This account seemed quite reliable, with logical details. However, according to the same account, Cao Song was supposed to be in Huaxian, Taishan, not Haiqu, Langya. What was the real history? Even if I had traveled through time, it would still be a mystery.

As we approached the manor, the main gate opened, and a steward came out to ask who we were and what our business was. Because I was dressed as a scholar and arrived in a carriage with only two soldiers and a driver, they did not treat us as a threat. I showed the official document from Tao Qian and handed over my name card, saying, "I am here on the orders of Governor Tao to pay my respects to Lord Cao."

The steward went inside to report and soon returned, guiding my carriage in. When I entered the main hall, the steward pointed to a man and said, "That is my master, the former Grand Commandant Cao Song." I looked up and was surprised to see that it was indeed Cao Song, not Dong Zhuo!

Cao Song, in his fifties, had a round face, a beard, thick eyebrows, large eyes, a straight nose, and a wide mouth. He was so fat that his chin was almost invisible, his neck seemingly retracted due to his large belly. I remembered that according to historical records, when Tao Qian's troops came to kill him, Cao Song tried to escape through a dog hole with his concubine, but she was too fat and got stuck, leading to his death. Looking at him now, it wasn't the concubine who was too fat; it was Cao Song himself. With his bulky figure, he wouldn't fit through a bear hole, let alone a dog hole!

Suppressing my urge to comment, I approached and greeted him. Cao Song did not invite me to sit and asked, "What position do you hold in the state?"

I replied, "I am a commoner."

Upon hearing this, Cao Song's face fell, and he coldly said, "Is there no one else in Xuzhou? Why send a commoner to see an old man like me?" He raised his hand, and two concubines helped him up and led him behind a screen. I thought to myself, "It's like two foxes supporting a hippo," but then realized, "Even if you look down on me for being a commoner, you can't just leave me in the hall alone!"

Just as I was at a loss, a voice came from the shadows behind the screen, "My father is unwell and has neglected to entertain our guest. Please do not be offended." This startled me—where were you hiding? Are you a ninja?!

———————————Scene Break———————————

In this chapter, an important NPC, Sun Fan, appears. He is a cousin of Sun Guan from Taishan and a general in Langya, holding the rank of squad leader, which would be equivalent to a second lieutenant today... played by the reader "Yun Zhong Fanke," everyone give a round of applause!

What? You ask Sun Fan's courtesy name? Since he will soon meet his end, does he really need one...?

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