Chapter 60

It was as if in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Pang Tong had to first lie low in Leiyang County, waiting for Zhang Fei to come for an inspection before showing his talent, and then presenting the recommendations from Lu Su and Zhuge Liang. This time, when Xun saw that Cao Cao had already largely convinced Cao Cao to pardon Guan Hai and approve the two proposals for the alliance between Xu and Yan, he then took out Cao De's family letter and Tao Qian's official document.

Tao Qian's official document was simple, merely feigning a sigh over the emperor's plight and the decline of the Han dynasty, then congratulating Cao Cao on taking control of Yan Province, and finally encouraging him to diligently serve the state and maintain peace. Cao Cao was not appointed as the governor of Yan Province by the court but was elected by the local people. After the election, two scholars and officials submitted a memorial, but whether the court would approve it or even if it could be safely delivered to Chang'an, no one really cared. So Tao Qian's empty words actually indicated his recognition of Cao Cao's status as the ruler of Yan Province and hinted that they could strengthen their relations.

As for the various frictions and even conflicts on the border due to their different affiliations in the past, including this time when Cao Bao and Zang Ba invaded the land of Yan Province, they were not even mentioned.

Cao De's letter was even simpler, merely stating that Xun was a relative and a capable person worthy of trust, and hoping that his elder brother would not neglect him.

This made Cao Cao even more enthusiastic. Xun seized the opportunity and said, "Why don't I go and persuade Guan Hai to surrender? You can send people to collect weapons and arrange for farming, and also send troops to Sheqiu to bring your father, brothers, and nephews over. Time waits for no one, and if we want to achieve great things, we must act quickly!"

That afternoon, Xun went to the Yellow Turban camp and bluntly told Guan Hai, "Cao Cao has agreed to pardon you, as well as the other Yellow Turban leaders who were on the execution list. You should lay down your weapons and surrender immediately. If you wait any longer, more people will starve to death." Guan Hai convened his generals, and they all shrugged, "At this point, do we have any other choice?"

Some were still skeptical and asked Xun, "Is Cao Cao really going to spare us? Is he not trying to lure us out and then ambush us to capture us all?" Xun smirked, "You are like birds in a cage or fish in a pot. If he just keeps you surrounded for a few more days, you will all starve to death. Why would he need to set up an ambush?"

Guan Hai nodded, "I believe you won't harm us, but... does Cao Cao have any other conditions?" Xun explained that Cao Cao would not immediately release them to return to their normal lives as farmers. Instead, he would first confine them to farming for a few years. He outlined the rules of farming, and Guan Hai said, "It's like being slaves to the Cao family, farming for a few years. As long as he provides us with farming tools and seeds, we will do it—don't think I'm not good at farming just because I'm not good at fighting."

Xun secretly sneered, thinking that with the technology and experience of this era, even if you boasted about being the best farmer, how much could you really achieve? Could you produce 500 kilograms of grain per acre? What's there to be proud of?

That evening, the Yellow Turbans from Qing Province began to move in groups of a hundred, following the designated route to Cao Cao's camp. Large pots were set up next to Cao Cao's camp, boiling thin porridge to sustain the starving people—weapons had to be exchanged for porridge. When it got dark, the surrender process was temporarily halted—no one knew if there might be any desperate people trying to attack Cao Cao's camp.

Xun accompanied Guan Hai to stay one more night in the Yellow Turban camp. That night, no one starved to death, as the weakest had already been sent out before dark, and the vast camp covered a wide area, allowing them to dig for roots for another day or two. Guan Hai boiled a pot of black soup with roots and offered a bowl to Xun.

Xun's stomach growled; he had only eaten a few bites of dry food at Cao Cao's camp all day. He naturally took the bowl and drank a large mouthful—damn, it was so bitter! He almost vomited. He remembered that before he was thirteen, he had lived in a poor village and drank this stuff all year. How could he, now living a life of luxury, not be used to it? Even Zhu Yuanzhang, after becoming emperor, could still pinch his nose and drink the "Pearl Jade White Jade Soup."

Right, pinch the nose—Xun gritted his teeth, pinched his nose, and drank the whole bowl of root soup, treating it like medicine. Guan Hai watched him and then asked, "Do you want more?" Xun shook his head and returned the bowl, "No, no, I'm full."

"You can really drink it," Guan Hai's face relaxed, "You, a scholar, are really different from others. Why do you go to such lengths to save my life? I don't even value my own life."

How was he different from other scholars? Xun silently asked himself. He came from two thousand years in the future and did not have the typical "gentleman" and "petty person" distinctions of the scholars of this era. He did not think that people like Guan Hai, who were peasants, were inferior to landlords like Cao Cao in terms of personality. Besides, when he first arrived in this world, he was also a peasant.

Rationally, Xun understood that peasants in this era could not rise up, and a peasant revolution had no hope of success. To live a stable and better life, he had to find a way to join the landlord class—otherwise, he wouldn't have impersonated someone and gone to Yingling. However, emotionally, although he did not lament the injustice of class exploitation and oppression like many protagonists in literary works, he did not want to see people like Guan Hai, whether they were peasants or landlords, die innocently—of course, whether Guan Hai was innocent was still questionable.

Sigh, he was just one of the masses, not a hero, and could not achieve great things, truly failing to live up to the title of "穿越人士" (time traveler).

At that moment, Xun and Guan Hai were sitting outside the tattered, leaky tent—sitting, not kneeling, with their legs spread and their buttocks on the ground—looking at the almost pitch-black camp with only a few scattered fires. Xun felt increasingly sad and pitiful. He leaned back, supported himself with his hands, and gazed at the vast starry sky, answering Guan Hai's question lightly, "If I say I'm saving your life because you cured my muteness, would you believe me?"

Guan Hai turned his head, his gaze scattered, not knowing where he was looking or what he was thinking, and said casually, "If you say so, then it is so. You saved my life and everyone else's, so whatever you say is true."

"I saved your life, but not everyone's. You will eventually surrender, of course, on the condition that your head is cut off first..." Xun continued to look at the sky, and their conversation seemed more like a monologue, "But if you die, your daughter... Guan Si will be heartbroken..."

"She has no favor to you. She even captured you and shot you with an arrow," Guan Hai said weakly, "You saved my life and my daughter's life, and we don't know how to repay you."

"Guan Si is sixteen, right? When you settle down and start farming, you will have to marry her off, right..." Xun took a deep breath and said bluntly, "Why don't you marry her to me?"

"Huh?"

Xun gritted his teeth, sat up straight, turned his head, and under the bright starlight, carefully observed Guan Hai's expression: "I am already engaged... you know the difference in our social status, so I cannot marry Guan Si as my main wife, but I promise I will not mistreat her or betray her. The engagement was arranged by my elders, and I have no say in it, but my feelings for your daughter are... sincere... I can swear to the sky or to your Yellow Emperor, whatever you want!"

He had struggled to say these words, but unfortunately, Guan Hai's face showed no expression, as if Xun was talking about someone else. Xun waited patiently for a while, and then Guan Hai sighed, "I don't want my daughter to marry, I hope she can always stay by my side, but that's impossible... You haven't been a father, so you don't understand my feelings. So, I don't care, you talk to her yourself. If she agrees, I have no choice..."

The next day, the surrender continued. Guan Hai and the other dozen Yellow Turban leaders set out last, accompanied by Xun and escorted by a whole squad of Cao Cao's soldiers to meet Cao Cao. Although Cao Cao had promised to spare their lives, the traditional procedures still had to be followed, and the formalities had to be observed. So they all had their hands tied behind their backs, heads hanging low, and reported their names as they entered the tent. Upon entering, they immediately knelt and said, as Xun had taught them, "We have been disrespectful and have offended the tiger's might of Lord Cao, and we come to beg for forgiveness." Xun had originally taught them to say "We are rebels," but Guan Hai insisted on maintaining his stance even at the moment of surrender, saying, "We are surrendering to Cao, not to Han. We are fighting for a peaceful world, so why say 'rebels'?" So it was changed to "disrespectful," meaning: whether our rebellion was justified or not is another matter, but we should not have come to invade your Yan Province, please forgive us.

Cao Cao quickly got up from his seat and extended his hands, saying, "Let's not talk about the past. Since you have sincerely surrendered, you will now be my subjects." He instructed the guards, "Take them out, untie them, give them food and drink, and treat them well." At the same time, he secretly gave a signal.

Xun happened to see his signal and was greatly surprised!