Chapter 79

Early in the morning, Xun ran to the field to find Guan Hai, only to see him squatting there, lost in thought. Since there was no one else around, he walked over and squatted down next to Guan Hai without any regard for his appearance. Guan Hai didn't even turn his head, just gave a slight glance and mumbled, "Back already?"

Xun nodded and couldn't help but say, "Cao De wants to continue borrowing me to serve as the county magistrate in Chengyang for a while. Do you want to come with me? It's been half a year, I think Cao Cao won't be wary of you anymore. I can plead with him to let you be a county captain in Chengyang. What do you think?"

Guan Hai shook his head, "No, I still have crops to tend to in my fields."

"Are you really content with this?" Xun really couldn't understand him, "The world is in turmoil, it's a great opportunity for men to build their careers. I see potential in Cao Cao; he will eventually unify the north... or at least carve out a vast territory. If you join his camp now, you'll have the chance to become a general. Haven't you forgotten those days of galloping and brandishing your whip?"

Guan Hai's lips trembled slightly, and he smiled bitterly, "What's so enjoyable about it? Leading a million people, all with families, the elderly sighing, children crying, all staring at you to carve out a path for their survival. Back then, I often couldn't sleep for whole nights, thinking about where to go the next day and where to find food. If this burden continues, I'll collapse before Cao Cao even attacks. Thanks to your help, I've been able to lay down this burden. Who would want to go back to such a life?"

"It's different now, not the same as before," Xun continued to persuade him, "No one is watching you now; you'll be watching me, and I'll be watching Cao Cao..."

Guan Hai curled his lips, "You make it sound easy. I just squat here and watch the crops and you. If I really go with you to be an official, how many commoners will be watching me? If I become a general, how many soldiers will be watching me?"

"When I was a child, I was carefree but always wanted to grow up," Xun reminisced, not about his struggling childhood in a poor village, "I thought being an adult meant freedom, but when I grew up, I realized that freedom is responsibility... the burden on your shoulders. With a burden, so-called freedom is just an illusion. Now, I just want to shrink back and be a child again. People always think others are better, always think the past or future is better than the present. Can you really be content with being a farmer for the rest of your life? I don't believe it."

"Believe it or not, it's up to you," Guan Hai spat out the grass stick in his mouth and slowly stood up, "I don't know if I'll regret it in the future, but for now... I have to tend to the seeds I've sown until they grow and are harvested. At least for this year, do your own thing and don't bother me."

But Xun, being a somewhat disobedient future son-in-law, still went to the fields every day to bother Guan Hai. Mainly, he had a few months of leisure time, so he helped Guan Hai with farming and caught up on some agricultural knowledge. Of course, he couldn't do the heavy work and didn't want to do the dirty work, just helping to hoe a bit and carry half a bucket of clear water. Fortunately, Guan Si often came to help as well. Often, Xun would get back pain after a few swings of the hoe, while the little girl could work for hours with her father. Xun's buckets were only one-third full and he moved like a snail, while the little girl could carry two full buckets and still run fast, even mocking her future husband.

Sometimes Guan Hai would drive Xun away, "What scholar does these things?" Xun laughed and asked, "Do you know who scholars most admire?" "Confucius." "Anyone else?" "I don't know." Xun said, "We most admire the ancient sages, like Yu Shun who taught the people to farm, and Xia Yu who dug canals with a shovel... Who says scholars can't do farm work?"

Guan Hai glanced at him, "You're a strange person." Guan Si laughed, "If he weren't strange, why would I agree to be with him?"

Not long after Xun returned to his estate, a scholar from Qingzhou who had fled there brought a letter from Taishi Ci. This was a reply to the letter Xun had written to Taishi Ci after helping Cao Cao suppress the Yellow Turbans last year. According to the content, the letter only reached the Taishi family in the spring of this year, and Taishi Ci's reply date was "March 30th," which means he hadn't yet met the envoy Cao De sent to recruit him.

Xun couldn't help but laugh bitterly. The communication in this era was truly backward and slow to the point of being outrageous! When will I get pigeons from Yuan Shu?

In the letter, Taishi Ci said that the Yuan army had entered Donglai and Beihai. Kong Rong was still holding out, but Donglai's governor, Cai Feng, couldn't bear it anymore and planned to abandon his post to return to his hometown in Jingzhou to reunite with his children. According to Taishi Ci's understanding, Cai Feng had two daughters, one married to a scholar surnamed Huang in Nanshui, and the other to the governor of Jingzhou, Liu Biao. He also had a son serving under Liu Biao...

Damn Cai's wife and Cai Mao! Suddenly seeing several famous historical figures, Xun couldn't help but bang the table, regretting deeply. He thought, "Why didn't I know Cai Feng had such noble relatives? If I had known, I would have flattered him more in Donglai to leave a good impression. I don't want to curry favor with Liu Biao through Cai Feng, but anyone familiar with the Three Kingdoms knows that there are two places where talented people emerge: Chenliu, Yingchuan, and Jingxiang. If I could connect with the Jingxiang scholars through Cai Feng and his son Cai Mao, it would definitely be useful in the future."

When will Zhuge Liang follow his uncle to Jingxiang? Pang Tong is also in Jingxiang. If the scattered historical records are correct, the husband of Cai Feng's eldest daughter, surnamed Huang, should be Zhuge Liang's father-in-law, Huang Chengyan!

He sighed for a while and finally refocused on Taishi Ci's letter. Taishi Ci said that when Cai Feng fled, he also wanted to take him south, but he politely declined. However, a few days ago, Liu Yao, who had fled to Huai Pu, sent a letter saying that the court had appointed him as the governor of Yangzhou and hoped he could assist.

Taishi Ci explained that Liu Yao was a member of the Han royal family, originally from Muping County in Donglai. His ancestors had once served this family, so there was a bit of a lord-vassal relationship. Therefore, he was a bit moved and planned to join Liu Yao.

Xun thought, "Don't do it! I've been flapping my butterfly wings so hard, and you still want to join Liu Yao? If you really go, I can predict your future: first, you'll follow Liu Yao to Qu'a, not be heavily used, and fight Sun Ce alone at Shenting. Then, when Liu Yao is driven away, you'll join the Sun family. Why? Why do this?"

Fortunately, Taishi Ci had more to say. "Since I'm going south, and I've received your letter, I'll take a detour and go to Juan Cheng to meet you first—haven't seen you in a long time, I miss you."

Xun slapped the table, "Good, come on over. As long as you come to me first, I'll do my best to convince you to stay!"

In July of that year, Xi Zhicai finally passed away. Cao Cao was devastated and personally held the banner, and Xun, of course, went to mourn. He regretted a bit that the best "Elegy" poem by Tao Qian, which he had sold to Kong Rong in Yingling before. Selling it to Kong Rong wasn't a problem, but the person mourned was a playboy, Wang Sheng, Wang Ziling—what good deeds did this waste do in his past life to deserve a poem from Tao Yuanming... no, from this poet?

There was no choice but to use another "Elegy" by Tao Qian for mourning Xi Zhicai. He recited at the memorial, "Life has its end, and early death is not a shortened fate. Last night we were all alive, today we are in the ghost register. Where does the soul go? The body is left in the empty wood..."

Actually, Tao Qian's three "Elegies" were written for himself shortly before his death, so the next lines were "The child cries for his father, and the good friend mourns me." Of course, these couldn't be used, as Xi Zhicai had no children and wasn't "me." So he skipped four lines and continued, "After a thousand years, who will know honor and disgrace? I only regret that in life, we couldn't meet often enough."—the last line was originally "drinking couldn't be enough," but he changed "drinking" to "meeting."

Cao Cao, upon hearing this, mumbled the lines "Last night we were all alive, today we are in the ghost register" and "I only regret that in life, we couldn't meet often enough" several times, then shouted, "Alas, Zhicai, you have killed me!" and stumbled, almost fainting.

Cao Cao was genuinely heartbroken, while Xun's grief was partly feigned. After all, his relationship with Xi Zhicai wasn't that deep, and compared to Xi Zhicai's death, he was more excited about another big event—since Xi Zhicai was dead, it meant that Guo Fengxiao was about to come out of seclusion. Oh, Guo Jia is my idol, I wonder when I'll meet him.

After sending off Xi Zhicai, Xun packed his bags and planned to go south to Chengyang to serve as the county magistrate. These months had been quite relaxed, as he was still on "loan" and didn't have to report to Cao Cao every day. If there was important business, Cao Cao would inform him, and if there was no work, Cao Cao wouldn't bother him. He could read books, farm, or go to nearby courtyards to scold the alchemist Xie Zheng.

He thought, "I've given you all the materials, you just need to find the right ratio. Why is inventing gunpowder so difficult? It's been so long with no progress?" But he couldn't push Xie Zheng too hard. If he wanted to improve papermaking, he could find workers, but at least he knew where they were. According to historical records, Cao Cao would advance to Henan and control the two capitals within ten years, and he could capture some papermakers then. But inventing gunpowder was different. Guan Hai could find Xie Zheng, which was a stroke of luck. Other alchemists were either hidden by wealthy families to make elixirs or lived in remote mountains. If he drove Xie Zheng away or even killed him, where would he find a replacement?

So he had to endure and treat Xie Zheng with a mix of scolding and encouragement. Finally, the holiday ended, and he had to go back to work. Although he was reluctant, he had to pack up and head south. Guan Si wanted to go with him, but he refused, "You can come and go freely in my estate, but if you go to Chengyang with me, we aren't officially married yet. If you come and go in the county office, it will definitely cause gossip!"

Of course, his refusal to take Guan Si wasn't just because of this reason...