Chapter 2955: The Yellow Turban Saintess

It was taboo to demand someone’s aides, not to mention that Zu An’s aides were gorgeous ladies. Dong Zhuo’s demand was as good as publicly humiliating Zu An.

Liu Biao and the other commanders frowned. Yuan Shu gloated. Since I can’t get my hands on those two beauties, I’d rather he not have them as well.

Zu An coldly replied, “There are no such rules here. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are my sworn sisters, as well as my lovers. I cannot obey your orders.”

Dong Zhuo’s face darkened. “They are soldiers of the imperial court, not your private army. You don’t have any claim to them. I am the chief commander of this army. It is within my authority to allocate troops to different posts.”

Zu An knew that Dong Zhuo was getting back at him. It would be one thing if it was anything else, but there was no way he could let this matter pass. “They aren’t the imperial court’s soldiers. We are volunteer soldiers who have responded to the imperial court’s call to aid our nation in its fight against the Yellow Turban Army.

“What you’re doing here will only chill the hearts of our brave Eastern Han men and hinder the imperial court’s campaign in quelling the unrest. Even if you’re the chief commander, this is not something you can take responsibility for!”

Who doesn’t know how to drop accusations?

The Annihilation Progenitor was strong enough to quash Zu An with a mere thought; the fact that they didn’t do so suggested that something was holding them back from doing so. Since that was the case, there was no reason for Zu An to fear them.

The tension in the tent rose to a peak. It felt like a fight could break out.

Just then, the vice general of the Garrison Cavalry Division stepped forward and mediated between them. He affirmed General Dong Zhuo’s authority to allocate troops while emphasizing the importance of maintaining a united front in the face of the enemy. He suggested letting Guan Yu and Zhang Fei decide their own posts. If they wanted to follow Dong Zhuo, Liu Bei couldn’t hinder their paths.

It looked as if he was speaking up for Dong Zhuo, but everyone could tell that he was protecting Liu Bei.

Fu Wan was from an illustrious clan that had produced generations of high-ranking officials. Furthermore, they had a hereditary noble title. His wife was the previous emperor’s daughter, Princess Yang’an. Faction-wise, he was closer to Lu Zhi, so he was displeased with the imperial court’s abrupt decision to switch Lu Zhi out for Dong Zhuo. Clan-wise, he was an imperial relative, so he naturally sided with Liu Bei.

Following Fu Wan’s lead, Liu Biao voiced his opinion, and the other vice generals of the Northern Army gave their inputs as well. These were all high-ranking commanders stationed in the capital, whereas Dong Zhuo was a crude general from the borders. Naturally, they didn’t like how Dong Zhuo was putting them down as soon as he arrived.

Dong Zhuo’s aides were furious. They were about to speak when Dong Zhuo halted them by raising his hand. “I was testing Liu Bei’s temperament to see if there was any credibility behind his record. I can see now that he is someone with a backbone. Good!”

His aides used this chance to bootlick him.

The Northern Army’s commanders knew better than that, but at the same time, they were reluctant to have a complete fallout with Dong Zhuo, since the latter was their chief commander now. So, they chose to play along.

Dong Zhuo laughed heartily as he changed the topic. “Do you have any ideas on how we should deal with Zhang Jiao?”

...

Dong Zhuo delegated a task to each of the commanders.

Zu An was assigned the most exhausting and dangerous task—he had to stop Zhang Bao’s army at the front lines, so the others could focus on dealing with Zhang Jiao.

Everyone could tell that Dong Zhuo was making things hard for Liu Bei. Zhang Bao had a hundred thousand men under his command. Even though those peasant farmers lacked proper training, that was still more than enough to quell Liu Bei’s army of several thousand. No matter how skilled Liu Bei was, this was a battle he couldn’t win.

It was killing two birds with one stone. Dong Zhuo could deplete Liu Bei’s troops while accusing him of failing to guard his post. This was as good as a death sentence.

But nothing could be done about that. Dong Zhuo, as the chief commander, had the power to allocate troops to different posts. Zu An couldn’t turn down the role under the pretext that it was a suicide mission, just for someone else to take his place.

The other commanders also didn’t say a thing. They feared that Dong Zhuo would make them take Zu An’s place.

After leaving the tent, Zu An discreetly bowed to Fu Wan, Liu Biao, and the others and thanked them for speaking up for him earlier.

Fu Wan sighed. “We can’t do anything about your mission. You’re on your own for that. However, you can be assured that he can’t punish you for this matter. If he dares to start something, we’ll march into the imperial court and speak up on your behalf.”

Liu Biao didn’t say anything. He was the careful type who would tread carefully to avoid making unnecessary enemies. His speaking up for Zu An in the tent was already the limit of what he would do for someone.

In contrast, Fu Wan was too inflexible. It was unwise to directly oppose the chief commander.

Zu An smiled. “Thank you for your concern, General Fu. This mission might be tough, but there might still be a way out.”

It was a good thing that Heaven Plunderer concealed his relationship with Princess Ni Huang.

Fu Wan was momentarily surprised before guffawing. “A young hero indeed! I almost forgot that you have overcome the Yellow Turban Army several times despite being at a disadvantage. You might just be able to pull off a miracle once more!”

Zu An didn’t continue the conversation. He had more important things to do.He returned to his tent, gathered his troops, and headed to the frontlines to block the Yellow Turban Army. Along the way, he told Yun Jianyue and Tingxue about this matter.

Yun Jianyue was infuriated. “That Dong fellow is too much!”

Tingxue’s expression turned cold as killing intent seethed from her being.

“What I’m worried about is his identity.” Zu An told them about his suspicion that Dong Zhuo was a fragment of the Annihilation Progenitor.

The two ladies were shocked. Yun Jianyue spent a moment in thought before saying, “A universal deity shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to deal with you. He must be restrained by the rules of this world. Should we find a chance to get rid of him?”

Tingxue glanced at Yun Jianyue and noticed that the latter’s eyes were gleaming with excitement. As expected of the leader of the Devil Sect. She doesn’t hesitate to propose murdering a deity.

Zu An replied, “I was considering that, but there’s no need for us to take the risk, since we have that fellow now...”

After they set up camp at the frontlines, Zu An snuck into the Yellow Turban Army’s camp. Many powerful individuals had gathered on the battlefield, with some even stronger than him. He was likely the only one who could sneak into the enemy camp without anyone noticing.

Ni Huang was delighted to see Zu An. She grabbed his hand and said, “You came just in time. Follow me. I’ll bring you to see someone.”

“Who is it?” Zu An was surprised.

“It’s the person I told you about,” Ni Huang replied with a mysterious smile.

Zu An recalled how Ni Huang had told him that she had met a familiar face here. She’s taking this matter very seriously. Could it be Zhang Jiao?

Passionate voices suddenly echoed in unison, “Paying respect to the Saintess!”

—

Quick identity recaps:

Zu An: Liu Bei, Liu Xuande (Ruler of Shu Han, distant imperial relative)

Tingxue: Guan Yu (General of Shu Han, Liu Bei’s sworn brother)

Yun Jianyue: Zhang Fei (General of Shu Han, Liu Bei’s sworn brother)

Princess Ni Huang: Zhang Bao, Earth Duke General (One of the leaders of the Yellow Turban Army, which is also affiliated with the Taiping Sect)

Murong Qinghe: Wuhuan princess (Little princess of an ethnic nomadic tribe)

Annihilation Progenitor: Dong Zhuo (Powerful warlord of the Eastern Han who later took the emperor captive)