Chapter 143: Women (10k Debt Repayment)

Returning to the Cao family manor, sure enough the lanterns were hung high, and then the banquet resumed once more... Although Cao Mengde was a man of simple tastes, at this time the head of the Cao family was still Cao Song, so this was truly not something he could skimp on just because he wanted to.

And besides, Gongsun Xun would not be staying much longer anyway; once this matter was settled, there would be one more farewell banquet tomorrow, and he could probably leave early the morning after, so there was no concern about excessive feasting or anything of the sort.

"Wenqi, why have you come so late?" Cao Cao called out from far inside the hall, and the rest of the company also came out to greet him. "And what of Miaocai? Did he not go to find you? Why has he not come either?"

"Oh, with nothing else to do, I went up onto the siege walls to watch the sunset." Gongsun Xun answered composedly as he stepped into the hall, and then with a turn of his eyes he spotted an unfamiliar face, a man similarly short in stature like Cao Cao. "As for Miaocai, I asked him to help me settle a matter; he should be here shortly... Which one of you is Cao Zilian?"

"Cao Hong of Pei State pays his respects to the Young Master of the Gongsun!" The unfamiliar face, upon hearing this, immediately stepped forward and saluted with clasped hands, using a form of address that left those around momentarily at a loss.

Gongsun Xun felt a stir in his heart, and could not help stepping forward to grasp his hand and smile: "Zilian also knows of Anli?"

"That is only natural!" Cao Hong's voice was rough and forthright, and he answered directly. "In the past, although your family's Anli Trading Company was already one of the great merchant houses under heaven, it only circled around the Bohai region. But these last two years, it has faintly shown signs of spreading its wings toward both Bingzhou and Xuzhou... I do not know about other places, but the Mi family of Xuzhou and the great houses here in Yanzhou and Yuzhou are now utterly restless. It is said they also wish to imitate your family, no longer operating directly, but banding together to form a trading company to compete. They even approached me to join them!"

Gongsun Xun could not help but laugh in spite of himself: "How could it possibly frighten these people so? My family's Anli Trading Company was able to move into Bingzhou because of my own efforts in Yanmen and Dai Commandery, and also because a Gongsun in-law served a term as Grand Administrator of Shanggu, nothing more. As for Xuzhou, unless I can serve a term as a Regional Governor of Xuzhou, my family's business still cannot pass beyond Langya... And as for forming a trading company, I fear it is merely some ambitious great houses using the name of my family's Anli Trading Company to carry out their own expansion."

"That reasoning makes even more sense!" Cao Hong was startled into sudden realization. "Raising the banner of jointly resisting an outside foe to expand one's own business—this is actually an old trick, and I nearly fell into their trap!"

Gongsun Xun could not help but chuckle softly again.

"But it is not entirely so," Cao Hong suddenly lowered his head and continued. "Setting everything else aside, just looking at the example of your Anli Trading Company, in this day and age, if one wants to do business and make money, it seems one must pursue regularization, standardization, and scale, does it not? These terms all came from your Anli Trading Company... I will not hide it from the Young Master of the Gongsun, but I too have a faint sense that forming trading companies is the general trend of the times, is it not?"

"I understand." Gongsun Xun nodded repeatedly, helpless. "It is indeed the general trend."

"In truth, even if the great houses of Yanzhou and Yuzhou truly formed a large trading company, Brother Zilian would not gain much benefit." At that moment, before Cao Hong could continue, Lou Gui suddenly stepped forward and spoke. "When the time comes, the bulk of what you gain would be nothing more than the exclusive trading rights for the area of Qiaoxian, plus some scattered dividends. And as for the exclusive trading rights in Qiaoxian, do you not already possess them now?"

The conversation had just begun and already they were deep in discussion, but Cao Cao listened at the side, utterly baffled. He wanted to call for a halt, but after glancing around, he suddenly realized that only his own younger brother Cao De seemed as confused as he was; judging by the expressions of the others, they all understood perfectly well... This was extremely awkward!

"What Brother Zibo means," Cao Hong pondered briefly, then withdrew his hand and asked Lou Gui with a serious expression, "is that I should follow the trade routes of Anli Trading Company and become a downstream affiliate of Anli?"

"Why ever not?" Lou Gui spread his hands and countered. "Speaking purely as businessmen, what goods of great profit are there locally in Yanzhou and Yuzhou? Grain, cloth, and pottery are certainly staple commodities whose trade will never change in ten thousand generations, but once a trading company is formed, how much of the profit would fall to you, Cao Zilian? By contrast, with our Anli Trading Company—fine horses, eastern pearls, ginseng—which of these, when brought to the Central Plains, does not yield a ten-thousandfold profit on a single investment?"

"I naturally understand this reasoning," Cao Hong was also quite tempted. "It is just that there are two great difficulties with this matter. One is how your Anli Trading Company could extend its trade routes to our Qiaoxian. The other is, if I go against the local great houses in this way, would I not be failing my fellow countrymen, and would they not turn around and bite me?"

"Then bring them along to serve as Anli affiliates together." Lou Zibo's words flowed like lotus blossoms; it seemed this fellow, during his time in Liaoxi, had probably done more than just work as an accountant. "These years, the heroes of Hebei have given us face, allowing our Anli Trading Company to establish a large trading post and a large trade depot in Yecheng. Although it is only a single line, using this as a foundation to expand the trade routes is entirely feasible..."

"What is the specific proposal?" Cao Hong was momentarily moved.

"Zilian, think about it. Yecheng is already near the Great River. If you can also persuade the heroes and great houses of Chenliu and Liang State, and then both sides together make arrangements with the heroes along the Yellow River, would this trade route not be opened?" Lou Gui continued his enticement. "As for them turning to bite you... since you have already persuaded the heroes and great houses of these two places, with Chenliu, Liang State, and Pei State forming a contiguous bloc, who within Yanzhou could do anything to you?"

Cao Hong felt this made more and more sense!

In truth, it was not that Cao Hong was so easily persuaded by just a few words. After all, doing business in this era boiled down to just two problems: information and security.

From the perspective of information, most of the time, negotiating a trade route might only require a single face-to-face meeting. But conversely, undertaking a single journey in this era was absolutely no easy matter. Had the Young Master of the Anli Trading Company, Gongsun Xun, not made a special trip to Qiaoxian, Cao Zilian would never, ever have had the option of becoming an Anli affiliate.

Moreover, in this era, a man's word was worth a thousand in gold. Everyone was a person of standing; a single sentence sufficed, and there was no need to sign any contract.

As for the matter of security... even if the Cao family had temporarily lost influence in the central government, their past connections and networks of friendship remained intact. And since this was a mutually beneficial venture to make money together, how could the wandering knights and great houses of Chenliu and Liang State truly refuse to give the Cao family face? Even in the most extreme scenario, if someone truly dared to refuse, in this region of Yanzhou and Yuzhou, the clan power formed by the three families of Cao, Xiahou, and Ding banding together—whom had they ever feared?!

Did you not know of the one who killed a man at fifteen, the fiercely unyielding Xiahou Dun, peerless in his ferocity? Did you not know how many ministers and nobles at court often sigh and say, were it not for the Grand Prolonger of Autumn, how could I have my present standing?

If anyone truly lacked discernment, both the upright and the underworld paths would be arranged for you with perfect clarity!

Of course, this kind of topic was best left at that. If Cao Hong could truly make up his mind, he could naturally send someone to Yecheng to discuss the specifics. But for the present moment, it was better to drink and boast. Otherwise, Cao Mengde, who was already scratching his ears and cheeks in impatience, probably would not be able to bear it any longer.

The banquet resumed. This time, thanks to the fact that the knot in the hearts of host Cao Cao and guest Gongsun Xun had both been untied during the day, plus the newly arrived Cao Hong being a coarse and unlettered man, and the usually honest Xiahou Yuan being uncharacteristically late in returning, the feast was inevitably even more casual and lowbrow than the day before... In the course of conversation, the company went from discussing heroic figures to strange tales and unusual anecdotes, and finally actually began telling bawdy jokes!

Dirty jokes, of course, have been a staple of drinking feasts since ancient times. Fortunately, the two brats Cao Ren and Cao Chun were also absent, so there was no worry about corrupting the children.

However, after Cao Hong and the others led off by telling a few, everyone felt they were no good, and so they pressed the two cultured men, Gongsun Xun and Cao Cao, to tell some. Cao Mengde naturally did not decline the honor!

"Do any of you know of the Buddhists?" Cao Cao first asked with a serious expression.

"That is only natural." The crowd nodded one after another.

"In Xuzhou, around Pengcheng, the Buddhist faithful probably already number in the tens of thousands, and Pingyuan likely has a similar scale." Cao Hong even urged him on. "Elder Brother, if you have a story, tell it quickly."

"Then do you know that proper Buddhist monks must have their heads shaved?" Cao Cao asked again.

"That is indeed rarely seen." Cao De laughed from his seat lower down. "Nowadays, proper Buddhist monks either come from the Western Regions, stopping once they reach Luoyang or Mount Wutai, or they come from the Lion Kingdom across the sea, stopping once they reach Qingzhou and Xuzhou. We truly have no proper foreign monks here... However, the matter of head-shaving is known to all. Everyone under heaven knows their scalps are shaved smooth and round, paying no heed to the saying, 'The body, hair, and skin are received from one's parents.'"

"Precisely so." Cao Cao laughed smugly. "What I am about to tell today concerns an affair in Changancheng, in Jingzhao. You must know that Buddhism flourishes there, and many aristocratic families have embraced the faith, with no small number of foreign monks as well... One day, a certain family was marrying off a daughter in a joyous ceremony. Because the master of the house was a Buddhist devotee, he invited a proper foreign monk, bringing their great Buddha statue, to bestow blessings and serve as part of the dowry. And because this was the first time an aristocratic family had invited the foreign monk to perform such an important task, he could not help but prepare with utmost sincerity—bathing, perfuming himself with incense, and even having someone take a knife to carefully scrape his scalp clean. Then, on that day, he ordered servants to carry the great wooden Buddha and accompany the wedding procession to deliver the bride."

In this day and age, no one could possibly connect a monk with a dirty joke, so as Cao Cao spun this tale, the company truly perked up their ears. Even Gongsun Xun, reminded of a certain someone's old exploit of seizing another man's new bride, could not help but smirk along with them.

"But the auspicious date chosen for that day was ill-fated. The wedding procession had not gone more than a few steps when rain began to fall." Cao Cao pointed to the sky and laughed derisively. "The foreign monk, having perfumed his entire body and needing to strike a dignified pose to bestow blessings at the groom's house, did not wish to get his robes wet. However, the sky had darkened so suddenly, and they were halfway there, with no one having brought rain gear. So the monk thought of a strange solution... It turned out that the belly of the great wooden Buddha was hollow, partitioned by a hidden panel. He ordered his servant to secretly open the hidden panel and crawl into the Buddha's belly to shelter from the rain, instructing the servants to continue carrying the wooden Buddha as before, just like bearing a palanquin, and proceed with the wedding procession."

By this point, quite a few people were already laughing.

"However, matters of wind and rain are truly unpredictable. In but a few breaths, the rain grew heavier and heavier, pouring down like a cascade from a ladle." Cao Mengde continued to speak with unhurried amusement. "And so, when the party passed by a great shrine dedicated to a Dragon God, they took the opportunity to duck inside and shelter from the rain. Because there were many serving women, they settled the dowry goods and the women under the eaves of the rear hall of the shrine, while the menfolk gathered in the front courtyard to escape the rain..."

"If that is so, then was not the foreign monk left all alone, plunged into a nest of powdered beauties?" Cao Hong could not help but laugh lecherously.

"Let me finish!" Cao Cao could not help but slap the table in rebuke. "Now, the serving women were mostly of mature years, and because it was a wedding occasion, they could not help but jest and banter. One after another, they pointed at the rain and said: 'This rain is so heavy, could it be that the Dragon God here is pissing?'"

Several people, recalling how that fellow had pissed into the well today, also burst into laughter.

"And just at that moment, the foreign monk inside the Buddha's belly first felt the statue being set down, and then heard the chattering outside. But as the language was unintelligible, he did not know what was being said, and assumed they had arrived at their destination." At this point, Cao Mengde's face was animated with mirth as he struggled to hold back his laughter. "So he opened the hidden panel on the Buddha's belly and poked his head out to look around... The women, seeing this sight, all panicked and cried out in alarm: 'We never imagined that before the Dragon God had finished pissing, the Buddha also wanted to take a piss!'"

Having finished the story, Cao Mengde could no longer contain himself and was the first to slap the table and roar with laughter. The rest of those seated, however, each looked bewildered, none of them understanding where the joke was supposed to be.

It was Lou Zibo, widely experienced and knowledgeable, who, after blankly raising his wine cup and drinking half a mouthful, suddenly grasped the meaning and directly sprayed the wine from his mouth!

At this, the rest of the company also jolted as if shocked. Sooner or later, each of them understood, and then they laughed uncontrollably, throwing the entire hall into complete disarray!

"Pah! All day long, your minds are full of such frivolous nonsense!" Outside, beneath the corridor, Lady Ding, who had arrived with two others and had been listening earnestly in confusion, also suddenly grasped the meaning. She could not help but blush and curse under her breath. "Have you no shame!"

At these words, Xiahou Yuan, who was standing beside her as Lady Ding's brother-in-law, was even more unbearably embarrassed. His face bright red and his head lowered, he darted away from his elder sister-in-law's side as if flying and fled into the hall.

However, seeing that the people inside the hall had finally managed to recover their composure, Lady Ding, who had come on business, found it awkward to enter just then. She could only continue waiting outside, anxiously hoping that the atmosphere inside would not remain so vulgar.

But inside the hall, after the group of men had finished listening to Cao Cao's joke, they all declared that the jokes of a scholar were indeed the finest, yet they stubbornly refused to let Gongsun Xun off, insisting that he too must tell one of equal caliber... Gongsun Xun tried to decline but could not, and so, half-reluctantly, half-willingly, he acquiesced to their demand.

"My joke is rather short." Gongsun Xun glanced at Xiahou Yuan, who had just taken his seat moments ago, knowing that the other had heard Cao Cao's earlier story from outside the door, and then could not help but recall a story himself. "It concerns a certain household where the husband was often away from home. The wife, unable to bear the loneliness, began an illicit affair with a neighbor."

The company held their breath to listen, while outside the door, Lady Ding wished to leave but had matters weighing on her mind, so in the end she remained standing beneath the corridor outside the door with one other person, inclining her ear to eavesdrop.

"However, the neighbor man was troubled by the uncertainty of the husband's return dates and had his misgivings." Gongsun Xun continued to speak in a perfectly proper tone and with a solemn expression. "The woman then said: 'In that case, let us bore a hole in the wall between our two houses. At night, you may extend your member through it. If he is not here, I will naturally find a way to signal you.'"

"Your joke is no good!" Cao Cao immediately interjected. "It defies common sense. Even a joke must follow rules to be funny... Since they agreed on a secret signal, why would they need to use such a thing?"

Gongsun Xun paid him no heed whatsoever and simply continued on his own: "One day, the woman's husband suddenly returned from abroad and sat by the wall telling his wife a joke he had heard in his travels. Suddenly, he saw a certain member emerge through the hole in the wall and immediately pointed at it, demanding an explanation. The woman stammered and could not answer. Only after a long while did she finally respond: 'Perhaps it has also come to hear the joke!'"

The company was momentarily stunned, then burst into uproarious laughter, and finally began cursing and laughing in equal measure. Cao Cao, seated nearby, even flung a piece of flatbread, which landed in the soup basin before Gongsun Xun, splashing the latter into a sorry state!

Outside the room, Lady Ding, hearing Gongsun Xun, Cao Cao, and this group of young men barely past their coming-of-age indulging in such unrestrained debauchery, laughing, jeering, and cursing, truly did not know what to say. Turning her head to look at the person behind her, she felt even more embarrassed.

After much deliberation, she actually pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to the other: "Since it has come to this, little sister, do not stand rooted here. Go in and wipe down the guests inside... and perhaps make them behave a little."

The person behind was naturally Bian Yu. Though her face was also flushed bright red, she still dared not disobey the other party, so she gave a slight bow, then took the handkerchief and went inside.

As expected, the room instantly fell dead silent.

Bian Yu, her face completely red, stepped forward and knelt in salute toward the seat of honor: "Lady Ding sent this servant to wipe away the soup for the honored guest."

As she spoke, she directly came forward, knelt sitting beside Gongsun Xun, and then prepared to wipe the soup stains from his face.

Now, Gongsun Xun was already terribly embarrassed, and seeing this person approach now made him even more alarmed... Something about this seemed off no matter how you looked at it, right? Why would Lady Ding send this person to perform such an intimate act of service for him?

And at this moment, that lustful fiend Cao Mengde was also staring over with a face full of shock, clearly just as baffled, unable to process it for a moment.

Gongsun Xun, caught under Cao Cao's gaze and thinking that the person before him was the future lawful wife of the man beside him, felt rather like he was taking advantage of someone else's wife. In his daze, Bian Yu had already come forward, knelt beside him, and begun wiping his face, so he hurriedly raised his cup and propped up his arm to block Cao Cao's line of sight.

However, as he swallowed half a mouthful of wine and turned his head to glance at Bian Yu's flushed face, he suddenly realized — so when he had told that joke about "listening to jokes," Lady Ding and this lady had both been "listening to jokes" just on the other side of the wall!

Unable to control himself, Gongsun Xun actually followed Lou Zibo's example and sprayed out half a mouthful of wine!

Now the situation grew even worse! Lou Zibo, after all, had sprayed into the air, but he had sprayed right onto a beauty! How could the two be the same?

As expected, Bian Yu looked utterly aggrieved, her cheeks growing even redder, yet she dared not first attend to the wine droplets on her own face, only continuing to kneel and wipe the soup stains from the person before her.

But on the other side, that lustful fiend Cao Mengde had already risen in indignation: "Wenqi, if you've turned yourself into a drowned chicken, fine — but why must you also torment a beauty and turn her into a drowned chicken too?!"

Hearing Cao Cao speak up in righteous defense of Bian Yu, Gongsun Xun's sense of stealing another man's wife right before his eyes grew even more intense! And under the influence of this somewhat strange feeling, he hurriedly apologized to the beauty beside him: "Miss Bian, do not be angry. I am indeed a drowned chicken, but for you, Miss, it is like red jade adorned with pearls, like morning blossoms catching dew..."

Hearing this, the flush on Bian Yu's face extended all the way down to her neck: "I dare not accept such lavish praise from the honored guest. That the honored guest should show me such favor already moves me to the depths of my heart."

These words sounded even more amiss. So, before Gongsun Xun could react, Cao Mengde, who had long coveted this woman, had already leaned forward, slapped the table, and lodged his accusation: "Wenqi, I took you for a bosom friend, which is why I spoke so frankly with you today in the Guo River! And what do you do? Yesterday, when I hadn't yet spoken to you, you showed no interest in her. Today, the moment I spoke frankly, you instead went and made moves behind my back! Come, tell me — what is this 'red jade adorned with pearls, morning blossoms catching dew,' and what manner of 'favor' is this?"

The crowd below was momentarily dumbfounded, but Gongsun Xun had by now sorted out his thoughts, so he simply pointed toward the main door in front of everyone.

Cao Cao, clever as he was, was suddenly jolted, and then immediately understood — of course! The moment Bian Yu entered, she stated plainly that she had come on her mistress's orders to "serve" Gongsun Xun!

At this thought, even a scoundrel like Cao Mengde, always so lecherous and lustful, felt as if a basin of ice water had been poured over his heart. He instantly calmed down, then slumped back down behind his table.

By now, Lady Ding no longer hid herself. She straightened her sleeves and strode in with dignity: "Husband, this Bian Yu is already nineteen and still unmarried. Seeing that our esteemed guest has come to stay with us yet has no one to attend him, I took it upon myself to purchase her, intending to present her to the honored guest, so that she might look after him a little... lest we fail in courtesy. What does my husband think?"

Cao Cao was dumbstruck, his eyes not even narrowing, yet in the end he could not bring himself to utter the word "good."

"Husband." Lady Ding sighed at the sight and took another step forward. "I am but a woman and should not meddle in the social affairs of you men. But from yesterday to today, I have vaguely perceived that our household seems to owe the honored guest something... That being so, we ought to show some token of regard."

Cao Cao stammered, at a loss for words.

"Husband!" Lady Ding showed a look of incomprehension and could only helplessly take yet another step forward. "I know this woman has uncommon beauty, but I have already sent her to attend upon the honored guest. Do you intend to take her back? If so, where would you place my face and the honored guest's face? Or does my husband think I am a jealous woman, deliberately doing this?!"

"Absolutely not!" Cao Cao hurriedly waved his hands.

"What is sister-in-law saying?" Beside them, Cao De also hurriedly rose to apologize on his elder brother's behalf. "This elder brother of mine has always been lecherous. In the past, he would take every woman he saw as a concubine... If even so one were to say sister-in-law is jealous, then I, as his younger brother, could only advise sister-in-law to seek an amicable divorce as soon as possible, to spare herself such suffering!"

Not only that, even Xiahou Yuan stepped forward to apologize to Cao Cao: "This matter actually originated with me... Just now, on the way back from welcoming Gentleman Gongsun, I happened upon this Miss Bian's young brother being bullied. The Gentleman spoke a few words of counsel, then brought her young brother back and entrusted him to me to settle. Unable to handle it, I had no choice but to go seek my sister-in-law. Only then did my sister-in-law summon Miss Bian to inquire, and after obtaining her nod, she took charge and sent someone to find Miss Bian's adoptive father to purchase her. I truly had no idea that my elder brother harbored such thoughts..."

"I..." Cao Cao was even more at a loss for words.

"Elder brother!" At this, even Cao Hong could not bear to watch any longer and slammed his wine cup onto the table. "She is merely a serving concubine! Should the host demand back a gift already given to a guest?! If you truly lack women, once the Anli Trading Company's trade route is established, I will pay out of my own pocket and buy you a hundred Xianbei women from the Anli Company to serve you!"

Cao Cao flew into a great rage: "I shall hold you to those hundred Xianbei women!"

Still, after this rebuke, Cao Mengde ultimately sat back down and swept his gaze across the hall... But seeing every one of his own people looking aggrieved and uncomprehending, while Lou Zibo on the other side eyed him coldly, and Han Yigong's face was even filled with indignation, as if he felt Cao Cao had insulted Gongsun Xun... This being the case, even Cao Aman, who had always been "true to his nature" when it came to women, could not help but feel his heart turn cold!

"In that case..." Cao Cao, helpless, waved repeatedly at the crowd in the hall and could only turn his head and ask in person. "What does Wenqi think?"

Gongsun Xun, who had remained silent all along, heard these words and slowly raised his cup as he answered: "Does Brother Mengde realize that while you have been pressing this matter relentlessly, the beauty beside me has been trembling in silence the entire time? I, Gongsun Xun, though I have no craving for feminine charms, still possess ordinary human feelings and a heart that pities the flowers. She is a woman from a musician household, orphaned since youth. Now that she has already come to my side, how could I let her be tossed back and forth and held in contempt?"

Beside him, Bian Yu immediately let out a sigh of relief.

And Cao Cao was thoroughly deflated: "In that case, let it be as you wish!"

Now, if at the very beginning Gongsun Xun had still felt some guilt, as if caught in the act of stealing another's wife, as Cao Cao's people one by one spoke up and turned on Cao Mengde, Gongsun Xun suddenly saw the light... Of course! At this time, this Bian Yu was ultimately not the lawful wife who would bear Cao Cao an heir, but a wandering songstress, her status even lower than an ordinary serving concubine. And Cao Mengde's lawful wife was Lady Ding!

Now that Xiahou Yuan had misunderstood and prompted Lady Ding to give this woman to him, he was perfectly in the right! Couldn't everyone see that Cao Mengde's behavior was the most unreasonable here?

Besides, since he had already set out to shatter the doctrine of Heavenly Mandate, and his ambitions were growing by the day, then when such a beauty took the initiative to nestle close, how could he not take her?! Or rather, if he could not even take a single woman, how could he take anything else?

However, with the banquet having descended into such chaos, it probably could not continue. And it would not be proper for him to delay his departure any longer — he might as well take his leave and go tomorrow!

Of course, with matters having come to this, that very evening, Bian Yu could not avoid personally attending to him, and Gongsun Xun naturally turned this Miss Bian into Lady Bian of the Gongsun clan.

Truly: Plump and delectable, just past nineteen,

Red blossoms at their peak in early seventh moon.

Spring breezes for ten li along the Yanzhou road,

Pearls, jade, morning dew — none can compare.

Strangely enough, Gongsun Xun did not feel the heat at all that night?!

And the next day, Gongsun Xun, as he had resolved the day before, openly and honorably took his leave of Cao Mengde and departed. By now, Cao Mengde was considerably more rational. He did not even glance at the Bian siblings inside the carriage, but instead clasped the hand of the man before him, reluctant to part for a long while... After all, this time, who knew when they would meet again? And a songstress he had only seen twice was truly not worth creating a rift over.

"Brother Mengde, remember our words in the pool." For a moment, Gongsun Xun was also deeply moved and could only clasp arms with him in farewell. "A golden-scaled dragon is no creature of the well — once it meets the wind and clouds, it transforms into a dragon!"

Cao Mengde, stirred with emotion, could only reply with a smile: "Wenqi goes one step ahead. I shall of course be diligent and self-disciplined, and in days to come, I will surely set out later but arrive first!"

"Let us hope so!" Gongsun Xun said no more. He took the farewell wine cup that Cao Ren beside them presented, drained it together with him, and then, wine-cup in hand, spurred his horse and rode off.

And so, Gongsun Xun, Han Dang, and Lou Gui rode at the front on horseback; Lady Bian and her ten-year-old younger brother, along with several maidservants gifted by Lady Ding, rode in a few carriages in the middle; and several attendants brought up the rear... As for those Bian-family musicians, Gongsun Xun had long since given them some valuables and mentioned the name of the Anli Trading Company — whether they came or not was no longer his concern... In short, in the seventh month's waning heat, as the weather gradually cooled, Gongsun Xun's party, having bid farewell to Cao Cao, headed straight for Hebei.

However, as the party slowly traveled north along the original route, not long after reaching Liang State, they encountered a troop of strikingly familiar white-horsed riders coming head-on.

"Young Lord!" The leader, spotting Gongsun Xun on the official road, immediately tumbled from his saddle, prostrated himself by the roadside, and presented a letter. "Clerk Lu said there is news of great importance and sent us to find you, Young Lord!"

Gongsun Xun's expression immediately turned solemn... He didn't even need to think — for Lu Fan to be so anxious and serious, something major must have gone wrong during the hostage exchange at Wei Commandery!

As expected, the moment he tore open the envelope on horseback and hastily scanned it, he saw written at the top the matter of the Wei Commandery exchange. And as he read further down, Gongsun Xun's face simply turned pale.

"Young Lord, what has happened in Wei Commandery?" Lou Gui, seeing this from the side, could not help but ask anxiously.

Gongsun Xun said nothing, merely handing over the letter in his hand. Unexpectedly, Lou Zibo, after a rough glance at the letter, only wore a strange expression.

"What is it?" Han Dang, not very literate and finding it hard to read the letter, directly asked. "Has something happened in Wei Commandery?"

"Indeed." Lou Gui frowned and replied. "But it's not really anything major, is it? Perhaps it's even a happy event?"

As he said this, the fellow even turned his head to glance back at the carriage behind them.

"What do you mean by that?" Han Dang stole a glance at Gongsun Xun, whose expression was still shifting between dark and uncertain, and couldn't help lowering his voice to ask.

"Cao Hanfeng, when he sent someone to exchange the hostages, only took back his adopted son and adopted daughter, but left his own younger brother and granddaughter behind." Lou Gui put away the letter and answered slowly. "He said to let our Young Lord discipline the two of them on his behalf... and added something like 'as long as they don't die, it's fine.'"

Han Dang was momentarily bewildered.

"Then, after our young madam saw Fan Shaojun and Lu Ziheng bring the person back, she went directly to the Cao family household in Wei Commandery and presented betrothal gifts, taking that Feng woman as a minor wife for the young lord." At this point, Lou Gui also fell into a pensive silence. "But then, this was probably Cao Hanfeng's original intention, wasn't it?"

Han Dang immediately nodded... That Cao Poshi aside, the so-called discipline was likely meant as genuine discipline, but leaving such a delicate young girl who had just turned fifteen with one's own lord, a young man, for "discipline" — if that wasn't the meaning, what else could it be?

But what bearing did this matter have? Could it be that being linked by marriage to powerful eunuchs invited contempt, and that was why their lord was so grim? Yet this affair was also quite private, wasn't it? No outsider had known of it from start to finish... In short, Han Dang, a mere military man, could not think it through in the moment.

"Young lord." Lou Gui simply asked outright. "Are you perhaps worried that Cao Hanfeng's side will publicize this widely?"

"No." Gongsun Xun shook his head repeatedly. "Cao Hanfeng is a serving eunuch favorite, while I am a mere thousand-bushel county magistrate. If this matter were spread abroad, the blow to him would likely be greater. I am merely..."

"Merely what?" Lou Gui asked curiously. "That is why I said this matter might actually be a good thing, is it not? Why then is the young lord's face pale instead?"

"I..." Gongsun Xun started to speak, then hesitated, but suddenly said, "Zibo, Yigong."

"Yes." Han Dang and Lou Gui hastily responded.

"Tell me, if a person has a... beloved dog that they keep by their side all day, every day, and it goes missing for a month and then returns — would they not recognize it?"

"Others might not recognize it, but how could the owner himself not recognize it?" Lou Gui immediately spread his hands and countered.

"Exactly the principle." Han Dang also laughed. "Back when I was a cavalryman in the army and had my first horse, I didn't need to keep it by my side all day — I knew every single hair on that horse clearly. Let alone missing for a month, I'd likely recognize it even after half a year... Not to mention back then, even now, the white horses beneath us — to others they all look alike, but can we ourselves not tell them apart?"

Gongsun Xun looked at the white horse beneath him, then turned his head to glance at the carriage behind, and felt wave after wave of numbness creep across his scalp!

"What exactly is the young lord thinking?" Lou Zibo grew even more curious. "This matter is already settled, and most likely harmless. Just simply accept it as taking a minor wife!"

Gongsun Xun glanced at these trusted confidants of his, but ultimately did not dare to speak the thoughts in his heart... What was he thinking? What else could he be thinking but of women? Only, the woman who had him restless and uneasy was not that Feng Zhi, nor was it Bian Yu behind him, but his own principal wife, Zhao Yun!

This woman already had a somewhat petulant nature. Before, merely sending a cat had thrown his household into disarray... Later, when the cat returned, she clearly knew the full story yet never once mentioned the reason behind that cat. Why? It was nothing more than that during those half a year he spent in Luoyang constantly stirring up trouble, he had no time for intimate marital closeness and had somewhat neglected her. And after losing the cat, he felt himself in the wrong and couldn't help being extra cautious, which made the couple far more harmonious — she simply didn't want to spoil that atmosphere.

To put it plainly, what a woman naturally seeks is exclusive favor! His own mother, when idle and chatting, had told no small number of tales about harem rivalries for favor. He hadn't caught on then, but how could he possibly not understand now?!

That being the case, now that Zhao Yun had seemingly been magnanimous in taking the Feng woman as a minor wife for him, appearing untroubled on the surface, who the hell knew whether she was secretly bristling inside?

In fact, there was no need to guess at all — Lu Ziheng's sending of the letter was itself probably hinting at this very matter... This time, his wife, Lady Liu, was also accompanying Zhao Yun and was surely perfectly clear about it. Add to that the prior lesson of the lost cat, and that was why he had solemnly dispatched someone to bring word and explain to him!

At this thought, Gongsun Xun couldn't help feeling even more cowardly... One minor wife had already thrown Lu Ziheng into a panic, sending word to him — and now he was bringing yet another?

This was his principal wife! And moreover, the sole granddaughter of that old matriarch whom even his own mother couldn't help but defer to, and the only daughter of the Liaoxi Grand Administrator besides. If the household truly fell into turmoil and she kicked up a fuss, why did it feel like he would be the one to suffer? Especially on this trip to Liaodong — if, when the main party passed through Liaoxi, this woman met her natal family and did nothing else but shed tears of genuine grievance and heartbreak, he'd probably be in for it, wouldn't he?

To put it plainly, a principal wife is a lifelong equal partner, and too much is bound up in that — how could anyone else compare?

Yet at this thought, Gongsun Xun, still on horseback, found himself dazedly recalling that Lady Ding, Cao Cao's wife, and turned his head to look at the carriage behind him... That night, had she truly merely misunderstood because of her brother-in-law Xiahou Yuan's words? Could it not have been deliberate?

But what could someone as freely romantic and unrestrained as Cao Mengde do about it?

He and Cao Aman, each saddled with such a principal wife — one of immense clan power and forceful temperament — truly were fellow sufferers at the ends of the earth!

It seemed Yuan Shao's wife was no easy candle either...

Liu Biao later on as well...

The higher their birth, the more formidable their wives — was this truly mere coincidence?

"What exactly is the young lord thinking?" Just then, Han Dang could not help but call out. "The letter has been received, the road stretches long — we must make haste and travel, must we not?"

"Oh!" Gongsun Xun suddenly came to his senses, but immediately assumed a thoughtful expression. "I've also just recalled someone... That Wang Xiu, Wang Shuzhi, whom we met that day — do you still remember him? Why don't we go to Beihai to see him, and then take the sea route from Qingzhou to Liaodong?"

"Does the young lord not doubt his virtue?" Lou Gui immediately frowned.

"It's not that I doubt it, only that I have some misgivings." Gongsun Xun spoke seriously. "That day, I merely thought to have Jia Chao verify things over in Nanyang later. Now that I think on it, I'd rather go directly to his hometown and see for myself... If he truly is such a gentleman of moral integrity, one who endures hardship and toil without regard for fame or profit, then he might well be someone who can be entrusted with responsibilities in the rear!"

Lou Gui gently stroked his beard and nodded.

"Then... what of Lady Bian?" Han Dang could not help but ask. "Is she to turn with us toward Beihai as well? If we suddenly change course, the road is long, and the carriage will inevitably be far too slow."

And hearing these words, even Lady Bian herself, flustered, leaned out from within the carriage.

"You men." Gongsun Xun pointed to the several guards who had delivered the letter. "On this journey, you will have to endure some hardship!"

The men hastily cupped their fists in salute.

"Leave one man to go back and report to Ziheng. The rest of you, help escort my newly acquired family dependents to Liaoxi to find my mother." Gongsun Xun gave earnest instructions. "Do not rendezvous with the main party of A-Fan and Ziheng. Go directly by the eastern route, avoiding my wife... I will write a letter in my own hand. You must deliver both the person and the letter personally into my mother's presence."

Those several guards hastily cupped their fists in acknowledgment. And while Han Dang thought nothing of it, Lou Zibo, upon hearing the words "avoiding my wife," suddenly understood completely, and could not help but laugh aloud on horseback.

Gongsun Xun shot the latter a fierce glare, then hurriedly dismounted to comfort his beloved concubine behind him, and to write a letter seeking help from his own mother... In truth, the only one he could count on at this moment was that mother of his. He could only hope that she wasn't just someone who spent all day boasting about those so-called tactics of hers!

—————— I am the dividing line of fearing the wife yet still wanting to have them all ——————

"Empress Zhao was by nature benevolent, filial, frugal, and unadorned, gentle, warm, and magnanimous. She loved to read and often calmly discussed ancient matters with the Grand Ancestor, thereby offering counsel and alternatives, bringing great benefit. Moreover, their bond began in the princely residence; Emperor and Empress were close and harmonious, never estranged. The Grand Ancestor also once praised her, saying: 'In anger, her countenance does not change; in joy, she does not lose decorum — this is what makes A-Yun most rare.' Yun was the personal name of Empress Zhao. Such was their flawless accord!" — Old Book of Yan, Annals of the Empress

PS: I've noticed that Friday is actually the most relaxing day, Saturday is instead the busiest, and only on Sunday do I have some time... and it's always been this way... In any case, no more debts, mind at ease.

Also, new book group 684558115, everyone please join.

(End of Chapter)