[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-overthrowing-han":3,"chapter-overthrowing-han-overthrowing-han-chapter-260":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Overthrowing Han",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1223019,1620,"Chapter 260: A Cool, Fine Autumn Day","overthrowing-han-chapter-260",260,"\u003Cp>A roaring tiger is a fierce, bellowing tiger!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Bu of Jiuyuan had been recommended by Liu Yan as a Protector Army Major as early as when Lu Zhi led troops out of Luoyang, but Lu Zhi, because this man came from a Jizhou Attendant background, regarded him as a civil official and rarely let him go into battle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, within the army, those with backgrounds and origins far outnumbered him, so his reputation had always been obscure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who could have expected that in today's battle, this man would truly be like a fierce tiger emerging from the mountains, his roar intimidating all of Hebei and shaking ten thousand troops. Relying on his outstanding performance, the Han army launched a massive pursuit and actually won a complete victory beneath Guangzong's walls. Not only were the earthen hills and siege ramparts before the city retaken, but Zhang Liang fled in panic around the city, and Zhang Jiao also hastily retreated with support... likely fearing that the other side might loose an arrow at him from afar atop the earthen hills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, while this great victory certainly boosted the Han army's morale somewhat, it was hardly enough to be a decisive blow against the Yellow Turban army of a hundred thousand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ultimately, Dong Zhuo's strategic blunder had given the Yellow Turban army a rare chance to catch their breath. The city walls were repaired, and the wounded and troops were reorganized. Therefore, after the attempt to expand the gains failed the next day, faced with Zhang Jiao inside the city and Zhang Liang outside, relying on each other with deep trenches, high ramparts, and a strict, desperate defense, the Han army could only return to the arduous stalemate of siege warfare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The valor of a single general might determine the life or death of a thousand troops or the victory or defeat of ten thousand, but when faced with a major campaign involving over a hundred thousand men, it falls short.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One must understand that even someone like Zhang He, who forced the enemy commander to retreat in field battle, still needed ten thousand cavalry to arrive in time to deliver the decisive blow in the field... not to mention that Zhang Jiao was a cautious man, who from beginning to end led his elite troops to guard the city carefully, without any flaw, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, as time dragged on, other rumors circulated in the army, suggesting that perhaps Commander Dong Zhongying had his own selfish motives. After all, his strategic blunder this time was severe, and it was feared that a replacement had already been chosen in Luoyang. So, having saved face, he was no longer willing to toil in battle only to make a wedding dress for someone else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, though both were sieges, the situation at Xiaquyang seemed... well, seemed much more relaxed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over a period of about twenty days, the Han army, under no pressure of victory or defeat, carried out the siege while also sequentially conducting sacrifices, erecting steles, rewarding merit, and weeding out the weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By the time August arrived, the Han army even sent men to harvest the unspoiled millet in the surrounding area and distributed the new grain as extra rations to the frontline siege troops.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And it was amidst the aroma of millet porridge that the earthen hills around Xiaquyang gradually took shape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Earthen hills were an old method of siege warfare, time-consuming and laborious, but remarkably effective in practical application.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In fact, once the earthen hills were built, faced with the Han army's systematic suppressive strikes from atop them, the Yellow Turban army in Xiaquyang City indeed appeared even more on the verge of collapse, and many minor Yellow Turban commanders from powerful family backgrounds began to waver.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some tried to flee from the south where the road was left open, only to be calmly pursued and killed by Han cavalry; some tried to arrange a surrender date, but the Han army ignored them entirely; others directly defected at night by lowering ropes from the city walls, only to end up sold to Liaodong to reclaim wasteland.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, according to the unified accounts of these men, the city was indeed in a sorry state—the most direct sign being that Zhang Bao had lost his fighting spirit since the battle that day, drowning himself in drink all day and ignoring military affairs. Now, all matters in the city, great and small, were handed over to his trusted retainers, who were ignorant of general affairs and acted quite unjustly. Thus, the morale of the Yellow Turban army in the city had now plummeted to rock bottom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In mid-August, in the afternoon, on the south bank of the Hutuo River, at a ball field built next to the main army camp, the troops were watching a cuju match.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It should be said that after using the conferral of rewards to reduce the troop size, since the Han army was largely organized by place of origin, Gongsun Xun simply organized the commanderies into battalions and rotated them for combat duties. The advantages and disadvantages of this were obvious, but as a temporary arrangement, it posed no major problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And now, the two teams competing on the field were precisely the Hejian Battalion, which had greatly distinguished itself that day, and the Yuyang Battalion, which was much favored by Gongsun Xun. This match was not the usual 'friendly match' gambled on to avoid digging earthen hills, but a formal 'Victory Celebration Cup' tournament personally organized by Gongsun Xun. The tournament had long entered the knockout stage, and the winner today would compete for the championship the day after tomorrow against the Bingzhou Battalion, which had introduced cuju into the army.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, the entire army swarmed over to watch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No good!\" Wei Yue looked down from a high vantage point, putting on airs. \"Both these teams are mediocre. No matter who wins or loses, they definitely won't be a match for Cheng Lian and his men the day after tomorrow... Isn't that right, Master Ziheng?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beside him, Lu Fan turned his head and glanced at the other man, smiling slightly, but said nothing more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Yue continued smugly, \"In my opinion, unless the General lets Brother Yigong send out brothers from the White Horse Volunteers to compete, there's simply no one in the army who can compare to the Bingzhou Battalion. That kid Cheng Lian has a few tricks in cuju... Though, the White Horse Volunteers are mostly old brothers from Bingzhou anyway, so it would probably still be an internal battle among the old Yanmen brothers.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan smiled again, and finally spoke: \"Zidu, you're overthinking it. The General already intends to use this cuju tournament to select warriors from each battalion to expand the White Horse Volunteers. How could he then let the Volunteers form a team to compete?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That's exactly what I mean!\" Wei Yue quickly seized the opportunity to say. \"Master Ziheng, there are rumors in the army that once Zhang Bao is defeated, the grand army will take the opportunity to disband, and everyone will be rewarded according to their merits... When that time comes, most of these people will be transferred to serve as officials elsewhere. Only we few and the White Horse Volunteers will follow our Lord Marquis. That being the case, what use is there in keeping so many outsiders in the Volunteers? And Master Ziheng, don't you think this would lead to too many Jizhou men in the Volunteers? In my view, the old soldiers from Bingzhou and the local fellows from Youzhou are already sufficient!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In your view?\" Lu Fan couldn't help but laugh. \"You, Wei Zidu, have indeed made some progress.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Yue was momentarily embarrassed, but fortunately, the Yuyang Battalion scored a go-ahead goal on the field, drawing a burst of cheers, which allowed him to use the moment to think briefly before laying everything out:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"To be honest with you, Master Ziheng, it's because after word spread that our Lord Marquis intends to expand the White Horse Volunteers, many Bingzhou locals are eager to try, but seeing so many heroes from Hebei in the army, they sought me out to find out what's really going on...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then I won't hide it from you either,\" Lu Fan said frankly. \"This recruitment to expand the Volunteers will indeed select more men of Jizhou origin. Just keep that in mind and don't go spreading it around when you return.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This...\" Wei Yue hesitated for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You're an old hand who's followed our Lord Marquis since the days of Pingcheng in Yanmen. Don't you know my temperament by now?\" Lu Fan said dismissively. \"If you have something to say, just say it. Why hem and haw?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's not that I doubt the decisions of our Lord Marquis and you gentlemen. Since you've decided on this, there must be your own considerations. It's just, Master Ziheng,\" Wei Yue suddenly lowered his voice, \"my only worry is that as more Jizhou men gather around our Lord Marquis, won't that make Inspector Shen Zhengnan, Shen Zheng, gain even more favor? That man is already overbearing, and what's worse, he has the ability to make people submit to him. If he then has so many local fellows assisting him, wouldn't that affect you, Master Ziheng?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan studied Wei Yue with keen interest, then couldn't help but sneer: \"Wei Zidu, let me be blunt. If I were to deliberately suppress Shen Zhengnan in such matters, that would be giving him the chance to replace me. As for the current situation, let Inspector Shen first surpass Inspector Guan before coming to trouble me! And you, Wei Zidu, instead of spending your days being petitioned by locals, you'd do better to learn from Inspector Gao and Inspector Cheng. Those are the kind of troop commanders worthy of being claws and teeth!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, Lu Ziheng stood up with his hands behind his back and strode away proudly, leaving Wei Yue alone to be disheveled for a moment in the north wind blowing from the Hutuo River.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, on the cuju field below, the Hejian team seized the moment of this north wind to suddenly launch an attack and actually overtook the score again, drawing a unified roar from the entire army, whether in cheers or curses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Yue was helpless. He had wanted to say that this time he hadn't dared to take any money, but in the end, he could only sit back down helplessly and join the ranks of those cursing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over here, Lu Fan left the ball field and headed straight for the central army, making his way toward that earthen hill, intending to find Gongsun Xun at the main army tent. Unexpectedly, he ran into Wang Xiu and Zao Zhi leading several military clerks carrying a pile of account books, so he stopped to greet them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Brother Ziheng, wait a moment.\" After some pleasantries, Wang Xiu couldn't help but remind him, \"When we came out, a messenger had just arrived from the north, likely bringing a family letter for our Lord Marquis...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, but quickly reacted: \"Family letters from Fanyang are mostly sent collectively. The last batch just arrived together the day before yesterday, already the third round... If a family letter arrives today, it's probably a letter from the Old Madam... You and I will indeed have to avoid intruding for a while.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Xiu also sighed softly: \"Letters from the Old Madam indeed require special discretion. And it seems our Lord Marquis has been waiting a long time for this reply from the Old Madam. It's precisely for this reason that we hurried out.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan nodded slowly: \"When it comes to truly major matters, our Lord Marquis does mostly consult with the Old Madam, which truly makes us private ministers and scholars feel rather ashamed... yet we can't help but concede to it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"May I ask, Brother Ziheng,\" Wang Xiu and Lu Fan spoke with tacit understanding, their words full of veiled meanings, which Zao Zhi beside them simply could not endure, so he opened his mouth to ask, \"does the Old Madam also participate in political strategy? I thought the Old Madam only had a hand in the operations of the Anli Trading Company.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How could it be limited to political strategy?\" Lu Fan said quietly, facing the wind. \"Our Lord Marquis once said that if the Old Madam had been born a man, the world would likely have long been a different scene. Most affairs in Liaodong are now solely managed by the Old Madam... Besides that, Wengong, do you know that many figures in our Lord Marquis's staff, such as Lou Zibo, Yang Zizhang, Wei Zidu, and of course the Protector Army Major, if the Old Madam gave an order, they would probably obey immediately as well.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fortunately, our Lord Marquis is the Old Madam's only son, and the Old Madam is our Lord Marquis's widowed mother. The two are naturally one entity, and thus complement each other perfectly,\" Wang Xiu suddenly said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That is true,\" Lu Fan laughed in spite of himself. \"I was merely, as a scholar on the staff, marveling at the Old Madam's insight and feeling rather ashamed...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Xiu nodded slightly, bowed, and took his leave, and Zao Zhi hurriedly followed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Ziheng stood by the side of the earthen hill, watching their figures gradually recede into the distance, and hearing another burst of noise from the nearby ball field, he shook his head repeatedly before finally heading up the earthen hill toward the main army camp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wenqi, I heard from Wang Shuzhi that a family letter has arrived?\" Lifting the tent flap and entering, seeing that there was no third person present, Lu Fan was as straightforward as usual. \"A letter at this time, could it be from the Old Madam?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Indeed,\" Gongsun Xun, seated behind a desk, was head-down, circling and marking a list of names. He replied without looking up, \"It is a letter from my mother.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan immediately fell silent for a moment, but after he promptly sat down on a camp stool, he quickly couldn't hold back: \"Have you finished reading the letter so quickly? Aren't the Old Madam's letters always extremely long?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gongsun Xun raised his head upon hearing this, and seeing Lu Fan's barely restrained expression, couldn't help but chuckle: \"This time, my mother's letter contained only a single sentence, with no guidance or commentary. It was more of a note than a letter. I read it and burned it... I'm afraid I've disappointed you, Ziheng.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Between you and me, we are nominally lord and minister, but in truth, we are close friends and outspoken critics. What is there that cannot be said?\" Gongsun Xun continued to lower his head and mark names, completely unbothered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What did the Old Madam say in the letter?\" Lu Fan mustered his courage and asked through gritted teeth. \"For it to travel all the way from Liaodong with such hardship, and the Old Madam sends only a single sentence... In my view, the shorter the message, the more important it likely is.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's nothing,\" Gongsun Xun said frankly. \"If you want to hear it, I'll just tell you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I wish to hear the details.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My son, being able to say such words, you can indeed strive for this realm under heaven,\" Gongsun Xun calmly recited, then looked up with keen interest at his foremost confidant. \"That was it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Ziheng was suddenly bewildered and stood up abruptly. He almost instinctively looked outside the tent, but then immediately realized that even Han Dang had gone to recruit volunteers, and there was truly no one else around at the moment. Only then did he feel at ease, and he couldn't help but lean forward and ask in a lowered voice:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then, Wenqi, what exactly did you write in your letter to the Old Madam?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"After the battle that day, I wrote many words to my mother from this place,\" Gongsun Xun said, unconcerned. \"From the savagery of the great battle to Zhang He's valor, from the decline of the Huang Jin to the strife between Guan and Shen, from Wang Zishi (Wang Yun) being imprisoned to Zhang Chun falling into the water... I left out no detail, great or small. However, this line my mother replied with is likely aimed at the final sentiment I expressed in my letter.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What did you lament?\" Lu Fan remained tense and uneasy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I lamented,\" Gongsun Xun said, suddenly rising to his feet, \"that from the day I was transferred from Liaodong to become Handan's County Magistrate, to this day of the great Huang Jin chaos, I have passed through several years, shifted posts to three places, and fought three great battles. All that I have seen and heard tells me that the decline of the Han house truly has its causes! For instance: powerful families annexing land, causing independent farming commoners to go bankrupt one after another, many turning into refugees; for instance: Confucian classical studies gradually becoming the sole ladder to officialdom, leaving those above and below cut off from each other, causing the powerful families to grow resentful toward the Han house; and for instance: the corruption and excess of the Son of Heaven, the eunuchs, and the noble officials and hereditary clans; and also for instance: the unrest and turmoil of the borderland foreign tribes... And of course, this Huang Jin uprising has added yet more fuel to the fire!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan stared wide-eyed and tongue-tied, utterly at a loss for how to respond.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I also said at the end,\" Gongsun Xun continued, \"that among these things, the borderland upheavals and the sorcerer cult's rebellion are truly points where chaos erupts, indeed largely caused by chance; while the corruption and factional strife of the court's Son of Heaven, eunuchs, and noble officials are the festering wound of the Han house, the place that needs the knife; and as for the powerful families' annexation and the complete loss of pathways between above and below — these are the fundamental chronic ailments that have brought the realm to its present state... Then I asked my mother what she thought of my insight. It's laughable to say — since I came of age, for many years now, my mother has rarely praised me as she did today... And what does Ziheng think?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan pondered for a moment, but his heart remained tangled in confusion, and he could only slowly shake his head: \"Setting aside the words in the old lady's letter and Wenqi's original intent... never mind contending for the realm — if you want to contend, I will follow you and contend. It's just that these words of Wenqi's... I, I truly can only grasp three-tenths of them!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That is precisely right,\" Gongsun Xun said, stepping behind the other man and pressing a hand on his shoulder. \"This is why I must rely on my mother. There are some things that even you, Ziheng, can only dare claim to understand three-tenths of!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having said this, Gongsun Xun circled back around, picked up the list from the low table, and handed it to the other: \"Take the list. Have the Changshan camp invite them into the Retinue according to this... It's a pity there is no one whose name resembles the Lady's.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan took the list in a daze and turned to leave. Just before stepping out of the tent, he could not help but suppress the myriad thoughts in his heart and look back: \"Wenqi!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What is it?\" Gongsun Xun had already sat back down and picked up yet another list.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The north wind has risen today; the weather is turning cold,\" Lu Fan said in earnest reminder. \"Zhang Bao should also be taken!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Since the weather has turned cold, then let Zhang Bao go die!\" Gongsun Xun said, as if suddenly awakening. \"The cuju final is the day after tomorrow... Go find Prefect Guo and set the attack for the day after that, so as not to affect the troops' morale!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fan cupped his hands and withdrew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he walked out of the tent, the autumn wind rustled. Lu Ziheng, half his body covered in sweat, heard from behind him once more his lord's faint, lingering sigh: \"Just as the saying goes — longing to speak, yet holding back, one merely remarks how cool the sky, what a fine autumn.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, he did not understand!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—————I am the dividing line of \"the sky cools, Wang breaks\"—————\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The Grand Ancestor campaigned against the Huang Jin. With victory near, he raised ramparts and set walls, yet did not attack. Instead, he had the army play cuju for amusement, while simultaneously reorganizing the camp units, weeding out the weak and selecting the best, and further choosing the army's bravest warriors to fill his White Horse personal troops. By the time all was ready, the morale within the city had already collapsed, and all around submitted to him.\" — New Book of Yan, Volume 1, Annals of the Grand Ancestor, Emperor Wu\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>PS: Everyone with monthly tickets, go grab red envelopes... Also, the book friend group, 684558115, feel free to join if interested.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",3567,"2026-06-04T19:42:26.060Z",1,"Novelzhen Translator","467868176c6d210f7c5ee2bb5eb1915aa308bf567d5fd1f623e16ada4b349f82","overthrowing-han-chapter-261","overthrowing-han-chapter-259",548,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Foverthrowing-han-cover.jpg"]