"The Moth Rebels are here!"
This news exploded across Luoyang like a thunderclap. Although the common folk within the city had long heard that the Yellow Turban Army was marching on Luoyang in massive force, many among them had believed that Luoyang was, after all, the capital of all under heaven, ringed by the Eight Passes—how could it possibly be taken so easily?
Who could have imagined that the supposed natural barrier of the Yellow River and the formidable Mengjin Pass had failed completely to slow the Yellow Turban Army's advance? The regional garrisons upon whom so much hope had been pinned showed no will to resist, allowing the Yellow Turbans to march straight up to the walls of Luoyang.
The city erupted into turmoil.
Some planned to huddle inside their homes and go nowhere; others scrambled through every connection to seek shelter under prominent officials and powerful clans; still others intended to surrender without offering the slightest resistance...
Inside the General-in-Chief's mansion.
He Jin sat kneeling in the hall with a dark, sullen face. Downing three cups of wine in rapid succession, tipsy from the drink, he yanked hard on the beauty who was pouring his wine. Startled, she nonetheless leaned into his embrace and wrapped her arms around his waist.
"General-in-Chief!"
Seated below He Jin on the left, Yuan Shao spoke up, his expression displeased.
He Jin looked through drunken eyes at the imposing, dignified Yuan Shao and chuckled softly. "Benchu, you seem displeased?"
Yuan Shao said coldly, "The General-in-Chief hosted this banquet and summoned Mengde, Lord Dong, Lord Sun, myself, and the others. I assumed you intended to discuss the Moth Rebels' siege of the city with us over the feast. Yet I never expected you to grope and dally with a woman in public. Is this not a sign of your displeasure toward us? How has it become me being displeased with you?"
As soon as he spoke, the attendees—Cao Cao, Dong Zhuo, Wu Kuang, Chen Lin, Sun Jian, and the rest—all turned their gazes toward He Jin. While their eyes did not necessarily hold displeasure, the scrutiny nonetheless gave He Jin a jolt, dispelling much of his drunkenness. Shoving the beauty out of his lap so hard she crashed to the floor, he let out a couple of boisterous laughs. "My mistake! I've had too much to drink—drunk, quite drunk!"
Having been thrown down like that, the beauty did not dare weep or make a fuss; she simply scrambled to her feet, bowed, and withdrew from the hall.
Seeing that He Jin seemed to have regained his wits, Yuan Shao's expression softened slightly. "General-in-Chief, one hundred thousand Moth Rebels surround us. Though they have not yet begun storming the walls, anxiety runs rampant within the city. We must agree upon a countermeasure without delay."
Hearing this, He Jin sighed. "Indeed. A countermeasure is needed. What counsel do you gentlemen have for me?"
He glanced around, his gaze falling upon each man's face.
Dong Zhuo shook his head in secret; Cao Cao remained silent; Wu Kuang, as He Jin's subordinate commander, had always obeyed He Jin unconditionally and had no intention of offering any plans...
"Wentai, do you have any strategy?" He Jin asked, fixing his gaze on Sun Jian.
Sun Jian had originally been accompanying Zhu Jun in besieging the Yellow Turban forces at Wancheng. But with the imperial court facing dire peril, orders had ultimately been issued to draw elite troops from Zhu Jun's command to garrison and protect Luoyang.
Upon learning that both Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song had been defeated, Zhu Jun understood the court's plight all too well. Without hesitation, he dispatched his most ferocious and battle-tested officer, Sun Jian, to Luoyang, providing him with five thousand troops.
Leading his five thousand men, Sun Jian arrived in Luoyang and was immediately treated with immense regard by He Jin, Yuan Shao, and their circle. They frequently threw banquets in his honor, giving Sun Jian a thorough taste of imperial power and wealth, the lofty demeanor of the scholar-gentry, and the prestige of eminent clans.
Under this concerted courtship by numerous renowned scholars, Sun Jian swiftly leaned toward He Jin's faction.
Meanwhile, another reportedly elite contingent—the You Province troops led by Gongsun Zan—had aligned with Minister of the Imperial Clan Liu Yan, or more accurately, with Emperor Liu Hong himself.
The reason was simple: Gongsun Zan had an officer under his command named Liu Bei. Liu Bei possessed an imposing and striking appearance, considerable martial vigor, and was a disciple of Lu Zhi. Most crucially, his surname was Liu. At a critical juncture like this, he was immediately relied upon and favored by Liu Hong and Liu Yan.
Singled out by He Jin, Sun Jian immediately declared with fervent bravado, "General-in-Chief, as I see it, why not pick several thousand troops, march out of the city, and fight a battle against the Moth Rebels to blunt their ferocious momentum?"
The moment the words left his mouth, Cao Cao, sitting across from him, could not help but let out a soft sneer.
Sun Jian instantly sprang to his feet in fury, glaring at Cao Cao with tiger-like eyes. "Is Lord Cao mocking me?!"
Cao Cao waved his hands in haste. "No, no! Wentai, please be seated. I am not laughing at you, Wentai—I am laughing at myself."
The others looked puzzled, and Sun Jian sat back down, though still hesitant.
A bitter, helpless smile surfaced on Cao Cao's face as he explained, "In the past, when I followed Lord Huangfu to besiege Guangzong, I also petitioned Lord Huangfu to lead a detachment into pitched battle against the Moth Rebels. Little did I expect..."
Little did he expect that the Yellow Turban Army would force a decisive battle from the very start, completely bewildering and routing the Han army in a single clash, to the point where Cao Cao had no choice but to abandon his several thousand troops in disgrace and flee back to Luoyang alone.
Hearing this, Sun Jian merely let out a light grunt. Chen Lin chimed in at an opportune moment: "Mengde, having fought a battle against the Moth Rebels, have you devised a way to deal with the rogues?"
Cao Cao pondered for a long time, shook his head, and said with a touch of despair, "The Moth Rebels are not difficult to deal with; it is the immortal god that cannot be matched."
The moment the words "immortal god" were uttered, everyone held their breath.
They all knew that the most vital reason for the Han army's catastrophic defeat was the legendary, all-powerful Holy Sovereign Huang Tian. Were it not for the divine protection of an immortal deity, mere Yellow Turban rebels would have been extinguished long ago. Even with thirty-six divisions across the realm and hundreds of thousands of troops, they would have been shattered like dry twigs before the Han court's punitive campaigns.
Yet there were no "ifs" in this world.
Dong Zhuo let out a heavy sigh of his own. "I advise you gentlemen: rather than scheming how to defy an immortal god, you had best make preparations early and seek an escape route, lest you be slaughtered by rebel troops when the city falls."
These words were blunt to the point of insolence, yet none of them could reproach him. After all, Dong Zhuo had lost his entire core force of several thousand men in that single battle and, like Cao Cao, had fled to Luoyang alone. That he spoke such defeatist words was something they could grudgingly endure.
The hall lapsed into silence for a moment before Yuan Shao spoke again: "The Moth Rebels are at our gates, and abandoning the city to flee is out of the question. The Son of Heaven, the princes, dukes, and high ministers, as well as the eminent worthies of illustrious houses, are all inside the city. Most of our kin are here as well. Surrendering the city would be no different from handing a blade to the Moth Rebels, leaving ourselves entirely at their mercy."
Surrendering was impossible, yet they could not win in battle. The situation had plunged into a hopeless dilemma.
Growing impatient, Sun Jian spoke up: "Even if the Moth Rebels have an immortal god on their side, does that mean we dare not fight? In the end, it is nothing more than death! If we stake our very lives, what is there to fear?"
Stepping out from his seat, he faced He Jin and declared with impassioned fervor, "General-in-Chief, this humble subordinate is willing to lead five thousand troops outside the walls to engage the Moth Rebels! If I win, it will bolster our army's morale; if I lose, let the Moth Rebels sever my head!"
A look of profound emotion crossed He Jin's face, and he said repeatedly, "Wentai, you are a true hero! I shall certainly enter the palace, request an audience with His Majesty, and secure a military commission for you to exterminate the Moth Rebels!"
The others also rose in unison and bowed toward Sun Jian, extolling him as a hero. This filled Sun Jian with immense pride and delight, stoking his fervor even higher.
Only Yuan Shao watched with cold detachment. A surge of anger rose within his heart—not directed at Sun Jian, but at his own clan.
'Hmph! The clan elders detest me after all for not being of the main lineage. The moment word arrived that the Moth Rebels were marching on Luoyang, they immediately had that brat Yuan Shu lead some members of the direct line away from Luoyang to flee to Runan, while abandoning me here in this death trap of Luoyang. Detestable! Truly detestable!'
His fury burned fiercely. Unwilling to sit and wait for death inside Luoyang, he pondered all manner of escape routes in his mind. Turning his gaze back toward Sun Jian now, his eyes could not help but reveal a trace of pity.
Chapter 30