Chapter Thirty-Six: The Choice
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A hundred thousand?
Liu Bei’s expression shifted slightly. At present, he had barely more than a thousand soldiers in total. To stand against a force of one hundred thousand would indeed be extremely difficult.
He turned his gaze toward Zhuge Liang beside him.
Upon hearing that Xiahou Dun was leading a hundred thousand troops toward Xinye, Zhuge Liang said nothing. He merely lowered his head and fell into deep thought, clearly considering how to defeat the enemy.
Seeing Zhuge Liang sink into silence, Zhang Bo remained quiet as well, watching him intently. He was very curious whether Zhuge Liang would, as in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, think of setting fire to Bowang Slope.
After roughly the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Zhuge Liang raised his head. That confident smile had returned to his face.
To be honest, every time Zhang Bo saw that confident smile on Zhuge Liang’s face, he felt an inexplicable sense of reassurance, as though everything lay within Zhuge Liang’s grasp.
“Master Kongming, have you thought of a strategy?”
“Indeed.”
“May I ask what that strategy is?”
Zhuge Liang slowly uttered five words:
“Set fire to Bowang Slope.”
Zhang Bo nodded repeatedly.
Just as expected. It was the strategy of burning Bowang Slope, exactly as described in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
And the flavor of it was absolutely perfect.
Afterward there would be the burning of Xinye, the burning of Red Cliffs, the burning of the Rattan Armored Army, and the burning of Shangfang Valley.
Zhuge Liang had truly brought the art of fire attacks to its utmost refinement.
“Shopkeeper, may I ask what strategy was recorded in the book?”
Although Zhuge Liang had already devised a way to defeat the enemy, he was still quite curious about the method recorded in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
“Master Kongming, the strategy recorded in the book is the same as the one you just proposed. It is also the burning of Bowang Slope.”
“Oh?”
A rare look of astonishment appeared on Zhuge Liang’s face.
He had reached this conclusion only after extensive consideration.
Xiahou Dun was coming with his army, and there was a strong chance that he would station them in Bowang City.
After all, there were few cities capable of accommodating an army of one hundred thousand. As the fief of Marquis Zhang Qian of Bowang, Bowang City was the only place near Xinye that qualified.
If they were stationed in Bowang City, then there was only one road they could take to reach Xinye:
Bowang Slope.
As it happened, Bowang Slope was also an excellent place for an ambush. That was why he had come up with the plan to set it ablaze.
Even Zhuge Liang had not expected that the strategy he had arrived at after layer upon layer of analysis would be exactly the same as the one recorded in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
At once, he felt that his plan to study the writing of later ages ought to be moved forward.
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“Big Brother, if Uncle Xuande and the others follow the instructions in this book, won’t they be able to avoid every danger and fulfill their wish of unifying the realm?”
“Xiao Ju, it isn’t that simple. A book is a dead thing, but people are living beings, and people change.
“Even if Lord Xuande follows the book’s instructions exactly and defeats Xiahou Dun, what will he do afterward? When Cao Cao marches south in the thirteenth year of Jian’an, he will still have to flee. Of course, Lord Xuande will probably take the people of Xinye with him this time as well. Once he learns of that news, will he evacuate with the people ahead of time, or will he be driven into flight by Cao Cao just as the book describes?”
“This…”
“If he flees in advance, such a large-scale movement will inevitably alert Cao Cao. As for what Cao Cao will do afterward, no one can say. But if he does not flee early, the consequences will be severe. Not only will he be pursued by Cao Cao, he will also become separated from his two wives. Had Zilong not risked his life to save them, both ladies and A Dou would have fallen into Cao Cao’s hands.
“Unfortunately, Lady Mi, grievously wounded and unwilling to burden Zilong, entrusted A Dou to him before throwing herself into a well and taking her own life.”
Lady Mi had thrown herself into a well and died!
Even Liu Bei, who had seen the fickleness of human fortune, could not conceal the grief on his face.
He and Lady Mi had met in the first year of Jian’an. Eleven years had passed since then. Throughout those years, they had treated each other with mutual respect and lived in harmony.
In Liu Bei’s eyes, Lady Mi was unquestionably a virtuous wife.
Yet such a virtuous woman would, in the near future, throw herself into a well and take her own life. For a time, Liu Bei found it impossible to accept.
After only a moment’s thought, Liu Bei made up his mind to change this fate.
“Shopkeeper, can I change all of this?”
“Of course. As I said, if you wish to change Lady Mi’s fate, you will have to send her away ahead of time. In that case, the story of Zilong fighting his way through Cao Cao’s army seven times in and seven times out will never happen. As for what follows, events will begin moving in an unknowable direction. Lord Xuande, have you thought this through?”
Liu Bei nodded firmly without the slightest hesitation.
In his previous life, even relying solely on the people around him, he had still managed to establish a tripartite balance. Now, without Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he would merely lose his knowledge of future events. Moreover, he had the assistance of the shopkeeper before him and the Filial Martial Emperor. There was no reason he should fare worse than the events recorded in the book.
In Liu Bei’s eyes, exchanging knowledge of the future for Lady Mi’s life was worth it.
Seeing that Liu Bei had made his decision, Zhang Bo said no more.
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To guard against the unexpected, Zhang Bo took Romance of the Three Kingdoms from Liu Ju and began reading it carefully.
If Zhao Yun’s seven charges into and seven charges out of Cao Cao’s army were omitted, the consequences did not seem too serious. Aside from obtaining the Green Serpent Sword, killing fifty officers of Cao Cao’s camp, and making the name of Zhao Zilong of Changshan renowned, the incident appeared to have little effect on the main storyline.
Indeed, as Zhang Bo continued turning the pages, he felt that escorting the people across the river still offered considerable room for maneuver.
Now that they knew Cao Cao’s objective, they only needed to send scouts to keep a close watch on his movements. Once the time was right, they could flee in advance, without worrying about being driven onward by Cao Cao as they had been in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
Moreover, this flight might even allow them to convey false information to Cao Cao:
Liu Bei was timid and afraid of trouble. The moment he heard that Cao Cao was attacking, he had immediately fled at the first sign of danger.
It seemed that as long as they maintained the right degree of subtlety, events would not deviate too far from Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
Zhang Bo immediately shared his idea with Liu Bei.
After hearing it, Liu Bei was overjoyed. Now he did not even need to make a choice. The people of Xinye would remain safe, his two wives and A Dou could escape unharmed, and Zilong would not need to risk his life to save them. The main storyline of Romance of the Three Kingdoms would not be altered by much.
For him, it was an overwhelming victory.
Liu Bei was extremely grateful that he had made the journey here.
Now that they had obtained the answer they sought, it was time for the future ruler and ministers of Shu-Han to prepare to leave.
After bidding farewell to the three men from the Western Han, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang prepared to begin their journey home.
“Master Kongming, wait. I have something for you.”
Zhuge Liang turned around curiously as Zhang Bo disappeared into the room.
Soon, Zhang Bo emerged carrying several books similar to those he had given Liu Che—picture books for preschool children.
He had not been idle during this period. After learning that both Liu Che and Zhuge Liang wished to study modern knowledge, he had ordered another set of preschool books online. That way, they would not waste time sharing a single set of textbooks.
Taking the brightly colored books from Zhang Bo, Zhuge Liang expressed his heartfelt thanks. Then he departed with Liu Bei, disappearing through the entrance of the country guesthouse.
“Big Brother, it is time for us to leave as well.”
“Wait, Champion Marquis. There is something I would like to say to you.”
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