Three Kingdoms: The Kingdom Cannot Be Partial

Chapter 271 The Emperor's Personal Guards, Their Lives Soldier and Brains

The Chinese military tent.

The campfire crackled, casting shadows that appeared both short and long.

Liu Shan had removed his armor and was sitting behind the table in only a black casual robe.

On the table lay the names of the soldiers who had made four great contributions in this battle: being the first to charge, breaking through enemy lines, beheading enemy generals, and capturing the flag.

Generals Chen Dao, Fu Qian, Guan Xing, Zhao Guang, and Zhang Gu sat on both sides.

The curtain was lifted.

Long Xianglang led more than ten men in single file into the room.

The men varied in height and build, yet each exuded a menacing aura, their eyes sharp as knives. Only when they met the emperor's gaze did they all become subdued, bowing their heads and daring not to act rashly.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Wei Qi, a soldier of the Imperial Guard, and Gao Ang, a Tiger-like warrior, shouted almost simultaneously.

Immediately afterwards, the others who were unlucky enough to miss seeing the emperor's face realized what was happening and bowed in unison.

"Rise." Liu Shan had already risen from his seat and stepped forward, his gaze sweeping over each of these fierce soldiers who had narrowly escaped death.

He then cast encouraging and approving glances at Wei Qi and Gao Ang, indicating that the emperor truly remembered them.

Finally, Liu Shan's gaze fell on the person on the far left.

This man was not tall, more than a head shorter than Ji Bachi behind Liu Shan, probably around 1.6 meters tall, but he had broad shoulders and a thick back, and standing there, he gave Liu Shan the impression of a short blacksmith.

On the side of his face, there was a fresh cut that ran from his cheekbone to his jaw, with the skin and flesh turned outwards. It had only been hastily treated and looked rather grotesque.

Seeing the emperor stop in front of him, he dared not look up, but his eyes, fixed on the ground, were filled with excitement.

"Your Majesty, this man is named Liu Tao, a military officer under General Chen Hu of the Warships. He joined the army in the first year of Zhangwu. Today, he was the first to ascend Hengjiang and then captured the banner of Wu general Sun Jun!" said Zhuge Qiao, the Imperial Son-in-Law, from behind Liu Shan.

Upon hearing this, the generals' expressions changed.

The first year of Zhangwu was the year the late emperor launched the Battle of Yiling, which means that the military commander in front of us is a survivor of the Battle of Yiling.

Today, he has won two of the four major merits: being the first to scale the cliff and capturing the flag. This shows that he is fierce and brave in battle, and that he is blessed with good fortune.

The combination of these two traits produces a promising future general.

"Your name is Liu Tao?" Liu Chan asked.

The short, stocky man suddenly clasped his hands in a fist salute:

"Your Majesty! My name is Liu Tao!"

"Which Tao?" Liu Shan blurted out almost without thinking, only realizing after asking that he had asked a redundant question, because Liu Tao's resume was already written in the booklet in front of him, which he had read repeatedly.

Most of the people in the tent did not react to the emperor's question, but the expressions of Zhao Guang, the General of the Dragon Cavalry, and Ji Bazhi, the General of the Dragon Cavalry behind Liu Shan, all changed slightly.

Upon hearing the emperor's question, the military officer loudly replied:
"Your Majesty! Peaches from the peach tree!"

Upon hearing this, memories of the wounded soldiers' camp on the banks of the Wei River flooded back like a tidal wave.

...

...

"Your Majesty... I bet that if Your Majesty comes down the mountain to see me today, I will surely live."

"If I win the bet, I will definitely not die!"

"You must kill more Wei dogs for His Majesty, and in the future you will surely become His Majesty's Sima!"

"..."

"..."

In a moment of distraction, Liu Shan quickly regained his composure:
"Okay, peach, okay!"

He then looked at Xi Zheng behind him and asked, "Liu Tao was the first to scale the river and capture the flag today, displaying unparalleled bravery in the army. According to custom, how should he be rewarded?"

Xi Zheng thought for a moment and then said:

"Your Majesty, according to custom, the four great merits of beheading a general, capturing a flag, breaking through enemy lines, and being the first to scale the walls are all rewarded with one million coins, one hundred bolts of Shu brocade, and one hundred acres of land and houses."

"Those below the rank of Sima will be directly promoted to Sima."

"Those above the rank of Sima will be promoted to Duwei or Xiaowei depending on the situation of the battle."

Upon hearing this, all the meritorious soldiers in the tent were filled with uncontrollable excitement.

Liu Shan pondered for a moment, then looked at Liu Tao:
"Today, the battle that resulted in the heaviest casualties was fought by the Marquis who died for his country and the Earl who also sacrificed his life in battle. I have already bestowed upon the Marquis and the Earl the title of 'First-Class Meritorious Official' and given the name 'Roaring Tiger of the Mountain' upon the battle."

“Today I still feel it’s not enough.”

At this point, Liu Shan looked at Xi Zheng:

“The ‘Roaring Tiger’ will be a separate unit, directly under my central army.”

He then looked at Liu Tao and said, "Liu Tao, I hereby appoint you as the Commander of the 'Roaring Tiger' Special Division, directly under my command."

Roaring Tiger?!

A separate commander?!
Leading a single unit?!

Directly under the Emperor's command?!
Such a promotion is more than just breaking the rules!

You should know that His Majesty has two personal guards under his command.

One of them was called Longxiang, and was commanded by Zhao Guang, the General of Longxiang.

Another force was called the Tiger Warriors, commanded by Tiger Warrior General Guan Xing.

Who are these two?!
And now, this ordinary, short man named Liu Tao has somehow risen to the same level as these two, becoming a Sima under the emperor, based solely on this military achievement?!

Even a fool could guess that although the "Roaring Tiger" could not compare with the Dragon Soaring and the Tiger Warriors, it would certainly not be limited to a "separate tribe" in the future.

What does it mean?
This means that as long as this short man named Liu Tao doesn't do anything outrageous or shameful, he will definitely become a general in the future!
Generals Guan Xing, Zhao Guang, Fu Qian, and Zhang Gu all glanced at Liu Tao a few more times.

The other meritorious soldiers in the tent all cast envious glances at Liu Tao.

Among those present, even Wei Qi, a soldier of the garrison, and Gao Ang, a tiger-like warrior who had beheaded seven people in the previous battle, only managed to claim the credit for being the first to charge in this battle. The others also each had their own merit.

To achieve the feat of being the first to scale the ship and capture the flag in a single battle, one truly needs a stroke of luck. Countless people on the Yangtze River have tried to be the first to scale the ship, only to perish on the battlefield. Capturing the flag is even more so, requiring both strength and luck. If one is unlucky, one might be betrayed by their comrades from behind.

Liu Tao was first stunned, then overwhelmed by immense joy, and finally knelt down abruptly:
"Liu Tao thanks Your Majesty for your great kindness! I dare to serve Your Majesty with my life and even my bones!"

Liu Shan was taken aback, then asked:
"Are you literate?"

It was indeed somewhat unexpected for Liu Shan that such a reckless man, who had always been on the verge of bloodshed, could utter such words as "liver and brains spilled" and "body shattered to pieces."

Liu Tao, who was just over six feet tall, appeared even shorter kneeling on the ground. She looked up in surprise, then shook her head sheepishly.

"Your Majesty, I... this humble general is illiterate, I can only write my own name."

"These fancy words are something I've picked up from listening to that nagging Xuan Yilang talk about all day long."

Liu Shan suddenly understood, and was not surprised. He turned to his secretary, Lang Xizheng, who was standing beside him:

"The imperial edict proposes to promote Du Qian, the Xuanyi Zhonglang, to concurrently serve as the Xuanyi Canjun of the 'Xiaoshanhu' branch, to assist Liu Sima in handling military documents."

"As for teaching Liu Sima to read, we will find another idle Xuanyi Lang to assist him."

Xi Zheng bowed and said "Yes, sir."

When Liu Tao heard that he had to learn to read, his dark face showed a hint of bitterness, but it was quickly replaced by greater excitement.

I am a separate commander under His Majesty!

What an extraordinary achievement this is!

How can you get by if you can't read?!
Wouldn't that be a disgrace to His Majesty?!
study! Must learn!
Liu Shan continued, looking at Liu Tao, and spoke:
"I will select elite soldiers from various camps to supplement your Xiaoshan Tiger Division. You must lead me to a truly fierce and powerful army."

"Yes, sir!" Liu Tao, the commander of the separate division, roared in response. Although he did not understand what the "Laughing Tiger Army" meant, he still held his chest high.

Next, Liu Shan commended Wei Qi, Gao Ang, and other meritorious generals and soldiers.

Gao Feng and several other Tiger Warriors who were the first to scale the wall and seize the flag were more composed than the other soldiers.

They were originally the emperor's personal guards, and all their glory and rewards came from the emperor's grace.

As elite field troops, they would not be directly sent out to attack and capture cities.

The reason they were able to achieve the feat of being the first to scale the cliff and capture the flag was because other soldiers paved the way for them with their blood and flesh. There was nothing to be proud of. On the contrary, it would be a disgrace to the emperor if they failed to achieve this.

Wei Qi, representing the local militia, was the first to charge today and achieved a great victory.

Liu Shan patted Wei Qi on the arm and encouraged him once again.

With these two brothers in the Wei family, there is no doubt that, as long as they are lucky enough to live well, they will become representatives of the Han Dynasty's noble families in the future.

If they can educate their children well in the future and let them participate in the imperial examinations that will inevitably appear in the future, then the nobles will become officials again, and this family will become a model that can be recorded in history.

Under the Fubing system, their rewards were calculated differently, generally slightly lower than those of soldiers in the army, but the advantage was that all the spoils belonged to them, which was one of the biggest motivations for Fubing soldiers to fight to the death.

Wei Qi was patted on the arm twice by the emperor. Although his expression remained solemn and calm, the burning passion in his eyes was stronger than that of others.

While war is cruel, it does indeed open up a narrow but real path to advancement for soldiers like them at the lowest rungs of society.

Slaying generals, capturing flags, charging into battle, and being the first to scale the walls.

If any one of these goals is achieved, social mobility can be realized.

Although his elder brother Wei Xing was not the first to charge into battle, he had already achieved the feats of beheading generals and capturing flags, and had gained the emperor's favor, with a promising future ahead of him.

He himself had previously achieved the feat of being the first to charge into battle at Yanyu Pass, and in this battle, he achieved the feat of being the first to scale the walls.

Slaying generals, capturing flags, charging into battle, and being the first to scale the walls—the Wei family has already achieved a grand slam.

Just as his elder brother said, as long as the Wei family doesn't make any mistakes, they will surely be able to sit at the same table with military families like Guan Xing and Zhao Guang in the future.

After the rewards were distributed, the generals expressed their gratitude and left, and the tent temporarily returned to quiet.

Guan Xing stepped forward, his face beaming with barely suppressed excitement, a stark contrast to his usual composure: "Your Majesty, an unexpected incident has occurred on the Jiangnan battlefield today."

"Oh?" Liu Shan looked at Guan Xing, both suspicious and surprised.

Guan Xing continued to speak with renewed enthusiasm:

"Your Majesty, Fu Shiren's son, Fu Yi, was shot dead today at the Iron Chain Pass in Jiangnan by a crossbow bolt! The giant crossbow bolt pierced through his body and pinned him directly to the pass wall!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Shan's hand, holding the bowl of water, froze in mid-air: "Fu Shiren's son?"

Guan Xing nodded:

"I originally intended to shoot Sun Shao's banner!"
"Unexpectedly, by a twist of fate, I shot and killed this fiend!"

"Your Majesty, these traitors and rebellious sons, lying dead under crossbows, is this not the clear will of Heaven?!" Guan Xing's words carried a sense of triumphant satisfaction at the unexpected turn of events, which was far more exhilarating than killing Fu Shiren's son with his own hands.

Upon hearing this, the generals in the tent mostly expressed a mixture of sighs and delight.

Mi Fang, Pan Jun, Hao Pu, Fu Shiren... these traitors are a disgrace to the Han Dynasty. Although Fu Yi's death was not as satisfying as killing Mi Fang and Fu Shiren, it was a clear sign of Heaven's will and was enough to make the three armies applaud.

Liu Shan remained silent for a moment, then drank the water in the bowl in one gulp and gently put it down.

...

Near the central command tent, the campfire crackled.

Ji Bazhi, the Longxiang Sima who was on leave tonight, received imperial wine bestowed by the emperor and sat down to drink with several Longxiang Lang.

After several rounds of drinks...

Ji Bachi's dark face was already flushed with alcohol.

Clutching the wine jar, gazing at the flickering flames, his large, usually alert eyes, accustomed to scrutinizing any unusual movement, now revealed a rare, complex and indescribable emotion.

“That scoundrel Liu Taozi…” he suddenly spoke, his voice slightly unsteady from the alcohol, “When he first met His Majesty, he shamelessly said that he would become His Majesty’s Sima in the future.”

Ryūjōrō next to him all looked over.

Ji Bazhi tilted his head back, took a sip of wine, swallowed it, and after a moment said:

“Back then, he always scored a little less in military merit than me in every battle, and he couldn’t memorize military orders and regulations as quickly as I could… He would argue with me, saying that I was just lucky.”

Ji Bazhi chuckled twice, but he wasn't smug; instead, he seemed rather annoyed.
"Later, outside Chang'an, he insisted on making a bet with me, saying he wanted to see who would become the Sima first..."

At this point, he took another big gulp of wine, which dripped down his disheveled beard.
"As a result, he didn't get the position."

"I, Ji Shu, have become the first Longxiang Sima personally appointed by His Majesty."

The tent fell silent again, broken only by the crackling of the campfire. The other Longxiang warriors remained silent, all remembering their comrade-in-arms, who was braver than them but less fortunate. "But today..." Ji Bazhi's voice lowered, his eyes fixed on the ground, deep and unfathomable.

"The fellow who seized Wu Gou's banner on the river today is also named Liu Tao! His Majesty immediately promoted him to the position of 'Roaring Tiger' of the Separate Division Commander, directly under His Majesty's command!"

He suddenly looked up, his gaze sweeping over his colleagues:

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty must remember our Peach Brother! He must remember!"

Seeing this, the dragon riders remained silent, but were no longer sullen.

A moment later, a young man with a dragon-like gait suddenly spoke up:

“I only knew before that our Emperor had a good memory and remembered many people… but this is the first time I’ve seen something so clear… that our Emperor remembers even soldiers who have been dead for so long so perfectly…”

“Yes,” another Long Xianglang chimed in, his voice carrying an indescribable sense of peace and honor.

"If we... if we're gone too, His Majesty will surely remember us just as he remembers Peach, right?!"

Ji Bazhi didn't reply. Instead, he suddenly poured all the remaining wine from the jar into a ceramic bowl, then stood up and raised the bowl high.

This burly man, eight feet tall, who struck fear into the hearts of his enemies on the battlefield and was feared by all in the camp, moved with a solemnity that bordered on clumsiness.

"This toast is to Peach!"

After saying this, he flipped his wrist, poured out all the wine in the bowl, and then poured it as a libation to Liu Tao.

Upon seeing this, the dragon-horse warriors inside the tent all stood up in unison, raised their wine bowls in unison, and finally responded in a low voice: "Toast to peaches!"

The liquor was forcefully splashed onto the ground, seeping into the soil.

After the libation was finished, Ji Bazhi once again filled the empty bowl with wine from the jar, then raised the bowl even higher. Once everyone else had raised their bowls high, he whispered, "May Your Majesty be victorious!"

"May Your Majesty be victorious!" All the imperial guards inside the tent shouted in unison.

...

The next day.

early morning.

In the dense forests of the mountains more than 20 miles southwest of Wuxian County.

The damp, cold fog enveloped everything, and the dozens of Wu people finally dared to light a fire for warmth.

There were over a hundred of them when they fled yesterday, but now only forty remain. They are all wounded, slumped around, cold, hungry and exhausted, their faces showing lingering fear and growing despair.

With his back against a large tree, Sun Shao's panic and anger at abandoning the pass and fleeing into these vast mountains yesterday, after a night of torment, finally turned into humiliation and resentment.

"Pan Jun has ruined me! He has ruined my army! He has ruined Jiangdong!"

"If that fellow hadn't suffered repeated defeats, if those so-called extremely dangerous iron cones that could sink into the river and those so-called impregnable iron chains that could cross the river hadn't been broken by the Shu people like paper, would I, Sun Shao, be in this predicament?!"

With the military commander beside him, he dared not speak.

"How much grain is left?" Sun Shao finally asked.

Upon hearing this, the Imperial Guard Commander replied, "General, this humble general...this humble general has checked repeatedly, and all the rations gathered together are probably not enough for two days. We should...we should eat as sparingly as possible..."

“Two days…” Sun Shao murmured repeatedly.

The military commander looked around at the soldiers warming themselves by the fire, hesitated, and then offered some words of advice:

"General, we cannot linger here... The Shu people are adept at marching through mountains, and those Banshun barbarians are even more skilled at it. We must quickly move to higher, drier ground. If we can find a stream, perhaps... perhaps we can find some fish and shrimp to eat..."

Sun Shao looked around and said, "Let's eat, but be careful with our food."

Upon receiving the order, the imperial guards, who had been gathering around the fire for warmth, struggled to assemble.

The military commander opened the ration bag, and each person received only a small handful of dried biscuits and a small piece of dried meat.

Sun Shao didn't take the dried meat. He only had a small piece of dry biscuit in his hand, but he didn't eat it immediately. He just stared blankly at the rough texture on the biscuit.

Since his birth, Sun Shao had never worried about having enough to eat. He never imagined he would end up like this!

"Liu Shan!" The man gritted his teeth, wanting to curse, but ultimately had nothing to say.

"Eat your food and leave! We can't stay here and wait to die! Get up!"

The soldiers around him hurriedly shoveled the last bit of food into their mouths, swallowed it, and struggled to get up, but were unwilling to leave the campfire.

The military governor hesitated before asking:
"General, which way should we go? Continue west?"

To the west lies the upper reaches of the great river, the territory of the Shu people.

However, the reason they managed to escape was that Sun Shao did not flee to the lower reaches of the Yangtze River from the beginning. In this way, he separated himself from the large number of Wu soldiers who fled eastward according to their instincts, and also avoided most of the Han army's pursuers.

Before it was completely dark, they fled to a mountain path cleared by the Han army hiding in the southern mountains. They then waded into a mountain stream and went upstream into the mountains further south and deeper. In this way, their traces disappeared completely from the sight of the Han army.

"We can't go any further west, let's go to Zigui." Sun Shao looked around and saw almost identical towering ancient trees and rolling thick fog, making it impossible to distinguish east from west or north from south.

But he was not a spoiled brat after all. He suppressed his panic and carefully observed his surroundings. He squatted down and touched a patch of moss with his hand. He then looked at the distribution of moss on the trunks of several large trees next to him. It was obvious that one side was thicker and denser.

“Here,” Sun Shao pointed due east.

The remaining troops began their journey once again.

Sun Shaoshen stumbled along, walking less than two hundred steps eastward, passing two enormous ancient trees, when suddenly the commander of the imperial guards who was scouting ahead let out a cry of alarm.

Upon hearing this, Sun Shao's hair stood on end.

He shook off everyone and ran forward.

Immediately afterwards, his pupils suddenly contracted to their maximum size. He saw a mountain road and the thing that had caused the Imperial Guard Commander to collapse to the ground.

"The Red Horse Boat?!"

"My Great Wu Red Horse Boat?!"

"How...how did I end up here?!"

Sun Shaoru was struck by lightning, terrified to the point of death, her soul nearly scattered.

When the group of Wu people arrived at the scene, they were bewildered, astonished, and terrified.

The small red boat in front of me, in terms of its design and size, is clearly the Red Horse Light Boat used by the Great Wu Navy for communication and reconnaissance!

"How can there be a road here?!"

"How...how did the ship get here?!"

Finally, someone couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

Some people thought they had seen a ghost. How could a Wu boat appear in the deep forest, dozens of miles away from the riverbank and deep in the mountains?

Sun Shao punched the boat, then looked up at the bare, muddy hillside in front of him.

The boat was badly damaged, clearly caused by rolling down the ramp and impacting the ship.

Around the ship, the decaying leaves were an eerie dark brown, and several ripped strips of ochre-black cloth hung from the trees, along with traces left by either a bear or a tiger.

It is clear that the people of Shu fell into the valley while carrying their boats and were eventually eaten by wild beasts.

In a flash, a chilling thought suddenly popped into Sun Shao's mind.

In an instant, Sun Shao was utterly dejected.

"It's over...it's over..."

By now, how could he still not understand?

The Shu ambush force that was detected by Pan Jun's spies, closely monitored by him, and even targeted by him in a trap, was not an ambush force at all!
That was a bait deliberately set up by Liu Shan!

And what about this group of Sichuan people who traveled by boat even deeper in the mountains?
"It's over, it's over..."

"Zigui...Zigui..."

Sun Shao was distraught and muttered to himself.

"General?"

"General, we..."

Seeing their commander so distraught, the surrounding guards grew increasingly bewildered and fearful.

Just as the forty-odd people were panicking and almost in despair, a crossbow bolt tore through the thick fog without warning and embedded itself in a tree trunk next to Sun Shao.

"—Thud!" The arrow's tail trembled violently.

"No, enemy attack!"

"Form ranks! Protect the general!" the commander of the personal guard shouted hoarsely.

Although the surviving Wu soldiers were panicked, they instinctively tried to move closer to Sun Shao, drawing their weapons to form a defensive formation.

However, it was too late.

The next moment, the Han army broke through the fog and attacked.

The Wu people around him were completely blank-minded, and finally powerless to struggle, they were almost waiting to die.

The Han army was not large, appearing to number only around a hundred. After a grueling march, many were exhausted.

The leading Han general, over fifty years old, with a resolute face, was none other than Fu Kuang, the General Who Pacifies the East of the Great Han Dynasty.

He looked at the Wu general and his remaining troops, who were surrounded in the center and looked ashen-faced. He didn't feel much pride, but rather a faint weariness, as if he had finally completed a troublesome task.

“Sun Shao?” Fu Kuang asked.

"You do have some cleverness."

"But the mountains are high and the forests are dense, and the roads are treacherous and difficult to travel. You have nowhere to go. There is no need to fight like cornered beasts. His Majesty has decreed that those who surrender will be spared death. Your cousin Sun Jun has already surrendered."

Sun Shao was the cousin of Sun Huan and Sun Jun. When Sun He died, Sun Huan was too young, so he initially inherited his uncle Sun He's troops.

Upon hearing that Sun Jun had surrendered, Sun Shao suddenly looked up and stared intently at Fu Kuang: "You're talking nonsense! Shu Ying will never surrender to Shu!"

Fu Kuang stared at Sun Shao for a long time before saying:

"Believe it or not, he surrendered."

"Nonsense! Don't try to demoralize my troops! Jiangdong men, follow me and kill!" Sun Shao pointed his sword at Fu Kuang and charged forward.

However, few of the Wu soldiers around him responded; many hesitated, leaning on their swords and spears.

Fu Kuang raised his voice again:

"Put down your weapons! His Majesty has decreed that those who surrender will be spared. You still have parents, wives, and children at home. Why must you die here in vain?"

Upon hearing the shout, Sun Shao roared and charged forward with his sword, aiming straight for Fu Kuang. His personal guard commander also yelled, "Protect the general and break through the encirclement!"

Seeing this, seven or eight of Sun Shao's trusted confidants, who had been deeply indebted to him, showed resolute expressions and mustered their last strength to rush forward.

The Han army unleashed a volley of crossbow bolts.

Not long after, Sun Shao died.

The thirty-odd men who had been hesitant at first saw Sun Shao and the Imperial Guard Commander fall dead, and more than ten of them finally rushed forward, crying out, and died for their cause.

The other half, on the other hand, abandoned their troops and surrendered to the land.

Fu Kuang glanced at it and ordered them all killed.

These people might not be of any use to the Han Dynasty if they are kept alive; on the contrary, they might cause trouble. Moreover, his own soldiers are currently serving as a feint and have no military merits, so he is looking to kill people to vent his anger.

Just then, Zhang Biao, who had been silently observing, suddenly stepped forward.

"Anton, wait!"

He bowed to Fu Kuang:

“Since they have already laid down their weapons, it would be inauspicious to kill them.”

"Why not bind him and send him to the main camp for His Majesty and the Grand Commander to decide his fate?"

Fu Kuang hesitated for a moment upon hearing this, then finally nodded.

With a wave of his hand, the Han soldiers behind him quickly stepped forward, began to collect weapons, and bound and guarded the Wu soldiers one by one.

At this moment, Fu Kuang turned his head and said to the scholar beside him, "You lad, you're not some pedantic scholar spouting classical phrases or a Ma Su who only talks about war on paper. His Majesty has his reasons for appointing you as an advisor to the army."

(End of this chapter)