Wei Xiaobao's Three Kingdoms Adventure

Chapter 22: Too Much Wine
Zuo Feng snorted and slammed the wine glass in his hand heavily on the edge of the table, and the wine in the glass spilled onto his sleeves.

Wei Xiaobao didn't know the identities of the two eunuchs opposite him, but Lu Zhi did. He was even more aware of how sensitive eunuchs were to the phrase "men's stuff", so he scolded them, "Xiaobao, don't be rude. Apologize to Lord Zuo quickly."

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "If I make them angry and this meal ends hastily, maybe that old brat Lu Zhi will have to teach me a lesson. It would be better if I could cheer them up and get them drunk. Then I can have a chance to escape."

Wei Xiaobao stood up, reached out to scoop a spoonful of wine from the wine bottle in front of him and poured it into the wine glass, then walked towards Zuo Feng holding the wine glass.

The man next to Zuo Feng quickly reached out and pressed on the hilt of the long sword at his waist.

Lu Zhi said, "I am a naughty boy, and I have offended you unintentionally. I hope you will not take it personally."

Zuo Feng said, "Lord Lu is a famous scholar in the imperial court. How could he have such a vulgar student?"

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "Oh, I'm toasting you, and you still look down on me."

Lu Zhi said, "Although my disciple comes from a humble background, he has been able to put the court first and turn from darkness to light. I will definitely teach him well in the future. I also hope that Master Zuo will take good care of him. I hope that one day I can achieve the same success as Master Tang."

The man beside Zuo Feng twitched his face when he heard Lu Zhi's words. He said, "Lord Lu, you are too kind. Everything I have now is a gift from the Emperor and Lord Zuo. I dare not even think about rising to prominence. I only hope to serve the court."

Zuo Feng laughed dryly, picked up the remaining half glass of wine on the table and drank it all.

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "Master Tang? Could this person be Tang Zhou?"

Lu Zhi said, "Xiaobao, drink this cup quickly and then apologize to Lord Tang."

Wei Xiaobao drained his glass, then refilled his own and Lord Tang's glasses across from him and said, "I envy Lord Tang for being able to work alongside Lord Zuo. Although I was able to capture the traitor Tang Qin under Lord Lu's arrangement, this contribution is really insignificant compared to Lord Tang's."

Before Wei Xiaobao arrived, Lu Zhi had already been talking to Zuo Feng and the others for a long time. Although Wei Xiaobao didn't know what Lu Zhi had said, it was right for him to continue following Lu Zhi's words. He also wanted to test whether the Tang Lord across from him was the Tang Zhou he had guessed.

That man was indeed Tang Zhou, and he had already heard from Lu Zhi that Wei Xiaobao had helped him capture Tang Qin. Hearing Wei Xiaobao's confession, Tang Zhou's eyes were already burning with anger, but he could only pick up the wine glass and drink with Wei Xiaobao.

Although Tang Zhou's expression changed only for a moment, it did not escape Wei Xiaobao's eyes.

Wei Xiaobao finished his drink and walked back to his seat. Before he sat down, he glanced at Tang Zhou again and realized he was staring at him. Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "You look like you're going to eat me. It seems you must be Tang Zhou, and the man in the prison van outside is definitely your brother. But you're just a eunuch, how could you follow such a high-ranking official to the front lines? Is that Zuo Feng also a eunuch? That's right, he must be a eunuch, otherwise why would he get so angry just because I mentioned men's stuff?"

Thinking of this, Wei Xiaobao looked down at his crotch and a sarcastic smile appeared on his face again.

Tang Zhou had been staring at Wei Xiaobao. Seeing his actions and expressions, he thought he was mocking him again. He gritted his teeth in hatred and the muscles on his face trembled a few times.

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "Could this Zuo Feng be the eunuch Chen Bai mentioned? If so, how can I contact him? Zhang Liang only said to leave a secret code in the barracks, but I don't know what it is. Even if I did know, I can't just go and contact him directly. What if he's not the eunuch I'm looking for? Wouldn't I be sticking my head out for someone to snap?"

As he was thinking, Wei Xiaobao unconsciously filled a glass of wine and drank it into his mouth. When he put down the glass, he saw Tang Zhou still staring at him, and subconsciously nodded at him.

Tang Zhou thought Wei Xiaobao was provoking him, so he drank a glass as well and raised his neck towards Wei Xiaobao.

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself: "It seems that you are a little unconvinced!"

Wei Xiaobao and Tang Zhou drank three more cups each in this way.

When he picked up the wine glass again, Wei Xiaobao glanced at Lu Zhi and Zuo Feng, and saw that they were exchanging polite words with each other, and the wine glasses in their hands kept rising and falling. When he looked at Tang Zhou again, he saw that he was tilting his head back to drink.

Wei Xiaobao took the opportunity to pour the wine in the glass behind him.

The four men in the military tent, Zuo Feng and Lu Zhi were drinking and discussing the court's rewards for the troops and the attack on Guangzong County. Tang Zhou wanted to compete with Wei Xiaobao in drinking capacity, while Wei Xiaobao was thinking about how to verify Zuo Feng's identity while looking for an opportunity to empty his wine glass.

Tang Zhou was filled with anger, and was tricked by Wei Xiaobao. Soon he was drunk and his body was shaking.

Zuo Feng suddenly spoke up, "Since Lord Lu insists on surrounding the city without attacking, we won't need all the food and supplies we brought this time. I'll have to take half back and return it to the emperor." Lu Zhi said, "Lord Zuo has already worked very hard escorting the supplies all the way. Wouldn't it be even more troublesome for you to bring them back? It would be better to return to Luoyang with a light carriage and a few people. You can enjoy the scenery along the way. Besides, most of the army's supplies were burned by the Yellow Turbans. Having more supplies is a good precaution."

Zuo Feng said, "Although the food was burned in order to capture the rebels and spies, it was lost after all. I'm afraid Lord Lu will be held responsible if the court investigates. Since Lord Lu needs to prepare more food, and he feels sorry for us having to go through the hardship on our return journey, why not convert half of the food and supplies into military expenses and let me take it back to report to the Emperor."

Wei Xiaobao chuckled secretly, thinking, "This little eunuch's extortion skills are no worse than your grandfather, Xiao Guizi's. It seems that what Xiao Xuanzi said about eunuchs not interfering in politics is really a good idea. There are at least tens of thousands of officers and soldiers outside. You took away half of their food. Your family, including your grandfather, grandmother, father, mother, and son, would not be able to eat it all in several lifetimes. Oh, by the way, you are a eunuch and have no sons. You said you were taking it back to report to the emperor, but which fool would believe you? Even if you really give it to the emperor in the end, it will have to go through your pocket first, and you have the final say on how much is left. That's what your grandfather did when I raided Aobai's house."

If Wei Xiaobao could understand this, how could Lu Zhi not understand it? Lu Zhi said, "Master Zuo, I have been leading the troops to suppress the Yellow Turban Army for a long time, and the military funds are almost gone."

Zuo Feng said, "Then we have no choice but to take the food and supplies back. After all, we are doing errands for the Emperor, so no matter how hard it is, it is what we deserve."

Lu Zhi said, "The food and fodder were sent before the troops moved, and the food and fodder that had already been delivered to the camp was taken back to Luoyang. Can Lord Zuo bear the charge of disturbing the morale of the army?"

Seeing that Lu Zhi was truly furious, Zuo Feng quickly smiled and said, "Master Lu, please don't be angry. I am only following the Emperor's orders."

Lu Zhi grew even more enraged. Still drunk, he stood up, pointed at Zuo Feng, and cursed, "Don't try to frighten me with the Emperor. If the Emperor hadn't listened to the slander of the eunuchs Feng Xu and Xu Feng and eliminated the Taiping Dao so early, how could he have given the Yellow Turbans time to rise up?"

Wei Xiaobao knew that the two people Lu Zhi was talking about were the eunuchs who were in contact with Ma Yuanyi. Even if Zuo Feng was not the eunuch he was looking for, Lu Zhi said this in front of Zuo Feng, which undoubtedly put the responsibility of the Yellow Turban Rebellion on all the eunuchs including Zuo Feng.

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "What if Zuo Feng is really that eunuch, and is as cowardly as Tang Zhou, and confesses everything after being scolded by Lu Zhi? Wouldn't all my efforts be in vain?"

Wei Xiaobao quickly stood up and supported Lu Zhi, saying, "Sir, you are drunk. Go to bed early."

Lu Zhi was awakened by Wei Xiaobao's words. He realized that he had spoken out of turn and actually complained to the emperor in front of Zuo Feng, the emperor's personal eunuch. He quickly pretended to be drunk and shouted, "Let me go. I'm not drunk. I want to drink three more cups with Master Zuo."

Wei Xiaobao quickly said to Zuo Feng, "Don't mind, Master Zuo. My master is drunk. He never doubted that Master Zuo would collude with the Yellow Turbans, nor did he doubt Master Tang's sincerity in surrendering to the court."

Zuo Feng smiled awkwardly and said, "I can't hold my liquor well either, so I'll take my leave now. Please take good care of Lord Lu, and we'll discuss military matters tomorrow."

Zuo Feng pulled up Tang Zhou, who was already drunk, and fled out of the military tent.

Seeing Zuo Feng leave, Lu Zhi pulled his arm free from Wei Xiaobao's embrace, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "I asked you to come to the banquet simply to convince Zuo Feng that the burning of the military rations was an accidental loss caused by my plan to capture Tang Qin. I never expected that you would actually save my life in the end."

Wei Xiaobao only understood the first half of the sentence but not the second. He thought to himself, "No wonder you, an old fellow, want to treat me to a meal and a drink. It turns out you're using me as a shield."

Lu Zhi added, "I have been discussing the Emperor's faults in front of him and have refused his request for military funds. I am afraid he will certainly gossip about the Emperor when he returns to Luoyang."

Wei Xiaobao thought to himself, "Even if you don't curse the Emperor, you've cut off his source of income, and he won't let you off easily."

Lu Zhi glanced at Wei Xiaobao and said, "Only the two of us know what happened tonight. I want to assign you a task. Are you willing?"

Wei Xiaobao cursed in his heart, "Why are you all the same? You're asking me to agree without even explaining what it is. Did Chen Bai, Zhang Liang, and you all have the same master? Forget it, I'll agree to yours first, and when you fall asleep, I'll slip away."

Wei Xiaobao imitated what Tang Qin had said in front of Zhang Liang and said, "I will follow your instructions!"

Lu Zhi nodded and said, "I was right about you. Zuo Feng and Tang Zhou cannot be kept here. You should take advantage of them while they are drunk."

As he spoke, Lu Zhi stretched out his hand and made a beheading gesture.

Wei Xiaobao groaned inwardly, "Let's not talk about whether Zuo Feng is the person I'm looking for. If I kill them, you can throw the dirty water on me. You will be fine, and I will become your scapegoat. I won't do this!"

Suddenly, the guards came to report: "Report! Zuo Feng and Tang Zhou stole two horses, hijacked Tang Qin in the prison cart, and escaped from the military camp."

Lu Zhi pointed outside the tent and shouted, "Go after them!"

(End of this chapter)