Reborn Liu Bei: I'll lead this Three Kingdoms to victory!

April 25th, Jian'an 7th year, Xuchang.

The seventh day of the citywide search.

Zhao Yan stood by the window, looking out through the narrow crack.

There were fewer people on the street.

It's not that there's no one there, it's that there are fewer people from the school administration. A couple of days ago, there were groups of people passing by one after another, but today it took half an hour for a group of three to pass by, walking very slowly, not like a search, but more like a street patrol.

He glanced towards the alley entrance.

The old man who always squats there selling steamed buns didn't come today.

Zhao Yan's heart skipped a beat. The old man was Xun Qu's man.

He took a step back, went back into the house, and closed the door.

After waiting for half an hour, footsteps sounded outside the door. Three short, two long, three short. Zhao Yan opened the door.

Xun Qu slipped inside.

His complexion was a little better than a few days ago, but he was still thin, with sunken eyes and prominent cheekbones.

"What about the old man?" Zhao Yan asked.

Xun Qu sat down and took a sip of water first.

"He was transferred," he said. "The people in charge, Zheng, noticed that he was squatting there every day. Although they didn't find anything, they thought he was in the way, so they moved him to another place."

Zhao Yan breathed a sigh of relief. "Where did it go?"

"West of the city," Xun Qu said, "Let's find another place and continue squatting."

Zhao Yan didn't speak. He looked at Xun Qu and noticed that he seemed a little different today.

It wasn't her complexion, it was her eyes.

That look in his eyes was like someone who had been waiting for a long time and had finally received some news.

"What happened?" Zhao Yan asked.

Xun Qu looked at him.

"Western Liang".

Zhao Yan was taken aback.

"Ma Teng?"

"Hmm." Xun Qu nodded. "Cao Cao received news that there was some unusual activity on Ma Teng's side. We don't know the specifics, but Cao Cao summoned Chief Zheng this morning, and he didn't come out for half an hour."

Zhao Yan's heart raced again. Unrest had broken out in Xiliang. Cao Cao was distracted. This meant—

"Is the big lock about to loosen?" he asked.

Xun Qu nodded. "Soon," he said, "but it can't move yet."

Zhao Yan understood. He couldn't move. He had to wait. Wait for the most opportune moment.

The rear hall of the Xiapi Governor's Office.

Liu Bei sat at his desk, with a middle-aged man standing in front of him.

The man was in his forties, dressed in ordinary cloth clothes, his face dusty from the journey, clearly having traveled a long way. He stood there, his back ramrod straight, his eyes fixed on Liu Bei without a trace of fear.

Horse play.

Ma Teng's cousin, a veteran of the Xiliang army, had fought alongside Ma Teng for twenty years.

"Lord Liu," Ma Wan said, his voice rough and carrying the distinctive accent of Xiliang, "My general asked me to deliver a message."

Liu Bei nodded.

"Please speak."

Ma Wan took a letter out of his pocket, held it with both hands, and handed it to Liu Bei.

Liu Bei took it and opened it.

The letter was short, but every word was as sharp as a knife.

"Lord Liu: Cao Cao has deceived the emperor, bestowed upon him the Nine Bestowments, and promoted him to Duke of Wei, which has aroused the indignation of the people. Although I am in Xiliang, I am aware of his disloyal intentions. Now, Chao'er is in Xuchang. Although Cao Cao treats him well, he is in reality a hostage. I cannot sleep at night when I think of this. I wish to form an alliance with you, Lord Liu, to jointly punish this traitor. If you are willing, I will lead the troops of Xiliang eastward to Chang'an, so that Cao Cao will be unable to attend to both ends. Ma Teng bows."

After reading the letter, Liu Bei remained silent for a long time. He then handed it to Pang Tong, who was standing beside him. Pang Tong finished reading it and took a swig of wine.

"Ma Shoucheng, this is..." He paused, "...has you thought it through?"

Ma Wan looked at him. "I've made up my mind," he said. "My general has been thinking about this for three years, and now he's made up his mind."

Pang Tong didn't ask any more questions. He just looked at Liu Bei. Liu Bei stood up and walked to the window.

The sun was shining brightly outside, and the pomegranate tree in the yard was in full bloom.

He thought of Ma Chao. That young man who grew up in Xiliang, now a hostage in Xuchang, right under Cao Cao's nose. He thought of Ma Teng.

The old general who had guarded Xiliang for twenty years finally decided to rebel.

"General Ma," he turned around, looking at Ma Wan, "what does your general need?"

Ma Wan looked at him. "I need a word from you, my lord."

"What did you say?"

"When will you make your move, my lord?" Ma Wan asked. "My general said that as soon as you make your move, he will immediately raise an army, march east out of Chang'an, and leave Cao Cao unable to attend to both ends."

Liu Bei remained silent for a moment.

Then he said, "Make him wait."

Ma Wan paused for a moment. "Wait?"

"Yes." Liu Bei nodded. "Let's wait for the right opportunity. Let's wait for news from Xuchang. Let's wait for Cao Cao to fall into chaos first."

He watched the horse play.

"Go back and tell General Ma that it will take at most three months. Within three months, I will definitely take action."

Ma Wan stared at him for a long time.

Then he knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "This humble general obeys your command."

The secret chambers in Xiapi were not locked at night.

Sima Yi and Pang Tong sat facing each other. Two secret reports were spread out on the table. One was from Xuchang: "The city-wide search has been relaxed, and the manpower of the Imperial Secretariat has been reduced. News from Xiliang has arrived, and Cao Cao is distracted."

One document came from Xiliang: "Ma Teng sent an envoy to Xiapi, wishing to form an alliance to jointly attack Cao Cao."

Pang Tong took a swig of wine. "Interesting," he said, "two things have come together."

Sima Yi nodded. "Cao Cao must be having a headache right now," he said. "The matter in Xuchang hasn't been investigated yet, and now there's trouble in Xiliang."

Pang Tong looked at him. "Which side do you think he'll attend to first?"

Sima Yi thought for a moment. "Xiliang," he said, "no matter how big the matter in Xuchang is, it's an internal traitor. If Xiliang rebels, it's an external threat. Cao Cao knows the difference between what's important and what's not.

Pang Tong nodded. "So..."

"Therefore the great rope will loosen," Sima Yi said, "and it will become looser and looser."

He looked at the secret report from Xudu. "We can move in Xun Qu's direction now."

Pang Tong put down his wine gourd. "How much?"

Sima Yi was silent for a moment. "Move on ten first," he said, "the ten most crucial ones. Don't move more, or we'll be exposed."

Pang Tong nodded. "I'll make the arrangements."

In the east of Xudu City, there is a general store.

Sun Fu stood behind the counter, holding the pair of scissors in his hand.

Soldiers came again today. It was the same three men, but today they didn't search anything. They just stood at the door, glanced around, and left.

Sun Fu stood there, waiting for them to walk away before slowly putting down the scissors.

The curtain was lifted. A person walked in. Sun Fu looked up. Xun Qu.

"Shopkeeper, do you have lamp oil?" Xun Qu asked.

Sun Fu nodded, turned around and took a small jar of lamp oil from the shelf.

Xun Qu paid the money, picked up the oil can, and left. The entire process was conducted without a single unnecessary word.

But just as he took the oil can, a note slipped into Sun Fu's palm.

Sun Fu didn't look at it. He waited until it got dark, until the door was closed, until all was quiet. Only then did he unfold the note under the oil lamp.

The note only had a few words: Choose ten, and wait for further notice.

Sun Fu stared at those words, remaining silent for a long time: Ten. Waiting for further notice.

He knew what it meant. Those people were about to move. He stuffed the note into his mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it. Then he blew out the light, lay down, and stared at the dark ceiling.

This time, he didn't have trouble sleeping. He slept very soundly.

The Prime Minister's Residence in Xudu.

Cao Cao sat in his study with two documents spread out in front of him.

One document, just delivered by Manager Zheng, details the progress of the city-wide manhunt. It lists how many people were arrested, how many households were searched, and what was uncovered—all petty thieves, none of whom are connected to Wang Pu's case.

The other report came from Xiliang.

Ma Teng has recently been training his troops. His stated reason is that the Qiang people are restless and need to be guarded against. However, his scouts report that things are peaceful and nothing is amiss on the Qiang side.

Cao Cao frowned more and more as he looked at the two documents.

Footsteps came from outside the door.

"Prime Minister," came the voice of Chief Clerk Zheng.

"Come in."

Chief Clerk Zheng pushed open the door and entered, his face grave. "Prime Minister, there's new news from Xiliang..."

Cao Cao looked up. "Speak."

Master Zheng took out a secret report from his sleeve and presented it with both hands.

Cao Cao took it and unfolded it. He glanced at it, and his hand clenched. "Ma Teng has sent an envoy to Xuzhou, seemingly to make contact with Liu Bei."

Cao Cao closed his eyes. The study was eerily quiet. After a long while, he opened his eyes.

"Master Zheng."

"exist."

"The citywide search and rescue operation must be suspended for now."

Chief Clerk Zheng was taken aback. "The Prime Minister?"

"Transfer all the people to the north," Cao Cao said. "The matter in Xuchang is not urgent. The matter in Xiliang is urgent."

Manager Zheng bowed his head. "Yes, sir."

He left. Cao Cao sat alone in his study, looking at the two documents. One was about a traitor within Xuchang. The other was about an external threat from Xiliang.

He suddenly felt incredibly tired. A kind of exhaustion that seeped into his very bones. But he couldn't stop. If he stopped, he would lose.

The sky was beginning to lighten with the first light of dawn.

Zhao Yan stood by the window, having not slept all night.

Today he saw the old man who sells steamed buns come again.

It's not the original location; it's across the alleyway.

He squatted there, with a bamboo basket in front of him containing a dozen or so steaming steamed buns.

Zhao Yan looked at the old man and suddenly wanted to laugh. He moved to another spot and squatted down again. People from Xunqu are just different. A soft sound came from the windowsill.

Zhao Yan walked over and opened the window. In the moonlight, a small pebble lay on the windowsill.

It was bluish-green and round. He reached out, picked up the pebble, and gently pinched it in his palm.

The pebble cracked open. Inside was a tiny slip of paper. He unfolded it and read it by the moonlight.

The note contained only a few words:

"Choose ten. Wait."

Zhao Yan stood there, motionless. A cool night breeze blew in. He stuffed the note into his mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it. Then he lay back on the couch and closed his eyes. Choose ten. Wait, it'll be soon.