PFC Chapter 116 Sun Bofu, the Dog Who Lost His Home
Chapter 116 Sun Bofu, the Dog Who Lost His Home
Below the hall, Ju Shou and Tian Feng exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with surprise.
I knew Yuan Tan was brave, but I didn't expect him to be this brave.
Not only did they win the counterattack in self-defense, but they also captured the capital.
It would be difficult to find another example of this feat in history books.
Guo Tu and Feng Ji's expressions changed slightly.
With the eldest son in such a powerful position, the third son's situation becomes even more precarious.
"Good! Good! Good!" Yuan Shao suddenly burst into laughter, saying "Good!" three times in a row, his face beaming. "My son Xiansi, you truly have the style of your father!"
A huge weight was lifted off his shoulders.
Sun Ce, the biggest threat in the south, was actually eliminated by Yuan Tan.
In this way, the worries about the south are greatly reduced.
"My lord," Tian Feng said urgently, "even so, we must still be cautious about attacking Lü Bu..."
"Yuan Hao, there's no need for further words." Yuan Shao waved his hand, in high spirits. "Cao Cao's strategy, though akin to using one tiger to devour another, is also beneficial to us. Lü Bu is a wolf in sheep's clothing; he will inevitably become a threat in the long run. The Imperial Seal is a national treasure; how can it be allowed to be privately possessed by a mere commoner?"
He paused, then looked at the crowd:
"However, what you say makes sense. Xiansi has just finished a major battle and should not move again. Therefore, report back to the court that this general has been ordered to immediately prepare troops to attack Lü Bu. At the same time, order Xiansi to prepare troops in Huainan, making it appear as if he is advancing eastward to contain Lü Bu's forces. As for Liyang..."
He looked north, a sharp glint in his eyes:
"Tell Chunyu Qiong to intensify preparations for war. Also urge Chen Lin to finish that proclamation quickly. When the time is right, I will personally lead a large army south to purge the court of corrupt officials and eliminate the traitor Cao!"
"Ming Gong is wise!"
Guo Tu and Feng Ji immediately flattered him.
Ju Shou and Tian Feng opened their mouths, but ultimately said nothing more.
They knew that Yuan Shao's mind was made up.
Moreover, Sun Ce's defeat and death did indeed change the situation.
Yuan Shao rose and picked up his wine cup:
"Today, double happiness arrives, let us raise a toast! Come, drink this cup to the brim, to celebrate Xian Sihe's passing, and to celebrate the Yuan family!"
Inside the hall, everyone raised their glasses, and the music resumed.
……
Sun Ce lay prone in the reeds by the river, as humble as a stray dog.
He had been soaking in the muddy water for most of the night, looking at the city of Moling on the opposite bank.
The banner planted on the city wall was no longer Sun Ce's, but a conspicuous banner with the character "Yuan".
"Moling has also been lost?"
The river water was very cold, and his wounds turned white from being soaked in it, but he couldn't feel any pain.
Three days ago, he crawled out of the Huainan battlefield.
The soldiers risked their lives to save his life.
He swam across the river, hid among the rotten fish on the fishing boats to evade inspection, and begged his way back to Moling.
He waited until late at night, and during a shift change, he crawled through an abandoned water gate.
The city was completely unfamiliar to me.
The streets are still the same streets, but the atmosphere has completely changed.
There were more soldiers patrolling at night, and they spoke with northern accents.
Occasionally, a night watchman would strike the clapper, his voice weak and feeble.
Some of the houses were sealed off; they were the former residences of officials from Jiangdong.
As dawn approached, he hid in a dilapidated ancestral hall.
This is his uncle's ancestral hall, which fell into disrepair in its early years and is rarely visited.
He huddled under the offering table, listening to the sounds gradually rising outside, his vision blurring with hunger.
He needs information.
Any messages.
There was a small teahouse in the south of the city, a melting pot of all sorts of people.
Sun Ce made himself look disheveled to ensure that no one would recognize him.
That's how I arrived here. I ordered the cheapest bowl of coarse tea and started listening intently.
At the next table were several porters, drinking and chatting.
"Have you heard? That scoundrel Sun Ce is finished!"
A man was spitting as he spoke.
"I'd heard about it. The entire army was wiped out! Tsk tsk, thirty thousand Jiangdong men, all gone..."
Others nearby chimed in.
"Serves him right! Who told him to collude with Lü Bu and try to seize Huainan? Yuan Qingzhou was acting on behalf of Heaven!"
Sun Ce gripped the edge of the broken bowl tightly, his body trembling with anger.
Yuan Tan is acting on behalf of Heaven?
fart!
At this moment, another thin man lowered his voice:
"Oh, I also heard that Zhou Yu, the handsome Zhou Lang... is gone!"
Sun Ce froze, and his ears rang.
"Zhou Yu? That strategist who looks like a woman?"
"Yes! They say that on the day Moling fell, he refused to surrender and set his own residence on fire, burning it completely to the ground, leaving nothing behind!"
The bowl slipped from Sun Ce's hand and fell onto the adobe ground, spilling the murky tea everywhere.
Gongjin...committed suicide by self-immolation?
His vision went black, and he almost collapsed.
That Zhou Gongjin, his childhood friend, so dashing and heroic, is just... gone?
What about Quan Di?
Where is Shangxiang?
Where were they at that time?
For a moment, he trembled violently, and a huge sense of grief and indignation welled up from the bottom of his heart.
"Hey! You filthy beggar! Are you looking to die?"
The tea stall owner rushed over angrily, pointing at the tea on the ground.
Sun Ce looked up blankly and glared at the other person.
The boss was startled by his gaze. How could a beggar have such sharp eyes?
He walked away grumbling, "What bad luck!"
Sun Ce sat there blankly, and the surrounding sounds turned into a buzzing noise.
Gongjin is dead, his family is missing, Moling is lost, and 30,000 brothers are gone...
His grandson Bofu had truly become a homeless dog.
In a daze, Sun Ce was led by the crowd to a relatively lively restaurant in the city center.
A notice from the government was posted at the entrance of the restaurant, attracting a large crowd.
He instinctively leaned closer.
"...The traitor Sun Ce, who colluded with Lü Bu to wreak havoc in Huainan, has now been executed, and his whereabouts are unknown..."
Someone was reading it haltingly.
"Pah! Good riddance!" someone in the crowd spat.
"Yuan Qingzhou is a truly enlightened ruler; he reduced taxes as soon as he arrived..."
"Exactly. When the Sun family was here, they levied exorbitant taxes and levies; how could they be where they are today?"
Sun Ce felt his heart bleed as he listened to these discussions.
Yuan Tan reduced taxes?
He fought a battle, doesn't he want to recover his losses?
But when did the Sun family start levying exorbitant taxes?
These same people, who not long ago welcomed him into the city with food and drink, now...
He staggered back and leaned against the wall on the opposite street corner, looking at the restaurant.
The seats by the window on the second floor were a place he and Zhou Yu used to frequent.
Just then, a quarrel broke out in the restaurant.
"Stop talking nonsense!" A clear female voice sobbed, "My brother... no... even if Sun Ce had faults, he still protected the borders and the people!"
Sun Ce suddenly looked up. That voice... it was Shang Xiang!
"Hey, young lady, you're speaking up for that traitor, are you perhaps an accomplice?"
A slick voice teased.
"You!" Sun Shangxiang's voice was even angrier.
"My sister is ignorant, please forgive her."
Another hoarse male voice rang out, its tone calm.
"Sun Ce defied the will of Heaven, and his downfall and disgrace are entirely his own fault. We are but humble commoners, seeking only to make a living. Shopkeeper, the bill is due."
Sun Ce stared intently at the entrance of the restaurant.
A moment later, a man and a woman came out.
The woman was dressed as a married woman, with her head down, but her figure and gait were clearly those of her younger sister, Sun Shangxiang.
The man was dressed in an ordinary scholar's robe and had an upright posture, but several hideous scars crisscrossed his left cheek, almost ruining half of his appearance. Only his eyes were calm and serene.
That's... Gongjin?!
Sun Ce's heart nearly leaped out of his chest.
He's not dead! But his face...
Zhou Yu pulled the still sulking Sun Shangxiang along and quickly left the restaurant.
As Zhou Yu passed the corner of the wall where Sun Ce was leaning, he seemed to be bumped by a passerby and stumbled into Sun Ce.
"Feel sorry."
Zhou Yu whispered, then gave Sun Ce's arm a seemingly unintentional but forceful shove. He steadied himself, grabbed Sun Shangxiang, and without looking back, blended into the crowd, quickly disappearing at the end of the alley.
Sun Ce stood there, stunned, his arm throbbing slightly where he had been pushed.
But he could sense that Gongjin seemed to have discovered him as well.