Dynasty Killers: An Epic Novel of Ancient China (The Three Kingdoms Chronicles Book 3) by Baptiste Pinson Wu

Author:Baptiste Pinson Wu [Pinson Wu, Baptiste]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Little Conqueror Press
Published: 2023-08-10T04:00:00+00:00

Ningqiang county, Yi province

12th month, 4th year of the Jingyuan era of the Cao Wei empire (263)

The silence is heavy around the fire. None dare to speak, but I can see the desire to ask questions in their eyes. None more so than General Zhong Hui, to whom I owed this audience. Some are old friends, and they’ve heard this story before; the others are the officers of the Cao Wei empire who remained behind as I recovered. Of course, they did not choose to do so out of their good heart for an old, feeble veteran. Not so long ago, we fought on opposite sides of the battlefield, and for the more advanced in age among them, I might have killed some of their comrades. No, if they remained behind it was out of loyalty to Zhong Hui. Two factions exist within this Cao Wei army, but that’s what you get for sending two generals with a similar level of authority on a faraway campaign. As long as they worked together, they would be hard to break, but separated, we had a chance. Now that Deng Ai and his faction had taken the road ahead, we could work on Zhong Hui and his followers. We had a lot to prepare if we wanted to put our plan in motion before reaching the border of our former state; many old friends needed a spark of hope to rekindle the fire of their patriotism. And while I regaled this small crowd, Zong Yu would be busy visiting those potential allies. I would give him as much time as possible.

How ironic that the future of our great war resides in my storytelling skills. Truly, I’m thinking we are doomed.

“To think we are sitting across a man who battled Lü Bu,” Zhong Hui says, shaking his head in wonder. “I am without words.”

“That’s a first,” one of his officers comments, which brings a few chuckles from the audience. Zhong Hui is not what could be considered a friendly man, and if the man who had spoken were anything but a close ally, he would have been thrashed by his leader for such a jest. I believe his name is Tian Xu. I will need to keep an eye on him. He could prove useful.

“We are talking of Lü Bu here,” Zhong Hui goes on. “The greatest warrior this land ever saw. The bane of Dong Zhuo, the beast of the north, the master of Red Hare! And you, old general Liao, fought him. A toast to a hero!” he calls, raising his cup and inviting the others to do so as well.

I humbly thank him for his gesture, wishing I could accompany them in their wine. My disease, while it served our plan well, was not faked. I had recovered enough to take a few steps out of the wagon, where Zhong Hui, upon hearing me talk of Lü Bu, insisted I retell the story in the evening, but at my age, one never truly recovers, and I have to be careful if I ever want to see the end of our dealings.

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