At the end of the Han dynasty, Jiaozhou was perhaps the most overlooked of the great provinces. Even Romance of the Three Kingdoms barely mentioned it.
Yet precisely because it drew so little attention, it remained peaceful for quite a long time.
This not only led large numbers of people to migrate to Jiaozhou, but also drew many talented men south.
Xue Zong was one of them. His family had originally been a prominent clan of Pei Commandery, descended from Tian Wen, Lord Mengchang of Qi Kingdom.
Later, after the Tian clan had been enfeoffed in Xue Kingdom, they all changed their surname to Xue. They served as officials generation after generation and became one of the major local clans.
But when the Yellow Turban Rebellion arrived, the Xue family relocated wholesale to Jiaozhou.
In the original course of events, after the Battle of Red Cliffs, he submitted to Sun Quan along with Shi Xie and became Administrator of Hepu and Jiaozhi in turn.
Later, he repeatedly remonstrated with Sun Quan and rose to the post of Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince, becoming one of the renowned ministers of the Wu Kingdom.
But at this time, Xue Zong was still a young man in his twenties. By Zhang Jin's order, he had come to Qin Tian's camp as an envoy.
Qin Tian had originally had no wish to receive Zhang Jin's envoy, but upon hearing that it was Xue Zong, he allowed him into the camp.
The moment Xue Zong entered the camp, he hurriedly offered his respects. To his surprise, Qin Tian waved a hand and said, "No need for such courtesy, sir. I had no wish to see the envoy of that traitor Zhang Jin. I only agreed to meet you because I respect that you come