Lieren County, county office.
Lu Zhi sat kneeling at the head of the table, his brow furrowed with worry. Kneeling to his left was a man named Cao Cao, short in stature with sharp eyes. To his right knelt Dong Zhuo, burly and stout, with a thick beard and hair.
Platters of fruit and wine had been set before all three. There were no musicians playing in the hall, nor any beauties singing and dancing.
Lu Zhi took a sip of wine and let out a quiet sigh.
Seeing how dejected he was, Cao Cao felt a little displeased and spoke up. "Lord Lu, why are you so downcast? It was only one defeat. Have you lost heart already?"
Dong Zhuo's plump face glistened with oil. At this, he narrowed his eyes and sized up Cao Cao and Lu Zhi.
Faced with Cao Cao's indignation, Lu Zhi smiled wryly. "This has nothing to do with victory or defeat."
Cao Cao frowned. "Are you worried about the Immortal Gods?"
Although he and Dong Zhuo had only just arrived in Lieren, they had heard of the Yellow Heaven Holy Infant's descent as soon as they entered Ji Province.
They did not really believe it, though—especially Dong Zhuo. He was a reckless fellow who feared neither Heaven nor earth, had killed countless people, and scoffed at talk of ghosts and gods.
Cao Cao did not believe it either, but the thought still left him uneasy.
Lu Zhi nodded slightly. "Exactly. Unless we get to the bottom of the matter of the gods, our army will lose every battle."
Cao Cao fixed Lu Zhi with his sharp gaze. The latter remained utterly calm.
"You're only emboldening the Moth Bandits and dampening our own spirits." Cao Cao was somewhat displeased, but Lu Zhi was renowned throughout the land, so he still had to show him respect.
Lu Zhi sighed.
He had known it. These generals, who had walked through blades and flames, simply did not believe his talk of ghosts and gods. They might even think he had been defeated by the Yellow Turban Army and frightened out of his wits.
Cao Cao spoke with fervor. "Lord Lu, I am willing to lead troops around Quzhou and the outskirts of Guangzong, hunting down and killing the Yellow Turbans' mounted scouts!"
As a Cavalry Commandant of the imperial court, and with his family's immense wealth behind him, Cao Cao had about five thousand men under his command. Fifteen hundred of them were cavalry, swift as the wind and ideal for surprise attacks and cutting through enemy lines.
Lu Zhi waved a hand, refusing.
Though the imperial court had stripped him of his post as General of the Household by then, his prestige was enough to keep a "newcomer" like Cao Cao in check. Of course, if Cao Cao insisted on showing no respect for his elder and marched out anyway, there was little Lu Zhi could do.
When Lu Zhi still refused, Cao Cao turned his gaze to Dong Zhuo. Dong Zhuo was a shrewd man. He lowered his head and drank, wanting no part in Cao Cao's plan to send out troops.
He had only eight thousand men under his command: four thousand old hands from Liang Province, and another four thousand assigned to him by the court and local authorities.
If he marched out and lost, and his core Liang Province troops were wiped out, he would be weeping bitter tears.
Cao Cao felt a fire burning inside him. He wanted nothing more than to point at the two "cowards" and curse them.
"In this world, why does everyone only care about their own petty, grubby schemes? Is there no one who will loyally restore the Han?!"
Suppressing his anger, he rose to his feet. "Lord Lu, I suddenly feel unwell. I'll take my leave."
Lu Zhi could see how displeased the young man was with him, but he did not mind. "That's fine. Go on, Mengde."
Cao Cao turned sharply and strode out of the room. From far away came a cold snort.
Lu Zhi's expression did not change as he continued to drink, though the worry between his brows remained.
Dong Zhuo was a seasoned man. He did not mention what had just happened, nor did he bring up the Immortal Gods. He simply focused on keeping Lu Zhi company over their drinks.
The two drank cup after cup, and the gathering ended only when they were both tipsy and the guests had left.
Meanwhile.
At Guangzong City, the gates stood wide open.
Tian Feng, tall and straight-backed, sat in an ox cart and gazed at the dense crowds streaming in and out of the city. Beyond the walls lay fields where many farmers were rushing to sow wheat, a lively scene all around.
Tian Feng wondered to himself, "Why doesn't Guangzong City look at all like it's preparing for war? They're so lax that they haven't even shut the gates, and they're letting people farm outside?"
More than ten thousand Han troops were stationed in Lieren County, not far from Guangzong. By all rights, the Yellow Turban Army in Guangzong should have scouts roaming the countryside, everyone on edge, and a grim air hanging over the place.
Yet it looked as if the land were at peace. Everyone wore a smile, utterly unconcerned that an enemy might attack.
Tian Feng stroked his short beard and gave an order. "Let's go. We're entering the city!"
Sweat beaded in the driver's palm. He sounded apprehensive. "Young master, Guangzong is full of Moth Bandits. Not one of them is decent. They kill without blinking. You're of noble birth—perhaps you shouldn't go in?"
Tian Feng smiled. "The Yellow Turban Army has posted notices throughout Julu, announcing that it has established a Political Academy and a Science Institute to recruit talent from across the land. They're hardly going to kill someone like me, who intends to join them."
Tian Feng came from the declining Tian Clan of Julu Commandery. His status was far from noble, but he had made a name for himself at a young age through his devotion to his parents and his exceptional talent.
When the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out in Ye City, Ji Province, Tian Feng grew wary and immediately took his clan to a manor in the countryside, where they fortified themselves for protection.
After Lu Zhi led the Han Army against Zhang Jiao and trapped him in Guangzong, Tian Feng felt much safer and brought many trusted clansmen to Ye City, a major stronghold of the Han Army.
At the time, he thought Lu Zhi would pacify the Yellow Turbans in Ji Province within a few months, and then he could return to his hometown in Julu. But no one could have imagined that Lu Zhi, who had won a hundred battles, would actually be defeated!
And lose all twenty thousand of his elite troops!
When word reached Ye City, everyone was thrown into a panic. If Lu Zhi had not remained in Lieren County, showing that he was still resisting the Yellow Turban Army, the powerful clans of Ye City would likely have already moved to Luoyang.
After all, Ye City was not very far from Luoyang, which offered the greatest security of all. No matter how strong the Yellow Turban Army was, surely it could not take Luoyang, could it?
Amid his alarm, Tian Feng also keenly followed the rumors about the Yellow Heaven Holy Infant. He believed Lu Zhi's defeat could not be separated from it. Many thought the Immortal Gods were a lie Lu Zhi had invented to escape blame, but Tian Feng suspected they were the key to the battle.
Curious by nature and always both bold and cautious, he took an ox cart to Lieren County. There he heard even more rumors about the Yellow Heaven Holy Infant and saw the defeated soldiers, shaken and terrified by divine might.
This only made him more curious about the Yellow Turban Army and the Sovereign Yellow Absolute God. He was also beginning to believe that the gods might truly exist. When news came that the Yellow Turbans in Guangzong were posting notices to recruit talent, he tossed and turned all night, weighing his options again and again, until he finally decided to enter Guangzong under an assumed name and see what was happening.
As a son of a distinguished clan, even one whose fortunes were declining so badly that it could not compare to some powerful clans, entering an enemy camp alone seemed foolish. But Tian Feng understood that after the descent of the Immortal Gods—whose existence was still uncertain—and the rout of tens of thousands of Han troops, the world had changed completely!
If the Immortal Gods were false, Ji Province still held a vast force of one hundred thousand Yellow Turbans, now "reinforced" with elite Han troops. Given time, they could transform into a truly powerful army.
And with the land enduring a prolonged drought and the people reduced to utter misery, who would rule the realm amid such upheaval was anyone's guess.
If the Immortal Gods were real, then the Great Han was doomed to fall. He had to find his clan a good way forward in advance...