Vol 9 Chapter 57 (1/2)

VOLUME 9 CHAPTER 57: DON’T TELL ME THIS IS A BANQUET IN XINYE (9)

Liu Bei POV

Ah, that’s way too scary.

“Well then, does big brother have anything to add?” Yun Chang looked around before asking me.

“As for me…” Because I had already sought advice from Yuan Zhi, and she said something similar, I do not have anything against what Yun Chang said, I thought as I looked at Yuan Zhi and saw that she was quietly thinking.

“*Dang* Excuse me.” Wen Yuan said as she clanged her bowl against the table and spoke up, “Can I confirm what you said 1 more time?”

Yun Chang was puzzled but she nodded, “Is there any problem?”

“What I want to ask is, Yun Chang wants to broadcast that our lord is still alive and let Cao Cao go around Xinye unharmed and attack Xiangyang?”

“To put it simply, yes, that is what I suggested.” Yun Chang nodded with a forceful look in her eyes.

“Un…” Wen Yuan did not nod immediately and merely smiled cheekily as she took a sip of liquor before looking at Feng Xian, “What do you think, my lord?”

“… Me?” Feng Xian had been silent and motionless the entire time and only just spoke up when Wen Yuan called out to her, “Well, I am fine with anything really.” She said as she stroked Red Hare, “No matter what, peace is the best but we are in troubled times. If we don’t do anything at all, that would be a little too boring.”

Feng Xian’s words were contradicting but it seemed like she herself realised this as she chuckled when she finished and took a sip of liquor.

“I understand what my lord means.” However, Wen Yuan understood what she meant and gave a small sigh as she turned to Yun Chang, “As for what think, it might be a little immature here.”

Wen Yuan smiled when she finished and did not continue, perhaps because the overwhelming majority was in favour of Yun Chang’s suggestion. It was clear that she had more to say. In that case, she ought to say it.

“Wen Yuan, go ahead and say what you want to say.” I encouraged her since Yun Chang did not say anything and merely waited for Wen Yuan to continue.

“… Alright, since my lord has said as much, I’ll say it then.” Wen Yuan said as she set her empty bowl down on the table and stood up, “I think that, whether or not we broadcast our lord’s survival, we should fight Cao Cao’s troops.”

“Un, un.” Zhou Cang nodded vigorously.

“But our troops are limited. If we fight, in the long term–”

“We will think about the long term when we get there.” Wen Yuan seemed a bit agitated and she herself was aware of this, “I understand very clearly the ramifications of doing so and your justifications for what you proposed but I just cannot bring myself to accept it.”

“Why is that?” Yun Chang asked.

“I just feel that it’s not very righteous of us to use our lord’s survival to get peace!”

“Well said.” Zhou Cang added as she bounced about. Looking at how energetic she is, she’s probably very eager for the upcoming battle.

“But now isn’t the time to talk about being righteous.” Zi Long said as she looked down and folded her arms, “What we should think about is what kind of role we should play if we partic.i.p.ate actively in the campaign.”

“A new role.” Wen Yuan continued as she raised her arm, “Before this, from Xu state to Guandu, we did not partic.i.p.ate in any battles nor were we a truly independent faction. Now, we’ve

practically separated from Liu Biao with Xinye. It wasn’t easy getting here and our lord nearly died. After all we’ve been through, we would seem like useless cowards to hole up and proclaim neutrality.”

As Wen Yuan said so, she began to pace as she frowned, “This battle is to let everyone know that there is 1 more faction out there fighting for the Great Han. And this battle, is also for all of us to turn things around.”

“Un.” Yun Chang nodded but she was still frowning, “But it will be almost impossible for us to achieve victory in this battle.”

“We can always find a way to retreat later on. But finding ways to advance our cause will only grow fewer in time.” Wen Yuan said definitively and cruelly. She then raised her arm and pointed at everyone in turn, “Everyone of us here has their own path and all of us wants to walk it till the end. To do this, we can only continue walking on.”

Path… Wen Yuan’s words jolted me, and everyone else as well. I could feel my blood burning and when I looked around, I saw that everyone else was the same. Perhaps Wen Yuan is more talented in oratorical skills than I am.

“Wen Yuan.” Just then, Feng Xian called out to Wen Yuan.