Battle Royale of the Sinners

December 31st, 181 A.D.

Snow covered wooden shacks, houses, trees, and roads everywhere. It was in the middle of the winter season.

Tong sat in his courtyard within the Zhang Resident in Ningjin County, thinking back what had happened in this year.

Everything turned into chaos once the system announced the existence of the otherworlders.

Tong gazed at the door in the courtyard, the image of Hua Shi, when they had the first conversation, appeared in his mind. The moment when Tong threatened her with a grenade could still be remembered.

Tong laughed in his heart. The grenade he planned to use that day was still with him. Somehow he kept it with him as a good luck charm.

Then he turned his head toward the whitened trees at the back of the resident, where Sima Xin used to hide there. The pain of regret came back to Tong. If he had finished off Sima Xin that day, then the stupid war would not have happened.

"Should have … Would have … Could have … Didn't happen."

Tong shook his head to shake off the thought.

Tong walked to the graveyard of the family to pray to his mother. Then he found that his father was already there.

"Hey, dad."

"Oh, son. You are here too?"

Both father and son knelt down and lit the incense sticks as they prayed to Tong's mother.

"I've heard it from everyone. You did well."

Tong smiled in bitterness and shook his head.

"You sure have a high standard." Zhang Jiao bemused.

"I could have done it better."

"We all have survived because of you, but you are not satisfied."

"I could have prevented the war."

Zhang Jiao sighed. His son was too ambitious. If he continued to behave this way, he could destroy himself.

"No man is perfect. Just learn from your mistakes. You can do it better next time."

Zhang Jiao smiled at Tong and patted his shoulder as he stood up. Then Tong stood up and looked at his father.

"Thanks, dad."

Tong stepped forward and hug his father. Zhang Jiao was surprised. In China in this era, people did not hug each other to express love, but they bowed or kowtowed to their seniors to show respect. If someone were to hug a senior, it could be mistaken as a disrespectful behavior and would be punished. However, Tong had forgotten about the culture and hugged his father by instinct.

Zhang Jiao came to his sense. He patted the back of his son. The feeling of hugging a family member was not so bad.

Tong also realized what he had done. He stepped back in a hurry and bowed to his father.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

"Haha. No big deal. Actually, I haven't hugged you since you were a baby. It's fine."

Zhang Jiao laughed as he left the graveyard in a great mood. Then a servant came for him.

"Report the great teacher. Lord Zhang Bao has come back with a group of officials from the capital. They are waiting for you inside the main hall."

"Oh?"

Zhang Jiao looked at the servant in confusion. Afterward, he glanced at Tong.

"You did something weird again?"

Tong laughed awkwardly and nodded.

"It was insurance to get you back from the Yuan family."

…

…

Tong, Zhang Jiao, Zhang Liang and Hua Shi arrived at the main hall together. The eunuch was already there as he sat on the main seat while his entourages stood behind him. Zhang Bao was also there, attending the guests.

The eunuch stood up. His entourage knelt and handed him a golden pedestal tray with a golden scroll on top. He asked.

"Are you Zhang Jiao?"

"Yes, I am Zhang Jiao."

"Good! Kneel and receive the edict from the emperor!"

Everyone knelt down and cupped their hands. All of them kept their head down as if they were kneeling to the emperor himself.

The eunuch picked up the golden scroll, opened it, and read it out loud.

"Zhang Jiao of Ningjin! You have contributed to the people and the emperor well! The number of tributes was rival that of several cities combined. The emperor has judged that your talents and your abilities should not be wasted as a commoner in this rural area! You shall be bestowed with the title of governor of Julu County to replace the incompetent Guo Dian! The Emperor hopes that you can continue your contribution to the imperial court. Here is the imperial edict with the emperor seal, take it!"

Zhang Jiao opened his eyes wide in confusion. Then he saw Tong who was winking at him.

'So that was what he did.'

Zhang Jiao sighed in his heart. His son seemed to have gifts in politics. He might do well as an official in the future.

"Thank you, your majesty! May your majesty lives tens of thousands of years!"

The eunuch nodded and handed over the imperial decree scroll to Zhang Jiao. Then he asked.

"I've heard that you have special products here. Can I see it?"

Zhang Jiao frowned. Was this eunuch about to ask for a bribe?

Zhang Jiao hated corrupted officials with a passion. His face was getting reddened as his anger rose. However, before he said anything, Tong spoke out.

"Yes, Lao Gong Gong. I'll prepare them for you as your souvenirs in return."

The imperial eunuch laughed as he enjoyed the bootlicking. He liked Tong's attitude.

"Very good! I'll be sure to put good words to the emperor once I return!"

"Thank you! Lao Gong Gong!"

Tong did not hold back. He had his servants brought out a dozen barrels of beer and a hundred of his unsold soap bars. They laid it down in the middle of the main hall.

"These are our humble products. You can have them."

"Good! Good! You are very sensible! Zhang Jiao, you have a very good son. You should be proud! HAHAHA!"

The eunuch laughed as he ordered his servants to pack the gifts into his carriage. He did not want to spend a night in this rural village, but a big city or in a better luxurious tent that he had prepared for himself.

…

After the eunuch and his entourage left, Zhang Jiao glared at his son as he disapproved of his action.

"I know what I did was against your ideal. But sometimes bending to the power temporary is a better solution than colliding with the power head-on."

"But you didn't bend to Yuan family, yet you bend to the corrupted government?"

Tong laughed and answered his father.

"Yuan Shao and his families are destined to thrive. But the emperor is going to die soon. So pretending to be loyal to him for a few years is better than becoming a permanent dog of a noble family."

Zhang Jiao gave Tong a meaningful look as he was thinking about what Tong said. Then he nodded.

"Alright. But I hope you won't do it again."

"Yeah, I don't want to bow my head to anyone too. For now, we're too weak, so we have no choice."

"What kind of "too weak" are you talking about? Can someone who is renowned as the Immortal Beast who got stabbed by a dozen spears yet he is still alive be weak?"

Tong was shocked by what he heard.

"You knew about that?"

"Yes, I knew. That new butler Tian Feng gave me a bunch of scrolls that recorded all of your deeds in the war! I thought you were even crippled back then."

"Wow, he sure treated you well. Did he torture you or put you in inconvenient position?"

"No. He is more admirable comparing to that asshole Feng, but I feel that the new guy is more dangerous. His actions were all masked, I can't read him at all."

Tong nodded. Tian Feng was indeed a dangerous strategist. If Yuan Shao utilized him and Ju Shou properly in the history, Cao Cao might not be able to take over the Northern provinces of China.

Then Tong was reminded that he had to create a better intelligent organization soon. Everyone around him seemed to have all the information of him and his army activities. The leak of information about him and his army might kill them in the future. Therefore, this became a homework for him to complete once he took Julu County.

Tong also realized that he could neither rely solely on his radar map nor ignored the importance of the intel agents, spies, counter-spies and scouts. The previous battle and the family struggles had proven that the Zhang family still lacked talents and proper intelligence agencies.

"How did you get the emperor to notice us?" Zhang Jiao asked.

"Bribe him, of course. A hundred thousand gold for a position of a governor and temporary protection from the emperor."

Zhang Jiao almost choked blood. Did tong spend a hundred thousand gold to save his life? As a father, he felt guilty because he dragged his son down.

"Oh well, just be careful not to get yourself killed in the future."

Zhang Jiao patted Tong's head and left with Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang. He gave up questioning Tong further as he was no longer in a good mood. Because he had just been shoved with the position of the governor of Julu, there was much preparation he had to do.

Zhang Jiao thought that he, too, could not become a burden to his son anymore. There should be something that he could do to befit that of a father for Tong.

Tong looked at the back of his departing father. He muttered to himself.

"Stay safe, father."

"You won't die a tragic death in this world."

"I'll let you see the world of your dream."

"Your ideal is my ideal. Yellow Turban may fail, but our dreams will prevail!"