Chapter 30: The Arrival of the Angel

Liu Zhang sent Dong Fu away with the promise of a three-year term.

At present, Liu Mao had only just been subdued within the Provincial Governor's mansion. In the north lay Zhang Lu of Hanzhong, who appeared submissive on the surface but was likely plotting to carve out his own territory in secret. In the southern regions, the Sou tribes rebelled from time to time; a few days ago, news arrived from Yuexi Commandery that a Sou chieftain had stirred up trouble, and Liu Zhang still needed to discuss with Wang Shang who should be sent to quell the uprising.

Close at hand, his own Sima, Zhao Wei, harbored malicious intentions, while many of the great clans of Yizhou remained on the sidelines, waiting to gauge the quality of their new Governor before making their next move.

Liu Zhang’s current situation was precarious, like a house in a storm. His only desire was to recruit more talent and soothe the resentment and estrangement between the Dongzhou settlers and the local Shu people, so that he might first secure his position as the Governor of Yizhou.

Moreover, his father and elder brother had only recently passed away, so even if he were to marry, he would have to wait for a period of mourning. Besides, as a modern man, although he understood the need to adapt to local customs, he felt somewhat uneasy about taking a fifteen-year-old girl as his wife. Most importantly, Liu Zhang shared the same predilection as the "Cao scoundrel"—he had no interest in young, immature girls and preferred women with a mature charm.

Taking all these factors into account, Liu Zhang simply set a three-year agreement. In three years, Huang Wan would be eighteen, a perfectly appropriate age.

As for making Huang Wan wait until she was eighteen to marry, it was not a significant issue. Although girls in the Han Dynasty typically married young—often at eleven or twelve—a careful study of the *Book of Rites* (specifically the "Quli Shang" chapter) notes: "A man is capped at twenty, and after being capped, he is considered a husband; he marries at thirty. A woman is betrothed at fifteen and marries at twenty."

According to these regulations, a woman being betrothed at fifteen and marrying at twenty was considered a normal age for marriage even in the eyes of a modern person. Huang Wan marrying at eighteen was well within the rites, even if it did not perfectly align with current popular customs.

Liu Zhang had learned Huang Wan’s given name from Dong Fu, knowing that this young lady was named simply "Wan."

Furthermore, the promise Liu Zhang made to Dong Fu—that he would execute the villains Li Jue and Guo Si within three years—was a plan he had been turning over in his mind. He intended to stabilize his position as Governor of Yizhou and secure the heads of those two scoundrels who had brought chaos to the world within that timeframe.

However, to accomplish great things, one needs talent. While the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty was certainly not lacking in talent, there were few such individuals currently in Liu Zhang’s administration.

Thinking of this, Liu Zhang could not help but feel distressed. He was troubled that his father, Liu Yan, had not paved a smooth path for him, having instead dug quite a few pits for him to fall into.

The first major pit was, naturally, the conflict between the Dongzhou settlers and the local people of Yizhou; this hardly required further elaboration.

The other major pit was the estrangement between him—the Governor—and the local scholars of Shu. Liu Yan was a strong-willed man who refused to relinquish even a shred of power to others, especially the scholars of Shu.

Of course, there was a reason for this. Jia Long, the Provincial Registrar who had pacified the Yellow Turban uprising in Yizhou and had been the one to welcome Liu Yan into the region, had grown suspicious of Liu Yan’s loyalty to the imperial court. This was because Liu Yan had dispatched Zhang Lu to Hanzhong to sever the road between Guanzhong and Shu, and had executed Wang Xian, the Administrator of Ba Commandery, along with the powerful local figure Li Quan, to establish his authority. Consequently, Jia Long had conspired with Ren Qi, the Administrator of Jianwei, to raise an army and rebel against Liu Yan. Although Liu Yan successfully defeated them using his Dongzhou troops and recruited Qiang warriors, his trust in the people of Shu plummeted, and he rarely met with or recruited local scholars thereafter.

In terms of high-ranking civil positions, only Wang Shang, through his loyalty and ability, had managed to serve as the Senior Registrar (*Zhizhong Congshi*). Yet, even then, Liu Yan rarely adopted Wang Shang’s advice. This year, when Liu Yan conspired with Ma Teng, Wang Shang had repeatedly urged him against it, saying it was like "asking a tiger for its skin" and would lead to great harm.

If the civil service was like this, the military positions were even more exclusionary. Liu Yan had deployed four divisions—Left, Right, Front, and Rear—likening them to the Emperor’s four armies, each commanded by an official with a salary of two thousand shi.

Among these four Sima, the Left Sima Yang Huai, the Right Sima Gao Pei, and Zhang Lu—who had been moved from Rear Sima to Supervisor of Righteousness Sima—were none of them from Shu. The only Shu native to hold a command position was Zhao Wei, who had entered Shu with Liu Yan. Because of his close relationship with Liu Yan, he served as the Front Sima and was later reassigned as the personal Sima of the Governor's tent.

"Truly, once bitten by a snake, one fears a coiled rope for ten years," Liu Zhang sighed to himself. Liu Yan’s caution had certainly prevented the local Shu people from usurping power, but it had simultaneously extinguished the ambitions of the local scholars.

Furthermore, Liu Yan’s ability was formidable enough that he could hold the land of Ba and Shu even without the cooperation of the local scholars, but Liu Zhang was different. He lacked such talent. Moreover, in an era of great chaos, success belonged to those who could win the hearts of men.

Therefore, during this period, Liu Zhang had been constantly recruiting talent and winning hearts. Whether they were of humble origins, from poor families, from other regions, or those who had been estranged from him, he brought them all into his fold. Yet, he had gathered fewer than ten people; his administration was still sorely lacking in personnel.

"Time waits for no one," Liu Zhang muttered. For the sake of his goals, he needed to accelerate his pace.

***

"My Lord, it is time to depart. The imperial envoy sent by the court will arrive soon."

Pang Que informed Liu Zhang that the carriages were ready. It was time to head out to welcome the messenger from the imperial court.

*Finally here.* Liu Zhang did not take the imperial envoy to heart. What kind of "heavenly messenger" was this? Wasn't it just a bird-man sent out by his own office? In this day and age, which imperial envoy would dare pass through Hanzhong to reach Shu? They would be lucky to keep their heads.

The mad dog Zhang Lu, whom his father had placed in Hanzhong, was not one to be trifled with.

"Let’s go." Liu Zhang waved his hand, and the Governor’s procession set off.

He was accompanied by the renowned Dong Fu, the high-ranking official and Senior Registrar Wang Shang, and his personal Sima, Zhao Wei. As for the others, they stayed at their posts; receiving an imperial envoy required the presence of those with significant status.

The carriage procession rolled through the streets of Chengdu.

Liu Zhang knew that the envoy arriving to read the imperial decree was Zhang Su, whom he himself had dispatched. Perhaps he could have sat in his mansion and waited, but as a member of the imperial clan, he had to maintain the appearance of respect for the Han court.

Feudal lords who were not of the imperial clan could afford to disregard the court, but as a member of the clan, Liu Zhang had to maintain a posture of absolute reverence. The dignity of the court was, in some small way, tied to his own.

The carriages rattled and the horses neighed. With guards clearing the path ahead, the group soon reached the outskirts of Chengdu.

From afar, Liu Zhang squinted and could see the messenger’s carriage.

Likewise, in the distance, Zhang Su, seated in his carriage, saw the welcoming party from Yizhou, especially Liu Zhang in the lead.

At the sight of Liu Zhang, Zhang Su was reminded of his audience with the Han Emperor, Liu Xie.

He had reported the Yizhou officials' wish to have Liu Zhang succeed as the Governor of Yizhou. Before the Emperor could respond, Li Jue, the General of Chariots and Cavalry, who sat at the head of the military officials, asked, "I wonder what the character of the two sons of the Yizhou Governor is like."

Zhang Su answered truthfully: the third son, Liu Mao, was much like his father, bold and capable of handling affairs, while the fourth son, Liu Zhang, was not like his father at all, being gentle and benevolent.

Upon hearing this, a middle-aged scholar present at the court whispered something to Li Jue and Guo Si.

Immediately after, Li Jue jumped up and endorsed the Yizhou officials' candidate: "This is good, this is good."

General of the Rear Guo Si shouted to the Han Emperor, who sat on the throne: "Your Majesty, this is the one we want."

"Let Liu Jiyu serve as the Governor of Yizhou."

The Han Emperor, Liu Xie, meekly replied, "Very well, very well. Let it be as the Generals wish."

The imperial court, which should have been a place of solemnity, was as chaotic and noisy as a vegetable market; the majesty of the throne had been completely swept away.

As for Liu Xie, he was a puppet emperor, coerced by those Liangzhou scoundrels, pointing east when they said east, and west when they said west, not daring to utter a single word of defiance.

*Damn it all, how did the Great Han end up like this?* Zhang Su had cursed crudely in his heart at the time.

He had taken the opportunity to inquire about the scholar who had played the key role in the matter. The man’s surname was Jia, his name Xu, and his courtesy name Wenhe; he was the primary strategist for the Liangzhou faction.

Zhang Su felt a sense of admiration for Jia Xu. He was indeed a master strategist with a sharp eye, realizing instantly that by having the fourth son, Liu Zhang, succeed as Governor, Guanzhong would have one less enemy to worry about—a far better choice than allowing the more capable third son, Liu Mao, to take the position.

Seeing the carriage approaching the new Governor of Yizhou, Zhang Su did not dare to act arrogant as an imperial messenger. He stepped down from his carriage and bowed to Liu Zhang.

"Junqiao, you have had a difficult journey," Liu Zhang said warmly, using Zhang Su’s courtesy name.

Zhang Su bowed and replied modestly, "Serving you, my Lord, I dare not claim it was a hardship."

Then, raising his voice, he added, "I have fulfilled my mission."