In this life, however, as a transmigrator, Miss Mengde had skillfully avoided the tragedy that befell the original Cao Cao in history.
First, in terms of status, thanks to her careful planning, her father Cao Song was no longer viewed as the much-detested son of a eunuch.
Instead, he had become one of the Four Gentlemen, praised by the scholar-officials.
Even her grandfather Cao Teng, once a controversial figure, now had a reputation as a virtuous eunuch.
Naturally, the girl would not be mocked by the scholar class like the historical Cao Cao was.
Secondly, Miss Mengde herself was not the troublemaker that the original Cao Cao had been.
She didn’t stir up incidents like beating Jian Shuo’s uncle to death with multicolored clubs.
Mengde could hardly imagine what her father’s face must have looked like upon hearing about that event in the original timeline—certainly not a pleasant expression.
After all, at the time, Cao Song was still aligned with the eunuch faction by virtue of his background.
For Cao Cao to kill a eunuch’s relative was a blatant act of betrayal against his own allies.
If Cao Song hadn’t scolded him afterward, that would’ve been the strange part.
Most importantly, compared to the historical Cao Cao, Miss Mengde’s greatest advantage lay in her knowledge of the future.
This gave her a kind of foresight and also instilled in her the belief that all people are equal, allowing her to treat the people of the world with fairness.
With all these advantages stacked in her favor, there was no way Miss Mengde would end up like the historical Cao Cao, who spent his final years lonely and paranoid, afraid of being assassinated even in his sleep.
‘Why had the elderly Cao Cao feared someone might assassinate him in his sleep?’
‘Was it because he had once tried to assassinate Dong Zhuo in his youth?’
‘It was likely because he saw in himself the very image of Dong Zhuo—the treacherous tyrant he had once tried to kill.’
‘And so, he feared that another “Cao Cao” might come for him in the same way.’
‘That version of him—the young man who dreamed of becoming General Who Conquers the West—had failed to stab Dong Zhuo with the Seven-Star Sword.’
‘But in the end, that blade had pierced deeply into the heart of the man who would later become King of Wei.’
‘What a tragedy that was.’
Miss Mengde sighed to herself at the thought.
***
Then, turning to Liu Bei, she said: “Since you have plenty of free time during the day, we no longer need to worry about fitting your lessons into your schedule.”
“Ahaha… I see,” Liu Bei chuckled awkwardly.
Judging by the tone of her voice, he could already tell that the coming days would be quite busy for him.
“Don’t give me that bitter smile! We’re talking about Grand Commandant Zhang—one of the Three Bright Stars of Liangzhou! Do you know how many people wish they could get into his class?”
She shot Liu Bei a glare before raising her voice toward the door.
“Is anyone there? Someone come in!”
“Miss!” Two household attendants quickly entered the room upon hearing her call.
Kneeling on one knee, they asked, “Is there anything you would like us to do?”
“Send for Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan. Also, prepare the carriage and horses—I’ll be going out shortly.”
“Yes, Miss!”
The attendants received the order and left.
***
About ten minutes later, Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan—nineteen and sixteen years old respectively—entered the room.
They first cupped their hands and greeted Mengde.
Then Xiahou Dun spoke up.
“Little sister, do you need something?”
Mengde gestured toward Liu Bei, who was seated nearby, and said, “This boy is named Liu Bei. He’s fifteen years old. From now on, treat him as your younger brother. Starting tomorrow morning, he’ll be joining you both for martial arts training. Xiahou Dun, make sure to train him properly.”
“Understood!”
Xiahou Dun cupped his hands toward Mengde once again.
Then he turned to Liu Bei, grinning broadly with his teeth visible, a cheerful glint in his eyes.
“I’ll make sure to train you well in the days ahead.”
“……”
Hearing Xiahou Dun’s words, Liu Bei couldn’t help but shiver.
‘Looks like the days ahead won’t be easy.’
He couldn’t stop himself from thinking that.
***
At the same time, Mengde turned to Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan and said, “You two have been practicing martial arts for quite a while now, and you’ve achieved a fair amount. But if you want to become generals in the future, just training in martial arts isn’t enough.”
“That’ll only make you brave warriors charging at the front. If you want to be commanders who lead entire armies, you have to study military strategy. I’ll be taking you to visit Grand Commandant Zhang Huan soon and ask him to teach you military tactics.”
Originally, Mengde had only planned to have Liu Bei study under Zhang Huan.
But as the saying goes, whether you’re herding one sheep or two, you’re herding either way—so since she was already asking Zhang Huan to take a student, why not a few more?
“Grand Commandant Zhang Huan!? We can really study military strategy under him?”
Xiahou Yuan asked excitedly.
At this point in time, before the Yellow Turban Rebellion had erupted, and before Huang Fu Song, Zhu Jun, and Lu Zhi had demonstrated their leadership in battle, there was no doubt who held the best military record in the Han dynasty—the famed generals of Liangzhou who had suppressed the Qiang rebellions in the northwest.
Among the so-called “Three Brilliants of Liangzhou,” Huang Fu Gui had passed away last year, leaving only Zhang Huan and Duan Jiong still alive.
Of the two, Zhang Huan was on good terms with Cao Song, while Duan Jiong was just an acquaintance at best.
“Of course! Don’t underestimate your sister’s connections!”
Mengde activated her Face-Fruit ability.
***
A few minutes later, the carriage was ready.
Mengde rode in the carriage, while Liu Bei, Xiahou Dun, and Xiahou Yuan followed on horseback.
After a bit of travel, the group arrived at the residence of Grand Commandant Zhang Huan.
Upon hearing that Mengde had arrived, Zhang Huan—now seventy-two years old—personally came out to greet her, smiling with joy.
“Well, if it isn’t the little pillar of the Cao household! What brings you here today?”
“Grandpa Zhang, you really didn’t have to come out in person! I’m not worthy!”
Mengde quickly stepped forward to support him, walking at his side as they entered the house and chatted casually.
Once they were seated on the wooden mats, she finally got to the point.
“To be honest, Grandpa, I came today to ask for a favor.”
“A favor? That’s too formal.”
Zhang Huan smiled and shook his head slightly.
“What kind of relationship do I have with the Grand Minister Cao? Since you call me Grandpa, helping you is only natural. No need to treat it like a favor. Go ahead—what do you need me to do? Don’t tell me you’ve gotten into some trouble?”
“I’m a good girl! Why would I cause trouble?”
Mengde pouted in mock offense, then continued with her request.
“My family has three brothers who all want to learn military strategy and become generals someday. Right now, the best general in the entire Han dynasty is you, Grandpa. So I came to ask if you’d be willing to teach them.”
“You want me to teach them?”
“Yes.”
Zhang Huan hesitated for a moment.
“Take on students, huh… Well, bring the three of them in. Let me have a look at what they’re like.”
“Alright!”
Mengde nodded and then called Liu Bei, Xiahou Dun, and Xiahou Yuan—who had been waiting outside all this time—to come in.
Zhang Huan stroked his beard thoughtfully as he examined the three young men.
They sat upright and respectful in front of him.
After observing them for a while, Zhang Huan nodded with consideration and said, “They do look promising. Fine. Let them stay here for a few days and try it out. I’m not too busy these days anyway.”
At seventy years old, Zhang Huan was already an elderly man—one who would’ve been long retired in modern times.
Though he still held the official title of Grand Commandant, he hadn’t handled state affairs for a long time.
He had delegated most responsibilities to his subordinates and other departments.
Which is why he said, “I’ve got nothing better to do anyway.”