Heroes of Chaos (The Three Kingdoms Chronicles Book 2)

HEROES OF CHAOS The Three Kingdoms Chronicles (Book 2) Copyright © 2022 by Baptiste Pinson Wu All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. ISBN 978-4-9912768-2-8 (Paperback) ISBN 978-4-9912768-3-5 (eBook) Created with Vellum CONTENTS Dramatis Personae Prologue I. Soldiers and Men II. Survival III. The New Center of the World Epilogue To be continued in Afterword Acknowledgments Bonus Chapter Thank you To Louis, Bane of my creativity, Slayer of my productivity, Beloved son. Now go to bed and let me finish my book, damn it! DRAMATIS PERSONAE Characters from book one in Heroes of Chaos. 263 CE Liao Hua (Chun/Dun): General of Cavalry of the fallen Shu Han kingdom. Narrates his life’s journey to a scribe, starting from his childhood in a farm of Jing province. Chen Shou: Former official of the Shu Han kingdom, now in charge or recording the life’s tale of Liao Hua. Zhong Hui: One of the two generals of the Cao Wei kingdom responsible for the defeat of Shu Han. Ordered the recording of Liao Hua’s story. 190 CE Cao Cao: Cunning warlord of the late Han period, unofficial leader of Chenliu (city), member of the Loyal Rebels gathered to defeat Dong Zhuo. Cao Ang: First son of Cao Cao, Liao Chun’s rival. Cao Shuo: Second son of Cao Cao. Cao Anmin: Nephew of Cao Cao from a dead brother. Cao Ren: Cousin and officer of Cao Cao. Cao Hong: Youngest cousin and officer of Cao Cao. Xiahou Yuan: Jovial cousin of Cao Cao and his cavalry commandant. Xiahou Dun: Cao Cao’s cousin and Liao Chun’s master. Lady Ding: Cao Cao’s wife. Lady Bian: Favorite concubine of Cao Cao and Liao Chun’s first love. Lady Cao: Xiahou Dun’s wife. Chen Gong: Cao Cao’s secretary/strategist. Cheng Yu: Cao Cao’s strategist. A tall, cold, and calculating man. Du Yuan: Friend of Liao Chun and former Yellow Turban taken by Cao Cao for his academy project. Pei Yuanshao: Friend of Liao Chun and former Yellow Turban taken by Cao Cao for his academy project. Has a tendency for larceny. Xu Chu: Student of Cao Cao who joined his guard corps because of his imposing physique and skills in combat. Man Chong: Student of Cao Cao with a cunning mind. Hates Cao Cao’s sons. Yue Jin: Student of Cao Cao. Short but extremely skilled in combat. Liu Bei: Descendant of the imperial clan. Fought against the Yellow Turbans and joined the Loyal Rebels under the banner of Gongsun Zan. Guan Yu: Oath brother of Liu Bei. Target of Liao Chun’s hatred after he killed his beloved uncle, Cheng Yuanzhi. Zhang Fei: Oath brother of Liu Bei and Guan Yu. Killed Deng Mao (Uncle Deng) in a duel. Dong Zhuo: Chancellor of the emperor. Has taken control of the court and abuses his power, thus angering several lords who gathered to bring him down. Yuan Shao: Leader of the Loyal Rebels and childhood friend of Cao Cao. From the distinguished Yuan clan of Runan. Yuan Shu: Half-brother East of the pass stand noble men, gathered to combat evil, Vowing to meet in Luoyang, their hearts set for Chang’an. One force but divided minds, like a wavering skein, Allies turned on each other, clans fought to the death. Yuan the younger sat on a throne, his brother in the north a seal forged. Worn-out armor is lice-ridden, entire families met their demise, Sun-bleached bones rest in the wild, no rooster crows for a thousand miles. From a hundred men, one survives, and so my heart breaks with sorrow. Hao Li Xing, Cao Cao PROLOGUE Zitong county, Yi province 12th month, 4th year of the Jingyuan era of the Cao Wei empire (263) For a week now, the rain has put a stop to our course. Winter in this part of the land does not have the violent downpour of fall, but the dampness of the perpetual drizzle and the night chill make the frozen ground dangerous to travelers. Even more so when said travelers number in the thousands, with packed carts, wagons, oxen, and a whole court crossing half an empire to the capital of their conqueror. My former lord—an emperor in his own right until our defeat a few weeks back—brought enough luxury to fill fifty wagons to their limits. Hopefully, this burden makes our new masters’ lives a bit more of a hassle. The two generals responsible for our defeat bicker nervously as our convoy remains stuck. That is good. With some luck, they might even kill each other. I wonder if they considered asking some of us about the weather and when to expect the road to be usable again. Not that I, or any fervent son of the Shu Han empire, would answer them. Let them struggle with this land a bit more, I say. And let me enjoy my beloved land a little while longer before being paraded into the old capital of Luoyang. And while I revel in this waste of time for our conqueror, I must also admit, to my surprise, that I enjoy the idea of spending more time with my young companion as he writes down the life story of a young peasant boy who became the General of Cavalry of the Shu Han. We are still far from this part of my life and have many years to cover before my luck brought me under the wing of the great General Guan Yu. At our current point of the story,