“Can a strategist not ascend the throne?”
Chapter 223: The Jian’an Era
A special position for the Grand Marshal…
Back during the Western Han, the Grand Marshal was just a title tossed around, nothing more than a fancy way to highlight a general’s status, without any real governing power.
It wasn’t until Huo Guang came along that “Grand Marshal Grand General managing the affairs of the Secretary” became a combo title, giving it some real authority, akin to a Chancellor back in the early Han days.
By the Eastern Han, things shifted again.
The Grand Marshal transformed from an inner adviser to a military post, topping the Grand General, and eventually became the Grand Commandant; after that, it just disappeared.
It wasn’t until Dong Zhuo took over that the Grand Marshal was resurrected, placing it above those three high offices to showcase a power play.
These days, it’s a position above the Triumvirate and the Grand General. Talk about clout!
Qiao Yan asked Xi Zhicai, “Isn’t there a concern about seizing power taking this position?”
Since the Grand Marshal was given administrative power, most of its holders haven’t exactly been “upstanding ministers.”
Take Huo Guang, who decided on policies, or Wang Feng, who had his say in everything, or Wang Mang, who just up and usurped the Han.
Xi Zhicai shot back, “Would anyone really think Liu Yu ever had designs on usurping?”
Qiao Yan mused, not wrong there.
Even though people say the Grand Marshal position is one of “extreme wealth, yet the ministers are none,” it’s funny how when Dong Zhuo reactivated it, he didn’t keep it for himself but handed it to Liu Yu instead, probably as a desperate attempt for a lighter reputation.
In short, if anyone thinks Qiao Yan yearned for the power, they should first discuss whether Liu Yu had wild ambitions before Dong Zhuo pushed him into the hot seat.
Xi Zhicai continued, “On the flip side, the Grand General title is often held by outsiders, and the last few Grand Generals didn’t end well, which often led them to clash with the Emperor. Better choose the Grand Marshal!”
Why not have the crown as the power broker and the glory of supporting the Emperor, and aim for even more?
With her achievements in subduing Liang and sweeping through Guanzhong, she could truly vie for that power!
Just as Xi Zhicai pointed out, seeing how Eastern Han’s Grand Generals kept stepping on the Emperor’s toes, taking the Grand Marshal position could be a step up or a retreat, but it sure looked better on paper.
However, there was one concern.
Most who attained the Triumvirate had spent more than a decade, some even decades, climbing the ranks to finally be listed as Grand Commandant, Minister over the Masses, or Minister of Works.
Qiao Yan hadn’t even hit ten and she was already snagging this spot; people would definitely raise eyebrows.
But let’s not forget Dong Zhuo; he didn’t just bring back the Grand Marshal, he also set some quick templates for climbing up to the Triumvirate.
Like Huang Wan.
He kicked off his official career after the Prohibition of Factionalists and was promoted to the title of Marquis of Leping around the same time as Qiao Yan, but he made it to the Triumvirate two years ago.
In other words, he went from entry-level to Triumvirate in just five years.
And then there’s the case of Xun Shuang.
He went from minding his own business in Hanbin to becoming part of the Triumvirate in barely a month; talk about a meteoric rise!
This practically established a notion that under current special circumstances, the normal promotion process didn’t have to be strictly followed.
Which gave Qiao Yan a chance to twist things in her favor.
Seeing Qiao Yan’s expression, Xi Zhicai knew she’d made her choice between the Grand Marshal and the Grand General, prompting him to say, “If you’re set on vying for this position, you might want to consider how to handle the current Grand Marshal.”
Right now, that was Liu Yan, the Governor of Yizhou, also a Dong Zhuo appointee.
Because Liu Yan hadn’t criticized Dong Zhuo after the court in Ye City was established, Dong Zhuo gave this gig to Liu Yan after moving the capital to Chang’an.
Qiao Yan said, “You say that as if you’ve made some plans.”
Xi Zhicai replied, “When Liu Yu becomes Emperor, you should aim for a position for that Governor of Yizhou. Have him step down as Grand Marshal and take on the Grand General role instead.”
Qiao Yan chuckled at that.
Sure, the Grand General has real power over the soldiers, but if the Grand General is stuck in Yizhou, unless he can make a move north to seize Guanzhong as a launch pad, what good is that title if he’s just stuck managing his backyard?
And with his authority as Governor of Yizhou, that was already enough.
No need for the hassle of becoming a Grand General!
But on the surface, asking for the title wasn’t a problem.
Liu Yu didn’t have any relatives he could draft into the Grand General role.
His wife and kids barely escaped the chaos in Youzhou; unlike Liu He and the others who didn’t make it through the conflicts, but his brother-in-law fought and died at the Battle of Binhai.
Given this, the Grand General position was perfect for someone like Liu Yan, as a method to win his loyalty.
Yet Liu Yan had played a little too loose with his authority in Yizhou.
So what kind of consequences would result from this so-called loyalty that was really a demotion?
No need to hurry in detailing that, it just gave Qiao Yan a possible chance to snatch the Grand Marshal title.
When her subordinates brought Zhu Tan over into their conversation, Qiao Yan chose to halt this topic.
She mounted her horse, nodding at Xi Zhicai, saying, “Thanks for the insight, once I return from Yuzhou, I’ll bring you good news!”
Back in the day, Xi Zhicai only got the pay for a basic ten-man squad, pushing for Qiao Yan to rise to the position of Bingzhou’s Governor himself, and now he’s rooting for her to grab that Grand Marshal slot, staying true to his original intent.
But isn’t that how their positions align beautifully?
Having shared a smile, Qiao Yan took her leave and headed west, supported by her guards, making her way to Juyong Pass in Shanggu County.
While they weren’t quite ready to fully expand into Yuzhou just yet, or ready to face Gongsun Zan head-on, she had to make it clear that with Liu Yu’s backing, they wouldn’t concede further after retreating to Shanggu.
What Qiao Yan didn’t expect was when she reached Shanggu County, she would have an unexpected gain.
Zheng Xuan’s old friend, Ping Yuan, was hiding out in Liaodong County. Upon hearing about the conflict between Gongsun Zan and Liu Yu, he felt that Liaodong wasn’t a safe place anymore, and after receiving Zheng Xuan’s letter, he decided to rush to Bingzhou before winter sealed the mountains.
As he was halfway, he caught wind of Liu Yu being ambushed and defeated while pursuing Gongsun Zan. Now, Zhang Liao, Liu Yan’s subordinate, was stationed at Shanggu County, so he quickened his pace to catch up.
As Zhang Liao guided Qiao Yan into the city, he said, “Mr. Ping’s luck has been quite good. If he had no one to escort him from Liaodong, he might have been in danger from bandits.”
“And that sturdy chap escorting him is interesting. I heard from Mr. Ping that he hails from Qingzhou and back during the Zhong Ping years, there was some squabble between the Qingzhou and Donglai prefectures. They each sent a petition to the authorities, and he was working for Donglai when he rushed to Luoyang to destroy the province’s documents before he sent his own. Even though he was acting for the prefecture, the dispute was indeed in their favor, to avoid being blamed by the province. He ended up fleeing to Liaodong.”
Upon hearing “Donglai,” Qiao Yan stopped dead in her tracks, “What’s this guy’s name?”
Zhang Liao replied, “He goes by… Donglai Tai Shici.”
If Yuan Shao knew that he was technically the Qingzhou governor yet still let a marksman originally from Qingzhou fall into Qiao Yan’s hands, whether Tai Shici was indeed just escorting Ping Yuan to Bingzhou or seeking to align with Qiao Yan, he’d probably be livid.
But for now, he was focusing on the official letter Gongsun Zan sent him.
Yuan Shao never imagined that Liu Yu’s return from Liangzhou to fight Gongsun Zan would end up this way.
He sighed, “If it weren’t for this battle, I’d be clueless that Liu Boyan’s leadership was this abysmal.”
That kind of performance was practically delivering victory on a silver platter to Gongsun Zan.
What a shame…
“It’s a pity that in this battle, Qiao Yan’s Zhang Wen Yuan performed exceptionally well.”
Whether it was arranging camp defenses, intercepting Gongsun Zan, Ke Biner, and Tadan’s allied forces, cutting down Ke Biner to force the Xianbei faction to retreat, or making a detour to rescue Liu Yu after the latter foolishly chased after Gongsun Zan, his prowess shone through as a true general.
Yuan Shao would be lying if he said he wasn’t intrigued by such a ferocious general.
But then Zhang Liao was from Yanmen County, had stuck with Qiao Yan for a while, clearly had her trust, so there was no chance he’d switch sides.
So yes, Gongsun Zan defeated Liu Yu, but that win didn’t translate into victory over Qiao Yan and it certainly didn’t shake the morale on her side.
In fact, with Liu Yu’s defeat and retreat, it seemed like Gongsun Zan snagged most of Youzhou, but really, it was just Dai County and Shanggu County coming under Bingzhou’s influence, giving Qiao Yan an unexpected jump in territory.
Keeping both counties wouldn’t be a stretch for the Bingzhou army.
Juyong Pass directly connects to the Taihang Mountains, known in this region as Jundu Mountain, one of the eight passes of Taihang.
Securing this pass would effectively shield both Dai County and Shanggu County.
Zhang Liao’s quick call helped ease the defensive burden for Bingzhou.
With Juyong Pass held tight, even though Gongsun Zan was posted in Changping, he wouldn’t have the strength to cross over.
Hannover needed to consider crossing the Taihang Mountains just to threaten Dai County.
As Yuan Shao contemplated Zhang Liao’s decisive actions, he got even angrier.
No wonder Qiao Yan hadn’t taken Zhang Liao along for the conflict in Liangzhou and Guanzhong.
A commanding officer who could hold his own at the front lines, even if young, was crucial for holding the fort.
The more he thought, the angrier he got, so he shifted his focus back to the military report in hand and asked Ju Shou, “Do you think we should concede to Gongsun Bo Gui’s demands?”
To be honest, Yuan Shao had initially been wary of Gongsun Zan invading from the south and had even hired Liu Bei to teach Yuan Shu a lesson by managing troop movements. Now he was being pushed to compromise because of Gongsun Zan’s troop expansions and alliances with Wuhuan; that left him feeling quite disgruntled.
But hearing Ju Shou’s response made him realize it wasn’t the time to act out of spite.
Ju Shou said, “Think about it, what if we refuse to grant Gongsun Zan this position?”
“After Liu Yu’s defeat, Gongsun Zan built an army exceeding fifty thousand across the counties. While the Bingzhou forces at Juyong Pass have cut off Gongsun Zan’s westward advance, it wouldn’t be simple for them to exit the pass either. This means Gongsun Zan could linger in Changping while heading south to invade our Jizhou, potentially throwing Bingzhou into a laughingstock.”
“On the other hand, if we give him the title of Governor of Youzhou, he’ll have reason to behave respectfully towards us.”
Ju Shou seemed to sense Yuan Shao’s worries and continued, “But this gesture wouldn’t stem from fear, rather because the former Governor of Youzhou, Liu Yu, harbored thoughts of usurpation within a court that has Our Majesty here in Ye, which is treasonous. Therefore, Gongsun Zan’s expedition to quell him would be justified, warranting such an accolade.”
This line of reasoning provided an explanation for Yuan Shao’s fluctuating stance while preserving face for Jizhou.
After hearing that, Yuan Shao felt better.
Then Ju Shou suggested, “Additionally, I propose we station military officers in Bohai and Donglai to keep Gongsun Zan in check.”
“Bohai is bordered by Guangyang and Yuyang to the north, providing the first line of defense against Gongsun Zan’s advances. Donglai overlooks the sea from Youzhou; if we station troops there, Gongsun Zan would have to fear our crossing into the heart of Youzhou.”
Yuan Shao looked at the map and inquired…
“Who should we station here?”
Ju Shou replied, “On this matter, I think you already have a decision in your heart, my lord.”
What he needed to persuade was merely for Yuan Shao not to be too concerned about his reputation and to grant Gongsun Zan the title of Governor of Youzhou.
Ju Shou, holding the position of Cavalry Officer, was a part of the military staff, so he shouldn’t just be seen as Yuan Shao’s civilian officer.
In this situation, recommending a military officer for a position felt somewhat inappropriate.
Hearing Ju Shou say that, Yuan Shao didn’t ask further, but turned to the others present and inquired, “Does anyone have any objections to the arrangement of Gongsun Bogui?”
Since Yuan Shao himself had already shown a clear preference, his strategists, despite their factions, wouldn’t dare go against him at this moment and all chimed in agreement.
Now they could discuss another issue—how to deal with the Xianbei tribe and the Wuwan.
In the request for a seal sent from Gongsun Zan to Yuan Shao, there was also a piece of news that Qiao Yan was still unaware of.
The Wuwan chieftain Qiu Liju had never been in great health. It was uncertain whether the arrival of winter worsened his illness or if Tadu, without warning, followed Gongsun Zan into battle, causing him to gasp for breath. In any case, when Gongsun Zan sent this letter, the Wuwan chieftain was no longer Qiu Liju but Tadu.
Yuan Shao vaguely remembered that Gongsun Zan had a past grudge with Qiu Liju and had once fought to a mutual demise.
With Qiu Liju dead, the alliance between Gongsun Zan and Tadu had become even stronger.
This, too, wasn’t particularly good news for Yuan Shao.
Yuan Shao turned to Xu You, “Ziyuan, what are your thoughts on this matter?”
Since Xu You returned from Chang’an last time, he had been much more silent, perhaps out of embarrassment from that trip.
But now, directly called out by Yuan Shao, Xu You quickly adjusted his mood and replied, “Gongsun Zan requests a seal for Tadu as king in the letter, but according to Han law, only the Liu family can be called king. In the past, Emperor Xiaohuan tried to secure Tanshihuai as king, but wouldn’t dare to say it publicly to the emperor, yet scholars had their complaints in secret. My lord should not repeat that mistake.”
“If what you say is true, then granting Gongsun Zan the title of Governor of Youzhou is due to his military achievements against Liu Bo’an. Tadu, at most, should receive a reward for assisting. My lord might as well ask Gongsun Zan who played the primary and secondary roles in this victory; if he was the secondary, then the title of Governor of Youzhou would be better suited for Tadu. If he was primary, Tadu wouldn’t dare to claim kingship.”
“In my view, giving him a marquis title in Liaodong, along with a pension from the Liaodong dependent state, and a title and seal in the name of the Wuwan chieftain should suffice.”
“Though the Liaodong dependent state was set up to accommodate the Wuwan, there are a good number of Han people living among them due to trade. Since Gongsun Zan is Governor of Youzhou, he also owns the Liaodong dependent state. Let these two squabble over taxation matters.”
What they could argue about might not only be territory but also whether the title of Marquis of Liaodong would satisfy Tadu’s appetite.
If not for Liu Yu’s emotional decisions, Gongsun Zan wouldn’t have retrained his fortunes, and had Tadu been pushed to his limits from the battle, he might have developed a grudge against Gongsun Zan.
Despite Gongsun Zan’s success in driving back Liu Yu today and boldly demanding recognition, lurking crises loomed.
Yuan Shao listened as Xu You continued, “Moreover, I ask my lord to find an excuse six months from now to have the emperor grant titles of County Lord to Naluo, Supuyuan, and Wuyan.”
Theoretically, these three were not part of the same Wuwan tribe with Qiu Liju and Tadu. Instead, as Qiu Liju grew stronger, he absorbed populations from the other three tribes, placing himself in a commanding position.
Each of these three claimed kingship, supporting the chieftain.
Tadu’s reckless usurpation of Qiu Liju’s power was only possible because of Gongsun Zan’s support; otherwise, these three would coexist with him peacefully, submissive to his intimidation.
However, it should be noted that during the early reign of Lingdi, Naluo, who resided in Shanggu, commanded nearly ten thousand followers, even more than Qiu Liju at that time. With that kind of advantage, Naluo wouldn’t easily submit to Tadu.
If they were to receive support, it would create a mutually balancing dynamic among the Wuwan.
At that point, for Gongsun Zan, it would be an opportunity to either lean towards one side or watch the Wuwan burn, which would also be an opportunity for them in Ji Province and Qingzhou.
Yuan Shao clapped and laughed, “Great! With your brilliant plans, Ziyuan, I have nothing to fear from these two lowly fellows of Liaodong!”
He turned and asked, “By the way, should we help Ke Biner, who has died, and provide support to Xianbei’s Qianman to restrain a contingent of soldiers from Bingzhou?”
“That’s not a good idea,” Shen Pei interjected, “The strengths of the various Wuwan factions are quite similar, and there’s still potential for mutual attacks, but Qianman is different.”
“He’s already fled in fear from the Bingzhou army, and seeing how the Xianbei chieftain Budugen has been supported by Qiao to grow stronger, with Ke Biner now dead, he’s already terrified. If my lord dares to grant him a decree, he would probably go to Shanggu tomorrow to apologize to the Bingzhou army.”
While Shen Pei’s words weren’t particularly pleasant to hear, Yuan Shao had to admit he was speaking the truth.
He said, “Then let’s not worry about him. Allow Gongsun Bogui to recruit this faction of the Xianbei for himself.”
After Gongsun Zan received the title of Governor of Youzhou, he certainly wouldn’t let such a useful labor force slip by.
After several arrangements, Yuan Shao glanced at the others present, and thanks to the reliability of his strategists, he finally calmed the previous envy toward Qiao Yan for having Zhang Liao as an aide.
However, listening to Ju Shou, Xu You, and Shen Pei’s advice, Yuan Shao couldn’t avoid thinking of someone who was absent from the gathering.
He felt a nagging thought regarding Tian Feng, who had been away for some time gathering intel in Bingzhou. Logically, whether he had any news or not, he should have sent a word back by now; why was it as if he vanished into thin air?
With Tian Feng’s cleverness, it shouldn’t be that he was discovered as a spy upon arrival in Bingzhou, leading to his capture.
It was also impossible that he’d grown lazy and failed to send a letter.
Thinking that he couldn’t have just disappeared like that, Yuan Shao calculated if he didn’t receive any news from him in another half month, he’d have his subordinates check in on him.
If Tian Feng were to hear Yuan Shao’s musings, he would probably vent out all his grievances.
In reality, this vanishing act wasn’t his fault.
Being caught by Zhang Niujiao in this “future cherished role,” he did daily tasks and literacy lessons comprised of group assignments, seldom mingling with a large crowd.
This meant that if he wanted to sneak messages to his subordinates, it was practically impossible.
Even worse, since Zhang Niujiao had intentionally sent him to study at the Academy of Military Technology, a week after he was promoted, he was promptly shipped off to Leping.
Leping Academy is relatively free at entry and exit, but Leping Academy of Military Technology is not.
Considering that the weapon master Ma Jun was there, the Academy of Military Technology was managed strictly according to military camp regulations.
Tian Feng hadn’t even had a chance to observe what was special about the academy’s walls when the supervisor informed him that accommodations, work, leisure, and meals were all available on-site, so entering and exiting the place required registering the purpose and time, and nothing could be carried out.
With a desire not to draw suspicion, he decided to suppress the urge to meet his subordinates for now and planned to request a day off after finishing his calculations to send all the intel out at once.
But the unfortunate Tian Feng ran into a major issue.
On the nineteenth day of his routine learning of calculations, just as he was about to be “released” the next day, Leping received a piece of news.
Due to Liu Yu’s succession as emperor, the old palace site in Chang’an needed to be resurveyed, and the former Lingtai in Luoyang required reconstruction. The inauguration process would need the Grand Historian and his subordinates’ assistance, so some of them had to go to Chang’an to start work.
By rights, such matters shouldn’t have involved Tian Feng, since he belonged to the agricultural tools production department and wasn’t under the Grand Historian’s jurisdiction.
But Ren Hong, who taught him calculations, had a title that sorted her work under Lingtai.
This position, which had a Hou of 100 stones monthly salary according to Han regulations, was the first subordinate of the Grand Historian, commanding more than 40 members, overseeing celestial phenomena.
Since Qiao Yan had gotten Ren Hong renamed and it had been over two years now, she had concentrated on learning from Ma Lun in Leping, leading to today’s results.
So when Ma Lun caught a cold due to winter weather, the task of constructing the new Lingtai in Chang’an was handed to Ren Hong.
Suddenly receiving such an important assignment, Ren Hong felt a bit nervous and decided to bring along as many people as she could borrow.
While Tian Feng hadn’t shown any impressive performance learning calculations, he had completed the studies step by step.
Thus, Ren Hong thought of him as a useful aid and directly ran to borrow him from Zhang Niujiao.
Tian Feng regretted saying he’d travel to Bingzhou for work to earn more money and bring his family along.
When Ren Hong generously offered him three times the salary, he found it hard to refuse.
He couldn’t exactly say he got car sick, could he?
To top it off, there was Hua Tuo in Leping!
Helpless, Tian Feng didn’t even get a chance to inform Yuan Shao that he had gone from being a spy in Ji Province to being undercover in Chang’an.
Yuan Shao probably wouldn’t have anticipated this.
After all, before Tian Feng left Ye City, no matter how much they considered possible mishaps during the intel gathering, they never expected the situation would turn out like this.
Who could he complain to about this!
And according to the Bingzhou people’s logic, this actually counted as a windfall, getting a significant role.
With that thought, Tian Feng instinctively tugged at his cotton clothing.
Reportedly for the sake of dressing appropriately for this trip to Chang’an, he was even issued a new outfit.
In the agricultural tools production department’s books, he’d seen components of seed separation machines and illustrations of cotton batting bows, but regrettably, he hadn’t observed where cotton was grown.
But even if he had seen it, it wouldn’t matter as he couldn’t send the news back.
As Tian Feng felt the warmth and cold-resistance of the cotton clothing, he couldn’t help but worry for Ji Province a little more.
He wasn’t concerned about how many manpower resources could be saved in Bingzhou during winter weather but rather another serious issue.
Previously, combat in the northern environment didn’t often occur in winter.
Even if it did, both sides faced the same harsh elements.
But now that Bingzhou had such utterly unreasonable cold-resistance items, it implied that aside from differences in weapons, there was another influencing factor.
He couldn’t help but gaze out of the carriage at the direction of a vent window, feeling that the responsibility of his mission was growing heavier.
Fortunately, his unusual behavior had gone unnoticed.
The sizable carriage held more than ten people, including Ren Hong.
Her mind was entirely focused on recalling the knowledge Ma Lun had taught her, leaving no attention to spare for Tian Feng’s actions.
Thinking that Qiao Yan would also arrive shortly after they reached Chang’an, she felt a bit more nervous.
She wanted to prove that what her teacher had taught her over these two years was sufficient for her to walk among others as Lingtai’s Second, rather than merely a court lady like Diao Chan, and to demonstrate that Qiao Yan’s hope for her “not to fly low” was gradually becoming a reality.
Additionally, she had another important task.
For reasons unknown, since Qiao Yan had assigned this task, she felt she must complete it for her.
Traditionally, the year titles were largely derived from the emperor’s thoughts, especially after a new emperor took the throne.
But strangely, before Qiao Yan headed to Youzhou’s Juyong Pass, she sent a message to Leping.
She expressed her hope to convince Liu Yu to establish the era name as—
“Jian’an.”
![[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come](https://i3.wp.com/novelhitam.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/1737407792-8993-TS-The-end-of-magical-girls-has-come.png?resize=151,215 "[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come")
