109. Ju Yi Lodges a Complaint

The Yuan army camp. The central command tent.

Yuan Shao sat upright in the seat of honor, while his civil and military officials were arrayed on both sides.

"At present, our provisions and armaments are fully stocked. If we continue to drag this out, I fear that before the spring thaw, Cao Mengde will have no choice but to retreat in disgrace," Xu You flattered.

No sooner had Xu You finished speaking than the likes of Feng Ji and Shen Pei, who were well-versed in the art of sycophancy, joined in with their own torrents of praise. Bathed in this adulation, Yuan Shao began to feel a sense of smug self-importance.

As for men like Xu You, Feng Ji, and Shen Pei, one could not deny they possessed genuine talent. Yet, why were such capable men so fond of licking boots? The answer lay primarily in the master they served. Yuan Shao was a man who relished flattery; only those who pandered to him gained his favor. If you failed to stroke his ego, no matter how brilliant your proposals were, Yuan Shao would simply ignore them.

Circumstances dictate one's actions. Even the most gifted strategist, serving under Yuan Shao, had to resort to sycophancy if he hoped to be valued.

As the group was busy singing Yuan Shao's praises, a discordant voice rang out. The source of this intrusion was none other than the dusty and travel-worn Ju Yi. Upon his return, Ju Yi had intended to lodge a formal complaint with Yuan Shao, and he arrived just as the council was in session. He decided then and there to present his evidence before the entire assembly of officials. He wanted to see how Xu You would attempt to talk his way out of this, and he was determined to see the man executed by his lord.

"The Cao bandit outside is not what is truly frightening! What is frightening is the rot within our own ranks!"

"In my view, if these parasites are not purged, our lord’s quest for hegemony will never succeed!" Ju Yi’s voice cut through the tent, harsh and jarring.

Yuan Shao’s expression darkened instantly. While others were busy singing his praises, Ju Yi dared to suggest his hegemony was doomed. How could Yuan Shao not be enraged?

With a cold face, Yuan Shao demanded, "What is the meaning of this?"

Ju Yi was completely unfazed. He stepped forward, bowed, and reported truthfully, "My lord, you sent me to escort a shipment of armaments. Outside Wuchao, I encountered a caravan transporting nothing but grain."

"I never imagined that while our soldiers on the front lines are fighting to the death against the Cao army, there are those in the rear daring to smuggle military grain for personal profit."

"I have already put the entire group to the sword, and their heads are currently displayed along the mountain road."

Hearing this, Yuan Shao’s face grew even darker. The smuggling of military grain was a private enterprise conducted by his subordinates, something they certainly dared not let him know. He had never imagined anyone would be bold enough to target the grain supply.

"Audacious!"

"Well killed!" Yuan Shao slammed his fist against the table. "I must defeat Cao Mengde in this campaign. Anyone who dares to stir up trouble behind my back shall be executed without mercy."

Hearing that Ju Yi had exposed their secret, Xu You, Shen Pei, Feng Ji, and the other officials involved were gripped by terror, cold sweat breaking out on their brows. Ju Yi had claimed to have killed a band of grain smugglers, but no one knew whose men they were. They prayed silently that it was not their own.

"Ju Yi, who were the men smuggling the grain?" Yuan Shao asked, intending to make an example of them. To defeat Cao Cao was Yuan Shao’s obsession. The key to wearing down Cao Cao was the grain in Wuchao; in Yuan Shao’s eyes, stealing that grain was equivalent to aiding the enemy.

Ju Yi glanced at Xu You, withdrew a document from his robes, and said, "My lord, the person behind the smuggling is Xu You’s nephew, Xu Hong."

"I found this on Xu Hong’s person. The heads hanging along the road are the human evidence, and this document contains the names of everyone involved. It is the material evidence. I ask that you examine it, my lord."

Upon hearing this, Xu You’s complexion shifted through a spectrum of white, red, and black. He was not grieving for his nephew’s death; he was terrified of being implicated himself. His entire family was in Ye City. If he were dragged into this, not a single member of the Xu household would be spared.

Xu You’s brow dripped with sweat as his mind raced, his wits pushed to their limit. He was desperately formulating a strategy to talk his way out of this disaster.

While Xu You schemed, Yuan Shao had taken the document and was scrutinizing it closely. The more he read, the angrier he became, until he was trembling with rage. Looking at the list of names, he realized there was hardly an honest man left among his subordinates. He was particularly incensed to see Xu You’s name at the very top. *Yuan Benchu thought to himself,* "I have been friends with you, Xu Ziyuan, for all these years, and yet you betray me behind my back!"

*Thwack!* Yuan Shao slammed the document onto Xu You’s face. "Xu Ziyuan, is our friendship not even worth as much as Cao Mengde to you?"

"What did Cao Mengde offer you that you would lead the theft of my military grain?"

With that, Yuan Shao issued his command: "Guards! Drag everyone whose name appears on this list outside and execute them."

At these words, the officials in the hall trembled. However, two men stepped forward to retrieve the document from the floor: Tian Feng and Ju Shou. Why were they not afraid? They were men of integrity; they had done no wrong and knew their names would not be on the list. They were checking to see how many people were involved.

Smuggling grain was undoubtedly a grave offense, and those responsible deserved to die. But when they saw the dozens of names densely packed on the document, Tian Feng and Ju Shou exchanged a look and cried out in unison, "My lord, you cannot! You must not!"

The names on the list accounted for nearly half of those present. If they were all executed, how could the war be fought?

"My lord, executing your generals before a battle is a terrible omen, let alone executing dozens of them!"

"History has no precedent for such an act. I beg you, my lord, let them atone for their crimes through service," Tian Feng pleaded.

As soon as Tian Feng finished, Ju Shou added, "My lord, perhaps it would be better to hear Ziyuan’s explanation before making a final decision."

As he spoke, Ju Shou gave Xu You a look, signaling that he had done all he could and the rest was up to him.

Why did Tian Feng and Ju Shou plead for these men? Were they corrupt as well? Certainly not. They were upright, incorruptible officials who could never align with such scoundrels. They pleaded for them solely for the sake of Yuan Shao’s great cause.