Chapter 12

Recently, there was an incident that stirred up Xuzhou.

It was the story of Lady Son and Chang-ran.

In an era with little to enjoy, Xuzhou, once a place of wealth and culture, had become a place of mere survival after enduring prolonged chaos.

Despite the hardships, Lady Son, who brought peace to Xuzhou as Liu Bei’s wife but was at odds with him, was almost a public enemy among the people of Xuzhou.

Even Liu Bei couldn’t stop Lady Son’s lawlessness, and just as everyone was giving up, a girl appeared like a comet and taught her a lesson.

The fact that this girl was none other than the daughter of Zhang Fei, Liu Bei’s sworn brother, quickly caught the public’s attention.

The people, weary of their hard lives, were thrilled by the girl’s story of justice and quickly spread the rumor.

Despite my efforts to stop it, the rumor grew and changed shape on its own.

Before I knew it, the story had escalated to the point where I supposedly went to Lady Son and defeated a hundred maids to discipline her.

Of course, no one seriously believed it. Lady Son’s mischief had stopped, but she still paraded around with armed maids in broad daylight, so the truth of the rumor was beyond doubt.

Nevertheless, it was true that I had curbed Lady Son’s arrogance, and I was enjoying unexpected popularity.

At first, it was just the people cheering, but then military officers with official positions came to see me, followed by a few so-called celebrities knocking on the Zhang Family Manor’s door.

Thanks to this, at the tender age of ten, I earned a nickname.

Like Sun Jian’s “Tiger of Jiangdong,” Guan Yu and Zhang Fei’s “Ten Thousand Men’s Strength,” or Zhou Yu’s “Beautiful Zhou Lang.”

So, what was my nickname?

“Our Little Mystic Lady, what worries could you possibly have?”

“Mother, please stop teasing me.”

It was “Little Mystic Lady.”

Of course, it was derived from the “Mystic Lady of Jiutian,” a Taoist goddess who taught Emperor Huang the strategy to defeat Chi You. I’m not Sun Ce, so why “Little Mystic Lady”?

“Hmm, not bad. It’s a fitting nickname for a woman who steps onto the battlefield to achieve military merits. Just as she helped Emperor Huang accomplish great deeds, you too will contribute greatly to your elder brother’s grand undertaking. I, your father, am quite pleased.”

My parents, upon hearing about the incident between me and Lady Son while they were away, not only accepted Chuk-baek as my maid but also quite liked the nickname that came with the spreading rumors.

In the “Romance of the Three Kingdoms,” many characters, whether in official history or folklore, have nicknames. Considering their sense, my nickname must be quite impressive.

Having a nickname means my reputation has grown, which is good, but I didn’t want such a grandiose one.

Something memorable, like “Yanren” before my father’s name or Zhao Zilong’s “Changshan,” would have been fine.

Still, there were some benefits. The nickname was so flashy that many celebrities came out of curiosity to see how clever a child could be to earn the title “Mystic Lady of Jiutian.”

My life didn’t change dramatically just because more people came to see me instead of my father. I still trained, spent time with my family, and occasionally read books.

But today was different. I was casually listening to Chuk-baek’s report of a visitor when I put down my book upon hearing the visitor’s name.

“Who’s here?”

“Uh, it’s Commander Ban Jun. Do you know him?”

Ban Jun, Chengming. Honestly, I don’t know much about him. But I remembered the name.

When I was reborn as Chang-ran, determined to navigate these chaotic times, I recorded all my memories of past lives.

Though my knowledge of the “Romance of the Three Kingdoms” was fragmentary, Ban Jun’s name was among the few pieces of information I had.

Because he was involved in Guan Yu’s death.

‘Zhang Da and Fan Jiang, who killed my father. Mi Fang and Fu Shiren, who betrayed Guan Yu. And Ban Jun.’

I didn’t know much about him, but the comments about the Xuzhou officials who betrayed Liu Bei were particularly memorable.

‘Shiren betrayed, Haobo was deceived, and Ban Jun went along.’

Fu Shiren, who actively cooperated with Wu after betraying.

Haobo, who surrendered after being deceived by Ye Meng’s scheme but was ashamed.

Unlike them, Ban Jun did not surrender to Wu but followed Sun Quan’s repeated invitations.

Where’s Mi Fang? He doesn’t even belong here. He was plotting betrayal even before Ye Meng arrived, the epitome of evil.

Of course, he might have felt wronged by the treatment of a founding hero, but did he have to resort to such extreme measures?

If he had talked to his brother Mi Zhu and vented his grievances to Liu Bei, he might have been forgiven to some extent.

After all, Liu Bei was known for his kindness to those within his domain.

Anyway, why did Ban Jun come to see me?

“Bring him in.”

“Yes, Lady Ran.”

I greeted Ban Jun with a polite bow as he entered my room.

Unlike scoundrels like Mi Fang and Fu Shiren, Ban Jun never surrendered until the end. First, I needed to understand what kind of person he was.

“I am Commander Ban Jun.”

Ban Jun was young. Probably in his late twenties. In his mid-twenties, Ban Jun wasn’t as strikingly handsome as Zhuge Liang or Zhou Yu, but he was good-looking enough to be called handsome, with a neat and upright appearance.

After briefly introducing himself, Ban Jun sat down without hesitation when I offered him a seat.

“Would you like some tea?”

“If you offer, I will gratefully accept.”

“Chuk-baek, bring two cups of tea.”

While Chuk-baek brought the tea, Ban Jun and I exchanged polite conversation. When Chuk-bak brought the tea and the aroma filled the room, I asked.

“But Commander, you must be busy with official duties. What brings you here?”

Ban Jun calmly set down his teacup.

“I came to see you because I have something to say and a question to ask.”

§

Ban Jun, courtesy name Chengming.

He was a renowned official of Xuzhou who studied under Song Zhong, the greatest Confucian scholar of the time.

When Liu Biao was alive, he served as the Commander of Jiangxia, rectifying lax laws and eliminating corruption. Although his strict methods made him feared by the people, he also earned their trust and support.

Despite being a disciple of Song Zhong, a leading figure in classical studies, Ban Jun’s tendencies leaned towards Legalism.

Similar to Zhuge Liang, who later advocated strict punishment in Shu, Ban Jun followed Confucian teachings but handled governance strictly according to the law.

After Xuzhou fell into Liu Bei’s hands, Ban Jun also joined Liu Bei. Recognizing his talent, Liu Bei promoted him from a mere county magistrate or commandery commander to the Commander of Xuzhou.

Ban Jun prided himself on fulfilling his duties faithfully.

As the saying goes, a scholar dies for one who understands him. Ban Jun was exactly that. Liu Bei showed trust in him in this regard.

Despite being a disciple of Song Zhong, who had conflicts with Liu Bei, Liu Bei trusted Ban Jun’s abilities and made him the Commander of Xuzhou. Thus, Ban Jun did his best to repay Liu Bei’s trust.

However, there are problems in the world that one cannot handle no matter how hard they try.

For Ban Jun, Lady Son, Sun Lin, was such a problem.

Ban Jun valued the law, while Sun Lin disregarded it.

But unlike when he was the Commander of Jiangxia, Lady Son was someone Ban Jun couldn’t handle.

As Liu Bei’s wife and Sun Quan’s sentinel, Ban Jun understood her position well and had to suppress his boiling anger.

Then, Sun Lin’s lawlessness stopped as if it were a lie.

Although she still paraded around with sword-bearing maids, creating an ominous atmosphere, the blatant law-breaking of the past disappeared.

Even Liu Bei, the ruler of Xuzhou, couldn’t achieve this. Ban Jun was shocked and quickly set out to understand the situation.

At the end of it was someone he never expected or imagined.

“Chang-ran? The eldest daughter of the Nan Commandery Governor, that Chang-ran?”

It wasn’t a completely unfamiliar name. The story of the daughter who followed Zhang Fei to the Nan Commandery battle had spread widely among the soldiers.

Unlike her strict father, she treated the soldiers kindly, sharing their hardships, which somewhat soothed their weary hearts.

But after the Nan Commandery battle, he heard she had left the military camp. He thought she had come to her senses after experiencing real combat.

So why did her name suddenly come up here? The detailed answer soon came with the spreading rumors.

‘Lady Son picked a fight with Chang-ran, who then showed amazing swordsmanship and scolded Lady Son for her lawlessness.’

‘She defeated the maids one by one, and Lady Son, surprised, apologized and begged for forgiveness.’

‘Unable to bear the lawlessness, Chang-ran personally went to Lady Son and with a single swing of her sword, a hundred maids fell.’

As the rumor spread from mouth to mouth, it became more exaggerated and distant from the truth, but Ban Jun, who was already investigating, could grasp the detailed inside story.

For some reason, Lady Son went to see Chang-ran and made a bet on a duel between her attendants and Chang-ran.

The duel ended with Chang-ran’s victory, and as the price of the bet, Chang-ran demanded that Lady Son abide by the law and etiquette.

This was shocking to Ban Jun.

That a mere young girl had achieved what he and even Liu Bei couldn’t.

And the deep meaning behind Chang-ran’s demand for Xuzhou’s stability as the price of victory.

After submitting a report on the incident as the Commander of Xuzhou, Ban Jun immediately set out from Gong’an to Jiangling to meet Chang-ran.

The Chang-ran he met in person was more mature than he had imagined. And above all, she was a beautiful girl beyond his expectations.

Given that she had followed Zhang Fei to battle and contributed to capturing Wugong, he had imagined a rough, tomboyish girl.

But the Chang-ran before him was so delicate that it was a wonder how she had been treated as a soldier and participated in battle.

Of course, she was tall for her age, but to Ban Jun, a sturdy adult male, she didn’t look much different from other girls.

As he conversed with Chang-ran, Ban Jun realized his judgment had been wrong.

Thus, he could sincerely say.

“First, I want to express my gratitude.”

“Huh? Suddenly, what are you talking about…”

“Thank you for fulfilling the duties I should have as the Commander of Xuzhou. I am ashamed that I, as the Commander, couldn’t stop Lady Son’s lawlessness.”

Ban Jun stood up and bowed deeply, expressing his gratitude and shame.

Chang-ran didn’t know, but this also included an apology for looking down on her after hearing about her exploits in the Nan Commandery battle.

“Please, rise. I didn’t do it to receive gratitude.”

Chang-ran helped Ban Jun up. Here, Ban Jun realized that thinking there would be no more surprises was another misjudgment.

‘What kind of strength does this girl have…’

Ban Jun was a civil official but had martial qualities. He had practiced martial arts and was sturdy.

But Chang-ran’s strength seemed comparable to his own.

‘As they say, a tiger father has a tiger daughter. It’s not just a saying.’

Ban Jun sat back down, organizing his thoughts.

Chang-ran, who had been flustered by his sudden gratitude, regained her composure and spoke.

“Now, what is the question you wanted to ask?”

In fact, this was the real reason Ban Jun had come to see her in person. Gratitude could have been sent in a letter.

Ban Jun asked.

“Do you intend to continue involving yourself in military affairs?”