Gan Ning, along with Taishi Ci, bought a few items and quickly disguised themselves. With ease, Gan Ning led them to a restaurant and secured a private room on the second floor that provided a clear view of the governor's mansion. They sat down comfortably.
"See, it's that simple. Just sit here, and we can keep an eye on the governor's mansion. With our eyesight, we can see everything clearly. So relax, if there's any chaos inside, we'll know and can go in," Gan Ning said proudly, tapping the window. This kind of task was sothing he'd done countless tis.
Taishi Ci looked at Gan Ning and sighed. Perhaps even petty theft required professional talent.
"Waiter, bring us so wine, lamb, and venison. Whatever you have, bring it up!" Gan Ning shouted loudly. "The wine should be warm, and the at tender."
"Right away!" The waiter's voice ca from outside the door, and soon, the food and rice were brought up. After setting everything down, the waiter asked, "Is there anything else you need? Our broth is quite good, perfect for a cold day like this."
"Rice? This stuff isn't satisfying. Do you have any stead buns? Bring
ten or so," Gan Ning said as he eyed the large bowl of rice.
"I'm sorry, we're out of stead buns. Ever since Chen Xi introduced stead buns, they've beco popular all over the country. Unfortunately, wheat isn't widely grown, so the stead buns made purely from millet flour aren't that good."
"Oh, then bring so hot soup. It's really cold here," Gan Ning said, a bit uncomfortable with the weather.
"Right away." The waiter took the tray and left.
After eating and drinking to their heart's content, Gan Ning asked, "Do you have any rooms here? Your food is pretty good, and I don't want to move. If you have rooms, I'll stay here. Make sure to reserve this spot for us during al tis. If not, recomnd
a good inn."
As he spoke, Gan Ning tossed a gold bead to the waiter. Although gold beads weren't standard currency, all rchants recognized their value.
"We do have rooms, and good ones too. I'll take care of everything for you," the waiter replied eagerly. Custors like this often tipped generously.
"Give us two good rooms. By the way, which fur shop around here is the best? I have a friend getting married, and I want to buy a gift. Do any of the shops have sothing special?" Gan Ning asked.
"Well, there are quite a few fur shops around here, but the best is probably the Tian family’s fur shop. As for sothing special, I'm not sure," the waiter replied after thinking for a mont.
"Alright, then. Let your manager prepare so roasted at and strong liquor for us tonight," Gan Ning instructed, sounding like a typical food lover.
"Of course, right away." The waiter nodded and left.
"See, Ziyi, it's that simple. Spend a little money, and everything gets done. There's no need for you to co all the way to Youzhou—this place is really cold. I bet the river will freeze over in a month. We need to hurry up," Gan Ning said smugly, though a gust of cold wind made him shiver.
"We'll see in the coming days. From what I’ve observed, General Gongsun's current temperant won't allow him to tolerate Liu Yuzhou much longer," Taishi Ci said with a sigh, feeling disheartened by Gongsun Zan's behavior.
"Who cares? We just need to focus on our own tasks. The rest has nothing to do with us," Gan Ning said dismissively. He had completely lost faith in Gongsun Zan and no longer admired the once-renowned White Horse General who had terrorized the northern frontier.
Liu Yu, upon learning of Gongsun Zan's defeat at the hands of Yuan Shao, couldn't have been more pleased. He had never agreed with Gongsun Zan's aggressive approach toward Yuan Shao. Of course, he didn't approve of Yuan Shao's annexation of Han Fu either. Despite the claims of Yuan Shao's loyalists, anyone with a keen eye could see what was really going on.
Compared to Yuan Shao, who ca from a noble family and still maintained so semblance of propriety, Liu Yu found Gongsun Zan utterly distasteful. To him, Gongsun Zan was nothing more than a brute who used violence to solve everything.
Liu Yu wasn't against using violence to control violence, but in his view, if you could intimidate your enemy into submission, there was no need to wipe them out completely. As for the so-called virtue of heaven in preserving life—that was just a convenient excuse. Letting the enemy live was a way to demonstrate one's own strength, to have them sing praises of your greatness. Even when the Zhou dynasty defeated the Shang, they didn't eradicate all traces of the Shang people. So why should he?
In this respect, Liu Yu had no kind intentions toward the foreign tribes either. He wanted to slowly assimilate them into Han culture, subtly erasing their distinct identities. But Gongsun Zan's quick and brutal thods disrupted Liu Yu's more gradual approach, making it seem as if Liu Yu was overly lenient toward the Hu people.
Liu Yu's strategy required stability. He wanted to integrate the Hu people into Han society, have them envy the Han way of life, marry Han won, and leave their n single. This plan needed a peaceful and harmonious environnt, which is why Liu Yu's governance of Youzhou was actually quite effective.
However, when Gongsun Zan appeared on the scene, whole tribes of Hu people began disappearing—one today, another tomorrow, and the day after that, yet another. Liu Yu's plans to civilize and assimilate the foreign tribes were completely thwarted. Under Gongsun Zan's reign of terror, how could the Hu people settle down and marry into Han families?
This was the root of their conflict. As Gongsun Zan beca more ruthless in his campaigns, achieving kill ratios of one to twenty, the Hu people beca so terrified that they would avoid even the ntion of Gongsun Zan, let alone face him. The areas where Han and Hu people had once lived together beca deserted—no Hu people, and no Han people either.
Gongsun Zan had no tolerance for grey areas. In his eyes, mixed Han-Hu communities were just as much a target for extermination, which led to a complete break with Liu Yu. Their goals were fundantally incompatible—Liu Yu wanted to gradually assimilate the Hu people, while Gongsun Zan saw even the Han people in these communities as traitors and eliminated them. How could Liu Yu accept this?
From that point on, Liu Yu began to actively sabotage Gongsun Zan. Gongsun Zan might have had popular support, but so did Liu Yu. In terms of public opinion, they were evenly matched.
Gongsun Zan's troops, after fighting in the northern frontier, often beca unruly upon returning, causing trouble for the local populace. While Liu Yu understood that this was normal behavior for soldiers, the feud between them ant he was no longer willing to turn a blind eye. Instead, he seized every opportunity to attack Gongsun Zan.
When Gongsun Zan returned victorious one day, news would soon follow of his soldiers causing havoc sowhere, and these reports were always verifiable. Naturally, the rift between them deepened, until it seed like a fight to the death was inevitable.
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