His name shook Jiangdong.
Children stopped crying at the mention of it.Children stopped crying at the mention of it.
Inside the hall, the generals could only look on in envy.
What does a man seek by carving merit from the battlefield?
To awe his age.
To blaze through history.
To leave a name that outlives bone and dust.
With achievements like these—who wouldn't be jealous?
But Guan Yu was not among them.
"This defeat cannot be blamed on Sun Quan's cowardice alone,"
the Martial Saint said calmly, fingers stroking his beloved beard.
"Look at the whole of Xiaoyao Ford.
Zhang Liao dared to press for battle during deliberations, lifting morale when others hesitated.
Before the fight, he hid troops beyond the ford and struck after the enemy committed.
When Wu's army had yet to gain firm footing, he charged first, broke their formation, and ripped them apart.
And during the retreat—he did not abandon his comrades, but carried them with him."
Guan Yu paused only after delivering the entire assessment in one breath.
"Flawless."
"The calamity of Wu did not lie with Sun Quan alone—it lay with the whole of Eastern Wu.
Their courage broke. Their defeat was deserved."
The contempt for Jiangdong's soldiers was unmistakable.
Huang Zhong lowered his head.
Back when he guarded Jing Province, he had thought Wu troops respectable.
Had Jing-Xiang narrowed his vision that badly?
— Online Retrospective Thread: "Xiaoyao Ford" —
IronArchivist: Let's be real—this battle goes differently depending on who stands there.
IronArchivist: If Sun Jian were present, when Zhang Liao's eight hundred charged, he would've met them head-on.
A hundred thousand troops watching—what is there to fear?
BladeCommentary: If Sun Ce were there, he'd fight to the death at the ford with his guards.
Hold long enough, the southern vanguard repairs the bridge.
Crisis solved.
FormationNerd: If Zhou Yu commanded the retreat, layers of feints and decoys.
Floating bridges prepared in advance.
This disaster never happens.
PolicyWonk: Even if it were Lu Su, holding Jing Province—
after escaping, he'd redirect Sun Quan north by another route.
No sobbing on boats. No humiliation.
IronArchivist: But alas—only Sun Quan was present.
IronArchivist: And two years later, Lu Su dies of illness.
From that moment on, no one ever again offers Sun Quan a strategy broad enough to match the world.
The hall fell quiet.
"If Sun the Breaker were beneath Hefei's walls," Liu Bei said slowly, recalling the man in his mind,
"he would have shouted to steady morale while counter-charging Zhang Liao himself.
Zhang Liao would never have achieved such glory."
Liu Bei sighed.
Such a heroic father…
How did his descendants end up like—
Wait.
Ah Dou.
His heart hurt again.
"The Little Conqueror of Jiangdong and the Grand Commander were both heroes of their age,"
Huang Yueying said evenly.
"Even a woman like me has heard their names thundered across the land.
They were not cowards who fled at the first sign of danger."
"Lu Zijing as well," Zhuge Liang added, hands folded.
A man who always seemed to hold victory in hand—
yet served another lord.
"Courage and strategy, without losing sight of the whole realm.
A pity we could not serve together."
Jiang Wan glanced at the list he had copied.
"After Lu Su's death… was it this Lü Meng who took control in Jiangdong?"
"Of course!" Zhang Fei snarled.
"A heartless schemer! Must've used underhanded tricks to harm my second brother!"
Guan Yu shook his head.
"Lü Meng is but a brute general for now.
He is not worth my attention."
The disdain was palpable.
Back in Nanjun, the man had barely shown brains.
As for ferocity—how could he compare to Yan Liang?
— Thread Continues: "Zhang Liao's Rewards" —
IronArchivist: Zhang Liao already held the merit of White Wolf Mountain—
breaking the Wuhuan, slaying the Chanyu Tadun.
IronArchivist: Add Xiaoyao Ford to that, and his achievements are overwhelming.
HistoryMod: During Tang Suzong's reign, Zhang Liao was enshrined among the Sixty-Four Generals of the Martial Temple,
receiving incense and worship for generations.
HotTakeDealer: And the greatest contributor to Zhang Liao's glory?
HotTakeDealer: Without question—Sun Quan.
DealHunterBot: Such generosity! Just like a certain modern… billion-subsidy shopping platform!
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— Comment Section Explodes —
KeyboardHistorian: WHAT KIND OF CUT IS THIS?!
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Blink twice if you're sponsored.
SteelPedant: Pattern-welded steel didn't exist until the Song!
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SiegeGuy: That's not a Zhuge Crossbow.
That's clearly an Eight-Ox Ballista.
SiegeGuy: Yeah—used later with fire rounds against Germanic barbarians.
RandomClassicist: So what were the barbarians doing during Flooding the Seven Armies?
CursedTrivia: 219 AD. Elagabalus—same-sex marriage pioneer, imperial prostitute, fashion revolutionary—ascends as Roman Emperor.
ALL CAPS USER:
MY EYES
AnotherUser:
HELP
ConspiracyPoster:
Wait… didn't the Liu clan kinda like men too?
Is this the secret to conquering the world?
EyeBleachSeeker: Stop.
I'm washing my eyes and rereading Flooding the Seven Armies three times.
Li Shimin: Martial Temple? Great idea.
I officially invented it.
Also—what's this app?
A hurricane of information slammed into the hall.
Zhang Fei stood dumbfounded.
"Wait—Martial Temple?
Incense worship?
No—what the hell is this 'shopping platform'?"
Watching swords, crossbows, and books flicker across the glowing screen, his head began to spin.
"Copy everything!" Zhuge Liang shouted.
"Gongyan—prioritize all text!
My lord, assist him!"
"Yueying, with me! Zizhong—copy every image you see!"
Everyone moved at once.
Only Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Huang Zhong stood awkwardly aside.
Zhang Fei finally tore his eyes away from the words 'imperial prostitute' and focused on something else.
"Martial Temple, Sixty-Four Generals—
my second brother's definitely in there!"
"And there ought to be a spot for me too!"
Huang Zhong said nothing.
Could he dare hope?
His first half of life—mediocre, buried in Jing-Xiang.
One late-life charge, one beheading.
Was that enough to enter the Martial Temple and receive incense from posterity?
A heavy hand clapped his shoulder.
Huang Zhong looked up—Zhang Fei was grinning broadly.
"Old General Huang—I've thought it through!"
"…Eh?"
"Instead of leaving our merits to future generations to judge—
why not do exactly what Big Brother said?"
"Follow the Second Generation Martial King!
Restore Han, rebuild the foundation!"
"After reclaiming the Central Plains, we'll fight south, north, west, east—one by one!"
"By then, who needs posterity to judge us?"
"My big brother will build the Martial Temple himself!"
"We'll line up inside—who dares object?!"
Zhang Fei thumped his chest.
Guan Yu stroked his beard and smiled.
Huang Zhong's heart burned.
Liu Bei, finished copying, looked up rubbing his wrist.
"If such a foundation truly comes to pass—why need a Martial Temple?"
"Each of you could have a temple of your own."
"That won't do!" Zhang Fei snorted.
"A temple alone is lonely. I want to be with Second Brother and Big Brother!"
"Third Brother…" Liu Bei was deeply moved.
"…But Big Brother," Zhang Fei added innocently,
"what does it mean that the Liu clan 'liked men'?"
Silence.