chapter 368

[?]: I say, Meng De…

[?]: Go ahead, brother Yuan.
(“older brother please say”)

[?]: Now as the world falls to chaos,

chapter 368 A Send-off To A Hero

[Yuan Shao]: we watch Dong Zhuo grow stronger and the warlords break apart…

[YS]: If this disturbance does not cease, what fronts should be held?
(quoting from RoTK, chapter 33, paragraph/line 15)

[?]: Haha, how could someone like Yuan Shao give up so soon?

[Cao Cao]: Fine. How would you regain the loss if you were to try again?

[YS]: The strength of my Yuan clan is enormous. I shall lean on the Yellow River to the south, as well as Yan and Dai to the north.

[YS]: Once I recruit the barbarian warriors, I will head south to seize power.
[YS]: One step at a time, so that a victory is guaranteed.

Right, Meng De…?

[CC]: Right.

[CC]: Except, brother Yuan, what you wished for is what I have achieved.

{tombstone says: The Grave of Great Han’s General-in-Chief Yuan Shao}
[?]: Now I stand over the Yellow River,
(see paragraph/line 15 for context)

[Cao Cao]: with Yan and Dai in my grasp.

[CC]: The hordes serve under me.

[CC]: But I shall be marching south alone.

[CC]: You asked me, if this disturbance does not cease, what fronts should be held?
(quoting from RoTK, chapter 33, paragraph/line 15)

[CC]: Today I reply, the size of territory matters not;

[CC]: nor the size of troops.

[CC]: I only care about the talents this world has to offer.

[CC]: Under the right leadership, success could be achieved anywhere.

[CC]: My talented men…

[CC]: are the hero who looked death calmly in the eye during a disaster;

[CC]: the leader who commanded tens of thousands of men with extreme caution;

[CC]: the good officer who never held back on the criticism.
(“…always near me admonish…”; could be a typo, will have to check the book version later)

[CC]: What’s more,

[CC]: there are the Supreme General who allowed me to focus all my attention on the front line;

[CC]: the officer who kept the soldiers warm and fed;

[CC]: the valiant general who disregards his own life when leading the charge.

[CC]: And,

[CC]: the virtuous who commanded talented men without seeking personal glory.

[CC]: And most importantly,

[CC]: there are those who followed me since the battle of Puyang-

[CC]: who did not bow to the powerful, nor be swayed by trickery.

[CC]: They were righteous men who held on to their belief and never surrendered.

[CC]: Did you have any of these, brother Ben Chu?
(Ben Chu is Yuan Shao’s courtesy name)

[CC]: No, you did not…

[CC]: You never had,

[CC]: and you never will.

[CC]: Because one by one, all of your offspring will be eliminated.

[CC]: Everything you have will go the way of the corrupt- to fall into my hands one step at a time.
(not sure)

[CC]: Brother Ben Chu,

[CC]: you were not as capable as me.

[CC]: Definitely not.

[CC]: This is not the way to govern the world.

[CC]: A clan of three ministers,

[CC]: yet no match for a man who lived through scorn

[CC]: due to his clan’s Eunuch heritage.

[CC]: I sing with this drink–

[CC]: farewell, Duke Yuan.

[CC]: And,

[CC]: farewell, my most important…

[?]: The wind stirs, Advisor Guo. Be careful not to catch a cold.

[Guo Jia]: The breeze… has given a sent-off to everything.

[GJ]: See, he’s here again.

[?]: There’s no one out there, Advisor.

[?]: If there is, I only pray that it’s him…

[GJ]: Ha.

[GJ]: When you kill so many people… you run out of saviors…

[GJ]: On the other hand, here comes a reaper.

[GJ]: Come.

I shall meet with every one of you outstanding talents in hell.
(“in hell meet group-of hero/great-figures”)