This is a title she must strive for!

In Qiao Yan’s original plan, she already had merits from suppressing the Yellow Turbans in Yan and Yu provinces.

Therefore, giving up some of her achievements in the Ji province battle to gain the favor of Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi was acceptable.

Once the war settled, she would immediately head to Luoyang to see Qiao Xuan one last time, and then return to Yan province to observe mourning and maintain her reputation.

In Yan province, her swift actions to drive the wolves to devour the tigers and merge the three factions of the Yellow Turbans into one prevented the conflict from expanding, saving some people and establishing her influence in the region.

Though she couldn’t openly recruit retainers like the powerful clans of the late Eastern Han period, she could still entrust this task to the Xue and Tian families, with whom she had allied.

When the chaos of Dong Zhuo erupted in the seventh year of Guanghe, her clan uncle, then serving as the Governor of Dong Commandery, would issue a forged imperial edict calling on the warlords to attack Dong Zhuo.

She would seize this opportunity to gain more reputation.

Afterward, she could either retreat to Dong Commandery to profit from the conflict between Qiao Mao and Liu Dai or abandon the war-torn Yan province and seek a new place to settle.

In any case, she would need another push at the right time.

Even if her plans failed, she could still follow the main storyline of the strategist system and become an advisor to a regional warlord.

With the reputation and influence she had built up, no one would dare to kill her casually without facing severe consequences.

But now, an unexpected opportunity had arisen.

In the imperial edict handed to Zhang Rang, the emperor actually intended to grant her a marquis title based on her military achievements.

This could make her plans more proactive and not confined to the territory of Yan Province.

In fact, this was far from the best solution!

From this imperial edict, it was clear that her age was no longer a limitation for becoming a marquis—

Even though Huangfu Song had been ambiguous about her gender in the military reports, judging by his letter to Lu Zhi, he leaned towards showcasing her “young but highly talented” qualities.

So, his letter to Emperor Liu Hong should be similar.

Given this, the only issue she had to consider was her gender.

But this wasn’t a simple matter of being male or female.

Knowing history well, Qiao Yan realized Zhang Rang’s concerns upon learning that he withheld the decree to grant her a marquis title.

Although there were precedents from the early Western Han Dynasty where women could be ennobled, to successfully obtain this marquis title, she would have to break through many layers of restrictions and prejudices.

Therefore, she needed to add weight to her case, or rather, find a reference model for herself.

The system watched as she sat back at her desk, deep in thought, her fingers continuously tapping as she pondered.

Her fingers unconsciously traced the characters “Xu Fu” on the table.

Yes, Qiao Yan could only reference Xu Fu’s situation.

The other four female marquises of the early Western Han Dynasty were either ennobled due to their husbands’ merits or favored by those in power, which clearly didn’t match Qiao Yan’s circumstances.

Moreover, even during the reign of Empress Dowager Deng, who had the posthumous name “Xi,” which means “to bring peace to the people,” she didn’t dare to emulate Empress Lu’s practice of ennobling her sisters, indicating the Han Dynasty’s deep fear and hatred of Empress Lu’s legacy.

They were terrified of any sign suggesting someone might follow her precedent.

The Han rulers generally avoided ennobling women as marquises, likely due to this fear.

Xu Fu’s case was unique; she was ennobled because of her skill in physiognomy.

Her ennoblement was tied to the legitimacy of Liu Bang’s rule, making it a necessity.

Could Qiao Yan use this reasoning? Perhaps she really could.

With the initial suppression of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, if she could prove that her presence could extend the Han Dynasty’s reign, like a prophetic sign, then this marquis title might indeed be granted.

Emperor Liu Hong was a “very interesting” ruler.

From Qiao Yan’s perspective, only during his reign did she have the opportunity to be ennobled.

Although his governance had many flaws, his ability to balance the influence of the imperial family, eunuchs, and the noble families was truly fitting for an emperor.

Qiao Yan originally belonged to the noble faction, but with her parents’ death in the Yellow Turban Rebellion and Qiao Xuan’s short remaining lifespan, she had the possibility of becoming an independent fourth force.

But this promotion needs to be handled with care.

If it’s too heavy-handed, it might make the reigning emperor wary of her, which would be inappropriate.

He might even retract the feudal decree on the grounds of gender.

If it’s too light, it might give rise to other thoughts, which Qiao Yan definitely doesn’t want to see happen.

With the reputation of filial piety and fraternal respect, the absence of a powerful extended family, and her clever methods, isn’t eleven-year-old Liu Bian the most suitable choice for the prince’s consort?

Qiao Yan wouldn’t jump into this pit.

Her goal is only that, even though she doesn’t know what rank it is, as long as it’s a marquis position, it’s acceptable.

To handle the weight of this promotion, it seems she’ll need to make use of the three people who came with her on this trip, as well as the debate she had planned to harvest her reputation from Zhang Jiao.

A burst of light from the lamp in the tent splashed into a lamp flower, shimmering in the corner of her eye, and also causing her to contemplate the implications of being “enfeoffed”

Her thoughts were brought back.

With a bit more certainty in her heart, she didn’t need to lose sleep over this news.

Let’s see what tomorrow brings.

She blew out the candle, plunging the tent into darkness.

The system had originally wanted to ask her what the result was, but seeing her tired expression as she lay down to sleep, it didn’t ask.

With the abilities of the host, what did it have to worry about? It was better off worrying about Zhang Rang, who hadn’t proclaimed properly, and Chunyu Qiong, who she was already using to gather information.

It quietly said one last thing. [Goodnight, host.] —

The next day, at the military camp outside Quzhou City, Qiao Yan woke up to the reminder from the system’s alarm clock.

Chunyu Qiong, on the other hand, woke up from his drunken stupor.

When he woke up, he still felt a bit groggy.

He vaguely felt like he had said too much yesterday, but he didn’t know if there was anything he shouldn’t have said.

But after thinking about it, he didn’t think he knew any particularly secret information.

Even if he had spoken without inhibition after drinking, there probably wouldn’t be any major issues.

Probably…?

Thinking this, he wandered aimlessly around the camp, trying to remember what he had said to Liu Bei.

But the numbness from the alcohol didn’t help him figure out the key information in the end.

He then learned that Liu Bei had left the camp early, just like yesterday, to deal with the bandits.

Trying to get an answer from him was obviously an impossible task.

Captain Chunyu decided not to trouble himself.

If he couldn’t remember, he would just treat it as if it never happened.

After “resolving” this matter, he felt like he could enjoy the camp again.

Lu Zhi moved some of the soldiers, along with some of Huangfu Song’s men, into the city of Quzhou, reducing the number of people in the camp.

But in Chunyu Qiong’s view, Lu Zhi truly lived up to his reputation as a famous general.

These soldiers, after winning the battle against the Yellow Turbans in Jizhou, remained vigilant and made no mistakes in patrolling the camp, even better than the camps in Luoyang.

Although there were some gaps in the numbers, they were covered up by the ongoing operations, making it impossible to spot any flaws.

But that’s just how he is.

He wouldn’t feel ashamed about it; at most, he would feel safer in a camp like this.

However, in this orderly military defense, two people stood out.

Chunyu Qiong stopped at the edge of a tent and, using the cover of the military tent, looked over to see Qiao Yan and Zhang Rang standing together.

Normally, the granddaughter of a high-ranking official, a daughter of a noble family, and a eunuch wouldn’t have anything to do with each other.

But at this moment, the two of them seemed to be talking happily, and Chunyu Qiong couldn’t discern any difference in their camps.

He frowned, regretting that he didn’t have ears sharp enough to hear what they were saying from this distance.

If he got closer, he was afraid Qiao Yan and Zhang Rang would notice him.

All he could see was that, during their conversation, Qiao Yan suddenly seemed a bit melancholic, even on the verge of tears.

Zhang Rang then appeared to be offering words of comfort.

While the topic of their conversation might not have been joyful, the atmosphere could be described as harmonious in a sense.

Chunyu Qiong became wary.

He was aligned with the Yuan family, naturally opposing eunuchs.

Before coming here, Sima Yi had instructed him to pay close attention to Zhang Rang and Zuo Feng’s actions.

If they did anything to offend Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song, it would be an opportunity for their side to win them over.

As for Qiao Yan, who had recently gained the emperor’s favor, it was also important to manage the relationship carefully.

If Zhang Rang and the others were to befriend Lu Zhi and Huangfu Song first and succeed, they would need to report it to Luoyang as soon as possible.

Chunyu Qiong couldn’t help but feel that this seemed like a signal that the other party had chosen the Ten Eunuchs as their backing.

As for whether this was his own choice or if he had been deceived, it didn’t really matter.

When it came to choosing sides, once you made a wrong step, it was hard to change your position.

Of course, Chunyu Qiong would never admit that his current feelings weren’t all about regret for missing out on a great opportunity.

It was also because he hadn’t been enfeoffed yet, while that child was likely to receive a high position, which made him feel a bit disgruntled.

After watching for a while, Zhang Rang and Qiao Yan finally separated and went their own ways.

Qiao Yan didn’t show any signs of turning hostile after Zhang Rang left.

Instead, she watched him leave until he disappeared from her sight.

This reinforced his belief that his judgment was correct.

When he came to his senses from his thoughts, he realized that not only had Zhang Rang disappeared, but Qiao Yan had also vanished from his sight.

But little did he know.

Qiao Yan had a valid reason to chat with Zhang Rang.

No matter how much Zhang Rang thought about how he had suppressed the imperial decree because of Qiao Yan’s gender, feeling uncomfortable all over,

When she asked about Qiao Xuan’s condition in Luoyang, he could only answer her question.

After all, among the people who had come here, only he had accompanied Liu Hong to Qiao Xuan’s mansion.

When he heard that the emperor had personally visited and that Qiao Xuan was seriously ill, saying, “Please bury me on the frontier and pray for the Han Dynasty with my spirit,”

Qiao Yan was deeply moved and couldn’t bear to see this old man who had lost his son in his old age suffer.

Unfortunately, although Qiao Xuan was loyal and righteous, he lived in the difficult times of the late Eastern Han Dynasty.

After Qiao Yan had calmed down, “I still have duties here. Even if my grandfather finds out, he won’t blame me.

My grandfather has the ambition to guard the frontier, and I also have the desire to serve my country. Thank you for informing me of my grandfather’s words.”

Zhang Rang breathed a sigh of relief.

He had sent out a letter yesterday, along with the military report of Huangfu Song and Lu Zhi’s victory here.

He believed that there would be news after it arrived in the capital.

As long as he wasn’t coerced into reading the imperial decree, everything would be fine.

From Chunyu Qiong’s perspective, the conversation between Qiao Yan and Zhang Rang had such an atmosphere.

Zhang Rang didn’t know that Qiao Yan had someone watching Chunyu Qiong’s tent and had approached him when he left the camp.

All he knew was —

Someone like Qiao Yan, even if she might not be able to become the Marquis of Yuepingxiang due to the restrictions of the Han Dynasty, would definitely not be an ordinary person.

Since she didn’t seem to draw a clear line like Huangfu Song, perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad thing to maintain good relations with her.

With this calculation in mind, Zhang Rang didn’t hesitate to greet Qiao Yan when he saw her later.

In Chunyu Qiong’s eyes, it seemed like these two had already reached an agreement in secret.

This didn’t seem hard to understand.

After seizing the imperial decree, Zhang Rang didn’t deliberately contact Huangfu Song but contacted Qiao Yan instead.

It wouldn’t be surprising if he had informed her in advance of the Han Emperor’s intention to grant her the title of marquis.

If this eunuch mediated and secured the marquisate for this woman, wouldn’t it be a huge favor owed to him by Qiao Yan?

How she would repay it would be entirely up to Zhang Rang.

No matter how Chunyu Qiong thought about it, this didn’t seem like a good omen.

But Zhang Rang could send a letter back, and so could he!

Not to mention that as the escort on this trip, he also carried plenty of soldiers around, even sending a letter wouldn’t take long.

Chunyu Qiong wasn’t very good at writing, but as a notable captain, writing a letter was not a problem.

The letter that eventually reached Yuan Wei’s hands was particularly concise:

【Qiao Yan, daughter of Qiao, is secretly conspiring with Zhang Rang.】

He stated an “objective fact.”

How to handle it—whether to assist Qiao Yan in securing her title ahead of Zhang Rang or to suppress her directly—was a decision for Yuan Wei to make.

After sending this letter, Chunyu Qiong felt much calmer.

Later, when he saw the two of them chatting happily, he no longer felt uneasy.

With the removal of the eunuch faction, it was certain that the court would reinstate the Confucian scholars.

With the support of the Yuan family of Runan, the position of the Minister of Works would certainly be greatly enhanced.

Wouldn’t it be easy to make some moves?

In any case, he couldn’t let the eunuchs gain any more support.

But no matter how fast the messenger horses rode day and night, it would still take some time to get the message from Jizhou to Luoyang.

Before Chunyu Qiong received news from the capital, he saw a heavyweight figure arriving at the military camp.

—Someone he never expected to see here at this time.