In Chapter 57 of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a clandestine conspiracy unfolds in the heart of Cao Cao’s capital. Huang Kui, an imperial secretary, secretly allies with the veteran general Ma Teng to assassinate the powerful warlord Cao Cao, whom they view as a usurper threatening the Han dynasty.
The course of history is not entirely determined by heroic figures; the actions and choices of ordinary people also influence the historical process to varying degrees. In the Three Kingdoms period, two insignificant figures even shattered two chances to alter the Han Dynasty’s fate.