Three Kingdoms

by Luo Guanzhong (Moss Roberts trans. )

  Li Meng and Wang Fang (who had opened the city gates to the rebels) were assigned commands.

  Generals Li Jue and Guo Si thanked the Emperor and led their armies out of the city. Then they ordered Dong Zhuo's corpse recovered. Since only bits of skin and bone could be found, they ordered a sculptor to make a statue of their fallen leader out of fragrant wood. When the work was done, they dressed the statue in royal robes and placed it in a royal coffin. They chose an auspicious day and led a funeral procession to Mei. At the burial, however, a tremendous cloudburst flooded the area, and the force of the thunder shook the coffin open, knocking the statue out. Li Jue waited for the skies to clear, but the storm raged on and interment had to be postponed again and again until the fragments of Dong Zhuo's corpse had been consumed by lightning. Great indeed was Heaven's wrath.

  Now that they dominated the government, Li Jue and Guo Si terrorized the capital. Their henchmen infiltrated the palace staff and kept the Emperor under close watch, a virtual prisoner. Officials were promoted and demoted as the two villains saw fit. To restore some degree of public confidence, they made the gesture of appointing Zhu Jun to be court steward and invited him to participate in court affairs.1

  One day it was reported that Ma Teng, governor of Xiliang, and Han Sui, imperial inspector of Bingzhou, were advancing on the capital with an army of one hundred thousand, proclaiming their intention to punish the rebels in the name of the Emperor. In preparation for this mission, Ma Teng and Han Sui had secured the collaboration of three important men inside Chang'an: Privy Counselor Ma Yu, Court Counselor Chong Shao, and Left Imperial Corps Commander Liu Fan. These three had secretly persuaded the Emperor to appoint Ma Teng and Han Sui to the rank of general—the former, Conqueror of the West, the latter, Queller of the West—and to authorize them to unite against the party of traitors.

  In response to these developments Li Jue and the other three generals put their heads together to work out a plan of resistance. Their adviser, Jia Xu, said, "Ma Teng and Han Sui are coming a great distance. All we need do is to dig in and defend ourselves resolutely. Their food will be gone in a few months; they'll have to withdraw. Then we can pursue and capture them easily." The two commanders Li Meng and Wang Fang objected. "A poor idea!" they said. "Give us ten thousand men, and we will deliver the heads of Ma Teng and Han Sui in short order." "If you engage them now," Jia Xu warned, "you will lose." "If we fail, we will offer our own heads," Li Meng and Wang Fang said, "and if we succeed, we'll demand yours!" So Jia Xu made a suggestion to Li Jue and Guo Si: "Let generals Zhang Ji and Fan Chou guard the Zhouzhi Hills two hundred li west of Chang'an. The terrain there is quite difficult. Then Li Meng and Wang Fang may go forth." Li Jue and Guo Si followed his advice, placing fifteen thousand men under the two volunteers. They set out in high spirits and camped two hundred and eighty li west of the capital.

  The two commanders confronted the loyalist troops from the west. Ma Teng and Han Sui rode out together in front of their lines and roadblocks. Pointing to Li Meng and Wang Fang, they cried, "There are the rebels. Who will seize them?" Before they had finished speaking, a young general was already in the field. His face was like flawless jade; his eyes gleamed like shooting stars. He had a powerful torso, brawny arms, a lusty stomach, and a supple waist. On a splendid charger he sped forward, gripping a long spear. It was Ma Chao (Mengqi), the seventeen-year-old son of Ma Teng, a lad of supreme courage.

  Wang Fang scorned the youthful challenger and engaged him proudly. But Ma Chao slew Wang Fang handily and wheeled his horse about. Li Meng galloped after the victor. Ma Chao kept riding for his line seemingly unaware of the danger. Ma Teng shouted a warning, but his son already had Li Meng prisoner. Ma Chao had allowed Li Meng to pull close enough to attempt a thrust, and then artfully dodged so that Li Meng speared thin air as his horse carried him abreast of Ma Chao's. At that moment Ma Chao scooped Li Meng up with a supple sweep of his brawny arm. Now leaderless, the troops from the capital broke formation. Ma Teng and Han Sui pursued them hotly and turned their advantage into a great victory. The western army pitched camp at one of the passes outside the capital. Li Meng was beheaded and his severed head publicly displayed.

  Li Jue and Guo Si had new respect for Jia Xu's foresight after hearing of the death of Li Meng and Wang Fang. They reverted to his original strategy, keeping the passes tightly guarded and refusing all challenges. As Jia Xu had predicted, within two months the western army had to retreat for lack of supplies. At the same time Ma Teng and Han Sui's three collaborators within Chang'an were betrayed by a household servant. Li Jue and Guo Si executed the three and set their heads on the front gate of the capital. Then they extinguished the plotters' entire clans, young and old, noble and commoner. With all hope gone of ousting the clique of four generals, the Xiliang force withdrew. Li Jue and Guo Si ordered Zhang Ji to pursue Ma Teng, and Fan Chou to pursue Han Sui. Though the western forces were in disarray, Ma Chao managed to drive off Zhang Ji. But near Chencang, Fan Chou caught up with Han Sui, who turned and faced his enemy. ''You and I are townsmen, "he cried." How can you hunt me down like this? "" I act in the service of the Emperor, "said Fan Chou." I too fight for the ruling house, "Sui protested," why press me so hard? " Without another word, Fan Chou swung his horse round and led his men back to camp, allowing Han Sui to escape.

  Fan Chou's act of mercy did not go unnoticed. A nephew of Li Jue's reported it to the general, who wanted to send out the army to punish Fan Chou. But Jia Xu restrained him: "When the people are so unsettled, there is nothing to be gained by constant resort to war. It would be much simpler to hold a celebration for the two generals, seize Fan Chou, and execute him then and there." This advice satisfied Li Jue. He invited the victorious generals to a banquet, and they attended with pleasure. Midway through the toasts Li Jue suddenly dropped his cordiality and demanded, "Why was Fan Chou plotting with Han Sui? Is he going to rebel?" Fan Chou panicked; before he could defend himself, swords and axes hemmed him in, and his head was quickly taken. Zhang Ji prostrated himself in terror. But Li Jue lifted him up, saying, "Fan Chou conspired against me—that is why I killed him. In you I have complete trust. Have no fear." Fan Chou's forces were then placed under Zhang Ji, who returned to his base in Hongnong.

  After Li Jue and Guo Si had defeated the Xiliang army, no other leaders dared challenge them. At Jia Xu's insistence, they took measures to benefit the population and attract worthy and outstanding men. As a result, the court began to reassert its authority. Unexpectedly, the Yellow Scarves in Qingzhou staged another uprising.2 Hundreds of thousands of rebels under numerous chieftains ravaged the region. The recently appointed court steward Zhu Jun recommended to Li Jue someone who he was sure could put down the Scarves. The man he named was Cao Cao. "Where is Mengde [Cao Cao] now?" asked Li Jue. "At present he is governor of Dongjun," replied Zhu Jun, "and he has a massive army. If we authorize him to act, the rebellion will be crushed swiftly." Li Jue accepted the suggestion and penned an edict authorizing Cao Cao to join forces with Bao Xin, lord of Jibei, for that purpose.

  Cao Cao accepted the commission and joined forces with Bao Xin. They attacked the Yellow Scarves at Shouyang. Bao Xin forced his way into a strongpoint and was killed. Cao pursued the rebels to Jibei, where tens of thousands surrendered to him. Cao placed these former rebels in his vanguard. Wherever he went, the rebels transferred their allegiance to him. In one hundred days Cao Cao had induced the surrender of over three hundred thousand troops and one million noncombatants. He picked the finest of the Yellow Scarves troops and organized them into the Qingzhou army. The remainder he sent back to their farms. In consequence, Cao Cao's prestige rose steadily, and the court recognized his triumphs by naming him General Garrisoning the East.

  Back in Yanzhou, Cao Cao summoned worthy and capable men to build his administration. First came the Xun family of Yingyin in Yingchuan, uncle and nephew. Xun Yu (Wenruo), the son of Xun Gun, had once served Yuan Shao but had shifted his allegiance to Cao Cao. Cao took great deligh
t in Xun Wenruo's opinions and referred to him as "my Zifang."3 He was appointed military counselor. Wenruo's nephew, Xun You (Gongda), a renowned scholar and an attendant in the Inner Bureau when the court was still in Luoyang, had left his office and retired to his village. Cao made him a military instructional superviser. Xun Wenruo recommended to Cao Cao the scholar Cheng Yu (Zhongde), who came from Dong'e in Dongjun. "A name long known to me," Cao commented and sent an emissary, who found Cheng Yu studying in a mountain retreat and persuaded him to enter Cao's service. Cheng Yu said to his patron Xun Wenruo, "I am a foolish, poorly informed man, of little note, undeserving of the honor of your recommendation. But your fellow townsman, Guo Jia (Fengxiao), is a true and worthy scholar of our day. Why not recruit him?" "He nearly escaped my mind!" exclaimed Xun Wenruo, and he urged Cao to invite Guo Jia to Yanzhou to consult with him on the state of the realm. Guo Jia arrived and in turn recommended Liu Ye (Ziyang) from Chengde in Huainan, a descendant of the principal branch of the first imperial family of the Eastern Han. Liu Ye recommended two more notables: Man Chong (Boning) of Changyi in Shanyang, and Lü Qian (Zike) of Wucheng. These two men were also known to Cao Cao, and he gave them positions as military aides. Man Chong and Lü Qian recommended Mao Jie (Xiaoxian) of Pingqiu in Chenliu, and Cao also appointed him military aide.

  Cao Cao made further additions to his newly formed staff: Yu Jin (Wenze) from Ju-ping in Taishan arrived with several hundred troops and was accepted. Cao Cao saw that Yu Jin was a seasoned mounted archer and outstanding in the martial arts. He appointed him captain of the roll. One day Xiahou Dun brought in Dian Wei of Chenliu, a big fellow of almost supernatural strength. Dun introduced him to Cao Cao: "Dian Wei previously served with Zhang Miao. During a quarrel with Zhang Miao's other followers, Dian Wei killed several dozen men with his own hands and then fled into the hills. Some time later while hunting, I spotted Dian Wei chasing a tiger across a stream. It was then that I recruited him, and now I present him to you." "The man is a colossus," said Cao Cao. "He must be extremely powerful." "Once he killed a man to avenge a friend," said Xiahou Dun, "then he marched off with the victim's head. Out of a crowd of hundreds of witnesses, not one dared approach him. He has two steel spears, each weighing eighty catties, and on horseback he wields them like the wind." Cao Cao ordered Dian Wei to demonstrate his skill. Dian Wei grasped his weapons and was dashing back and forth when he noticed that the main pennant above Cao Cao's headquarters was about to blow over despite the attempt of many soldiers to steady it. Dian Wei shouted the soldiers out of his way and held the pole with one hand, immobile against the wind, a tower of strength. Cao Cao exclaimed: "He's certainly another Elai!" and assigned him to guard his headquarters.4 He also presented him with the brocade shortcoat he was wearing, as well as a fine horse and a tooled saddle.

  Thus Cao Cao, aided by wise counselors and fierce fighters, made his prestige felt east of the pass. He now wanted to be reunited with his father, Cao Song, and so sent Ying Shao, governor of Taishan, to Langye to fetch him.5 Song had been living there quietly since leaving Chenliu, the Cao clan's home area, when Cao Cao became a fugitive.6 As soon as Cao Song received his son's message, he and his younger brother Cao De loaded the entire clan—more than forty relatives and one hundred attendants—onto one hundred carts and headed for Yanzhou.

  En route the Cao clan passed through Xuzhou, whose imperial inspector was Tao Qian (Gongzu), a warm and sincere man who had always wanted to be associated with Cao Cao. Now, learning that Cao Cao's father was passing through his province, Tao Qian meant to treat him royally. He received the procession at the border, paid his highest respects, and led it to the capital where he spread forth a splendid banquet that lasted two days. When Cao Song insisted on resuming the journey, Tao Qian personally escorted him out of the city. He then assigned Commander Zhang Kai and five hundred men to escort the family.

  The procession reached the area around Hua and Fei counties. It was late summer, and a sudden storm blew up. The travelers sought shelter in an ancient temple, where the resident monk received them. Cao Song settled the family in and told Zhang Kai to quarter his men in the corridors. The soldiers, drenched from the storm, began grumbling. Zhang Kai called some of his lieutenants to a private conference at which he said, "We were once Yellow Scarves and surrendered to Tao Qian out of compulsion. What good has it done us? The Caos' freight and wagons are enough to make us all rich. We strike at the third watch, kill the whole family, and go into hiding with the goods. What do you say?" The lieutenants agreed.

  That night as the storm raged, Cao Song heard the clamor of voices; his brother, Cao De, took his sword and went out to find the cause. He was cut down immediately. Cao Song tried to help one of his concubines over the wall behind the abbot's quarters, but she was too heavy to climb it. Cao Song hid with her in a toilet, where the guards found them and slew them. Ying Shao, the man Cao Cao had originally sent to fetch his father, escaped and fled to the camp of Yuan Shao. His bloody work completed, Zhang Kai burned down the temple and fled south to Huainan with his five hundred followers. A poet of later times wrote:

  Cao Cao in all his vaunted cunning,

  Slew his hosts and kept on running.

  Now that his whole clan's been slain,

  The scales of Heaven are level again.

  One of Ying Shao's soldiers got away and reported the massacre to Cao Cao, who fell to the ground weeping. As his attendants helped him up, Cao Cao gnashed his teeth and swore: "Tao Qian allowed his men to kill my father! The two of us cannot share the same sky. First I will put his city7 to the sword to quench my wrath." Cao ordered a full-scale invasion of Xuzhou, leaving only Xun Wenruo and Cheng Yu with thirty thousand men to guard the three counties of Juancheng, Fanxian, and Dong'e. Xiahou Dun, Yu Jin, and Dian Wei led the invasion—under orders to slaughter the inhabitants as soon as the capital was taken—to avenge Cao Cao's father.

  Governor of Jiujiang Bian Rang, a close friend of Tao Qian's, learned of the trouble and brought five thousand troops to aid Xuzhou. Angered by this move, Cao sent Xiahou Dun to intercept Bian Rang and kill him. Another friend of Tao Qian's was Chen Gong,8 who held a position in Cao's district, Dongjun. When Chen Gong learned that Cao Cao intended to exterminate the populace of Xuzhou in his thirst for vengeance, he sought an audience. At first Cao Cao refused to see any man coming to plead for Tao Qian, but sentiment prompted him to hear out his former benefactor. Chen Gong appealed to Cao Cao: "They are saying that you are about to invade Xuzhou and avenge your father's murder by wholesale bloodshed. Let me attempt to dissuade you. Tao Qian is a humane and honorable gentleman and would never seek improper gain. Your father's death was Zhang Kai's crime, not Tao Qian's. Moreover, what enmity is there between the people of Xuzhou and yourself? Taking their lives would augur ill for your larger ambitions. I pray you, reflect on this." "Didn't you once abandon me?" Cao asked angrily. "How can you face me again? Tao Qian slew my whole family, and I mean to pluck out his entrails to satisfy my hatred. What you say in his behalf will not sway me." Taking his leave, Chen Gong thought sadly, "Then I cannot face Tao Qian again myself," and he went to Chenliu to serve Governor Zhang Miao.9

  Cao's army invaded Xuzhou. Wherever it struck, multitudes were slaughtered and graves were despoiled. When Tao Qian learned of the toll taken by Cao's army of vengeance, he lifted his eyes and cried bitterly, "I have offended Heaven and brought this on my people." He called his advisers to counsel. One of them, Cao Bao, said, "Let us not meekly turn ourselves over to them. I would like to help you defeat them, my lord." Reluctantly, Tao Qian led his army forth to battle. In the distance he could see Cao Cao's forces spread out over the earth like a vast blanket of snow. Above the central force two huge white banners read "Vengeance and Satisfaction."

  The invaders began assuming battle formations as Cao Cao himself—dressed in mourning white—rode out from the lines, cursing at the enemy as he gestured with his whip. Tao Qian rode forward, bowed low, and tendered his respects. "At first, my lord,
I sought your friendship," he said, "and that is why I sent Zhang Kai to guarantee your father's safety. Little did I realize the rebel's criminal nature had never changed. That is the cause of this misfortune. I had nothing to do with it. I pray you, examine the facts." "Despised wretch," Cao swore. "You slew my father and dare to lie about it! Who will take this old scoundrel for me?" Xiahou Dun answered the call. Tao Qian fled back to his lines, and his commander, Cao Bao, came out. The two warriors grappled with one another. Suddenly a violent storm blew up and sent sand and stones flying about, throwing both armies into disorderly retreat.

  Tao Qian reentered his city and addressed his followers: "Considering the size of Cao Cao's army, I have decided to put myself at his mercy and spare the population further suffering." But someone made a countersuggestion: "Xuzhou has long benefited from your protection. The enemy may be numerous, but they cannot take this city quite so easily. Let us dig in and defend it. Though I possess little talent, I beg to try something that should cause Cao Cao to die without hope of decent burial." This boast astonished one and all. What was his plan? Indeed:

  In Cao Cao, Tao Qian sought a friend and found a foe;

  Now in his extremity, would destiny surprise him again?

  Who had spoken up?

  Read on.

  11

  Liu Xuande Rescues Kong Rong at Beihai;

  Lü Bu Defeats Cao Cao near Puyang

  The man who proposed to resist Cao Cao's siege was Mi Zhu (Zizhong), from an old and wealthy family in the county of Qu in the district of Donghai. Mi Zhu had once had an extraordinary experience. On the way home after doing business in Luoyang, he met a beautiful woman who requested a ride. Mi Zhu offered the woman his seat and proceeded on foot, but the woman insisted that they share the carriage. So Zhu climbed back up, but he sat stiffly, holding his gaze away from the passenger. Several li farther on the woman said good-bye, adding, "I am the deity of solar fire, sent by the Supreme God to destroy your household. Your commendable gentility has moved me to give you this warning: rush home and remove your valuables. I am due tonight." With that she disappeared. Mi Zhu raced home in shock and cleared out his goods. True to the prediction, a fire broke out in the kitchen that night and burned down his house. Thereafter Mi Zhu became known for showing generosity and concern to those in need. Thus, Tao Qian, imperial inspector of Xuzhou, invited him to serve as an aide to the inspector's lieutenant.