Three Kingdoms

by Luo Guanzhong (Moss Roberts trans. )

  When Huang Zhong reentered Changsha, Governor Han Xuan ordered him arrested. "I have committed no crime," Zhong shouted; but Han Xuan said angrily, "I have been watching for three days. Do you think you can fool me? Two days ago you didn't put up a real fight. Was it because you had interests of your own? Yesterday your horse slipped and the foe spared you. Was there some understanding between you? Today you snapped an empty bowstring twice, and the third time hit only his helmet. What can explain this except some liaison ? If I let you live now, I will only pay the price later on." The governor ordered armed guards to execute Huang Zhong in front of the city gate, and forestalled all pleas by saying, "Whoever appeals for mercy will be taken as his sympathizer."

  The executioner had pushed Huang Zhong out of the gate and was about to deal the death blow when from nowhere a commander swooped down, slaughtered the executioners, and carried off Huang Zhong. "This man is the shield of Changsha," he shouted. "To kill Huang Zhong is to kill the people of Changsha. Governor Han is ruthless and violent; he slights the worthy and insults men of learning. He should be put to death by common, concerted action. Those who will, follow me!" Everyone turned to the man. His face was ruddy as a date, his eyes as clear as stars. It was Wei Yan of Yiyang.

  Wei Yan had come from Xiangyang in search of Xuande but, unable to find him, sought service with Han Xuan. The governor, however, offended by his easygoing manner and his inattention to ceremonial affairs, chose to let Wei Yan remain idle in the neighborhood rather than give him the position his talents warranted.

  That day, after rescuing Huang Zhong and rousing the people against Han Xuan, Wei Yan bared his arm and mobilized hundreds with a single shout. Huang Zhong was powerless to stop them. Wei Yan fought his way to the top of the city wall and cut Han Xuan in half with a single blow. He took the governor's head, led the people out of the city, and offered himself to Lord Guan. Delighted by Wei Yan's surrender, Lord Guan entered Changsha and calmed the populace. He invited Huang Zhong to audience, but Zhong pleaded illness. Then Lord Guan sent for Xuande and Kongming.

  Xuande had begun organizing a support detachment the day Lord Guan left for Changsha. It was already on the way when its blue-green standard fell over and rolled up. At the same time a south-flying crow passed them, croaking three times. "What do these signs mean?" Xuande asked. Kongming took an augury on horseback and replied, "Changsha district is ours! And we have won over important generals. We will learn more this afternoon." Soon a petty officer reported, "General Guan has taken Changsha and received the surrender of generals Huang Zhong and Wei Yan. He awaits the arrival of Lord Liu." Xuande rejoiced and entered the city. Lord Guan welcomed him into the main hall of the government compound and described his encounter with Huang Zhong. Xuande then went to Huang Zhong's home to extend the invitation to submit. Huang Zhong submitted, requesting only permission to have Han Xuan buried east of the city. A poet of later times has memorialized General Huang Zhong:

  His martial powers set him high as Heaven,

  Yet in the end this greybeard went in bonds.

  Resigned to death, he held no man to blame;

  Surrender made him hang his head in shame.

  His dazzling sword bespoke demonic daring;

  His barded mount, wind-breathing, inspired his combat-lust.

  This hero's noble name defies oblivion,

  Trailing the orphan moon above the Xiang and Tan.

  Xuande was generous to Huang Zhong; but when Lord Guan led in Wei Yan, Kongming ordered him executed. "The man has merits and is without fault. Why must he die?" Xuande said anxiously. "To kill the lord that fed you is disloyal; to deliver your homeland is dishonorable. I see treachery in Wei Yan. Eventually, he will turn against us. Kill him now and you will prevent it."1 Thus Kongming replied. "Why then," said Xuande, "everyone who surrenders will fear for his life. I pray you, relent." Kongming pointed to Wei Yan and said, "I spare you, then. Repay your new lord with all your loyalty and never think to deceive him—or in the end I will have your head." With that, Wei Yan retired, anxiously nodding in agreement.

  Huang Zhong recommended to Xuande the nephew of Liu Biao, Pan, presently residing in You county without office. Xuande appointed him governor of Changsha. With four districts now under his control, Xuande marched back to Jingzhou city, also known as Youkou, which he now renamed Gong'an.2 From this time forward, Xuande had ample supplies of grain and coin, and many worthy men tendered him their service. He dispatched cavalry commanders to defend all strategic points and passes.

  Chief Commander Zhou Yu, nursing his wound in Chaisang, sent Gan Ning to Baling3 and Ling Tong to Hanyang to defend these two districts with war-junks pending further orders. After that, Cheng Pu took the rest of the commanders and officers to Hefei, where Sun Quan had been battling Cao Cao's forces since the fighting at Red Cliffs. Not daring to pitch camp near the city after a dozen indecisive engagements, Sun Quan camped fifty li away.

  The news of Cheng Pu's arrival buoyed Sun Quan's spirits, and he personally went out from his encampment to reward the troops. Lu Su was the first to be received. Sun Quan dismounted to welcome him, and Lu Su flung himself to the ground in ritual prostration. All the commanders were amazed by Sun Quan's extraordinary deference. Sun Quan invited Lu Su to remount and the two rode side by side. Sun Quan asked him softly, "Was greeting you on foot recognition enough?" "No, my lord," Lu Su replied. "What wish remains unfulfilled?" "To see my illustrious lord's awesome virtue prevail throughout the land, to see every province under your sway, to see your imperial enterprise consummated and my name written down in the histories—then and only then will I be satisfied with my 'recognition.'" Sun Quan rubbed his palms together and laughed heartily. The two walked to the command tent for a grand banquet, at which the men and officers of the Red Cliffs campaign were feasted and rewarded. Then Sun Quan and Lu Su took up the question of how to subdue Hefei.

  As they spoke, a defiant letter from Zhang Liao was brought in. Sun Quan read it and said angrily, "Now, Zhang Liao, you go too far! You taunt me to combat knowing Cheng Pu has arrived. But I'll send no fresh troops against you. I'll be in the field tomorrow and will give you the fight you're looking for." Sun Quan issued an order for all armies to leave for Hefei at the fifth watch. The march was in progress when Cao's forces intercepted it in midmorning. The opposing sides arrayed their warriors. Sun Quan rode forth in golden helmet and armor: to his left, Song Qian; to his right, Jia Hua. Both commanders bore halberds with twin side blades. The triple drumroll ended. In the center of Cao's army the gate flags parted, and three commanders in full battle gear stood before their line: in the center, Zhang Liao; to the left, Li Dian; to the right, Yue Jin. Zhang Liao charged to the front and called Sun Quan to combat.

  Sun Quan set his spear and prepared himself. But from his own line another commander bolted ahead to take the challenger. It was Taishi Ci. Zhang Liao whipped his sword around, and the warriors clashed seventy or eighty times with no decision. Li Dian called out to Yue Jin: "That one, in the golden helmet, is Sun Quan. If we catch him, we'll avenge the eight hundred and thirty thousand lost at Red Cliffs."

  At these words Yue Jin angled into the field, a lone rider with a single sword, streaking toward Sun Quan like a bolt of lightning. His hand rose, his sword fell, but the two halberdiers, Song Qian and Jia Hua, blocked his blow. Jin's sword struck off both men's halberd blades; and they reached for their opponent's horse with the bare staves. While Yue Jin swung his horse around, Song Qian seized a spear from a soldier and raced for Yue Jin; but Li Dian put an arrow to his string and shot Song Qian in the breast. The rider went down as the string hummed. Taishi Ci saw the man fall, abandoned Zhang Liao, and headed back to his line. Zhang Liao, seeing the battle turn in his favor, came on strong. The southern forces broke and scattered. Zhang Liao headed for Sun Quan at top speed. Another company, under Cheng Pu, spotted Zhang Liao, and plunged into the fray, intercepting the attack and thus saving Sun Quan. Zhang Liao collected his fighters and went back to Hefe
i.

  Guarded by Cheng Pu, Sun Quan returned to the main camp, his defeated troops to their encampments. The sight of Song Qian's fall caused Sun Quan to give voice to his grief. One of his chief lieutenants, Zhang Hong, said, "My lord, confidence in your own vigor led you to underestimate the enemy and led our men to be disappointed by Your Lordship's rashness. Suppose you had killed a commander and seized a flag, and in so doing had dominated the battleground; it would still have been no more than the service expected of a lower-ranking commander, not of the lord of the land. Let my lord suppress his desire to display the raw valor of a Meng Ben or a Xia Yu4 and embrace the strategies of a king or a hegemon. Your disdain for the foe has cost Song Qian his life. Hereafter it will be essential that your person be kept safe." In response Sun Quan acknowledged his fault and promised to correct it.

  Soon Taishi Ci entered the command tent and said to Sun Quan, "I have in my company one Ge Ding, the brother, as it happens, of a groom in Zhang Liao's service. This servant harbors a deep resentment from having suffered continual rebuke. Tonight he has sent word that he will kill Zhang Liao to avenge Song Qian and will signal us with fire when he has completed the deed. I am requesting troops to support him from without." "And where is Ge Ding?" asked Sun Quan. "He has already entered Hefei undetected. I beg you for five thousand men." At this point Zhuge Jin intervened. "Zhang Liao," he argued, "is full of schemes. They may have been forewarned. Do not act rashly." But Taishi Ci was insistent, and Sun Quan, eager for revenge on Song Qian's killers, met Taishi Ci's request for troops.

  Ge Ding was a fellow townsman of Taishi Ci. Disguised as a soldier, he had entered Hefei and found his brother. "I have already sent word to General Taishi Ci," Ding told him. "They will coordinate with us tonight. How are you going to work it?" The groom replied, "We are too far from the central camp to get in before nightfall. Let's simply stack some hay here and set it afire. You cry rebellion in front of the city to create a panic among the troops. In the midst of it all I'll stab Zhang Liao, and the rest of the army will disperse." "A perfect plan!" responded Ge Ding.

  That night Zhang Liao returned victorious. He rewarded his troops handsomely but forbade them to disarm or sleep through the night. His lieutenants protested, "Today our victory was complete; we drove the enemy far off. Why don't you unhook your armor, General, and rest?" "That would be a mistake," Zhang Liao responded. "In war one must never rejoice in victory nor grieve in defeat. If the enemy thinks we are unguarded and attacks, how will we defend ourselves? Tonight we should be even more alert than usual." As Zhang Liao spoke, fires shot up from behind the camp, and a shrill voice calling for revolt was answered by a battery of others.

  Zhang Liao left his tent and mounted his horse, summoning his closest commanders and lieutenants. A dozen of them stood in the roadway. "The voices sound urgent," they said. "We'd better go and look." "How could the whole city rise in revolt?" cried Zhang Liao. "This is the work of troublemakers trying to frighten our men, that's all. Anyone joining the disorder is to be executed." Moments later Li Dian captured Ge Ding and his brother, the groom; and Zhang Liao, as soon as he discovered the truth, had them executed on the spot. Directly, a great clamor of gongs and drums rose outside the city. "That must be the southerners working with the rebels. We'll turn the tables on them." He ordered his men to start a fire inside the main gate and raise the cry of revolt as they opened it and lowered the bridge.

  Taishi Ci saw the doors part and, thinking the rebellion had succeeded, raced inside with spear raised. From the wall a bombard crashed and archers raked the ground with arrows. Taishi Ci tried to pull back but was wounded several times. From behind, Li Dian and Yue Jin came out for the kill. More than half of the Southland troops were killed as Cao Cao's commanders pursued them to the edge of their camp. Then Lu Xun and Dong Xi came out fighting and rescued Taishi Ci, and Cao's men went back to Hefei.

  Sun Quan grieved at the sight of Taishi Ci's wounds. On Zhang Zhao's appeal he halted the campaign and ordered his warriors to their boats. The expedition returned to Nanxu and Runzhou. By the time the southern army had redeployed, Taishi Ci was near death. Sun Quan sent Zhang Zhao to see him. Taishi Ci exclaimed: "A fighting man, born into an age of trouble, must carry a three-span sword to immortalize his name. Alas, my hopes are defeated. Let death come." With these words he died; his age was forty-one. A poet of later times has praised Taishi Ci:

  Loyal and true, this dedicated son—

  Taishi Ci of Donglai earns our praise.

  His name lent glory to the far frontiers;

  His bow and horse confounded mighty foes.

  For Kong Rong, his mother's comforter,

  Heartily he fought, requiting courtesy.

  His final stand bespoke a sturdy will.

  In every age he draws men's sympathy.

  Sun Quan mourned Taishi Ci and ordered him richly interred at the foot of Beigu Hill in Nanxu; then he took Ci's son, Taishi Heng, into his own home.

  In Gong'an city Liu Xuande had reorganized his fighting force. Learning of Sun Quan's defeat at Hefei and his retreat to Nanxu, he called Kongming to counsel. "Last night I was watching the heavens," Kongming said. "A star fell to earth in the northwest: a member of the imperial house must have died." That very moment they received a report that Liu Qi had passed away. Xuande wept sorely at the news. "Life and death are predetermined," Kongming said consolingly. "Such grief could injure you, my honored lord. Look at things in perspective for now. We must send someone to guard the city and see to the funeral." "Whom can we send?" Xuande asked. "Guan is the man," replied Kongming. And so Lord Guan was sent to defend Xiangyang. "Now that Liu Qi is dead," Xuande said, "the southerners will claim Jingzhou. How should we respond?" "If anyone comes," Kongming reassured him, "I know what to say." Two weeks later Lu Su arrived to convey his lord's condolences. Indeed:

  Once the plan is set,

  The claimant can be met.

  What would Kongming say to the envoy from the Southland?

  Read on.

  54

  State Mother Wu Meets the Bridegroom in a Temple;

  Imperial Uncle Liu Takes His Bride to the Wedding Chamber

  Xuande and Kongming greeted Lu Su outside the city walls and ushered him into the government buildings. After the reception Lu Su said, "My lord Sun Quan, learning of your honored nephew's passing, offers these trifling gifts and sends me to participate in the obsequies. Chief Commander Zhou Yu, moreover, conveys his sincerest respects to Imperial Uncle Liu and Master Zhuge Liang." Xuande and Kongming, rising, expressed thanks for the Southland's gracious sentiments and accepted the gifts. They then set wine before their guest, who continued, "On my previous visit Imperial Uncle Liu said that the province of Jingzhou would be restored to the Southland in the event of Liu Qi's death. Now that the young master has died, we expect its return as a matter of course. Would you inform us when the province can be transferred?" "Enjoy your wine, and we will discuss it," replied Xuande.

  Lu Su steeled himself, and after swallowing several cups of wine, he again attempted to broach the subject. Before Xuande could reply, Kongming interrupted. "You're being quite unreasonable," he said with a stern expression, "if I have to speak plainly.1 The Supreme Ancestor slew the white serpent and rebelled against the Qin to found this great dynasty, which has enjoyed unbroken sovereignty to this very day. Now in these evil times treacherous contenders arise everywhere. Each one seizes a corner of the realm for himself, while the world waits for the rule of Heaven to be restored—under the rightful sovereign. Lord Liu Xuande is descended from Prince Jing of Zhongshan, of the progeny of Emperor Jing the Filial. And he is an uncle of the reigning Emperor. Is he not eligible to be enfeoffed as a feudal lord? All the more so when he is the younger brother of the late Liu Biao! Where do you find impropriety in a younger brother succeeding to an elder's estate? Your lord, son of a minor officer from Qiantang, has rendered no meritorious service to the Han court. At the present time, depending on sheer military power, he has
possession of the six districts and eighty-one townships of the Southland. Yet his greed is not satisfied. He wants to devour more Han territory. In a realm ruled by the Liu family, my lord, a Liu himself, has no rightful share, while yours, a Sun, actually means to wrest this land from him. Don't forget that in the battle at Red Cliffs my lord bore the brunt of the fighting, and his commanders risked their lives in the field. Do you mean to tell us that the victory was due to the strength of the south alone? If I hadn't been able to borrow the force of the southeast winds, what strategy would Zhou Yu have used? Had the south fallen, not only would the ladies Qiao have been moved to the Bronze Bird Tower, even the safety of your own family could not have been guaranteed. The reason Lord Liu did not answer you just now is that he regards you as a high-minded gentleman who may be expected to understand such things on his own. How could you be so undiscerning?"

  During this tirade Lu Su sat silent. At long last he commented, "There is some truth, I'm afraid, in what you say. The thing is, it puts me in a most difficult position."2 "How is that?" Kongming asked. "When the imperial uncle was in straits in Dangyang," Lu Su answered, "it was I who took Kongming to meet my lord. Later when Zhou Yu wanted to march on Jingzhou, I was the one who stopped him. When you told me you would return Jingzhou after Liu Qi died, once again I committed myself and guaranteed your word. If you do not honor your promise today, what kind of answer would you have me take to my lord, who, as much as Zhou Yu, can well be expected to resent the injury?3 If I must die for the failure of my mission, so be it. My only fear is that if the southerners are incited to arms, the imperial uncle will not be able to enjoy possession of Jingzhou and—all for naught—will end up the object of ridicule."