Three Kingdoms

by Luo Guanzhong (Moss Roberts trans. )

  Secretly gratified by this counsel, Sima Zhao returned to his palace. When he was preparing to partake of his dinner, however, he suffered a severe stroke and as a consequence lost his power of speech. The next day his conditioned worsened. Grand Commandant Wang Xiang, Minister of the Interior He Zeng, and Military Counselor Xun Kai, joined by various high officials, entered the palace to inquire of the king's condition. Sima Zhao, still unable to speak, pointed to the crown prince, Sima Yan; then he died. It was the eighth month of the year, twenty-eighth day of the cycle.10 He Zeng said, "The fate of the empire now rests with the king of Jin. Let the first son be established as the new king; the sacrifices and interment can then be performed." That day Sima Yan assumed the position of king of Jin and honored He Zeng as prime minister, Sima Wang as minister of the interior, Shi Bao as general of the Flying Cavalry, and Chen Qian as general of Cavalry and Chariots. Sima Yan's father, Zhao, was posthumously titled King Wen.

  The burial complete, Sima Yan summoned Jia Chong and Pei Xiu to his palace and asked, "Is it true that Cao Cao once said, 'Had Heaven's Mandate rested in me, would I have played the honest regent's part of the Duke of Zhou'?" Jia Chong answered, "Cao Cao meant that he feared being denounced as a usurper since the Han had employed members of his clan for generations. Instead, he wisely arranged for Cao Pi to become Son of Heaven." Sima Yan asked, "How does my father, the late king, compare with Cao Cao?" Jia Chong replied, "Cao's accomplishments were known throughout the northern heartland. The masses feared him for his power more than they loved him for his virtue. But after his son Pi succeeded to power, his punishing corvee and military service requirements drove the people hither and yon without respite. Subsequently, King Xuan and King Jing both compiled records of great achievements, and the benefits thereof spread through the realm, so that early on they won the love of the people of the empire. And King Wen incorporated Riverlands territory into our realm—a towering achievement that surpasses all that Cao Cao did."

  Sima Yan said, "Cao Pi made the rule of Wei continuous with that of Han by receiving its last emperor's abdication. How could I not similarly preserve the continuity of the rule of Wei?"11 Jia Chong and Pei Xiu prostrated themselves over and over before offering this petition: "That indeed is a precedent Your Lordship could properly follow: building another altar to receive the abdication of the Emperor and announcing to the world your assumption of the throne."12

  Delighted, Sima Yan took his sword and entered the palace the next day. For several days during this period Cao Huan, ruler of Wei, had held no court. His thinking was unclear, his behavior erratic. Sima Yan went directly to his rear chamber. Cao Huan hastened down from his platform seat to welcome him. Sima Yan seated himself, then he asked, "Whose efforts have maintained the empire for Wei?" "We owe everything to the father and grandfather of the king of Jin," Cao Huan responded. With a smile Sima Yan went on, "In my judgment Your Majesty has proven ill informed as to the true way of government and is unable to defend the kingdom militarily. Should you not step aside for a ruler with the necessary talent and virtue?"

  Cao Huan was dumbfounded. Beside him was Zhang Jie, a courtier from the Inner Bureau, who shouted, "The king of Jin speaks false! Our Martial Ancestor Cao Cao led sweeping conquests in the four directions; it was no easy task for him to win the empire. The present Son of Heaven has his virtue and is guilty of no crime. Why should he yield his reign?" Wrathfully, Sima Yan responded, "The dynastic altars belong to the great Han. Cao Cao coerced the Son of Heaven as a means to control the lords of the realm. He made himself king of Wei, then he usurped the house of Han itself. My father and his father before him guided and supported the Wei dynasty, which possessed the empire by the strength of the house of Sima, not of Cao—as the world well knows. Why should I not inherit the reign of Wei?" Zhang Jie retorted, "If you carry it through, it will be treason by usurpation!"

  Sima Yan exploded in anger. "I am avenging the house of Han," he cried. "Is something wrong with that?" So saying, Sima Yan ordered his guards to beat Zhang Jie to death in the throne hall with the golden ceremonial mace. Cao Huan kneeled and pleaded desperately, but Sima Yan rose and left the throne hall. Cao Huan said to Jia Chong and Pei Xiu, "We have reached the crisis. What is to be done?" Jia Chong responded, "The Heavenly-ordained time has expired. Your Majesty should not defy Heaven, but rather follow the precedent of Emperor Xian and have another Altar for the Acceptance of the Abdication erected for the transfer of the imperial seal to the king of Jin with full ceremonial splendor. Such an act would coincide with the wish of Heaven and conform to the people's mood while ensuring Your Majesty's security and peace of mind."

  Cao Huan accepted this advice and ordered Jia Chong to construct the altar. On the first cyclical day in the twelfth month13 Cao Huan, the seal of state held high in both hands, ascended the altar in front of a grand congregation of civil and military officials. A poet of later times was moved to write:

  Wei swallowed Han, and then Jin swallowed Wei;

  From Heaven's turning wheel no man can hide.

  Shed a tear for Zhang Jie's loyal demise,

  One man against the towering Mount Tai.

  Next, Sima Yan, king of Jin, was requested to ascend the altar and accept the abdication. Cao Huan descended and stood at the head of the court wearing garb appropriate to a court official. Sima Yan seated himself squarely upon the altar, flanked by Jia Chong and Pei Xiu, who held swords. They ordered Cao Huan to reascend, prostrate himself, and receive the new Emperor's command.

  Jia Chong said, "Since the twenty-fifth year of the last Han reign period, Jian An, when Wei received the abdication of Han, forty-five years have passed. Today Heaven's endowment has finally ended, and its Mandate newly rests on Jin. The ever-burgeoning merit and virtue of the Sima reaches to the limits of Heaven and earth. The clan leader may rightfully assume the imperial throne and preserve the continuity with Wei. You shall be enfeoffed as the prince of Chenliu. Go now to the city of Jinyong and dwell there. Depart at once and do not return to the capital without the throne's express edict." Cao Huan wept and departed, expressing his appreciation.

  Imperial Guardian Sima Fu prostrated himself tearfully before Cao Huan and said, "A vassal of Wei all my life, I could never turn against your house." Out of respect for Sima Fu's devotion, Sima Yan wished to enfeoff him as prince of Anping, but Sima Fu retired without accepting the honor. That day the entire body of officials prostrated itself once and again below the Altar for the Acceptance of the Abdication, shouting mightily, "Long live the new Emperor!" After the transfer was completed, Sima Yan named the new dynasty Great Jin and changed the reign period from Xian Xi, year 2, to Tai Shi, "Magnificent Inception," year 1 (a. d. 265). A general amnesty was declared. The Wei dynasty was no more. A poet of later times expressed his sadness thus:

  Jin's model was Cao Cao, king of Wei.

  And the prince of Chenliu recalls Lord Shanyang.14

  Again the rite of transfer on the stage—

  He thinks back to the time and grieves.

  Sima Yan, Emperor of Jin, posthumously honored Sima Yi as Emperor Xuan; his uncle, Sima Shi, as Emperor Jing; and his father, Sima Zhao, as Emperor Wen. He built seven ancestral temples to glorify his line back to its founder. Who were the seven to whom the temples were dedicated? General Sima Jun, Conqueror of the West for the Han; Jun's son, Sima Liang, governor of Yuzhang; Liang's son, Sima Jun, governor of Yingchuan; Jun's son, Sima Fang, governor of Jingzhao; Fang's son, Sima Yi, Emperor Xuan; Yi's sons, Sima Shi and Sima Zhao, Emperors Jing and Wen. These were the seven. The change of dynasty complete, daily consultations began on how to conquer the Southland. Indeed:

  The towns and walls of Han were in new hands;

  The hills and streams of Wu would soon change hands.

  How did the conquest take place?

  Read on.

  120

  With the Recommendation of Du Yu, an Old General Offers a New Plan;

  With Sun Hao's Surrender, the Realm Is United
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  The Southland ruler, Sun Xiu, sick with worry that a southern invasion would soon follow Sima Yan's usurpation, remained in bed. He summoned his prime minister, Puyang Xing, whom he had the heir apparent, Sun Wan, duly welcome into the royal chamber. With one hand Sun Xiu grasped the minister's arm; with the other he pointed toward Sun Wan. That moment he died.1 Prime Minister Puyang Xing emerged from the chamber and, after conferring with the assembled vassals, proposed instating the heir apparent. Left Army Superintendant Wan Yu said, "The heir-son is too young to control the government. It would be better to choose the lord of Wucheng, Sun Hao." General of the Left Zhang Bu added, "Sun Hao has the talent, the insight, the intelligence, and the decisiveness to take the throne." Still undecided, Puyang Xing went before Queen Mother Zhu with the question. She responded, "A poor widow like me knows nothing of such matters as the sacred shrines. The senior lords and ministers should act at their own discretion." And so Puyang Xing welcomed Sun Hao as the sovereign of Wu.

  Sun Hao (Yuanzong) was the son of Sun He, Sun Quan's heir apparent. In the seventh month of the year Sun Hao assumed the throne and changed the reign year to Yuan Xing, "Primary Prosperity," year 1 (a. d. 264).2 Hao enfeoffed Sun Wan as prince of Yuzhang and honored his own father, Sun He, with the posthumous title August Emperor Wen. His mother, of the house of He, became queen mother. Ding Feng was made grand marshal of the Right.

  The following year the reign year was changed to Gan Lu, "Sweet Dew," year 1 (a. d. 265). Sun Hao became unbearably cruel and violent, sinking deeper and deeper into vice and luxury. He made the eunuch Cen Hun the special object of his favor. When Puyang Xing and Zhang Bu remonstrated with the ruler, Hao, in a fit of anger, had them executed along with their clans. Thenceforth the vassals sealed their lips, and no one dared remonstrate.

  Sun Hao changed the reign year to Bao Ding, "Precious Tripod," year 1 (a. d. 266), and made Lü Kai and Wan Yu left and right prime ministers, respectively. At the time Sun Hao was in Wuchang. By exacting excessive tribute from the people of Yangzhou he had caused extreme distress.3 Sun Hao's court indulged in extravagance that emptied the private as well as the public purse. Lü Kai submitted a written remonstrance:

  No calamity has struck, yet the people's lives are drained. Nothing has been undertaken, yet the state treasury stands empty. How keenly I deplore it. Long ago the house of Han declined, and three houses established separate power. But the clans of Liu and Cao failed to govern well, and their kingdoms passed into the domain of Jin. Their example is plain to all. I, your humble vassal, seek but to spare Your Majesty's rule a like fate. The terrain around Wuchang is difficult and unproductive, no place for a royal capital. Further, a recent children's jingle goes: "Better Jianye water than Wuchang fish to eat; / Better dead in Jianye than alive in Wuchang seat." This rhyme shows the mood of the people and the mind of Heaven.

  The kingdom has less than one year's reserves. A crisis is in the making. Our officials and officers make onerous exactions and gain wide disfavor. The harem of less than one hundred imperial concubines at the time of the Great Emperor, Sun Quan, has grown to more than a thousand since the time of Emperor Jing, Sun Xiu—an unconscionable waste of resources. Furthermore, unfit royal attendants, a multitude of contending factions, and assassinations and plots against the loyal and worthy subvert the government and plague the people. I appeal to Your Majesty to reduce the people's burden of military service and corvee labor, remove onerous exactions, limit the number of women in the palace, and selectively purge the officials so that the kingdom will know peace, Heaven will rejoice, and the people will commit themselves to Your Majesty.

  Sun Hao was most displeased by this memorial. He began another large-scale luxury project, building the Palace of Reflected Light, and sent all officials into the hills to gather wood for the construction. He also summoned Shang Guang, a diviner, to cast his yarrow stalks and discover for him how to conquer the empire. Shang Guang reported to the Emperor, "The divination has produced a fortunate answer for Your Majesty: in the next gengzi year,4 the thirty-seventh year of the cycle, a blue canopy will enter Luoyang." Well pleased, Sun Hao said to Hua He, the deputy treasurer, "Upon your advice, the late Emperor, my father, had his commanders extend a line of hundreds of camps along the banks of the Great River, and he placed them under the overall command of Ding Feng, the veteran general. It is now our intention to bring all the territory of Han under our control and avenge the ruler of the Riverlands. With what region should we begin?"

  Hua He remonstrated with Sun Hao: "Now that Chengdu has fallen and the Liu dynastic shrines are overthrown, Sima Yan will aim to swallow Wu. It would behoove Your Majesty to develop your virtue and bring security to the people of the Southland. That would be the soundest plan. If we were to mobilize at this time, we would be like the proverbial firefighter who tried to beat out flames with dry hemp and got himself burned. I beg Your Majesty to consider this."

  Sun Hao cried in anger, "It is the royal wish to use this opportunity to restore our patrimony. Why such ill-omened words? Were it not for your long years of honorable service, I would have you beheaded as a warning to all." So saying, he had Hua He removed.

  Hua He left the court and uttered a deep sigh. "Alas," he said, "these hills and streams that nature made so lovely are soon to pass to another's hands." After that Hua He remained in his residence and did not stir. Sun Hao ordered General Lu Kang, Queller of the East, to station forces at Jiangkou, the main crossing point of the river, with the objective of seizing Xiangyang.

  These movements were swiftly reported in Luoyang, and a privileged attendant informed the ruler of Jin, Sima Yan, by petition. On learning that Lu Kang intended to make a military attack on Xiangyang, the ruler of Jin conferred with his advisers. Jia Chong stepped forth from the ranks and petitioned: "It is known that Sun Hao of the Southland has not maintained a virtuous government and is given to immoral conduct. Your Majesty might issue an edict to Field Marshal Yang Hu to lead the army against the south. A coup is likely there, and that will give us the chance to attack. The Southland can be taken with the ease of turning one's palm."

  Delighted, Sima Yan sent an edict to Xiangyang with instructions for Yang Hu. The edict received, Yang Hu put his forces into fighting condition and prepared to engage the enemy. During his tenure as their defender, Yang Hu had won the confidence of the Xiangyang populace. He had permitted all Southlanders who had surrendered but desired to leave to do so, and he had reduced the number of soldiers on patrols, using them to cultivate some five thousand hectares of land. Consequently, the grain supply for the army, which was less than one hundred days' when Yang Hu first came to Xiangyang, grew by year's end into a ten-year reserve. When with the troops Yang Hu wore no armor, only a light fur jacket cinched with a broad belt. The guard at his command tent never exceeded ten men.

  One day a subordinate commander entered with a petition for Yang Hu: "Scouts have reported that the Southland soldiers seem lax and lazy. Since they are unprepared, a surprise attack should defeat them." With a smile Yang Hu replied, "Aren't you and the soldiers underrating Lu Kang? He is a man of high intelligence and productive plans. Some time ago when the ruler of Wu ordered him to attack and seize Xiling, he killed Bu Chan and several score of the defending officers before I could rescue them. If he is the Southland commander, we can do no better than to defend ourselves and wait for a change in their internal situation before aiming for a conquest. If we act recklessly without carefully considering the time and circumstances, we will end up defeated ourselves." The commanders, won over by Yang Hu's logic, confined themselves to the defense of Xiangyang.

  One day Yang Hu was leading a few commanders on a hunt when he came upon Lu Kang accompanied by a like party. Yang Hu had instructed his commanders not to cross into Southland territory, and as ordered they hunted only within Jin territory. Watching from afar, Lu Kang said with a sigh, "What discipline General Yang has! We must not violate his boundary." As the day ended, both parties withdrew.

&
nbsp; Returning to his quarters, Yang Hu inspected the day's kill and sent back to the southerners all game shot with their arrows. The delighted southerners reported this to Lu Kang, who summoned the Jin envoy into his presence and asked, "Does your chief commander enjoy meat and wine?" The envoy replied, "Only if the wine is finely brewed." Lu Kang smiled and said, "I have a gallon that is well aged. Take it for the field marshal with my compliments. Tell him I fermented it for my own use and offer him this measure now to show my gratitude for his courtesy to our hunters." The envoy accepted the gift and carried it back to Yang Hu. Lu Kang's attendants asked, "What was the purpose of that?" "I could not fail to reciprocate the courtesy he extended to us," Lu Kang answered, to the astonishment of his followers.

  The envoy recounted to Yang Hu all that Lu Kang had said and described the gift of wine. With a smile Yang Hu responded, "He, too, knows my capacity for drink!" He ordered the wine vessel opened and poured some out. His subordinate Chen Yuan said, "There could be something in it. Perhaps the field marshal should wait before drinking." "Don't worry. Lu Kang is no poisoner," Yang Hu said and tipped the vessel into his mouth. Thenceforth messengers passed regularly between the two men.