One day Lu Kang sent a man to convey his regards. Yang Hu asked, "How is General Lu?" "The field marshal has been ill for several days and confined to his bed," was the reply. "I would guess," Yang Hu went on, "that we both suffer from the same thing. I have compounded a tonic for it; you can take some back to him." The messenger carried the potion back to Lu Kang. Kang's commanders said, "Yang Hu is an enemy. This medicine cannot be safe." But Lu Kang answered, "Yang Hu would not give me tainted drugs. Rest assured," and he drank the tonic. The next day his condition improved, and his commanders came to wish him well. Lu Kang said, "If their methods are virtuous and ours are violent, then they will subdue us without fighting. Let every commander confine himself to protecting our boundaries. Seek no trifling advantage from them." The commanders accepted this order.
At this moment a messenger from the ruler of Wu arrived. After being received by Lu Kang, he said, "The Son of Heaven transmits this command to his general: advance with all speed; do not permit the men of Jin to strike the first blow in our territory." Lu Kang told the messenger, "You go on back. My written petition will follow." The messenger departed, and Lu Kang drafted the petition and sent it on to Jianye. The ruler's privileged attendants submitted it to Sun Hao, who read the document. It explained in detail why Jin could not be successfully attacked, and it entreated the ruler to develop his virtue and apply punishment with great caution, adding that military adventures should be avoided for the sake of domestic security.
When he had finished reading the petition, the ruler of Wu was furious. "I have heard that Lu Kang fraternizes with the enemy at the border," he cried. "And that's exactly what this means!" The ruler dispatched an envoy to terminate Lu Kang's command and reduce his rank to commanding officer, and he assigned General of the Left Sun Ji to replace Lu Kang. None of his vassals dared remonstrate.
The ruler of Wu, Sun Hao, changed the reign period to Jian Heng, "Established Balance" (a. d. 269-71). For the next three years, until the succeeding reign period, Feng Huang, "The Phoenix" (a. d. 272-74), the ruler acted on his impulses. He exhausted military strength in policing actions so that courtiers and commoners everywhere groaned with discontent. Prime Minister Wan Yu, General Liu Ping, and Minister of Agriculture Lou Xuan all recognized the evils of his administration. They spoke frankly and remonstrated earnestly with him, but in the end they were killed for their pains. More than ten years passed. The number of loyal vassals killed rose to over forty. In his comings and goings Sun Hao was accompanied by an armored guard of fifty thousand riders. The mass of vassals lived in fear, but none dared attempt to change things.
Meanwhile, Yang Hu had kept informed of Sun Hao's loss of virtue after the removal of Lu Kang. Realizing that the time to attack the Southland had come, he petitioned the court in Luoyang to authorize the invasion. The text of his memorial read in essence:
Heaven may ordain, but men must achieve. The Southland's terrain is far less arduous than the west's. The tyranny of Sun Hao far exceeds Liu Shan's. Wu's people face problems far worse than Shu's. And Jin is militarily stronger now than ever before. Our reign will not long endure unless we restore order throughout the realm at this critical hour, for to allow the confrontation of armies to go on, taxing the empire with endless campaigns, will quickly lead us from prosperity to ruin.5
Delighted with Yang Hu's memorial, Sima Yan ordered his forces to mobilize. But Jia Chong, Xun Xu, and Feng Dan objected strenuously and succeeded in preventing the invasion.
When Yang Hu learned his petition had been denied, he sighed and said, "How rarely things go one's way in this world! A Heaven-sent opportunity will pass untaken. What could be more lamentable?" In the fourth year of Xian Ning, "Universal Tranquility" (a. d. 278), Yang Hu went to court and begged permission to retire to his home village to restore his health. Sima Yan asked him, "Have you any recommendation for the security of our kingdom?" Yang Hu answered, "Sun Hao's tyranny has reached the extreme of violence and cruelty. He can be conquered without a battle. But if Sun Hao should pass from the scene and a capable sovereign come to the throne, Your Majesty may find the Southland difficult to conquer." Sima Yan, inspired by these words, asked, "Would you be willing to lead the invasion now?" "My years are many and my health is poor," Yang Hu answered. "I doubt I could undertake the mission. But if Your Majesty could find someone else—some shrewd, bold warrior—it could be done." So saying, Yang Hu took leave of Sima Yan and returned to his home village.
In the eleventh month of that year Yang Hu's condition worsened, and Sima Yan made a personal visit to his home to express his concern. As he came near the sickbed, Yang Hu said tearfully, "Ten thousand deaths could not repay all I owe Your Majesty." Sima Yan cried too. "How sorely we regret our failure to adopt your plan to invade Wu," he said, "for who today can bring your purpose to fulfillment?" Choking back his tears, Yang Hu replied, "As death approaches, I must fulfill my humble fealty. Du Yu, general of the Right, is the one to entrust with the task. He is the man to lead the attack on Wu." Sima Yan responded, "Recommending the worthy and able is something to be proud of. Why did you burn your memorials of recommendation and prevent anyone from learning of them?" Yang Hu said, "To recommend someone in open court so that later he could show his gratitude to me privately was something I chose to avoid." And with those words Yang Hu passed away.
Sima Yan loudly lamented Yang Hu's death all the way back to his palace. There he issued an order posthumously naming Yang Hu imperial guardian and lord of Juping. In Nanzhou, when the common people heard of Yang Hu's death, they closed their markets and mourned for him. The soldiers guarding the Southland borders also wept and mourned. People in Xiangyang remembered that when he was alive Yang Hu had often ridden in the Xian Hills, and so they erected a temple and a tablet there and sacrificed to his memory every season. Without exception, passersby who read the engraved text shed tears, and so the stone was called the "Tablet of Falling Tears." A poet of later times was moved to write these lines:
A morning climb—the temple—Yang Hu's moving tale
On old stone shards, one spring in Xian Hills.
The constant fall of dewdrops through the pines—
Are they the tears of those who mourned him then?
On Yang Hu's recommendation, the ruler of Jin honored Du Yu as chief commander, Queller of the South, with authority over Jingzhou province. Du Yu was worldly-wise, at once experienced and prudent. He never tired of his studies. His favorite book was Zuo Qiuming's commentary to the Spring and Autumn Annals, the Zuo zhuan, which he kept beside him day and night. Even when he rode out, he always had his man carry a copy of it, so that his contemporaries called him "the Zuo zhuan addict." When the mandate of the ruler of Jin arrived, Du Yu was in Xiangyang reassuring the populace and developing his military strength for the invasion of the Southland.
By this time both Ding Feng and Lu Kang of the Southland had died. Whenever the ruler of Wu, Sun Hao, feasted his vassals, he would order them to get themselves drunk. He had also given ten officers of the Inner Bureau the power to impeach officials. After the banquets these Inner Bureau eunuchs would present cases against various offenders to the throne. Those found guilty were punished by having the skin peeled from their faces or their eyes gouged out. This struck terror into the hearts of the people.
Wang Jun, imperial inspector for Yizhou under Jin, petitioned for an invasion of the Southland. His statement read:
Sun Hao's wild depravity and vicious perversity demand swift punishment. First, if Sun Hao dies and a worthy ruler comes to power, the enemy will then be too strong. Second, I, your vassal, began building warships seven years ago, and some of them are deteriorating. Third, I myself at age seventy have little time left. Any change in these three factors could frustrate our plans. I beg Your Majesty not to lose this critical moment.
The ruler of Jin perused the memorial and consulted with his officials. "Wang Jun's views coincide with what Yang Hu once proposed," he said. "We are therefore resolved." However, Privy Counse
lor Wang Hun petitioned: "I, your vassal, have heard that Sun Hao has already organized his ranks for a move on the north. To engage them at the peak of their readiness could mean trouble; but if we delay another year until they have grown fatigued, success will be more likely." The ruler of Jin approved this petition and issued an edict halting the advance of his troops.6
The ruler of Jin had retired to his private quaters and was passing the time playing chess with Zhang Hua, his deputy of the Household Secretariat, when a privilged attendant announced the arrival of a memorial from the border. The ruler of Jin opened and read it. The author was Du Yu. It said:
Previously Yang Hu failed to consult widely with the court officials and laid plans with Your Majesty in secret. As a result, the officials came to no consensus. The merits of every decision need to be debated fully. In my judgment, the benefits of a southern offensive outweigh the drawbacks by a ratio of eight or nine to one, while the only real danger is failing to accomplish our goal. Since autumn it has become increasingly clear that we will have to conduct a punitive expedition against the south. If we delay now, midway in our course, Sun Hao will have been sufficiently alarmed to shift the capital to Wuchang and to fortify the various towns along the Great River, transferring their populations elsewhere. If the southern river towns are fortified and the countryside offers nothing to plunder, then a year's delay will prove too long.
The ruler of Jin had hardly finished reading Du Yu's memorial when Zhang Hua sprang to his feet, pushed aside the chessboard, and said, hands clenched, "Your Majesty is wise in military affairs, our kingdom is wealthy, and our people are strong. The Southland ruler's depraved cruelty has weakened his kingdom and made the people anxious. If we move to smite them now, rest assured that we will establish a new order with little effort."
The ruler of Jin said, "Your penetrating insight has banished all doubt." With that he left his chambers and ascended to the royal hall, where he ordered Chief Commander Du Yu, Queller of the South, to assume the position of first field marshal and lead a force of one hundred thousand against Jiangling; Supreme Commander Sima Zhou, prince of Langye and Queller of the East, to go forth against Tuzhong; Supreme Commander Wang Hun, Pacifier of the East, to go forth against Hengjiang; General Wang Rong, Es-tablisher of Prestige, to go forth against Wuchang; and General Hu Fen, Restorer of Order to the South, to go forth against Xiakou. Each general, under the overall direction of Du Yu, commanded fifty thousand. The ruler of Jin also dispatched Prancing Dragon General Wang Jun and Extender of Warfare General Tang Bin to move east down the river. The land and marine forces together numbered more than two hundred thousand; warships numbered in the tens of thousands. Lastly, the ruler of Jin assigned Champion General Yang Ji to occupy Xiangyang and control the several field armies.
Word of these moves soon reached Sun Hao. In alarm he summoned his prime minister, Zhang Ti, his minister of the interior, He Zhi, and his minister of works, Teng Xun, to a conference on how to repel the enemy. Zhang Ti petitioned: "General of Chariots and Cavalry Wu Yan could be made field marshal with orders to engage Du Yu at Jiangling. And Flying Cavalry General Sun Xin could be ordered to defend Xiakou and other river points. I, your vassal, could then serve as director general with command over General of the Left Shen Rong and General of the Right Zhuge Xing to lead a force of one hundred thousand through Niuzhu and reinforce the various field armies as necessary." Sun Hao approved this plan and ordered Zhang Ti to depart with his army.
When Sun Hao retired to his private quarters, deep anxiety was written on his face. His favorite, the eunuch Cen Hun, asked why, and Sun Hao replied, "The armies of Jin are coming. Our own have gone forth to meet them. But how will we cope with the strong thrust from Wang Jun, who is leading tens of thousands of troops downriver in his well-equipped fleet? That is the question that most perturbs me." Cen Hun said, "I have a plan to cut Wang Jun's fleet to pieces." Sun Hao was delighted and asked the details. Cen Hun resumed his petition: "The Southland is rich in iron. Let us forge a hundred lengths of chain, each chain several hundred spans long and each link weighing some twenty or thirty catties. Lay the chains across the vital points up and down the river to block the warships' advance. Next, make tens of thousands of ten-span iron stakes and set them in the riverbed; if the warships of Jin sail downriver, they will strike the stakes and break apart. They will never get across the Great River." Well pleased, Sun Hao had all ironworkers assemble at the river's edge in order to work day and night making the chains and stakes and setting them up in the right way.
The first field marshal of the Jin forces, Du Yu, moved his army out toward Jiangling and ordered Garrison Commander Zhou Zhi, "Quietly lead eight hundred sailors across the Great River on small boats and take Yuexiang by night, then raise flags and banners all over the surrounding country. By day shoot your bombards and roll your drums; by night start fires at various points." Zhou Zhi accepted his assignment and took his men across the river and into hiding on Ba Hill.
The next day Du Yu led the general advance on land and sea. Scouts informed him: "The ruler of Wu has sent three armies to oppose us—Wu Yan on land, Lu Jing on water, and Sun Xin in the vanguard." Du Yu continued ahead until he encountered Sun Xin's advance ships. The two forces engaged; Du Yu retired. Sun Xin led his men ashore and tracked the northerners' tortuous flight. Before he had gone twenty li, however, a bombard sounded and the troops of Jin fell upon Sun Xin from all sides. Pressing his advantage, Du Yu slew the southern troops in numbers past reckoning as they struggled to turn back.
Sun Xin fled back to the outskirts of Xiakou, but Zhou Zhi's eight hundred sailors had mingled among them and entered the city undetected. Once inside, they started fires atop the city walls. Alarmed, Sun Xin cried, "Has the enemy flown across the river?" Xin started to retreat from the city when, at a shout from Zhou Zhi, he was hacked down and fell from his mount.
From his ship the southern naval commander Lu Jing saw a stretch of fires along the south bank and a square banner waving atop Ba Hill, inscribed "General Du Yu of the Jin, Queller of the South." In a panic Lu Jing tried to land and save himself; but as he clambered ashore, the Jin commander Zhang Shang intercepted him and cut him down. Wu Yan, seeing that the field was lost, abandoned Jiangling and fled but was arrested by soldiers in ambush and brought in bonds before Du Yu. "What's the good of sparing him?" Du Yu said and ordered him executed.
And so Jiangling fell. Soon after, throughout the Yuan and Xiang river region—even in certain districts in Guangzhou—governors and magistrates, sensing the course of events, tendered their credentials under Wu and surrendered. Du Yu authorized his men to reassure the populations in these areas and to avoid even the slightest encroachment on their interests. Wuchang was the next to fall before the Jin onslaught.
His prestige felt far and wide, Du Yu convened a grand conference of commanders to plan the taking of the Wu capital, Jianye. Hu Fen said, "Rebels for a hundred years are unlikely to submit fully. Now that the spring floods are at their height, we cannot easily stay here for long. Let us put off this great move until next spring." Du Yu said, "In ancient times Yue Yi annexed the mighty state of Qi in the single battle of Jixi. Now when our might is feared by all, we can take the south as easily as a knife splits bamboo: after a few sections have been cut through, the bamboo comes apart as soon as it meets the blade till there's nothing left to deal with." Du Yu circulated a bulletin summoning all commanders to a general attack on Jianye.
At this time Prancing Dragon General Wang Jun was leading his northern sailors downstream when scouts reported to him, "The southerners have forged iron chains and strung them along the river. They have also embedded iron stakes in the riverbed to stop our ships." Wang Jun laughed aloud. He had several score of large rafts constructed and put on them straw figures resembling armored men holding spears; then he sent the rafts downstream. The southern soldiers thought they were seeing real men aboard the rafts and fled. The hidden stakes got stuck in the rafts and were pulled out of the ri
verbed. On the rafts large torches had been placed, more than ten spans high and ten arm-lengths around and fueled with hemp oil. When these fiery torches came in contact with the chains across the river, the metal melted and the chains quickly separated. Wang Jun's two armies came ashore and overcame the southerners at every point.
Meanwhile, Southland prime minister Zhang Ti had ordered the generals of the Left and Right Shen Rong and Zhuge Xing to meet the Jin troops. Shen Rong said to Zhuge Xing, "Our forces upstream are not prepared. My guess is that the Jin armies will come; and we must do all we can to oppose them. If the fortunes of battle favor us, the south will be safe. If the enemy gets across, all is lost." "What you say is correct," Zhuge Xing replied. At that moment they were informed that Jin warships were moving downstream in irresistible force.
The two commanders hurried to consult with Zhang Ti. Zhuge Xing said to Zhang Ti, "The Southland stands in peril. Should we not avoid disaster ourselves?" His tears falling, Zhang Ti replied, "The Southland is undone, as any fool can tell. But if liege and liege men surrendered together without a single man dying for the kingdom in its final hour, how unbearable the shame would be!" Zhuge Xing wept too; then he left. Zhang Ti and Shen Rong directed the defense as the northern troops encircled them. Zhou Zhi was the first to cut his way into the southern camp. Zhang Ti, struggling virtually alone, perished in the turmoil of battle. Shen Rong was slain by Zhou Zhi. The southern troops dispersed and fled the field. A poet of later times has left these lines in praise of Zhang Ti:
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