2. This is an allusion to a southern legend concerning Fan Li, an adviser to the king of Yue during the Warring States period. After the king of Wu had conquered the Yue at Kuaiji, Fan Li arranged for the beauty Xi Shi to be presented to the victorious king of Wu, ostensibly as a peace offering. Perhaps distracted by Xi Shi, the king of Wu became less vigilant, enabling the Yue many years later to avenge its defeat and destroy the kingdom of Wu.
3. This rhapsody served a different occasion in history from the one it serves in the novel. The SGZ (p. 558) dates the rhapsody to the winter of a. d. 210, i. e., two years after the events of this chapter and after Cao Cao's grand ambitions had been thwarted. Historically, the poem was intended to project Cao Cao's imperial ambition in moral rather than martial accents, taking a tone more appropriate for lauding a chastened chief commander; it was not written to celebrate Cao Cao's plan to conquer the empire. The poet, barely nineteen at the time of composition, used extravagant and derivative language. See n. 5 on Kongming's use of the rhapsody in the novel.
4. The next eight lines are not in Cao Zhi's original; they are in the TS, p. 434.
5. In the TS this reads "holding two bridges [qiao, the graph for the surname written with the wood radical]," not "holding two [brides surnamed] Qiao." A footnote to the 1973 edition of the Sanguo yanyi (Beijing: Renmin wenxue chubanshe, 1973; p. 385) comments, "In chapter 34 it says that 'they built two flying bridges to traverse the space. ' So the two qiao must refer to the flying bridges [of the Bronze Bird Tower]. In [chapter 44 of] the novel, in order to provoke Zhou Yu, Kongming cunningly twists the words to make them mean that Cao Cao wants to steal the wives of Zhou Yu and [the late] Sun Ce. Then in chapter 48, Cao Cao himself speaks of his desire for these two women. This somehow verifies Kongming's accusation while blackening Cao Cao's name." It was Mao Zonggang, however, who changed the TS text. In the TS (p. 434) the lines added to Cao Zhi's poem read: "Embracing two qiao on the southeast, / Like rainbow arches [didong] in the eastern sky." This version describes the towers' architecture while making an allusion to Shi jing, ode 51, "Didong," a poem about a marriage that alienates a woman from her family. According to the "Little Preface" to the Shi jing, the moral purpose of ode 51 is to discourage elopement.
Mao Zonggang's alteration of Cao Zhi's poem may remind Chinese readers of the legend of the hebo (river baron), a maiden-devouring monster that haunted the River Zhang by the city of Ye. Each year the girls to be sacrificed to the hebo were cloistered in special quarters built on the riverbank. Ximen Bao is the enlightened official who put a stop to the killing; see SJ, "Guji liezhuan." See, also, n. 9.
6. Literally, "flying bears enter the dream," an allusion to King Wen of Zhou's meeting the sage Taigong (Jiang Ziya) on the riverbank. References to the father of the founder of the Zhou dynasty reinforce Cao Cao's protestations of support for the Han. King Wen had the allegiance of the empire but refrained from overthrowing the decadent reigning dynasty. With the next line the original text resumes.
7. The provincial capital of Jizhou, Ye.
8. The original poem ends here.
9. Zhou Yu's jealousy is a theme from the PH (p. 80): Zhou Yu is too happy with his beautiful wife to heed Sun Quan's call for help. Gifts of gold, jade, and silk also fail to move him. But when Kongming tells him that Cao Cao has built a bronze tower to house many beautiful women and predicts the imprisonment of the sisters Qiao, Zhou Yu rises to the cause of the south.
10. Xiakou is being held by Liu Xuande.
11. A note from the 1973 edition of Three Kingdoms: "An ancient 'military law. ' The seven prohibitions are: recklessness, insolence, theft, deceit, defection, dissension, and sabotage. Each category contained many subdivisions, totaling fifty-four, violation of which was punishable by decapitation."
12. In the TS (p. 436) Sun Quan says: "Zhang Zhao has no sense. All of them look to their families [qi zi] and cling to their personal interests, to my great disappointment."
13. Three Rivers refers broadly to the area where the Han meets the Yangzi, or Great River.
14. Bo Yi and Shu Qi were elders of the Shang dynasty who starved to death rather than transfer their allegiance to the newly victorious Zhou.
15. In this conversation, qing is translated as "sentiment," yi as "honor." The TS version (p. 438) reads:
Kongming said, "You mean the sentiment between Bo Yi and Shu Qi?" His brother Jin replied, "Those two men refused office and fled, yet remained together. Later they remonstrated with King Wu [for attacking the Shang, the dynasty to which Wu's father, King Wen, had remained loyal]. Spurned by King Wu, they chose to live as recluses rather than eat the grain of Zhou, [the new dynasty founded by King Wu], In the end, though they starved, they died as they had lived—never apart. When I think how we two, brothers suckled at the same breast, are forever divided serving different masters, I blush with shame before the example of Bo Yi and Shu Qi."
To this Kongming replied, "Elder brother, you speak of honor. But which of the three— honor [yi], loyalty [zhong], and filial piety [xiao]—counts most?" Jin responded, "It is said that loyalty and filial piety are the foundation; and that honor may never be breached." Kongming said, "What if I were to ask you to preserve your loyalty and filial piety whole?" "What do you mean?" Jin asked. Kongming said, "We are both men of the Han. Imperial Uncle Liu is a remote descendant of Emperor Jing, fifth sovereign of the Han, through Jing's son, Prince Jing of Zhongshan. If you would leave Lord Sun and serve Imperial Uncle Liu, the principle of loyalty would be uncompromised. Think also of our parents' tombs in the north, across the river. If you would return there to sweep their graves and offer sacrifices, the principle of filial love would be uncompromised. And if you would join me in serving a weak and isolated lord, the principle of honor, too, would be preserved intact. But if, instead, you cling to the Southland, ignoring the importance of loyalty and filial piety, I can hardly be expected to heed your call to make whole the principle of honor."
CHAPTER 45
1. TS: "... and deliver Liu Bei."
2. Jiang Gan has appeared in the guise of a hermit.
3. Shi Kuang was a musician of the state of Jin during the Spring and Autumn period; he was skilled at distinguishing differences in pitch.
4. Lu Jia and Li Yiji were two diplomats of the early Han dynasty.
5. Mao: "As arranged."
6. Mao suggests that Cao Cao might not have killed the commanders had they defended themselves instead of allowing their confusion to lend them a guilty appearance.
7. After Liu Biao died, Cai Mao and Zhang Yun conspired to do away with Biao's heir, Liu Zong, and deliver his province, Jingzhou, to Cao Cao. See chapter 40.
8. Mao's introductory notes emphasize the parallels that recur throughout the novel: " The beauty [of the scene in which] Xuande overhears Yuanzhi in Still Water's farmhouse [chap. 35] lies in the clarity of every word. By contrast, Jiang Gan understands little of what the guard says in Zhou Yu's tent, and therein lies the beauty [of that scene]. Although Xuande heard clearly, he had no idea who Yuanzhi was, nor did he understand what was going on. By contrast, Jiang Gan could not hear what was said but, having seen the letter, was convinced he understood what was going on.
"The beauty [of the scene in which] Chen Gong picks up the letter from Xuande to Cao Cao [chap. 18] lies in the utter genuineness of it. The beauty [of the scene in which] Jiang Gan picks up the letter from Cai Mao and Zhang Yun to Zhou Yu lies in the [reader's] uncertainty of its authenticity. When Lü Bu saw Xuande's letter, he had no doubts. When Cao Cao saw his commanders' letter, he was initially convinced and later—too much later—doubtful. But the letter that Chen Gong picked up was not written by Cao; the letter Jiang Gan picked up was in fact written by Zhou Yu."
CHAPTER 46
1. Mao: "It is Kongming who speaks of punishment, Zhou Yu of reward."
2. In the PH (p. 81), Zhou Yu himself is the author of the arrow-harvesting scheme. There is no fog. Cao Cao and Zhou Yu guide their boats to the center
of the river to talk. When Cao Cao's men begin shooting, Zhou Yu returns the fire and maneuvers his craft so as to collect an enormous number of arrows. The taunt "Thank you, Your Excellency" is uttered by Zhou Yu.
3. Mao: "Zhou Yu's previous question as to the choice of weapons was not genuine. This question is."
4. Mao: "The reference is to the battles at Bowang and Xinye [chaps. 39 and 40]."
5. The TS (p. 455) has Huang Gai giving a fuller version of the capitulationist argument: "Since Zhou Yu assumed chief command, we have worn ourselves out in vain. The disproportion in forces is too great for us, and we cannot continue clinging to illusions. We shall have to accept Zhang Zhao's view and sue for peace."
6. Mao's introductory note characterizes Kongming's genius: "The beauty of his schemes lies in their 'borrowings. ' To defeat the northern army, he borrows the Southland's army; to help the Southland's army, he borrows the northerners' arrows.... To get the arrows, he borrows Lu Su's boats; to puzzle Cao Cao, he borrows the river fog. He borrows from man and from Heaven, too.... And so he will borrow an east wind. Is there any reason not to borrow Jingzhou?"
CHAPTER 47
1. Mao: "With a letter as a hook, himself as the line, and Cao's eighty-three legions as the catch."
2. Mao: "The key line."
3. The TS (p. 459) adds this opening line: "Officer for Grain Supply for the Southland, Director of the Naval Vanguard Huang Gai presents this letter to Your Excellency with heartfelt and inexhaustible respect." The document is dated Jian An 13 (a. d. 208), 11th month.
4. Mao: "Kan Ze had to wring this concession from Cao Cao before he could proceed."
5. Mao's introductory note discusses the art of persuasion: "The reason Kan Ze succeeded instead of being killed is because he knew how to speak persuasively to a cunning man of action [jianxiong].
Whether speaking to a cunning man of action or to a heroic man of action [yingxiong], it is essential to be contrary rather than agreeable. The heroic man of action prides himself on his honor, nothing else. Thus, when Zhang Liao was working on Lord Guan, he condemned holding his life too lightly as dishonorable [chap. 25]. The cunning man of action, however, prides himself on his knowledge, nothing else. In working on Cao Cao, Kan Ze mocked his ignorance in sizing up the situation. "
6. Mao: "Kan Ze reverses the truth to test Gan Ning."
7. The TS adds here: "Kan Ze's accomplishment may be considered the first victory of the Battle at Red Cliffs." A commemorative poem to him confirms the point.
8. Of this refugee group, Zhang Zhao, Sun Quan's principal civil adviser and the main advocate of accommodation with Cao Cao, is perhaps the most influential. Pang Tong (Young Phoenix) is paired with Kongming in chapters 35 and 36.
9. Jiang Gan had carried a letter to Cao Cao (chap. 45) falsely incriminating the two naval commanders Zhou Yu wanted eliminated, Cai Mao and Zhang Yun. Zhou Yu was able to deceive Jiang Gan a second time because Cao Cao never revealed that he had been fooled the first time.
10. Sunzi and Wu Qi were master military strategists of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, respectively.
11. Sima Rangju was a military strategist of the kingdom of Qi during the Spring and Autumn period.
12. The ZZTJ (p. 2089) commentary cites Du You's description of the two kinds of craft: "The light attack boats are cased in raw oxhide; both sides have openings for oars. Left and right are openings for crossbows and lances. No enemy can approach them, nor can arrow or missile destroy them. These are small boats designed for speed. No troop-carrying ship can overtake them. They do not engage the enemy directly. In contrast, the warship is girt by a crenellated wall some three feet high. Below it are the oarlocks. Inside is a shed, as high as the wall, on top of which stands a second crenellated wall.... Fore and aft, left and right, there are flags, signal banners, gongs, and drums. This is a [troop-carrying] warship."
CHAPTER 48
1. Mao: "Shan Fu [Xu Shu], who had dropped out of sight, suddenly reemerges." He was Liu Xuande's first military adviser. Cao Cao lured him to his camp by forging a letter from Fu's mother. See chapters 35 and 36.
2. The significance of Xu Shu's assignment to guard against the western warriors Ma Teng and Han Sui will become clear ten chapters later.
3. Cao Cao has incorporated this slogan of the Yellow Scarves, just as he has incorporated their forces into his Qingzhou army. See chapter 1.
4. The broken halberd is a relic from the ensuing battle at Red Ciffs.
5. Du Kang was the legendary first vintner.
6. Shi jing, ode 91, "Zi jin." The ode's theme is longing for an absent love.
7. Shi jing, ode 161, "Lu ming." The ode's theme is the welcoming of guests.
8. Sima Qian quotes the Duke of Zhou as saying, "At any meal, in my anxiety not to pass up one of the empire's worthy men, I may spit out my food and rise from the table to receive men of standing." See SJ, "Lu Zhougong shijia."
9. There is a second part to this ode, which Luo Guanzhong omits; it elaborates on Cao Cao's historical models. The Duke of Zhou is the historical model of the loyal regent, which Cao Cao invokes to show his support for the legitimate Emperor and his determination not to usurp the throne. The two other figures Cao compares himself to are Patriarch Huan of Qi and Patriarch Wen of Jin. They were the archetypal ha, or hegemons (rulers by force rather than virtue), who always subordinated themselves to the Emperor in formal or ritual matters, while concentrating great military power in their own hands. In the Analects Confucius expresses the deepest admiration for the Duke of Zhou and he acknowledges the achievement of Patriarch Huan, but he does not cite Patriarch Wen, whose reputation has suffered because he once compelled the Emperor to attend a meeting and thus was guilty of insubordination. On that occasion appearances were preserved by saying that the Emperor was going on a "hunting expedition." The hunting party in chapter 20 therefore suggests tha Luo Guanzhong could see Cao Cao as a Patriarch Wen, but did not share Cao Cao's appraisal of himself as a Duke of Zhou or Patriarch Huan. (The historical Cao Cao wrote the song. )
10. The TS (p. 470) has a sentence, inexplicably missing from the Mao text, that is essential to the point of both this scene and the chapter: "Wen Ping reported the loss of Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan to Cao Cao. Cao, perfectly pleased with himself [because he had argued the incompetence of northerners in marine warfare], recalled the remainder of the attack force." Also see n. 11 below.
11. In his introductory note Mao discusses the importance of this chapter's closing scenes to the development of the narrative: "The southern command tricked Cao Cao into joining his boats. When Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan were defeated in boats that were not bound to the flotilla, Cao was confirmed in his decision that it was imperative to join the boats.... What the southern command intended to use was fire. But Han Dang and Zhou Tai, by scoring a victory without using fire, persuaded Cao that the south would not necessarily use fire. Thus their eventual use of fire was past all anticipation by Cao.... People only think of Pang Tong's offering of the 'boat-connecting scheme' [in the preceding chapter] and the outcome of the battle at Red Cliffs [in the next chapter], overlooking the manner in which this chapter connects these events."
CHAPTER 49
1. Mao: "If Pang Tong [Young Phoenix] cured the northern troops, Kongming [Sleeping Dragon] has to be the one to cure Zhou Yu."
2. TS (p. 472): .. and to put ghosts and spirits under one's command; it can be used to deplo a line and array troops, to secure the populace and stabilize the dynasty; and it can be used to find good fortune and avoid ill. "On dun jia (evading stems), the technique by which Kongming will summon the winds, see Kenneth J. Dewoskin, Doctors, Diviners, and Magicians of Ancient China (New York: Columbia University Press, 1983).
3. I. e., the Northern Dipper (in Ursa Major); Kongming will again appeal to this constellation at the end of his life.
4. In his introductory note Mao says that the wind and fire might be linked to the gua (hexagrams) of the Book of Changes in the f
ollowing way: the wind trigram (sun, no. 6) over the fire trigram (li, no. 7) yields the hexagram called "Family Members" (jiaren, no. 37); the fire trigram over the wind trigram yields the hexagram "Tripod" (ding, no. 50). Hence: if Sun Quan and Liu Xuande become "family members," the realm will divide into three parts, typically symbolized by the tripod. The interdependency of Sun and Liu is like the interdependency of fire and wind in the battle at Red Cliffs.
5. With slight alterations, translations of star names in this passage are based on Joseph Needham et al., Science and Civilization in China (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1954- ), 3: 235-37. A slightly different interpretation can be found in Edward H. Schafer, Pacing the Void (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1977), p. 76. The green dragon (east/ wood), dark tortoise (north/water), white tiger (west/metal), and vermillion bird (south/fire) represent the four quadrants of the sky—excluding the region of the circumpolar stars, the center or "imperial court." See also Wang Chong's chapter "The Nature of Things" in his Lun Heng, trans. Alfred Forke (reprint, New York: Paragon Book Gallery, 1962), 1: 106.
6. In the TS (p. 472), Kongming prudently sends Lu Su away: "Go back and help Zhou Yu.... If there is no wind after my incantation, show no surprise. Wait for the wind and act when it comes." He then gives the instructions himself. Lu Su's departure from the altar is assumed in the Mao version as we find him back with Zhou Yu in the next paragraph.
7. Bringing to bear the full force of the symbols of the day's and the year's renewal—east, sun, yang, natural greens—and suggesting at the same time the prevalence of the east wind over the west.
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