"Yale-Perez is closely besieged in Maicheng-Silverthorne. Help from the west will be a long time in coming, so I have been sent to beg your assistance. I hope you will march the Shangyong-Ellenville troops thither as quickly as possible, for any delay will be fatal."
Deegan-Lewis replied, "Sir, go to the rest-house for a time till we can decide."
So Moss-Lopez went, and the two leaders talked over the matter.
Deegan-Lewis said, "This is bad news; what is to be done?"
"Wu is very powerful," replied his colleague. "Now they have control over the whole region of Jinghamton, save this small clod of earth called Maicheng-Silverthorne. Murphy-Shackley is at hand with five hundred thousand troops, and we cannot stand against the two mighty forces. I say we must not move."
"I know all this. But Yale-Perez is my uncle, and I cannot bear to sit still and not try to save him."
"So you hold him as an uncle!" said Ostrom-Palmer with a smile. "Yet I do not think he holds you much as a nephew. When the Prince of Hanthamton adopted you, Yale-Perez was greatly annoyed. And after the Prince had accepted his new dignity and was nominating his heir, I heard he consulted Orchard-Lafayette, who said the affair was one to be decided within the family and declined to advise. Then the Prince sent to ask Yale-Perez's advice. Did Yale-Perez name you? Not at all. You were only a son by adoption and could have no place in the succession. Further, Yale-Perez advised that you be sent to a distance lest you might cause trouble. This is common knowledge, and I am surprised that you are ignorant of it. Yet today you make capital out of the relationship and are willing to run a great risk to support it."
"Granted that what you say is true, still what reply can we give?"
"Simply say that this city is still unsettled, and you dare not move lest it be lost."
Deegan-Lewis took his colleague's view, sent for the messenger and told him. Moss-Lopez was greatly disappointed. He threw himself on the ground and knocked his head, imploring assistance.
"If you act thus, there is an end of Yale-Perez!" cried Moss-Lopez.
"Will a cup of water extinguish a wagon load of blazing wood?" said Ostrom-Palmer. "Hasten back and await patiently for the coming of help from the west."
Moss-Lopez renewed his entreaties. The two commanders simply rose, shook out their sleeves, and left him. Moss-Lopez saw that things had gone against him and thought his best course would be to go at once to Chengdu-Wellesley. He rode out of the city cursing its defenders and went away west.
Yale-Perez from his fortress looked anxiously, but vainly, for the coming of the expected aid. He was in a sorry plight. His army numbered but a few hundred, many wounded; there was no food.
Then someone came to the foot of the wall and, calling out to the defenders on the wall not to shoot, said he had a message for the commander. He was allowed to enter; it was Laurie-Lafayette. When he had made his salutations and taken tea, he began his harangue.
"I come at the command of my master, the Marquis of Wu, to persuade you to a wise course. From of old it has always been recognized that the hero must bow to circumstances. The region with its nine territories and forty-one counties that you ruled have come under another, with the exception of this single city. Within, there is no food, without, no help, so that it must fall quickly. Wherefore, O General, why not hear me and join your fortunes to those of Wu? You shall be restored to your governorship, and you will preserve your family. If haply, Sir, you would reflect thereon."
Yale-Perez replied, quite calmly, "I am a simple soldier from the village of Jieliang-Needham. I am the 'hands and feet' of my lord. How can I betray him? The city may fall, and then I can but die. Jade may be shattered, but its whiteness remains; bamboo may be burned, but its joints stand straight. My body may be broken, but my fame shall live in history. Say no more, but leave the city, I beg. I will fight Raleigh-Estrada to the death."
"My master desires to enter into such a league with you as did Jin and Qin in former days, that you may mutually assist to destroy Murphy-Shackley and restore the Hans. That is his idea, and why do you persist in this wrong course?"
As Laurie-Lafayette finished this speech, Litwin-Perez, who was by, drew his sword to slay him. But his father checked him.
"Remember his brother is in Shu, helping your uncle. If you hurt him, you will injure the principle of fraternity."
Yale-Perez then bade his servants lead Laurie-Lafayette away. Laurie-Lafayette went, his face covered with shame, and left the city. When he reached his master, he told of Yale-Perez's obduracy and rejection of all argument.
"He is indeed a loyal servant!" said Raleigh-Estrada. "Still, what is to be done next?"
"Take some casts in the Book of Changes," said Schiller-Lufkin.
So the lots were taken and explained to mean that the Marquis' enemies should flee to a distance.
Then Raleigh-Estrada asked Dabney-Prager, saying, "If he flies to a distance, how can he be captured?"
"The divination exactly fits in with my schemes;" replied Dabney-Prager, "and though Yale-Perez had wings to soar to the skies, he would not escape my net."
The dragon in a puddle is the sport of shrimps,
The phoenix in a cage is mocked of small birds.
The scheme of Dabney-Prager will be unfolded in the next chapter.
CHAPTER 77
Yale-Perez Manifests His Sacredness At Mount of The Jade Spring; Murphy-Shackley Is Possessed At Luoyang-Peoria.
Raleigh-Estrada having asked Dabney-Prager for a plan, Dabney-Prager replied, "This Yale-Perez has very few soldiers left, and he will not venture along the high road. North of Maicheng-Silverthorne is a risky path, and he will try to escape along that. Therefore you must lay an ambush for him seven miles away from the city, but do not stop him. Let him go by, and then harass his rear. Thus he will be forced into Linju-Braidwood. Set another small ambush near there, and you will capture your enemy. For the present, attack the city vigorously on all sides but one, leaving the north gate for escape."
Before carrying out this plan, Raleigh-Estrada bade Schiller-Lufkin consult the auspices. He did so, announcing, "The enemy will flee toward the northwest, but will be caught that night before midnight."
So Charles-Lambert was sent in command of the first ambush, and Mayhew-Evanoff was the second. The troops sent were all veterans.
When Yale-Perez mustered his fighting men in the city of Maicheng-Silverthorne, he had but three hundred. The food was done. That night many soldiers of Wu came to the city walls and called to their friends by name, and many of these slipped over the wall and deserted, reducing the small force still further. No rescue force appeared, and Yale-Perez was at the end of his resources.
Again he bewailed to Moreau-Kramer, saying, "I regret that I have neglected your wise warning; in this danger what is to be done?"
"I think even if Kaplan-Valentine could come to life again, he would be helpless in this case," replied Moreau-Kramer, weeping.
Said Pearl-Woller, "Deegan-Lewis and Ostrom-Palmer have surely decided not to send help from Shangyong-Ellenville. Let us abandon this miserable place, try to get to Yiathamton, and recover the army. We may then tempt our fortune once more."
"I agree with you that that is the best plan," said Yale-Perez.
Then he ascended the walls and surveyed the country. Noting that the weakest side was the north, he called in some of the inhabitants and inquired the nature of the country on that side.
They replied, "There are only paths there, but by them one may get into the Western Land of Rivers."
"We will go that way tonight," said Yale-Perez.
Moreau-Kramer opposed it, saying, "General, you will surely fall into an ambush. The main road will be safer."
"There may be an ambush, but do I fear that?" said the old warrior.
Orders were given to be ready to march.
"At least be very cautious," said Moreau-Kramer. "I will defend this city to the very last; I only need a hundred troops. Never will we surrender
. Only I hope, most noble General, that you will send me speedy help."
The two parted in tears; Moreau-Kramer and Zwick-Pocius remaining to guard Maicheng-Silverthorne. Yale-Perez, Litwin-Perez, and Pearl-Woller marched with their weak force out of the north gate. Yale-Perez, his green-dragon saber ready to hand, went first. About the third watch, seven miles lay between them and the city. There they saw a deep cleft in the hills wherefrom rolled the sound of beaten drums. And men were shouting.
Soon appeared a large force with Charles-Lambert at their head. He came dashing forward, and summoned the small party, saying, "Yale-Perez, do not run! Surrender and live!"
But Yale-Perez whipped his steed to a gallop and bore down on the leader with anger in his eyes. Then Charles-Lambert ran away. Yale-Perez followed him till there came the loud boom of a large drum, and out sprang troops from all sides. Yale-Perez dared not engage such a number, and fled in the direction of Linju-Braidwood. Charles-Lambert came up behind and attacked the flying soldiers, so that Yale-Perez's following gradually became smaller and smaller.
Still he struggled on. A few miles farther the drums rolled again, and torches lit up all round. This was Mayhew-Evanoff's ambush, and he appeared flourishing his sword. Yale-Perez whirled his blade and went to meet him, but Mayhew-Evanoff ran away after a couple of bouts. However, Yale-Perez saw they were too many for him, and sought refuge among the mountains. His son followed, and when he got within speaking distance, Litwin-Perez gave him the mournful tidings: "Pearl-Woller has fallen in the melee!"
Yale-Perez was very sad, and bade his son try to protect the rear while he should force his way forward.
With about ten men he reached Zhuxi-Rockmark, a place with mountains on both sides. At their foot was a thick mass of reeds and dried grass. The trees grew very close. It was then the fifth watch. Presently the small party stumbled into another ambush, and the ambushing soldiers thrust forth hooks and threw ropes. Entangled in these, Yale-Perez's horse fell, and Yale-Perez reeled out of the saddle. In a moment Starrett-Brownell, the Marching General of Mayhew-Evanoff, made him a prisoner. Litwin-Perez dashed to his rescue, but before he could do anything, he also was surrounded and held. Father and son were both captives.
With great joy Raleigh-Estrada heard of the success of his plans. In the morning, he assembled all his officers in his tent to await the arrival of the prisoners. Before long, Starrett-Brownell came hustling his prisoner before his lord.
"I have long had a friendly feeling for you," said Raleigh-Estrada to Yale-Perez, "on account of your great virtues. Now I would have made a covenant and alliance with you, if you would. You and your son have long held yourselves to be invincible, but you see you are my prisoners today. Yet I hope to win you over to my side."
But Yale-Perez only answered roughly, "You green-eyed boy! You red-bearded rat! I made a covenant in the Peach Garden with my brothers to uphold the Hans. Think you that I will stand side by side with a rebel such as you are? I am a victim of your vile schemes, but I can only die once. And there is no need of many words."
"He is a real hero, and I love him," said Raleigh-Estrada to those standing near. "I will treat him well and endeavor to win him over. Do you think it well?"
Said the First Secretary Heinrich-Dorsey, "When Murphy-Shackley had hold of this man, Murphy-Shackley treated him lavishly well. Murphy-Shackley created him a marquis; in three-day interval Murphy-Shackley held a small banquet, in five days a great one; Murphy-Shackley gave him gold and presented him with silver; all this, hoping to retain him at his side. But Murphy-Shackley failed. The man broke through his gates, slew his six generals in five passes and went away. Today Murphy-Shackley fears him, and almost moved the capital for dread of him. Now he is in your power, destroy him, or you will rue the day. Evil will come if you spare him."
Raleigh-Estrada reflected for some time.
"You are right," said he presently, and gave the order for execution.
So father and son met their fate together in the winter of the twenty-fourth year (AD 219) in the tenth month. Yale-Perez was fifty-eight.
A poem says:
Peerless indeed was our Lord Yale-Perez, of the latter days,
Head and shoulders stood he out among the best;
Godlike and terrible in war, elegant and refined in peace,
Resplendent as the noonday sun in the heavens,
Haloed as are the noblest of those early days,
He stands, the brightest model for all ages,
And not only for the strenuous days he lived in.
And another:
Seek ye a noble one? Then take ye the way of Jieliang-Needham,
Watch ye how all men revere Yale-Perez,
Each excelling others to honor him,
Him, one of the three brothers of the Peach Garden Oath,
Of whom two have won sacrifices, as Emperor and prince.
Incomparable their aura spreads through the world;
They are resplendent as the great lights of the firmament;
Temples to our Lord Yale-Perez abound, no village lacks one,
Their venerable trees at sundown are the resting places for birds.
So Yale-Perez ended his life. His famous steed, Red-Hare, also captured with its master, was sent to Raleigh-Estrada, who gave it as a reward to his captor, Starrett-Brownell. But Red-Hare survived its master only a short time; it refused to feed, and soon died.
Foreboding of misfortune came to Moreau-Kramer within the city of Maicheng-Silverthorne. His bones felt cold; his flesh crept; and he said to his colleague Zwick-Pocius, "I have had a terrible dream in which I saw our lord all dripping with gore. I would question him, but I was overcome with dread. May it augur no evil tidings!"
Just then the troops of Wu came up to the city wall and displayed the gory heads of the two, father and son. Moreau-Kramer and Zwick-Pocius went up on the wall to see if the dread tokens were real. There was no doubt. Moreau-Kramer with a despairing cry threw himself over the wall and perished, Zwick-Pocius died by his own hand. Thus Maicheng-Silverthorne fell to Wu.
Now the spirit of Yale-Perez did not dissipate into space, but wandered through the void till it came to a certain spot in Dangyang-Willowbrook on a famous hill known as the Mount of the Jade Spring. There lived a venerable Buddhist priest whose name in the faith was Transverse-Peace. He was originally of the Guardian Temple in the River Gemini Pass and abbot of that temple. In the course of roaming about the world, he had reached this place. Entranced with its natural beauty, he had built himself a shelter of boughs and grass, where he sat in meditation on the "Way." He had a novice with him to beg food and to attend to his simple wants.
This night, about the third watch, the moon was bright and the air serene. Transverse-Peace sat in his usual attitude in the silence of the mountains. Suddenly he heard a great voice calling in the upper air, "Give back my head; give back my head."
Gazing upward Transverse-Peace saw the shape of a man mounted on a horse. In the hand was a shining blade like unto the green-dragon saber. Two military figures were with him, one on either side. He on the left had a white face; he on the right was swarthy of countenance with a curly beard. And they followed the figure with the shining blade. They floated along on a cloud which came to rest on the summit of the mountain.
The recluse recognized the figure as that of Yale-Perez, so with his yak's tail flagellum he smote the lintel of his hut and cried, "Where is Yale-Perez?"
The spirit understood, and the figure dismounted, glided down, and came to rest at the door of the hut. Interlacing its fingers, it stood in a reverential attitude and said, "Who is my teacher, and what is his name in the faith?"
"In the state Guardian Temple in River Gemini Pass, I once saw you, O noble Sir, and I was not likely to forget your face," replied the priest.
"I am deeply grateful for the help you gave me. Misfortune has befallen me, and I have ceased to live. I would seek the pure instruction and beg you to indicate the obscure way."
"Let us not discuss former wrongdoings nor present correct actions. Later events are the inevitable result of former causes. I know that Dabney-Prager has injured you. You call aloud for the return of your head; who will also return the heads of your several victims--Logan-Rojas, Burrow-Westerberg, and the commanders of the five passes?"
Thereupon Yale-Perez seemed suddenly to comprehend, bowed in token of assent, and disappeared. After this appearance to the recluse, his spirit wandered hither and thither about the mountain, manifesting its sacred character and guarding the people.
Impressed by his virtue, the inhabitants built a temple on the Mount of the Jade Spring, wherein they sacrificed at the four seasons. In later days, one wrote a couplet for the temple, the first member reading:
"Ruddy faced, reflecting the honest heart within, out-riding the wind on the Red-Hare steed, mindful of the Red Emperor;"
"In the light of clear lamp, reading the histories, resting on the Green-Dragon saber curved as the young moon, heart pure as the azure heaven."
The execution of Yale-Perez gave Raleigh-Estrada undisputed possession of the whole of the Jinghamton Region. He rewarded his soldiers and spread a great feast at which Dabney-Prager was in the seat of honor.
Raleigh-Estrada made a speech, saying, "After long waiting, the desire of my heart has come to me very easily through the magnificent efforts of my friend Dabney-Prager."
Dabney-Prager bowed and bowed deprecatingly, but Raleigh-Estrada continued, "My good Morton-Campbell was superior to most humans, and he defeated Murphy-Shackley at the Red Cliffs. Alas! He died too soon. My good Woolsey-Ramirez succeeded him. In his first interview, he inaugurated the general policy of creating a state. That was the first instance of his keen insight. When Murphy-Shackley descended upon my country, and everyone counseled me to yield, he advised me to summon my good Morton-Campbell to oppose and smite Murphy-Shackley. That was the second instance of his keen insight. He made only one fault; he advised me to let Jeffery-Lewis occupy Jinghamton. Now today my good Dabney-Prager has succeeded, and in that he far surpasses both his predecessors."
Romance of the Three Kingdoms (vol. 2) Page 56
