Three Kingdoms

by Luo Guanzhong (Moss Roberts trans. )

  To avoid arousing Cao Cao's suspicions, Xuande took to his back garden, planting and tending vegetables, keeping his purposes hidden. Lord Guan and Zhang Fei asked, "Brother, why have you lost interest in the great issues of the realm and given yourself to a commoner's toil?" "This is something you might not appreciate," responded Xuande, and his brothers did not ask again.4

  One day when Lord Guan and Zhang Fei were away and Xuande was watering his plants, two of Cao's generals, Xu Chu and Zhang Liao, led a score of men into the garden. "His Excellency," they announced, "requests that Your Lordship come at once." Alarmed, Xuande asked, "An emergency?" "I don't know," Xu Chu answered. "I was told to request your presence." Xuande could only follow the two men to Cao Cao's residence.

  A smiling Cao Cao greeted Xuande. "That's quite a project you have under way at home," he said in a tone that turned Xuande's face pale as dust. Taking Xuande's hand, Cao led him to his own garden. "You have taken up a most difficult occupation in horticulture," Cao continued. "Just to while away the time," Xuande answered, relieved. "There is nothing else to occupy me."

  "I was admiring the plums on the branch," Cao remarked. "The new green ones called to mind last year's campaign against Zhang Xiu, when we ran short of water on the march. How parched the men were! Then something occurred to me. 'There's a plum grove ahead,' I cried and pretended to locate it with my whip. When the troops heard me, their mouths watered and their thirst was gone. Seeing these plums now, I can't help enjoying the sight;5 and having some wine just heated, I decided to invite Your Lordship6 for a drink at this little pavilion." Regaining possession of himself, Xuande went along with Cao Cao. Delicacies had already been set out: a plate piled with new green plums and a jar brimming with warmed wine. Sitting opposite one another, the two men drank freely and enjoyed themselves without constraint.

  The wine had enlivened their spirits when dark clouds appeared and overspread the heavens: a flash storm was threatening. An attendant pointed to what seemed like a distant dragon suspended on the horizon. The two men leaned against the balcony and watched it. Cao turned to Xuande and asked, "Does my lord understand the dragon's multiform manifestations?"7 "Not in great detail," Xuande replied. "The dragon," Cao continued, "can enlarge and diminish itself, surge aloft or lie beneath the surface of the water. Enlarged, it creates clouds and spews mist. Diminished, it can veil its scaly form from view. Aloft, it prances triumphant in the upper realm of space. Under the surface, it lurks among the surging breakers. Now in the fullness of spring it mounts the season, like men who would fulfill an ambition to dominate the length and breadth of the land. In this respect the dragon can well be compared to the heroes of the age. You yourself have traveled widely and surely must be familiar with the great heroes of our time. Please try to point them out for me."

  "How can these eyes of mine sight heroes?" Xuande said. "Set your modesty aside," Cao urged. "Thanks to Your Excellency's gracious benefaction," Xuande responded, "I have succeeded in serving the dynasty. But as for the heroes of the realm, such things are more than I would know of." "Even if you do not know any personally," Cao Cao persisted, "you should at least have heard of some." "Yuan Shu of Huainan?" Xuande ventured.8 "His warriors are first rate, his provisions abundant. Would he be one?" "Dry bones," Cao laughed, "rattling in the grave. Sooner or later I will have him." "Yuan Shao, then," Xuande suggested. "For four generations the Yuans have held highest office, and many officials served under them. Shao has a firm grip on Jizhou, where he is supported by capable men. Would you count him?" "His expression is fierce enough," Cao said. "But his courage is thin. He enjoys conniving but lacks decision. He plays for high stakes but begrudges personal sacrifice, spots a minor gain and risks his life. No hero he!"

  Xuande asked, "And how would you rate Liu Biao, a paragon whose reputation stretches across the realm?" "Liu Biao?" Cao answered. "A name without substance, and no hero either." "There is Sun Ce," Xuande suggested. "The leader of the Southland is in his prime." "Sun Ce," Cao replied, "stands on his father's reputation. He's no hero." "Liu Zhang, then," Xuande said, "perhaps he could be considered." "Though connected to the royal house," Cao Cao said, "he is nothing but a watchdog by the gate and hardly deserves the name of hero." "Then," Xuande continued "what about Zhang Xiu, Zhang Lu, Han Sui, and the other warlords?" Cao Cao clapped his hands and laughed. "Petty mediocrities," he said, "beneath our notice." "Truly," said Xuande, "I can think of no one else."

  "Now," Cao Cao went on, "what defines a hero is this: a determination to conquer, a mine of marvelous schemes, an ability to encompass the realm, and the will to make it his." "Who merits such a description?" Xuande asked. Cao pointed first to Xuande, then to himself. "The heroes of the present day," he said, "number but two—you, my lord, and myself." Xuande gulped in panic. Before he realized it, his chopsticks had slipped to the ground. Then the storm came on. A peal of thunder gave him the chance to bend down casually and retrieve them. "See what a clap of thunder has made me do?" he remarked. "A great man afraid of thunder?" Cao asked. "Confucius himself became agitated in thunderstorms," Xuande reminded him.9 "How could I not fear them?" In this way he succeeded in glossing over the cause of his anxiety. Later a poet left these lines in admiration:

  Xuande sheltered in the tiger's lair:

  Cao betrayed two names that made him quake.

  He seizes on the thunder as the cause—

  A perfect ploy negotiates the pause.

  The rain stopped. Two men burst into the garden. Swords in hand, they dashed to the pavilion, shoving aside the guards. There before Cao's eyes stood Lord Guan and Zhang Fei! The two warriors, after returning from archery practice, were told that Xu Chu and Zhang Liao had escorted Xuande to see Cao Cao. Anxious for their elder brother's safety, the two had rushed to the prime minister's residence and pushed their way into the rear garden, only to find Cao Cao and Xuande calmly drinking together. Lord Guan and Zhang Fei stood still, hands resting on their weapons. Cao asked the reason for the visit, and Lord Guan replied, "We heard Your Excellency was carousing with our brother and have come to present a sword dance for your amusement." "Not another Hongmen, I hope," Cao said, smiling. "We hardly need a repeat of that performance."10 Xuande smiled too. "Two more cups," ordered Cao, "to take the edge off these would-be Fan Kuais!" But the brothers respectfully declined and the party broke up. Xuande bid Cao Cao good-bye and returned to his quarters.

  "We thought it was the end," Lord Guan said. Xuande told them how he had dropped his chopsticks, and his brothers asked what that meant. "I work in the garden," Xuande explained, "to show Cao Cao I have no ambition. But he caught me off guard by calling me a hero, and the chopsticks slipped from my hand. I told him it was the thunder to put him off the track." The brothers marveled at Xuande's quickness.

  The following day found Xuande a guest of Cao's once again. While they were together, Man Chong reported that Yuan Shao had defeated Gongson Zan. Xuande, anxious about his longtime friend, asked for details.

  Man Chong replied, " Zan could not cope with Yuan Shao in the field, so he walled in his position, built a hundred-span tower above it called Yijing Tower, and laid in three hundred thousand measures of grain. His soldiers, however, kept passing in and out of the fortified area, and some were caught outside. Zan's followers wanted to rescue them, but Zan said, 'Rescue one, and others who will have to fight will be looking for help instead of fighting to the death.' Zan's denial of help only prompted many of his men to surrender to Yuan Shao. Isolated now, Zan sent to the capital for help. Unfortunately, Shao captured his messenger. Next, Zan tried to get Zhang Yan to cooperate inside of Shao's camp by setting a fire as a signal. Again, Shao intercepted the letter and used the information to draw Zan into an ambush. Zan lost more than half his men before retreating into the city. Shao then tunneled under the Yijing Tower and set it ablaze. Trapped, Zan killed his wife and children and hanged himself. The rest of his family was consumed in the flames.

  "Consequently, Yuan Shao is now vastly st
rengthened by the new forces he has acquired. Meanwhile, Yuan Shu, Shao's brother, lives a dissipated life, scorning the needs of his army and his people—many of whom have already turned against him. Shu has proposed transferring to Yuan Shao the imperial title he usurped, and Shao for his part wants the royal seal more than anything.11 Shu has promised to deliver it personally and is now moving from south of the Huai to north of the Yellow River. If the Yuan brothers overcome their former enmity and join forces, we may not be able to handle them. I beg Your Excellency to deal with this emergency."

  Xuande grieved for the loss of Gongsun Zan, who had once so kindly recommended him. And where, he worried, could his dear friend General Zhao Zilong be? The time had come, Xuande calculated, to make his break with Cao Cao. Xuande stood up and faced the prime minister. "For Yuan Shu to join his brother, Shao," Xuande declared, "he will have to pass through Xuzhou. Grant me an army to attack him en route, and I will capture Yuan Shu." Cao Cao smiled and said, "Shall we submit your proposal to the Emperor? We can take action after that."12

  The following day, after formal request to the Emperor, Cao Cao gave Xuande command of fifty thousand men and sent two generals, Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao, to accompany him. The Emperor was distraught as Xuande begged his leave, and wept in parting with his uncle. Back at his quarters, Xuande spent the night preparing weapons and gear; then he took his general's seal and set out. Dong Cheng rushed to the wayside pavilion ten li beyond the city to see him off. "You must bear with this," Xuande said to him. "I will find a way to fulfill the decree." "Take care and remain loyal to the Emperor's purpose," Dong Cheng pleaded. The two men parted. Lord Guan and Zhang Fei, riding beside Xuande, asked, "Brother, what made you so eager to fight this battle?" "Here I am a caged bird, a trapped fish," Xuande replied. "With this move I gain the sea, the lofty space, free of cage or net." He told his brothers to have Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao hurry the troops along.13

  Cao Cao's advisers, Guo Jia and Cheng Yu, who had just returned to the capital from checking the treasury and granary, opposed Cao Cao's decision to send Xuande to Xuzhou. "How could you give him a military command?" they asked. "I wanted to cut off Yuan Shu," Cao explained, "that's all." "When Xuande was protector of Yuzhou," Cheng Yu said, "we urged you to kill him. You ignored the advice. Now by giving him troops you have let the dragon into the sea, the tiger into the hills. You can never again dominate him." "Even if you could not bring yourself to kill him," Guo Jia added, "what was the point of letting him leave? The ancients warned that 'endless difficulties ensue when you let the enemy escape.' I hope Your Excellency will consider what we say." Persuaded by this advice, Cao Cao sent Xu Chu ahead with five hundred men to bring Xuande back. Xu Chu took up his orders and left.

  Xuande spotted the pursuers and told his brothers, "Cao must have sent men after us." He stopped the march, camped, and posted Lord Guan and Zhang Fei, weapons in hand, at either side of the entrance. Xu Chu arrived to find Xuande's company in perfect formation, completely armed. Cao's general dismounted and entered the camp. Xuande received him, asking, "What brings you here?" "I have an order from the prime minister," Xu Chu said. "You are to return for further consultation." "You know the custom," Xuande answered, "'A general in the field may refuse his lord's command.' I have appeared before the Emperor and have been duly assigned by His Excellency. What remains to be discussed? Ride back to him with my answer."14

  Xu Chu thought, "The prime minister has always been close to Xuande. And I was told not to use force. What can I do but report what he says? Any action against him will have to wait." Thus, Xu Chu took his leave and gave Cao Cao an account of his mission. Cao was of two minds about his next step. "If he won't return," Cheng Yu and Guo Jia argued, "clearly he has turned against us." But Cao rejoined, "Two of our generals are with him. My guess is he won't rebel. Anyway, we have sent him. Regrets are useless." The idea of bringing Xuande back was dropped. Admiration of Xuande is expressed in these lines of later times:

  The soldiers packed, the horses fed, the hero dashed away;

  But ever sacred to his mind was what Xian had decreed.

  He broke from an iron cage, a tiger loose again;

  He sprung the metal lock, a dragon newly freed.

  Now that Xuande was gone, Ma Teng returned west to Xiliang to calm a disturbance on his border.

  At Xuzhou, Xuande was greeted by Che Zhou, the acting imperial inspector Cao Cao had appointed after defeating Lü Bu.15 The welcoming feast concluded, Xuande's men, Sun Qian and Mi Zhu, paid their respects to him. Then Xuande went home to see his family. He also had agents investigate Yuan Shu's situation. The scouts reported back, "Yuan Shu has sunk into a life of excess. Lei Bo and Chen Lan have left him and gone to Mount Song. Shu's position is now so weak that he has offered the imperial title to his brother Yuan Shao. At Shao's summons, Shu got together men, horses, and articles of the sacred regalia and set off. But he will first have to come through Xuzhou."16

  In command of fifty thousand men, Xuande, Lord Guan, and Zhang Fei—joined by Cao's generals Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao—marched forth. They met Yuan Shu's advance guard, led by Ji Ling. Wasting no words, Zhang Fei went for Ji Ling. Before ten thrusts had been exchanged, Zhang Fei gave an ear-splitting shout and ran his opponent through. Ji Ling tumbled from his horse; his army fled. Yuan Shu advanced and offered battle. Xuande divided his men into three units: Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao to the left, Lord Guan and Zhang Fei to the right, Xuande himself holding the center. As Yuan Shu came into view, Xuande stood beneath his colors and denounced him. "Treasonous renegade!" he cried. "I hold here a mandate to bring you to judgment. Bind your hands and surrender, and your crimes will be excused." "Miserable mat-weaver! Sandal-maker!" Yuan Shu answered. "Will you insult me?" He waved his soldiers forward.

  Xuande held back to allow his flanks to strike first. Their fierce onslaught took its toll: Yuan Shu's slain soldiers were strewn over the blood-soaked field. Thousands more fled. Yuan Shu's former commanders, Lei Bo and Chen Lan of Mount Song, plundered his treasure, grain, and fodder. Bandits kept Shu from returning to his base city, Shouchun, and he was forced to remain at Jiangting with barely a thousand men, most of them old and weak. It was midsummer. He had thirty pecks of wheat to feed his followers. Many of his own family had already starved to death. Shu could not swallow the coarse meal and asked the cook to find some honeyed water to ease his thirst. "We have bloody water," the cook said, "no honey." Suddenly Shu, who had been seated on his couch, groaned and toppled over. He spit up mouthfuls of blood and died. It was the sixth month of the fourth year of Jian An (a.d. 199).17 Later this verse was written:

  The end of Han saw all the realm in arms:

  What grounds had Yuan Shu for his mad ambition?

  From family high in service all these years,

  He alone craved the royal throne.

  Having seized the precious seal of state,

  He claimed by Heaven's signs to be elected.

  Denied a little honey at the end,

  Alone he died, spitting blood, in bed.

  After Yuan Shu's death, his nephew Yin fled to Lujiang, accompanied by the surviving relatives and Shu's coffin. En route they were captured and killed by Xu Liu, who brought the seal to Cao Cao in Xuchang. Cao expressed his satisfaction by appointing Xu Liu governor of Gaoling.18

  Xuande officially informed the court of Yuan Shu's death. He also reported the fact to Cao Cao. Then he sent Cao's generals, Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao, back to the capital— but without their troops, whom he detailed to guard Xuzhou. At this time Xuande left the city to exhort the people who had scattered during the fighting to return to their occupations.

  Back in Xuchang, Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao told Cao Cao how Xuande had kept their troops. Cao wanted to execute the two generals at once, but Xun Wenruo opposed it. "Xuande had the authority," he argued. "Your generals were obliged to obey." Cao therefore released them. Then Xun Wenruo advised him, "Write to the protector of Xuzhou, Che Zhou, and have him work against Xuande from within." Cao Cao ado
pted this plan and sent instructions to Che Zhou. Che Zhou turned to Chen Deng for advice. "I have a simple solution," Chen Deng said.19 "While Xuande is out of the city urging people to return to work, place men in ambush by the city's outer wall. When he comes back, they can cut him down as you go out to welcome him. I will have archers placed on the walls to hold off his supporting forces. This plan will work." Che Zhou approved.

  Chen Deng then explained the plan to his father, Gui.20 Gui wanted no part of it and ordered his son to inform Xuande. Obediently, Chen Deng raced off and met up with Lord Guan and Zhang Fei, who were returning ahead of Xuande. After Chen Deng had disclosed the plot to them, Zhang Fei wanted to attack the concealed troops, but Lord Guan cautioned him, "They are waiting for us at the outer wall. If we attack, we will lose. I have a better plan. Tonight, let's pretend to be an army of Cao Cao's arriving in Xuzhou. Che Zhou will have to come out and welcome us—then we kill him." Zhang Fei agreed.

  In the dead of night the brothers led a company of men to the gates of Xuzhou, flying the flags and clad in the dress and armor of Cao's army.21 To the guard's challenge they answered that they were Zhang Liao's soldiers, marching on orders from Prime Minister Cao Cao. Their demand for entry was taken to Che Zhou, who consulted Chen Deng. "If we don't receive them," Zhou said, "we could arouse suspicion; but it could be a trap."