Three Kingdoms

by Luo Guanzhong (Moss Roberts trans. )

  The defection was reported to Jiang Wei. At first mistrustful, he sent someone to investigate before permitting Xiahou Ba to enter the city. Xiahou Ba prostrated himself before Jiang Wei and tearfully told his story. Jiang Wei said, "In ancient times Wei Zi left the house of Zhou and earned immortal fame. Sir, if you can help restore the house of Han, your name will do the ancients proud." Then Jiang Wei entertained Xiahou Ba at a banquet. During the festivities Jiang Wei asked him, "Now that Sima Yi and his sons hold power, do they have their eye on our kingdom?" Xiahou Ba responded, "The old traitor is plotting to make himself emperor and has no time to spare for matters outside his domain. However, in the kingdom of Wei two young men just entering manhood have lately come to the fore. Given commands, they could pose grave problems for the Southland and the Riverlands." "Who are they?" Jiang Wei asked.

  Xiahou Ba replied, " The first has been assigned to the palace library. He is Zhong Hui (styled Shiji) from Changshe in Yingchuan, the son of former Imperial Guardian Zhong Yao. He proved himself both brave and sensible even as a boy. Zhong Yao once brought his two sons into the presence of Emperor Wen. At the time Hui was seven, his bother Yu, eight. Yu was so overcome by the Emperor's presence that sweat flowed down his face. 'Why do you sweat? ' the Emperor asked him. Zhong Yu answered, 'From fear and trembling—the sweat comes forth like juice. ' Next, the Emperor asked Zhong Hui, 'Why do you not sweat? ' Zhong Hui answered, 'From fear and trembling—the sweat dares not appear. ' The Emperor was struck by this reply. When Zhong Hui was a little older, he delighted in reading military texts and gained a great understanding of strategy. Both Sima Yi and Jiang Ji admire his ability.

  "The second young man," Xiahou Ba continued, "is presently a lower official. He comes from Yiyang, and his name is Deng Ai, his style Shizai. He lost his father while still a boy. Deng Ai has always had great ambition. On seeing a high hill or a wide dale, he will instinctively size up the best places for massing troops, for storing grain, for placing ambushes, and so forth. Others make fun of him, but Sima Yi values his ability and has him take part in his strategic decisions. Deng Ai has a speech defect: every time he introduces a petition he stutters: 'Ai... Ai... ' Sima Yi once teased him: 'You say," Ai... Ai... "Just how many Ais are there? ' Deng Ai replied, 'They say," O phoenix! O phoenix! "when really there is only one phoenix. ' Deng Ai's mind is quick and alert in this way. He and Zhong Hui are the two men who may prove troublesome to you." Jiang Wei smiled as he replied to Xiahou Ba's account, "I don't think those young pups worth our concern!"

  After this, Jiang Wei brought Xiahou Ba to Chengdu, where they came before the Second Emperor. Jiang Wei addressed the sovereign: "Sima Yi has compassed the death of Cao Shuang and tried to trick Xiahou Ba into returning to Luoyang. That is why he has surrendered to Your Majesty. At this time Sima Yi and his two sons hold power at court. Cao Fang is feeble and lacks courage. The kingdom of Wei has little chance of surviving. I, your servant, in Hanzhong many years, have superb troops and ample supplies. I want to command an imperial army and, with Xiahou Ba as my guide and counselor, bring the northern heartland under our control and restore the house of Han. I would thus requite Your Majesty for your kindness and fulfill the late prime minister's purpose."

  To this proposal Chief of the Secretariat Fei Yi objected: "Recently Jiang Wan and Dong Yun passed away in succession. Our domestic government needs people. It is better to have Jiang Wei defend his positions and not act rashly." "Not at all!" Jiang Wei retorted. "Life passes more swiftly than a fleet stallion glimpsed through a crack. If we continue to procrastinate, will we ever recover the heartland?" Fei Yi answered, "Sunzi has said, 'Know the other, know yourself; never know defeat! ' None of us can compare to the late prime minister in framing long-range strategy. If even he failed to recover the heartland, how could we succeed?"

  Jiang Wei went on, "I've been in Longshang many years and I know the Qiang people well. If we engage their help, even though we may not recover the north, all the land west of the Longshan Mountains will come cleanly into our hands." The Second Emperor said to Jiang Wei, "If you really mean to go to war with Wei, then give me your full loyalty and unstinting effort; do nothing to weaken morale or undermine my command." After this, Jiang Wei took the written mandate and left the court; with Xiahou Ba he returned to Hanzhong to plan the expedition.

  Jiang Wei said, "First we must send a man to work out a treaty with the Qiang. Then we will move through Xiping toward Yongzhou, where we must build two walled forts— well guarded—to serve as salients at the foot of the Qu Hills. I will dispatch all our grain and provender to the mouth of the river. We will follow the late prime minister's method, advancing in orderly stages." It was the eighth month of the year (a. d. 249). Jiang Wei first sent generals Gou An and Li Xin in joint command of fifteen thousand troops to the Qu Hills to build the forts. Gou An defended the eastern fort, Li Xin the western.

  Scouts soon informed the imperial inspector of Yongzhou, Guo Huai, of the Riverlands army's advance. Guo Huai sent the information on to Luoyang and at the same time dispatched his lieutenant commander, Chen Tai, to engage the westerners with fifty thousand men. Gou An and Li Xin marched against the northerners but, having too few to oppose them, quickly retreated into their forts. Chen Tai ordered his men to besiege the forts; he also cut off the supply route from Hanzhong. Behind their walls Gou An and Li Xin soon began to run short of grain.

  Guo Huai himself arrived to reinforce Chen Tai. After looking over the terrain, Huai felt elated and in discussions with Chen Tai at the base he said, "Their forts are in hilly terrain on high ground where water is scarce; they'll have to come out for it. If we can interdict their water upstream, they will perish." He had his men dig a trench and cut the flow of water to the fort, forcing Li Xin and his troops to look for water outside the fort. Thus the Yongzhou soldiers tightened their siege. Li Xin's struggle to get through the enemy line failed and he withdrew. Gou An's fort was also dry, so he joined with Li Xin. Together they came forth and massed in one place; the two western commanders fought the besiegers for hours but finally withdrew again.

  The Riverlands soldiers had grown desperate for water. Gou An said to Li Xin, "I wonder why Field Marshal Jiang Wei's force hasn't arrived." Li Xin replied, "I'm going to risk breaking through to get help." At the head of a few dozen riders, Li Xin opened the gate and came out fighting, hurling his small force against the overwhelming blockade. Fighting for his life, he succeeded in getting past it, all alone and badly wounded; his followers perished. That night a storm blew thick clouds in from the north, and a heavy snow fell. The Riverlands soldiers were able to fill their stomachs with grain cooked in the melted snow.

  After bursting through the encirclement and traveling two days along the bypaths of the western hills, Li Xin met up with Jiang Wei and his men. Bending low to the ground, Xin said, "Our two forts by the Qu Hills are surrounded by Wei forces. They have cut our water lines. Luckily we had snow and, melting it down, we scraped by. Things couldn't have been much worse." Jiang Wei explained, "Don't think I moved slowly. The Qiang missed the rendezvous, making us late." Jiang Wei had Li Xin escorted back to the Riverlands to recover from his injuries.

  Jiang Wei turned to Xiahou Ba: "The Qiang haven't come, and the Qu Hills are surrounded. What should we do?" Xiahou Ba answered, "If we wait for the Qiang, both forts will fall. My guess is that all Yongzhou troops have joined the attack on the forts and must have left the chief city of Yongzhou ill defended. General, why not march directly to Ox Head Mountain and slip in behind the city? Guo Huai and Chen Tai will have to come back and rescue Yongzhou, and the siege will be lifted." "An excellent plan!" Jiang Wei exclaimed and led his men toward Ox Head Mountain.

  Chen Tai, seeing that Li Xin had fought his way out of the fort, said to Guo Huai, "If Li Xin reports their plight to Jiang Wei, he will assume our men are all in the Qu Hills and will try to slip by Ox Head Mountain and surprise us from the rear. May I propose, General, that you take one company to hold the River Y
ao and cut off the Riverlands grain supply? I will detach half my force and attack the enemy at Ox Head Mountain. Once they know their supply line is cut, they will flee." Guo Huai approved his plan and quietly took control of the River Yao. Chen Tai led a company of men toward Ox Head Mountain.

  Jiang Wei's forces reached Ox Head. Suddenly he heard shouts from his vanguard; scouts told him that the northerners had blocked the road. Jiang Wei hurried to the front to study the situation. He found Chen Tai bellowing at him: "Planning to surprise Yongzhou? We've been waiting for you all this while!" Angrily Jiang Wei raised his spear and charged Chen Tai. Chen Tai met him with broad sweeps of his blade. After three passes Chen Tai fled in defeat, and Jiang Wei motioned his men to hunt down Chen Tai's soldiers. When the enemy retreated up the mountain, Jiang Wei recalled his men and encamped at its base.

  Each day Jiang Wei sent his men to challenge the Yongzhou troops, but the conflicts produced no victor. Xiahou Ba said to Jiang Wei, "This is no place for a long siege. These indecisive clashes day after day are only part of a plan to weaken us. They are planning a surprise. We had better pull back and rethink our strategy." At that moment scouts reported that Guo Huai had taken the River Yao and blocked all Riverlands grain supplies. Jiang Wei, caught by surprise, had Xiahou Ba retreat at once while he protected the rear.

  Chen Tai divided his forces into five armies and hurried back toward Ox Head. Jiang Wei alone resisted the joint attacks of the five armies and tied them down. Chen Tai maneuvered his men up the mountain and began hurling rocks and arrows down on the Riverlands force. Jiang Wei retreated to the river, where Guo Huai attacked him with blow upon blow, thrust upon thrust, as the northern troops sealed off his escape. Jiang Wei fought desperately, but after losing more than half his men, he fled toward Yangping Pass. At the pass another company confronted him; the general at their head charged him with leveled sword. He had a round face and large ears, a flat mouth and thick lips. Under his left eye was a black mole out of which a dozen fine hairs grew. The man was a Sima Shi, eldest son of Sima Yi and general of the Flying Cavalry.

  Angrily Jiang Wei shouted, "You calf! How dare you block my way!" Whipping his mount and aiming his spear, he went straight for Sima Shi. Sima Shi met him, sword in play. They fought, and Sima Shi fell back. Jiang Wei escaped and continued toward the pass, and men atop the wall opened the gate and let him through. Sima Shi followed up to the pass. From both sides hidden archers shot at his troops, ten bolts at a time, using the repeating bow Kongming had designed before his death. Indeed:

  How could Wei stave off defeat

  By the ten-bolt device handed down years back?

  Would Sima Shi survive the battle?10

  Read on.

  108

  Ding Feng in the Snowstorm Uses Short Blades;

  Sun ]un at the Banquet Works a Secret Plan

  How did Sima Shi's army come to intercept Jiang Wei's flight? Earlier, Jiang Wei's advance on Yongzhou had been reported at once to the Wei court by Guo Huai, imperial inspector of Yongzhou. The Wei ruler, Cao Fang, and Sima Yi had then agreed that Sima Shi should take fifty thousand men to defend the province. En route Sima Shi learned that Guo Huai had driven back the Riverlands force. Sensing opportunity, Sima Shi attacked the retreating troops, chasing them all the way to Yangping Pass. At the pass, however, the western forces struck back with their repeating crossbows. From both sides more than one hundred hidden marksmen shot simultaneous volleys of ten poison arrows, and crossbowmen on both flanks added their bolts. Northern men and their mounts fell in untold numbers. In the confusion Sima Shi managed to make his escape.

  Meanwhile, in his Qu Hills fort, Riverlands commander Gou An, seeing no help coming, opened his gates and surrendered. Jiang Wei, whose losses numbered in the tens of thousands, led his defeated army back to Hanzhong and encamped there. Sima Shi returned to Luoyang.

  In autumn, the eighth month of the third year of Jia Ping (a. d. 251), Sima Yi fell gravely ill. He called his two sons to his bedside and instructed them: "After years of service to the Wei, I was made imperial guardian, the highest civil office a vassal can hold. Many suspected my fidelity, to my great sadness. After my death, the two of you will have to manage the government well. Take care, great care!" So saying, he passed away. His sons, Sima Shi and Sima Zhao, officially informed the Wei ruler, Cao Fang. Cao Fang provided for a grand funeral service and bestowed posthumous honors on the imperial guardian. He appointed Sima Shi his regent-marshal and authorized him to supervise the Secretariat's most sensitive decisions; Sima Zhao was made superior general of the Flying Cavalry.

  The ruler of Wu, Sun Quan, initially had made Sun Deng his heir apparent. Deng was the son of Lady Xu. Deng, however, had died in the fourth year of Chi Wu,1 and so the next son, Sun He, had become heir to the house. Sun He was the son of Lady Wang from Langye. He had bad relations with Princess Quan, however, and she spread evil rumors about him. The result was that Sun Quan removed Sun He as heir apparent; He subsequently died of vexation. The third son, Sun Liang, was then confirmed as heir apparent. He was the son of Lady Pan. By this time Lu Xun, Zhuge Jin, and other leading figures had passed away, and all matters great and small were left to Zhuge Ke.2

  In the autumn of the first year of Tai Yuan,3 on the first day of the eighth month, a great storm suddenly struck, blowing rivers and lakes into great billows and flooding flatlands to a depth of eight spans. Pines and cypresses that had been planted at the Sun clan's ancestral tombs were uprooted by the winds and blown to the south gate of Jianye on the main road. Sun Quan fell ill from the shock. In the fourth month of the following year, his condition graver, he called Imperial Guardian Zhuge Ke and the chief commanding officer, Lü Dai, to his beside and instructed them on the handling of the government in the future. When Sun Quan had finished speaking, he was no more. He had reigned for twenty-four years, reaching the age of seventy-one. By the Shu-Han calendar it was the fifteenth year of Yan Xi.4 A poet of later times left these lines about Sun Quan:

  The purple beard, the gem green eyes, hailed a hero true;

  And Sun Quan's vassal-officers freely gave their love.

  One score and four he reigned, the Southland king:

  A dragon coiled, a tiger poised below the mighty Jiang.

  After Sun Quan's death, Zhuge Ke instated Sun Liang as emperor. A general amnesty was proclaimed, and the reign year was changed to Jian Xing, year l.5 Sun Quan was posthumously titled Great August Emperor and buried at Jiangling. These events were soon reported in Luoyang.

  When Sima Shi heard that Sun Quan was dead, he immediately began discussing a military expedition against the Southland.6 Chief Secretary Fu Gu said, "The Southland is defended by a formidable river; the late emperors' repeated attempts at conquest always failed their hopes. Better for each kingdom to guard its borders." Sima Shi said, "The way of Heaven brings great changes every thirty years. How can this three-way division of the realm last forever? I am for invading." Sima Zhao said, "With Sun Quan lately gone and Sun Liang still a boy without firm purpose, there is an opportunity to strike." And so Sima Shi ordered Wang Chang, General Who Conquers the South, to attack Nanjun with one hundred thousand soldiers. At the same time he ordered Hu Zun, General Who Conquers the East, to attack Dongxing with another hundred thousand. Finally, he ordered Controller of the South Field Marshal Guanqiu Jian to attack Wuchang with one hundred thousand men. The three field armies set forth. Sima Shi also sent his younger brother Sima Zhao to serve as first field marshal with supreme authority over the three armies.

  It was the winter of the year, the twelfth month, when Sima Zhao reached the border of the Southland. He stationed his forces and summoned Wang Chang, Hu Zun, and Guanqiu Jian to his tent to plan the next step. Zhao said, "In Dongxing district, the Southland's most vital point, they have erected a defensive shore barrier fortified on either end to protect Lake Chao from the rear. My lords, you must think through your tactics." So saying, he ordered Wang Chang and Guanqiu Jian to fan out with ten thousan
d men each. "Do not advance for now," Sima Zhao said. "Wait until we take Dongxing; then we will advance together." The two generals accepted their assignment and departed. Sima Zhao had Hu Zun take the vanguard and lead the way for the three armies. Sima Zhao told Hu Zun, "First we must throw a floating bridge over the river to take the Dongxing barrier. Seizing the two forts would be a great achievement." Hu Zun went to carry out his charge.

  Meanwhile Zhuge Ke, the Southland imperial guardian, conferred with his military about the approach of the three northern armies. General Who Pacifies the North Ding Feng said, "Dongxing is a vital point. If we lose it, Nanjun and Wuchang could fall." Zhuge Ke replied, "I agree fully. My lord, take three thousand marines from our river forces. I'll send three armies after you in support—Lü Ju, Tang Zi, and Liu Zan each with ten thousand horse and foot. A string of bombard shots will signal their onset. I myself will follow up in force." As commanded, Ding Feng detailed three thousand marines to thirty vessels and headed for Dongxing.

  The northern vanguard under Hu Zun, crossing by the floating bridge, managed to establish itself at the shore barrier. Hu Zun then sent Huan Jia and Han Zong to attack the two forts—the left defended by Southland commander Quan Duan and the right defended by Liu Lüe. The two forts, solid and imposing, withstood the most furious assaults. Commanders Quan and Liu, seeing the size of Wei's attacking force, did not venture forth but defended their outworks stoutly. Hu Zun encamped at Xutang. It was the dead of winter. Snow fell heavily.

  Hu Zun had gathered his commanders for a banquet, when he was informed that thirty southern boats were moving up the river. Hu Zun went to study the scene and saw the boats paralleling the shore, each carrying about one hundred men. He returned to his tent and said to his commanders, "Nothing to fear—no more than three thousand." He sent a minor commander to investigate and resumed drinking.