Three Kingdoms

by Luo Guanzhong (Moss Roberts trans. )

  Liu Chan, prince of Beidi, informed of this decision, shook with indignation. Sword at his side, he entered the palace. His principal wife, Lady Cui, asked him, "Why do you look so strangely today, Your Highness?" "The troops of Wei are almost here," he replied. "My royal father has already conveyed the instruments of surrender to Wei and will confirm the surrender in person tomorrow, thus consigning our sacred altars to oblivion. But before I kneel to a stranger, I'll die and present myself unstained before the late sovereign in the land below." Lady Cui said, "You are noble, indeed, to seek so fitting a death. Let me precede Your Highness." "Why need you die?" Liu Chan asked. "Your Highness will die for your father, I for my husband. We will thus both fulfill our duties. When the husband has perished, the wife dies. Need you say more?" So saying, she rammed her head against a pillar and killed herself.

  Liu Chan killed his three sons with his own hands and severed his wife's head, which he carried to the ancestral temple of Emperor Zhao Lie. Bowing to the ground, he said through his tears, "I am disgraced, seeing our heritage handed over to strangers. I have killed therefore my wife and children to free myself of care, and now I offer this life to you, Grandfather. If you can see and hear still, you must know what I feel." Blood oozed from his weeping eyes as he slit his throat and died. The Riverlanders grieved at the news, and a man of later times left these lines in Liu Chan's praise:

  Liege and men were glad to bend the knee;

  For him alone the anguish was too keen.

  Remote in time—that kingdom in the west—

  But what a hero, Beidi's prince, Liu Chan!

  He gave his life in tribute to Zhao Lie,

  Fortune-vexed, weeping at the arched blue sky.

  His awesome presence seems among us still.

  Who can say the Han has gone for aye?

  On hearing of the suicide of the prince of Beidi, the Emperor ordered him buried.

  The next day the Wei army arrived in force. The Second Emperor led his heir apparent together with the remaining princes and a court retinue of more than sixty officials a distance of ten li outside the north gate of Chengdu. Facing the victor, his hands bound behind his back, the Emperor walked beside a carriage bearing a coffin.4 Deng Ai rose to support the Emperor and personally untied his bonds, then he burned the coffin and rode back into the capital with the Emperor beside him. A man of later times was moved to write these lines:

  The northern host came marching into Shu;

  The king held life too dear to sacrifice.

  How willfully Huang Hao betrayed his liege;

  For what did Jiang Wei strive to save the land?

  Inspiring, that great captain loyal and true!

  How sad for the heir who did not fail his trust.

  Though Zhao Lie led the realm through many trials,

  His proud estate turned instantly to dust.

  With incense and flowers the people of Chengdu came forth and welcomed the northerners. Deng Ai honored the Second Emperor with the generalship of the Flying Cavalry; other civil and military officials were granted rank in keeping with their status. The Second Emperor was invited to return to his palace. A proclamation was issued to calm the populace; and possession of the granaries, arsenals, and treasuries was transferred to the conquerors. In addition, the Second Emperor ordered Master of Ceremony Zhang Jun and the lieutenant governor of Yizhou, Zhang Shao, to call on the soldiers and people of the Riverlands districts to support the new regime. Finally, one envoy was sent to persuade Jiang Wei to surrender and another was sent to Luoyang to announce the victory. Deng Ai, on the basis of information about Huang Hao's treachery, had intended to have the eunuch executed. But Deng Ai's assistants, bribed with gold and precious gems, helped Huang Hao evade punishment. And so the Han ceased to exist. A man of later times wrote this memorial ode to the Martial Lord in connection with the Han's end:

  Even fish and fowl must heed his battle writs,

  And the rains and winds protect his battlements.

  But all for naught, the leader's penned commands,

  When his fallen king was carried to the foe.

  He lived up to his idols, Guan Zhong, Yue Yi,

  But once the brothers died, what could he do?

  Some other year we'll pass his Jinli shrine—

  Our Liangfu songs shall end; our sorrow, no.5

  Court Steward Jiang Xian reached Saber Gateway and, to a shocked and speechless Jiang Wei, delivered the Second Emperor's command and described the surrender to the north. The news made Jiang Wei's commanders indignant to a man: gnashing their teeth and glaring, their beards stiffened, they drew their swords and cut through stones shouting, "Let us all fight to the death. Why should we submit?" The wails of the troops traveled for many li. Seeing how his men yearned for the Han, Jiang Wei soothed them with comforting words. "Have no fear," he said. "I have a plan to restore the house of Han." At the urging of all assembled, Jiang Wei whispered something to his commanders.

  Immediately flags of surrender went up around Saber Gateway, and a courier was sent ahead to Zhong Hui's camp to announce that Jiang Wei would be leading Zhang Yi, Liao Hua, and Dong Jue to offer their surrender. Zhong Hui, well pleased, had Jiang Wei welcomed into his command tent. "Why has it taken you so long to get here?" Zhong Hui asked. With a formal expression but crying freely, Jiang Wei responded, "The dynasty and the whole army are represented in my person. My arrival today may be sooner than expected."6 Surprised by the remark, Zhong Hui stepped down from his seat and bowed. He treated Jiang Wei like an honored guest.

  Jiang Wei plied his powers of persuasion on Zhong Hui. "General," he said, "they say that from the time of your Huainan campaigns until the present, every one of your stratagems has worked. The rise of the house of Sima owes everything to your efforts. That is why I am content now to bow my head in surrender. Had it been Deng Ai, I would have fought to the finish. Surrender? Out of the question!" Zhong Hui proceeded to break an arrow, swearing brotherhood with Jiang Wei. The two men became warmer friends than ever, and Zhong Hui let Jiang Wei command troops as before. Jiang Wei, inwardly pleased, sent Jiang Xian back to Chengdu.7

  Meanwhile, Deng Ai had appointed Shi Zuan imperial inspector of Yizhou.8 District governorships in Yizhou also went to Qian Hong, Wang Qi, and other leading commanders. Next, to publicize the victory, Deng Ai erected a grand dais and hosted a general meeting of Riverlands officials at a banquet. When the company was well warmed with wine, Deng Ai pointed to the assembly and said, "You were lucky to have me to deal with and to live to see this day. Another general would have put the lot of you to the sword." The officials rose from their places and prostrated themselves in gratitude.

  Suddenly Jiang Xian arrived and reported Jiang Wei's surrender to Zhong Hui, Queller of the West. The news made Deng Ai bitterly jealous of Zhong Hui, and he drafted a letter that was carried to the lord patriarch of Jin, Sima Zhao, in Luoyang. Sima Zhao received Deng Ai's letter, which said:

  I hold that in warfare an army's reputation should precede its appearance in force. Now, having subdued Shu we are in a position to dominate Wu. The time has come to gather up the empire in our hands like a mat. Now, however, after major action our commanders and troops are too fatigued to resume combat at once. It would be preferable to leave in place twenty thousand Longyou soldiers and another twenty thousand Shu soldiers to produce salt and iron and to build warships. In that way our plans will proceed step by step until we are in a position to dispatch an envoy with our ultimatum to the south and subdue it without armed conquest.

  The thing to do now is to draw Sun Xiu to us by honoring Liu Shan. If Liu Shan is taken to Luoyang, the southerners will suspect our intentions toward them, making it difficult to convince them to accept northern rule. Let us instead leave Liu Shan in the Riverlands and not bring him to the capital until the winter of next year. Meanwhile, let us honor him as prince of Fufeng, grant his retinue sufficient means, and ennoble his sons. This will make manifest the favor we show to those who submit.
The southerners will fear our might yet cherish hopes of our kindness, and sensing the way the wind trends, they will become our followers.

  This letter produced in Sima Zhao a suspicion that Deng Ai meant to arrogate authority in the Riverlands to himself. Therefore, he sent a handwritten letter to Wei Guan, followed by an edict enfeoffing Deng Ai. The edict read:

  To General Deng Ai, Conqueror of the West: Thanks to your brilliant prestige and vigorous campaigns deep in enemy territory, the usurping Riverlands ruler has publicly surrendered. Your troops have completed their mission in good time, leaving the skies clear of war clouds and the western territories, Ba and Shu, purged and stabilized. Your achievement surpasses Baiqi's victory over the stronger kingdom of Chu as well as Han Xin's conquest of the hardy kingdom of Zhao. Therefore shall Deng Ai be grand commandant with a city of twenty thousand households added to his fief, and his two sons shall be honored as precinct lords with revenue from a thousand households each.9

  After Deng Ai had received this edict, Army Superviser Wei Guan handed Deng Ai Sima Zhao's handwritten letter. It said that Deng Ai's recommendations on the disposition of Liu Shan would have to wait for the petitioning process to be completed and could not be precipitately acted upon. Deng Ai said to Wei Guan, ' " A general in the field may refuse the king's command. ' Why should he reject my proposal when I have the authority of an imperial edict for my expedition? '' Deng Ai wrote another letter, which the bearer took back to Luoyang.

  By this time everyone at court was saying that Deng Ai must intend to revolt, and Sima Zhao was becoming increasingly mistrustful. Suddenly the bearer returned and presented Deng Ai's letter, which Sima Zhao unsealed. It read:

  I, Deng Ai, campaigning in the west under your mandate, have subdued the principal malefactor. It is now fitting to take expedient measures to reassure those of our former enemies who first joined with us. Were I to wait for a mandate from the court, the exchange of documents could consume many months. As the Spring and Autumn teaches, beyond the borders a high official may act on his own authority if the purpose is to secure the dynastic altars and benefit the kingdom.

  At this time the Southland has yet to acknowledge our sovereignty and remains an ally of the Riverlands. The opportunity to win them over must not be lost by clinging to accepted practice. According to the canon of war, the ideal general advances with no thought for fame and retreats regardless of blame. Surely I cannot match the integrity of those ancients, but I shall never demean myself by injuring the government's interests. Let my previous recommendations be put into effect.

  Shocked by this letter, Sima Zhao hurried to confer with Jia Chong. Zhao said to him, "Deng Ai's merits have made him arrogant. He acts as he pleases, and I can see a revolt in the making. What are we to do?" Jia Chong replied, "My lord, why not promote Zhong Hui and use him to control Deng Ai?" Sima Zhao adopted this suggestion and sent an edict honoring Zhong Hui as minister of the interior. Immediately after this Sima Zhao ordered Wei Guan to take command of the two field armies and empowered him and Zhong Hui by private letter to keep Deng Ai under surveillance and forestall any untoward act on his part. Zhong Hui read the public edict, which said:

  To General Zhong Hui, Queller of the West, whom none dares oppose, whose strength prevails over all, master of a multitude of cities and captor of fugitives, whose commands have brought low the Riverlands' mighty leaders, whose plans never miscarry, and whose actions never fail: You shall be minister of the interior and lord of a county with an increase in revenue of ten thousand households. Your two sons shall be precinct lords with revenues of a thousand households each.

  Upon receiving this fief, Zhong Hui immediately conferred with Jiang Wei. Hui said, "Deng Ai's merit is rated above mine, and he has been honored with the office of grand commandant. But Lord Sima now suspects the motives of Deng Ai and therefore has ordered Wei Guan to supervise the army and authorized me to control Ai. What is your esteemed view?" Jiang Wei answered, "I have heard that Deng Ai is a man of humble origins. As a youth he tended calves for a farming family. Now by mere chance his startling dash from Yinping Pass, vaulting the treetops and scaling sheer cliffs, has resulted in a great achievement—not from any superior strategy of his own but simply by depending on the great good fortune of the ruling house. Had not you and I, General, held each other in check at Saber Gateway, could Deng Ai have achieved so much? But now he wants to enfeoff Shu's former ruler, Liu Shan, as prince of Fufeng to bind the hopes of the Riverlanders. His inclination to revolt is evident. Sima Zhao, lord of Jin would be well advised to distrust him."

  This explanation satisfied Zhong Hui fully. Jiang Wei then continued, "Would you excuse your attendants? I must say something to you privately." When they were alone, Jiang Wei took a map from his sleeve and handed it to Zhong Hui, saying, "Long ago, when the Martial Lord left his rush-thatched dwelling, he presented this map to the late Emperor and said, 'Yizhou—with thousands of acres of fertile land—is a prosperous kingdom with a productive population, an ideal place to establish hegemony. ' On the basis of this advice, the late Emperor founded his dynasty at Chengdu. When Deng Ai gets here, he will be all too apt to do something outrageous himself." Well pleased with this counsel, Zhong Hui asked to have the geography of the kingdom explained in detail, and Jiang Wei did so.

  Next, Zhong Hui asked, "How can we get rid of Deng Ai?" "We will have our opportunity," Jiang Wei answered. "The lord of Jin suspects him, so let us lose no time submitting a memorial now detailing Deng Ai's subversive conduct. The lord of Jin will dispatch you, General, to punish him. One stroke will deliver him into our hands." Zhong Hui agreed and sent a memorial to Luoyang charging that Deng Ai would stage a revolt sooner or later, for he had assumed powers not rightfully his and made decisions on his own authority in order to win favor with the defeated Riverlands leadership.10 The memorial caused great consternation among the civil and military officials at court. In addition, to strengthen his accusation, Zhong Hui had a man intercept Deng Ai's memorial, to which he added a few presumptuous phrases in an expert imitation of Deng Ai's handwriting.

  The memorial from Deng Ai angered Sima Zhao, and he sent an order to Zhong Hui to arrest Ai. Sima Zhao also sent Jia Chong into Ye Gorge at the head of thirty thousand men, and Zhao himself along with the Wei ruler, Cao Huan, personally joined in the expedition. Shao Ti, an officer at the West Bureau, urged in opposition, "Zhong Hui's forces are six times larger than those of Deng Ai. Having Hui arrest Ai is all that needs to be done. What need, my lord, for you to go yourself?" Smiling, Sima Zhao responded, "Have you forgotten what you once said to me, that Zhong Hui himself would revolt one day? It is for Hui, not for Ai, that I march today." With a smile Shao Ti answered, "I put the question only because I thought Your Lordship might have forgotten. Since you are resolved, it is essential to keep your intentions absolutely secret." Sima Zhao agreed; then he began the expedition.

  Jia Chong also had his suspicions concerning Zhong Hui, which he shared privately with Sima Zhao. But Sima Zhao dismissed them saying, "Had I sent you, should I be doubting you? When I get to Chang'an, all will become clear." Meanwhile, spies had already informed Zhong Hui that Sima Zhao had reached Chang'an. Zhong Hui called Jiang Wei hurriedly to confer with him on a plan for arresting Deng Ai. Indeed:

  No sooner did Zhong Hui accept Jiang Wei's surrender

  Than Sima Zhao advanced to Chang'an in force.

  How did Jiang Wei destroy Deng Ai?

  Read on.

  119

  The False Surrender Proves a Futile Ploy;

  An Imperial Abdication Copies the Pattern

  Zhong Hui sought Jiang Wei's advice on arresting Deng Ai. "First send Army Su-perviser Wei Guan to make the arrest," Jiang Wei advised. "If Deng Ai kills Wei Guan, his defection must be real. And you, General, may then send troops to punish him." Well pleased, Zhong Hui ordered Wei Guan to Chengdu with several dozen troops to arrest Deng Ai and his son, Zhong. But a subordinate cautioned Wei Guan: "This is Minister Zhong Hui's wa
y of testing General Deng Ai's defection—by having him kill you, General. Do not go under any circumstances." "I have a counterplan of my own," Wei Guan replied, and he proceeded to issue twenty or thirty written directives that read, "I am authorized by edict to arrest Deng Ai. All other commanders are under no suspicion and are welcome to tender allegiance in good time to keep their rank and reward unchanged. Whoever fails to come forth will suffer execution with his whole clan." Next, Wei Guan prepared two cage-carts and set out for Chengdu.

  By cockcrow Deng Ai's lieutenant commanders had received their directives, and all had submitted to Wei Guan. While this was happening, Deng Ai lay abed in his quarters. Bursting into Deng Ai's rooms with several dozen men, Wei Guan shouted, "I hold an edict to arrest Deng Ai and his son, Zhong." Startled, Deng Ai slid down from the bed. Wei Guan ordered Deng Ai tied and caged. Deng Zhong appeared and was also swiftly seized, tied, and caged. The astounded commanders and officials in Deng Ai's official residence started preparing an armed rescue, when they saw dust billowing in the distance: spies reported the arrival of Minister of the Interior Zhong Hui with a large force of men. Deng Ai's followers fled in all directions.