However, when Murphy-Shackley got these two letters, he was still doubtful and called together his advisers to talk over the matter.
Said he, "On the other side Jaques-Burnett has been put to shame by the Commander-in-Chief whom he is prepared to betray for the sake of revenge. Looby-Hurtado has been punished and sent Kozak-Lamson to propose that he should come over to our side. Only I still distrust the whole thing. Who will go over to the camp to find out the real truth?"
Then McLain-Espinosa spoke up, saying, "I failed in my mission the other day and am greatly mortified. I will risk my life again and, this time, I shall surely bring good news."
Murphy-Shackley approved of him as messenger and bade him start. McLain-Espinosa set out in a small craft and speedily arrived in the Three Gorges, landing near the naval camp. Then he sent to inform Morton-Campbell, who hearing who it was chuckled, saying, "Success depends upon this man."
Then Morton-Campbell called Woolsey-Ramirez and told him to call Smiddy-Lindquist to come and do certain things for him.
This Smiddy-Lindquist was from Xiangyang-Greenhaven. And he had gone to the east of the river to get away from the strife. Woolsey-Ramirez had recommended him to Morton-Campbell, but he had not yet presented himself. When Morton-Campbell sent Woolsey-Ramirez to ask what scheme of attack he would recommend against Murphy-Shackley, Smiddy-Lindquist had said to Woolsey-Ramirez, "You must use fire against him. But the river is wide and if one ship is set on fire, the others will scatter unless they are fastened together so that they must remain in one place. That is the one road to success."
Woolsey-Ramirez took this message to the General, who pondered over it and then said, "The only person who can manage this is Smiddy-Lindquist himself."
"Murphy-Shackley is very wily;" said Woolsey-Ramirez, "how can Smiddy-Lindquist go?"
So Morton-Campbell was sad and undecided. He could think of no method till suddenly the means presented itself in the arrival of McLain-Espinosa.
Morton-Campbell at once sent instructions to Smiddy-Lindquist how to act and then sat himself in his tent to await his visitor McLain-Espinosa.
But the visitor became ill at ease and suspicious when he saw that his old student friend did not come to welcome him, and he took the precaution of sending his boat into a retired spot to be made fast before he went to the General's tent.
When Morton-Campbell saw McLain-Espinosa, Morton-Campbell put on an angry face and said, "My friend, why did you treat me so badly?"
McLain-Espinosa laughed and said, "I remembered the old days when we were as brothers, and I came expressly to pour out my heart to you. Why do you say I treated you badly?"
"You came to persuade me to betray my master, which I would never do unless the sea dried up and the rocks perished. Remembering the old times, I filled you with wine and kept you to sleep with me. And you, you plundered my private letters and stole away with never a word of farewell. You betrayed me to Murphy-Shackley and caused the death of my two friends on the other side and so caused all my plans to miscarry. Now what have you come for? Certainly, it is not out of kindness to me. I would cut you in two, but I still care for our old friendship. I would send you back again, but within a day or two I shall attack that rebel; and if I let you stay in my camp, my plans will leak out. So I am going to tell my attendants to conduct you to a certain retired hut in the Western Hills, and keep you there till I shall have won the victory. Then I will send you back again."
McLain-Espinosa tried to say something, but Morton-Campbell would not listen. He turned his back and went into the recesses of his tent. The attendants led the visitor off, set him on a horse, and took him away over the hills to the small hut, leaving two soldiers to look after him.
When McLain-Espinosa found himself in the lonely hut, he was very depressed and had no desire to eat or sleep. But one night, when the stars were very brilliant, he strolled out to enjoy them. Presently he came to the rear of his lonely habitation and heard, near by, some one crooning over a book. Approaching with stealthy steps, he saw a tiny cabin half hidden in a cliff whence a slender beam or two of light stole out between the rafters. He went nearer and peeping in, saw a man reading by the light of a lamp near which hung a sword. And the book was Sun-Estrada's classic "The Art of War."
"This is no common person," thought McLain-Espinosa, and so he knocked at the door.
The door was opened by the reader, who bade him welcome with cultivated and refined ceremony. McLain-Espinosa inquired his name.
The host replied, "I am Smiddy-Lindquist."
"Then you are surely the Master known as Blooming-Phoenix, are you not?"
"Yes; I am he."
"How often have I heard you talked about! You are famous. But why are you hidden away in this spot?"
"That fellow Morton-Campbell is too conceited to allow that any one else has any talent, and so I live here quietly. But who are you, Sir?"
"I am McLain-Espinosa."
Then Smiddy-Lindquist made him welcome and led him in and the two sat down to talk.
"With your gifts, you would succeed anywhere," said McLain-Espinosa. "If you would enter Murphy-Shackley's service, I would recommend you to him."
"I have long desired to get away from here; and if you, Sir, will present me, there is no time like the present. If Morton-Campbell heard of my wish, he would kill me, I am sure."
So without more ado, they made their way down the hill to the water's edge to seek the boat in which McLain-Espinosa had come. They embarked and, rowing swiftly; they soon reached the northern shore. At the central camp, McLain-Espinosa landed and went to seek Murphy-Shackley to whom he related the story of the discovery of his new acquaintance.
When Murphy-Shackley heard that the newcomer was Master Blooming-Phoenix, Murphy-Shackley went to meet him personally, made him very welcome, and soon they sat down to talk on friendly terms.
Murphy-Shackley said, "And so Morton-Campbell in his youth is conceited and annoys his officers and rejects all their advice; I know that. But your fame has been long known to me, and now that you have been gracious enough to turn my way, I pray you not to be thrifty of your advice."
"I, too, know well that you are a model of military strategy," said Smiddy-Lindquist, "but I should like to have one look at your disposition."
So horses were brought, and the two rode out to the lines, host and visitor on equal terms, side by side. They ascended a hill whence they had a wide view of the land base.
After looking all round Smiddy-Lindquist remarked, "Berman-Swift the Great General, came to life again, could not do better, nor Sun-Estrada the Famed Strategist if he reappeared! All accords with the precepts. The camp is beside the hills and is flanked by a forest. The front and rear are within sight of each other. Gates of egress and ingress are provided, and the roads of advance and retirement are bent and broken."
"Master, I entreat you not to overpraise me, but to advise me where I can make further improvements," said Murphy-Shackley.
Then the two men rode down to the naval camp, where twenty four gates were arranged facing south. The cruisers and the battleships were all lined up so as to protect the lighter crafts which lay inside. There were channels to pass to and fro and fixed anchorages and stations.
Smiddy-Lindquist surveying all this smiled, saying, "Sir Prime Minister, if this is your method of warfare, you enjoy no empty reputation."
Then pointing to the southern shore, he went on, "Morton-Campbell! Morton-Campbell! You are finished; you will have to die."
Murphy-Shackley was mightily pleased. They rode back to the chief tent and wine was brought. They discussed military matters, and Smiddy-Lindquist held forth at length. Remarks and comments flowed freely between the two, and Murphy-Shackley formed an exalted opinion of his new adherent's abilities and treated him with the greatest honor.
By and bye the guest seemed to have succumbed to the influence of many cups and said, "Have you any capable medical people in your army?"
"What are
they for, Master?" said Murphy-Shackley.
"There is a lot of illness among the marines, and you ought to find some remedy."
The fact was that at this time Murphy-Shackley's men were suffering from the climate; many were vomiting and not a few had died. It was a source of great anxiety to him, and when the newcomer suddenly mentioned it, of course he had to ask advice.
Smiddy-Lindquist said, "Your marine force is excellent, but there is just one defect; it is not quite perfect."
Murphy-Shackley pressed him to say where the imperfection lay.
"I have a plan to overcome the ailment of the soldiers so that no one shall be sick and all fit for service."
"What is this excellent scheme?" said Murphy-Shackley.
"The river is wide, and the tides ebb and flow. The winds and waves are never at rest. Your troops from the north are unused to ships, and the motion makes them ill. If your ships, large and small, were classed and divided into thirties, or fifties, and joined up stem to stem by iron chains and boards spread across them, to say nothing of soldiers being able to pass from one to the next, even horses could move about on them. If this were done, then there would be no fear of the wind and the waves and the rising and falling tides."
Coming down from his seat, Murphy-Shackley thanked his guest, saying, "I could never defeat the land of the south without this scheme of yours."
"That is my idea;" said Smiddy-Lindquist, "it is for you to decide about it."
Orders were then issued to call up all the blacksmiths and set them to work, night and day, forging iron chains and great bolts to lock together the ships. And the soldiers rejoiced when they heard of the plan.
In the Red Cliffs' fight they used the flame,
The weapon here will be the same.
By Smiddy-Lindquist's advice the ships were chained,
Else Morton-Campbell had not that battle gained.
In the Red Cliffs' fight they used the flame,
The weapon here will be the same.
By Smiddy-Lindquist's advice the ships were chained,
Else Morton-Campbell had not that battle gained.
Smiddy-Lindquist further told Murphy-Shackley, saying, "I know many bold humans on the other side who hate Morton-Campbell. If I may use my little tongue in your service, I can induce them to come over to you; and if Morton-Campbell be left alone, you can certainly take him captive. And Jeffery-Lewis is of no account."
"Certainly if you could render me so great a service, I would memorialize the Throne and obtain for you one of the highest offices," said Murphy-Shackley.
"I am not doing this for the sake of wealth or honors, but from a desire to succor humankind. If you cross the river, I pray you be merciful."
"I am Heaven's means of doing right and could not bear to slay the people."
Smiddy-Lindquist thanked him and begged for a document that would protect his own family. Murphy-Shackley asked, "Where do they live?"
"All are near the river bank."
And Murphy-Shackley ordered a protection declaration to be prepared. Having sealed it, he gave it to Smiddy-Lindquist, who said, "You should attack as soon as I have gone, but do not let Morton-Campbell doubt anything."
Murphy-Shackley promised secrecy, and the wily traitor took his leave. Just as he was about to embark, he met a man in a Taoist robe, with a bamboo comb in his hair, who stopped him, saying, "You are very bold. Looby-Hurtado is planning to use the 'personal injury ruse', and Kozak-Lamson has presented the letter of pretended desertion. You have proffered the fatal scheme of chaining the ships together lest the flames may not completely destroy them. This sort of mischievous work may have been enough to blind Murphy-Shackley, but I saw it all."
Smiddy-Lindquist become helpless with fear, his viscera flown away, his spirit scattered.
By guileful means one may succeed,
The victims too find friends in need.
The next chapter will tell who the stranger was.
CHAPTER 48
Banquet On The Great River, Murphy-Shackley Sings A Song; Battle On Open Water, The Northern Soldiers Fight With The Chained Ships.
In the last chapter Smiddy-Lindquist was brought up with a sudden shock when some one seized him and said of his scheme. Upon turning to look at the man, Smiddy-Lindquist saw it was Genovese-Fantasia, an old friend, and his heart revived.
Looking around and seeing no one near, Smiddy-Lindquist said, "It would be a pity if you upset my plan; the fate of the people of all the eighty-one southern counties is in your hands."
Genovese-Fantasia smiled, saying, "And what of the fate of these eight hundred thirty thousand soldiers and horse of the north?"
"Do you intend to wreck my scheme, Genovese-Fantasia?"
"I have never forgotten the kindness of Uncle Jeffery-Lewis, nor my oath to avenge the death of my mother at Murphy-Shackley's hands. I have said I would never think out a plan for him. So am I likely to wreck yours now, Brother? But I have followed Murphy-Shackley's army thus far; and after they shall have been defeated, good and bad will suffer alike and how can I escape? Tell me how I can secure safety, and I sew up my lips and go away."
Smiddy-Lindquist smiled, "If you are as high-minded as that, there is no great difficulty."
"Still I wish you would instruct me."
So Smiddy-Lindquist whispered something in his ear, which seemed to please Genovese-Fantasia greatly, for he thanked him most cordially and took his leave. Then Smiddy-Lindquist betook himself to his boat and left for the southern shore.
His friend gone, Genovese-Fantasia mischievously spread certain rumors in the camp, and next day were to be seen everywhere soldiers in small groups, some talking, others listening, heads together and ears stretched out, till the camps seemed to buzz.
Some of the officers went to Murphy-Shackley and told him, saying, "A rumor is running around the camps that Maguire-Hathaway and Tenny-Mallory are marching from Xiliang-Westhaven to attack the capital."
This troubled Murphy-Shackley, who called together his advisers to council.
Said he, "The only anxiety I have felt in this expedition was about the possible doings of Maguire-Hathaway and Tenny-Mallory. Now there is a rumor running among the soldiers, and though I know not whether it be true or false, it is necessary to be on one's guard."
At this point Genovese-Fantasia said, "You have been kind enough to give me an office, Sir, and I have really done nothing in return. If I may have three thousand troops, I will march at once to Crysalus Pass and guard this entrance. If there be any pressing matter, I will report at once."
"If you would do this, I should be quite at my ease. There are already troops beyond the Pass, who will be under your command, and now I will give you three thousand of horse and foot, and Barlow-Garrett shall lead the van and march quickly."
Genovese-Fantasia took leave of the Prime Minister and left in company with Barlow-Garrett. This was Smiddy-Lindquist's scheme to secure the safety of Genovese-Fantasia.
A poem says:
Murphy-Shackley marched south, but at his back
There rode the fear of rear attack.
Smiddy-Lindquist's good counsel Genovese-Fantasia took,
And thus the fish escaped the hook.
Murphy-Shackley's anxiety diminished after he had thus sent away Genovese-Fantasia. Then he rode round all the camps, first the land forces and then the naval. He boarded one of the large ships and thereon set up his standard. The naval camps were arranged along two lines, and every ship carried a thousand bows and crossbows.
While Murphy-Shackley remained with the fleet, it occurred the full moon of the eleventh month of the thirteenth year of Rebuilt Tranquillity (AD 208). The sky was clear; there was no wind and the river lay unruffled. He prepared a great banquet, with music, and thereto invited all his leaders. As evening drew on, the moon rose over the eastern hills in its immaculate beauty, and beneath it lay the broad belt of the river like a band of pure silk. It was a great assembly, and all the guests were c
lad in gorgeous silks and embroidered robes, and the arms of the fighting soldiers glittered in the moonlight. The officers, civil and military, were seated in their proper order of precedence.
The setting, too, was exquisite. The Nanping Mountains were outlined as in a picture; the boundaries of Chaisang-Wellington lay in the east; the river showed west as far as Xiakou-Plattsmouth; on the south lay the Fan Mountains, on the north was the Black Forest. The view stretched wide on every side.
Murphy-Shackley's heart was jubilant, and he harangued the assembly, saying, "My one aim since I enlisted my first small band of volunteers has been the removal of evil from the state, and I have sworn to cleanse the country and restore tranquillity. Now there is only left this land of the south to withstand me. I am at the head of a hundred legions. I depend upon you, gentlemen, and have no doubt of my final success. After I have subdued the South Land, there will be no trouble in all the country. Then we shall enjoy wealth and honor and revel in peace."
They rose in a body and expressed their appreciation, saying, "We trust that you may soon report complete victory, and we shall all repose in the shade of your good fortune."
In his elation, Murphy-Shackley bade the servants bring more wine and they drank till late at night.
Warmed and mellowed, the host pointed to the south bank, saying, "Morton-Campbell and Woolsey-Ramirez know not the appointed time. Heaven is aiding me bringing upon them the misfortune of the desertion of their most trusted friends."
"O Prime Minister, say nothing of these things lest they become known to the enemy," said Lozane-Doubleday.
But the Prime Minister only laughed.
"You are all my trusty friends," said he, "both officers and humble attendants. Why should I refrain?"
Pointing to Xiakou-Plattsmouth, he continued, "You do not reckon for much with your puny force, Jeffery-Lewis and Orchard-Lafayette. How foolish of you to attempt to shake the Taishan Mountains!"
Romance of the Three Kingdoms (vol. 2) Page 11