Ch’iao Chou, who protested against the war, was Grand Historian. He was also a student of astrology. He opposed the war, saying, “My present office involves the direction of the observations on the Astrological Terrace, and I am bound to report whether the aspect forebodes misfortune or promises happiness. Not long since, several flights of orioles came from the south, plunged into the Han Waters and were drowned. This is an evil augury. Moreover, I have studied the aspect of the sky, and the ‘Wolf’ constellation is influencing the aspect of the planet Venus. An aura of prosperity pervades the north. To attack Wei will not be to our profit. Again, the people say that the cypress trees moan in the night. With so many evil omens, I would that the Prime Minister should not go forth to war, but remain at home to guard what we have.”

  “How can I?” said K’ungming. “His late Majesty laid upon me a heavy responsibility, and I must exert myself to the utmost in the endeavour to destroy these rebels. The policy of a state cannot be changed because of vain and irresponsible talk of inauspicious signs.”

  K’ungming was not to be deterred. He instructed the officials to prepare the Great Bovine Sacrifice in the Dynastic Temple. Then, weeping, he prostrated himself and made this declaration: “Thy servant Liang has made five expeditions to Ch’ishan without gaining any extension of territory. His fault weighs heavily upon him. Now once again he is about to march, pledged to use every effort of body and mind to exterminate the rebels against the Han House, and to restore to the Dynasty its ancient glory in its old capital. To achieve this end he would use the last remnant of his strength and could die content.”

  The sacrifice ended, he took leave of the king and set out for HanChung to make the final arrangements for his march. While so engaged, he received the unexpected news of the death of Kuan Hsing. He was greatly shocked, and fainted. When he had recovered consciousness his officers did their utmost to console him.

  “How pitiful! Why does Heaven deny long life to the loyal and good? I have lost a most able captain just as I am setting out and need him most.”

  As all are born, so all must die;

  Men are as gnats against the sky;

  But loyalty or piety

  May give them immortality.

  The armies of Shu numbered thirty-four legions, and they marched in five divisions, with Chiang Wei and Wei Yen in the van, and when they had reached Ch’ishan, Li K’uei, the Commissary General, was instructed to convey stores into Hsieh Valley in readiness.

  In Wei they had recently changed the style of the year-period to Ch’ing-Lung, Black Dragon, because a black dragon had been seen to issue from Mop’o Well. The year of the fighting was the second year.

  The courtiers said to King Jui, “The wardens of the marches report thirty or so legions advancing in five divisions from Shu upon Ch’ishan.”

  The news distressed the king, who at once called in Ssuma I and told him of the invasion.

  Ssuma replied, “The aspect of the sky is very auspicious for the capital. The K’uei star has encroached upon the planet Venus, which bodes ill for Hsich’uan. Thus K’ungming is pitting his powers against the heavens and will meet defeat and suffer death. And I, by virtue of Your Majesty’s good fortune, am to be the instrument of destruction. I request leave to name four men to go with me.”

  “Who are they? Name them,” said the king.

  “They are the four sons of Hsiahou Yuan, Pa, Wei, Hui and Ho. The first two trained archers and cavaliers, the other two are deep strategists. All four desire to avenge the death of their father. Pa and Wei should be leaders of the van; Hui and Ho Expeditionary Ministers of War to discuss and arrange plans for the repulse of our enemy.”

  “You remember the evil results of employing the ‘Dynastic Son-in-Law,’ Hsiahou Mou; he lost his army and is still too ashamed to return to court. You are sure these are not of the same kidney?”

  “They are not like him in the least.”

  The king granted the request and named Ssuma I as Commander-in-chief with the fullest authority. When Ssuma took leave of the king he received a command in the king’s own writing:—

  “When you, Noble Sir, reach the banks of the Wei River and have well fortified that position, you are not to give battle. The men of Shu, disappointed of their desire, will pretend to retire and so entice you on, but you will not pursue. You will wait till their supplies are consumed and they are compelled to retreat, when you may smite them. Then you will obtain the victory without distressing the army unduly. This is the best plan of campaign.”

  Ssuma took it with bowed head. He proceeded forthwith to Ch’angan. When he had mustered the forces assembled from all districts they numbered forty legions, and they were all camped on the river. In addition, five legions were farther up the stream preparing nine floating bridges. The two leaders of the van were ordered to cross the river and camp and in rear of the main camp on the east a solid earth rampart was raised to guard against any surprises from the rear.

  While these preparations were in progress, Kuo Huai and Sun Li came to the new camp, and the former said, “With the men of Shu at Ch’ishan there is a possibility of their dominating the Wei River, going up on the plain and pushing out a line to the north hills whereby to cut off Shensi.”

  “You say well,” said Ssuma. “See to it. Take command of all the Shensi forces, occupy Peiyuan and make a fortified camp there. But adopt a fabian policy; wait till the enemy’s food supplies get exhausted before you think of attack.”

  So they left to carry out these orders.

  In this expedition K’ungming made five main camps at Ch’ishan, and between Hsieh Valley and Chienko he established a line of fourteen large camps. He distributed the men among these camps as for a long campaign He appointed inspecting officers to make daily visits to see that all was in readiness. When he heard that the men of Wei had camped in Peiyuan, he said to his officers, “They camp there fearing that our holding this district will sever connection with Shensi. I am pretending to look toward Peiyuan, but really my objective is the Wei River. I am going to build several large rafts and pile them with straw, and I have five companies of watermen to manage them. In the darkness of the night I shall attack Peiyuan; Ssuma will come to the rescue; if he is only a little worsted I shall cross the river with the rear divisions. Then the leading divisions will embark on the rafts, drop down the river, set fire to the bridges and attack the rear of the enemy. I shall lead an army to take the gates of the first camp. If we can get the south bank of the river the campaign will become simple.”

  The spies carried information of the doings of the men of Shu to Ssuma, who said to his men, “K’ungming has some crafty scheme, but I think I know it. He proposes to make a show of taking Peiyuan, and then, dropping down the river, he will try to burn our bridges, throw our rear into confusion and then attack.”

  So he ordered Hsiahou Pa and his brother to listen for the sounds of battle about Peiyuan; if they heard the shouting they were to march down to the river, to the hills on the south, and attack the men of Shu as they arrived. Two other forces, of two companies of bowmen each, were to lie in hiding on the north bank near the bridges to keep off the rafts that might come down on the current and keep them from touching the bridges.

  Then he sent for Kuo Euai and Sun Li, and said, “K’ungming is coming to Peiyuan to cross the river secretly. Your force is small, and you can hide half way along the road. If the enemy come in the afternoon, that will mean an attack on us in the evening. Then you are to simulate defeat and run. They will pursue. You can shoot with all your energy, and our marines will attack. If the attack is in great force, look out for orders.”

  All these orders given, Ssuma sent his two sons Shih and Chao to reinforce the front camp while he led his own men to relieve Peiyuan.

  K’ungming sent Wei Yen and Ma Tai to cross the Wei River and attack Peiyuan, while the attempt to set fire to the bridges was confided to Wu Pan and Wu I. The general attack was to be made by three divisions. The various divisions started at noon and crossed the river, where they slowly formed up in battle order.

  The armies sent against Peiyuan arrived about dusk. The scouts having informed the defenders of their approach, Sun Li abandoned his camp and fled. This told Wei Yen that his attack was expected, and he turned to retire. At this moment a great shouting was heard, and there appeared two bodies of the enemy bearing down upon the attackers. Desperate efforts were made to extricate themselves, but many of the men of Shu fell into the river. The others scattered. However, Wu I came up and rescued the force from entire destruction.

  Wu Pan set half his men to navigate the rafts down the river to the bridges. But the men of Wei stationed near the bridges shot clouds of arrows at them, and the Shu leader, Wu Pan, was wounded. He fell into the river and was drowned. The crews of the rafts jumped into the water and got away. The rafts fell into the hands of the men of Wei.

  At this time Wang P’ing and Chang I were ignorant of the defeat of their Peiyuan army, and they went straight for the camps of Wei. They arrived in the second watch. They heard loud shouting, and Wang P’ing said to his colleague, “We do not know whether the cavalry sent to Peiyuan has been successful or not. It is strange that we do not see a single soldier of the enemy. Surely Ssuma has found out the plan and prepared to frustrate the attack. Let us wait here till the bridges have been set on fire and we see the flames.”

  So they halted. Soon after, a mounted messenger came up with orders for them to retire, as the attack on the bridges had failed. They attempted to withdraw, but the men of Wei had taken a byroad to their rear, and they were at once attacked. A great fire started also. A disorderly battle ensued, from which the two leaders eventually got out, but only with great loss. And when K’ungming collected his army at Ch’ishan once more he found, to his sorrow, that he had lost more than the equivalent of a legion.

  Just at this time Fei I arrived from Ch’engtu. K’ungming received him and, after the ceremonies were over, said, “I would trouble you, Sir, to carry a letter for me into Wu; will you undertake the mission?”

  “Could I possibly decline any task you laid upon me?”

  So K’ungming wrote a letter and sent it to Sun Ch’uan. Fei I took it and hastened to Chienyeh, where he saw Sun and presented this letter:— “The Hans have been unfortunate, and the line of rulers has been broken. The Ts’ao party have usurped the seat of government and still hold the command. My late master confided a great task to me, and I must exhaust every effort to achieve it. Now my army is at Ch’ishan and the rebels are on the verge of destruction on the River Wei. I hope Your Majesty, in accordance with your oath of alliance, will send a leader against the north to assist by taking the capital, and the empire can be shared. The full circumstances cannot be told, but I hope you will understand and act.”

  Sun Ch’uan was pleased at the news and said to the envoy, “I have long desired to set my army in motion, but have not been able to arrange with K’ungming. After this letter I will lead an expedition myself and go to occupy Ch’aomen and capture the new city of Wei. Moreover, I will send Lu Hsun with an army to camp at Mienk’ou and take Hsiangyang. I will also send an army into Huaiyang. The total number will be thirty legions, and they shall start at once.”

  Fei I thanked him and said, “In such a ease the capital will fall forthwith.”

  A banquet was prepared. At this, Sun Ch’uan said, “Whom did the minister send to lead the battle?”

  Fei replied, “Wei Yen was the chief leader.”

  “A man brave enough, but crooked. One day he will work a mischief unless K’ungming is very wary. But surely he knows.”

  “Your Majesty’s words are to the point,” said the envoy; “I will return at once and lay them before K’ungming.”

  Fei quickly took leave and hastened to Ch’ishan with his news of the intended expedition.”

  “Did the King of Wu say nothing else?” asked K’ungming.

  Then Fei told him what had been said about Wei Yen.

  “Truly a comprehending ruler,” said K’ungming, appreciatively. “But I could not be ignorant of this. However, I use him because he is very hold.”

  “Then, Sir, you ought to decide soon what to do with him.”

  “I have a scheme of my own.”

  Fei returned to Ch’engtu, and K’ungming resumed the ordinary camp duties of a leader.

  Then suddenly a certain Wei leader came and begged to be allowed to surrender. K’ungming had the man brought in and questioned him.

  “I am a supplementary leader, Cheng Wen by name. A certain Ch’in Lang and I are old colleagues. Recently Ssuma transferred us and, showing great partiality for my colleague, gave him high rank and threw me out like a weed. I was disgusted and left, and I wish to join your ranks if you will accept my service.”

  Just at that moment a man came in to say that Ch’in Lang, the very man whose promotion had sent the deserter to the other side, had appeared in front of the tents and was challenging Cheng Wen.

  Said K’ungming, “How does this man stand with you in fighting skill?”

  “I should just kill him,” said Cheng.

  “If you were to slay him that would remove my doubts.”

  Cheng accepted the proposal with alacrity, mounted his horse and away he went. K’ungming went out to see the fight. There was the challenger shaking his spear and reviling his late friend as rebel and brigand and horse-thief.

  “Give me back my horse you stole!” cried he, galloping toward Cheng as soon as he appeared. Cheng whipped up his horse, waved his sword and went to meet the attack. In the first bout he cut down Ch’in Lang.

  The Wei soldiers then ran away; the victor hacked off the head of his victim arid returned to lay it at K’ungming’s feet. Seated in his tent, he summoned the victor and burst out:—

  “Take him away and behead him!”

  “I have done nothing wrong,” cried Cheng.

  “As if I do not know Ch’in Lang! The man you have just killed was not Ch’in Lang. How dare you try to deceive me?”

  Cheng said, “I will own up, but this was his brother Ming.”

  K’ungming smiled. “Ssuma sent you to try this on for some reason of his own, but he could not throw dust in my eyes. If you do not tell the truth I will put you to death.”

  Thus caught, the false deserter confessed and begged his life.

  K’ungming said, “You can save your life by writing a letter to Ssuma telling him to come to raid our camp. I will spare you on this condition. And if I capture Ssuma, I will give you all the credit and reward you handsomely.”

  There was nothing for it but to agree, and the letter was written. Then the writer was placed in confinement.

  “How did you know this was only a pretended desertion?” said Fan Chien.

  “Ssuma looks to his men,” replied K’ungming. “If he made Ch’in Lang a leading general, he was certainly a man of great military skill and not the sort of man to be overcome by this fellow Cheng in the first encounter. So his opponent certainly was not Ch’in Lang. That is how I knew.”

  They congratulated him on his perspicacity. Then K’ungming selected a certain persuasive speaker from among his officers and whispered certain instructions in his ear. The officer at once left and carried the letter just written to the Wei camp, where he asked to see the general. He was admitted, and the letter was read.

  “Who are you?” said Ssuma.

  “I am a man from the capital, a poor fellow stranded in Shu. Cheng Wen and I are fellow villagers. K’ungming has given Cheng a van-leadership as a reward for what he has done, and he got me to bring this letter to you and to say that he will show a light tomorrow evening as a signal, and he hopes you will lead the attack yourself. Cheng will work from the inside in your favour.”

  Ssuma took great pains to test the reliability of these statements, and he examined the letter minutely to see if it bore any signs of fabrication. Presently he ordered in refreshments for the bearer of the letter, and then he said, “We will fix today at the second watch for the raid, and I will lead in person. If it succeeds I will give you a good appointment as a reward.”

  Taking leave, the soldier retraced his steps to his own camp and reported the whole interview to K’ungming.

  K’ungming held his sword aloft, took the proper paces for an incantation, and prayed. This done, he summoned six of his most able and trusty leaders, to whom he gave certain instructions. When they had gone to carry them out he ascended a hill, taking with him a few score men only.

  Ssuma had been taken in by Cheng Wen’s letter and intended to lead the night raid. But the elder of his sons, whom he had selected to help him, expostulated with his father.

  “Father, you are going on a dangerous expedition on the faith of a mere scrap of paper,” said his son. “I think it imprudent. What if something goes unexpectedly wrong? Let some captain go in your place, and you come up in rear as a reserve.”

  Ssuma saw there was reason in this proposal, and he finally decided to send Ch’in Lang, with a legion, and he himself would command the reserve.

  The night was fine with a bright moon. But about the middle of the second watch the sky clouded over, and it became very black, so that a man could not see his next neighbour.

  “This is providential,” chuckled Ssuma.

  The expedition duly started, men with gags, and horses with cords round their muzzles. They moved swiftly and silently, and Ch’in Lang made straight for the camp of Shu.

  But when he reached it, and entered, and saw not a man, he knew he had been tricked. He yelled to his men to retire, but lights sprang up all round, and attacks began from four sides. Fight as he would, Ch’in Lang could not free himself.

  From behind the battle area Ssuma saw flames rising from the camp of Shu and heard continuous shouting, but he knew not whether it meant victory for his own men or to his enemy. He pressed forward toward the fire. Suddenly, a shout, a roll of drums and a blare of trumpets close at hand, a bomb that seemed to rend the earth, and Wei Yen and Chiang Wei bore down upon Ssuma, one on each flank.

 

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