The Three Kingdoms, Volume 3: Welcome the Tiger: The Epic Chinese Tale of Loyalty and War in a Dynamic New Translation (80 page)

Before setting out he asked Fu Qian, “In your opinion, where should we head for?”

Fu Qian replied, “The grain and forage of Wei are stored at Changcheng. Let us go out by Luo Valley and cross the Shen Ridge to get to Changcheng. First burn their supplies and then move on to Qinchuan. And the conquest of Wei will be a matter of days.”

“Your view fits in with my plan,” Jiang Wei told him.

So the army advanced along this route toward Changcheng. The commander of the city was Sima Wang, a distant cousin of Sima Zhao. In the city was a large quantity of grain, but only a small army. When he heard of the impending invasion, Sima Wang hurriedly consulted his two officers and led his weak force out to encamp some twenty
li
from the city.

The next day the Shu army arrived. Sima Wang and his two officers went forth to meet them. Jiang Wei rode out and said, “Sima Zhao has forced your Emperor to move into his army camp, which plainly indicates that he intends to follow the path of Li Jue and Guo Si. My lord has commanded me to punish this crime. Yield at once! If you persist in erring, your family will all be put to death.”

Sima Wang shouted back, “You and yours are impudent enough to repeatedly invade a superior state. Withdraw at once or else none of your men will return alive!”

Before he finished his words one of his officers rode out, his spear set ready to thrust. From the Shu army came Fu Qian to take the challenge, and the two engaged. After less than ten encounters Fu Qian tempted his opponent by feigning a weakness. His opponent thrust hard at the opening but Fu Qian evaded the blow, pulled him out of the saddle, and carried him off toward his own side.

This infuriated the Wei officer’s colleague, who went to his rescue. Brandishing his sword, he went pounding after Fu Qian. Knowing he was chased, Fu Qian proceeded slowly, thus luring his enemy closer. When he was near enough, Fu Qian suddenly dashed his prisoner with all his strength to the earth, secretly laid his hand on his four-edged iron bar, and smote his pursuer full in the face. The blow knocked out an eye, and the poor man fell dead. The other officer was killed by Shu soldiers as he lay on the ground. At this Jiang Wei urged his men forward. Sima Wang abandoned his camp and fled into the city, closing the gates behind him.

Jiang Wei told his men to rest for the night to regain their strength and seize the city on the morrow.

At dawn the next day the assault began. The men, fresh from their rest, vied with each other to reach the city first. They shot fire-arrows and fire-bombs into the city. Instantly all the straw huts inside were in flames and the men of Wei were in turmoil. Then Jiang Wei ordered his men to pile brushwood against the wall and set it alight. The flames rose high into the sky. The city was on the brink of destruction and the wailing of the Wei soldiers inside the walls could be heard across the fields.

Suddenly a great shout diverted the attention of the attackers from the city. Jiang Wei turned round and saw a troop of Wei soldiers marching up, beating drums and waving banners. Switching his rearmost unit with the vanguard, he took his place beneath the great standard. Looking across he saw a young officer, fully armored, riding ahead with his spear ready to thrust. He looked a little over twenty years of age, with a fair complexion and rich red lips.

“Do you recognize General Deng?” he cried fiercely.

“So this is Deng Ai,” thought Jiang Wei. He set his spear and rode out. They fought for about thirty or forty bouts, but neither could claim advantage over the other. The youth wielded his spear with perfect skill.

“If I don’t employ some ruse, how will I win?” Jiang Wei thought to himself.

So he turned to a mountain path on his left. The youth followed closely. Jiang Wei, hanging up his spear, quietly reached for his carved bow and arrow, and shot. But the young man was sharp-eyed, and as the bowstring sang he lunged forward and the arrow swished harmlessly by.

Glancing back, Jiang Wei saw his pursuer close upon him, and his spear was already threatening his life. Jiang Wei ducked and the spear missed. As it slipped past his ribs, Jiang Wei caught it firmly under his arm. The young man abandoned his weapon and made for his own ranks.

“What a great pity!” sighed Jiang Wei as he turned to pursue.

He followed the youth to the front of the Wei line, from which emerged a warrior holding his sword. “Jiang Wei, do not pursue my son!” he cried. “Deng Ai is here!”

Taken aback, Jiang Wei realized that he had only been contending with the son of his real opponent and in his heart he admired the youth for his skill. He desired to fight with Deng Ai but he feared lest his steed was too weary to stand the contest.

So he pointed to Deng Ai, “Today I have met you and your son. Let us both draw off our men for the present. We will fight a decisive battle tomorrow.”

Seeing that the battlefield was ill-suited for him, Deng Ai agreed to wait. Reining in his horse he said, “All right. Let us lead off our men, and whoever attempts to take any secret advantage is a base fellow.”

Both sides retreated. Deng Ai camped on the bank of the Wei River and Jiang Wei across two hills. As he saw that the men of Shu had the advantage of position, Deng Ai wrote to Sima Wang, “We must not give battle in any case, but wait until reinforcements come from inside the passes. By then the enemy will have run out of supplies and we can defeat them with an attack on three sides. In the meantime, I’m sending my son Deng Zhong to help you defend the city.”

He also dispatched a messenger to ask for further help from Sima Zhao.

Jiang Wei sent his man to the Wei camp to deliver a challenge for battle the next day. Deng Ai feigned acceptance, but when morning came and Jiang Wei had deployed his men, his enemy did not appear. Nor was there any sign of occupation in his camp, no display of flags or rolling of drums all day. At nightfall, the army of Shu returned to camp and Jiang Wei sent another challenge, reproaching his opponent for failing to keep his word. Deng Ai treated the messenger with wine and food and invented an excuse of indisposition. Then he promised to come to fight the next day.

But the same thing happened on the following day. Jiang Wei led his army out but Deng Ai again was nowhere to be seen. And this went on for five or six times.

Fu Qian warned his chief: “There must be some trick afoot. We must be on our guard.”

“They are certainly waiting for reinforcements to come, so that they may attack us on three sides,” said Jiang Wei. “I will write to Wu and ask Sun Chen to join forces with me.”

Just then, mounted scouts brought news of the rout of the army of Wu, of the fall of Shouchun, and the death of Zhuge Dan. Moreover, Sima Zhao had led his army back to Luoyang and would soon come to rescue Changcheng.

“This campaign is hopeless again!” said Jiang Wei bitterly. “We’d better withdraw.”

Four times he missed! he hailed
The fifth occasion joyfully, and failed.

Jiang Wei’s plan of withdrawal will be told in the next chapter.

*
   Capital of Wu, and modern Nanjing.

*
   Tian Heng (?–202
B.C.
), a lord in the kingdom of Qi, who escaped to an island after he was defeated by Han. Later he was summoned by the founder of Han to go to Luoyang. Unwilling to submit, he committed suicide on the way; when news of his death reached his five hundred followers on the island, they also killed themselves.

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTEEN

Ding Feng Designs a Plan to Slay Sun Chen

Jiang Wei Defeats Deng Ai in a Contest of Battle Formations

A
s
was said in the previous chapter, Jiang Wei decided to pull out his army from Changcheng for fear of the approach of Wei reinforcements. He sent the infantry and the baggage away first, and kept the cavalry to cover the retreat.

Spies reported his movements to Deng Ai, who said gleefully, “He has gone because he knew our commander’s army would soon be upon him. Let him go, and don’t follow. If we pursue we will fall into his snare.”

Scouts were sent to reconnoiter, and when they returned they reported that kindling material had been piled up in some narrow parts of Luo Valley to check any pursuit with fire. The officers praised the prevision of their leader. Then Deng Ai sent a memorial to court to report the whole event. Sima Zhao, greatly pleased, rewarded Deng Ai with more gifts.

The commander of Wu, greatly angered by the desertion of so many of his men and officers to Wei, put all the families of the deserters to death. The ruler of Wu, Sun Liang, then only sixteen, disapproved of this act of cruelty.

The young Emperor was of an ingenious turn of mind, as can be seen from the following story. One day in the west garden, he told a eunuch to go and get some honey, since he wanted to try some green plums. The honey was brought, but there were bits of mouse droppings in it. The young Emperor called the storekeeper and blamed him for carelessness.

The storekeeper bowed to the ground and said in protest, “I kept the honey sealed air tight. How could there be such dirt in it?”

“Has the eunuch asked you for honey lately?” asked the Emperor.

“He did ask me for some a few days ago, but I refused him.”

The Emperor pointed at the eunuch and said, “You must have defiled the honey intentionally to incriminate him because you were angry that he earlier refused you the honey.”

The eunuch denied the charge.

“It is very easy to tell,” said the Emperor. “If the dirt has been in the honey for some time it will be soft all through, but if it is newly planted it will be dry inside.”

He ordered an attendant to break off a lump and it was quite dry inside. The eunuch had to plead guilty.

This episode showed that the Emperor was quick-witted. But clever as he was, he had no control over his country, for Sun Chen dominated the government and had placed his brothers in command of all the garrisons and armies.

One day the young Emperor sat musing over his sorrows. Standing at his side was Quan Ji, brother of the Empress.

Weeping, the Emperor said to his brother-in-law: “Sun Chen holds all real power and kills people as he wishes. He has humiliated me too much. Something must be done or else he will do even greater harm in future.”

Quan Ji said, “I will suffer any sacrifices to do whatever Your Majesty commands me to do.”

“Muster the Imperial Guards without delay and hold all the city gates with General Liu Cheng. I myself will go out to slay that ruffian. But remember, you must not let your mother know about this, for she is Sun Chen’s elder sister. Any leaking of our plan and I would be ruined.”

“Will Your Majesty give me an edict that I may show it to all when the moment of action comes?” requested Quan Ji. “That will hold back Sun Chen’s supporters.”

Then the secret edict was drafted and given to Quan Ji, who went home and confided the plan to his father, Quan Shang. His father told his wife that Sun Chen would surely be eliminated in three days.

“Serves him right,” she said.

However, although she approved with her tongue, she sent a secret messenger with a letter to tell her brother, Sun Chen, about it. In wrath Sun Chen called in his four brothers that very night and surrounded the palace with his best troops. At the same time he seized Liu Cheng and Quan Shang and all the members of their families. At daybreak the young Emperor was disturbed by a commotion outside the palace. Then attendants hurried in and told him that the palace was surrounded by Sun Chen’s troops.