The Name That Calls the World
When the state of Qin first began its assault on Wei, Lord Xinling Wei Wuji grasped the situation faster than anyone else. Her retainers still numbered over three thousand, and their acquaintances alone reached into the tens of thousands. Those who had once gathered around her in Wei continued to admire her to this day, willingly acting as her informants across the lands. If she so desired, she could know what the King of Qin had done the previous day. Even Qin, which had built the largest network of sympathetic figures across the realm, could not match the breadth of her intelligence network. Relationships forged through profit could never rival those bound by genuine loyalty, who acted of their own accord.
The moment Lord Xinling received the news, she spread it at once. She informed not only Li Mu, stationed in Taiyuan, but also her homeland of Wei about Qin's invasion. The process was carried out in complete secrecy, so that those who received the information believed their own spies had successfully obtained it rather than realizing it had come at her direction.
In her youth, Wei Wuji had revealed herself openly. She had proudly declared that so many followed her and that she understood every event in the world as clearly as the lines on her palm. The result had been disastrous. Her half-brother, the King of Wei, who should have acknowledged her abilities and put them to use for the state, instead grew wary of her and excluded her from governance.
After that, Wei Wuji learned that simply revealing her capabilities was not enough. While Qin's armies spread into Zhao and Wei and both states scrambled to prepare countermeasures, she remained silent. Even when it became known that an army of nearly three hundred thousand was marching toward Wei, and her retainers came to urge her to rush to her homeland's defense, Lord Xinling offered no reply. When even more retainers began visiting, she issued a stern warning: anyone who mentioned Wei would be expelled from her household.
Only after the fall of Gaodu did Wei finally realize this crisis was different from any before. The state itself might perish. Once they understood this, Wei hurriedly dispatched an envoy to Zhao. They sought military support and, more importantly, the aid of Wei Wuji, the greatest general their state had ever produced.
Yet Wei Wuji refused even to meet the envoy from Wei. When the envoy stood outside calling her name, she did not respond. Instead, she ordered her retainers to drive him away. Her clear determination to have nothing to do with Wei's affairs left her retainers at a loss. In their minds, they knew they should immediately help Wei resist Qin, but since the woman they served with all their hearts was acting this way, they could not decide what was right.
Amid this confusion, only two men remained calm. They were Xue Gong and Mao Gong, the closest to Wei Wuji among the new retainers she had accepted in Zhao after losing so many of those who had followed her in Wei. The pair sought out the reclusive Lord Xinling.
This was no time for hesitation. She must rise at once and go to save Wei. They intended to remind her that the respect she received in Zhao was possible only because of her connection to Wei. And if she still refused to listen, they were prepared to utter the near-treasonous words: "Would you still be able to live like this if Qin destroyed Wei and burned its ancestral temples?" It was a desperate appeal that risked their very lives.
Yet when the two men were finally granted an audience, what they saw on Wei Wuji's face was not the anger of someone betrayed by a homeland that only sought her in times of crisis. Instead, she wore an expression of perfect serenity, as though everything were unfolding exactly as it should.
Only then did the two men realize they had been dancing on a stage Wei Wuji had prepared long ago. Xue Gong let out a bitter laugh and rubbed his face.
Wei Wuji asked with her usual gentle smile. Though Xue Gong wore an expression that said, Must I really explain it?, he answered dutifully.
At his words, the hue of the smile on Wei Wuji's lips changed. The faint ease and joy vanished, replaced by bitter regret and inner turmoil. She slowly shook her head.
How could there be no resentment? The King of Wei had been wary of her, his half-sister, and had cast her aside. He had completely forgotten how much she had sacrificed for Wei. Despite her passionate advocacy for an alliance with Zhao, he had remained indifferent. Yet the moment danger reached his own feet, he came crawling to beg for the very alliance he had once ignored. It went beyond pathetic and hateful; it was downright despicable.
Above all, from what Wei Wuji had heard, the King of Wei had not changed at all. If she returned, he would no doubt pretend to welcome her at first, only to reveal his old wariness again before long. Knowing this, she had resolved not to step forward and save Wei herself.
But now, things were different.
For the sake of the future. Just as Lord Pingyuan had done, she too would place her hopes on the boy who would lead that future.
This time it was Mao Gong who spoke. If Wei Wuji had immediately accepted Wei's request for her return, would the state have granted her complete autonomy? When a favor was granted too readily, people felt brief gratitude, but soon enough other thoughts would creep in. Wei Wuji had waited for the moment when her value would be highest—for the time when Wei was filled with fear and Zhao was desperately searching for the right person to send.
The moment she arrived at the Zhao court matched exactly what she had been aiming for.
Everyone trembled at Wei Wuji's declaration. How could they have forgotten? Lord XinlingWei Wuji. If she stepped forward, there was no longer any need to worry about the concerns and objections that had plagued them until now.
Questions of hierarchy with Wei? Was there anyone in Wei of higher birth than Wei Wuji, aside from the King himself? Even that very king had sent an envoy to beg her to return. Concerns about defending the borders with Yan or Qi? Why worry about that? If those states offered support, the only question would be which route to let them take.
This was Lord Xinling. The greatest righteous person under heaven. The noble who had cast aside all wealth and glory to follow the path of chivalry. If anyone dared pursue selfish gain during a war in which Lord Xinling herself had stepped forward to save her homeland, they would face the judgment of the coalition armies long before any heavenly punishment.
For the King of Zhao, it was the best possible outcome. He could not order her to go himself, but if she volunteered, he would welcome it with open arms.
Feeling an indescribable sense of awe, the King of Zhao rose from his throne and approached Lord Xinling. Even a king could not help but tread carefully before such presence and reputation. Nevertheless, Wei Wuji faced him with the utmost courtesy.
From this moment on, Wei Wuji was no longer Zhao's honored guest Lord Xinling, but a princess of Wei seeking reinforcements to save her country. As she knelt on one knee, clasped her hands together, and bowed her head, the King of Zhao hastily helped her to her feet.
The King of Zhao still remembered it vividly: the black tide of Qin soldiers that had darkened the land before Handan. The days when Lord Pingyuan and his retainer Ji Dan had barely held on with a suicide squad of three thousand. And when even Ji Dan, the squad's commander, had fallen after a desperate, bloody struggle and the unit itself had reached its limit, rescue had arrived with the first light of dawn. That overwhelming emotion, that heart-bursting gratitude. Everyone who had witnessed that scene understood why Zhao had treated Lord Xinling as an honored guest for ten long years. They could not help but understand.
Lian Po, who normally made no effort to hide his displeasure when even the king treated him casually, was unusually subdued this time. It was because he too acknowledged that Lord Xinling was someone to whom he could entrust himself without reservation.
With fifty thousand troops already deployed toward Taiyuan and another fifty thousand now being sent, Zhao was committing nearly its entire army, save only the forces reserved for the absolute worst-case scenario.
Wei Wuji bowed her head even deeper and spoke.
Wei Wuji asked for neither Lian Po, Yue Sheng, nor Fang Nan. She already had more than enough talent. The name Wei Wuji alone was sufficient.
After the court session ended, Lord Xinling returned to her residence and made a proclamation to the retainers who had been waiting for her.
Spread the word across the realm.
At the head of three thousand retainers, Xue Gong and Mao Gong knelt as one, hanging on her every word. They watched with their own eyes as their master once again stepped out into the world.
Lord XinlingWei Wuji had called upon the world.
And the states answered.