The Uninvited Guest
An envoy. An envoy, of all things. And not just any envoy — I was to travel north and offer condolences for Cao Cao. Hmm. That was a thought that had never crossed my mind.
I was a military officer, yet somehow Liu Bei kept assigning me these kinds of missions.
Not that I was to go alone. The orders included additional instructions to rendezvous with Fei Yi in Xiangyong and travel together.
Fei Yi was a civil official, a man who would one day make a name for himself as an outstanding diplomat. With him along, the diplomatic side of things would be in capable hands.
Well. Since it had come to this, I might as well treat it as a journey and head to Wei. I was curious about what Xuchang looked like, anyway.
There was just one problem with my leaving.
"Master Gan. Please look after His Highness the Crown Prince while I'm gone. And keep a particularly close eye on Huang Hao."
What worried me was Liu Shan. Or rather, Huang Hao more than Liu Shan himself.
I was entrusting this to Gan Yong because he was sharp-eyed and warm with people. And, most decisively, Mi Zhu's health had improved considerably — which made Gan Yong the person with the least to do around here.
"Huh? M-me?"
"Yes. I ought to be looking after him myself, but now I have to go as an envoy."
"You fretted about attending His Highness at first, and now look at you — devoted as can be…"
As expected, Gan Yong was less than thrilled, so I had to persuade him.
"His Majesty gave the order, so of course I must go. I'm not asking you to do it alone. If he needs schooling, ask Master Ma Su. If Huang Hao starts getting insolent, request help from General Zhang Fei. I'm certain they'll assist you."
"Must you go that far? There are plenty of servants and eunuchs attending the Crown Prince. He'll be fine without all this fretting."
"Even so, those people only wait on him. They don't educate him or offer counsel, do they?"
"Have you no pity for this old man? After all my hardships, I was just starting to enjoy a little ease."
"And what about me? Still unmarried at my age, stuck playing nanny — am I not pitiable?"
"…Aigoo. I never should have teased you about being a nanny…. Wait — who ever told you not to marry? Sukji kept telling you to go, go, go, and you dug in your heels and refused. You didn't fail to marry — you chose not to!"
"Between fighting wars, looking after His Highness, and now having to travel all this way as an envoy — I simply haven't had the time."
After much back and forth, Gan Yong finally yielded to my persuasion.
"…Fine, fine. I can't win against you. I'm beginning to understand why His Majesty is sending you as an envoy. Leave the Crown Prince to me. And Huang Hao has been quiet lately, so I doubt there'll be much to worry about."
"Thank you. I'm sorry for making such an unreasonable request. I'll be sure to bring you a gift on my way back."
"Nonsense. What money do you have for gifts? Just come back healthy. I know full well how hard you've worked holding things together here — of course I ought to help."
And so I left Liu Shan temporarily in Gan Yong's care and set out for the north.
"General! General! I'm so sad you're leaving like this."
"I'll be back as soon as the envoy's business is finished. So don't worry — just wait for me."
"Yes! I'll study hard until you return!"
Before departing north, I said my farewells to Liu Shan and the others.
"Just come back in one piece. I'll handle things here."
"Yes, Master Gan. I'm counting on you."
Behind Liu Shan, Huang Hao had been smiling slyly — until Zhang Fei fixed him with a glare and cleared his throat with a loud "Ahem!" Huang Hao's expression went rigid.
"Ahem! General Jin. Don't you worry — we'll take care of everything here. And if any scoundrel shows his face, I'll thrash him good!"
At Zhang Fei's words, Huang Hao shrank even smaller.
"Wang Ping — look after the unit while I'm gone."
"Have no concern! This Wang Ping will guard the General's troops with his life."
"No, you don't need to stake your life on it…"
Wang Ping still spoke like a soldier through and through.
As before, Wang Ping would temporarily take command of my unit, with Gou Fu, Liu Min, and the others assisting him. (For the record, Gou Fu and Liu Min had become my subordinate officers after the Battle of Jingzhou.)
"General Jin. Scarcely have you finished the hard work of defending Jiangling, and already you must set out on another long journey."
"Advisor Xu. This time I'm not going to fight, so there's no need to worry."
I exchanged farewells with Xu Shu, Ma Liang, Ma Su, Pan Jun, and the rest in turn, then set off northward.
Behind me followed Yu Eun, Zheng Sui, and the rest of my escort and attendants. Our first destination was Xiangyong, where we would rendezvous with Fei Yi.
Somewhere between Xiangyong and Fancheng, I was reunited with Fei Yi.
"Master Fei Yi. It's been some time. Have you been well?"
"I have indeed. I'm glad to see the General looking as well as ever."
"You must have worked hard holding Xiangyong."
"And I hear the General performed brilliantly defending Jiangling. What little I did hardly compares."
I had heard that during the previous Battle of Jingzhou, Fei Yi — alongside Liu Feng, Deng Zhi, and others — had held Xiangyong and coordinated with Xiangfan.
Bringing him to Xiangyong early really was the right call.
"And what of Master Deng Zhi?"
"Master Deng Zhi is preparing to travel to Wu as an envoy, by His Majesty's command. We must restore relations with Wu going forward, after all."
"Ah. I see."
We had averted one tragedy, but Shu was still far weaker than Wei. We had to think about alliance and coordination with Wu.
"I expect Master Deng Zhi will be visiting Wu frequently as a diplomat from now on."
In actual history, Deng Zhi had served as the envoy who made peace with Wu — so I had every confidence he would handle it well.
After all, even after the Battle of Yiling, Shu and Wu had still formed an alliance.
"Well then, let us set out for Xuchang. The tribute gifts and other necessities have been prepared in Xiangyong."
In any case, we had to go to Xuchang, where Cao Pi awaited, so we turned our steps northward. Past Wan, then on to Xuchang.
"It seems Wei's officials haven't arrived yet. We'll have to camp in this area for the night."
"Yes, the timing and the distance are both awkward. Let's rest one night and move on tomorrow."
Heading toward Wan, we found the night already deep, so we decided to stop at a suitable spot and rest until morning.
Once camp was set, Fei Yi and I sat inside the tent discussing the mission ahead.
"Master Fei Yi. What do you make of offering condolences for Cao Cao? I hear there was some debate in Chengdu over whether to send them at all."
"Yes. Some argued that one should never mourn the traitor Cao Cao, scourge of the realm. Others said that even for the king of an enemy state, one ought to observe the minimum of courtesy. In the end, it was decided we would go."
"Indeed. However poorly things stand, the two nations must observe proper form, or there will be talk later. I can understand His Majesty the King of Hanzhong's decision."
"Yes. I also believe going is the proper course."
"As for the tribute gifts, this should be more than enough. And the elegy has already been composed…"
We had prepared gifts including Shu silk, and the elegy had been written by Fei Yi himself — a capable civil official — so there would be no problems on that front. Beyond the official business, though, there was something else to keep in mind…
"And I think we should learn whatever we can about Wei while we're there. For the northern campaigns to come."
"A northern campaign. As expected of General Jin — you've been thinking of that as well."
"Yes. Rumor has it that Cao Pi and Cao Zhi are on poor terms. That, too…"
Fei Yi and I were deep in conversation when it happened.
—Murmur, murmur.
Suddenly there was a commotion outside the tent.
"What is it? Has someone come?"
Puzzled, I opened the flap and looked out.
Through the darkness, someone was trying to force his way into the camp, raising a ruckus. Zheng Sui was desperately blocking him.
"How dare you! Do you know who I am, refusing me entry?!"
"It's not that you cannot enter — but you must at least give your name and state your purpose. As things stand, I cannot let you through."
"A common soldier, barring my path?! Are you so eager to lose your head?!"
"Y-you still can't. At the very least, I must check your belongings…"
Zheng Sui's voice trembled, but he still tried to hold the man back.
"What is all this noise?!"
Before I could step in, Yu Eun came running out.
"Well, this gentleman showed up out of nowhere demanding to see General Jin Cheong…"
"I am Yu Eun, aide to General Jin Cheong. May I ask what business brings you here?"
"How dare you treat me with such discourtesy?!"
"It is not discourtesy — it is proper procedure! You haven't even identified yourself."
I had no idea who this man was, but at this rate he would only keep making a scene. I decided to let him in and at least hear him out.
"Yu Eun, just let him through."
"Absolutely not! At minimum, we must inspect his belongings!"
"Th-that's right…!"
"…!"
Another round of fuss followed, but my loyal aide and soldier stubbornly insisted on checking his possessions. Only after confirming he carried no weapons did they finally allow him inside.
"Ahem. Ahem. At last we meet. You are a difficult person to get an audience with."
And so our uninvited guest stood before us, making a distinctly unpleasant first impression.
"It was a necessary procedure. Please forgive any inconvenience."
It was a face I had never seen before.
A self-assured smile filled his features, and his neck and shoulders were held so high they seemed to announce, I am an arrogant man.
When he spoke, a deep, resonant voice emerged — well matched to that arrogance. His eyes and overall bearing, however, were far from agreeable.
"The one standing there must be the general called Jin Cheong. I have heard the name often enough. And the person beside her would be Fei Yi."
"Yes, that is correct. But who exactly are you? And how did you find us — at this hour of the night, no less?"
At my question, he stiffened his neck even further and declared:
"This one's name is Cao Wei! I dare say you have both heard of me at least once!"
"…?"
No. I've never heard of him. Who is this person?