The Poison of Ambush
Contemplation.
Sun Quan, Lord of Eastern Wu.
After suffering a crushing defeat at the hands of Man Chong at Hefei and being forced to withdraw, he had for a time refused all food and drink.
I thought Hefei without Zhang Liao would fall easily… Man Chong. Was that man truly so formidable?
He had spent so long sharpening the blade of his vengeance that this latest defeat struck him all the harder.
In the aftermath, the opinions of his senior ministers split cleanly in two.
"If we reorganize our forces once more, another expedition is not impossible. If we simply sit idle, the strength of the other two kingdoms may grow beyond anything our Wu can hope to challenge."
"The losses are far too great for that. What we need now is to focus on recovery."
"We cannot afford to let this chance slip by while Shu is still invading Wei. And the enemy, flush with a great victory, may well have grown complacent. According to our latest intelligence, even the reinforcements that came to Hefei have now withdrawn. They had no choice, of course — they must hold Shu at bay."
"Even so, the fact remains that our own strength has been severely diminished. What happens if we suffer another defeat? The time required for recovery would be incalculable, and if Wei or Shu chose that moment to invade, it would be a catastrophe."
They must march again.
No — they must concentrate on rebuilding.
The two camps locked horns in stubborn opposition, yet neither view sat well with Sun Quan.
The scars left by Hefei ran so deep that he could not bear even to look in that direction for the time being — and yet he had no desire to sit still and do nothing.
Shu has already taken Xinye and Jiangxia. Word is that their main army is advancing smoothly as well. At this rate, Eastern Wu will truly sink to the weakest of the Three Kingdoms. And both Liu Bei and Cao Pi sit as emperors, while I remain a mere king.
Sun Quan had originally planned to use this northern campaign to secure achievements and gradually lay the foundation for his own ascent to the imperial throne. That great defeat had nearly reduced the entire scheme to foam on the water.
What if I strike Jingzhou instead — while its main forces are away on the northern campaign? Just as we did before.
Sun Quan's heart tilted toward a surprise assault on Jingzhou. Wei remained the strongest of the three kingdoms, but the nation that had grown most dramatically over the past several years was, without question, Shu. If he did not break Shu's momentum now, he feared the gap would become impossible to close — and that thought led to another, and another still.
Yet even that plan divided opinion.
"The last time we tried to raid Jingzhou, we took nothing but heavy losses. And so long as Wei remains the strongest power, our alliance with Shu must be maintained. If we invade again, the relationship between our two nations will be beyond repair."
"But if things continue as they are, Shu may grow far too powerful. And is Wei not already showing signs of internal fracture? Better to strike the empty Jingzhou and break Shu's momentum while we still can."
"Seizing Jingzhou would be fine — but do you have a workable method? Even if their main forces are gone, they will have prepared thoroughly."
Even those who advocated the invasion could offer no clear answer, and merely hemmed and hawed.
It was then that the strategist Zhou Fang requested a private audience with Sun Quan, claiming he had a plan. The scheme he laid out was enough to make the fretting lord of Wu prick up his ears.
"Your Majesty. This humble servant Zhou Fang wishes to present a strategy for the invasion of Jingzhou."
"Oh? You have such a method?"
"I do, Your Majesty. We plant an ally within Jingzhou and bring it down from the inside."
"Have we not tried something similar before? Mi Fang claimed he would join our side, and we were the ones who took the blow to the back of the head."
"Indeed. But my plan is somewhat different. This time, we plant one of our own people among the enemy. What one might call the Ambush Poison stratagem."
"The Ambush Poison. And whom do you propose to plant?"
"The Ambush Poison, Your Majesty, shall be prepared by this humble servant."
"You?"
Sun Quan's eyes widened slightly.
"This servant has long been drawing up plans for the conquest of Jingzhou. I have gathered a great deal of intelligence on the province as a result. Do you not agree that now — with Jingzhou's main forces away to the north — is the perfect opportunity?"
"I share that thought, yes."
"According to our current information, the principal generals — Guan Yu and Zhang Fei among them — have all departed northward in force."
"If Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are both gone… do you happen to know where Jin Cheong is?"
Sun Quan asked after the female general whose name had suddenly come to mind.
"Jin Cheong is presently in Xinye, recovering from serious wounds."
"What? Seriously wounded?"
"Yes. Intelligence reports that she was badly injured in her battle with Zhang Liao and is now convalescing. Almost no one has been able to see her, and there are even rumors that she may not last the day."
"Is that so? Excellent. In the last war, everything went wrong the moment that one appeared. Well — if she clashed with Zhang Liao, of course she would not have come away unscathed."
To Sun Quan, Jin Cheong was a figure he watched more warily than even Guan Yu or Zhang Fei.
Not long ago he had asked the diviner Wu Fan to cast fortunes for Jin Cheong and the other Shu generals. But the moment Wu Fan heard the name Jin Cheong, his face had gone grave, and he had said:
"I am deeply ashamed, but it seems my spiritual power has run dry. I can no longer cast fortunes for Your Majesty. I beg you to forgive this unworthy servant's inadequacy."
That she was now removed from the field was, without question, welcome news.
"So the opportunity is clear enough. We shall seize Jingzhou in a single stroke and ensure she never rises from that sickbed again. Very well — what is the next step of the plan?"
"This servant will make secret contact with Xu Shu in Jiangling. And then I shall draw Xu Shu out beyond the walls."
"Draw him outside the walls?"
"Precisely. In the previous war, we trusted Mi Fang's word alone and rushed into an invasion, only to be caught. This time we reverse it — we dangle bait before Xu Shu and reel him in. Bait so sweet he cannot refuse."
"And what bait is that?"
"Well… it is…"
As Zhou Fang whispered the details of his plan, a smile spread across Sun Quan's face. In short: lure Xu Shu outside, crush him with an ambush, and send a second force around to seize the emptied Jiangling.
And Zhou Fang's stratagem did not end there.
"Furthermore, Jiangling currently harbors a considerable number of reactionaries discontented with Shu. If we make use of them, the city can be taken with ease. And the Crown Prince of Shu is also in Jiangling — we could take him as a hostage as well."
"Hmm. Good. You have prepared thoroughly, I see."
"However, preliminary work is required. Our Wu must continue to make a show of turning our eyes northward."
The plan was to keep up the appearance of pressing a northern campaign, thereby lulling Shu into complacency.
Accordingly, Sun Quan reorganized the northern expeditionary force and took the dramatic step of reinstating Lu Xun and Ding Feng, both of whom had been temporarily demoted.
The northern army, however, was largely composed of raw recruits and commoners — a decoy force in all but name.
Thus Lu Xun, Ding Feng, and the other generals marched tens of thousands of men toward Hefei, with the dual purpose of drawing the eyes of both Shu and Wei.
Having watched Lu Xun's army set out for Hefei, Zhou Fang secretly dispatched a man to Xu Shu in Jiangling, placing a letter of his own composition in the messenger's hand.
And so the man Xu Shu met was none other than Zhou Fang's subordinate.
"I have heard that Master Zhou Fang is a high minister of Eastern Wu. Why would he send a letter such as this to me?"
The letter was filled with praise for Xu Shu himself. It made no sense whatsoever.
Zhou Fang's subordinate spoke as follows:
"My master, Zhou Fang, has long admired Master Xu Shu. That is why he sends this letter. Master Xu Shu's strategic brilliance and valor are well known even in the land of Wu, and…"
The man, who introduced himself as Dong Zhan, piled on flattery without end — yet to Xu Shu, none of it made any sense.
He is clearly after something to go to such lengths. But what? Is he trying to win me over? Or is this another attempt to raid us? Yet Eastern Wu should not have the strength for that right now.
The thought that they might attempt another surprise attack, as they had before, did cross his mind — but intelligence that Eastern Wu's great army had once again set out to reinvade Hefei kept him from certainty.
"Enough of that. Tell me what you want. For what purpose have you come?"
"There is no ulterior purpose — it is truly because of Master Xu Shu's ability, his righteous spirit, and his strategic genius that…"
But Dong Zhan never arrived at a conclusion, offering only endless praise of Xu Shu. Then, with a promise to visit again, he took his leave.
He is clearly after something, yet I cannot tell what. If only General Jin were here at a time like this.
Had Jin Cheong been at his side, he could have consulted her — and Xu Shu felt the absence keenly.
As he sat alone with his thoughts, a subordinate civil official came to report.
"Military Advisor Xu. General Jin Cheong has sent a messenger from Xinye."
"What? General Jin? Bring him in at once."
Thinking the timing remarkably fortunate, Xu Shu received the messenger Jin Cheong had sent.