To Nanjun
Xuchang. The place to which Cao Cao had returned after his defeat at the Red Cliffs.
Having left that bitter defeat behind him, Cao Cao was resting there, tending to his wounded body.
Just then an official entered and brought what he considered good news.
"My lord Chancellor. Young Master Cao Zhi has composed a poem of consolation and sent it to you."
"Is that so? Bring it here at once."
Receiving the bamboo slips that Jia Xu held out, Cao Cao already wore a smile upon his face.
He unrolled the slips fully and fixed his gaze upon the poem his third son had written.
Hmm, hmm. Indeed.
Cao Cao himself possessed a profound interest in and talent for poetry. Whenever the subject turned to verse, the work of Cao Zhi—who ranked among the foremost poets of the age—always enriched his spirit.
This time was no exception. In an instant he was thoroughly absorbed, reading the poem over and over, until at last a broad smile spread across his face. It was a masterpiece that washed clean the turmoil in his heart, truly a poem without peer.
"Hahaha. When it comes to poetry, no one can match Zhi. Who could possibly equal such talent?"
Just then another visitor sought Cao Cao out.
"My lord Chancellor. Your servant Jia Xu. May I enter?"
"Jia Xu? Come in."
"My lord Chancellor. Young Master Cao Pi has also composed a poem and sent it to you."
Having received permission, Jia Xu entered, held out the bamboo slips, and reported that the eldest son had likewise written a poem.
"Hmm. So Pi has written one as well. Let me see."
Cao Cao unrolled the slips bearing Cao Pi's poem. Yet he felt little of the anticipation he had known a moment before.
Hmm. Hmm, yes.
It was a cleanly written poem without excess, that much was certain—but Cao Cao's appreciation went no further. He had only just finished reading the verse into which Cao Zhi had poured his heart's blood, and the earlier emotion diluted whatever impression this one might have made.
When it comes to letters, Zhi is still a cut above.
Cao Pi was no shallow hand at poetry either. Yet his gift could not quite reach Cao Zhi's.
Whenever Cao Cao took the field, both Cao Pi and Cao Zhi would vie to present poems praising the campaign. Each time, Cao Cao privately awarded the palm to Cao Zhi.
And that judgment carried more than literary meaning alone.
It was the struggle for the succession. The poems also meant that Cao Pi and Cao Zhi were contending for the place of heir.
By the principle of primogeniture the heir ought to be Cao Pi, yet Cao Cao could not stop his heart from leaning toward Cao Zhi. Outstanding literary talent was not the sole reason.
Pi's temper is harsh. Zhi is not without his own flaws, but his character is far the better of the two.
The question had always troubled him, yet it could not remain a matter of endless fretting. The affairs of the world could not be foreseen even an inch ahead. Had he not nearly lost his life in the recent battle at the Red Cliffs?
Had I fallen at the Red Cliffs, with the succession still unsettled, the faction might well have split. The time has come to decide.
Even so, the matter fretted him. After so long a deliberation, would an answer come easily now?
Then Cao Cao's eye fell upon Jia Xu, who still stood respectfully before him.
That's right. I have Jia Xu.
Among the strategists in whom he took pride, Jia Xu ranked among the foremost for cunning. Expecting a clear answer, Cao Cao put the question to him.
"Jia Xu. There is one matter I would ask of you. Answer me freely and without reserve."
"Command me in anything, my lord Chancellor."
"I am deeply troubled over which of the two—Cao Pi or Cao Zhi—I ought to name as heir. Can you give me an answer on this?"
"So that is it. Hmm. You have been pondering the succession…."
Having spoken so, Jia Xu sank into thought. Time passed, yet his lips showed no sign of opening. Growing impatient, Cao Cao pressed him.
"Jia Xu. I asked for your opinion on who should be heir. Why do you give no answer at all?"
"Ah, forgive me. I was momentarily thinking of something else."
"Something else?"
"Yes. I was thinking of Yuan Shao and Liu Biao."
"Yuan Shao and Liu Biao…."
"Just so."
Jia Xu did not offer a direct answer, yet the man he pointed to was unmistakable.
Cao Pi.
Both Yuan Shao and Liu Biao had once been formidable warlords contending for the realm, yet because neither had established the eldest son as heir, their power had crumbled. By alluding to them, Jia Xu was saying that the succession must go to the eldest—Cao Pi.
"Haha. Very well, I understand your meaning. You may withdraw."
"Yes, my lord Chancellor."
Jia Xu withdrew, and Cao Cao sank into thought.
Cao Pi… yes. Naming the eldest is the proper course, is it not?
The Battle of the Red Cliffs, which had begun in the winter of 208, ended, and a year turned over into 209. My own age had somehow reached fourteen.
One more thing: in recognition of my service, Liu Bei had promoted me a rank. I was no longer a Duwei but a Xiaowei.
The aftershocks of the Red Cliffs were immense. Cao Cao, who had entered Jingzhou without shedding a drop of blood and swaggered in triumph, now found himself on the defensive. He left Jiangling in the hands of a subordinate and himself returned to Xudu with only a handful of troops.
Thanks to that, our army could at last draw a free breath. We could stretch the limbs we had kept coiled and seize the chance to advance once more beyond Jiangxia.
"Cao Cao has gone north. This is our opportunity."
"Indeed. We must take the four southern commanderies of Jingzhou while we can."
Following the counsel of Zhuge Liang and Xu Shu, we were laying plans to seize the four southern commanderies—Wuling, Lingling, Changsha, and Guiyang.
Eastern Wu was not idle either. Sun Quan likewise refused to let the chance slip and began expanding his power in earnest. First he gave Zhou Yu a force and sent him toward Jiangling in Nanjun; he himself led a great army against Hefei.
Judging by the size of the host, even the great clans of Wu—who until the Red Cliffs had been reluctant to commit troops—seemed more cooperative this time. And they requested our support as well.
"An envoy has come from Eastern Wu. They ask us to send reinforcements for the assault on Jiangling."
Liu Bei conferred with his advisors.
"We are allies; it seems right to lend our strength. It is also a chance to break Cao Cao's power still further."
"Jiangling is the key stronghold of southern Jingzhou. As a hub of roads and rivers, wresting it from Cao Cao will ease every path that follows."
"Agreed. Since the Red Cliffs our army's morale is high. We must ride that momentum."
Jian Yong, Sun Qian, and Mi Zhu offered their views first. Then it was Xu Shu's turn.
"This request for reinforcements is not merely a request for reinforcements."
"Hmm? What do you mean? That Sun Quan does not truly want aid?"
"Not at all. He needs the troops and has asked for them in earnest. Yet a deeper design lies beneath."
"A deeper design…."
At those weighty words Liu Bei and the others cocked their heads. Only Zhuge Liang wore a faint smile.
"The alliance with Eastern Wu may shift its meaning after the Red Cliffs. Before the victory our common purpose was the expulsion of Cao Cao. Once he withdrew, that purpose vanished."
Liu Bei's face showed that he grasped the point.
"Then Sun Quan is already watching us with caution?"
"Precisely. By drawing our strength toward Jiangling he means to keep us from seizing other territories."
So Xu Shu was already keeping an eye on Eastern Wu. Looking ahead to the later attempt to snatch Adou and the assault on Jingzhou, he was not wrong. Cao Cao had been driven off; now Sun Quan would watch closely how we moved.
"Then you counsel us not to send reinforcements?"
To Liu Bei's question Zhuge Liang answered.
"Not so. Yuanzhi is saying that rather than reinforcements we must pour our strength into taking the four southern commanderies."
Xu Shu smiled and nodded.
The four southern commanderies of Jingzhou—Lingling, Guiyang, Wuling, and Changsha. Cao Cao's influence there had already waned greatly; the present moment was the perfect chance to seize them.
"Yes, exactly. What I propose is that we send reinforcements, yet they must not be our main force. The instant the relief column departs, we must hasten the conquest of the four southern commanderies."
Zhuge Liang backed Xu Shu's counsel.
"Jiangling is the traffic hub leading into southern Jingzhou. If we pin Jiangling down, the campaign against the four commanderies will go far more smoothly. Therefore let us send a relief force to press Jiangling together with Wu's army, while we ourselves take the main host south at once."
Liu Bei accepted the plan. Reinforcements would go to Jiangling, but the numbers were kept to the bare minimum.
"Guan Yu, take two thousand men and go to Jiangling to support Zhou Yu. Take Liao Hua and Guan Ping as your lieutenants."
Liu Bei dispatched a detachment under Guan Yu to reinforce Zhou Yu's army at Jiangling.
Mmm. My own mouth itched to join the coming fight. Once the siege of Jiangling ended, chances to fight side by side with Wu's forces would grow scarce.
The next step would be the entry into Shu—westward, in other words. Before that, it would be good to build even a little goodwill with Wu. And of course to gain more battle experience.
Whether he read my heart or not, this time Liu Bei spoke first.
"Xiaowei Jin."
"Yes, my lord."
"Do you wish to go with the relief force as well?"
"I—yes. How did you know?"
"It is written all over your face."
Liu Bei smiled as he spoke.
"Xiaowei Jin has never once failed to prove useful when she takes the field, so I trust you. Yet are you not pushing yourself too hard? From Bowang Slope straight through to the Red Cliffs you have not rested. Would it not be better to remain in the rear this time and recover?"
At Liu Bei's words my father nodded as well. He fretted every time I rode out to war. Yet once again no one could break my stubborn will. And Liu Bei himself seemed quietly to hope I would go.
"Xiaowei Jin already fought shoulder to shoulder with Wu's army at the Red Cliffs; she will be of great help there. Such spirit is admirable. I grant you leave to go to Jiangling and coordinate with Wu's forces."
In the end I received permission to march. Liu Bei smiled with satisfaction; my father covered his brow with one hand and sighed.
"I should have stopped her the moment she first asked to learn martial arts…."
Gan Yong, who had been sitting askew, patted my father's shoulder in consolation.
"Cheong will be fine this time as well, so do not worry. Honestly, looking at what she has already done, she could toss most grown men about like dolls, could she not? It seems we ought to start fretting more for the enemy."
"Do nothing reckless, and come back safe. Understood?"
In the end my father sent me off with endless worry. In his eyes I was still only a young daughter. Well—he was not wrong.
He looked as though he wished to go with me, yet his post as captain of Liu Bei's personal guard always held him back.
"This Guan Yunchang goes with her, so set your mind at ease, General Jin."
Thus I set out for Jiangling County in Nanjun together with Guan Yu, Guan Ping, Liao Hua, and the rest, while the main body of Liu Bei's army began planning the conquest of southern Jingzhou.
The siege of Nanjun had begun.