An Awkward Encounter, a New Acquaintance, and Unexpected News
The battle was over.
Lei Tong, Wu Lan, and the others had ambushed and crushed Lü Qian's rear guard, while Zhang He's main force—cut off from any hope of reinforcement—had been shattered by Zhang Fei.
I had blocked Zhang He's escape route and taken him prisoner myself.
We captured several thousand prisoners alone. Of the rear guard, only Lü Qian had managed to slip away with a handful of men.
By any measure it was a considerable victory, and capturing Zhang He alive was by far the greatest prize of all. Unlike Xu Huang, who had been so grievously wounded that death had been inevitable, Zhang He was in no danger of dying. We could escort him back under guard just as he was.
"Oh-ho! This bat of a man—always flitting about, making a nuisance of himself—and we've finally got him! General Jin, well done. That was a magnificent showing."
"…"
Zhang Fei brightened at the sight of Zhang He being dragged forward, bound in rope. He was so delighted at having finally caught the pest that he nearly bounced on his heels, while Zhang He kept his head bowed and ground his teeth in silence.
"What are you going to do about it, grinding those teeth of yours? Huh? Huh? If you didn't want to get caught, you shouldn't have been caught."
"Just cut my head off already… you ignorant savage…"
Zhang He spat the words as if chewing them. The tone was deliberately provocative, but Zhang Fei only kept grinning, utterly unprovoked.
"Save that kind of talk for after you've caught me. I could take your head right now if I wanted, but for the time being we'll escort you to Chengdu."
"General Zhang, leave Zhang He to me. I'll take him to Chengdu myself."
"Fine. You caught him, so he's yours."
I intended to keep Zhang He under my charge for now. Having already taken him alive, I judged it better to treat him decently and leave some favorable impression than to leave him to suffer humiliation.
"General Zhang He, please come in. While you remain in our camp, I'll have the ropes removed."
"…"
I brought Zhang He into my tent and unbound him.
"It may sound strange coming from me, but please make yourself comfortable here while we prepare for the withdrawal. I have no intention of harming you."
"You capture me, and then treat me kindly… why?"
Zhang He regarded me with clear discomfort—the look of a man wondering why, after dragging him in as a prisoner, I was suddenly being considerate. Fair enough. It was the classic pattern of wounding someone and then offering the medicine; I would have found it odd myself.
"Even though you find yourself here under these circumstances, General Zhang He, you are a renowned commander whose fame is well known even among us. At the very least, it is only proper that we treat you with due courtesy."
I was not merely being polite. In the original history, Zhang He had been a general of such ability that even Liu Bei had regarded him with caution—that much was beyond dispute.
"And as for the subordinates we captured, you need not worry overmuch about them either. We will not treat them harshly."
"Am I to take you at your word?"
Zhang He asked suspiciously, but I meant it in earnest.
In an age with no concept of human rights, prisoners were often not treated as people at all. They were worked like slaves or simply executed, so his distrust was only natural. But I carried the sensibilities of another era, and I intended to prevent prisoner massacres and the like as far as I possibly could.
"Have no concern. I swear it on my name."
"If you mean to win me over, spare yourself the trouble. I have not the slightest intention of abandoning our Chancellor."
Truthfully, the thought was not entirely absent from my mind. A general of Zhang He's caliber on our side would be a tremendous asset. Looking at him now, though, he was not about to turn his back on his lord anytime soon. This was not a game where you pressed a recruitment button and the man switched sides on the spot.
For now, I would show him that our faction was different from the others, and win him over gradually.
"I have no such intention at present. I only meant that you need not worry about being harmed or treated with any breach of courtesy."
"We're finished here. We return to Chengdu."
Zhang Fei gave the order to withdraw with a look of pure relief.
"Ahh. At last I can go home and see my little girl. How many months has it been?"
The joy of a great victory was one thing, but Zhang Fei seemed even more elated at the prospect of seeing his young daughter again after so long. So even he was a doting father, after all.
I had heard that Zhang Fei's daughter was only three or four years old now—the girl who would one day become Liu Shan's wife. Did Zhang Fei have any idea that his daughter would eventually become empress?
In any case, we reorganized our forces, stabilized the rear areas, and liberated one by one the territories that had surrendered to Zhang He. Then we made ready to return to Chengdu. The soldiers, too, were in high spirits at the thought of going home.
A cool, pleasant wind wrapped around us.
Just as we were setting out in good spirits, we came upon a party of travelers. There were civil officials and soldiers among them, but also a great many who looked like laborers.
Zhang Fei greeted the civil official riding at their head.
"Ahem. Is that not Master Liu Ba? What brings you all the way out here?"
His tone was polite enough, but his expression was far from pleasant.
Ah. So this was Liu Ba. The moment I recalled who he was, my own face stiffened slightly.
If one had to sum up Liu Ba in a single phrase, he was one of the most famously disagreeable personalities in the entire Three Kingdoms.
His political and administrative talents were so outstanding that Liu Bei had gone to great lengths to bring him into his service. Even Zhuge Liang had held his abilities in high regard, so Zhang Fei could hardly treat him carelessly either.
In matters of internal administration, he had more than justified the effort Liu Bei had spent recruiting him, and he would eventually rise to the critical post of Director of the Imperial Secretariat—an indispensable figure in Shu Han's civil government.
Unfortunately, he was also notorious for getting along poorly with Zhang Fei. The friction stemmed from their clashing temperaments. Zhang Fei had never cared for petty men, but he had always respected gentlemen of true worth.
Zhang Fei had once sought Liu Ba out with full courtesy, hoping to converse with a man of such renown. Liu Ba, however, had dismissed him as a mere warrior and refused even to observe proper etiquette.
With two men whose enmity ran that deep now face to face, I found myself swallowing hard for no good reason.
"Hmph."
Liu Ba's snort seemed to foul the pleasant wind that had been blowing only moments before. And then:
"That this official should set aside pressing public works to journey even unto this place is owing in no small measure to the benighted ignorance of those whose learning yet remains shallow. Combining rumor with intelligence, this official finds himself unable to suppress his deep foreboding regarding the events that have transpired here—a matter most lamentable. Thus having come to remedy the ignorant acts committed by the unenlightened, this official shall from this place express both profound regret and firm resolve…"
"…"
I was speechless. Was I hearing this correctly?
Understanding any language fluently was supposed to be one of those transmigrator perks, wasn't it? For a moment I thought the perk had glitched.
Apparently speaking in impossibly ornate language was simply his passive ability. To hold a smooth conversation with this man, one would need to be on the level of Zhuge Liang or Pang Tong.
Once I parsed the actual content of what he was saying, though, it came down to roughly this:
He had come to soothe and restore the people's morale in the Ba region, which the war had left in turmoil.
That much was fine. We had done our best to contain the damage, but it was true that local sentiment had grown unstable and that some residents had suffered losses.
The problem was the contempt for military officers and soldiers woven through his words. Having once dismissed Zhang Fei as a mere warrior, he carried the same disdain for subordinate officers and common soldiers alike.
We and our men had risked our lives fighting—this was going too far. In the end, I stepped forward to speak.
"Master Liu Ba, this junior officer is Jin Cheong. Your words seem rather excessive. General Zhang Fei here, along with his officers and soldiers, all fought with their lives on the line. Such remarks are not, I believe, fitting for troops who have endured so much."
"Hmph. How dare you…!"
Liu Ba snorted again and looked ready to launch into another lecture—when a pleasant-faced young civil official at his side stepped forward with careful courtesy and intervened.
"Master Liu Ba, I well understand the depth of your purpose. However, the people of Ba await the fulfillment of that purpose, and it would seem proper that we hasten onward. Therefore, Your Excellency…"
The young official worked to calm Liu Ba. He was a man of considerable skill—mixing sound logic with just the right amount of flattery—and Liu Ba's raised eyebrows gradually settled.
"Since Master Fei Yi puts it thus, this official shall return to his original duties."
With that, he led his party past us.
As Fei Yi went by, he bowed his head and offered a brief apology.
"You must have labored hard to defeat the enemy—I am truly sorry. I hope you will understand. Everyone knows of the great merit you have earned. When you return to Chengdu, His Lordship will reward you handsomely."
I inclined my head slightly in return.
Ah, so that was Fei Yi—the open-hearted, good-natured Fei Yi. He was said to have mediated even between the bitter rivals Wei Yan and Yang Yi; here, too, he was already displaying that gift.
On the road home, I had unexpectedly encountered a capable talent. He was one of the people I would need to keep an eye on.
There had been a bit of friction, but we made it back to Chengdu without further incident. Waiting for us was a throng of well-wishers.
Zhang Fei, I, and the rest of our force received a rapturous welcome upon our return to Chengdu. Crowds packed both sides of the road, clapping and cheering for our triumphant entry.
Zhang Fei swaggered with his shoulders thrown back; I smiled a little awkwardly. The other officers waved in answer to the cheers.
And at the end of that road stood Liu Bei himself, come out to meet us.
"My lord. We have returned."
"I congratulate you all on your victory."
And then I was promoted.
"I appoint you Pian-general. Jin Cheong—it was a difficult mission, yet you carried it out successfully, and I am truly glad. Sending you was the right decision after all. Capturing Zhang He alive, above all, is a merit beyond words."
"It is all thanks to Your Lordship's grace."
Liu Bei praised the achievements of his generals and distributed rewards. I, too, received gold, silver, silk, and other gifts.
A faint, hard-to-read smile played on Liu Bei's face as he bestowed the rewards. This was likely the first victory since taking Yizhou, and he seemed thoroughly pleased. He would already be preparing to advance on Hanzhong. It was a relief to see things proceeding smoothly even after the conquest of Yizhou.
"Seyoung. Every time you go out, you win military merit. This father of yours is proud of you."
In the past, Father had fretted whenever I went to war; now he rejoiced each time I earned distinction. There was an element of resignation in it—he had never managed to break my stubbornness—but I was glad that he now regarded me as a proper general in my own right.
"Indeed. Have I not said so time and again? That Seyoung would make a fine general."
"Come now, Master Gan. Were you not worried yourself? When Seyoung first took part in battle?"
"When did I ever worry?"
"You mean to say you didn't?"
Gan Yong had come by our house and was deep in what might generously be called mutual compliments with Father. Being on friendly terms with both of us, he dropped by like this from time to time.
"Well then, let us hear about everything that happened."
Tea and refreshments were set out, and I told the two of them about the course of the Battle of Tangqu.
"Oho. So that's how it was. You used such tactics. Truly splendid, my daughter."
Father, as a military man, showed keen interest in the tactics and the fighting itself. Gan Yong, on the other hand—
"Zhang Fei's temper is no ordinary thing, and yet you managed to keep it in check."
"I wouldn't call it 'keeping it in check.' More like barely talking him down."
"Even that is no small feat. Our lord has always fretted over what to do about General Zhang's disposition. He must have set that worry down at last. Heh heh heh."
Gan Yong said this and kept chuckling, thoroughly amused by something.
"Master, what has you laughing so much?"
"Ah, how could I not laugh? I keep picturing Seyoung playing nursemaid to all those dark-faced grown men."
"Master Gan! Calling an unmarried girl a nursemaid—what kind of talk is that?"
"I don't mean it literally—it's just a manner of speaking, a manner of speaking."
"What manner of speaking is that supposed to be? I can't make heads or tails of it."
Gan Yong kept snickering.
"Think about it. Whenever some uproar broke out in camp, all the officers must have gone round-eyed and cried, 'Where's General Jin? What do we do? Someone fetch General Jin, hurry!' How is that not funny?"
Father looked unconvinced, but Gan Yong was not wrong.
Whenever Zhang Fei raised hell in camp, the officers and soldiers would go wide-eyed and come looking for me. I would somehow soothe Zhang Fei and settle him down. It was fortunate that he at least listened to me a little; without that, things would have been far harder.
"Our lord, truly. At this rate, Seyoung will end up as an actual nursemaid…"
"Ah! Why do you keep turning the child into a nursemaid?!"
Gan Yong kept giggling; Father kept grumbling. For all their bickering, the two of them got along rather well.
Once that little commotion had settled, the conversation moved on.
"Seyoung, after you left, I learned something—Her Ladyship is with child."
"Pff—!"
"Urgh!"
I sprayed the tea I had been drinking, and Gan Yong, sitting across from me, took it full in the face.
"Oh no! Master Gan, I'm so sorry—are you all right?"
"Ugh… I'm fine…"
"There, you see. You keep teasing Seyoung about being a nursemaid, and this is your punishment."
This time it was Father who snickered.
Gan Yong wiped his face, and we returned to the matter at hand.
"Lady Sun… Her Ladyship is pregnant, you say?"
"So it seems. I heard the news myself right after you left."
"…"
When I put on a more serious face than expected, both of theirs grew grave in turn.
"Are you all right, Seyoung? You always seem to grow thoughtful whenever Her Ladyship comes up."
"Indeed. Is something the matter?"
"Ah—no, I'm fine. I was just a little surprised…"
A little surprised did not begin to cover it. Lady Sun had not only come to Chengdu—she was pregnant.
"…I should pay her a visit tomorrow, at the latest."
"Yes. She will be glad to see you. Even after you left, she often spoke of you."
Just what have I changed?