Drawing the Sword Toward Hanzhong
Whenever I found the time, I kept up my visits with Lady Sun.
"Heehee!"
Liu Li laughed with delight in my arms. Sun Ren had brought the child to my house that day.
"She's grown so much already."
"I know. Raising a child is no small thing — neither the growing nor the rearing."
Had she somehow absorbed a tiger's spirit? Young as she still was, she was large for her age and her cries were thunderous. When the baby squirmed and wailed, still unused to my embrace, I froze in panic while Lady Sun took her back with practiced ease and soothed her in moments.
Watching her like this, I could hardly believe this was the same tomboyish Lady Sun I had known.
Contrary to my worries, the child was growing up healthy and strong. I had heard no word of any friction between her and Liu Shan or Liu Feng either.
"And how is the generalship treating you? All that training and military administration — isn't it exhausting? And on top of that, you're out recruiting people as well."
"I'm only doing my duty. Raising a child must be harder, isn't it?"
"Well, the servants handle all the menial work for me. Aside from the occasional longing for home, my days couldn't be better. More than anything, watching my little one grow so well makes me feel as though I'm living life all over again."
I was passing one of those languid afternoons when a messenger arrived with news.
"Pian-general, His Lordship has summoned every civil and military official. You should prepare and go at once."
"Understood. I'll ready myself shortly."
Once the messenger had gone, Lady Sun voiced her concern.
"What could it be? Another war? Or some other great matter?"
I reassured the anxious Lady Sun, then donned my armor and set my attire in order.
A great matter. Yes — it was about time one broke.
My father's face was slightly set, but true to the model of a refined warrior, he had already dressed himself neatly in armor and was ready to depart for the great hall.
"Let's go, Cheong."
"Yes, Father."
The great hall was already packed with civil and military officials. Among them were many faces I knew well.
"Military Advisor Pang Tong."
"Aha. General Jin Cheong. It's been some time since I last saw that face of yours. We've been rather out of touch of late, haven't we?"
"I've been so buried in military affairs I haven't even managed a proper greeting. You've been well yourself, I hope?"
"Of course. I've been so idle lately I was growing bored — and it seems at last I'll have something to do again."
"Idle? You, a military advisor, with nothing to do? That hardly makes sense. You haven't been slacking off again, have you?"
"Oh, come now. Slacking? I'll have you know I'm an extremely busy man."
"Please. You just said you were bored a moment ago."
After a brief exchange of banter, I asked casually:
"Do you happen to know what this is about? It doesn't seem like an ordinary matter."
"Mm. It's a rather weighty affair. You'll find out soon enough."
"I don't think we've ever gathered like this before. Look — Military Advisor Zhuge is here as well."
Across the hall stood Zhuge Liang, feather fan in hand, clad in pure white scholar's robes, looking for all the world like an immortal descended from the heavens.
"And over there — Generals Ma Chao and Pang De. And…"
The great hall had become nothing less than a full assembly of Yizhou's most essential figures.
Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Huang Zhong, Wei Yan, Li Yan, Huang Quan, Liu Ba, Mi Zhu, Sun Qian, and more… Setting aside those still in Jingzhou — Guan Yu, Ma Liang, and the rest — nearly every person of rank was present.
Seeing them all together, I was struck by how solidly our faction's talent pool had been built. At this level, we would not fall short of Wei or Wu in the least.
"Ah, and there's Yuanzhi as well."
Xu Shu entered, dressed neatly in official robes, and we exchanged greetings.
"Pang Tong — and General Jin Cheong. It's been a while."
"Yes, Military Advisor Xu. It's good to see you again. Looking at this gathering, something truly momentous must have happened, don't you think?"
Xu Shu welcomed me warmly enough, but his expression was slightly strained.
He, too, seemed to know something. Of course he would — Liu Bei's innermost circle of advisors, Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong, Xu Shu, Fa Zheng, Huang Quan, and the rest, had almost certainly been informed already.
Still, he did not speak it aloud. He only said:
"Lord Fa Zheng will announce the matter shortly. Ah — here he comes now."
Following Xu Shu's gaze, I saw Fa Zheng striding purposefully toward the center of the hall.
At the far end, Gan Yong — who had been lounging with one ear casually dug out by a finger — snapped upright the moment he spotted him.
"Ahem!"
Fa Zheng shot him a sidelong glare, but Gan Yong merely cleared his throat with a "Khmm!" and looked away as if nothing had happened.
So Fa Zheng's temper really was as sharp as they said. Even before Liu Bei or Zhuge Liang, Gan Yong maintained his freewheeling manner — yet in front of Fa Zheng, he straightened up at once.
Presently, Fa Zheng's low yet piercing voice rang through the great hall.
"When His Lordship arrives, a matter of the utmost importance will be announced."
Those two words — His Lordship, and a matter of the utmost importance — silenced the assembly.
At last Liu Bei arrived and took his seat of honor. Fa Zheng stepped to the center, unfurled a bamboo slip as though delivering a proclamation, and began to read.
The sentences were long, but they all resolved into a single word.
The Northern Expedition.
Or, more precisely: an assault on Hanzhong.
Not a single person present failed to grasp what that meant. Anyone who did not would have had no business standing in this hall.
The silence that had settled over the assembly deepened until even breathing seemed too loud. Only the sound of someone swallowing hard broke the stillness.
And at the center of it all, Liu Bei's eyes shone bright.
"Speak your minds on this matter."
There were a few dissenting voices among the officials, but the majority accepted the proposal.
Every man present, civil and military alike, bowed in perfect unison.
Soon after, those who would march and those who would remain were decided.
Zhuge Liang, Li Yan, Liu Ba, and others would stay in Chengdu to manage internal affairs and supply. The generals selected for the campaign made their final preparations.
I, too, as one of those generals, would soon depart for Hanzhong.
The curtain had risen on the struggle for Hanzhong.
Yet among the key figures, there was one who would not take part in that campaign.
"Military Advisor Xu — you're going to Jingzhou?"
"I am. I have already discussed the matter with His Lordship, Kongming, and Shiyuan."
I was a little surprised. Truth be told, Jingzhou — where Guan Yu still remained — had been weighing on my mind as well.
The entire army was already in a frenzy of preparation for the march on Hanzhong. Wu Lan and Lei Tong's forces were said to have completed their readiness. The reason he was doing this was probably—
"Something's been troubling you, hasn't it, Advisor?"
"It has. In truth, it has worried me since before I left Jingzhou."
Neither of us named it outright, but we both knew perfectly well what it was.
An invasion by Wu.
Indeed. Even while he was still in Jingzhou, Xu Shu had fretted over what Wu might attempt.
"The Hanzhong campaign is about to begin. Will you be all right?"
If he joined the Hanzhong campaign, he could win considerable merit. Historically, it would be a victory of deep significance for Liu Bei's army.
"Shiyuan, Lord Fa Zheng, and Lord Huang Quan will all take part in Hanzhong — there is no need for concern on that front. Simply holding Jingzhou intact will be merit enough. Once the main force marches on Hanzhong, reinforcing Jingzhou in a crisis will become difficult."
Had Zhuge Liang, Zhao Yun, Zhang Fei, and the others still been stationed in Jingzhou, he would never have made this decision.
I had been planning to head for Xiangyong or Jiangling myself once the Hanzhong campaign was over. That Xu Shu was volunteering to go to Jingzhou was something I could only be grateful for.
"And I wish to see my mother as well."
"Ah — of course. Come to think of it, it's been a long time since you last saw her."
Xu Shu's mother had found the journey this far too difficult and had remained in Jingzhou. As a devoted son, he must have missed her constantly.
He would not be going alone — Ma Su, Gou Fu, and others would accompany him.
Ma Su was close with Xu Shu, and Gou Fu would serve as their escort and aide.
In that case, there was something I absolutely had to tell him before he left.
"Military Advisor Xu — lean in a moment, if you would…"
"…?"
Xu Shu looked mildly puzzled but readily offered his ear. The moment I whispered something to him, his eyes went wide. This was no ordinary surprise.
"Th-that — is it true?!"
"It is only my conjecture, of course — but I believe the possibility is more than real."
"Heavens. I never anticipated anything of the sort. How could such a… I knew the two of them were not on good terms, but… I came only to bid farewell, and this is beyond anything I imagined."
He tried to keep his face carefully blank and compose himself, but the faint tremor at the corner of his mouth betrayed his true feelings.
Even I, who already knew what was coming, still struggled to fully grasp it — how much more so for him.
"And if you cooperate with Lord Pan Jun of Jingzhou, matters should proceed more smoothly. He is a capable man."
"I know of Lord Pan Jun. Very well."
I quietly shared several more things with him, and with each one his face cycled through a range of emotions — shock, conflict, worry, and more.
And so we spoke quietly of Jingzhou's affairs.
"In any case, I shall take your counsel to heart. You will soon depart for Hanzhong — take every care of yourself. I shall await news of your victory from Jingzhou."
"Please do. And once my own work is finished, I will come to reinforce Jingzhou as well."
Having said my farewells to Xu Shu, I hurried to complete my preparations for Hanzhong.