A Dream Long Held
"My lord! How can this be allowed to stand? That a brother would resort to such base treachery!"
"Heh… it was all my own lack of foresight. Mine alone…"
Yang Xiu, who had spent the entire night outside handling military affairs and returned to Cao Zhi only at first light, could make no sense of the scene before him. He had thought it strange enough when he heard that Cao Zhi's residence had suddenly been changed—but this…
Cao Zhi, who was supposed to take command of a great army as supreme commander at any moment, now lay pale and haggard, murmuring only in a voice drained of all strength. The reek of wine still clung to him, and he could barely move. Putting on armor and mounting a horse was out of the question.
"If I—if only I had been there, he never would have fallen for such a cheap trick…!"
"It's finished… all of it…"
"No! I will go and settle this myself! I cannot stand by while men who commit such vile acts go unpunished."
"My lord! My lord!"
Two men burst in, gasping for breath—the brothers Ding Yi and Ding Yi, Cao Zhi's closest retainers.
"My lord! Disaster! General Cao Hong has already set out for Xiangfan at the head of the relief force!"
"What!"
The Ding brothers stood crushed with despair, and Cao Zhi closed his eyes as if he had already given up. But Yang Xiu had not.
"I will go before His Majesty the King of Wei myself and remonstrate. This is a filthy scheme hatched by cunning men—something that must never be overlooked! Once I explain, His Majesty will surely take it into account."
"Yang Xiu!"
Leaving that cry of fury behind him, Yang Xiu stormed out the door and raced toward the palace where Cao Cao waited.
This cannot be… this simply cannot be…!
Yang Xiu repeated the words of rage over and over in his heart as he staggered toward Cao Cao's palace.
Those who crossed his path flinched and stepped aside. Yang Xiu had always been impeccably composed, overflowing with confidence. Now his eyes were bloodshot, his robes askew, and he ran as if he had lost his mind.
"Your Majesty—Your Majesty!"
The moment he reached Cao Cao, Yang Xiu flung himself flat upon the floor.
"What is it?"
"Your Majesty. A little more time—only a little more. If you would grant us just a little longer, Lord Cao Zhi will be ready to march…"
"More time? Do you not understand that this matter cannot wait a single hour? And I am told the boy still cannot even stand properly. How much longer am I expected to wait? Until the city has fallen? And do you truly believe the generals will obey the orders of a man who could not restrain himself from drowning in wine before a campaign?"
Yang Xiu pleaded with all his heart, but Cao Cao's response was ice.
For a moment Yang Xiu was struck speechless—yet he believed that if he simply told the truth, Cao Cao would surely reconsider, and so he opened his mouth again.
"Please hear me, Your Majesty. This is an injustice. A frame-up! A deception, Your Majesty!"
"A deception, you say?"
"Your Majesty—the truth is… the truth is that Lord Cao Zhi was ensnared by a plot. He need not take the field if that is your will, but I beg you to look into this matter once more. I will tell you everything from the beginning…"
"Look into what, exactly?"
"…Pardon?"
At Cao Cao's cold words, Yang Xiu doubted his own ears.
"I asked what there is to look into when the boy simply failed to control his drinking. Not long ago I went to considerable trouble covering up the incident in which he, drunk, forced his way through the Sima Gate. And now you ask me to forgive him again? What lesson did he take from that affair?"
"This time it is not the same, Your Majesty. Please hear me. It is true that Lord Cao Zhi is fond of wine, but he has reflected deeply on that earlier incident ever since. This time a cunning conspiracy…"
"I have no need to hear more. The boy drank himself senseless without even grasping how critical this expedition is. That is his own fault. I do not wish to listen. Get out."
"Your Majesty…"
Even Yang Xiu's most earnest pleas met only coldness. Something was wrong. The Cao Cao he knew would at least have heard him out a little further. To dismiss him so flatly…
Could it be… could it be that His Majesty already knows the whole of this affair?
"Did you not hear me tell you to leave?"
Yang Xiu understood what Cao Cao's reaction truly meant. Cao Cao already knew everything. And more important still—
Cao Zhi had been eliminated from the succession.
How… how can this be…
Cast out of the palace under Cao Cao's cold contempt, Yang Xiu could not believe what had just unfolded.
Only yesterday he had pictured it: Cao Zhi as commander of an army, and himself at his side as chief advisor.
And the dream he had cherished for so long—Cao Zhi's ascension to the throne—had no longer seemed a dream at all.
Where… where did it all go wrong? When, and from what moment, did everything twist so far off course…?
As he trudged along, lost in those thoughts, he came face to face with three men.
"Well now. If it isn't Lord Yang Xiu."
"To see the great Yang Xiu of all people looking so thoroughly defeated—the sun must be rising in the west."
"…!"
Cao Pi. And with him, Wu Zhi and Zhu Shuo.
These—these bastards…!
Yang Xiu kept his head bowed, his jaw trembling violently.
And then he saw it: Cao Pi casually drawing his robe over something at his waist.
Only the tip was visible, but Yang Xiu, who had served Cao Cao at close quarters for so many years, knew at once what it was.
That is… the Yitian Sword…?
Cao Cao's treasured blade, the Yitian Sword. As recently as yesterday, when Yang Xiu had received his orders, Cao Cao himself had been wearing it. And now—how? Could it be…?
The King of Wei means to name Cao Pi his heir. That much is certain. But how? What scheme did these dogs pull to overturn everything in a single night?
"What's the matter? Answer us. Has something not gone quite as planned?"
"I've never seen the famously talkative Lord Yang Xiu struck this silent. Heh heh."
"Why not? If you're so frustrated, why not go have a drink somewhere?"
"Indeed. When the heart is heavy, drowning yourself in wine can be the best remedy. Until you lose consciousness, that is. Heh heh heh."
…!
Cao Pi's face remained expressionless, but Wu Zhi and Zhu Shuo still wore those vile smiles as they mocked him.
"Enough. Let us go."
"Yes, my lord."
At Cao Pi's word, the three of them walked past Yang Xiu and were gone.
Even after a considerable time had passed, Yang Xiu remained rooted to the spot, standing rigid as a post. Anyone watching from a distance might have taken him for a wooden statue carved in human form.
But up close, one would have seen it clearly: Yang Xiu's face flushed scarlet, his jaw clenched so hard it seemed ready to shatter.
You—you insolent whelps…! I will never forgive you for this!
Meanwhile, Cao Hong—now commander of the relief force—set out for Xiangfan, pushing his misgivings to the back of his mind.
It was Cao Cao's order, true enough, but being hauled out of a sound sleep in the dead of night by a sudden summons had left him thoroughly bewildered.
And the command he received upon arrival had been this:
To ask, Wasn't Lord Cao Zhi supposed to command the relief force? was impossible—Cao Cao's expression and the atmosphere around him had been far too grim and murderous.
In the end he had accepted the transfer of command without a word and led the army out, but bewildered he remained.
Something was clearly afoot, yet he could not afford to keep dwelling on it.
Having received the king's order, his first duty was to hurry to Cao Ren's rescue.
He passed through Wan and advanced as far as the vicinity of Xinye, but the march was far from easy. The swollen Han River blocked the route of advance.
We'll need boats if we're to reach Fancheng.
While Cao Hong was still deliberating, an urgent report arrived.
"General Cao Hong. An enemy force is approaching from the southwest. Roughly several thousand strong."
"Whose army?"
Cao Hong studied the banners of the force kicking up dust as it drew near.
Liu Feng. At that strength, not someone to be overly concerned about.
Liu Feng was a capable general in his own right, but in the eyes of Cao Hong—who had followed Cao Cao since the very first raising of arms—he still looked like a fledgling.
Then another banner came into view beside Liu Feng's.
Jin Cheong.
The moment he saw that banner, a wariness he had not felt before surged up in him. He knew that general well. Indeed, there was not a soul under heaven who did not know her—the one and only female general.
He had first encountered her at the Battle of Nan Commandery.
And in the more recent riverside engagement, he had been forced to flee in humiliation, even losing the golden helmet he prized so highly.
That was not all. Was she not the one who had matched Cao Zhang blow for blow in single combat, time and again—and even brought him down once?
A troublesome opponent indeed.
Cao Hong formed his ranks and prepared to fight.
"Then we march."
It had been a long wait. Judging that the time was ripe, I set out from Xiangyong with Liu Feng at the head of our forces.
Of the three thousand men I had brought with me, I left one thousand under Fei Yi and Deng Zhi to hold Xiangyong. Meng Da, Shen Tan, and Shen Yi were still there, and I could not entirely shake my concern for the rear.
With Fei Yi and Deng Zhi, any disloyal designs could be stopped before they took root.
Both men held civil posts, yet both were more than capable in military affairs as well; I calculated they would perform ably enough in a defensive action.
Pairing the pleasure-loving Fei Yi with the single-minded Deng Zhi might have looked precarious on the surface, but their combination worked better than one might expect.
At a glance, Fei Yi seemed like nothing more than a wastrel who lived for amusement. Even in broad daylight he would drink with others or sit over a game of Go. His gift for winning people over was absolute—wherever he went, laughter never ceased.
Watching him carouse like that, some might worry whether he ever got any work done. Yet somehow, even while eating and playing, he finished every task assigned to him—an enviable talent if ever there was one. (Surely a useful ability even in the modern world.)
There had been one occasion when Deng Zhi, fretting over Fei Yi's constant idling, paid him a visit—only to find that all the work had already been completed, leaving him startled. And then, drawn in by Fei Yi's coaxing, Deng Zhi had even sat down for a round of Go before heading home.
Even Deng Zhi, that byword for stern gravity, ended up playing and going home—such was the cheerful force of Fei Yi's nature.
With the unflappable, impeccably serious Deng Zhi at his side, I judged that Xiangyong would be safe.
Pang Tong had also promised to send support; by now he should already have set out from Hanzhong and be on his way here.
Now I would achieve the greatest plan I had long cherished.
The rescue of Guan Yu.