Beyond Xinxi, the Campaign Continues
"Heh heh heh! Master Zhang, you really do shine brighter on a battlefield!"
We had driven Lu Bu's army off twice already, and now we were sharing the joy of reunion with Zhang Fei, come in with the relief force.
"Lu Bu truly is a terror. When he closed to within two hundred paces, flung a blade at my throat, and rode off, I thought my heart would stop."
"Huh? That bastard got that close? Hey, Zilong!"
In a flash Zhang Fei had rounded on Zhao Yun, glaring.
"My training was lacking."
Zhao Yun answered with a bitter smile, and I hurried to stop it there.
"Nonsense! Zilong never shrank from danger. He guarded me to the very last. I was the one who overreached, trying to take Lu Bu myself."
"If only Brother Yunchang had been here."
True enough. Had Guan Yu been with us, I couldn't help wondering what would really have become of Lu Bu.
"Can you tell me more of how the fighting has gone?"
"Gladly!"
Zhang Fei planted himself in the tent and laid out everything that had happened since.
"Anyang, the city Big Brother and I took—Lu Bu's generals there were a pair called Cao Xing and Cheng Lian. I caught Cheng Lian, and that... what's his name? Shuzhi? Shucheng?"
"You mean Chen Dao, style Shuzhi, the man the Imperial Uncle just named company commander?"
"Ah, right, that one. Tough little devil. He took Cao Xing on the spot, and when the man kept swinging his spear to the bitter end, he just took his head right there!"
Chen Dao's martial skill was nothing to scoff at. And Liu Bei—meeting a man once, making him a guard-company commander on the spot, and handing him a chance at merit—was remarkable in his own right.
"Then the Imperial Uncle's army at Anyang will be coming this way as well?"
"Baoxin'll fall too. Hate to admit it, but that Cao Cao bastard ain't the sort to fail at taking one little county."
From here on, it was a race against time. Lu Bu's army would be finished this time, no question. The problem was seeing that Liu Bei's host claimed greater merit in the conquest than Cao Cao's.
Liu Bei was Inspector of Yuzhou in full title, and both Yiyang and Anyi lay within Yuzhou. If he meant to plant his feet firmly in that office, he needed achievements no one could argue with.
"We take Xinxi, then go straight down to Yiyang. That will surely be the ground of Lu Bu's last stand."
"The moment Big Brother gets here, we head down. I'd best whip the army back into shape right now."
"I'm counting on you, together with Junyi and Zilong. Brother Yide."
Zhang Fei broke into a wide grin and nodded.
Just then a few old veterans slipped quietly into the tent.
"What's this? Who are you lot?"
"Ah, Brother Yide. I sent for them. Heroes of the victory."
"Eh?"
The veterans Wang Ling had brought knew the weather of Yuzhou. They had seen the rain coming and had even made the men puttees and blackjacks.
"You've all had a hard time of it. A battlefield's no easy place to haul things like this around, I know."
I took silver taels from the chest and pressed one into each man's hand.
"Thank you. Truly, thank you, my lord!"
"Heh heh heh. No trouble getting home now. Much obliged, truly."
A reward for reading the weather and lending a hand at the odd jobs ought to be enough.
"Er... Lord Imperial Censor."
"Hm?"
"There's something I ought to tell you."
"What is it?"
"You know that solid-built general on horseback who fought alongside Lu Bu? The one who hauled him off when he came charging straight at you on the first day."
Ah—the officer with the superb horsemanship? The face had been familiar. He was bound to be someone formidable.
"What about him?"
"I know that face."
"A man of Yuzhou, remembering enemy officers one by one? You must have tramped battlefields for a very long time."
At that the old soldier looked once each at me, at Zhang Fei, and at Zhao Yun, then let out what he knew.
"My lord, this humble one lives in Xiaopei now, but I was born in Yangzhou. That man spoke with a Yangzhou tongue."
"Hmm. Is that so? They say most of Lu Bu's host is from Bingzhou in the north, and yet a man out of Yangzhou in the south follows him. An odd one, then."
"He's the very man who fought the Danyang troops before the walls of Xiaopei. I was there myself."
?!
I drew another silver tael from the chest and held it out to him.
"Tell me everything."
"I nearly died that day and lived to tell it, and I remember what he said to Commandant Cao, who had the command then. 'I too am a surrendered officer from Yangzhou, and I know how Danyang troops move with my eyes shut. My unit is an elite force that has taken that and gone further.' Those were his words."
So there was a southerner in Lu Bu's army—that I was only learning now—and he was the same officer who had cut down nearly half the Danyang troops at Xiaopei? Then the Trapped Camp's...
"Don't tell me that man is Gao Shun."
"I don't know if that's his name, my lord, but of the man himself I'm certain."
I tossed him one tael more.
"As of this moment, you're discharged. The instant the Imperial Uncle arrives, I'll petition him, and you go home."
Color rushed into the veteran's face. Amid the murmuring I ordered Wang Ling to take them out.
Gao Shun. So it had been Gao Shun. That changed the story.
"Master Zhang, what's the matter? Don't tell me you've got some tie to that fellow?"
"Ties are something you build from here on out."
"Do you mean, Imperial Censor... that you intend to capture this Gao Shun and make him a surrendered general of ours?"
"Whaaat? Some fella who bowed and scraped under that Lu Bu dog, and we'd take him?"
Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun had both turned the question back on me.
"I'll be frank with you both. As far as I'm concerned, the Imperial Uncle's bond with Lu Bu ends here. No—I want that man to stop being called a hero of the realm, and to become at last a figure of the past."
"Honestly, you ain't wrong."
"His officers, though, are another matter. There are plenty of capable men among them, and if we can win them over, I'm all for it."
"Kill Lu Bu, but the moment we catch the men under him, start pulling 'em onto our side?"
"Cao Cao will surely do the same. He'll be looking among Lu Bu's followers for the fierce generals he himself most lacks—men who charge at the head of the vanguard. Lu Bu is the finest of them, so in place of the pheasant he'll take the chicken: the shock captains who served under him."
We had men enough to lead a charge. Cao Cao did not. He had helmets and shields to spare for the work of strategic command, but too few spears beneath them to make the thrust.
"I've got plenty more to say, but all of this waits till Big Brother gets here."
"Very well. I mean to propose it formally to the Imperial Uncle myself. The decision will be his."
At that Zhang Fei grinned wide once more and nodded.
Not only Guan Yu, but Zhang Fei too put Liu Bei's word above all else. Show the Imperial Uncle proper respect, and he would follow gladly.
"Till then I'll reform the troops and throw a ring around that Xinxi place."
Once Zhang Fei arrived, everything moved at a startling pace.
The roads of Yuzhou were flat, and just as expected, Liu Bei arrived with remarkable speed. From the moment his army came in, Xinxi was a lamp before the wind. Catch Lu Bu here, and the game was over.
Not that I believed, turn it over as I might, that he hadn't already slipped away.
"Qian. You said that once we take the place and capture Lu Bu's generals, we should urge them to surrender?"
"Yes. The judgment is yours, Imperial Uncle."
"As it happens, the Minister of Works seems to have taken one of Lu Bu's veteran generals himself. Zhang Liao, I believe the name was?"
"So it comes to that after all."
"He said nothing of how the man would be dealt with, but I hear he was escorted under guard."
"And what will you do, Imperial Uncle?"
"To cut down a man who has surrendered, without hearing right from wrong, is no chivalry. If they yield, I will receive them gladly."
"And if one refuses, will you grant me a chance to persuade him?"
"Of course."
Liu Bei nodded and rode up before the walls of Xinxi.
In place of the hundreds of oxen I had once handed Xun Yu to build his new institutions, a blood-sweating horse of the Western Regions had been turned over to our army. Astride that famed steed—far larger, and far stronger, than his old mount—he drew his twin swords and cried out, proud and ringing.
The shout rolled like thunder, and both swords leveled at Xinxi.
Shiiik—clang!
In place of an answer, an arrow flew at Liu Bei, and he struck it aside with his sword, square from the front. The parley was over. He raised his remaining blade and ordered the attack, and the full weight of his army came on.
Zhang He, Zhao Yun, Wang Ling, and Hao Zhao—and with them Zhang Fei, Chen Dao, Jian Yong, and Tian Yu—closed on the city with a fury so great it seemed to carry even Guan Yu's share, though he remained in Xudu guarding the Emperor. The walls were none too high, and this was no forward fortress of brick but an earthen rampart. Seasoned soldiers poured up the ladders without pause and hammered the gate with battering logs.
Xinxi fell within half a day.
Boom—
The gate burst, and soldiers flooded through like a tide.
What I had to do now was settle the chaos inside as fast as I could, and stop any plunder or outrage cold. Once within the walls I clamped down hard: aside from those who still resisted, not a hair on anyone's head was to be touched.
"Anyone who plunders the people of Xinxi will be beheaded! Anyone who harms a prisoner that offers no resistance will be executed on the spot!"
"Imperial Censor, I will take charge of order."
"And I—I'm confident of a swift occupation!"
Zhang He and Zhao Yun moved as one, while Wang Ling, Hao Zhao, Tian Yu, and the others swept the streets clean in short order.
Then the surrendered soldiers, and with them an enemy general, were flung down bound before me.
Thud.
"Master Zhang. As enemy generals go, there's just this one."
"Kh—!"
The bound officer was just as described. Short of stature, but solid as a bear, and even in captivity his eyes glared wide, his spirit unbroken.
"Kill me! I've no mind to live and be made a fool of!"
"Are you Gao Shun?"
"I am. I failed my lord's charge. I'll pay that crime with my death!"
"I hear you come from Danyang. How did you come to meet Lu Bu of Bingzhou, and serve under him?"
"...Just kill me."
There was more than one thing I wanted to know, and Gao Shun, true to form, was iron about it. If I could only persuade him and bring him over to our side, I was certain he would be worth an army of thousands.
"Lu Bu killed his foster father, fell into Dong Zhuo's hands, and then killed even Dong Zhuo over a woman. He is an unfilial monster, and the very emblem of betrayal. Don't you think loyalty to a man like that is a waste?"
"How should a scholar know the heart of a warrior?"
A man who had chosen the wrong lord, and stiff-necked into the bargain. I was about to say I would try a little longer when Liu Bei came up smiling and set a hand on my shoulder. He nodded, stepped quietly over to Gao Shun, and then shouted.
"Yide! How dare you treat an honored man so roughly!"
"?!"
"B-Big Brother?"
Liu Bei, of all things, scolded Zhang Fei—then raised Gao Shun, who lay sprawled on the ground.
"Lord Gao, forgive the discourtesy. Before a warrior, this is no proper courtesy."
"Liu Xuande... if you truly mean to offer me no discourtesy, then take my head here and now."
"You are a talent I truly grieve to see wasted. Can you not fight beside me to restore the imperial house of Han, and give your loyalty to the realm?"
"...Cut."
Even with Liu Bei himself stepping forward, Gao Shun did not bend. And Liu Bei drew his sword.
"Imperial Uncle, wait—!"
Shiiik—tok. Thud-thud.
"?!?!?!?!"
He had not taken Gao Shun's head. He had severed the ropes that bound him. In the instant Gao Shun found himself free, eyes flying wide in shock, Liu Bei went on and cut the bonds of the remaining officers and soldiers as well.
"Big Brother, what are you—!"
"My lord!"
"Left General!"
"Inspector Liu!"
While every voice cried out in alarm, I found my composure again for a moment.
Don't tell me. This was really that scene you only ever see in the stories?
"Go."
"My lord!"
"You're... letting me go?"
"Because you cannot become my man, must more blood be spilled here? Xinxi has seen blood enough."
Liu Bei simply released Lu Bu's men, Gao Shun among them.
"I set you all free, on the condition that you leave your armor and your weapons. Lord Gao, depart for wherever you wish."
"If I... go back to Yiyang from here, I will strike at you once more."
"I don't mind. If you do go that way, tell Fengxian this: Liu Bei will come to call in person, with Zhang Qian and his brothers beside him."
The tone was calm. The words were sharper than any blade.
"But, Lord Gao—there will not be a second time. Neither as a warrior nor as a man of chivalry could I do such a thing again."
"..."
"Go. If you have no horse, I will give you mine."
I could hardly believe it.
It was the very image everyone carries of Liu Bei. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei go out, crush the enemy, and drag the prisoners back, and Liu Bei always cries that this is no way to treat them, cuts their ropes, and receives them with courtesy. And here I was, watching it happen in real time.
But Imperial Uncle—even so! After giving his beloved horse over to the soldiers at Shuchun, was he truly going to hand Gao Shun the famed steed he had only just received from Cao Cao as well?
"I will... walk."
"Even on flat ground, Yiyang is a long road. I'll lend you a horse."
"No. I will not go to Yiyang."
For an instant, Liu Bei smiled.
"The Minister of Works' army will be to the north. I don't know where you mean to go, but take care on the road."
Gao Shun's eyes settled into pure resignation, and not one of Lu Bu's men dared say he would go down to Yiyang. Instead, several dropped to their knees before Liu Bei and cried out.
"Left General, take us in!"
"From this moment, we follow the Left General!"
"We abandon Lu Bu and beg to be the Left General's men! Grant it, we beg you!"
Gao Shun, looking as if his soul had left him, gave a bitter smile at the sight and trudged away. And the only one who followed him was me.
"Gao Shun. This war does not end until Lu Bu is dead."
"..."
"The Imperial Uncle has shown you mercy. I mean to show you patronage. If you truly have nowhere to go, try Xiaopei."
I tossed the Xiaopei transit token from inside my robe. It landed at his feet.
"..."
"Take that with you, and the past will be set aside. Until the time comes, you'll have food and a roof."
Gao Shun's body trembled, and then he picked up the token I had thrown.
"They say you have the military gift to raise an elite like the Trapped Camp. We've lost our Danyang troops, and their chief, Lord Cao, has retired. His daughter has become my wife."
"...Why tell me that?"
"If you become the Imperial Uncle's man, what do you suppose your work would be? The choice is his. The capital, and the manpower, are mine."
Gao Shun laughed, empty, and walked off with his shoulders slumped, step after heavy step.
The back of a shabby warrior who had lost a war, and everything with it. Even so, I was certain he would come back to Liu Bei. He seemed to have felt far too much.