The Aesthetics of Divergence - 4
“Welcome! We've been waiting for you!”
Mi Fang, whom I hadn't seen in ages, looked healthy and full of vigor.
He'd been traveling all over Jingzhou, throwing himself into internal affairs, but now he was staying in Yangyang, holding down the fort in Liu Bei's stead.
“How's the situation in Yangyang?”
“Same as always. You've got a guest who's been here ahead of you.”
A guest?
“Who is it?”
“Master Suyoung came in person to see the general and has been waiting a few days.”
“Call me Chief of Staff, not general.”
“Haha, if that's what suits you. Got it.”
Elder... it's been a while.
I nodded to Mi Fang and headed toward the guest room.
That face, etched with deep wrinkles like crackling skin, hadn't changed a bit from before.
“How've you been?”
“Still the same as ever, I see.”
We sat facing each other and caught up on lost time. I had the luxury for that much, at least.
My heart warmed a little.
From what I'd heard, Master Suyoung hadn't changed either. Getting into official positions was still a nightmare.
The recommendation system was the big culprit.
Come to find out, Shi Dao's appointment as Jingzhou's personnel manager was partly to draw in promising talents for Master Suyoung.
Shi Dao hustling back and forth between Yangyang and Soyoung was pretty famous among the Soyoung locals.
Sure, droves flocked to Cao Cao, but in scholars' eyes, Soyoung suited some tastes just fine.
And now that Liu Bei had declared himself King of Jingzhou... we needed talents—more talents.
Of course, the border regions were the more pressing headache.
“Things outside the realm are trending poorly. Might I hear your esteemed thoughts on what to do?”
The elder spoke calmly, hands clasped behind his back.
Utterly composed.
“Wasn't this foreseen the moment Kongming set out from Wuzhong? Liu Bei's path forward hinges solely on the western lands. Yizhou may look rugged on the outside, easy to defend, but its fertile plains stretch a thousand li within—it must be taken. What troubles you so?”
I laid it out straight.
“I'm worried about Cao Cao's army crashing into Soyoung. I... keep having these bad feelings. That's why I moved the entire Jiangnan force to Yangyang territory.”
Master Suyoung, oblivious to how grave I felt, chuckled like some enlightened immortal.
“If you lead Jingzhou and Yangyang's armies westward, Liu Bei will surely achieve hegemony. Hasn't that rascal Kongming timed it perfectly to match? This is the perfect chance to revive the Han house—why all the fretting?”
Timed it perfectly? No clue what he meant.
I wanted to reinforce Soyang, but here was this absurd push to back Yizhou.
Still, I wouldn't brush it off. He had been my teacher, however briefly.
“It's too much for me. Zhang He's got 100,000 bearing down on Jingzhou, and Liu Zhang won't fold easily. Won't we be facing enemies on two fronts?”
“So bold in debates, yet look at you now.”
Normally that'd grate, but right then? Nothing. The sense of crisis had me in its grip.
“I was planning to shift the army to Soyang. Suddenly west? Are you certain Uncle Kongming can hold the line?”
“Have you forgotten the grace you've bestowed on Soyang? You know people inside out—why judge by surface now and botch it all? Your benevolence has taken root there long ago. You think anyone dares shake that ground?”
I didn't follow. He sounded like some idealist spouting feel-good nonsense that didn't connect.
But... it almost sounds like advice to stick to the history books.
Historically, Liu Zhang surrendered once Zhuge Liang's Jingzhou forces arrived.
Liu Bei's supply lines were shaky, so he tasked Zhuge with logistics.
Fa Zheng's advisor Deng Zhi suggested scorching the earth—Liu Bei would retreat, and pursuit would nab him.
Liu Bei was foraging to sustain, so if Deng Zhi's ploy had played out, Liu Bei's Yizhou conquest might've ended right there.
But Fa Zheng assured Liu Bei that Liu Zhang was too soft for that, and sure enough, he sacked Deng Zhi—paving the way for conquest.
“So, Elder, you want me heading west?”
“Deaf, are we? That's precisely right.”
Master Suyoung was urging a historical replay.
Honestly? Terrified. Really freaking terrified.
The thought of Soyang breached and Yangyang lost? Unbearable.
“Urgent dispatch!”
My heart dropped.
“Rice wagons have arrived from Soyang!”
????
Master Suyoung slapped his knee.
“Isn't that what Kongming's urging too? Yizhou's terrain is brutal—supply woes are certain. He's pressing you to do just that.”
Was it?
Uncle Kongming had sent three notes.
Ilnyeom Tongcheon. Yangyang. And a blank one.
Let's rethink.
Single-minded devotion overcomes all... enough to hold Yangyang?
Then the blank... that's my rattled mind right now.
Uncle Kongming's telling me to trust it. Just once.
Master Suyoung pressed again.
“The road to Bashu is treacherous. Not just rough, but riddled with mountains and rivers. That's why you must go west.”
“In a word, you think if Liu Bei gets pushed out of Yizhou, it's game over.”
“Eh? Didn't you always insist Liu Bei must seize Yizhou for the great cause?”
Yeah, me.
I nodded.
Follow history's footsteps.
“You're the same as ever, Elder.”
Master Suyoung stroked his beard.
“You bloom brilliantly, while I fade.”
“Rice bows as it ripens, y'know.”
Master Suyoung burst into hearty laughter.
Sima Yi shook off the frame-up easily.
Cao Ang doted on him, and Cao Cao had no solid pretext anyway.
Plus, Sima Yi was capable—and he pitched an ironclad plan Cao Cao couldn't ignore.
“Demand parley from Han Su. If he bites, strike. He won't be ready—my lord can claim a great victory.”
Jia Xu and Guo Jia nodded along, so Cao Cao bought it and ran with Sima Yi's scheme.
Han Su's forces crumbled miserably under it.
Even Ma Chao couldn't hold against Cao Cao's horde.
The moment reinforcements arrived, Cao Cao's army went on the offensive.
Liu Bei offered no standoff, making it a cakewalk.
Cao Cao ambushed; Han Su got ambushed.
Someone torched Han Su's command tents, flames roaring skyward.
His startled troops poured out of camp, swarming the tents.
“You've bared your teeth!”
Suddenly, blades flashed in the heart of Han Su's formation.
Cao Cao's troops.
Ma Chao and his Xiliang riders clashed with Cao's infantry; soon the rearguard—Pang De and Ma Dai's forces—rushed in support.
“Waaaaah!!!”
As the entire rearguard funneled toward Han Su's tents, roars erupted from all sides.
With the sudden war cries, Cao Cao's massive army enveloped Han Su's camp, unleashing arrows.
Front: Xu Chu's vanguard and Cao Cao himself. Rear: Cao Hong and Xuhuang. Left: Xiahou Yuan and Xiahou Dun. Right: Sima Yi and Cao Ang's legions.
Han Su's tangled forces, outnumbered, were thoroughly crushed before long.
Ma Chao, showing his mettle, broke through the encirclement with about a hundred Xiliang cavalry—but the fates of the others? Unknown.
Ma Chao held the bridge to Hanzhong with his remnant.
“There! Ma Chao's over there!”
Cao Hong bellowed on spotting him, and Cao's soldiers swarmed like ants.
Ma Chao had no choice but to slip into Hanzhong territory.
A crushing defeat.
“This terrain is so treacherous, sever Liu Bei's rear and you'll capture him—my lord can achieve great things.”
“Well said.”
Sima Yi's sights now turned to Liu Bei.
The frame-up still rankled.
But it had wiped out Han Su, bringing Hanzhong into reach.
Pressure the Elder, and he'd surrender for sure—but the aftermath? Unclear.
After all, there was a loose end.
Liu Bei's army.
Deep in Bashu.
In this setup, the perfect play was to cut their supply lines and let them wither.
“Liu Bei won't last 100 days.”
In Sima Yi's eyes, toppling Luocheng—guarded by Liu Shun—would take Liu Bei over a year.
Crystal clear now: Liu Bei's forces had shifted to conquer Yizhou.
An utterly moronic gamble.
They couldn't take Luocheng easily.
So they'd besiege it and bolt for Chengdu. In that scenario, our best move? Sever supplies.
Do that, and the world's balance tips—done.
“With Hanzhong ours, Wuguan isolates Liu Bei. No matter the route from Shangyong, we block and win big.”
Sima Yi's words rang true, not a syllable off.
Shangyong was spitting distance from Chang'an; Wuguan, a natural fortress.
History proved it—later dynasties always hit Chang'an via Hanzhong, never Shangyong.
Explains Zhuge Liang's obsession with Qishan in his northern campaigns.
Wuguan was an impregnable bastion no one touched.
“We'll lay a trap in Hanzhong. Spread rumors the Elder's surrendering—Liu Bei has to rush in and attack.”
Cao Cao nodded.
“Zhang He's 100,000 will pin Yangyang down. Zhongda's right—how could we ignore it?”
“Grant me troops. I'll cut their supplies, pursue the retreating Liu Bei, and capture him.”
“Done. Take 30,000 and bring me his head!”
Jia Xu chimed in.
“Send the Elder a letter demanding surrender. Win or lose, it'll lend the rumor credibility—more will buy it.”
Cao Cao nodded, adopting Jia Xu's counsel too.