Chapter 167: Crumbling into Ruin

"We were captured by Liu Bosheng just like that, interrogated separately, and had no choice but to reveal our identities — though we only said we were sent by the clan head's order to eliminate Liu Xiu."

"Afterward, Liu Bosheng came in person to release us and apologize, saying his brother had broken the law and fled to evade the authorities. When they heard foreign accents in the county, they grew extra vigilant, never imagining they'd caught one of their own."

This was the account Diwu Fu gave of his ordeal. After hearing it, Diwu Lun sneered. One of their own? Liu Bosheng truly lived up to his reputation as a renowned gallant of the commandery — this was the style of a genuine underworld boss.

From the description, the entire Whitewater Township… no, the whole of Caiyang, had been run like an iron barrel. His retainers and followers were spread through every post station; whenever outsiders arrived, nothing escaped Liu Bosheng's eyes and ears. The young gallants of the county all answered to his command.

The scene was all too familiar. Linqu Township was the same now — from the Bailiff, the Elders, and the Precinct Chief down to every last post station, all were men Diwu Lun had planted, run so tightly not a drop of water could seep through.

Reflecting on this overly hasty operation, it was like someone sending a dozen men to Linqu Township to try to kidnap Diwu Ba. A mighty dragon still can't crush a local snake. Across over a thousand li, venturing into another's territory, of course the only outcome was to eat dirt.

The Diwu clan was hardly the only one preparing for the coming chaos. It was just that, situated within the capital region, with great surnames like the Qiongcheng Marquis still in the county, the Diwu clan's power had a ceiling to its expansion.

But the Liu of Chongling were different. They had been the greatest powerful family in Caiyang for over a hundred years, and now they had produced this pair of brothers, Liu Bosheng and Liu Wenshu. One pushed outward, the other held the ground. Word was they had even begun answering the call of the Grand Governor of Qiandui Commandery, drilling armed militia "to guard against Greenwood."

In the end, Liu Bosheng had Diwu Fu and the subordinate clerks escorted out of the county with full courtesy, and even sent generous gifts, saying that the moment his brother returned, he would inform Lord Diwu at once.

Having suffered this loss, his men were all rather unwilling to swallow it. Diwu Fu, long accustomed to throwing his weight around, ground his teeth and begged Diwu Lun to send someone to report to Yan You — to accuse the Chongling Liu clan of plotting rebellion! Wipe out their entire family of several thousand!

Children tussle and lose, then run crying to the adults to settle the score? Setting aside that Diwu Lun and the Liu family had not yet torn face, and that he and Liu Xiu were still nominally "old friends" — just considering Yan You's upright way of doing things, without evidence he would never believe it. And with the main army already dispatched to Nan Commandery and Jiangxia, in the midst of encircling and suppressing Greenwood, he had no attention to spare elsewhere. Even if Yan You wanted to intervene, he might not necessarily be able to do anything to the Liu family backing them, and might directly push a string of Qiandui powerful families into revolt. In the end, the one to suffer might well be Yan You himself.

"First calm your mind, and do your own work well." So he said, but Diwu Lun's eyes would absolutely never shift away from the Chongling Liu clan again. They were truly a formidable rival.

Amid the string of bad news, there was one piece of good. Coming to Ji Province together with Ma Yuan and the others this time was Zheng Tong, whom Diwu Lun had earlier dispatched to Xihai Commandery to try to rescue Diba Jiao.

Months earlier, when Zheng Tong and his several dozen men had endured countless hardships and reached Jincheng Commandery, they learned that a Qiang uprising had broken out again in Xihai. The entire commandery had fallen to the Behe Qiang; even the Grand Governor of the commandery was dead. Without a force of several thousand, there was likely no reaching Xihai City now.

The Qiang in revolt were far more ruthless than ordinary bandits and roving outlaws, so they had no choice but to turn back. Fortunately, Diba Jiao, long without word, had finally sent a letter back to Linqu Township through someone.

It turned out that when the Qiang uprising erupted, Diba Jiao and the gallants of the commandery had fled north, crossing the Wushao Ridge through a pass in the Qilian Mountains, and reached Zhangye (Wuwei Commandery). Suffering minor wounds and an illness that made long travel difficult, he had been stranded there. Now he had been recruited as a clerk by Grand Governor Dou You and settled down to recuperate.

"As long as the man is safe."

Hexi was still peaceful, and Dou You was Dou Rong's clan cousin — being able to build a connection there put Diwu Lun greatly at ease. He sent word for Diba Jiao to return only once he had recovered.

In the past, Emperor Wang Mang, having lost Xihai and unable to complete his "all within the four seas is the king's land," would certainly not have let the matter rest. But the Great Xin's foreign policy had now gone from utterly uncompromising to complete and utter retreat.

The war with the Xiongnu had ceased; Wang Zhaojun's nephew had been sent to guard the frontier, likely hoping to restore peace. But the barbarians had seen through the Xin Dynasty's fierce exterior and inward timidity, and their border incursions grew ever more frequent. Wang Mang had also abandoned the conquest of Gouding, but Gouding, for the sake of blood vengeance, refused to submit. Tens of thousands of men were bogged down in the south, unable to withdraw.

Add to that the renewed Qiang uprising in Xihai — internal troubles and external threats, not one was missing. The Xin Dynasty already wore the face of death. Diwu Lun felt that the realm was crumbling into ruin.

"I fear it truly is within two or three years!"

……

After pouring out his heart to his wife, whom he had not seen for so long, Diwu Lun went to the military camp outside Yecheng to see how Ma Yuan and his young Maoling hometown fellow, the white-horse youth Geng Yan, were getting along.

A proud and arrogant youth like this still needed a lesson from the wave ahead before he would lower his head a little. The script in Diwu Lun's mind was to have Ma Yuan put Geng Yan in his place and humble his pride.

Upon arriving, he found that Geng Chun, whom he secretly cursed as "the Finishing-Blow Clerk," had already gotten there first and was standing outside the door, smiling.

Diwu Lun went over and asked, "Well? Have the two of them started fighting?"

Geng Chun pointed at the barracks. "They're inside drinking."

So they'd hit it off at first meeting and were now drinking and chatting merrily? The script was not quite playing out as Diwu Lun had imagined.

Geng Chun shook his head. "Those two — clearly from the same commandery, fellow locals, both famed for gallantry and martial valor — yet their temperaments don't mesh at all. Truly like enemies. They've already competed in everything that can be competed in. Now all that's left is to compete in drinking capacity."

Just then, cheers rang out from inside the barracks: "Excellent! Lord Ma has already downed five dou!"

"Lord Geng, keep drinking!"

"One cup, just one more cup and it's even."

"The wine cup can't even reach his lips — Young Lord Geng is drunk!"

"He's slumped over the table!"

"This round goes to Lord Ma!"

"Quick, hold him steady, don't let Lord Ma collapse too."

"Let go, all of you — I'm not drunk!"

With that standard declaration of a drunkard, the barracks door was shoved heavily open, and out came Ma Yuan, belly bulging, face flushed all over. Catching sight of Diwu Lun, he broke into a delighted grin. "Worthy Brother Boyu, you've been well!"

Diwu Lun didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Big brother, you've even got the generational rank wrong — and you say you're not drunk?

Ma Yuan paid no heed, throwing an arm around Diwu Lun and pointing his little finger at the young Geng Yan, who had drunk too much and was slumped over the table inside, snoring soundly. "This old man has crossed more bridges than he has walked roads. If the little whelp wants to beat me — ten years… no, talk to me again in twenty years!"

As he spoke, he wrapped his arms around Diwu Lun and began to snore. People hurriedly helped him away to sleep. On Geng Chun's side, after checking on his nephew and finding he had merely drunk too much, he laughed until his stomach hurt.

At this point, Zhao Pang and the other military clerks gathered around, chattering to Diwu Lun about the contest between Ma Yuan and Geng Yan.

"They first competed in bridle-theft. Colonel Ma also got it in one circuit, just like Young Lord Geng."

"Young Lord Geng wouldn't accept it, so the two competed again in mounted archery. Lord Ma was no match for Young Lord Geng."

Diwu Lun nodded. Ma Yuan preferred close combat with naked blades; his archery couldn't even match Wan Xiu, let alone mounted archery. But the two had locked horns over it.

"Then they competed in hand-to-hand combat, and wrestling…"

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He didn't even need to hear the result — Ma Yuan had surely won. Diwu Lun couldn't last three bouts against him, and no one in the army could beat him either. Though Geng Yan was young, in experience he was utterly crushed by Ma Yuan, who had roamed the land for years and fought countless brawls. He lost two in a row.

Next was crossbow shooting, and Geng Yan recovered his standing there.

In short, over the course of a day, the two had contested everything in the army that could be contested, and could only fall back on a drinking match.

The result was a narrow victory for Ma Yuan.

And so, they had fought to a draw.

By all rights, this should have been a case of "out of blows, friendship grows," with the two gallants recognizing each other's worth. But the two slept until the next morning before rising. Diwu Lun hosted a banquet. Ma Yuan, who just yesterday had called him brother, sat on the eastern mat, while Geng Yan sat on the western mat. When their eyes met, sparks flew and lightning flashed.

Geng Yan still refused to yield to Ma Yuan, and Ma Yuan seemed to regard Geng Yan as a little wild colt, straining every muscle to tame him, unwilling to admit age. In the end, he had only managed a draw in drinking capacity — saying it aloud was an embarrassment.

Geng Chun, with his personality that thrived on stirring up trouble, clamored for the two to keep competing. But Ma Yuan and Geng Yan both looked down on little games like pitch-pot or liubo. They couldn't exactly make two martial men sit down and chat about the Odes and the Classics, could they?

Just as the atmosphere was growing delicate, Diwu Lun clapped his hands and smilingly made a suggestion.

"In truth, in military affairs, there is still one thing you two have not yet competed in."

The two turned their gazes toward him. Diwu Lun said, "That is commanding troops!"

Diwu Lun dismissed the attendants, keeping only a few trusted men, before speaking. "I won't hide it from you gentlemen. The troubles in Wei territory are, to the east, a splinter faction of the Red Eyebrows, and to the north, the bandits of Qinkou Mountain. The bandits have repeatedly plundered officials' iron tools, nearly cutting off all traffic between Yecheng and the three counties to the northwest."

"I am resolved to wipe out this bandit before autumn arrives!"

Diwu Lun swept his gaze over the assembly: "When the time comes, Colonel Ma shall lead one battalion. Boyang, scion of a general's house, would you be willing to serve as my commandery military advisor and also lead a battalion alongside Constable Zhao against the bandits? After the deed, your achievements and captured heads shall be assessed, and rank determined."

Geng Yan was no fool. He laughed: "Lord Diwu, are you deliberately trying to provoke me so I will stop refusing your appointment?"

Look at you — why do you speak as bluntly as your uncle? Before Diwu Lun could reply, Ma Yuan, playing the old cynic, interjected: "Truth be told, the Wei lands are not exactly short of single-handed valor."

Had he not said that, it would have been fine — but hearing it, how could Geng Yan still back down? The young man of eighteen or nineteen immediately rose and declared: "In the north, Geng Yan has often observed troops at the commandery inspections. I am willing to try my hand as commandery military advisor!"

Young and fond of amusement, he treated it as a game — at worst, he could simply resign once the contest was over!

"With the aid of you two gentlemen, it is like adding a pair of wings to a tiger!"

Diwu Lun raised his wine and toasted the two. After the banquet ended, he informed Ma Yuan and Geng Chun of a major piece of news he had only learned the night before.

"Feng Yan, aide to the General of Renewal, has, just as I requested, altered the route of the new Qinzhong Boar-Rush Braves. They have already set out eastward. In two more months, they will pass through Shangdang and enter the Wei lands."

Geng Chun understood at once: "Between Shangdang and Weicheng Commandery, the shortest route is the Fukou Pass, which passes through She County…"

And She County was precisely one of the three northwestern counties controlled by the Li family of Wu'an!

Geng Chun grasped it instantly. Diwu Lun did not even need to request that Lian Dan dispatch troops to suppress the bandits. He only had to maneuver slightly so that the new Qinzhong Boar-Rush Braves altered their line of march. When they passed through She County, Weicheng Commandery would just happen to be in the midst of exterminating mountain bandits. Since the road ahead was blocked by bandits, and the local great clan, the Li family, had turned traitor and joined the outlaws — there was no alternative but to join the fight together!

Even better, by then the General of Renewal and the Grand Preceptor — that pair of Sleeping Dragon and Fledgling Phoenix — would have over a hundred thousand troops massed in the Central Plains. The Zhao prince's descendant surnamed Liu, whom the Li family had painstakingly courted, would likely not dare make a rash move. After all, it was over a hundred thousand imperial troops — their fighting strength was not great, but their destructive power was immense. No one wanted to stick their neck out at such a moment.

Diwu Lun set the battle plan: within two months, train the regular troops to two thousand, then conscript two thousand auxiliary soldiers…

When the time came, everything would be in place, lacking only the west wind.

"The day Junyou leads the Boar-Rush Braves to arrive — that shall be the day I unify the Wei lands!"

……

By late in the fourth month, when the eastern expedition army reached Luoyang, Feng Yan, aide to the General of Renewal, had traveled with the host the entire way. He saw that everything was just as it had been on the eve of the northern campaign years before: morale was low, the marching pace was agonizingly slow, the able-bodied men were in rags, and wherever the imperial troops passed, they ran rampant. The common folk fled them like bandits, bolting their doors and shuttering their windows as if facing a great enemy.

Where the imperial army marches, not a blade of grass grows!

"With soldiers like these, how can one fight?"

And this war was not like the northern campaign, which could be stopped simply by letting the war hawk Han Wei go to his death. A civil war does not end until one side is utterly crushed.

Feng Yan therefore seized the right moment, when the General of Renewal, Lian Dan, was also looking deeply troubled, and admonished him: "General, what do you think the outcome of this campaign will be?"

Lian Dan had no confidence in his heart, but his words were firm: "Though the Red Eyebrows number in the tens of thousands, back when Zhai Yi rebelled, he gathered over a hundred thousand troops and rampaged across several commanderies — his momentum was even greater than the Red Eyebrows — yet he was still easily crushed. In the past, His Majesty simply did not take them seriously. Now that he has dispatched the imperial army, this campaign is certain to be victorious!"

Feng Yan shook his head: "Has the General ever heard the saying from the time of Emperor Wu of Han, about 'crumbling earth and shattering tiles'?"

Lian Dan did not know it, so Feng Yan explained: "What is meant by 'shattering tiles'? It is the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms — Wu, Chu, and the others — in the time of Emperor Jing of Han. The seven kingdoms plotted great treason, each claiming the title of a lord of ten thousand chariots, with armored soldiers numbering in the hundreds of thousands — their might sufficient to overawe their own territories, their wealth sufficient to encourage their officers and people. And yet, they could not seize even a foot of land to the west, and ended up dying at the hands of General Zhou Yafu. Why was that? It was not because their authority was weak, but because, at that time, the benevolent influence of Emperor Wen of Han had not yet faded, and the people were content in their homes and customs, unwilling to follow the rebels."

"The rebellion of Zhai Yi back then was likewise nothing more than a case of 'shattering tiles.' All under Heaven admired the virtue of the Duke Who Pacifies the Han and had despaired of the house of Han, their hearts dead to it. Any move to restore the Han was going against the current. That is why the Grand Minister of Works, Wang Yi, could pacify Zhai Yi in an instant and have him dismembered."

Lian Dan fell silent, then asked again: "And what is meant by 'crumbling earth'?"

Feng Yan said: "I will give an example. So-called 'crumbling earth' is what happened at the end of the Qin. That Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were not lords of a thousand chariots; they held not a foot of land. In bloodline, they were no descendants of kings, dukes, great men, or famous clans. They had no reputation in their home villages, nor the worthiness of a Confucius, Mozi, or Zengzi, nor the wealth of a Tao Zhu or Yi Dun."

"Yet they rose from humble alleys, brandished thorny staves, and at Daze Village bared one shoulder and raised a great cry — and all under Heaven followed like the wind, until at last the Qin clan was destroyed. Why was that? It was because, under the Qin, the people were exhausted and the ruler showed no compassion; those below bore grievances and those above knew nothing of it. Customs had fallen into chaos and governance was not repaired. These were all reasons Chen Sheng could raise his cause."

"Therefore, the peril of the realm does not lie in 'shattering tiles.'"

Feng Yan raised his head, his gaze deep and far-seeing: "It lies in 'crumbling earth'! The present age is no longer the 'shattering tiles' of over a decade ago — 'crumbling earth' is imminent!"

"When the Xin rose to power, the talented and worthy did not attach themselves to it. Now, within the seas, all is turmoil and collapse. Powerful local magnates and officials of the two-thousand-bushel rank secretly harbor rebellious intent, and all are sitting back to watch the General's success or failure."

Take, for example, that fellow who had asked him to alter the marching route of the new Qinzhong Boar-Rush Braves — Feng Yan knew that Diwu Lun was clearly not as loyal as he appeared on the surface.

"The court constantly exaggerates the evils of Qin and extols the Xin, little realizing that in the eyes of the common people, the officials are already like the Qin officials, and the Red Eyebrows and Greenwood are just like Chen Sheng and Wu Guang. Does the General imagine that he and the Grand Preceptor are the equals of Zhang Han?"

Though he was loath to admit it, Lian Dan's ability was probably about on par with Wang Li's…

Feng Yan seized the opening: "Therefore, your servant now devises a plan for the General. Rather than hastily joining battle with the Red Eyebrows, letting your army be destroyed on the Central Plains, your body fatten the grass of the wilds, your achievements ruined and your name disgraced — it would be better to…"

Lian Dan stared at Feng Yan: "Better to what?"

Feng Yan prostrated himself and touched his head to the ground, then spoke his bold idea.

"General, you would do better to hold your troops and consolidate your own power, entrench yourself at Dingtao and Suiyang, calm and nurture your officers and men, whet their resolve, then draw in the heroic talents of the Liang lands, seek out loyal and wise counsel, and await the shifts of the vertical-horizontal struggle!"

Lian Dan shot to his feet in shock: "You are telling me to betray His Majesty!?"

……

PS: Chapter 2 at 13:00.

(Chapter 3 at 18:00.)