Chapter 305: Swinging Between Sides

"Diwu Lun's vessel is small indeed!"

From the Fan family estate in West District of Changling County, this voice rang out.

Had it been a woman speaking, it would surely invite misunderstanding; a pity it came from a man past fifty — which rather spoiled the mood.

Fan Zhu slammed the seal and cord he had fetched from Yueyang hard onto the table, startling his concubine, who was sewing, and then sat on the couch stroking his great beard, stewing in anger.

The Fan clan has a long history, descended from Fan Kuai, a founding hero of the Great Han who achieved illustrious battle merit. Enfeoffed as a marquis by Emperor Gao, his stipend was set at 5,400 households in Wuyang County, placing him among the foremost.

Later, however, the Fan family lost the marquisate for being embroiled in the Lü clan's rebellion; Emperor Wen, magnanimous and forgiving, restored it.

In the time of Emperor Jing, they lost it again over a scandal of borrowed seed and cuckoldry, and the line was broken for a hundred years. Emperor Xuan of Han, recalling the toil of the founding heroes, restored the marquisate once more and settled them at Changling north of the Wei.

But then, when Wang Mang supplanted the Han, their title was lost yet again!

After several such reversals, the Fan family, now passed to its tenth-generation head Fan Zhu, once more met a turning point.

Before going to Yueyang, Fan Zhu had been quite confident: "The King of Wei and I are old friends. At that gathering at Changping Hall, the King of Wei and Jing Dan both rode piebald mares; everyone laughed, but I alone saw he was no ordinary man — and now indeed he is a feudal lord."

Fan Zhu, however, remembered wrong: it was clearly he who had first shown disdain, and Diwu Lun's impression of him was very poor, for the Fan family was rich but unrighteous, and in his little notebook he had even marked an "×," only waiting to settle accounts later.

Moreover, when the troops rose to slay Wang Mang, the Fan family hesitated a long while before following Wang Yuan in raising their banner and shouting slogans, without shedding a drop of blood. After that, when Diwu Lun struck Hexi and Hedong, they made no contribution either — not even a single dan of grain donated — and simply sat waiting to share the spoils.

Now Fan Zhu had eagerly hurried to Yueyang, thinking his family could at least land a thousand-household marquisate and sip some soup; in the end, he got only a "viscount."

"Is this not demoting my family two whole ranks? A supreme disgrace, a supreme disgrace."

Fan Zhu's anger surged from his heart. In truth, his family had long been in decline, already a small landlord whose actual controlled territory was not large — a single ting — yet he still clung stubbornly to the old status, treating his ancestors' merit as his own rightful pleasure, and even sought to use the sword of the Former Former Dynasty to obtain a title from the King of Wei.

"Wang Yuan did not exert great effort either — on what grounds is he a marquis of three thousand households?"

"Zhang Chun from New Qinzhong came to pledge allegiance even later — how was his marquisate restored?"

What Fan Zhu failed to consider was that Wang Yuan was a friend of Diwu Ba, and after placing his bet he actively participated in building the Wei state's institutions, even willing to go on Diwu Lun's behalf to Longyou to negotiate with the Wei clan; he was also the leader of the powerful families north of the Wei, able to summon a hundred responses with a single call — did Fan Zhu have that? And Zhang Chun, the moment he arrived, offered up four counties and spoke pleasingly — did Fan Zhu have that?

Yet Fan Zhu simply felt wronged: the King of Wei's bestowal of rewards was unfair! So long as he was not given enough, it was inequitable!

In his fury and resentment, Fan Zhu dug out the marquis seal that the "Western Han" had sent by roundabout means. On Fang Wang's advice, the Wei clan had been generous, restoring dozens of powerful families north of the Wei to full marquis rank in one breath! But earlier Fan Zhu had thought this an empty promise — Longyou was too far, impossible to redeem, and Diwu Lun nearby was more reliable. Yet now, it seemed…

"Indeed, the remnant spawn of Tian Qi's transported captives, a son of a humble household — his vision and breadth of mind are both insufficient. Diwu Lun is likely incapable of achieving great things. Should the Yuanshu Emperor from Longyou strike over, I, Fan Zhu, will be the first to raise troops and answer the true Son of Heaven!"

Fan Zhu fondled the "marquis seal" with doting hands, longing for Longyou to march east soon, while the Wei state's viscount seal was tossed to the bottom of a chest. Immediately after, he recalled the news sent from the opposite bank two days earlier.

"Even Liu Bosheng treats us powerful families better than Diwu Lun does."

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He had heard people say that Liu Bosheng, worthy of the title Pillar-of-Heaven Grand General, was quite generous, distributing the Shanglin Park that the powerful families south of the Wei had long coveted among them. Fan Zhu's friend Xiao Yan, who had been the first to go south and join him, had received a large tract and was now a favorite by Liu Bosheng's side. Had he known, the Fan family should have abandoned this old home of over a hundred qing of land and followed after.

Fan Zhu had already made up his mind: "Had Diwu Lun given me a marquis rank, my family could still support him. When he battles the Green Han and Western Han, we could at least remain neutral, helping neither side."

"But now, if Liu Bosheng and Diwu Lun fight, my Fan family, and the powerful families north of the Wei who have been coldly treated, will surely watch with cold indifference, sit back and wait for this so-called Wei state to destroy itself, and when it is about to collapse, give it a push!"

"Let him know what fate awaits without our support!"

……

Fan Zhu was dissatisfied with the viscount and baron ranks, and among the powerful families north of the Wei, there were plenty who had not obtained any title at all — the Ban clan of Anling was one such.

The Ban clan also had a long and distinguished lineage. At their most illustrious, during the time of Emperor Cheng of Han, Ban Jieyu was quite renowned; compared with Empress Xu, Zhao Feiyan, and Zhao Hede, who shared the same palace, though she was less beautiful, she surpassed them in virtue and talent.

As a Han imperial in-law clan, the Ban family did not exploit their influence to expand, but instead devoted themselves diligently to scholarship, once receiving a duplicate of the imperial secret archives bestowed by Emperor Cheng of Han.

Even Wang Mang admired their family's reputation and befriended the Ban brothers, who were also Gentlemen of the Yellow Gate, treating Ban You as an elder brother and Ban Zhi as a younger brother. When Ban You died, Wang Mang even personally donned mourning sackcloth and grieved deeply.

But around the time the Xin Dynasty was established, the Ban family seemed to sense something and deliberately distanced themselves from Wang Mang. As old friends serving as two-thousand-dan officials in the provinces, they actually did not respond to Wang Mang's call for them to present auspicious omens. As a result, they were arrested and imprisoned; it was only thanks to Wang Zhengjun and Wang Mang's regard for old ties that their lives were spared. But by this means they smoothly withdrew from politics, the whole family retiring to their estate to continue immersing themselves in scholarship.

The head of the Ban family in this generation was named Ban Si, who excelled in the study of Laozi and Zhuangzi and was also a renowned great scholar of Guanzhong. He had traveled and studied with Yang Xiong, and Huan Tan had come to his door to borrow books.

Because of this connection, after Diwu Lun declared himself king, he immediately sent men to summon Ban Si, hoping he would use his strengths to serve as Grand Master of the Secretariat and assist Wang Long and others in organizing the palace books that had been relocated. Ban Si declined the first time on grounds of illness, and now, with the titles settled, Diwu Lun's summons had come again!

Ban Si sighed deeply. It was not that he cared about office or title — these were things the Ban family could have easily obtained during the Han or Xin — he simply felt that Guanzhong's allegiance was not yet decided and wished to avoid disaster.

But he also feared angering the King of Wei. Unable to decide himself, Ban Si looked at his younger cousin Ban Biao, who was reading with head lowered: "Shupi, what do you say I should do?"

Ban Biao's father had once been an old friend of Wang Mang, then withdrew to guard Emperor Cheng of Han's tomb, yet never relaxed his son's education. From childhood, Ban Biao was fond of antiquity and diligent in learning, traveling and studying ceaselessly with Ban Si. Now only twenty-one, his scholarly reputation was already gradually emerging.

However, Ban Biao was more interested in the Confucian classics and historical texts; he had read the Grand Historian's Records bestowed by Emperor Cheng of Han no fewer than ten times.

He raised his head and said: "If elder cousin does not wish to go, then simply leave."

"Leave? Go where?"

Ban Biao gestured, pointing in several directions: "Beidi, Longyou and Hexi, even south of the Wei — where can we not go?"

"What of the family estate?" Ban Si was worried. His family believed in the words of their ancestors and had not hoarded too much real property; the house itself mattered little, but he could not bear to part with the roomful of bestowed books! To those devoted to learning, these were the most precious things in a chaotic age.

"Is the King of Wei not a lover of books? Consider it our family's gift to him." Ban Biao did not wholly reject Diwu Lun; at least in his love of learning, he was worthy of being Yang Ziyun's disciple. A pity, though, that in the end he could not defy the greater trend…

Ban Si caught on: "Shupi also thinks that Diwu Lun's kingship cannot endure?"

When Diwu Lun first raised troops, the powerful families and scholars had no choice; now they had three options.

"Exactly. If south and north of the Wei go to war, Liu Bosheng will surely win!" Ban Biao said with certainty.

"Why?"

Ban Biao extended three fingers: "First, Liu Bosheng was first to rise in righteousness at Nanyang. Though he did not become Son of Heaven, he possesses the great righteousness of All Under Heaven, causing Wang Mang to tremble in terror. His name, with the Xin's bounty of a hundred thousand gold on his head, is known throughout Guanzhong — this is the momentum of Emperor Gao. Diwu Lun, by contrast, violated the bond between lord and subject and is no more than a Zhang Han or Zhao Gao! Though he gained the name of expelling Wang Mang, true scholars of reputation all disdain his conduct. Has elder cousin not seen? Zhang Zhan of the same commandery, who was originally Diwu Lun's recommender, shut his door and refused Diwu Lun's office of Grand Mentor."

"Second, in the old days when Chen Ping compared Xiang Yu and Emperor Gao, he said: Xiang Yu is courteous and respectful to others, caring toward people; scholars of integrity and propriety mostly flock to him. But when it comes to rewarding merit and granting titles and fiefs, he is stingy with these ranks and estates, so profit-minded men keep their distance."

"Emperor Gao, on the other hand, is arrogant and lacking in propriety; scholars of integrity do not come to him. But he is able to part generously with titles and stipend estates, so those who are slick and spineless, greedy for gain and shameless, mostly flock to Han."

"If someone could discard the shortcomings of both and combine the strengths of both, then All Under Heaven could be settled with a wave of the hand."

Ban Biao, drawing on the understanding he had gained in his twenties solely from reading books, said: "Now Liu Bosheng is not only brave, fierce, humane, and strong, much like Xiang Yu, but he also treats scholars with courtesy and respects the powerful families, and is even willing to distribute the palaces and parks of Shanglin to others — he has Emperor Gao's magnanimity. Diwu Lun, on the other hand, though he too tries to recruit scholars, to the various clans north of the Wei he is only willing to grant the paltry ranks of viscount and baron, which instead provokes their resentment."

"Everyone knows: whoever wins the prominent clans wins All Under Heaven. Diwu Lun's mind is all on distributing grain to the commoners, seeking to buy hearts with petty favors. The reason he gained power is that he had not yet met a true hero — and now that Liu Bosheng has come, the contrast makes it clear: Diwu has already lost!"

Ban Si nodded: "And the third?"

Ban Biao said: "The kingly mandate rests with the Liu; Han shall be revived. The common people sing and chant, longing for Han's virtue. Though Diwu Lun bestows offices and confers titles, his intent to set himself up as ruler is glaringly obvious. Yet this is going against the tide, recklessly coveting power and profit, overstepping his station to presume authority. Outwardly he does not measure his strength, inwardly he does not know his destiny — he will surely lose the patrimony that preserves his house and forfeit the years Heaven allotted him!"

After hearing this, Ban Si laughed: "If Shupi admires Liu Bosheng so much, why not, like Confucius's eighth-generation descendant, take up the ritual vessels and go join Chen Sheng and Wu Guang?"

"Though Liu Bosheng's odds of victory are greater, the Western Han in Longyou still stands at the side. When the two Han contend, victory and defeat remain unknown."

Ban Biao advised his elder cousin: "We have suffered the upheavals of two reigns, afflicted by the calamity of blocked roads. You Fufeng is caught right between three powers; once war breaks out again, the old houses will surely be destroyed and reduced to mounds of rubble — we cannot afford to linger even a little."

He was quite carefree about it: "Better to shake out my sleeves and depart, transcend all worldly traces and roam afar!"

Yet Ban Si, as the head of the family, was fated to be unable to be so untroubled. He hesitated a long while, then sighed: "Though my family is of imperial affinal kin, the previous generation had entanglements with the Xin dynasty that cannot be clearly explained. A restored Han may not necessarily treat us leniently. Now that the King of Wei has summoned me, and it is for the matter of collating books, I still must go. I have old ties with Yang Ziyun and Huan Junshi — Diwu Lun will likely not make things difficult for me."

"Shupi, if you wish to leave, then leave. Leave a seed for our family as well. If it truly turns out as you say, that Liu Bosheng and the Western Han gain power, and I die alongside the Wei, then the continuation of the Ban line will depend on you!"

…

The night before, Ban Si had drunk with Ban Biao deep into the night, strumming the zither and lamenting the hardships of the times. After retiring to his couch, he could not fall asleep for a long while. Having wrestled with the decision all night, the next day he still rose sluggishly, bathed, changed his clothes, perfumed himself, and prepared to go to Yueyang to accept an official post — his face still a picture of utter reluctance.

After dawdling for half the day, just as he was about to step out the door, he did not see Ban Biao come to bid him farewell. Greatly puzzled, he asked: "Where is Shupi?"

A servant said: "The Second Gentleman went out by carriage early this morning."

Ban Si was alarmed: "Where did he go?"

Even if this younger brother intended to roam the clouds and flee far from the war, he would not leave without a single word of farewell! So was it west, south, or north?

"He went east!"

Ban Si was stunned. Only then did a servant hurriedly bring him the letter Ban Biao had left behind. Ban Si read it and at once stamped his feet: "My foolish little brother!"

On the letter, written with bold, flowing strokes, it read: "As for Laozi, he cut off sagehood and cast aside wisdom, cultivated life and preserved his true nature — pure, empty, tranquil, and indifferent, returning to the natural, taking Creation alone as his teacher and companion, never enslaved by worldly affairs…"

"Elder Brother cultivates the learning of Laozi and Zhuangzi; it is unfitting for you to sniff at the bait of an arrogant lord. You should let your will roam free and unbound, fish with rod and line in a single ravine — then the ten thousand things cannot defile your purpose. Linger at ease upon a single hill — then the whole world cannot barter away your joy."

In short, in a single sentence: Elder Brother, you continue to be a carefree butterfly — I shall go in your place and be the sacrificial ox in the temple!

Ban Biao, already departed from Anling and traveling east, his broad sash stirring in the wind, rode carefree in his easy carriage. Turning back toward the direction of home, he cupped his hands in salute and spoke the words he had not left in the letter.

"Your younger brother's learning is no shallow thing either. I am willing to offer myself in my elder brother's stead, and enter the wolf's den at Yueyang."

"The virtue of Han succeeds upon Yao; it bears the talisman of a numinous mandate. The rise of a true king's line is not something that can be achieved by deceit and force. Though many Han now stand side by side, in truth, men throughout the realm each raise the banner of the Liu clan, gathering and answering one another, speaking with one voice, coinciding without prior conspiracy — this proves all the more that the Mandate of Heaven rests with Han!"

"I shall use these words to move Diwu Lun. Perhaps I can make him abandon his delusions and submit to Liu Bosheng or the Western Han, sparing the common people of Guanzhong from the calamity of blades and arms!"

…

The great families north of the Wei were the same as ever. No matter what benefits you offered or what bait you laid out, they still jumped back and forth among the three powers. The clever ones were like this, and the fools were no different.

And bearing the orders of Liu Bosheng, Lai Xi had at last reached the city of Chencang, where he beheld the awe-inspiring cavalry of the sons of good families from the six commanderies.

And also the old friend who ran out bare-legged to greet him joyfully.

Wei Ao's beard quivered with every stride as he ran. He had been taking a midday nap, and when he heard that his old acquaintance Lai Xi had arrived, he dashed out without even putting on his trousers, shouting with delight from afar:

"Lord Lai, why so late!"

…

PS: Tomorrow's update at 13:00.