Chapter 342: A Dog Guarding the Door

As the army advanced, leaving Huaili and traveling over a hundred li west, they reached Wugong County.

The location of Wugong County in the Han Dynasty was not the same as Wugong in Shaanxi in later ages; it lay south of the Wei River and was a key town in Youfufeng. Gazing south, one could see, a hundred li away, Mount Taibai, the highest peak of the Qinling range. It was the twelfth month, and snow capped the summit; mist and snow blocked the paths, and few people ventured there.

Diwu Lun looked that way and raised his whip. "Some say that in the fifth month, Liu Zijun performed a ritual and set up an array there, beseeching Taiyi to send heavenly punishment down upon Wang Mang?"

Wang Long, who accompanied the army, answered, "Indeed. On the eve of Wang Mang's downfall, there truly was a Taibai Star transiting the heavens..."

That was what led Wang Mang to lead his officials and Imperial Academy students in wailing to heaven, and the Northern Army by the Ba River, terrified by this strange phenomenon, collapsed without a fight. It also caused many under Diwu Lun's command to regard the events of that day as an auspicious omen.

"Wenshan, do you believe it?"

Wang Long shook his head. "Though that celestial sign was connected to Wang Mang's destruction, I fear it had nothing to do with Liu Xin. He was skilled at observing the heavens and predicted the events of that night, then spread the news, deliberately making it so."

If old Liu Xin truly had that ability, why didn't he just call down another heavenly thunderbolt to strike the King of Wei dead?

As they spoke, Wugong County town came into view. Over the past month, this place had served as the base for the Longyou army's eastward advance and was now the forward position of the Wei army. While still far from the town, they could see smoke and fire rising from within; it was said that before Wei Ao withdrew, he had ordered the granaries burned...

Zhang Zong of the vanguard returned to report: "Your Majesty, Wei Ao ordered the granaries burned, but was stopped by a local magnate, Su Hui. The fire is now extinguished, and a little less than half the grain remains."

"Su Hui? Didn't he throw in his lot with Wei Ao and even get appointed Elder of Youfufeng?"

This surprised Diwu Lun. His good name now spread far and wide among the common folk, but among the "hundred surnames" — the powerful clans — his reputation was infamous for a thousand li!

By all logic, the powerful families south of the Wei should now fear him like a tiger and all be fleeing. This Su Hui had only days ago welcomed the Wei clan with vessels of drink, clung to Wei Ao's horse's leg, and begged him not to abandon the Guanzhong magnates. He should be a target for liquidation by the King of Wei. Why had he changed his tune? Could he still be harboring false hopes?

And so Diwu Lun, before the city, met Su Hui among the ranks of those prostrating themselves and said with a smile, "Sir Su, why did you not leave with Wei Jimeng?"

Su Hui was also acting out of helplessness. Wei Ao had loudly proclaimed he would champion the powerful families, yet when it came to fleeing, he was faster than anyone, greatly disappointing Su Hui. His family had lived in Wugong for generations and could not bear to leave, so he decided to risk this gamble.

"The tomb and ancestral shrine of my forefather, the Right Assistant and Director of Dependent States, Sir Su, are here. I dare not abandon them."

This sentence made the stakes clear: I am a descendant of Su Wu, with an excellent local reputation — you cannot kill me!

But that alone was surely not enough. After all, from the rumors, the King of Wei was a vicious and ruthless man, by no means a kind soul. Su Hui kowtowed again: "I was previously deluded by Wei Ao, until recently I had a dream."

"In the dream, a divine being told me: The King of Wei raises a righteous army to punish the tyrant Mang. On the twenty-eighth day of the fifth month this year, the Taibai Star transited the heavens. Your town lies beneath Taibai Peak and should correspond to this auspicious sign!"

"When I awoke in fright, I had men search near a well I dimly recalled from the dream, and they found a faint white glow emanating from the well's mouth. I had a man lowered by rope, and he found a white stone!"

Diwu Lun's generals, ministers, and officers looked at one another. Presenting auspicious omens — this was an old trick of the Wugong people. Back in the day, Wang Mang had sent men here to fabricate the White Stone of Wugong, one of the twelve divine artifacts used to establish the Xin Dynasty.

Hearing this, Diwu Lun could not help but laugh. He looked at Su Hui. "The well where you found the white stone — is it the same one from which Wang Mang obtained the White Stone of Wugong back then?"

What an incredible divine well! It could mass-produce auspicious omens, like a hen laying an egg every few days?

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Su Hui was somewhat embarrassed. "Not the same well — it was adjacent."

He hastily had the obtained white stone presented. Fearing that some villain might use the stone to strike the King of Wei's head in an assassination attempt, guards passed it hand to hand. The stone was clearly artificially carved, ground into a five-edged, five-pointed shape, and upon it were several characters written in cinnabar...

"The Taibai Star transits the heavens, signaling a change under heaven, the people change their king. King of Wei, Lun, shall be the White Emperor!"

Diwu Lun understood. This was Su Hui and the Wugong people's way of self-preservation. He could not help but laugh in spite of himself. Truly, this was the worst-hit area for auspicious omens and prophetic texts under Wang Mang; having tasted the benefits, they were addicted!

Su Hui continued on his own: "The High Ancestor once cut down a white serpent. The white serpent was the son of the White Emperor; Liu Bang was the son of the Red Emperor. Now, for Your Majesty to take the Red Emperor's realm as the White Emperor, repaying the grudge of that single sword-stroke of old and extinguishing the many Han — it is only right and proper!"

Having spoken, he bowed his head low. The assembled ministers, however, looked at him with unfriendly eyes, thinking to themselves: "The King has explicitly said to 'delay claiming the imperial title,' so recently no one has urged him further. If there is to be an urging to ascend, does it fall to an old man like you?"

Diwu Lun held the white stone and sighed with emotion. "This county was originally named after the water — Wugong. In the fifth year of Yuanshi under the Xin Mang, it was made the private domain of the Duke Who Pacifies the Han and renamed Hanguang Hamlet."

"When Wang Mang usurped the Han, it was renamed Xinguang Hamlet."

"Today, do you all wish to rename it Weiguang Hamlet as well?"

He shook his head. "There is no need to change it. Continue using the old name."

As he spoke, Diwu Lun casually handed the artificially made white stone to Zhang Yu beside him, telling him to throw it back into that well. "Lun's virtue is shallow and meager. This stone should first be returned to that 'heavenly messenger'!"

He did not reject superstition, but such a crude auspicious omen and prophetic text — Diwu Lun felt it beneath his dignity to use. And the Wugong people's plan to use one trick to eat their fill forever, to once again swindle a tax exemption and amnesty, also came to nothing.

As for Su Hui and other turncoats, seeing that he had succeeded in making Diwu Lun laugh this time, Diwu Lun merely had them placed under control; dealing with them could wait until after the war.

Just as Diwu Lun and Wan Xiu's main army was entering Wugong, however, they received a piece of bad news from the north.

"The Seventh General pursued Wei Cui, but north of Mount Qi, he was ambushed by his cavalry escort and lost several hundred men. Wei Cui withdrew to Chencang and joined forces with Wei Ao."

"Uncle is unharmed — your nephew's heart is at ease now!"

In Chencang City in Youfufeng, watching his old uncle, beard and hair flecked with snow, stride toward him with the vigor of flight, Wei Ao actually felt a twinge of disappointment in his heart.

Wei Cui was also annoyed with his indecisive nephew. "Jimeng, tell me — how did our perfectly secure rear area come under attack by the Wei army?"

He believed Wei Ao had dropped the ball and dragged him down. Learning that the force that took Qian County numbered only seven hundred, Wei Cui, a lifelong gallant, was even more furious: "A mere seven hundred men, even if they took a county town, could not block the road. Why recall both armies! Just a few more days, and Liu Long and I could have taken several counties in Beidi and joined forces to march south!"

"Uncle."

Before his elder, Wei Ao did not resemble a Grand General but rather a timid young wife. He explained his caution with a sense of grievance: "Your nephew believes this is Diwu Lun's strategy — using a detached force to cut our rear line, then launching a counterattack to annihilate our entire army east of Long..."

"Annihilate?" Wei Cui burst into loud laughter. "Such big talk. Did he ask this old man first?"

With that, he boasted to his nephew of his battle achievements north of Mount Qi. He had left behind a company of elite cavalry from respectable families, which successfully dealt heavy losses to the overly aggressive Seventh Biao Division of the Wei army, greatly dampening Wei army morale.

"Uncle is over sixty, yet still possesses the valor of a match for ten thousand — truly a hero of the Six Commanderies, no less than the Flying General of old." Wei Ao flattered his old uncle, who had worshipped Li Guang since childhood, then haltingly brought up his own plan.

"For now, the best course is to take advantage of Diwu Lun being delayed for several days by the powerful families of Shanglin, and his northern detached force being temporarily checked, so our army can calmly withdraw westward, back to Longyou via the Long Pass Road or the Wei River Gorge Road..."

"Withdraw? Why withdraw?" Wei Cui slammed the table and rose. "This campaign is already half-won! Youfufeng has already submitted to the Wei clan, and the powerful families deeply fear Diwu Lun and are willing to contribute troops and grain to help. How can we abandon it? Moreover, did that Mister Fang not say: to hold Long, one must hold Yong!"

The essence of Youfufeng lay in the area around Chencang and Yong County. This region had historically nurtured the Zhou and Qin peoples. The Zhou gained the realm from the eight hundred li below Mount Qi, and the Qin state also established its capital at Yong, becoming a regional hegemon in the Spring and Autumn period.

Back when Duke Xiang of Qin and others struggled bitterly to fight eastward from Longyou, what were they after? West of Mount Long, the land was half-farming, half-pastoral, sparsely populated, and barren. The households of all six commanderies combined were fewer than those of Youfufeng alone!

After arriving in Youfufeng and seeing its fertile soil, grain, and population — all things Longyou most lacked — how could Wei Cui bear to leave easily?

With Youfufeng in hand, they still had a chance to contend for the realm. But if they lost it...

That so-called "Western Han" would be a great laughingstock confined to Longyou, never again able to march east. Wei Cui's dream of "the sons of the Six Commanderies ruling the world" would be stillborn.

Yet in Wei Ao's view, shrinking back to their homeland was not so bad. Without the strength, one should not delude oneself about unifying the realm. He felt this chaotic age would likely resemble the Warring States period, fractured and divided, lasting for several generations. For him, a position as a feudal lord west of Mount Long was enough.

But Wei Ao dared not say this openly. He only said, "It is true that to hold Long, one must hold Yong, but Yong has no defensible terrain."

Youfufeng and the Guanzhong Plain were a single whole. Mount Qi was merely a corner north of the Wei and could not obstruct movement; Diwu Lun could strike in at any time.

Wei Cui, however, held the opposite opinion. "The lack of mountain and river barriers is a good thing. Only then can the cavalry of the Six Longyou Commanderies deploy freely east of Chencang to meet the enemy."

Uncle and nephew, neither could convince the other. Just then, a messenger from Longyou arrived and informed them of a major event!

"Late last month, taking advantage of the withered mountain forests, the King of Shu, Gongsun Shu, dispatched over ten thousand troops out of Boshui Pass to strike Wudu Commandery. By the time the letter was sent early this month, the Governor of Wudu had already surrendered to Shu!"

Although no one knows where Master Feng Yan is trapped now, the "Wei-Shu Alliance" he was ordered to stir up has at least had some effect. After learning that Western Han and the State of Wei had gone to war, Gongsun Shu waited half a month before sending out his troops.

Wudu Commandery is too remote. It was a place the Wei clan had subdued merely by proclamation, and they never paid it much attention. Longyou did not even have spare troops to station there for defense. Now, struck by the Shu army, it surrendered at the mere rumor of their approach — in any case, to the local Di and Qiang chieftains, what difference does it make whether these Central Plains kings and lords call themselves Han, Shu, or Wei?

The Wei uncle and nephew were stunned by this dire news. Wei Ao murmured, "Though Wudu is secluded on the western frontier, it borders the Qiang and Rong, controls the strategic pass of Mount Qi, links the routes between Long and Shu, and is defended by perilous mountains and rivers — it is the path for a northern campaign."

He grew even more convinced of his own judgment: "From Geng Boyao's surprise raid to Gongsun Shu's strike on Wudu — all of this is indeed within Diwu Lun's scheme, aiming to settle everything in a single campaign!"

They had thought that, relying on Fang Wang to act as a go-between, they could make Diwu Lun face enemies on two fronts. They never imagined that the ones being caught in a pincer attack would be themselves!

"Uncle!"

Wei Ao dismissed everyone else. This dignified Grand Marshal and Grand General actually bowed deeply to Wei Cui with clasped hands and used a pleading tone: "Uncle, although Gongsun Shu is blocked by the peril of Mount Qi and will find it hard to break through in winter, if we are tied down by Diwu Lun for long in Youfufeng, I fear the Shu army will continue its northern campaign once spring begins. The Longyou army has been brought out by us in its entirety; our home is empty. We should withdraw after all!"

"You dog who only knows how to guard the house — no ambition!"

Wei Cui was so furious he slapped Wei Ao across the face. The blow was extremely heavy, and a red mark immediately surfaced on Wei Ao's face. He was stunned.

Wei Cui was stunned too. Only after striking him did he feel he had gone too far. He simply helped Wei Ao up and said with earnest gravity, "Jimeng, we have led the sons of the six commanderies eastward. If we retreat in such panic, will we not lose all our prestige? Become a laughingstock? Once people's hearts scatter, the alliance of sixteen families will fall apart!"

The foundation of this Western Han court was not the child Liu Ying they propped up, but the common interests of the Longyou magnates.

"Your nephew understands Uncle's painstaking concern."

Wei Ao seemed to have come to a sudden realization, putting on an obedient, repentant look. "But now, with everyone in Longyou in a state of panic, someone must be there to steady them. Why not let Uncle return to hold the fort, and let your nephew stay to deal with Diwu Lun…"

"If anyone goes back, you go back. This old man is not going back!"

Was this not a joke? His nephew excelled in classical studies — what did he know about fighting wars?

"Jimeng, you take a few thousand men and return west. Leave me twenty thousand troops. Youfufeng — leave it to this old man to defend!"

Wei Cui had stepped right into Wei Ao's trap. This was exactly what Wei Ao had been waiting for. He immediately responded, "Aye! Once your nephew returns and settles people's hearts, I will immediately conscript able-bodied youths and Qiang and Hu cavalry to come to Uncle's aid!"

Only after Wei Ao left did he gently press his hand to his face, red and stinging from his uncle's iron palm, and thought to himself, "If this battle is won, the worst Diwu Lun can do is retreat to Chang'an. But if it is lost, the Wei clan is in grave danger."

That slap from the old man had, in fact, thoroughly woken Wei Ao up!

"Better to be a dog guarding the house than a dog that has lost its home!"