Chapter 392: Bearing Rings in the Beak

"So this is the old Hangu Pass from the Qin era?"

In the sweltering heat of late June, Zheng Tong wiped the sweat from his head and looked up at this godforsaken place.

After receiving their orders from the King of Wei, they had marched east from Tong Pass several days ago, traversed a narrow mountain trail, and arrived at a tableland even more magnificent than the Tong Plateau. This tableland was called the "Dense Mulberry Plateau" — the word "dense" perfectly captured the sight of trees packed thickly across its surface! Even small scouting parties struggled to cross it, let alone a vast army hauling baggage and fodder!

A single fissure cutting through this Dense Mulberry Plateau formed the western mouth of Hangu — comparable to the "Yellow Lane Defile" below Tong Pass. This trail stretched fifteen kilometers, sheer cliffs rising on both sides, its width no more than a few paces. Truly, "chariots could not run side by side, horses could not ride abreast." As the local folk put it in their plain way: "A god rubbing a single mud pellet off his body could block the whole road."

Thinking of this, Zheng Tong couldn't help reaching into his collar and rubbing. Wearing armor in summer was just miserable.

Climbing to a high point, through the sun rising in the east, he could faintly make out the eastern mouth of Hangu at the far end of the narrow passage — that was the old Hangu Pass.

But this once-mighty stronghold could now only watch helplessly as the Wei army detoured north, swaggering openly along a broad road beside the Yellow River's mudflats.

Zheng Tong recalled that when the King of Wei held literacy classes in the palace, he had read aloud from an essay that said something like: "A host of a million troops hammered at the pass to attack Qin. The men of Qin opened the pass and extended their lines to meet the foe, yet the armies of the nine states hesitated and dared not advance."

At the time, Zheng Tong had been terribly curious about just how formidable Hangu really was. Now he could only find it laughable: "The six states were truly stupid. With this big road available, why insist on battering themselves against the pass?"

North of Hongnong city, by the river, there was also a ferry crossing. Dou Rong, Governor of Hedong, had sent boats over from the "Great Yu Crossing" to the north to transport grain and supplies, so the soldiers could eat a hot meal instead of chewing parched flour day after day.

Hearing Zheng Tong mock the ancients for their foolishness, Dou Rong shook his head. "Over two hundred years, high banks have become valleys, and deep valleys have become hills. When the six states attacked Qin, the river still flowed right along the tableland and had not yet receded to expose these mudflats."

Before coming, Dou Rong had discussed this very matter with the King of Wei during a military council. Dou Rong believed the river had simply been larger in the Qin era and was shallower now.

Diwu Lun, however, had said at the time: "It is more than that. In truth, all the rivers under heaven, drawn by some immense force, veer to the right, scouring the right bank more heavily. Over centuries, the high banks are thus worn down into flat shoals. Once the river level drops even slightly, paths appear where none existed before."

After leaving Anyi, Dou Rong had observed the rivers along his route, and it seemed the right banks were indeed more heavily scoured. Recalling Diwu Lun's eerily accurate predictions before the Battle of Kunyang, he felt even more certain that the King of Wei was heaven-sent.

"Since the natural barrier is gone, the pass itself becomes useless. That is why, in the time of Emperor Wu of Han, the old Hangu Pass was abandoned and relocated."

Zheng Tong suddenly understood. As they crossed the Hongnong River, he gazed again at Hangu Pass. He could imagine that, when no smooth road existed, the Hongnong River had served as Hangu's moat. "If that was truly the case, then this Hangu was indeed more formidable and harder to assault than Yao Pass."

Since there was no need to force Hangu, Hongnong city lay exposed to a combined assault by water and land. Over the past year, the Greenwood commanders stationed here had changed three times: first was Wang Chang, who was dismissed after his attack on the Tong Plateau failed because he had aided Liu Bosheng; next was Li Yi, but he found this a wretched place with nothing but mountains, and within a few months had schemed his way back to Nanyang; now it was the Gengshi regime's "Grand General of the Valiant Cavalry," Song Tiao, who, merely because he was an old friend of Liu Xuan, had been gratuitously enfeoffed as King of Yingyin, commanding over ten thousand troops to garrison Hongnong and the Xiao-Hangu region.

"Such dogs, swine, rats, and sparrows — without an inch of merit, yet they dare call themselves kings, dare claim the title Grand General of the Valiant Cavalry?" Zheng Tong had by now sorted out the difference between substantive general titles and miscellaneous ones, and he was thoroughly disgusted.

Regrettably, he never even got the chance to teach the King of Yingyin a lesson. Upon hearing that the Wei army was advancing east, the man knew he could not hold the city and had already abandoned it, fleeing eastward.

"One can only hope General Zhang Zong can intercept him at Shan County."

Dou Rong asked Zheng Tong to array the troops before Hongnong city, as imposing and martial as possible. He intended to accept the surrender of Hongnong's elders on behalf of the King of Wei.

And when the city gates opened, the one who came forward as the people's representative to offer the soil was an old man with graying temples, in his fifties. Dou Rong stepped forward with a smile and helped him rise. "Elder Yang, we meet again!"

This man was named Yang Bao. He was the foremost prominent figure of the region, the head of the Hongnong Yang clan.

This Yang Bao was a great Confucian scholar of Hongnong, a transmitter of the Ouyang Shangshu tradition. He had been quite renowned during the reigns of Emperors Ai and Ping of Han. Wang Mang had once summoned him to court to serve as an Erudite, but Yang Bao, still loyal to the House of Han at the time, fled into hiding, roaming the realm and teaching for a living, amassing a considerable number of disciples.

At the end of the Xin era, seeing that the Xin was on its last legs, Yang Bao had slipped back to his hometown. He had also encountered Dou Rong, who, after the great defeat at Kunyang, was leading a few thousand broken troops back to Guanzhong to join Diwu Lun, and had entertained them in Hongnong city.

As Dou Rong took Yang Bao by the hand and entered the city, he brought up another amusing anecdote about the man.

"The locals say that when Elder Yang was nine years old, he saw a great owl in the mountains wound a yellow sparrow, which was then surrounded by a swarm of ants. Elder Yang's heart was moved to pity, and he rescued the injured yellow sparrow and set it free."

"Afterward, the yellow sparrow actually came to the Yang residence carrying four white rings in its beak and placed them on the steps. Everyone in Hongnong knows this story. They all say the yellow sparrow was a messenger of the Queen Mother of the West, and that because Elder Yang's benevolence saved it, his descendants would surely be pure and incorruptible, rising to the Three Ducal Ministers, just like those rings!"

It was true that Yang Bao had rescued a yellow sparrow as a child, and later, after dwelling on it by day and dreaming of the bird at night, he had told his father about it. The next morning, four jade rings had appeared in the courtyard, and his father had sworn up and down that the yellow sparrow had brought them…

The story spread far and wide. When Yang Bao grew older and was recommended as Filial and Incorrupt, this legend contributed greatly. His skill at cultivating reputation and prestige far outstripped that of a certain fellow who made a show of yielding pears.

Dou Rong, however, cared little whether the story was true or false. He only drew a parallel: "Hongnong has its tale of bearing rings in the beak, and my Hedong, in ancient times, had the story of knotting grass to repay a kindness. Dou Rong once received Elder Yang's benevolence. A year ago, without Elder Yang's aid, I could never have entered Hangu, much less stood where I am today. How dare I not knot grass and bear rings in my beak to repay you?"

How could Yang Bao dare accept this? He hurriedly bowed in return. "Governor Dou is the savior of the Yang clan. The knotting of grass and bearing of rings — that is something Yang Bao must do."

A year ago, Yang Bao had still cherished the Han dynasty in his heart, serving as the Greenwood-Han "Governor of Hongnong" and assisting Wang Chang in sending forth troops. But with Liu Bosheng's great defeat and Wang Chang's fall from power, Yang Bao had also discerned that the Greenwood had no future. He began to establish ties with Dou Rong, just across the river. And so, in the third month, having received word from Dou Rong, he had even dispatched disciples to travel secretly to Chang'an to sit the civil service examinations, where they placed on the second-rank list.

After that, Yang Bao grew even more active in communicating with Dou Rong, facilitating the change of banners, which led to today's bloodless capture of Hongnong city.

This was also why Diwu Lun had placed Dou Rong in overall command of this campaign: the Xiao-Hangu line was a narrow corridor, easily blocked by a single point during an advance — not a good place for arbitrary purges. The powerful local clans along the route had to be won over one by one, and that task fell to Dou Rong, the Duke of Zhou.

Dou Rong and Yang Bao each deferred to the other, insisting the other had shown them kindness, until at last they reached a consensus.

"Elder Yang, you and I are both yellow sparrows."

"And the Xin is the great owl."

"The Greenwood is the little ants."

"We have all been saved by the King of Wei, and we too must knot grass and bear rings in our beaks to repay him!"

Standing atop the walls of Hongnong, watching the Wei army pass through smoothly and the boats continue eastward, Dou Rong spoke with emotion.

"Elder Yang, what is past does not matter. The King of Wei has said that all former deeds are forgiven. Only remember this: where the King of Wei comes, the azure heavens come. Where the King of Wei comes, Hongnong finds peace!"

…

He had said he wanted to be a Cao Shen, but Dou Rong was still drifting further and further down the path of a Xiao He. Even he himself could not say how much of his performance in Hongnong was genuine and how much was pretense.

After passing Hongnong, Dou Rong continued by water. The boats sailed downstream, and after several hours, the river channel narrowed. Strangely, however, the current grew slower.

This meant that the Mao Ford — where the state of Jin had once "feigned a campaign against Yu to destroy Guo" — was drawing near.

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By all logic, following the river downstream, one could sail all the way to Luoyang. But after passing Mao Ford, the boats had to slow down immediately, because ahead lay a famous natural barrier: the Pillar Mountain, left behind from when Great Yu tamed the waters!

That Pillar Mountain stood in the middle of the great river, at the Sanmen Gorge, where reefs and rocks clustered thickly, divided into the Ghost Gate, the Spirit Gate, and the Man Gate. The channels between the reefs and cliffs were narrow, the current swift and fierce. Boats could easily crash headlong into them, so they had to put in at the ferry crossing at Shan County (Sanmenxia city) on the southern bank.

Shan County was a rare stretch of relatively flat ground within the Xiao-Hangu valley. Dou Rong knew that in ancient times, the Zhou dynasty had used this place to divide the realm, with the Duke of Shao governing west of Shan and the Duke of Zhou governing east of Shan. Truly, it was the elbow and armpit of the passes and rivers, the choke point commanding the four directions — whoever seized it first grew strong, whoever arrived later met defeat.

The Marquis of Yangquan, Zhang Zong, had crossed the river southward several days ago to occupy this place. Now Dou Rong had also brought over the grain and fodder from Hedong, enough supplies to sustain the great army until they reached the new Hangu Pass.

Speaking of the relocation of Hangu Pass, it was said to be connected to the Hongnong Yang clan. An ancestor of the Yang family, Yang Pu, had served Emperor Wu of Han as a "Tower-Ship General," campaigning against Nanyue and attacking Korea. Because his home was in Hongnong city, which was considered "beyond the pass" and not counted among the capital region's registered households, he deeply regarded it as a disgrace. He then used the argument that the old Hangu Pass was useless and submitted a memorial to Emperor Wu of Han, proposing that Hangu be moved eastward. Emperor Wu, also wishing to expand the scope of "Guanzhong" and central authority, approved the memorial, relocating Hangu Pass to Xin'an County, over a hundred li east of Shan County.

Now the Greenwood's King of Yingyin had retreated all the way to this new Hangu Pass, relying on Luoyang at his back for support.

"Lord Dou, this humble officer believes there is no need to assault the new Hangu Pass."

Though Zhang Zong had risen in the world, he still referred to himself as a humble officer. He would never forget that if Dou Rong had not given him a chance, the Hedong faction, suppressed by the King of Wei's inner circle, would have had no way to stand out. Now the Hedong officers all regarded Dou Rong as their factional leader. Zhang Zong had conceived a bold idea and hoped to gain Dou Rong's support.

"When this humble officer first came from Nanyang to Hedong as a live-in son-in-law, I passed through Luoyang first, then went north via Shan County, crossing the Xiao Mountains. But the route I took was not the Northern Xiao Road, where the new Hangu Pass lies."

Zhang Zong pointed his hand to the southern side of the layered, jagged peaks of the Xiao Mountains on the map. "It was the Southern Xiao Road!"

Dou Rong understood Zhang Zong's meaning. Taking the Southern Xiao Road would allow them to bypass the new Hangu Pass, heavily guarded by Greenwood troops.

But both of these roads — he had traveled them himself back then, when he followed the Xin army to Kunyang, and when he retreated in defeat from Kunyang.

"Gentlemen, generals, comparing these two routes, the Southern Xiao Road largely follows the Luo River. Now, in the rainy season, the river has swollen and is difficult to traverse."

Dou Rong glanced outside. The early autumn rains fell without pause, flooding the entire Xiao–Han valley as if it were brimming with deluge, severely slowing the army's march. As the man coordinating from the center, he had to weigh every factor.

"The Northern Xiao Road may be rougher, with more rocks and poorer going, but its advantage is that the surface is mostly stone, so the rain affects it less. Taking that route will be far more reliable."

For this reason, in history the Northern Xiao Road was often the first choice for large armies: a day's march east lies Mianchi County, where the famous Mianchi Meeting once took place; and at Xin'an, also on the Northern Xiao Road, Xiang Yu buried alive two hundred thousand surrendered Qin troops. The new Hangu Pass was built there too, because very few people ever traveled the Southern Xiao Road.

"Precisely because it is hard going, the enemy will never expect it!"

Zhang Zong likewise regarded Dou Rong as his patron, a fellow man of the Hedong faction, and only for that reason was he willing to discuss it with him.

"If this campaign succeeds, Lord Dou can advance a step further, and I too can be made a general!"

Once that thought had surfaced, it could never be taken back. Zhang Zong could not suppress the impulse in his heart and laid bare his bold plan.

"The King of Wei only wants us to take everything west of the new Hangu Pass by the seventh month, to secure the natural defenses of the mountains and rivers for a future advance. But I believe that is far too cautious."

"Right now, the Greenwood main force has shifted south, and morale is low. Not only can Hongnong not be held — even Henan is empty! As long as Lord Dou and General Zheng make a show of force against the new Hangu Pass and draw the Greenwood main army into defending it, I am willing to take three thousand crack troops, travel the Southern Xiao Road, cross mountains and ford rivers, break through Yanling Pass, take Yiyang, descend on Yique, and then…"

"Strike straight at Luoyang!"

……

PS: The map will be posted after this.