Chapter 420: The Master of the Northern Road

Dai Commandery, the northeasternmost part of Bing Province, lies north of Changshan; the two commanderies are bounded by the towering Heng Mountains and the precipitous Changshan Pass (present-day Daoma Pass).

By mid-eleventh month, as a seasonable wet snow fell from the sky, the thousand-strong surprise force that Diwu Lun had dispatched on a last-minute micromanaging whim had already suffered a pincer attack at Changshan Pass from the Zhending garrison and the foul weather, lost several hundred men without achieving anything, and been forced to retreat to Dai County — were Jing Dan to learn of it, he would be sorely disappointed.

Fortunately, he could still count on allied troops.

Dai Commandery is bisected by the long, winding Sanggan River; its northern half is now occupied by the Hu, the Han, and the Xiongnu, its walled towns and farmland reduced to barbarian horse pastures. The Xiongnu Left Division, wintering here, often water their horses at the Sanggan and gaze covetously at the rich lands to the south.

But on the opposite bank a powerful cavalry force bars their southward advance. The several counties south of the Sanggan, a region of many hills and ridges, have now fallen into the hands of Geng Kuang, Governor of Shanggu. He has stationed five thousand infantry and cavalry at Dai County, guarding against further Xiongnu incursions while also taking in the Wei army's battered flanking force and supplying them with food and clothing.

Yet the letter from Jing Dan delivered by that flanking force left Governor Geng, a man in his prime, deeply troubled. In his youth he had been a scholar of the Laozi, but after ten years of military service and a hundred battles on the frontier, he had suffered many blade wounds, spear wounds, arrow wounds, sprains, and falls — and with every injury, another layer of his old bookishness had peeled away, until now he looked every inch the sturdy, brawny general.

After stroking his beard and pondering at length, Geng Kuang felt the decision was simply too hard to make, so he summoned his most capable deputy, Merit Assessor Kou Xun, and showed him Jing Dan's letter.

Kou Xun, courtesy name Ziyi, came from a prominent local clan of Shanggu. Back in the day, he and Jing Dan had been Geng Kuang's right and left hands, training the You Province shock cavalry and helping Shanggu stand independent amid the chaos, preserving peace in the border commandery.

Jing Dan's status was now far higher than before, but at the sight of that familiar handwriting, Kou Xun could not suppress a laugh. "It seems Sunqing has truly run into trouble."

"Exactly," Geng Kuang said, clasping his hands behind his back and gazing south. "Sunqing is attacking Jingxing — one of the nine great passes under Heaven!"

The Nine Passes are Dafen, Ming'e, Wuruan, Fangcheng, Hangu, Jingxing, Lingci, Yanmen, and Juyong. Among them, "Wuruan" is the collective name for the five defiles linking Dai Commandery with the Yan and Zhao lands to the south — and Changshan Pass, where the Wei flanking force met defeat, is one of them.

Geng Kuang said, "Sunqing is my former subordinate and old comrade. Though he is now honored as General of the Vanguard of Wei, our bond remains. And Jingxing is crucial — if he can take it, Sunqing can break out eastward, and Liu Ziyu and the Tongma will have no more defensible strongholds. It would also make it easy for my You Province shock cavalry to coordinate with him and sweep across northern Ji."

"But aiding him is no easy matter. To march south from Dai Commandery via Puyin or Feihu, I would still have to face the Zhending garrison. It is one of the Nine Passes as well — is it really any easier to attack than Jingxing?"

He would need to send at least several thousand men to have any chance of breaking through and advancing south. But Shanggu, however formidable, was still just a single border commandery: fifteen counties in all, with only a little over thirty thousand households and a hundred thousand-plus souls. Geng Kuang had pushed to the absolute limit, conscripting every able-bodied male, and had barely managed to raise ten thousand troops.

"There is another difficulty. In the autumn, the King of Wei issued an edict ordering me to do two things. First, to assist in defending Dai Commandery and guard against the Xiongnu — I have done so, leading troops here in person. Second, to attack the Yan region as the northern-route army and open up the Hebei theater — I have done that as well, sending a capable colonel with several thousand infantry and cavalry south. But at Zhuo Commandery they have been checked by the King of Guangyang and the rain and snow, and have yet to achieve any major result."

Although Geng Kuang had been forced by circumstances to submit to the Northern Han the year before, the question of whether to side with the Tongma or the State of Wei was never really a question for him at all.

As an official of the Xin Dynasty, he felt no fervent, blind loyalty to the Liu Han. As a man of Maoling, he and the King of Wei were practically fellow provincials. Moreover, Geng Kuang's sons, former subordinates, and clansmen all held posts in Wei as generals, Three Excellencies, and Nine Ministers — the Geng family had long since boarded Diwu Lun's ship.

So when the Northern Han planned to send a new governor to replace him, Geng Kuang did not hesitate to kill the envoy, declare Liu Ziyu a false emperor, and formally pledge allegiance to the King of Wei. As it happened, the Northern Han was in internal turmoil, and neither Liu Ziyu nor the King of Zhending could do anything about him; they could only let it be.

Now that the King of Wei had finally freed his hands to deal with Hebei, it was time for Shanggu to prove its loyalty to the new king. Geng Kuang was quite eager — it was only that his ambition outstripped his resources.

"Two hands cannot do three things at once."

Geng Kuang spread his hands in helplessness. The mobile troops he had left were few; he had originally planned, once the situation in southern Dai Commandery was stabilized, to go to Zhuo Commandery in person to oversee the campaign. If he now acceded to Jing Dan's request and sent these men to attack Puyin, it would delay the King of Wei's edict. How was he supposed to choose?

Geng Kuang sighed. "I fear I can only refuse Sunqing."

"Your humble officer, for his part, believes that even if Your Excellency went to Zhuo Commandery in person, fighting alone, you would not necessarily defeat the King of Guangyang's army of tens of thousands."

Kou Xun said, "Since the Changshan Pass garrison is quite large, it would be better to take the Feihu Road and strike at Zhongshan Commandery, then wheel west and sweep across northern Changshan. After that, we could either coordinate with Sunqing to annihilate the Han troops at Jingxing, or drive straight for Xiayang City, where Liu Ziyu is based!"

"Then Zhuo Commandery would remain deadlocked…"

Seeing Geng Kuang sink into hesitation, Kou Xun smiled. "My lord, the King of Wei hopes the northern-route army will open up the situation. Whether it does so from Zhongshan, Changshan, or Zhuo Commandery is of no great importance."

Geng Kuang still hesitated. "Bozhao is the General of Chariots and Cavalry of Wei at such a young age, at the very pinnacle of a subject's rank — only Ma Yuan can keep him in check. If I accede to Sunqing's request and delay the King of Wei's original plan, it will be seen as the Shanggu faction forming a clique and colluding. That would be bad for both the Geng clan and Sunqing."

Kou Xun, for his part, thought the King of Wei would not be so narrow-minded. "What if there were a plan that satisfies both sides — one that neither delays the Zhuo Commandery campaign nor fails to lend Sunqing a hand?"

Geng Kuang nodded. "Ziyi, speak."

"The You Province shock cavalry is not the sole possession of Shanggu."

Kou Xun bowed low. "Xun requests leave to go east and make an alliance with Yuyang. If I can persuade the Governor of Yuyang to send troops south in aid of Wei, with the two commanderies united in purpose and strength, the King of Guangyang will be no threat at all!"

…

In the end, Geng Kuang agreed to Kou Xun's proposal. He dispatched the last force at his disposal, sending it south from Dai Commandery to raid Zhongshan via the loosely defended Feihu Road.

Meanwhile, Kou Xun set out at once, traveling day and night toward Yuyang Commandery to the east.

Yuyang and Shanggu both belong to the border commanderies of You Province, where the people are fierce and martial. The current Governor of Yuyang, however, was not a holdover official of the Xin Dynasty, but a man from Handan sent by the King of Zhao after the Northern Han was established.

As the situation shifted, this man had begun to flip back and forth — one moment agreeing to change banners and join Wei, the next moment thinking that Liu Ziyu, with the Tongma's backing, was powerful enough that he could afford to wait and see a little longer.

And so it had dragged on until now, with Yuyang still making no clear gesture of aiding the King of Wei. Kou Xun intended to go and lay out the reasoning, to make the Governor of Yuyang stop dithering in confusion.

At the end of the eleventh month, amid heavy wind and snow, the party entered the territory of Yuyang Commandery.

Although the two commanderies, under pressure from the Xiongnu and Wuhuan, cooperated in mutual defense on the frontier, each still feared the other might try to swallow them up, and remained on guard. When they heard it was an envoy from Shanggu, and saw that he had brought only a small escort, the Yuyang troops let them pass.

Hebei was now a boiling cauldron of chaos. Shanggu's shock cavalry were at war with the Northern Han's King of Guangyang, who controlled Guangyang and Zhuo Commandery, but Yuyang still sat on the fence and watched. Within the commandery, however, military preparations were strict. On his journey east, Kou Xun saw many soldiers, taking advantage of a lull in the snow, patrolling the roads with halberds and spears.

"Merit Assessor Kou, can we really persuade the Governor of Yuyang?" Seeing that the several county towns they passed still flew the Han banner, his subordinates were full of worry.

"If we cannot…" Kou Xun turned his head to look at the several dozen Shanggu shock cavalrymen who had accompanied him.

"Then I shall have no choice but to emulate Fu Jiezi, who beheaded the King of Loulan!"

When they reached the county west of the Yuyang commandery seat, their way was barred. The Yuyang troops simply refused to let them through.

"A great snow has fallen from the sky; the road east is cut off." The commandery Bandit Officer stationed here with several hundred men was named Gai Yan — a fellow a full eight chi tall, with a great bow slung across his back that would likely take three hundred jin of strength to draw. The stalwart warrior eyed Kou Xun warily, and without allowing further explanation, waved them off.

"Then what business does the Officer have here?"

"Word is that Hu raiders have come south to cause trouble, so I am here on guard. You lot, go back at once — do not approach Yuyang City!"

Gai Yan's attitude was resolute, and Kou Xun could hardly explain his full purpose, so he could only lead his mounted escort on a detour south, planning to circle around via a county in southern Yuyang called Hunu.

Yet after reaching Hunu County, he sensed something amiss. As night was about to fall, Hunu County was likewise on high alert. Torches moved atop the walls and ramparts, their flames dancing in the wind. When the arrivals were spotted, snow-dusted soldiers in helmets rushed to redeploy; more torches appeared, and a body of troops came charging straight at them!

Kou Xun had only a few dozen men, while the opposing force numbered at least several hundred. He could not put up a fight, so he simply ordered his subordinates to stay calm. As the encircling troops slowly closed in, Kou Xun raised a torch before his face and declared his purpose.

"I am Kou Xun, Merit Assessor of Shanggu Commandery. I have come on business to pay my respects to the Governor of Yuyang."

"Shanggu? A subject of Lord Geng?"

The man in charge rode forward. His accent closely resembled that of the stalwart Gai Yan whom Kou Xun had encountered earlier — perhaps they were from the same hometown — but he was somewhat more refined in manner. He smiled and cupped his hands in salute. "Since you are a guest from afar, arriving early is no better than arriving at the right moment. You wish to see the Governor of Yuyang? Then follow me!"

It was only on the ride to Yuyang Commandery City that night that Kou Xun learned the man's name was Wang Liang, the County Magistrate of Hunu, and indeed a fellow villager of Gai Yan.

"Sir Kou ran into Gai Yan? I hope you will not take it to heart — that is simply his temperament."

Wang Liang showed little interest in other matters along the way; what he was most keen to hear about was Shanggu's campaign against the King of Guangyang. His speech was peppered with disparagement of Liu Ziyu and praise for the King of Wei, Diwu Lun, saying things like "he honors the worthy and humbles himself before the learned, and scholars flock to him in droves," and "the King of Wei is in the ascendant; the Tongma cannot stand against him alone."

All night long, no matter how Kou Xun probed, Wang Liang would not reveal what exactly had happened in Yuyang. Kou Xun, for his part, feared Wang Liang was trying to draw him out, and answered only in vague generalities.

By the time they entered Yuyang Commandery City, the sky was about to brighten. Only then could Kou Xun truly see, with stark clarity, what violent upheaval had taken place in Yuyang the day before.

On the roads within the commandery city, besides the piled snow, there were bloodstains and corpses crammed into every ditch and gully, lying every which way. The houses in the city were all shut tight; none of the common folk dared venture out.

A group of men were dragging away bodies and clearing up the remains. Every one of them greeted Wang Liang when they saw him, boasting of their own heroic deeds the day before.

The center of this mutiny was the commandery governor's residence, where the fighting was the most brutal. Seeing this scene, Kou Xun had a guess: "The Governor of Yuyang, I fear, has met a grim fate."

As he drew closer, he even spotted Gai Yan — the commandery Thief-Catching Clerk who had blocked the road west of Yuyang City yesterday to stop him from entering — drenched in blood from head to toe: other people's blood, now frozen into red ice-crust.

Gai Yan stood a full eight chi tall, yet at this moment he was bowing, bending at the waist, to a short, stocky man who stood with his back turned, a bit over seven chi in height.

And he was not the only one — Wang Liang also made Kou Xun wait, dismounting and stepping forward to bow with clasped hands. It was clear that this man was the leader of the mutiny, one who could command the wholehearted respect of stalwarts like Gai and Wang, which made Kou Xun intensely curious about him.

The man wore a loose set of armor, his back to Kou Xun, the blade at his hip still unsheathed and caked with thick bloodstains. He nodded repeatedly at Gai and Wang's words, and only after a moment did he rest a hand on his waist-sword and turn around.

He was a solid, robust middle-aged man, his bearing fierce and hawkish, yet his eyes lacked neither cunning nor a spark of intelligence. Only then did Kou Xun notice that tied to his waist was a severed human head, its eyes still open in death!

After Kou Xun stepped forward and paid his respects, the man sized him up and said, "You, sir, are the envoy from Shanggu, here to see the Governor of Yuyang?"

Kou Xun acknowledged it, but the man replied, "Then is it the former Governor you wish to see, or the present Governor?"

Without waiting for Kou Xun's answer, he slapped the head at his waist and declared, "The former Governor is right here. Because he failed to grasp the greater situation and refused to heed our proposal to send troops in aid of Wei, insisting instead on following Liu Ziyu — and ignored repeated remonstrations — he has been executed by us in a mutiny of remonstrance!"

It was laughable, really — Kou Xun had thought to emulate Fu Jiezi beheading the King of Loulan, never imagining that someone inside Yuyang would beat him to it, staging a coup from below!

But as he looked at the "Wei" banner just raised atop the city wall — though it had been stitched together overnight — to Kou Xun, this was nothing short of glad tidings. He simply cupped his hands and said, "Magnificent. Then how should I address the present Governor standing before me?"

The man laughed. "I am a man of Nanyang, formerly the County Magistrate of Anle in Yuyang — Wu Han."

"It is fortuitous that you have arrived, Lord Kou. I hope you will submit a memorial on my behalf to the King of Wei: Wu Han has already executed the Han Governor. With the situation so urgent, there was no time to await an appointment from the King of Wei, so I can only provisionally declare myself Governor of Wei. I am willing to dispatch the Yuyang shock cavalry south at once, to aid Wei in destroying Liu!"

……

PS: Something came up; updates at 18:00 and 23:00. The leave-of-absence notice I posted this morning got stuck in the Qidian app — I only just realized it now, and it still won't post. Sorry about that.