Chapter 451: The Invisible Guest

Wei Ao, as the host, seemed calculating, but he was actually quite unqualified. In inviting guests for this meal, he had actually overlooked one table of guests.

As the "Inspector of Liang Province" personally appointed by Diwu Lun, Diba Jiao had endured countless perils and finally reached the seat of Jiuquan Commandery, the city of Lufu.

"His Majesty will surely love the name of Jiuquan's capital," Diba Jiao thought to himself. It was said that beneath this city, whose very name carried an air of celebration and good fortune, lay a golden spring whose water tasted like wine — hence the name Jiuquan, "Wine Spring."

Jiuquan Commandery was even more desolate than the Wuwei and Zhangye he had passed through. Most of the region was covered by Gobi wilderness; only the oases along a few rivers held human settlements and military farm colonies. This place truly sat at the farthest frontier, hanging alone at the edge of the sky, a critical chokepoint controlling the Hexi Corridor.

The most prominent structure in Lufu City was a drum tower, its four sides inscribed with phrases like "Eastward Greeting the Hua Peak," "Westward Reaching Yiwu," "Southward Gazing at Qilian," and "Northward Through the Desert." It was within this drum tower that the Governor of Jiuquan, Liang Tong, "received" Diba Jiao in audience.

"A frontier minister pays respects to the Envoy." Liang Tong's first impression on Diba Jiao was one of gauntness and competence. It was said that his ancestors had migrated several times, moving between Hedong, Beidi, and Maoling, until the final years of Emperor Ai and Emperor Ping of the Former Han. Having likely caught the scent of the coming chaos, they had actually moved from the prosperous Guanzhong region to the barren Wushi in Longyou.

Thus, Liang Tong could claim to be a "good family son of the Six Commanderies" or present himself as a wealthy young idler from the Five Tombs — depending on whether he submitted to Longyou or to the State of Wei.

The Liang Tong before him now adopted a "neutral" stance, neither servile nor overbearing. He had kept the Longyou army at bay outside his borders but had not completely torn off all pretense. At the same time, he had taken in Dou You, the Governor of Wuwei who had fled to him, in the name of old friendship, and he had not refused Diba Jiao's arrival either.

The Hexi Corridor was simply too long. After seizing Zhangye, the Longyou army had become a spent force; even Liu Long showed little interest in a distant campaign against Jiuquan. It was Wei Ao who had sent envoys to Jiuquan to persuade Liang Tong, saying: "Now heroes contend in the chase, and victory is undecided. Each should hold his own territory and ally with Long and Shu. At best, you could become one of the Six Warring States; at worst, you would be no less than Wei Tuo."

What this meant was that he did not demand Liang Tong bow his head and declare himself a subject. Even if Liang Tong carved out Jiuquan as his own fief, Wei Ao would recognize his independent status and could even petition the Gongsun Emperor to grant him the title of "King of Western Liang."

And what could the State of Wei offer him? Liang Tong was very keen to hear Diba Jiao's terms.

However, Diba Jiao was a gentleman of benevolence and integrity. His words contained very little of the cunning of political strategists; what he said was spoken entirely from a position of strength.

"Of the thirteen provinces of the realm, Wei already holds four."

Diba Jiao spoke to Liang Tong thus: "Sili and Jizhou are lands of wealth and plenty; Bingzhou and Youzhou have fierce, battle-hardened populations. The registered households number no less than ten million."

"And what of Liang Province? When I was at court, I once examined the maps and registers. I found that although Liang Province has eight commanderies, it has no more than two hundred sixty thousand households and a population of only one million thirty thousand — still less than a single large commandery in Guanzhong or Jizhou."

"And within it, Jiuquan Commandery, though it has nine counties, has a population of a mere eighteen thousand households, with just over seventy-six thousand people. Even if every able-bodied man in every household were conscripted, your army would number only a few thousand."

There was no helping it; Jiuquan's conditions were destined never to support a large population. Even when Emperor Wu of Han had forcibly relocated over a hundred thousand households to Hexi, after most of them finished building the Great Wall, their descendants, whenever possible, would still leave this barren, bitter land and flee back to Guanzhong.

Using this absolute disparity in strength, Diba Jiao shattered Liang Tong's notion of being "no less than Wei Tuo": "With the strength of Jiuquan alone, throwing your lot in with Long and Shu will do nothing to change the greater situation. If Wei Ao were to win by luck, he would surely send Longyou cavalry to seize Jiuquan afterward and install his own trusted man as Governor. In that case, Lord Liang, you would surely lose your grip on power. And once His Majesty descends the western slopes of Longban and sweeps through Tianshui and Longxi, he need only dispatch one Assistant General with ten thousand troops on a western campaign to gather all four Hexi commanderies into his bag. Would Jiuquan still have the strength left to resist?"

Although the two hundred jin of gold Diwu Lun had entrusted to him had been lost, the official seals for Dou You and Liang Tong had been carefully preserved. Now, he presented them to Liang Tong.

Liang Tong still hesitated somewhat. Because Longyou already controlled Zhangye and Wuwei, the moment he rejected Wei Ao's envoy, Liu Long would surely turn his forces west. If the Wei army could not fight past Longban, Jiuquan would be in grave danger.

And so Diba Jiao laid out the stakes clearly for Liang Tong: "I will not speak empty words. I will only quote two phrases His Majesty loves to use: 'sending charcoal in the snow' and 'adding flowers to brocade.'" These were indeed idioms Diwu Lun had single-handedly invented.

"If you, Governor, aid Wei against Long now, it will be sending warm charcoal into the snow. When the time comes, your deeds will be counted as righteous uprising. At best, you can safeguard the peace of Jiuquan's seventy thousand common folk; at the least, you can earn a Marquisate through merit, and your clan will flourish under Wei."

"But if you delay until the outcome in Long is decided, then it can only be counted as 'surrender' — adding flowers to brocade. In His Majesty's estimation, its weight will be greatly discounted!"

What finally made Liang Tong resolve his decision was the counsel of Dou You. As Dou Rong's younger brother, Dou You had already sent his sons to Chang'an and had no room left to maneuver. He simply said: "Zhongning, though there are several who have declared themselves emperor now, the mandate of the various Han lines is exhausted. Gongsun Ziyang merely dominates Yizhou as a regional hegemon. Only the Wei Emperor holds the broadest lands, the strongest armored troops, and the clearest commands. Observe how he employs his mandate and examine his handling of men and affairs — the Wei Emperor knows men well and assigns them fitting roles. Inspector Diba, with a mere two men, carved a path through Hexi; his ability is plain to see. Longyou's days are numbered. You can no longer afford to waver and vacillate!"

After careful, detailed comparison, in mid-June, upon learning that Diwu Lun had truly begun his campaign against Longyou, Liang Tong finally made his decision to align with the east!

What he delivered was not just Jiuquan, but also Dunhuang.

"Commandant Xin Tong of Dunhuang is on good terms with me. His allegiance hinges entirely on Jiuquan. I am willing to write a letter asking Xin Tong to bring his troops and join us."

Although Dunhuang was even poorer and smaller than Jiuquan, with the several counties under its jurisdiction totaling only thirty thousand people — scraping together three thousand soldiers would be its absolute limit — for Diba Jiao, it was still better than nothing.

"Excellent," Diba Jiao said. In his capacity as Inspector of Liang Province, he assumed overall command of the allied forces of Jiuquan and Dunhuang. Though they numbered only a few thousand, they could still exert some degree of containment on Wei Ao from the west. He now had the confidence to face his old friend Liu Long and decide the victor!

"I am willing, together with Jiuquan and Dunhuang, to contain Liu Long from the west and decide the outcome with him in Hexi!"

Diba Jiao had recovered his confidence from his days of flight and desperate escape: "Though my martial prowess may be no match for Liu Long's, yet..."

"The greater momentum lies with Wei. Victory shall surely belong to us!"

And on the side of Diwu Lun, who had orchestrated the simultaneous arrival of four batches of guests, there was also a clear understanding of Wei Ao's power.

"Pressed by our three-pronged advance, Longyou has dragged every available source of troops to the front lines. The fighting has now lasted over a month. Wei Ao's generals and commanders show signs of imminent collapse; his army's advance bears the marks of inevitable defeat."

Diwu Lun maintained intermittent contact with Wan Xiu's army through the narrow Wei River valley. Although he could not send a large force to support them, he was still able to maintain offensive pressure at Longban, tying down Wei Ao's main strength.

Because the terrain advantage of Long Mountain was an objective fact, Diwu Lun could not demand his officers achieve victory within a short time. Yet regarding this war, he also possessed a clear understanding.

"Longyou is a mere half a province. Once this becomes a protracted war, the first to be dragged to collapse will surely be Wei Ao!"

This judgment was further confirmed after the incessant, drizzling rains of June. Although the Wei army, attacking uphill, was utterly exhausted, their military supplies and equipment damp, their combat effectiveness sharply reduced, Diwu Lun estimated that the opposing side was likely even more worn down.

"What Liang Province relies upon is bows and arrows. Now the accumulated rain has lasted long; sinew and glue have all dissolved, the bows unusable. They are like birds with broken wings. Our men dwell in houses and eat cooked food; our blades and arms are sharp. If we do not seize this moment, what are we waiting for?"

And so Diwu Lun once again personally went to the Guanshan grasslands, raised the five-colored banners, beat the war drums himself, and directed the army in continuous assaults. For a time, Longyou was thrown into great alarm — their commander, Wei Ao, was still sitting in the far rear, waiting out the rain.

Although the Wei army still could not take Longban, the Long army, having gone so long without rear-area reinforcements or troop rotations, was also utterly exhausted. On top of that, Diwu Lun had his soldiers, between bouts of fighting, constantly shout propaganda at Longban, launching a psychological offensive.

"Our surprise troops have already broken through into the Longyou rear! Are your homelands still safe?"

"Has it been many days without reinforcements or rotations? Is the grain still sufficient? The Longyou heartland is in chaos! Wei Ao can barely fend for himself and can only leave you here to die!"

"Turn around and look! Longxi is already covered with Wei banners! Do not keep stubbornly resisting from your isolated position!"

The clamor buzzed like a swarm of flies, unsettling the minds of the Long soldiers. Their own generals hemmed and hawed, evasive and tight-lipped about matters in the rear, making the Long soldiers even more suspicious. Quite a few now believed the Wei army's words and were filled with anxiety over their families' safety. What heart did they have left to defend against the enemy at Longban?

Wan Xiu's surprise force, though tactically it had achieved little, had undoubtedly produced its intended strategic effect — something the devious Diwu Lun could exploit to the fullest.

The Longyou good family sons, originally as tough as forged steel, could not withstand this. Within a few days, their morale was already wavering. However, what truly shifted the course of the battle was the long-stalemated northern front.

"Though Geng Bozhao is incompetent, I cannot let him hold me back."

After capturing the city of Jingyang, Wu Han, still blocked by Xiao Pass, spoke thus to the officers of his independent division: "Though this Long Mountain is precipitous, our scouts have recently discovered that at the Fanxu crossing, infantry can cut a path through the hills and completely cross over, striking into the rear of Longyou."

"Should we inform General Geng?" a subordinate kindly reminded him. The man was, after all, the General of Chariots and Cavalry, the second-ranking figure in the Wei army.

"Inform him? What for? So he can tie my hands and steal my credit?" Wu Han's rift with Geng Yan ran deep. He was convinced that Geng Yan, holding three thousand cavalry, had deliberately refused to coordinate with him to preserve his own strength — exercising the Wei army's fine tradition of sabotaging friendly forces.

But what Wu Han did not know was that after Geng Yan took Chaona and moved his forces to Chaona Lake, letting the horses eat and drink their fill of grass and water, he had not been idle these days either. He too had his subordinates actively scouting paths and had also found a route that bypassed the perilous passes of Long Mountain.

"Long Mountain runs north-south, slanting toward the southeast. As long as we go far enough west, we can completely bypass it."

Unlike Wu Han, whose troops were mostly infantry, Geng Yan possessed the advantage of cavalry. The range of options open to him was far wider; he still intended to play the game of "grand encirclement, grand envelopment."

"The cavalry will follow the great river upstream, keeping far from Long Mountain, then take the Zuli River valley. Within five days, we can thrust straight into the heartland of Tianshui Commandery!"

"Should we inform Wu Han?" his subordinates asked. Geng Yan thought for a moment and then scoffed: "Let that inferior nag Wu Ziyi grind away at Xiao Pass and keep Niu Han well occupied for me!"

Though both harbored intentions of undermining their ally, whether it was a case of great minds thinking alike or mere coincidence, the location Geng and Wu planned to strike in a surprise attack after crossing or bypassing Long Mountain coincided perfectly with Wan Xiu's original plan!

"Lueyang. Strike straight at Wei Ao's army." Geng Yan stared at that spot on the map, his eyes burning with intensity.

And Wu Han, rubbing his fists and eager for battle, declared: "I shall take Wei Ao's head, to wash away the shame of being blocked at Xiao Pass!"

These two reckless guests, having gnawed on hard bones for half a day without tasting meat, were already ravenous with hunger. Unwilling to wait for the host to seek a neighbor's help in preparing the dishes, they were about to impatiently smash down the door and set upon the board!

……

PS: Sorry, I accidentally fell asleep last night.