Chapter 602: No Go

Deng Yu had been unable to take part in the great battle of Xu-Huai, because months earlier Liu Xiu had dispatched him to White Emperor City to pay a formal call on Gongsun Shu.

According to their earliest pact, once the two sides had jointly taken Nan Commandery, Chengjia would hand over the major city of Jiangling, along with places like Xiangyang, to Liu Xiu, while Liu Xiu would in turn exchange the Changsha and other commanderies in southern Jing.

But things had not gone as hoped. In the battle for Jing-Xiang, the Han army had failed on the verge of success and even lost a great general; their battle lines had fallen back to the shores of Cloud Dream Marsh, and they had barely managed to hold on to Jiangxia Commandery. The Shu army, on the other hand, had successfully seized control of Jiangling. After the fighting, Gongsun Shu declared that the pact should be honored as agreed — yet Jiangling had long since been stripped bare of people and wealth by the Shu troops, and lying on the lower Han River, it was a place Cen Peng could sail down and seize at any moment; it simply could not be held. That was why Deng Yu had been sent hurrying to White Emperor City to wrangle over the matter.

Although Gongsun Shu was furious at Liu Xiu for breaking the pact, he also knew that the State of Wei's seizure of Jing-Xiang already threatened Ba Commandery. Mindful of the larger strategy of allying with Wu to resist Wei, Gongsun Shu scaled his appetite back from three commanderies to three counties. Liu Xiu would hand over the few counties in Nan Commandery that the Han army still temporarily controlled to the Shu army, allowing them to build a defensive line on Jiangling's outer perimeter — for to hold Ba, one must hold Jing.

Deng Yu began his return journey in early winter. When he arrived back in Wu territory and heard with shock that a great battle had already broken out north of the Huai, he immediately set out, traveling by night under the stars.

"North of the Huai is in peril." Deng Yu had already prepared himself for the worst. A small half of the Han army was still pinned down in southern Jing by Cen Peng and could not return; in this battle, they were at an absolute disadvantage.

Yet by the time Deng Yu reached Xu County in Linhuai Commandery, he arrived just in time for a rare victory. The Han main force, over thirty thousand strong, had withdrawn from Xiapi by boat to Xu County, where they fought a meeting engagement with the vanguard of the Wei army's raiding force. Outnumbered, Gai Yan had broken and retreated.

And after his audience with the Emperor, when he learned that Liu Xiu had just slipped free from an enemy reinforcement force twice their size at Xiapi, Deng Yu felt even more lingering terror. He could not help but sigh with emotion: "We owe a great deal to the Si River."

"Indeed. Northerners ride horses; southerners steer boats. Relying on our fleet to carry us, we were able to advance and retreat freely."

Besides the Si River, Liu Xiu also thanked one other person: "And King Fuchai of Wu. Five hundred years ago he dug the Han Canal, linking the Huai and Si waterways. Though his crime was felt in his own age, his legacy has blessed a thousand autumns. Wu and Yue are full of improper shrines — there are temples to Wu Zixu, to the King of Yue, to Fan Li — but for Fuchai alone there is none. In the future, I shall have no choice but to raise a temple to Fuchai myself."

Liu Xiu had also been fortunate in another way. The waterways that Fuchai had dug and dredged back then were not limited to the south. To advance into Qi and Lu, he had also expended vast amounts of manpower and resources to dig the He Canal, a waterway that linked the Ji River and the Si River, making it possible for boats from the Yangtze to sail all the way to the Yellow River. It was only a pity that during the Xin dynasty the great river had burst its banks, turning Yan Province into a Yellow River flood zone and silting up the He Canal. Otherwise, the Wei army could have sent large numbers of northern boats south, instead of having to march overland the moment they left Lingbi.

The Han army's retreat and maneuvering, though brilliant, was still fairly conventional. But that Liu Xiu had actually anticipated Diwu Lun's move and turned back to intercept Gai Yan's cavalry — that was astonishing. Could it be that the Han army also had spies inside the State of Wei?

Liu Xiu, however, shook his head. When it came to intelligence, he was completely in the dark. His control of the battlefield relied entirely on gambling and conjecture.

"During the Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms, Zhou Yafu's stratagem of sending light troops to sever the Huai-Si confluence — that was the key to the northern army breaking the south in a single stroke. Diwu Lun saw me holding troops at Xiapi and was bound to use this very plan!"

It was still a matter of good luck. The plan itself had no major flaw; had Gai Yan advanced step by step, coordinating his march with the infantry, Liu Xiu would not have gained any advantage at all.

"But while Diwu Lun does not make mistakes, the commanders under him do."

Just as Liu Xiu himself planned everything, yet his subordinates' understanding and execution always fell a notch short, Diwu Lun seemed to suffer deeply from the same affliction.

Deng Yu's admiration only grew. When it came to the Han side's foremost commander, it was still the Emperor himself. He merely sighed with regret: "It is only a pity we could not annihilate this cavalry force entirely and let them break through the encirclement and flee west."

"That remains to be seen." Liu Xiu, however, looked to the west. "There were originally over ten thousand men at Fuli, commanded by Assistant General Jian Tan, serving as a decoy force to confuse Diwu Lun. After they were discovered, they withdrew early to the south of Daze Village to await orders. Gai Yan is retreating west; he may well run into them."

The good news came very quickly. Deng Yu had been there barely half a day when word came back from the west:

"The enemy general Gai Yan has been trapped by General Jian Tan at Gaixia!"

…

In the end, Gai Yan never got the relief he had hoped for.

The General Who Sweeps the Field, Zheng Tong, a hundred li away, recalled his own early experience during the campaign in Guanzhong, when he had rashly advanced with light troops and suffered disastrous losses. He chose to play it safe, halted his troops, and let Gai Yan's several hundred remaining soldiers be trapped at Gaixia by Jian Tan's ten thousand men.

The outcome of the battle was never in doubt. Cavalrymen on exhausted horses, stripped of their mobility, were hard-pressed on every side in the fight. Worse, the ruined city of Gaixia was missing a wall, leaving nothing to defend. Although the Yuyang shock cavalry were all northerners with formidable individual fighting prowess, forcing the Han army to suffer several hundred casualties, the encirclement steadily tightened inch by inch.

Had they been Diwu Lun's own core troops, they would surely have fought to the death and dragged more enemies down with them. But the Yuyang shock cavalry were a bunch of "mercenaries" to begin with; without lavish rewards and without permission to loot, these men would not even mount their horses, so why would they throw away their lives for the Wei Emperor? While Gai Yan was still in the last roofless mud hut, drawing a strong bow and brandishing a naked blade in a final stand, the shock cavalry surrendered in whole squads.

Gai Yan was so furious he cursed his subordinates for their stupidity: "We have killed heavily on this southern campaign and are surely hated by the southerners. If we surrender to Wu, how can we possibly live?"

Yet the very next moment, the Han soldiers across from them began to shout: "His Majesty has long heard that General Gai is a bold hero of the northern frontier, famed for his courage, and wishes to meet the general alive!"

"Liu Wenshu knows there is a Gai Yan in this world?"

Liu Xiu was at least a man contending for the throne against Diwu Lun. This made Gai Yan, who could not even rank among the Wei army's throng of imperial favorites, both pleased and startled.

In that single moment of hesitation, the Han soldiers suddenly pushed over the tottering wall, crushing Gai Yan entirely beneath it…

…

Gai Yan had at last fulfilled his boast of being "the first to water his horse in the Huai River" — though he did so as a captive being escorted to the Huai-Si confluence.

The Huai-Si confluence was indeed, as Diwu Lun had predicted, the Han army's main base. Grain from Huainan was transported there via the Han Canal, which never froze over all year. Without the Han Canal, the Han army would have collapsed long ago; no wonder Liu Xiu was so grateful he wanted to build a temple to Fuchai.

Although Liu Xiu had verbally expressed his wish to "meet General Gai Yan alive," Gai Yan had arrived at an inopportune moment. When he was shoved into the Han camp, a funeral was underway.

Though no snow had fallen at the Huai-Si confluence, the entire area around the Han army's main tent seemed shrouded in white. Mourning was observed inside and out, and the atmosphere was heavy with grief.

As it turned out, word of the battle at Ximatai in Pengcheng had arrived. Liu Xiu had learned that the Governor of Donghai, Liu Zhi, had died in battle, and had specially declared mourning for him.

Not only that — following the precedent set when Ma Wu fell in the Jing-Xiang campaign, Liu Xiu had exceptionally posthumously enfeoffed Liu Zhi as "King of Julu," granting him the highest posthumous honor, to commend a loyal minister who had died for Han.

Although Liu Zhi had been a complete "orphan of Hebei" in the southeast, unconnected to any of the great factions from Nanyang or Yingchuan, and ordinarily had few close friends, as a member of the imperial clan his heroic death in battle still moved many to mourn. Moreover, with the Xu-Huai campaign going unfavorably and Pengcheng already beyond rescue, everyone's mood was already rather gloomy and pent-up. The arrival of Gai Yan and the Yuyang shock cavalry as prisoners instantly ignited those feelings.

"The Youzhou troops are cruel and bloodthirsty. Since entering Xu Province, who knows how many common people they have harmed. Gai Yan, as Diwu Lun's hawk-dog, took part in the siege of Pengcheng and is connected to the death of the King of Julu. Better to kill him, and then execute all the Youzhou soldiers, as a sacrifice to the King of Julu and the officers and men who perished!"

Faced with these cries for blood, Gai Yan stood utterly unafraid. He was over nine chi tall; even with his hands bound, he kept his back ramrod straight and cast a contemptuous look at the crowd of clamoring southern shorties before him. He sneered: "Had your father here not advanced alone and deep without anyone coming to his aid, and met you on the battlefield with a strong bow, all your heads would be nothing but targets beneath my bowstring!"

His voice was thunderous, and for a moment his aura blazed so fiercely that it stoked the Han officers' fury even higher.

Then Gai Yan swept his gaze over the crowd dressed in mourning garb: "Where is Liu Xiu? Did you not say you wanted to see your father here? Come out at once."

Only after he had bellowed this several times did the middle-aged man who had been bowing before Liu Zhi's coffin rise, turn around, and look at Gai Yan: "Gai Juqing, you are indeed a fierce and valiant man. Liu Xiu is here."

"So you are Liu Wenshu?"

Gai Yan looked back at him and saw that he was dressed in fine undyed hemp — the mourning garb for a clan cousin. He had a square face, a handsome beard and brows, a prominent nose, and a wide mouth; his forehead, wrapped in a white mourning cloth, was quite broad.

Judging by looks alone, he was rather more handsome and imposing than Diwu Lun, who was also an emperor…

But Gai Yan's mouth still refused to yield: "I had intended to come to the Huai-Si confluence and win matchless merit, but never expected to fall into your trap. Though I did not get to kill Liu Xiu, at least I have seen the living Liu Xiu and know the size of your head. Kill me if you will! But in a few short months, my lord will sweep across Huaibei and strike off your head!"

The Han ministers flew into a great rage, but Liu Xiu shook his head: "The general may die, but the Wei sovereign has always been stingy. When his men have merit and ought to be enfeoffed, he turns their seals over and over in hesitation until they are worn, yet still cannot bear to grant them. I hear that even for great merit like Geng Bozhao's, he could not obtain the post of Grand General of Chariots and Cavalry."

"After General Gai dies, will Diwu Lun give a defeated general like you a funeral of such scale, and posthumously enfeoff you as a king?"

After speaking these words, which left Gai Yan stunned, Liu Xiu ordered him taken away for the time being. Then he placated his ministers, saying: "The situation at Pengcheng is not yet clear. For now, let us hold Gai Yan as a captive hostage."

But that evening, Liu Xiu personally went to the camp where Gai Yan was confined. Seeing him still trussed up tightly, he repeatedly apologized, then personally came over and untied the ropes. He even ordered meat, vegetables, and rice brought in, and sat down across from Gai Yan.

Now it was Gai Yan's turn to be astonished. He glanced around the tent — there was not a single guard. Though one of his arms had been wounded in the fighting, with his martial skill, he could kill a man with just one hand!

But Gai Yan did not attempt a surprise attack. He merely voiced his puzzlement:

"Liu Xiu, are you not afraid I will seize you?"

Liu Xiu, however, appeared quite at ease: "The general is loyal, brave, and fearless. Since I, Xiu, am treating you as a guest, the general surely will not stoop to the deeds of a petty cutthroat."

With that, he actually toasted Gai Yan with a cup of wine: "With a mere two thousand elite cavalry, the general dared to race three hundred li to strike at my Huai-Si confluence. When I learned of it, I broke out in a cold sweat and fled back south under the stars that very night. Had I been a moment later, this place would already be a sea of flames, and the fall of the state would be at hand. Though the general did not succeed, it was truly because your allies' support did not arrive in time — it was no fault of yours in battle."

These words pleased Gai Yan greatly. Since it was a toast, he drank. He had been starving ever since his capture, and now he threw caution to the wind and began to eat and drink with great relish.

Watching Gai Yan wolf down his food, Liu Xiu continued: "I hear that the general surrendered to Wei in Hebei? You rose in revolt at Yuyang alongside Wu Han, presented that great commandery to Diwu Lun, and were appointed Assistant General."

He had actually inquired into his background so thoroughly? Gai Yan kept eating, but inwardly he could not help being somewhat moved.

Yet he heard Liu Xiu continue: "After the great battle at Heji, General, your deeds were outstanding, and only then were you enfeoffed as a marquis. Now ranked among the miscellaneous titles, you still count as one of the great generals."

Liu Xiu's tone suddenly shifted: "But when the General was besieged, the Wei army's Hengye Division was right on the border, yet it sat and watched without coming to the rescue, which led to General Gai's capture. Does the General know why?"

This was precisely what galled Gai Yan, so Liu Xiu proceeded to "illuminate the mystery" for him: "The General is not one of Diwu Lun's personal followers or direct line, and therefore you suffer exclusion. Despite your valiant achievements, you can only lead the Yuyang shock cavalry, and Diwu Lun holds little regard for the General and the Yuyang troops, often using you for raids and storming strongpoints. When it comes down to it, Diwu Lun is in the north and does not lack cavalry commanders or horsemen. With Geng Bozhao, Wu Han, Ma Yuan, the old troops from Xin Qinzhong, and the Shanggu shock cavalry at hand, he can simply let the General and the Yuyang troops wear themselves down."

Gai Yan stopped chewing. Though loath to admit it, part of what Liu Xiu said was indeed fact.

Liu Xiu now brought out the same approach he had once used to win over the river pirates of Danyang, and said with earnest warmth: "All my ministers wanted the General killed, but I wish to keep the General! The south does not actually lack horses, and we have some cavalry too, but what we are missing is precisely a cavalry commander!"

"If the General would return to Han, how would Xiu begrudge him the post of General of Swift Cavalry and the rank of Marquis? If you can render service to Han and defeat Diwu Lun, then one day the General shall surely be counted among the likes of Guan Ying!"

Guan Ying — Grand Commandant and Chancellor of the Former Han, a founding hero of the dynasty — was Gai Yan's life's ambition. He looked into Liu Xiu's earnest eyes, and it seemed he was on the verge of being persuaded.

But the next moment, Gai Yan suddenly erupted, spitting the half-chewed meat in his mouth right at Liu Xiu's feet:

"Ptui!"

"A single minister does not serve two masters. You want your old man to surrender? Deluded fantasy!"

With his one still-good hand, Gai Yan swept the cups and plates from the table, sending them clattering and shattering on the floor. At the sound, the Han soldiers outside the tent rushed in as one, drawing their blades and leveling them at him.

Gai Yan gave an even colder laugh: "So it turns out to be fake generosity and real wariness."

"It seems General Gai still needs to think it over more."

Liu Xiu, however, raised a hand to stop them, and ordered that Gai Yan be taken across the river to Jiangdong to be held under guard.

Gai Yan strode out of the barracks with his head held high, but inside, his heart was in utter turmoil.

At a certain moment just now, he had very nearly been swayed by Liu Xiu. In the end, he had steadied himself — he only had to think with his toes to know that at present, Great Wei held every advantage. Even if they had not taken the Huai-Si region, if things dragged on, what did Liu Xiu have to win with? And to command the cavalry for him? That would be staining his own name.

Still, though his mouth had declared "a single minister does not serve two masters," in that lightning-flash instant, the person in Gai Yan's heart was not Diwu Lun, but another man…

"If I surrender to Liu, what face would I have left to see General Ma Wenyuan? No — absolutely not!"