Chapter 638: Crack Troops

Diba Jiao had just declared that "in light of General Wu and the Bingzhou troops rescuing Guzang, I shall treat him as my dearest kin and closest friend," and was prepared to endure his discomfort, hold his nose, and show this old ruffian the utmost deference for once.

But by the time the various Xiongnu divisions had fled in disarray to the northwest and Wu Han returned to Guzang with great fanfare, Diba Jiao, coming out to the main gate to welcome him, regretted it all over again.

"Wu Ziyan will surely seize this chance to humiliate me." Diba Jiao's face was wreathed in smiles, but inwardly he could not help fretting. After all, the two had genuinely fallen out in the past — so badly that they had torn all face apart and each submitted memorials to Diwu Lun attacking the other.

Just as expected, Wu Han rode up to the gates of Guzang, dismounted, and walked straight toward Diba Jiao. His eyes swept over this imperial kinsman, gaunt from starvation, and he said with a grin, "The Hexi wind and sand are harsh — the Inspector of Liang Province has shrunk considerably."

Tapping the riding crop in his hand, he added, "Had the Inspector not made trouble for me back then, and had Wu Han been allowed to garrison Liang Province a few more years and wipe out the Western Qiang completely, how could there be this Qiang and Hu rebellion today? Just as I thought — the Qiang and Hu can be broken by force, but never won over by virtue."

Diba Jiao, neither servile nor overbearing, cupped his hands toward Wu Han and replied, "The vile wretches of the Xianlian have indeed rebelled time and again, attacking and overrunning county towns, plundering and abducting the people — destroying them would be no pity. But had the General not rejected my strategy of 'divide and rule' back then, failing to distinguish the good from the bad, using nothing but brute force against the Western Qiang and slaughtering indiscriminately, thereby driving the small and middling Qiang tribes into the arms of the Xianlian — would there have been this great chaos?"

"Guzang today indeed owes much to the General's rescue, but I, Jiao, still hold to my original view: apart from the ringleaders, who must be exterminated utterly, the remaining Di and Qiang remnants are hard to root out. It is like cutting grass — even if you burn it with a great fire, next year it will again cover the hills. The north is full of trouble, the south is not yet unified, and the court cannot permanently station a hundred thousand troops in the northwest to exterminate the barbarians. It is better to win them over with grace; only thus can trouble be minimized."

Their political views were impossible to reconcile. Everyone expected Wu Han to fly into a rage and this reunion to end in bitter discord. But after his expression flickered through several shades of uncertainty, Wu Han actually laughed. "What the Inspector says is not without reason! However, though the Xiongnu are now defeated, the Right Worthy Prince's main force has withdrawn to Zhangye and Jiuquan, using the Juyan Marshes as their grazing ground, and they still refuse to leave Hexi. This time, the Inspector of Liang Province and I must join forces to drive the Hu barbarians out completely!"

With that, he actually took the initiative to throw an arm around Diba Jiao's shoulders and said, "The troops have been fighting and killing for a long time; their dry rations are exhausted. I wonder if there is still any wine or grain in the city to fill their bellies?"

The Hexi autumn harvest was imminent, and the Xiongnu had not had time to carry off the crops. As long as the siege was lifted, there was grain in the fields. Diba Jiao accordingly invited Wu Han inside, and the anxiety in his heart eased a little. It seemed that this time, the two would not repeat the earlier disaster of discord between the civil and military.

But Wu Han's trusted confidants found it strange. After nightfall, when Wu Han had drained the last of Guzang's wine and returned tipsily to the camp, several of his retainers — men who had followed him all the way from Hebei to Longyou — asked him, "General, had it not been for Diba Jiao, we would never have been transferred away from Longyou. Given the General's temperament, you were bound to humiliate Diba Jiao to his face. Why were you so amiable and respectful toward him instead?"

"Amiable? If a man treats me with respect, why must I answer with harsh words?" Wu Han sat down, reeking of wine. Though the ruler and ministers of Wei regarded him as a "reckless general," he was no fool. On the contrary, he was a man who seized opportunities extremely well. Otherwise, during the Hebei campaign, when so many had flocked to Wei, why had he alone leapt up to become a great general of Wei?

He asked his retainers, "Let me ask you: in His Majesty's eyes, who is closer — me or Diba Jiao?"

Diba Jiao, of course. This Inspector of Liang Province was the first clansman permitted to use the imperial surname "Wu," had been enfeoffed as a Marquis early on, and everyone said that if the State of Wei were ever to establish imperial-surname vassal kings, Diba Jiao would surely be one of them!

In the past, Wu Han had refused to believe in such things, relying on being a "solitary minister" and daring to offend anyone, from Ma Yuan to Diba Jiao. But these past two years, shuttling between Liang and Bing provinces, he had finally understood what it meant to walk a lonely road without aid. If he wanted to get ahead in the officialdom of Great Wei, having only Ren Guang and Gai Yan and a few others as friends was not enough.

What was more, he was inwardly anxious. Seeing Ma Yuan, Cen Peng, and Geng Yan successively become "Grand" Generals, Wu Han felt he had suddenly fallen behind, dropped into the same ranks as Wan Xiu and the rest.

"In this campaign against the Qiang and Hu, Ma Wenyuan and Geng Bozhao are also among those sent into battle. Old Wu not only has to fight a brilliant fight on the battlefield, but must also, through cooperating with Diba Jiao, let His Majesty know that Wu Han has grown up, has breadth of mind, and is worthy of being a Grand General! After the campaign, I'll be promoted to Grand General of such-and-such as well, on equal footing with Ma, Geng, and Cen!"

…

In Jincheng Commandery, likewise in the eighth month, Ma Yuan's Liang Province army had already shifted its headquarters to the commandery capital, Yungu City.

Among his subordinate officers, some who had followed Ma Yuan for many years felt this was the strangest the general had ever fought. In the past, Ma Yuan had led troops in the style of Li Guang — rather rough and freewheeling. But this time, he had suddenly turned into a Cheng Bushi: when marching, he sent scouts far ahead; every movement was made in battle readiness; every halt was made with fortified camps. For two full months, he had only inched forward from Lingju County into the He-Huang valley.

The Western Qiang's terrain was complex, and they were dealing with natives adept at mountain warfare — a little caution was fine. But this was far too cautious. Could it be that after the He-Ji campaign, where he had nearly been defeated by the Red Eyebrow Army, Ma Yuan's courage had shrunk?

Having endured with difficulty until mid-eighth month, with the millet in He-Huang nearly ripe, everyone urged Ma Yuan in burning impatience: "Grand General, though we have pushed the battle line back to He-Huang and prevented the Qiang from joining forces with the Xiongnu, the Western Qiang still refuse to retreat. Ten thousand Liang Province cavalry are pinned down here, while Guzang in Hexi hangs by a thread. We can endure no longer — give the order to attack!"

Jincheng did not yet know that Wu Han had already relieved the siege of Wuwei, but this was undoubtedly the heartfelt cry of all the subordinate officers.

"Attack?" Ma Yuan looked at the agitated crowd in the war council and smiled. "Very well. Tell me — where should we strike first?"

Everyone voiced their own opinions, and the hall instantly filled with a hubbub. The names they uttered were all different — from the Han Qiang, to the Kai Qiang, to the Jie Qiang — names so strange you could not remember them after hearing them several times. In short, they were all small tribes that followed the Xianlian.

The strategy they proposed was simple: pick the softest persimmon to squeeze. The Western Qiang were an aggregate of many tribes, led by the most powerful, the Xianlian Qiang. Since the Xianlian Qiang's territory lay far away on the upper reaches of the Great River, beyond the easy reach of a large army, they should start with the small tribes close at hand!

"The millet is nearly ripe. We should seize this moment to raid the various tribes, seize their livestock, and carry off their wives and children. The barbarians will surely be terror-stricken."

Ma Yuan's gaze swept past the crowd and settled on the Colonel for Qiang Protection, Niu Han, who had arrived late because he was handling affairs and had taken a seat just at the entrance of the hall. "Colonel Niu, you know Qiang affairs best. Come forward and speak!"

When Niu Han was called, he had no choice but to rise and walk forward under the gaze of the assembled officers. He advanced to within five paces, but Ma Yuan was still beckoning, so he had to come within three paces.

Still not satisfied, Ma Yuan actually rose, smiling, and pulled Niu Han to the deputy seat, placing him above the Governor of Jincheng. For a moment, this drew sidelong glances from everyone. After all, as a "surrendered general," Niu Han, though ranked at Equivalent to Two Thousand Piculs, in reality held no high status.

"Then this humble officer will be so bold as to speak."

Niu Han, both moved and uneasy, deliberated before saying, "The Western Qiang colluding with the Xiongnu to rebel is a drama that played out repeatedly under the Former Han — nothing remarkable. Every Qiang rebellion has been led by the Xianlian Qiang. This tribe has been defeated time and again but never destroyed. Now they have surged back, and with Gongsun Shu's titles and Wei Ao's overtures, they think the Central Plains are in chaos and no one can restrain them. Unless they take all of He-Huang, the Xianlian king will never be content."

"But the direct reason the rest of the Western Qiang rose up in rebellion is that when Wu Han was in Longyou, he did not understand Qiang affairs, did not distinguish good from evil, and simply slaughtered and suppressed the Western Qiang indiscriminately, forcing the small tribes that were still watching the situation to throw in their lot with the Xianlian Qiang!"

Niu Han's loathing of Wu Han was identical to Diba Jiao's. Although the Liang Province Wei army had been built single-handedly by Wu Han, after Ma Yuan took office, the key positions had all been replaced with his own personal followers and old subordinates, or with men chosen from among the local magnates of Longyou. Ma Wenyuan was, after all, of Five Tombs aristocratic stock, a famous knight-errant, and his style and bearing were naturally different from that of Wu Han, a mud-legged roughneck of Precinct Chief origins. The Longyou gentry did not submit to Wu Han, but they held Ma Yuan in deep reverence.

Thus, this speech won unanimous agreement from the officers in the hall. Pinning the blame on a certain Mr. Wu was something they were happy to see.

Niu Han used this to lead into his next point: "General Ma not only routed the Qiang troops soundly at Lingju, but has also sparred with the Western Qiang in He-Huang for two months. The Qiang are fierce and brave, swift in the charge, but they cannot endure a prolonged stalemate. The various Qiang originally intended to follow the Xianlian and go plunder people and pastureland in Hexi. Who would have thought they would be blocked for so long, delaying the herding of their cattle and sheep? They are bound to be restless and impatient, and may even grow suspicious of the Xianlian."

"If at this moment we strike the small tribes first and plunder their cattle and sheep, we force them into a dead end, leaving them no choice but to follow the Xianlian in rebellion to the bitter end! Then this war, I fear, will not end even by winter."

"Colonel Niu means…?"

Niu Han said, "Whether in the time of Emperor Wu of Han or Emperor Xuan of Han, there was only one way to pacify a Qiang rebellion."

His words rang with force: "Strike the Xianlian, and execute the ringleaders!" "Use the old strategy of General Zhao Chongguo of Han times: concentrate our forces, strike the Xianlian first to terrify them, and the remaining small tribes will submit without the trouble of arms!"

According to Niu Han's view, he should, in his capacity as Colonel for Qiang Protection, send secret envoys to tell the various Qiang that Ma Yuan had come solely to punish the Xianlian, that he would treat the other tribes differently, that the Western Qiang should not collude with one another, and that they should redeem themselves through meritorious service. Afterward, they could even be rewarded for their deeds and carve up the Xianlian's territory. In this way, the Western Qiang alliance could be dissolved — a tactic that Han envoys had used with repeated success over the past century.

"The Qiang are beasts without honor or trustworthiness. Can one speak of good and evil among them?" someone muttered.

Not only Ma Yuan's subordinate officers, but even the new colonels of Longyou origin were somewhat unwilling and rose to object: "The various Qiang betrayed us and raided the frontier, attacked towns, and killed officials. The ringleaders must of course be executed, but the rest of the tribes — are we to let them off just like that?"

"Of course not." Ma Yuan spoke up. "Those who have disturbed His Majesty's borders and killed our people can never be forgiven. But the purpose of this advance into Jincheng is to swiftly quell the Qiang rebellion so that we can free our hands to support Hexi. Compared to the Western Qiang, a malady of the armpit, the Xiongnu are the great disaster pressing down upon our heads!"

Ma Yuan knew that Niu Han's strategy was correct. Among the Western Qiang, the "Shaodang Qiang" had been making eyes at him all along, providing inside information. For the Qiang tribes, the greatest competitor was not the court, which had no interest in high mountain pastures and the few river valley basins, but the other tribes descended from the same ancestors!

Blood feuds centuries old — could they be resolved by slaughtering an ox and sharing a drink? The Xianlian Qiang had long grown accustomed to being overbearing. In He-Huang, those who nominally submitted but harbored ill intent in their hearts were by no means limited to one tribe.

The men had gradually been persuaded. Their only remaining worry was…

"The Qiang troops we defeated at Lingju were a motley force. But the Xianlian Qiang have spent the past century living in seclusion beyond the Western Sea's head. They have fine horses from the Hequ, and the Great and Small Yun Valleys have nurtured fierce Qiang warriors. Their tribal host lies far in western He-Huang. To cross the border and strike deep — I fear a swift victory will be hard to achieve."

"Isn't that perfect?"

Ma Yuan slammed both hands on the table, making the decision to strike the Xianlian first. Rising to his feet, he declared with soaring spirit:

"What Ma loves to fight most are crack troops!"