Chapter 655: Adversaries

Because wind and snow had blocked the roads, news of the victory in Wudu Commandery did not reach Chang'an until New Year's Eve of the fourth year of Wude.

After reading the "Farewell Letter" that Niu Han had submitted from Wei Ao, Diwu Lun could not help but sigh with emotion: "Wei Jimeng has finally lost his head after all."

He showed the letter to Chamberlain for Ceremonials Wang Long for his perusal: "Wei Jimeng and your uncle Wang Huimeng were old friends and close acquaintances. The Junior Guardian will likely be grieved."

Wang Long and his uncle, the great magnate Wang Yuan of Changling, had been an important pillar of support for Diwu Lun in the early days when he established himself in Guanzhong. Moreover, during Diwu Ba's lifetime, Wang Yuan had often presented hunting dogs and fighting cocks, winning the old master's favor, so later Diwu Lun had granted him the nominal title of "Junior Guardian."

Wang Yuan was likewise on intimate terms with Wei Ao; Diwu Lun's first meeting with Wei Ao had been at the Wang family's Changping Lodge. Back then, Wang Yuan had probably hesitated for a time, wondering whether to choose Diwu Lun or Wei Ao. But those were all stale, moldy matters of the past, and Diwu Lun saw no need to pursue them or settle accounts.

Unlike his uncle, however, Wang Long had a very low opinion of Wei Ao. After casually flipping through his final letter, he shook his head and said: "Wei Jimeng was a mediocre man. Born in Longyou, he should have been a gallant and domineering knight-errant, yet he made a name for himself studying Confucian arts instead. He read the Five Classics for nothing."

"When the realm fell into chaos, Wei Ao's heart swelled with wild ambition. He raised a banner and rallied his clan, falsely claiming divine sanction, vainly attempting to borrow the name of restoring the Han to achieve the deeds of a Duke Huan of Qi or a Duke Wen of Jin. Yet he could not even control his own uncles and nephews. He made a Han emperor his puppet and became a puppet himself. Only after his uncle died could he seize control of Longyou. By then, Your Majesty had already entered and taken charge of Guanzhong. Governance was cultivated, the people were loyal, and worthy men filled the court. Wei Ao failed to recognize his true lord, instead clinging to his troops to secure himself, plotting the schemes of the Six Kingdoms. Thus his strategists abandoned him, Hexi turned against him, and he was defeated and fled to Didao. In the end, he threw himself at Gongsun Shu, colluded with the Rong and Di barbarians to invade, until today his body is dead and his followers scattered. It is hardly surprising."

In Wang Long's telling, Wei Ao was nothing but a clownish buffoon who lacked the destiny of a king or marquis yet harbored the ambitions of a petty hegemon. He should have perished long ago!

Diwu Lun laughed. "Then in your view, Uncle Mountain, how does Wei Ao compare to King Qin Feng of Chu and Li in the south, or King Zhang Bu of Qi in the east?"

Those two had surrendered to Diwu Lun one after the other. Diwu Lun had not killed them either. He demoted Qin Feng to a commoner and kept him under guard in You Province. Zhang Bu, having at least once offered tribute to Diwu Lun, received slightly better treatment; he was now the "Baron of Pacified Steps," confined to a small residence built for him in Luoyang.

Wang Long actually replied: "Zhang Bu and Qin Feng, though mediocre, knew where to turn after their defeat and ruin, and could still preserve their descendants. Therefore, Wei Ao was even inferior to those two!"

Imperial Counselor Jing Dan, however, held a different view.

"Your Majesty, in my opinion, the Chamberlain for Ceremonials' words are biased."

Jing Dan had always governed with a gentle hand, yet today, contrary to his usual manner, he argued with Wang Long over this "trivial matter." It was truly a rare sight.

Jing Dan then said: "When Wei Ao first occupied Longdi, for a time he was humble and courteous to men of worth, drawing all the heroes of Longyou to his side. Although he was not skilled in military strategy, he had a certain method in governing the state. In the beginning, he could still uphold laws and governance, his troops and armor were abundant and strong, and he kept Longyou at peace amid the chaos. Thus he could temporarily entrench himself there. Though he did not match Duke Huan of Qi or Duke Wen of Jin, he still possessed the air of the Six Ministers of Jin."

"It is just that, though Longdi was a narrow pass, it did not have the strategic advantage of holding two against a hundred. A mere few commanderies could hardly withstand the grand and imposing edge of Great Wei. This led him to exhaust his court's stratagems and drain his people with levies, and in the end he was defeated and destroyed. It was not that his ability was insufficient, but that he failed to recognize his true lord. First he embraced Liu Ying, then he turned to Gongsun. He drove his chariot south when he meant to go north. No matter how great his ability, he could hardly resist the great momentum of the age."

Jing Dan further proposed: "Though this man was neither a true king nor a hegemon, he did once carve out a territory for himself. I have heard that Your Majesty has already ordered the Grand Historian to compile the Book of Han, and in the future will also compile a Book of Xin to record the twenty years from Wang Mang's usurpation of Han to the first year of Great Wei's Wude. Wei Ao ought to be given a biographical section."

The Grand Historian was subordinate to the Chamberlain for Ceremonials; this was Wang Chang's task. Hearing Jing Dan's words, he was rather puzzled. What virtue or ability did Wei Ao possess to warrant a biographical section…

Diwu Lun, however, had already shown his inclination: "The Imperial Counselor speaks rightly."

Diwu Lun silently approved of Jing Dan, thinking to himself that Jing Sunqing was also a talent fit for the chancellorship, with a truly grand vision. He was quite right. Wei Ao had resisted Diwu Lun for a full seven years and could be considered an adversary of a sort. If they disparaged him too much, making him appear even less than Zhang Bu and Qin Feng, and looking across the realm saw only mediocrities, then who would serve as a foil for Diwu Lun's great enterprise of unification? Relying solely on Liu Xiu and Gongsun Shu — though those two could still put up a fight, it was still not enough.

Now that the north was largely settled and unification was only a matter of time, it was time to think carefully about the narrative of this period of history. Therefore, regarding Wei Ao, for his swift consolidation of Longyou in his early years, they should praise what deserved praise. But for colluding with the Qiang and Hu barbarians and mistakenly submitting to Gongsun, they must fiercely condemn what deserved condemnation! Digging up the Wei clan's ancestral graves would not be too great a pity.

After defining Wei Ao's character, Diwu Lun read the memorials from Ma Yuan and Niu Han and pondered: "As for Wei Ao's corpse, there is no need to send it into Chang'an."

Diwu Lun said: "Wei Jimeng was, after all, an old acquaintance of mine. Back when I was trapped in the office of the Master of Fates of the Five Majesties, he came to my aid on Liu Xin's orders. Though I rejoice that Longyou is thoroughly pacified, if I were to see his face today, I would still be overcome with melancholy and tears, recalling the events of those years. Meeting is not as good as not meeting. Let his body be cast aside in the lands of the Di and Qiang, left for the barbarian vultures and crows to peck at. Then have Wei Ao's head displayed throughout the commanderies of Longyou, so the heroes of Longzhong can see what end awaits those who collude with foreign enemies and mistakenly submit to Gongsun!"

Wei Ao had at least fulfilled his dying wish, but the corpse of another old acquaintance of Diwu Lun's did not receive such "old friend" treatment.

"What? The false Hu-Han emperor Lu Fang was cut into twelve pieces by the General of Chariots and Cavalry and has already reached the north gate of Chang'an?"

Diwu Lun's first reaction was to ask those beside him: "Does Geng Boyan know that his younger brother Geng Guang died in battle in Hexi?"

Jing Dan reported back: "The report from Hexi only reached Chang'an a few days ago. Bing Province could not have known in advance…"

It was not until the cart carrying Lu Fang's remains arrived at the North Watchtower of Weiyang Palace that Diwu Lun saw young Geng's memorial and understood the reason for his actions.

It turned out that Lu Fang, as a ghost who had escaped Diwu Lun's blade before, knew how ruthless this man was and understood that he would certainly die a horrible death. After being captured, he bit off his own tongue, then sought every opportunity to smash his head against the ground. His wounds became infected and worsened, and he clamped his mouth shut, refusing water and food. Seeing that the man could not be delivered alive to Diwu Lun, Geng Yan simply killed him and stated his reasoning in the memorial:

"Lu Fang claimed to be protected by the eleven emperors of the Former Han. Including himself, he had twelve lives and twelve heads. Therefore, during the Xin dynasty, the Governor of Anding once 'cut off Lu Fang's head,' yet Lu Fang's body could still grow a new head, and he fled into exile among the Xiongnu. No small number of people in Bing Province believe such nonsense."

The Bing Province region was a mixed settlement of Hu and Han, where shamanistic practices flourished. The resurrection of the dead was a local legend. Diwu Lun recalled that when he was garrisoning New Qinzhong, he had chanced to read an article titled "Record of the Tomb Master," a story copied and circulated among the garrison soldiers: a conscript named Dan, after stabbing someone, was executed and abandoned in the marketplace and buried. Three years later, he came back to life, and after another four years, he could speak. He then recounted what he had seen in the other world and claimed that he was not supposed to have died and had been sent back to the human realm by the Master of Fates…

This was the soil in which the swindler Lu Fang took root. It was said that many captured Hu and Han generals claimed they had long found this false Han emperor an eyesore, but had always worried that Lu Fang could revive after death and could not be killed with a single assassination attempt, and so they were held back by fear.

"Therefore, I, your servant, in New Qinzhong, before tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians, as well as captured Xiongnu and Hu-Han troops, personally beheaded Lu Fang!"

According to the memorial's description, after Lu Fang's head was chopped off, he died instantly. Geng Yan deliberately left the corpse in the snow for three days and three nights. Lu Fang did not come back to life as he had boasted. Seeing that the man was thoroughly dead, Geng Yan then cut his corpse into over ten pieces, preserved them with lime and salt, and sent them for Diwu Lun to inspect.

Diwu Lun had no desire to look at a stinking "New Year's gift." He sent someone to inspect and verify the matter, merely arranging: "Twelve pieces. This number is rather fitting. Even if Lu Fang had twelve lives, they are all here now."

For these twelve pieces of corpse, Diwu Lun had already thought of the best arrangement: "Lu Fang was originally a mixed Hu from Sanshui. He falsely claimed to be a great-grandson of Han Wudi, impersonating the Liu clan. His conduct was similar to Liu Ziyu of Hebei, yet because he submitted to the Xiongnu and addressed the Chanyu as 'your child and servant,' he was even more despicable than Liu Ziyu! Not only are men and gods alike enraged, but even if the eleven emperors of the Former Han were aware, they too would be indignant and restless."

"The Han has eleven mausoleums. North of the Wei River are Emperor Gao's Changling, Emperor Hui's Anling, Emperor Jing's Yangling, Emperor Wu's Maoling, Emperor Zhao's Pingling, Emperor Yuan's Weiling, and Emperor Cheng's Yanling; Emperors Ai and Ping also have Yiling and Kangling. South of the Wei River are Emperor Wen's Baling and Emperor Xuan's Duling."

"Send eleven portions of Lu Fang's corpse to each of the above mausoleums. Treat them as New Year's sacrificial meat, and tell the Former Han emperors: the Son of Heaven of Wei, who has inherited the Mandate of Heaven of the Han house, has slain this swindler on your behalf. You may now enjoy your blood sacrifices in peace!"

Killing the man, and then killing his spirit too? In this deep winter, Lu Fang had long since become frozen meat; where would any blood come from? But the assembled men thought it over and found some sense in it. They hurriedly arranged for men to carry out the task. These Han mausoleums were quite scattered; if they did not hurry, they would miss the New Year's Day sacrifices.

"As for the head…" While Diwu Lun was deliberating, Wang Long and others proposed: "Lu Fang is of Hu stock. His head should be hung on the North Watchtower to display it to the myriad li."

This was a recurring spectacle since the Han dynasty. No emperor felt comfortable unless a few heads of barbarian, Rong, and Di chieftains were hung there.

But that was a custom of the former dynasty. Under Diwu Lun, things were different.

"Hanging the head at the Barbarian Hostel on Gao Street will be enough to overawe the Di, Qiang, and sundry Hu."

He sneered contemptuously: "A mere Lu Fang, a clownish, despicable wretch — is he worthy of being hung at Weiyang?"

Diwu Lun had raised the standards of the Han dynasty. The gates of Great Wei's Weiyang Palace were not places where just any Tom, Dick, or Harry could be hung.

He gazed toward where the sun rose: "The Azure Dragon Watchtower at the east gate is the main gate of Weiyang, facing the dignified heartland of China and the teeming common people. Therefore, only one man's head has ever hung there — that of the 'Tyrant' Wang Mang!"

Diwu Lun had decided: from now until the day the Wei dynasty fell, the East Watchtower would be Wang Mang's exclusive place. Whether for two hundred years, three hundred, or five hundred years, no other head would be permitted to trespass there. The next head hung there, Diwu Lun hoped, would be that of an unworthy descendant, the "Last Emperor of Wei," preferably cut off by the enraged people using the very "Dragon-Slaying Platform" with which he had killed Wang Mang.

"The Black Tortoise Watchtower at the north gate shall be reserved for the Xiongnu Chanyu. One day he will come. Either he will kowtow and declare himself a subject, or he will go up there to accompany the Black Tortoise, the tortoise and snake. If someday the General of Chariots and Cavalry and the General of the Rear capture and kill the Left and Right Worthy Kings, the Left and Right Guli Kings, they too will only be fit to hang at the Barbarian Hostel."

Diwu Lun flung his sleeves and rose, pacing to the center of the hall. He turned his head to look back, his gaze sweeping over the other two directions:

"I have already ordered craftsmen to build residences in Chang'an for the lords of Wu and Shu. If those two ultimately submit and come to surrender, they may live there in peace and joy, enjoying the scenery and customs of Guanzhong, and will surely not miss Wu and Shu."

But from what Diwu Lun knew of those two, he understood that this possibility was infinitesimally small. Compared to small fry like Lu Fang and Wei Ao, those two were his true adversaries — especially Liu Xiu!

"If they resist to the bitter end, then the White Tiger Watchtower at the west gate and the Vermilion Bird Watchtower at the south gate shall be the final resting places for Gongsun Ziyang and Liu Wenshu!"