Chapter 684: Male and Female

After Liu Xiu swiftly moved his pieces, the choice fell to Cen Peng.

"Grand General, Liu Xiu has fled under cover of night — shall we pursue?"

Faced with the inquiries of his deputy generals and colonels, Cen Peng pondered in silence for a long while, as if running through the battle in his mind again and again, envisioning the enemy's every move. As time slipped by and the others grew increasingly anxious, Cen Peng finally spoke: "Our orders were to pin down Liu Xiu's main force and await His Majesty's grand army. Now that he retreats by night, if I do not pursue, Liu Xiu will likely still manage to withdraw to Jiangling — even if General Geng has burned every dock in Nan Commandery and Jiangxia."

So that meant pursuit? The officers clamored to join the fight, but Cen Peng shook his head and continued: "Yet Liu Xiu's move is likely because he saw he could not take Changban by storm, so he feigns retreat to lure us out. If we pursue, Liu Xiu will probably turn around and fight us to the death!"

And according to a courier's message just received, although Diwu Lun had rested at Lankou Ford for only half a day before hurrying south, even his vanguard cavalry could not arrive until tomorrow night.

It is said that even tens of thousands of pigs cannot all be caught in three days and nights — but an army made of men can collapse far faster than that.

Cen Peng rose. "Liu Xiu, Feng Yi, and Jia Fu are all present. None of you can match them in a single bout. This battle must be commanded by me personally!"

Only he could, in open-field combat, use inferior numbers to lock Liu Xiu in a death grip and hold on until the great banners of the Five Virtues descended.

Yin Shi had been ordered to stay behind and defend. He assured Cen Peng, "Grand General, you may take all the crack troops with you. Leave me only the old, the weak, and the sick."

Cen Peng would not agree. "Cibo, have you heard the story of how Han Xin broke through at Jingxing?"

Yin Shi replied, "The battle with the river at his back — it is famed across the realm. How could I not know it?"

Cen Peng smiled. "In that battle, later generations remember only the river at his back. But the key to victory was actually Han Xin luring the Zhao army out to fight, while sending two thousand light troops carrying many Han banners to circle behind the Jingxing pass by night, raid the Zhao camp, and plant Han flags everywhere. When the Zhao army, beaten back, retreated and saw their old camp seized, their morale shattered and they collapsed in utter rout. The King of Zhao was captured, Chen Yu died in battle, and mighty Zhao, with its hundreds of thousands, surrendered entirely to Han Xin."

To prevent Liu Xiu from using the same trick, Cen Peng deliberately left Yin Shi and his deputy generals a full ten thousand men.

And he himself would take only twenty-five thousand troops in pursuit — to face a Han army three times their number...

Before departing, Cen Peng called Yin Shi close and whispered in his ear: "If misfortune befalls me, Changban still has enough strength to receive His Majesty."

Yin Shi was horrified. Cen Peng's low words, like a last testament, made him understand just how great the risk of this pursuit was. Ignoring his own rank as Inspector of Jingzhou, a full two-thousand-bushel official, Yin Shi knelt long and said, "If that is so, at least let the Young General remain behind!"

Yin Shi meant Cen Peng's only son, Cen Zun. Back when Cen Peng followed Yan You to suppress the Greenwood, Nanyang unexpectedly fell first. The Cen clan was slaughtered by the Greenwood men; only Cen Zun was rescued by Ren Guang and taken to Wei Commandery to seek refuge with Diwu Lun...

Now, more than ten years later, Cen Zun was past twenty. Like Dou Gu and others of similar age, he had become a Palace Gentleman, attending upon the Emperor, receiving his words and personal instruction. Beyond archery, horsemanship, and swordsmanship, they also took various military courses — clearly an officer reserve class.

When a Feathered Forest Palace Gentleman's performance was sufficient, Diwu Lun would often dispatch them to various military districts for "field training," while they also served as the Emperor's eyes and ears, reporting to Diwu Lun matters that generals would not mention in their memorials. Cen Zun had been assigned to Cen Peng's command partly because Diwu Lun pitied the Cen clan's sparse numbers and wished to let father and son spend more time together, and also as a gesture of trust toward General Cen.

The night was deep. Cen Peng knew full well that a trap might lie ahead, yet he had no choice but to spring it — but there was no need to bring his own son along, was there?

Cen Peng, however, would not agree. He said something that brought tears to Yin Shi's eyes: "This battle is perilous. If my own son does not march, how can the officers and soldiers entrust their lives to me?"

The troops had mustered before Changban Slope. Cen Peng rode past them in a chariot, his son Cen Zun standing beside him as the chariot-right, halberd in hand.

Cen Peng looked at the young faces one by one, and a sense of guilt inevitably rose in his heart. They were all fine sons of the Central Plains, mustered and trained in Nanyang!

And he was about to lead them to their deaths!

But when he roused the men, Cen Peng's words were still fervent and stirring:

"Gentlemen, His Majesty's grand army will soon arrive!"

"Long live!" the soldiers roared in mountain-shaking unison. The feigned defeat at Jiangling and the days of bitter siege had not broken their will. Under Cen Peng's constant instilling, "Wei shall prevail" had become a truth they all believed in.

"Liu Xiu, hearing the news, flees by night in utter panic!"

The officers and men believed it without doubt — for the Young General Cen Zun stood right at Cen Peng's side. If this march meant near-certain death, would he be going with them?

Cen Peng, against his own heart, stirred the men's courage, and even his son Cen Zun, ignorant of the truth, was fired up with hot-blooded fervor.

The Grand General of the Southern Campaign drew his sword and pointed at the lines of fiery dragons withdrawing southward — the Han army in retreat:

"The Son of Heaven's carriage will soon arrive. We ought to be slaughtering cattle and straining wine to welcome him — how can we instead trouble our lord with rebel captives? Pursue the enemy! Strike down the false Emperor Liu Xiu and present his head to His Majesty! This peerless merit shall belong to the Southern Campaign Army, and I, Cen Peng, shall lead you all to seize it!"

Twenty li south of Changban, the burned Dangyang Bridge had been rebuilt, but only crudely lashed together from bamboo and timber — it could not even bear heavy supply wagons.

Liu Xiu's command post was set up right before Dangyang Bridge. When scouts reported that the Wei army at Changban had left camp and was marching south, Liu Xiu did not know whether he should be pleased.

He immediately summoned his chief generals for a council. Aside from Jia Fu, who had already been ordered to circle around to the rear, Feng Yi, Wang Chang, and the others all arrived. At that moment, everyone was optimistic, thinking Liu Xiu's plan had worked — only Feng Yi hung his head and said nothing.

Liu Xiu clapped his old comrade, the one who understood him best, on the shoulder. "Gongsun, why do you frown and look so troubled?"

"Your subject..." Feng Yi hesitated, then said, "Cen Peng is a seasoned commander. He only strikes with surprise at the critical moment; the rest of the time he is largely cautious and not easily lured. This hasty pursuit does not match his way of waging war."

Wang Chang and the others all thought Feng Yi was overthinking it. But Liu Xiu inwardly approved. So, before them all, he revealed Fu Jun's desperate emergency report and told the generals the full truth — that Diwu Lun was approaching with a great army!

So this was why Cen Peng was risking pursuit! Sure enough, the eyes of the generals, who moments before had been itching to annihilate the enemy in one stroke, now showed panic. Cen Peng was merely a little fox coming to entangle them. Even if they fought with all their might and wiped out the pursuers, they would pay a heavy price — and then, battered and bloodied troops facing Diwu Lun, that great tiger — would they not be swallowed in a single gulp?

And so the men began to waver. One after another, they begged Liu Xiu to reconsider, arguing it was wiser to withdraw to Jiangling — there was no need to gamble the fate of the realm in a death match with Diwu Lun...

But Liu Xiu's mind was made up. "The formation is already set. If we retreat in haste now, Cen Peng will harry us from behind."

"What is more, Geng Boyou is still prowling at our rear!"

He swept his gaze over the generals. "Shall we counterattack here, entrusting our lives and fortunes to the blades in our hands — or shall we turn and flee in rout, offering our backs to the Wei men?"

Yet wherever his eyes fell, including Wang Chang, the men averted their gaze, not daring to meet Liu Xiu's eyes.

Clearly, they had no confidence. In this Jiang-Han campaign, Han army morale had been high mainly because of ample supplies and a great numerical advantage over Cen Peng. But Liu Xiu had been Emperor for ten years now, and whenever Han and Wei forces were evenly matched, they had basically never won a single battle — let alone now, with Diwu Lun personally on campaign, battle-hardened generals massed, and military strength overwhelming. How could they possibly win?

Yet it was Feng Yi, the first to have voiced doubts, who now firmly backed Liu Xiu: "Your Majesty, gentlemen — I believe that even against Diwu Lun, this campaign still holds a chance of victory!"

Feng Yi brought up an ancient battle example: "In the Warring States period, when Wei and Qi contended for supremacy in the Central Plains, Wei repeatedly sent Pang Juan to attack Han and Zhao. Qi appointed Tian Ji as general and Sun Bin as military advisor, and besieged the Wei capital, Daliang, luring Pang Juan back. The Qi army then retreated without a fight. Pang Juan pursued, and at Maling fell into Sun Bin's ambush. The Qi army loosed ten thousand crossbows at once; the Wei army fell into chaos and scattered. Pang Juan, knowing his stratagems were exhausted and his army defeated, cut his own throat. Qi followed up the victory by utterly smashing the Wei army and capturing the Wei Crown Prince Shen before returning. Sun Bin's fame spread across the realm, and his art of war has been handed down through the ages."

That tactic was "besieging a point to strike the reinforcements" — a favorite of Diwu Lun's. Feng Yi believed they might as well imitate it today.

"Cen Peng at Changban is like Daliang, and Diwu Lun is like Pang Juan's army. We turn around, first crush Cen Peng, and then, riding the momentum of victory, meet Diwu Lun in battle."

Wang Chang reminded Feng Yi: "General Feng, Fu Jun says Diwu Lun is personally leading a hundred thousand troops south. When the time comes, the Wei army's armor and weapons will be keen-edged. Against our troops, exhausted from prolonged fighting, can you truly be certain of victory?"

Feng Yi replied: "Sun Bin said: 'He who races a hundred li for gain will trip even his top commander; he who races fifty li for gain will have only half his army arrive.' Even if Diwu Lun truly has a hundred thousand men, he is rushing south from Lankou Ford, a forced march of two hundred li to Dangyang. Those who arrive first — can they be more than fifty thousand? At most, their numbers will match ours. And the exhaustion of a forced march is no less than that of bitter combat."

He looked at Liu Xiu and added one more point: "Furthermore, the Wei army's giant catapults can strike from afar, beyond the reach of our bows, crossbows, and flying stones. At Jiangling, at Changban, whether attacking or defending, they left our army with no stratagem to employ. This time, Your Majesty has lured Cen Peng to shift his forces into the open field, where he no longer has the aid of giant catapults. Even if Diwu Lun arrives, fighting us on the open plain, he will not be able to set up his giant catapults in a short time — it will be like losing an arm."

Feng Yi had been thoroughly terrified by the counterweight trebuchets. The countermeasure he had found was to stay mobile, to keep the enemy fully in motion, to make them leave their hard fortifications — and would that not solve the problem?

After this speech, the Han army seemed to glimpse a sliver of hope once more. Liu Xiu struck while the iron was hot and encouraged them further. The generals' attitudes were at least unified before the battle.

Liu Xiu divided his army into four parts. Jia Fu had already taken five thousand troops to lie in ambush over ten li to the northwest. He also assigned Wang Chang, Grand General Who Sweeps the Field, to command the Left Army, took personal command of the Center Army, and gave the Right Army to Feng Yi.

"Today I owe much to Gongsun for bringing the generals around."

Greatly gratified, Liu Xiu handed Feng Yi the tiger tally and command banner, and said to him in a low voice: "General, to the state, our bond is that of lord and subject in duty; in grace, it is that of brothers!"

These words carried immense weight. Feng Yi was greatly startled and was about to speak, but Liu Xiu patted his hand, smiled, and shook his head. Then he turned to the generals and declared: "This battle will decide not only the fate of the Jiang-Han region, but whether the Great Han survives or perishes! If we are victorious, would I, the Emperor, begrudge meritorious generals the reward of enfeoffment as kings, with lands carved out for them?"

Since Liu Xiu had established the "Eastern Han," although he had also created kings from different surnames, he had only bestowed the title on important generals who had died in battle — men like Lai Xi, Ma Wu, and Liu Zhi. But this time, he relaxed his stance and signaled his willingness to share the realm with the living!

Because Liu Xiu knew all too well just how crucial this battle was — and how enormous the risk!

Though Feng Yi had helped him persuade the others, Liu Xiu still could not deceive himself.

He was not unaware that once Diwu Lun's great army arrived, his own side would be at a disadvantage in numbers, position, and arms. The Han army had long since stepped into the trap, and Diwu Lun's noose was drawing tighter and tighter.

"But this is also the moment when Our strength is closest to Diwu Lun's, now that We meet him on the battlefield!"

Diwu Lun held the northern provinces, whose wealth and prosperity made Liu Xiu's mouth water. Yet after ten years of painstaking effort, Jiangdong remained vast in territory but sparse in people. Lingnan and Jiaozhou could not be counted on, Jingzhou was already ruined, and Huainan might be lost at any moment... This gap, as time passed, far from shrinking, only grew wider. Liu Xiu had also noticed that every time they fought, Diwu Lun always managed to produce some new weapon or device — things like high-saddle stirrups and giant trebuchets — that made the Han army suffer heavy losses.

To be slowly crushed and tormented to death by Diwu Lun's methodical operations, or to rise up and gamble everything, using a single victory to reverse the disadvantage?

Liu Xiu chose the latter!

"We cannot wait until Diwu Lun has seized the entire upper river and watered his horses in the Great River, only to imitate Xiang Yu and sigh, 'It is Heaven that destroys me, not any fault in my generalship.'"

"Better to decide the outcome in one decisive clash while there is still a chance."

The sky was fully bright. The Han army, having slept on the ground without tents for barely two double-hours, hastily assembled. Cen Peng's force of twenty-five thousand, having pursued south through the night, had already reached ten li to the north and was also slowly halting its steps...

When the sun rose and the mist gradually dispersed, the two sides had closed to within five li, swords drawn and bows bent.

Yet although Cen Peng had marched out resolved to die, that did not mean he would foolishly charge headlong into a slugging match with the Han army.

Looking at the Palace Gentleman accompanying the army at his side — who was also his own son, Cen Zun — he smiled and said:

"Palace Gentleman Cen, do you know what the Wei army was best at when His Majesty first raised his troops?"

Cen Zun was taken aback, but their cohort of Palace Gentlemen had attended an accelerated officers' course at Weiyang Palace, with textbooks personally compiled by His Majesty the Emperor! They were thoroughly familiar with the military history of Great Wei, so he replied reflexively:

"Best at... remaining calm and unflustered when meeting the enemy, as orderly as a forest, as immovable as a mountain..."

"Hahaha, exactly. Today I shall use this art to deal with Liu Xiu." Cen Peng laughed heartily. "As orderly as a forest, as immovable as a mountain" — that was the polished phrasing from the books. In the private banter of the State of Wei's veteran generals, two words were enough to sum it up.

"Standing firm!"