Chapter 291: Darkness Beneath the Lamp

Chen Yu felt that he had been played for a fool by Shusun Tong.

Although Chen Yu made his name in Zhao, he was a native of Daliang in Wei, for he was fond of both knight-errantry and Confucian scholarship; his associates included not only great knights like Zhang Er, but also great Confucians like Kong Fu…

Kong Fu's ancestral home was in Lu, but he himself had long resided in Wei. While Wei still stood, Chen Yu was a regular guest in Kong Fu's household, often discussing scholarship with him; their bond, though not a neck-slashing friendship like the one he shared with Zhang Er, was still that of a revered teacher and trusted friend.

When Wei fell, Chen Yu went to Yangwu County to try to rescue Zhang Er's wife and children but failed; after his attempt to seize hostages was discovered and crushed by Heifu's scheme, he was immediately hunted everywhere by Qin troops and could only flee east in panic. Unable to find Zhang Er's whereabouts for a time, and not daring to return to his home in Zhao, he fled to Kong Fu's house in Lu to seek refuge.

It was during that month and more of staying in Lu that he came to know Kong Fu's disciple, Shusun Tong.

Though young in years, Shusun Tong was gifted, thoroughly versed in Confucian arts, and spoke with perfect propriety; he quickly became thick as thieves with Chen Yu, and the two talked together with great delight.

Chen Yu did not stay long in Lu, however; once he learned of Zhang Er's whereabouts, he left to join him.

Just as the two were fretting over where to go from there, Qin launched its first campaign against Chu. Li Xin drove deep into enemy territory, only to be defeated by Xiang Yan, and the Lord of Changping also turned against Qin and returned to Chu…

When they heard this, the worry on their faces vanished in an instant; they embraced and laughed, wild with joy!

This was not only a victory for Chu, but also the greatest victory the Six States had won against Qin in over thirty years! Seven commandants, seventy thousand men! Qin had suffered such a colossal loss that restorationists everywhere were elated and heartened. They saw this battle as a repeat of Handan, and the Lord of Changping's righteous uprising as equal to the Lord of Xinling stealing the tally to save Zhao.

And so, over the following year, Chen County became the headquarters of the anti-Qin forces. Men of Han, Zhao, Wei, and even Yan all gathered there — Zhang Er and Chen Yu were no exception.

But what no one expected was that the King of Qin, whom they had all written off as a Fuchai or a Zhi Bo, would in the span of a single year organize six hundred thousand men and come sweeping back, commanded by the battle-scarred Wang Jian, giving Chu not the slightest chance…

When Xiang Yan retreated in defeat, Chen County was also taken by Qin troops. The men from various states inside the city fled in panic; Chen Yu wanted to leave too, but Zhang Er urged him to stay.

Zhang Er said, "Xiang Yan is defeated, Chu will surely fall. Pei, Si, Lu, and Xue are all Qin territory now. Qi has shut its passes and will not take us in. Dai and Liaodong are far away. Where else do you and I have to go?"

Chen Yu grew anxious: "What you say makes sense, brother, but we still cannot stay here. Chen is a key stronghold north of the Huai; Qin will certainly garrison it with a large army. It is far too dangerous."

Zhang Er was, as expected of a man who had once been a county knight, though years of ease had softened his body somewhat and dulled his ambition, ever since the Qin army attacked, stripping him of his territory, his retainers, his wife dead and his children captured, he had returned to a life of licking blood off a blade, growing bolder and sharper by the day.

At Chen Yu's worry, Zhang Er smiled faintly, moved the small oil lamp burning on the table in front of Chen Yu, and told him to look.

"Look at what?" Chen Yu did not understand.

Zhang Er said, "When this lamp is lit, it illuminates a space of several zhang within the room."

He then pointed at the lamp itself: "But look at the inches right beneath the lamp!"

Chen Yu looked — indeed, though the flame flickered on the wick and lit them up, the lamp's own body blocked the light, creating a small circle of shadow directly beneath it…

"Even beneath a bright lamp, there is a dark place. Moreover, Qin has only just taken Chen; it cannot transplant its whole system here overnight. Rather than wander as fugitives in the wilds, better to stay right here. Not only is it safer, but my network and acquaintances are here — many who have received my favors can be of use to us. And should the situation change, Chen County, as a crossroads, will make it easy to act!"

And so Zhang Er and Chen Yu went into hiding in Chen County, sheltering among the lanes and markets. Just as they had reckoned, the city held tens of thousands of people, and with those who had fled the war, the total approached a hundred thousand. Qin had no way to check them all; they could only have each ward report the origins and names of its residents and issue them new identity tallies and travel permits.

Zhang Er and Chen Yu had been in Chen County a long time and spoke the local dialect with perfect fluency, so they passed themselves off as natives of nearby Yangxia County who had fled here, and just like that obtained the "good-citizen certificates" the Qin garrison was handing out.

Zhang Er shaved off his long beard and played the elder brother, working as a peddler, while Chen Yu grew out his whiskers and played the younger brother, using the identity of a Confucian scholar as cover.

At the time, the two still harbored a sliver of hope that Xiang Yan might work another miracle, but things went against their wishes. Last month, word came: Xiang Yan had died in battle, Shouchun had fallen, and the King of Chu had been taken captive…

The two did not know that the Lord of Changping had succeeded to the throne; they believed Chu was utterly destroyed.

But just then, another opportunity presented itself: the King of Qin had come to Chen County!

At first Zhang Er and Chen Yu had no particular plan, but a man of Han who was likewise hiding in Chen County sought them out and made a proposal:

"That Qin has swallowed the five states facing south, though it is the fruit of six generations of victories and long-accumulated momentum, still could not have happened without King Zheng of Qin's grand vision. He desires to unite all under heaven, harbors a greedy and grasping heart, exercises a self-stirring wisdom, dispatches strategists and fine generals as if waving his own arms, and sends forth armies of hundreds of thousands as if going on a hunt. Thus in seven years he has already extinguished five states — a thing unprecedented in all history — and Zheng is a sovereign without equal in a hundred generations."

"Therefore, to halt Qin's annexations and restore the five states is no longer a matter of armies clashing. We must follow the example of Crown Prince Dan of Yan and use an assassin to kill the King of Qin. I have heard that the King of Qin's eldest son is still a minor. If the King of Qin dies, the ruler will be young and the state uncertain, and the annexations may be slowed."

Having spoken, the man of Han bowed low to the ground before Zhang Er and Chen Yu: "The reason I, Liang, left Xinzheng, dismissed my three hundred servants, and left my younger brother unburied — what is it? I ruined my house to relieve the nation's calamity, longing to find a fierce warrior to assassinate the King of Qin! Not only to avenge Han, but also to win back a sliver of hope for the restorationists of every state! I beseech Sir Zhang and Sir Chen to join me in this great enterprise!"

…

Recalling this, Chen Yu felt a chill run down his spine. That man of Han, Zhang Liang, was meticulous in the extreme; every step had been carefully planned.

The three had divided the work: Zhang Liang was responsible for funding; Zhang Er was to use his knight-errant network to find strong, brave men with the guts and a grudge against Qin; Chen Yu was assigned to scout out the King of Qin's movements and security arrangements, to see if an opening could be found.

Just as he was racking his brains with no way to begin, yesterday, at the north gate of Chen County, he ran into Shusun Tong hurrying into the city…

When Chen Yu learned that Shusun Tong was going to see the King of Qin, he was overjoyed. He certainly would not ask this Confucian of Lu to carry out the assassination; he only asked him to help probe the true state of the King of Qin's security.

Shusun Tong had readily agreed at the time, but after Chen Yu triumphantly told Zhang Liang and Zhang Er about it, Zhang Liang immediately rose and questioned him.

"This Shusun Tong — how did Sir Chen come to know him?"

Chen Yu honestly recounted how they had met, and Zhang Liang's face changed dramatically: "As the proverb says, if a secret matter is not kept secret, it brings disaster. Thus the gentleman is cautious and secretive and does not let things out. The assassination of Qin is an utmost secret, yet Sir Chen has told it to a man he has known barely a month. The affair is likely already leaked. I fear Liang can remain no longer. Farewell!"

With that, Zhang Liang unilaterally broke off cooperation with the two and vanished without a trace. While Chen Yu cursed Zhang Liang for a coward, he also began to worry about Shusun Tong's end of things.

When Zhang Er's men saw Shusun Tong swaggering in and out of the Chen County temporary palace in the King of Qin's retinue, wearing the cap of an Erudite and bowing farewell to a Qin clerk, Chen Yu assumed the wretch had already betrayed the cause. That was why he had lain in ambush at his lodgings, leading to the scene before him now…

Chen Yu pressed the dagger closer to Shusun Tong's neck: "Your master would rather rot in prison than answer the King of Qin's summons, yet you — in a single day you have donned the King of Qin's Erudite robes and paraded through the streets. A man who betrays his own teacher! Have you also given us up to trade for riches from the King of Qin? The bounty on my head is worth five hundred taels of gold!"

"If I had, Qin clerks and soldiers would already have smashed down your door with me in tow."

Shusun Tong explained: "When the King of Qin performed the sacrifices, the temple inside and out was ringed by a thousand men of the Central Chariot Office Guard and the Gentlemen Guard, and another thousand held the streets. When I entered, I was searched three times; twice they nearly stripped me completely bare."

"And afterward, when the King of Qin proceeded to the temporary palace, he was escorted by over a thousand men front, rear, left, and right. Every street and alley the King of Qin passed through was searched in advance by Gentlemen Guards and Qin soldiers, and the buildings facing the street in particular were cleared out entirely…"

"With security this tight, Sir Chen, what you intend to do has no chance whatsoever."

Though Chen Yu had not said it outright, how could Shusun Tong not guess what they were planning?

So he gently pushed Chen Yu's sword aside and sighed: "The King of Qin's defenses are impenetrable; there is no gap to exploit. Sir Chen, if I may say so, let this matter rest. To attempt an assassination now is nothing but a moth flying into the flame. Better to preserve your useful selves and await the changing times."

Chen Yu fell silent for a moment, but then grabbed him again and snapped: "You've already gone over to Qin — of course you would say that!"

Shusun Tong, however, grew solemn: "Though I, Shusun Tong, am cursed as a flatterer with a pleasant face, a man without shame, disloyal — yet I hold fast to the Confucian Five Constants alone: benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness. In these turbulent last days, I hold these five things more important than so-called loyalty to sovereign and love of country. Therefore, since I gave Sir Chen my word, I would never go back on it and betray you!"

Chen Yu heard this and fell silent. Was it not precisely for this reason that he had trusted Shusun Tong and asked him to probe the King of Qin's security?

Shusun Tong pressed on: "Furthermore, today I curried favor with the King of Qin and was recruited as an Erudite. Had I refused, my head would already be hanging from the city gate tower…"

"But precisely because of this, I can go to Xianyang as an Erudite-in-Waiting and serve as an inside contact for Sir Chen and the others. The King of Qin is vainglorious and fond of grand achievements; now that he has taken Mount Tai, he may well hold the Feng and Shan sacrifices someday. He will surely summon all the Erudites to accompany him, and when that time comes, I will be among them. I may be able to pass intelligence to you and help Sir Zhang and Sir Chen accomplish your great deed…"

By this point, Chen Yu's intent to kill had vanished. He hastily pulled Shusun Tong up and bowed in apology: "Chen Yu is dull and foolish; I nearly wronged you, sir!"

What he did not know was that Shusun Tong would never put all his eggs in one basket. He would fawn on and please the King of Qin on one side, but on the other, he would not tear his face off with the anti-Qin righteous men and seal that road off completely…

Shusun Tong straightened his collar and smiled: "No matter. Besides, though today's outing revealed that the assassination of Qin has no opening, it was not entirely fruitless…"

"I recall that after Wei fell, Sir Chen came to seek refuge with my master and said that back in Wei, Sir Zhang's wife was killed by a certain Qin clerk, who also used a treacherous scheme to kill Zhou Shi of the Wei Martial Troops and several hundred righteous men. What was that Qin clerk's name again?"

"His name is Heifu!"

Chen Yu ground his teeth. That was the greatest humiliation of his life. Ever since that affair, he had always felt he had let his brother Zhang Er down, and had failed Zhou Shi and the fallen knights and Wei soldiers.

"Indeed!"

Shusun Tong clapped his hands and laughed: "I went to see the King of Qin today, and happened to run into that Heifu! He's in Chen County too!"

PS: When Han fell, Zhang Liang had three hundred household servants; he did not bury his younger brother when he died, but used all his family wealth to seek a retainer to assassinate the King of Qin, to avenge Han — because his grandfather and father had served as chancellor to five generations of Han rulers.

Zhang Liang once studied ritual propriety at Huaiyang. — Records of the Grand Historian: The Hereditary House of the Marquis of Liu

Several years after Qin destroyed Wei, it had heard that these two men were renowned scholars of Wei, and offered a reward of a thousand gold for Zhang Er and five hundred gold for Chen Yu. Zhang Er and Chen Yu then changed their names and surnames, and both went to Chen, where they worked as wardens of a village gate to support themselves.

— Records of the Grand Historian: The Biographies of Zhang Er and Chen Yu

In my personal opinion, the "thousand gold" and "five hundred gold" here should be in taels, not yi. The King of Qin rewarded Xia Wuju with only two hundred yi; these two men were not worth such a high price at the time.

(End of chapter)