Chapter 607: Many Words Bring Many Failures

"General Yang Duanhe has passed away?"

On the first day of the seventh month, Heifu received this shocking and grievous news.

His subordinates looked at one another in dismay. With Chen Ping absent, Xiao He and Cao Can became the two pillars at Heifu's side: one supervised the transport and overall coordination of provisions and fodder, while the other discussed military affairs with Heifu. Although the army supervisor had no authority to interfere in combat operations, every detail of the front-line situation was transmitted back for him to know, and then reported to Xianyang, so that Qin Shi Huang would know whether his eldest son's examination this time was proceeding smoothly.

But now, this war—which in Qin Shi Huang's plan had Yang Duanhe safeguarding the front and Heifu escorting the rear, utterly foolproof—had sprung a colossal leak.

Chen Ping notified Heifu at the first moment and, on behalf of Fusu, asked: "Now that things have come to this, what is to be done?"

The question boiled down to two choices: advance, or halt?

"What do you two think?"

Heifu, however, tossed this question to Xiao He and Cao Can.

"With General Yang gone, I fear this campaign can no longer be fought."

Cao Can knew very little about Fusu, only that he was a prince with a reputation for benevolence who had never led troops. As commander-in-chief, Fusu had the veteran general Yang Duanhe to assist him; he only needed to issue orders, while Yang Duanhe handled all the specifics. Now that Yang Duanhe had perished before the expedition could achieve victory, never mind fighting a battle—could Fusu even manage to keep his ten thousand men from scattering?

Heifu shared this worry: "Chen Ping says that after the thousand-li march through Liaoxi and Liaodong, the army has suffered considerable attrition—several hundred dead or wounded in the mountain forests, several hundred more deserted. And with the old general's passing, army morale is even more unstable. Although there are still three commandants helping the prince keep the three armies in check, the conscripted soldiers from Yan and Zhao lands all long for their homes and have lost the will to fight..."

"Since army morale is already in disarray, rash advances are inadvisable. The best choice is to halt at Xi'anping."

Though Cao Can fought fiercely in battle, ordinarily he was a cautious and steady man. Before the fighting even began, the deputy commander was dead, the chief commander knew nothing of warfare, and the three armies' morale was low—what difference was there between sending such a force into foreign territory and simply sending them to their deaths?

Xiao He, however, shook his head and said: "The prince and the great army are the arrow, and the one drawing the bow is His Majesty the Emperor. The arrow was loosed from the string back in Xianyang—how can there be any principle of stopping midway?"

Cao Can was considering the matter from a military standpoint, but Xiao He saw the political factors.

This war was not something Fusu wanted to fight, nor something those soldiers wanted to fight—it was Qin Shi Huang forcing them to fight! The Emperor's edict demanded that Canghai must be annihilated before winter's onset. There were still over two months left to carry it out. If they halted now, one could well imagine how furiously Qin Shi Huang would rage!

As Xiao He and Cao Can argued, Heifu sank into contemplation: "Xiao He is right. If my domineering old man gives his son a test and the son abandons it halfway, then Fusu will utterly disappoint the Emperor, plunge straight off the cliff, and be finished for good."

To be honest, the mere fact that Fusu had entrusted Chen Ping to ask Heifu for advice already disappointed Heifu somewhat.

"Too naive..."

If he were an ambitious prince, if he still possessed a shred of enterprising spirit, at a moment like this he should not be asking whether to retreat or advance, but rather grit his teeth, stamp his foot, and hoist that banner himself! What he should have said to Heifu was: "Fusu wishes to rely on his own ability to command the army and destroy Canghai—could Commandant Wei lend Fusu a hand?!"

Never mind his ability to get things done—at the very least, he did not even know how to act in his own best interest. Hesitating in the face of trouble, utterly bewildered—no matter how fine his character, surviving in this filthy, profit-driven, shameless world would be far too difficult...

For Heifu to willingly entrust his own life, his family's lives, and his subordinates' lives to such a person—he did not have that big a heart. Sometimes, trusting oneself is better than trusting others!

Heifu, by contrast, was very clear on how to act in his own best interest.

Qin Shi Huang would absolutely never let the matter rest. He was like a tireless archer, crossbow in hand, aiming at his target. If one bolt missed, he would loose another—just as he had twice destroyed Chu. If this distant expedition ceased without a fight, everyone involved would likely face punishment, and Heifu, the army supervisor, would not escape unscathed either.

And a year or half a year later, an even larger-scale expedition would begin once more...

Considering the overall situation, the war in the north had to be concluded before the southern campaign began!

And considering Jiaodong alone, this war also had to be won.

Chen Ping had once complained to Heifu that Jiaodong's two years of new policies had all been poured into this war. If it were abandoned halfway, the earlier investments—the ships, the provisions and fodder, the corvée labor—would all be thrown into the Eastern Sea with nothing to show for it.

Therefore, this war must be won, and won cleanly, leaving no loose ends!

After Chen Ping earlier sent back a letter describing what he had seen and heard in Liaodong, Heifu had also glimpsed the profits to be had overseas. Post-war management of southern Liaoning and the Korean peninsula would be Jiaodong's future...

Not colonization, but economic plunder. From southern Liaoning to Korea, most of these cold regions abounded in furs—sables and beavers were everywhere—as well as mountain goods like ginseng, with astonishing profit margins. This would bring Jiaodong enormous benefits!

By this time, Xiao He and Cao Can's discussion was nearing its end. Cao Can agreed with Xiao He that if this campaign came to an abrupt halt, they would have no way to account for it to the Emperor. But the military problems were something Xiao He could offer no solution for either.

"A spent crossbow bolt cannot pierce thin Lu silk! Unless..."

Cao Can, however, had an idea, and he looked toward Heifu.

The veteran general closest to the front line right now was the man before his eyes. If he could go to Korea, a trifling Canghai would be as easy as reaching out a hand to take...

Xiao He, however, gave a light cough and warned: "Without His Majesty's edict, the army supervisor may not leave his post without authorization, still less overstep his bounds!"

"Xiao He is right."

Heifu knew perfectly well that this was absolutely impossible. Going to help Fusu without Qin Shi Huang's permission—in the Emperor's eyes, that situation would be nothing short of cheating...

He gave the order: "Cao Can, draft a letter at once and have it sent by relay station, eight-hundred-li express, to Xianyang, to report this matter to His Majesty!"

A round trip would take at least three months. By then, if the war was not yet over and the Emperor ordered him to go, Heifu might be able to cross to the opposite shore and clean up the mess. But until Qin Shi Huang's edict arrived...

He had to stay obediently in Jiaodong and could not take a single step across the sea!

As for Prince Fusu, Heifu personally wrote a letter, solemnly telling him: "To accept the command and not refuse, to return only after the enemy is broken—this is the rite of a general!"

The meaning was very clear: the campaign must not be terminated! The deadline Qin Shi Huang demanded was drawing ever closer; the great army must not linger long at Xi'anping.

But he also wrote: "However, if the army's heart is not united, even a multitude will be defeated. Would it not be better for the prince to leave the Yan and Zhao soldiers at Xi'anping and Manfanhan to settle their hearts, and have them plant banners far and wide to overawe Korea? The prince need only take five thousand Guanzhong troops with two commandants, borrow passage through Korea, and coordinate with Commandant Ren's naval forces to encircle the Lord of Canghai—then this war can be won!"

This was one of the very few things Heifu could do. Although Fusu's inquiry had left him somewhat disappointed and amused, the two had, after all, worked together once. In public duty and in private, as army supervisor, Heifu would pave the road for him. As for whether he walked it, and whether he walked it well—that would depend on Fusu himself...

"There is one more thing..."

After mulling it over, Heifu took another sheet of paper and wrote a separate letter, this one to Chen Ping.

The letter contained only four terse characters, but they were enough for Chen Ping to understand Heifu's intent.

"Many words bring many failures!"

You—don't think I don't know anything...

No sooner had the letter been sent off than Cao Can came back to report: "My lord, word has come back from Chengshan Cape that General Ren's naval forces departed across the sea just yesterday!"

This was a prearranged plan. The previous several exploratory voyages had all approached Liekou under the guise of merchant ships. But Liekou was, after all, a port of Jizi Korea. Once Fusu's army entered Korea, Liekou would become the most convenient supply station. Therefore, Ren Xiao was to go to the opposite shore, greet the Jizi Korea side, and incidentally establish diplomatic relations...

"Indeed."

Heifu set aside those vexing matters and revealed a satisfied grin: "Tower-ship diplomacy!"

In the first ten days of the seventh month of the thirty-third year of Qin Shi Huang, at Jizi Korea's capital, Wangxian City, with its low, squat walls, the crude wooden gate was knocked open early in the morning. Someone from Liekou hurried into the city in haste and ran to the Korean royal palace—cramped as a small county office—to report to King Jifou of Korea:

"At Liekou—dozens of black ships have come ashore!"

PS: Organizing the outline, trying to recover my rhythm. Only a short, feeble chapter today; normal updates resume tomorrow.

(End of chapter)