The Three Kingdoms Volume 2 (27 page)

“I am acting on Heaven’s behalf to do right. I will not slay the people.”

Pang Tong thanked him and then begged for a document that would protect his own family.

“Where do they live?” asked Cao Cao.

“Right by the riverbank. They will be safe if you can give me this document.”

Cao Cao ordered a decree to be prepared. Having signed it he gave it to Pang Tong, who bowed to him in gratitude.

“You should attack as soon as I am gone,” said Pang Tong. “Do not wait until Zhou Yu finds out.”

Cao Cao agreed and the strategist took his leave.

Soon, he came to the river. As he was about to embark he was seized from behind by a man in a Taoist robe and a bamboo hat, who said, “You do have guts, don’t you? Huang Gai plays the trick of having himself tortured and Kan Ze has presented the letter of false submission. Now you have come to offer the fatal scheme of chaining the ships together lest the flames may not completely destroy them. This sort of wicked scheme may have been enough to blind Cao Cao, but not me!”

Pang Tong was so frightened that his three souls seem to have flown away and his seven spirits scattered.

By clever strategies the south may succeed,

But who says there aren’t able men in the north?

Who the speaker was will be revealed in the next chapter.

CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

Cao Cao Feasts on the Yangtze and Composes a Song

The Northern Men Attack the South Using Chained Ships

A
t
the end of the last chapter Pang Tong was filled with fear when someone seized him and told him that he had seen through all the tricks of the south. Hastily turning around to find out who the speaker was, he saw, to his great relief, that it was his old friend Xu Shu. Looking around to make sure there was no one near, he said, “It would be a pity if you upset my plan. The fate of the people of all the eighty-one counties in the south is in your hands.”

Xu Shu smiled. “And what of the fate of these 830,000 northern men here?” he challenged.

“Do you really intend to wreck my scheme?”

“I’ve never forgotten the kindness of Liu Bei, nor my oath to avenge the death of my mother on Cao Cao. I’ve pledged never to plan anything for him. Am I likely to wreck yours now? But I’m here with the army and after its defeat, everyone, good or bad, will suffer alike. How can I escape? Tell me how I can secure safety and I’ll seal my lips and go away.”

Pang Tong smiled, “That shouldn’t be a problem for a man of your genius.”

“Please instruct me what to do.”

So Pang Tong whispered something in his ear, which seemed to please Xu Shu greatly, for he thanked him most cordially. Then Pang Tong took his leave and went back to the southern shore in his boat.

That night, Xu Shu sent his men to spread certain rumors in the various camps. The next day, men in small groups were seen everywhere, whispering to each other till the camps were abuzz. Some of the men went to Cao Cao and told him that a rumor was going around that Han Sui and Ma Teng were going to attack the capital. This troubled Cao Cao, who called his advisors to a council. He said, “The only anxiety I have about this expedition is what mischief Han Sui and Ma Teng might be up to. Now there is a rumor running among the men, and though this may not be true, it is necessary to be on our guard.”

At this point Xu Shu said, “You have been kind enough to give me a post, sir, and I have really done nothing in return. Give me 3,000 men and I will leave at once to guard San Pass. If any pressing matter occurs I will report to you at once.”

“If you can go I will have no worries. There are already some troops at the pass, who will be under your command, and now I will give you 3,000 more cavalry and foot soldiers. Let Zhang Ba be the leader of the van. You must set out at once.”

Xu Shu took his leave and left, in company with Zhang Ba. This was the very scheme that Pang Tong had told his friend to secure his safety.

Cao Cao marched south, but at his back

There was the fear of rear attack.

Pang Tong’s good counsel Xu Shu took,
And thus the fish escaped the hook.

Cao Cao’s anxiety diminished after he had sent away Xu Shu. Then he mounted and went down to inspect his troops—first the land forces and then the naval. He boarded a large ship on whose tall mast fluttered the standard bearing the large character for commander. The naval camps were arranged on the two sides and on the ships were deployed a thousand bows and crossbows.

It was the full moon of the eleventh month of the thirteenth year of Jian An. The sky was clear. There was no wind and the river lay calm. Cao Cao ordered his men to prepare a great banquet with music and he invited all his advisors and officers. As evening drew on the moon rose over the eastern hills in its immaculate splendor and beneath it lay the broad belt of the river, like a band of pure white silk. It was a great assembly—all the guests were clad in gorgeous silks and embroidered robes and the weapons of the fighting men glittered in the moonlight. The officials, civil and military, were seated in order of precedence.

The setting, too, was exquisite. The Nanping hills were outlined as in a picture. In the east lay the boundaries of Caisang; in the west the river stretched as far as Xiakou; in the south lay the Hills of Fan; while in the north was the Forest of Wulin. There was wide open space on every side.

Thrilled by the enchanting scenery, Cao Cao addressed the assembly: “My one aim since I enlisted my first band of volunteers has been the removal of evil from the state and I have sworn to cleanse the country and restore tranquillity. Now there is only this land of Wu that I have not conquered. But, with my army of one million men and the great effort of you gentlemen, I have no doubt of my final success. After I have subdued Wu there will be no trouble in all the country. Then we will live in peace, enjoying wealth and honor together.”

They rose in a body to express their appreciation. “May Your Lordship soon win complete victory, and for all our lives we will repose in the shade of your good fortune.”

In his elation Cao Cao told the servants to serve the wine and the guests drank till late. Mellow with drink, he pointed to the south bank and said, “Zhou Yu and Lu Su, you know nothing about the will of Heaven. Now you have the misfortune of the desertion of your own officers. Heaven is indeed on my side.”

“Say nothing about these,” warned Xun You, “lest they become known to the enemy.”

But Cao Cao only laughed. “All of you present here are my trusted men, officers, or attendants. There is nothing to fear.”

Pointing to Xiakou he continued, “Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang, how foolish of you to attempt to shake Mount Tai with your puny force of ants!”

Then turning to his followers, he said, “I am now fifty-four. If I gain Wu, I have one special wish. In the past, Lord Qiao and I were great friends and I know his two daughters are lovely beyond words. I wasn’t aware that they were later married to Sun Ce and Zhou Yu. But now I have built the Bronze Bird Tower on the Zhang River and if I conquer the south I will get the two fair ladies and keep them in the tower to comfort my declining years. My desires will then be complete.”

He laughed heartily at the prospect.

Du Mu, a famous poet of the Tang Dynasty, once wrote,

A broken halberd buried in the sand,

With deep rust eaten,
Loud tells of ancient battles on the strand,
When Cao was beaten.

Had eastern winds Zhou’s plan refused to aid
And fan the flame,
Two captives fair, locked in the Bronze Bird’s shade,
Would’ve gone to shame.

But suddenly amid the merriment was heard the hoarse cry of a raven flying toward the south.

“Why does that raven cry like this in the night?” asked Cao Cao.

“The moon is so bright that he thinks it is day,” they said, “and so he cries and leaves his tree.”

Cao Cao burst into more hearty laughter. By this time he was quite intoxicated. He set up his spear in the prow of the ship and poured a libation into the river and then drank three brimming goblets. Holding the spear, he said, “With this spear I have broken up the Yellow Turbans, captured Lu Bu, destroyed Yuan Shu, subdued Yuan Shao, penetrated into the far north, and reached Liaodong. I have fought throughout the empire as a true hero does. This scene before me moves me to the depths and I will sing a song. I want you all to accompany me.”

And so he sang:

Songs are to go with wine,

For brief indeed is life.

Like the dew drops at dawn
How time has passed beyond recall!

Man’s life may be spent in the noblest enterprise,
But sorrowful thoughts in his heart oft arise.

Let us wash away our lament that intrude,
With bumpers of wine such as Du Kang once brewed.
Gone are my days of youthful fire
And still ungained is my desire.

I wait and ponder till now
For my thoughts are to you bound.

The deer feed on the level plain
And joyful call, then feed again.

My noble guests are gathered round,
The air is trilled with joyful sound.

Splendid is the moonlight
That forever is bright.

Sadness rises in my heart
Never will it cease to hurt.

Crossing fields and paths,
Friends come to greet me.

Merrily we talk and feast,
Our hearts warm with friendships past.

The stars are paled by the full moon’s light,
The raven wings his southward flight,
And thrice he circles round a tree,
No place thereon to rest finds he.

The mountains can never be too high,

Nor can the waters be too deep.

Duke Zhou welcomed the valiant and the wise,
And men gathered around him from all sides.

When he had finished they sang it with him and were all exceedingly merry. However, one guest suddenly said, “When the great army is on the point of battle and officers and men are about to risk their lives, why do you, sir, speak such words of ill fortune?”

Cao Cao turned quickly toward the speaker, who was Liu Fu, Governor of Yangzhou. This Liu started his career from Hefei. When first appointed to his post, he had quelled the runaway people and restored order. He had founded schools and encouraged the people to farm the land. In his many years of employment with Cao Cao he had rendered valuable services.

Holding his spear crosswise Cao Cao asked, “What ill-omened words have I used?”

“You spoke of the moon diming the stars and the raven flying southward without finding a resting place after circling round the trees for three times. These are ill-omened words.”

“How dare you blight my joy?” cried Cao Cao in wrath. With that he raised his spear and slew Liu Fu.

The assembly broke up and the guests dispersed in fear and confusion. The next day, when he had recovered from his drunkeness, Cao Cao grieved at what he had done. When the victim’s son came to beg for the body of his father for burial, Cao Cao wept and expressed his sorrow.

“I killed your father by mistake, for I was drunk yesterday. I am exceedingly sorry for that. Your father shall be interred with the honors of a minister of the highest rank.”

He sent a band of soldiers to escort the body home for burial without delay.