Published at 6th of July 2021 6:18 am

Volume 6, Chapter 34: The Missing Piece

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

Translator: hweirdo

> Lu Can hailed from Jiangxia, legitimate heir of the Marquis Who Suppresses Distant Lands. His paternal grandfather, named Ping, served as Grand General in the time of Emperor Wu and was famous for his loyalty and bravery. His father, named Xin, was military governor of Jiangxia for twenty years, supremely loyal and respected by all levels of society. The Duke lost his mother at a young age and followed his father into the military. When he was slightly over the age of ten, he could draw a three-picul bow. He had divine strength. In a hundred battles, warriors couldn’t defeat him. Xin more or less said every time, “My son’s exploits are better than mine.”

>

> The Duke was skilled in martial arts and detested literature since childhood, because the State esteemed literature and looked down on the military. Xin fretted about this and invited a teacher to instruct him. The Duke was stubborn and disobedient by nature and drove away tutors. In the eleventh year of Xiande, Xin hired Jiang Zhe of Jiaxing as the family tutor. At the time, Zhe was barely fifteen. Xin was concerned the Duke would feel uneasy, but the Duke changed his attitude and acted with utmost courtesy and respect.

>

> In the twenty-second year of Xiande, Zhe was carried off to Yong and surrendered. Many years later, the Yong Emperor enfeoffed him as the Marquis of Chu of the fourth rank and married him to Great Yong’s Princess Changle of Ning. When the people of Chu heard this, they were incensed. All former colleagues and friends vilified him. Only the Duke was silent, so some criticized the Duke. The Duke said, “A teacher for a day is a father for life. How could I sever ties because of a forced choice? Listen, denouncers, and retreat in shame.”

>

> —Southern Chu Dynastic Records, Biography of the Duke of Loyal Courage

Early in the eighth month of the tenth year of Longsheng, an endless stream of travelers took the post road running from Hai Prefecture to Xuzhou on foot. A storm had just passed, expelling the scorching heat. Wind blowing in from the sea brought along a slightly fishy smell as well as magnificently fresh air.

In the distance, dust billowed. The rumbling of cart wheels reverberated through the air, and an unbroken line of baggage wagons trundled toward Hai Prefecture under the protection of Yong troops. The merchants and travelers on the road all made way to the side of the road. This kind of scenario would happen nearly every ten to fifteen days, so they didn’t need the troops to order them aside and voluntarily moved out of the way.

Great Yong and Southern Chu had been warring for many years, expending countless food, fodder, and supplies. Although the Yong military had also reclaimed farmland and trained troops in the area, they still required money, food, and supplies to be sent from the various regions Great Yong controlled. And the food and grain shipped from Youzhou and Yizhou mainly passed through the Yuntai Port in Hai Prefecture en route to Xuzhou.

In this vast and mighty convoy, a dark-robed young man not wearing armor nudged his horse slowly forward. He was Huo Cong. Two days ago, he landed at Yuntai and was supposed to ride hard to Xuzhou, but after he got ashore, dread rose inside him, and he deliberately delayed his journey. He set out with the caravan delivering provisions, nominally to have a safe trip. Although the Stalwart Tiger Guard protecting him saw into his mind, they couldn’t bear to expose him. After all, they had been together for years, the camaraderie deep.

As noon approached, the general escorting the provisions and supplies ordered the whole column to rest beside the road. The general walked over and said, “Young master Huo, there’s an inn up ahead. This general often makes a stopover there for a meal on these journeys. If young master isn’t opposed, can this general invite the young master to a round of drinks?”

Huo Cong may have been concerned, but he wouldn’t show any of it on his face. The officer was trying to be friendly. Huo Cong wouldn’t decline this, so said with a smile, “The general’s kindness embarrasses this one.” Then he vaulted off his horse and walked to the inn with the general while bantering.

The four Stalwart Tiger Guards automatically split off a pair who went off to investigate the inn. With Huo Cong leaving Dinghai, the Stalwart Tiger Guards who’d followed Huo Cong to Dinghai should have had no reason to stay in Dinghai anymore, but a vast majority of them had served in the Eastern Sea Navy, and many of them now held positions as mid-level generals or other important posts. If they pulled out all at once, it would unavoidably impact the combat effectiveness of the Eastern Sea Navy. As a result, before Jiang Zhe summoned Huo Cong back, he’d sent a memorial to the Yong emperor, petitioning that he might as well transfer those imperial bodyguards into the Eastern Sea Navy to hold posts. Outside of the four Stalwart Tiger Guards who’d been by Huo Cong’s side over the years, the bodyguards all stayed in Dinghai.

Although the general escorting the baggage wasn’t sure about Huo Cong’s identity, when he saw the young man had a retinue of Stalwart Tiger Guards protecting him, he knew Huo Cong had an important status. As such, he was reverent and respectful the whole journey and extremely courteous. Meanwhile, Huo Cong took the opportunity to ask a great deal about the state of affairs in Xuzhou.

Ever since the Jiangnan Command Post was constructed in Xuzhou in the eighth year of Longsheng, the hundreds of thousands of reinforcements that came in turned Huaibei into an impregnable fortress. After numerous large battles in three years, rivers of blood ran through Jianghuai. Generals on both sides had exhausted their ingenuity. Beyond the battlefields, secret agents traveled north and south without end on the roads. Even in Xuzhou, it was difficult to prevent Southern Chu secret agents and jianghu patriots from infiltrating. And the Prince of Qi, Li Xian, and Crown Prince Li Jun were overseeing Xuzhou, so assassins sprang up one after another. As a result, Xuzhou had long ago been placed under military rule, heavily guarded.

But what made Huo Cong worry was that his respected teacher, Jiang Zhe, was not in Xuzhou at the moment. Although Jiang Zhe was the Jiangnan Command Post Adviser, he didn’t seem to care much about important military matters. In the past three years, not only had he returned multiple times to the Yong capital, he also spent most of his days traveling across the mountains and rivers between Jingxiang and Huaibei. Or he was rowing a boat on Weishan Lake, or climbing Mount Song to visit the Buddhist temple there, or lingering on Mount Xian by the Han River. He rarely showed an interest in major military events.

However, the way the Yong emperor indulged Jiang Zhe was unprecedented. Not only did he not condemn Jiang Zhe, he even promoted his title. Jiang Zhe was now honored as the Marquis of Chu of the imperial rank. This made a ton of people see red at the unfairness. Even though Huo Cong knew Jiang Zhe was rising through the nobility due to his extraordinary feats in the eighth year of Longsheng, Jiang Zhe’s self-indulgence rather puzzled him. Awarding others leverage was not something his respected teacher would do.

Huo Cong’s mind was spinning, but his face was expressionless. He chatted merrily and carefreely with the general as they walked into the spacious and clean roadside inn. Lifting the curtain and entering through the inn’s entrance, the general was about to yell to greet the innkeeper when he caught sight of something. He shuddered, then froze. Huo Cong was following him and saw something off with the general’s behavior. But his line of sight was blocked by the general’s body, so he couldn’t see what was wrong inside the inn. Yet he took an unconscious step back. The two Stalwart Tiger Guards behind him caught up and took a protective stance around him.

If something unexpected happened inside the inn, the two Stalwart Tiger Guards who’d gone in first would’ve found out and sounded the alarm. Huo Cong was suspicious and gazed inside with shining eyes. At this moment, the general took a couple hasty steps forward, prostrated, and said, “This general, Xue Quanzhong, kowtows to Your Lordship, the Marquis. I didn’t know Your Lordship would be here. Please forgive this general for trespassing.”

Huo Cong heard an explosion go off inside his head when he heard the words. He went stiff as his gaze traveled past the prostrate general. He looked in and saw two people he was beyond familiar with sitting at the table in the center of the inn. One was a young man who still looked as young as ever, though his face pure as snow had changed slightly in three years. Wasn’t he the servant who never left his master’s side for a moment, Demonic Shadow Li Shun? And then there was the man wearing black robes that reached the ground, with gray hair, hoary temples, his face a bit more wrinkled by time, though his eyes were even gentler and deeper. Wasn’t he his respected master he’d been separated from for many years?

The older man reached out in a polite gesture to indicate the general rise, then turned his gaze outside the inn. He said with a smile, “Cong’er, after an absence of three years, you can’t have forgotten your teacher, right? What a waste of your teacher’s kindness to personally come to welcome you.”

Staring into the deep eyes full of admiration and relief, Huo Cong felt the fear that had been pestering him for many days melt and disappear without a trace like ice and snow encountering the scorching sun. Unable to prevent the rush of emotions, he threw himself before the man, prostrating, and choked out, “This disciple kowtows to respected teacher. How has respected teacher been?” Before he finished, tears began falling to the dirt.

Seeing Huo Cong’s shoulders trembling softly as he forced himself to hold his passion in check, I was quite moved too. Regret welled up inside me at this moment. Thinking of how I’d purposely wronged my beloved disciple over the past few years and of how he had to endure such stress at such a young age, I’d truly made things difficult for him. I stepped forward, taking him by the arm, and pulled him into a seated position. I said with a smile, “It’s all right. Although I made you suffer for the past few years, it would be difficult for a normal person to get a chance like this, governing a county at such a young age like you have. Haitao sent letters saying you’d helped him wage war with great effectiveness. You also racked your brains to govern Putuo, and he recommended you be appointed officially. However, I declined in your stead. These past few years were just for you to gain experience and familiarize yourself with general affairs. There’s no need to become an official. Stay with me and learn for several years. By then, you’ll be able to directly assist His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince in governing. If you got a post now, it’d be troublesome.”

Listening to his respected teacher’s earnest guidance, Huo Cong’s hidden uneasiness faded away. Wiping away his tears, he just realized only Jiang Zhe, Li Shun, and him remained in the inn. The uninvolved people had silently withdrawn, leaving an independent space for the teacher and disciple to talk. As for Li Shun, Huo Cong knew the man was attached at the hip to his respected teacher. Him remaining here was of no concern. After calming down, Huo Cong asked a long harbored question. “Sir, this disciple often had doubts when reading war dispatches in Dinghai. Sun Tzu said, ‘The art of war is of vital importance to the state. It is the grounds of life and death, a road to either safety or to ruin. It cannot be left unexamined.’ Sir deeply understands the Art of War, so should know that a stalemate in warfare harms the people and society. If one can win, one should win quickly. If one cannot win, one should cease all military activities, make preparations for war, and wait for an opportune moment. The Emperor thinks highly of Sir, so why not do your utmost, or advise the Emperor to end the war, or pacify Southern Chu in one fell swoop?”

I smiled at the question and replied, “Cong’er, experienced and knowledgeable people in the world say Southern Chu is ignorant and weak, so why can’t Great Yong trample all over it? Do you know the reason why?”

“Southerners mostly seek only ease and comfort. They adore grandeur and have no desire to capture the Central Plains,” Huo Cong said with a stern face. “If considering the strength of the two countries, outside of Grand General Lu Can’s subordinates, most of the rest are not strong. Our military’s elite soldiers are each worth ten men, so Southern Chu is powerless to produce a threat against Great Yong. The current Southern Chu is ignorant and weak. Although this is the case, Jiangnan is rich and populous and has a vast expanse of fertile land. And it has Jianghuai as a barrier to northern heavy cavalry, as well as Sichuan guarding the Yangtze River upstream. Jiangnan has been conducive to being defendable since ancient times. The feudal lords guarding Jianghuai and dividing Jiangnan from the fallen half of the country are too numerous to count. As long as the Southern Chu King has popular support, steadily defends the natural barriers of Jianghuai, and gets another couple famed generals to guard strategic locations, and with a united military spirit, it’ll make Great Yong gaze across the Yangtze and sigh. Southern Chu has occupied Jiangnan for decades, and though powerful ministers now hold power, the political situation can still be said to be stable. The taxes levied aren’t heavy, and the commoners can still manage to live in peace. The populace is still supportive, and with a famous general like Grand General Lu blocking our military from marching south, the war has been stuck in a rut for years. Conquest is not possible.”

I nodded silently. Huo Cong had indeed grown greatly over the last few years. I asked, “Since this is the case, what is your opinion of the current state of affairs? Which of the two sides has the upper hand?”

Huo Cong had thought this question through a long time ago. He replied without hesitation, “Xiangyang is in our army’s hands, and the Southern Chu military doesn’t have the ability to march north into Jingxiang to invade Nanyang and threaten Guanzhong. Xuzhou is impregnable, and Southern Chu’s Jiangnan army doesn’t have the opportunity to march north into Qing Province and Xuzhou. The majority of Sichuan has fallen in our hands. The Southern Chu military must rely on Ba Prefecture and Kuizhou to defend themselves. The Southern Chu military can only defend passively now. The side with the upper hand is self-evident. It’s just that the Southern Chu military can still protect itself, and their forces have been honing themselves for the past few years. The Southern Chu military’s strength has gradually increased. If delays continue, one side waxing and the other side waning, it might be possible for the upper hand to flip to the Southern Chu military.”

“Your grasp of this point shows you truly haven’t wasted your time. Not bad,” I said, pleased. “Right now, Southern Chu seems in danger but is actually safe. And although our military has the upper hand, it appears strong but is weak in reality. Lu Can is not one to rest on his laurels. Three years ago, he seized an opening when our armies didn’t get timely reinforcements to assault Chuzhou and Sizhou. If not for our military launching attacks in Dinghai, I fear he would’ve seized the chance to capture the empty Xuzhou. Although I made the best of the situation, using the rancor within the defending general of Xiangyang, Rong Yuan, to capture Xiangyang and reverse the fortunes a little, Lu Can’s great ambitions were fully revealed. Although Southern Chu is currently on the back foot, Lu Can has taken advantage of successive years of hard fighting to seize all military authority in Jianghuai, training an elite force no worse than our military’s. Once our military appears slightly fatigued, he’ll suddenly ambush our armies when they’re unprepared, making all of Great Yong’s hard work in conquering Southern Chu go up in smoke.”

The words struck terror in the heart of Huo Cong. He lowered his head and thought hard for a long time before finally saying, “Although Lu Can often focuses on defense in battle, whenever his enemy slacks off, he suddenly leads an ambush and seizes a vital city. One example is him capturing Jiameng Pass during the chaos in the eastern Sichuan region. Another example is when he dispatched Shi Guan to capture Suzhou and Yang Xiu to raid Sizhou while our army was reorganizing after defeat. The two militaries have been stuck in a stalemate for over a year. I’m afraid Lu Can already has a plan for attacking our army’s strategic locations. But where will he set his objective?”

I nodded lightly and sighed. “Cong’er knows that if we wanted to conquer Southern Chu, the best opportunity was in the twenty-third year of Wuwei. At the time, Northern Han had recently been defeated, and Sichuan hadn’t been fully pacified yet. Meanwhile, Southern Chu’s wise king passed away; the successor was dull, the subjects in chaos, and the court disintegrated. As a result, His Imperial Majesty could lead a large host to storm Jianye, take the King captive, and retreat the whole army. If Great Yong had pressed on without letup, they would certainly have had the chance to conquer Southern Chu in one operation. Unfortunately, the succession struggle was an imminent concern.

“His Imperial Majesty may have controlled a large army, but he was afraid to attack Southern Chu with full force. The soldiers weren’t united, and as a result, he missed this great opportunity. By the time the court settled down, Northern Han had recovered its strength, and the Northern War began again. And hidden troubles in the eastern Sichuan region began bubbling up to the surface. In addition, Southern Chu, with its heavily populated territory, stabilized their situation. If he fought in the south, it would be a protracted war, so he had no choice but to make his strategy to first conquer Northern Han before conquering Southern Chu. After Northern Han was conquered, in order to absorb Northern Han’s national strength and because Jiameng Pass was lost, His Imperial Majesty was forced to recuperate and build up strength. During this time, Lu Can became the leading figure of Southern Chu’s military. Although Shang Weijun had monopolized all the power in the Southern Chu court, nobody could rival Lu Can in the military. It was a unified front in the Southern Chu military rarely seen over the decades. We had lost the great chance to conquer Southern Chu.

“What I mean is that in the seventh year of Longsheng, troops shouldn’t have been raised to conquer the South. After all, Shang Weijun and Lu Can were the civil and military administrators at the time, dominating the military and government. If Great Yong had marched south, even if Shang Weijun harbored evil thoughts, he would’ve had to rely on Lu Can. When Great Yong’s heavy cavalry approached Jiangnan, it would allow the two men to cast aside their animosity and work together against a foreign enemy. Unfortunately, His Imperial Majesty itched to undertake the great cause of unification and finally decided to conquer Southern Chu, which helped Lu Can gain the hearts of the entire Jiangnan army.

“Right before the war began, I received the imperial decree to head south. At the beginning, I intended to use Dinghai to contain Wuyue, then stalemate the Southern Chu armies in Jianghuai and Jingxiang. I hadn’t planned to immediately provoke war, but I never expected Lu Can to go on the offensive and use the war to continuously reinforce his own position in the Southern Chu military.

“Seeing the ravages of war stretching throughout Jianghuai and Jingxiang, I finally determined Lu Can’s plan. He wasn’t willing to seek a momentary reprieve in Jiangnan and actually had ambitions for the Central Plains. Although Great Yong has a wise ruler on the throne, as well as famous generals and a powerful army, and cannot be hastily attacked, as long as Lu Can seizes a chance to go north through the gate to the Central Plains and stays entrenched, waiting for a wise ruler to ascend to Southern Chu’s throne, he can go north to the Central Plains. Although that might happen decades later, it’s not an impossible dream.”

As Huo Cong listened, a cold light glinted in his eyes. After a long time, he finally said, “Since Sir has seen through Lu Can’s intent, Sir presumably has a counterstrategy. These years, Sir has roamed throughout nature. Was it to have Lu Can stop paying attention to Sir’s actions?”

“The two armies wage war, beheading generals and capturing banners, not what I’m good at. Even if I were at the head of the army, I wouldn’t be of much use,” I said with a thin smile. “If we want to deal with Lu Can, we need to act from within the Southern Chu court. Lu Can may be highly ambitious, but he fails to understand the state of affairs. The Southern Chu government is debauched: King Zhao Long has just come of age and assumed the throne and is busy selecting beauties, carrying out large construction projects, and building palace halls. He is not a wise ruler. Meanwhile, Shang Weijun has feared Lu Can for a long time but only hindered Lu Can’s military authority. And because Great Yong eyed Southern Chu with hunger, he didn’t have any excuses and had no choice but to keep his emotions in check. Since ancient times, the government has contained bad rulers and treacherous officials. How can great generals get a chance to do great deeds outside the court? Lu Can encountered similar jealousy and suspicion but couldn’t remove dissidents even with extraordinary measures. Taking control of the court was him treading the path to doom. I only require one situation to make Lu Can fall to certain death. Why confront him on the battlefield?”

Huo Cong’s mind spun into overdrive. In the twinkling of an eye, he thought about everything that had happened over the years. Although he didn’t know many of Jiang Zhe’s hidden arrangements, just the things he knew about made his stomach drop. He stole a glance at Jiang Zhe and asked, “Could Rong Yuan be the weapon Sir arranged for Shang Weijun?”

I nodded. “Rong Yuan losing Xiangyang was a serious crime. But the Southern Chu court didn’t condemn him, only demoting him one rank, and even let him lead troops to atone by way of winning honor. Even if Lu Can intended to protect him, how could he without Shang Weijun’s approval? Rong Yuan is narrow-minded and has been jealous of Lu Can’s renown and achievements for a long time.

“Lu Can is also at fault. Rong Yuan is a former general of the Prince of De and is both stubborn and prejudiced in temperament. If a person like him isn’t put to use, he ought to be eliminated, lest he stir up trouble. Just because Lu Can didn’t like Rong Yuan’s method of removing dissidents, he was unwilling to employ him, but he let Rong Yuan take charge of Xiangyang, estranging the two of them. This allowed our army to take advantage of the discord to capture Xiangyang, which made Rong Yuan have no choice but to rely on Shang Weijun to protect him. Once Shang Weijun moved against Lu Can, Rong Yuan was the person charged with decisive action. But because Lu Can is persistent, he was unwilling to annihilate his opposition, instead trying to mend things. He appointed Rong Yuan the leader of Jiangling’s military, which was a further mistake. However, if not for already knowing Lu Can’s personality, he wouldn’t have been kicked while he was down.

“And how could I let Rong Yuan escape? In the past, Rong Yuan had fled south in panic, so I ordered troops to set up an ambush in Fenglin Pass. If not for keeping an opening in the net, how could Rong Yuan had fled? Because Rong Yuan remains, Shang Weijun has the power to oppose Lu Can.”

Huo Cong said, “All of General Lu’s attention is on the war and can’t help neglecting events in the court. In addition, General Lu has a noble nature, disliking struggles for power and flattery of the monarch, so he isn’t looked upon favorably by the King. Prime Minister Shang’s time in power is nothing much, as Shang Weijun can’t use an arbitrary reason to punish General Lu. But once the King assumes the throne, the circumstances are different. Wrath and grace will both come at the discretion of the monarch. If King Zhao Long wants to strip General Lu of rank for no reason at all, General Lu will have no choice but to silently comply. Just, because war has been a deadlock, this order can’t be randomly handed down.”

“Whenever an opportunity to make an independent decision arose while the Grand General was abroad, Lu Can was resolute and unwavering. He stormed Jiameng Pass and captured Huaidong, both of which were independent actions. So although our Great Yong secret agents had infiltrated all levels of Southern Chu society, we didn’t get any signs that an army was being sent. This kind of action, in and of itself, is a major taboo for officials. Even if the monarch were a sage ruler, it would be a fatal disaster, to say nothing of the King of Southern Chu, who doesn’t even count as a resurgent ruler.

“As for Regent Shang Weijun, one of the powerful ministers? A few days ago, Queen Dowager Shang of Southern Chu intended to select Lu Can’s daughter, Lu Mei, as the queen. Although Shang Weijun blocked her, she still intended to select Lu Mei as a noble consort. For Lu Can, sending Lu Mei into the palace as a concubine would’ve been the best resolution method. Once she married into the royal family, Lu Can would have an opportunity to control the Southern Chu government, gradually eliminating the influence of the Shang family. It’s unfortunate that Lu Can isn’t a powerful minister, and he isn’t willing to sell out his beloved daughter in exchange for wealth and title either.

“I received news that Lu Mei was escorted to Shouchun by Lu Can’s second son, Lu Feng. Experts from the North Star Hall were also secretly escorting them on the journey. With this, Zhao Long will definitely be unhappy with Lu Can. Once the situation changes, Zhao Long certainly won’t think of protecting Lu Can. Besides … Alas!” I sighed.

Sorrow appeared in Huo Cong’s eyes, and he continued, “Besides, the Grand General in command is the object of the King’s suspicion and jealousy. General Lu controls a massive army and is unwilling to fawn upon the royal family. Zhao Long must doubt his loyalty. Since ancient times, outstanding ministers and famous generals have had a hard time avoiding misfortune, much less someone as candid and virtuous as General Lu. Once the situation stabilizes, the Lu family will suffer catastrophe. And with treacherous and petty officials seizing the opportunity to spread slander, it will be impossible for General Lu to hang up the armor and return to the farm.”

“If this situation develops, Lu Can’s only way out will be to raise an army and rebel. However, the Lu family is loyal, respected by the whole world. If he truly raises an army and rebels, his family’s spotless name will be destroyed. Jiangnan will descend into chaos. That will be our army’s opportunity. If Lu Can doesn’t rebel in the end, it’ll be difficult for him to escape from the deadly clutches of the bad ruler and treacherous ministers. Then the pillar of Jiangnan will have been toppled, and who could possibly resist our army’s southward march?” I said calmly.

Huo Cong whispered, “Although there’s many private concerns, Lu Can controls a massive army and is fighting our armies fiercely. Presumably, Shang Weijun won’t go so far as to bite the hand that feeds him in this situation, right?”

Profound grief flickered in my eyes. “Shang Weijun isn’t a fool and naturally won’t act rashly. If he acts, it’ll be when, one, the war has calmed, and two, some kind of leverage over Lu Can lands in his hands. It’s just that my three years of planning have been leading up to this day. Everything is ready now save for the missing piece. For many months, Southern Chu has been on the verge of a sweeping change. I summoned you here because I didn’t want you to miss out on this change that will decide the fate of Southern Chu.

Huo Cong felt a stab of pain in his heart. Three years ago in Wuyue, he crossed swords with Lu Can multiple times. Although Lu Can had never worn a mask, Huo Cong could feel the man’s integrity. He was a true hero of the time. Thinking of how that man was about to die due to intrigue, he found it difficult to form words. After a long while, he finally said, “Sir just said there’s a missing piece, but what is the missing piece?”

My eyes glimmered, and I replied, “The missing piece is Xiangyang. Xiangyang is a prefecture Lu Can must capture, but when he seizes it, that’ll initiate the start of the collapse of the pillar of Southern Chu.”

Share