Miracle Workers
Four Men, Four Dreams, No Solutions
People are fickle.
When you keep their bellies full, they praise you to no end. But the moment you decide to lift a finger against their laziness and stagnation and lack of iron, they whine about how cruel you are.
My Lord Cao Cao recognized this. He kicked them into shape, forced these sheep to move forward to create a mighty future. China was in ruins: many little factions fought over scraps of land and millions died because of it. Sadly, good-hearted men without the stomach for power and order either stayed useless or died swiftly. Liu Bei was one before he wizened up and killed Liu Zhang. Kong Rong was one and, well, that is why he died.
In recent years I've realized that the pattern is repeating itself. Wu might be strong, but she lacks the conviction and strength to conquer northern lands. Shu, well, has always been small, but they are handling Meng Huo fairly efficiently. It is Wei, however, that once again shows its incompetence. Lord Cao Pi attempted to attack the Southland, and has failed miserably. He is lucky that the people are ignorant of his folly, but I am not.
Too many people have died because of imbeciles. Too many people's lives are at risk when some idiot decides to take charge without realizing the responsibilities that entails. If it is necessary, the Sima clan will have to take the reigns. We cannot afford to let China wallow in misery again.
Heaven may damn the Simas for this, but Heaven and Earth are fickle. Those who bring order get praised when they keep bellies full. Sentimental fools get everyone killed.
- Sima Yi
Chen Shou's commentary: In spite of these words of bravado, Sima Zhongda was not the one who reunited the realm. Although one can see his convictions when his son dethroned the incompetent Cao Fang. Sima Shi was no doubt influenced by his father's thinking. Cao Shuang threatened the order of Wei, so Sima Yi killed him. Cao Fang threatened the very legitimacy of that order, so Sima Shi eliminated him. The Simas lived and died in the name of order, and perhaps that is why Jin lives in infamy. His clan brought peace, but at what cost?
After so many decades, I still find myself torn over the meaning of honor.
In my eyes, it seems that most of our people have spat in the face of honor. We were trusted with the protection of Han. Strategists, Generals, there is no difference between us where the fate of Han is concerned. Our forefathers pledged allegiance to the Han Dynasty and the Imperial Family, and everyone ought to lay down their life for the Lius.
For we trusted their protection. We believed, with all our hearts, that they would protect us and keep China prosperous.
There are those who argue that Han has failed that promise. They seized land for themselves and two particularly powerful ones carved out kingdoms in the North and in the Southeast. They broke the promise their ancestors made for centuries. How can they live with themselves? How can they justify such a betrayal? They claim to be loyal. They claim to believe in promises and in vows. Yet they broke vows that were kept for centuries.
My Lord Liu Bei has shouldered the burden of the Imperial Family. Liu Zhang's fate was regrettable, but through his death Shu has grown strong. It can hold its own against the rebels of the north and south. The northerners laugh at us, saying that by all rights they are true voice of China.
How can they be so callous? Some of them even claim they fight for order, and yet they threw away the vows of their ancestors and allowed millions to die for their greed! What hypocrisy! What ridiculous hypocrisy!
The Southerners, for their part, are as apathetic as they come. They claim to be protecting themselves, to spare their own lives. In truth, they are moral cowards. They do not have the conviction of upholding generations of prosperity under Han. Rather, they have the gall to seize the Southland, to rule those provinces, and then claim that Loyalists like myself are deluded. Not only are they blinded by greed, they are also too cowardly to admit the truth.
But as long as I draw breath, I will not betray the oaths of my clan. I will not spit upon the vows of my ancestors. Han's Prosperity will return to China, even if the road is steep, rugged, and cruel. The traitors will fall, and Honor will rule. Even if I fail, even if I die, history will remember the honor of Han!
- Zhuge Liang
Chen Shou's Commentary: Zhuge Kongming was the pillar of the remnant of Han. He spoke of Han's prosperity even when people within Shu were starving. There are those who say that he was deluded, and this public servant believes they are correct. Han had indeed failed in its promises, and those who chose not to maintain that failed banner managed to bring some order and prosperity into people's lives. Shu Han was defined by constant campaigns to 'liberate territory' and the waste that war brings to a nation. Since Wei had brought order to most of China, she became the legitimate authority of the land. If only Zhuge Liang had chosen to accept the truth and assist in bringing prosperity to all of China, he would not have died so pitifully. The man held ideals, but in the end they proved false.
I curse this illness with my dying breath.
For it forces me to betray the promise I made to my brother. And, more regrettably, it shatters all our plans for the future.
For decades the Southland has been underestimated. Cao Cao thought he could beat us by playing his weakness against our strength. We mastered the naval arts. These northerners are formidable on the land, but they are not so adept on the water. Still, they expected to win against us.
When Lord Sun Jian entered the Central Plains, he was seen as an oddity, as a mere warlord who, by all rights, did not have the ability, prestige, or up-and-coming talent of heroes like Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Lu Bu, or that newcomer Liu Bei.
It is a pity that my sworn brother's father died so quickly. He died before he could bring the Southland the honor it rightfully deserves.
My brother reunited our people, and prepared them for the final confrontation with those northerners. I led our navy to victory against a vast armada of ships, and proved to Cao Cao that he was not invincible. Yes, Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao and Liu Biao. Both were impressive feats, but the false Prime Minister and his tyrannical fleet could not pacify the Southland...
Not while I was alive.
And yet, this illness robs me of my chance to consolidate our victory. We hold Jiang Ling, but will future generations consider that to be a worthy prize, comparable to our achievements? No, Wu should be given the honor of reuniting China! People starve, suffer, and howl at the heavens because we are not there to protect them. Liu Bei is wrong: Han has failed in keeping its promise, and with Xuzhou Cao Cao proved that he is unworthy of the responsibility of caring for China. The Southland has grown the grain of our world, now she should watch over the people as a mother watches over her children.
My veins boil with rage. The destiny of my people will not be fulfilled! Alas! Why did Heaven create me only to let me fail in my sacred mission?! Why must I live without achieving my homeland's dream?
- Zhou Yu
Chen Shou' s Commentary: Some would argue that Zhou Yu was more foolish than Zhuge Liang. Considering both men's lifespans, those arguments may not be so false. He spoke of fulfilling goals that were beyond his reach. The man should have known his limits, or should have at least known the limits of his subordinates. Yet overconfidence was a common flaw among many great strategists and generals of the time: Zhuge Liang is probably even more guilty of that. Guan Yu, Gongsun Zan, Yuan Shao, He Jin, these were men who also died painfully and, in many cases, quickly because of their arrogance and overconfidence. Still, Zhou Yu's vision of a Southland that could prove itself to the rest of China failed almost as quickly as it began. But, if there is any consolation, the prosperity his work brought to the Sun's Empire has changed the Southland from a mere agricultural sector and military/political backwater to a thriving community, in stark contrast with other parts of China. His dream may have failed much like those of his rivals, but it did bring some truths to the table.
My Childhood Friend and I were given a duty.
A duty to watch over the people of China, and to ensure their welfare.
Yet I have failed my clan.
We Yuans were the finest of men! We managed the Empire's affairs and were the most esteemed of nobles! By all rights, I should have been the Hero of Han!
Yet I have failed, and now I die, and it is likely that my clan will never see glory again. Our honor will be forgotten, and those who trusted me with their lives will soon be corpses.
Why did I fail? How could I fail? How could Heaven spit on the Yuans?
The World is in Chaos. Good men are dying every moment, and the people scream in fear. Their screams echo throughout the land, yet heroes like me can do nothing to save them. And now I have failed them.
Cao Cao betrayed me. Once we were brothers in arms against Dong Zhuo. In the dawn of our lives we were friends and shared many pleasant moments together. Yet Heaven has a cruel sense of humor. It forced us to face each other on the battlefield. My men were strong. My soldiers were brave and numerous, my tacticians were shrewed and wise.
As I look back, perhaps I should have been more fair to some of them. Tian Feng is dead, but I remember that he served me for a long time. Even if he had no tact, I should not have killed him so eagerly. In the end, he tried to stop me from challenging Cao Cao. It is clear that I was unready, but now he is dead. Alas! I had Shen Pei, Ju Shou, and Tian Feng, yet I forced two of them to leave my side and now we are all dead.
I wonder if wisdom comes to those who will soon see death. Foresight is easier when you realize that you have lost, I suppose. Here I am, on my deathbed, a man who should have been Regent Marshal or even Prime Minister. I should have represented the glory of my clan! I should have been granted the honor of succeeding where He Jin failed and protecting the people of China! And yet I am a failure and a disgrace and all is lost.
These are the times that try men's souls, the times that test whether they are worthy of leading the masses or whether they ought to be trampled by them. I never thought I would be in the latter category. But though my own glory is gone, one thought remains: how much longer will this Chaos rule over the land? How much longer must China suffer? My failure ensures that I will never see this horror, but how many will scream in pain before it is over? Death, take me now, before this sin of defeat reveals more of this nightmare...
- Yuan Shao
Chen Shou's Commentary: Of the Old Guard, the Ancient Nobility of Han, Yuan Shao served as their prime example. He was blinded by his pride and his greed. Often, when men are about to die they begin to justify their lives to themselves, and this is a textbook example. Yuan Shao claims that he wanted to save the world, and perhaps he truly did. We will never know. What we do know is that pride killed him like it killed many great men of the era. What if he had achieved his dream? What if the glory of the Yuans was allowed to continue for another few decades? Would China have been reunited quicker? Yuan Shao's impulsiveness and lack of foresight may show that to be unlikely, but some battles can sober a man. It is a pity that we will never know.