Author's Note: Nope, no Zhao Yun in
this chapter. It's plot, don't shoot me! I wuv Zilong as much as the
next person (probably more, actually). He'll be back in the next
installment.
This chapter's title was snagged from a section heading in "Mastering the Art of War" by--wait for it--Zhuge Liang! Yep, it's a real book. My copy was translated by Thomas Cleary, and it's a nice edition, so I recommend it. It's rather short, though. I quoted a bit of the book near the end of the chapter; you can probably guess where. I'm thinking of trying to title all the chapters from here on out with headings and phrases from the book, but I dunno how well that'll work out. We shall see.
Filling the Void
by Iris Amergin
Chapter Two: Formation of Opportunity
"Boyue?"
"Hm?"
"The scouts have reported in." Yue Ying pointed down the road with her spear. "They're coming."
A tingle of excitement ran down Jiang Wei's spine...excitement mixed with dread. Hardly a day had passed since he was given command by Kongming. He would have liked more time to prepare. More time to mourn.
Then again, he would have liked it if Zhuge Liang had not died at all.
He nodded to Yue Ying. "How close are they?"
"Within several li."
"We'll stand our ground here and wait for them."
Ma Chao frowned. "Shouldn't we go intercept them before they reach our camp?"
"No. Under normal circumstances, it would make more sense. But we have to convince them that we're completely sure of victory--that's the entire point of the ploy His Excellency left us to carry out. If we go out to intercept them, it might ruin everything."
"I still don't like the idea of letting them get so close."
"His Excellency was positive that this will scare Sima Yi off," said Jiang Wei firmly. "It'll work. Take your positions." As Ma Chao and Yue Ying left to take their places, he adjusted his grip on his spear and glanced at the soldiers around him. A few whispers hung on the air; soft footsteps sounded here and there as a few nervous soldiers shifted their weight. The handful of sounds only heightened the overwhelming silence.
He looked at the subofficers to each side of him. "When I give the signal, we must let out a war cry--as loud as we can possibly make it." The officers nodded.
Another scout came dashing forward. "They're here!" he gasped.
Jiang Wei raised his fist in the air, and the army roared.
He thought he would be knocked onto his face by the force of the sound. For a fleeting moment, he heard--or did he?--every individual within the clamor--an army of thousands, and yet every one of them seemed sharp and distinct. Thousands of parts of a united whole. For a few seconds, Wu Zhang was engulfed in a living example of the unity of Shu--the unity that would surely lead them to victory, in the end.
And the sound died, and he was jolted back into reality by the sudden silence--a silence that positively terrified him, as seemingly every soldier in the vicinity, his own and Sima Yi's, looked to him, wondering what he would do next. He dropped his fist--the signal for the troops behind him to part ranks, and reveal the most elaborate part of the plan.
Zhuge Liang. Only not quite.
Yue Ying had been assigned to both the handling of her husband's remains, and creating a dummy that would fool Sima Yi from a distance. And from the expressions worn by the Wei army as the Shu soldiers stepped aside, Yue Ying had done well.
Sima Yi went white-knuckled, gripping his fan tightly. "Impossible!" he hissed.
"Stand your ground, rebel!" Jiang Wei shouted with as much courage as he could muster. "You're in my prime minister's hands!"
"Retreat!" Sima Yi shouted, backing away for several steps. He stumbled slightly, and his courage seemed to leave him completely. He turned and fled, leaving his officers to cover his retreat.
Were the situation not so serious, Jiang Wei could have laughed. Zhuge Liang had read the situation perfectly. He leveled his spear at the nearest Wei soldier and thrust forward, catching the man off guard and impaling him through the stomach.
The Wei army lost heart as quickly as their commander had, and the retreat quickly became a free-for-all. As the stragglers disappeared over the hill, Jiang Wei shouted "Don't pursue too far! Fall back over the next two li and return to camp!" The soldiers nearest to him shouted their assent as they chased the Wei soldiers.
Jiang Wei stopped to catch his breath, leaning on his spear. The first part of the plan had gone off without a hitch. All that remained was for Zhao Yun and Wei Yan to carry out the ambush, and although Jiang Wei didn't particularly trust Wei Yan, he was sure that Zhao Yun would not let him down.
One of his officers stopped beside him. "What now, sir?"
"Now...we wait. It's out of our hands." He shook his head. "Let me know the moment we get a report back from the ambush parties. And send Ma Chao and Yue Ying to see me." The officer bowed and strode off.
Gazing at the road ahead, Jiang Wei sighed. Kongming's plan might have worked, but the prime minister had left no instructions as to what actions should be taken after the ambush. The other generals had followed the plan unquestioningly--but of course they would do that, having seen Zhuge Liang's skills demonstrated in battle after battle. Some of Jiang Wei's suggestions might have been worked into the battle plan here and there, but this would be his first major command for Shu. Would they trust him without Zhuge Liang there to back him up?
He shook his head. This certainly wasn't the time to worry about such things--especially not as Ma Chao and Yue Ying were approaching him. He turned his attention to them. "How did your divisions fare?"
"Minimal losses," said Yue Ying. "We took out some of their forces, but not many. They fled too fast for us to make much of a dent in them."
"That was what we were aiming for," said Jiang Wei. "Their morale must have taken a serious hit from this. The ambush should get most of them."
"What now?" asked Ma Chao.
"Clean things up. Get rid of the bodies--ours and theirs. Don't let the men relax too much; we haven't won this battle yet. I'm going to write a letter to the emperor." He didn't wait for a response, but simply turned and began the trek back to his tent.
He had dreaded writing this letter, but as Zhuge Liang's student and successor, it was his duty. Although the ambush preparations had given him an excuse to delay writing it earlier, he couldn't put it off any longer--not in good conscience, anyway. Liu Bei had to be informed of what had just happened, and he needed to know sooner rather than later.
Jiang Wei's tent was situated in the center of the Shu camp, amidst a jungle of supplies, weapons, materials, and other essentials for the siege. He picked his way past bundles of arrows and piles of wood, scowling at the disorganization. Perhaps he should have ordered Ma Chao to detail some men to organize the supplies. And what were the piles of wood for? He couldn't think of any reason to keep them around. Once he finished the letter, he thought, he'd have someone dispose of them.
As he reached his tent, he pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. The logistics of the battle could wait until he wrote the letter. Settling himself at the table, he pushed aside Zhuge Liang's notes and took a deep breath...held it in, for just a moment...and exhaling, began to write.
To His Majesty, the August Emperor:
It is my sad duty to report to you the death of His Excellency, the prime minister Zhuge Liang.
As I believe Your Majesty is already aware, His Excellency had a strong work ethic--perhaps too strong; he has long been known to work tirelessly even at the cost of his own health. In planning the campaign into Wu Zhang, he had pushed himself even farther than usual, and eight days ago as of my writing, the stress overwhelmed him and Lady Yue Ying pressured him into resting in bed; however, her efforts were too little, too late. His Excellency passed away one week later.
With the last strategy he outlined for us before his death, we should have eliminated a significant portion of Wei's army by dawn tomorrow. He left it to me to carry out the conquest of the north. I will not let Your Majesty down.
He stopped, his eyes flicking back across what he had had written, and frowned. Far from perfect, but it would have to do. As he sealed the letter and set it aside, his gaze strayed to Zhuge Liang's notes, still stacked neatly to one side of the table. He picked them up and began leafing through them. Kongming hadn't left any specific instructions for the rest of the battle, but if he had perhaps written something down, made some maps or sketches--
He paused on what appeared to be a set of schematics. Several diagrams showed instructions for building some sort of large boxlike object out of wood, with a narrow slot running horizontally through the center of one side. A sketch underneath that depicted a series of arrows being shot from the slot.
A slow smile crossed Jiang Wei's face. So that was what the wood was stockpiled for! The device--the sketches labelled it an "arbalest"--could be used to fire ten arrows at once, without exposing archers to enemy fire. Zhuge Liang must have planned to build them for later use in the siege, but had not gotten to it before his death. But since Jiang Wei had the blueprints...
He leapt up and dashed outside to where the wood was stored. At his best estimate, there were enough supplies available to build ten arbalests; perhaps even a few more if they were lucky. He laughed to himself as he returned to his tent, drawing stares from several nearby soldiers. Things were going to get a bit nastier for the Wei army once the arbalests were finished.
He almost felt sorry for Sima Yi.
**********
"Boyue?" Ma Chao poked his head inside the tent. "Scouts are in."
Jiang Wei set aside Kongming's notes and yawned. "I'll be right out." He stretched and got up.
Ma Chao and the scout were waiting directly outside Jiang Wei's tent. The scout bowed. "The ambush went exactly as planned. Sima Yi escaped, but we eliminated half of their force and took only minimal losses."
"Were any of their officers killed?"
"No. But Zhao Yun and Zhang He dueled."
"And?" Jiang Wei said eagerly.
"It was a draw, sir. They both ended with minor injuries."
"I see..." He sighed. "When will our forces return to camp?"
"They should be back tomorrow."
"Good." He turned to Ma Chao. "I'd like you to get some men assigned to cleaning up the camp and organizing the supplies--they've gotten a bit scrambled during the preparations for the last engagement. There's a large stockpile of wood among the supplies--"
"I've noticed that," said Ma Chao. "What's the point of it? Shouldn't we get rid of it?"
"His Excellency's notes contained diagrams of a new weapon to be built with those stockpiles. I want to get construction started tomorrow." He frowned. "Yue Ying usually takes charge of the siege weapons. I plan to delegate the arbalests to her. Could you take her these papers and have her assemble some men and begin working tomorrow?" He held out the arbalest blueprints. "And keep this quiet, if you please. I don't want a word of this to leak to the Wei army."
Taking the papers, Ma Chao nodded and left. Jiang Wei yawned again and returned to his tent.
It was getting late, and he knew he should stop and rest for the night. But to succeed in this campaign, he needed to be as prepared as he could possibly be, and that meant reading all of Zhuge Liang's notes. And after all, hadn't the prime minister stayed up late many a night planning assaults, ignoring his own needs in favor of the greater good?
And that was what got him killed. Don't be stupid, Boyue.
He sighed. Late as it might be, he wanted to finish that night...but as he shuffled the papers, it was rather obvious that finishing everything was going to take a while.
Just a few more pages, he thought. Once I finish this section, I can get some sleep, but I don't want to stop in the middle of it...
He fought back a yawn and continued reading.
In military operations, order leads to victory. If rewards and penalties are unclear, and if signals are not followed, even if you have an army of a million strong, it is of no practical benefit...
His head dropped onto the page. No... he thought sleepily. Need to finish...
But the strategist was fighting a losing battle, and sleep soon overtook him.
This chapter's title was snagged from a section heading in "Mastering the Art of War" by--wait for it--Zhuge Liang! Yep, it's a real book. My copy was translated by Thomas Cleary, and it's a nice edition, so I recommend it. It's rather short, though. I quoted a bit of the book near the end of the chapter; you can probably guess where. I'm thinking of trying to title all the chapters from here on out with headings and phrases from the book, but I dunno how well that'll work out. We shall see.
Filling the Void
by Iris Amergin
Chapter Two: Formation of Opportunity
"Boyue?"
"Hm?"
"The scouts have reported in." Yue Ying pointed down the road with her spear. "They're coming."
A tingle of excitement ran down Jiang Wei's spine...excitement mixed with dread. Hardly a day had passed since he was given command by Kongming. He would have liked more time to prepare. More time to mourn.
Then again, he would have liked it if Zhuge Liang had not died at all.
He nodded to Yue Ying. "How close are they?"
"Within several li."
"We'll stand our ground here and wait for them."
Ma Chao frowned. "Shouldn't we go intercept them before they reach our camp?"
"No. Under normal circumstances, it would make more sense. But we have to convince them that we're completely sure of victory--that's the entire point of the ploy His Excellency left us to carry out. If we go out to intercept them, it might ruin everything."
"I still don't like the idea of letting them get so close."
"His Excellency was positive that this will scare Sima Yi off," said Jiang Wei firmly. "It'll work. Take your positions." As Ma Chao and Yue Ying left to take their places, he adjusted his grip on his spear and glanced at the soldiers around him. A few whispers hung on the air; soft footsteps sounded here and there as a few nervous soldiers shifted their weight. The handful of sounds only heightened the overwhelming silence.
He looked at the subofficers to each side of him. "When I give the signal, we must let out a war cry--as loud as we can possibly make it." The officers nodded.
Another scout came dashing forward. "They're here!" he gasped.
Jiang Wei raised his fist in the air, and the army roared.
He thought he would be knocked onto his face by the force of the sound. For a fleeting moment, he heard--or did he?--every individual within the clamor--an army of thousands, and yet every one of them seemed sharp and distinct. Thousands of parts of a united whole. For a few seconds, Wu Zhang was engulfed in a living example of the unity of Shu--the unity that would surely lead them to victory, in the end.
And the sound died, and he was jolted back into reality by the sudden silence--a silence that positively terrified him, as seemingly every soldier in the vicinity, his own and Sima Yi's, looked to him, wondering what he would do next. He dropped his fist--the signal for the troops behind him to part ranks, and reveal the most elaborate part of the plan.
Zhuge Liang. Only not quite.
Yue Ying had been assigned to both the handling of her husband's remains, and creating a dummy that would fool Sima Yi from a distance. And from the expressions worn by the Wei army as the Shu soldiers stepped aside, Yue Ying had done well.
Sima Yi went white-knuckled, gripping his fan tightly. "Impossible!" he hissed.
"Stand your ground, rebel!" Jiang Wei shouted with as much courage as he could muster. "You're in my prime minister's hands!"
"Retreat!" Sima Yi shouted, backing away for several steps. He stumbled slightly, and his courage seemed to leave him completely. He turned and fled, leaving his officers to cover his retreat.
Were the situation not so serious, Jiang Wei could have laughed. Zhuge Liang had read the situation perfectly. He leveled his spear at the nearest Wei soldier and thrust forward, catching the man off guard and impaling him through the stomach.
The Wei army lost heart as quickly as their commander had, and the retreat quickly became a free-for-all. As the stragglers disappeared over the hill, Jiang Wei shouted "Don't pursue too far! Fall back over the next two li and return to camp!" The soldiers nearest to him shouted their assent as they chased the Wei soldiers.
Jiang Wei stopped to catch his breath, leaning on his spear. The first part of the plan had gone off without a hitch. All that remained was for Zhao Yun and Wei Yan to carry out the ambush, and although Jiang Wei didn't particularly trust Wei Yan, he was sure that Zhao Yun would not let him down.
One of his officers stopped beside him. "What now, sir?"
"Now...we wait. It's out of our hands." He shook his head. "Let me know the moment we get a report back from the ambush parties. And send Ma Chao and Yue Ying to see me." The officer bowed and strode off.
Gazing at the road ahead, Jiang Wei sighed. Kongming's plan might have worked, but the prime minister had left no instructions as to what actions should be taken after the ambush. The other generals had followed the plan unquestioningly--but of course they would do that, having seen Zhuge Liang's skills demonstrated in battle after battle. Some of Jiang Wei's suggestions might have been worked into the battle plan here and there, but this would be his first major command for Shu. Would they trust him without Zhuge Liang there to back him up?
He shook his head. This certainly wasn't the time to worry about such things--especially not as Ma Chao and Yue Ying were approaching him. He turned his attention to them. "How did your divisions fare?"
"Minimal losses," said Yue Ying. "We took out some of their forces, but not many. They fled too fast for us to make much of a dent in them."
"That was what we were aiming for," said Jiang Wei. "Their morale must have taken a serious hit from this. The ambush should get most of them."
"What now?" asked Ma Chao.
"Clean things up. Get rid of the bodies--ours and theirs. Don't let the men relax too much; we haven't won this battle yet. I'm going to write a letter to the emperor." He didn't wait for a response, but simply turned and began the trek back to his tent.
He had dreaded writing this letter, but as Zhuge Liang's student and successor, it was his duty. Although the ambush preparations had given him an excuse to delay writing it earlier, he couldn't put it off any longer--not in good conscience, anyway. Liu Bei had to be informed of what had just happened, and he needed to know sooner rather than later.
Jiang Wei's tent was situated in the center of the Shu camp, amidst a jungle of supplies, weapons, materials, and other essentials for the siege. He picked his way past bundles of arrows and piles of wood, scowling at the disorganization. Perhaps he should have ordered Ma Chao to detail some men to organize the supplies. And what were the piles of wood for? He couldn't think of any reason to keep them around. Once he finished the letter, he thought, he'd have someone dispose of them.
As he reached his tent, he pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. The logistics of the battle could wait until he wrote the letter. Settling himself at the table, he pushed aside Zhuge Liang's notes and took a deep breath...held it in, for just a moment...and exhaling, began to write.
To His Majesty, the August Emperor:
It is my sad duty to report to you the death of His Excellency, the prime minister Zhuge Liang.
As I believe Your Majesty is already aware, His Excellency had a strong work ethic--perhaps too strong; he has long been known to work tirelessly even at the cost of his own health. In planning the campaign into Wu Zhang, he had pushed himself even farther than usual, and eight days ago as of my writing, the stress overwhelmed him and Lady Yue Ying pressured him into resting in bed; however, her efforts were too little, too late. His Excellency passed away one week later.
With the last strategy he outlined for us before his death, we should have eliminated a significant portion of Wei's army by dawn tomorrow. He left it to me to carry out the conquest of the north. I will not let Your Majesty down.
He stopped, his eyes flicking back across what he had had written, and frowned. Far from perfect, but it would have to do. As he sealed the letter and set it aside, his gaze strayed to Zhuge Liang's notes, still stacked neatly to one side of the table. He picked them up and began leafing through them. Kongming hadn't left any specific instructions for the rest of the battle, but if he had perhaps written something down, made some maps or sketches--
He paused on what appeared to be a set of schematics. Several diagrams showed instructions for building some sort of large boxlike object out of wood, with a narrow slot running horizontally through the center of one side. A sketch underneath that depicted a series of arrows being shot from the slot.
A slow smile crossed Jiang Wei's face. So that was what the wood was stockpiled for! The device--the sketches labelled it an "arbalest"--could be used to fire ten arrows at once, without exposing archers to enemy fire. Zhuge Liang must have planned to build them for later use in the siege, but had not gotten to it before his death. But since Jiang Wei had the blueprints...
He leapt up and dashed outside to where the wood was stored. At his best estimate, there were enough supplies available to build ten arbalests; perhaps even a few more if they were lucky. He laughed to himself as he returned to his tent, drawing stares from several nearby soldiers. Things were going to get a bit nastier for the Wei army once the arbalests were finished.
He almost felt sorry for Sima Yi.
**********
"Boyue?" Ma Chao poked his head inside the tent. "Scouts are in."
Jiang Wei set aside Kongming's notes and yawned. "I'll be right out." He stretched and got up.
Ma Chao and the scout were waiting directly outside Jiang Wei's tent. The scout bowed. "The ambush went exactly as planned. Sima Yi escaped, but we eliminated half of their force and took only minimal losses."
"Were any of their officers killed?"
"No. But Zhao Yun and Zhang He dueled."
"And?" Jiang Wei said eagerly.
"It was a draw, sir. They both ended with minor injuries."
"I see..." He sighed. "When will our forces return to camp?"
"They should be back tomorrow."
"Good." He turned to Ma Chao. "I'd like you to get some men assigned to cleaning up the camp and organizing the supplies--they've gotten a bit scrambled during the preparations for the last engagement. There's a large stockpile of wood among the supplies--"
"I've noticed that," said Ma Chao. "What's the point of it? Shouldn't we get rid of it?"
"His Excellency's notes contained diagrams of a new weapon to be built with those stockpiles. I want to get construction started tomorrow." He frowned. "Yue Ying usually takes charge of the siege weapons. I plan to delegate the arbalests to her. Could you take her these papers and have her assemble some men and begin working tomorrow?" He held out the arbalest blueprints. "And keep this quiet, if you please. I don't want a word of this to leak to the Wei army."
Taking the papers, Ma Chao nodded and left. Jiang Wei yawned again and returned to his tent.
It was getting late, and he knew he should stop and rest for the night. But to succeed in this campaign, he needed to be as prepared as he could possibly be, and that meant reading all of Zhuge Liang's notes. And after all, hadn't the prime minister stayed up late many a night planning assaults, ignoring his own needs in favor of the greater good?
And that was what got him killed. Don't be stupid, Boyue.
He sighed. Late as it might be, he wanted to finish that night...but as he shuffled the papers, it was rather obvious that finishing everything was going to take a while.
Just a few more pages, he thought. Once I finish this section, I can get some sleep, but I don't want to stop in the middle of it...
He fought back a yawn and continued reading.
In military operations, order leads to victory. If rewards and penalties are unclear, and if signals are not followed, even if you have an army of a million strong, it is of no practical benefit...
His head dropped onto the page. No... he thought sleepily. Need to finish...
But the strategist was fighting a losing battle, and sleep soon overtook him.