“We are natives of Hanzhong and are going home. We heard that there was fighting and that the high road was blocked, and so we are taking this way through Cang Stream, into the Zitong Mountains, and down Guijin River to get back to our homes in Hanzhong.”
“Can one reach Wakou Pass by this path? And how far is it?”
The country people replied: “The rear of the pass can be reached from a pathway in the Zizhuang Mountains.”
For this information Zhang Fei rewarded them by taking them into his camp and giving them a good meal. Then he told Wei Yan to make a frontal attack on the pass, while he himself led some light horses to attack it from the rear by way of the mountains.
At the pass, Zhang He was grieving that his chief had sent no help. Soon Wei Yan’s attack was reported. He girded on his armor and was about to ride out when there came the startling news that fire had started at half a dozen places behind the pass and it was not clear from where the enemy had come. So Zhang He decided not to face Wei Yan in front, but instead to meet this unknown foe behind. To his horror, when the flags were unfurled, his eyes fell on the terrible figure of Zhang Fei. Away he fled along a pathway.
But the path was too narrow for his steed, and as Zhang Fei pressed very hard upon him, he abandoned his horse and ran up the mountainside on foot, following whatever paths he could find. When he finally outran his pursuers he had just a dozen followers left of his army of 30,000 men. It was a small and dejected party that trudged its weary way on foot into Nanzheng. Cao Hong was very angry at the sight.
“I told you not to go, but you were willful. And you gave a written pledge. Now you have lost all your men, and yet you do not commit suicide. Why have you come back?”
Cao Hong ordered his guards to put him to death. At this an officer called Guo Huai interceded.
“An army is easily raised—a leader is hard to find,” said the man. “Though he is guilty, he is a great favorite with our prince and I think you should spare him. You can give him another 5,000 men and send him to take Jiameng Pass. This move will affect the deployment of Liu Bei’s forces at all his stations. Consequently, the threat against Hanzhong will be diminished. If he should fail a second time you can punish him for both faults.”
Cao Hong accepted his advice and so Zhang He was given command of another 5,000 men to take Jiameng Pass.
The officers he was going to confront at the pass were Meng Da and Huo Jun. Hearing of his approach, the two, however, were at variance—the former desiring to go out to meet Zhang He, the latter insisting on a firm defense. Meng Da, set on having his way, went out to give battle and was defeated. Huo Jun reported this to Chengdu, where Liu Bei at once called in his chief advisor to consider the matter. Zhuge Liang assembled all the chief officers in the hall.
“Jiameng Pass is in danger,” he said. “We must get Yi-de back from Lang-zhong to drive off Zhang He.”
Fa Zheng replied, “But he is encamped at Wakou Pass in defense of the Langzhong region, which is no less important than Jiameng. I don’t think he should be recalled. Choose one among the officers here to go and defeat Zhang He.”
Zhuge Liang laughed, “Zhang He is a renowned warrior—no ordinary officer will avail. Yi-de is the only man to send, the only one equal to the task.”
At once an officer stood out, crying angrily: “Commander, why do you despise us all? Incapable as I am, I will slay this Zhang He and lay his head before you.”
All eyes centered on the speaker, who was the veteran Huang Zhong.
“General, you’re bold enough, but what about your age? I fear you’re no match for Zhang He.”
Huang Zhong’s white hair bristled as he said, “Old I may be, but these two arms can still pull the three-hundred-catty bow, and the vigor of my body is far from spent. Am I not strong enough to meet such a poor thing as Zhang He?”
“General, you’re nearly seventy—can you still claim you’re not aged?”
Huang Zhong tore down the hall. Seizing one of the great swords off the rack, he whirled it and made it fly. And the stiffest bows that hung on the wall he snapped in two in quick succession.
“Well, if you go, who do you want to be your second?” asked Zhuge Liang.
“I prefer old general Yan Yan. And if there is the least neglect of duty, well, you may have my hoary head.”
Liu Bei was pleased and he immediately sent these two to go and fight Zhang He.
Zhao Yun, however, said to Zhuge Liang in protest: “Zhang He is invading Jiameng Pass, and this fight is no child’s play, for the loss of that Pass will endanger the whole of Yizhou. Why do you give this task to a couple of old generals?”
Zhuge Liang replied, “You think them too old to succeed, but I’m sure the attainment of Hanzhong depends upon these two.”
Dubious, Zhao Yun and the others sniggered as they withdrew from the hall.
In due course, the veteran general and his comrade arrived at Jiameng Pass. At the sight of them, the two officers at the pass laughed in their hearts, thinking that in sending such a pair of old men on such a crucial mission Zhuge Liang had slipped in his calculations.
Huang Zhong said to his colleague: “You see the behavior of these people? They’re laughing at us because we’re old. Now we’ll do a wonderful service to convince them all.”
“At your orders, General,” replied Yan Yan.
The two veterans decided on their plan after a careful discussion. Huang Zhong led his men out of the pass to meet Zhang He. Both drew up in battle array. When Zhang He rode out and saw his aged opponent, he laughed in his face.
“Old man, are you not ashamed to go into battle at your age?” sneered Zhang He.
“You brat!” replied the veteran. “Do you despise me for my age? You will find my good sword young enough.”
So he urged his steed forward and rode at Zhang He. The two chargers met and a score of bouts were fought. Suddenly a great shouting came from the rear of Zhang He’s troops for Yan Yan, by way of a back road, had come up to raid him from behind. Attacked from both the front and the rear, Zhang He was utterly defeated. The pursuit did not cease with nightfall, and Zhang He was driven back nearly a hundred li. Contented with this success, the two old generals returned to the pass. For a time neither side stirred.
When Cao Hong heard of Zhang He’s defeat, he wanted again to exact the death penalty. But again Guo Huai dissuaded him. “If he is pressed too hard he may surrender to Liu Bei. Better send him some reinforcements. You will thus keep a hold on him and prevent his desertion.”
Therefore two officers were sent to help Zhang He with reinforcements. One of the two was Xiahou Shang, nephew of Xiahou Dun, and the other, Han Hao, was brother of Han Xuan, former prefect of Changsha and master of Huang Zhong. They took with them 5,000 soldiers.
The two officers soon reached Zhang He’s camp, where they questioned him about the battle.
“That old general Huang Zhong is really valiant,” said Zhang He, “and with Yan Yan’s help he is quite formidable. We must be careful.”
“When I was with my brother I knew the old rascal was very fierce. He and Wei Yan killed my brother and yielded their city to Liu Bei. Now that he is here I must have my revenge,” said Han Hao.
So he and Xiahou Shang led out the newly arrived force.
Now, the two venerable generals had been doing a great deal of reconnoitering and had gained a thorough knowledge of the country. Yan Yan said, “Near here is a mountain named ‘Tiandang’ where Cao Cao has stored his supplies. If we can gain possession of that place we’ll deprive the enemy of their grain and forage and so we’ll get the whole region of Hanzhong.”
Huang Zhong agreed entirely with his colleague, to whom he then related a secret scheme to accomplish their great design. Yan Yan, following the instruction, marched off with a body of men to carry out his part in the stratagem.
At news of the arrival of a new enemy force, Huang Zhong rode out to meet them. Han Hao, riding in front, began to abuse the veteran as a d
isgraceful old ruffian. Then he whipped up his steed and set his spear at Huang Zhong. Xiahou Shang also rode out to join the combat. They fought about a dozen bouts, before Huang Zhong fled.
They pursued him for twenty li and seized his camp. Huang Zhong, however, hastily threw up another camp. The next day they renewed the pursuit, which ended with the capture of the hastily constructed camp. By then they had advanced another twenty li. They called upon Zhang He to protect the second camp. Zhang He, suspecting guile in this unusual behavior from his opponent, tried to dissuade his colleagues from continuing the pursuit.
“Huang Zhong has retreated before you for two days—there is bound to be some trick behind this,” warned Zhang He.
Xiahou Shang scoffed at him. “You’re such a coward! No wonder you’ve been beaten so many times. Now say no more, but let us accomplish something great.”
Zhang He, much mortified and shamed, left. The next day the two officers again went out to battle, and again the flee-and-chase game repeated itself. At the end of the day Huang Zhong had retreated still another twenty li. On the following day, Huang Zhong fled at the sight of his enemies without putting up much of a fight, except at short intervals. Thus he retreated back to Jiameng Pass, where he maintained a firm defense. The pursuers knocked at the very gate of the pass and made a camp close by.
Meanwhile, Meng Da secretly wrote to Liu Bei, telling him that Huang Zhong had been repeatedly defeated and now was inside the pass, afraid to venture out. Liu Bei became alarmed and consulted Zhuge Liang, who said, “That is his stratagem to make the enemy feel bloated with conceit so as to destroy them ultimately.”
But none of the officers, Zhao Yun in particular, shared this opinion. Liu Bei decided to send his adopted son Liu Feng to reinforce his aged general. The young man came to the pass and saw Huang Zhong, who asked him bluntly why he had come to help.
“My father heard that you’ve suffered several defeats, and so he’s sent me,” said Liu Feng.
“But I’m only employing the ruse of leading on the enemy,” said Huang Zhong, smiling. “You’ll see tonight that in one battle I’ll regain all the camps and capture their supplies and many horses. I’ve only lent the camps to them to store their supplies.” Then he told Huo Jun to guard the pass and Meng Da to gather up the spoils that night, while Liu Feng was to witness how he was going to destroy the enemy.
At the second watch, Huang Zhong left the pass with 5,000 men. Now Xiahou Shang and Han Hao, seeing no movement from the pass for many days, had slackened their vigilance, and so were utterly unprepared for the raid. Their men had no time to don their armor or to saddle their horses. All the two leaders could do was to flee for their own lives, while their men trampled each other down in their haste to escape and were killed in great numbers. All three camps were recovered by dawn, and in them were found all sorts of military equipment, horses, and saddles. The booty was carried off by Meng Da and stored in the pass.
Huang Zhong urged his men to pursue the enemy. Liu Feng tried to dissuade him, saying that the men needed to regather their strength.
“Can you seize the tiger’s cubs without entering the tiger’s lair?” cried Huang Zhong. And he spurred on in front.
Encouraged by their leader, the soldiers also exerted themselves. Zhang He’s army was thrown into confusion by the fleeing men, and he could not hold his position, but was also forced to retreat to the banks of the Han River, abandoning all the stockades.
Then Zhang He sought out the two officers who had brought about the misfortune and said to them: “This is Mount Tiandang, where our stores are. Close by is Mount Micang, which is also a depot for our grain. These two places are the very source of life for our army in the whole Hanzhong region. Any mishap to them means the loss of Hanzhong. We must see to their security.”
Xiahou Shang said, “My uncle, Xiahou Yuan, is defending the granaries at Mount Micang, which is linked to another range of hills called Mount Dingjun. There is nothing to worry about. My brother, Xiahou De, is guarding Mount Tiandang. Let’s go there and help him to protect that.”
Zhang He and the two officers set out at once. When they reached the mountain they told Xiahou De all that had happened.
“I have 100,000 men in camp here,” he replied. “You can take a troop and recover your lost camps.”
Zhang He objected, “The only proper course is to maintain a firm defense.”
Almost as they spoke the rolling of drums and the clang of gongs were heard, and sentinels came to report that Huang Zhong had approached.
“The old ruffian doesn’t know much of the art of war, after all,” said Xiahou De with a laugh. “He relies only on mere boldness.”
“Don’t underestimate him—he is crafty and not only bold,” said Zhang He.
“But his move is against the rules of war and not at all clever. Firstly, he’s come from a long way and his men are fatigued after the arduous march. Secondly, he’s penetrated deep inside an enemy’s country. I call these acts sheer neglect of military strategy!”
“Nevertheless, there is no harm in being more careful,” insisted Zhang He. “You’ll still do well to be on the defensive.”
“Give me 3,000 good soldiers and I’ll cut him to pieces,” cried Han Hao.
His request was granted and with the 3,000 men, Han Hao went down to meet his foe. As he approached, Huang Zhong deployed his men for battle. Liu Feng again added a note of warning, protesting that it was late in the day to fight and the men were weary.
Huang Zhong laughed. “I don’t think so. This is a Heaven-sent opportunity to win great success, and it’ll be a violation of Heaven’s wish not to take it.”
So saying, he advanced amid thundering rolls of drums. Han Hao came forward with his men and the aged officer went toward him, whirling his sword. In the first encounter Han Hao fell. At this the men of Shu gave a loud yell and charged up the hill, at which Zhang He and Xiahou Shang quickly moved out to withstand them. But a great red glare sprang into the sky from behind the hill, accompanied by a deafening shouting. Hastily Xiahou De turned his men to deal with the new danger and ran straight into Yan Yan; the latter’s arm rose, and sword fell—then Xiahou De dropped from his steed to rise no more.
This ambush had been carefully prepared by Huang Zhong, who had instructed his comrade and sent him there beforehand. Therefore as soon as he saw Huang Zhong come up with his army, Yan Yan raised a fire and the flames had reached up to the sky, illuminating the hills and valleys.
Yan Yan, after slaying Xiahou De, came round the hill to aid in the attack, so that Zhang He and Xiahou Shang were assaulted from both the front and rear. Finding the situation desperate, they abandoned their position and rushed toward Mount Dingjun to seek refuge with Xiahou Yuan.
Meanwhile, the two old generals consolidated the position they had won and sent the good news of victory to Chengdu. Liu Bei, exhilarated by the happy tiding, called together all his officers to celebrate.
Fa Zheng said, “Not long ago Cao Cao, after subduing Zhang Lu and thereby getting possession of Hanzhong, did not follow it up with an operation to seize all of Shu, but left two officers to guard it while he himself returned to the north. That was a mistake. Now, my lord, do not make a similar mistake yourself. Take advantage of the present favorable situation, with Zhang He newly defeated and Tiandang captured, to personally lead an army to attack Hanzhong, and you will seize it at once. Once that region is secured, you can proceed to train your army and amass supplies so that when opportunities arise you can advance to strike Cao Cao or retreat to defend yourself. This is a Heaven-sent chance and you should not let it pass.”
Both Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang saw the wisdom of his words and prepared to act accordingly. Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei were to lead the van, while Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang were to command a mighty army of 100,000 men. A day was chosen for the expedition and orders were sent to alert officers at every position to keep careful guard.
It was on an auspicious day in the seventh month of t
he twenty-third year of the period Jian An (A.D. 218) that the army departed. At Jiameng Pass, Huang Zhong and Yan Yan were summoned and well rewarded for their remarkable services.
Liu Bei said to Huang Zhong, “Everybody said you were old, General, but our Chief Military Counselor knows you better, and you have indeed rendered a most amazing service. Still, there is Mount Dingjun yet to be seized. It is the enemy’s central depot of supplies and protects Nanzheng. If we could get that mountain we would have cleared our way to the whole area around Yangping Pass. Do you think you are equal to this task?”
To this question the veteran nobly answered in the affirmative and made ready to start.
Zhuge Liang intervened hastily, “You’re brave enough, General, but Xiahou Yuan is quite different from Zhang He. He’s a real strategist, well versed in the art of war; so much so that Cao Cao relies upon him as his pillar in the west. He was the one who held Chang’an against Ma Chao and now he is again the person to maintain Hanzhong. Cao Cao entrusts him with these tasks, for he believes Xiahou Yuan has the makings of a great commander. You have overcome Zhang He, but it does not follow that you will conquer this man. I think I must send someone down to Jingzhou to relieve Guan Yu for this task. He will be the right match for Xiahou Yuan.”
Huang Zhong hotly replied, “In the old days General Lian Po,* at the age of eighty, still ate one dou of rice and ten catties of meat every day. His strength and valor frightened the neighboring lords, who dared not encroach upon the borders of his country. Now I’m not yet seventy and you call me old! I’ll go with my own 3,000 men, without any help and I’ll lay Xiahou Yuan’s head at your feet.”
Zhuge Liang refused to allow him to go, but Huang Zhong insisted. At last Zhuge Liang conceded, on the condition that an advisor was to accompany him on the expedition.
To excite is more effective than to request;
An aged general may prove better than a younger man.
The name of the advisor will be disclosed in the next chapter.