Chapter 114: Slay the General, Seize the Pass (Part One)

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An Dark Blade was the only woman among the troops. With her skills, it was naturally no problem for her to accompany the army on the campaign. She traveled with the army as Zhang Chi’s personal guard, so she would surely have the chance to see Zhao Qian. Zhang Chi had originally thought that, given Dark Blade’s temperament, she would surely fly into a rage upon meeting Zhao Qian. But to Zhang Chi’s surprise, when the two met, there was no particular reaction from either of them.

Could it be that during the last encirclement, Dark Blade did not recognize Zhao Qian as the commanding general? Zhang Chi found this puzzling as well.

Since Dark Blade did not recognize him, Zhang Chi was not foolish enough to tell her. He pretended he did not know either, gave the order to deploy the troops, and led the army northward.

Outside Chengdu, there stretched vast fertile fields without any checkpoints—it was all territory belonging to Liangzhou.

Leaving Chengdu, the terrain was flat plains, allowing for rapid marching. They proceeded north until gradually reaching the mountainous area.

The Bashan Mountains were once also called Liangshan, but this Liang was not that of the Water Margin’s Liangshan Marsh; rather, it referred to the Liang of Liangzhou. From a modern perspective, Bashan is the boundary mountain range among the provinces of Sichuan, Hubei, and Shaanxi. During the Eastern Jin dynasty, this was the crucial passage from Hanzhong to the heartland of Shu. The mountains were high, the waters perilous, and its strategic position extremely important. Easy to defend, difficult to attack. It controlled Sichuan and Shaanxi, held sway over the Central Plains. It could be used as a springboard for advance, or a stronghold for retreat. It was a place contested by military strategists throughout the ages.

The marching formation was arranged by Du Ximing, while Zhang Chi accompanied the army as a companion. But speaking frankly, if he were in command, wouldn’t he be able to orchestrate seventy or eighty thousand troops with great order?

In ancient times, marching and warfare were very different from modern methods; they relied entirely on a capable general.

Where does this come from? On the battlefield, ordinary soldiers had no sense of the overall situation. They might not even know the map, and sometimes not even the destination of the march. They only knew to follow orders—charge, defend, advance, or retreat.

Thus, the outcome of the entire army depended largely on the general. This is why it was common that when a general fell, even if the army vastly outnumbered the enemy, they would often scatter and flee.

In the era of cold weapons, the role of the general was critical, which gave rise to the lament that “a thousand soldiers are easy to find, but a good general is hard to come by.”

Seeing Du Ximing and Qin Bo skillfully directing the troops, San Tong felt envious. He followed closely beside Zhang Chi and said, “Brother Zhang, now that you’re the commander, you should assign me a minor officer role, let me experience the thrill of commanding troops as a general.”

Before Zhang Chi could respond, Dao Xuan burst out laughing: “Give me a break, you want to lead soldiers too?”

San Tong was indignant: “What’s wrong with that? Back then, I was also a leader among our mountain bandits.”

When San Tong mentioned his old bandit group, Zhang Chi recalled the time when he and Dao Xuan traveled to Huainan City and encountered San Tong. He couldn’t help but laugh; that San Tong was far more amusing than now. They had been together so long that Zhang Chi had barely noticed, but recalling back then, it was clear San Tong had grown considerably more composed.

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“I wonder how my brothers from the bandit camp are faring after joining the army,” San Tong said, clearly lost in memories.

Near Yaoyi Sang Mountain, San Tong first met Zhang Chi. Later, when they were attacked by the Hu barbarians’ cavalry, San Tong nearly lost his life. Fortunately, Zhang Chi and Dao Xuan helped him escape. However, the bandit camp was razed and slaughtered by the barbarians; the families of San Tong’s brothers were killed. Those who survived swore revenge and joined the Northern Prefecture army. No one knew how they were doing now.

Seeing San Tong’s gloomy expression, Zhang Chi quickly comforted him: “I’ll find a chance to let you command troops, and you can be a general, alright?”

Hearing this, San Tong’s sadness vanished instantly, replaced by joy: “Brother Zhang, are you serious?”

“Absolutely serious,” Zhang Chi smiled. “I just appointed Han Xiang as a commander, leading her original ten thousand troops from the Five Pecks of Rice Taoist sect. If I don’t promote you, won’t she bully you later?”

After Zhang Chi spoke, Dao Xuan laughed out loud. San Tong hastily defended himself: “She doesn’t bully me. She always listens to me.”

Han Xiang was riding ahead nearby; she heard everything and smiled faintly but said nothing. Men cared a lot about their pride, and she knew it, so she let San Tong boast among friends.

Everyone laughed heartily at San Tong’s bragging, except Dark Blade, who showed no amusement.

She had always stayed close to Zhang Chi as his bodyguard, never speaking or smiling. Zhang Chi even wondered if she was capable of smiling at all.

Bored during the march, they sought some entertainment. Ding Yizhi smiled and said, “Liangzhou has always been a militarily significant region. Now that we have the chance to be here, why not ask our brother to recite a poem for us?”

Everyone cheered loudly. San Tong clapped his hands and said, “Yes, yes! Brother Zhang, I admire your literary talent the most. Recite one for us.”

“I’ve never been to Liangzhou before, so I can’t compose a poem on the spot,” Zhang Chi said with a smile when he saw their disappointment. “But I know someone who once wrote a poem mentioning Liangzhou. Let me read it to you.”

“Good!”

Zhang Chi cleared his throat and recited Lu You’s “Expressing True Feelings”:

“Once I searched ten thousand miles for noble rank,
Alone I guarded Liangzhou’s frontier.
Where did dreams of river and pass break apart?
Dust darkens my old sable cloak.
The barbarians not yet crushed, my temples first turn gray,
Tears flow in vain.
Who would have thought this life—
Heart at Tianshan, body old in Cangzhou.”

“A fine line: ‘Alone I guarded Liangzhou’s frontier!’” Ding Yizhi praised. “A good poem, but why are the lines uneven in length?”

“That’s because it’s not a poem per se; it was meant to be sung with rhythm, so the lines vary.”

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“The poem is excellent, but it’s somewhat melancholy,” San Tong said. Since following Zhang Chi, he had grown beyond his earlier crude lines like ‘Today’s harvest is plentiful, a cart full of grain.’ He could now sense the emotion in the poem. “Melancholy, yes, but it’s not fitting for Brother Zhang’s current situation. Now that you command a great army, you should be full of vigor and pride.”

Dark Blade, who had been silent all along, suddenly interjected: “While the barbarians remain, who is not sorrowful?”

Zhang Chi was startled. This wooden person actually spoke. When he looked back at her, he saw faint tears glistening in her eyes.

Throughout their acquaintance, he had never seen Dark Blade cry. He had always thought she was carved from wood—emotionless, forever cold and impassive. Now to see tears in her eyes was truly surprising.

Seeing Zhang Chi look her way, Dark Blade quickly turned her head aside, lowering her gaze as she repeated softly, “The barbarians remain.”

Zhang Chi could sense that Dark Blade hated the barbarians most of all.

As the army marched on, Zhang Chi suddenly noticed the vanguard had stopped. Du Ximing, commanding the troops, galloped back swiftly and reported to Zhang Chi, “Young master, we have encountered a city gate ahead, under Liangzhou’s jurisdiction. They refuse to open the gates to let us pass.”

“Just tell them we are heading north to fight the barbarians,” San Tong said simply.

Du Ximing smiled bitterly: “I already explained everything to the garrison, but they say they need an order from the Liangzhou governor before they will allow passage. Otherwise, if we approach the city further, they will shoot arrows.”

“Let’s go see for ourselves,” Zhang Chi said.

Why does this Liangzhou governor always make things difficult for us?

Setting fire to the courier station might have been his doing. Now I send troops, and his soldiers not only fail to show but even set up roadblocks?

What is this Liangzhou governor really thinking?