Taiheiki

Chapter 337 Homing Pigeon
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"Bring me the pigeon, the one with the gray spot on its wing!" Yu Wen carefully folded the silk scroll, stuffed it into the bamboo tube, sealed the opening with melted wax, and tied it to the pigeon's leg. Then, he went outside, looked around to make sure no one was there, and with a strong lift, he lifted the pigeon up. The agile bird flapped its wings and took flight. It circled above Yu Wen's head once, then flew southeast and quickly disappeared into the air.

"May the gods protect us, may everything go smoothly on the journey, and may we deliver the letter safely!" Yu Wen prayed silently.

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Jiaozhi, Longbian.

One second he was fast asleep, the next he was suddenly jolted awake.

He instinctively gripped the hilt of his sword with his right hand. This was a good habit he had developed in Liangzhou. The Qiang people fought regardless of time or place, and he had been attacked by them at least twice while using the toilet in the wild. He survived only because he always carried his sword.

What's wrong? What did I just hear? Something must have happened!

Duan Wei rolled out of bed. The evening breeze sighed softly outside the window. He heard a cat meowing in the distance, but nothing else! Had he imagined it? Duan Wei shook his head in confusion, about to go back to bed, when suddenly he heard something knocking on the window. He went to the window, drew his short sword with one hand, and pushed the window open with the other. A dark creature scurried in, flapped its wings twice, and landed on the bookshelf, looking at Duan Wei.

"It's a pigeon, a carrier pigeon!" By the moonlight, Duan Wei recognized the uninvited guest. He quickly lit the oil lamp with his fire knife, removed the bamboo tube containing the letter from the pigeon's leg, and scattered a handful of millet for the hardworking messenger. Only then did he begin to take out the letter from the bamboo tube and read it.

"The King of Funan has left the capital to fight the Ju-ting people. What timely news!" Duan Wei subconsciously clenched his fist. As a Liangzhou native, he did not like the weather in Jiaozhi. It was hot and humid, and he felt as if he was wrapped in a wet quilt all day long, which was very uncomfortable. But for the sake of the 30,000 households of food and clothing promised by his brother, he was willing to roll in boiling water.

Duan Wei quickly dressed and went to Duan Jiong's residence, knocking loudly on the door. The sea breeze at night felt like many fingers tickling Duan Wei, giving him goosebumps. His brother should already be asleep. Should he go back and tell him the news tomorrow morning?

"Who is it!" A familiar voice came from inside the house.

"It's me!" Duan Wei responded subconsciously. He regretted it a little, but continued anyway, "A carrier pigeon just arrived. It was sent by Yu Wen from the Funan people!"

The soft rustling of clothes being put on came from inside the room. The door opened, and Duan Jiong stood in the doorway, his expression calm. But Duan Wei, who knew his brother well, could see more in his brother's eyes.

"Come in and talk!" Duan Jiong returned to the table. The oil lamp had already been lit. Duan Wei took out the silk book and bamboo tube from his sleeve. Duan Jiong picked up the silk book and read it carefully. After thinking for a long time, he asked, "Zhongming, what do you think we should do?"

"This opportunity is too good to miss!" Duan Wei replied without hesitation, "We should deploy our elite troops and wait for the right moment to strike!"

"Then whom should we help?"

"Warriors should unite for mutual benefit, and generals should adapt to changing circumstances. It's too early to talk about these things now; we'll make a decision once we get there!"

"Well said!" Duan Jiong's eyes gleamed with admiration. "Zhongming, you've finally made progress!"

"It's all thanks to my elder brother's excellent teaching!"

"Hehehe!" Duan Jiong laughed. "Between brothers like us, there's no need for such formalities. Some things are innate, not teachable. I'm glad you understand. You'll be in charge of the vanguard this time. Remember what you just said: 'Warriors unite for profit, and a general must adapt to changing circumstances.' No matter how well-equipped our troops are, the local natives outnumber us ten or even a hundred to one. If we rely solely on brute force, even if we win a few times, we'll only end up dead!"

Hearing his elder brother appoint him as the vanguard, Duan Wei was secretly delighted. For a warrior, the easiest place to achieve merit is as the vanguard. His elder brother was giving him the opportunity to be ennobled. As for whether he could seize it, that was up to him: "Brother, how many soldiers will I have as the vanguard this time?"

“Seventeen hundred men! Eight hundred crossbowmen and one hundred cavalry!” Duan Jiong said.

"How can there be so few!" Duan Wei said disappointedly, "Brother, look at what this letter says. The Ju-ting people claim to have 100,000 men, and the King of Funan had 30,000 soldiers and 150 war elephants when he left the capital. What can my 1,700 men do?"

"Have you forgotten what I just said? The natives outnumber us tenfold or a hundredfold. If we try to rely on force, we'll only end up dead!" Duan Jiong laughed. "Besides, 1,700 isn't a small number. Yu Wen has another 500 men, all of whom are under your command!"

"There are only a little over two thousand people in total, what can that do?" Duan Wei muttered.

"That's quite a lot. When General Wei raised his army in Yuzhang and marched south to take Jiaozhou, he only had about ten thousand men! You already have a quarter of his forces, and your armor, weapons, and crossbows are definitely far superior to his back then. Moreover, this time you are traveling by sea. If you encounter a strong wind at sea, your entire army may be wiped out. I cannot risk losing a large army to give you too much!"

Duan Wei fell silent. Just as Duan Jiong had said, according to the Jiaozhou army's plan, to expedite the march and avoid the difficulties caused by the annual rainy season's topographical changes in the Mekong Delta, the vanguard would travel by sea, sailing southeast along the coastline, then upstream along the Mekong River directly into Tonle Sap Lake, reaching the Funan capital; while the main force would be led by Duan Jiong, advancing by both land and sea. Given the limited navigational technology of the time, Duan Jiong, as the commander-in-chief, certainly couldn't afford to gamble with too many troops on ships.

"Alright, a general should be in the thick of things and share danger with his soldiers. If you don't want to be the vanguard, that's fine, I'll find someone else!"

"No, no, no!" Duan Wei quickly denied, "I didn't mean that, brother, please rest assured, I will definitely not let you down!"

"That's good!" Duan Jiong patted his younger brother's shoulder. "Zhongming, the path to becoming a marquis is like this: victory brings meteoric rise, defeat brings the destruction of your entire clan. You must be careful!"

At night, the enemy camp's campfires lit up on the opposite hillside, like falling stars, sometimes expanding and stretching, sometimes contracting and drooping, as if they were alive.

They were about three li away from him, and about ten zhang higher than his current position. Yu Wen used the skills he had learned in Panyu to estimate the distance. "These fools from Funan, don't they know that in a battle between two armies, the first thing to do is to seize the high ground?" he thought indignantly.

Yu Wen didn't care about the victory or defeat of the Funan people. In fact, if the Funan people lost, it might be more advantageous for Yu Wen. As long as he didn't get caught up in the Funan's defeated army, Yu Wen could retreat to the Funan capital as quickly as possible and then control the area until the reinforcements sent by Duan Jiong arrived. Moreover, his ships were moored on the river only two miles from the camp, and he had considerable confidence in his small army.

But not caring about victory or defeat is one thing, and seeing these nominally friendly forces so undisciplined is another. Yu Wen, who had already received considerable military training in the Jiaozhou army, did not realize that he had become stubborn and arrogant, especially in military matters.

"Messenger! Messenger!" came shouts from not far away.

"What is it?" Yu Wen turned around. He recognized the man; he was a servant of the Prime Minister of Funan. The Prime Minister always sent this man when he invited him.

"His Majesty wishes to discuss military matters; please join us!"

“Hmm!” Yu Wen nodded. Led by his servant, he walked down the mound, crossed a section of earthen embankment, and entered the Funan people’s camp.

Even on the battlefield, the King of Funan did not neglect himself—his residence was carpeted with soft carpets, the walls were made of fine bamboo, and there were musicians, incense burners, and the nearly two-hundred-square-meter bamboo shed was filled to the brim with luxurious furnishings. Yu Wen wondered to himself, could this King of Funan not distinguish between marching and traveling?
"Your Excellency has finally arrived!" The Prime Minister smiled and nodded to Yu Wen, gesturing for him to sit down beside him. "We've only just begun. You can share your thoughts later!"

"We dare not!" Yu Wen nodded. Then, several Funan generals expressed their opinions, all saying that they should strengthen and build more fortifications to defend against possible enemy attacks.

"A bunch of idiots!" Yu Wen finally couldn't hold back and muttered to his deputy.

"What did you just say?" the prime minister asked, turning around after hearing this.

“What I just said was truly insightful!” Yu Wen quickly replied with a smile, knowing that the prime minister could understand Chinese.

The prime minister glanced at Yu Wen, his eyes full of suspicion. Yu Wen was about to explain when the King of Funan noticed the commotion and turned around: "Prime Minister, does the Han envoy have anything to say?"

Yu Wen tried to offer a casual remark, but when he saw the King of Funan feeding his pet monkey fruit from a golden cup, a surge of anger rushed to his head. He shouted, "To be honest, I am quite surprised by your country's nonchalant attitude towards war. Indeed, in our Han Dynasty, there is a saying: 'War is a matter of vital importance to the state; it is a matter of life and death, a road to survival or ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which can on no account be neglected!' This means that war is a major national affair, concerning the life and death of individuals and the survival of the nation, and must be carefully observed and analyzed. Yet, I see absolutely no sign of this importance in any of you, especially in His Majesty. Why has such a country survived to this day? It is truly a strange thing!"

At first, the King of Funan was nonchalant, feeding the monkeys while listening to the interpreter beside him. But as the interpreter translated, his expression grew increasingly grim. In the end, the interpreter dared not continue translating, fearing that he would become the king's punching bag.

"The outcome of the war is determined by the gods. I am the shadow of Vishnu, the god of heaven. Victory is destined to be mine!" the King of Funan declared arrogantly.

"If the gods can decide the outcome of a war, then why bother summoning soldiers to the battlefield? Why not just build more temples and offer sacrifices to the gods?" Yu Wen sneered. "Emperor Xin also believed himself to be a descendant of the Heavenly Emperor, and that if the Heavenly Emperor accepted the sacrifices of the Shang people, he would forever protect them and rule over all directions. But later, during the Battle of Muye when King Wu attacked King Zhou, the Heavenly Emperor did not appear when Emperor Xin set himself on fire at Lutai! Is Your Majesty's bloodline more noble than Emperor Xin's? Are you as devout in your sacrifices to the gods as the Shang people? Now, with the two armies facing each other, have the gods appeared?"

"Alright, alright! Your Excellency, please stop talking about this! Tell me what we should do now," the prime minister said with a wry smile. The interpreter had already shut his mouth, not daring to translate Yu Wen's words to the King of Funan.

Yu Wen snorted coldly: "I just went out to check the enemy camp and found that they have already controlled a high ground on the right side of their camp, which is at least ten zhang higher than our side. Standing on such a high ground, no matter what our troops do, the enemy can see it clearly. And we have no idea what the enemy does. How can we possibly win a battle like this? As for now rushing to build fortifications, that's even more ridiculous. The two armies' camps are seven or eight li long. With such a long line of defense, no matter how much fortifications we build, the enemy can attack the remaining weak points. What's the use? It will only waste the soldiers' strength!"

The interpreter's voice echoed in the bamboo shed, leaving the Funan officers speechless. The prime minister nodded: "What you say makes a lot of sense. You truly deserve to be an envoy of the Great Han. If you were the commander of our army, what would you do?"

"Of course, we should attack that enemy high ground first!" Yu Wen answered without hesitation. "By capturing the high ground, we can see the enemy's movements clearly, adapt accordingly to defend against their attacks, and prevent the enemy from seeing our own formation. Moreover, we can deploy some war elephants on the high ground. If the enemy dares to attack our camp, we can signal the elephant corps stationed on the high ground to attack the enemy from behind or the side, while the garrison in the camp can also launch an attack. With a pincer attack, victory will naturally be achieved!"

The Funan officers showed admiration upon hearing this, and the prime minister nodded in satisfaction, saying to the King of Funan, "Your Majesty, the Han envoy's opinion is very wise. Why don't we follow his suggestion and attack that high ground tomorrow?"

"Alright!" Faced with the prime minister's advice, the King of Funan nodded, though somewhat reluctant. He glanced at Yu Wen: "To achieve victory, I will pray to Vishnu tonight that no one will disturb me!" With that, he stood up, picked up his pet monkey, and disappeared behind the curtain, surrounded by palace maids and slave musicians.

"That's settled then. Everyone, go back and prepare yourselves. We'll attack the high ground tomorrow morning!" The vizier stood up and bowed to the shrine: "May Vishnu protect us!"

"May Vishnu protect us!" All the Funan people inside the bamboo shed bowed to the shrine.

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(End of this chapter)