Chapter Summaries

Liu Cheng decided to seize control of Wang Qia’s northern troops by promising local marriages to officers who had lost their families. At the farewell banquet, the officers agreed to move to Xinye, Wang Qia surrendered Bowang’s defenses, and he proposed bringing two thousand of Zhang Yu’s troops with them.

• After Xue Zhen urged swift action, Liu Cheng agreed to seize Wang Qia at the next day’s banquet, ordering Xue to avoid killing him or attacking Bowang City unless negotiations failed.
• On the morning of the twenty-ninth day of the first month, Liu Cheng sent three Black-Clad Guards along separate routes, then invited Wang Qia and the officers to a farewell feast outside Bowang.
• When Garrison Commander Han worried that Liu Cheng’s departure would end hopes of improving their lives, Liu Cheng revealed Huan Huo’s marriage proposals for the northern officers.
• Xue Zhen disarmed Wang Qia, and Liu Cheng asked the officers to move their garrison to Xinye and accept marriages; Li Hong and most of the men agreed.
• Wang Qia asked whether he could still receive the governorship of Xiangcheng and offered to bring two thousand of Zhang Yu’s soldiers; Liu Cheng told him to surrender Bowang’s defenses and leave the decision to Huan Huo.
• Wang Qia drank with the others and surrendered, while Garrison Commander Han and the last holdout followed suit.

Liu Cheng brought two thousand armored Northern Migrants south while Deng Xia, Huan Qian, and Wang Qia prepared an ambush that defeated Zhang Yu's force. After Huan Wen summoned Liu Cheng to question his choices, Liu Cheng loudly defended his loyalty and demanded authority to act on future missions.

• Deng Xia and Huan Qian joined Liu Cheng at Bowang, where Liu Cheng persuaded them to ambush Zhang Yu's force while he escorted two thousand armored Northern Migrants and the families south.
• Huan Huo welcomed the soldiers at Xinye, arranged a collective wedding for their officers, and sent reinforcements toward Bowang as Liu Cheng continued south by river.
• Huan Wen questioned Liu Bo about the troops and his plans, and Liu Bo, fearing Huan Wen's intentions, rode north to retrieve his family.
• Deng Xia, Huan Qian, and Wang Qia reported that they had killed three hundred enemy soldiers, captured a thousand, and seized five hundred sets of armor and equipment.
• Liu Cheng returned to Jiangling and defended his decision to yield military credit to the commanders, insisting that he needed their support and discretionary authority for future missions.

Liu Cheng persuaded Huan Wen to appoint Wang Qia as Administrator of Xiangcheng and to send Liu Bo to serve in Yangzhou, then discussed Huan Wen’s strategy and his own plans for Jiangdong. After realizing that his future Northern Expedition service could put him in danger, Liu Cheng decided to learn archery instead of practicing calligraphy.

• Liu Cheng recommended that Huan Wen keep Wang Qia in Ye County as Administrator of Xiangcheng, and Huan Wen agreed.
• Liu Cheng asked Huan Wen to grant Liu Bo a post in Yangzhou, and Huan Wen told him to explain the arrangement when Liu Bo returned.
• Liu Cheng argued that Huan Wen should avoid negotiating with Zhang Yu and changing his plans for Guanzhong, while Huan Wen said he would consult his staff.
• Huan Wen gave Liu Cheng the revised first chapter of Popular Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and Liu Cheng handed him the second chapter to polish.
• Liu Cheng told Xi Chao he hoped to bring trusted men to Jiangdong, arrange a marriage, and recruit troops; Xi Chao agreed to support him.
• After a willow twig failed to strike a wall, Liu Cheng decided to practice archery or the Military Crossbow to prepare for the Northern Expedition.

Liu Cheng received the title of Pavilion Marquis and won Huan Wen’s approval to organize a willow-shooting gathering that would bring Jingzhou’s civil and military officers together ahead of the planned campaign. As preparations began at Eight Ridge Mountain, Liu Bo arrived in distress, and Liu Cheng arranged for Xi Chao to see him off rather than face him himself.

• Huan Wen’s office petitioned to grant Liu Cheng the title of Marquis of Duting, and Huan Xin asked him to help organize the spring gathering.
• Liu Cheng proposed a willow-shooting ceremony modeled on an alleged gathering by Emperor Wu of Wei, linking it to the coming military campaign at Wuchang.
• Huan Wen approved the plan and assigned Liu Cheng, Huan Xin, and Xi Jiabin to organize it, while Huan Chong arranged security and the venue.
• Liu Cheng and Huan Xin chose a terrace by Eight Ridge Mountain and began preparations as Xi Chao summoned Jingzhou’s officers and officials.
• Liu Dage reported that Liu Bo had arrived wanting to leave with his family, and Liu Cheng provided them with travel provisions and asked Xi Chao to see Liu Bo off.

Xi Chao confronted Liu Bo at the ferry and made him face his ingratitude toward Huan Wen and Liu Cheng. Liu Bo returned to Jiangling, apologized to Liu Cheng, and agreed to wait for the Wuchang Military Review before going to Jiankang.

• Xi Chao stopped Liu Bo from leaving and rebuked him for failing to take leave of Huan Wen and for mistreating Liu Cheng.
• Xi Chao explained that Liu Cheng had pleaded for Liu Bo and arranged for him to transfer to Jiankang after the military review.
• Liu Bo accepted Xi Chao's accusations, decided to return, and said he would apologize to Liu Cheng in person.
• Xi Chao warned Liu Cheng about Liu Bo's unsettling condition, and Liu Cheng returned with mounted guards.
• Liu Bo apologized to Liu Cheng, explained his reasons for leaving Jingzhou, and agreed to follow Liu Cheng's arrangements.
• The chapter recounted how Yu Jin's family repeatedly buried a bloodied dead man's head that kept emerging from the soil before Yu Jin's mother died.

Liu Cheng helped oversee the willow-shooting ceremony at Eight Ridge Mountain, where Huan Wen staged a grand entrance before the contests began. As the military competition unfolded, Liu Cheng spotted a remarkable archer named Liu Hong and wondered whether he was connected to Liu Bo’s clan.

• Liu Cheng set aside his unease about Liu Bo and focused on preparations for the willow-shooting ceremony as officials and commanders gathered in Jingzhou.
• Liu Cheng went to Eight Ridge Mountain with Xi Chao and Fu Hong, attracting a large crowd of colleagues along the way.
• Huan Wen made a dramatic entrance with soldiers, riders, and a war chariot, then boasted about his ceremony to Meng Jia and Liu Cheng.
• Liu Cheng corrected Huan Wen about the traditional cheers for shooting an arrow, and Huan Wen admitted that the startling entrance had been his own idea.
• The officers competed in the horseback willow-shooting contest, and Liu Hong impressed the crowd by hitting the brocade on his first arrow and retrieving it with his bow.
• Liu Cheng wondered whether Liu Hong’s name indicated a connection to Liu Bo’s Liu Clan of Pengcheng.

At Huan Wen’s military review, Deng Xia won the mounted archery final, while Liu Cheng’s carefully arranged foot archery turned into an unexpectedly comic display of his own skill and poetic flair. The chapter ended with Liu Cheng’s poem winning over the young scholars and leaving Deng Xia puzzled by the phrase “shooting only lionesses.”

• Liu Hong’s spectacular shot impressed Huan Wen, while Xue Zhen advanced by hitting a target, Deng Xia claimed another robe, and Huan Qian was eliminated.
• Deng Xia won the mounted archery final and challenged the assembled warriors to mounted combat, but Huan Wen, Huan Chong, and Liu Cheng restored order.
• Huan Wen read the crude poem Liu Cheng had given him and began summoning guests as the archery contest gave way to the group event.
• Ying Dan and the eleven-year-old Zhu Xu excelled at foot archery, while Liu Cheng repeatedly hit a willow instead of the target.
• Liu Cheng recited Ode to the Willow as he shot the tree, then challenged the young scholars to ask Sun Sheng to judge the poem.
• Deng Xia asked Ying Dan what “shooting only lionesses” meant.

At Huan Wen’s banquet, he killed an injured horse and recited a poem that warned his rivals while claiming he sought peace and the Northern Expedition. Xi Chao’s defense reconciled the gathering, and Liu Cheng ended the chapter by asking Luo You to join a proposed mission to the South of the Yangtze.

• Sun Sheng criticized Liu Cheng’s poem but praised his archery, while Huan Wen silently resented Sun Sheng’s opposition to his plans.
• Liu Cheng presented Zhu Xu to Huan Wen, who awarded the boy first place and gave him a jade pendant.
• At the banquet, Huan Wen ordered an injured horse brought up, shot it, and recited a poem about using force to restrain invasion while avoiding slaughter.
• Xi Chao interpreted Huan Wen’s poem as a defense of his political aims, and Sun Sheng agreed before Huan Wen called for unity between Jing and Yang.
• After the banquet, Liu Cheng asked Luo You to join him on a mission to the South of the Yangtze, but Luo You hesitated.

Liu Cheng secured Huan Wen’s approval to lead a large delegation to Jiangdong to pursue a marriage alliance, recruit officials and soldiers, and seek support for a Northern Expedition. After delays expanded the fleet, he reached Jiangcheng Port near Jiankang on March twenty-fourth, dressed for his homecoming.

• Huan Wen praised Liu Cheng’s Three Kingdoms romance, then approved his mission to Jiangdong and agreed that marriage alliances and the movement of officials were its priorities.
• Liu Cheng proposed Awu as chief envoy, with Fu Tao, Luo You, and himself as deputies, and asked Huan Wen to fill out a detailed contingency chart; Huan Wen cut out a list of names and told him to act on his own judgment.
• Liu Cheng obtained permission to pursue his own marriage, recruit Pengcheng Liu Clan relatives and soldiers, and carry colleagues’ goods downstream, while Huan Wen’s wife delayed departure to prepare more ships and gifts.
• The expanded fleet left on March sixteenth with Awu, Fu Tao, Luo You, Liu Cheng, and more than a hundred Northern Migrant soldiers aboard, and Huan Wen gave Liu Cheng the fifth chapter of his romance to take along.
• The fleet reached Wuchang, where Huan Chong took command ahead of the military review, then continued rapidly downstream through Pen Pass into Jiang Province.
• On March twenty-fourth, the fleet arrived at Jiangcheng Port near Jiankang, and Liu Cheng wore the Shu brocade Huan Wen had given him for his homecoming.

Liu Cheng led Huan Xin and the Jingzhou delegation into Jiankang, where he paid a visit to Sima Yu and clashed with the prince’s staff over Huan Wen’s plans. The chapter ended with Liu Cheng accusing Gao Song’s source of being a Hu infiltrator and demanding that Sima Yu expose and punish him.

• Liu Cheng reunited with Gao Jian at Jiangcheng, then arranged for the delegation to travel into Jiankang and visit Sima Yu the next morning.
• Liu Cheng and his companions discussed where to stay and considered lodging Huan Xin with Sima Yu while Liu Cheng and Luo You sought another politically useful residence.
• Luo You identified Fan Wang as a possible host, and Liu Cheng recognized that the commander of the central army had defected from Huan Wen’s camp to the court.
• Liu Cheng assigned Liu Huzi, Gao Heng, and Liu Dage to manage the fleet, gifts, supplies, and accompanying travelers before the group entered Jiankang.
• At Sima Yu’s residence, Liu Cheng introduced himself as Huan Wen’s Chief Secretary and defended the rank and authority of his post when Xie Wan challenged him.
• Gao Song questioned Fu Tao about Huan Wen’s planned military review at Wuchang, and Liu Cheng denied the plan before accusing Gao Song’s source of being a Hu agent and urging Sima Yu to investigate him.

Liu Cheng confronted Sima Yu and the court’s officials, arguing that Huan Wen’s Northern Expedition was compelled by the dangerous conditions in the north and warning that political obstruction could bring disaster. After leaving the residence, Liu Cheng and Luo You went to Fan Wang’s home, where Luo You took up residence with his men.

• Liu Cheng challenged Sima Yu’s judgment of Huan Wen’s intentions and argued that southern officials misunderstood the realities facing the north.
• Liu Cheng recounted how he had acted quickly to capture Wang Qia, helping defeat Zhang Yu’s forces and avert a wider conflict in northern Jingzhou.
• Liu Cheng warned that Huan Wen might be forced into action despite his reluctance, and Luo You abruptly left the tense gathering.
• Xie Wan dismissed Liu Cheng’s warnings and cited Yin Hao’s advance, so Liu Cheng wagered that Xie An would not retreat south of the Huai River within three years.
• Liu Cheng departed after asking Sima Yu to let Huan Xin and others remain, and the officials discussed his commitment to the Northern Expedition.
• Liu Cheng and Luo You went to Fan Wang’s residence, where Luo You demanded food and announced that he and his men would stay there.

Fan Wang struggled with the arrival of Liu Cheng, Huan Wen’s envoy, and summoned his son-in-law Wang Tanzhi to learn what had happened at the Prince of Kuaiji’s residence. Liu Cheng argued that Fan Wang feared a complete rupture between the Upper and Lower Reaches, then left him pondering the danger as a storm broke over Jiankang.

• Fan Wang returned from inspecting Stone City and found Liu Cheng’s Black-Clad Guards at his residence, where Liu Cheng announced he would stay for several days.
• Fan Wang arranged food, lodging, and rain gear for Liu Cheng and his men, then urgently summoned his son-in-law Wang Tanzhi to explain the events at the Prince of Kuaiji’s residence.
• Wang Tanzhi recounted Liu Cheng’s argument about executing Cao Wushang, and Fan Wang questioned him about Liu Cheng’s character and abilities.
• Wang Tanzhi visited Liu Cheng in the side courtyard, where Liu Cheng explained that Fan Wang feared a complete break between the Upper and Lower Reaches, not either leader’s personal suspicions.
• Liu Cheng recited Huan Wen’s verse about targeting the enemy’s leader, and Fan Wang recognized that Liu Cheng had understood his political predicament.

Liu Cheng toured Stone City with Wang Tanzhi, Fan Kang, and Fan Ning, then proposed his kinsman Liu Bo as its next garrison commander. He ended the visit by inscribing a poem attributed to Huan Wen, leaving Wang Tanzhi and Fan Kang unsure whether it praised the Jin dynasty or hinted at its fall.

• After receiving the Marquis of Duting's seal and ribbon, Liu Cheng went with Wang Tanzhi, Fan Kang, and Fan Ning to inspect Stone City.
• Liu Cheng argued with Wang Tanzhi that refusing a Northern Expedition would leave the South vulnerable to future invasions and internal unrest.
• Liu Cheng asked Fan Kang to recommend Liu Bo, his older clansman's eldest legitimate grandson, as Stone City's garrison commander, and Fan Kang agreed he would be suitable if Liu Cheng could secure his release from Jiangling.
• Liu Cheng copied a poem about Wang Jun's conquest of Jinling onto the beacon tower and attributed it to Huan Wen, leaving Wang Tanzhi and Fan Kang bewildered.

Liu Cheng brought Luo You to the Jingkou settlement, where he reunited with its people and revealed that he had become the Marquis of Duting. At Grandpa Wang’s grave on Flower Mountain, Liu Cheng unexpectedly broke down as he realized that he, too, would one day die and be buried there.

• Liu Cheng rode with Luo You and Liu Huzi to the growing settlement, learning that it held four or five thousand people and faced tensions with the Way of the Celestial Masters.
• Liu Huzi described how he had prepared an ambush and assembled archers and armed men in case the settlement’s dispute with the neighboring manor turned violent.
• Liu Cheng bowed in the mud to Liu Rengong and the other elders, then showed them his Marquis of Duting seal, stirring excitement among the gathered people.
• Liu Cheng toured the settlement, praised its livestock, and asked Liu Huzi’s Elder Sister to prepare sour noodle soup for Luo You.
• Liu Cheng went with the elders to visit the graves on Flower Mountain and wept at Grandpa Wang’s grave after realizing his own life would end in death.

Liu Acheng held a meeting with Liu Jili, Liu Huzi, and their companions to discuss their political prospects and decide who should join him in Jingzhou. They agreed on several future plans and returned to camp to report them to Liu Rengong.

• Liu Cheng waited for Liu Yehu before discussing business with Liu Jili, then explained how Liu Jili’s letter had been used to deceive his eldest brother and described the conflict involving Huan Wen.
• Liu Jili agreed to bring Liu Azhu into the discussion and said he could keep his eldest brother isolated if he returned to Jiankang.
• Liu Cheng proposed possible futures for the group, and Gao Heng agreed to recruit three to five hundred men and join him in Jingzhou by autumn.
• Liu Cheng advised Liu Huzi to remain in Jingkou for now, while Liu Jili and Liu Huzi agreed to help find Liu clansmen willing to follow him to Jingzhou.
• Liu Cheng asked the group to treat their disagreements as settled, and the six men returned to camp to explain their plans to Liu Rengong, who urged Liu Cheng to act within his means.

Liu Cheng assessed the declining Liu branches in Jingkou and sought to recruit Liu Agan for the northern expedition. After testing Agan with a meal, money, and a challenge to his pride, Liu Cheng followed him as he gathered armed men and led them out of Jingkou Ward.

• Liu Jili and Liu Rengong reviewed the Liu branches in Jingkou, while Liu Cheng privately resolved to recruit Liu Agan.
• Liu Cheng and Liu Huzi visited Lord Liu Ying’s household and found that Liu Agan was away; the next morning, Agan returned and invited them to drink with his companions.
• Liu Cheng paid for a large feast and Agan’s debts, then offered him silver and silk while challenging his ambition and martial ability.
• Agan refused to accept the gifts as charity, fetched his bow and arrows, and gathered seventy or eighty armed men.
• Liu Cheng followed Agan and his men as they set out from Jingkou Ward in the rain.

Liu Acheng accompanied Liu Agan and his archers to Yu Xi’s country estate, where Liu Agan’s pride in his aristocratic connection gave way to humiliation after Yu Xi rebuked him. Acheng then revealed his own standing and ties to Yu Yun and Wang Tanzhi, leaving Agan stunned as the gathering turned into a cordial banquet.

• Liu Agan brought Liu Acheng, Liu Huzi, and nearly a hundred archers to Yu Xi’s country estate and boasted that Yu Xi had allowed him to practice there.
• Liu Agan’s men competed against Liu Huzi’s in archery, and Liu Agan proved especially skilled before a servant announced Yu Xi’s arrival.
• Yu Xi rebuked Liu Agan for occupying the east hall, but Yu Yun persuaded him to let the archers remain and Wang Tanzhi advised him not to provoke them.
• Liu Agan returned soaked and red-eyed, then offered Liu Huzi a horse after losing the distracted archery contest.
• Liu Acheng led Liu Huzi and Liu Agan to Yu Xi’s banquet and introduced himself to Yu Yun, Wang Tanzhi, and Yu Xi as Liu Yulong, a Chief Secretary in the Western Expeditionary General’s Office.
• Yu Xi and his guests welcomed Liu Acheng and his clansmen, while Liu Agan sat in profound embarrassment.

After recounting Liu Agan’s humiliation at the Yu family manor, Liu Cheng defended him while condemning the aristocratic clans and offered him a Banner Chief position in Jingzhou. Liu Agan agreed to go with Liu Cheng, who departed the next day still angry about the family’s decline.

• Liu Cheng questioned Wang Tanzhi about the events at the manor, then argued that Wang had helped prevent a lasting feud between Liu Agan and Yu Xi.
• Liu Cheng praised Liu Agan’s skills and following, defended his complaint about aristocratic privilege, and angrily denounced the great clans to Liu Agan and Wang Tanzhi.
• Liu Cheng told Lord Liu Ying he had planned to recruit Liu Agan as an Elite Soldier in Jingzhou, and explained the risks and prospects of that choice.
• Lord Liu Ying agreed to send Liu Agan with Liu Cheng, and Liu Agan accepted a Banner Chief position and prepared to recruit a banner’s worth of men.
• Liu Cheng and Liu Huzi set out in the rain the next day, and Liu Cheng criticized Liu Agan’s family and urged Liu Huzi to read more.

Liu Acheng settled the dispute over Liu Agan and led a large party south toward Kuaiji to recruit talent and advance Huan Wen’s plans. At Zhangpu Pass, he recruited Wang Yan after Wang reconsidered his offer, and the party continued into Wuxing.

• Liu Acheng explained to Liu Jili and Liu Huzi why he had lashed out at Liu Agan, and Liu Jili accepted that they would use Liu Agan despite his anger.
• Liu Acheng traveled through Jiankang to meet allies and prepare for the journey south, then set out with several hundred guards, recruits, and laborers.
• Liu Acheng refused Liu Huzi’s suggestion that they seize Master Du Ming’s Manor and ordered the men not to cause trouble there.
• At Zhangpu Pass, Liu Acheng offered the pass official a position under Huan Wen, but the man initially refused and later caught up with the party.
• The pass official revealed that his name was Wang Yan, courtesy name Tengzhi and childhood name Ahuo, and agreed to accompany Liu Acheng through Wuxing before seeking a future in Jingzhou.

Liu Acheng reunited with Shen Jin and persuaded him to arrange a marriage with a Shen Family Daughter, using the alliance to help consolidate the Liu Clan of Jingkou. The engagement negotiations ended with Shen Jin agreeing to help, while Liu Acheng immediately asked him to humiliate Wang Ahhuo’s namesake, Shen Jin, in order to win Wang Ahhuo’s loyalty.

• Liu Acheng met Shen Jin in Wuxing and recounted his recent rise, while learning that Wang Huzhi remained paralyzed and that Wang Tanzhi’s grandmother had died.
• Liu Acheng told Shen Jin he wanted to marry a Shen Family Daughter to gain help, wealth, and an estate for the Liu Clan of Jingkou.
• Shen Jin agreed to arrange the marriage and offered an estate in Qianxi, while Liu Acheng asked him to seek the estate of Master Du Ming in Jingkou instead.
• Shen Jin accepted Liu Acheng’s marriage proposal and promised to help arrange the match with one of the two Shen women.
• Liu Acheng asked Shen Jin to help him win Wang Ahhuo’s loyalty by humiliating Shen Jin, the official who had once disgraced Wang Ahhuo.