Before evening, Liu Cheng watched Zhuge You sign his name and office, nodded, then turned to Zhuge Heng, who had arrived ahead of time. "Take this to the men under your Clan Elder Brother who hold a General's title, and have them all sign it. Bring it back to Eastern Office Xi tonight. He'll take it back to Yang Pass, and that will settle matters."
Zhuge Heng nodded and went out first, carefully carrying the memorial.
Only then did Liu Cheng turn to Xi Chao. "Jiabin, take this to Yang Pass tomorrow and see General Liu. Explain things clearly to him. Tell him Yang Pass is a vital position, and he needn't insist on coming to mourn. If anything comes up, have him tell you. If necessary, I can go to him."
"All right," Xi Chao answered glumly.
Liu Cheng understood, but had no time to soothe Xi Chao's feelings. He simply turned to Zhuge You. "General Zhuge, bear with it a little longer. Once these people leave, half our troubles will be over... Military affairs are complicated, and there's far too much for us to do. Even if we're lucky, I'm afraid you'll have to toil here with me for another month. It would be nothing unusual if we had to struggle on for a while longer... If the Xianbei people won't leave us alone, there's even less to say. We'll just have to hold out."
"Sorry for the trouble, General of the Vanguard Army." Zhuge You let out a long sigh. "Duke Xun has only just passed away, and the Northern Command has already come to this. Every last one of them is like a black-eyed fighting cock, and we can only rely on you to preside over things. It's truly shameful."
"There's nothing to be ashamed of."