A discussion in the command tent

"Don't go! I'll support you for the rest of your life!"

Meng Yuan had resolved to leave for distant lands and wasted no words. First he informed Master Huo, the martial arts school's owner, then sought out Widow Cao of the Ping'an Bookshop. After they enjoyed a bout of lovemaking, Widow Cao was reluctant to part with him.

Widow Cao truly could not bear to let him go. Since being widowed, she had kept quite a few pretty boys, but only Meng Yuan had left her both satisfied and tenderhearted.

He had endless sweet nothings and a honeyed tongue, treated her son as well as a real older brother would, and coveted none of her money. He even refused it when she gave him too much. He had the bearing of a benevolent gentleman of old!

Moreover, he was lustful without being debauched. Though he had plenty of tricks in bed, once out of it, he was like an old monk deep in meditation, reading history by candlelight night after night. He even disregarded his status as her lover to seek instruction from her father.

And that was not all. In just one short year, he had gone from an illiterate peasant to someone who could not only read and write, but had read through histories and developed considerable insights.

Widow Cao felt that he had approached her for the free books, with sleeping together merely a bonus.

"Ah, I've heard it's dangerous out there. Why put yourself through that? My family has served as clerks for generations and saved up some money. My father actually likes you very much. He said that if you're willing to marry into the family, he'll welcome you in. If you're willing to stay, you can inherit his position someday. Then I'll find you a concubine too, to carry on your Meng family line." Widow Cao was filled with emotion.

Meng Yuan understood perfectly well that he and Widow Cao had nothing more than a simple illicit relationship. He was merely earning a little money for his hard work.

He put on his clothes, exchanged a few pleasantries, and took his leave.

Rather than returning home, Meng Yuan headed straight for the seat of Huai'an Prefecture.

Meng Yuan was in no hurry to pledge himself to anyone. Instead, he planned to travel far and wide first, studying the geography and local customs and observing the various powers.

In the first year of Meng Yuan's travels, the Yu Kingdom's new sovereign ascended the throne, purged the eunuchs with thunderous force, and placed great trust in civil officials.

In his second year away, a great drought struck the realm. Rebel armies raised their banners everywhere, and the sovereign replaced his chancellor and issued an edict reproaching himself.

In his fourth year away, a relay-station soldier in the northwest turned the heavens upside down, his army's spearhead pointing straight at the Imperial Capital. Troops from across the realm entered the capital to defend their sovereign. After the siege was broken with great difficulty, the sovereign again replaced his chancellor and issued an edict reproaching himself.

In his sixth year away, the Yu Kingdom tottered on the brink. When government troops pressed down one gourd, another floated up; no matter how they tried, they could not extinguish the rebel armies. The sovereign replaced his chancellor twice in one year and issued edicts reproaching himself.

In his eighth year away, order throughout the realm collapsed entirely. More than half the Yu Kingdom's territory was lost, petty kings were beyond counting, and some men of prowess had distinguished themselves and proclaimed themselves kings.

That year, Meng Yuan was twenty-seven. He had accomplished nothing in either letters or martial arts, and instead had a face covered in dust.

He had earned little money, often went hungry between meals, and was sometimes swept along by marauding troops. Still, he had made a rough circuit of nearly half the realm and gained some slight knowledge of its geography and local customs.

That year, Meng Yuan returned to his home in Qingping County.

The place had been plundered several times by rebel armies, then stripped several times by government troops. Three in ten of its people were gone, and it no longer resembled what it had once been.

Master Huo of the martial arts school was guiding the rebels, Master Cheng had fled south with his household, and though Widow Cao was still alive, she could no longer afford to keep pretty boys.

Back in Niujia Village, his father, elder brother, and sister-in-law were all still alive. Upon seeing Meng Yuan, they no longer disdained him as before, but instead embraced him and wept bitterly.

Old Yang's son and daughter-in-law had died. With his grandson in tow, he was about to flee the famine.

Recalling the time he had carried on with Pan Shi, Meng Yuan could still hear Old Yang's admonitions in his ears.

"Fleeing the famine won't necessarily keep you alive either. Why not follow me for now? I plan to join an army. If it works out, at least it'll give us a way to survive. If it doesn't, it won't be too late to flee." After eight years of travel, Meng Yuan had already chosen where to place his piece.

Now there was King Zhang in the southeast and Commander Li in the northwest, both great powers sweeping across their respective regions.

Apart from them, there were a dozen or so middling forces.

One of these forces had just occupied Huai'an Prefecture and established itself in Qu County. Its leader was named Lü Yinglong.

And this man was the reason Meng Yuan had returned home.

The realm was in turmoil, and rebel armies rose and fell in swift succession, one taking the stage as another finished its song. Amid the mingled mud and sand, Lü Yinglong's rebel force numbered only a little over ten thousand, yet maintained strict discipline and very rarely slaughtered or plundered the common people.

Meng Yuan privately believed that Lü Yinglong had the bearing of a king.

Better still, though Lü Yinglong had won many battles and fought through many perilous ones, he had kept campaigning from place to place without seeking a permanent base.

Clearly, Lü Yinglong still thought only of moving about to feed his rebel army, lacking the awareness to contend for the realm-or rather, not knowing how to contend for it.

Put plainly, Lü Yinglong lacked someone beside him who could devise a grand strategy.

Of course, Lü Yinglong had probably sensed this too. After seizing Huai'an Prefecture, he had sent proclamations everywhere, inviting worthy and capable men to join him.

Meng Yuan stayed home for a day. The following day, he changed into white robes, bought a hairless old donkey, and set off for Huai'an Prefecture with Old Yang and his grandson.

"Brother, where are we going?" Old Yang's grandson was already nine. Named Yang Dayong, he was as skinny as a monkey.

"How many times have I told you? When we're away from home, don't call me brother!" Meng Yuan scolded.

"What should I call you, then?" Yang Dayong led the donkey and carried a basket containing several history books. He asked curiously, "Young master?"

"I come from weaving mats and selling straw shoes. Calling me young master would only invite ridicule for no reason. You should call me sir!" Meng Yuan said.

"Yes, sir!" Yang Dayong caught on quickly.

When they reached Qu County outside the prefectural seat of Huai'an, they saw more than a dozen military camps. Meng Yuan approached and announced that he was a scholar answering the summons, come expressly to offer General Lü a strategy.

He entered the camp and waited a long while, but no one attended to him. Only after enduring until dusk without so much as a sip of water was Meng Yuan summoned into the main tent.

A man sat in the seat of honor inside the tent. About thirty-five or thirty-six, he was powerfully built. This was Lü Yinglong.

Seeing how young Meng Yuan was, he showed some impatience and merely asked, "What is your name, sir? Where are you from?"

"I am Meng Yuan, a native of Qingping County." Meng Yuan cupped his hands in greeting.

"Can you govern and bring peace to the people, sir?" Lü Yinglong asked.

"I'm a rustic villager. I can't even keep the chickens and dogs at home at peace. How could I bring peace to the people?" Meng Yuan said.

"Are you versed in marching and drilling troops, taking cities and conquering territory?" Lü Yinglong asked again.

"My martial skills are poor. I have only some slight knowledge of history and have never studied military strategy," Meng Yuan said.

"So you're one of those silver-tongued persuaders who live by flapping their lips!" Lü Yinglong laughed.

"I've been dull and tongue-tied since childhood, and am no good with words," Meng Yuan said.

Lü Yinglong could stand it no longer. He slapped the table and demanded impatiently, "Then what can you do? Can you play with women?"

Is this really the enlightened lord I mean to serve?

"Allow me to explain the state of the realm to you, General!" Meng Yuan said.

As though he had heard something extraordinary, Lü Yinglong could not help laughing. He tucked both hands into his sleeves and said, "Go on, then."

"General, you raised your army six years ago, not much later than King Zhang and Commander Li. You've fought no fewer battles than either of them, yet those two have now gained momentum and surpassed you tenfold."

Standing inside the tent, Meng Yuan continued, "Is it because you lack valor? Because you cannot win men's hearts? No. King Zhang holds the southeast, with ample grain, fodder, wealth, and tax revenues; Commander Li commands the northwest alone, with no shortage of provisions or recruits. Yet you can only move from place to place seeking food, because you lack a secure foothold."

After listening, Lü Yinglong fell silent for a while, then asked, "You mean I should develop Huai'an Prefecture?" He finally noticed that Meng Yuan was still standing and said, "Please sit, sir."

Meng Yuan sat down and continued, "No. Though Huai'an Prefecture is a granary, it has no natural defenses. It is exposed to attack on all sides! If you insist on remaining here, General, you will exhaust yourself contending with the various powers."

Lü Yinglong considered this, then nodded. "You're right, sir. Where should I take, then?"

"Shu in the southwest has a thousand li of fertile plains. You can take it!" Meng Yuan laid out the grand plan he had pondered for so long. "Then pacify the southwest, establish yourself in Shu, and hold the vital passes! Build up ample stores of grain and fodder, recruit troops into an army, and one day you will surely be able to march forth into the realm in force!"

Lü Yinglong stroked his chin without speaking.

"Sir."

Just then, someone entered the tent: a woman in ordinary dress, around twenty-five or twenty-six. Though not a peerless beauty, her looks were among the finest.

She had the charm of a mature married woman and a tranquil bearing that inspired goodwill at first sight.

"This is my wife," Lü Yinglong introduced her.

Since Meng Yuan intended to serve Lü Yinglong, he had naturally made inquiries. Lü Yinglong was of rough origins, but his wife Chen came from a prominent clan and was said to be exceedingly virtuous.

Madam Chen bowed slightly to Meng Yuan and said, "Sir, you propose developing Shu in the southwest, but that would mean settling for security in a corner. Once the greater struggle outside is decided, wouldn't we be like a turtle caught in a jar?"

Meng Yuan met Chen's gaze openly and smiled. "In my view, two men hold the advantage in the realm: King Zhang in the southeast and Commander Li in the northwest. Yet the Yu Kingdom will not fall just yet. King Zhang is arrogant and conceited. Within three years, he will surely proclaim himself emperor, and then the Yu Kingdom's armies will strike him with all their might. As for Commander Li in the northwest, he has never had great ambitions, and the rebel troops under his banner come from disparate backgrounds. Trouble is certain to arise!"

At this point, Meng Yuan rose and declared with absolute conviction, "Then General Lü can hold the southwest and wait until King Zhang proclaims himself emperor and the Yu Kingdom has no strength to spare for the north. He can then march north against Commander Li, strike east toward the Imperial Capital, and afterward turn his armies toward the southeast. Thus the realm can be pacified, and the great undertaking accomplished!"

Having finished explaining the plan he had pondered for several years, Meng Yuan offered not another word of explanation.

Lü Yinglong and Chen stared blankly for a moment. Both felt that this Master Meng viewed matters from a commanding height.

Leaving aside whether it could succeed, at least it was a clear and definite path toward contending for the realm.

"Attendants!" Chen called. "Prepare a feast of fine food and wine. The general will drink with Master Meng all night!"

Wine was poured, and Lü Yinglong fetched a map. He then discovered that Master Meng knew not only the origins and histories of the various rebel armies, but also the geography of the realm.

They talked freely all night, with Madam Chen's red sleeves adding fragrance as she attended them.

Only on the following afternoon did the couple finally let Meng Yuan go.

"I've prepared a large tent for you, sir. Please get some rest." Holding Meng Yuan's hand, Lü Yinglong escorted him to a tent.

"Are you married, sir?" Madam Chen was exceedingly warm as well.

A lame strategist had met a blind general. Meng Yuan knew that this time, he had succeeded!