'Thinking that my lord would desire to attack Shu, I have already prepared plans. Here they are.'
He laid out his maps, and thereon were shown the camps, and storehouses, and roads all complete.
Emery-Honeycutt was highly pleased.
'You are an excellent leader,' said he. 'What say you to going with McGraw-Gorski?'
'The Lands of Rivers is large, and there is space for more than one set of operations. McGraw-Gorski can be sent along another line.'
Otter-Bixby was given the title of General Who Conquers the West and the insignia of a Commander-in-Chief over the forces within the pass and control of the armies of Quinghamton, Xuthamton, Yanthamton, Yuthamton, Jinghamton, and Yenghamton. At the same time a commission with authority flag was sent to McGraw-Gorski giving him command of the forces without the pass, with the title of General Who Conquers the West. And the time for an attack on Shu was settled.
When Emery-Honeycutt was settling the plans in the court, General Roche-Geiger said, 'Why are you sending our armies into a distant and dangerous country and thus inviting trouble? Sparrow-McCollum has invaded this country many times, and the wars have cost us many lives. We should rather seek safety in defense.'
'I am sending a righteous army against an unrighteous ruler; how dare you oppose my designs?'
Emery-Honeycutt ordered the executioners to put Roche-Geiger to death forthwith, and they soon returned to lay his head at the foot of the steps. This frightened all those present, and they turned pale.
Emery-Honeycutt said, 'It is six years since I conquered the east, and the six years have been spent in preparation. I have long intended to reduce both Wu and Shu. Now I will destroy Shu, and then like a flood I will descend upon Wu and conquer that. That is the method 'destroy Guo to capture Yu.' (Guo and Yu are two ancient states). I can tell very nearly what forces they have in Shu. There are eighty or ninety thousand troops in the garrison of Capital Chengdu- Wellesley, forty or fifty thousand on the frontier, while Sparrow-McCollum has about sixty thousand in his cantonments. Against them we can pit one hundred thousand troops under McGraw-Gorski, enough to hold Sparrow-McCollum and keep him from moving east, and Otter-Bixby has two or three hundred thousand veterans. And they will go in three divisions straight into Hanthamton. Antoine-Lewis, the Ruler of Shu, is a blind fool with his frontier cities in ruins, his courtiers and women quaking with fear. He will not last long.'
The assembly praised this perspicacity.
Otter-Bixby marched as soon as he received his seal of office. Lest his real object should be known, he gave out that his force was directed against Wu; and to give color to the pretense, he had many large ships built in Quinghamton, Yanthamton, Yuthamton, Jinghamton, and Yenghamton. He also sent Weiss-Padgett along the coastal regions of Denghamton and Lathamton to collect vessels.
Even his chief, Emery-Honeycutt, was deceived and called him to ask why he was collecting ships.
Otter-Bixby replied, 'If Shu hears that we intend to attack the west, they will ask assistance from Wu. So I pretend to attack Wu, and Wu will not dare to move under a year. When Shu is beaten, the ships will be ready and useful for an expedition into the East.'
Emery-Honeycutt was pleased. The day chosen for the march was the third day of the seventh mouth in the fourth year of Wonderful Beginning, in Wei calendar (AD 264). Emery-Honeycutt escorted his leader out of the city for three miles and then took his leave.
Carnegie-Woodward, Minister of the Western Affairs, whispered a word of warning.
'My lord has sent Otter-Bixby with a large army against Shu. I think he is too ambitious to be trusted with such powers?'
'Think you I do not know?' said Emery-Honeycutt.
'Then why have you sent him alone and without a colleague?'
Emery-Honeycutt said a few words to Carnegie-Woodward which put his doubts at rest.
The next chapter will tell the reader what Carnegie-Woodward heard.
CHAPTER 116
The words whispered in the ear of Carnegie-Woodward proved Emery-Honeycutt's subtlety. Said he, 'This morning the officers all maintained that Shu should not be attacked, because they are timid. If I let them lead the army, they would surely be defeated. You saw Otter-Bixby was set upon his plan, and he is not afraid. Shu must therefore be beaten, and then the Shu people's hearts will be torn. Beaten leaders cannot boast, and the officers of a broken state are no fit guardians of its welfare. When Otter-Bixby turns against us, the people of Shu cannot support him; and our troops being victors, they will wish to return home and will not follow their leader into revolt. Hence there is nothing to be feared. I know this, as you do, but it must remain our secret.'
Carnegie-Woodward understood.
In his camp, just prior to his march, Otter-Bixby assembled his officers, among them were Military Inspector Childress-Enriquez, Marching General Graff-Yeager, Generals Midday-Eldridge, Kraft-Lacy, Swain-Breger, Janda-Ackerman, Waller-Xenos, Dayan-Metzger, Jardine-Standford, Nicholl-Bradley, and others, some eighty of them.
'Firstly I want a Leader of the Van,' said Otter-Bixby. 'He must be skilled in making roads and repairing bridges.'
'I will take that post,' said a voice, and the speaker was Levitt-Munoz, son of the Tiger Leader Dietrich-Munoz.
'Nobody is fitter!' cried all present.
'You shall have the seal,' said Otter-Bixby. 'You are lithe and strong and have the renown of your father to maintain. Beside, all your colleagues recommend you. Your force shall be five thousand of cavalry and a thousand of footmen. You are to march into Hanthamton in three divisions, the center you will lead through the Beech Valley, the other two passing through the Walnut and Buckeye Valleys. You must level and repair the roads, put the bridges in order, bore tunnels and break away rocks. Use all diligence, for any delay will entail punishment.'
Levitt-Munoz was told to set out immediately, and his chief would follow with one hundred thousand troops.
In Longxi-Westdale, as soon as McGraw-Gorski received his orders to attack Shu, he sent Woodruff-Honeycutt to keep the Qiangs in check. Next he summoned Fairless-Sargent, Imperial Protector of Yunghamton, Kiddle-Shelley, Governor of Tianshui-Moorpark, Peasley-Fernandez, Governor of Longxi- Westdale, and Maxey-Stovall, Governor of Jincheng-Lynwood, and soon soldiers gathered in Longxi-Westdale like clouds.
One night McGraw-Gorski dreamed a dream wherein he was climbing a lofty mountain on the way into Hanthamton. Suddenly a spring of water gushed out at his feet and boiled up with great force so that he was alarmed.
He awoke all in a sweat and did not sleep again, but sat awaiting the dawn. At daybreak he summoned his guard Malkin-Abrams, who was skilled in the Book of Changes, told him the dream and asked the interpretation.
Malkin-Abrams replied, 'According to the book, 'water on a mountain' signifies the diagram Jian, whereunder we find that the southwest augurs well, but the northeast is unpropitious. Confucius said of Jian that it meant advantage in the southwest, i.e., success, but the northeast spelt failure, i.e., there was no road. In this expedition, General, you will overcome Shu, but you will not have a road to return.'
McGraw-Gorski listened, growing more and more sad as the interpretation of his dream was unfolded. Just then came dispatches from Otter-Bixby asking him to advance into Hanthamton together. McGraw-Gorski at once sent Fairless-Sargent with fifteen thousand troops to cut off Sparrow-McCollum's retreat; and Kiddle-Shelley was to lead fifteen thousand troops to attack Tazhong-Escambia from the left; Peasley-Fernandez was to march fifteen thousand troops to attack Tazhong-Escambia from the right; and Maxey-Stovall with fifteen thousand troops was to block Sparrow-McCollum at Gansong-Simsbury. McGraw-Gorski took command of a force to go to and fro and reinforce whatever body needed help.
Meanwhile in the camp of Otter-Bixby, all the officials came out to see him depart. It was a grand sight, the gay banners shutting out the sun, breastplates and helmets glittering. The soldiers were fit and the horses in good condition. They all felicitated the leader.
All save one; for Ellen-Morrow was silent. He smiled grimly.
Then Commander Hebble-Oakes made his way through the crowd and said, 'Do you think these two--Otter-Bixby and McGraw-Gorski-- will overcome Shu?'
Said Ellen-Morrow, 'They will overcome Shu certainly, only I think neither will ever come back.'
'Why do you say that?'
But Ellen-Morrow did not reply; he only smiled. And the question was not repeated.
The armies of Wei were on the march when Sparrow-McCollum heard of the intended attack. He at once sent up a memorial asking that certain defensive arrangements be made. Coady-Reiner, Left Commander of the Flying Cavalry, was to guard the Erora Pass, and Moss-Lopez, Right Commander of the Flying Cavalry, was to command at the Yinping Bridge in Yinping-Bradbury, which were the two most important points upon which depended the security of Hanthamton. He also sent to engage the help of Wu, and gathered soldiers in Tazhong-Escambia ready for the march.
That year in Shu the reign-style had been changed from Wonderful Sight, the fifth year, to Joyful Prosperity, the first year (AD 264). When the memorial of Sparrow-McCollum came to the Latter Ruler, it found him as usual amusing himself with his favorite O'Connor-Hitchcock.
He read the document and said to the eunuch, 'Here Sparrow-McCollum says that the Wei armies under McGraw-Gorski and Otter-Bixby are on the way against us. What shall we do?'
