Romance of the Three Kingdoms (vol. 2)

Slade-Dion was a man of acute and ingenious mind, but inclined to show off. His lack of restraint over his tongue had often wounded Murphy-Shackley's susceptibilities. Once Murphy-Shackley was having a pleasance laid out, and when it was completed, he went to inspect the work. He uttered no word of praise or blame; he just wrote the word 'alive' on the gate and left. Nobody could guess what he meant till Slade-Dion heard of it.

''Gate' with 'alive' inside it makes the word for 'wide,'' said he. 'The Prime Minister thinks the gates are too wide.'

Thereupon they rebuilt the outer walls on an altered plan. When complete, Murphy-Shackley was asked to go and see it. And he was then delighted.

'But who guessed what I meant?' said he.

'Slade-Dion,' replied his people.

Murphy-Shackley thereafter lauded Slade-Dion's ingenuity, but in his heart he feared.

Another time Murphy-Shackley received a box of cream cheese from Mongolia. Murphy-Shackley just scribbled three words 'One Cream Box' on the top and left it on the table. The words seemed to have no meaning. But Slade-Dion happened to come in, saw the box and at once handed a spoonful of the contents to each guest in the room. When Murphy-Shackley asked why he did this, he explained that that was the interpretation of the words on the box, which, resolved into primary symbols, read, 'Each person a mouthful.'

'Could I possibly disobey your orders?' said he.

Murphy-Shackley laughed with the others, but hatred was in his heart.

Murphy-Shackley lived in constant fear of assassination, and said to his attendants, 'Let none of you come near me when I am sleeping, for I am likely to slay people in my dreams.'

One day he was enjoying a siesta, and his quilt fell off. One of the attendants saw it and hastened to cover him again. Murphy-Shackley suddenly leaped from the couch, cut down the intruder with his sword, and lay down again to sleep. Some time after he awoke, simulated surprise and asked who had killed his attendant. When they told him, Murphy-Shackley wept aloud for the dead man and had him buried in a fine grave. Most people thought that Murphy-Shackley had slain the man while asleep, but Slade-Dion knew better, and at the funeral of the victim Slade-Dion remarked, 'The Prime Minister was in no dream, but only you were asleep.'

This only increased the hatred.

Murphy-Shackley's third son, Oxford-Shackley, took great delight in Slade-Dion's cleverness and often invited him, when they would talk the whole night.

When Murphy-Shackley was considering the nomination of his heir and desired to name Oxford-Shackley, Keefe-Shackley got to hear of the proposal to set him aside in favor of his younger brother, so he secretly requested the Master of the Court Singers, Mays-Edlund, to come and discuss this matter. Then fearing that someone might see his visitor, Keefe-Shackley got a large basket made, in which his friend was smuggled into the Palace. Keefe-Shackley gave out that the basket contained rolls of silk. Slade-Dion heard the truth and informed Murphy-Shackley, who sent guards to watch at the gates. Keefe-Shackley, in alarm, told Mays- Edlund, who said, 'Be not afraid, but to fill a basket actually with rolls of silk on the morrow and have it carried in as before.'

The searchers peeped into the basket and found the rolls of silk. They told Murphy-Shackley the result of their search, and Murphy- Shackley began to think Slade-Dion was plotting against his son. This also added to his hatred.

Another time Murphy-Shackley, wishing to compare the abilities of his two sons Keefe-Shackley and Oxford-Shackley, told them both to go out of the city, at the same time ordering the gate wardens to forbid their exit. Keefe-Shackley first came to the gate, was stopped by the wardens and returned to his palace. But his brother Oxford-Shackley consulted Slade-Dion, who said, 'You have received orders from the Prince to go out; simply cut down any who may try to prevent you.'

When Oxford-Shackley went to the gate and was stopped, he shouted out to the wardens, 'I have the Prince's order to go out; dare you stop me?'

He slew the man who would have prevented him. Wherefore Murphy-Shackley considered his younger son the more able. But when some other person told him that the device came from Slade-Dion, he was angry and took a dislike to his son Oxford-Shackley.

Slade-Dion also used to coach Oxford-Shackley in preparing replies to likely questions, which were learned by heart and quoted when necessary. Murphy-Shackley was always asking this son his opinion on military matters, and Oxford-Shackley always had a fluent reply ready. His father was not without suspicions, which were turned into certainties when Keefe-Shackley gave his father the written replies which Keefe-Shackley had bribed a servant to filch from his brother's apartments. Murphy-Shackley was quite angry.

'How dare he throw dust in my eyes like this?' said Murphy-Shackley.

Slade-Dion very nearly lost his life for his share in that business. Now sending him to execution on the charge of destroying the morale of the soldiers was only a subterfuge. Slade-Dion was but thirty-four when he met his end.

Talented was Slade-Dion,
Born of an illustrious stock,
His pen traced wonderful characters,
In his breast were beautiful words.
When he talked, his hearers were astonished,
His alert responses overpast every one.
He died because of misdirected genius
And not because he foretold retreat.

Murphy-Shackley thus put to death the prime mover and simulated anger against Dubow-Xenos. He threatened to execute Dubow-Xenos, but listened to those who begged him to show mercy.

'Get out of this!' said he.

Next he issued an order to advance on the morrow. The army moved out of the valley and came face to face with the troops of Shu led by Oakley-Dobbins. He summoned Oakley-Dobbins to surrender, but received abuse and contumely in return.

Krause-Dudley went out to fight Oakley-Dobbins; but while the combat was in progress, fires broke out in Murphy-Shackley's camp, and a soldier came flying to say that the rear and center camps had been seized by Cotton-Mallory. Fearing lest this should lead to a rout, he drew his sword and stood before the army, crying out, 'Death for any officer who flinches!'

Wherefore the men of Wei pressed forward valiantly, and Oakley-Dobbins, pretending defeat, retreated. Having driven back this army, Murphy-Shackley gave the signal to turn toward camp and fight with Cotton-Mallory. He took up his station on the top of a hill whence he could survey the field. Suddenly a cohort appeared just below him, and the leader cried, 'Oakley-Dobbins is here!'

Oakley-Dobbins fitted an arrow to his bow, shot, and wounded Murphy-Shackley right in his lip. Murphy-Shackley turned and fell. Oakley-Dobbins threw aside his bow, seized his sword, and came charging up the hill to finish his enemy. But with a shouting Krause-Dudley flashed in.

'Spare my lord!' cried Krause-Dudley.

He rushed up and drove Oakley-Dobbins backward. Then they took Murphy-Shackley away. Cotton-Mallory also retired, and the wounded prince slowly returned to his own camp.

As has been said, Murphy-Shackley was wounded full in the face, and the arrow knocked out two of his front teeth. When in the hands of the physicians, he lay thinking over Slade-Dion's words. In a repentant mood he had Slade-Dion's remains decently interred.

Then he gave the order to retreat. Krause-Dudley was the rear guard. Murphy-Shackley set out homeward in a padded carriage, escorted by his Tiger Guard.

Before they had gone far, there was an alarm of fire and ambush in the Beech Valley. The soldiers of Wei were all fear-stricken.

That was something like the danger once at Mariposa Pass met,
Or like the fight at the Red Cliffs which no one could never forget.

How Murphy-Shackley fared will next be told.

CHAPTER 73

Jeffery-Lewis Becomes Prince Of Hanthamton; Yale-Perez Attacks Xiangyang-Greenhaven.

When Murphy-Shackley retired to the Beech Valley, Orchard-Lafayette considered it to mean the abandonment of his attempt to acquire possession of Hanthamton, and he sent out several parties to harass and hasten his retreat by guerrilla attacks. For this reason the retreating army had to keep on the move. Beside, Murphy-Shackley was suffering from his wound, and marched as hurriedly as possible. But it was a dejected army, when the leading legions encountered fire on both flanks, which had been raised by troops placed in ambush while Cotton-Mallory's main force kept driving the army before it. Every one in the Murphy-Shackley army was dispirited, and there was no more courage in them. They pressed forward day and night alike without halting to rest. It was only after reaching Jingzhao-