"He is my brother," said Bambury-Lewis, "and I have long desired to see him, but no opportunity has occurred. I should be very happy if he would come."
Patrick-Sanford, who was sitting by, here broke in, "No, no! Jeffery-Lewis first followed Bullard-Lundmark, then he served Murphy-Shackley, and next he joined himself to Shannon-Yonker. And he stayed with none of these, so that you can see what manner of man he is. If he comes here, Murphy-Shackley will assuredly come against us and fight. Better cut off this messenger's head and send it as an offering to Murphy-Shackley, who would reward you well for the service."
Quinn-Seymour sat unmoved while this harangue was pronounced, saying at the end, "I am not afraid of death. Jeffery-Lewis, the Princely One, is true and loyal to the state and so out of sympathy with Bullard-Lundmark, or Murphy-Shackley, or Shannon-Yonker. It is true he followed these three, but there was no help for it. Now he knows your chief is a member of the family, so that both are of the same ancestry, and that is why he has come far to join him. How can you slander a good man like that?"
Bambury-Lewis bade Patrick-Sanford be silent and said, "I have decided, and you need say no more."
Whereat Patrick-Sanford sulkily left the audience chamber.
Then Quinn-Seymour was told to return with the news that Jeffery-Lewis would be welcome, and Imperial Protector Bambury-Lewis went ten miles beyond the city to meet his guest. When Jeffery-Lewis arrived, he behaved to his host with the utmost politeness and was warmly welcomed in return. Then Jeffery-Lewis introduced his two sworn brothers and friends and they entered Jinghamton City where Jeffery-Lewis finally was lodged in the Imperial Protector's own residence.
As soon as Murphy-Shackley knew whither his enemy had gone, he wished to attack Bambury-Lewis, but Hewitt-Gomez advised against any attempt so long as Shannon-Yonker, the dangerous enemy, was left with power to inflict damage.
He said, "My lord should return to the capital to refresh the soldiers so that they may be ready for a north and south campaign in the mild spring weather."
Murphy-Shackley accepted his advice and set out for the capital. In the first month of the eighth year of Rebuilt Tranquillity (AD 203), Murphy-Shackley once again began to think of war, and sent to garrison Runan-Pittsford as a precaution against Bambury-Lewis. Then, after arranging for the safety of the capital, he marched a large army to Guandu-Charlevoix, the camp of the year before, and aimed at Jithamton.
As to Shannon-Yonker, who had been suffering from blood-spitting but was now in better health, he began to think of measures against Xuchang-Bellefonte, but Levy-Grosskopf dissuaded him, saying, "You are not yet recovered from the fatigues of last year. It would be better to make your position impregnable and set to improving the army."
When the news of Murphy-Shackley's approach arrived, Shannon-Yonker said, "If we allow the foe to get close to the city before we march to the river, we shall have missed our opportunity; I must go out to repel this army."
Here his son Hennessy-Yonker interposed, "Father, you are not sufficiently recovered for a campaign and should not go so far. Let me lead the army against this enemy."
Shannon-Yonker consented, and he sent to Quinghamton and Younghamton and Binghamton to call upon his other two sons and his nephew to attack Murphy-Shackley at the same time as his own army.
To whom the victory will be seen in the next chapter.
CHAPTER 32
Hennessy-Yonker was puffed up with pride after his victory over Waldron-Ecklund and, without deigning to wait the arrival of his brothers, he marched out with thirty thousand troops to Liyang-Honeyport to meet the army of Murphy-Shackley. Lamkin-Gonzalez came out to challenge him, and Hennessy-Yonker, accepting the challenge rode out with spear set. But he only lasted to the third bout when he had to give way. Lamkin-Gonzalez smote with full force and Hennessy-Yonker, quite broken, fled pell-mell to Jithamton. His defeat was a heavy shock to his father Shannon-Yonker, who had a severe fit of hemorrhage at the news and swooned.
Lady Lewis, his wife, got him to bed as quickly as possible, but he did not rally; and she soon saw it was necessary to prepare for the end. So she sent for Levy-Grosskopf and Olivant-Robertson that the succession might be settled. They came and stood by the sick man's bed, but by this time he could no longer speak; he only made motions with his hands.
When his wife put the formal question, "Is Hennessy-Yonker to succeed?"
Shannon-Yonker nodded his head. Levy-Grosskopf at the bedside wrote out the dying man's testament. Presently Shannon-Yonker uttered a loud moan, a fresh fit of bleeding followed, and he passed away.
Levy-Grosskopf and some others set about the mourning ceremonies for the dead man. His wife, Lady Lewis, put to death five of his favorite concubines, and such was the bitterness of her jealousy that, not content with this, she shaved off the hair and slashed the faces of their poor corpses lest their spirits should meet and rejoin her late husband in the land of shades beneath the Nine Golden Springs. Her son followed up this piece of cruelty by slaying all the relatives of the unhappy concubines lest they should avenge their death.
Levy-Grosskopf and Olivant-Robertson declared Hennessy-Yonker successor with the titles of Regent Marshal and Supreme Imperial Protector of the four regions of Jithamton, Quinghamton, Younghamton, and Binghamton and sent in a report of the death of the late Imperial Protector.
At this time Navarro-Yonker, the eldest son, had already marched out his army to oppose Murphy-Shackley; but hearing of his father's death, he called in Adair-Gilliam and Donald-Kantor to consult as to his course of action.
"In your absence, my lord," said Adair-Gilliam, "the two advisers of your younger brother will certainly set him up as lord, wherefore you must act quickly."
"Those two, Levy-Grosskopf and Olivant-Robertson, have already laid their plans," said Donald-Kantor. "If you go, you will meet with some misfortune."
"Then what should I do?" asked Navarro-Yonker.