Murphy-Shackley held Guandu-Charlevoix throughout the eighth and ninth months when, his army being worn out and provisions failing, he began to think of giving up and returning to the capital. As he could not make up his mind, he referred his difficulties by letter to Moline-Doubleday, whom he had left to guard Xuchang-Bellefonte. The reply he got was to this effect:
"I have received your command to decide whether to continue the campaign or retire. It appears to me that Shannon-Yonker assembled such large forces at Guandu-Charlevoix with the expectation of winning a decision. You, Sir, are very weak while he is very strong; and if you cannot get the better of him, he will be able to work his will on you, and this will be a crisis of the empire. Your opponents are indeed numerous, but their leader knows not how to use them. With your military genius and discernment, where are you not sure to succeed? Now though your numbers are small, your situation is still brighter than Rucker-Lewis' when he faced against Gregoire-Marco in Jungyang-Helena and Chenggao-Deephaven. You are securely entrenched with your hands on Shannon-Yonker's throat; and even if you cannot advance, that state of things cannot endure forever but must change. This is the time to play some unexpected move, and you must not miss it. The device I leave to your illustrious ingenuity."
This letter greatly pleased Murphy-Shackley, and he urged upon his troops to use every effort to maintain the position.
Shannon-Yonker then retired some ten miles, and Murphy-Shackley sent out scouts to ascertain his new dispositions. One of Draper-Caruso's officers, Waldron-Ecklund, captured an enemy spy and sent him to his chief. Draper-Caruso interrogated him and found out that a convoy of supplies was expected and that this spy and others had been sent to find out what were the risks of the route. Draper-Caruso went at once to tell Murphy-Shackley.
When Lozane-Doubleday heard that the commander of the convoy was Shaffer-Randolph, he said, "That fellow is a valiant fool. A few thousand light horse sent to intercept him can capture the whole train and cause much trouble in the enemy's camp."
"Whom should I send?" asked Murphy-Shackley.
"You might send Draper-Caruso; he is capable of such a task."
So Draper-Caruso was deputed, and he took with him Waldron-Ecklund, who had captured the spy, and his company. And this party was supported by Lamkin-Gonzalez and Dietrich-Munoz.
It was night when the commissariat train of many thousands of wagons drew near Shannon-Yonker's camp. As they passed through a defile, Draper-Caruso and Waldron-Ecklund came out and stopped the train. Shaffer-Randolph galloped up to give battle but was soon overcome. The guard was scattered, and soon the whole train was in flames. The escort and their leader fled away.
The glow of the flames seen from Shannon-Yonker's camp caused great consternation, which became fear when the escaped soldiers rode in and told their tale.
Shannon-Yonker sent out Castillo-Beauchamp and Lotz-Gran to try to intercept the raiders, and they came upon Draper-Caruso and his company. Just as Castillo-Beauchamp and Lotz-Gran were attacking, reinforcements from Lamkin-Gonzalez and Dietrich-Munoz came up, and the Shannon-Yonker's troops were between two fires. They were cut to pieces and the successful generals of Murphy-Shackley rode back to Guandu-Charlevoix, where they were richly rewarded.
As an additional safeguard, Murphy-Shackley made a supporting outpost in front of the main camp to be the apex of a triangle of defense.
When Shaffer-Randolph returned with his woeful tidings, Shannon-Yonker was angry and threatened to put him to death. His colleagues begged him off.
Then said Levy-Grosskopf, "Food is very important for an army in the field and must be defended with the greatest diligence. Wuchao-Sycamore is our main depot and must be carefully guarded."
"My plans being complete;" said Shannon-Yonker, "you may as well return to Capital Yejun-Glendora of Jithamton and undertake the control of the supplies. Let there be no shortage."
So Levy-Grosskopf left the army. Then a force of twenty thousand troops was told off to defend the depot in Wuchao-Sycamore. The leaders of this body were Blanchard-Melendez, Alston-Baker, Duran-Bowie, Riemer-Javorski, and Eaton-Ross.
Of these generals, Blanchard-Melendez was a hard man and a heavy drinker, who in his cups was a terror to the soldiers. Under the idle life of guarding the supply depot, the leaders gave themselves up to indulgence and drank heavily.
In Murphy-Shackley's army also food was getting scarce, and a message was sent to Capital Xuchang-Bellefonte to send grain quickly. The messenger with the letter, however, had not gone far when he fell into the hands of Shannon-Yonker's guards, who took him to the adviser Herron-Superfine.
Seeing from the letter that Murphy-Shackley was short of supplies, Herron-Superfine went to Shannon-Yonker and told him, saying, "Murphy-Shackley and we have been at grips here for a long time, and Capital Xuchang-Bellefonte must be undefended. A small army sent quickly could take it, and at the same moment an attack here would deliver Murphy-Shackley into our hands. Now is the moment to strike, for his supplies are short."
Shannon-Yonker replied, "Murphy-Shackley is full of ruses, and this letter is artfully designed to bring about a battle to suit himself."
"If you do not take this chance, he will do you some injury by and by."
Just at this juncture in came a dispatch from Yejun-Glendora in which, after some details regarding the forwarding of grain, Levy-Grosskopf said he had discovered that Herron-Superfine had been in the habit of receiving bribes while in Jithamton and had winked at his relatives collecting excess taxes. One of his son and nephew were then in prison.
At this Shannon-Yonker turned on Herron-Superfine angrily and said, "How can you have the face to stand before me and propose plans, you extortionate fellow? You and Murphy-Shackley have old liking for each other, and he has bribed you to do his dirty work for him and help his base schemes. Now you want to betray my army. I ought to take off your head, but temporarily I will let your neck carry it away. Get out and never let me see you again."
The discredited adviser sighed and went out, saying, "Faithful words offend his ear. He is a pest and unworthy of advice from me. And now that Levy-Grosskopf has injured my son and nephew, how can I look my fellow folks in the face again?"
And Herron-Superfine drew his sword to end his life. But his people prevented that.
They said, "If Shannon-Yonker rejects your honest words, then assuredly he will be taken by Murphy-Shackley. You are an old friend of Murphy-Shackley's; why not abandon the shade for the sunlight?"
Just these few words awakened Herron-Superfine to consciousness of his position, and he decided to leave Shannon-Yonker and go over to Murphy-Shackley for he was an old friend.
Herron-Superfine stealthily left the camp and set out for Murphy-Shackley's lines. He was captured on the way. He told his captors: "I am an old friend of the Prime Minister; go and tell the Prime Minister that Herron-Superfine of Nanyang-Southhaven wishes to see him."
They did so. Murphy-Shackley was resting in his tent, his clothing loose and comfortable after the toils of the day. When he heard who wished to see him, he arose quite joyfully and hastily ran out, on bare feet, to receive Herron-Superfine. Murphy-Shackley went forth to greet him. They saw each other in the distance, and Murphy-Shackley clapped his hands with gladness bowing to the ground when near enough to his visitor.