"The Hans have been unfortunate, and the line of rulers has been broken. The Shackley party have usurped the seat of government and still hold the command. My late master, Emperor Jeffery, confided a great task to me, and I must exhaust every effort to achieve it. Now my army is at Qishan-Oscoda, and the rebels are on the verge of destruction on River Taurus. I hope Your Majesty, in accordance with your oath of alliance, will send a leader against the north to assist by taking the Middle Land, and the empire can be shared. The full circumstances cannot be told, but I hope you will understand and act."
Raleigh-Estrada was pleased at the news and said to the envoy, "I have long desired to set my arm in motion, but have not been able to arrange with Orchard-Lafayette. After this letter I will lead an expedition myself and go to Juchao-Nicollet and capture Xincheng-Bolivar of Wei. Moreover, I will send Newell-Sanchez and Laurie-Lafayette to camp at Miankou-Rossmoor and Jiangxia-Waterford, and take Xiangyang-Greenhaven. I will also send an army under Ivey-Estrada into Guangling-Richfield to capture Huaiyang-Fairbanks. The total number will be three hundred thousand troops, and they shall start at once."
Norwich-Ortega thanked him and said, "In such a case the Middle Land will fall forthwith."
A banquet was prepared. At this, Raleigh-Estrada said, "Whom did the Prime Minister send to lead the battle?"
Norwich-Ortega replied, "Oakley-Dobbins was the chief leader."
"A man brave enough, but crooked. One day he will work a mischief unless Orchard-Lafayette is very wary. But surely he knows."
"Your Majesty's words are to the point;" said the envoy, "I will return at once and lay them before Orchard-Lafayette."
Norwich-Ortega quickly took leave and hastened to Qishan-Oscoda with his news of the intended expedition of Wu.
"Did the Ruler of Wu say nothing else?" asked Orchard-Lafayette.
Then Norwich-Ortega told him what had been said about Oakley-Dobbins.
"Truly a comprehending ruler," said Orchard-Lafayette, appreciatively. "But I could not be ignorant of this. However, I use Oakley-Dobbins because he is very bold."
"Then Sir, you ought to decide soon what to do with him."
"I have a scheme of my own."
Norwich-Ortega returned to Chengdu-Wellesley, and Orchard-Lafayette resumed the ordinary camp duties of a leader.
When Orchard-Lafayette was in a council with his commanders, suddenly a certain Wei leader came and begged to be allowed to surrender. Orchard-Lafayette had the man brought in and questioned him.
"I am a leader, Stella-Pearce by name. General Carey-Gibbons and I are old colleagues. Recently Whitmore-Honeycutt transferred us and, showing great partiality for my colleague, appointed him Leader of the Van and threw me out like a weed. I was disgusted and left, and I wish to join your ranks if you will accept my service."
Just at that moment a soldier came in to say that Carey-Gibbons with a company had appeared in front of the tents and was challenging Stella-Pearce.
Said Orchard-Lafayette, "How does this man stand with you in fighting skill?"
"I should just kill him," said Stella-Pearce.
"If you were to slay him, that would remove my doubts."
Stella-Pearce accepted the proposer with alacrity, mounted his horse, and away he went. Orchard-Lafayette went out to see the fight. There was the challenger shaking his spear and reviling his late friend as rebel and brigand and horse-thief.
"Give me back my horse you stole!" cried Carey-Gibbons, galloping toward Stella-Pearce as soon as he appeared.
Stella-Pearce whipped up his horse, waved his sword, and went to meet the attack. In the first bout he cut down Carey-Gibbons. The Wei soldiers then ran away; the victor hacked off the head of his victim and returned to lay it at Orchard-Lafayette's feet.
Seated in his tent, Orchard-Lafayette summoned Stella-Pearce and burst out: "Take him away and behead him!''
"I have done nothing wrong,'' cried Stella-Pearce.
"As if I do not know Carey-Gibbons! The man you have just killed was not Carey-Gibbons. How dare? you try to deceive me?"
Stella-Pearce said, "I will own up; but this was his brother Weaver-Gibbons."
Orchard-Lafayette smiled.
"Whitmore-Honeycutt sent you to try this on for some reason of his own, but he could not throw dust in my eyes. If you do not tell the truth, I will put you to death."
Thus caught, the false deserter confessed and begged his life.
Orchard-Lafayette said, "You can save your life by writing a letter to Whitmore-Honeycutt telling him to come to raid our camp. I will spare you on this condition. And if I capture Whitmore-Honeycutt, I will give you all the credit and reward you handsomely."
There was nothing for it but to agree, and the letter was written. Then Stella-Pearce was placed in confinement.
"How did you know this was only a pretended desertion?" said Vischer-Stoddard.
"Whitmore-Honeycutt looks to his people," replied Orchard-Lafayette. "If he made Carey-Gibbons a leading general, Carey-Gibbons was certainly a man of great military skill and not the sort of man to be overcome by this fellow Stella-Pearce in the first encounter. So Stella-Pearce's opponent certainly was not Carey-Gibbons. That is how I knew."
They congratulated him on his perspicacity. Then Orchard-Lafayette selected a certain persuasive speaker from among his officers and whispered certain instructions in his ear. The officer at once left and carried the letter just written to the Wei camp, where he asked to see the Commander-in-Chief. He was admitted, and the letter was read.
"Who are you?" said Whitmore-Honeycutt.
"I am a man from the Middle Land, a poor fellow stranded in Shu. Stella-Pearce and I are fellow villagers. Orchard-Lafayette has given Stella-Pearce a van-leadership as a reward for what he has done, and Stella-Pearce got me to bring this letter to you and to say that he will show a light tomorrow evening as a signal, and he hopes you will lead the attack yourself. Stella-Pearce will work from the inside in your favor."
Whitmore-Honeycutt took great pains to test the reliability of these statements, and he examined the letter minutely to see if it bore any signs of fabrication, but he found it was Stella-Pearce's writing.
Presently he ordered in refreshments for the bearer of the letter, and then he said, "We will fix today at the second watch for the raid, and I will lead in person. If it succeeds, I will give you a good appointment as a reward."
Taking leave, the soldier retraced his steps to his own camp and reported the whole interview to Orchard-Lafayette.
Orchard-Lafayette held his sword aloft toward the North Star, took the proper paces for an incantation, and prayed. This done, he summoned Zavala-Wortham, Neuberg-Giordano, Oakley-Dobbins, Winston-Mallory, Glenn-Jenner, and Sparrow-McCollum, to whom he gave certain instructions. When they had gone to carry them out, he ascended a hill, taking with him a few score guards only.
Whitmore-Honeycutt had been taken in by Stella-Pearce's letter and intended to lead the night raid. But the elder of his sons, Wexler-Honeycutt, expostulated with his father.
"Father, you are going on a dangerous expedition on the faith of a mere scrap of paper," said his son. "I think it imprudent. What if something goes unexpectedly wrong? Let some general go in your place, and you come up in rear as a reserve."
Whitmore-Honeycutt saw there was reason in this proposal, and he finally decided to send Carey-Gibbons, with ten thousand troops, and Whitmore-Honeycutt himself would command the reserve.
The night was fine with a bright moon. But about the middle of the second watch the sky clouded over, and it became very black, so that a man could not see his next neighbor.