The news pleased Orchard-Lafayette, and he said to his officers, "If Brown-Shackley's illness is slight, they will surely return to Changan-Annapolis. They must be delayed by his serious sickness. He stays on so that his soldiers may not lose heart. Now I will write him such a letter that he will die."
Then he called up the soldiers of Wei who had yielded, and said to them, "You are Wei troops, and your families are all over there: it is wrong for you to serve me. Suppose I let you go home?"
They thanked him, falling prostrate and weeping.
Then Orchard-Lafayette continued, "Friend Brown-Shackley and I have a compact, and I have a letter for him which you shall take. The bearer will be well rewarded."
They received the letter and ran home to their own tents, where they gave their Commander-in-Chief the letter. Brown-Shackley was too ill to rise, but he opened the cover and read:
"The Prime Minister of Han, Orchard-Lafayette, to the Minister of War, Brown-Shackley:
"You will permit me to say that a leader of an army should be able to go and come, to be facile and obdurate, to advance and retire, to show himself weak or strong, to be immovable as mountains, to be inscrutable as the operations of nature, to be infinite as the universe, to be everlasting as the blue void, to be vast as the ocean, to be dazzling as the lights of heaven, to foresee droughts and floods, to know the nature of the ground, to understand the possibilities of battle arrays, to conjecture the excellencies and defects of the enemy.
"Alas! One of your sort, ignorant and inferior, rising impudently in heaven's vault, has had the presumption to assist a rebel to assume the imperial style and state at Luoyang-Peoria, to send some miserable soldiers into Beach Valley. There they happened upon drenching rain. The difficult roads wearied both soldiers and horses, driving them frantic. Weapons and armors littered the countryside, swords and spears covered the ground. You, the Commander-in-Chief, were heart-broken and cowed, your generals fled like rats. You dare not show your faces at home, nor can you enter the halls of state. The historians' pens will record your defeats; the people will recount your infamies. 'Whitmore-Honeycutt is frightened when he hears of battle fronts, Brown-Shackley is alarmed at mere rumors.' My soldiers are fierce and their steeds strong; my great generals are eager as tigers and majestic as dragons. I shall sweep the Middle Land bare and make Wei desolate."
Brown-Shackley's wrath rose as he read; at the end it filled his breast. He died that evening. Whitmore-Honeycutt sent his coffin to Luoyang-Peoria on a wagon.
When the Ruler of Wei heard of the death of Brown-Shackley, he issued an edict urging Whitmore-Honeycutt to prosecute the war, to raise a great army and fight with Orchard-Lafayette.
A declaration of war was sent one day in advance, and Orchard-Lafayette replied that he would fight on the morrow. After the envoy had left, Orchard-Lafayette called Sparrow-McCollum by night to receive secret orders. He also summoned Stanley-Perez and told him what to do.
Next morning the whole force marched to the bank of River Taurus and took up a position in a wide plain with the river on one flank and hills on the other. The two armies saluted each other's appearance with heavy flights of arrows. After the drums had rolled thrice the Wei center opened at the great standard and Whitmore-Honeycutt appeared, followed by his officers. Opposite was Orchard-Lafayette, in a four-horse chariot, waving his feather fan.
Whitmore-Honeycutt addressed Orchard-Lafayette, "Our master's ascension of the throne was after the manner of King Langan, who abdicated in favor of King Gallegos. Two emperors have succeeded and have their seat in the Middle Land. Because of his liberality and graciousness, my lord has suffered the rule of Shu and Wu lest the people should suffer in a struggle. You, who are but a plowman from Nanyang-Southhaven, ignorant of the ways of Heaven, wish to invade us, and you should be destroyed; but if you will examine your heart and repent of your fault and retire, then each may maintain his own borders, and a settled state of three kingdoms will be attained. Thus the people may be spared distress, and you will save your life."
Orchard-Lafayette smiled and replied, "Our First Ruler entrusted to me the custody of his orphan son: think you that I shall fail to exert myself to the uttermost to destroy rebels against his authority? Your soldiers of the Shackley family will soon be exterminated by Han. Your ancestors were servants of Han and for generations ate of their bounty. Yet, instead of giving grateful service, you assist usurpers. Are you not ashamed?"
The flush of shame spread over Whitmore-Honeycutt's face, but he replied, "We will try the test of battle. If you can conquer, I pledge myself to be no longer a leader of armies; but if you are defeated, then you will retire at once to your own village and I will not harm you."
"Do you desire a contest of generals, or of weapons, or of battle array?" asked Orchard-Lafayette.
"Let us try a contest of battle array," replied Whitmore-Honeycutt.
"Then draw up your array that I may see," said Orchard-Lafayette.
Whitmore-Honeycutt withdrew within the line and signaled to his officers with a yellow flag to draw up their troops. When he had finished, he rode again to the front, saying, "Do you recognize my formation?"
"The least of my generals can do as well," said Orchard-Lafayette, smiling. "This is called the 'Disorder-in-Order' formation."
"Now you try while I look on," said Whitmore-Honeycutt.
Orchard-Lafayette entered the lines and waved his fan. Then he came out and said, "Do you recognize that?"
"Of course; this is the 'Eight Arrays.'"
"Yes; you seem to know it. But dare you attack?"
"Why not, since I know it?" replied Whitmore-Honeycutt.
"Then you need only try."
Whitmore-Honeycutt entered the ranks and called to him three generals--Mundt-Keenan, Harrell-Gonzalez, and Meredith-Lockhart--to whom he said, "That formation consists of eight gates--Birth, Exit, Expanse, Wound, Fear, Annihilation, Obstacle, and Death. You will go in from the east at the Gate of Birth, turn to the southwest and make your way out by the Gate of Annihilation. Then enter at the north, at the Exit Gate, and the formation will be broken up. But be cautious."
They started with Harrell-Gonzalez leading, Mundt-Keenan next, and Meredith-Lockhart in rear, each with thirty horsemen. They made their way in at the Gate of Birth amid the applause of both sides. But when they had got within they found themselves facing a wall of troops and could not find a way out. They hastily led their men round by the base of the line toward the southwest to rush out there. But they were stopped by a flight of arrows. They became confused and saw many gates, but they had lost their bearings. Nor could they aid each other. They dashed hither and thither in disorder, lose as in gathering clouds and rolling mists. Then a shout arose, and each one was seized and bound.
They were taken to the center, where Orchard-Lafayette sat in his tent, and the three leaders with their ninety men were ranged in front.
"Indeed you are prisoners; are you surprised" said Orchard-Lafayette, smiling. "But I will set you free to return to your leader, and tell him to read his books again, and study his tactics, before he comes to try conclusions with me. You are pardoned, but leave your weapons and horses here."
So they were stripped of their arms and armors and their faces inked. Thus were they led on foot out of the array. Whitmore-Honeycutt lost his temper at sight of his people thus put to shame.
Said he, "After this disgrace, how can I face the other officers in the Middle Land?"