Now the fire that had created such a scare had been raised by Jin Yi's own people sent for that purpose, and Jin Yi had followed them to fight when the time came. Hence there was no one but the woman folk left in his house. When the women heard the clamor at the door, they thought Jin Yi had come back, and his wife, from the door of the women's quarter, called out, “Have you killed Wang Bi?”
This was a shock, but it told Wang Bi that his quondam friend was now an enemy. Wherefore he fled further to the house of Cao Xiu and told him, “Geng Ji and Jin Yi have raised a disturbance.”
Cao Xiu immediately armed himself, got to horse, and led a thousand troops into the city. He found fires on all sides, and the Tower of the Five Phoenixes was in flames. The Emperor had fled into the recesses of the Palace, but Cao Cao's friends and partisans were defending the Palace gates like grim death.
In the city the crowd was shouting one to another: “Slay Cao Cao and restore the Hans!”
When Xiahou Dun had received thirty thousand troops and the command to keep watch and ward over the capital, he had gone into camp three miles from the city. When he saw the conflagration start, he set the army in motion and surrounded the city. He also sent reinforcements to Cao Xiu within.
Inside the city the fighting went on all night. No one joined the conspirators; the small band were left to their own efforts. Soon it was reported that Jin Yi, Ji Mao, and Ji Mu were slain. Geng Ji and Wei Huang found their way to one of the gates, but there they met Xiahou Dun's main force and were made prisoners. The handful of men with them were cut to pieces.
When the fighting subsided, Xiahou Dun went into the city and set his troops to put out the fires. He also laid hands on the whole households of the five conspirators. Then he sent a report to Cao Cao, who sent back orders to execute the two conspirators and put to death in public all the members of the five families. He was also to arrest every official and send the whole batch to Yejun for interrogations.
Xiahou Dun sent his two chief prisoners to the place of execution. They shouted against Cao Cao. “Living we have failed to slay you, Cao Cao; dead we will be malicious spirits smiting rebels in all places!”
The executioner smote Geng Ji on the mouth with his sword, so that the blood gushed out, but he continued to shout as long as he could. Wei Huang, his fellow-conspirator, dashed his temples on the ground crying, “How I hate him!” and ground his teeth till he broke them to fragments. And they both died of hatred and exhaustion.
Who can with outstretched hands uphold the sky
Or thrones maintain by simple loyalty?
Han's day was done; two would avert the doom,
But failed, and carried anger to the tomb.
Xiahou Dun carried out his chief's orders and sent the officials he had arrested to Yejun. There Cao Cao set up two flags, one red and one white, in the drill ground and sent all the officials thither. Then he addressed them.
“In this late rebellion some of you went out to extinguish the fire, some of you stayed within doors. Let those who went forth to put out the fire take their stand by the red flag, and those who remained in their houses go to the white flag.”
The officials thought within themselves, “Certainly there can be nothing wrong in trying to put out a fire,” so they nearly all placed themselves under the red flag; only about a third went to the white.
Then the order was given to seize all those by the red flag.
They protested.
“We are guiltless!” cried they.
Cao Cao said, “At that time you intended not to put out the flames but to aid the rebels.”
He sent them all down to River Zhang and had them put to death on the bank. There were more than three hundred victims. He rewarded those who were under the white flag and sent them to their homes in the capital.
Wang Bi died from his wound and was buried with great honor.
Cao Xiu was placed over the guards; Zhong Yao was created Prime Minister of the princedom of Wei, Hua Xin became High Minister. The occasion was taken to create six grades of the title of Lordship with three divisions each, eighteen in all. There were seventeen grades of Marquis West of the Pass. And all these had golden seals of office with purple ribbons. There were also sixteen ranks of Interior Marquis and Exterior Marquis. They had silver seals with tortoise ornaments on the back and black ribbons. There were five classes of Minister with three grades in each class. These had brass seals, with chain ornaments and ribbons. And with all these various gradations of ranks and nobility reorganized, the court was entirely reformed. There were new ranks and new people in office.1
Cao Cao then remembered the warning about a conflagration in the capital and wished to reward Guan Lu for his prescience, but he would receive nothing.
Cao Hong with an army went into Hanzhong. He placed Xiahou Yuan and Zhang He in command at points of importance, while he went on to the attack. At that time Zhang Fei and Lei Tong were holding Baxi. Ma Chao marched to Xiabian and sent Wu Lan out as Van Leader to reconnoiter. He fell in with Cao Hong, and Wu Lan was going to retire. But General Ren Kui advised against this.
“The enemy are newly arrived, why not fight and take the keen edge off their pride? If we do not fight, how can we look our chief in the face when we return?”
So it was decided to offer battle, and Ren Kui rode out and challenged Cao Hong. The challenge was accepted, and the warriors advanced. Cao Hong cut Ren Kui down in the third encounter and pressed the advantage, and Wu Lan was beaten off. When Wu Lan returned and told Ma Chao, he was blamed.
“Why did you attack without orders and bring about this defeat?”
“It was the fault of Ren Kui, who disobeyed orders.”
“Defend the Pass most carefully; do not engage,” said Ma Chao.
Ma Chao sent a report to Capital Chengdu and awaited orders for a further action. Cao Hong suspected some ruse when Ma Chao remained so long inactive, and retired to Nanzheng. Here he was visited by Zhang He, who asked, “General, why did you retire after the successful attack and slaughter of one of the enemy leaders?”
“Seeing that Ma Chao declined to come out to fight, I suspected some ruse,” replied Cao Hong. “Beside, when I was at Yejun that wonderful soothsayer, Guan Lu, foretold the loss of a leader here. I heeded what he said and so was careful.”
Zhang He laughed, “You have been a leader of soldiers for half your life, and yet you heed the sayings of a soothsayer! I may be of small wit, but I would take Baxi with my own troops, and the possession of Baxi would be the key to the whole of Shu.”
“The defender of Baxi is Zhang Fei,” said Cao Hong. “He is no ordinary man to meet. One must be careful.”
“All of you fear this Zhang Fei, but I do not. I look upon him as a mere nobody. I shall have to capture him this time.”
“But if you fail, what then?”
“Then I shall be content to pay the penalty according to military rules.”
Cao Hong made him put his undertaking in writing, and then Zhang He marched to the attack.
The proud are often defeat;
Lightsome attacks oft fail.
The following chapter will tell how Zhang He fared.
CHAPTER 70. Zhang Fei Takes Wakou Pass By Tactics; Huang Zhong Captures Tiandang Mountain By Stratagem.