Page:Romance of the Three Kingdoms - tr. Brewitt-Taylor - Volume 1.djvu/221

 Then appeared a new force under Kuan Yü. Holding his sword ready to strike he called out, “Do not flee, O Lü Pu, Kuan Yü is waiting for you.”

Lü Pu joined battle; he was flurried and scarce knew what was happening. And soon Chang Fei came up once more. By desperate efforts Lü Pu and his men cut their way through the press and got free. After this they started for Hsiaop‘ei as fast as they could travel and Hou Ch‘êng helped to keep the pursuers at bay.

So the two brothers Kuan Yü and Chang Fei were together again after their separation. Both shed tears of joy as they told each other what they had seen and suffered.

“I was on the Haichow road when I heard of you,” said Yün-ch‘ang. “I lost no time in starting.”

“And I had been camped in the Mangtang Hills for a long time. It is happiness to be together again.”

So they talked. Then they marched off together to find their elder brother, and made their salutations with tears. In Yüan-te’s heart sadness and joy intermingled. Next they were presented to Ts‘ao Ts‘ao and with him they went into the captured city.

Mi Chu soon came with the welcome news of the safety of the family. And the two Ch‘ên’sCh‘êns [sic], betrayers of Lü Pu, came to present their salutations. A grand banquet was prepared for the officers at which Ts‘ao Ts‘ao presided as host and Ch‘ên Kuei and Yuan-tê occupied the seats of honour. At the close of the banquet Ts‘ao Ts‘ao paid the two Ch‘êns the highest compliments on their success and rewarded them with the revenues of ten departments beside giving the son the title of Fu-po Chang-chün or General, “Queller of Waves.”

Ts‘ao Ts‘ao was very pleased with his success and at once began to scheme for the taking of Hsiaop‘ei, the sole place now left to Lü Pu, where he had taken refuge. Ch‘êng Yü said the course was inadvisable.

“If Lü Pu be pressed too hard he may get clear by a desperate effort and throw himself into the arms of our especial enemy Yüan Shu. These two as allies would be difficult to overcome. Rather send a capable man to guard Huainan, one able to secure you against Lü Pu on one hand and to hold Yüan Shu on the other. Moreover the bandits are in Shantung and still our enemies. They must be watched.”

Ts‘ao replied, “I can keep the whole of Shantung and I will request Yüan-tê to take the south.”

“Could I dare withstand your command?” said Yüan-tê.

So forthwith Liu Pei, leaving Mi Chu and Chien Yung at Hsüchou, went south, taking in his train his brothers and Sun Ch‘ien. And Ts‘ao led his army to Hsiaop‘ei.

Lü Pu felt very secure in his refuge. He had good store of grain and he had the protection of the river, so he sat quiet,