The city wall of Chengdu had only just finished echoing with pork songs and textile chants when reality returned like a cold splash of river water.
Amusing though the chieftains' performances were, war did not pause simply because cured pork sold well.
Before the echoes of advertisement faded, scouts had already ridden north.
They returned before dusk.
Boots muddy.
Faces grim.
They knelt before Cheng Xu.
"The Rebel Army has moved north. They have plunged deep into the mountain forests."
A quiet fell over the command area.
Cheng Xu turned his gaze toward the horizon, where the northern mountain range rose like the spine of some ancient dragon. Endless ridges overlapped into haze. Ravines cut through stone like scars. Forests thick as woven carpets swallowed sunlight whole.
"Into the mountains," he murmured.
His brow tightened.
"The Shu Mountains are treacherous terrain. Ravines interlock. Valleys twist. Once we enter that ground, our artillery range advantage shrinks dramatically. We will be forced into close engagements. Climbing, descending, crawling through gullies. And although we possess reconnaissance hot air balloons, this region has not suffered drought. The forests are dense. Their canopy will block observation from above."
He paused, weighing the implications carefully.
"The rebels can conceal themselves beneath those trees. They can break formation. They can ambush from any direction. We risk losing cohesion."
The officers listened in silence.
This was no plain.
No open battlefield where cannons sang freely.
This was the belly of Shu.
After completing his assessment, Cheng Xu turned respectfully to Qin Liangyu.
"General Qin. Your wisdom?"
Though well past sixty, Qin Liangyu stood straight as a spear. Her White Pole Soldiers had marched these lands long before Cheng Xu had ever held command.
"Instructor He," she said evenly, "the Shu Mountains must be handled by the people of Shu."
She gestured toward her assembled forces.
"My White Pole Soldiers. The Yellow Pole, Black Pole, Green Pole contingents from various chieftains. Do you think we came here merely to eat and watch?"
Her eyes flashed.
"If our men take the lead through those mountains, no ambush will catch your firearms units unaware."
Cheng Xu's expression brightened immediately.
"Excellent."
Plans were set.
That night, the army rested inside Chengdu.
The mood had shifted.
Less singing.
More sharpening of blades.
At dawn, the entire force assembled and began its northern advance.
---
As columns moved out, Ran Ke hurried toward the Enshi Pacification Commissioner with the urgency of a merchant who had missed market day.
"How much did you sell yesterday?" he asked in a hushed tone.
The Enshi Commissioner grinned broadly.
"Over five thousand jin of cured meat."
Ran Ke stopped walking.
"Five thousand?"
"We prepared thoroughly," the Enshi Commissioner said with satisfaction. "Each soldier carried several jin. If unsold, it serves as rations anyway."
Ran Ke felt a sharp pang in his chest.
"Our Kaixian Tujia were unprepared. We only demonstrated Xilankapu brocade. When people asked to purchase, we had nothing to sell. Only promises. I am deeply frustrated."
The Enshi Commissioner laughed.
"That is because the one who helped develop your village did not plan commerce carefully."
Ran Ke stiffened.
"The one who helped us was Flat Rabbit. A righteous and valiant hero. Speak no ill of him."
The Enshi Commissioner chuckled.
"Good men are not always good merchants. The one who helped us, San Shier, he has the face of a schemer. But when such a man helps you make money, the results are impressive."
Ran Ke opened his mouth to argue.
No argument formed.
The drums sounded.
Cheng Xu and Qin Liangyu were already calling for forward movement.
The two commissioners broke off their conversation and returned to their ranks.
---
Leaving Chengdu meant crossing the Chengdu Plain.
The wealthiest region in Sichuan.
The cradle of culture.
Or at least it had been.
Now the plain lay wounded.
Fields of grain, once golden and hopeful, were blackened and trampled. Unripe crops burned before harvest. Irrigation ditches clogged with ash.
Scattered farmhouses stood hollow and silent. Some were charred frames. Others collapsed inward like broken ribs.
Here and there, bodies still lay near thresholds.
Men who had tried to defend their homes.
Women who had not escaped in time.
Valuables stripped.
Doors smashed.
Silence heavy.
The Gao Family Village Militia marched through this devastation with clenched jaws. They had undergone strict moral and ideological training. Protection of the people was not a slogan to them. It was doctrine.
Many soldiers lowered their eyes.
Others stared straight ahead, faces pale.
Qin Liangyu surveyed the ruin with controlled fury.
"These rebels cannot be allowed to continue," she said quietly. "They must be eliminated swiftly."
Cheng Xu nodded.
"I agree."
But Qin Liangyu's thoughts moved further.
"If we press too hard in a single large offensive," she said slowly, "they may scatter northward over the great mountain barrier and spill into Shaanxi. That would create a larger disaster. We should send word immediately. Shaanxi must prepare defenses. Ideally Governor-General Hong Chengchou should establish fortifications in southern Shaanxi."
Cheng Xu smiled faintly.
"General Qin, you need not worry. We have already arranged for militia forces to construct a powerful defensive line in the mountainous corridor between Sichuan and Shaanxi."
Qin Liangyu blinked.
"You planned that in advance?"
Cheng Xu's expression remained modest.
"Preparation averts disaster."
---
North of the plain rose Jian'ge Pass.
Famed throughout history.
During the era of the Three Kingdoms, when the Shu Han held it, the Cao Wei forces dared not attack directly. Only when Deng Ai led troops along the perilous Yinping trail did Shu fall.
Such was its reputation.
Now that legendary pass had collapsed without resistance.
The reason was painfully simple.
The garrison was incompetent.
Poorly equipped.
Poorly trained.
Unpaid for months.
When rebels appeared, they fled faster than startled hares.
The Chuǎng Wang now occupied Jian'ge Pass comfortably.
Guo Tianxing bowed.
"We have withdrawn into the mountain forests north of the Chengdu Plain. What is your command?"
Er Zhi Hu spoke quickly.
"We must not defend the pass directly. Their cannons will bombard it relentlessly."
The Chuǎng Wang nodded.
"We cannot hold obvious positions. Nor can we mass in visible formations. Their artillery will tear us apart."
He stepped onto the battlements and looked southward.
A large spherical object floated in the sky.
The reconnaissance hot air balloon.
"A scout device," he said calmly. "They observe us from above. Any large movement will be detected."
The generals murmured uneasily.
"So formidable?"
"It sees large formations," Chuǎng Wang continued. "But not scattered units beneath dense forest canopy."
He turned back toward them.
"Therefore we divide."
He spoke deliberately.
"Break the army into numerous small units. Under one thousand men each. Hide within forests, ravines, caves. No grand displays. No mass gatherings. When opportunity arises, emerge suddenly and drag their firearms troops into close combat."
His eyes hardened.
"In mountains, terrain is the true commander."
A scout rushed in again.
"Government troops approach!"
Chuǎng Wang smiled faintly.
"Then let them come."
Outside, the forests of Shu waited.
Dense.
Silent.
Hungry.