Chapter 30: The Strategist

On May 3, Tian Yi returned to the restaurant he had visited a few days earlier. Today, a Closed sign hung at the entrance. There were no pretend customers or waiters, and only a single dining table stood in the entire restaurant.

A bearded, middle-aged man in a long gown sat at the table, waiting for Tian Yi.

Tian Yi walked straight over and sat down opposite him. “You must be the renowned Mr. Zhuge, Xingtian's strategist.”

The man stroked his beard, picked up a battered fan lying beside him, and fanned his bizarre mop of natural curls. “Too kind, too kind. I'm just Zhuge Zhai, trying to earn my keep.”

Hearing his Mandarin, thick with a rural accent, and seeing the fan in his hand, which looked as though he had snatched it straight from Ji Gong, Tian Yi's first response was, “Let me guess… Before you became a strategist, you were a village schoolteacher…”

“How'd you know? Don't tell me we're from the same place?” Zhuge Zhai kept fanning himself. “Back in those days… our boss sure knew talent when he saw it. As the saying goes, well, let's see… Had the late lord not graced him with three visits, who'd have known the Sleeping Dragon in his thatched hut?”

“If you want to keep getting fed, next time you recite those lines, you'd better replace ‘late lord’ with something you can call a living person. ‘Moron,’ for instance,” Tian Yi said. “Forget it. Enough of that. Have you considered the deal?”

“Mr. Tian, ain't that asking a little much? Suppose you're pulling our legs, stringing us along, then…” Zhuge Zhai was just gearing up for a long bout of bargaining.

Tian Yi suddenly sprang up, grabbed the stool he'd been sitting on, and swung it at the man. What followed was one hell of a beating. Punches, kicks, and heavy blows with the stool had Zhuge Zhai howling. After several dozen seconds, dozens of Xingtian members poured through doors on every side, some carrying knives, others guns. They were about to surround Tian Yi and subdue him when Zhuge Zhai raised an arm and shouted, “Nobody move!” He clambered to his feet, his face swollen and bruised. “Everyone out! Shut the doors!”

They exchanged looks, thinking, What's going on? Has the strategist gone mad?

“Didn't you hear me? We're discussing serious business here! Get out!” Zhuge Zhai roared again. Only then did they shrug and leave, looking dubious.

Zhuge Zhai hauled himself back into his seat. Tian Yi set the stool down and sat on it again. “Know why I beat you?”

“All right… all right… I was wrong,” said Zhuge Zhai. “I'll take the liberty of settling this deal on the boss's behalf. It's agreed.”

“Ah, that's more like it. You're obviously a clever man. Why go asking for it?” Tian Yi said, looking exceedingly pleased with himself.

Zhuge Zhai said, “Mr. Tian, there's still a few things I don't understand. I'd be grateful if you'd enlighten me.”

“Go on.”

“These past few days, Steel Commandment suddenly went and joined up with those bandits in Double Eagle Commandery who call themselves ‘White Lightning.’ They've also moved all their troops in the Dragon Commandery north to assemble. Looks very much like the two armies mean to join forces and march south. Does that… have anything to do with you?”

“Yes. I sent word to their grand master that Xingtian would soon abandon the Dragon Commandery, and that I had a way to wipe out Steel Commandment's scattered forces there one by one in a single operation. So I asked him to get the hell out too. This territory belongs to me from now on.”

“You're forcing him to act,” Zhuge Zhai said. The strategist's greatest talent was working out other people's calculations. By the time Tian Yi had finished speaking, he had already thought it all through. From Steel Commandment's perspective, the Dragon Commandery's strongest resistance organization was withdrawing, while they themselves could no longer operate in the shadows. Getting the hell out was absolutely out of the question, so they might as well take the opportunity to switch to open warfare. But with the European front still at a stalemate, taking on a territory as large as the Dragon Commandery meant allying with forces they would normally disdain.

“They won't act just yet. At least, not until they've confirmed you've really withdrawn,” Tian Yi said. “They won't believe every word I say, either. Of course, they have to respond to things that have already happened. So abandoning their bases and concentrating their forces is the right decision. Allying with White Lightning is only preparation. When it comes to actually firing the first shot, they can't possibly ignore Xingtian's stance.”

Zhuge Zhai said, “Mr. Tian, you're using us as bait. No wonder you set those terms. By the time we've seized the mist, won't the Dragon Commandery already be at war?”

Tian Yi said, “What are you worried about? I'm not going to eat the fish. When the two sides are fighting openly, you can stay in the shadows, use the mist's power to strengthen your forces, and watch how things develop. Let the snipe and the clam fight while you play the fisherman and reap the profits.”

Zhuge Zhai put down his fan, looking troubled. “Mr. Tian, we don't have much to do with Steel Commandment, but we're both resistance organizations, and we've never had much friction. The Empire's still a wall that's mighty hard to knock down. If we go along with this plan of yours, wouldn't that be a little dishonorable?”

Tian Yi said, “Heh… Strategist, oh, Strategist. That's a thug's sham honor.” He laughed. “First, you're going to seize the mist regardless. Even if I gave you the intelligence outright, without making withdrawal from the Dragon Commandery a condition of the deal, you'd still need to pull out at least eighty percent of your forces to be confident of taking it from the Ten Celestial Guards.”

“What! The Ten Celestial Guards?!” Zhuge Zhai started doing his calculations again.

Tian Yi said, “Relax. For an escort job, they'd send one at most. If your boss goes in person, it shouldn't be much of a problem.” He paused. “Now stop interrupting and listen. While you're off seizing the mist, I'll still be doing everything I can to make the Dragon Commandery somewhere Steel Commandment wants to attack, can attack, and must attack. Nobody can stop me. So here I am, sitting down to talk with you, handing you all sorts of future gains. You ought to be weeping with gratitude.

“One last thing. Listen carefully. About this so-called honor of yours…

“In peaceful times, benevolence and righteousness come first; in times of turmoil, strategy and guile. If I believed in love and justice, I'd find five elementary school kids, hand out some equipment, and send them off to protect world peace. But I haven't. Know why? Because this world has long been beyond saving. From the beginning to the present, and on into the future, no order can last forever. History woven through with chaos and death—that's reality. If you and your boss still want to play leading roles in these troubled times, you ought to understand that those who achieve great things put praise and blame aside. I believe Steel Commandment, White Lightning, and the Empire won't be troubling themselves with this honor business.”

Zhuge Zhai remained silent for a long time before speaking. “May I ask, sir, just who you really are?”

Tian Yi stood. “You'll find out sooner or later.” He tossed an envelope onto the table. “Hades's Divine Mist is your best chance to enter the struggle among the great powers. Make the most of it.”

…

After he left, Zhuge Zhai remained in his seat, turning things over again and again. But there was one calculation he simply couldn't make come out right.

Song Zhong emerged from the shadows and stood beside him. “Strategist, we only have his word for it. His intelligence may not be true.”

Zhuge Zhai replied, “Not so, not so… This man is no ordinary fellow. As the saying goes, only a great hero dares show his true colors; a true man of distinction has a grace all his own. His intelligence is true, and what he said just now shows he really does mean to lend us a hand.

“Thinking back, he was probably behind those ‘major incidents’ a few days ago too. Even Tea Immortal fell into his trap… Peace and quiet will soon be scarce in the Dragon Commandery.”

Song Zhong said, “Then… what do you mean to do, Strategist…?”

Zhuge Zhai said, “Send word. Gather our men. Be quick about it, or we'll be in serious trouble.”

“Yes, sir.” Song Zhong left to carry out the order.

Gently waving his straw fan, Zhuge Zhai stroked his beard and rose, still muttering over the calculation he couldn't resolve. “Tsk… Who does this fellow answer to? What's he after?”

..