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fresh-prince-of-denmark · 4 years

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Analysis of the Devil Ending: Who Died and Left Aristotle In Charge of Ethics? (Pt 5)

Hello and welcome back to me over-analyzing everything in Cyberpunk. If you haven’t read my other posts, please read those first! (V’s Mikoshi Poem, Johnny’s Mikoshi Poem, The Sun, New Dawn Fades).

This part took me a lot longer to complete. Not because it was particularly long…it was just painful. Jesus Christ. I hated every second of this ending. That shit hurted.

There were a few shards located at Arasaka’s estate that I chose to skip, as I did not find ant that were unique to the location. The three the game seemed to want to draw your attention to were actually not scattered as shards, they were spoken-word. The only shard I was able to find was a portion of The Odyssey. The other two pieces of literature are In Kyoto, which is quoted to V by the guard to takes her to the hospital room, and (what I believe to be) a reference to Plato’s The Allegory of the Cave. This section is going to be super theoretical. Like, more theoretical than the rest. So bare with me please.

Let’s start easy. This is the poem that the guard quotes at V as he leads her out of the operating room:

In Kyoto,

hearing the cuckoo,

I long for Kyoto

(By: Basho, translated by Jane Hirshfield)

Ten words. What could ten words amount to? The saddest goddamn words you’ll ever hear, dammit. This poem is a feeling more than a concept. Ever feel homesick when you haven’t gone anywhere? Lonely when you’re around other people? That’s V. This was supposed to be a victory, supposed to be what they wanted. But now Johnny’s gone, scorned and betrayed, and no one they calls seems to even be able to give V the time of day. This was supposed to be a victory, their way of going back to the way things were, getting their life back, going home. But we can never go back, can’t ever erase our experiences, what we learn, how we grow. As Misty says, we should not fear change in of itself, but who we might change into. This just goes to show what happens when we betray ourselves by rejecting our own growth: all that’s left is bitterness and sorrow.

The next day when V wakes, you can pick up a shard containing a section from Chapter 8 of The Odyssey. Now, I’m not too familiar with the Odyssey. In fact, I hate the Odyssey. So if anyone wants to jump in here and add something more intelligent, I’m all for it. The Odyssey is the tale of Odysseus, who has been trying for ten long years to return to his wife and son after the Trojan war. Odysseus is basically listening to a bard remind him of all his Trojan War trauma, and begins to weep, at which time time people start questioning what’s up with this guy:

Say what thy birth, and what the name you bore,

Imposed by parents in the natal hour?

(For from the natal hour distinctive names,

One common right, the great and lowly claims:)

Say from what city, from what regions toss'd,

And what inhabitants those regions boast?

So shalt thou instant reach the realm assign'd.

In wondrous ships, self-moved, instinct with mind;

No helm secures their course, no pilot guides;

Like man intelligent, they plough the tides,

Conscious of every coast and every bay,

That lies beneath the sun's all-seeing ray;

Though clouds and darkness veil the encumber'd sky,

Fearless through darkness and through clouds they fly;

Though tempests rage, though rolls the swelling main,

The seas may roll, the tempests may rage in vain,

E'en the stern god that o'er the waves presides,

Safe as they pass, and safe repass the tides,

With fury burns; while careless they convey

Promiscuous every guest to every bay,

These ears have heard my royal sire disclouse

A dreadful story, big with future woes;

How Neptune raged, and how, by his command,

Firm rooted in a surge a ship would stand

A monument of wrath; how mound on mound

Should bury these proud towers beneath the ground.

But this the gods may frustrate or fulfill,

As suits the purpose of the Eternal Will.

But say through what waste regions hast thou stray'd

What customs noted, and what coasts survey'd;

Possess'd by wild barbarians fierce in arms,

Or men whose bosom tender pity warms?

Say why the fate o Troy awaked thy cares,

Why heaved thy bosom, and why flowed thy tears?

Reading this made me feel just how tired V must be. All this fighting, all this war, and for what? Much like Odysseus, V has been through hell and back (literally, depending on how you see it). And it never seems to end. V has been fighting for so long, yet there’s always something more; the tests the doctor gives her are endless, and they’re always being asked to do more, over and over again, with no results or end in sight. Odysseus is teetering on despair; nothing he does seems to do will ever be enough, just like V. The world will just take and take and take. It’s exactly what V’s poem asserts in Mikoshi; the world cannot be fixed, and resistance is futile. You can’t change how corporations rule the world, and as a protestor states on the TV in the hospital room, the rich have no boundaries or morals, and we are powerless to stop them from taking whatever they want. They can take not only our souls, but our bodies, devour them in order to prolong their own lives. Johnny would, of course, disagree. Even a slap in the face to The Man is better than submitting to a corpo-leash, even if that is the easier path. And in fact, he may be right, since it seems taking Hanako’s offer is the conformist path, and the only one that leads to Saburo coming back.

But Johnny isn’t there anymore to walk the rebel path at their side. No more guardian angel to whisper when they it most to never stop fighting.

There’s a lot more we could go into here with the Odyssey; comparing Arasaka to the story of Polyphemus and the cave, talking about themes of passion vs. commitment, yadayadayada. I hate the Odyssey so that can be someone else’s problem tbh.

The final piece is what the doctor asks V to read as one of their tests. Now, on surface-level, this is foreshadowing if V will choose to stay in their body, or be turned into an engram. It’s laughing at them, really, both pitying and mocking the fact that they believe they have a choice, since either way they’re once again at the mercy of the rich and powerful:

“And it was a sight to behold, he said, how a soul would choose its life; sometimes pitiable, sometimes laughable at times wonderful and strange. For in most cases, the souls made their choice according to the habits of a former life.”

I couldn’t find where this was from, or if it was a quote from anything. But googling it does bring up Plato’s Allegory of The Cave, which I thinks tracks pretty well. I found a quote from this chapter of Plato’s The Republic, which is strikingly similar in meaning. For the sake of my sanity, lets assume that this quote is referencing this one from Plato:

“And he will count the one happy in his condition and state of being, and he will pity the other; or, if he have a mind to laugh at the soul which comes from below into the light, there will be more reason in this than in the laugh which greets him who returns from above out of the light into the cave.”

If you’re unfamiliar with the allegory of the cave, it’s a philosophical discussion from Plato’s The Republic. It’s about how human perception is limited, and so true knowledge comes from the self via philosophical reasoning. Much like humans imprisoned in a cave with only shadows as their entire world, we cannot imagine the true world outside the cave until we leave to see it for ourselves. Those who are freed from this limited reasoning have a duty to go back and free others, subjecting them to the full experience of awakening; both the pain and the triumph it entails. V starts out with a limited perception of things; a surface-level world, never stopping to see the bigger picture, until Johnny comes along and encourages them to question the status quo. In all other endings, V accepts this enlightenment. They challenge Arasaka, and try to follow Johnny’s legacy and Stick It To the Man. Yet if they accept Hanako’s offer in an attempt to return to “the habits of a former life,” they are rejecting this new understanding, refusing to leave the cave and live in ignorant bliss. This, I believe, is where Johnny’s true feeling of betrayal comes from: not because he’s being shredded, and not because he thinks V doesn’t know any better. V learned and changed just as much as he did, and this growth was something they were able to gift to one another. Johnny is proud of his change, proud to be someone trusted by V, proud at a second chance not to fuck things up. When V gives him control to go with Rogue to Arasaka, he’s ecstatic to prove himself worthy of that trust, to prove that he’s changed. Yet V, the person who aided in that change, is now actively ignoring and rejecting their own growth, and thus is betraying themselves. By not using their enlightenment to actively oppose the status quo and rebel, they are choosing the side of the oppressor by default.

Some of her last words if you choose not to sign the contract are to Goro, “You have no idea how good it feels to be free.” But the truth is, V is not free, and now they will never be free. By walking the path they have, they are choosing willful ignorance, stubbornly clinging to the darkness of the cave because it is easier to convince oneself that they are not a prisoner at all than it is to leave the comfort of one’s chains. Either way, they are caged, even if the bars the rich and powerful build around her are clear instead of solid. Her so-called freedom (and knowledge) is pure illusion — shadows depicted on a cave wall.

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fuyonggu · 5 years

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SGZ 23: Biography of Zhao Yan

I seem to remember him looking a bit silly in Dynasty Tactics.

The parenthetical comments on the ZZTJ entries are Hu Sanxing’s commentary, not present in the original translations.

I wish this had been in Traditional instead of Simplified.

趙俨字伯然，颍川陽翟人也。避乱荆州，与杜襲、繁钦通财同计，合为一家。太祖始迎献帝都许，俨谓钦曰：「曹镇东应期命世，必能匡济华夏，吾知归矣。」建安二年，年二十七，遂扶持老弱诣太祖，太祖以俨为朗陵长。县多豪猾，无所畏忌。俨取其尤甚者，收缚案验，皆得死罪。俨既囚之，乃表府解放，自是威恩并著。时袁紹舉兵南侵，遣使招诱豫州诸郡，诸郡多受其命。惟陽安郡不动，而都尉李通急录户调。俨见通曰：「方今天下未集，诸郡并叛，怀附者复收其绵绢，小人乐乱，能无遗恨！且远近多虞，不可不详也。」通曰：「紹与大將軍相持甚急，左右郡县背叛乃尔。若绵绢不调送，观听者必谓我顾��，有所须待也。」俨曰：「诚亦如君虑；然当权其轻重，小缓调，当为君释此患。」乃书与荀彧曰：「今陽安郡当送绵绢，道路艰阻，必致寇害。百姓困穷，邻城并叛，易用倾荡，乃一方安危之机也。且此郡人执守忠节，在险不贰。微善必赏，则为义者劝。善为国者，藏之於民。以为国家宜垂慰抚，所敛绵绢，皆俾还之。」彧报曰：「辄白曹公，公文下郡，绵绢悉以还民。」上下欢喜，郡内遂安。

Zhao Yan, styled Boran, was a native of Yangdi county in Yingchuan commandary. During the turmoil at the end of the Han dynasty, he moved to Jingzhou, where he pooled his funds with Du Xi and Fan Qin, the three of them acting as one family. When Cao Cao had just welcomed Emperor Xian to his capital at Xu (in 196), Zhao Yan said to Fan Qin, "The General Who Guards The East, Cao Cao, is responding to the times and heeding the mandate of the age, and he will surely be able to rectify and set to rights the lands of the Huaxia (ethnic Han). Now I know it is safe to return home."

In the second year of Jian'an (197), when he was twenty-six years old, Zhao Yan brought a group of old and weak people to visit Cao Cao, who appointed him as Chief of Langling county. There were many bold and cunning fellows in that county who had no fear of anyone acting against them. Zhao Yan thus had the most prominent of them arrested and tied up, then investigated them, and they were all given the death sentence. But then, after imprisoning them, Zhao Yan petitioned the regional staff to have them released. By such actions, people appreciated both Zhao Yan's power and his mercy.

At this time, Yuan Shao had raised his troops to march south against Cao Cao's territory. He sent agents to stir up the various commandaries of Yuzhou and beguile the people into supporting him, and most of the commandaries indeed accepted his orders. Only the people of Yang'an commandary had not actually made any move to support Yuan Shao's cause. However, at the same time, the Commandant of Yang'an, Li Tong, was enforcing a strict household tax on the people there.

Zhao Yan came to see Li Tong and told him, "We already have to deal with the problems of the realm being divided and these other commandaries rising in rebellion. Now you want to insist upon enforcing this silk tax against those who still want to remain loyal to our side. There are always miscreants willing to take advantage of such things to stir up trouble. Don't you think you'll have cause to regret this later? Besides, one can never be too careful in considering dangers, both near and far."

Li Tong replied, "But it is just as you say: Yuan Shao and the Grand General are both locked in fierce struggle, and our neighboring commandaries and counties have turned traitors and rebels. So if I do not collect the silk tax and send it in, people will say that I too am thinking of switching sides and am being opportunistic."

Zhao Yan said, "Your concerns are valid, but you must still consider the situation. Delay the tax for now, and I will alleviate your worries."

And he wrote a letter to Xun Yu stating, "It is true that Yang'an commandary is currently scheduled to send in its silk tax. But the roads are blocked and dangerous, and the tax would surely fall into the hands of invaders. Besides, the people are distressed and exhausted, and the neighboring cities have all rebelled as well. The cauldron is on the point of tipping over; this is the very moment which will decide danger or peace. Furthermore, the people of this commandary have maintained their loyalty and upheld their duty, and they remain unswerving even in the face of danger. When even the slightest good is sure to be rewarded, then the righteous will be stirred to act. The silk would best serve the interests of the state by remaining with the people. Thus I propose that, by way of comforting and consoling the people, the state should return the silk that has been collected."

Xun Yu wrote back to him, "I have referred your thoughts to Lord Cao, who has ordered that the silk from Yang'an commandary all be returned to the people."

Thus both the officials and the people in Yang'an were satisfied, and the commandary remained peaceful.

潁川杜襲、趙儼、繁欽避亂荊州... 及曹操迎天子都許，儼謂欽曰：「曹鎭東必能匡濟華夏，吾知歸矣！」遂還詣操，操以儼爲朗陵長。〈朗陵縣，屬汝南郡。〉[ZZTJ 197.Y]

Du Xi, Zhao Yan and Po Qin, men of Yingchuan, had fled the troubles and come to Jing province.

Later, when Cao Cao brought the Emperor to Xu city, Zhao Yan said to Po Qin, "The General Who Maintains the East in Peace, Cao Cao, can certainly save the empire. I know where I am going." He went back to Cao Cao, and Cao Cao appointed him as Chief of Langling.

(Langling county was part of Runan commandary.)

通急錄戶調，朗陵長趙儼見通曰：「方今諸郡並叛，獨陽安懷附，復趣收其緜絹，小人樂亂，無乃不可乎？」通曰：「公與袁紹相持甚急，左右郡縣背叛乃爾，若緜絹不調送，觀聽者必謂我顧望，有所須待也。」儼曰：「誠亦如君慮，然當權其輕重。小緩調，當爲君釋此患。」乃書與荀彧曰：「今陽安郡百姓困窮，鄰城並叛，易用傾蕩，乃一方安危之機也。且此郡人執守忠節，在險不貳，以爲國家宜垂慰撫；而更急斂緜絹，何以勸善！」彧卽白操，悉以緜絹還民，上下歡喜，郡內遂安。[ZZTJ 200.R]

Li Tong kept particular check of the tax due in silk from each household. Zhao Yan, Chief of Langling, went to him and said, "All the commanderies are in rebellion and only Yang'an remains obedient. If you press on with the collection of silk, however, men of mean spirit will be glad to make trouble. Surely this is a mistaken policy?"

"The Duke and Yuan Shao are in a critical fight," replied Li Tong, "and many commanderies and counties have turned away to rebellion. If the silk is not collected and sent to the capital, those who hear of it will surely claim that my loyalty is suspect and that I am waiting to see who wins."

"That is certainly a cause for concern," agreed Zhao Yan, "but we must consider how serious it is. If you will delay the tax just a little while, I can solve the problem for you."

Then he wrote to Xun Yu, "The people of Yang'an are poor and distressed, neighbouring cities are in rebellion, and the regime could easily be overthrown. Here is a time of crisis for the region. Moreover, the people of this commandery have held loyal, and even in time of danger they have never been uncertain. I believe the state should be showing some consideration, but we still impose the silk tax. What sort of encouragement is that?"

Xun Yu spoke to Cao Cao, and all the silk was returned to the people. Everyone was pleased and there was peace in the commandery.

入为司空掾属主簿。时于禁屯颍阴，乐进屯陽翟，张辽屯长社，诸將任气，多共不协；使俨并参三軍，每事训喻，遂相亲睦。太祖征荆州，以俨领章陵太守，徙都督护軍，护于禁、张辽、张郃、朱灵、李典、路招、冯楷七軍。复为丞相主簿，迁扶风太守。太祖徙出故韩遂、马超等兵五千餘人，使平难將軍殷署等督领，以俨为关中护軍，尽统诸軍。羌虏数来寇害，俨率署等追到新平，大破之。屯田客吕并自称將軍，聚党据陈仓，俨复率署等攻之，贼即破灭。

Zhao Yan later came to the capital to serve as a Registrar to the Minister of Works. At that time, Yu Jin was camped at Yingyin, Yue Jin was camped at Yangdi, and Zhang Liao was camped at Changshe. The three generals were obstinate, rarely willing to work together with one another. So Cao Cao sent Zhao Yan to coordinate among the three armies, and whenever it came time to issue orders or commands, Zhao Yan ensured that things operated smoothly.

When Cao Cao campaigned in Jingzhou (in 208), he appointed Zhao Yan as acting Administrator of Zhangling. He was later shifted to be Protector-General and Commander of military affairs, directing the armies of Yu Jin, Zhang Liao, Zhang He, Zhu Ling, Li Dian, Lu Zhao, and Feng Kai.

Later, Zhao Yan was appointed as Registrar to the Prime Minister (Cao Cao), then sent out to be Administrator of Fufeng. When Cao Cao relocated more than five thousand soldiers who had once served under Han Sui, Ma Chao, and the other Liangzhou warlords, he appointed the General Who Pacifies Difficulties, Yin Shu, and others to lead them, and he appointed Zhao Yan as Protector-General of Guanzhong and had him direct the various armies there. The Qiang and other tribes launched several raids into the region, but Zhao Yan led the forces of Yin Shu and the others to pursue them to Xinping, where he greatly routed them. A man from the tuntian agricultural farms, Lü Bing, declared himself a general and gathered together his partisans to occupy Chencang. But Zhao Yan once again led the forces of Yin Shu and the others to attack Lü Bing, and the rebels were routed and crushed.

〈《魏略》曰：太祖北拒袁紹，时远近无不私遗笺记，通意於紹者。俨与领陽安太守李通同治，通亦欲遣使。俨为陈紹必败意，通乃止。及紹破走，太祖使人搜阅紹记室，惟不见通书疏，阴知俨必为之计，乃曰：「此必趙伯然也。」臣松之案《魏武纪》：破紹后，得许下軍中人书，皆焚之。若故使人搜阅，知其有无，则非所以安人情也。疑此语为不然。〉

(The Weilue states, "When Cao Cao was opposing Yuan Shao to the north, all of Cao Cao's subordinates, near and far, secretly wrote letters to Yuan Shao, intending to collude with him. Zhao Yan and the acting Administrator of Yang'an, Li Tong, both governed their territories from the same place, and Li Tong too wished to send word to Yuan Shao. But Zhao Yan explained to Li Tong how Yuan Shao would surely be defeated, so Li Tong decided against it. Later, after Yuan Shao had been routed and put to flight, Cao Cao sent agents to review all of Yuan Shao's captured correspondance. He found that Li Tong alone had never sent Yuan Shao any letters. He realized that this must have been because of Zhao Yan, and he even said, 'This is the work of Zhao Boyan'."

Your servant Pei Songzhi notes that, contrary to this account, the Annals of Emperor Wu (Cao Cao) in the Records of the Three Kingdoms states that when Cao Cao obtained Yuan Shao's correspondence after having routed him, he burned all the letters rather than read them. If we believe that he in fact reviewed them closely, to the point that he knew who had sent letters and who had not, that would surely not have reassured his officers of his trust in them, as the Annals claims that his burning of the letters did. Thus I suspect that this account is untrue.)

遼在長社，于禁屯潁陰，樂進屯陽翟，三將任氣，多共不協。操使司空主簿趙儼幷參三軍，每事訓諭，遂相親睦。[ZZTJ 208.N]

While Zhang Liao was camped at Changshe, Yu Jin was at Yingyin and Yue Jin at Yangdi. Each acted as he saw fit, and they refused to cooperate. Cao Cao sent the Master of Records under the Minister of Works, Zhao Yan, to act as liaison officer to the three armies and give counsel on all matters. So the three commanders came to agreement.

操徙出故韓遂、馬超等兵五千餘人，使平難將軍殷署等督領，〈平難將軍，曹氏所置。〉以扶風太守趙儼爲關中護軍。[ZZTJ 215.T]

Cao Cao collected five thousand men who had formerly served Han Sui, Ma Chao and the other generals [of the northwest], and he put them under the command of Yin Shu, as General Who Pacifies Disorder. The Grand Administrator of [You]fufeng, Zhao Yan, was made Protector of the Army Within the Passes.

(The title General Who Pacifies Disorder was a creation of the Cao clan.)

时被书差千二百兵往助汉中守，署督送之。行者卒与室家别，皆有忧色。署发后一日，俨虑其有变，乃自追至斜谷口，人人慰劳，又深戒署。还宿雍州刺史张既舍。署軍复前四十里，兵果叛乱，未知署吉凶。而俨自随步骑百五十人，皆与叛者同部曲，或婚姻，得此问，各惊，被甲持兵，不复自安。俨欲还，既等以为「今本营党已扰乱，一身赴之无益，可须定问」。俨曰：「虽疑本营与叛者同谋，要当闻行者变，乃发之。又有欲善不能自定，宜及犹豫，促抚宁之。且为之元帅，既不能安辑，身受祸难，命也。」遂去。行三十里止，放马息，尽呼所从人，喻以成败，慰励恳切。皆慷慨曰：「死生当随护軍，不敢有二。」前到诸营，各召料简诸奸结叛者八百餘人，散在原野，惟取其造谋魁率治之，餘一不问。郡县所收送，皆放遣，乃即相率还降。俨密白：「宜遣將诣大营，请旧兵镇守关中。」太祖遣將軍刘柱將二千人，当须到乃发遣，而事露，诸营大骇，不可安喻。俨谓诸將曰：「旧兵既少，东兵未到，是以诸营图为邪谋。若或成变，为难不测。因其狐疑，当令早决。」遂宣言当差留新兵之温厚者千人镇守关中，其餘悉遣东。便见主者，内诸营兵名籍，案累重，立差别之。留者意定，与俨同心。其当去者亦不敢动，俨一日尽遣上道，因使所留千人，分布罗落之。东兵寻至，乃复胁喻，并徙千人，令相及共东，凡所全致二万餘口。

At this time, an order was sent out commanding about twelve hundred of the soldiers to be sent to help guard Hanzhong, with Yin Shu to lead them there. The departing soldiers would thus be separated from their families, and they all looked most distressed upon parting. The day after Yin Shu had set out with the troops, Zhao Yan became worried that there might be some incident among the soldiers. So on his own initiative, he pursued them to the mouth of the Xie Valley, where he comforted the soldiers and greatly instructed Yin Shu. He then turned back, staying the night at the residence of the Inspector of Yongzhou, Zhang Ju. But after the army had marched another forty li forward, the soldiers indeed mutinied, and no one knew what had happened to Yin Shu.

Zhao Yan himself was in command of a hundred and fifty horse and foot, all of whom had been part of the same force as the rebels and some of whom were even their in-laws. When this smaller force heard that the soldiers in the main army had mutinied, they too became agitated, and they put on their armor and held their weapons and refused to calm down.

Zhao Yan wanted to go back to visit the main army again. Zhang Ju and others told him, "The troublemakers in your own camp are already stirring things up, and it wouldn't do any good for you to go there by yourself. Let's wait until the situation becomes clearer."

But Zhao Yan replied, "Though I do worry that my own soldiers may be plotting together with the rebels, I still ought to go and see just what the situation there is, so I'll go. Besides, I doubt that the rebels are going to calm down on their own, so I had better go to them while they are still somewhat tranquil and comfort and console them in order to bring them to heel. Furthermore, this is all my duty as the overall commander. If I fail to pacify this mutiny and I suffer misfortune because of it, that shall be my fate." So he departed.

After traveling for thirty li, Zhao Yan halted and ordered his men to let the horses rest. He took the opportunity to address the soldiers accompanying him, explaining to them that the mutiny would certainly fail, and he was earnest and passionate in consoling them. They all ardently replied, "Protector, in life and death we shall follow you; we would not dare go against you."

Zhao Yan then continued, and when he arrived at the main army's camp, he investigated and discovered that more than eight hundred of the malcontents had scattered into the plans and fields. But he ordered that only the organizers of the mutiny should be dealt with, and no further questions should be asked of anyone else. The local commandaries and counties released and sent back all the rebels whom they had arrested, and they led one another to come submit to Zhao Yan.

Zhao Yan then secretly sent a report stating, "We should send a general to the court and request some veteran soldiers to guard Guanzhong." Cao Cao thus sent the general Liu Zhu to lead two thousand troops, with orders that this not be officially reported until the troops had actually arrived. However, the news leaked, and the various local camps were thrown into a panic and would not calm down or listen to orders.

Zhao Yan then told his generals, "We have too few veteran soldiers on hand here, and the new troops from the east have not yet arrived, thus the local camps here are plotting something nefarious. If we allow their plot to come to fruition, we shall be in unfathomable peril. So we should resolve their doubts as soon as possible."

He then declared that he was going to select a thousand hearty men from among the drafted soldiers to remain defending Guanzhong, while the others would all be sent back east. He even went so far as to supervise the process, reviewing the records of the soldiers of the various camps and carefully investigating them to decide whom to appoint. Those chosen to remain behind were thus reassured, and they were inclined to support Zhao Yan, while those who were ordered to depart did not dare to act against orders. Zhao Yan had all the departing soldiers set out on the same day, while he had the remaining thousand soldiers scattered out among various groups.

When the eastern troops soon arrived, Zhao Yan then used them to force the remaining thousand drafted soldiers to be sent back east as well; he relocated more than twenty thousand people in all.

〈孫盛曰：盛闻为国以礼，民非信不立。周成不弃桐叶之言，晋文不违伐原之誓，故能隆刑措之道，建一匡之功。俨既诈留千人，使效心力，始虽权也。宜以信终。兵威既集，而又逼徙。信义丧矣，何以临民？〉

(Concerning this episode, the historian Sun Sheng remarked: From what I understand, one should govern the state with propriety, nor should one be faithless to the people. It was for such reasons that King Cheng of Zhou upheld his oath of the paulownia leaf to appoint his younger brother as a marquis, though it had been a mere jest, and that Duke Wen of Jin honored his pledge to fall back three she in the face of the Chu army, though he was not compelled to. By honoring their word, both these rulers set a glorious example and established great deeds. Now as for Zhao Yan, his initial deception in retaining a thousand of the draftees may have been called for, an expedient measure in order to calm the people. But having made the agreement, he should have honored it. Yet once his military authority had been augmented, he forced these soldiers to depart as well. Trust and righteousness were thus violated. How could he preside over the people in such a fashion?)

操使儼發千二百兵助漢中守禦，殷署督送之，行者不樂。儼護送至斜谷口，還，未至營，署軍叛亂。儼自隨步騎百五十人，皆叛者親黨也，聞之，各驚，被甲持兵，不復自安。儼徐喻以成敗，慰勵懇切，皆慷慨曰：「死生當隨護軍，不敢有二！」前到諸營，各召料簡諸姦結叛者八百餘人，散在原野。儼下令：惟取其造謀魁率治之，餘一不問；郡縣所收送皆放遣，乃卽相率還降。儼密白：「宜遣將詣大營，〈大營，謂操營也。〉請舊兵鎭守關中。」魏公操遣將軍劉柱將二千人往，當須到乃發遣。俄而事露，諸營大駭，不可安諭。儼遂宣言：「當差留新兵之溫厚者千人，鎭守關中，其餘悉遣東。」便見主者內諸營兵名籍，立差別之。留者意定，與儼同心，其當去者亦不敢動。儼一日盡遣上道，因使所留千人分布羅落之。東兵尋至，〈東兵，劉柱所將之兵也。〉乃復脅諭，幷徙千人，令相及共東。凡所全致二萬餘口。[ZZTJ 215.T]

Cao Cao ordered Zhao Yan to raise twelve hundred soldiers to help in the defence of Hanzhong. Yin Shu was in command of the transfer, but the men were unhappy when the order was given to move. Zhao Yan escorted them as far as the Yegu Pass, but as soon as he went back, and even before they had reached their camp, Yin Shu's troops mutinied.

Zhao Yan had with him some hundred and fifty footsoldiers and horsemen, all of them relatives or fellow-townsmen of the mutineers. When these heard the news they too became agitated: they put on armour and took up weapons, and they would not calm down. Zhao Yan tactfully explained the situation to them, consoled them and encouraged them. All then responded to him and cried, "For life or death we shall follow the Protector. We would not dare be disloyal." They went forward to the rebel camps.

When a count was made it was found that eight hundred of the mutineers had scattered in the countryside, but Zhao Yan issued orders to "Take only the ringleaders for punishment. Ask nothing of the others." Those who had been captured by the commandery and county administrations were sent back, and all the rest came to give themselves up.

Zhao Yan sent in a secret report, urging that "Someone must go to [Cao Cao's] headquarters and ask for experienced and reliable troops to garrison the lands within the passes." Duke Cao of WEI sent General Liu Zhu with two thousand men, and he ordered that no further transfers be made until these forces had arrived.

When this became known, the whole camp was disturbed, and nothing anyone could say would calm the men. So Zhao Yan announced, "We shall choose a thousand good-natured fellows from amongst the newly-joined troops to remain on guard within the passes. The rest will be shifted east."

The officers submitted lists of names of all those in camp. Zhao Yan looked through them and immediately made his selection. Those chosen to stay were quite content, and the ones told off to go did not dare object. Zhao Yan sent them all off down the road on the same day. The thousand men due to remain behind were ordered to escort those who were leaving and keep them in order.

Then Liu Zhu's reinforcements arrived from the east and Zhao Yan was at last able to enforce his orders again. So he shifted the remaining thousand as well, they caught up with the rest and all travelled together. Altogether he transferred more than twenty thousand people.

(In his secret report, Zhao Yan refers to the "main camp"; this means Cao Cao's camp.

The "eastern troops" were those under the command of Liu Zhu.)

关羽围征南將軍曹仁於樊。俨以议郎参仁軍事南行，（迁）平寇將軍徐晃俱前。既到，羽围仁遂坚，餘救兵未到。晃所督不足解围，而诸將呵责晃促救。俨谓诸將曰：「今贼围素固，水潦犹盛。我徒卒单少，而仁隔绝不得同力，此舉適所以弊内外耳。当今不若前軍偪围，遣谍通仁，使知外救，以励將士。计北軍不过十日，尚足坚守。然后表里俱发，破贼必矣。如有缓救之戮，余为诸軍当之。」诸將皆喜，便作地道，箭飞书与仁，消息数通，北軍亦至，并势大战。羽軍既退，舟船犹据沔水，襄陽隔绝不通，而孫权襲取羽辎重，羽闻之，即走南还。仁会诸將议，咸曰：「今因羽危惧，必可追禽也。」俨曰：「权邀羽连兵之难，欲掩制其后，顾羽还救，恐我承其两疲，故顺辞求效，乘衅因变，以观利钝耳。今羽已孤迸，更宜存之以为权害。若深入追北，权则改虞於彼，將生患於我矣。王必以此为深虑。」仁乃解严。太祖闻羽走，恐诸將追之，果疾敕仁，如俨所策。

Guan Yu besieged the General Who Conquers The South, Cao Ren, at Fan (in 219). Zhao Yan was appointed as a Gentleman-Consultant and an advisor for Cao Ren's army in the south. He accompanied the General Who Pacifies Invaders, Xu Huang, to advance to Fan together.

When they arrived, they found that Guan Yu had established sturdy siege lines around Cao Ren's position, and the remaining reinforcements had not arrived either. The forces under Xu Huang's command were thus insufficient to break the siege. Even so, his subordinate generals blamed Xu Huang for his inaction and urged him to rescue Cao Ren at once. But Zhao Yan said to the generals, "The rebels have laid a heavy siege upon the city, and the floodwaters are still high. Furthermore, we are a small and lone force here, and we are still cut off from Cao Ren and thus unable to coordinate our efforts with him. To do as you propose would merely ruin both us and Cao Ren. What we ought to do is have our army advance forward just enough to threaten the enemy's siege lines, while sending word in to Cao Ren to let him know that reinforcements have arrived, which will bolster the morale of his officers and soldiers. I reckon that further reinforcements will arrive here within ten days, and until then, we would do best to shore up our own defenses and await their arrival. Then we may all act at once, and the rebels are sure to be routed. If the reinforcements do not arrive by then, I am willing to accept execution for my mistake." This pleased the generals, and they built tunnels and shot messages attached to arrows in order to communicate with Cao Ren and bring news to him. Then the reinforcements arrived as well, and they all combined their strength and fought a great battle.

Guan Yu's army was thus forced to fall back. However, his fleet was still occupying the Mian River, and communication with Xiangyang was still cut off. But then, Sun Quan captured Guan Yu's supply base. When Guan Yu learned of this, he fled south again.

Cao Ren gathered his generals to discuss what should be done next. Most of them said, "Now that Guan Yu is in such peril, we must pursue and capture him."

But Zhao Yan said, "Sun Quan wanted to take advantage of Guan Yu's troops being locked in battle by moving to seize control of his rear. However, he was worried either that Guan Yu might return to rescue his base or that we would take advantage and attack both sides. It was for that reason that he offered words of submission and asked to prove his devotion by attacking. He is merely taking advantage of the fighting between us and watching to see where he can reap his own advantage. So now that Guan Yu has already been cut off, we ought to leave him be so that he can cause trouble for Sun Quan. If we march deep into his territory to pursue him, then Sun Quan will become worried about us instead, and he will become another problem for us. Prince Cao has surely taken all this into consideration." Cao Ren thus canceled his military preparations.

When Cao Cao heard that Guan Yu had fled, he was worried about his generals pursuing Guan Yu, and he indeed quickly ordered Cao Ren not to do so, just as Zhao Yan had predicted.

操使趙儼以議郎參曹仁軍事，與徐晃俱前，餘救兵未到；晃所督不足解圍，而諸將呼責晃，促救仁。儼謂諸將曰：「今賊圍素固，水潦猶盛，我徒卒單少，而仁隔絕，不得同力，此舉適所以敝內外耳。當今不若前軍偪圍，遣諜通仁，使知外救，以勵將士。計北軍不過十日，尚足堅守，然後表裏俱發，破賊必矣。如有緩救之戮，余爲諸君當之。」諸將皆喜。晃營距羽圍三丈所，作地道及箭飛書與仁，消息數通。〈晃營迫羽圍如此而不能制，使呂蒙不襲取江陵，羽亦必爲操所破，而操假手於蒙者，欲使兩寇自敝，而坐收漁人、田父之功也。〉[ZZTJ 219.BB]

Cao Cao had sent Zhao Yan to accompany Xu Huang as Gentleman-Consultant and Adviser to the Army of Cao Ren. Though the other units had not arrived and Xu Huang's command was too small to break the siege, his officers kept urging him to hasten to Cao Ren's relief. Zhao Yan said to them, "The enemy have a strong position and the floods are still rising. We do not have many men, while Cao Ren is quite cut off and cannot join forces with us. To attack now will only cause difficulty inside and out.

"For the time being, the best plan is to bring the army forward to keep pressure on the besiegers, and send agents through to Cao Ren so that he knows relief is coming and can encourage his men. I reckon it no more than ten days before the main force from the north will arrive, and Cao Ren can hold out that long. Then we can coordinate our attack, and the enemy will certainly be defeated. If anyone is punished for bringing help too late, I shall take full responsibility."

The officers were pleased, and Xu Huang set his camp no more than thirty feet from Guan Yu's siege-works. He dug tunnels into the city and shot letters to Cao Ren on arrows, so news and information were exchanged several times.

(Considering that Xu Huang was able to threaten Guan Yu's siege lines to this extent and yet Guan Yu could not deal with him, Guan Yu surely would have been routed by Cao Cao in the end even if Lü Meng hadn't launched his surprise attack against Jiangling. However, the reason that Cao Cao decided to borrow the hand of Lü Meng was because he wished to have his two enemies destroy one another, while he sat back and "reaped the fisherman's profit" or "showed the merit of the old farmer".)

關羽聞南郡破，卽走南還。曹仁會諸將議，咸曰：「今因羽危懼，可追禽也。」趙儼曰：「權邀羽連兵之難，欲掩制其後，顧羽還救，恐我乘其兩疲，故順辭求效，乘釁因變以觀利鈍耳。今羽已孤迸，更宜存之以爲權害。若深入追北，權則改虞於彼，將生患於我矣，王必以此爲深慮。」仁乃解嚴。〈趙儼之計，此戰國策士所謂兩利而俱存之之計也。解嚴，解所嚴兵，不復追羽也。是後陸遜敗劉備於峽中，收兵而還，不復追備，計亦出此。〉魏王操聞羽走，恐諸將追之，果疾敕仁如儼所策。[ZZTJ 219.GG]

As soon as Guan Yu heard that Nan commandery had fallen, he returned in haste to the south. Cao Ren gathered his officers for a council of war, and everyone said, "Guan Yu is threatened and anxious. We can chase him and take him." Zhao Yan, however, argued that, "Sun Quan has taken advantage of the fact that Guan Yu was vulnerable, with his forces committed elsewhere, and has made a surprise attack against his rear.

"When he sees Guan Yu coming back to the relief he will be afraid we may take advantage of both of them. He will therefore address us very politely, and request our full support. Then he will simply let our people do the fighting and stand by to watch the result.

"Now that Guan Yu is isolated and in flight, we should keep him as a threat to Sun Quan. If instead we press him too hard, Sun Quan will change his plans and turn against us. His majesty the King will certainly give deep thought to this question."

So Cao Ren cancelled his orders. When King Cao of WEI heard Guan Yu had fled, he was afraid his officers might chase after him, and he did send orders post-haste to Cao Ren, just the way Zhao Yan had said.

(Cao Ren canceled his preparations in that he no longer planned to pursue Guan Yu.

Zhao Yan's plan was along the same lines as those old Warring States strategists who advised mutual benefit through mutual preservation. When Lu Xun later defeated Liu Bei at Xiazhong, he too merely gathered up his own troops and turned back rather than pursue Liu Bei; it was for the same reason.)

文帝即王位，为侍中。顷之，拜驸马都尉，领河东太守，典农中郎將。黃初三年，赐爵关内侯。孫权寇边，征东大將軍曹休统五州軍御之，徵俨为軍师。权众退，軍还，封宜土亭侯，转为度支中郎將，迁尚书。从征吴，到广陵，复留为征东軍师。明帝即位，进封都乡侯，邑六百户，监荆州诸軍事，假节。会疾，不行，复为尚书，出监豫州诸軍事，转大司马軍师，入为大司农。齐王即位，以俨监雍、凉诸軍事，假节，转征蜀將軍，又迁征西將軍，都督雍、凉。正始四年，老疾求还，徵为骠骑將軍，迁司空。薨，谥曰穆侯。子亭嗣。初，俨与同郡辛毗、陈群、杜襲并知名，号曰「辛、陈、杜、趙」云。

When Cao Pi rose to the throne (in 220), Zhao Yan was appointed as a Palace Attendant. Not long afterwards, he was appointed as Commandant of Side-Cavalry, acting Administrator of Hedong, and Agricultural Director of the Household Gentlemen. In the third year of Huangchu (222), he was appointed as a Marquis Within The Passes. When Sun Quan invaded the border regions and the Grand General Who Conquers The East, Cao Xiu, led the forces of five provinces to oppose him, he summoned Zhao Yan to accompany him as a Directing Instructor. Once Sun Quan's host retreated, the armies returned, and Zhao Yan was appointed as Marquis of Yitu Village. He was transferred to be Logistical Director of the Household Gentlemen, then became a Master of Writing. Zhao Yan accompanied the army on the campaign against Wu, traveling as far as Guangling, and he was once again appointed as Directing Instructor to the General Who Conquers The East.

When Cao Rui became Emperor (in 226), he promoted Zhao Yan to a Marquis of a Capital District, with a fief of six hundred households. Zhao Yan was appointed as Credential Holder and Chief of military affairs in Jingzhou, but he soon fell ill and was unable to take up that post, so he was once again appointed as a Master of Writing. Later, he was sent out to serve as Chief of military affairs in Yuzhou, then transferred to be Directing Instructor to the Grand Marshal, then brought back to the capital to be Grand Minister of Finance.

When Cao Fang rose to the throne (in 239), Zhao Yan was appointed as Chief of military affairs in Yongzhou and Liangzhou and Credential Holder. He was transferred to be General Who Conquers Shu, then as General Who Conquers The West and Commander of military affairs in Yongzhou and Liangzhou. In the fourth year of Zhengshi (243), he asked to return to the capital on account of illness, so he was summoned back to serve as General of Agile Cavalry, then transferred to be Minister of Works. When Zhao Yan passed away, he was granted the posthumous title Marquis Mu ("the Solemn"). His son Zhao Ting succeeded him.

Since Zhao Yan, Xin Pi, Chen Qun, and Du Xi had all come from the same commandary and had all become famous, people used to refer to them all in the same breath as "Xin, Chen, Du, and Zhao".

〈《魏略》曰：旧故四征有官厨财籍，迁转之际，无不因缘。而俨叉手上车，发到霸上，忘持其常所服药。雍州闻之，乃追送杂药材数箱，俨笑曰：「人言语殊不易，我偶问所服药耳，何用是为邪？」遂不取。〉

(The Weilue states, "Traditionally it was the case that the Generals Who Conquer (the East, etc.) had their own government staff and resources, and whenever they were assigned somewhere else they invariably brought along such assistants. Yet when Zhao Yan set out to return to the capital, he traveled as far as Bashang before realizing that he had forgotten to bring along the medicine that he usually took. When the officials of Yongzhou heard him mention this, they hurriedly had people pursue Zhao Yan and bring along several boxes of various medicines. But Zhao Yan only laughed and said, "Such things are easier said than done. Why go to all this trouble when I was only just asking about my medicine?" And he did not take it.)

春，正月，以票騎將軍趙儼爲司空。[ZZTJ 245.1]

Spring, first month (February 14-March 15). The General of Agile Cavalry, Zhao Yan, was appointed Minister of Works.

夏，六月，都卿穆侯趙儼卒。〈《諡法》：中情見貌曰穆。〉[ZZTJ 245.14]

Summer, sixth month (July 12-August 9). Zhao Yan, the “Affable (Mu)” Lord of Duxiang, died.

(The Laws of Posthumous Names states, "One whose inner feelings are displayed in their expression may be called Mu.")

#Zhao Yan #Three Kingdoms #Sanguo #Sanguozhi

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