| Annals of Xiang Yu: |
As Pei Gong has come out, King Xiang ordered Lieutenant Chen Ping to call him back in. Pei Gong said (to Fan Kuai): "I came out without saying goodbye, what should I do now?" Fan Kuai said: "The most powerful never mind small matters; the most polite never care about small etiquette. Now they are knife and chopping block, we are fish in between, why need we say goodbye?" So [Pei Gong decided to] leave. He ordered Zhang Liang to stay and apologize for him. Liang asked: "Have you brought anything here?" [Pei Gong] said: "I have a pair of white jade for the Lord, and a pair of jade pecks for Yafu. They were angry so I dare not give them. Please deliver the gifts for me." Liang said: "Yes."
At that time, the camp of King Xiang was in Hongmen, and the camp of Pei Gong was in Bashang, 40 li from each other. Pei Gong discarded his chariot and rode alone, followed by Fan Kuai, Xiahou Ying, Qi Jiang and Ji Xin with swords and shields in their hands. They took a shortcut at the foot of the Mountain Li through Zhiyang. Pei Gong told Liang [before they left]: "It is only 20 li to our camp through this path. You go back in when you estimate that we have arrived." Pei Gong reached his camp after a while. Zhang Liang went back in (to the hall) and apologized: "Pei Gong has drunk too much, he cannot say his farewells. He ordered me to give this pair of white jade to the Lord, and this pair of jade pecks to the high general." King Xiang asked: "Where is Pei Gong?" Liang said: "He heard that the Lord intended to blame him for his fault, so he left and should have arrived in his camp." King Xiang accepted the jade and put it on the table. Yafu took the jade pecks, put them on the ground and broke them with his sword, saying (to Xiang Yu): "Ah! You idiot, I cannot help you! It shall be Pei Gong who will defeat you. We all will be imprisoned by him!" Upon arriving in his camp, Pei Gong executed Cao Wushang. |
