Capture of Fu Pass

The Capture of Fu Pass is a turning point in Xuande’s advance through Yi Province: an apparent departure from the pass becomes a trap for two commanders plotting against him, and their soldiers help Xuande’s army take the fortification without further bloodshed. The episode joins warning, deception, and clemency in a swift change of control.

Causes and Background

Liu Zhang has learned of a genuine threat against him and orders the passes guarded, with no one from Jingzhou allowed to travel in or out. At Fu Pass, Xuande invites the commanders Yang Huai and Gao Pei to pay their respects as he departs. Suspecting that Xuande has a plan, they arrive with two hundred men and concealed knives, intending to kill him at the meeting.

The encounter is therefore shaped by competing suspicions: the commanders come prepared to attack, while Xuande has already been warned that he is in danger. The pass, meant to control movement through the region, becomes the setting for a struggle over who can command its gate and the troops guarding it.

The Meeting and Seizure

A banner blows over, and Pang Tong interprets the incident as a warning of a murder plot. When Yang Huai and Gao Pei arrive bearing gifts, Xuande welcomes them and pretends to have a secret to share, getting their men out of the meeting. The two commanders are then seized, and concealed knives are found on them. Pang Tong urges that they be killed. Xuande hesitates, but after being persuaded that the men had intended to kill him, he gives permission for their immediate execution.

Xuande does not treat the two hundred soldiers as accomplices to be punished. He offers them freedom or the opportunity to join his army. Relieved at being spared, they cheer him. Pang Tong uses this change in allegiance to propose the next step: the soldiers can help Xuande’s men enter the pass by approaching the gate as if returning to their post.

The Gate Opens

The soldiers agree and lead Xuande’s force to the fortified entrance. They call for entry; the defenders recognize them and open the gate. Xuande’s men rush in alongside the soldiers who have changed sides, and the defenders surrender when they realize they are overwhelmed. The pass is captured in minutes, with no further bloodshed.

The quick outcome depends on more than the commanders’ removal. Xuande’s offer gives their men a reason to cooperate, and their familiarity to the defenders turns the gate itself into the means of entry. The capture thus converts a dangerous meeting into a change of control without a prolonged assault.

Consequences and Significance

News of Yang Huai and Gao Pei’s deaths and the fall of Fu Pass alarms Liu Zhang, who is especially distressed that a kinsman has acted against him. He follows Huang Quan’s advice to strengthen Luocheng as a barrier to Xuande’s further advance, sending Liu Gui, Ling Bao, Zhang Ren, and Deng Xian to defend it with fifty thousand men. The capture therefore wins Xuande a passage while prompting Liu Zhang to prepare the next line of resistance.

The episode’s resolution contrasts lethal force with selective restraint. Xuande authorizes the deaths of the two men who planned to kill him, but spares their two hundred soldiers and turns them into the means of taking the pass. That combination of punishment and clemency changes both the balance of power at Fu Pass and the immediate prospects for Xuande’s campaign.