Chapter Sixty-three Pray, tell me, how much sorrow can one bear? (III)

　　He said:　　"A hundred thousand households resemble a board of weiqi,　　Twelve streets align like furrows of a garden.　　From afar one discerns the faint glow of morning fires,　　Like a river of stars flowing westward of the Five Gates."　　Now, when Wu Chengsi died in discontent, the Empress felt remorse. She thought that if Wu Yanxiu could not be brought back, then in a hundred years the ancestral line of the Wu clan would not be honored. Moreover, the rebellion of Mochuo still raged on. To pacify this turmoil, in the second year of Shengli (699), the Empress appointed Minister of State Affairs Di Renjie as Supreme Commander of the Hebei expeditionary forces, to lead the army against Mochuo.　　Prince Liang, Wu Sansi, saw this and realized he had no more means to rise; fearing for his future standing in court, he admonished the Empress, saying:　　"Lord Di is already in his seventies, yet still he devotes himself to the state. I am deeply ashamed. Though I lack ability, I beg permission to recruit soldiers for Lord Di, so as to respond to his loyal heart."　　The Empress, upon reading this, felt somewhat comforted and gave consent. Thus Wu Sansi began raising troops in Luoyang. Yet as days passed, none enlisted. As the day of battle drew near, Wu Sansi was much distressed.　　His retainers advised: "Your Highness, why not recruit under the name of the Crown Prince?"　　Wu Sansi resisted: "I have been commanded by the August One to recruit soldiers; this must be under my name. To use the Crown Prince's name—what propriety would that be?"　　The retainer replied: "Your Highness speaks tru