Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 102 With a sharp blade in hand, the will to kill arises spontaneously.

Unlike the sorrow in the Shu Han imperial palace, laughter never stopped after Shi Shouxin led his troops back to Baishui Pass.

No need for weapons, go and claim it!
If you don't have a uniform, go get one!
Without armor, the strong and healthy shall go and lead!
The four local powerful families from Hanzhong received military uniforms and weapons. Under Shi Shouxin's command and arrangement, they began to reorganize their troops, select junior and middle-ranking officers, and determine the order of battle.

After several days of counting, a total of 2,500 soldiers were obtained, including 1,000 from the Xi family and 500 each from the other three families. The Yang family also had many tenant farmers and the elderly and weak who were settled around Baishui Pass and were allocated land and empty houses.

These troops are already a real army, lacking only training and actual combat experience; their weaponry is essentially no different from that of the Wei army.

The difference is that the Wei army listens to Sima Zhao and Zhong Hui, while these soldiers are hereditary soldiers who only listen to Shi Shouxin.

These soldiers, newly recruited into the "regular army," had no idea who Sima Zhao was, nor did they care about Zhong Hui. All they knew was that Shi Shouxin was their boss, his word was law, and they would do whatever he ordered!
As for the matter of Zhong Hui plotting a rebellion, it has nothing to do with them. They only stand in front of Shi Shouxin, responsible for charging into battle, killing and robbing!
The main focus is loyalty!
Late that night, Shi Shouxin, who had just finished dealing with military affairs, was working in the signing room on the Baishuiguan city tower, which also served as his study.

When the four local powerful families in Hanzhong saw how simple Shi Shouxin's life was and how he personally handled everything, they were all sincerely impressed and dared not have any ulterior motives.

"Deng Ai has indeed cleared the game, but he doesn't know that there are additional levels in this game."

Having finished writing down the ten basic military principles, Shi Shouxin placed the brush on the brush holder, crossed his arms, and pondered to himself.

Ma Long brought back Zhong Hui's military orders and a thousand sets of half-body lamellar armor. Shi Shouxin has now been appointed as a lieutenant general, leading an army independently. Nominally, he is under the dual command of Sima Zhao and Zhong Hui!

Or you could call it "He can choose to listen to whomever he wants"!
This is a remarkable step, akin to breaking free from bound hands.

The most important reason why Wei Guan could not suppress Zhong Hui was that he only had a thousand men under his command.

The position of military supervisor and the power of holding the imperial insignia do not inherently conflict with whether or not one should lead an army independently. Sima Zhao's decision not to give Wei Guan enough troops was merely to ensure Zhong Hui performed his duties well, thus deliberately putting Wei Guan in a subordinate position.

Now that Shi Shouxin has the power of a hereditary army, the ridiculous thing of sending him to deliver messages like before is no longer possible.

He looked at the appointment letter on the table, a cold smile appearing on his face.

With a sharp blade in hand, the desire to kill arises spontaneously!
Shi Shouxin is ready to enter Sichuan and then have a good showdown with all sorts of demons and monsters. In the chaos of war, it won't be surprising if anyone dies; no one's neck can't be cut off!
This is a golden opportunity for him to gain political capital! Now that he is well prepared, he will no longer feel the helplessness of being manipulated by others as he did in the past.

"The lid's off, it's time to add some seasoning. Otherwise, it'll be too bland and tasteless!"

Shi Shouxin muttered to himself as he spread a piece of paper on the table and picked up a pen to write a letter to a man who was now living a life of great success in Sichuan.

That person was Deng Ai!
If Deng Ai were simply arrested by Wei Guan, as in history, things wouldn't be interesting. The water isn't murky enough to facilitate fishing.

Leaving aside Zhong Hui's arrogance, Jiang Wei was not someone to be trifled with. Shi Shouxin had already gauged Zhong Hui's strength, but he dared not underestimate Jiang Wei in the slightest.

I wrote as I thought, and the writing became smoother and smoother.

Half an hour later, the letter was finished. Shi Shouxin read it over several times and was quite satisfied with it.

The letter begins by congratulating Deng Ai on his extraordinary achievements and praising him for his future renown in history.

Secondly, it serves as a reminder to Deng Ai that the extermination of his clan is imminent.

In his letter, Shi Shouxin said that the Sima family had devoted themselves to the country for two generations, but the territory they had seized was insignificant, let alone the achievement of destroying a country.

As a result, the great credit for conquering Shu was actually taken by General Deng.

After the army returns to the capital, Sima Zhao will have to be subservient to you. After conquering Shu, your prestige will be at its zenith. Tell me, who in the court will still listen to Sima Zhao? At that time, they will probably all follow General Deng's lead.

Now that the Cao family's power has been usurped and their rule exists in name only, and General Deng has made unparalleled contributions, it seems that the Deng family's change of dynasty is not far off.

Should I address you as the Son of Heaven now, or should I address you as the Son of Heaven later?

This situation is really putting me in a difficult position.

Finally, Shi Shouxin "reminded" Deng Ai that if he wanted to become emperor, he should quickly stage a coup in Shu, and he would absolutely not participate in the campaign against General Deng.

If General Deng has no intention of declaring himself emperor in Shu, then you should think about how to explain this to Duke Jin. There cannot be two suns in the sky, nor two rulers in a country; this is a principle even a three-year-old understands, and I believe General Deng understands it too.

I surmise that after learning of General Deng's conquest of Shu, the Duke of Jin, stationed in Chang'an, will immediately send Zhong Hui with a large army to capture and kill you. I'm only reminding you because I don't want to see General Deng die and his clan wiped out; I mean nothing more.

If General Deng doesn't take this seriously, then if your whole family suffers a catastrophic disaster in the future, don't blame me for not warning you.

You should not have crossed the river, yet you did. You died while crossing; what can be done about it?
The ancients have long ago made this point, and I hope General Deng will understand.

All of Zhong Hui's Wei troops will kill you without hesitation. I hope you will be careful and not take any chances.

This letter should be burned immediately after reading, so as not to give others cause for criticism.

Shi Shouxin put the letter away and then had Meng Guan summon his beautiful concubine, Li Qiu.

As soon as the beautiful young woman entered the signing room, she bowed respectfully upon seeing Shi Shouxin. Her charming face displayed a mixture of shyness and joy, but her eyes held a barely perceptible longing.

A woman who has tasted the sweetness of love always looks at her lover with eyes as clear as a flowing spring river.

Shi Shouxin immediately had her sit on his lap, picked her up and kissed her. The two kissed for a long time before separating.

At this moment, Li Qiu was already panting heavily, and a blush appeared on her cheeks.

Those bright eyes seemed to spit fire, carrying an undisguised allure. She slumped limply in Shi Shouxin's arms, like an eel, her bones almost gone.

It is said that women are made of water, and Shi Shouxin wholeheartedly agrees at this moment.

"Please sit here. How is your handwriting?"

Shi Shouxin asked Li Qiu to sit next to him, then looked into her eyes and asked.

"Not bad, he started practicing at a very young age."

Li Qiu said in a low voice, with a lot of confidence.

"Make a copy."

Shi Shouxin remained calm as he laid out the letter he had just written on the table.

Li Qiu glanced at him with some doubt, but didn't say anything. She picked up a brush and copied the letter directly. The delicate handwriting was clearly from a woman's hand.

After the transcription was completed, Shi Shouxin suddenly asked, "What did this letter say?" Li Qiu was taken aback and replied casually, "I was so busy copying that I don't remember what I copied."

She genuinely doesn't remember, or perhaps it's due to her upbringing.

From a young age, I was taught at home not to memorize what was written when copying letters.

"Don't be nervous, I was just asking casually."

Shi Shouxin smiled gently, putting one arm around Li Qiu's slender waist and pulling her into his arms.

"My lord, there are three other women who will become your concubines this time. Why do you favor me the only one?"

As Shi Shouxin kissed her cheek, Li Qiu breathed heavily and murmured with her eyes closed. She knew very well that Shi Shouxin had no shortage of women around him, and the competition was fierce.

Now that we have the chance to spend time together, let's not be sentimental!

"You're not even pregnant yet, how could I possibly touch them? We'll talk about everything once you're pregnant."

Shi Shouxin whispered in Li Qiu's ear.

The sooner they have children, the sooner they can establish a relationship. If Li Qiu doesn't give birth to his child, those Li family retainers won't be so devoted to fighting for him.

Shi Shouxin showed no courtesy whatsoever; after all, she was his concubine, and he figured he should seize the day.

Beauty is secondary; politics is the primary principle for survival. Shi Shouxin intends to set an example for the other three wealthy families in Hanzhong by showing favor to Li Qiu. With an example set, others will follow suit, and order will be established.

These words were like the most potent aphrodisiac in the world. Li Qiu, bewildered and infatuated, began to actively respond without hesitation.

Shi Shouxin has his way of surviving, and Li Qiu also has his own way of surviving.

The room was filled with springtime beauty, making everyone around envious.

……

Deng Ai led his troops to capture Luocheng, and he seemed to be full of pride and prestige.

But in reality, the Wei army was already exhausted.

Chengdu was the capital of Shu Han. Putting aside everything else, its sheer numbers alone could overwhelm Deng Ai's small army.

Therefore, after capturing Luocheng, the Wei army's advance came to a halt. Even Deng Ai, a man who was not afraid of death, was no longer as arrogant as before.

Instead, they became extremely cautious and timid.

Chengdu has a large population; you could raise an army just from the Shu Han imperial palace alone. How could Deng Ai not be afraid?
Taking advantage of the torrential rain, the Wei army rested in Luocheng for a few days. Deng Ai racked his brains but couldn't come up with a way to conquer Chengdu. If Liu Shan really fought to the death and held Chengdu firmly, Deng Ai's forces were simply not enough to take the city; he might as well give up and go to sleep.

Even if Liu Shan erected straw men on the city walls, this large city was not one that Deng Ai could easily conquer.

what can we do about it?

Deng Ai was unaware that he had discussed the matter with Shi Zuan, Deng Zhong, Tian Xu, and others for three days, but they still couldn't come up with a good solution.

The only way to conquer Chengdu is to wait for Liu Shan to surrender.

This is no joke; it is a true reflection of the precarious state of Shu today!

Although the Wei army failed to capture Chengdu, the foundation of the Shu Kingdom had collapsed, rendering it incapable of re-establishing itself. The powerful families of Shu had long lost the will to fight, and they had no interest in the Shu Han's proposal to restore the Han Dynasty.

Even if Deng Ai's Wei army withdrew from Shu, the Shu Kingdom afterward would no longer be the same as before.

The tide has turned, and there's no turning back!
Therefore, from this perspective, Deng Ai was not without a chance of winning.

The current situation is like the final shot in a football match. The goal is open, and with a little care, it's guaranteed to go in. Anyone would need to stay calm in that situation.

Deng Ai is waiting; he won't make a move easily!

After several days of torrential rain, the rain finally stopped, and the sky cleared up without a single cloud.

The scorching heat of summer is gradually and silently receding. Autumn is slowly approaching, the season of harvest.

The chirping of cicadas outside the window disturbed Deng Ai, who was sitting upright in the main hall of the county government office.

It's so frustrating to be so close, but you don't have the strength to do it and hand over the initiative to the enemy.

Just then, Deng Zhong rushed over and, before Deng Ai could reprimand him, hurriedly stepped forward and reported, "Father, Qiao Zhou has arrived with a letter of surrender. Liu Shan is willing to surrender, only asking that we treat the people of Shu well!"

He was visibly excited, and his whole body was trembling uncontrollably.

Today's victory was hard-won, fraught with danger and bloodshed along the way. Many fell on the way to secretly cross Yinping, and many more died on the battlefield fighting to the death with the Shu army under Zhuge Zhan.

The hard-won victory was earned by them, one blow at a time!

How could Deng Zhong not be excited!
"Quick, take me there!"

Deng Ai suddenly stood up and ran without putting on her shoes, but turned back at the lobby entrance to put them on.

When he arrived at the entrance of the county government office, he saw Qiao Zhou, Deng Liang, and Zhang Shao kneeling on the ground. Qiao Zhou was holding a letter of surrender in his hand, and the other two were behind him.

Seeing that obsequious manner, Deng Ai felt both admiration and contempt.

"What is the reason for this? Please rise, please rise!"

Deng Ai, with a humble demeanor, quickly stepped forward and helped the three people up.

"My lord is willing to surrender, only asking that Lord Deng treat the people of Shu well."

Qiao Zhou stood up, respectfully handed the surrender document to Deng Ai, and then lowered his head without saying a word.

(End of this chapter)