Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 111: The Pig Teammate Who Can't Be Carried Away

Zhong Hui stationed his troops in Fucheng and was not in a hurry to advance on Chengdu. He was waiting for Jiang Wei to surrender to him.

This was not a whim of Zhong Hui to praise Jiang Wei, a "famous scholar of Shu," but rather a result of his own political planning.

The current situation is that Deng Ai has gained the upper hand, and Liu Shan was forced to surrender by Deng Ai.

Even if Zhong Hui had arrived in Chengdu, the situation there would likely have been dominated by Deng Ai. The reason is simple: Emperor Liu Shan of Shu submitted his surrender document to Deng Ai, not Zhong Hui.

Therefore, naturally, Deng Ai came to control the situation in Shu. With Liu Shan in his grasp, Deng Ai could forge various edicts and control the resources of Shu.

Zhong Hui, as an "outsider" from Wei with no connections in Shu, shared the same niche as Deng Ai. Deng Ai was already in control of the situation; no matter how Zhong Hui tried, he couldn't outmaneuver him.

So how do we break this deadlock?
Zhong Hui thought of one person: Jiang Wei!

Although there is no conclusive evidence that Jiang Wei was Zhuge Liang's disciple, there is no doubt that Jiang Wei was entrusted with Zhuge Liang's care before his death and was also his spiritual successor.

Jiang Wei was a key figure in Zhong Hui's opening up of the situation in Shu, and an indispensable person in his execution of his "exclusive plan".

Of the more than 100,000 men under Zhong Hui's command, only Shi Shouxin "knew" his plan.

Shi Shouxin, who was in Jiange checking the grain and fodder, distributing military rations, and arranging transportation, was also preparing for his own plans.

Early that morning, Shi Shouxin ordered all soldiers, except for the few hundred guarding the pass, to assemble at the drill ground inside the pass.

One thousand men under Ma Long's command, two thousand five hundred soldiers from the local gentry of Hanzhong, and two thousand soldiers from Weixing County borrowed from Liu Qin were all standing in neat rows on the drill ground.

Shi Shouxin instructed Meng Guan to lead a hundred personal guards to patrol the drill ground.

Anyone who makes a rash move will be struck with a wooden stick as a warning the first time they are caught. If they commit the offense a second time, they will be dragged out and executed in front of all the soldiers in the unit!

Military appearance, discipline, and posture are the first steps in transforming a rabble into elite soldiers. If even this cannot be achieved, then there is nothing more to say.

Shi Shouxin could tolerate his side being inferior to the enemy in terms of tactics and skills on the battlefield, but he absolutely could not tolerate a soldier who did not stand or sit properly.

After giving these instructions, Shi Shouxin went to the granary to check the account books. Because the journey to transport the grain was too long, more than half of the grain was consumed on the way.

There are still some unclear accounts. Transporting supplies is a job that doesn't offer any military merit, so nobody wants to do it. Delivering on time brings no reward, while delays result in punishment and demerits.

Therefore, most grain transport teams had their own set of tricks.

Upon arriving at the granary, two minor officials sent by Zhong Hui were doing accounts. Without saying a word, Shi Shouxin ordered them to take out the bamboo slip account books from the baskets so he could check them.

Although papermaking technology has developed greatly since the Three Kingdoms period, bamboo slips still have their own unique advantages in many places.

For example, it can be reused.

It wasn't that the government couldn't afford paper, but rather that bamboo slips were more cost-effective.

By checking the accounts one by one and roughly calculating the distance of the grain transport in his mind, Shi Shouxin soon discovered the trickery.

The "loss" of these provisions was truly astonishing. In other words, the grain transport team ate far too much on the way!

The past accounts were relatively good, probably because it was during a war, and it was really difficult to tamper with military rations; if something went wrong, you would lose your head.

However, with the capture of Yang'an Pass and Deng Ai's successful sneak crossing of Yinping, the losses of grain transported from Guanzhong increased dramatically. The current loss rate is almost double that at the start of the war! No wonder they consumed more than half of it along the way.

"The war is about to end, and those who didn't get enough before are now reaping what they can."

Shi Shouxin revealed a mocking smile.

After Liu Shan submitted the surrender document, the Wei army, from top to bottom, from soldiers to logistics personnel, all believed that the war was over.

Those in logistics are feasting in the rear, while those on the front lines are probably preparing to plunder the local areas.

What an ugly scene! But it's only human nature; the war against Shu was a lavish feast, and anyone who could get involved wouldn't hesitate to make a profit. These people were all like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, each displaying their unique abilities.

Shi Shouxin tossed the bamboo slips into the basket; he already knew what was going on. These accounts could be checked discreetly, so there was no rush.

Just then, a soldier hurriedly entered the granary's accounting room and whispered a few words to Shi Shouxin.

Shi Shouxin, who had been nonchalant, immediately narrowed his eyes, as if he had noticed something.

"Have they detained the person?"

Shi Shouxin asked in a deep voice.

"Reporting to Supervisor Shi, the man has been detained in the signing room on the city wall. General Meng is guarding him. Would you like to go and take a look?"

The guard asked in a low voice.

"Lead the way, I'll go take a look."

Shi Shouxin stood up and ordered his personal guards to take him to the city tower.

A short while later, in the signing room on the city wall of Dajian Pass, Shi Shouxin saw the "spy" that the guard had just mentioned, who was now bound hand and foot.

The so-called spy who could make Meng Guan set aside his military duties to deal with him must not be an ordinary person.

"Commander Shi, this should be the person you are looking to arrest."

Meng Guan leaned closer and whispered.

"Shi Shouxin, I am a messenger of Grand Commandant Deng, on my way to Chang'an to deliver a message to the General. Why are you arresting me?"

The man who called himself the messenger looked at Shi Shouxin and angrily rebuked him, seemingly unaware of the seriousness of the matter.

He assumed that he and Shi Shouxin were both soldiers of Wei, therefore they should be on the same side. But the reality was far more complex than the messenger imagined.

However, the fact that this messenger knew to avoid Zhong Hui's army entrenched in Fucheng shows that he wasn't completely stupid.

Shi Shouxin was too lazy to waste words with this fellow. He directly took the secret letter that Deng Ai wrote to the court from Meng Guan, examined it repeatedly, and read it over and over again.

There was a strange look on his face.

In his letter, Deng Ai reported three things to Sima Zhao:
Firstly, I took it upon myself to sneak across Yinping because the opportunity was rare, and a general in the field may disobey orders. I admit I was a bit daring, but I gambled and succeeded.

Secondly, Liu Shan and his descendants should all be relocated to Luoyang. The court should treat them well, setting an example for the rulers and ministers of Eastern Wu. I suggest that Liu Shan be granted the title of King of Fufeng, given wealth, and be served by servants so that he can enjoy a comfortable life. I believe this arrangement is more appropriate.

Thirdly: Strike while the iron is hot, strengthen military training and build warships in Shu. Three years later, we can sail downriver and pacify Eastern Wu. I suggest the court allow me to oversee the campaign against Wu in Shu.

Faced with such a letter, Shi Shouxin didn't know how to evaluate it.

"Shi Shouxin, you opened Grand Commandant Deng's letter without permission. Do you have a death wish?"

Seeing that Shi Shouxin hadn't spoken for a long time, the messenger couldn't help but ask a question.

"Do you want to rest here for a while before taking the letter to Chang'an, or do you want me to kill you and send someone else to Chang'an to deliver the letter?"

Shi Shouxin looked at the man and asked.

The messenger fell silent. If he could live, who would want to die? Deng Ai wasn't his father!

"Untie him and take him away to be kept under close watch! Don't neglect him."

Shi Shouxin waved his hand gently, and Meng Guan personally untied the ropes binding the messenger and led him out of the signing room.

After everyone had left, Shi Shouxin sat down at the table, spread the letter out on the table, and lowered his head in deep thought.

This was Deng Ai's letter reporting his achievements to the court, but it was also a letter that could send him into an abyss. Even if Zhong Hui hadn't changed a single word, Sima Zhao would still have considered killing Deng Ai after seeing this letter.

The question now is: should Shi Shouxin lend Deng Ai a hand, or rather, how should he do so?

This guy is a master of self-destruction; he's put all his skill points into military matters, leaving him a complete novice when it comes to politics!

Shi Shouxin is now faced with several options, making it difficult for him to decide.

The first option is to send the letter back to Deng Ai and tell him that if he sends this letter to the court, he will surely die, so he should rewrite it immediately.

What would happen then?

not so good!
Deng Ai wouldn't appreciate it at all. If he had that kind of emotional intelligence, he wouldn't have written such a letter!
The second option is to ignore everything and simply return the letter to the messenger, letting him deliver it directly to Chang'an. This isn't impossible, but Shi Shouxin doesn't know what a sealing wax seal looks like; this is Deng Ai's token.

Shi Shouxin only copied the Grand Commander's seal from Zhong Hui; he didn't know about the one from Deng Ai.

They were handed over to Sima Zhao just like that, which can be described as getting nothing but trouble instead of getting anything.

This clearly does not conform to Shi Shouxin's usual principle of doing things in a roundabout way.

Therefore, the only option left is the third one: deliver the letter to Zhong Hui and then seek benefits from him. After all, helping to intercept Deng Ai's letter to the court is also a way of subtly demonstrating loyalty to Zhong Hui.

Of course, sending the letter to Zhong Hui is fine, but it's not acceptable to help Zhong Hui deal with Deng Ai, because in this power struggle, Deng Ai is the weakest party. Only by weakening the strong and helping the weak can the "muddled situation" be maintained.

Then take advantage of the chaos!

After pondering for a moment, Shi Shouxin had made up his mind.

It's time to make a move!

He sent someone to summon Li Liang to the signing room, and then, without saying a word, handed Deng Ai's letter to Li Liang to read.

After a moment, Li Liang sighed and said, "Deng Ai really knew how to die a righteous death."

This comment was very accurate, and Shi Shouxin nodded in agreement.

"Here's what you're going to do: leave now, take the letter I gave you last time, go to Chengdu and find Deng Ai, and give him the letter."

Remember, don't go to deliver it yourself. Go to a beggar on the street; whatever you do, don't reveal your whereabouts or identity.

Shi Shouxin reminded him that he had changed his mind.

Judging from what Deng Ai wrote in this letter, this General Deng's political intelligence was frighteningly low, and Shi Shouxin was really afraid of being dragged down by him.

When some people get really stupid, you really can't guess what kind of trouble they'll cause.

"Understood, I will certainly handle it well."

Li Liang said with absolute certainty.

Shi Shouxin was still somewhat worried, because his letter might not be able to offset the negative impact of Deng Ai's memorial to the court.

"Have your sister make another copy of Deng Ai's letter to the court, and send it over together with my letter."

If Deng Ai still doesn't understand what these things mean, then there's really nothing more that can be done.

Shi Shouxin also gave a wry smile.

"Commander Shi, man proposes, God disposes. Just do your best."

Li Liang advised him that he didn't really think highly of Deng Ai, but Shi Shouxin was the backbone, so he could only keep his opinion to himself.

(End of this chapter)