Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 119: The bottom overcomes the top (1)

Upon returning from Zhong Hui's camp, Shi Shouxin was utterly disappointed in this Grand Commander of the Wei army.

In his past life, he often mocked Yuan Shao for being cunning but indecisive. He felt that Yuan Shao had truly squandered a winning hand.

But seeing Zhong Hui today, Shi Shouxin finally understood: the fog of the times is not something everyone can see through.

When you're in a fog, you can only make choices based on the few steps you can see in front of you.

Often, being impatient for quick success, focusing only on the present, being indecisive, and resorting to desperate measures are all common occurrences.

Zhong Hui was in a similar predicament; faced with Sima Zhao's blatant favoritism towards Deng Ai, he too began to panic. Now, for Zhong Hui to even consider surrendering and accepting defeat was utterly distasteful.
It's okay if you surrender and lose half your money, but what about the people who follow you?
Shi Shouxin found Zhong Hui's actions utterly outrageous, so he quickly summoned Li Liang and Meng Guan to discuss countermeasures. Shi Shouxin recounted the events that had transpired in Zhong Hui's tent that night, and Li Liang and Meng Guan were equally incredulous!

At this critical juncture, Zhong Hui is still hoping to gain Sima Zhao's forgiveness. What is this guy thinking?

No one could understand.

However, intelligence and willpower are two different things. A person with intelligence may not necessarily have a firm will, and Zhong Hui was a person with an unwavering will. From this perspective, he was far inferior to Jiang Wei.

"Given Zhong Hui's situation, how should we respond?"

Shi Shouxin looked at Li Liang and Meng Guan and asked.

"This subordinate will follow Supervisor Shi's orders and will do whatever you say."

Meng Guan's answer was straightforward. He no longer had those messy thoughts; after all, he and Shi Shouxin would be related by marriage. Now that trouble had arisen, how could they not stand together?
"Supervisor Shi, I believe we should do something; we can't keep waiting."

Li Liang offered his advice in a deep voice.

Shi Shouxin nodded, satisfied with their statements. He appreciated both their advice and expressions of loyalty.

What should we do?

Shi Shouxin looked at Li Liang and asked.

"Reporting to Supervisor Shi, I believe that we should incite conflict between Deng Ai and Zhong Hui, and it would be best if the two sides clashed and became irreconcilable enemies."

Only by pushing Zhong Hui forward could he avoid retreating.

Once the two sides openly clash, Sima Zhao will have no way to mediate. Given the current situation, Zhong Hui might back down, still harboring some illusions.

The most urgent task is to shatter all of Zhong Hui's illusions!

Li Liang pointed out Zhong Hui's problem incisively: he wasn't proactive enough in doing things!

Zhong Hui hoped that the court, namely Sima Zhao, would order Deng Ai to be transferred or dismissed.

Using someone else to do the dirty work, so as not to get one's hands dirty. This is also typical strategist thinking, hoping to use someone else to deal with Deng Ai, so that one can reap the benefits without lifting a finger.

The problem is, Sima Zhao is also a shrewd strategist; he might not fall for it. This puts Zhong Hui in a rather passive position.

If Sima Zhao had issued a military order to transfer Hu Lie and his troops to Deng Ai's command, wouldn't that have resulted in the immediate annihilation of tens of thousands of Zhong Hui's soldiers?
When Zhong Hui faces this military order that will shift the balance of power between the two sides, will he accept it or not?

While Shi Shouxin was trying to balance the relationship between Zhong Hui and Deng Ai, Sima Zhao was intervening with greater force to maintain that balance. Compared to Shi Shouxin's subtle and gradual approach, Sima Zhao's methods were straightforward and brutal.

Originally, Zhong Hui held absolute power, but Sima Zhao's letter strongly supporting Deng Ai reversed their relationship. The next military order from Sima Zhao will likely resolve the conflict between Deng Ai and Zhong Hui completely.

The situation is as it is, there's no need for excessive doubt. The only question is, what to do next?

"Go back and think about it first, while I consider it."

Shi Shouxin nodded, but didn't say what should be done. He actually already had a plan in mind, but whether or not to implement it was always a difficult decision.

Li Liang and Meng Guan bowed and left.

After they left, Shi Shouxin plopped down at the table, spread out a large sheet of paper, and prepared to write a letter. He thought for a long time, but felt that the effect of writing the letter seemed to have reached its limit.

It's like a patient who is terminally ill; conventional medications and injections are no longer effective in improving the condition.

It's time for the next drastic measure!

He picked up his pen and began to write a letter. But not to anyone else; rather, he was writing a groundbreaking letter on behalf of someone else, using their identity and tone.

I wrote for over an hour, revised it more than a dozen times, and collected a lot of scrap paper before finally finishing it.

He carefully put the letter away and let out a long sigh of relief.

Now, all that's left is to wait for the next imperial edict.

With over 100,000 troops under Zhong Hui's command in Shu, Sima Zhao must be losing sleep. Shi Shouxin was certain that the second imperial edict would arrive soon. If nothing unexpected happened, it would definitely contain orders to transfer some troops out of Shu, or even to divide them among Deng Ai's forces!
As soon as the imperial edict arrives, it will be time for Mr. Shi to take the stage!

……

Two days later, a two-wheeled carriage quietly drove into Zhong Hui's central army camp, delivered a beautiful young woman into the commander's tent, and then vanished without a trace. It was as if they had come quietly, without leaving a trace.

The young woman was Liu Yue. She breathed a slight sigh of relief when she saw Zhong Hui, dressed in a blue brocade robe and exuding a gentle and refined air, inside the central command tent.

It's fortunate that he wasn't a burly, strong man; it's a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

Seeing that Zhong Hui ignored her, Liu Yue stepped forward, took out the letter of divorce from her sleeve, and placed it on Zhong Hui's desk.

"Your father is quite interesting."

Zhong Hui skimmed through the letter of divorce and chuckled. "He certainly wouldn't send away Prime Minister Zhuge's daughter-in-law. Nor would he send away General Guan's daughter-in-law."

Face is very important; everyone cares about their reputation.

So, the Fei family will just have to make do. Tell me, am I right? Mrs. Fei.

Oh, now you should call her Liu San Niangzi.

Zhong Hui looked at Liu Yue with a half-smile and asked, his words laced with sarcasm and barbs.

"Grand Commander, isn't this your own doing? Why are you blaming others?"

Liu Yue retorted without any politeness, her face full of anger. However, she didn't look fierce at all; instead, she appeared rather cute.

Born into an imperial family, they lived a life of luxury from childhood, never having to work in the fields or endure hardship.

You've enjoyed so much, can't you suffer a little now?
"Don't you ever bother to find out what kind of lives other women lead?"

Zhong Hui retorted sharply, saying that if it came to a debate, not only would Liu Yue, this young lady, be no match for him, but even all the soldiers in the camp combined would be no match for him.

As expected, Liu Yue was speechless. After a long silence, she said calmly, "Then I will leave my fate to the Grand Commander."

She adopted an indifferent attitude, neither agreeing nor resisting.

"Don't worry, my demand for the Shu princess is only to deal with Deng Ai. You are just a tool."

I have no interest in you. Guards, take her away and change her into a dancer's outfit. Serve her well and don't neglect her.

This is a military affairs office; women are not allowed to behave so presumptuously here.

Zhong Hui waved his hand gently, and two guards stepped forward, gesturing for Liu Yue to leave the command tent immediately.

Zhong Hui's attitude was very impolite, even rude, as he drove them away!

This left Liu Yue with an unspeakable sense of humiliation.

If the man in front of her picks her up and throws her onto the bed to have his way with her the moment they meet, then she can breathe a sigh of relief. A man's eagerness can be seen as a form of respect for a woman's appearance.

The problem is that Zhong Hui doesn't seem to care about her at all, and he doesn't even bother to mention her beautiful appearance, giving off an attitude of "you're just a tool".

This made Liu Yue realize that something was very wrong.

Just because Zhong Hui wasn't interested in her didn't mean his subordinates weren't. A princess of Shu, even if she'd been married before, even if Shu had fallen, still held some appeal.

After Liu Yue was taken away and settled in, Zhong Hui frowned.

Liu Shan actually backed down!

Deng Ai actually backed down!

Combined with the military orders issued by Sima Zhao, Zhong Hui had a feeling that something terrible was about to happen.

Sima Zhao had already sent a letter to Deng Ai to Chengdu. It was acceptable to look at letters from the court, but to withhold them would be unwise. If no news was received from Shu for an extended period, Sima Zhao would take decisive action.

What if Sima Zhao ordered Zhong Hui to return his troops to Guanzhong instead of punishing Deng Ai? Would that happen?

It's quite possible, to say the least. Sima Zhao might first recall Zhong Hui's troops before dealing with Deng Ai. By then, Zhong Hui would be a toothless tiger, easily manipulated!

what can we do about it?

Zhong Hui became restless and immediately sent Qiu Jian to the Shu Kingdom's surrendered army camp where Jiang Wei was located, summoning Jiang Wei to the central command tent.

Upon meeting, Zhong Hui immediately showed the other party a transcribed letter, which consisted of letters written by Sima Zhao to Zhong Hui and Deng Ai. The comparison clearly revealed Sima Zhao's intention to elevate one while belittling the other.

"The Grand Commander is not yet forty years old, yet he already commands a large army. There has never been such an achievement in history. I, Jiang, am truly impressed."

Jiang Wei remarked with admiration.

"I am quite apprehensive about being reprimanded by the Duke of Jin. I would like to ask Brother Boyue how to deal with this."

Zhong Hui, humbly asking questions, bowed to Jiang Wei and said...

Jiang Wei looked puzzled and asked curiously, "I just don't know what the Grand Commander is thinking. The Shu Kingdom no longer exists, and the Grand Commander has already achieved great success. If you wish to retire gracefully, you should submit a memorial to the Duke of Jin to request your resignation."

Zhong Hui nodded slightly, but then sighed and said, "Alas, I am thirty-nine years old this year, the perfect time to make my mark. Although the Shu Kingdom has fallen, the Wu Kingdom still exists, and the world is not yet unified. How can I retire after achieving my goals?"

Hearing this, Jiang Wei felt reassured. He bowed to Zhong Hui and said, "In that case, the Grand Commander should make plans as soon as possible."

When Zhong Hui asked again how to prepare, Jiang Wei simply changed the subject, seemingly sensing that Zhong Hui still had doubts and had not yet made up his mind, and therefore did not want to offer any advice.

Seeing that Jiang Wei was unwilling to share his valuable information, Zhong Hui sighed helplessly and had no choice but to send him out of the central army camp.

Zhong Hui understood Jiang Wei's thoughts. If even Jiang Wei wouldn't offer him advice, then who could?
He suddenly thought of Shi Shouxin.

However, although Shi Shouxin was considered a confidant, he was not as trustworthy as Jiang Wei. The reason was simple: Shi Shouxin's family was in Luoyang. Wasn't he afraid that Sima Zhao would kill them all?

"Yes, this is a very important matter, we can't be hasty."

Zhong Hui muttered to himself, already having an idea in mind.

(End of this chapter)