Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 130 Turbulent Waters

On the same night, different people experience different circumstances.

In a small courtyard in Chengdu, Shi Zuan was frowning as he led Deng Zhong, who had never interacted with him, into the courtyard.

Since entering Shu, the conflict between Shi Zuan and Deng Ai has become public. In other words, Shi Zuan has stopped pretending, since Deng Ai has no reason to get rid of him anyway.

Once we return to Luoyang, Shi Zuan will definitely file a complaint against Deng Ai and let this old general taste the iron fist of Sima Zhao!
"Tell me, what's the matter?"

Inside the main room, the two had just sat down when Shi Zuan asked casually, showing no kindness towards Deng Zhong.

Since entering Chengdu, the army, from top to bottom, began to become lax, and Shi Zuan was no exception. Everyone was thinking of making a fortune here and then returning home in glory.

"Zhong Hui is plotting a rebellion!"

Deng Zhong said in a deep voice.

"Hmm? Zhong Hui? Treason?"

Shi Zuan was taken aback, then asked with some confusion, "Although you say that, but... is there any concrete evidence that Zhong Hui plotted a rebellion? You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want!"

"Of course there is."

Deng Zhong handed the letter of betrayal sent by the "mysterious man" to Shi Zuan, which he had taken from his father's desk when Deng Ai wasn't looking.

Upon seeing the letter of denunciation, Shi Zuan, who had been nonchalant, instantly tensed up, and his expression turned extremely ugly.

"Liu Shan, is he really missing?"

Shi Zuan asked angrily, sharing the same feeling as Deng Ai: Liu Shan was shameless.

Liu Shan's disappearance is not a good thing. If he falls into the hands of the "former officials of Shu," and they raise their arms again, the chaos they could cause is unimaginable. If he falls into Zhong Hui's hands, then he will be a sharp sword that kills both Liu Shan and Deng Ai!
"They didn't go missing; they were picked up by cavalry sent by Zhong Hui. Moreover, this cavalry force happened to run into Tian Xu's troops, and the two sides even fought a battle!"

Deng Zhong sighed helplessly, saying that now that things had come to this, he had nothing left to hide.

Upon hearing this, Shi Zuan's hair stood on end! Damn it, why did you take so long to tell me something so crucial!
"Oh no, Zhong Hui is very likely to send troops to attack!"

Shi Zuan, his face deathly pale, said that he could almost see Zhong Hui leading his army straight towards Chengdu. At that time, whether it was Deng Ai, Deng Zhong, or even himself, the military commander, they would all die! No one would survive!

This is obvious, because Zhong Hui was plotting a rebellion, and he would definitely be bloodthirsty when the time came.

Would Zhong Hui really leave someone behind as a witness and have that person go to Luoyang to testify against him? It's impossible; only the dead can keep a secret!

"Quickly, quickly, take me to see General Deng now!"

Shi Zuan got up and walked out, his attitude extremely enthusiastic.

Seeing his hurried departure, Deng Zhong couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

It seems this matter is settled.

……

Meanwhile, in the central camp of the Wei army commanded by Grand Commander Zhong Hui, the atmosphere of the banquet began to shift from enthusiastic to tense. Deng Ai's rebellion, Liu Shan's accusation, and this feast of eating, drinking, and merrymaking—many unspoken implications were already evident.

"Grand Commander, what do you mean by this?"

Wei Guan looked at Zhong Hui and asked in an unfriendly tone. With him taking the lead, the Wei army generals, including Hu Lie and Li Fu, also looked at Zhong Hui.

"Gentlemen, Deng Ai's rebellious intentions have been revealed. I intend to send troops to punish Deng Ai. What do you say?"

Zhong Hui looked around at everyone and asked.

"Grand Commander, everything we are talking about now is only Liu Shan's side of the story and should not be taken seriously."

Why not send a letter from the Grand Commander to Chengdu, questioning Deng Ai about his true intentions?
If Deng Ai came alone to plead guilty, then Liu Shan's words were untrue, and his intentions were despicable.

If Deng Ai makes all sorts of excuses, then... it won't be too late to send troops to punish him later."

Wei Guan said slowly, "In short, Liu Shan is an 'outsider,' while Deng Ai is the commander of the Wei army and is one of our own. There's no reason to trust an outsider and doubt one's own people."

"Wei Guan! Are you trying to tip off Deng Ai?!"

If Deng Ai doesn't come then, wouldn't that be a golden opportunity to take action?

Would you dare vouch for Deng Ai?

Zhong Hui was furious. He drew his sword and pointed it directly at Wei Guan, his voice sharp and stern! He directly accused Wei Guan of treason.

Watching the military supervisor Wei Guan and Grand Commander Zhong Hui argue, Hu Lie and other generals simply stood by and watched the show, without choosing to take sides at all.

Seeing that no general stepped forward to smooth things over, Wei Guan grew increasingly anxious.

Sima Zhao's attitude towards Zhong Hui is the source of Wei Guan's confidence, especially since Sima Zhao has recently been in direct contact with Wei Guan, bypassing Zhong Hui, which clearly shows his extreme distrust of Zhong Hui!

Wei Guan's intervention at this moment was truly out of necessity. If a general were to step forward to support him, then the delaying tactic might very well succeed.

Just then, Shi Shouxin stepped forward and bowed to Wei Guan. He then bowed to Zhong Hui and to all the generals present.

Then he spoke up and said, "Grand Commander, Supervisor of the Guards, and all generals, I am willing to vouch for Liu Shan. Everything he said is true. If Deng Ai is really willing to come here to explain to the Grand Commander, please behead me."

His words were forceful and moving. Besides, with so many people in front of him, it was impossible for him to go back on his word.

Seeing that his generals all looked thoughtful, Shi Shouxin continued:
"However, if Deng Ai doesn't come, wouldn't that delay the military operation?"

Who will be held responsible then? Anyone who dares to vouch for Deng Ai should step forward now.

If Deng Ai does not come, I, Shi, am willing to lead the vanguard to Chengdu to punish this scoundrel. Please behead the person who vouched for me as a sacrifice to the flag!

Shi Shouxin looked around at everyone and asked, and whenever someone made eye contact with him, they would unconsciously look away.

“Yes, Commander Wei, since you trust Deng Ai so much, why don’t you vouch for him?”

Write a letter to Chengdu; if Deng Ai doesn't come, your head will roll!

Zhong Hui asked with a half-smile.

Wei Guan was speechless. Deng Ai had always had very poor connections in the army and was not good at handling interpersonal relationships. All his cronies were in his own little territory.

It would be more convenient to just kill Wei Guan than to have him vouch for Deng Ai now.

"The matter of Deng Ai is indeed strange. Why don't we write a letter to the Duke of Jin and let him decide?"

Wei Guan took a step back and passed the ball directly to Zhong Hui.

"I have already sent the letter, but military intelligence waits for no one."

Deng Ai must have already known that Liu Shan had left Chengdu.

He may have already dispatched troops to attack Fucheng.

Are we just going to sit here and wait, missing this opportunity?

Zhong Hui passed the buck back to Wei Guan, basically saying: If you're not willing to take responsibility, shut up; if you are, you'll be the first one killed if something goes wrong!
How could Wei Guan possibly vouch for Deng Ai? The two of them weren't even acquainted.

However, with so many people in front of him, Wei Guan had nowhere left to retreat.

Wei Guan gritted his teeth. His arrangements today were only as a precaution, after all, Sima Zhao had given him instructions.

"Grand Commander, no matter what you say, I will not agree to your sending troops to attack Chengdu and engage in indiscriminate killing with Deng Ai's forces today."

Wei Guan said solemnly.

If he doesn't make a firm statement now, once Zhong Hui is dealt with, Wei Guan will find it difficult to extricate himself from this quagmire. Many things he didn't want to say were forced upon him by Sima Zhao's threat.

Zhong Hui remained silent, only staring at him with icy eyes, a murderous intent surging within them.

If the news of killing Wei Guan gets out, Sima Zhao will resort to extreme measures, such as Yang Hu, who is stationed at Jiange, who is always ready to fight.

At this moment, Zhong Hui was still hesitating whether to kill or not.

Just then, Wei Guan pulled a whistle from his sleeve and blew it loudly.

The whistle was sharp and long, and could travel a long distance. Especially since there were no military tents around to block its view, even the personal guards outside the camp could hear it.

Upon seeing Wei Guan make his move, Zhong Hui's expression changed drastically. However, at this moment, the generals in the army all watched coldly, with no one stepping forward to smooth things over or to express their opinions.

Soon, the sound of hurried footsteps could be heard outside the camp.

Then came the booming of drums, the hum of clashing weapons, the slapping of clubs against bodies, and the neighing and shouting of warhorses.

There appears to be a conflict outside the military camp!
The expressions of all the military commanders present at the banquet changed drastically.

Just then, a hundred or two axemen poured out of the tents surrounding the banquet venue, completely surrounding the area!
"Zhong Hui! Are you plotting a rebellion?"

Wei Guan looked somewhat uneasy and pointed at Zhong Hui, loudly questioning him.

"Treason? The label of 'military supervisor' is too big for Zhong's head to bear."

It's still hard to say who is plotting a rebellion.

My central army has its own guards, but there was a commotion outside the main camp. I don't know which unit of troops it was, but they actually charged the central army camp after hearing your whistle.

That does raise suspicion.

Why don't we have someone interrogate them later? Then everything will be clear.

Zhong Hui chuckled coldly and continued to shout at Wei Guan:
"Guards! I suspect that Wei Guan is an accomplice of Deng Ai, plotting to collude with Deng Ai to support Liu Shan in restoring the kingdom."

Tie him up and take him away to be kept under close watch!

Before he finished speaking, Xi Zuo, accompanied by two personal guards, emerged from the crowd surrounding the banquet and immediately bound Wei Guan hand and foot and took him away!
At this moment, the conflict outside the camp had also ended. Li Liang hurriedly walked to Shi Shouxin's side and whispered a few words in his ear.

Shi Shouxin then whispered a few words to Zhong Hui. Upon hearing Shi Shouxin's report, Zhong Hui felt relieved, and his anxiety subsided.

Then Zhong Hui looked around at everyone and shouted, "Gentlemen, the General Wei's main force just launched a surprise attack on the central army's main camp. They're all lying on the ground outside. You'll see when you get there."

Zhong now asks you one question: Deng Ai has rebelled; are you willing to suppress the rebellion and march on Chengdu?

"This humble general obeys! Please, Grand Commander, issue the military order to punish the traitors!"

Li Fu was the first to step forward. As a seasoned veteran, he had already grasped the current situation and couldn't help but feel a sense of lingering fear.

"The general will obey your orders!"

"The general will obey your orders!"

"The general will obey your orders!"

Hu Lie, Li Bao, and others stood up to express their support, and under the watchful eyes of the axemen around them, these military commanders all yielded.

"Zhong wrote a proclamation denouncing Deng Ai, which I will not read aloud here."

Sign your names on this document, then hurry back and prepare your troops. We'll march out tomorrow!

Zhong will deliver this signed proclamation to the Duke of Jin in Chang'an.

Zhong Hui spoke with great pride, ordering his personal guards to bring over a piece of silk as large as two tables, which he then spread on the ground so that everyone could see it.

Writing on a desk was not a difficult task, but Zhong Hui insisted on spreading silk on the ground. No matter which general wanted to sign their name on it, they had to squat down to show their obedience.

The generals all gathered around to see what was written on the large silk cloth on the ground.

Upon closer inspection, it became clear that this was a scathing critique of Deng Ai. Although the entire piece was beautifully written, it boiled down to just four words: Deng Ai deserves to die.

It was Li Fu again who was the first to squat down and sign his name on the silk scroll inscribed with the proclamation.

After signing the document, he ignored the stares of others, got up and left without saying a word to anyone.

Seeing that Li Fu had already signed, the other generals followed suit. Zhong Hui finally breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that things were finally progressing as expected.

(End of this chapter)