Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 144 Destruction and Rebirth (2)

In the study, Shi Shouxin looked Zhang Shao up and down.

The former "Imperial Brother-in-Law" of the Shu Kingdom looked exhausted, his expression tense and tinged with helplessness. He lacked the air of a powerful nobleman.

Shi Shouxin couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

The Shu Kingdom was officially named "Han," claiming to have inherited the mantle of the Han Dynasty. It's important to understand that during the Western and Eastern Han Dynasties, powerful relatives of the empress, especially the emperor's brother-in-law, were frequent guests at the table!
I never imagined I would end up in such a state.

It's just that fortunes change, and tomorrow it might be my turn. Nobody can predict what will happen in the future.

"May I ask if I may ask, General Shi, is he on Zhong Hui's side or Sima Zhao's side?"

After a long silence, Zhang Shao raised his head and asked in a serious and methodical manner.

These words were so frank, addressing them by their first names, that Zhang Shao fully expressed his disgust and disrespect for Zhong Hui and Sima Zhao.

"I, Shi, only stand on my own side."

Shi Shouxin said meaningfully.

It neither mentions Zhong Hui nor Sima Zhao.

"Every man for himself" – what's wrong with Shi Shouxin standing on his own side? Is there a problem?

Of course there's a problem! And a huge one at that!

The fact that they didn't confront them directly when they heard about certain sensitive issues, and instead answered such malicious questions, is itself a serious matter of attitude!

If even their attitude is problematic, what else is there to say?
Zhang Shao got the answer he wanted to hear, and a long-lost smile finally appeared on his face.

"General Shi, there is a confidential matter that I can only discuss with my own people. I wonder if you consider me one of your own?"

Zhang Shao asked again.

Without a second thought, Shi Shouxin replied, "Of course. You are Liu Yue's uncle, and I am the father of her child. Although we are on separate sides, we are still family."

Shi Shouxin dropped the pretense and laid his cards on the table. This answer was perfectly reasonable, and Zhang Shao breathed a sigh of relief; he had finally found someone who could help.

That's a good answer. It's neither Zhong Hui's man, nor Sima Zhao's man, nor Jiang Wei's man.

Instead, they are "one of our own".

"Well, a few days ago, I went to Zhang Yi's farm in the suburbs to attend a banquet."

Then they discovered that this banquet was not so simple.

Zhang Shao slowly and methodically recounted what had happened that night, mostly as a factual account without embellishment.

Because the former officials of Shu now live in farms in the suburbs, it is easier to communicate than before, and it is also less likely to be monitored by Zhong Hui.

Shi Shouxin only learned bits and pieces from the clues he had gathered about such a large-scale gathering, and knew that there was such an important banquet attended by former officials of the Shu Kingdom.

However, no one knows who exactly attended or what they said at the meeting.

After hearing Zhang Shao's explanation, Shi Shouxin suddenly understood, and some questions he couldn't figure out before became clear!
For example, where did the missing stock from the granaries and armories go?

"You think they're very likely to fail, right?"

Shi Shouxin asked in a low voice, his face serious and without a trace of a smile.

Zhang Shao was overwhelmed by the opponent's imposing aura, and after a long while, he muttered to himself, "There are more than 100,000 Wei troops in the suburbs. How could they possibly succeed? It's obviously impossible!"

"No, they could actually succeed, but the chances are extremely slim."

Of course, in that case, both sides will inevitably suffer heavy losses, and afterwards, everything will be a mess.

However, Yang Hu's 10,000 elite troops were stationed at Jiange, while Jia Chong had 50,000 troops in Hanzhong, ready for battle.

Even if Jiang Wei wins this round, what about next time?

Shi Shouxin countered with a question, also startled by the audacity of Jiang Wei and these former officials of Shu Han.

The possibility of success is only theoretical, because Zhong Hui would never kill all these Wei generals. If he killed them all, he would be left with no troops, and it would be difficult to say whether he could even save his own life.

Those 100,000-plus Wei soldiers didn't even know Zhong Hui, so who would listen to him?
This is like a person still having a body, but having all the nerves and blood vessels in their limbs and spine removed. Can that person still move?
Think about it and you know it’s impossible!

Since Zhong Hui would not allow Jiang Wei to manipulate him, the success rate of Jiang Wei's plan was very low. If even one Wei general returned to camp and informed his soldiers that the Shu people intended to kill them all, a mutiny like a landslide or a tsunami would immediately erupt!

The chaos caused by a mutiny of over 100,000 soldiers would be too much to bear.

Therefore, it cannot be said that Zhang Shao betrayed Jiang Wei; he went too far this time. Even if it had barely succeeded, the destructive power of the mutiny would have been difficult to control.

Moreover, everyone has their own choices. Even ants try to survive, let alone humans.
It's understandable that Zhang Shao didn't join Jiang Wei in his reckless behavior.

"I understand. You can go back now. Don't worry about anything else."

Shi Shouxin waved his hand lightly, appearing nonchalant.

Seeing that he didn't take it seriously, Zhang Shao immediately became a little uneasy. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he could only sigh and say nothing.

“I also have troops under my command, and they are troops that only obey my orders and cannot be commanded by Zhong Hui.”

What Jiang Wei could do, I can do too.

Shi Shouxin stood up, looked at Zhang Shao, and said, his words filled with unparalleled confidence and assurance!

Zhang Shao then stood up, looking at Shi Shouxin with a mixture of surprise and uncertainty on his face. He seemed to have realized something incredible!
There are truly armies within armies in this Wei army!
No wonder Zhong Hui gave Liu Yue to Shi Shouxin when there were so many generals in the Wei army!

It turns out it wasn't done randomly, but rather a result of strength!

A beauty of noble birth can only be won by the strongest and most powerful.

Zhang Shao seemed to have also understood Zhong Hui's power structure. Shi Shouxin and his troops who "only obeyed his command" were the leverage to suppress Jiang Wei!
It was precisely because Shi Shouxin was there that Zhong Hui was not sidelined by Jiang Wei and his Shu army!
"General Shi, I only hope that... you will do as little killing as possible while you are in Chengdu."

How wonderful it would be if the child in Liu Yue's womb were born next year, crying loudly as it enters the world.

To celebrate his birthday, the house was decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations.

No matter who it is, it wasn't easy for his parents to raise him to adulthood.

A human head isn't like a leek; once it's cut off, it can't grow back.

If we can reduce the number of heads we cut off, we should do so as little as possible.

Zhang Shao tells Shi Shouxin the story of "destruction and rebirth":

Your legal wife has already given birth, and your concubines are also bearing children one after another. You should understand the feelings of a father. Everyone grows up from childhood; if it's not necessary, isn't killing more people just creating unnecessary bloodshed?
What's the point of killing for the sake of killing?

"Don't worry, I understand."

Shi Shouxin nodded slightly in agreement, and then saw Zhang Shao out of the mansion. After returning, he locked himself in his study, took out a large sheet of paper, and drew a relationship diagram and a needs analysis diagram on it.

One by one, familiar or unfamiliar names appeared on this piece of paper.

Their ideas and their needs were listed one by one on the paper.

"The power of the Shu Kingdom is divided into two factions:"
One faction consists of former officials who are aligned with Jiang Wei; the other faction comprises powerful families from Shu who are on my side.

They all wanted to deal with Zhong Hui.

The power of the Wei state was divided into three factions.

One faction consisted of Sima Zhao's confidants, who wanted to eliminate Zhong Hui, bring the Wei army back to Luoyang, and ensure a smooth transition in Shu, preventing unnecessary bloodshed.

The one in the lead was the military supervisor, Wei Guan.

One faction consisted of Zhong Hui and his confidants, who wanted to establish their own independent regime in Shu and purge disobedient generals from the army.

The last group consisted of Wei generals and soldiers who only wanted to burn, kill, and plunder in Shu, returning laden with spoils. These people were short-sighted and would not obediently follow orders.

Shi Shouxin muttered to himself, his thoughts gradually becoming clearer.

Doing great things isn't about wining and dining; the most important and primary goal is to figure out who my friends are and who my enemies are.

First of all, Zhong Hui was definitely Shi Shouxin's enemy, as were Jiang Wei and the old officials of Shu.

In reality, neither Liu Shan nor the powerful families of Shu were Shi Shouxin's enemies, nor were they necessarily his friends. Their relationship depended on the dynamics of their power struggles.

Ultimately, Shi Shouxin's friends could only be those with whom he had established a "personal relationship," regardless of their social status. This relationship was solely related to him and had nothing to do with their connection to the Sima family.

In other words, even those who opposed the Sima family could become Shi Shouxin's friends as long as they established a close personal relationship with him.

In short, Shi Shouxin alone could not finish all the food in Sichuan.

He wanted to ensure he ate his fill first, and then distribute the rest to the most capable people. How it was distributed was a matter of personal favor, and Shi Shouxin wouldn't interfere.

Who is the most powerful? It is obviously the Sima family.

As for Zhong Hui, Jiang Wei, and even Wei Guan, if they didn't know their place, they would all be enemies fighting with Shi Shouxin for food!

When dealing with enemies, we must sweep them away like autumn leaves in the wind, killing them with a single blow! There is absolutely no need to show any mercy!

"In two weeks, there will be a bloody storm."

Shi Shouxin placed the character relationship diagram on the table and couldn't help but sigh.

At this moment, he felt somewhat helpless and did not have that sense of control over the overall situation.

Because Shi Shouxin realized that this matter was like a finely tuned gear, it was bound to happen sooner or later, no matter what he did.

We can only react passively.

He was also involved in the situation; the overall trend had been brewing for years. Trying to change the tide at the last minute was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

Feeling extremely frustrated, Shi Shouxin pushed open the door to his study and wandered around the courtyard.

It is now night, and most of the people in the courtyard are already asleep.

Suddenly, he saw that a room was still lit, and through the paper window, he could see a woman sitting at a table.

Shi Shouxin pushed open the door and entered. He then saw a young girl with an intellectual and aloof appearance and a slender figure facing him, her head down, fiddling with the counting rods on the table.

Simply put, counting rods are a large, densely packed bunch of bamboo sticks used for calculations, and they have a long history.

The Book of Han records that the method of calculation uses bamboo, one-tenth of an inch in diameter and six inches long. Two hundred and seventy-one bamboos are used to make six gu (a type of ancient Chinese vessel), which is one zhu (a type of ancient Chinese hand).

Shi Shouxin suddenly couldn't remember the girl's name, only that her surname was Yang, and that she came from the prominent Yang family of Hanzhong. It was said that her younger brother was too young, her parents had died early, and she had been managing family affairs since she was very young.

"Still not sleeping at this late hour?"

Shi Shouxin sat down opposite her and asked in a low voice.

"The accounts aren't finished yet, how can you go to sleep?"

Yang replied absentmindedly, then seemed to remember something, looked up at Shi Shouxin, her face changed drastically, and she knelt down on the ground, trembling with fear.

"I'm not a tiger."

Shi Shouxin helped her up and sighed, "Back then, almost all of your family members who didn't die became slaves. This was all because I didn't explain things clearly to Liu Qin beforehand. You don't need to mind what happened back then."

"I...I was just afraid of being disliked by you, my lord. Many of my people died in that tragedy. Things are fine now, and I am quite content."

Yang sighed and said she didn't want to recall what happened that night.

"The family's accounts probably don't have that many records, do they?"

Shi Shouxin asked curiously.

Upon hearing this, Yang immediately perked up.

She mustered her courage and said, "My lord, I believe that with the current size of your hereditary soldiers, you cannot support them without more than a hundred acres of farmland, plus the produce from the surrounding mountains, forests, lakes, and marshes. Have you thought about how you will survive after leaving Shu?"

Instead of talking about men and women, Madam Yang directly raised a survival issue: "Master, you have too many soldiers under your command, and you can't afford to support them without land!"

"You don't need to worry about that; you're thinking from the perspective of ordinary people."

I, on the other hand, approach problems with the mindset of a bureaucrat and a general.

What you find difficult, I consider a piece of cake!

Shi Shouxin laughed heartily.

This girl is kind of adorable and a bit silly, she's kind of interesting.

The questions she asked were even more interesting.

How can one describe the mindset of having troops at one's disposal yet worrying about not having enough land to support them?
"You must remember one thing: your Ah Lang has a gun!"

My neighbor hoards grain, I hoard guns; my neighbor's house is my granary!
With soldiers in hand, why fear not having land?

Don't worry, some people will obediently hand over their land to me to manage. They'll even get angry if I refuse.

Shi Shouxin said with great pride, patted Yang's shoulder, and then got up and left the room.

He thought to himself: There's no need to rush into taking this girl into my household; getting things done is more important. I'll spend some quality time with her after I've settled things in Sichuan.

(End of this chapter)