Wei and Jin did not submit to Zhou

Chapter 43 is in full swing
Just as Zhong Hui led his troops south to Hanzhong, the war machine also started up in Didao County, where Deng Ai had stationed his troops.

Even though Deng Ai repeatedly submitted memorials stating that attacking Shu was not feasible, Sima Zhao's military orders were clear: the Wei army in Longyou, as the western route army, would cooperate with Zhong Hui's eastern route army, and its main objective was to contain the elite Shu army under Jiang Wei!
Sima Zhao's order was very clear: regardless of whether Deng Ai Li understood his purpose, preparations for the expedition could not be stopped for a moment!
Just as Deng Ai was sighing all day long, Sima Zhao's chief clerk, Shi Zuan, arrived, bringing with him a personal letter from Sima Zhao and the imperial appointment document, appointing him as the military commander.

Deng Ai was overjoyed.

In fact, he never knew what Sima Zhao was thinking. Now that Shi Zuan had arrived, he could finally try to find out indirectly.

That night, Deng Ai hosted a banquet for Shi Zuan in his command tent. After the deputy generals and lieutenants had all eaten and drunk their fill and left, he kept Shi Zuan behind.

"Master Sima, there is something that I have been pondering for a long time and it has left me feeling very uneasy."

Now that we've drunk this much, may I ask a question?

Deng Ai poured Shi Zuan a cup of wine and slowly inquired.

"General Deng, please speak freely."

Shi Zuan nodded, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

"Why is the General so insistent on attacking Shu?"

Deng Ai asked in confusion.

coming!

Shi Zuan sighed dramatically, then explained, "This matter is a long story, let me tell you slowly."

He came from a poor family, had a very impatient temperament, was not a refined person, and his abilities were far from outstanding.

But this kind of person has some advantages: they are obedient, capable, and have strong execution skills. If you tell them to go east, they won't dare to go west, and they won't do anything unnecessary.

In Sima Zhao's eyes, people like Shi Zuan were nothing more than hawks and hounds.

It works, it's sufficient, and it's easy to use.

If Sima Zhao didn't want someone like Shi Zuan, did he really expect to find someone as virtuous and talented as Zhuge Liang? Even if he did find one, no one would pay him any attention, so why invite humiliation upon himself?
Looking at Deng Ai, who was humbly seeking advice, Shi Zuan cleared his throat, couldn't help but sigh, and asked in return, "General Deng, you must know something about what happened to the Duke of Gaogui a few years ago, right?"

When Cao Mao's death was mentioned, Deng Ai's heart sank, and he nodded slightly.

Some things are really disgusting.

Even an outsider like Deng Ai, who had no intention of helping the Cao family, would feel uncomfortable about the emperor being killed in the street.

"This incident has dealt a great blow to the reputation of the general. The general insisted on attacking Shu because he wanted to salvage his reputation through military achievements."

Shi Zuan hinted meaningfully, almost without any attempt to conceal it.

That's enough for now. The rest depends on whether Deng Ai can understand it himself. If he can't understand it, then there's nothing that can be done.

"But... is it a bit hasty to use battle-hardened troops to restore the general's lost popularity?"

Deng Ai retorted with some dissatisfaction.

Upon hearing this, Shi Zuan almost spat out a mouthful of blood onto the table.

Isn't Sima Zhao's reputation more important than the army under your command, Deng Ai? Can't you even see that?
Shi Zuan was silenced by Deng Ai. After a long while, he shook his head helplessly and bluntly reminded him: "No matter what, General Deng still has to try. Your future is something you earn and something you lose. Conquering Shu is your future. That's all I have to say."

After saying that, Shi Zuan didn't bother to say anything more and got up to leave.

After Shi Zuan left, Deng Ai sat alone in the commander's tent, looking at the leftover food on the table. His heart felt as if something was scratching at it.

Deng Ai didn't fully understand what Sima Zhao was trying to do, but he understood after Shi Zuan's last sentence.

Conquering Shu is our future!

Having said all that, Deng Ai didn't bother to delve into Sima Zhao's true intentions. In any case, it all boiled down to this:

He only needs to lead his troops south and hold off Jiang Wei. He doesn't need to worry about anything else; that's Sima Zhao's problem.

However, now is not a good time to send troops.

When Jiang Wei established military colonies in Tazhong, his troops were required to participate in both spring plowing and combat, making them not entirely professional armies.

It's winter now, and Jiang Wei's men are all in excellent condition, making it a foolish time to send troops.

It would be better to wait until spring to take action, when Jiang Wei's attention will be focused on spring plowing, requiring a significant amount of manpower to participate.

That will be the best time to make a move.

Why is Sima Zhao in such a hurry? What is he trying to achieve?

……

Just as Deng Ai was preparing provisions and supplies, the team responsible for repairing the plank road on the Baoxie Road had to stop due to the complicated road conditions ahead.

Xu Yi was not a general skilled in engineering. As the commander of the vanguard, he could open roads through mountains and build bridges over rivers, but if the plank roads were completely burned down, he would be helpless.

Shi Shouxin led his hundred personal troops south to a place called "Jiangwozi," where water converged, causing the water level to rise significantly.
The plank roads we passed before all had supports or diagonal braces underneath. The water here is terrifyingly deep, making it impossible for the plank roads to have any support.

Back then, in order to solve this problem, Prime Minister Zhuge Liang chiseled square holes in the stone wall and filled them directly with square timbers of the right size to serve as crossbeams. He then laid planks on top of these to create a walkway.

However, the Baoxie Road was a vital transportation route for the Shu army's northern expeditions, so the Shu army naturally took great care in maintaining the plank roads there. But with the death of Zhuge Liang, the Shu Kingdom's defense strategy for Hanzhong changed to strategic defense, so these plank roads with square timber beams were also burned down by the Shu army.

Legend has it that Zhao Yun burned it.

The climate here is completely different from that in the north. The road ahead was close to Shaanxi, where the streams were frozen. But here, the climate is closer to Hanzhong, and the rivers don't freeze anymore!

Looking at the emerald green Bao River before him, and then at the sheer cliffs and the square holes in them, Shi Shouxin seemed to understand something.

"Commander Shi, we really can't go any further. The vanguard has already lost dozens of brothers while repairing the plank road, and they are exhausted."

The road ahead requires extensive repairs, and large, square timbers like these are unavailable nearby. Mr. Xu was unsure how to proceed with the construction and would likely have to return to Sanjiao City to reconsider.

Xu Yi sighed, looking dejected. He could have earned some military merit, but the road ahead was blocked, and the army couldn't get through. As the vanguard officer, he should be grateful if he wasn't beheaded by Zhong Hui; getting any credit was just a pipe dream!
"Well, let's go back to Sanjiao City first and then make a decision."

Shi Shouxin nodded and said, "Being stuck here isn't a solution. We should return to the Sanjiao City stronghold to let the vanguard rest, and then have Hu Lie convene a meeting of the army's leaders to brainstorm and, incidentally, find someone to share the blame." Sure enough, upon returning to Sanjiao City, Xu Yi reported to Hu Lie that the plank road ahead couldn't be repaired. Hu Lie was furious and seized the opportunity to have Xu Yi flogged fifty times, stripping him of his vanguard officer position and forcing him to lead his troops from the front to the rear, exchanging ranks with a general named Li Bao.

This seemingly cruel act was actually to protect Xu Yi, preventing him from being targeted and purged by Zhong Hui. Xu Yi clearly knew the trick; he cheerfully accepted the fifty lashes and even chatted and laughed with Shi Shouxin as they parted.

Dealing with Xu Yi only resolved the issue of the Vanguard Army "violating military law," but it did not solve the problem of the Baoxie Road being blocked.

Left with no other option, Hu Lie reported to Zhong Hui that the section of the Baoxie Road near Hanzhong had been burned down by the Shu army. He also emphasized that this section of the road was not only difficult to traverse, but also riddled with rivers below the mountain walls.

On the other hand, Li Bao, a general in the Imperial Guard who was skilled in building fortifications and proficient in earthwork, was invited by Hu Lie to Sanjiao City to discuss the important matter of building a plank road, and was asked to lead troops to clear the way.

Within two days, Zhong Hui's military order arrived: overcome the difficulties to repair the plank roads, ensure their completion, and do not delay the march. The Tangluo Road route will be the main attack route, while the Baoxie Road route will be a feint attack. As long as the general offensive is launched before April of next year, everything will be fine!
If you calculate the time, there are only three months left at most.

Hu Lie, Shi Shouxin, and the other generals who had taken the Baoxie Road finally came to their senses.

Zhong Hui left this road not only because of his poor leadership, but also because he knew long ago that this road was simply impassable!

The hope of conquering Hanzhong still lies with Li Fu.

Those who could get along with Sima Zhao could not be truly foolish. Seeing that the Wei generals who took the Tangluo Road were all unruly, Zhong Hui arranged for them to spend time on this route so as not to affect his plans.

Whoever obeys will be transferred to another route!
Although Shi Shouxin was quick-witted, and the exam was semi-open book, he was still tricked by Zhong Hui this time.

If the plank road is not completed on schedule, most of the generals along this route, starting with Hu Lie, will be punished and will not fare well. Shi Shouxin, as the supervising officer, will certainly not escape punishment.

How can we break this deadlock?
Inside a military tent within the city of Sanjiao, Hu Lie looked at Shi Shouxin, Du Yu, and others with a worried expression. On the table lay a wooden board, on which was carved an "engineering sketch," drawn by Shi Shouxin and his men after taking measurements.

The number of holes in the mountain wall, their spacing, and the side length and depth of each square hole have all been surveyed.

The blueprints were numbered and detailed, making them very clear. Everyone admired Shi Shouxin's solid foundation in engineering, which he demonstrated when he worked at the Imperial Household Department.

"Everything else is fine, but transporting the timber is a problem. Such a large square beam can't be made from ordinary trees."

Du Yu sighed.

"Moreover, this kind of wood needs to be processed into a square shape, which requires finding trees with very thick trunks. I'm afraid we'll have to go to Sichuan or Guanzhong to find such trees. There aren't any in Longyou."

Li Bao also mentioned it briefly.

A true expert's skill is immediately apparent. Compared to Xu Yi, who only knew how to follow Shi Shouxin's orders, Li Bao clearly understood construction engineering. Building a plank road wasn't difficult in terms of manpower.

The only problems are the materials and how to transport them to the location where the walkway needs to be built!
It's important to understand that the plank road ahead was built by Zhuge Liang, not by the Wei Kingdom. Even the design of the plank road was determined by Zhuge Liang!
Those square beams and pillars were also transported from Hanzhong, or even from the densely forested Shu region!

Shi Shouxin secretly wondered if Zhong Hui might have known about this beforehand and deliberately set a trap here! But thinking about it now was useless. He realized that everyone present was staring at him, an official from the Imperial Household Department.

After all, they are a professional team! It's not surprising that people have high expectations for them.

"Commander Shi, I've heard that you spent more than two years in the Imperial Household Department and even built a bridge in Luoyang. You must be quite capable in that area."

"May I ask how this plank road should be repaired?"

Li Bao didn't stand on ceremony with Shi Shouxin and asked directly.

Judging from the engineering drawings on the wooden board on the ground, Li Bao knew that Shi Shouxin's skills were definitely superior to his own.

Could he really hold such a significant position in the army that conquers Shu simply because he is Li Yin's son-in-law? Little does he know that Li Yin's eldest son, Li Gu, was only a county magistrate before!

If promoting one's son to an official position is no better than this, then how much better is promoting one's son-in-law? So it's obvious why Shi Shouxin can be so eloquent here now.

Hu Lie and the others could tell at a glance that Shi Shouxin's status was mostly earned through his own abilities.

"Let me think about it for two days. Anyway, it will take time to build granaries and military stations in Baoxie Road, so it won't delay anything."

What does General Hu think? We'll discuss it again in three days.

Shi Shouxin spoke calmly, appearing very composed. His composure reassured everyone; at least someone had taken responsibility for this matter.

"Alright, let's attend to our respective military affairs first, and discuss this matter again in three days."

Hu Lie naturally had nothing to say, since this was not Shi Shouxin's job; it was just that he had experience in this area.

Shi Shouxin's primary duty on this expedition was to serve as a military supervisor, which meant he was specifically tasked with finding fault with the generals!

Helping is a favor, not helping is one's right. Of course, if the supervisor only focuses on finding fault, that's tantamount to courting death!

The fundamental premise for all of this is to "win the battle".

If we can win, then small problems are no problem, and big problems will be punished with three drinks.

If they lose, the supervising officer must be able to find someone to take the blame so that he himself doesn't end up taking the blame.

So the position of military supervisor may seem simple, as if sleeping in the barracks is no problem. In reality, it is quite difficult, with many intricacies, and a slight mistake can lead to execution.

Before parting, Du Yu secretly met with Shi Shouxin for a private talk.

He said with a troubled expression, "I dare to accept, but you should try to go back to Luoyang. You have already offended Zhong Hui, and I'm afraid... it will be very dangerous later."

"It's too late to talk about leaving now."

Shi Shouxin sighed. To withdraw now would not only bring shame to Yang Huiyu, but also give up his future prospects. There was no way out.

"Zhong Hui is so arrogant and reckless that it seems he has no intention of returning to Luoyang."

"We still need to be careful, Zhong Hui... will definitely rebel."

Du Yu solemnly reminded him.

"I understand, thank you for reminding me, Yuan Kai."

Shi Shouxin nodded, his heart heavy. Even Du Yu could see that Zhong Hui was problematic; it was hard to say what crazy things this Grand Commander might do.

(End of this chapter)