Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

Although a country has systems in place, there are some things that not everyone can do.

For example, Zhuge Jin, the general of Wu who was stationed in Jiangling, immediately dispatched an envoy northward along the river upon learning of the enemy's situation to inform his younger brother, Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of Han, of the attack from Wei.

Sun Quan trusted Zhuge Jin, and therefore tolerated this behavior. If Bu Zhi, Zhu Ran, or Quan Cong had done these things, Sun Quan would undoubtedly have suspected them of colluding with foreign powers.

January 9th, Chengdu.

Since Zhuge Liang ended his fifth Northern Expedition and returned to Chengdu last year, the political situation of Shu Han has become unusually stable.

On the one hand, Liu Shan's clear statement last year temporarily terminated Prime Minister Zhuge Liang's long-standing Northern Expedition plan, opting instead to recuperate and accumulate resources in order to restore military capabilities and build up troop strength, giving the court and the public a signal of stability.

For the time being, there was no need to expend blood and sweat on the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains, and people at all levels felt much more relaxed. It would be good to be able to relax for a few years.

On the other hand, Zhuge Liang ended the political structure in which the Prime Minister's Office controlled all government affairs and returned real power to the Secretariat within the national system, which left everyone speechless.

Although Prime Minister Zhuge Liang was mostly kind and gentle, he also had ruthless methods to deal with anyone who spoke nonsense and interfered with the affairs of the state.

Of course, this institutional change did not mean that Zhuge Liang lost his power or was sidelined from the center of power. Zhuge Liang remained Chancellor and Grand Secretary, while Yang Yi, Jiang Wan, Fei Yi, and others nominally held positions within the Chancellor's office, but also received official titles from the imperial court. For example, Yang Yi served as Military Advisor General, Jiang Wan as Grand Secretary, and Fei Yi as Protector of the Army General, while the others continued to hold important positions.

It can be said that apart from shedding the skin of the Prime Minister's residence, the changes are not significant.

But this was enough for the small Shu Han court, which was confined to a remote corner of the country.

Zhuge Liang knew when to advance and when to retreat, and always consulted with Liu Shan on matters, while also having Liu Shan handle political affairs with him.

A person's character is shaped.

After all, he was Liu Bei's son. Since Liu Shan made the momentous decision last year to interfere with the direction of the country, he would inevitably have to bear the busyness and worries of political affairs, and there was no way to avoid it.

Thus, another extremely important matter was placed before Liu Shan.

"Prime Minister." Liu Shan personally left the palace and went to the Secretariat, where he met Zhuge Liang, who was handling state affairs. The two sat together in the same room. "Prime Minister, I am truly at a loss about what to do with this message you sent me. What exactly does Zhuge Ziyu mean by this letter you sent?"

Without hesitation, Zhuge Liang replied, "The letter that Zhuge Ziyu sent to me is exactly what it says. Wei troops are coming from the north to invade Jiangling, and Wu is in danger, hence the plea for help. Your Majesty told me that you are facing a difficult decision, but I wonder what makes this decision so difficult?"

Zhuge Liang was always cautious and never used terms like "elder brother" when discussing official matters.

Liu Shan paused for a moment: "Logically speaking, the Wei army has attacked Wu more than once. Last year, the Wei army led cavalry to make a feigned attack on Jiangling and Yiling, and then there was no further movement. Prime Minister, if I were to speak from a more objective point of view, in recent years, Han and Wu have attacked Wei more often than Wei has attacked Han and Wu less often."

Zhuge Liang cautioned, "But the Wei army will always gain something with each attack."

"What you say is absolutely right, Prime Minister." Liu Shan nodded: "So, Zhuge Ziyu is worried that the Wei bandits are now too powerful and feel that they are determined to win?"

Zhuge Liang stroked his beard and sighed: "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold as to speak, as a commander, I can often sense the enemy's state when they attack, which is of course also related to the strength of our own forces."

"In his letter to me, Zhuge Ziyu mentioned that there has been constant internal strife within Wu since the year before last. Your Majesty knows that the generals of Wu all have their own troops, right?" "Yes." Liu Shan nodded.

Zhuge Liang sighed: "Since the year before last, Sun Quan has been consolidating his power and gradually taking over the troops from the generals in Jingzhou and Yangzhou. Many soldiers who have served the army for more than ten or twenty years have had to switch sides, which has greatly affected the Wu army's combat strength. He also mentioned that Sun Quan encountered danger in Wu territory last winter in October. There was a rebellion in the Wu army. If Sun Quan had not acted swiftly, he would have almost died."

Liu Shan immediately understood: "Zhuge Ziyu believes that the Wu Kingdom is in turmoil, which is affecting the army's combat effectiveness, and that we are about to face a crisis?"

Zhuge Liang nodded slightly and said nothing more.

Liu Shan added, “Actually, from his letter, it seems that he wants the court to send reinforcements to Wu, but I don’t think Sun Quan will agree to that.”

Zhuge Liang replied, "Sun Quan would certainly not agree to the Han Dynasty sending troops into his territory to help him defend. But it would also be unreasonable for the Han Dynasty to do nothing."

Liu Shan suddenly realized: "In that case, the court should reinforce Yong'an. If Wu loses Jiangling and Yiling, the court can use Yong'an to defend against Wei's invasion."

"Prime Minister, I have an idea, but I don't know what to say," Liu Shan said, looking at Zhuge Liang. "If Wu loses that place, can the Han Dynasty take it to support itself?"

It wasn't until Liu Shan uttered those words that a slight smile appeared on Zhuge Liang's face.

"Your Majesty's words are excellent." Zhuge Liang stroked his beard and smiled. "Although Han and Wu are allies, both Wei and Wu are, in essence, traitors who stole the lands of the Han Dynasty. It's just that the Wei bandits are powerful, so the court should act according to the facts and temporarily form an alliance with Wu. The court should not break the alliance. If these two territories still belong to Wu, then the court should sit back and watch. If they belong to Wei, then we can advance without hindrance, and Wu will have nothing to say."

"Last year, I led troops to attack Wei, but was rejected by Wei Zhen and others. Since Wei has launched a major attack on Wu this year, I believe that Wei must have defenses in Guanzhong. The road to attack is long and the losses are great. The roads are difficult and the food and supplies are very expensive. It is not advisable to send troops north again."

"The best course of action at present is for us to concentrate our forces to defend Baishui, Yinping, and Baxi, and then select troops from the court to march east to Yong'an. There are waterways available from Chengdu to Yong'an, so the transport of supplies and the deployment of soldiers can be done without any problems, which is very convenient."

"Yes." Liu Shan nodded in agreement.

From his youth, Liu Bei had Zhuge Liang teach Liu Shan the Legalist principles of Shen Buhai and Han Fei, and Liu Shan fully understood the ways of a ruler. From Liu Shan's perspective, the experience of making decisions based on his own will and the emperor's will further enriched his political life as emperor.

In short, Liu Shan enjoyed the process of making practical decisions.

Liu Shan thought for a long time, then coughed lightly: "Prime Minister, I think we should draw on the imperial guards near Chengdu and the troops from Fuxian, plus 10,000 garrison troops from Yong'an, to form a total of 25,000 troops to guard the area west of Yiling. If there is any change in Wu, we can then march east to deal with any unforeseen circumstances."

"As for the commander... what about General Wei Wenchang, who is in charge of the expedition?"

Zhuge Liang was somewhat surprised that Liu Shan had pointed out the number of troops and generals to be dispatched. Although he had some different ideas in mind, according to Liu Shan's wishes... there was no particularly big problem.

“Wei Wenchang is brave and skilled in battle, and can command a large army. I think he is capable.” Zhuge Liang said, “However, Your Majesty’s imperial guards should move less, as they still need to protect the safety of Chengdu. It would be better to transfer 5,000 troops from Fuxian, transfer another 5,000 troops from the imperial guards, and recruit another 10,000 troops from the five counties of Jiangyang, Ba, Fuling, Badong and Baxi, so that Wei Yan can have 30,000 troops there.”

Zhuge Liang looked up at Liu Shan's face and said, "Now that the Northern Expedition has slowed down and the transportation costs are low, it is not a problem to recruit an additional 10,000 troops, which can also be used to strengthen the eastern counties."

"As you say, Prime Minister!" Liu Shan nodded emphatically. "I will soon issue an order to Wei Wenchang, ordering him to return to Chengdu to report on his duties, and have Wu Ziyuan take over his responsibilities at Baishui!" (End of Chapter)