The False Surrender: A Wit Scheme Becomes A Vain Plan;
The Abdication: Later Seeds Learns From The Ancient.

Asked to say what was the best plan to secure the arrest of Deng Ai, Jiang Wei said, "Send Wei Guan. If Deng Ai tries to kill Wei Guan, he will manifest the desire of his heart. Then you can destroy him as a traitor."

Hence Wei Guan was sent, with some thirty men, to effect the arrest.

Wei Guan's own people saw the danger of the enterprise and urged him not to go, saying, "Zhong Hui clearly wants Deng Ai to kill you to prove his point!"

But Wei Guan said, "Do not worry. I have a scheme prepared."

Wei Guan first wrote a score or two of letters, all in the same terms, saying:

"Wei Guan has orders to arrest Deng Ai, but no other persons will be dealt with providing they submit quickly. Rewards await those who obey the Imperial Command. However, the punishment for laggards and those who are contumacious will be death to the whole family."

Wei Guan sent these letters to various officers who were serving under Deng Ai. He also prepared two cage carts.

Wei Guan and his small party reached Chengdu about cockcrow and found waiting for him most of the officers to whom he had written. They at once yielded. Deng Ai was still asleep when the party reached his palace, but Wei Guan entered and forced his way into Deng Ai's chamber.

He roared out: "I serve the Son of Heaven's command to arrest Deng Ai and his son!"

The noise awakened the sleeper, who tumbled off his couch in alarm. But before Deng Ai could do anything to defend himself, he was seized, securely bound, and huddled into one of the carts. Deng Ai's son, Deng Zhong, rushed in at the noise, but was also made prisoner and thrust into the other cart. Many generals and attendants in the Palace want to attempt a rescue, but before they had prepared, they saw dust arose outside, and Zhong Hui with an army was close at hand, thus they scattered.

Zhong Hui and Jiang Wei dismounted at the Palace gates and entered.

Zhong Hui, seeing both the Dengs prisoners, struck the elder about the head and face with his whip and insulted him, saying, "Vile cattle breeder! How dare you have your own scheme?"

Nor was Jiang Wei backward. "You fool! See what your good luck has brought you today!" cried he.

And Deng Ai replied in kind. Zhong Hui at once sent off both the prisoners to Luoyang, and then entered Chengdu in state. He added all Deng Ai's army to his own forces, so that he became very formidable.

"Today I have attained the one desire of my life!" cried Zhong Hui.

[e] Han Xin was suspected of rebellion and was arrested by Liu Bang. However, Han Xin said, "When the birds have vanished, the good bows are stored." Liu Bang absolved him due to his merits. But Xiao He and Empress Lu executed him when Liu Bang was absent. .....
[e] After Yue conquered Wu, Fan Li gave up politics and traveled. But his collegue Wen Zhong stayed to continue serving King Gou Jian loyally. Wen Zhong later was put to death due to slanders. Meanwhile, it is said that Fan Li, together with the beauty Xi Shi, had become a wealthy merchant and was doing charity works. .....

[e] Emei Mountain one of the most renowned Buddhist and Daoist (Taoist) sanctuaries in China. The mountain is located in the basin of Sichuan Province. The beautiful majesty of this mountain has caused it to be named Emei, "the most beautiful mountain under heaven". Visitors of this mountain are treated to several peaks, bubbling springs, cascading waterfalls, tall ancient trees and abundant flowers along the many mountain paths leading to the many scenic spots and temples that dot the mountain side from the base to the summit. .....
 

Jiang Wei replied, "At the beginning of Han, Han Xin hearkened not to Kuai Tong to establish his own kingdom, and so blundered into trouble at the Weiyang Palace, where he met his fate*. In Yue, High Minister Wen Zhong would not follow Fan Li into retirement on the lakes, and so fell victim to a sword*. No one would say these two---Han Xin and Wen Zhong---were not brilliant, but they did not scent danger early enough. Now, Sir, your merit is great and your prestige overwhelming that of your prince, but why do you risk future dangers? Why not sail off in a boat leaving no trace of your going? Why not go to Emei Mountain* and wander free with Master Red Pine?"

Zhong Hui smiled.

"I do not think your advice much to the point. I am a young man, not forty yet, and think rather of going on than halting. I could not take up a do-nothing hermit's life."

"If you do not, then take heed and prepare for dangers. Think out a careful course, as you are well able to do. You need not trouble any old fool for advice."

Zhong Hui laughed loud and rubbed his hands together with glee.

"How well you know my thoughts, my friend!" said Zhong Hui.

They two became absorbed in the plans for their grand scheme.

But Jiang Wei wrote a secret letter to the Latter Ruler, saying:

"I pray Your Majesty be patient and put up with humiliations for a season, for Jiang Wei, your humble servant, will have the country restored in good time. The sun and moon are all the more glorious when they burst through the dark clouds. The House of Han is not yet done."

While Zhong Hui and Jiang Wei were planning how best to outwit each other, but both being against Wei, there suddenly arrived a letter from Sima Zhao:

"I am at Changan with an army lest there should be any difficulty in disposing of Deng Ai. I need you to come to discuss state affairs."

Zhong Hui divined the real purport at once.

"He suspects," said Zhong Hui. "He knows quite well that my army outnumbers that of Deng Ai many times and I could do what he wishes easily. There is more than that in his coming."

He consulted Jiang Wei, who said, "When the prince suspects a minister, that minister dies. Have we not seen Deng Ai?"

"This decides me," replied Zhong Hui. "Success, and the empire is mine; failure, and I go west into Shu to be another Liu Bei, but without his mistakes."

Jiang Wei said, "Empress Guo of Wei has just died. You can pretend she left you a command to destroy Sima Zhao, the real murderer of the Emperor. Your talents are quite sufficient to conquer the empire."

"Will you lead the van?" said Zhong Hui. "When success is ours, we will share the spoil."

"The little I can do, I will do most willingly," said Jiang Wei. "But I am not sure of the support of all our subordinates."

"Tomorrow is the fifteenth day of the month, a Feast of Lanterns will be held. We can gather in the Palace for the congratulations. There will be grand illuminations, and we will prepare a banquet for the officers, whereat we can kill all those who will not follow us."

At this, the heart of Jiang Wei leapt with joy. Invitations were sent out in the joint names of the two conspirators, and the feast began. After several courses, suddenly Zhong Hui lifted his cup and broke into wailing.

Everyone asked what was the cause of this grief, and Zhong Hui replied. "The Empress has just died, but before her death she gave me an edict, which is here, recounting the crimes of Sima Zhao and charging him with aiming at the Throne. I am commissioned to destroy him, and you all must join me in the task."

The guests stared at each other in amazement, but no one uttered a word.

Then the host suddenly drew his sword, crying, "Here is death for those who oppose!"

Not one was bold enough to refuse, and, one by one, they all signed a promise to help. As further security, they were all kept prisoners in the Palace under careful guard.

"They are not really with us," said Jiang Wei. "I venture to request you to bury them all."

"A great pit has been already dug," replied his brother host. "And I have a lot of clubs ready. We can easily club those who disagree and bury them in the pit."

As Jiang Wei and Zhong Hui discussed the matter, General Qiu Jian, a man in the confidence of Zhong Hui, was present. He had once served under Assistant General Hu Lie, who was one of the imprisoned guests, and thus he found means to warn his former chief.

Hu Lie wept and said, "My son, Hu Yuan, is in command of a force outside the city. He will never suspect Zhong Hui capable of such a crime, and I pray you tell him. If I am to die, it will be with less regret if my son can be told."

"Kind master, have no anxiety; only leave it to me," replied Qiu Jian.

He went to Zhong Hui, and said, "Sir, you are holding in captivity a large number of officers, and they are suffering from lack of food and water. Will you not appoint an officer to supply their needs?"

Zhong Hui was accustomed to yield to the wishes of Qiu Jian, and he made no difficulty about this. He told Qiu Jian to see to it himself, only saying, "I am placing great trust in you, and you must be loyal. Our secret must be kept."

"My lord, you may be quite content. I know how to keep a strict watch when necessary."

And Qiu Jian allowed to enter into the place of confinement a trusty confidant of Hu Lie, who gave him a letter to his son Hu Yuan.

When Hu Yuan knew the whole story, he was astonished and told his subordinates, and they were greatly enraged.

They came to their commander's tent to say: "We would rather die than follow a rebel!"

So Hu Yuan fixed upon the eighteenth day of the month to attempt the rescue. He enlisted the sympathy of Wei Guan and got his army ready. He bade Qiu Jian tell his father what was afoot. Hu Lie then told his fellow-captives.

One day Zhong Hui said to Jiang Wei, "Last night I dreamed a dream, that I was bitten by many serpents. Can you expound the vision?"

Jiang Wei replied, "Dreams of dragons and snakes and scaly creatures are exceedingly auspicious."

Zhong Hui was only too ready to accept this interpretation. Then he told Jiang Wei that all was ready and they would put the crucial question to each captive.

"I know they are opposed to us, and you would do well to slay them all, and that right quickly," replied Jiang Wei.

"Good," replied Zhong Hui.

He bade Jiang Wei with several ruffians kill the Wei leaders among the captives. But just as Jiang Wei was starting to carry out these instructions, he was seized with a sudden spasm of the heart, so severe that he fainted. He was raised from the earth and in time revived. Just as he came to, a tremendous hubbub arose outside the Palace. Zhong Hui at once sent to inquire what was afoot, but the noise waxed louder and louder, sounding like the rush of a multitude.

"The officers must be raging," said Zhong Hui. "We would best slay them at once!"

But they told him: "The outside soldiers are in the Palace!"

Zhong Hui bade them close the doors of the Hall of Audience, and he sent his own troops upon the roof to pelt the incoming soldiers with tiles. Many were slain on either side in the melee. Then a fire broke out. The assailants broke open the doors. Zhong Hui faced them and slew a few, but others shot at him with flights of arrows, and he fell and died. They hacked off his head.

Jiang Wei ran to and fro slaying all he met till another heart spasm seized him.

"Failed!" he shrieked, "But it is the will of Heaven!"

He put an end to his own life. He was fifty-nine.

Many hundreds were slain within the Forbidden City. Wei Guan presently ordered that the soldiers were to be led back to their various camps to await the orders of the Duke of Jin.

The soldiers of Wei, burning for revenge of his many invasions, hacked the dead body of Jiang Wei to pieces. They found his gall bladder extraordinarily large, as large as a hen's egg. They also seized and slew all the family of the dead leader.

Seeing that Deng Ai's two enemies on the spot were both dead, his old soldiers bethought themselves of trying to rescue him. When Wei Guan, who had actually arrested Deng Ai, heard this, he feared for his life.

"If Deng Ai lives, I will die in his hand!" said Wei Guan.

Furthermore, General Tian Xu said, "When Deng Ai took Jiangyou, he wished to put me to death. It was only at the prayer of my friends that he let me off. May I not have my revenge now?"

So Wei Guan gave order. At the head of five hundred cavalry, Tian Xu went in pursuit of the cage-carts. He came up with them at Mianzhu and found that the two prisoners had just been released from the carts in which they were being carried to Luoyang. When Deng Ai saw that those coming up were soldiers of his own late command, he took no thought for defense. Nor did Tian Xu waste time in preliminaries. He went up to where Deng Ai was standing and cut him down. His soldiers fell upon the son, Deng Zhong, and slew him also, and thus father and son met death in the same place.

A poem, pitying Deng Ai, was written:

 [hip, hip, hip]
While yet a boy, Deng Ai loved to sketch and plan;
He was an able leader as a man.
The earth could hide no secrets from his eye,
With equal skill he read the starry sky.
Past every obstacle his way he won,
And onward pressed until his task was done.
But foulest murder closed a great career,
His spirit ranges now a larger sphere.
[yip, yip, yip]
 

A poem was also composed in pity for Zhong Hui:

 [hip, hip, hip]
Of mother wit Zhong Hui had no scanty share,
And in due time at court did office bear.
His subtle plans shook Sima Zhao's hold on power,
He was well named the Zhang Liang of the hour.
Shouchun and Saber Pass ramparts straight fell down,
When he attacked, and he won great renown.
Ambition beckoned, he would forward press
His spirit homeward wandered, bodiless.
[yip, yip, yip]
 

Another poem, in pity of Jiang Wei, runs:

 [hip, hip, hip]
Tianshui boasts of a hero,
Talent came forth from Xizhou,
Lu Wang fathered his spirit,
Zhuge Liang tutored his mind,
Valiant he ever pressed forward,
Nor had a thought of returning,
Grieved were the soldiers of Han
When death rapt his soul from his body.
[yip, yip, yip]
 

And thus died all three leaders. Many other generals also perished in the fighting, and with them died Zhang Yi and other officers. Liu Rui, the heir-apparent, and Guan Yi, Lord of Hanshou and grandson of Guan Yu, were also killed by the Wei soldiers. Then followed a time of great confusion and bloodshed, which endured till Jia Chong arrived and restored confidence and order.

[e] Matt, a reader: "Shu's Demise---I Am Pissed: I found it disheartening that the Shu Kingdom was overturned by Deng Ai. In all, all the three kingdoms were united by the Jins. Man, Shu Kingdom were the most righteous, honorable kingdom which actually tried to upheld the Han Dynasty. In the end, Cao Cao's decendants and Sima Yi's heirs managed to destroy Shu and Wu. This is not right!! The Emperor was never avenged, and the kingdom which was actually trying to restore the Hans were destroyed. If they were so righteous, why were they defeated by the rebel!! Man, where there is a great warrior like Zhou Yu, there is Zhuge Liang that defeated him. Where there is great Prime Minister Zhuge Liang, there is great strategist Sima Yi that out-witted him. Where there is Jiang Wei, there is Deng Ai. Rebels remains victor and the righteous are defeated." .....
[e] Sephiroth, a reader: "I tend to agree with you. The ones who actually tried to restore the Hans were defeated and the rebels remains victorous. This sucks but this is based on facts. So, can't we argue with it any more. What does it tell ya, man? The good guys don't always win...in fact, in life, the bad guys often have a winning hand. For example, look at [modern politics and how bullies have their way.] So, relax...life is like that..." .....

[e] Justin, a reader: "Yea, the ending is very sad, but you got to rememember that this is true histroy, so they can't alter the storyline of the story. If you follow the story carefully, some scenes foreshadow the ending. For example, Ma Su's disobedience is one of them. Zhuge Liang commented after the defeat that there would be no more golden opportunity to capture Changan. Another scene is when Zhuge Liang ingeniously lured Sima Yi into a small valley to burn him. Sima Yi would have perished but luckily he was saved by a sudden rainstorm. Zhuge Liang knew at that moment that Heaven had destined Sima Yi to reunite the land, not Shu-Han. To me, Shu had the most talents but it was pre-destined to lose to Jins. Others can be blamed for the downfall of Shu. Shu kingdom was really small compared to the vast kingdom of Wei. Of all the people I hate the most, it would be Liu Chan. His lack of knowledge and his apathy for the kingdom was one of the causes of the downfall. Beside this, If some generals would listen and heed Zhuge Liang's advice, major strategic locations wouldn't be lost. This is another factor that caused the demise. It is sad for me to read the ending of Zhuge Liang' life. The man worked his butt off for his land, but Heaven had to betray him. This can be seen clearly in the scene when he invokes the stars." .....

[e] # 44, a reader: "Zhuge Liang was never effectively outmanuvered by Sima Yi. If he had been allowed to live ten more years, he might have been able to make it. But good doesn't always win over evil in the real world. And virtue is rarely a guarantee of anything but being virtuous. The world should follow good and honorable humans, but more often they follow power out of fear or opulence out of desire. At least Shu was there to make sure Cao Cao never saw a complete empire in ............