Chapter 46 Squeeze Every Last Drop of Value

It was already past the hour of midnight when Shi Shouxin returned to Liu Qin’s Wei army camp. Liu Qin repeatedly asked how the conversation had gone, but Shi Shouxin only replied that it was passable, and then went off to his own tent to sleep.

He slept straight until the sun was three poles high. Only when the tent became unbearably stuffy did Shi Shouxin wake up. He then went to the Han River for a bath, changed into a fresh military uniform, and finally returned to the main camp.

As an army supervisor, Shi Shouxin naturally enjoyed a certain degree of leisure. Having nothing to do in the camp, washing away the foul sweat of the day was of no great consequence, and no one would murmur against him for it.

Around dusk, the Shu forces stationed at Huangjin Enclosure sent men to Liu Qin’s camp. Without uttering a word, they simply left behind a few scrolls of bamboo slips and departed.

This was a piece of Han rhapsody improvised by Liu Yin the previous night, titled "Rhapsody on the Cold Plum," quite an ordinary name.

The essay was quite long, beginning thus:

"When the dark cycle turns, and the season brings the bitter chill,
The northern wind shakes the wilds, and drifting snow fills the sky.
I survey the alternation of the four seasons, and sigh at the withering of a hundred flowers.
Withered lotus leaves fall upon the waves, broken reeds startle the wind-blown tumbleweeds.
Chrysanthemums fade in the golden valley, orchids languish in secluded thickets.
Yet here is this fine tree, bearing alone a singular beauty,
Conceiving the pure breath of earth's spirit, endowed with heaven's steadfast virtue..."

In short, it straightforwardly expressed how other flowers withered in the bitter cold, leaving only the plum blossom, fearless of wind and snow, in its noble and precious state. Then, using the object to symbolize humanity, it hinted that he, like the plum blossom, would not be disturbed by external winds and snow.

However, at the very end of the rhapsody, it indicated that only when "spring warms and flowers bloom" would the plum blossom "fall of its own accord," turning into spring mud.

This was a subtle hint: once Liu Shan’s imperial edict arrived, the plum blossom, which had stubbornly refused to wither, would finally drop.

Had he not spent the past two years familiarizing himself with classical poetry and prose, Shi Shouxin would have been utterly at a loss as to what Liu Yin was trying to convey.

With such men of letters, understanding the literal meaning of their writings was easy; the hard part was figuring out what they truly wished to express through their words!

For instance, an unrefined brute like Liu Qin failed entirely to grasp why Liu Yin had written this piece. Plum blossoms not fearing wind and snow? To him, it was sheer, pointless moaning!

"Inspector Shi, did Liu Yin write this 'Rhapsody on the Cold Plum' simply to tell us that he will only surrender when Liu Shan’s edict arrives? Why on earth couldn't I see that?"

Liu Qin wore a baffled expression, stopping just short of cursing aloud.

"Indeed he did. He made the exact same promise yesterday. This 'Rhapsody on the Cold Plum' is the token Liu Yin has given us."

Shi Shouxin said with a smile, the heavy stone in his heart finally dropping, and the gloom on his face completely swept away.

"It's just that..."

Liu Qin paused, asking with a puzzled frown, "What is the point of all this if we can't understand it? Wouldn't it have been much simpler for him to just write a letter promising to surrender?"

"We may not understand this 'Rhapsody on the Cold Plum', but the Grand Commander (Zhong Hui) will."

Shi Shouxin smiled, his words instantly enlightening the other!

"Ah! So that's how it is! I understand now! Inspector Shi, your resourcefulness is truly boundless!"

Liu Qin was so excited he nearly jumped three feet into the air.

"As long as we send someone carrying this 'Rhapsody on the Cold Plum' to the Grand Commander's desk, he will no longer hold it against us for failing to attack Huangjin Enclosure. For through this rhapsody, Liu Yin has made it abundantly clear that he would rather die than surrender, awaiting only Liu Shan's edict.

The Grand Commander is most fond of associating with renowned scholars. Upon seeing this 'Rhapsody on the Cold Plum', he will surely treasure it and be unable to put it down. How could he possibly hold anyone accountable?"

Shi Shouxin patiently explained.

Liu Qin was genuinely convinced this time. He had originally thought that an army supervisor was merely someone sent to find fault within the army, but he never expected Shi Shouxin to be so learned and adept at handling matters. Many difficult problems, once in his hands, were resolved so smoothly.

"These are mere trifles. Liu Yin has not had an easy time of it either, and there is truly no need for us to force him into a desperate fight to the death. I once personally experienced the fall of Yang'an Pass, where I truly put forth little effort yet reaped much glory. One cannot compare people to people, nor events to events."

Shi Shouxin was in high spirits at the moment and mentioned it casually.

Even when recalling the unpleasant business at Yang'an Pass, he felt no great distress now. After all, it was all in the past; a person had to look forward to make progress.

"Ah, indeed, one cannot compare people to people."

Liu Qin sighed, shaking his head.

Just then, a personal guard reported that someone had arrived with a letter, specifically addressed to Shi Shouxin.

Liu Qin asked with a curious expression, "A letter delivered exclusively to Inspector Shi? What kind of letter is it?"

Shi Shouxin spread his hands, indicating he knew nothing about it either. He and Liu Qin walked out of the military tent together and saw a young man whose facial features bore a striking resemblance to Yang Hu, holding two wooden boxes in his hands.

Both boxes were fitted with bronze locks, their seams sealed with red wax—the exact same style Wei Guan had previously given him!

Except that one box had the character "Zhong" written on it, while the other bore the character "Deng".

"Inspector Shi, I am Yang Ji; Yang Hu is my uncle. This time, the imperial court has ordered me to deliver these letters and hand these two boxes over to you. The court requires you to send one of these boxes to Hanzhou for Zhong Hui, and the other to Yinping for Deng Ai.

My uncle asked if you had any letters to send back home, so that I may take them back to Luoyang on my return journey."

Yang Ji was extremely respectful toward Shi Shouxin, clearly aware that the latter had a close relationship with his uncle, Yang Hu. Serving in Yang Hu's army, Yang Ji naturally could not be ignorant of his uncle's interpersonal connections.

Liu Qin cast a somewhat surprised glance at Shi Shouxin, never expecting that this Inspector Shi would be on such familiar terms with the Yang clan of Taishan.

Shi Shouxin initially wanted to let Yang Ji take a letter back to Li Wan, but upon second thought, considering his itinerary—places like Hanzhou and Yinping were all mountainous terrain and treacherous passes leading into Shu.

The arduous journey alone went without saying, not to mention encountering someone full of hostility like Zhong Hui.

Better not to give his wife cause for worry.

Abandoning the thought of writing a letter, Shi Shouxin asked Yang Ji warmly, "Has Lord Yang reached the Baoxie Trail? Otherwise, they wouldn't have sent you to deliver this."

Hearing this, Yang Ji praised admiringly, "My uncle said that Inspector Shi is both wise and courageous, his foresight unerring. Seeing you today, reputation truly does not lie. Indeed, as Inspector Shi predicted, my uncle, serving as the Central Commandant, has already led ten thousand imperial guards to garrison the Baoxie Trail. Additionally, Jia Chong has led another ten thousand imperial guards to garrison the Tangluo Trail."

True enough, Sima Zhao was already taking deep precautions against Zhong Hui! By blocking both routes, even if the conquering army of Shu rebelled, they would not be able to break into Guanzhong.

Even if they successfully revolted in Shu, they would probably have to emulate Zhuge Liang's repeated Northern Expeditions.

Without changing his expression, Shi Shouxin nodded and said to Yang Ji, "I shall write a receipt, affix my seal to it, and you can take it back to report to the Great General."

Yang Ji nodded, bowed deeply to Shi Shouxin, and was exceedingly polite.

Ah, the privileged elite; they always showed a bit more respect to capable people. But that did not mean they would be this polite when encountering others whom they held in disdain.

After writing the receipt, handing it to Yang Ji, and watching the man depart from the camp, Shi Shouxin's expression finally darkened, though he made no drastic moves.

The appearance of such wooden boxes meant that important letters were being delivered. Last time, he had successfully delivered the letter to Chang'an, and this time Sima Zhao was employing the exact same tactic.

A useful person was worked to the bone, while one's own insignificance left one helpless. Apart from furious impotence, Shi Shouxin had no idea what else he could do.

After a long while, he finally calmed his mind and cast off his latent hostility.

Looking at the two wooden boxes resting on his desk, Shi Shouxin followed the old routine: unpack the boxes first, read the letters later!

Shi Shouxin took out his tools and first opened Zhong Hui's box. Inside was a personal letter from Sima Zhao. The contents were not complicated: it stated that he temporarily agreed to Zhong Hui's request not to halt the campaign, but hoped he would take the initiative to seek out the enemy's flaws.

The rest consisted of official appointments from the court, documents promoting Zhong Hui and bestowing titles upon him.

A phrase flashed instantly through Shi Shouxin's mind: Duke Zheng of Zheng defeating Duan at Yan!

He made a copy of the letter, sealed the first box back up, and then opened the second box, which was meant for Deng Ai.

He wouldn't have known if he hadn't looked, but looking gave him a start.

This box contained only a single letter, completely empty otherwise, unlike Zhong Hui's box which had been packed to the brim.

This too was Sima Zhao's "personal letter" (stamped with his private seal). In the letter, Sima Zhao sharply reprimanded Deng Ai, asking why he had failed to block Jiang Wei, allowing Jiang Wei to escape to Jiange and block the advance of Zhong Hui's army.

After scolding Deng Ai, Sima Zhao further ordered him to lead his troops back to Tazhong, letting Zhuge Xu's forces take over Yinping and stop making pointless trouble.

To put it simply, after expressing his dissatisfaction with Deng Ai's military operations, Sima Zhao was telling him not to waste time, money, and grain, and to withdraw first!

Which meant telling Deng Ai to go back to Tazhong, wash up, and go to sleep!

The blatant favoritism between the two needed no further elaboration; it jumped off the page.

"Once Deng Ai reads this letter, he will take Zhong Hui even less seriously. Jealousy truly makes people unrecognizable."

Shi Shouxin sighed, roughly guessing what Sima Zhao was trying to achieve.

This Great General, sitting in Chang'an and overseeing the campaign from afar, was terrified that Zhong Hui and Deng Ai might join forces to carve out independent domains in Shu, and therefore felt compelled to create an "irreconcilable" conflict between them!

Elevating Zhong Hui while disparaging Deng Ai—trapping a fool in a pit while delivering a lethal praise to an old fox.

This petty trick of lifting one while trampling the other was nothing special, yet those involved found it exceedingly difficult to extricate themselves from the trap.

Shi Shouxin clicked his tongue in wonder, then continued copying the letters and restoring the wooden boxes.

When all this was done, Shi Shouxin packed up his things and stepped out of the tent, only to find Mengguan boredly teasing a cricket with a blade of grass. Seeing Shi Shouxin emerge, Mengguan hastily stood up at attention, a trace of awkwardness flashing across his face.

"You've had a hard journey. Come with me to Hanzhou."

Shi Shouxin patted him on the shoulder and said.

Hanzhou was a name given by Liu Bei, originally called Jiameng. It encompassed Jiameng Pass and a series of surrounding territories, being considerably more prosperous than ordinary passes with a certain degree of local production.

Presently, Zhong Hui was garrisoned precisely at Hanzhou, locked in a standoff with Jiang Wei at Jiange.

"Inspector Shi, seeing that you handle deliveries securely, the Great General is working you to the bone. It's simply too bullying."

Mengguan said with lingering indignation.

"Isn't this just the way the world works? What is there to complain about?"

Shi Shouxin glared at Mengguan and turned to pack his equipment.

Liu Qin watched from the side with a heavy heart, though he dared not say much. Hard as Shi Shouxin's lot was, his father-in-law was Li Yin, the Vice Director of the Imperial Secretariat, and he was on familiar terms with the Yang clan; his future prospects were bright. All this toil would eventually be rewarded.

Liu Qin felt a pang of self-pity; as a minor character with no backing whatsoever, he truly had no qualification to pity Shi Shouxin. Who knew how many years of struggling up from the bottom he would have to endure before he could finally make a name for himself, only for his hard-earned military merits to be carved up by the powerful elite.