Chapter Summaries

After Liu Zhang recalled Yan Yan from Swordland and ordered him executed, Liu Bei's forces captured the pass and killed Pang Xi. Liu Zhang faced the loss of Shu Commandery and summoned Yan Yan as Liu Bei's army advanced.

• Yan Yan returned to Chengdu with Deng Xian and was arrested under Liu Zhang's order to be publicly executed in three days.
• Wu Lan questioned the severity of the sentence, but Liu Zhang insisted Yan Yan had to die and trusted promised aid from Liu Cong and Cao Cao.
• Huang Quan reported that Liu Bei's army had taken Swordland and Guan Yu had killed Pang Xi as he fled.
• Liu Zhang ordered Wu Lan to bring Yan Yan back and resolved to defend Shu Commandery until reinforcements arrived.
• Wang Lian warned that Liu Cong and Cao Cao might withhold aid, and Wu Lan brought the shackled Yan Yan into Liu Zhang's study.

Yan Yan agreed to defend Chengdu for Liu Zhang after Liu Zhang fled to seek reinforcements. Liu Bei's army reached the city and prepared to attack, while Yan Yan stood ready to resist.

• Liu Zhang told Yan Yan that Swordland had fallen and asked him to hold Chengdu while he sought help from Liu Cong and Cao Cao.
• Yan Yan accepted the command to defend Chengdu, and Liu Zhang gave him five thousand elite soldiers and the military tally.
• Liu Bei's forces reached the Pi River after local officials surrendered along their route.
• Pang Tong reported that Liu Zhang had fled toward Jing Province and left Yan Yan in charge of Chengdu, prompting Liu Bei to hurry the campaign.
• After resting for a day, Liu Bei led a direct assault on Chengdu, where Yan Yan prepared to defend the city.

Liu Bei's army besieged Chengdu for eight days without breaking through Yan Yan's defenses, so Liu Bei ordered the assaults reduced while his men hurried to dig a tunnel. In Xiangyang, Emperor Xian of Han armed himself and prepared to lead soldiers against Liu Cong and Cai Mao.

• Liu Bei attacked Chengdu, where Yan Yan's defenders held the walls against repeated assaults; Liu Bei noticed Wei Yan leading the first-to-scale unit.
• After eight days and four failed attacks, Liu Bei told Pang Tong to speed up the tunnel and ordered the army to reduce its assaults while aiming to take Chengdu before month's end.
• Yan Yan reviewed the defenders' heavy losses, conscripted young men to replenish his forces, and hoped Liu Zhang would return with reinforcements.
• In Xiangyang, Emperor Xian of Han put on heavy armor and, accompanied by Cao Cao's guard, addressed several hundred soldiers before setting out to slay the rebels.

At Liu Cong’s Mid-Autumn Banquet, Liu Zhang failed to persuade Liu Cong and Cao Cao to send troops to Yi Province. Emperor Xian of Han then stormed the residence with Cao Cao’s support, accused Liu Cong and Cai Mao of treason, and took control of the guards.

• Liu Zhang pleaded with Liu Cong and Cao Cao to send troops against Liu Bei, but both said they would wait for the Son of Heaven’s decree.
• Emperor Xian of Han arrived at Liu Cong’s residence with armored soldiers and accused Liu Cong and Cai Mao of imprisoning him.
• Cai Mao ordered the guards to kill the emperor’s supporters, while Cao Cao declared that he knew of the plot against Liu Biao and Liu Qi.
• Some of the guards turned on their comrades, then knelt before Cao Cao, leaving Cai Mao and Liu Cong stunned.

Cao Cao seized control of Jing Province after executing Cai Mao and Liu Cong, then promised Liu Zhang aid against Liu Bei. In Chengdu, Liu Bei’s army broke into the city through a tunnel and overran the South City Gate, leaving Yan Yan to rally the remaining defenders.

• Cao Cao had Xu Chu behead Cai Mao and Liu Cong, then presented their heads to Emperor Xian of Han.
• Kuai Liang, Pang Ji, and the other Jing Province families praised Cao Cao and accepted his takeover without objection.
• Cao Cao assured Liu Zhang that he would send troops to help reclaim Yi Province from Liu Bei.
• Yan Yan inspected Chengdu’s walls and warned Deng Xian not to let the defenders lower their guard.
• Liu Bei’s troops poured through a tunnel into Chengdu, opened the South City Gate, and launched a full-scale assault.
• Yan Yan found the South City Gate lost and ordered the West Camp, South Camp, and North Camp to follow him in holding off the enemy.

Liu Bei’s forces captured Chengdu after Yan Yan refused to surrender and died defending the city. With Yi Province under his control, Liu Bei learned that Cao Cao had killed Liu Cong and Cai Mao and prepared to report the news to the Son of Heaven.

• Yan Yan refused to abandon Chengdu and led his defenders against Liu Bei’s troops as they stormed the city.
• After Chengdu fell, Yan Yan rejected Liu Bei’s offer to surrender and charged with Deng Xian and his remaining soldiers.
• Liu Bei’s crossbowmen killed Yan Yan’s defenders, and Liu Bei ordered Yan Yan’s remains to be given an honorable burial.
• Liu Bei took control of Chengdu and all of Yi Province, then asked Pang Tong and Xu Shu about developments in Jing Province.
• Pang Tong told Liu Bei that Cao Cao had killed Liu Cong and Cai Mao, and Xu Shu warned that Cao Cao could threaten Yi Province once he controlled Jing Province.
• Liu Bei agreed to report Cao Cao’s actions to the Son of Heaven.

Liu Xie visited the pregnant Lü Lingqi, where Zhen Mi helped her pass the time by teaching her needlework. The chapter ended with Zhen Mi asking when she would conceive a dragon heir, and Liu Xie reassuring her.

• Zhen Mi taught Lü Lingqi to sew baby clothes, while explaining that the Empress might fear Lü Lingqi’s pregnancy would threaten her position.
• Lü Lingqi said she had no intention of competing for the empress’s position, despite her father’s promise that she would become Empress.
• Liu Xie arrived at Ziyun Palace and praised Zhen Mi’s tiger-head shoes, then tried to comfort Lü Lingqi over her poorly sewn baby clothes.
• Liu Xie asked after Lü Lingqi’s health and said Luoyang’s rebuilding should be nearly complete by the time their child was born next year.
• Zhen Mi asked Liu Xie when she would conceive a dragon heir, and he reassured her that she would.

Liu Xie and his ministers received news that Liu Bei had conquered Yi Province while Cao Cao had seized Jing Province by killing Liu Cong and Cai Mao. After deciding against an immediate attack on Jing Province, Liu Xie left the court’s next move unresolved as he sought Zhuge Liang’s opinion.

• Zhen Mi tried to invite Liu Xie to spend the night at Qingli Palace, but urgent military news summoned him away; she asked Guo Nüwang to tell him she would prepare red bean soup.
• Guo Jia reported that Liu Bei had captured Chengdu and recovered Yi Province, forcing Liu Zhang to flee to Jing Province.
• Jia Xu explained that Cao Cao had used Emperor Xian of Han’s accusations to execute Liu Cong and Cai Mao and gain the support of Jing Province’s great families.
• Sima Yi urged an immediate campaign against Jing Province, but Yang Xiu warned that Cao Cao was prepared and the court’s northern troops would struggle with the province’s terrain and waterways.
• Liu Xie accepted Yang Xiu’s objections, admonished Sima Yi against haste, and heard Guo Jia recommend rebuilding strength and waiting until spring before considering military action.
• Liu Xie asked Zhuge Liang for his view on what the court should do next.

Liu Xie’s court decided to offer Ma Chao surrender terms and prepare to reclaim Chang’an if he refused. Guo Nüwang began her daytime service, and Liu Xie summoned Ma Teng to learn whether Ma Chao might surrender.

• Zhuge Liang proposed attacking Ma Chao to reclaim Chang’an, and Liu Xie agreed to offer him surrender terms before sending troops.
• Jia Xu explained that the Jian'an Machine had provided woolen clothing that made winter campaigns practical, and the court discussed the challenges posed by Ma Chao’s Western Liang Iron Cavalry.
• Guo Nüwang ignored the palace maids’ envious gossip, gave Eunuch Wu a medicinal sachet, and prepared to serve Liu Xie.
• Liu Xie ordered Guo Nüwang to summon Ma Teng so he could assess Ma Chao’s willingness to surrender.
• Ma Teng arrived under Gao Lan’s escort and bowed before Liu Xie, who told him to rise.

Liu Xie sent Ma Teng to persuade Ma Chao to surrender, while preparing for a campaign if the rebel refused. He ordered Lü Bu, Zhang Liao, and Huang Zhong to form an army equipped with mo dao to counter the Western Liang cavalry.

• Liu Xie questioned Ma Teng about Ma Chao's refusal to surrender and heard Ma Teng plead for his other sons' lives.
• Liu Xie offered Ma Chao a pardon if he surrendered and sent Ma Teng to deliver the terms in person.
• Liu Xie told Lü Bu, Zhang Liao, and Huang Zhong that Liu Bei had recovered Yi Province and that their forces might campaign against Ma Chao to retake Chang'an.
• Liu Xie explained that Ma Chao's cavalry made the Western Liang Army dangerous and that he wanted to prepare troops specifically to counter it.
• Liu Xie showed the generals a mo dao design and ordered him to select tall, powerful soldiers to wield the weapons against charging cavalry.

Liu Xie ordered the creation of a five-thousand-man Mo Dao army and assigned Lü Bu, Zhang Liao, and Huang Zhong to select soldiers while the Zhen Clan made its equipment. The Zhen elders resisted the cost, and their dispute exposed their fear that Lü Lingqi’s pregnancy would cost the Zhen Clan its chance to place a woman in the imperial harem.

• Liu Xie ordered his generals to select elite Mo Dao troops and commissioned the Zhen Clan to forge their weapons and armor.
• Lü Bu, Zhang Liao, and Huang Zhong each sought command of the new army, but Liu Xie postponed the decision until it had been formed.
• Zhen Yi told the Zhen Clan elders that the imperial order required five thousand sets of equipment within two months, and he pledged his branch’s share.
• The other branch elders protested the expense, but Zhen Yi rebuked them and ordered them to obey the Son of Heaven.
• The Second Branch elder argued that the Zhen Clan’s efforts would be wasted because Lü Lingqi was pregnant, leaving Zhen Yi troubled by the possibility that she would become empress.

Zhen Yi weighed his clan elders’ push to compete for the Empress’s Position while Liu Xie calmly watched the Zhen Clan test his limits. In Chang’an, Ma Teng arrived to persuade Ma Chao to surrender, while Ma Chao ordered his cavalry equipped with double stirrups and horseshoes.

• Zhen Clan elders urged Zhen Yi to make the clan assert its claim to the Empress’s Position, and he agreed to consider it while warning them not to neglect funding the Mo Dao Army.
• Liu Xie told Jia Xu he would tolerate the Zhen Clan’s actions for now, leaving Jia Xu uneasy about the danger of the Emperor’s silence.
• Ma Teng reached Chang’an with Cui Lin’s delegation to deliver the ultimatum that Ma Chao surrender.
• Ma Chao praised the advantages of double stirrups and horseshoes, then ordered Pang De to have them produced for the Western Liang Army’s warhorses.

Ma Chao learned that Ma Teng had returned to Chang'an and feared his father would take command of the Western Liang Army from him. After the two clashed in the General's Residence, Ma Chao denied plotting rebellion while Cui Lin offered him a chance to explain himself.

• A deputy general told Ma Chao that Ma Teng had returned to Chang'an with an imperial delegation, and Ma Chao ordered Pang De to secure the camp while he went to meet his father.
• Ma Chao found Ma Teng and Cui Lin in the General's Residence, where Ma Teng attacked him with a whip and sword for betraying the Imperial Court.
• Ma Chao disarmed Ma Teng but withdrew his blade and urged him to discuss matters calmly.
• Ma Teng accused Ma Chao of plotting treason, while Ma Chao claimed he had intended to rescue his father and the Son of Heaven.
• Cui Lin denied that Lü Bu and Yuan Xi had held the Son of Heaven hostage and gave Ma Chao a chance to explain himself.

Ma Chao rejected Ma Teng’s plea to surrender and revealed that he intended to secure power for the Ma Family by fighting the Imperial Court. He claimed he would submit only if the Son of Heaven granted him Liang Province as a hereditary fief, leaving Cui Lin stunned and furious.

• Ma Chao challenged Ma Teng’s claim to loyalty by reminding him that he had also rebelled in the past.
• Ma Chao declared that the Ma Family should rule its own domain and argued that surrender would leave them vulnerable to a later reckoning.
• Ma Chao refused to turn back, declared that the family must risk everything, and knocked Ma Teng unconscious before ordering guards to watch him.
• Ma Chao told Cui Lin that he was willing to submit to the Imperial Court, then demanded Liang Province as the Ma Family’s hereditary fief.
• Cui Lin reacted with anger when Ma Chao asked the Son of Heaven to grant him Liang Province.

Ma Chao rejected the Imperial Court’s terms and demanded to be made King of Liang, while deceiving Pang De about Ma Teng to keep the general’s support. Outside Ye City, new recruits trained under the scorching sun, and a centurion reprimanded soldiers for blaming a fallen comrade.

• Cui Lin condemned Ma Chao’s demand for Liang Province and kingship, but Ma Chao spared him and ordered him to report the ultimatum to the emperor.
• Ma Chao told Pang De that Lü Bu and Yuan Xi had tortured Ma Teng and threatened his brothers, using the lie to keep Pang De from visiting his father.
• Ma Chao ordered preparations for battle and for making double stirrups and horseshoes, then privately resolved to secure Liang Province or march on Ye City.
• New recruits ran cross-country in the heat, and Wang Er collapsed, forcing his Third Unit to stop and lose its chance to finish first.
• The Third Unit’s centurion slapped soldiers who blamed Wang Er and demanded to know whether winning or standing by their comrades mattered more.

Liu Xie praised Zhang Liao’s troop training and inspected the selected soldiers for the Mo Dao Army. After learning how rigorously they had been chosen and trained, he saw the newly made armor and weapons arrive, leaving Zhang Liao stunned by their quality.

• The Third Squad’s centurion rebuked soldiers for abandoning Wang Er, and Wang Er recovered enough to resume marching with their help.
• The Third Squad caught up with the Seventh Squad, whose centurion had waited for them, and the two units challenged each other to race.
• Liu Xie praised Zhang Liao for instilling discipline and collective honor in the marching troops, then asked about the Mo Dao Army’s selected soldiers.
• Zhang Liao explained the soldiers’ demanding physical training and selection standards, including their strength and ability to march under heavy loads before fighting.
• Liu Xie ordered the Zhen Clan’s newly made armor and Mo Dao brought to the drill ground, where the soldiers admired the equipment and Zhang Liao was astonished by it.

Liu Xie inspected Zhang Liao’s newly equipped Mo Dao Army, which impressed the generals and sparked a scramble for its spare armor and weapons. After returning to the palace, Liu Xie learned that the delegation to Chang’an had returned and hurried to hear Cui Lin’s report, where the officials’ grim reactions left the outcome unclear.

• Liu Xie watched Zhang Liao’s two thousand soldiers form ranks in their Mingguang Armor and praised the Mo Dao Army’s bearing.
• Huang Zhong, Qu Yi, Gao Shun, and Lü Bu saw the army and recognized its strength, while Lü Bu decided he wanted to command it.
• Liu Xie left Zhang Liao in charge of training the soldiers, and Lü Bu claimed the spare equipment after Zhang Liao offered it to Huang Zhong.
• Gao Lan reported that the delegation to Chang’an had returned to Ye City, and Liu Xie hurried to the Xuan Room to ask about Cui Lin and Ma Teng.
• Liu Xie entered the Xuan Room as Cui Lin reported to Zhuge Liang, Jia Xu, Guo Jia, and the other officials, whose grave reactions hinted at troubling news.

After Ma Chao demanded to be made King of Liang Province, Liu Xie ordered Sima Yi to lead a campaign to recover Chang'an and Liang Province. Sima Yi worried over the difficult war, and Zhuge Liang visited him late at night, leaving his intentions unclear.

• Cui Lin reported that Ma Chao had refused to surrender, detained Ma Teng, and demanded to be enfeoffed as King of Liang.
• Yang Xiu and several ministers called for an attack, and Liu Xie ordered Sima Yi to accompany the army and annihilate Ma Chao’s forces.
• Sima Yi returned home and told Lady Zhang that Ma Chao’s hundred thousand Western Liang Iron Cavalry made the campaign uncertain.
• Zhuge Liang visited Sima Yi’s home, claiming he had stopped by for tea, while Sima Yi suspected he had come to mock him.

Zhuge Liang left Sima Yi a plan for defeating Ma Chao, but Sima Yi kept it only to prove he could win without help. After Cao Cao took Jing Province, he discussed Ma Chao’s rebellion with Xun Yu and Xun You and considered trying to win Ma Chao over.

• Zhuge Liang offered Sima Yi a plan to defeat Ma Chao, but Sima Yi angrily ordered him out and refused to read it.
• After Zhuge Liang left, Sima Yi stopped himself from burning the brocade pouch and kept it as a reminder to defeat Ma Chao.
• Cao Cao welcomed the shackled Xu You to Xiangyang and refused to release him, then greeted Xun Yu and Xun You as they arrived from Jiangdong.
• Xun Yu told Cao Cao that Ma Chao had rebelled against the Pretender Emperor, and Xun You suggested Cao Cao try to recruit Ma Chao and his Western Liang Iron Cavalry.
• Cao Cao agreed to write to Ma Chao to learn why he had rebelled before deciding whether to seek an alliance.

Liu Xie visited a village incognito to inspect how government policies were reaching the people and met Zhaodi, a young girl whose father had died in battle. After seeing how poor Zhaodi and her sick grandmother were, he suspected their military compensation had been withheld and resolved to investigate.

• Liu Xie and Zhao Yun toured a village and noticed that few young, able-bodied men remained after years of war.
• Liu Xie met seven-year-old Zhaodi carrying firewood and learned that her father had died fighting rebels to reclaim Bing Province, while her mother had died of illness.
• Liu Xie accompanied Zhaodi home and saw that she and her grandmother lived in a crude, impoverished hut.
• Liu Xie suspected that Zhaodi's family had not received the compensation and monthly supplies owed to families of fallen soldiers, and he resolved to investigate.
• Liu Xie introduced himself to Zhaodi's grandmother as a visitor from Ye City inspecting the distribution of military-family compensation.