Chapter Summaries

Cao Mao teases three boys in the palace, then asks Empress Dowager Guo to help rehabilitate Xiahou Xuan and condemn Sima Shi for his past actions. Empress Dowager Guo eagerly agrees, leaving Cao Mao poised to revisit the political purges that shaped Wei.

• Cao Mao catches Guo Ping, Cao Qi, and Sima You after a football nearly hits him, teases them about their punishment, and sends them back to study.
• Cao Mao tells Sima Yue that the boys have potential and suggests military treatises for Guo Ping, while allowing them time to play.
• Cao Mao meets Guo Zhi and Guo Jian at Zhaoyang Hall, where Empress Dowager Guo praises their service.
• Cao Mao reminds Empress Dowager Guo that she deposed the King of Qi and raised him to the throne, then asks her to help rehabilitate Xiahou Xuan and those executed in the purge.
• Cao Mao condemns Sima Shi for overstepping his authority and argues that the executions were unjust; Empress Dowager Guo enthusiastically agrees that the matter should have been addressed long ago.

Cao Mao arranged to clear Xiahou Xuan and other ministers’ names while condemning Sima Shi’s abuses. He then forced Sima Zhao to seal a memorial concerning Sima Shi’s crimes, leaving Sima Zhao powerless before Cao Mao’s demand that they discuss the reckoning.

• Cao Mao told Empress Dowager Guo to issue an edict explaining Xiahou Xuan’s case and ordered Guo Zhi and Guo Jian to help clear the ministers’ names and release arrested scholars.
• Cao Mao told Guo Ze that Sima Shi’s remaining followers would not dare oppose him, then considered explaining the matter to Sima Yue.
• Cao Mao summoned Sima Zhao and asked whether he had submitted a memorial seeking leniency for Xiahou Xuan.
• When Sima Zhao challenged Cao Mao and invoked his family’s past service, Cheng Ji and the guards seized him and forced him to seal a memorial.
• Cao Mao threatened Sima Zhao with punishment for the Sima family’s crimes, then said they would discuss clearing Xiahou Xuan’s name and pursuing Sima Shi’s wrongs.

Cao Mao went to Shiqian Hall to tell Sima Yue that he intended to hold the Grand General accountable, but the two spent the night together before he could raise the matter. Meanwhile, Cao Mao’s campaign to clear Xiahou Xuan and the others’ names culminated in Sima Zhao acknowledging Sima Shi’s crimes.

• Cao Mao visited Sima Yue at Shiqian Hall, where she prepared for his arrival and they spent the night together.
• The next morning, Cao Mao warned Sima Yue not to heed anyone trying to divide them over the investigation into the Grand General.
• Cao Mao ordered the Censorate to investigate Xiahou Xuan and the others’ cases and clear their names, and the Empress Dowager declared that Sima Shi had been the one at fault.
• The King of Qi and the Censorate submitted memorials accusing Sima Shi of crimes and affirming Xiahou Xuan and the others’ innocence.
• Sima Zhao submitted a memorial admitting that Sima Shi had ignored his advice and deserved the blame for his actions.

Cao Mao welcomed the victorious Central Army, rewarded its soldiers, and honored Ma Long and Wen Yang at a banquet. After Ma Long assessed the strengths of Wu and Shu, Cao Mao ordered the creation of dedicated mountain and naval battalions to prepare for future campaigns.

• Cao Mao welcomed the returning Central Army, praised Ma Long and Wen Yang, and granted the troops honors, provisions, and three days of festivities.
• At the banquet, Wen Yang asked why Cao Mao had not destroyed the Sima Family, and Cao Mao explained that he planned to dismantle powerful clans gradually while preserving useful allies.
• Cao Mao asked Ma Long and Wen Yang to assess the armies of Wu and Shu, and Wen Yang dismissed them as weak.
• Ma Long warned Cao Mao not to underestimate Wu’s generals and navy or Shu’s mountain troops, and recommended training in naval and mountain warfare.
• Cao Mao agreed with Ma Long and ordered the Central Army to establish dedicated Mountain and Navy Battalions as models for regional forces.

Cao Mao rejected Ji Kang’s plea for benevolent governance and dismissed him, while Ji Kang blamed Wang Su’s teaching for the emperor’s harsh rule. Wang Su then proposed to Zhuge Dan that they reinterpret the Supreme Mystery to suit the needs of government, leaving the pair poised to establish a doctrine for Cao Mao.

• Cao Mao told Ji Kang that practical results mattered more than reputations and ordered him to go home, refusing to pardon Wang Rong.
• Ji Kang confronted Zhang Hua about failing to persuade Cao Mao, then blamed Wang Su for teaching the emperor badly.
• Ji Kang and other celebrated scholars accused Wang Su of distorting the Supreme Mystery, but their complaints gave Wang Su an idea.
• Wang Su hurried to Zhuge Dan and proposed writing a new annotation of the Supreme Mystery suited to contemporary government.

Wang Su began composing Classical writings to support Cao Mao’s policies, while Cao Mao learned of the effort and anticipated the political and scholarly benefits. The chapter left Liu Lu preparing to place more people near Liu Shan and Sun Xiu, as He Zeng’s unusual praise of the emperor came to light.

• Wang Su told Kong Chao that he would develop Classical arguments to support the emperor’s policies, despite Kong Chao’s reservations about Zhuge Dan’s scholarship.
• Wang Su wrote down principles including unification, practical action, good faith, and frugality, intending to ground Cao Mao’s policies in the Classics and the Supreme Mystery.
• Zheng Chong declined to get involved in Wang Su’s scholarly project and agreed to write letters of introduction for his servants, who feared being sent away after his son arrived.
• Cao Mao read Liu Lu’s letters about the project, praised his work, and told him to prepare to place people near Liu Shan and Sun Xiu.
• Liu Lu reported that He Zeng seemed to have discovered their placements and had been praising Cao Mao and bowing toward the Imperial Palace, but Cao Mao said there was no need to worry.

Cao Mao appointed Jiao Bo Governor of Nanping Commandery and planned how to advance his young officials. Meanwhile, Pei Xiu sought Liu Bao’s help with assimilating the Xiongnu, and Liu Bao agreed to consider leading by example.

• Cao Mao persuaded the anxious Jiao Bo to accept the governorship of Nanping, promising that Wang Zhennan and Hua Yi would support him.
• Cao Mao reviewed his plans for developing his officials and summoned Guo Ze to check whether Pei Xiu had been taking powder.
• Pei Xiu told Liu Bao that his two previous proposals for governing the Xiongnu had been rejected and asked for advice on a third.
• Pei Xiu argued that the Xiongnu should abandon their old titles and take positions in Great Wei, offering their people greater power and opportunity.
• Liu Bao asked how to proceed, and Pei Xiu proposed that Liu Bao set an example by accepting rewards and allowing his son to study with him.

Pei Xiu reported that Liu Bao would cooperate with the Wei court’s efforts to instruct and assimilate his Xiongnu tribe, and Cao Mao authorized him to proceed. At the Central Army drill ground, Cao Mao tasked Luo Xian with helping establish a mountain-warfare battalion, while Wen Yang watched him closely as Luo Xian secretly planned to assassinate the emperor later.

• Guo Ze brought Pei Xiu to Taiji Hall, where Pei Xiu told Cao Mao that Liu Bao had agreed to cooperate in changing his tribe’s customs and settlements.
• Pei Xiu argued that better living conditions and opportunities for office would draw other Xiongnu tribes into the court’s plans, and Cao Mao gave him authority to handle the matter.
• Cao Mao visited the Central Army drill ground, greeted its officers and soldiers, and praised Luo Xian for distributing their rewards well.
• Cao Mao ordered Luo Xian to remain with the Central Army and help establish a battalion skilled in mountain warfare.
• Luo Xian accepted the order while privately planning to earn Cao Mao’s trust before attempting an assassination, and Wen Yang moved close to guard the emperor.

Wang Su gathered the ministers to discuss governance, then presented Cao Mao with his annotated classics and a theory combining the Three Ages of the Gongyang Commentary with the Supreme Mystery. Cao Mao praised Wang Su as a great worthy, while Wang Su left his proposals open to the emperor’s suggestions.

• Wang Su invited the court ministers to his residence, where Zhuge Dan and others offered mostly empty proposals while Zhong Yu contributed practical ideas.
• After the ministers departed, Wang Su took his prepared manuscripts to the palace, and Kong Chao questioned why he was sharing credit with the others.
• Wang Su presented Cao Mao with his annotations, including the purported Confucius's Admonitions, and explained how the Supreme Mystery aligned with the Gongyang Three Ages Theory.
• Guo Ze challenged Wang Su’s claim that Confucius had commented on the Supreme Mystery, but Wang Su answered that the Sage knew its underlying mystery, leaving Guo Ze speechless.
• Wang Su outlined policies for the realm’s current age and asked Cao Mao for suggestions; Cao Mao clasped his hand and hailed him as a great worthy.

Cao Mao praised Wang Su’s synthesis of Xuanxue and Confucian Learning, rewarded him, and discussed how people-centered governance could bring Great Wei toward peace. After Du Yu read Wang Su’s work, Cao Mao proposed printing and distributing it throughout the realm, but Du Yu advised having Duke Pei handle its spread instead.

• Cao Mao praised Wang Su’s scholarship and granted him honors, rewards, and a marquis title for his heir.
• Cao Mao and Wang Su discussed how protecting the people’s livelihoods could establish benevolent governance and lead to the Age of Great Peace.
• Wang Su realized that people-oriented thought gave him a new argument against the Disciples of Zheng Learning and continued exchanging ideas with Cao Mao.
• Cao Mao summoned Du Yu, who read Wang Su’s work and praised how it had clarified his thinking.
• Cao Mao proposed printing the work widely, but Du Yu warned that conspicuous imperial promotion would provoke resistance and recommended having Duke Pei spread it.

Cao Mao managed regional rivalries and tasked Pei Xiu with promoting Wang Su’s new annotations. Wang Su accepted Liu Yuan as a disciple, while Pei Xiu reluctantly took charge of the emperor’s publishing plans.

• Cao Mao ordered Du Yu to stop approving Hu Zun and Yang Hu’s projects if they required more corvée labor, while promising support for Wang Zhennan’s work in Jingzhou.
• Du Yu recommended Yang Zong for service, but Cao Mao chose to wait until Pei Xiu had completed his assignment.
• Pei Xiu brought Liu Bao and Liu Yuan to visit Wang Su, who accepted the boy as his disciple.
• Pei Xiu returned to Taiji Hall, where Cao Mao assigned him to find a way to promote Wang Su’s new annotations.
• Pei Xiu agreed to oversee the undertaking after Cao Mao reminded him of his earlier ideas for the Eastern Hall’s book collection.

Cao Mao and Pei Xiu used secrecy and rumors to make Wang Su’s annotated Classics a sensation among Wei’s scholars, and Zhong Hui became one of their first admirers. Cao Mao then opened the Palace Examination by giving its candidates Wang Su’s annotated Supreme Mystery and asking how Wei could move from rising peace to great peace.

• Pei Xiu advised Cao Mao to conceal Wang Su’s books and let rumors of their importance spread, then copied the manuscripts and acted as though he had become Wang Su’s devoted student.
• Rumors about Wang Su’s new Classics spread through Luoyang and across the realm, while Wang Su and ministers refused to reveal their contents.
• Cao Mao gave Zhong Hui a copy of the books, and Zhong Hui read them, visited Wang Su formally, and publicly praised the works as a sage’s guide to governing.
• Cao Mao prepared for the Palace Examination, which fewer than twenty candidates passed, mostly scions of Great Clans.
• At the Palace Examination, Cao Mao gave the candidates Wang Su’s annotated Supreme Mystery and asked how Wei could advance from rising peace to great peace; Cui Hong was surprised to find the concepts could be connected.

Shi Ji urged Sun Xiu to ally Wu with Shu and bring Ding Feng back to Jianye, but Zhang Bu and Puyang Xing resisted to protect their influence. Sun Xiu approved the alliance mission, yet Wu’s envoys reached Chengdu amid the deaths and absences of Shu’s key officials and were sent home by Huang Hao.

• Shi Ji arrived in Jianye, blamed himself for losing Jiangbei, and outlined defenses while proposing an alliance with Shu and Ding Feng’s return to the capital.
• Puyang Xing opposed Shi Ji’s proposals, and Sun Xiu challenged him and Zhang Bu over their motives before ordering Shi Ji to pursue an alliance with Shu.
• Shi Ji sent envoys by a difficult route to Chengdu to meet Chen Zhi and discuss cooperation.
• The envoys learned that Xiahou Ba had died, Chen Zhi was gravely ill, and Jiang Wei was away in Hanzhong; Chen Zhi died eight days after they arrived.
• Huang Hao sent the Wu envoys back, and Shi Ji laughed when he heard the mission had failed.

After Chen Zhi died, Liu Shan appointed Dong Jue Director of the Secretariat and elevated Huang Hao to Central Regular Attendant and Commandant of Chariots. Dong Jue, Fan Jian, Zhuge Zhan, and Jiang Wei failed to restrain Huang Hao, who began building his influence at court, while Cao Mao saw Sun 𬘭’s likeness in him.

• Liu Shan chose Dong Jue over Zhuge Zhan to succeed Chen Zhi as Director of the Secretariat.
• Liu Shan appointed Huang Hao Central Regular Attendant and Commandant of Chariots, alarming Shu Han’s ministers.
• Dong Jue, Fan Jian, and Zhuge Zhan struggled to decide how to oppose Huang Hao, and Jiang Wei declined to take action against him.
• Huang Hao gathered supporters by securing favors from Liu Shan and began demoting or exiling officials who opposed him.
• Cao Mao heard of Huang Hao’s growing influence and compared him to Sun 𬘭.

After receiving news of Xiahou Ba and Chen Zhi's deaths, Cao Mao considered how Chen Zhi's death would hasten Shu's decline and blamed Liu Shan rather than Huang Hao alone. He reviewed the palace examination memorials and advanced Wang Learning, then learned that its ideas had stirred Luoyang; he ended by setting his next goal as destroying Shu.

• Cao Mao received news of Xiahou Ba's and Chen Zhi's deaths and reflected on how Chen Zhi's loss would destabilize Shu and worsen Jiang Wei's position.
• Cao Mao told Zhang Hua and Guo Ze that Liu Shan was ultimately responsible for Huang Hao's rise and Shu's decline.
• Cao Mao reviewed the palace examination memorials and was pleased that scholars offered practical proposals and embraced Wang Learning.
• Zhang Hua reported that the Supreme Mystery's new contents had spread through Luoyang, prompting widespread interest and even a burglary at Lord Zhong's residence.
• Cao Mao ordered books sent to the ministers who had helped compile Wang Learning and told them to keep the texts from circulating outside their circle.
• Cao Mao left Pei Xiu to continue promoting Wang Learning and chose destroying Shu as his next goal.

Luo Xian and Hu Fen trained the newly reorganized Mountain Battalion as Great Wei prepared for a future campaign against Shu. After rewarding Zhong Hui for reshaping the administration, Cao Mao entrusted him with planning the destruction of Shu, and Zhong Hui proposed exploiting the kingdom’s fears surrounding Zhuge Zhan.

• Luo Xian led Hu Fen’s Mountain Battalion into Wangwu Mountain for training, while Hu Fen promised adequate logistical support.
• Xiahou Xian and Ma Long discussed Luo Xian’s reliability and imagined how Great Wei would divide its forces in a campaign against Shu.
• Zhong Hui reported that the replacement and assessment of court and local officials were essentially complete.
• Cao Mao promoted Zhong Hui to Marquis of Dongwu Pavilion and assigned him to prepare for the destruction of Shu.
• Zhong Hui invoked the Battle of Changping and suggested that Shu’s appointment of Zhuge Zhan in place of Jiang Wei could deter Wei from invading Hanzhong.

Cao Mao and Zhong Hui planned to exploit Shu Kingdom’s court rivalries, while the revival of Wang Learning and the School Affairs Office unsettled Wei’s ministers. Xun Yi, overwhelmed by a new assignment on the Xiongnu, decided to resign from the Imperial Secretariat.

• Zhong Hui advised Cao Mao to befriend Huang Hao and use him when Shu Kingdom neared destruction, and Cao Mao approved his plans for agents in Shu.
• Zhong Hui confronted Zhang Hua about his schemes, then left Cao Mao wondering how Zhong Hui had detected Zhang Hua’s planted agent.
• Xun Yi visited Cui Zan to arrange for younger members of his clan to study under Wang Su, but Cui Zan rejected Xun Yi’s offer of reciprocal assistance.
• Cui Zan privately realized Zheng Chong was directing the revived School Affairs Office’s secret operations and training its informants.
• Xun Yi considered leaving the Imperial Secretariat, but Pei Xiu brought him urgent Xiongnu documents that had to be reviewed before the next day.
• After seeing the volume and detail of the documents, Xun Yi resolved to resign from the Imperial Secretariat.

Cao Mao accepted Xun Yi’s departure from the Imperial Secretariat, promoted Zhong Hui, and planned to appoint Lu Qin as an Attendant. After spending the night with Zheng Xian, Cao Mao learned that her grandfather Zheng Xiaotong secretly preferred poetry to classical studies, while Zheng Xiaotong panicked over the prospect of debating Wang Su; the emperor and Zheng Xian then arrived at the Zheng Residence.

• Xun Yi insisted on leaving the Imperial Secretariat, and Cao Mao appointed him Grand Coachman.
• Cao Mao chose Zhong Hui to fill the vacant Senior Secretary position and planned to place Lu Qin among the Attendants.
• Cao Mao visited Zheng Xian, agreed to take her to the Zheng Residence, and stayed with her overnight.
• Zheng Xian told Cao Mao that Zheng Xiaotong preferred poetry and literary compositions to studying the classics.
• Zheng Xiaotong worried that he would have to defend Zheng Learning against Wang Su, whose scholarship had become increasingly influential.
• A palace official told Zheng Xiaotong that Cao Mao had brought Lady Zheng to visit the family.

Cao Mao reassigned Zheng Xiaotong and Lu Qin to palace posts, giving Zheng time to study Wang Su’s teachings and making Lu an Attendant who would review memorials about the classics. With Wei’s administrative offices running effectively, Cao Mao looked toward strengthening the state and eventually confronting the other two kingdoms.

• Cao Mao visited Zheng Xiaotong, who condemned Wang Su’s scholarship as having strayed onto a crooked path.
• Cao Mao appointed Zheng Xiaotong Privy Treasurer so he could focus on the classics, and urged him to discuss Wang Su’s ideas calmly.
• Cao Mao appointed Lu Qin Attendant after arranging other officials’ transfers, and Lu accepted the post.
• Cao Mao assigned Lu Qin to review memorials concerning the classics and bring important matters to him.
• Cao Mao considered leaving the Imperial Secretariat to work without interference as its officials pursued reforms, then turned his attention toward wars against the other two states.

Cao Mao inspected Ma Jun’s blast furnace and urged Great Wei to invest in smelting, mining, and recruiting skilled artisans. Meanwhile, Zhong Hui arranged to spread praise of Zhuge Zhan in Shu to provoke conflict over Jiang Wei’s command.

• Cao Mao found Ma Jun standing atop the blast furnace, ordered Du Yu to assign guards to protect him, and listened as Ma Jun explained his coal-fueled smelting improvements.
• Cao Mao discussed mining and the possibility of developing gunpowder with Ma Jun, then instructed Du Yu to recruit more talented artisans for Great Wei.
• Zhong Hui had his followers repeat a message claiming Zhuge Zhan was Shu’s most formidable figure and should replace Jiang Wei.
• Zhong Hui sent his followers to spread the message within Wei, expecting it to reach Shu and stir anxiety and conflict over Zhuge Zhan’s rise.