Hua Xin and Chen Qun looked at each other and knew that the emperor was taking advantage of the civil strife in Western Shu to raise troops to attack Shu. However, they had just conquered Wu, so how could they attack Shu again? Chen Qun immediately stepped out of the court to persuade him. Said: "Your Majesty, in October last year, our Wei Dynasty sent troops to conquer Wu until this year. Although we made countless gains, we still consumed a lot of financial and military resources. Not long ago, the national strength has not been restored. At this time, I may not be able to conquer Shu. ah!"
Hua Xin also spoke to stop him and said: "Your Majesty, what Chang Wen Gong said is very reasonable. Although the people of Western Shu are poor and there are civil strife at this time, the road to conquer Shu is long, there are many mountains, and the passes are dangerous and difficult. We must not take it lightly until we have a complete strategy. Use troops."
Just now I mentioned Zhuge Liang's reply. The ministers tried their best to criticize and belittle it. It seemed that Western Shu was about to be subjugated. Cao Pi was very excited after hearing this, so he suddenly wanted to use weapons to the west.
Since he became emperor, he has only conquered Sun Quan of Eastern Wu, and has never launched a war against Western Shu. Even when Liu Bei conquered Sun Quan in the east, he did not take the opportunity to attack Shu. Of course, at that time, Liu Ye also suggested that Cao Pi take advantage of the opportunity to attack Soochow, but he also did not adopt it, and just adopted the strategy of reaping the benefits. Unexpectedly, after Sun Quan's rebellion last year, Cao Pi personally led the army to march south. However, Soochow had just defeated Liu Bei in the Battle of Yiling, and its morale was high. Although the Wei army achieved some results, the army eventually withdrew. Come back.
Therefore, since the Southern Expedition, Cao Pi has been wondering whether to change the priority of the expedition. Although the road to conquer Shu is difficult, Soochow also has the strongest navy in the world to block the river. Therefore, Cao Pi thought that it was possible to change the strategic direction. At this time, the leader of the Shu Kingdom, Shao Guo, was doubtful. What if he could make a big attack in one fell swoop?
Therefore, the various disadvantages of Xishu were mentioned in today's discussion, and Cao Pi suddenly became interested. Unexpectedly, the two important ministers Chen Qun, Hua and Xin knocked him down as soon as he finally said it. Cao Pi's face immediately darkened. He stood down and looked at the ministers with cold eyes. Although the ministers were frightened when they saw the emperor being angry, they still had to use reason to remonstrate for the sake of the country and could not let the emperor do whatever he wanted.
Wang Lang wanted to give some words of advice, but he never thought that Sima Yi, the minister on the right and the right servant of Shangshu, would come out first and say: "Your Majesty, when do you think it will be better if I don't attack Shu at this time?" When Cao Pi saw someone supporting him, he immediately said happily: "Oh, Zhong. If you have any high opinions, tell me quickly."
"Your Majesty. Although what Mr. Chen Hua said is reasonable, I think that even if the country is in difficulty at this time, the situation of Shu is even more difficult. Moreover, the national power of our country, Wei, far exceeds that of Wu and Shu. Even if we have just experienced war, our country, Wei, will be more difficult. We still have the strength to expedition to Shu, but it will only waste people and money. However, I think that although Western Shu is a small country, Zhuge Liang is good at running the country. Once he recovers, he may not have such a good opportunity in the future. Therefore, I think We, the Wei Dynasty, should take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to accumulate strength, unite our troops, unite as one, overcome all difficulties, and deliver a thunderous blow to Zhuge Liang with overwhelming force. In this way, even if Zhuge Liang has great talent, he will not be able to protect Liu Chan's son's empire."
Speaking of this, Sima Yi stopped and looked at Cao Pi's expression. He saw the emperor smiling and beaming with joy. Knowing that what he said was right, he immediately added fuel to the fire: "Your Majesty, Xi Shu has been pacified." After a few more years of cultivation and rest in the Wei Dynasty, we can divide our troops into three groups. One group will cross the river from Qingxu to attack Wu County, the other group will go south from Wancheng to Jiangling, and the other group will go down the river from Shuzhong. The army of Lu will attack from three sides and wipe out Soochow in one fell swoop. If this is the case, the world will be unified and Your Majesty's great cause will be accomplished."
Sima Yi not only gave the reasons for sending troops to attack Shu, but also continued to talk about the blueprint for pacifying Shu and destroying Wu. These passionate words spoke directly to Cao Pi's heart.
You must know that although Cao Wei was founded in name only through the abdication of the Han Dynasty, knowledgeable people in the world, especially people in Wu and Shu, knew that the abdication was actually a usurpation of the throne. Even during Cao Cao's time, Zhou Yu had already made a pretense of Cao Cao. The conclusion that the Han Prime Minister was actually a traitor to the Han Dynasty, therefore the legitimacy of the Cao Wei regime has always been a great hidden danger, and the Shu Han often used this to criticize them. And Cao Pi's achievements were far inferior to those of his father, so his persuasiveness as an emperor was not enough. Therefore, Cao Pi really wanted to unify the world in his lifetime and make immortal achievements to prove to the world that the Wei Dynasty and the Han Dynasty were popular and obeyed nature and people. of.
At this time, Cao Pi thought about Sima Yi's plan. How could he not feel happy? He was extremely excited and was about to praise Sima Yi, but his servant Liu Ye came out to speak first and suppressed what he was about to say.
"Zhongda, have you only seen the wonderful prospect of conquering Shu, but have you forgotten that today's world is dominated by three pillars?" Liu Ye said earnestly: "Sun Quan is a capricious person. Recently, Wu and Shu seem to have re-allied. It means. If our army attacks Shu, Sun Quan will attack me and support Zhuge Liang. Once we, the Wei Dynasty, are attacked by Wu and Shu at the same time on the east and west fronts, we will inevitably ignore each other. If there is a loss, the country will be in danger."
Sima Yi couldn't help but hesitate when he heard this. It's not that he didn't think about Sun Quan's side, but he had always looked down on the people in Soochow, and expected that there were enough talents in the country to cope with it.
Sima Yi wanted to retort, but Liu Ye continued: "Besides, the road to Shu is difficult and dangerous, and Zhuge Liang is very resourceful. How can it be so easy to wipe out Shu in one fell swoop?"
Hua Xin and Chen Qun saw that Liu Ye supported them so powerfully, and they also expressed their intention to attack Shu. Cao Pi originally came up with an impromptu idea. Seeing that most of the ministers were opposed, Cao Pi felt temporarily uninterested. He waved his hands and said feebly: "That's it. We will discuss this matter later. I'm exhausted. You can just stand down."
Seeing that the plan to conquer Shu was abandoned due to the objections of the ministers, Sima Yi shook his head with a wry smile, opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but in the end he sighed and left the palace to go back to the house. He is only forty-four years old this year, and he is in the prime of life. Since Cao Cao's death, the sword that has been hanging in his heart has finally been eliminated. Now is the time for him to make great achievements, so he is vigorously promoting the cutting-off in the court today. In the Shu discussion, this move was not only to establish meritorious service, but more to gain the opportunity to gain military power.
You must know that since Sima Yi was forcibly recruited as a literary official by Cao Cao in the 13th year of Jian'an, he has successively held the positions of Huangmen Shilang, Shilang, and Chief Secretary of the Prime Minister. Although this is a sign that the two generations of lords regard him as a confidant. , but in terms of his true nature, he still prefers to be at the front desk to meet the heroes of the world. Moreover, Cao Cao later saw Sima Yi's wolf-like attitude and became suspicious of him, which resulted in his very small influence in the army.
However, Sima Yi not only had rare and uncanny strategies, but he was also well versed in the art of war. When Cao Cao conquered Zhang Lu and Xiangfan, he offered every clever strategy and was highly relied upon by Cao Cao. Now that the heroes of the older generation such as Cao Cao and Liu Bei have passed away, he looks at the world and sees only a few people as his opponents. Therefore, he believes that as long as he can control the military and political power, he will be able to conquer the world and establish an unparalleled career.
Today, he was about to persuade Cao Pi, but he was still dissuaded by Liu Ye, Chen Qun and others. Sima Yi could only express his regret in his heart. He really felt that this was a good opportunity to conquer Shu. Zhuge Liang was extremely good at governing the country. , if he takes this breath, it will be difficult to deal with him again in the future.
