The Wei lord restores authority to the Sima household; Jiang Wei’s army is defeated at Niutou Mountain.

Sima Yi, whose courtesy name was Zhongda, heard that Cao Shuang and his younger brothers Cao Xi and Cao Xun, along with his close advisers He Yan, Deng Yang, Ding Mi, Bi Fan, Li Sheng, and his Imperial Guard, had gone out of the city with Emperor Cao Fang to pay respect at Emperor Ming’s tomb and then to hunt. Sima Yi was delighted. He returned to the Palace offices, had Grand Commandant Jiang Ji and Prefect of the Masters of Writing Sima Fu draft a memorial together, and sent it out by a eunuch directly to the emperor. He ordered Minister over the Masses Gao Rou, gave him a halberd token to exercise the powers of the General-in-Chief, and sent him first to take possession of Cao Shuang’s camp; he also ordered Wang Guan of the Stables to assume middle command and occupy Cao Xi’s camp.

Sima Yi then entered the inner palace to report to Empress Dowager Guo: “Cao Shuang has betrayed the late emperor’s trust in leaving an orphaned throne to him. Through deceit and corruption he has thrown the realm into chaos. His crimes deserve dismissal.” The empress was shocked and asked, “The Son of Heaven is away. What can we do?” Sima Yi replied, “I have drafted a memorial for the Son of Heaven and a plan to execute treacherous ministers. Your Majesty need not worry.” In fear, the empress gave no choice.

Sima Yi hurriedly sent Grand Commandant Jiang Ji and Prefect of the Masters of Writing Sima Fu to write and submit another report. He ordered eunuchs to carry it out of the city at once and go directly before the Son of Heaven. Sima Yi moved his main force to the armories.

News reached Cao Shuang’s household quickly. His wife Liu Shi hurried to the front hall and asked the gate official, “Our lord is out of the city. Why has Zhongda raised the army?” Pan Ju, the gate captain, answered, “Lady, do not be alarmed; I will inquire.” He then brought dozens of bow and crossbow men to the gate tower and stared out. Just then he saw Sima Yi approaching with troops passing in front of the residence, so he signaled a random volley. Arrows rained down and Sima Yi could not pass. At that moment Sun Qian, a flank commander, shouted from behind: “Grand Tutor’s matter is urgent state business. Do not fire!” He stopped him three times, and only then did Pan Ju refrain.

Sima Zhao shielded his father, Sima Yi, as they passed. He led his troops out of the city and camped on the Luo River, taking the pontoon bridge.

Meanwhile, Sima Lu-Zhi, who served under Cao Shuang, saw turmoil inside the city and met with staff officer Xin Chang to discuss what to do. “How can we respond to Zhongda’s upheaval?” he asked.

“Take out your regular forces and ride outside the city to meet the Son of Heaven,” Xin Chang replied.

Lu-Zhi accepted his counsel. Xin Chang rushed into the rear hall. His sister Xianying saw him and asked, “What has happened, and why such haste?”

Xin Chang said, “The Son of Heaven is outside the city, and the Grand Tutor has closed the gates. He surely intends treason.”

Xianying replied, “Grand Tutor Sima may not be plotting treason; he may only wish to execute the Grand General.”

Xin Chang was startled. “Then what do we do?”

Xianying answered, “The Grand General was never equal to Zhongda. He will lose.”

Xin Chang said, “Was it truly possible the day Sima Yi told me to join him, I had no way to refuse?”

Xianying replied, “A person’s service is his duty. Even in crisis, one may still have compassion. To drop the whip and abandon one’s charge is the greatest inauspicious act.”

Heeded, Lu-Zhi followed her advice and broke through the gate with him, riding out with only a few dozen men.

Word reached Sima Yi. He feared that Huan Fan might have fled and sent for him at once. Huan Fan conferred with his son. His son said, “The imperial carriage is out of town. Better to go out by the southern road.” Huan Fan agreed and rode to Pingchang Gate. The gate was already shut. The gate captain, the old retainer Si Fan, blocked him.

From his sleeves Huan Fan drew out a bamboo order and said, “The empress dowager has issued an edict. The gate may be opened now.”

Si Fan said, “Please verify the edict.”

Huan Fan shouted, “You are my old subordinate. How dare you delay?”

Si Fan reluctantly opened the gate. Huan Fan rode out and called after him, “Grand Tutor has plotted rebellion. You should follow me at once.”

Si Fan was alarmed and pursued but could not catch up. He reported this to Sima Yi.

Sima Yi was startled. “The stratagem has been exposed! What are we to do?” Jiang Ji replied with an idiom: “A horse grown soft on stall-feed cannot do its work.”

Sima Yi summoned Xu Yun and Chen Tai. “Go to Cao Shuang and say the Grand Tutor has no other intention. He seeks only to reduce your brothers’ military power.”

The two departed.

He also summoned the palace officer Yin Da-mu, had Jiang Ji write a letter, and sent him to Cao Shuang. Sima Yi instructed him, “You and Cao Shuang have been close. You can take this mission. Tell him I and Jiang Ji have sworn an oath at the Luo River. I have no other motive beyond matters of military command.”

Yin Da-mu followed the order and departed.

At that time Cao Shuang, while chasing hawks and hounds, was suddenly informed that the city had changed and that the Grand Tutor had submitted a memorial. He was terrified, nearly falling from his horse. A eunuch held the memorial on his knees before the Son of Heaven. Cao Shuang took it, broke the seal, and ordered his close court attendants to read it aloud.

The memorial said:

Your servant Sima Yi, Grand Tutor and Grand Commander Who Conquers the West, humbly and with dread submits this report:

When I returned from Liaodong, the late emperor summoned Your Majesty and Prince of Qin and my fellow officials up onto his couch and, gripping my arm, spoke earnestly of later affairs. Now Grand General Cao Shuang has cast aside the late emperor’s charge; he has disrupted state precedent. Within the court he has presumptuously usurped the court’s forms, and without, he has monopolized authority. He made Zhang Dang of the eunuchs his supervisor and made him command all reports and connections, watching over the Son of Heaven and attending the sacred regalia. He has sown division between the Two Palaces and wounded the ties of flesh and blood. Across the realm all is in uproar; the people live in fear. This is not what the late emperor charged me with, nor what he entrusted to Your Majesty.

Though I am old and decayed, can I forget what I once spoke? Grand Commandant Jiang Ji and Prefect of the Masters of Writing Sima Fu all deem Cao Shuang to carry himself with no loyalty to his lord. Brothers should not command the guard units and escort troops. I therefore now submit this to Empress Dowager Yongning, requesting a command to act.

I have already ordered his men, Cao Xi’s men, and Cao Xun’s men to be dismissed from service so that each may return to his household and not wander beyond. Should they linger, they are to be punished by military law. I immediately hastened with my troops and camped at the pontoon bridge on the Luo River to observe signs of disorder.

I submit this respectfully for Your Majesty’s Holy hearing.

Cao Fang listened and then called for Cao Shuang. “This is what the Grand Tutor has written. How will you judge it?”

Cao Shuang, hands and feet gone slack, looked to his two younger brothers. “What are we to do?”

Cao Xi replied, “Your younger brother once remonstrated with you, but brother would not listen and now this has come to pass. Sima Yi is without equal in deceit. Even Kongming could not defeat him—how then for us? Better to surrender and present yourselves to him now, to avoid a swift death.”

Before he finished, Xin Chang and Sima Lu-Zhi arrived. Cao Shuang asked what they had seen.

They said, “Inside the city, the gates are taken up like iron-bound tubs. The Grand Tutor has stationed his army at the Luo River pontoon bridge; recovery seems unlikely. We should settle our plan at once.”

At that very moment Censor Huan Fan came at speed. He said to Cao Shuang, “The Grand Tutor has already moved. Why not ask the Son of Heaven to remain at Xuchang and bring outside troops to punish him?”

Cao Shuang asked, “Our whole family is inside the city. How could we seek aid elsewhere?”

Fan answered, “A mere man in distress still hopes to live! Your lord is at the Son of Heaven’s side and may issue commands to all under heaven. Who would disobey? Why cast yourselves into a place of certain death?”

Cao Shuang remained indecisive, only weeping.

Fan continued, “It is no more than half a night’s ride to Xuchang. The city stores can support several years. Your private cavalry camp is near the city gate and can come at once. A seal of the Grand Commander is still here. Your Excellency should hurry. To delay now is to rest in danger.”

“Do not urge too hard,” Cao Shuang said at last. “Let me think this through.”

After a while, Attendant-in-Waiting Xu Yun and Prefect of the Masters of Writing Chen Tai arrived. They told him, “The Grand Tutor wants only to cut your military power. He has no other intent. You should return early to the residence.”

Cao Shuang remained silent.

Then palace officer Yin Da-mu arrived. He said, “The Grand Tutor swore by the Luo River and has no other intent. The letter from Grand Commandant Jiang Ji is here. General, you should surrender your command authority and return to the Secretariat.”

Cao Shuang took it for honest advice. Fan repeated urgently, “The matter is urgent. Do not listen to men outside and choose death.”

That night Cao Shuang could not decide. He drew his sword and stood with it in hand, sighing and thinking. From dusk until dawn he wept and remained torn by suspicion. Huan Fan entered his tent and urged him: “Your Excellency has hesitated all day and all night. Why still cannot you decide?”

Cao Shuang threw down his sword and sighed. “If I do not raise troops and do not submit a petition, I can at least retire from office and live as a wealthy householder.”

Fan wept loudly and left the tent: “Cao Zi-dan has boasted so of strategy and wit; the three brothers are only fattened piglets!”

Xu Yun and Chen Tai then urged Cao Shuang to first hand over his seals of office and command regalia to Sima Yi. Cao Shuang ordered that they be sent.

His clerk Yang Zong caught and held the seals and regalia, crying: “Your Excellency, if you surrender your military authority and submit yourself now, you will surely be flayed in the eastern market.”

Cao Shuang answered, “The Grand Tutor will not break faith with me.”

Thus Cao Shuang handed over his seals and regalia through Xu Yun and Chen Tai. The rest of his army, seeing no one left with command authority, all drifted apart. Only a few dozen official riders remained at his side. At the pontoon bridge, Sima Yi’s orders arrived: the three brothers were told to return at once to their private mansions; everyone else was to be detained and wait for instruction. When Cao Shuang and his brothers entered the city, not one attendant accompanied them.

Huan Fan reached the bridge bank, where Sima Yi was mounted. He struck with his whip and asked, “Master Huan, why have you done this?” Fan lowered his head and said nothing, then returned to the city.

Then Sima Yi invited His Majesty to break camp and enter Luoyang. After the three brothers returned home, Sima Yi had a great lock fasten the gates and ordered eight hundred residents to guard their household.

Cao Shuang was tormented with worry. Cao Xi said, “Our stores are running low. Brother, write to the Grand Tutor and ask him for grain. If he is willing to lend us grain, he cannot intend harm.”

Cao Shuang wrote and sent it out.

Sima Yi read it and had grain delivered—one hundred hu—to Cao Shuang’s residence.

Cao Shuang rejoiced: “Grand Tutor Sima has no intention of hurting me.” He relaxed at once.

Sima Yi had already seized Zhang Dang, the eunuch, and held him for interrogation. Zhang Dang admitted, “Not only me. He Yan, Deng Yang, Li Sheng, Bi Fan, and Ding Mi are all among the five who planned rebellion.” Sima Yi took Zhang Dang’s statement and then arrested He Yan and the others, pressing them until the matter was clear. All confessed, saying that they had planned revolt over the last three months. Sima Yi placed heavy iron shackles on them.

Gate captain Si Fan reported that Huan Fan had forged an edict to leave the city, claiming the Grand Tutor plotted treason. Sima Yi said, “Falsely accusing an innocent man of treason is itself a treasonous offense. He, too, must answer for slander and is to be punished.” He imprisoned Huan Fan and the others as well. Then Cao Shuang, his two brothers, and all their associates were all brought out and beheaded in the market, and their three households were extinguished. Their property and all household goods were entirely confiscated.

At that time there was the wife of Cao Shuang’s younger cousin Wen Shu, who had been a daughter of Xiahou’s commander. She was widowed early and had no son. Her father wished to remarry her away, and she had once cut off her own ear as a vow. When Cao Shuang was executed, her father again sought to marry her off, and she cut off her own nose as well. Her family, shaken by fear and grief, asked her, “In this world life is as light as dust on brittle grass. Why punish yourself so? Moreover, your husband’s entire family has been exterminated by the Sima clan. For whom do you mean to preserve yourself?”

She wept and replied, “I have heard: ‘The humane do not alter their conduct with rise or fall; the righteous do not change loyalty with life or death.’ When the Cao family flourished, they still sought to preserve the end. Now that they are ruined, how could I abandon them? This is no act of a beast; how could I do it?”

Sima Yi heard and admired her. He allowed her to be spared, to raise her son, and to continue the Cao line.

Later people wrote:

弱草微塵盡達觀，夏侯有女義如山。 丈夫不及裙釵節，自顧鬚眉亦汗顏。

The grass is thin and dust is fine, yet it all accepts the way of things; Xiahou’s daughter keeps her righteousness like a mountain. A husband’s tie has not even reached the knot of hairpin and skirt, yet I myself blush, beard and brows wet with shame.

When Sima Yi had Cao Shuang beheaded, Grand Commandant Jiang Ji said, “Still there are Sima Lu-Zhi and Xin Chang, who broke through the gates and forced a way out, and Yang Zong, who seized the seals and did not hand them over. None should be spared.”

Sima Yi replied, “Each did what was right by his own lord. They are men of righteousness.” He restored each to old position.

Xin Chang sighed: “If I had not consulted my sister, I would have abandoned my duty of fidelity.”

Later people wrote in praise of Xin Xianying:

為臣食祿當思報，事主臨危合盡忠。 辛氏憲英曾勸弟，古今千載頌高風。

A servant who eats a ruler’s stipend must remember to repay it; when a lord is in peril, loyalty must be total. Xianying Xin once advised her brother, and through a thousand years the ages praise that lofty spirit.

Sima Yi pardoned Xin Chang and the rest and issued a public bulletin: All under Cao Shuang who served under him should be spared death. Any officials should return to their former appointments. Military and civilian households should keep their trades and lands. Within and without, order held.

He Yan and Deng Yang later died by extraordinary misfortune, as if their fate had already been foreknown in Guan Lu’s saying.

Later people wrote in praise of Guan Lu:

傳得聖賢真妙訣，平原管輅相通神。 鬼幽鬼躁分何鄧，未喪先知是死人。

He carried forward the true subtle teaching of the sages; Guan Lu of Pingyuan understood the breath of spirits. He discerned He Yan and Deng Yang before ruin took them, knowing them dead before their deaths arrived.

Thereafter Emperor Cao Fang named Sima Yi Chancellor and granted him Nine Bestowals. Sima Yi refused firmly. Cao Fang did not allow it and ordered father and sons together to oversee state affairs.

Sima Yi suddenly thought: Cao Shuang’s whole family had been destroyed, yet Xiahou Ba of the garrison in Yong Province and others were still there and related to them. If they were to rebel suddenly, how could we prepare? He must be handled.

He issued an edict commanding him to come to Yong Province and bring General Who Conquers the West Xiahou Ba to Luoyang for consultation.

When Xiahou Ba heard this, he was greatly startled and immediately assembled his own three thousand men to rise in revolt. The Inspector of Yong Province, Guo Huai, did likewise upon hearing of Xiahou Ba’s rebellion: he gathered his own force and fought him. Guo Huai spurred out and shouted in rage, “You are a great Wei kin and the Son of Heaven has never wronged you. Why do you now turn against the state?”

Xiahou Ba answered with equal fury, “My grandfather has rendered many services to the state. What sort of man is Sima Yi, extinguishing the family of the Cao line and then coming for me as well? He has long sought the throne and has been waiting for this moment. Is this my treason because I rise with justice against a bandit?”

Guo Huai grew angry and galloped forward with his spear. Xiahou Ba raised his blade and charged. After fewer than ten rounds the battle was lost for Guo Huai, and he turned and fled. Xiahou Ba chased him. Suddenly a shout came from rear troops. Realizing he was caught, Xiahou Ba turned back and Chen Tai arrived with troops and attacked. Guo Huai returned as well.

Pressed by both sides, Xiahou Ba was badly defeated and lost much of his force. Finding no path, he withdrew to Hanzhong and surrendered to the later lord.

Someone reported this to Jiang Wei. He did not trust it at once and sent an agent to verify, then admitted Xiahou Ba. Xiahou Ba came to bow and wept as he reported the events. Jiang Wei said, “Once when Weizi withdrew from Zhou, he became a model for ten thousand years. You have preserved the Han house without shame before the ancients.” He held a feast in his honor.

At table Jiang Wei asked, “Now that Sima Yi and his sons control all power, do they have eyes on our state?”

Xiahou Ba answered, “The old brigand is already plotting another overthrow and has no mind to attend outside matters. Yet in Wei there are now two men in the prime of their youth. If they receive military command, they would be a great threat to Wu and Shu alike.”

Jiang Wei asked, “Who are those two?”

Ba replied: “One is called a secretary clerk. He is from Changshe in Ying Province; surname Zhong, personal name Hui, courtesy name Shiji, son of Grand Tutor Zhong Yao. From youth he had courage and wit. When he and his brother were taken to court by Emperor Wen, they were seven and eight years old. When the emperor asked Yiu why he had been sweating, Yiu said, ‘I am frightened and my sweat runs in streams.’ When he asked Hui why not, Hui answered, ‘I am shaking all the time, yet my sweat dares not come out.’ The emperor admired him at once. As he grew, he loved military books and understood stratagems deeply. Sima Yi and Jiang Ji both praised his talent.

He has one other title: in the court he is treated as a clerkly assistant, and he is from Yiyang. His surname is Deng, personal name Ai, courtesy name Shizai. Orphaned young, he was born with strong ambition. Wherever he saw high mountains and broad marshlands, he drew maps and inspected whether there was place to station troops, where to stock grain, where to set ambushes. People laughed at him. Only Sima Yi recognized the talent, and therefore made him a military aide.

Ai stammered when he spoke and in counsel he always said, ‘Ai, Ai.’ Sima Yi once joked, ‘If you keep saying Ai-Ai, how many reeds are you naming?’ Ai answered at once, ‘Phoenix, Phoenix — in truth it is one phoenix.’ In nature he was quick and sharp; the two of them are truly daunting.”

Jiang Wei laughed, “Such children and we speak so seriously of them?”

Thereafter he brought Xiahou Ba to Chengdu and introduced him to the later lord. Jiang Wei reported: “Sima Yi slew Cao Shuang and then seized Xiahou Ba. In doing so he made clear his designs on our side. At present Sima Yi and his sons hold all power, and Cao Fang is weak; Wei is in danger. I have spent years in Hanzhong; the troops are seasoned and provisions are sufficient. I request command of the royal troops. Let Xiahou Ba be appointed a township guide and assigned, and then we will push forward into the Central Plain, restore Han rule, and repay Your Majesty’s grace and complete the former chancellor’s wish.”

The Minister of the Secretariat Fei Yi remonstrated: “Recently Jiang Wan and Dong Yun have died in succession; there is no one to govern inwardly. Lord Boyue should wait and watch the time, not move hastily.”

Jiang Wei replied, “No. Life slips by like a white colt through a narrow pass. If we keep delaying, when will we return the Central Plain?”

Fei Yi said again, “Sun Tzu taught: if one knows both oneself and the enemy, one wins every battle. We are all far below the chancellor; if even he could not recover the Central Plain, how could we?”

Jiang Wei answered, “I have lived long upon the Longzhong heights and know the heart of the Qiang. If we can ally with the Qiang as support, even if we do not recover the Central Plain now, we can still hold ground west of Longzhong.”

The later lord said, “If you seek to strike Wei, then give your whole heart and strength. Do not lose your edge and fail His command.”

So Jiang Wei, following the imperial decree, rode out with Xiahou Ba and traveled directly to Hanzhong to make war plans. He said, “First send envoys to the Qiang lands to establish alliance, then advance to Xiping and then near Yong Province. Build two fortresses first below Qushan, and let troops hold them as flanking horns. In all of Sichuan’s mouths, expend our grain in full, and then advance step by step by the former procedure of the chancellor.”

That year in the eighth month of autumn, he first sent generals Ju An and Li Xin with fifteen thousand men to the front of Qushan to build two adjacent fortresses. Ju An garrisoned the east, Li Xin the west.

There was already a spy report for Inspector Guo Huai of Yong Province. Guo Huai at once reported to Luoyang and sent his deputy Chen Tai with fifty thousand men to Qushan to fight the Shu troops.

Ju An and Li Xin each led one force to meet him in the field, but because they were too few they retreated into the fortresses. Chen Tai ordered his men to surround on four sides and cut off the supply road from Hanzhong.

Ju An and Li Xin had no water in the fortresses.

Guo Huai arrived with his own force as well. After he assessed the terrain, he rejoiced inwardly. Returning to camp, he and Chen Tai planned: “The city rises high on the slope and is short of water. We must fight outside to secure water. If we cut off its upper stream, Shu troops will die of thirst.” So he ordered soldiers to dig an earthen dam and break the upper flow.

As expected, the fortresses had no water.

Li Xin brought men out to fetch water, but the force from Yong Province surrounded him in desperate pressure. He fought and could not break out, so he retreated into the city.

The city under Ju An also had no water. He joined Li Xin and led troops out together. A fierce battle lasted long, and they again lost and returned into the fortresses. The soldiers were drying up from thirst.

Ju An and Li Xin said, “General Jiang’s force has not arrived yet. I do not know why.”

Xin answered, “I shall die if I must and cut a path out in exchange for rescue.” He led out several dozen riders, broke the gates, and charged forth.

The troops of Yong Province surrounded him on all sides. He broke through in a wild charge and only escaped with his life, though badly wounded; he alone survived while the rest were swallowed by the confusion.

That night a strong north wind rose, dark clouds covered the sky, and heavy snow fell. By that fortune the men in the fortresses ground the snow and shared it for food.

Li Xin did break the encirclement and for two days moved by a side path over the western ridge. He arrived precisely where Jiang Wei’s forces were gathered and knelt to the ground as he dismounted: “Both fortresses at Qushan are now fully encircled by Wei troops and cut off from water. Only by the heavy snow did they survive by grinding it for food. It is perilous indeed.”

Jiang Wei said, “I did not fail in haste; it was because the Qiang force had not arrived.” He ordered Li Xin treated in the river town.

Then he asked Xiahou Ba, “The Qiang force has not arrived, and Wei’s siege at Qushan is severe. What is your strongest opinion?”

Xiahou Ba answered, “When the Qiang arrive at Qushan both fortresses will fall. I expect all the Yong Province forces will come there to press the attack. Yongzhou city will then stand empty in the rear. General, ride to Niutou Mountain and strike from behind. Guo Huai and Chen Tai must return to save Yongzhou; then the encirclement at Qushan will lift.”

Jiang Wei rejoiced: “That is the best course.” He led his troops toward Niutou Mountain.

When Chen Tai saw that Li Xin had broken out, he told Guo Huai, “If Li Xin has sent an emergency message to Jiang Wei, he will think most of our troops are at Qushan and attempt to cut off his rear at Niutou Mountain. His Excellency should send one army to capture the Tao River and cut Shu’s supply route. I will send half our force straight to Niutou Mountain and strike.” Guo Huai agreed and sent one army to take the Tao waters by a hidden route. Chen Tai marched with one force toward Niutou Mountain.

When Jiang Wei’s troops reached Niutou Mountain, they suddenly heard their vanguard shouting that Wei soldiers had blocked the route. Jiang Wei rushed to the front and inspected. Chen Tai shouted: “So you want to strike us in Yongzhou? I have waited long enough!” Jiang Wei grew furious, raised his spear and spurred his horse straight at Chen Tai.

Chen Tai met him with his blade. After fewer than three exchanges, he withdrew in defeat. Jiang Wei closed and fought until Wei troops began retreating, pulling back to the ridge.

Jiang Wei drew up his camp below Niutou Mountain. Each day he ordered constant skirmishes that yielded neither victory nor defeat.

Xiahou Ba said to Jiang Wei, “This is no place for long entrenchment. Repeated fighting with no clear result is a maneuver to draw troops in. There is another plan behind it. Better to retreat for now and make fresh calculations.”

While they spoke, reports arrived: Guo Huai had taken an army and captured the Tao River, cutting off supplies.

Jiang Wei was shocked. He ordered Xiahou Ba to withdraw first. Jiang Wei covered the rear himself.

Chen Tai split his army into five routes and chased after them.

Jiang Wei held all five avenues alone and stopped Wei’s troops. Chen Tai then arranged for troops to climb the ridge, where arrows and stones came down like rain. In haste Jiang Wei withdrew toward the Tao waters, and Guo Huai rode in with his men. Jiang Wei sent his troops into rapid collision. The Wei lines blocked their path, close as an iron vat. He fought desperately to break through, losing half his men and finally bolting for Yangping Pass.

Another army reached the front next. At its head a major general rode out, sitting his horse crosswise with a sword drawn. The man had a round face and broad ears, a thick-lipped mouth, a left eye with a black swelling, and several black hairs rising from the swelling. He was Sima Shi, General of Agile Cavalry, the eldest son of Sima Yi.

Jiang Wei thundered, “How dare this mere boy block my way home?” He pressed his horse, raised his spear, and rode straight at him. Sima Shi met him with his blade. In only three exchanges Jiang Wei broke through and cut Sima Shi down. He slipped away and ran for Yangping Pass.

Those in the city opened the gates for Jiang Wei’s entry.

Sima Shi came to seize the gate as well. Both sides loosed crossbow fire. One release cast ten bolts: this was the repeated-bolt device left as Master Wuhou’s parting inheritance.

The final verse of the chapter is:

難支此日三軍敗，獨賴當年十矢傳。

This day no force could hold back the three armies from breaking, and only by the old ten-bolt shaft does one still endure.

How this turned out will be told in the next chapter.