Chapter 207: Heaven

"Your talent is ten times that of Cao Pi; you will surely pacify the state and ultimately settle great affairs."

"If the heir can assist, assist him; if he is incompetent, you may take matters into your own hands."

These were Liu Bei's words to Zhuge Liang, and also an immortal ode to sovereign‑minister trust.

Zhuge Liang wept and kowtowed: "I dare to exhaust my strength, uphold loyal integrity, and follow it with death!"

Liu Bei then said to his son Liu Chan: "You shall work with the Prime Minister as if he were your father."

From then on, the burden on Zhuge Liang's shoulders was as heavy as Mount Tai.

The later sovereign was dim and weak, the realm small and its people weary; outside loomed a powerful Wei, inside the Yi Province aristocracy was unstable.

He "opened the office to manage affairs," handling every detail himself.

By day he dealt with state affairs, adjudicated cases, and received envoys;

By night he studied military texts, plotted the northern campaign, constantly "toiling from dawn to dusk," forsaking sleep and food.

Clerk Yang Yong advised him that he need not attend to every matter personally; he replied, "It's not that I am unaware, but I bear the late emperor's entrusted weight, and I fear others will not be as devoted as I am!"

He does not lack awareness of fatigue; he merely dares not be without fatigue.

That phrase "you may take matters into your own hands" was the greatest trust and the heaviest shackles,

binding him tightly to the storm‑tossed wreck of Shu Han, destined to burn himself out to fight for that slender, dim chance of survival.

【Fifth Act: May Crossing of Lu, Deep into Barren Lands】

To stabilize the rear and devote all forces to the northern expedition, Zhuge Liang personally led the main army on a southern campaign against the rebellion.

He rejected the "annihilation" approach, insisting that "winning hearts is paramount, sieges are secondary; psychological warfare is supreme, armed combat is subordinate."

Regarding the barbarian king Meng Huo, he captured and released him seven times until Meng Huo was both inwardly and outwardly convinced, shedding tears and saying, "Lord, your heavenly might is evident; the southerners will never rebel again!"

The pacification of the south not only removed rear‑ward worries but also secured troops and supplies.

In the scene, Zhuge Liang and Meng Huo sit opposite, easing tensions with wine, while behind them loom dense mountains and the now‑subdued barbarians, displaying another facet of the "benevolent invincible" power.

Force can conquer land, but only benevolence can win hearts.

Zhuge Liang's southern campaign was a successful example of psychological warfare.

【Sixth Act: Six Engagements at Qi Mountain, Northern Campaign to the Central Plains】

With the rear secured, Zhuge Liang began the lifelong pursuit of the northern expedition.

From AD 228 to 234, he led the army out of Qi Mountain five times (the novel dramatizes six engagements), marching north against Cao Wei.

The first time, he mistakenly appointed Ma Su, lost Jieting, was forced to retreat, and demoted himself three ranks.

The second time, he exited San Guan, besieged Chen Cang, ran out of provisions and withdrew, cutting down the pursuing general Wang Shuang.

The third time, he captured the two commanderies of Wu Du and Yin Ping.

The fourth time, he again advanced on Qi Mountain, using wooden oxen and flowing horses to transport grain, holding a stalemate with Sima Yi, and shot the Wei general Zhang He dead.

The fifth and final time, he moved through Xie Valley, stationed troops at Five Zhang Yuan, and faced Sima Yi across the Wei River.

The celestial curtain highlighted the day‑and‑night of Five Zhang Yuan.

The Shu army came from afar, its advantage lying in swift battle.

Sima Yi, shrewd and calculating, held his positions, intending to drag the Shu forces until their supplies ran out and they withdrew.

Zhuge Liang sent a woman's garment to mock him; he cheerfully put it on and asked the envoy, "How are the Prime Minister's sleeping and eating habits?"

The envoy answered honestly: "Lord Zhuge rises early and retires late; for those over twenty, he personally inspects them, and his daily intake never reaches a few sheng."

Sima Yi, after hearing this, said to his subordinates, "Kong Ming eats little and is busy; can he endure for long?"

Within the camp, Zhuge Liang's tent lantern burned constantly.

He attended to every matter personally, reviewing documents, managing provisions, observing the stars, and scouting enemy movements.

Meals grew ever smaller; sleep grew ever shorter.

He worried about state affairs, and more so about the ideal that "the Han and the traitor cannot coexist, the royal enterprise cannot be at peace," fearing it might truly go out together with his lamp that was about to burn out.

In the scene, he rises at midnight, dons his robe, steps out of the tent, gazes at the pitch‑black northern sky belonging to the Central Plains, the autumn wind ruffling his graying temples and thin clothing; his silhouette is so solitary, so… stubborn.

He races against time, against national strength, and against his own life.

The opponent is not merely Sima Yi, but the massive power of Cao Wei, the treacherous terrain of the Shu Region, the almost irreversible tide of the world, and… his own body, already over‑extended to the limit.

【Seventh Act: Autumn Winds over Five Zhang, Falling Stars of the General】

In August AD 234, autumn winds had risen, and the camps at Five Zhang Yuan were grim and lethal.

Zhuge Liang fell ill, his condition grave.

He knew this time he truly could not endure.

He forced his sick body to make a final inspection of the camps, delegating withdrawal orders and appointing Jiang Wan, Fei Yi, Jiang Wei and others as successors.

Returning to his tent, he wrote his final testament on his sickbed, requesting a modest burial, with no surplus silk inside nor wealth outside.

At the brink of death, he seemed to hear the late emperor Liu Bei's summons, and see the tranquil fields of Longzhong,

hear the Red Cliffs warships' cries, see the earnest gaze of the sovereign when he entrusted the orphan… in the end, all returned to silence.

"The campaign fails before victory, and I die first; forever heroes' tears wet their collars."

A paragon of his generation, the Shu Han Prime Minister, Marquis of Wu Xiang Zhuge Liang, died of illness in the Five Zhang Yuan camp at the age of fifty‑four.

According to his will, the funeral was kept secret and the retreat was drawn out.

Sima Yi led his forces to pursue; seeing the Shu army's orderly formation and steady banners, he suspected an ambush, dared not press forward, and the Shu army withdrew intact.

The people coined a saying: "When Zhuge dies, Zhongda runs alive."

Yet this final "divine contrivance" could not conceal the endless sorrow and regret.

He burned himself out, ultimately unable to illuminate the path to the Han Court's restoration.

Yet that blaze illuminated the two‑thousand‑year‑long historical corridor behind him, giving the words 'loyalty,' 'wisdom,' and 'responsibility' their most concrete, tragic, and lofty embodiment.

"Vast heavens, how could they be so indifferent to me?"

(Anyone with an illustration may now display it.)

Heavenly Curtain Overall Review: "One who reads the 'Memorial on the Dispatch of Troops' without weeping is not loyal; one who reads the 'Memorial on Petition' without weeping is not filial."

Later generations said this, fully expressing the Marquis of Wu's charisma.

He is not a 'perfect' strategist. He handles everything personally and is poor at cultivating successors;

He is overly cautious, never employing Wei Yan's brilliant plan at Ziwu Valley;

He knowingly does the impossible, draining Shu's vital energy.

Yet it is precisely these 'imperfections' that make him more real, more great.

His wisdom, offered without reservation, was devoted to ideals and promises;

His loyalty surpassed the ruler‑subject bond, bordering on a religious martyrdom;

His sense of responsibility epitomizes 'If I do not go to hell, who will?'

Among all strategists, only Zhuge Liang merged 'strategy' with 'character', 'ideals' with 'destiny' so thoroughly and tragically, reaching the pinnacle of the strategist's spirit—intelligence bordering on the demonic, loyalty bordering on the saintly, bowing and exhausting himself, only dying after all is done.

Top of the historical Top Ten Strategists list: Zhuge Liang, tally complete!

Heaven's Way bestows blessings: add sixty years of lifespan!

Grant 200,000 jin each of potato, corn, and sweet‑potato seeds!

Grant hundred‑fold steel, a three‑piece horse‑gear set, and the blueprint for the Quyuan plow!

Grant firearms and the blueprint for the Red‑clothed cannon!

Aid the Marquis of Wu in completing the northern expedition, restoring the Han court, and rectifying an age‑long regret!

(Note: Zhuge Liang's greatest lifelong regret is that Heaven did not grant him enough years, and the northern campaign remained unfinished.

Heaven's Way bestows blessings directly to the core, increasing his lifespan so he has sufficient time to reorganize the rivers and mountains;

Grant high‑yield grain seeds, advanced farm tools, fine armaments, and even era‑spanning firearm blueprints, fundamentally compensating for Shu‑Han's military shortfall,

help him fulfill his lifelong wish to "restore the Han court and return to the old capital", rewarding his unparalleled loyalty and wisdom.)