227 AD

The year 227 is the setting for the opening of Kong Ming’s first northern campaign: after Sima Yi is removed from command, Kong Ming persuades the second ruler of Shu to resume the war against Wei and leads a large invasion in spring. The campaign presents the unfinished restoration of the Han as a political duty, but its early momentum also exposes the risks of command, as the defeat at Jieting shows how a single field decision can imperil the larger undertaking.

A renewed campaign

Kong Ming sees Sima Yi’s dismissal as an opportunity: with Sima Yi no longer holding an army, he is less afraid of invading Wei. He persuades the second ruler to authorize a new northern war, urging him to carry forward the reunification intentions of his father. The ruler worries that Kong Ming will overtax himself so soon after the demanding southern campaign. Astrological warnings add another reason for caution, but Kong Ming argues that Heaven’s circumstances change and that this is the moment to strike. The decision is therefore framed both as a strategic opening and as an argument over whether signs should restrain political action.

Kong Ming assumes supreme command and consults the astrological charts to choose an auspicious day in spring. The invasion is reported at a force of three hundred thousand. Its scale makes the campaign a major bid to shift the balance between Shu and Wei, while its timing reflects Kong Ming’s effort to unite military initiative with a claim of heavenly sanction.

Zhao Zilong in the vanguard

As the army prepares to depart, Zhao Zilong asks to join the expedition. Kong Ming tries to dissuade the old general, but Zhao Zilong persists and wins the right to lead the vanguard. Deng Zhi volunteers to accompany him; Kong Ming assigns them five thousand elite troops and ten officers to support and protect them. The episode places an experienced, insistent commander at the front of a large campaign, while making clear that his advance is backed by a carefully designated force rather than left to individual valor alone.

The struggle over Han legitimacy

The campaign’s political purpose is presented as more than territorial expansion. Kong Ming urges the second ruler to continue his father’s aim of reunifying the empire, and the invasion is consequently linked to the Shu claim of continuity with the Han. When news of the advance reaches Cao Rui, he appoints Cao Zhen and the elderly minister Wang Lang to defend Wei. At the ensuing parley, Wang Lang argues that the Mandate of Heaven passed to Cao Cao and then Cao Pi, and casts Kong Ming’s campaign as rebellion against Heaven’s will.

Kong Ming answers by telling a rival history of the Han’s troubles: in his account, the Mandate passed to Xuande and then to Xuande’s son, and the work left unfinished by Xuande—putting down rebels—is now Kong Ming’s responsibility. Their exchange shows how the same language of Heaven and dynastic succession can authorize opposing claims. The year’s campaign begins as a military undertaking, but its stakes are also a contest over which regime can present itself as the rightful continuation of the Han.

Early reversals

The campaign’s opening does not guarantee success. After Meng Da’s death changes the strategic situation, Kong Ming orders a force to hold Jieting against Sima Yi and agrees to Ma Su’s offer to command it, assigning Wang Ping to supervise him. At Jieting, Ma Su rejects Wang Ping’s advice to defend the road and instead camps on a hill. Sima Yi exploits the position: his troops cut Ma Su off, the hill has no water, and the men begin to desert. Wang Ping’s smaller force cannot rescue them; Ma Su’s army breaks apart as it attempts to fight its way out.

The defeat at Jieting gives the campaign an immediate cost. Wei captures the city, Shu’s rescue efforts suffer further losses, and its commanders retreat toward Yangping Pass. The contrast between the auspiciously chosen date and the consequences of Ma Su’s decision makes the campaign’s central tension plain: a claim to restore the Han and a carefully planned invasion still depend on sound judgment in the field. In the account of 227, ambition and legitimacy open the war; command failures threaten to undo its gains.