"Twenty-eight civil and military officials?"
The atmosphere in the hall shifted—subtly, but unmistakably.
Liu Bei leaned forward, his gaze sharpening.
Jingzhou had only just stabilized. Jiangling had only just been secured. Yet he now found himself in a state he had never truly experienced before—a kind of drought.
Not a lack of virtue.
But a lack of everything else.
Talents. Administrators. Commanders.
So when the words twenty-eight officials appeared, Liu Bei's thoughts took on an embarrassingly practical turn.
Could this list be used to… locate them ahead of time?
Recruit them?
Intercept fate, perhaps.
[Voiceover]
"It should be noted that this roster was not fixed. Across successive dynasties, its composition changed.
The final revision was completed during the Qing Dynasty under the supervision of Liu Yuan.
His criterion was simple:
Those permitted to stand beside Emperor Zhaolie must be Pure Ministers—men of singular, unalloyed loyalty.
As a result, Fa Zheng, Xu Jing, and Liu Ba were removed from the list."
"So strict?" Liu Bei frowned.
From what the light screen had previously shown, he held Fa Zheng in genuine esteem. To think that such a man would later be judged unworthy even of standing at his side?
Nearby, Huang Zhong felt a quiet stir of unease.
Pure Minister…?
Guan Yu noticed at once.
"You are loyal, steadfast, and upright, Han-sheng," he said calmly.
"Even a thousand years from now, the people still honor you. What is there to fear?"
He added evenly,
"The Liu descendants praised your merits at Hanzhong as well.
You are destined to be my brother's grip and elbow—his indispensable support."
Only then did Huang Zhong finally exhale.
[Voiceover]
"Among the military officials, Zhao Yun stands first—beyond dispute.
He is followed by Sun Qian. Though Sun Qian never commanded troops, his placement likely stems from his later appointment as General of Upholding Loyalty after the pacification of Yi Province.
Though a miscellaneous title created by Liu Bei, its rank stood second only to Mi Zhu's—clearly a transitional post reserved for future importance.
Unfortunately, Sun Qian soon fell ill and died. His promise ended there."
"Died of illness?"
Liu Bei froze.
He had not expected this.
The Xuzhou men were not merely subordinates. They were those who had followed him when he had nothing—no land, no power, no certainty.
To think that after all they endured, they would still fall to something as ordinary as sickness.
"Gongyou worked diligently—too diligently," Zhuge Liang said softly.
"If he is destined to fall after our entry into Yi Province, that gives him perhaps three to five years. He should rest more. Tonight, summon him back and have Physician Zhang examine him."
Liu Bei nodded, then turned the words back on him.
"And what of you, Kongming?
I ordered that unfinished affairs be left for the next day. How many times have you listened?"
Under his lord's reproach—and Huang Yueying's quiet, worried gaze—Zhuge Liang could only smile wryly.
"From today onward, Gongyou and I shall watch over one another."
"Good," Liu Bei said, raising an eyebrow.
Privately, however, he was already considering assigning a squad of guards to supervise.
Perhaps they should physically carry Kongming out at sunset and lock the office doors.
The thought amused him enough that he let out a low chuckle.
Zhuge Liang felt a chill.
My lord… please act normal. This is unsettling.
[Voiceover]
"Zhang Yi and Jiang Wei are ranked fourth and tenth.
Jiang Wei inherited the Prime Minister's will and persisted in the Northern Expeditions.
Zhang Yi believed the state was small and the people exhausted, and warned against reckless warfare.
The two often clashed.
After Shu's fall, Jiang Wei incited the Wei general Zhong Hui to rebel, seeking one last chance to restore Han amid chaos.
Zhong Hui failed. Jiang Wei died with regret.
Zhang Yi also perished in the turmoil."
The name Jiang Wei resonated heavily in the hall.
Inherited the Prime Minister's will.
That phrase now carried weight.
No one spoke.
After losing Jingzhou, relying only on Yi Province and a hollowed Hanzhong—after six northern expeditions—the state truly would be small and weary.
"And yet," Zhuge Liang sighed, "the imperial cause cannot find peace in a corner."
Even with rest and recovery, how could one province contend with the vast north?
To advance still held hope.
To stop meant slow extinction.
Liu Bei looked at Zhuge Liang with deep, wordless remorse.
The ruin left behind—who had created it?
The flames of Yiling.
The complacency after Hanzhong.
"If only Sun Wu had not betrayed us at Xiangfan…" Guan Yu muttered.
If only that alliance had held.
If only Lu Su had lived a few years longer.
"Second Brother," Zhang Fei said, tapping his temple, "you forget—our cheap brother-in-law has problems here."
Liu Bei's eye twitched.
He chose not to respond.
[Voiceover]
"Ma Chao and Huang Zhong require no elaboration.
Ranked fifth is Wang Ping, a surrendered general taken during the Hanzhong campaign.
He later commanded the Wudang Flying Army, a unit that became legendary.
Later historians believe it was composed largely of tribal warriors, specializing in mountain warfare and rapid response.
After the Prime Minister's death, Wang Ping defended Hanzhong until dying in office.
Command then passed to Zhang Ni, ranked twelfth.
In 254, during Jiang Wei's seventh expedition, the mortally ill Zhang Ni led five thousand Flying Army troops against nearly twenty thousand Wei soldiers.
The army was annihilated.
Zhang Ni died in battle."
Killed in service to the state.
Zhang Ni's statue on the screen appeared gentle, almost mild—but the words carried killing weight.
"Could they not retreat if they could not win?" Liu Bei murmured, eyes reddening.
"Such men… why must it end like this?"
The restoration of Han had been his cause.
Zhang Ni.
Those tribal soldiers.
They died not only for Han—but for him.
How could he ever claim peace of mind?
"Righteous ministers. Loyal armies. A true defender of Han," Zhuge Liang said, cupping his hands toward the screen.
Zhang Fei sighed.
"Second Brother, since you and your boy are bound to become gods, you'd best look after men like these."
Guan Yu stared silently at the statue.
Guan Ping added,
"Such loyal spirits—Mount Tai's Lord would surely cherish them."
[Voiceover]
"Ranked eighth is Liao Hua—the clearest witness to Shu-Han's rise and fall.
He survived Jingzhou's collapse and escorted his mother back.
He survived Yiling.
Under Liu Shan, he served as Administrator of Yinping, watching the Chancellor's six expeditions from afar.
At fifty, he followed Jiang Wei north.
In his seventies, he defended Jiange.
Finally, under Liu Shan's order, he surrendered.
The following year, en route to Luoyang, illness returned.
The state fell.
The man followed."
Zhang Ni's end was heroic.
Liao Hua's life was simply bitter.
"Truly a Pure Minister," Zhang Fei sighed. "But what a hard road. If given a choice, who would wish to perish with a dying state?"
Liu Bei could not stop staring at one line:
Liu Shan ordered surrender.
It burned.
Have I hardened A-Dou too little?
Have I burdened him too much?
That night's sword practice, he decided, would be doubled.
"If a seventy-year-old general still had to don armor," Guan Ping asked bluntly, "was the state truly so empty of men?"
Several gazes turned to Huang Zhong.
The old general chuckled softly.
"Do not let white hair extinguish a hero."
Guan Yu said nothing—but resolved to review the rosters that night.
The topic passed.
Zhuge Liang's heart did not.
Perhaps… at that time, Shu truly had no one left.
[Voiceover]
"Ranked ninth is Xiang Chong, named in the Proclamation on Starting the Expedition.
Well-versed in military affairs, modest, and fair.
At Yiling, his unit retreated without disorder, earning Liu Bei's praise.
Ranked thirteenth and fourteenth are Zhang Nan and Feng Xi, both killed at Yiling.
Later generations wrote:
'Feng Xi's loyalty knew no equal;'Feng Xi's loyalty knew no equal;
Zhang Nan's righteousness stood unmatched.Zhang Nan's righteousness stood unmatched.
Gladly they died upon the battlefield;Gladly they died upon the battlefield;
their names endure in history.'
In 240, during a tribal uprising in Hanjia, Xiang Chong was ordered to suppress it—and died in the fighting."