Welcome to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms podcast. This is episode 138.

Last time, after laying low for a decade, Sima Yi staged a stunning coup to grab the rings of power in the court of the

Kingdom of Wei. In the process, he exterminated a significant portion of the Cao clan. But then one

day, Sima Yi suddenly remembered that he had not quite exterminated all of Cao Shuang's relations.

There was a certain general named Xia Houxuan, who remained in control of Yong province, and he was a kinsman of Cao Shuang's.

So Sima Yi invited this Xia Houxuan to the capital for a T.

Well, actually, for the time being, he just gave Xia Houxuan a position at court

to keep an eye on him rather than leaving him out in the provinces where it would be much

easier for him to stir up trouble. Now, we'll hear from Xia Houxuan a little farther down

the road, but another member of his clan made some immediate noise.

Xia Houxuan's uncle, Xia Houba, found out that his nephew had been summoned to the capital,

and Xia Houba's spidey sense began to tingle.

Remember that Xia Houba was a veteran general who had accompanied Sima Yi on many campaigns,

but now he could see the writing on the wall

and figure that Sima Yi would be coming for him sooner or later.

So Xia Houba immediately led the 3,000 men under his command

in open rebellion in Yong province.

But before Xia Houba's rebellion could get very far, he ran into Guo Huai,

the old warhorse who was now imperial protector of Yong province. They faced off on the battlefield,

and Guo Huai lured Xia Houba into a trap, sandwiching him between two forces. Xia Houba himself managed to escape, but his army was decimated.

With no other option left, Xia Houba decided to seek refuge in the kingdom of Shu. Now, remember that

Xia Houba had long been an enemy of Shu, what with all those battles he fought against Zhuge Liang under

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