Upon the death of Liu Bei, Crown Prince Liu Shan prefers to keep the status quo. Zhu Ge Liang, however, decides to press on with his father's ambition of a Han dynasty revival. He launches successive forays into the North while resurrecting the alliance with his southern neighbor, the Eastern Wu. Zhu fulfills his commitment to his former master, although his northern expeditions are met with fierce resistance by Si Ma Yee, his arch-rival. Palace intrigues return inside the Tsao Wei Kingdom after Emperor Tsao Rui, grandson of Tsao Tsao, dies in middle age, substantially weakening the Tsao family's grip on power. Groomed by the elder Si Ma Yee, the two Si Ma brothers take control upon their father's death, ultimately turning the Tsao Wei Kingdom into yet another puppet regime under a pair of strong men. Meanwhile, General Chiang Wei succeeds Zhu Ge Liang in Chengdu and launches new attacks along the Shu Han and Tsao Wei borders, leading to disastrous consequences. Si Ma Zhao succeeds in his conquest of Shu Han and prepares his son to force the latest Tsao Wei emperor to abdicate. Soon afterwards, the new emperor Si Ma Yan of the Jin Empire dispatches a massive force to bring down Eastern Wu, officially bringing the Three Kingdoms Era to an end.