In 227 AD, following the successful pacification of the Nanzhong rebellion, Zhuge Liang returned to Chengdu to prepare for his long-planned Northern Expeditions against Cao Wei. With the death of Emperor Cao Pi and the ascension of the young Cao Rui (Emperor Ming of Wei), Zhuge Liang saw a strategic opening.
The Chu Shi Biao, or “Memorial on the Northern Expedition,” is a letter written by Zhuge Liang, the chancellor of the Shu Han kingdom, to the young emperor Liu Shan before his first military campaign against the rival Wei state.