Reborn in the Three Kingdoms: Da Qiao Doesn't Want to Be a Widow Anymore

Chapter 385 The New Sun-Liu Alliance

Sun Quan decisively announced this "good news," and Qiao Wei, naturally understanding the principle of following her husband's lead, naturally complied.

“My sister-in-law is pregnant again, which is a joyous occasion. I will prepare some generous gifts and medicinal herbs for the pregnancy and send them to Yuzhang. Ten months of pregnancy is very hard, and my sister-in-law’s health is a bit weak. She needs to take good care of herself.”

“It’s time to take good care of him.” Sun Quan nodded in satisfaction, but then suddenly remembered something and added, “I heard that my uncle’s old injuries have recurred occasionally, and my aunt is getting old and always feels weak in the winter. You should prepare more medicine and send it over, and write a letter to Deng’er to deliver it. When it arrives, please inquire about her condition.”

Since Deng'er didn't spend much time with his uncle and aunt after his birth, they decided to let him stay for a few days to put their minds at ease.

“Okay.” Qiao Wei had no objections. Although Sun Deng was young, Sun Quan had clearly treated him as a prince and was training him. Many things to win people’s hearts were also entrusted to Sun Deng.

Qiao Wei would only feel happy about this.

While Jiangdong received a threatening letter from Cao Cao, Liu Qi in Jingzhou, Liu Zhang in Yizhou, and Zhang Lu in Hanzhong also received the same "hunting" invitation.

The difference is that Cao Cao wanted to invite Liu Qi to join him in attacking Jiangdong. After the success, he promised not only to return all of Jingzhou to Liu Qi, but also to give Jingzhou jurisdiction over Jiaozhou.

In the letter received by Yizhou, Cao Cao wanted to invite Liu Zhang to join him in attacking Jingzhou, and promised to lend him troops to wipe out Zhang Lu's Five Pecks of Rice sect after the success.

Of course, the letter to Zhang Lu invited him to join forces to conquer Jingzhou. After the conquest, they would jointly eliminate Liu Zhang, Cao Cao would seize Jingzhou, and Zhang Lu would be given Yizhou in return, thus forming an alliance.

What's even more despicable is that Cao Cao also secretly sent a letter to Liu Bei, who was now guarding the gate for Liu Zhang in Yizhou.

After Liu Bei's attempt to imprison Liu Biao was exposed and he was attacked by Liu Qi, he lost his troops and realized that he could not gain a foothold in Jingzhou. So he led his troops westward, intending to occupy Fangling and establish himself.

Fangling borders Hanzhong, so Liu Zhang sent someone to befriend Liu Bei, promising him military supplies and ordering him to guard the area against Zhang Lu in Hanzhong.

Cao Cao intended to completely disrupt the situation in the south so that he could eventually conquer the south.

After receiving the letter, Liu Qi was in a state of panic for several days. Under the repeated persuasion of Liu Pan and Wen Ping, he delivered the letter to Zhuge Liang, who was in charge of grain and fodder allocation in Lingling County.

Zhuge Liang immediately understood Liu Qi's meaning and wrote a letter to Lu Su and Qiao Wei, instructing Wen Ping to take the letter by boat from Jiangxia to Jingkou and present it to Sun Quan in person.

"Cao Cao invited Jing Mu to share Jiangdong, yet Jing Mu delivered this letter to me, demonstrating his sincerity. However, the benefits promised by Cao Cao are beyond my reach. Is it possible that Jing Mu would accept them?"

In his letter, Cao Cao not only promised to return the land of Jingzhou to Liu Qi, but also promised to personally submit a memorial to the emperor to formally appoint Liu Qi as General of Chariots and Cavalry and Governor of Jingzhou.

Although Liu Qi inherited his father Liu Biao's official position and governed the territory of Jingzhou, he did not actually receive recognition or rewards from the Han Dynasty. In fact, he was also under the watchful eyes of his younger brother Liu Cong and Lady Cai.

If Liu Qi were to receive a formal investiture from the Han court at this point, the Cai family would have to think twice before openly contacting other powerful clans to obstruct and denounce Liu Qi for his alleged filial impiety.

The benefits promised by Cao Cao could indeed relieve Liu Qi's immediate crisis.

If Liu Qi had agreed to Cao Cao's letter, Sun Quan wouldn't have found it strange at all.

Wen Ping immediately knelt down and said, “My lord, you need not doubt Mu Jun’s intentions. On a personal level, Mu Jun has not forgotten the kindness of your assistance to Jingzhou. On a public level, Cao Cao has tempted us with benefits, but there are bound to be great dangers under the weight of great benefits.”

Cao Cao uses the Emperor to command the world, but in reality, he holds the Emperor hostage to commit acts of disloyalty. My lord, Mu, is a member of the Han imperial family; how can he abandon his integrity and conspire with this treacherous tiger? Moreover, Cao Cao has already conquered eight or nine of the thirteen provinces; only your Jiangdong region in the south can still resist him, and only then can the remaining strength of the Han dynasty be preserved. My lord and I are bound together by an inseparable bond; if the lips are lost, how can the teeth be preserved?

That traitor Cao Cao is merely using this opportunity to sow discord between Jing and Yang, hoping to reap the benefits. Once he marches south to take Yang, he will certainly not return Jingzhou to the governor. Instead, he will open his wolfish mouth and use the situation to dismantle Jingzhou and Yizhou.

Once the world falls into the hands of the Cao family, the Han dynasty will surely change hands, and what face will the governor have to meet his ancestors in the afterlife?

Of course, with the Han dynasty weakened, if you, my lord, fear the power of Cao Cao and are willing to submit and bow down, the governor will not blame you.

It is human nature to seek advantage and avoid harm, but I hope that you, my lord, will not aid the wicked and raise an army to help Cao Cao attack Jing. This would fulfill your determination to preserve the Han territory.

Wen Ping spoke with conviction, clearly explaining Liu Qi's attitude and completely dispelling Sun Quan's concerns.

Sun Quan would certainly not let go of Jingzhou, but the current situation is that the danger to Jiangdong is not in the west, but in the north.

If Liu Qi were willing to ally with Jiangdong, with his 30,000 naval troops and 50,000 infantry, plus Jiangdong's navy and cavalry, and with the natural barrier of the Yangtze River, they might not be unable to fight him.

Sun Quan looked ashamed. "Lord Mu is so frank. I was too cautious. Please ask Zhongye to convey my message to Lord Mu."

"I am a subject of the Han dynasty, receiving the Han's bounty and the support of the Han people. Therefore, I should uphold the integrity of a Han subject, and my heart is one with that of a ruler. However, Cao Cao's power is overwhelming, and I must also make strategic adjustments."

Upon hearing this, Wen Ping secretly breathed a sigh of relief. After all, of the four southern provinces of Jing, Yi, Yang, and Jiao, Jing was the richest but also the weakest. When Cao Cao marched south, he would inevitably choose Jing as his first target.

Unlike Liu Biao, Liu Qi had no base of operations in Jingzhou. Cai Mao, as a local powerful family, secretly contacted many local gentry in an attempt to support Liu Cong and Liu Qi to rival each other.

After Liu Qi received Cao Cao's letter, Cai Mao and Han Song argued fiercely with Liu Qi in court.

The local gentry of Jingzhou, represented by Cai Mao and Han Song, advocated submitting to Cao Cao and joining forces with Cao Cao's northern army to attack Yangzhou from the east and reclaim Guiyang, Jiangxia and other counties that had been seized by Sun Quan.

Liu Qi did not make a decision immediately, but instead wrote to Liu Pan and Wen Pin for their advice.

Wen Ping had always been in charge of the northern defenses and was the most knowledgeable among the generals of Jingzhou about the movements of Cao Cao's troops in the north, so naturally he disagreed with surrendering to Cao Cao.

Even if it's the easiest path at hand.

But in chaotic times, one step back leads to another.

Compared to the threat posed by Sun Quan to Jingzhou, the threat from the north was more like the fangs of a tiger or wolf; retreating would mean certain death.

Therefore, Wen Ping volunteered to go to Jiangdong to negotiate an alliance with Sun Quan. However, neither Liu Qi nor Wen Ping were sure whether Sun Quan would accept the alliance offer from Jingzhou.

After all, when Liu Qi borrowed troops from Jiangdong, he also agreed to divide the territory between the two sides. In essence, Liu Qi gave up the opportunity to reclaim the three counties of Lingling in exchange for Sun Quan's army.

Now Liu Qi wants to unite with Sun Quan against Cao Cao, but he no longer has any more bargaining chips to use for exchange.