Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 513 The Feast at Hongmen

In April, after arranging affairs in Jingzhou, Zhang Yu led his civil and military officials back to Chang'an. Meanwhile, Zhang Liao, due to Cao Cao's return to Huainan, plundered over a thousand households in Huainan before withdrawing. With the Tang army's withdrawal, the flames of war in the Jianghuai region subsided, and both Cao Cao and Liu Bei focused on their internal affairs, striving to strengthen their own forces.

But the news of Sun Ce's assassination stirred up trouble in the newly pacified Jianghuai region once again.

It is located in a county adjacent to Changsha, within the prefectural capital.

"Sun Quan refused to form an alliance with our army?"

Liu Bei frowned deeply and asked, "Does Deshu know the reason behind this?"

Cheng Bing said with a wry smile, "My lord, Sun Quan said that his father and brother have died one after another, the counties of Ba and Shu are in turmoil, and the people's hearts are unsettled. He may not be able to form an alliance with our army. Therefore, we will discuss the alliance later."

Liu Bei paced back and forth, saying helplessly, "The alliance of the three families is the key to countering Zhang Yu, but now I fear that Sun Quan intends to submit to the Tang people."

Cheng Bing pondered for a moment and said, "My lord, Sun Quan had previously intended to form an alliance with our army and had already discussed military matters. However, the reason for his drastic change in attitude is that Sun Ce was assassinated while hunting, and Sun Quan succeeded him as the governor of Yi Province. Judging from this, Sun Quan must have some unspeakable difficulties!"

"What's the unspeakable reason?" Liu Bei asked in return.

"Forgive my limited wisdom and ignorance of the reasons!" Cheng Bing apologized.

"Does the strategist know the reason behind this?" Liu Bei asked Li Yan.

Li Yan, dressed in brocade robes, paced back and forth in thought, and said, "My lord, the reason why Sun Quan's attitude was inconsistent before and after is probably related to the Tang people."

"Oh?"

"Please make it clear!"

Li Yan said, "When Sun Ce was alive, the prefectures of Ba and Shu submitted, and the four prefectures of Nanzhong surrendered. Therefore, he dared to fight Zhang Yu and was determined to launch a northern expedition against Hanzhong. Now, Sun Quan is young and has no hope of commanding troops. The generals are each in their own prefectures and counties. With Sun Ce's death, it is inevitable that the generals will develop disloyal intentions. Since the internal situation is already unstable, if he were to form an alliance with our army again, it would provoke Zhang Yu's wrath, and he would surely lead the Tang army to invade the south."

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei looked thoughtful and said, "According to the strategist, Sun Quan may be trying to curry favor with Zhang Yu by breaking off the alliance with our army."

"That's about right!"

Li Yan said, "If Sun Quan wants to avoid disaster, he can only beg Zhang Yu for mercy, so that the disaster can be diverted eastward and Zhang Yu can attack our army."

Zhang Fei scratched his head and sighed, "So, Sun Quan's actions were merely self-preservation, using our army to seek peace. But he doesn't know the story of 'the lips and teeth are both cold'?"

Li Yan said, “It’s not that Sun Quan doesn’t understand the importance of mutual support, but rather that he wants to shift the blame eastward, ordering Zhang Yu to attack us and Cao Cao first, while he leads the troops of Ba and Shu to observe. If the two armies are locked in a stalemate, Sun Quan might send troops to our aid. If Zhang Yu wants to attack him, and Sun Quan asks our army for help, our army will not dare not refuse.”

Sun Quan's refusal to ally with Cao Cao and Liu Bei seemed to have cost him their support. However, this was not the case. If Sun Quan were the first to be attacked, both Liu Bei and Cao Cao, for the sake of the greater good, would not dare not come to his aid. If the two armies had stood by and watched Sun Quan perish, allowing the Tang to occupy Sichuan and Chongqing, the Yangtze River would no longer be a natural barrier, and Liu Bei would have been the first to fall.

Therefore, Sun Quan's strategy of breaking the alliance may seem foolish, but upon closer examination, it must be said that Sun Quan was cunning. He could avoid bearing any obligations while still enjoying the benefits.

“According to the strategist, although Sun Quan is not allied with our army, he will send troops to our aid. How is this different from an alliance?” Liu Feng asked.

Liu Feng was none other than Kou Feng. After Liu Bei conquered Changsha, he followed Li Yan's advice and formed marriage alliances with the powerful clans of Changsha. It was during this time that Liu Bei met Kou Feng, and he took a liking to him. Since he had no son of his own, he adopted Kou Feng as his son.

Li Yan sighed and said, "If they do not ally with our army, it means they are neutral. They can send troops to aid our army or remain inactive. When Zhang Yu unifies Wu and Chu, and Sun Quan surrenders Ba and Shu, the Sun family will enjoy wealth and honor for generations. This is not something to be happy about!"

Liu Bei stopped and said, “We will not speculate on Sun Quan’s intentions for now, but will inform Cao Cao first. Although Zhang Yu has returned to the capital, he has been training his navy and building large ships along the Yangtze and Han rivers, intending to launch a southern expedition. Therefore, the key now is to train the troops and repair the ships in preparation for Zhang Yu’s large-scale southward advance.”

"Yes!" the crowd responded in deep voices.

Not to mention that Liu Bei was focused on developing his military strength, his boats could travel hundreds of miles a day down the river.

Several days later, Cao Cao met Bu Zhi, who had rushed back from Shouchun, and reported to him about Sun Quan's refusal to join the alliance. Cao Cao's judgment was the same as Liu Bei's: the reason for the change in Sun Quan's attitude was due to internal problems, which forced Sun Quan to change his stance to avoid angering Zhang Yu.

After pondering for a moment, Liu Ye advised again, "Prime Minister, Sun Quan seeks self-preservation and refuses to ally with us, only Liu Bei as our ally. However, Liu Bei's strength is weak and he is unlikely to share our burdens. Therefore, in my opinion, Prime Minister, it would be better to first target Liu Bei, seize his troops, and then resist Zhang Yu." Seeing Liu Ye bring up the matter of annexing Liu Bei again, Lu Su retorted once more, "Sun Quan has already refused to ally with us. If we lose Liu Bei as well, wouldn't the internal strife in Southern Chu benefit Zhang Yu?"

"Your Majesty!"

Liu Ye ignored Lu Su and said, "Prime Minister, you uphold the legitimate rule of the Han Dynasty, and Liu Bei is a regional warlord under your rule. If you can control him, why worry about internal strife in Southern Chu? I have someone I wish to recommend to you, Prime Minister. This man possesses exceptional military strategy and unparalleled wisdom. He believes that if you wish to establish a great enterprise, you need to control the Yangtze River and divide the north and south with Zhang Yu. If you acquire this man, you will be like a tiger with wings, and conquering Liu Bei will be a piece of cake!"

"Who is it?" Cao Cao asked, intrigued.

"Zhou Yu, also known as Zhou Gongjin, is a member of the Zhou family of Shucheng, Lujiang. He was formerly the magistrate of Luo County. After the fall of Changsha and the surrender of Chen to Zhang, Zhou Yu fled back to Shucheng. I met him there and, after our conversation, was deeply impressed by his great talent. Now, at your invitation, I am in Shouchun," Liu Ye said.

"Please come immediately!"

"promise!"

Before long, a handsome man in a scholar's robe and turban appeared in the hall and bowed to Cao Cao.

"Yu pays his respects to the Prime Minister!"

Seeing Zhou Yu's handsome appearance, Cao Cao was immediately impressed and asked, "Liu Ye said that your military strategy is outstanding, making you a peerless hero. Now that Sun Ce is dead and Ba and Shu are in turmoil; Liu Bei is based in Southern Chu and has allied with us, I wonder what your opinion is?"

The Zhou family of Lujiang had bet on Yuan Shu. Zhou Yu had always served Yuan Shu because of Zhou Shang, so when the Sun family raised an army in Bashu, Zhou Yu did not participate at all. Yuan Shu was captured, the Chen state was destroyed, and Changsha was captured. Zhou Yu could not change the general trend, so he could only return to Shucheng and wait for the situation to become clear before thinking about his future.

Not long after returning to Shucheng, Zhou Yu befriended Liu Ye. Under Liu Ye's constant persuasion, Zhou Yu finally agreed to go to Shouchun to pay his respects to Cao Cao.

Of course, this was largely due to Sun Ce's untimely death. During his time at home, Zhou Yu had intended to seek refuge with his friend Sun Ce. However, before setting off, he learned of Sun Ce's death, forcing Zhou Yu to abandon his plans for Ba and Shu and instead join Cao Cao.

As for why he didn't join Zhang Yu, firstly, Zhang Yu had many talented people under his command, and Zhou Yu thought that without a recommendation, he would hardly be valued by Zhang Yu as a surrendered person; secondly, Zhou Yu's family was in Lujiang, and it would be best for him to serve in his hometown; thirdly, Zhou Yu believed that the Tang people might not be able to unify the world, and Cao Cao had the ability to control the entire Yangtze River basin.

Zhou Yu, with his hands behind his back and sleeves folded, said, "If the Prime Minister wishes to confront Zhang Yu, he must go all the way to the Yangtze River. Only by relying on the four provinces of Yi, Jing, Yang, and Jiao, and raising an army of 300,000, and taking advantage of the natural defenses of the river, can we contend with him. However, Yi and Jiao are now hard to come by, but the Southern Chu is still a possibility!"

"If Zhang Yu were to march south, the Prime Minister, inheriting the legitimacy of the Han dynasty and possessing the strength of Yangzhou, would have well-trained troops, abundant provisions, and valiant soldiers. They would be able to forge copper from mountains and boil seawater for salt, making the region rich and prosperous. Boats could sail from morning till night, and the soldiers would be fierce and invincible, far surpassing the Tang navy. Therefore, if we do not take action against Liu Bei now, when the people's hearts are won over, it will be very difficult to take him down."

"The Prime Minister holds the Emperor hostage and claims to be a Han subject, while Liu Bei reveres the Han dynasty. This is truly a case for us to seize!"

Cao Cao stroked his beard and pondered, saying, "The Yangtze River is what I desire. But now that Liu Bei is an ally, rashly annexing it might cause internal strife, allowing Zhang Yu to benefit. I intend to first subdue Zhang Yu, and then consider taking Liu Bei."

Zhou Yu said, "Liu Bei possesses the qualities of a hero, while Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are generals as fierce as bears and tigers. If these three were to establish a strong foundation, like dragons gaining access to clouds and rain, it would be difficult for the Prime Minister to subdue them. I believe it would be better to emulate the strategy of the Feast at Hongmen. The Prime Minister could use the pretext of relocating the capital to invite Liu Bei to Jiangzuo and imprison him, providing him with many beautiful women and luxuries to entertain him. At that time, Liu Bei has no heir. The Prime Minister could then carry the Emperor's edict, dispatching a naval force to cross the Yangtze River and sending troops into the various prefectures. The Southern Chu will then be secure!"

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes, a hint of cunning in them, quite satisfied with Zhou Yu's strategy.

“Gongjin’s view is very much to my liking, but now that Zhang Yu has just been withdrawn, it is not advisable to act rashly. We should first relocate to the capital region, and then settle Yangzhou.”

Zhou Yu cupped his hands and said, "There are hundreds of thousands of Yue people in Yangzhou, and the Prime Minister has not yet sent troops to relocate them. Now, in order to strengthen their bodies, the Prime Minister should send troops to conquer the Yue people and bandits, so as to obtain soldiers and strengthen their bodies."

"good!"

Cao Cao asked, "Gongjin's plan is feasible, and the Shanyue tribes must be subdued. But I wonder what official position Gongjin wishes to obtain?"

"I am willing to lead troops to conquer all directions for the Prime Minister!" Zhou Yu said.

Cao Cao waved his hand and said, "Since that's the case, I will appoint you as General of the Household, leading 3,000 infantry and cavalry, and appoint you as Commander-in-Chief under Cao Ren to conquer the Yue tribes of Danyang."

"Thank you, Prime Minister!"

(End of this chapter)