Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 521 Offering up one's sister in surrender
September, 200 AD.

"Boom!"

"All officials, enter the court!" the eunuch announced loudly.

The silent palace rang with the sound of bells. Civil and military officials, arranged in two rows according to their rank, entered the hall, led by Lü Bu and Zhong Yao. Holding their tablets, they removed their swords and shoes.

At that time, Zhang Yu, wearing a crown and imperial robes, sat on the imperial couch, watching the officials file in. He subconsciously touched the two strokes of his mustache, his expression seemingly indifferent, but secretly smug.

"Greetings, Your Majesty! May Your Majesty enjoy eternal happiness and longevity!"

"Gentlemen, you may dispense with the formalities!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The officials found their places and knelt on the side seats. Among the officials, the five sitting alone were Zhong Yao, Du Ji, Yu Yi, Xun You, and Lü Fan.

"Do any of you have any reports to report?"

"Your subject Shao has something to submit in a memorial!"

Linghu Shao rose from his seat and said, “Your Majesty previously summoned Zheng Xuan to the capital to serve as a scholar. However, when he reached Lu, Zheng Xuan’s condition worsened, and he has now passed away there. Zheng Xuan was highly renowned, famous throughout China, and a master of Confucianism. Your Majesty summoned him because of your admiration for his talent and learning, but he died on the way. Therefore, in my opinion, Your Majesty may send someone to offer condolences!”

After Zhang Yu returned to the capital, when he was planning to become emperor, in order to boost his prestige and win the hearts of the people, he adopted Guo Tu's suggestion and summoned the 74-year-old Zheng Xuan to the capital.

Zheng Xuan's health had deteriorated significantly due to the death of his son, Zheng Yi'en, and he had no interest in important matters, devoting himself instead to scholarly pursuits. Initially, he was unwilling to accept the assignment, but due to Man Chong's urging, he had no choice but to set off for Chang'an.

When Zheng Xuan arrived in Lu, he dreamed of Confucius and had a premonition that he was about to die. He also felt that his illness was serious, so he stayed in Lu to recuperate. After a month of ineffective treatment, Zheng Xuan finally died in Lu.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yu sighed and said, "When Lord Zheng said he dreamt of Confucius, I had a bad feeling. I sent people to rush to his aid, but it was too late to change fate."

Where are Ying Shao and Wang Can?

"Chen is here!"

The two stepped forward and responded.

"You two are learned men with exceptional memories, and are outstanding figures in the land. I hereby appoint Ying Qing as the chief envoy and Wang Can as the deputy envoy, to travel to Beihai on my behalf to comfort Zheng Xuan's family. Also, move Zheng Xuan's books and his family to Chang'an, where the court will provide them with a comfortable life and promote Zheng's scholarship," Zhang Yu instructed.

"According to the order!"

Zheng Xuan can be considered a genius rarely seen in a century. In his youth, he studied the ancient texts of the classics under Ma Rong. After completing his studies, he traveled for more than ten years, encompassing all the major classics, synthesizing various schools of thought, and annotating numerous classics. He broke down the boundaries between the ancient and modern texts, merging and unifying them. This unification of the two schools of thought made Zheng Xuan famous throughout the world, and he was revered as a great Confucian scholar.

After achieving fame and success, Zheng Xuan did not rest on his laurels but continued to annotate Confucian classics. For example, the *Lijing* (Book of Rites) was only taught by teachers and had no commentaries; even Ma Rong only annotated the *Sangfu* (Mourning Garments) section. Zheng Xuan, however, devoted himself to the study for many years, annotating the *Zhouli* (Rites of Zhou), *Yili* (Book of Etiquette), and *Liji* (Book of Rites), compiling these three commentaries into a single book, *Sanli Zhu* (Commentaries on the Three Rites), thus founding a school of ritual studies.

He subsequently wrote annotations for classics such as the Book of Changes, the Book of Documents, the Analects, the Book of Poetry, and the Han Dynasty Laws. He was also proficient in mathematics and astronomy, and had a deep understanding of phonology and exegesis. Therefore, it is no exaggeration to call him a polymath.

Zhang Yu has now sent someone to the North Sea, ostensibly to comfort the family, but in reality to obtain the books written by Zheng Xuan and the classics collected in his home. After all, the world is in chaos, and many classics have been lost. As the Son of Heaven of China, Zhang Yu has a responsibility to preserve and pass on cultural classics.

"Your Majesty," Ying Shao added, "at the end of the Later Han Dynasty, Zuo Bo paper was famous throughout the world. However, due to the prolonged war, Zuo Bo paper disappeared from China. I believe that this mission to the North Sea should not only comfort the family of Duke Zheng, but also seek out skilled craftsmen so that Zuo Bo paper can reappear in the world."

"good!"

Zhang Yu nodded and said, "The Zuo Bo paper is widely known throughout the world. If the technique is lost, it will be a great loss to the world. When you arrive in Qingzhou, you can ask the governor and prefect to send people to assist you."

Since Zhang Yu ascended the throne, he has submitted memorials every time he attends court requesting the retrieval of lost crafts. For example, during the last court meeting, Du Ji submitted a memorial requesting that someone be sent to Xiangyi in Chenliu to restore the Xiangyi weaving (brocade) that was popular throughout the world during the Han Dynasty.

During the Han Dynasty, although Shu brocade was widely known throughout the land, it could not compare to Xiangyi weaving. Taking advantage of Chenliu's central location, Xiangyi weaving developed into a national textile center and was responsible for the production of royal clothing.

However, due to the chaos at the end of the Han Dynasty, the textile industry in Xiangyi suffered a major blow, while the Shu brocade industry in Sichuan and Chongqing remained almost unscathed, thus Shu brocade flourished during the Wei and Jin Dynasties. Even so, by the Song Dynasty, Xiangyi's annual tribute of silk still accounted for more than 30% of the national total.

Du Ji submitted a memorial to the throne to restore the textile industry in Xiangyi, arguing that the circulation of Shu brocade throughout China and the flow of money and grain into Sichuan would be detrimental to the conquest of Sichuan. Therefore, he hoped to restore the textile industry in Xiangyi to reduce the market share of Shu brocade in China, thereby indirectly weakening the strength of Sichuan.

After Ying Shao accepted the order, Zhong Yao, holding his official tablet, said, "Zhang Su, the envoy from Yizhou, is waiting outside the palace. I wonder if His Majesty will summon him today?"

"allow"

"promise!"

"Summon Zhang Su, the envoy from Yizhou, to an audience!"

Amidst the loud commotion, Zhang Su, his face solemn, straightened his robes and stepped into the hall. "Your Majesty, I, your humble servant Zhang Su, pay my respects!"

Zhang Su bowed and said, "I am here by order of the governor to celebrate Your Majesty's unification of China and to congratulate Your Majesty on your ascension to the throne and the founding of the nation!"

With that, Zhang Su presented the official document with both hands, saying, "This is a small gift; I hope Your Majesty will not reject it!"

"No gift!"

Zhang Yu glanced at the list of gifts on the official document and said, "Sichuan is a thousand miles from Chang'an, and I am delighted that the envoy has come. But what brings you here?"

“Your Majesty, the Sun family and the Tang family have been on good terms for many years. When General Sun raised troops to attack Hanchuan, he was unaware that Hanchuan had submitted to Your Majesty, which was a mistake on our part. Now that General Sun has passed away and our lord has just ascended to the position of governor, he deeply admires Your Majesty's majesty. Therefore, he has ordered me to go to Chang'an to apologize for the past mistake and to seek good relations with the Tang family,” Zhang Su said.

"Ah!"

Xu Huang sneered and said, "In the past, we wasted hundreds of thousands of tons of grain and suffered thousands of casualties in the relief efforts in Hanchuan. How can your meager gifts compensate for that?"

Seeing this, Zhang Su lowered his posture and said, "My lord feels deeply apologetic for the Battle of Hanchuan. But what's done is done, and it's hard to change anything. Now that we've come to Chang'an, in addition to repairing relations with the Tang family, I'm also on my lord's orders to offer up Bashu and submit it to Your Majesty."

Upon hearing this, Xu Huang composed himself and snorted, "Words are meaningless; do not deceive His Majesty!"

"Don't dare!"

Zhang Su said, "My lord has sent me here today to discuss the matter of submitting to the vassal state."

After a pause, Zhang Su bowed to Zhang Yu on the couch and said, "My lord said that Your Majesty captured Yuan Shu, destroyed the Qi Yuan clan, and your power shook the land, almost unifying the world. Bashu is located in a remote southwest region. If it were to confront China, it would be like throwing an egg against a rock. Therefore, my lord wishes to submit to the Tang Dynasty, to end the war and not harm the people."

Zhang Yu narrowed his eyes slightly and asked, "Is there a set of regulations for internal affairs?"

Zhang Su said, "To be honest, General Sun was killed by an assassin. Many of the old ministers of the Sun family are not convinced by our lord and many of them are allied with the Han against the Tang. Therefore, our lord dares not rashly submit to us, for fear that there will be turmoil in Sichuan and Chongqing."

Xu Huang said with dissatisfaction, "Since you say you've submitted, but you haven't provided any specific plan, are you trying to deceive the Tang family?"

"Ok?"

Xu Chu glared angrily, his murderous aura startling Zhang Su.

"Don't dare!"

Zhang Su hurriedly explained, "My lord says that since we have now submitted to the Tang family, we have no proof. We wish to offer my beloved sister to Your Majesty as a concubine to show our sincerity. Furthermore, my lord says that if Your Majesty unifies Wu and Chu, those who plot rebellion within the state will not dare to act recklessly. My lord can then take the opportunity to persuade the generals to submit to Your Majesty."

"Marrying off your sister?"

Zhang Yu raised an eyebrow. He hadn't believed Zhang Su's earlier claim that Sun Quan had submitted to him, as Xu Huang had said, there wasn't even a formal agreement. But now, Sun Quan's willingness to form a marriage alliance and offer his sister as a tribute made it difficult for him to discern Sun Quan's true intentions in surrendering!

Now, not only Zhang Yu is suspicious of Sun Quan's intentions, but the civil and military officials of the court are also hesitant. Some of them, unaware of the situation, have even begun to celebrate.

After a long silence, Zhang Yu asked, "What is the situation in the province after Sun Ce was assassinated?"

“Your Majesty, my lord’s prestige is weak and cannot be compared with that of my father and brothers. The people in the state are restless and the generals and relatives are arrogant. My lord dares not act rashly.” Zhang Su spoke frankly without any scruples: “When I come to see Your Majesty this time, I dare not speak my intentions directly, for I am afraid that some people will criticize my lord because of this, or even stage a coup and change the ruler.”

Then, Zhang Su asked bluntly, "Does Your Majesty suspect my lord's intentions in surrendering?"

"Forgive my boldness, but if my lord intended to resist the Tang, he would have already allied with the Han people. Why would he have sent me on this arduous journey of thousands of miles to offer my lord's own sister, the eldest daughter of the old general, to the palace to serve Your Majesty?" Zhang Su said gently. "Unfortunately, my lord has no sons and cannot come to Chang'an as hostages."

Seeing that Zhang Su had said all he needed to say, Zhang Yu did not say anything more and said with a smile, "I already know that the governor is willing to surrender. Now that you have traveled here, you must be exhausted. Why don't you go back to the post station to rest first?"

"promise!"

Watching Zhang Su's departing figure, Zhang Yu's expression revealed a look of suspicion.

It's true that Sun Quan feared the Tang army's military strength, but would he offer up his allegiance to them so early in his reign?

Regardless, Zhang Yu can be certain of one thing: Sun Quan is not like Cao Cao or Liu Bei, who would never surrender. Instead, he would readily surrender to the conqueror in a crisis, making him a sophisticated egoist. One wonders if the current situation can already be considered a crisis for Sun Quan?

If it weren't for a crisis, what was Sun Quan's intention in surrendering to him? Was he perhaps deceiving him?
After all, Sun Quan had a history of misleading Cao Pi, intending to temporarily delay Cao Wei's military campaign so that he could focus on dealing with Liu Bei. However, after Sun Quan defeated Liu Bei, his attitude towards Cao Wei changed drastically.

(End of this chapter)