Tiger Guards

Chapter 266 Welding the Car Door
Xuzhou, Donghai State.

Almost at the same time when Sun Ce attacked and captured Xia Pi and seized the families of Liu Bei's army.

Xu Qiu, the prime minister of Donghai, joined forces with the refugee leader Chang Ba to march south to provide food to Liu Bei and support his withdrawal.

While Liu Bei, Chen Deng and Chen Yu were retreating in big strides, Guan Yu covered their retreat and sank boats to block the Sishui waterway.

During the withdrawal, Sun Ce's follow-up troops continued to land from Haixi and attacked Chen Yu. Chen Yu's army was defeated and he barely escaped.

After three days of desperate escape, Liu Bei and Chen Deng successfully entered the territory of Donghai State and rested on the east bank of Shushui River.

The army was in disarray, and a large amount of weapons were abandoned during the escape, and all the dry food they carried with them was eaten up.

Even so, the scattered troops connected front and back and headed towards the Shu River.

Sun Ce not only captured Xia Pi, but also captured the landing point Haixi, which was Chen Yu's territory.

The families of Chen Yu's troops were captured by Sun Ce, and after being attacked by Sun Ce's army, they fled before even fighting.

The rapid collapse actually delayed Sun Ce's army, giving Chen Yu and his followers a chance to escape.

Even so, Chen Yu arrived at the Shushui River Basin before Guan Yu and went upstream along the Shushui River.

The entire army had nowhere to run to and could only flee to the East China Sea.

Liu Bei was starving when suddenly an army appeared on the west bank of the Shu River. Many soldiers were hungry, weak and tired. Even when they saw the army, they sat on the ground and did not react.

Liu Bei struggled to stand up and saw that it was the army of Changba, the refugee commander from the East China Sea.

As soon as Changba arrived, Guan Yu gathered the soldiers who had fallen behind along the way and came to meet up with Liu Bei.

After another two or three days, Zhang Fei heard the news and led his troops to reunite.

In the Shushui area, Liu Bei gathered more than 40,000 troops.

Sun Ce allowed Liu Bei to gather the defeated soldiers under his nose, while Sun Ce's army continued to gather, seizing Xia Pi and Pengcheng, forming a corner with each other.

Zhang Hong, Sun Ce's envoy, brought precious grain to Liu Bei. Seven or eight days ago, these grains were still in Liu Bei's official warehouse in Xuzhou.

Now all the food belongs to Sun Ce. The food sent is only enough for Liu Bei to eat for one day, and there is no room for an extra meal.

Faced with Zhang Hong's proposal to cede control of Xuzhou and form an alliance to attack Yuan Shu...Liu Bei naturally refused.

At this moment, Liu Bei was dominated by anger, after all, he still had some strength to fight.

But Sun Ce had his troops stationed inside the fortified city, and Yuan Shu's army would soon be approaching. Even if a field battle broke out, it would be Liu Bei and Yuan Shu attacking each other, and Sun Ce would not be able to hurt him at all.

The most urgent issue was the lack of time to replenish military supplies and equipment, the need to restore morale, and the need for Mi Zhu to sell his property to raise military rations also required time.

And Sun Ce would never give Liu Bei a chance to breathe.

If you don't agree, Sun Ce will cooperate with Yuan Shu to launch a pincer attack!

By then, it won't just be Liu Bei who will be destroyed, all the big families in Xuzhou will suffer as well.

Liu Bei's situation was not so bad that his army had to eat each other due to lack of food, but he really could not bear this humiliation.

But Chen Deng was very realistic. He immediately led his troops away from Liu Bei and headed towards Xia Pi, formally forming an alliance with Sun Ce.

Whether it is Tao Qian, Liu Bei or Sun Ce, they are a hundred times better than Yuan Shu in ruling Xuzhou!
Driving people like Yuan Shu and Cao Cao out of Xuzhou is the only bottom line for the people of Xuzhou.

When the bottom line is reached, many things can be discussed.

As soon as Chen Deng left, his cousin Chen Yu was persuaded by Zhang Hong to join Sun Ce. As long as he joined Sun Ce, Chen Yu could get back his captured tribesmen and family members.

Soon after, the big families in Donghai also came out to support Sun Ce.

The Wang family, to which Wang Lang, the governor of Kuaiji County, belonged, had no choice but to support Sun Ce in order to survive.

Sun Ce failed to capture Kuaiji, but instead stole Wang Lang's lair in Xuzhou.

If Wang Lang didn't want his clan to be destroyed, he had no better choice... Communication in Jiangdong was inconvenient, and the most important thing for Sun Ce was to gain the recognition of the court.

Now is the best time to break away from Yuan Shu!

If Yuan Shu dared to come, Sun Ce would beat Yuan Shu to death and settle the old accounts between two generations of father and son.

As for Liu Bei, Sun Ce no longer cared much about him.

In another three to five days, Liu Bei's officers and soldiers would starve to death; in that state, Liu Bei could easily send a small army to put out the crisis!
The risks and rewards of a decisive victory between Lianghuai and Huaibei were so great that Sun Ce slept little each day, constantly watching Yuan Shu's reaction and hoping for a response from the imperial court.

With the court's permission, the wavering elements in the army would immediately firm their stance, and the county governors and captains who remained in Jiangdong would choose to remain neutral and watch his duel with Yuan Shu.

His first wave of envoys was intercepted by Cao's army. When Zhao Ji led an absolutely superior cavalry into the territory of Chenliu, Cao Cao's scouts retreated, allowing Sun Ce's second wave of envoys to pass and deliver the memorial to Zhao Ji.

The situation changed too drastically, and Zhao Ji really didn't expect Sun Ce to be so brave.

Liu Bei is a lesson for him, and he must protect his base at all costs.

As for Sun Ce... Zhao Ji doesn't like to challenge games that are too difficult.

Zhao Ji rested on a stool by the roadside and said to Ge Guang, Sun Ce's envoy: "My ancestral home is Langya, and we are from the same village. I don't know Sun Ce's character, but judging by his father's behavior, I know he is a resolute and heroic man. If he could seize the lands of Xu and Huai, as well as Wu and Yue, and gain the benefits of the South China Sea, he would be a serious threat to the country."

Ge Guang lowered his head, but the accompanying deputy envoy looked up and glared at Zhao Ji: "Why are you so biased? The Yuan family is a traitor to the country. The Marquis of Wucheng has been loyal and brave for generations. Now he is trying to escape. He should be praised and set an example. From now on, wherever the emperor's army arrives, generals from all over will submit. The day of peace and order for the world is not far away."

"From your tone, you sound like a member of the Sun family."

Zhao Ji looked at Ge Guang calmly. Ge Guang nodded slightly, and Sun Hao's expression suddenly changed.

Zhao Ji took a sip from his cup and smiled, "Yes, as you said, if we reward Sun Ce handsomely and make him governor of Xuzhou, then when the emperor's army arrives, the generals under his command will follow suit, and the day of peace will be just around the corner. Therefore, I am very worried. Yuan Shu is afraid of a traitor like Sun Ce among his own troops, but am I not afraid too?"

"You traitor!"

Sun Hao reacted quickly, immediately jumped up and cursed, and rushed forward with his eyes wide open. The guards standing on both sides quickly stepped forward and pounced on Sun Hao.

Sun Hong punched and kicked, but a guard behind him grabbed his waist with both arms. Sun Hong was unable to exert his strength or struggle normally. In the blink of an eye, his hands were tied behind his back and he was pressed to the ground. One side of his cheek was pressed against the yellow earth, and he looked at Zhao Ji with one eye.

Ge Guang reacted quickly, stepped back to the side with his hands hanging down and his body half-bent, appearing harmless.

Seeing that Sun Hao was panting and wanted to curse, Han Shu, who was standing next to him, stepped forward and kicked Sun Hao in the teeth. Sun Hao immediately became much more obedient, as if he had a huge dragon fruit in his mouth with red juice flowing.

Zhao Ji remained seated on his stool, looking down at Sun Hao. "Who was it that executed the Jingzhou Governor and Nanyang County Magistrate without imperial decree? And who mobilized the Jingzhou troops to ally with Yuan Shu, allowing Yuan Shu to seize Nanyang? Over the years, how many people in Nanyang, Ruying, and the Huai River regions have died because of Yuan Shu and the Sun family?"

"Liu and Lu are my allies, inseparable, defending against the two thieves, Yuan Shu and Cao Cao, respectively. If we are defeated by Yuan Shu and Sun Ce, I will say nothing. But why does Sun Ce think I will let him replace Liu Xuande? If I agree, how can I face Lu Bu, Liu Bei, Zhang Yang, and Duan Wei?"

Isn't it equivalent to encouraging the generals under his command to become independent if he controls the righteousness of the court and supports Sun Ce in becoming independent?
Sun Hong just stared at Zhao Ji with one eye, looking vicious, with sticky juice still flowing from his mouth.

Zhao Ji turned to look at Han Shu and said, "Report the beheading, salt it, and send it to Yuan Shu by envoy. Tell him to take good care of his men. Next year, I will fight him again between the Jiang and Huai regions."

As he was speaking, Zhao Ji looked at Zhang Zan who was standing beside him. Zhang Zan understood what he meant and immediately wrote a letter in a similar tone.

When the draft was handed over, Zhao Ji took a look and said, "Be more straightforward."

"Here."

Zhang Zan turned around and squatted in front of the desk to redraft the letter.

The autumn sky was high in the sky, and Zhang Zan was brewing his emotions. In accordance with Yuan Shu's temper, he wrote a reply with an arrogant tone.

It was not just Zhao Ji. When Cao Cao intercepted the first wave of Sun Ce's envoys, he did not stop but wrote a letter himself and sent an envoy to Xuyi to warn Yuan Shu.

Things like Sun Ce's self-determination...Cao Cao was also afraid, because he had suffered losses at the hands of Chen Gong.

If Yuan Shu was beaten to death by the coalition forces of Sun Ce and Liu Bei, and Sun Ce and Liu Bei were ordered to go up the Si River and attack Dongping, Dong'e, Jibei and other places, the Qingzhou soldiers would most likely turn against them en masse.

Cao Cao also didn't want Yuan Shu to be defeated too quickly, so having more allies could help share the pressure with him.

By the same token, Zhao Ji did not want Cao Cao to fall immediately.

Development still takes time, so the longer Cao Cao holds on, the better.

As for Sun Ce, he had already intended to purge the big families in Xuzhou, just as he had done in Jiangdong.

Zhao Ji's actual background was even lower than his, but he forced the emperor to take him hostage and cleared out Taiyuan and Shangdang like a bandit, and now he is coming to the Central Plains.

What Zhao Ji could do, Sun Ce could naturally do as well.

Unfortunately, Zhao Ji was not afraid of old-style warlords like Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, Yuan Shu, and Liu Biao, but was afraid of new-style warlords like Sun Ce and Zhang Xiu.

How is it possible to untie Sun Ce?
As long as he can still control and influence the court, he must suppress Sun Ce to death.

As for Zhang Xiu, he actively tried to get closer to the ministers. This kind of bootlicker would be killed by those old men sooner or later, so there was no need to worry too much.

(End of this chapter)