I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 47 Zhou Yu, a Master of War

Jiujiang, Shouchun.

Chen Wen, Yuan Yi, and Zhou Ang sat together, staring at Liu Miao's letter.

"So what exactly does Liu Miao intend to do by mobilizing troops at this time?"

"Could it really be as he said in his letter, that it's to quell the bandits on Chaohu Lake?"

As Yuan Shu gradually approached Huainan, every little thing that happened made Chen Wen and his men tremble with fear.

At this moment, Liu Miao suddenly launched a military campaign. Although it wasn't aimed at them, who could guarantee that Liu Miao wouldn't suddenly lead his troops north to join forces with Yuan Shu to attack them from both sides?

"We must send troops to keep an eye on Liu Miao!"

After discussing it, Chen Wen and Yuan Yi ultimately decided not to allow Liu Miao to lead troops into Chaohu.

It should be noted that once Liu Miao leads his troops into Chaohu from Longshu River, he can go upstream from Shi River (Dongfei River) on the north side of Chaohu and reach the city of Shouchun!
"Zhou Ang, you must lead two thousand elite troops from Danyang to Hefei and keep an eye on Liu Miao! Make sure he doesn't lead his troops north!"

Zhou Ang's wife had been humiliated before, and he and Liu Miao were already sworn enemies. Why would he refuse to do this?
"Rest assured, both of you!"

"As far as I know, the two thousand soldiers under Liu Miao's command are just new recruits hired by Lu Kang. How could they possibly be a match for my elite troops from Danyang?"

"If Liu Miao simply finishes suppressing the river bandits and retreats back to Shuxian, then I will naturally not bother with him. But if he shows even the slightest sign of heading north, then I will definitely settle all scores with him, old and new!"

"Thank you for your trouble, Prefect."

Yuan Yin stroked his beard and reassured him: "That Liu Miao is nothing but a mercenary. His military campaign this time was probably just a desperate act because he suffered financial losses. It's nothing serious."

"The most pressing issue right now is Yuan Shu in the north. Once the matter at Chaohu is resolved, I request that the prefect immediately lead troops north to garrison the Huai River."

Governor Chen Wen simply waved his sleeve and said, "It's nothing."

"Although Yuan Shu has led his army to Mengcheng, he has no ships under his command."

"I have already ordered a ban on navigation on both banks of the Huai River, prohibiting even a single ship from going out to sea, and have all the boats stockpiled in Hefei. Without ships, Yuan Shu will certainly be unable to overcome the natural barrier of the Huai River!"

Although the Huai River is not as large as the Yangtze River, it is still a major river and cannot be crossed by small boats or planks.

In addition, Mount Bagong on the south bank of the Huai River is high and commanding, giving it a significant advantage. It can defend against surprise attacks by Yuan Shu's small-scale troops and prevent the enemy from gaining a foothold on the south bank. It can be described as an impregnable fortress!

"Gentlemen! As long as we can keep Yuan Shu at bay north of the Huai River, the remaining Gongsun Zan, Tao Qian, and others will be no match for Lord Yuan and Lord Cao!"

"Whether Lord Yuan's great cause can be achieved depends on our performance this time!"

……

The place where the Longshu River flows into Chaohu Lake is called Quezhu.

Zhu refers to land in the water.

At this time, Liu Miao and Lu Jun led two thousand soldiers to stop here, ready to enter Chaohu Lake to suppress the bandits.

These new recruits were exhausted from several days of travel, and apart from a few patrolling scouts, they had all gone to sleep early. Only the lights at Lu Jun's place were still bright.

Besides Lu Jun, there was another person in the tent, but unfortunately, this person's expression clearly showed that he was not very willing.

"Gongjin, what's with that long face? Here! Have an orange!"

Zhou Yu took the orange with a disgruntled expression: "If you had been kidnapped here, what kind of pleasant attitude would you have?"

Lu Jun couldn't help but chuckle after hearing Zhou Yu's words.

"I truly didn't expect that Lord Liu would actually have you kidnapped from Shu County! Impressive! Impressive!" It turned out that just before the army departed from Shu County, Liu Miao suddenly went to ask Lu Jun a very crucial question—

"We're about to go and suppress bandits, but I've realized I don't know how to lead troops. What should I do?"

Lu Jun: "What a coincidence! I don't know how either!"

Liu Miao: "Then what should we do?"

Lu Jun: "Let those skilled in battle lead the troops."

Liu Miao: "Who is the best warrior?"

Lu Jun: "Zhou Gongjin of Shu County".

So Liu Miao went to Zhou Yu's house and asked him to take over the command of the troops.

When Zhou Yu thought of what had happened a few days ago when Liu Miao came to his residence, he covered his face with his hand and shook his head repeatedly.

“The other day, Governor Liu asked me to lead troops. I knew that I was not experienced enough and lacked prestige, so I refused. But Governor Liu scolded me: ‘A great man refuses when he has the opportunity to command thousands of troops. Isn’t that the most foolish thing in the world?’”

"He even asked me if I didn't want to serve the court? If I wanted to be a traitor to the Han dynasty? What's worse, he even asked me if my mother was still alive..."

"I intended to ignore him, but he simply tied me up with a rope and took me to the military camp..."

Zhou Yu's story was tragic, but Lu Jun listened with amusement!
Sure enough! One's happiness is only meaningful when it is built on the suffering of others!
"That's just how Magistrate Liu is, you'll get used to it!"

Zhou Yu said with deep resentment, "Who can get used to this?"

Lu Jun: "Even if you're not used to it, you have to endure it! Do you know how painful it has been for me to stay by Lord Liu's side these days?"

"Not only did he inexplicably give Wu Jing, Sun Ben, and others a lot of grain before, but a few days ago he also inexplicably wrote a letter to Zhou Ang and his men, asking them to bring their troops... Doesn't Magistrate Liu know that Zhou Ang is his enemy? Sending his enemy with troops, I really don't know what Magistrate Liu is thinking!"

Zhou Yu rubbed his face, trying to distract himself from Liu Miao's shadow.

"Although Magistrate Liu is a bit of a rogue, he has not done anything wrong."

Lu Jun asked curiously, "Why didn't you make a mistake? Did Gongjin see through something?"

Zhou Yu nodded.

"First, provide Sun Ben and Wu Jing with provisions, but do not take the initiative to mention the matter of recruiting. This may seem like a useless effort, but it is actually a strategic retreat that forces Sun Ben and Wu Jing to lead their troops to help Governor Liu suppress the bandits."

"Secondly, writing to Zhou Ang and the others is also a way to openly inform them of my movements, so as not to arouse their suspicion and to directly tear off the pretense of friendship and lead my troops to attack... But they probably don't trust Liu Shijun either, and will definitely send troops to the north of Chaohu Lake."

Zhou Yu took a deep breath: "I believe Liu Shijun's statement that he would not lead troops into battle."

"But if Prefect Liu says he knows nothing about military affairs, then that would be a complete lie."

"Haven't you noticed that although Sun Ben and Zhou Ang don't obey Liu Shijun, they still obediently led their troops to the area around Chaohu Lake to help Liu Shijun build up his influence?"

"Lord Liu's target this time is the bandits of Chaohu Lake, so even if Sun Ben doesn't obey him and Zhou Ang has a grudge against him, what does it matter? All Lord Liu needs to do is mobilize their troops to the vicinity of Chaohu Lake and make those bandits fear him, right?"

Although Zhou Yu was still resentful that Liu Miao had brought him here by kidnapping, he had no choice but to speak up for Liu Miao at this moment.

"I don't know what other plans Lord Liu has."

"But if we only look at the military affairs of fighting the river bandits, Governor Liu is already a skilled commander who was able to mobilize all the available troops!"

(End of this chapter)