I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 67 Governor
When Liu Miao received Cheng Pu's letter, he had already traveled from Shuxian to Liyang.

To the south of Liyang County flows the Lishui River, which connects directly to the Yangtze River!
In recent days, scouts have also thoroughly investigated the riverbank defenses and handed them over to Liu Miao.

The Yangtze River here runs north-south. In the center of the Yangtze River, there are two large islands, one called Danglikou and the other called Hengjiangjin, one to the north and one to the south, forming a defensive triangle. Behind them on the east bank is Niuzhu, a strategically important and easily defensible island.

After Niuzhu, one can travel unimpeded to Caishiji, and then directly to Wanling, the capital of Danyang County!
The most difficult task now is how to break through the almost insurmountable defense line of Danglikou, Hengjiangjin, and Niuzhu.

Zhou Yu, Lu Jun, Jiang Qin, and Zhou Tai sat together in the tent, staring at the map in front of the main tent, remaining silent for a long time.

Even Zhou Yu truly realized the power of the Yangtze River at this moment and began to think of a good plan to defeat the enemy.

Liu Miao glanced at the map above, then idly flipped through the bamboo slips on the table.

Those were not military intelligence reports, but rather the reflections that Jiang Qin, Zhou Tai, and Lü Meng had given to themselves after studying military texts these past few days.

All three were renowned generals who left their mark on history, especially Lü Meng, whose writings were often insightful and unconventional. As a result, Liu Miao's military expertise seemed to be advancing rapidly while reading these reflections!

However, the formidable Yangtze River was clearly not something Liu Miao could overcome by simply flipping through military books. So, after studying it for a while, Liu Miao looked up again, staring blankly at Zhou Yu and the others...

"Lord Liu, there is a letter from Fuchun."

Fuchun?

Liu Miao had a soldier bring him the letter, still somewhat puzzled: "Fuchun? Could it be a love letter from Wu?"

After untying the bird feathers binding the bamboo slips, Liu Miao glanced at them and handed them to Zhou Yu. He then went outside and said, "Gongjin, just call me when it's time to attack. I'm going back to catch up on some sleep!"

What sleep are you talking about? The army can't cross the river now, how can you, as the lord, possibly sleep?
However, when Zhou Yu saw the letter, he immediately smiled knowingly.

"The Yangtze River is a natural barrier, but it's not difficult to cross it!"

When Lu Jun, Zhou Tai, and the others received the letter and read it, they learned that Cheng Pu and his generals were coming to join them. They all slapped their thighs and exclaimed, "This matter is settled!"

With the help of Sun Jian's elite troops, what is there to worry about in achieving great things?
The two immediately beamed with joy, but Jiang Qin hesitated for a moment before rushing out to catch up with Liu Miao, who was going back to catch up on his sleep.

"Lord!"

Jiang Qin also changed his form of address, which meant that his relationship with Liu Miao was closer and that he could speak directly without any reservations.

“My lord, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, and the others are all proud and fierce generals under Sun Jian. They came to serve you because they admire your reputation and righteousness. But now that you have appointed Gongjin as the General of Jianwu and entrusted him with all military affairs, does that mean that Cheng Pu and the others will also have to obey the General? And the General is still quite young. Aren't you afraid that they might look down on the General and refuse to obey him?”

Jiang Qin, a former pirate, understood best the difficulty of winning people's hearts.

Zhou Yu is still young and has no reputation for leading troops, so how can he control Cheng Pu and his party?
Upon hearing this, Liu Miao laughed heartily and then patted Jiang Qin on the shoulder: "Gongyi! Do you know what I meant when I said I would entrust all military affairs to Gongjin?"

"That means I will no longer concern myself with military affairs! Including how to win people over and how to use people, that's all up to Zhou Gongjin."

"Now that Cheng Pu has come, how to convince them is Zhou Gongjin's business, what does it have to do with me?"

"Besides..."

Liu Miao spread his hands: "Since I have appointed Gongjin as general, he must prove to me, to you, and to all the soldiers that he deserves this position!"

"If he comes to me for help every time something happens, then I'm afraid the generals in the army will be even less likely to respect him!"

Unconditional trust.

Unrestricted rights mean that the recipient must also have unlimited capabilities.

If Zhou Yu can't even handle Cheng Pu and the others, then it's best to replace them with someone else as soon as possible!

Jiang Qin was speechless. He felt that Liu Miao's reasoning, though seemingly flawed, always seemed to be correct. He could only return to his tent.

"Gongyi! Where have you been?"

Zhou Tai, unaware of why Jiang Qin had suddenly gone out, called out to inquire.

Jiang Qin glanced at Zhou Yu, and without hiding anything, repeated Liu Miao's words to him.

Jiang Qin thought Zhou Yu would feel somewhat uncomfortable after hearing this, but to his surprise, Zhou Yu just chuckled.

“I expected the lord to say that, which is why I didn’t ask him about it.”

Jiang Qin said anxiously, "But these people are all arrogant and fierce generals, and unlike us, they don't know Gongjin's great talent. How can they submit to Gongjin?"

Zhou Yu maintained his smile and continued to shake his head: "Why should I make them submit to me? As long as they submit to their lord and obey orders on the battlefield, isn't that enough?"

Jiang Qin frowned, clearly thinking that Zhou Yu was unaware of the prowess of these arrogant and fierce generals.

However, Zhou Yu then added, "And does Gongyi really think that our lord has done absolutely nothing?"

"What did you do?"

Liu Miao had acted as if he had completely washed his hands of the matter, and Jiang Qin really couldn't see what he had done that would convince Cheng Pu and the others.

Zhou Yu pointed to Lu Jun beside him: "Previously, our lord handed over all the money and grain transported from Shouchun to Cheng Pu and the others, without asking for a single penny in reward."

"Even ordinary people know the principle of 'he who eats another's food is bound to him, and he who takes another's money is bound to him,' so how could Cheng Pu and his generals not know this?"

"So, at least for this battle of crossing the river, they will obey my orders."

After hearing this, Jiang Qin felt somewhat relieved, but still asked with doubt, "But that only applies to this time when I was under the command of the Lieutenant General. What happens after that..."

Zhou Yu waved his hand dismissively: "Gongyi, do not worry!"

"My lord was right about one thing—if I cannot win the trust of my generals, then I should abdicate as soon as possible and let someone else take my place!"

"If Cheng Pu and the other generals still cannot trust me after this war, then I will voluntarily resign from my post as lord!"

At this moment, Zhou Yu was in high spirits, and his confidence was like a raging fire, causing everyone in the tent to squint their eyes.

If Cheng Pu and the others are still not convinced of me after this battle, then I am incompetent!
Such confidence would likely lead someone unfamiliar with Zhou Yu to believe he was an arrogant and eccentric person!
Jiang Qin was convinced and never mentioned the matter again.

Meanwhile, Liu Miao, though saying he wouldn't interfere with Zhou Yu, sent him another letter that same day.

"Zhou Yu is appointed as the Commander-in-Chief, and the Imperial Censor is appointed to supervise all the armies!"

Therefore, if Cheng Pu and his generals do not obey Zhou Yu's orders, they will be punished according to military law!

(End of this chapter)