I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 97 Expelling Liu Miao

Yuan Shu personally changed "Moling" to "Jinling," and the impact on Jiangdong was clearly more than just a simple name change.

This move undoubtedly highlighted the close relationship between Yuan Shu and Liu Miao, making those who were already wary of Liu Miao even more fearful, while also prompting some who were still observing to actively attach themselves to him.

All the counties north of Danyang, including Hushu, Jiangning, Jiangcheng, Jurong, Dantu, and Qu'a, surrendered and handed over their household registration lists to Liu Miao... or rather, to Yuan Shu, leading their people to pledge allegiance.

Liu Miao was equally ruthless, ordering Gu Yong to implement the Three Chiefs and Equal Field System in all these areas, and sending Huang Gai and Zhu Zhi to lead troops to suppress any resistance.

Overnight, Zhou Xin, the governor of Danyang, was only able to control the four counties of Wanling, She, Liyang, and Yuqian. His power was squeezed into the southern part of Danyang by Liu Miao, and he was completely unable to move!

Although Zhou Xin was still organizing people to repair the city wall, it was clear that morale was low, and people were frequently fleeing to the territory controlled by Liu Miao in the north to join him.

Zhou Xin watched helplessly as all of this happened.

Officials who sought refuge with Yuan Shu did so out of fear of his family's prestigious reputation as high-ranking officials from a family with four generations of powerful clans.

The reason why people flocked to Liu Miao was that as Liu Miao's territory expanded, the people learned about the "equal land system" and realized that Liu Miao had actually recognized the private land held by the people. This made the people flock to Liu Miao.

None of this stemmed from Liu Miao's coercion, so Zhou Xin knew that even if he tried to stop them, he couldn't prevent the officials and common people from fleeing.

On this day, Zhou Xin specially left Wanling and traveled north along the Qingshui River to Chungu County, where Han Dang had stationed his troops.

Seeing that Han Dang's army was well-organized and had recruited many new soldiers to train here, totaling five thousand men, Zhou Xin couldn't help but feel fear.

When Zhou Xin saw the government organizing the people to reclaim land, build water conservancy projects, and construct cities on a large scale, he broke out in a cold sweat on a cold winter day.

"Were all these things accomplished by Yuan Shu's capable officials?"

actually not.

The implementation of the Three Chiefs system significantly enhanced the government's ability to mobilize the people, resulting in an administrative efficiency that had never been seen before in Jiangdong.

Zhou Xin, however, was unaware of these facts. He only believed that the officials under Yuan Shu and Liu Miao possessed abilities far surpassing his own, which made him even more frustrated. So he asked the people around him, "Can I really withstand Liu Miao?"

His advisors urged him, "Liu Miao is nothing but an incompetent and lustful man. You, the prefect, are a hundred times better than him. Why are you worried about him?"

Zhou Xin sighed: "Actually, what I'm worried about isn't Liu Miao, but Yuan Shu further north!"

His aides fell silent.

Both Yuan Shu's reputation and his current governance of Jiangdong have put immense pressure on them, making them, like Zhou Xin, unable to muster any thoughts of resistance.

Everyone was confident that they could drive Liu Miao away; but they didn't dare to speak to Yuan Shu, and could only pretend to be dead, not daring to look Zhou Xin in the eye.

Seeing this, Zhou Xin became even more distressed, so he raised his head again and used the Wind Angle Technique.

"what?"

Zhou Xin suddenly exclaimed in surprise: "Last time I observed the cloud formations, I saw that the dragon-like cloud was clearly in the north, but why is it in the east now?"

Zhou Xin's mastery of wind manipulation was unmatched, so when his advisors heard him say this, they all had different thoughts.

"Prefect, do you think... that strange dragon phenomenon might not refer to Yuan Shu, but to someone else?"

A well-informed person immediately said, "I heard that Lord Yuan appointed his eldest son, Yuan Tan, as the governor of Qingzhou, and sent him to Qingzhou to defeat Tian Kai, the governor of Qingzhou appointed by Gongsun Zan, and Kong Rong, the chancellor of Beihai. Could the clouds that suddenly moved eastward be referring to Yuan Tan?"

"And another thing, I've heard that Cao Cao, the governor of Yan Province, is currently attacking Xu Province to the east. Could this cloud formation be a reference to him?"

"What kind of talk is this? Are you implying that Cao Cao is comparable to Yuan Shao?"

"Anyway, as long as it's not Yuan Shu!"

"That's not bad..."

"..."

Everyone started offering their own interpretations of the wind-related omens observed by Zhou Xin. Some guessed Yuan Tan, some guessed Cao Cao, and some even guessed Tao Qian!

Anyway, as long as it's not Yuan Shu, it doesn't matter who it is!

Zhou Xin also became excited: "Could it be that I really saw it wrong, and the strange phenomenon last time didn't refer to Yuan Shu?"

"That must be it!"

"Definitely is!"

"Prefect, do not worry!"

The heavy atmosphere turned light and lively as the strange phenomenon changed. Among the crowd who had not dared to confront Yuan Shu just moments before, there were now people clamoring to fight Yuan Shu to the death!
One of the advisors suggested, "That chieftain Zu Lang previously humiliated Yuan Shu's envoy, so he must hate Yuan Shu just as much! His power extends west of Jing County, and he commands tens of thousands of men! Moreover, most of his men are Yue people from the mountains, who are brave and skilled in battle! With such power, even if we cannot resist Yuan Shu, we can at least drive Liu Miao out of Jiangdong! Then, if we rebuild our defenses on the south bank of the Yangtze River, wouldn't that be enough to stop Yuan Shu's army?"

First of all, Zu Lang had humiliated Yuan Shu's envoy, so he was naturally an ally on their side!
Secondly! The Yue people under Zulang's command are brave and skilled in battle, with a large army and considerable fighting strength!
Finally! And most importantly, as long as we act quickly, the enemy we face will no longer be Yuan Shu, but only Liu Miao!
No one dared to confront Yuan Shu, but if it were just Liu Miao, they would still dare to attack!

Zhou Xin agreed wholeheartedly after hearing this!
"If destiny truly does not lie with Yuan Shu, then I have nothing to worry about!"

Zhou Xin immediately dispatched an envoy to Zu Lang to explain the situation and express his intention to join forces to expel Liu Miao.

Although Zulang has remained inactive these days, it does not mean that he is truly indifferent.

After whipping and driving Han Yin away that day, Zu Lang became more and more frightened. He would often be awakened in the middle of the night and go out to stand on a high place to look north. Only after he realized that Yuan Shu's army had not attacked did he dare to go back and sleep fully clothed.

Now that Zhou Xin has invited him to join forces against Liu Miao, he naturally agrees!
However, despite his background as a powerful and ruthless leader, he still possessed a bandit-like spirit. Even before the battle had begun, he was already discussing post-battle matters with Zhou Xin.

"After expelling Liu Miao, all the land east of Moling... no, all the land east of Jinling, shall belong to me!"

"If Liu Miao can really be persuaded to leave, the land east of Jinling will naturally all belong to the powerful local leaders."

Zhou Xin's envoy agreed on his behalf, but he also expressed his doubts: "Can the great general really defeat Liu Miao?"

"Ha! Liu Miao is just a lecherous scoundrel. I've never heard of him having any special abilities. How difficult would it be to defeat him? Especially since this scoundrel once humiliated me. How could I let him go so easily?"

However, a cunning glint flashed in Zu Lang's eyes: "Although Liu Miao is incompetent, those former subordinates of Sun Jian whom Yuan Shu sent to assist him are quite capable." "You need to find a way to transfer those people away from Liu Miao, so I can easily kill him! What do you say?"

Zhou Xin's envoy hesitated. After returning, he told Zhou Xin what Zu Lang had said, and also worriedly said, "Zu Lang is cunning. He wants us to distract Zhou Yu, Cheng Pu and others, while he himself wants to lead troops to plunder Liu Miao's treasury. Can we really agree to such a thing?"

Zhou Xin also hesitated.

Zu Lang's tactics were clearly designed to send his men to their deaths so that he could launch a surprise attack on Liu Miao!

Why can't we send Zu Lang's men to their deaths while we send our own troops to fight Liu Miao?

Zhou Xin sent another envoy to negotiate with Zu Lang, but Zu Lang drove him away. Helpless, Zhou Xin had no choice but to arrange a meeting with Zu Lang in person.

The two met east of Jing County, where the terrain was relatively flat. This place was close to the border between their respective territories, and both felt at ease.

When Zhou Xin saw Zu Lang, he noticed that although Zu Lang had tattoos on his body, his clothes and appearance were no different from those of a Han general, and he walked with a powerful and imposing manner. He immediately asked, "What a burly and strong man! I just don't know why you have become an outlaw?"

When Zu Lang saw Zhou Xin, he saw that Zhou Xin was tall and upright with outstanding appearance, and he laughed loudly: "What an outstanding prefect! I just don't know why you have been forced into this situation?"

Zhou Xin sighed, "Naturally, it's because Yuan Shu has gone too far!"

Zulang immediately retorted, "Then naturally it's because the aristocratic families have gone too far!"

Although the two were at odds, they were both clear that they now shared the same enemy!
The place where the two met was not furnished with any shelters, tables, or chairs, so they simply exchanged pleasantries after disembarking from the boat.

"Is the powerful general afraid of Liu Miao?"

"Why should we fear Liu Miao, who is just an ordinary man?"

"Is it out of fear of Sun Jian's former subordinates?"

"I wasn't afraid even when Sun Jian was alive, so why should I fear his former subordinates now?"

Zhou Xin asked curiously, "Then why are you sending us to attack Liu Miao's main force, while you dare not engage them in direct combat?"

Zulang was surprised that Zhou Xin had met with him just to ask such a question, and immediately shook his head in disappointment.

"Everyone says that you, Zhou Xin, are well-read, knowledgeable in divination, and adept at predicting calamities... But since you have time to study those things, why don't you have time to read some military strategies? No wonder Zhou Yu was able to break through the Yangtze River's natural barrier so easily, sigh..."

Zhou Xin's face turned red, but he didn't dare to argue with Zu Lang. After all, he was truly unique in being able to so easily give up the natural barrier of the Yangtze River.

"Military strategy emphasizes the principle of deception and reality. Only by using the real to attack the weak can one achieve great victory and be invincible in every battle!"

“Now that you are the governor of Danyang, you are bound to be a thorn in Liu Miao’s side. Therefore, in Liu Miao’s eyes, you are “real”; on the contrary, I am just an ordinary person leading my clan to hide in the mountains. In Liu Miao’s eyes, I am actually “illusory”!”

"The troops under Liu Miao that were skilled in combat and were Sun Jian's former subordinates were the 'real' force on Liu Miao's side, while Liu Miao himself, the incompetent governor of Yangzhou, was just a 'false' one."

"But because I am good at fighting in the mountains, I am actually our 'real force,' while your troops under the command of the prefect are the 'false force'! What we need to do now is to let Liu Miao's 'real force' attack our 'false force,' while we use our 'real force' to attack Liu Miao's 'false force,' do you understand?"

……

Although it was a bit convoluted, Zhou Xin still understood what Zu Lang meant.

But Zhou Xin worriedly said, "In that case, many of my soldiers will probably die!"

"In war, people always die!"

Zulang didn't care at all, and had even already devised a battle plan for Zhou Xin—

"You can announce that you are going to attack Liu Miao to attract his attention, but in reality, you should stop your army in Liyang and not advance any further."

"Liyang, known as Gucheng during the Wu and Yue periods! Just from the name, you know that this place is easy to defend and difficult to attack! Even generals like Zhou Yu and Huang Gai probably couldn't easily break through here, right?"

Perhaps thinking of Zhou Xin's "outstanding" military capabilities, and considering that Zhou Xin had lost the natural barrier of the Yangtze River in just a few days, Zu Lang added, "I will also send troops to help you defend it."

"At that time, Liu Miao will definitely send all his elite troops to besiege you. Then I can cross Zhongshan and attack Liu Miao directly from the mountains, catching him off guard!"

"Although Liu Miao is a good-for-nothing, he is, after all, the Governor of Yangzhou, the General Who Conquers the East, a member of the Han imperial family, and a relative of the Yuan clan. With such a person in our hands, those former subordinates of Sun Jian will certainly not dare to attack! When the time comes, we can use Liu Miao to threaten them to withdraw from Jiangdong, and then we can win this battle, right?"

However, when Zu Lang mentioned this matter, he gave a sinister smile: "Although I can't kill him, if Liu Miao really falls into my hands, I will definitely make him kowtow to me a few times to avenge the great humiliation he caused me before!"

After hearing Zu Lang's plan, Zhou Xin was immediately amazed!

"A person like you should be a general fighting on the battlefield!"

"Ha, without someone's recommendation, what kind of general could someone like me become? Even you only became a prefect after you latched onto Chen Fan's coattails and then became a protégé of the Yuan family."

Zu Lang held the Han Dynasty's recommendation system in utter contempt, and consequently looked down on Zhou Xin as well. Now that the matter was settled, Zu Lang prepared to depart.

"Heroic!"

Zhou Xin called out to Zu Lang, clearly showing his interest in talent.

"With such a strategy, why would you stoop to become a bandit?"

"If you are willing to serve me, I will personally write a memorial to appoint you as a talented scholar and grant you an official position. What do you think?"

"..."

Zulang glanced back at Zhou Xin speechlessly, then turned and left, leaving Zhou Xin unable to catch up.

Those around Zulang asked him, "Zhou Xin is willing to recommend Hao Shuai as a talented scholar and grant you an official position, why don't you agree?"

Zu Lang said irritably, "Even someone like Liu Miao knows that in these chaotic times, we should use extraordinary measures and directly appoint Zhou Yu as the commander-in-chief and general! Now I have tens of thousands of troops under my command, but Zhou Xin still wants to follow the court's rules and deceive me with a mere title of 'Talented Scholar'. Such a person has been completely confined by the court's framework. Why should I be loyal to him?"

"If the prefects of all the prefectures in the land are as pedantic as Zhou Xin, then I think the Han Dynasty is truly doomed!"

(End of this chapter)