Tiger Owl

Chapter 177 Jia Xu Applys Pressure
When Jia Xu returned to Shouchun, he immediately summoned his general Yue Jin and said to him, "Today, we must arrest all of Sun Ben's family members and capture all of his troops."

Le Jin was shocked and quickly said, "We are allies with Sun Ben, why would we do this?"

Le Jin was no ordinary person; he was a general who directly commanded the army, and Jia Xu had to explain things to him clearly.

"This is the only way to force Sun Ben to withdraw his troops. If he still refuses to withdraw, we will hand over Jiujiang County and his entire family to Gan Ning."

"But--"

Jia Xu waved his hand and said, "I know what General Yue wants to say. We have no choice now. If we don't force Sun Ben to withdraw his troops, Gan Ning will start a war against us. Our lord is at a critical moment in the northern expedition. If war breaks out in the south, it will ruin our lord's great plans."

Le Jin lowered his head and pondered for a moment before saying, "This humble servant believes we can defeat Gan Ning!"

Jia Xu shook his head. "We are no match for him. He has an army of over 100,000. Once the war starts, his reinforcements will surely arrive. What will happen to Guangling County then?"

Le Jin blushed; he had forgotten about Guangling County.

"Understood, sir. We'll act tonight!"

That very night, Le Jin launched a coup, capturing Sun Fu and Sun Ben's families. Twenty thousand troops were also captured by Cao Cao's fifty thousand soldiers, and Shouchun City was completely under Cao Cao's control.

Jia Xu then instructed Sun Fu to write a letter to Sun Ben, and he himself wrote a letter to Sun Ben. He dispatched his trusted subordinates to Danyang County to deliver the letter to Sun Ben, and also sent the leader of Sun Ben's personal guards along with him.

At this time, Sun Ben was at Niuzhu. He was also worried that the Jiangdong navy would cut off his communication with Jiujiang County. Sun Ben knew very well that although he had defeated Sun Quan's army on land, he would surely be defeated on the river.

Sun Ben now needs to strengthen the defenses of Niuzhu to prevent the Jiangdong army's warships from entering the bay and destroying his own warships.

At this moment, a personal guard came to report, "Reporting to the lord, Ying Er has arrived, and Jia Junshi's men have also come with him!"

Ying Er was the deputy leader of Sun Ben's personal guards, leading 500 guards to protect his family in Shouchun.

Sun Ben was taken aback, a sense of unease rising within him. He quickly asked, "Where is he?"

Before long, Ying Er was brought up. Upon seeing Sun Ben, he knelt down and burst into tears. Sun Ben asked anxiously, "Stop crying, what happened?"

"My lord, something terrible has happened! Cao Cao's army has suddenly launched an attack and captured our troops. The mistress and the two young masters have been captured, as well as the Fu family."

Sun Ben was stunned, as if struck by lightning. After a moment, he asked urgently, "When did Cao Cao's army arrive?"

"Just a few days ago, Gan Ning's 100,000-strong army captured Hefei, and Cao Cao's army arrived."

"What?" Sun Ben's eyes widened suddenly. "One hundred thousand troops? You just said that one hundred thousand troops would occupy Hefei?"

"Yes! Gan Ning personally led an army of 100,000 to invade Jiujiang County and occupy Hefei."

Sun Ben was speechless for a long time. Although he knew this was possible, he did not expect it to come so quickly, and with an army of 100,000.

Sun Ben suddenly realized something and hurriedly said, "Where are Jia Xu's men? Bring them to me immediately!"

Not long after, Jia Xu's trusted subordinate was brought up. His name was Luo Sheng, and he held the official position of Military Advisor.

"So it's you, Luo Chengshi. I suppose Military Advisor Jia has something for you to deliver to me!" Luo Sheng handed two letters to Sun Ben without saying a word.

Sun Ben took the letters; one was from his brother Sun Fu, and the other from Jia Xu.

Sun Ben first read his brother Sun Fu's letter, which was similar to what Ying Er had said, only confirming that Ying Er's words were not untrue.

Sun Ben then opened Jia Xu's letter. Jia Xu's tone in the letter was very stern, which could be described as a warning to him. He demanded that Sun Ben withdraw his troops back to Jiujiang Commandery. If he did not withdraw his troops, he would hand over Sun Ben's family and Jiujiang Commandery to Gan Ning as a condition that Gan Ning would not go to war with Cao Cao's army.

Sun Ben's eyes widened. He almost doubted his own eyes. He handed over his family and Jiujiang County to Gan Ning as a condition that Gan Ning would not declare war on Cao Cao's army.

"Luo, what do you mean? You arrested my family to curry favor with Gan Ning?"

Luo Sheng nodded. "Although it's a bit hard to accept, that's the truth. We can't go to war with Gan Ning, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable. Now Gan Ning is using war with us as leverage, and we have no choice but to submit to his coercion."

"Why? You should immediately tell Military Advisor Jia that I am willing to send troops. If our two families attack Gan Ning together, we will surely defeat him."

Luo Sheng sneered and said, "General Sun did not understand my strategist's meaning. Right now, Cao Sikong is leading a large army in a fierce battle in Youzhou. It is the most critical moment. If a war breaks out in the south, it will force Cao Sikong to withdraw his troops from Youzhou. Do you understand the consequences? It is very likely that the war to unify the north will be in vain. How will we explain this to Cao Sikong?"

Moreover, Gan Ning has an army of 150,000. Once he commits all his forces to the war, even if our two families join forces, we might not be a match for him. Furthermore, the Jiangdong army will not stand idly by; they will launch a major offensive against Danyang or Guangling counties. General Sun, please consider the consequences!

Sun Ben sighed and said, "Let me think about it. I'll give you an answer first thing tomorrow morning!"

Inside the main tent, Sun Ben barely slept all night, pacing back and forth. He was unwilling to give up now, having finally gained a foothold. How could he possibly accept retreating like this?

But those were his wife, children, and brothers! And his old subordinates who had followed him for many years. How could he possibly abandon them for the sake of Danyang County?

At this moment, a guard reported: "General He urgently requests an audience!"

Sun Ben nodded. "Let him in!"

Generals He Qi and Han Dang were Sun Ben's right-hand men and the people he relied on most, even more so than Han Dang.

"My lord, something terrible has happened!" He Qi exclaimed as soon as he entered the tent.

"What happened?"

"I don't know who spread the news, but it is said that Jiujiang County has been occupied by Gan Ning's army. The soldiers' families are all in Jiujiang County. Everyone is anxious, my lord. The morale of the army is starting to waver."

Sun Ben was speechless for a long time; Jia Xu was too ruthless.

He Qi certainly had his own selfish motives; his family was also in Shouchun. So he advised, "My lord, you can only have one family member. You can come to Danyang County again!"

Sun Ben nodded slightly; this was the only way he could console himself.

The next morning, Luo Sheng came to see Sun Ben. Sun Ben stood with his hands behind his back and said after a long while, "Go back and tell Military Advisor Jia that I agree to withdraw my troops, but there are three conditions. First, after I withdraw to Jiujiang County, Gan Ning's army must completely withdraw from Jiujiang County. Second, Military Advisor Jia must also release everyone, including my family and troops, and Cao Cao's army must withdraw from Jiujiang County at the same time. Third, the safety of my army's retreat across the Yangtze River must be guaranteed. I don't need Military Advisor Jia to guarantee it, but Gan Ning. Simply put, I need Gan Ning's navy to escort me across the Yangtze River."

(End of this chapter)