Tiger Owl

Chapter 232 Iron-Blooded Decision
In Chaisang, inside the military and political council hall of the General's Mansion, Gan Ning convened a routine meeting. Military and political council meetings were held every five or ten days to discuss important matters. In case of any major incidents, an emergency military and political council meeting would also be convened.

The council hall was very quiet as Lu Su read aloud the latest battle report sent by Bu Zhi.

The report stated that the Western Chu army had captured Cangwu County, Zhang Jin had died of illness, and his two sons were fighting amongst themselves, leaving the entire military and political situation confused, lacking a sense of belonging, and with people yearning for change.

The strong entry of the Western Chu army gave hope to the officials and generals of Jiaozhou, who flocked to join them and successfully captured Cangwu County, gaining 20,000 troops and a large amount of food and supplies, thus establishing a foothold in Jiaozhou.

Immediately afterwards, the army defeated Wu Ju and captured Yulin County. At the same time, Nanhai County also expressed its willingness to surrender.

"We have now defeated two of the three major powers in Jiaozhou, leaving only Hepu County and the three counties of Jiaozhi. Hepu County is currently under the control of Shi Xie, and the three counties of Jiaozhi are also Shi Xie's stronghold. Taking Hepu County is not difficult, but the three counties of Jiaozhi are. Shi Xie and his son have cultivated deep roots in the three counties of Jiaozhi for many years, and the people are loyal to them. If we want to take the three counties of Jiaozhi, we will probably have to pay a heavy price."

After Lu Su finished reading Bu Zhi's report, Gan Ning slowly said, "Bu Zhi has two plans. One plan is to implement civil service, so that Shi Xie will nominally be loyal to us, but we will not interfere in Jiaozhi. After the two sides reach an agreement, the Jiaozhou campaign will end. This plan is equivalent to us giving up the three counties of Jiaozhi."

The second option is a military campaign to completely annihilate Shi Xie's army. However, this military campaign has two sub-options: one is to completely exterminate the Shi family, father and son, and kill them all; the other is to spare their men but not their soldiers, stripping Jiaozhi of its army, while keeping Shi Xie as the governor of Jiaozhi and using his influence to appease Jiaozhi. Let's discuss this!

Jiang Wan pondered for a moment and said, "The first option is tantamount to acknowledging Shi Xie's independence. If he obediently retreats to Jiaozhi, perhaps we can acquiesce. However, Shi Xie will never stay in Jiaozhi. He will definitely look for opportunities to counterattack Jiaozhou, making it impossible for us to defend against him. He will tie up a lot of our energy and resources, so the first option is definitely not feasible. I strongly oppose it. As for the second option, there are two choices. I personally prefer the latter option. This is like the solution for Nanhai Commandery. Keep people but not soldiers. Shi Xie is like a tiger with its claws and teeth removed. Use his prestige to appease the three commanderies of Jiaozhi, but he is powerless to rebel."

At this moment, Gan Ning saw that Xu Shu seemed hesitant to speak, so he smiled and said, "Military Advisor Xu, you may speak now!"

Xu Shu stood up and bowed, saying, "I also believe that the first plan is unacceptable and will cause endless harm. The second plan should be used. However, of the two options in the second plan, I agree with the first plan. The second plan also has great hidden dangers. Shi Xie is not comparable to Nanhai County. Nanhai Prefect Wang Chuan did not offer any resistance and directly expressed his willingness to hand over the army and surrender. This is true sincerity."

Did Shi Xie have any sincerity? Not at all. On the contrary, he wanted to fight us to the death, and only surrendered after being completely defeated. If we still appoint him as governor, who will take responsibility for our dead soldiers?
Our principle is that those who surrender will be spared, while those who resist will be killed without mercy. Why does this not apply to Shi Xie? If this sets a bad precedent, who will willingly surrender to us in the future? Everyone will fight to the death, since they can still become governors in the end.”

At this point, Xu Shu took a deep breath and said, "Reporting to the Marquis of Chu, there are no two options for the second plan. Unless Shi Xie does not resist and surrenders voluntarily, then we must exterminate him."

Jiang Wan was genuinely displeased and waved his hand, saying, "Military Advisor Xu, don't get agitated. Calm down first. We need to consider things from a political perspective. We should stabilize Jiaozhou first, and then consider governing Jiaozhou after defeating Cao Cao's army. Appointing Shi Xie as governor is only a temporary measure."

Xu Shu shook his head: "Even expedient measures must have principles. Does Jiaozhi rebel just because we've separated from Shi Xie and his son? We've exempted the people from taxes and corvée labor, and we've protected the interests of the gentry. Are the people of Jiaozhi going to rebel? If we can't even handle this small matter, what's the point of having Jiaozhou?"

Since the opinions of the participants were not unified, Gan Ning ultimately did not express his opinion and adjourned the meeting.

Gan Ning was truly troubled. He stood by the window with his hands behind his back, remaining silent for a long time. Historically, when Bu Zhi took over Jiaozhou, he chose the second option against Shi Xie. However, Shi Xie surrendered to the Marquis of Wu voluntarily and did not resist.

Therefore, the Shi Xie family had always occupied Jiaozhou and had an army. After Shi Xie died, his son Shi Hui rebelled.

Shi Xie initially submitted to Wu because of Wu's strength; he chose to surrender voluntarily. However, now that his own army is advancing south, Shi Xie may not surrender as he did in history. Moreover, with Cao Cao preparing a major southward invasion, Shi Xie is even less likely to change course and surrender easily. He has undoubtedly staked his fate on Cao Cao; if Cao Cao's army defeats him, and rewards are distributed, wouldn't Shi Xie become the governor of Jiaozhou?

At this moment, Ma Liang announced from the doorway, "Lord Chu, the military advisor of Lu requests an audience!"

"Let him in!"

A moment later, Lu Su hurried in, bowed, and slowly said, "Does the Marquis of Chu disagree with Chief Clerk Jiang's plan?"

Gan Ning asked calmly, "Does the strategist support Chief Secretary Jiang's plan?"

Lu Su bowed and said, "This humble servant can understand Chief Clerk Jiang's idea. He wants to stabilize Jiaozhou first, then we can focus all our efforts on dealing with Cao Cao's army. After defeating Cao Cao's army, we can then clean up the officialdom in Jiaozhou. This idea is not impossible, but it is a bit unrealistic. This humble servant believes that Shi Xie would rather retreat to Linyi than consider surrendering to us. He will definitely surrender to Cao Cao and wait for Cao Cao to turn the tables for him. Chief Clerk Jiang's consideration is not mature enough."

Gan Ning turned and glanced at Lu Su, then slowly said, "Does the strategist know why I am attacking Jiaozhou at this critical juncture?"

Lu Su nodded, "This subordinate understands!"

"Does the strategist know?"

Lu Su smiled wryly and said, "Last year, the Marquis of Chu and I discussed strategic depth. I then considered that the Marquis of Chu's decision to attack Jiaozhou was to use Jiaozhou as our strategic depth?"

Gan Ning nodded. "That's right. I wanted Jiaozhou to be our escape route. Once Cao Cao crosses the Yangtze River, things will get complicated. We'll have to start a strategic retreat. Where can we retreat to? Jiaozhou is the only option."

"Does the Marquis of Chu believe that Cao Cao's army will cross the Yangtze River?"

Gan Ning sighed softly, "I am confident that I will not let Cao Cao cross the river, but what about Jiangdong? If Jiangdong cannot stop Cao Cao's army, or cannot stop Sun Ben, then we will also be dragged down by Jiangdong."

Lu Su understood a bit. He nodded and said, "So the Marquis of Chu didn't want to leave any hidden dangers in Jiaozhou. He was determined to wipe out the Shi Xie family, which is Xu Shu's plan."

Gan Ning said slowly, "Shi Xie is the biggest hidden danger in Jiaozhou. We must eliminate him completely, otherwise Jiaozhou will not become our strategic depth. In the face of a life-or-death situation, we must not show any mercy!"

(End of this chapter)