Tiger Owl

Chapter 284 A Poisonous Eye
Zhang Zhao hurriedly returned to Wu Hou's official residence, where Sun Quan had been waiting for him for a long time.

"How are the talks going? Any progress?"

Not wanting to disappoint Sun Quan, Zhang Zhao slowly said, "Lord Wu, things must be done step by step. First, there's the attitude. The other side is willing to talk to us, and their attitude is sincere. This shows that they are not confident in taking Dantu County by force. Once they have the attitude, then it's a matter of continuous negotiation and compromise between the two sides. Only then can we reach an agreement that is acceptable to both sides."

"Does the strategist really believe an agreement can be reached?"

Sun Quan's voice trembled slightly. The immense pressure he had been under recently had robbed him of the confidence and composure of the Marquis of Wu, as well as the domineering aura of a ruler, turning him into an ordinary young man filled with anxiety and uncertainty.

Zhang Zhao sensed Sun Quan's lack of confidence. He sighed inwardly and said, "Lord Wu, negotiations are a long process. We must be extremely patient and talk to the other party again and again. Satisfactory results are not achieved by rushing, but by talking. As consensus is accumulated time and time again, we can eventually reach a compromise that both sides can agree on."

"So, is there any consensus today?" Sun Quan asked expectantly.

"Have!"

Zhang Zhao slowly said, "We have reached a consensus that the other side agrees to lift the siege of the South City so that the people can leave smoothly."

"Is this plan feasible?" Sun Quan asked hesitantly.

"It has both advantages and disadvantages!"

Zhang Zhao tried to calmly analyze the situation for him, saying, "On the downside, many officials will take the opportunity to flee, and a large number of people will flee, which may be disadvantageous when we conscript laborers. On the upside, our pressure will be greatly reduced, especially since those prestigious families will definitely flee, which will eliminate a lot of the noise that affects morale."

Sun Quan finally nodded. "In that case, execute it first thing tomorrow morning!"

In the evening, Lü Fan secretly met with Song Kuan, the head of the Western Chu Liaison Office, in a private residence near the eastern city.

This was actually the second time Song Kuan had persuaded Lü Fan to join Gan Ning.

Lü Fan was not unmoved. Back when Sun Quan accepted the peace proposal and decided to sign a seven-year agreement with Cao Cao, Lü Fan was extremely disappointed in Sun Quan. At that time, he had the idea of ​​abandoning Jiangdong and following Bu Zhi's example.

However, at the last moment, Sun Quan appointed him to lead an army of 80,000 to guard Dantu County, thus binding him back.

Lu Fan said apologetically, "I am grateful for the high regard that the Marquis of Chu has for me, and I am very willing to serve him. However, I am now burdened with heavy responsibilities and cannot abandon the 80,000 troops. Please ask Chief Steward Song to send a letter to the Marquis of Chu and ask him to understand."

Song Kuan smiled slightly and said, "I'm not talking about the present, I'm talking about the future. We all know that Jiangdong's situation is hopeless. In the end, either the city will be breached or we will have to negotiate and surrender. I heard that Cao Cao's army has agreed to give up the south gate and let the people leave. Chief Secretary Lü, this is an opportunity to evacuate your family. We are willing to protect your family and help them leave Dantu first. This way, Cao Cao will not be able to use your family to threaten you in the future."

Lu Fan remained silent for a long time before finally nodding. He was not pedantic. Although he had a strong sense of responsibility, it did not mean that he did not care about the safety of his family, nor did it mean that he wanted to keep his family and himself in the city. On the contrary, the safety of his family gave him no worries.

"Alright! I'm entrusting my family to you."

Zhang Zhao and Xun You reached an agreement on the evacuation of the people, which Sun Quan approved. The next day at dawn, the south gate and the south water gate were opened at the same time. Cao Cao's army outside the south city also withdrew. Tens of thousands of people who had been waiting in the inner city and barbican were extremely anxious. As soon as the city gate opened, the people rushed out, carrying their families and large and small bags, like a flood that had burst its banks, rushing out of the city.

The same was true of the water gate. Boats laden with the wealth and families of the rich lined up for miles inside the city. When the water gate opened, the boats sailed out of the city, into the canal, and headed south.

Lü Fan led tens of thousands of troops to stand on the south gate, vigilantly observing the movements of Cao Cao's army. If Cao Cao's army attempted to approach the south gate, they would immediately cut off the gate.

On the city wall, Lü Fan watched the people flee, his family on one of the boats. At that moment, Lü Fan failed to notice the barely perceptible cold glint in the eyes of his deputy, Chen Wu, not far away.

Lü Fan forgot that Chen Wu was not only the deputy general appointed by Sun Quan, but also the chief of the "Wu Sword," responsible for supervising all officials.

Inside the official residence, Sun Quan listened to Chen Wu's report with a blank expression, a look of disbelief flashing in his eyes.

"sure?"

Chen Wu nodded. "I can confirm that he did meet with Song Kuan yesterday evening. It was very discreet. This is the second time. My men who were sent to monitor his family said that Lü Fan's family was picked up by Song Kuan's men before dawn today."

Sun Quan was naturally suspicious, so he would not entrust 80,000 troops to Lü Fan with peace of mind. At the same time, he appointed his confidant Chen Wu as deputy general, which was actually to have Wu Jian, commanded by Chen Wu, monitor Lü Fan.

Sun Quan slowly clenched his fist. It was normal that Lü Fan was going to surrender to Gan Ning. Everyone was kicking him while he was down, including his second-in-command, Chief Clerk Lü Fan.

No! Sun Quan suddenly realized that Lü Fan had never been his confidant. He was the confidant of his elder brother Sun Ce. He had only appointed Lü Fan as Chief Secretary to seek his support for his ascension to the throne. Lü Fan was not loyal to him at all.

After realizing this, Sun Quan realized that he had made a big mistake. At the most critical moment, military power should have been in the hands of his trusted confidants. How could he have handed it over to Lü Fan?
After walking a few steps with his hands behind his back, Sun Quan said to Chen Wu, "Continue to monitor his every move!"

Chen Wu bowed and left. Sun Quan began to consider what excuse to use to relieve Lü Fan of his military power, and then to whom to hand over this military power.

"The Xu family!" This thought suddenly popped into Sun Quan's mind—his wife's family.

"Dang! Dang! Dang! Dang!"

The piercing alarm bells echoed through Cao Cao's naval camp, and the camp gates immediately opened, sending dozens of warships rushing out and heading towards the night-covered lake.

Commander Yu Jin immediately rushed to the observation tower next to the gate of the water fortress, his gaze dark as he stared at the night.

Zhang Yun stepped forward and reported, "These are Western Chu sentry ships, three in total, about a mile from our water fortress."

"One mile?"

Yu Jin was extremely annoyed. He had assured the Prime Minister that the Western Chu army's scout boats could not get within three miles of the water fortress, but now they had only been discovered within one mile.

"Kill the officer on duty tonight!"

Zhang Yun was startled. The general on duty tonight was Cai Zan. He quickly explained, "General, the sentry boat itself did not enter the three-mile warning zone and was anchored on the outer perimeter. The Western Chu army came in by skimming the water in sampans. These sampans are impossible to spot at night. To be able to spot them from a mile away is already very commendable. I believe they should be rewarded, not severely punished."

Yu Jin's expression softened slightly, and he nodded. "Since they are sampans, there's no need to behead them, but we must carefully study how to prevent enemy sampans from sneaking in again!"

After saying that, Yu Jin turned and left in a hurry.

Zhang Yun wiped the sweat from his forehead. The sampan was, of course, a quick and impromptu invention, which at least saved Cai Zan's life.

(End of this chapter)