Tiger Owl

Chapter 286 Scapegoat
Lu Su said calmly, "We are indeed waiting for the outcome of the Jiangdong war to be decided, but Gongjin, you don't think that the fall of the Jiangdong regime is our responsibility, do you?"

Zhou Yu fell silent. Yes! What did the collapse of Jiangdong have to do with Gan Ning? The collapse of the Jiangdong regime was already destined from the moment Sun Quan ascended to power and chose the Jiangnan aristocratic families.

Since Jiangdong chose to become the prey, why couldn't Gan Ning become the hunter? Why did he have to hand over the prey to Cao Cao?

Having figured all this out, Zhou Yu slowly revealed a bitter smile. He shook his head and said, "I underestimated the Marquis of Chu, and I underestimated you all."

Lu Su looked at Zhou Yu with expectation in his eyes, "Gongjin, we await your choice!"

Zhou Yu's gaze hardened, and he slowly nodded in agreement, "It is my honor to serve the Marquis of Chu!"

The attacking allied warships had disappeared, and the raging fire inside the water fortress had completely illuminated the sky, making the entire lake seem to be ablaze. Thick smoke blotted out the sun, and the deep red flames kept spitting out tongues of fire within the smoke.

At this moment, Cao Cao arrived at the naval camp under the escort of several thousand cavalry. The sight of flames burning the sky on the lake filled Cao Cao with despair. His face turned pale, his lips trembled, and he could not utter a single word.

Yu Jin had his soldiers tie him up, and then, bound hand and foot, he knelt down to beg for forgiveness.

"This humble servant is guilty; I beg the Prime Minister to execute him and display his head to the public!"

Cao Cao glanced at the military camp, then at Yu Jin kneeling on the ground, and asked in a trembling voice, "How many soldiers died in battle?"

Yu Jin bowed his head and said, "Five hundred and twenty soldiers were killed in action."

Cao Cao was taken aback. Why were there so few?
He wanted to ask Yu Jin, but he felt utterly exhausted. He closed his eyes and after a long while said, "Come see me again first thing tomorrow morning!"

He turned and walked towards the central command tent of the military camp.
Before long, a group of strategists including Cheng Yu, Xun Yu, Jia Xu, and Chen Qun rushed over. The raging fire at the water fortress left everyone dumbfounded.

After a long while, Cheng Yu suddenly asked, "Where is the Prime Minister?"

A soldier pointed to the central command tent, and everyone rushed over. Xu Chu, who was guarding the entrance of the tent, bowed and said, "Strategists, the Prime Minister is very tired. He wants to rest and does not want to see anyone. We can talk about it tomorrow morning."

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, their hearts heavy with sorrow. The fire attack had dealt a profound blow to the Prime Minister.

The following morning, most of the fire in the water fortress had been extinguished, but a few large ships were still burning. Nearly two thousand other warships and water gates had been burned to black charcoal, and most of them had sunk. The water was a mess, and countless soldiers stood on the shore looking at the wreckage of the warships, somewhat at a loss.

Inside the main tent, all the generals were gathered together. Yu Jin was still bound and kneeling on the ground. Cao Cao waved his hand, ordering the soldiers to untie him.

The ropes were cut by the sharp knife and untied. Yu Jin's arms were numb and he could no longer feel them.
Cao Cao slowly asked, "Now tell me, why were only 520 men killed in battle?"

Yu Jin lowered his head and whispered, "Should this subordinate order that soldiers be prohibited from boarding the ship?"

"Why? Is it because there's not enough time?" Cao Cao stared at him sharply.

"No, that's not it. Our scouting ships spotted the approaching enemy fleet three miles away and sounded the alarm in time. The naval soldiers rushed out of their tents, but because we had no experience in night combat, I... I believed that if we went into battle at night, we would be completely annihilated. Not only would we lose our warships, but our 30,000 soldiers would also perish at the bottom of the lake."

"So you chose to give up and watch two thousand warships be burned?"

"This humble servant is guilty and wishes to be beheaded and displayed to the public!"

Cao Cao did not answer. He muttered to himself, "No training for night battles?" Suddenly, he raised an eyelid and stared intently at Yu Jin, his gaze instantly hardening into a knife.

"General Yu, tell me the truth, do you even understand naval forces?"

Yu Jin hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "I don't really understand. I thought naval warfare was just soldiers boarding ships and fighting the enemy, and that the enemy's goal was to eliminate the soldiers. But I never dreamed that the enemy didn't care about the soldiers at all; their target was the warships!"

Did Cai Mao and Zhang Yun remind you?

Yu Jin shook his head. "Without being reminded, I now think that they don't actually understand naval warfare either."

Cao Cao glanced at Cai Mao and Zhang Yun standing behind him and asked coldly, "Why?"

"If they understood naval warfare, they shouldn't have built a water fortress in the bay at all. It's no different from standing in front of the enemy without armor. The Western Chu army could destroy our warships at any time."

It wasn't until last night that I realized the folly of our choice of location for garrisoning troops. Generals Cai and Zhang never mentioned this issue; they should know that garrisoning troops at Pengli Lake is no different than garrisoning troops in the middle of the Yangtze River.

Cai Mao and Zhang Yun stood behind Yu Jin. The more they listened, the more frightened they became. They trembled all over, their legs gave way, and they knelt down with a thud. They understood, of course, that Yu Jin was trying to shift the blame onto them.

"Prime Minister, this is not our responsibility!" Zhang Yun's voice was trembling with tears.

Cai Mao calmed down slightly and shouted urgently, "The warships coming to Pengli Lake and where they are stationed is none of our business!"

Cao Cao did indeed intend to use the two of them as scapegoats. With such a serious incident and the destruction of two thousand warships, someone had to take responsibility. Yu Jin was one of the Five Good Generals who had followed him for many years, and Cao Cao was reluctant to kill him. Cai Mao and Zhang Yun, the two naval deputy generals, became the best scapegoats.

Cao Cao stared at the two men and said coldly, "It was my decision to order the warships to move west. According to you two, is the responsibility mine?"

The two men's expressions changed drastically, and they frantically waved their hands, "No! That's not what we meant!"

Cao Cao snorted heavily, "If the warships were anchored on the Xunyang River, our army could have stationed itself on both sides of the river, and the enemy would not have been able to launch such an attack so easily. This is clearly the responsibility of choosing the location. Isn't this your responsibility? Why are you trying to shift the blame to others?"

The two men were speechless. Cao Cao was right, but in reality, no one would moor their ships on the Xunyang River. First of all, they would not pass the hurdle of naval training. Cao Cao would definitely not agree to that. But now they were being charged, and even the impossible became a crime.

Cao Cao's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he raised his voice, saying, "This is the responsibility for choosing the location. You two cannot shirk your crimes! Guards!"

A dozen or so executioners appeared, and Cao Cao pointed at the two men and coldly said, "Take them out and behead them, display their heads to the public!"

The soldiers dragged the two away like wolves and tigers. Cai Mao and Zhang Yun were terrified and desperately begged, "Prime Minister, spare our lives! Prime Minister, spare our lives!"

The shouts of the two men gradually faded into the distance. Before long, soldiers brought up the two bloody heads on a plate. Cao Cao waved his hand and said, "Take them and display them to the public!"

Cao Cao then slowly said to Jin, "Logically, you are the commander-in-chief, and you should be the one to be killed. However, you forbade the soldiers from boarding the ship, thus avoiding greater casualties. This seemingly absurd decision was actually the most correct one last night, and it was also very difficult to make. It demonstrated the responsibility of a great general. Therefore, your merits and demerits cancel each other out, and I will not pursue your responsibility this time!"

Yu Jin was moved to tears, and kowtowed, choking back sobs, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, Prime Minister!"

(End of this chapter)