Tiger Owl

Chapter 289 Sun Ben's Choice
In the morning, Cao Cao was discussing the withdrawal to Hefei with several strategists. A few days ago, Cao Cao received news that Sun Ben's fleet had been completely annihilated by the Western Chu navy. Although he knew this would happen, Cao Cao's eyes still went black for a moment when he heard the news, and he almost fainted. Gan Ning's intricate strategies, ruthless methods, and thunderous attack had really left him bewildered.

Once Cao Cao calmed down, he began to realize that there was no point in staying in Xunyang County any longer. He could no longer threaten Chaisang, but instead, Chaisang became a threat to them.

Cheng Yu stroked his beard and smiled, “Prime Minister, returning to Hefei is a wise move. This will free up Jiangxia County and Lujiang County. Let’s see if Gan Ning will follow suit and return to Jiangxia and Lujiang. Once he does, the battlefield will become Jiangbei. Then, in conjunction with our attack on Yuzhang County from Danyang County, a north-south battlefield will be formed. At that time, it will be a battle of strength and national power. Warships will be of no use.”

"Zhongde is brilliant!"

Xun Yu clapped his hands lightly and praised, "A simple retreat can completely change the course of the battle, rendering the opponent's advantage useless and highlighting our land advantage and strength advantage."

Chen Qun said with some concern, "I'm afraid Gan Ning won't take the bait and won't be willing to swallow Jiangxia and Lujiang as bait."

Cheng Yu smiled and said, "If he didn't want Jiangxia and Lujiang counties, he wouldn't have stationed troops in Queyue City. I believe he will definitely return to Jiangbei."

Cao Cao chuckled and said, "It's decided then. Return to Hefei as soon as possible!"

At this moment, a guard reported from below the hall, "Reporting to the Prime Minister, there is urgent news from the Third Young Master!"

"Send it up!"

A moment later, a guard presented Cao Cao with a copied message sent by pigeon. Cao Cao took it, glanced at it, and sneered, "Sun Ben is up to his old tricks again. He's still not satisfied and insists on becoming the new ruler of Jiangdong."

Chen Qun frowned. "Didn't we tell him to be a puppet for a couple of years as a transition? Or to go to Danyang County?"

Cao Cao stroked his beard and said, "Actually, I wanted him to attack Yuzhang Commandery and use Gan Ning to kill him."

Xun Yu thought for a moment and said, "If the Prime Minister really has this idea, then promise to give him Yuzhang Commandery. If I remember correctly, Sun Ce decided to grant him Yuzhang Commandery before. Perhaps he will want Yuzhang Commandery more."

Seeing that Cheng Yu was lost in thought and remained silent, Cao Cao asked, "What do you think, Zhongde?"

Cheng Yu said slowly, "Everything has its advantages and disadvantages. Letting Sun Ben be a puppet for two years as a transition is actually a good choice. Prime Minister, why don't we make things clear and lay out the conditions so that he can choose for himself?"

Cao Cao nodded. "Let him choose for himself. I've done more than enough for him."

Three days later, Sun Ben was invited to Cao Zhi's office again. He knew that this was Cao Cao's response, which made him quite nervous, wondering what fate awaited him.
Upon entering Cao Zhi's official residence, Sun Ben discovered that Xun You was also present, sitting calmly to the side watching him.

"Greetings, Third Young Master!" Sun Ben bowed to Cao Zhi.

Cao Zhi waved his hand, "General Sun, please have a seat!"

Sun Ben sat down nervously, but Cao Zhi remained as still as a meditating monk, ignoring him completely. Sun Ben was taken aback for a moment before realizing what was happening and turned his gaze to Xun You, who was the negotiator today.

General Sun!

Xun You calmly replied, "The Prime Minister has already replied, and we have three options for you to choose from."

Sun Ben nodded. "I'd like to hear the details!"

"The first option is to appoint you as the Prefect of Danyang Commandery."

“I don’t accept this proposal!” Sun Ben rejected it outright. It was a joke. He was now the governor of Jiujiang Prefecture. What was the point of making him the governor of a small Danyang Prefecture?

Sun Ben's attitude was within Xun You's expectations. Xun You calmly continued, "The second option is that we can let you inherit Sun Quan's position and become the new Marquis of Wu. However, this Marquis of Wu is the one we want, not the original one!"

"What do you mean?" Sun Ben frowned. He liked the first half of the sentence, but he couldn't hear the last sentence. What did he mean by "not the original Marquis of Wu"?
"The meaning is very simple. We have held five rounds of negotiations with Jiangdong and reached a consensus. However, the assassination of the Marquis of Wu changed the situation. We hope that the Marquis of Wu that General Sun will inherit is the one with whom we reached a consensus after five rounds of negotiations."

Xun You was just spouting nonsense in a serious manner; there was no consensus at all, and Sun Ben didn't know either.

What consensus was reached?

"Military power belongs to us. The troops stationed in Jiangdong are all Cao's troops. The new Marquis of Wu cannot have an army. Financial power belongs to the new Marquis of Wu. The power of officials is divided in two. The officials of the Marquis of Wu's mansion are appointed by you, while the power to appoint and dismiss local officials belongs to the imperial court."

There's a huge trap hidden here. Not to mention military power, the key is the power to appoint and dismiss local officials. Once Sun Ben agrees, he'll only have an empty shell of the Wu Hou Mansion. He won't even be able to govern Dantu County. The county magistrate isn't appointed by him, so the magistrate won't pay any attention to him. Without local power, the so-called financial power is also empty. Who in the local government will give him taxes?

Sun Ben clearly failed to see the trap; he was only concerned with military power. Without an army, he was nothing and could only be slaughtered by others.

He didn't answer immediately, but asked again, "What's the third option?"

"The third option is to appoint you as General Who Conquers the West, give you 50,000 troops, and be responsible for attacking the southern part of Yuzhang Commandery. After capturing Yuzhang Commandery, you will be appointed as the new Marquis of Chu, governing the three commanderies of Yuzhang, Wuchang and Changsha."

This option tempted Sun Ben; it offered an army and territory. However, he needed to carefully consider whether there were any traps involved.

After a long silence, Sun Ben slowly said, "Give me three days to think it over carefully, and then I will make a choice."

Sun Ben returned to his main tent. At that moment, his trusted advisor Wei Jing approached and asked in a deep voice, "General, how did the talks go?"

Wei Jing was a good friend of Bu Zhi and also belonged to the Huai Si Group. However, he did not have a high status in Jiangdong. Under the exclusion of the Jiangnan Group, he was obviously marginalized. Sun Ben, who was suffering from having no one to use, took the initiative to recruit him. Wei Jing saw Sun Ben's sincerity and became his strategist.

"Cao Cao gave me three choices!"

Sun Ben's voice was low and deep. He knew very well that the three choices were given by Cao Cao, and neither Xun You nor Cao Zhi could make the decision.

"My first choice was the governor of Danyang, but I refused outright."

"The second option is..."

Sun Ben explained the second and third options given to him to Wei Jing in detail.

“I told them I needed three days to think it over. Could you help me analyze this? I want to know Cao Cao’s true intentions.”

Wei Jing pondered for a long time and said, "Cao Cao finally destroyed Jiangdong. He will never allow a new Jiangdong regime to emerge. If you choose to become the Marquis of Wu, then the Marquis of Wu's jurisdiction will only be the Marquis of Wu's mansion. He won't even be able to govern Dantu County because the local officials don't have the power. You will just be a puppet in name only. After the transition period ends, you probably won't even be able to be a puppet anymore."

Sun Ben nodded. "I've thought about these issues too. Without military power, I'm just a fish on a chopping board. I won't take this Marquis of Wu. Sir, could you tell me your third option?"

(End of this chapter)