My brothers are all warriors capable of taking on ten thousand men; I'll roam freely in the Thr

Yangzhou, Lujiang.

In the summer, Lujiang is sweltering with heat and filled with the incessant chirping of cicadas.

Sun Jian sat in the main hall of the newly built governor's mansion, with a huge map of Yangzhou in front of him.

His finger traced a path from Wu County and Kuaiji on the south bank of the Yangtze River, through Danyang and Lujiang, before finally landing heavily on Shouchun.

Yuan Shu has been defeated, and Huainan has been pacified.

Of the six prefectures in Yangzhou today, he has acquired four.

Wu County, Danyang, Lujiang, and Jiujiang were all captured.

Although Kuaiji and Yuzhang have not been completely pacified, those local powerful families are nothing more than a minor ailment, and it will only be a matter of time before they are subdued.

Sun Jian leaned back in his chair, feeling smug and self-satisfied.

He recalled the scene in Luoyang when he, Ji Xuanyuan, Cao Cao, and Liu Bei swore an oath facing the Luo River.

At that time, he was just a general who defeated the enemy, dependent on others, and even his food supplies depended on Yuan Shu.

Now, he controls six counties in Jiangdong and commands over 100,000 armored soldiers. Even Cao Cao and Liu Bei have to be mindful of his feelings.

He picked up his wine cup and drank it all in one gulp.

"My lord."

Zhang Zhao walked in from outside, holding a scroll of documents in his hands: "The household registration list of Lujiang County has been completed. Please take a look, my lord."

Sun Jian took the book, flipped through a few pages, and suddenly asked, "Zibu, tell me, who has the greatest power in the south right now?"

Zhang Zhao was taken aback, then laughed and said, "Of course it is my lord. Although Cao Cao occupies Yanzhou, he is surrounded by enemies on all sides. To the north is Ji Xuanyuan, to the east is Xuzhou, to the south is my lord, and to the west is Liu Biao. He is trapped in a corner and has no way to make his move. Liu Bei is even more dependent on others and does not even have his own territory. Only my lord has Yuzhou and Yangzhou and is eyeing the world."

Sun Jian laughed heartily, his laughter echoing throughout the hall.

"Zibu is right!"

He put down his wine cup, stood up, and walked to the map: "Ji Xuanyuan occupies the north, and I occupy the south. Sooner or later, this world will be contested between the two of us."

Zhang Zhao pondered for a moment and said, "My lord, although Cao Cao and Liu Bei are not a threat for the time being, they should not be underestimated. Cao Cao has the demeanor of a ruthless hero, and Liu Bei has the ambition of a hero. Neither of them are people who will remain subordinate to others for long. If you want to achieve great things, you must subdue these two, or at least make them dare not act rashly."

Sun Jian nodded: "Zibu is right. So, in your opinion, what should be done?"

Zhang Zhao said, "Cao Cao has just returned to Yanzhou and formed an alliance with Liu Biao. His intention is to protect himself. My lord, you can send an envoy to Yanzhou to show goodwill to Cao Cao, and at the same time imply to him that Jiangdong and Yanzhou should take the Huai River as the boundary and not invade each other. Cao Cao is a smart man and will know what is good and bad."

Sun Jian nodded, then asked, "Where is Liu Bei?"

Zhang Zhao said, "Liu Bei appears to be gentle and kind, but he actually has great ambitions. He has the emperor's blood edict in his hands and brothers like Xu Chu and Xu Sheng. We must be wary of him. My lord, you can transfer him away from Huainan and settle him in Yuzhang or Kuaiji, far away from the central government, so that he cannot become too powerful."

Sun Jian pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Liu Bei is not a fool. If I transfer him away from Huainan, he will become suspicious. Besides, Xu Chu and Xu Sheng under his command are both fierce generals. If we push him too far, it will not be good."

Zhang Zhao said, "Then what does my lord mean...?"

Sun Jian waved his hand: "We'll discuss this later. You go and make arrangements with Cao Cao first."

"Yes, sir." Zhang Zhao bowed and withdrew.

Several days later, in Changyi, Yanzhou.

When Cao Cao received Sun Jian's letter, he was discussing military affairs with Xi Zhicai.

The letter was written very politely and the wording was very appropriate.

In his letter, Sun Jian said that the two families should take the Huai River as the boundary and not invade each other's territory.

I am willing to join forces with Mengde to protect the south and support the Han dynasty.

After reading it, Cao Cao sneered and handed the letter to Xi Zhicai.

"Zhicai, look, Sun Wentai is going to become the leader of the Southern Alliance."

Xi Zhicai took the letter, read it carefully, and a mocking smile appeared on his lips: "The Huai River as the boundary? What arrogance! Sun Jian has occupied four counties in Yangzhou, and he wants our lord to hand over Huainan to him as well?"

Cao Cao stood up, walked to the map, and pointed to the Huai River: "The land of Huainan was conquered by me with my own sword and spear. Sun Jian thinks he can take it away with a piece of paper? Dream on."

Xi Zhicai said, "Of course, our lord cannot agree to this, but it is also not advisable to fall out with Sun Jian. Currently, our lord has Ji Xuanyuan in the north and Liu Biao in the west. If we were to antagonize Sun Jian, we would be surrounded by enemies and would find it difficult to sustain our position."

Cao Cao nodded: "I know, so this letter must be replied to, and the reply must be polite and tactful."

He returned to his desk, picked up his pen, and wrote a reply. In the letter, he said that he had no objection to the Huai River as the boundary, and was willing to work with Wentai to protect the south and support the Han Dynasty. Although he was not talented, he knew the principle of mutual dependence. If Wentai had any requests, he would do his best to assist him.

After he finished writing, he read it again and handed it to Xi Zhicai.

After reading it, Xi Zhicai nodded and said, "My lord, this letter is well written. It neither agrees nor refuses, neither shows weakness nor acts tough. Sun Jian cannot find any fault with it."

Cao Cao smiled bitterly: "So what if he can't find fault with me? He will still expand as he pleases, and he will still suppress me as he pleases. In his eyes, I, Cao Cao, am nothing more than a pawn."

Xi Zhicai remained silent for a moment, then slowly said, "My lord, chess pieces also have their uses. The key is to see who is playing the game."

Cao Cao looked at him with a deep gaze.

Yuzhou, Runan, Liu Bei's camp.

Liu Bei's life was getting increasingly difficult.

Since Sun Jian took Yangzhou, his attitude towards him has become colder day by day.

Food supplies were intermittent, and the replenishment of military equipment was always "temporarily scarce."

His three thousand soldiers, once the elite of the elite, are now struggling to even get enough to eat.

Xu Chu stormed into the tent, his voice booming, "Brother, that bastard Sun Jian has gone too far! The grain rations for this month have been reduced by another 20%! The brothers are almost starving!"

Xu Sheng also said, "Brother, we can't take it anymore! Sun Jian is trying to starve us to death!"

Liu Bei sat at his desk, his face calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.

"Second brother, third brother."

He slowly began, "Tell me, why does Sun Jian want to suppress us?"

Xu Chu was taken aback: "Isn't he afraid that his elder brother will fight him for territory?"

Liu Bei shook his head: "Not entirely. He's not afraid of me competing with him for territory, but rather of what I have."

Xu Chu and Xu Sheng exchanged a glance, neither of them understanding.

Liu Bei offered no explanation, but carefully put away the blood-written edict, stood up, and said, "Let's go see Sun Jian."

Lujiang, the residence of Sun Jian.

Liu Bei, accompanied by Xu Chu and Xu Sheng, traveled to Lujiang with a small entourage.

Sun Jian was hosting a banquet in his residence to entertain representatives of prominent families, including Gu Yong and Lu Kang, who had just arrived from Jiangdong.

Seeing Liu Bei enter, he stood up and said with a smile, "Xuande has arrived! Please sit down, please sit down!"

Liu Bei bowed and took his seat at the lower end of the table.

After several rounds of drinks, Sun Jian raised his cup and said, "Xuande, how have you been doing in Runan?"

Liu Bei nodded: "Thank you for your care, Brother Wentai. I am doing well."

Sun Jian smiled and said, "That's good. By the way, there's something I'd like to discuss with Xuande. Things haven't been peaceful in Yuzhang Commandery lately. The Yue people have been invading our borders repeatedly. I'd like to ask Xuande to lead his troops south and garrison Yuzhang to relieve my burden. What do you think, Xuande?"

Upon hearing this, the hall immediately fell silent.

Xu Chu and Xu Sheng's expressions changed drastically.

Yuzhang?

That was the most remote place in Jiangdong, with high mountains, dense forests, and rampant miasma.

Sun Jian transferred Liu Bei there, clearly intending to remove him from the center of power!

Liu Bei's expression remained unchanged. He simply cupped his hands and said, "Brother Wentai, how could I dare disobey your orders? However, I have few soldiers and insufficient supplies. If I wish to go to Yuzhang, I will need your support."

Sun Jian laughed heartily: "Of course, of course! I will take care of the provisions and weapons, Xuande, please rest assured!"

Liu Bei raised his cup and drank with Sun Jian, a gentle smile on his face.

That night, in Liu Bei's tent.

Xu Chu paced back and forth in the tent, furious. "Brother! How could you agree to that? That godforsaken place, Yuzhang, once you go there, you'll never come back! Sun Jian is clearly trying to harm you!"

Xu Sheng also said, "Brother, why don't we just leave Jiangdong and find another way out? The world is so big, where can't we find a place to live?"

Liu Bei sat at his desk, his face calm and composed.

"Second brother, third brother."

He slowly began, "Do you think I agreed to go to Yuzhang because I was afraid of Sun Jian?"

Xu Chu was taken aback: "Then why is that, elder brother?"

Liu Bei stood up, walked to the tent entrance, gazed at the stars in the night sky, and said with a deep look in his eyes: "Because I don't yet have the capital to turn against him."

He turned to his two brothers and said, word by word, "Sun Jian has occupied four counties in Yangzhou and has over 100,000 armored soldiers. I only have 3,000 troops, and our supplies are running low, as are our weapons. If we turn against him now, what will we have to fight him with?"

Xu Chu said anxiously, "We can't just let him bully us like this!"

Liu Bei smiled slightly: "Enduring this moment's anger is for the sake of venting your anger later. Second brother, third brother, you must remember that those who achieve great things do not concern themselves with trifles."

He took the blood-stained edict from his bosom and unfolded it by candlelight.

The blood-red handwriting was shocking.

"The Emperor entrusted me with this blood-written edict, hoping that I could restore the Han Dynasty and revitalize the court. This is not only my mission, but also the mission of all the loyal ministers of the Han Dynasty."

His voice became firm: "Sun Jian, Cao Cao, and Ji Xuanyuan were fighting for the world and for power, but I, Liu Bei, am fighting for the future of the Han Dynasty."

Xu Chu and Xu Sheng knelt down in unison: "Brother, we are willing to go through fire and water with you!"

Liu Bei helped the two up and said gently, "There's no need to go through fire and water. All we need to do is live, and as long as we live, there is hope."

Shuntian, Tiance Prefecture.

Ji Xuanyuan sat in his study, with two secret reports spread out in front of him.

A document from Jiangdong states that Sun Jian suppressed Liu Bei, transferred him to Yuzhang, and proposed to Cao Cao that "the Huai River be the boundary," intending to delineate his sphere of influence.

A letter from Yanzhou: Cao Cao replied agreeing to "use the Huai River as the boundary," using polite and neither servile nor arrogant language.

Guo Jia sat at the lower end, his peach blossom eyes curving upwards: "My lord, Sun Jian is about to become the leader of the Southern Alliance. Cao Cao has temporarily yielded, and Liu Bei has been exiled to Yuzhang. The power structure of the three families in the south has been set."

Ji Xuanyuan put down the secret report and smiled slightly: "Let him be it."

Guo Jia was taken aback: "Isn't our lord afraid that he'll grow too powerful?"

Ji Xuanyuan stood up, walked to the map, and pointed to the location of Jiangdong: "Sun Jian is brave, but he lacks wisdom. He thought that by occupying Yangzhou he could contend with us, but he did not know that his greatest enemy was not us, but the Jiangdong aristocratic families that he had offended."

He turned around and looked at Guo Jia: "Tell Ziyi to make preparations. He will go to Jiangdong in a few days."

Guo Jia's eyes lit up: "My lord means..."

Ji Xuanyuan nodded: "Contact the powerful families of Jiangdong and tell them that if they are willing to submit to the imperial court, the six counties of Jiangdong will still belong to them."

Guo Jia clapped his hands and laughed, "Brilliant plan! Sun Jian conquered Jiangdong by force, and the aristocratic families outwardly submit, but inwardly they hate him to the core. As long as someone secretly contacts them, they could rebel at any time."

Ji Xuanyuan looked out the window, his gaze distant: "Let them fight first. We'll make our move when they're both severely injured."