Han Ji

Sun Ce's clothes were stained black with blood from his wounds. When the man rushed within three steps, a hand halberd struck Sun Ce from behind, hitting the assassin in the face with a muffled thud. The assassin fell backward.

Zhou Yu arrived with his troops. Cheng Pu and Huang Gai followed behind, and dozens of cavalrymen surrounded the woods. Two of his retainers were hacked to death, and the remaining one was pinned to the ground.

Zhou Yu squatted down in front of Sun Ce, his face paler than usual. He tore open the hem of his robe and pressed it against the wound on Sun Ce's right side.

"Bo Fu! Bo Fu!"

Sun Ce's eyes were still open, and his lips were pale. He reached out and grabbed Zhou Yu's wrist.

"Gongjin, I was careless."

Zhou Yu lifted him onto the horse and rode back. Sun Ce's blood dripped from the horse's body all the way. By the time they returned to Wu Commandery, his face was ashen.

The physician had rushed over from Kuaiji overnight. An old physician, over sixty years old, had treated arrow wounds for decades. He glanced at the location of the arrow shaft, gently probed the depth with a silver needle, and shook his head.

The arrowhead was embedded in his liver; pulling it out would kill him, but leaving it in wouldn't save him either. He mixed chicken blood with puffball grass and applied it around the arrow shaft to temporarily stop the external bleeding.

A dozen oil lamps were lit inside the tent, the heavy smell of blood and herbs mingling together. Sun Ce lay on the bed, eyes closed, breathing shallowly. Zhou Yu sat to the right of the bed, gripping his left hand tightly. Zhang Zhao stood in the doorway, hands behind his back, head bowed.

Sun Ce woke up in the middle of the night. His face was ashen, but his eyes were still bright. He saw Zhang Zhao, Zhou Yu, and Cheng Pu standing at the foot of his bed.

"Gongjin, Zhang Gong, both of you go out and leave me alone for a while."

Zhou Yu didn't move. Cheng Pu, who was at the foot of the bed, didn't move either.

Before dawn the next day, Sun Ce ordered his personal guards to turn on all the oil lamps. He opened his eyes and looked at Zhang Zhao's face.

"Lord Zhang, after I die, Zhongmou will succeed me. He is young, you must help him."

Zhang Zhao knelt, tears streaming down his beard and dripping onto the edge of the bed. "My lord..."

Sun Ce said, "Don't cry. I am a military general; I will die from swords and arrows, not in my bed. There's nothing to cry about."

After Zhang Zhao left, Sun Ce had his personal guards bring Zhou Yu in. When Zhou Yu entered, he was still clutching a piece of blood-stained cloth in his hand; it was the hem of the robe he had brought back from the hunting grounds.

"Gongjin, you manage the affairs of Jiangdong, while Zhang Zhao manages the internal affairs. You must assist Zhongmou. He can defend Jiangdong, he will. After I am gone, you and Zibu must stabilize the situation. Don't let Jiangdong fall into chaos."

Zhou Yu knelt down and buried his head in front of the bed. His shoulders were trembling.

That afternoon, Sun Quan rushed back to Wu Commandery from Kuaiji. Sun Quan was nineteen years old, tall, thin, and with a round face. He dismounted and ran straight to his residence without even tying the horse. When he entered the room, his forehead was still covered in a mixture of sweat and dust.

Sun Ce was on his deathbed. A sliver of light shone through his slits, focused on his younger brother. His breath escaped from his throat, and he spoke a few words before pausing for a long time.

"Zhongmou, you are not as good as me in leading the people of Jiangdong to contend with the world. In appointing the virtuous and capable, and letting everyone do their best, I am not as good as you."

He paused for a long time. He lifted his finger slightly, then lowered it again.

"What's in my hands, you must guard it. Zhou Yu is a military genius, and Zhang Zibu is a prime minister. To suppress the powerful families of Jiangdong, we must also use them. For external affairs, consult Zhou Yu; for internal affairs, consult Zhang Zibu."

Sun Quan knelt before the bed. His lips trembled, and he remained silent. Tears streamed down his face, but he did not wipe them away.

On the fifth day of the fifth month of the eighth year of Xingping, Sun Ce died. He was wounded in the liver by an arrow while hunting, and after a few days, he breathed his last in the inner chamber of the governor's mansion in Wu Commandery. His last words were only one sentence: "Tell Zhongmou to guard Jiangdong."

That night, Zhou Yu locked himself in his study and stayed there all night.

The next morning, when he emerged from his study, he was still wearing the same blood-stained white robe he had worn the night before. He collected the military tally, seals, and marching maps from Sun Ce's study into a wooden box. Then he went to find Sun Quan. Sun Quan was sitting in his study, his eyes swollen, but his face was no longer wet with tears.

In the main hall of the governor's mansion, Zhang Zhao read out Sun Ce's dying wish in front of all the generals, and Sun Quan received the seal. He knelt down to receive the seal, and his legs wobbled as he stood up, but he placed the seal squarely on the table.

Standing in the main hall were Zhou Yu, Zhang Zhao, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, Jiang Qin, Zhou Tai, and representatives from several prominent Jiangdong families, such as Gu Yong. Everyone was waiting for the young master to speak.

"I am young, and I rely on you gentlemen for important military and political affairs," Sun Quan said. His voice was not loud, but he did not hesitate.

"My elder brother left a will that I shall continue to govern the six prefectures of Jiangdong. You gentlemen are my former ministers, so each shall remain in your posts. The laws and taxes shall remain as they were." He paused, "The matters concerning Jiangbei shall be postponed for now."

Zhou Yu stepped forward and knelt in the hall. "I, Zhou Yu, am deeply grateful for the General's kindness in recognizing and supporting me, a debt I could never repay even with my life. I am willing to wholeheartedly assist the General and defend Jiangdong."

Sun Quan bowed in return. "Please rise, Gongjin." He waited for Zhou Yu to stand up, then his gaze swept around the hall before settling on Cheng Pu. "General Cheng, lead your troops to guard Chaisang, to prevent Huang Zu from attacking."

Zhou Yu glanced at Sun Quan. His first order upon assuming the throne wasn't about domestic affairs, but about defense. This nineteen-year-old knew who Jiangdong's greatest enemy was.

After the meeting, a public notice was posted on the city gates of Wu Commandery. The notice stated that Sun Quan, the rebel leader, had unfortunately passed away, and his brother Sun Quan had succeeded him as ruler of Jiangdong. All prefectures and military camps were to continue operating as usual, and merchants were to continue their business as before. Several veterans squatted under the notice for a long time, their eyes reddening, but they did not cause a disturbance. Jiangdong had not collapsed.

Sun Quan ordered all of Sun Ce's supplies prepared for the northern expedition to be stored away. The siege ladders were dismantled, the battering rams were put into the armory, and the catapults were put away in the work sheds. Of the 30,000 elite troops who had marched north, 20,000 returned to their respective garrisons, and 10,000 were incorporated into the guard. On the third day of his reign, Sun Quan walked alone into Sun Ce's archery range; the bow was still hanging on the weapon rack. He stood there for a while, without touching the bow, then turned and summoned Zhou Yu to his residence to discuss the defense of the river.

November.

That day, Jian Yong returned from Runan. He had gone to Runan to check the number of military farms, and the round trip took more than ten days, wearing out a pair of boots. When he entered the Prime Minister's residence, Jia Xu was talking with Liu Bei in the study.

Jian Yong placed the account books from Runan on the table and said that Zhang Xiu had almost finished training the new recruits in Wancheng, and Gan Ning's navy had also expanded. Three new transit ferry crossings had been set up on the waterway transporting grain from Yizhou to Wancheng. Liu Bei nodded after listening and asked how many military settlements had been set up on the north bank.

Jia Xu said, "We have set up four military settlements along the Yellow River. The larger ones are for planting wheat, and the smaller ones are for grazing horses. Gao Lan has stationed his surrendered troops at the nearest settlement, Liyang. Among the surrendered troops are people from Ji Province who are familiar with the irrigation canals there."

Just as Liu Bei was about to speak, Qian Zhao entered from outside. He had just returned from Hebei with news from Yuan Shao: Yuan Shao was gathering his remaining troops in Ye City, numbering around 30,000 to 40,000, and had not yet made any move to march south.

"There's one more thing." Qian Zhao pulled a secret report from his pocket. "It's from Jiangdong. Sun Ce was assassinated in May, and Sun Quan succeeded to the throne. Jiangdong's northern expedition plan has been cancelled."

Liu Bei put down the secret report, stood up, and walked to the map. He pointed to the location of Jiangdong and paused for a moment.

Liu Bei said, "Sun Quan. I've heard of that name."

Jia Xu asked, "Does Your Excellency know him?"

Liu Bei did not answer. Of course he knew Sun Quan; in his previous life's history books, Sun Quan was the Great Emperor of Wu, who controlled one-third of the land. But the current Sun Quan was only nineteen years old, had just lost his elder brother, and inherited the six commanderies of Jiangdong, which were not yet firmly established. Liu Bei's fingers tapped slowly on the table.

Jia Xu said, "With Sun Ce dead, the pressure on our southern border will be temporarily relieved. Jiangdong will not launch any military campaigns in the near future. We should take this opportunity to send someone to Jiangdong."

Jian Yong, standing nearby, asked, "Who should we send?"

Liu Bei turned around and looked at Jian Yong. "Xianhe, you've been to Jiangdong before. Go there again."