New Three Kingdoms Tales: Starting as the expressionless Liu Bei

Jingzhou, Xiangyang.

Liu Biao put down the bamboo slips in his hand, let out a long sigh, and glanced at the silent generals of Jingzhou below, finally fixing his gaze on Cai Mao. His voice was full of weariness and regret:

"Cai Mao, the feud between us and Jiangdong is likely to be irreconcilable for eternity. When the warlords of various regions hear about this, they will all speak ill of me, Liu Biao, behind my back, calling me ruthless and unjust."

Cai Mao stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said:

"My lord, things have come to this, why regret it? In chaotic times, the strong are respected. What can we do if Jiangdong hates us? After this crushing defeat, their strength is severely damaged, and they are no longer a match for Jingzhou."

Liu Biao frowned, his lips moved slightly, as if he was about to say something, when a hurried report came from outside the tent: "Report! My lord, Jiangdong has sent an envoy to sue for peace and has already sent General Huang Zu back!"

Liu Biao was slightly taken aback. So fast? They sent the person back without even sending a message?

He was intrigued and wanted to see what kind of person this Jiangdong envoy was, that he had the audacity to come to the Jingzhou camp alone.

Cai Mao, however, spoke first, cupping his hands in a respectful gesture, and said loudly:

"My lord, this is good news! Now that they have sent General Huang Zu back, they have lost their biggest bargaining chip in negotiating peace with us!"

"This humble general suggests that the envoy beheaded on the spot, and then a large army by land and sea besiege Sun Ce's remaining forces. With Sun Ce dead, Jiangdong will be without a ruler, and our army can then march east and take Jiangdong in one fell swoop. In this way, our hegemony can be achieved!"

Liu Biao shook his head, his brows furrowing even more deeply: "But... in war, envoys are not to be killed. If I break this rule, what will the world think of me in the future?"

Cai Mao grew anxious and stepped forward again to plead his case, his voice rising several decibels: "My lord, we have already thoroughly offended Jiangdong. What difference would it make if we executed another of their envoys?"

"Furthermore, Sun Jian secretly possessed the Imperial Seal of the State and harbored ambitions to become emperor; he deserved to die. If you, my lord, eliminate him, the people of the world will not only not blame you for being unrighteous and cruel, but will praise you for eliminating the traitor and supporting the Han dynasty!"

Liu Biao was somewhat swayed by these words. After pondering for a long time, he finally waved his hand, sighed, and said:

"Summon the messenger in first. Listen to what he has to say. If it's all nonsense, then do as you wish. If not, we can discuss it further later."

Cai Mao had no choice but to suppress his murderous intent, retreat to his seat, and stare coldly at the tent door.

Before long, Huang Zu walked in first. Behind him followed a hopping child, who was short and almost completely hidden by Huang Zu's tall figure.

The generals in the tent didn't think of it that way at all; they just assumed the child was Huang Zu's son, following his father into the tent to play.

Huang Zu walked up to Liu Biao, bowed, and with a hint of shame on his face, lowered his head and said in a low voice, "My lord, this humble general... this humble general has returned."

Liu Biao snorted coldly, not even looking at him: "Where is the envoy from Jiangdong?"

Huang Zu quickly stepped aside, making way for the short figure behind him. Sun Quan strode into the tent, stopped, and bowed deeply to Liu Biao: "Sun Quan, son of Sun Jian, greets Uncle Liu."

In an instant, the tent fell silent.

Liu Biao's eyes widened, and all the generals under his command were dumbfounded, exchanging bewildered glances. No one could figure out if the people of Jiangdong had lost their minds, sending a child who wasn't even an adult yet as an envoy.

Cai Mao was the first to recover, slamming his fist on the table and shouting angrily, "My lord! Sun Ce has gone too far, sending a mere child as an envoy!"

Liu Biao gestured for Cai Mao to sit down first. He carefully examined the calm, unfazed child before him and slowly asked, "How old are you this year?"

Sun Quan answered loudly, "Uncle Liu, I am nine years old this year."

As soon as he finished speaking, the generals in the tent burst into laughter.

"A nine-year-old sent on a diplomatic mission? What a ridiculous joke!"

"Jiangdong really has no one else to rely on; they've sent a kid to die!"

"This humble general suggests that we simply throw this child out!"

Sun Quan remained unmoved, simply bowing to Liu Biao once more, his voice clear and calm:

"Uncle Liu, when Emperor Gaozu was nine years old, he shot and killed a fully grown golden tiger. When Emperor Wu was nine years old, he was already able to draw a bow and kill enemies."

"I, Sun Quan, am incompetent. At the age of nine, I could only sue for peace with Uncle Liu and beg him to return my father's body. From this day forward, Jiangdong will never seek revenge against Jingzhou."

Liu Biao's eyes flickered slightly, his lips moved as if he were about to speak, but Cai Mao quickly moved closer to him, leaned down and whispered in his ear:

"My lord, Jiangdong has just suffered a defeat, Sun Jian is dead, and this son is young and ignorant. Why don't we take this opportunity to nip the problem in the bud, completely annihilate the Sun family, and then, taking advantage of their unpreparedness, launch a direct attack on Jiangdong and establish our imperial dominance!"

Unfortunately, Cai Mao was well-versed in "Cao Cao's Art of War" and knew that a victorious army is bound to be arrogant, and an arrogant army is bound to be defeated. However, he was unaware that the two men's secret plot would be overheard.

Although this was in public, because Cai Mao did not conspire loudly but instead whispered in Liu Biao's ear, even though the voice was very soft, Sun Quan was able to become an eavesdropper and hear their conspiracy clearly.

Sun Quan suddenly exclaimed, "Uncle Liu! My elder brother Sun Ce has succeeded our father as governor of Changsha and become the ruler of Jiangdong!"

"He is no longer at Sanjindu; he has already returned to Jiangdong to reorganize his troops and defend against the enemy! If I were to meet with misfortune here, my brother would surely return with a blood oath and massacre the people of Jingzhou! At that time, the nine counties of Jingzhou would be devastated! I implore Uncle Liu to reconsider!"

Liu Biao had just been persuaded by Cai Mao to kill him, but now these words touched on his hesitation, and his expression became uncertain.

Cai Mao sneered, staring at Sun Quan with a sinister look, and said:

"Sun Quan, you're quite right. Unfortunately, you were one move too late!"

"Your life is now in our hands, and we can take it with a snap of our fingers. We can tie you up first and use you as a hostage to force your brother to withdraw his troops. If he doesn't, I will torture you to death."

A twisted smile appeared on his lips. "Don't worry, I, Cai Mao, don't care about my reputation. I'm absolutely capable of doing something like this."

Sun Quan, however, calmly raised his chin, looked directly into Cai Mao's fierce eyes, and said, word by word:

"Uncle Cai, you're wrong. I have Grandpa Tianyi protecting me. Today, no matter what, I will bring back my father's body and walk out of this tent unharmed!"

Upon hearing the words "divine will," Liu Biao's expression visibly changed.

Cai Mao snorted coldly, completely refusing to believe it, and shouted sharply, "How dare you! Men, tie him up! I'll make him taste the might of the Jingzhou prison!"

Liu Biao opened his mouth, but ultimately didn't speak to stop him. He wanted to see if what Sun Quan had just said was true or false. Was Heaven truly protecting this nine-year-old child?

Two guards stepped forward, carrying ropes, ready to tie Sun Quan up. Sun Quan stood there, motionless, calmly watching the two tall soldiers before him.

Just before those two rough, large hands were about to touch Sun Quan's shoulders, two blinding bolts of lightning suddenly exploded in the sky.

The lightning pierced through the tent canopy and struck down without hindrance, hitting the wrists of the two guards precisely.

Their hands were blown into a cloud of charred blood mist, and they collapsed to the ground with screams, twitching twice before falling still.

Liu Biao abruptly stood up, his face deathly pale, his wide eyes filled with disbelief. Cai Mao also froze on the spot, the cold smile that had just been on his lips completely gone.

After a long while, Liu Biao finally spoke, his voice trembling: "Thunder... it is the will of Heaven! No one in the world is unafraid of the will of Heaven!"

He whirled around and roared at his bodyguards, who were equally terrified and pale-faced, "Drag these two idiots away right now!"

The guard finally came to his senses, his voice trembling uncontrollably: "I...I'm so sorry, my lord, that thunder...that thunder scared me to death!"

He walked forward shakily, reaching out to drag the two corpses. He trembled all over as he dragged them, wishing he could walk around Sun Quan in a big circle, afraid that he might accidentally touch the child's clothes and be struck by lightning and turned into charred remains.

Sun Quan sneered, bowed to Liu Biao again, and said loudly:

"Uncle Liu, my father gave me a piece of advice before he passed away. He said, 'Uncle Liu has the bearing of royalty, loyal and kind. The one who harmed Jiangdong was not Uncle Liu, but Yuan Shao!'"

"If we want revenge, we will only go after Yuan Shao. Jiangdong and Yuan Shao are sworn enemies! Father also said that for the safety of Jiangdong, we should make peace with Uncle Liu and the two families should live in harmony from now on!"

As Liu Biao listened, his turbid tears finally welled up in his eyes.

He stood up shakily, his voice choked with emotion, and said, "Child, get up quickly. I have ordered your father's remains to be properly prepared for burial; you can take them back to Jiangdong. I will hold a memorial service by the river to personally bid farewell to your father's spirit."

Sun Quan, his face streaked with tears, was overwhelmed with emotion. He opened his arms and strode toward Liu Biao, wanting to embrace his uncle who had finally relented.

Liu Biao was so frightened that he was still vivid in his mind the scene of the two guards being struck by lightning and turned into charred remains. How could he dare to let Sun Quan get close?

He took several steps back, turned around, and quickly ran away around the pillar next to him.

Sun Quan pursued relentlessly from behind, while Liu Biao limped around the pillar, desperately trying to dodge. His robes billowed in the wind behind him, and his white hair was disheveled, making him look quite pathetic.

The two of them actually put on a dramatic show of the King of Qin circling the pillar right here in the Jingzhou tent!