Three Kingdoms: Start by buying a governor.

"The only two prefectures he could truly control and have absolute authority over were Jiujiang and Danyang; Lujiang was his staunch ally, someone who could lend a hand."

"The remaining three prefectures in Jiangnan, namely Wu, Kuaiji, and Yuzhang, only nominally recognize him as their governor. In reality, they are all ruled by local powerful clans and are in a semi-autonomous state, completely disregarding his orders."

He paused, then continued, "Let's start with the core Jiujiang Prefecture. Shouchun, the seat of the Yangzhou governor, is located here, and it's also Chen Wen's old stronghold. This kid comes from a prominent family in Runan and is in cahoots with the Yuan family of Runan."

"We raided the Yuan family's ancestral home and imprisoned Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu in Gongdelin. This feud is already deadlocked. There's no way he'll surrender. We'll have to fight him head-on; there's no other way."

Xi Zhicai, who was standing nearby, smiled and added information about Danyang County:

"There's also Danyang County, where Prefect Zhou Xin is an ironclad ally of Chen Wen, the two are deeply intertwined, advancing and retreating together in both military and political matters."

"However, Zhou Xin is a scholar who has always been loyal to the Han Dynasty and is not a die-hard. We can send someone to persuade him to surrender first, and take him down without bloodshed, thus saving us from fighting."

Xun Yu continued, "Speaking of Lujiang Commandery, the Prefect Lu Kang is a loyal and virtuous old minister. He became the Prefect of Lujiang in the sixth year of the Zhongping era, quelled the Yellow Turban Rebellion, and won the hearts of the people during his tenure, establishing a very solid foundation."

"This old man has been loyal to the Han Dynasty his whole life. He believes in the Han Dynasty, not Chen Wen. When the time comes, we can send someone to persuade him to surrender in the name of the court, reasoning with him and appealing to his emotions. There is a high probability that he will surrender without bloodshed, without losing a single soldier."

The remaining three prefectures in Jiangnan were also thoroughly analyzed by everyone:

Sheng Xian, the prefect of Wu Commandery, came from one of the four great clans of Wu Commandery, namely Gu, Lu, Zhu, and Zhang. He was the head of the local gentry in Jiangdong. The affairs of the commandery were entirely decided by the local powerful clans, and it was basically semi-autonomous. Chen Wen had no say in it at all.

Guo Yi, the governor of Kuaiji Commandery, guarded the southernmost part of Yangzhou, far from the war in Huainan. He basically lived his own life behind closed doors, almost isolated from the outside world, and had no say in it.

Zhou Shu, the prefect of Yuzhang Commandery, only maintained a nominal subordinate relationship with Chen Wen. In reality, he was a local tyrant, in a semi-independent state. Chen Wen's decrees were ignored outside of Nanchang City.

After the story was told, the truth about Yangzhou was laid bare, leaving nothing but its underwear exposed.

Everyone knew perfectly well that although Chen Wen occupied six counties in Yangzhou, in reality, he could only effectively fight over two counties: Jiujiang and Danyang.

The rest are all opportunists; once the main force arrives, they will most likely surrender without a fight and will be utterly vulnerable.

Just as everyone was clamoring and vying to be the vanguard, Guo Jia, fanning himself with a feather fan, stood up from his seat, smiled, walked to the map, and cupped his hands in greeting to Liu Ce:

"My lord, I have a plan that will guarantee success, leaving Yangzhou with no chance of escape, and securing victory in a single battle!"

Liu Ce's eyes lit up, and he said with a smile, "Oh? What brilliant plan does Fengxiao have? Tell me quickly!"

Guo Jia pointed his feather fan at the map and said with a smile, "I suggest we wait until after this year's autumn harvest, then divide our forces into two groups and attack from the north and south!"

He paused, drew two lines on the map with his feather fan, and continued:

"The first route is to have General Qi Jiguang lead his troops to Jingzhou, and lead the navy in Jingzhou, commanded by Gan Ning, Cheng Pu, and Cai Mao, to sail down the Yangtze River from Jingzhou and directly attack Danyang and Wu County, cutting off Chen Wen's southern retreat route."

"The second plan is to have Yue Fei and others in Jiaozhou temporarily not return to Luoyang, but lead their troops north from Jiaozhou to take Kuaiji and Yuzhang first, blocking Chen Wen's escape route to the south."

He pointed his feather fan heavily at Shouchun City, his tone resolute:

"The two armies will first sweep away all the counties surrounding Yangzhou, and then we will send the main force south from Xuzhou and Yuzhou to take Shouchun and encircle it from three sides."

"At that time, Chen Wen will be trapped like a turtle in a jar, with no way out. Even if he has extraordinary abilities, he won't be able to escape our grasp! Yangzhou can be taken in one fell swoop, without any surprises!"

The council chamber fell silent for two seconds after these words were spoken.

Immediately, everyone slapped their thighs and cheered.

Fang Xuanling cupped his hands and smiled, "Fengxiao's plan is absolutely flawless! Encircling from three sides completely blocks all of Chen Wen's escape routes. Even if he wants to resist, he simply cannot withstand it!"

Du Ruhui nodded in agreement, saying, "That's right! Yue Fei's army is still in Jiaozhou, and his navy is in Jingzhou. We can launch an attack from nearby, saving time and effort by avoiding back-and-forth travel, and we can also catch Chen Wen off guard! This plan is brilliant!"

Li Jing also stood up and said, "Fengxiao is right. Yangzhou is surrounded by a dense network of waterways, and the navy is the key. Qi Jiguang's navy sailing down the river is tantamount to strangling Yangzhou."

"Yue Fei's advance from the south to the north effectively cuts off Chen Wen's retreat. Our main force will press forward from the north, launching a three-pronged attack; Chen Wen will have nowhere to escape. A steady and methodical advance, step by step, is the best military strategy. I second that!"

Looking at the map showing the territory of Yangzhou, and listening to Guo Jia's plan, Liu Ce laughed heartily. He immediately slammed his hand on the table, setting the final tone:

"Good! Do as Fengxiao says! Send down the order to have Yue Fei temporarily stationed in Jiaozhou to prepare for war; Qi Jiguang to lead his troops to Jingzhou to reorganize the army and prepare for battle; as for the navy, have Gan Ning, Cheng Pu, and Cai Mao prepare the warships so that they don't break down."

"After this year's autumn harvest, with ample supplies, we will launch a three-pronged attack, capture Yangzhou, and unify the world!"

As soon as the words fell, all the civil and military officials in the council hall rose in unison, knelt on one knee, and their voices nearly lifted the roof off, their imposing presence reaching the heavens.

"Yes, sir! We will obey your command! After the autumn harvest, we will march south to pacify Yangzhou and unify the world!"

......

After everyone had received their orders and dispersed, Liu Ce waved to Fang Xuanling, Du Ruhui, Xun Yu, and the others, signaling them to stay.

"Xuanling, Keming, Wenruo, Jiaozhou has been captured. Officials must be in place as soon as possible, and the people's livelihood must be restored as quickly as possible. Jiaozhou is a remote place, and the people have suffered for so many years. We cannot let them suffer any longer."

Fang Xuanling cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, rest assured. We have already discussed this and can transfer some officials from Jingzhou first. Jingzhou is close to Jiaozhou, and the climate and customs are similar, so the officials from there will be able to get up to speed more quickly."

"The remaining officials will be drawn from Youzhou, Bingzhou, and Jizhou to supplement the ranks. Although the officials from Youzhou and Bingzhou are far away, they are all people we have trained ourselves. They are highly capable and loyal."

Du Ruhui added, "The fourth cohort of students from Youzhou Academy will soon be graduating, and many of them are willing to go to the south. Once they graduate, we can send them there."

Upon hearing this, Liu Ce nodded and said, "Alright. Make arrangements as soon as possible, don't delay. Jiaozhou was a place the imperial court couldn't govern before, but now it must be taken over."

"Send county magistrates where necessary, and prefectural assistants where necessary. In particular, send people to appease those barbarian tribes in the south, so they don't think they can turn the world upside down just because they've changed masters."

"Yes!" Fang Xuanling and the others responded in unison.

(The area of ​​Liu Ce's control after taking over Yizhou and Jiaozhou is shown in the figure.)