Silver Fox of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 241 Sun Quan's humiliation and alliance
In Chaisang County, Yuzhang, it is the end of April, the flood season and rainy season in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

The sky was pattering with light rain. On the eaves of the middle hall of the Chaisang County Government Office, the rainwater slid down the eaves of the bucket arches, splashed in the courtyard, and then flowed into the drainage ditch next to it, and flowed out of the house.

Sun Quan sat cross-legged on the porch outside the central hall, looking down at the rainwater converging into streams flowing down the courtyard, with a glimmer of silence in his eyes.

When Sun Qian arrived in Jiangdong and found Zhang Zhao as a lobbyist, he knew that Sun Quan would definitely not agree, so he sent someone to tell Zhou Yu and Lu Su. After the two discussed it, they talked with Sun Quan for a long time, and finally Sun Quan reluctantly agreed. .

At this moment, Sun Quan was sitting on the porch, his face was rather unwilling, and Zhou Yu beside him was slightly pale, coughed twice, and said, "Sun Qian should go to Chaisang today, is Marquis Wu still thinking about this?"

"I'm not reconciled."

Sun Quan let out a long sigh: "Father was killed by Huang Zu, and my brother's long-cherished wish for many years is about to be fulfilled in my hands, but in the end he repeatedly wants to let Huang Zu go, how can I swallow this breath?"

Zhou Yu persuaded: "There is internal strife in Jingzhou. This is our best chance to annex Jingzhou. If we attack Huang Zu now, we are helping Liu Cong remove obstacles. If Huang Zu dies, the Jiangxia Navy will be destroyed. Then we will face Liu Cong. Cong's army of more than [-] may be difficult to maintain, for Jiangdong's great cause, Marquis Wu should bear with it first."

"I know."

Sun Quan frowned and said so, but he must still be very reluctant in his heart.

Lu Su smiled and said, "Marquis Wu doesn't have to worry about not being able to avenge Marquis Wucheng. Although Liu Qi and Liu Bei are fighting against Liu Cong this time, Liu Qi will definitely not have a good time. Once the war is coming to an end, we can raid Jiangxia again .”

"Ah."

Sun Quan didn't have any opinion on Lu Su's suggestion of renouncing the alliance. Instead, he said, "I'm just worried about Liu Bei. He's a hero, and he's much better than Liu Cong and Liu Qi. He said he was helping Liu Qi restore his status, but in fact he might just want to seize Jingzhou." , if he gets Jingzhou, what should we do?"

Zhou Yu said in a deep voice: "So we must not let Liu Bei succeed. With us on the side, Liu Bei and Liu Qi dare not let go of their hands and feet to fight Liu Cong. We promise to form an alliance with him. When we fisherman reaps the rewards."

"It's not like Liu Bei doesn't know this."

Sun Quan asked.

Zhou Yu smiled and said, "Of course he knows, but what can he do? If we don't retreat, Liu Qi will be defeated in the pinch between us and Liu Cong, so he can only choose to please us."

Lu Su said: "When the envoys come, Marquis Wu can pretend to accept the matter reluctantly, but he must insist that he is only an alliance with Liu Bei, not Liu Qi and Huang Zu, and he must explain that after they defeat Liu Cong, we will I will definitely attack Huang Zu and avenge Marquis Wu Cheng, so that I have an excuse to intervene in Jingzhou's affairs, and it is not considered a breach of the covenant."

The situation in Jingzhou is a mess now, if Jiangdong joins in and attacks Jiangxia, then Liu Qi will definitely lose.

More importantly, facing the double attack from Xiangyang and Jiangdong, Liu Qi is very likely to give up Jiangxia directly, and either defect to Liu Bei or run to Jingnan.

These two situations are things that Jiang Dong does not want to see.

Once Liu Qi escapes and Jiangdong enters Jiangxia, they will face positive pressure from Xiangyang.

After all, for Liu Cong, Liu Qi is the one who wants to steal his position, while Jiang Dong is the one who wants to destroy him. They are sworn enemies whose contradictions cannot be resolved, and direct conflicts will definitely occur.

Although Jiangdong defeated Huang Zu, Xiangyang was still a giant for them, so the choice for Jiangdong to maximize his interests was to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, and wait until Liu Cong and Liu Bei and Liu Qi's coalition forces were defeated, and then came out to take advantage of it.

In order to have a reasonable and legal excuse, when forming an alliance with Liu Bei, it was stated in advance that the hatred between Jiang Dong and Huang Zu could not be resolved, and after they defeated Liu Cong, they would immediately attack Jiang Xia.

In this way, they have an excuse to enter Jingzhou, and at the same time it cannot be regarded as a violation of the covenant.After all, they signed a contract with Liu Bei, not Liu Qi not to attack Jiang Xia.

"Ah."

Hearing Lu Su's words, Sun Quan nodded slightly.

This is indeed a good way to annex Jiangxia, take a peek at Jingzhou, and grasp righteousness.

While the three were talking, a servant came in from outside and said, "Marquis Wu, the envoy of General Zuo has arrived."

"Let him in."

Sun Quan narrowed his eyes, although he was very reluctant in his heart, but for the greater benefit, he could only temporarily keep Huang Zu's head in storage, and report it later!

After a while, Sun Qian came from the corridor on the side. At this moment, Sun Quan and the three had entered the middle hall. When he entered the hall, he saw the young man on the main seat and knew it was Sun Quan. So he cupped his hands and said, "General Zuo Engage in Zhonglang Sungan, and pay homage to Marquis Wu."

"Ah."

Sun Quan forced a smile, and asked, "Sun Zeng came to Jiangdong, what's your business?"

Sun Qian said: "Because the lord of Jingzhou died of illness, the second son Liu Cong fought with the eldest son Liu Qi. Our master Zuo General understands the righteousness and decided to help the eldest son, hoping to become an ally with Marquis Wu and not attack each other. "

Sun Quan sneered and said, "Didn't the old thief Liu Biao already claim the title of emperor? Back then, His Majesty even called General Zuo the emperor's uncle. Why is General Zuo going to betray the court?"

"My lord is not betraying the imperial court."

Sun Qian argued hard: "The emperor's uncle has never surrendered to the king of Chu."

"Oh?"

Sun Quan asked suspiciously, "Since this is the case, did you not see that General Zuo raised his troops when Liu Biao was alive, but now he wants to intervene in the affairs of Jingzhou? Could it be that General Zuo is planning to take advantage of this opportunity to annex Jingzhou?"

Sun Qian said solemnly: "My lord has no such intentions. The reason why he didn't raise troops back then was because the king of Chu was kind to my lord. Although he turned his back on the court and proclaimed himself emperor without authorization, my lord thought of the friendship of the same clan, so he didn't send troops in the end. It is said that supporting the eldest son today is also because the eldest son has always opposed the claiming of the king of Chu and is willing to help the eldest son regain Jingzhou."

"Ha ha."

Sun Quan smiled noncommittally, and said, "General Zuo is "benevolent and righteous."

"It's natural. My lord's reputation for benevolence and righteousness has spread far and wide. What happened in Jingzhou is my lord's hope that I can stop fighting and turn jade into silk, and persuade the second son to give up the false emperor's position and submit to the court."

Sun Qian heard Sun Quan's connotation, but pretended not to know: "Now General Zuo has proclaimed the eldest son as the shepherd of Jingzhou, explained the whole story to the court, and condemned Liu Cong as a false emperor who rebelled against the court, which shows the heart of my lord. If Marquis Wu still has his heart for the Han Dynasty, he should stop fighting and stop attacking Jiangxia."

"How can father's hatred stop here?"

Sun Quan pretended to be furious and said, "Old man Huang Zu, I will definitely kill him to avenge my father!"

"Marquis Wu."

Sun Qian sighed and said, "I hope the Marquis of Wu will know about my master's heart."

"Humph."

Sun Quan snorted coldly and said, "If you want me to give up my father's feud, you should at least show sincerity. How can you just want me to retreat in a few words?"

Sun Qian immediately said: "Nowadays there is great chaos in the south, Xichuan and Zhang Lu devoured the lord. My lord thought of the friendship of the same clan and decided to go to Xichuan to help. However, he encountered something about the eldest son on the way and had to stay in Zigui. If Wuhou is interested, The eldest son has already promised that as soon as he defeats Liu Cong, Jiaozhou will be surrendered to Marquis Wu."

Jiaozhou?

Sun Quan, Zhou Yu and Lu Su looked at each other, wanting to laugh.

Liu Bei's meaning is very simple, now that Zhang Lu wants to eliminate Liu Zhang, he intends to help, but probably after Zhang Lu destroys Liu Zhang, he will attack Zhang Lu and occupy Yizhou in the name of helping the same clan.

As for Jingzhou, he obviously wanted Liu Qi to get it. In this way, Yizhou in the south would belong to Liu Bei, Jingzhou would be Liu Qi's close ally, and Sun Quan would continue to be in Jiangdong.

But if you want Sun Quan not to send troops, you obviously have to give him some sweetness, and giving him the state will naturally become that benefit.

Where is Jiaozhou?
Later generations of Guangdong, Guangxi and most of Vietnam.

It sounds good, but at the end of the Han Dynasty, Jiaozhou was a place where birds didn't shit.

So this allocation is no different from insulting Sun Quan.

Sun Quan laughed angrily, and said cheerfully: "General Zuo and Liu Qi are generous, they gave me Jiaozhou."

"Did Marquis Wu agree to form an alliance?"

Sun Qian asked.

Sun Quan said coldly, "What if I don't agree?"

"Ugh."

Sun Qian sighed and said: "Then the eldest son can only retreat to Jingnan, and it doesn't matter if Jiangxia is handed over to Marquis Wu. When the time comes, my lord and the eldest son will guard Changsha, and just sit and watch Wuhou and the second son fight. "

"you!"

Sun Quan was passive for a while and became even more angry.

This is actually the main reason why Jiangdong is now forced to agree to form an alliance.

Where is Jiang Xia?
It is the city of Wuhan in later generations.

Wuhan City, Jingzhou City, Xiangyang City.

In the Han Dynasty, they were Xiakou, Jiangling and Xiangyang respectively.

These three places form a triangle. Once Liu Qi withdraws from Jiangxia and retreats to Jingnan, Sun Quan's army will face Liu Cong's army in Xiangyang.

At that time, Liu Qi was separated from the northern part of Jingzhou by the Yangtze River and Dongting Lake, so it was not so easy to fight Liu Cong.

Instead, Sun Quan was the first to stand in the way of Liu Cong going south to defeat Liu Qi and recover Jingnan.

Will the two sides start a war by then?
When the war starts, it will be Liu Qi and Liu Bei who sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight.

If there is no war, Sun Quan can't help it. Liu Cong may not take the initiative to send people to attack him.

So it's a dilemma.

He agrees to the alliance, and feels badly, insulted.

They gave him Jiaozhou, which sounds good, but Jiaozhou is not as important as Jiangxia County.

This situation is like a dog being thrown a bone, which is very unpleasant.

If you don't agree, it will be even more uncomfortable.

Because Liu Qi's forces withdrew from Jiangxia, Jiangxia's vacuum period was bound to be filled by Liu Cong's army, and he and Liu Cong would have to fight at that time.

Unless Liu Cong was too stupid to send troops to Jiangxia, or he withdrew his troops to Anqing, the two forces would be completely bordering each other, and Sun Quan was on the right side of the road in Xiangyang from Hanshui to attack Jingnan.

Therefore, Liu Bei obviously grasped Sun Quan, knowing that he would definitely agree to form an alliance, which seemed to be a little bit confident.

"Marquis Wu, don't get angry."

At this moment, Lu Su stood up and persuaded: "Let's be humble and ask the envoy."

"Humph."

Sun Quan turned his head away.

He was really aggrieved about this matter.

Lu Su looked at Sun Qian and said: "We all understand what your envoy means, but I hope that your envoy knows that the civil strife in Jingzhou has nothing to do with Jiangdong. My main goal is to kill Huang Zu and avenge my father, even if Liu Qi withdraws So what if we go out of Jiangxia? We strike back and return to Anqing, will Liu Cong chase him to Yuzhang? So in the end Liu Cong and Liu Qi will inevitably fight to the death."

"Well"

Sun Qian murmured and did not speak. If Jiang Dong was ruthless and retreated back to Anqing, Liu Cong felt that there was no threat, and it was indeed impossible to send pursuers, so it was not that they had no chance to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight.

Lu Su continued: "But because my lord only wants Huang Zu's head to avenge his father, it is not impossible to talk about it. Besides Jiaozhou, if Liu Qi offers Huang Zu and sends him bound to Jiangdong, my lord will not only You will attack Jiangxia, but you will send troops to help Liu Qi take Jingzhou back, what does your envoy think?"

"First of all, I can't take charge of this matter. Second, General Huang is the leader of the Jiangxia Navy. Because of General Huang's full support, the eldest son can fight against Liu Cong. I believe the eldest son will not agree."

Sun Qian flatly refused: "If Marquis Wu wants the eldest son to offer General Huang, I'm afraid it won't work."

"If that's the case, there's no way to talk about it."

Lu Su said regretfully: "Anyway, when Liu Cong and Liu Qi fight, it is only Jingzhou that will be damaged. Jiangdong can just sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight. After Liu Qi is defeated, even if we don't send troops, Liu Cong will not let him go." Huang Zu, there are people who avenge Marquis Wu Cheng, why should we not do it?"

Sun Gan hesitated for a while, and then said after a while: "Then according to the captain's intention, Jiang Dong plans to withdraw his troops to Anqing and watch the eldest son fight Liu Cong? Jingnan is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and there is the danger of Qingcao Lake. I am afraid that he will disappoint Marquis Wu."

"No matter how disappointed you are, it's better than not being able to avenge your father's death."

Sun Quan said indifferently: "It's still the same sentence, I am determined to kill Huang Zu, as a son, I cannot avenge my father, let alone Jiaozhou, so what if Jingnan is given to me?"

Sun Qian frowned.

Sure enough, as Xiaoqing expected, when he came, Shen Chen told him that Sun Quan would definitely seize the matter of avenging his father, and it seemed that Sun Quan really wanted to grab greater benefits.

Thinking of this, Sun Qian decided to make a move to retreat, so he stood up and cupped his hands and said: "Since this is the case, then I can only go back and report to General Zuo, let him write to the eldest son, let the eldest son retreat to Jingnan first, my lord At this time, we sent troops to Xichuan to assist Yizhou Mu."

Are you ready to go now?

Sun Quan, Lu Su, Zhou Yu and the others suddenly felt their hearts sink.

If we really go in this direction, then Liu Qi retreats to Jingnan. Jingnan is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and Dongting Lake is dangerous. Relying on Jiangxia Navy, Liu Cong may not be able to defeat Changsha in three to five years.

When Liu Bei successfully captures Yizhou, they can only watch helplessly in Jiangdong. Isn't it the worst ending?

Because at that point, Jiang Dong couldn't attack Jiang Xia.

Liu Cong will definitely send a large army to replace Jiang Xia's naval division. Although he has a large number of troops, firstly, it is difficult to fight in Jingnan, and secondly, he has to divide his troops to defend Jiangdong. Let alone annexing Jingzhou, even killing Huang Zu for revenge It's nowhere in sight.

Is this what Sun Quan wants?

However, at this time Sun Quan remained silent, his eyes were about to burst into flames.

He was actually very annoyed now, and there was a thought in his mind that he wanted to order the left and right to capture Sun Qian and threaten him with a knife and axe.

But Sun Quan, who has learned to endure by nature, understands a truth, that is, if he really does this, once the covenant agreement collapses, things may develop in the worst direction.

So at this time, he could only choose to grit his teeth and not speak.

But he didn't speak, so naturally his subordinates would do it for him. Lu Su quickly got up and said, "Your envoy, go slowly."

Sun Qian turned around and cupped his hands and said, "I don't know what else the captain wants to do?"

"Could it be that General Zuo really intends to watch the eldest son be defeated by us and Liu Cong and escape?"

Lu Su suddenly said: "Your envoy, don't forget that my lord only wants to kill Huang Zu, and Liu Cong is definitely willing to form an alliance with my lord. When he gets Jingnan, I want Huang Zu's head. No one will lose."

"Wu Hou is really filial."

Sun Gan sighed: "To avenge my father, I don't even want Jiaozhou."

"It's natural."

Lu Su said in a deep voice: "I hope that your envoy will understand my lord's determination."

Sun Qian said: "Since this is the case, how can Marquis Wu agree to form an alliance?"

Lu Su and Zhou Yu looked at each other and said, "First, Jiaozhou must return to Jiangdong. Second, Jiangdong will not send troops to attack Jiangxia, but this is only temporary. Once things change, we will still send troops."

"Then what's the difference between forming an alliance and not forming an alliance?"

Sun Qian spread his hands together.

Lu Su laughed and said, "At least we won't send troops when Liu Cong attacks Jiangxia. If Liu Qi defeats Liu Cong and takes Jingzhou, then General Zuo has no reason to ask Marquis Wu not to send troops to avenge his father."

"Well"

Sun Qian nodded slightly and said: "That's true. If the eldest son wins Jingzhou, then Marquis Wu will attack Jiang Xia and kill General Huang to avenge his father. It is indeed justified. If this is the case, then we will use this as an alliance and conclude an alliance. , what does Marquis Wu think?"

"That's it."

Sun Quan left with a flick of his sleeves. This alliance made him feel extremely humiliated.

As soon as he left, Lu Su said slightly apologetically, "My lord has always aimed to kill Huang Zu. I hope your envoy can understand my lord's filial piety to avenge his father."

"Of course I understand."

On the contrary, Sun Qian was not in a hurry, nodded with a smile and said: "I will write down the alliance letter after I go back, and then I will ask Marquis Wu to stamp the seal, so I will go back and hand it over to General Zuo."

"It's natural."

Lu Su said: "But there is only one covenant, so I'm afraid it won't work."

"I will write down two copies. At that time, Jiangdong can send someone to follow me to Zigui. General Zuo will stamp the official seal and bring them back to Jiangdong."

Sun Qian said.

"It's best that way, so be it."

Lu Su nodded.

Although Sun Quan was really aggrieved by this covenant, it was also the best result.

After the covenant was signed, Jiangdong stood still and waited and watched the situation.

And Liu Qi and Liu Cong fought to the death, and when both sides were hurt, they also had an excuse to send troops, so for Jiangdong, it was already the maximum benefit.

What's more, on the surface Liu Qi gave them Jiaozhou, even if Jiaozhou was like a chicken rib and useless, it was better than nothing.

Zhou Yu on the side didn't speak the whole time, but just watched with cold eyes.

Sun Qian and Lu Su chatted about some other things, then left and went back to prepare the alliance letter.

After he left, Zhou Yu said softly: "This Liu Bei, I'm afraid he has the heart to annex Jingzhou."

"Yes."

Lu Su looked at the back of Sun Qian leaving, and said softly: "If he really only wants Xichuan, he can go to Yizhou now, and why stay in Jingzhou? It's nothing more than fearing that Liu Qi will be swallowed up by Liu Cong, and it will be difficult to get back. It’s all about Jingzhou, this Liu Bei should not be underestimated.”

"At that time, it depends on who means it."

Zhou Yu coughed twice again. During the ten-year battle of Yi County in Jian'an, he was washed away by the flood. Although he survived by chance, he suffered sequelae. His lungs were damaged due to drowning, and he has not recovered yet.

Originally, he should take a good rest and recuperate, but now is the key to whether Sun Quan can win the south, Zhou Yu can only support his health and continue to fight.

　I feel like I'm going to lose my mind, and I have a fever and my throat hurts like swallowing a razor blade, which is really uncomfortable.Now that it is fully open, everyone really needs to protect themselves. It may not be fatal, but it is no different from losing half of your life if you get infected. You must pay attention to protecting yourself!Remember!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)