Yuan Shao, the father of Fanghua in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1271 Choice
The news of Zhang Fei's assassination caused an uproar on several sides. Sun Quan was naturally overjoyed when he learned about it. He took the opportunity to order Zhuge Jin to return to attack Changsha and launch an all-out counterattack against Zhang Fei's leaderless army.

Xu Shu, who stayed in Changsha, sent letters to Liu Bei in Jingzhou on the one hand, and led troops to resist on the other hand. In addition, the generals of Hannan were also extremely angry about Zhang Fei's assassination. After several fierce attacks and defenses, the Wu army still failed to capture Changsha, but took the opportunity to occupy several cities.

At that time, the news reached Lu Xun who was stationed in Wankou. He knew that this matter was of great importance, so he quickly reported it to Yuan Xi. By the time Yuan Xi received the letter, he found out that it had been half a month.

After reading the letter, he said to Zhuge Liang in a deep voice: "This news should have reached Lord Xuande."

"This matter is of great importance. They will certainly not give up. Liu Bei might even give up attacking Xu Du and withdraw his entire army."

Zhuge Liang thought that if Liu Bei could capture Xiangyang, he could threaten Xu Du. Given his dedication to being the emperor, would he abandon all his previous efforts just to avenge Zhang Fei?

However, he still trusted Yuan Xi's inference. He lowered his head and thought for a while, then said, "Changsha is in danger. Even if he doesn't return to the army himself, he will send Guan Yu and other generals to help."

"In this way, the pressure on Wei State in Jingzhou will certainly be reduced, which may have some impact on Yecheng."

"However, it is unlikely that Wei will take the offensive. Liang speculates that they will take the opportunity to sweep the Guanlong area and clean up and suppress the Yang family and other aristocratic families that were previously dissatisfied with Wei, in order to ensure stability in the rear."

The fact that Yang Xiu surrendered to Yuan Xi has remained a secret to this day. Because it might lead to retaliation from the Wei State against the Yang family of Hongnong, it has been well covered up by Yuan Xi.

However, the Yang family was not on the same page with the Wei State after all. Previously, the Wei State occupied a vast area and might need to win over the Yang family. Now that the center of Cao Wei began to shrink towards Yizhou and Xiliang, the Sili area, which was located in the heart of Cao Wei, would inevitably become the first target that needed to eliminate hidden dangers.

After hearing this, Yuan Xi thought for a while and said, "We are too far away to take care of it. We can send someone to inform Yang that if they cannot protect themselves, they can flee to Huaicheng and accept our protection."

"Now the Wei State is also trying to stabilize the internal situation. Although it suffered a great defeat, it abandoned several damaged states and counties, and can now go into battle with ease. Especially since Jingzhou and Yizhou have not been drained of blood, their foundation is still there, and it will not collapse so easily."

"In this case, we might as well seize this opportunity and solve the problem in Wu first."

Zhuge Liang replied, "I think so too. Wu has repeatedly gone back on its word because of its position and status. Although you have made many concessions, it is clear that Wu still has its own ideas."

"Now that Wu assassinated Zhang Fei, Hannan is empty. If Wu is allowed to annex Hannan, it will be troublesome. We must not let it become too powerful."

"With Zhang Fei's death, the Hannan Kingdom will certainly take revenge. We should take this opportunity to send troops and join forces to defeat the Wu Kingdom in one battle to eliminate future troubles."

Yuan Xi nodded and said, "That's right. I will send a letter to Boyan now and ask him to prepare for a full-scale war."

He thought that Madam Wu had returned empty-handed, but if he were Sun Quan, he would not be willing to live under someone else's roof.

If I destroyed the Wu Kingdom, how would I deal with Sun Quan?

I’m afraid Liu Bei would definitely want to kill him as soon as possible, right?

Thinking of this, Yuan Xi shook his head and thought that he should wait until the Wu Kingdom was destroyed before doing anything else.

He said, "I will go to Jianghuai later, but I am not in a hurry to leave now. Let me see how Lord Xuande reacts first."

"During this period, Jin State first put its energy into rebuilding Ye City, especially repairing the Yellow River channel in Jizhou."

"Last year, the Wei army dug the river. Although they tried their best to fill it afterwards, it was only an emergency measure. The flood season will come in a few months. If the dam breaks again, the people downstream will suffer again."

Zhuge Liang smiled bitterly and said, "The Yellow River floods nine out of ten years, and floods in the lower reaches are the norm."

"Over the past few hundred years, the Yellow River has been flooded repeatedly, which is a very troublesome problem."

Yuan Xi said in a deep voice: "The Yellow River has too much water. Sooner or later it will flow into the sea from the Huai River. Only by dispersing the water in the Yellow River and Huai River regions can we reduce the number of years affected by disasters."

"But this process will undoubtedly lead to frequent disasters, so when managing floods, we must purposefully dig more water diversion channels in the Huanghuai region."

"This is truly a long-term plan. It will only take 10 to 20 years to see initial results. And we obviously cannot devote all our efforts now. We can only take it slow and steady."

"Only when the country is pacified and the whole nation is mobilized to build a large number of steam engines to assist in excavation can this process be shortened."

"The sooner the world is pacified, the sooner the people can live and work in peace and contentment. Before that, I must set a good example and practice frugality in everything."

"Now that Yecheng is under renovation, it is time for me to make a statement to the people of the world. The houses of the common people and the public facilities in the city must be repaired first. The mansions of the wealthy families, especially where I live, should be used as the old houses of Cao Wei officials. It is fine as long as they can be lived in. Extravagant decorations are prohibited."

Zhuge Liang listened, wrote down everything, and said: "During the fire in Yecheng, many houses of Cao Wei were burned down. However, the Bronze Sparrow Tower built by Cao Cao was not damaged because it was located on high ground. That place is not suitable for others, so you can still live there."

Yuan Xi said, "Then I'll stay there temporarily. Once the donations from the nobles are settled, I'll head south." He then asked, "How are the remaining Cao troops in Yanzhou and Yuzhou?"

Zhuge Liang replied: "In Yuzhou, only Yingchuan is held by Wei. After all, that is the hometown of the Yingchuan faction."

"Yanzhou has been abandoned by the Wei State. There are only a few cities left that are still resisting. General Chunyu Qiong is leading his troops to clear out the city. They will be pacified soon."

After hearing this, Yuan Xi nodded and said, "Thank you for your hard work, Kong Ming. In a few days, I will appoint you as prime minister and general again, and temporarily make Yecheng the secondary capital as the front line for attacking Wei."

Yuan Xi was talking about the dual capital system, which appeared in the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, and also in the Sui and Ming dynasties. This was because transportation and information transmission were underdeveloped in ancient times, so people had to take countermeasures. Now Yuan Xi established Yecheng as the secondary capital, which would also better assist the main offensive direction of Jin State.

Jicheng was used to defend against the Xianbei outside the Great Wall, and Yecheng was used to attack the State of Wei. The advantage was very obvious, that is, it was used as a fortress on the front line. Whether it was defense or attack, the two places could greatly reduce the logistical pressure and save manpower and material resources to the maximum extent.

As for setting up a secondary capital in the Jianghuai area, it would be superfluous, and Yuan Xi had already made up his mind not to give Sun Quan another chance to cause trouble.

What happened next further strengthened Yuan Xi's determination.

Mrs. Wu was assassinated.

Although Lu Xun reported that he was protected by guards and the whole incident went smoothly, Yuan Xi was still scared when he learned about it, because when Madam Wu went to Wankou, she asked her to bring Yuan Qian and Sun Shangxiang with her in order to impress Sun Quan.

Mrs. Wu's idea was very good. She wanted to use family ties to turn hostility into friendship. If Sun Quan could surrender his entire country, both sides would become one family. Yuan Xi also offered corresponding generous conditions.

However, Sun Quan had great ambitions and would not yield to others. Although Yuan Xi had expected this, he did not expect that Sun Quan would dare to be so decisive towards his biological mother.

This time, Sun Quan sent Zhu Heng to lead hundreds of assassins to assassinate. Of course, Zhu Heng did not do it by force. Like Zhu Ran, he adopted the same strategy as when he assassinated Zhang Fei. He first led his men to the outside of Wankou City, and sent a letter to Mrs. Wu, saying that Sun Quan sent them to visit her, and also brought a secret letter from Sun Quan.

Mrs. Wu did not suspect anything and sent someone to take them into the city. However, she did not expect that after Zhu Heng led his men into the city, they launched a surprise attack in front of Mrs. Wu's mansion, which prevented the Jin army from reacting in time.

Fortunately, Mrs. Wu's personal guards and spies from the Procuratorate fought desperately to protect her. The fighting on both sides was extremely brutal, and hundreds of people died in less than half an hour, most of whom were the Wu Kingdom's assassins brought by Zhu Heng.

However, dozens of people who entered Jin State also died. Finally, Lu Xun personally led his troops to suppress the raid.

All of Zhu Heng's soldiers were killed. He wanted to commit suicide, but the Jin army guards broke his hand and captured him alive and imprisoned.

Lu Xun apologized in the letter, saying that it was all due to his negligence, but Yuan Xi knew that it was not entirely Lu Xun's fault. After all, Sun Quan's method was too disgusting. Who would have thought that he would kill his own biological mother?
After this incident, Mrs. Wu was completely heartbroken. Now she returned to Shouchun under the escort of Lu Xun, and then left Yuan Qian to Lu Xun for teaching, and rushed to Yecheng with Sun Shangxiang.

When Mrs. Wu arrived, it was already spring in Yecheng and flowers were in bloom. The renovated houses were full of swallows building nests. The entire Yecheng had almost returned to its pre-war prosperity.

When Madam Wu's carriage arrived at the Bronze Sparrow Tower, she saw from inside the carriage that Yuan Xi was actually waiting at the palace gate with Zhen Mi and Yuan Rui. She quickly pulled Sun Shangxiang out of the carriage and came over to pay her respects, saying, "I am deeply terrified to ask the King and Queen to move on."

Yuan Xi smiled and said, "Madam, I haven't seen you for half a year. Why are you so distant?"

Madam Wu said ashamedly, "I have done something wrong. I am really ashamed to see you, Your Majesty."

Yuan Xi comforted him, "Everyone loves their calves, but unfortunately, calves will change as they grow up."

He saw Sun Shangxiang hiding behind Madam Wu's skirt after she bowed, revealing half of her head. Her big eyes rolled around as she looked at him. He couldn't help but laugh. He stretched out his hand to pick her up, spun her around in the air twice, and said with a smile, "Xiangxiang has grown taller again. I can hardly hold her anymore."

Sun Shangxiang was a little reserved at first, but Yuan Xi's hug reminded her of the time when Yuan Xi teased her when she was a child, and she couldn't help laughing. The laughter of the Yinling class was very pleasant to hear, and it echoed with the swallows on the top of the Bronze Sparrow Tower. The awkward atmosphere among everyone was swept away in an instant.

Yuan Xi gently put Sun Shangxiang down and said to Yuan Rui, "Take her for a walk, don't let her run too far."

Yuan Rui understood and came over awkwardly to lead the way for Sun Shangxiang, but Sun Shangxiang simply pulled Yuan Rui's sleeve and ran. In the blink of an eye, the two ran far away. The guards behind them hurriedly chased after them, complaining bitterly.

Listening to Sun Shangxiang's laughter coming from afar, Yuan Xi and Zhen Mi couldn't help but smile. Yuan Xi sighed, "It would be great if we were all one family. But we have to fight to the death. I don't know how many more people will die just for a pride."

The three of them walked towards the Bronze Sparrow Tower. Yuan Xi saw that Madam Wu still had a worried look on her face, so he said, "The bottom line is that Sun Quan was blinded by his desire for power."

"It's also a way to give him a cold shower and make him sober up. Besides, Lord Xuande will not let him go."

"No matter what the outcome is, I will find a way to save his life."

Sure enough, a few days later, news came that Liu Bei had returned to avenge Zhang Fei and mobilized the entire country to counterattack the State of Wu. An extremely brutal and tragic war broke out between the two sides.

(End of this chapter)