Rebirth of the Three Kingdoms: Da Qiao doesn't want to be a widow anymore

Chapter 253 The Situation in the North

As Sun Quan and Lu Su finished their conversation, You Xuan brought a small plate of lotus seeds and said, "Sir, this is what my wife sent. Let me give you a taste to help you feel better."

Sun Quan raised his head slightly, "Where did the Madam go?"

"Madam took the young lady and the young master to the manor. She said it was too hot in the manor, so she went to the manor to cool off."

Sun Quan was a little annoyed, "Has An'er finished his homework? Are you taking him out to play now?"

Mr. Lu replied with a smile, "Since Madam Qiao came back, the young lady has been studying harder. Your Excellency, please don't push her too hard. You should always find a balance between tension and relaxation in everything."

Sun Quan calmed down and pushed the lotus seeds a little closer to Lu Su. "Zi Jing and I have been talking for a while. It is indeed hot and stuffy in the mansion. Try these lotus seeds and cool down your temper."

There was some mint in the lotus seeds, which made it feel cool and refreshing when I put it in my mouth. "Madam has a good idea. In fact, your suggestion is not impossible. The threat of Pan Lin must be eliminated urgently. Although Yuan Benchu ​​in the north can still contain Cao Cao, the two sons are now fighting each other, gathering their own factions, and the ministers also have their own preferences, and undercurrents are surging. If people are so panicked, within three years, Cao Mengde will surely defeat them.

Guo Fengxiao's plan is very vicious! "Speaking of the fight between Yuan Shao's two sons, Lu Su couldn't help but sigh.

Yuan Shao was originally from Runan, and most of the advisers who followed him in his early years were from the Yingchuan faction. After Yuan Shao took control of Jizhou, he had to win over the power of the Jizhou faction and recruit Yan Liang and other Jizhou faction members as powerful generals.

Originally, the two factions could still unite to face the threat of Cao Cao, but Yuan Shao favored his third son Yuan Shang and intended to depose the eldest son and enthronize the youngest son. So he adopted his eldest son Yuan Tan and assigned his second son Yuan Xi, Gao Gan and others to guard other places.

Since ancient times, when the princes went to war, the prince would govern the country. Keeping Yuan Shang by his side was no longer a hint, but a clear expression of his intentions.

But how could Yuan Tan really be willing to give up the inheritance of his family business? Yuan Shao's subordinates were divided and each supported their own side. Shen Pei, Feng Ji and others stood on Yuan Shang's side, while Xin Ping, Guo Tu and others supported Yuan Tan.

Guo Jia was also from Yingchuan. Through the relationship between relatives and friends, he was keenly aware of the internal contradictions of Yuan Shao. He then suggested that Cao Cao petition the emperor to appoint the eldest son Yuan Tan and the second son Yuan Xi as generals of the guards, and add the title of Tinghou to them, and appoint them as the governor of Qingzhou and Youzhou respectively.

It was considered as supporting Yuan Tan, the eldest son, in the name of the Han Dynasty, and it was also a disguised denial of Yuan Shao's act of adopting Yuan Tan away. This was undoubtedly a signal to Yuan Tan and the world, that is, the Han Dynasty recognized Yuan Tan, or in other words, Cao Cao recognized Yuan Tan.

For Yuan Shao, this only deepened his suspicion of Yuan Tan.

Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi were both rewarded with titles of nobility, but Yuan Shang was not. Even though Yuan Tan and Yuan Xi were enemies of Cao Cao, they dared not refuse the title of Marquis in the name of the Han Dynasty. On the other hand, Cao Cao also presented the benefits to Yuan Tan. With the recognition of the Han Dynasty, Yuan Tan would have more power to compete with Yuan Shang. Who could really resist taking the bait?

Even if Yuan Tan himself did not take the bait, the ministers around Yuan Tan would never let go when they saw the opportunity.

If Cao Cao gave them the opportunity, the Yingchuan faction and the Jizhou faction, the Yuan Tan faction and the Yuan Shao and Yuan Shang faction would fight more fiercely.

Such an open conspiracy, forcing people to take the bait, was indeed the method used by Guo Jia and Guo Fengxiao.

Sun Quan also nodded and said, "Such a genius, it shows that Cao family has found a good person!"

Lu Su continued, "If Cao Cao gets rid of this great threat and recovers the entire north, where will he target his troops next?"

"The road to Western Shu is easy to defend but difficult to attack. You only have to choose between Liu Biao of Jingzhou and Jiangdong." Sun Quan also understood that with Cao Cao's ambitions and the emperor of the Han Dynasty in his hands, Jiangdong would sooner or later face such a strong enemy. If not for this, Sun Quan actually admired Cao Cao very much. He was a capable minister who led troops with great ambitions, conquered all directions, and supported the Han Dynasty, just like his father and brothers. He admired them. Lu Su told him with certainty, "Although you now occupy Runan and Xuzhou, the hinterland of Jiangdong is still blocked by the natural barrier of the Yangtze River. You cannot advance without a navy. People in the north are good at land battles but not water battles. Cao Mengde will definitely take Jingzhou first and use the navy of Jingzhou to go east to Jiangdong. You don't have much time left."

Outsiders saw Sun Quan as a man who inherited his family business at a young age and enjoyed the fruits of his labor. However, they did not know that Jiangdong was plagued by external and internal troubles, and that Sun Quan had to work very hard to maintain this foundation and to put in place checks and balances.

Now that the civil unrest has not yet subsided, we must always be on guard against the movements of foreign enemies.

"So, the trip to Baishishan cannot be delayed!" Lu Su gave Sun Quan a clear answer, "A tiger entering the forest also needs to sharpen its claws and fangs."

Sun Quan understood, "The land of Shanyue is very dangerous..."

"If you are worried, you can let the young lady go with you. The Jin'an soldiers around the young lady can protect you closely. General He can also send soldiers to escort you along the way, so you can be safe."

When Sun Quan heard Lu Su mention the Jin'an soldiers, he thought it was indeed a solution.

"Madam also wants to take Deng'er with her. What do you think?" Sun Quan thought that since he had asked, he might as well ask clearly and also wanted to hear Lu Su's opinion.

"The young master is still young and needs his parents' embrace. It is understandable that Madam is reluctant to let him go." Lu Su did not say yes or no, "After all, this is your family affair, and I am not in a position to interfere. You can make the decision yourself!"

Sun Quan sighed. It was not that he was unaware of this truth, but... he had a feeling that if Qiao Wei took Sun Deng away with him, he didn't know what she would be attached to in this huge Sun family.

He wanted to trap her here in a vicious way, but he despised himself for doing so.

The dinner was not very tasty, but Sun Xu and Sun Deng probably had a great time and ate much more than usual.

Even Sun Deng no longer needed Qiao Wei to feed him. He followed Sun Xu's example and ate quickly and well with a spoon.

After dinner, Xu Yao Niang took the two children downstairs to take a bath. Before they finished bathing, the two children were so tired that they fell asleep.

The children were all asleep, and Qiao Wei also relaxed and chatted with Sun Quan about family matters, "Is General He having trouble?"

Sun Quan paused for a moment, "Why do you say that?"

"I met several ladies from the Lu family at the farm this afternoon, and the wives of the East and West Zou Shi were also there.

Mrs. Wang, the wife of Dong Zou Shi, looked at me with hesitation, as if she wanted to ask me something but didn't dare.

What's more, the Sun family is still in mourning period, but Mrs. Lu wants to board the ship to pay a visit. She probably wants to find out some information from me!

I've been thinking about it, maybe things are not going well for Dong Zou Shi?"