With Cao Cao by my side, what do I have to fear from the world?

Upon returning to the Imperial Secretariat, Liu Xie found Xun Yu and Jia Xu and told them about sending someone to bring back Cai Zhaoji's son.

After hearing this, Jia Xu sighed, “Your Majesty, those who are not of our race will surely have different hearts. In principle, I should not stop them, but since Cai Zhaoji has already returned to the Central Plains, she should sever ties with the Southern Xiongnu. If we bring her children to the Central Plains, they will inevitably cause controversy, as they will still have foreign blood in their veins.”

"Furthermore, Cai Zhaoji's sincere return to Han is admirable, and the court could have taken this opportunity to publicize it. However, if their child is brought back, wouldn't the effect of the publicity be much less?"

Jia Xu's idea was indeed very reasonable. Cai Zhaoji's return to the Han Dynasty showed that she longed for her homeland and had an inseparable affection for the Han Dynasty. However, if she were to bring back the two Xiongnu children, it would sound a bit distorted.

Xun Yu shook his head, seemingly not in agreement.

Liu Xie, who was always fair and good at accepting good advice, asked, "Wenruo, please feel free to speak your mind. I am all ears."

Xun Yu considered it carefully and replied cautiously, "Your Majesty, although the Southern Xiongnu have submitted, it will obviously take a long time to completely settle them down. This matter has given me an idea, and I would like to let Your Majesty consider it."

Liu Xie nodded to him, signaling Xun Yu to continue.

"Your Majesty, I believe we should bring Cai Zhaoji's children here and raise them carefully, so that they develop a deep sense of dependence and identification with the Han Dynasty from a young age. To put it bluntly, whatever Your Majesty wants them to become, it is entirely possible. When they grow up, we can select one of them to return to the Southern Xiongnu, and then we can proclaim that he is a descendant of the Left Wise King and make him the leader. This will make it easier for the court to control the foreign tribes, and the methods will not have to be too drastic."

Liu Xie looked at Jia Xu, then at Xun Yu, and smiled, “Your opinions each have their merits. Wen Ruo’s method is more moderate, while Wen He’s is more decisive. I think it would be better to observe Liu Bao’s reaction first. If he is sensible and obediently sends the child back, I will not hold it against him. Alas, even though I hate foreign tribes, the child is innocent after all.”

In the end, this matter fell to Ma Teng, because he was the Grand Herald, in charge of the court's diplomatic affairs.

Ma Teng is not the same as before. When he first arrived in Xudu, he was a little apprehensive and uneasy.

After years of getting to know and spend time with the emperor, all his anxieties and worries disappeared, and he spent most of his time enjoying his retirement, living a very comfortable life.

Ma Teng was quite excited to have a job assigned to him, and immediately took his two sons, Ma Xiu and Ma Tie, to Pingyang.

Upon meeting Liu Bao, the Left Wise King, and explaining his purpose, Liu Bao's eyes widened in anger and dissatisfaction.

Ma Teng glared at him and said in a rough voice, "Left Wise King, let me remind you, you're lucky to have met a good emperor. His Majesty is benevolent and unwilling to start a war, so he sent me to discuss this with you. Actually, what's there to discuss in this matter? You must submit to the court. Whatever His Majesty tells you to do, you should do it. Am I right?"

Ma Teng was a local warlord in his early years, known for his loud voice and imposing presence.

Matthew and Ma Tie stood on either side of him, their hands on their sword hilts, cheering on their father and staring coldly at Liu Bao.

Liu Bao sighed, "But those are my sons. I've raised them for many years, and they've never left me."

Ma Teng shook his head, somewhat dissatisfied. "Left Wise King, when Zhong Yao captured Pingyang last time, didn't the court pursue the matter too much? Logically speaking, you should have been forced to send your children to Xudu as hostages back then. This has always been the rule. You don't need to complain to me. The more unhappy you are, the more displeased His Majesty will be. Although His Majesty has a good temper, he still has his bottom line. You'd better remember that."

"How about this? Can you only take one of them?" Liu Bao hoped for the best and tried to bargain.

Ma Teng's face immediately darkened, and he stared at him coldly without saying a word.

Liu Bao nodded helplessly, "Alright then, I'll bring the person to you right away."

A weak nation has no diplomacy. Only when the Han Dynasty was strong did Ma Teng have the confidence to handle things so smoothly.

…………

Jingnan, Public Security Bureau!
Gong'an is located on the south bank of the Yangtze River, serving as a connecting point between the Jianghan Plain and the Dongting Lake Plain.

The original name of Gong'an was Chanling, but Zhou Yu renamed it Gong'an.

Gong'an's geographical location was extremely important. Situated on the banks of the Yangtze River, it was Zhou Yu's first line of defense protecting southern Jingzhou, and controlled the vital passage between the three counties of Wuling, Lingling, and Guiyang. Gong'an and Jiangling faced each other across the river.

Cao Cao withdrew all his troops from Jingnan, and Zhou Yu took the opportunity to conquer the four southern commanderies in one fell swoop. Now Lingling, Guiyang, Wuling, and Changsha all belong to Sun Quan.

When the good news was sent to Chaisang, Sun Quan was very happy. He originally wanted to recall Zhou Yu and ask him to help deal with Zhang Zhao's matter.

Let's see if there's any good solution, but Zhou Yu tells Sun Quan that Cao Cao's retreat is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Sun Quan hesitated for a long time, but in the end he had no choice but to give up the idea of ​​recalling Zhou Yu. He glanced at Zhang Hong and sighed, "The Dragon Guards have threatened to kill Zhang Zhao's entire family. This matter has now become the most important issue in Jiangdong. Zigang, do you have any good ideas?"

Zhang Zhao's entire family still has surviving members, and Sun Quan has gathered them together and sent people to protect them day and night. However, Sun Quan is still not at ease.

After all, the Dragon Guards only obeyed the Emperor; they were not just making empty threats. Sooner or later, Zhang Zhao's entire family would be slaughtered.

Zhang Hong stroked his graying beard and sighed helplessly. "My lord, all I can say is that we can only protect Zhang Zhao for a while. Since the emperor took control of Xuchang, he has become increasingly decisive in his actions, which is an indisputable fact. The court is also using this to proclaim that we are rebels. In the past, the court's influence did not extend to Jiangdong, but this time, it is clear that the court has made up its mind. Even if it does not send troops to attack us for the time being, it will not let us have peace."

Yu Fan nodded. "That's right. It's clear that the court is very determined. The emperor has declared Zhang Zhao a traitor. Even if the lord sends troops to protect him, the Dragon Guards might still take action at any time."

Sun Quan glared at him. "Can I really not send anyone to protect him? Zhang Zhao has followed me for many years and has always done his best. So many people are watching. If I ignore his life or death, who will support me in the future?"

This was an unsolvable problem, so Yu Fan had no choice but to shut up, thinking to himself: I'd better not say anything more, lest I arouse Sun Quan's suspicion.

The emperor wanted Zhang Zhao dead, and Sun Quan sent troops to protect Zhang Zhao. How would the people of Jiangdong view this?
Even a fool could see that Sun Quan was rebelling against the imperial court.

Sun Quan was somewhat indignant and complained, "I just don't understand. After the Battle of Red Cliffs, didn't the emperor leave long ago? I thought he had let go and wouldn't interfere in this matter anymore."

Sun Quan couldn't understand it. After the emperor left, he was actually quite relieved, thinking to himself: Now that the emperor is gone, I can slowly wear down Cao Cao, since Cao Cao has no intention of crossing the Yangtze River anyway.

Gu Yong hesitated, seemingly wanting to say something, so Sun Quan nodded to him.

Gu Yong stepped forward and said, "My lord, we all know the Emperor's intentions regarding the Battle of Red Cliffs. He wanted to reap the benefits without lifting a finger, making us fight Cao Cao with all our might. However, the result did not meet his expectations. It seems that the Emperor withdrew, but in fact, he was very angry. That's why he ordered Zhang Zhao to be used as an example. He did this to show the court's determination and to warn the world that Jiangdong belongs to the court, and the court has the final say here!"

"The emperor is doing this to show his determination to the lord and Cao Cao. So, in my opinion, since the emperor is going to take action against Zhang Zhao, even if the lord sends people to protect him day and night, they will not give up."

Sun Quan sighed repeatedly, "I wanted to call Zhou Yu back, but Zhou Yu said that now is the time to advance, because Cao Cao is also dissatisfied with the emperor. This may really be an opportunity for us."

No one knew whether to be happy or worried. Jiangdong was in chaos, with the Dragon Guards lurking like ghosts in the shadows. Everyone was worried that they might suffer the same fate as Zhang Zhao.

Despite being on Sun Quan's territory, everyone remained tense and uneasy.

Whether Zhang Zhao could be saved or survived was uncertain, because the crisis had not yet been resolved.

The good news was that Cao Cao withdrew his troops from Jingnan, consolidated his forces, and focused his attention on defending Xuchang. Cao Cao also amassed a large number of troops in Nanyang and Yanzhou.

"Report!"

Someone ran in to report, "My lord, news has just come that the imperial court has also begun to reinforce Xudu. Troops from Qingzhou and Xuzhou are moving towards Xudu."

Sun Quan clapped his hands excitedly, "Great! It seems that, just as Zhou Yu predicted, the emperor is also wary of Cao Cao. I hope this battle between the dragon and the tiger can actually start."

Zhang Hong's brows relaxed, and a smile appeared on his face. "Whether they fight or not, it's a good thing for us. Their concentration of forces and their stalemate greatly reduces the pressure on Jiangdong. Cao Cao probably cares about his reputation and won't really dare to fight the court, but as long as they remain in a stalemate, it's good for us."

But they didn't know that this was just a scheme deliberately set up by Liu Xie to cooperate with Cao Cao.

Liu Xie's greatest talent in life was acting. When Cao Cao stationed his troops, Liu Xie also stationed his troops. At first glance, it seemed that the two sides were about to fight each other.

But this was merely to mislead Sun Quan and Zhou Yu.

…………

"Grand Commander, your wife has come to see you."

On this day, Lü Meng led the way and brought Xiao Qiao to Zhou Yu.

Han Dang, Zhou Tai, and the others greeted Xiao Qiao with smiles, and then tactfully withdrew.

Zhou Yu glanced at Xiao Qiao, his feelings somewhat complicated. (End of Chapter)