Three Kingdoms: I, Liu Feng, do not want to die

The atmosphere in the tent became tense.

Yu Jin's calmness and composure did not quell Cao Xiu's anger. In Cao Xiu's view, Yu Jin's excuses after his tolerance were just a cover-up after the truth was revealed.

Cao Xiu's knife tip trembled slightly, and he sneered, "Fine words and flattering appearance! Your Majesty is far away in Luoyang and doesn't know the details. If you knew that Guan Xing sent you letters six times in one month, do you think your Majesty would believe you? If you hadn't secretly communicated with the Shu thieves, why would Guan Xing send you letters so frequently? This letter clearly states everything, are you still trying to quibble?"

Seeing Cao Xiu's aggressive questioning, Yu Jin was so angry that his beard trembled. He immediately bowed and pointed to Luoyang: "General Zhengdong, His Majesty's decree clearly states that 'the Shu thieves are always good at spreading rumors and discord. Don't fall for their tricks.' If you want to kill me because of personal grudges, you might as well just kill me with a knife. Why use this groundless suspicion as an excuse to make people laugh at you!"

Seeing that Yu Jin refused to admit his fault and emphasized the word "personal grudge", Cao Xiu became even more angry: "You said I was suspicious without reason? Good! Good! Good! Take out the letters that Guan Xing sent several times before, and I will send someone to Luoyang to ask Your Majesty to make a judgment!"

Yu Jin secretly thought that this was not good.

The letters that were sent several times before had long been thrown into the fire pot by Yu Jin, so how could they be retrieved?

"To be honest with you, General Zhengdong, I had already thrown the letters that Guan Xing sent me several times into the fire basin and burned them. And I have no connection with the Shu bandits, so what's the point of keeping them?" Yu Jin's tone became weaker, and it was obvious that even Yu Jin himself did not believe that Cao Xiu would approve of this reason.

really.

Cao Xiu laughed, "Yu Wen Ze, I think you are guilty! No wonder Wen Pin died in Shiyang, but you escaped alone.

You must have colluded with Liu Feng a long time ago, which led to Liu Feng's seizure of Shiyang City and Wen Pin's death. Now you want to repeat the same trick and offer Pingchun to Guan Xing, so that I will die in Pingchun as well?"

Yu Jin was almost laughing when he heard Cao Xiu's imagination.

If he wasn't afraid of further angering Cao Xiu and making things out of control, Yu Jin really wanted to say: "Is it my fault that Shiyang couldn't be defended without reinforcements? You are the General of the Eastern Expedition, why don't you lead troops to rescue?"

Taking a deep breath, Yu Jin suppressed his anger again: "General Zhengdong, I have no intention of offering Pingchun to you. What do you want me to do to make you believe me?"

Yu Jin didn't intend to argue and directly threw the question to Cao Xiu.

When Guan Xing first wrote to Yu Jin, he did not take the letter seriously. In addition, he was resentful of Cao Xiu's humiliation at the time and was too lazy to report it to Cao Xiu and simply burned the matter. At this moment, Yu Jin was unable to defend himself.

Just when the atmosphere was getting cold, the attendant Yang Ji, who came to announce the imperial edict, finally arrived.

Originally, Yang Ji was resting in the city when he suddenly heard Cao Xiu running towards the military camp angrily. Yang Ji felt something was wrong and hurriedly rode his horse to chase him to the camp.

After learning the cause of the conflict between Cao Xiu and Yu Jin, Yang Ji hurriedly advised: "General Zhengdong, this must be a misunderstanding. Don't fall into the trap of the Shu thieves!
General Zhennan's wife and children are still in Luoyang. If General Zhennan really intends to surrender to Shu, wouldn't he be cutting himself off from his wife and children?"

When Cao Xiu heard Yang Ji mention Yu Jin's wife and children, he couldn't help but frown. His anger subsided a lot. His gradually regained rationality told Cao Xiu: It seems that I really misunderstood Yu Jin just now.

but.

Cao Xiu would not admit his mistake, let alone to Yu Jin.

First he humiliated Yu Jin as a surrendered general, and then he suspected Yu Jin of secretly communicating with Guan Xing. If he admitted his mistake, how would Cao Xiu save his face?

Cao Xiu still held his sword: "Minister Yang, don't be fooled by Yu Wenze. He showed no mercy when he killed his old friend Chang Xi. Would such a man care about his wife and children? Moreover, when he surrendered to Guan Yu in Fancheng, did he ever consider the lives of his wife and children?"

Yu Jin closed his eyes and looked up: "Since General Zhengdong doesn't believe me, then chop me off with a sword and let Minister Yang take my head back to Luoyang to prove my conscience."

Cao Xiu wanted to find a way out, but when he saw Yu Jin stubbornly asking for death, he got angry again: "Yu Wen Ze, do you think I dare not?"

Yang Ji quickly held down Cao Xiu's hand holding the knife and said, "General Zhengdong, calm down. If we kill General Zhennan based on Guan Xing's letter, the soldiers will be dissatisfied. Why don't we wait until I return to Luoyang to report to Your Majesty and ask Your Majesty to make the decision?"

Cao Xiu had already realized that he had misunderstood Yu Jin, but he was stubborn and refused to admit his mistake. He also didn't really want to kill Yu Jin at this time. After a moment's stalemate, he put his sword back into its sheath.

"For the sake of Minister Yang, I will spare your life for now. If I find out that you have any signs of secretly communicating with Guan Xing again, I will kill you!" Cao Xiu warned Yu Jin severely, then turned and left.

Yang Ji turned around and tried to comfort Yu Jin: "General Zhennan, you have been wronged. His Majesty has no suspicion of you at all. You must not forget His Majesty's trust because of a few bad words from General Zhengdong."

And inside.

Yang Ji wanted to curse loudly.

Is it easy for me to come all the way from Luoyang to Pingchun?
I originally wanted to rest for a few days before going back, but now I have to travel day and night to return just because of this stupid thing you two have done!

Yu Jin also felt a little sorry for Yang Ji, so he sighed and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your hard work, Minister Yang. Now the Shu thieves are plotting to take over Jiangdong, and the General Zhengdong has a prejudice against me. I am worried that there will be more quarrels in the future.

After Yang Shizhong returns to Luoyang, he can convey my intention and ask Your Majesty to transfer me to another place and appoint another good general to garrison Pingchun with the General of the Eastern Expedition."

Yang Ji promised: "I will report General Zhennan's intention to Your Majesty, but it is not easy for me to travel, and it will take time to appoint another good general. I hope General Zhennan will be patient for the time being."

Yu Jin nodded and said, "Rest assured, Minister Yang, I have received great favors from the late emperor and Your Majesty, and I will never betray the Great Wei."

After pacifying Yu Jin, Yang Ji breathed a sigh of relief and left.

But after Yang Ji left, Yu Jin could no longer hold back his anger and kicked the table in the military tent away.

"Cao-Wen-Lie!"

The sound of gnashing teeth was like the roar of a wild beast.

at the same time.

Yu Jin also hated Guan Xing. If Guan Xing had not sent him a series of letters, how could he have been caught by Cao Xiu today?

Thinking of Guan Xing, Yu Jin thought of Guan Yu and the time when Guan Yu flooded seven armies.

That was the source of Yu Jin's shame and also the beginning of the frequent humiliations he suffered in recent years.

The humiliation brought by Guan’s father and son made Yu Jin even angrier!

Cao Xiu, who had returned to the Pingchun government office, was still angry.

Cao Xiu felt ashamed for scolding and questioning Yu Jin today, and the root cause of Cao Xiu's embarrassment was that Liu Feng was plotting to take over Jiangdong.

"Little Liu Feng, I didn't go looking for you, but you came to me on your own. You act like a rat. Do you really think I will be taken advantage of by you like Wen Zhongye?"

Cao Xiu already had doubts in his heart.

It is suspected that Liu Feng will repeat his old tricks and openly plot to take Jiangdong, but actually plot to take Pingchun, just like the last time Liu Feng launched a surprise attack on Shiyang.

Think of this.

Cao Xiu summoned the captain in charge of scouting and arranged a large number of scouts to gather intelligence on Jiangxia and Jiangdong.

If it was just Guan Xing, Cao Xiu would not have been so cautious.

But since his opponent is Liu Feng, Cao Xiu has to be cautious.

Cao Xiu also felt fortunate that Cao Pi had issued an edict saying that Liu Feng was in Wuchang. Otherwise, if he had misjudged his opponent, the consequences would have been very serious.

Naturally, the large-scale reconnaissance activities could not be concealed from Guan Ping in Shiyang.

After Guan Ping noticed that the number of Wei scouts between Pingchun and Shiyang had increased dramatically compared to the past, he quickly sent someone to Wuchang to inform Guan Xing.

"Cao Xiu took the bait."

Guan Xing's tone was more smiling.

Seven letters had been sent to Yu Jin in succession, but Cao Xiu in Pingchun had just responded.

Guan Xing guessed that Cao Pi must have received Shi Bao's urgent secret report and sent someone to inform Cao Xiu to be on guard.

Liu Feng asked Shi Bao to deliver a letter to Sima Yi and Guan Xing to deliver a letter to Yu Jin. Their purpose was the same: to lure the snake out of its hole.

It took a month for Cao Xiu of Pingchun to send more scouts, which made Guan Xing feel relieved.

after all.

When using the strategy of luring the snake out of its hole, the most feared thing is that the other party will not accept the move.

It’s like playing chess with someone. You think hard and come up with a complete set of killer moves, but the premise of this complete set of killer moves is that the other party is willing to play chess with you.

As a result, the other party just says "My mother is calling me home for dinner" and stops playing with you. Then no matter how ingenious your series of killing moves are, they will be of no use!

Liu Feng on the side also smiled: "Cao Xiu has taken the bait, the only thing left is Sun Quan. If Sun Quan can't do what I want, it will be very troublesome."

Guan Xing said with a smile: "Nowadays, many of Jiangdong's civil and military leaders have turned against Sun Quan. It is difficult for Sun Quan to protect himself, let alone compete with the world.

I think Sun Quan cannot refuse the conditions His Highness has put forward. If Sun Quan really cannot understand the situation, then he can only use force. "

Before using force to conquer Jiangdong, Liu Feng's main goal was to take over Jiangdong without bloodshed, but it was not easy to achieve this goal.

Although Sun Quan had already lost the overall situation, there were still many variables in Liu Feng's attempt to take over Jiangdong alone.

These variables cannot be avoided simply through human calculations.

The difference between humans and AI is that not everything humans do is logical, nor is it necessarily the optimal solution.

For example, when Mi Fang surrendered the city, neither Liu Bei nor Cao Cao could have guessed this result. Cao Cao even specifically ordered Cao Ren not to pursue Guan Yu, but to let Guan Yu go back and fight Sun Quan for a few years.

For example, when Ma Su lost Jieting, Zhuge Liang could not understand how Ma Su could want to "look down from a high position and be unstoppable", and Zhang He did not expect that his opponent would be so unimaginably weak, as if Ma Su was a spy planted by Sima Yi next to Zhuge Liang.

Liu Feng didn't believe that he could predict the future, just as he said to Liu Bei when he left Chang'an: try his luck, and if luck is not good, return to Chang'an.

As early as a month ago.

Liu Feng sent Wang Chong as an envoy with a thousand pieces of Shu brocade to Chaisang to present a gift to Lu Xun.

It was both a gift and a question about Lu Xun's attitude.

This was not the first time Liu Feng had cooperated with Lu Xun. As early as when Cao Pi attacked Ruxukou, Liu Feng cooperated with Lu Xun to eliminate Han Zong, Wen Pin and others.

At that time, Lu Xun was basically in a semi-surrendered state.

Since Liu Feng was not very confident that he could take over Jiangdong alone at that time, he did not let Lu Xun fully express his position.

The purpose of sending Wang Chong this time was to use Lu Xun's power in Jiangdong to fulfill his intention of taking over Jiangdong alone.

Lu Xun's attitude was also very correct.

The day after Wang Chong arrived in Chaisang, Lu Xun took Wang Chong to Jianye.

Liu Feng needed Lu Xun to lobby the ruler and his ministers in Jiangdong to achieve a peaceful transition of political power in Jiangdong.

This will take a long time and involve a lot of variables.

Liu Feng was not in a hurry either.

If Sun Quan expressed his agreement as soon as Wang Chong arrived in Jianye, Liu Feng would have to suspect that Sun Quan was planning to defect again. As Liu Feng expected.

Sun Quan had not been eating or sleeping well for the past half month. He was worried every day about the future of Jiangdong and the Sun family, and he had even pulled a lot of his hair out.

Sun Quan's original idea was to be a small invisible figure between Liu Bei and Cao Pi, and then develop quietly, accumulate strength quietly, and wait for the right time.

result.

After Liu Feng captured Guanzhong through a surprise attack on Chang'an, he fled directly to Wuchang before the Yongliang counties were completely stabilized. He even sent Wang Chong as an envoy to Jianye to demand that Sun Quan cede power.

This made Sun Quan feel stuck in a dilemma.

Give up power, Sun Quan is not happy.

If he doesn't give up power, Liu Feng will clearly have the attitude of "if you don't give it to me, I'll take it away."

With Jiangdong's current military strength, it is absolutely unable to stop the Jingzhou navy from top to bottom, and the Jiangdong civil and military leaders are not very motivated to fight. No one wants to fight a battle that has no benefits and cannot be won.

If Sun Quan insisted, he might be sold out by civil and military officials just like in the Battle of Hefei.

Unless Sun Quan again pledged his loyalty to Cao Pi, he might be able to prevent Liu Feng from taking over Jiangdong.

But Cao Pi was not a good man. Becoming a vassal to Cao Pi was just like driving away the tiger and attracting the wolf. They could still not escape the fate of being treated as fish on the chopping board.

Inside the royal palace.

Sun Quan was leaning on a stool alone when his attendant Gu Li came over quickly and said, "Your Majesty, someone has arrived from Jiangbei. It's Xing Zhen, the Minister of State Affairs of Cao Wei."

Sun Quan couldn't help but frown. Xing Zhen was the Minister of Rites of Cao Wei who was sent by Cao Pi a few years ago to confer the title of King of Wu of Great Wei on Sun Quan. Now that he came again, he must have some ulterior motive.

"Strange, why would Xing Zhen come to see me at this time?"

Sun Quan was confused.

Before Liu Feng had even thought through the request he had made, Cao Pi sent someone else!

"If Your Majesty doesn't want to see me, I will go and drive Xing Zhen away right now." Gu Li asked cautiously.

Sun Quan frowned and thought for a long time, then shook his head: "No, please invite Xing Zhen in to talk."

What is coming will always come.

Sun Quan also wanted to hear Cao Pi's conditions first.

What surprised Sun Quan was that Cao Pi's conditions this time were not harsh at all: not only did he promise that the King of Wu of Wei would guard Jiangdong for generations, but he also did not have to send his son as a hostage.

however.

Although the conditions offered by Cao Pi were very attractive, Sun Quan felt that they were not real at all.

A few verbal promises are meaningless. What’s the difference between saying them and not saying them?
When Xing Zhen told Sun Quan about Liu Feng's secret plan to take over Jiangdong, Sun Quan also guessed Cao Pi's intention.

This is because they are afraid that Liu Feng will take over Jiangdong alone and disrupt the situation!

Especially the sentence "Poyang prefect Lu Xun is secretly communicating with Liu Feng, and seems to have the intention of offering Poyang to him" made Sun Quan want to laugh even more.

If Sun Quan punished Lu Xun, it would be tantamount to cutting off one of his own arms; if Sun Quan did not punish Lu Xun, he would have to worry about Lu Xun offering Poyang.

No matter what choice Sun Quan makes, he will be digging his own grave.

Cao Pi did not come to help, but to tell Sun Quan: Come and eat!
[One Cao Pi, one Liu Feng, both want my Jiangdong, how hateful! ] Sun Quan was very upset.

After saying a few perfunctory words to Xing Zhen, Sun Quan sent someone to invite Lu Xun to the palace and told Lu Xun that Cao Pi had sent Xing Zhen to lobby.

"Boyan, you are right. Today, Jiangdong is a piece of meat on the chopping board of both the Han and Wei dynasties. It has long been included in the menu of both sides." Sun Quan's tone was filled with anger, bitterness and helplessness.

Anyone who wants to be the only one in power does not want to be treated as meat on the chopping board and included in the opponent's menu.

However, a weak country has no diplomacy and is not qualified to be a cook.

No matter how angry, bitter, or helpless Sun Quan is, he cannot change the fact that Jiangdong is currently on the menu.

"Your Majesty, today, the division of the world between Han and Wei is a foregone conclusion.

For Cao Pi, taking Jiangdong would allow him to build a navy that could compete with Liu Bei; for Liu Bei, taking Jiangdong would allow him to control the entire Jianghuai region.

Now that Liu Bei had seized the initiative, he sent Liu Feng to Wuchang, hoping that the Supreme Emperor would peacefully give up the power of Jiangdong.

Not only did he promise the Supreme the title of Marquis of Wu, he also promised to form an alliance with the Supreme, and let his son Liu Lin marry the Supreme's third daughter.

If this could be accomplished, Jiangdong could be spared the suffering of war; if this could not be accomplished, given Liu Feng's character, he would never give up and would definitely seize it by force.

Nowadays, there are many civil and military officials in Jiangdong who are afraid of fighting, and the powerful people in various counties are afraid that Liu Feng will punish them, so there must be many who will respond to Liu Feng.

Once the war begins, the Supreme will have no chance of winning! By then, even if the Supreme wants to negotiate, there will be no chance. "

Lu Xun persuaded him again.

In order to complete the peaceful transfer of power in Jiangdong, Liu Feng even used his son as a political tool and wanted to make Sun Quan's third daughter, Sun Luyu, Liu Lin's legal wife.

In other words.

As long as Sun Quan was willing to give up power, Liu Feng would not treat Sun Quan unfairly, and Liu Feng's eldest son would have to call Sun Quan his father-in-law.

Liu Feng has been thinking about having Sun Quan's daughter as his daughter-in-law for a long time.

As early as the Battle of Jingzhou, Liu Feng sent Han Zhong to lobby Sun Quan, saying, "The deputy general has a son who is only three years old and very smart. I heard that the Marquis of Wu has a daughter who is also only three years old and very clever. I came to ask for marriage, so that the two families can reconcile and work together to defeat Cao. This is truly a good thing, please consider it."

He also said, "The sister of Marquis Wu has long since betrayed the king, and the king has already married a virtuous woman in Xichuan as his principal wife. The king and Marquis Wu have long lost the relationship of marriage according to etiquette and law. Therefore, it is not beyond etiquette for the son of the deputy general to marry the daughter of Marquis Wu."

Sun Quan was very angry at that time.

Now the boomerang flew back again, making Sun Quan's mood extremely complicated.

At that time, Sun Quan could justifiably reject Liu Feng's kindness, but now Sun Quan has to seriously weigh the pros and cons.

Today, Liu Feng is no longer the deputy army general of the past, but the King of Yan, who is most respected by Liu Bei, the Emperor of the Han Dynasty, who controls Jing, Yi, Yong and Liang!
If Liu Feng had not wanted to take over Jiangdong through peaceful means, Sun Luyu would not have been qualified to be the daughter-in-law of the King of Yan!

No matter how you look at it, Sun Quan is marrying above his station!
Seeing Sun Quan remained silent, Lu Xun continued, "I understand your feelings. If you think that giving Jiangdong to Liu Feng is a shame to your father and brother, I have a plan that can help you become famous all over the world. Then you can retire after achieving success, and no one will dare to underestimate you."

Sun Quan raised his head suddenly: "What's the plan?"

Lu Xun guessed correctly.

Sun Quan was actually very clear about the current situation in the world, but he was unwilling to give up because of his face.

Therefore, when Lu Xun said that he could help Sun Quan become famous throughout the world, Sun Quan was finally moved.

Sun Quan was unwilling to give up Jiangdong to Liu Feng like a coward; but if he could retire after becoming famous throughout the world, the situation would be different.

At least Sun Quan could still brag to his descendants: It's not that I'm incapable, but that I took the overall situation into consideration, for the sake of the Han Dynasty, for the people of Jiangdong, and for...
It's okay for face.

For kings and princes, face is sometimes more important than success or failure.

Seeing that Sun Quan was interested, Lu Xun also told him the plan he had already conceived:
"Cao Pi got some secrets from somewhere and deliberately sent Xing Zhen to Jiangdong, hoping to make His Majesty suspect that I am secretly communicating with Liu Feng. Since this is the case, why not take advantage of their trick?

The Supreme Lord can put Wang Chong and I into prison, and at the same time appoint a new governor of Poyang to lead the troops in Chaisang, ostensibly to resist Liu Feng, but in reality to pretend to surrender to Cao Xiu.

Cao Xiu is greedy for merit and will surely attack Jiangxia in a hurry. As long as Cao Xiu leaves Pingchun, Liu Feng will have a way to defeat him.

If Cao Xiu is defeated, Your Majesty can attack Hefei again and join hands with Liu Feng to attack Shouchun. Not only will Your Majesty's long-cherished wish come true, but His Majesty will also be famous throughout the world."

Lu Xun slowly revealed his plan to join forces with Liu Feng to deceive Cao Xiu, which made Sun Quan very excited.

"Bo Yan, who do you think can take over the position of prefect of Poyang?" Sun Quan asked hurriedly.

Lu Xun recommended in a serious tone: "Zhou Cang, the commander of the western part of Danyang County, is courageous and resourceful. He can be appointed as the governor of Poyang and act for the emperor."

Sun Quan stood up and paced.

Sun Quan was quite interested in Lu Xun's plan, and he had also heard of Zhou Cang, the western commander of Danyang County, whom he recommended.

When Zhou Cang was young, he was studious and was selected as a filial and honest official. He served as the county magistrate of Ningguo County, the chief secretary of General Fenwei, and then the county magistrate of Huai'an County.

In the past, there was a bandit group in Qiantang named Peng Shi who gathered a crowd to cause chaos. Zhou Cang was appointed as the prime minister of Qiantang State. Within a month, he beheaded Peng Shi and his gang.

"With Ziyu's ability, he will be able to deceive Cao Xiu." Sun Quan's eyes flashed, and it was obvious that he had made a decision.

Sun Quan has never been a man who sits and waits for death.

It was not what Sun Quan wanted to see him die of depression in Jiangdong after lingering on.

Sun Quan didn't know whether Liu Feng would turn his back on him, but when Liu Feng was grinding the beans, Sun Quan also wanted to have a cup of bean juice first.

But in Sun Quan's heart, there was a more real idea: that was to first use Liu Feng's power to restore the military might of Jiangdong, and after defeating Cao Xiu and taking Hefei and Shouchun, whether to retire would depend on the specific circumstances.

[When Liu Bei was defeated and fled to Changbanpo, he only had Xiakou and Fankou, but he was willing to serve me, just like Goujian who endured the pain of tasting gall, and that’s how he built his current foundation. If Liu Bei could endure, I can endure too.] Sun Quan swore secretly.

Obviously.

Lu Xun's plan of "first helping Sun Quan become famous throughout the world" gave Sun Quan some inappropriate thoughts.

Lu Xun didn't know what Sun Quan was really thinking. He only knew that since Sun Quan agreed to the plan, Liu Feng's secret instructions had been half completed.

Conspiring to deceive Cao Xiu was both a token of Sun Quan's surrender and a token of Lu Xun's surrender.

Sun Quan didn't want to linger in Jiangdong, and Lu Xun didn't want to linger in Jiangdong either.

For Lu Xun: family inheritance is the most important thing.

For the sake of family inheritance, Lu Xun could change his name and become Sun Ce's son-in-law, and he could also deceive Cao Xiu into seizing Huainan for Liu Feng.

Naturally.

If Lu Xun can make great contributions, after Jiangdong returns to the Han Dynasty, Lu Xun will naturally become an official of the Han Dynasty.

This is also the promise Liu Feng made to the Jiangdong clans when he peacefully took back Jiangdong. (End of this chapter)