Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 493 King of Southern Chu

The great battle had just ended, on the banks of the Xiang River, outside the city of Linxiang.

In the distance, rolling hills and mountains rise and fall, while nearby, Jingzhou soldiers clean up the battlefield. Crows, drawn by the scent of blood, arrive, swarming in the sky, cawing incessantly, some perching on treetops, peering at the corpses of Chen's soldiers on the riverbank.

Liu Bei, wearing wet boots, stepped into the icy paddy field. Having lived in Jingnan for many years, he was used to the bone-chilling cold.

After surveying half of the battlefield and finding no fleeing enemy, Liu Bei found a clean spot to sit down and said, "Although Changsha is cold and desolate, it has more people than Guiyang. With Changsha as our base, we can then look to Nan Commandery for the future."

Li Yan thoughtfully presented the new boots, saying, "The weather is cold, my lord should change into new boots to avoid catching a cold."

Li Yan, courtesy name Zhengfang, was a native of Nanyang County. He served as a county official in his youth and was known for his talent and competence.

When Yuan Shu was in charge of Jingzhou, Li Yan, having found a way to serve him and advance in his career, was promoted from a local official to a county magistrate, thus gaining entry into officialdom.

When Li Yan was transferred to the position of magistrate of Xiangnan County, he was serving Liu Bei in his northern expedition. When Liu Bei captured Lingling and Guiyang, Li Yan realized that Yuan Shu was unpopular and that Liu Bei was gradually gaining the momentum to sweep through southern Jingzhou. Therefore, he sent someone to join him.

When Yuan Shu mobilized a large army to launch a northern expedition, Liu Bei assembled a large army and marched north. Led by Li Yan, they fought their way to Linxiang and forced Yuan Huan to send troops, defeating and killing him.

Li Yan, through his military and political abilities, won Liu Bei's favor. The killing of Yuan Huan was a result of Li Yan's strategy. Yuan Huan originally intended to hold Linxiang, but Li Yan suggested a surprise attack on Yiyang, cutting off Linxiang's communication with the outside world. To avoid being surrounded, Yuan Huan had no choice but to lead his troops out of the city to fight Liu Bei, whereupon he was ultimately killed.

For his meritorious service, Li Yan was eventually appointed by Liu Bei as Military Advisor and General, and given the responsibility of rectifying military discipline and devising strategies.

Seeing Li Yan holding clean boots, Liu Bei sighed deeply at Li Yan's thoughtfulness and said, "This is a matter for servants, not something that officials should do."

Li Yan smiled and said, "Your Majesty is the sovereign, and I am your subject. Your Majesty's body is as precious as a thousand pieces of gold, and I, your subject, should cherish it. How can I not cherish it if it is not my duty?"

Liu Bei nodded to himself, thinking that Li Yan was loyal and capable.

While Liu Bei was changing his boots, Li Yan congratulated him, saying, "Changsha has more than 60,000 registered households, which is the most common among the counties of Southern Chu. Now that you, my lord, have taken Changsha and Wuling County, and while Yuan Shu has been captured and the State of Chen is in turmoil, take Jiangling in the north to govern it. By combining the household registrations of the four counties of Southern Chu, the population can reach one million. At that time, you can achieve the cause of becoming the King of Chu."

The Three Chu states were divided into Southern Chu, Eastern Chu, and Western Chu. Pei, Chen, Runan, and Nanjun, located between the Han and Huai rivers, constituted Western Chu; Donghai, Wu, and Guangling, east of Pengcheng, constituted Eastern Chu; and Hengshan, Jiujiang, Jiangnan, Yuzhang, and Changsha constituted Southern Chu. Therefore, Xiang Yu established his base in Pengcheng and proclaimed himself the Hegemon-King of Western Chu.

Looking at Linxiang City amidst the rivers, Liu Bei sighed and said, "Yuan Shu established his power based on his family background, and at his peak, he dominated the entire Yangtze River region. Although he is now weak, he still has 100,000 armored soldiers. I thought that even if Yuan Shu was no match for Zhang Yu, he could still fight him for several years. But who could have predicted that Yuan Shu would be captured in a single day? He is not only the laughingstock of the world, but he also makes me deeply worried about Zhang Yu!"

Since the end of the Han Dynasty, numerous warlords have risen up. Zhang Yu raised an army in Dai, launched a western expedition against Li Jue, a northern campaign against Gongsun Zan, secured Longyou, pacified Yuan Shao in the east, and now captured Yuan Shu in the south. He is almost sweeping away all the warlords in the world.

Liu Bei had traveled from Hebei to Southern Chu, where he had met many warlords. Now, seeing that all the warlords of the Central Plains had been defeated by Zhang Yu, Liu Bei felt nothing but admiration.

Of course, Liu Bei was not one to give up easily. Although he admired and was deeply worried about Zhang Yu, he dared to challenge him!
Li Yan pondered for a moment and said, "In the past, our lord allied with Sun Ce and Cao Cao to attack Yuan Shu. Now that Zhang Yu almost controls China, it would be better to join forces with Cao and Sun again to defend against the enemy. Sun wants to take Hanzhong, and Bashu is located in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River; if our lord can control Nan Chu, he can control the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. Cao Cao, on the other hand, controls Jiangzuo and Huainan, and can guard the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. The three of us can then work together to defend against the powerful enemy!"

"The Yangtze River is like a natural barrier. Although the Tang people are skilled in archery and horsemanship and their population is several times that of the southern lands, the three families can use their boats as a wall to block the Tang people north of the Yangtze and Han rivers. If we can hold off the enemy, my lord can then join the other two families in a slow northern expedition and perhaps achieve great things."

Liu Bei nodded slightly; Li Yan's strategy of forming an alliance was good.

Because of the small court in Shouchun, he maintained a good relationship with Cao Cao, since both of them were loyal to the Han dynasty. Although he had previously maintained contact with the Sun family of Bashu, their relationship had cooled somewhat after Sun Jian's death and Sun Ce's ascension to the throne, when the latter no longer ventured eastward. However, given their shared interests, resuming diplomatic exchanges between the two families was by no means a problem.

"Should we send an envoy to contact Cao Cao today?" Liu Bei asked.

"No!"

Li Yan pondered for a moment and said, “The Emperor governs from Shouchun, which is adjacent to Yuzhou. Compared to you, my lord, Cao Cao is probably most worried about Zhang Yu, so it would be better to wait for Cao Cao’s envoy. Your priority now is to expand your territory. When Zhang Yu’s army reaches the Jianghan region, lead your troops to seize Nanjun and Wuling.” After a pause, Li Yan emphasized, “Jiangling is below. You need to pacify Jiangxia in the east and take Xiangfan in the north. Xiangfan is separated from the Han River. If it can be repaired and made into a strong city, then you can use a corner of southern Chu to resist the powerful army of the Central Plains.”

"At that time, the north was relatively peaceful. My lord sent generals south, firstly to avenge Shi Xie's betrayal, and secondly to take full advantage of the South China Sea. My lord now controls two provinces. Even if he cannot launch a northern expedition to the Central Plains, if he joins forces with Cao Cao and Sun Ce, the three of them can jointly contend with a powerful enemy and achieve hegemony."

Although Li Yan was cunning and power-hungry, his talent was undeniable. As a native of Nanyang, he was well-versed in the geography of Jingzhou and, under extreme circumstances, devised a foundation for Liu Bei's empire: an alliance with Cao Cao in the east, a truce with Sun Ce in the west, the defense of Xiangfan in the north, and the expansion of Jiaoling in the south.

Of course, strategy is one thing, but whether it can be implemented is another big question.

Historically, Zhou Yu, Gan Ning, and Lu Su all desired to divide the country along the Yangtze River, establishing a system of north-south division. However, all three ultimately failed. Zhou Yu conquered Nan Commandery but died from an arrow wound; Gan Ning was not given important positions and remained a mediocre general; Lu Su changed the division from north-south to a tripartite balance of power.

Now, Li Yan hopes that Liu Bei will achieve his planned hegemonic ambitions, but there are two major problems. First, to capture Jiangling and take Nan Commandery; second, to capture Xiangfan and Xiakou. Capturing Jiangling might be possible by taking advantage of the chaos in Chen State, but capturing Xiangfan and Xiakou would inevitably require fighting against Zhang Yu and Huang Zu.

Of course, it was difficult, but the key was that Liu Bei at least had a goal and was able to achieve it.

Liu Bei's face lit up with joy, and he said with a smile, "What Zhengfang said is indeed a brilliant idea. We have been fighting Yuan Huan for a long time now. Let's first go to Linxiang to rest and reorganize, and then lead our troops to conquer Jiangling."

Li Yan pondered for a moment and said, "My lord's foundation in Southern Chu is somewhat weak. If you wish to use this to gain control over the Tang people, you need to form marriage alliances with the local powerful clans. Only by winning the hearts of the people and strengthening your own forces, and by appointing virtuous and capable individuals to your posts, can you prevent Southern Chu from becoming chaotic."

Liu Bei pondered for a moment and said, "I have no son of my own. I can adopt a son as my own and marry a woman from a prominent family. This might win over the powerful families of Southern Chu."

"Everything is for the Lord's sake!" Li Yan bowed and said.

"I am not happy about the fall of Linxiang, but about gaining Zheng Fang's assistance." Liu Bei helped Li Yan up, clasped his hands tightly, and said, "If you do not abandon me, I will never abandon you!"

At a time when the emperor and his ministers were expressing their feelings for each other, Jian Yong arrived at an inopportune moment.

"My lord, something terrible has happened!"

Jian Yong hurried over and said urgently, "According to the officials of Changsha County, Yuan Shu has been captured by Zhang Yu, and the entire state of Chen is determined to surrender. They have already sent envoys to pay homage to Zhang Yu, and Zhang Yu's army may arrive in Wancheng soon."

"what!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei's expression changed drastically, and he said, "How could the Chen people surrender so quickly? If Zhang Yu reaches Wancheng, then Jingzhou will likely be in great turmoil."

After a moment's pause, Liu Bei looked at Li Yan and asked, "What are your views on this matter?"

Li Yan took a deep breath and said, "Since the Chen people have already surrendered to Zhang Yu, we must race against time. My lord, you might as well leave some men to guard Linxiang, and tomorrow we can go down the Xiang River to Dongting Lake, then turn to the Yangtze River and go upstream to take Jiangling. Try to capture Jiangling before Zhang Yu can reinforce his troops."

"What about Wuling Prefecture?" Jian Yong asked.

“Wuling County is located in the south of the Yangtze River. With the help of ships and naval forces, it can cut off communication between the north and south. At that time, our army had already occupied Jiangling. If Wuling County sent a general to conquer it, we could have taken it,” Li Yan said.

Liu Bei gripped his sword hilt tightly and said in a deep voice, "Leave Yunchang to guard Changsha, and tomorrow the main army will follow me to Jiangling."

"promise"

(End of this chapter)