Three Kingdoms: Jiangdong is no longer a rat

Chapter 124 Tolls

Yuan Shu's conquest path in the last two or three years can be described as bizarre. The Battle of Xiangyang and the Battle of Yanzhou, which he personally led, both ended in disastrous defeats.

In the Battle of Xiangyang, he was defeated by Liu Biao and lost Sun Jian, his sharpest sword.

In the battle of Yanzhou, he was defeated five times in a row at Kuangting, Fengqiu, Xiangyi, Taishou and Ningling, and was chased to Jiujiang by Cao Cao like a dog, where he finally settled down.

Instead, it was a random move he made: appointing Wu Jing as the governor of Danyang and attacking Danyang, which unexpectedly achieved great success.

Wu Jing won victory after victory in Danyang, drove out Zhou Xin, defeated Xu Gong, occupied most of Danyang and several cities in Wujun, and marched straight to Wucheng. He frightened Zu Lang, Wang Lang and others into hiding in their homes, not daring to move. Half of Jiangdong was subdued by Wu Jing's tyranny.

Yuan Shu was shocked!
Sun Jian's old subordinates are so damn good at fighting, their combat effectiveness is beyond imagination.

Yuan Shu originally wanted to focus his attack on Xuzhou, but when he saw Zhu Zhi raising an army in Qiantang and coordinating with Wu Jing inside and outside, as if he was going to sweep across Wujun and Kuaiji, he became excited and decided to adjust his strategy and take over Xuzhou and Yangzhou at the same time.

In addition, Wu Jing and Zhu Zhi seemed to take him less and less seriously, which made him feel the danger of the chess piece being out of control, and indirectly prompted him to make the decision to send troops into Danyang.

However, his first strategic goal has always been Xuzhou, and the troops that can be transferred to Danyang are limited. Therefore, how many troops to send to Danyang and who will lead them became issues worth discussing.

"My Lord, I suggest you first send 10,000 troops into Danyang and garrison in strategic cities like Qu'a and Guangde. Don't participate in the attack, but let Wu Jing handle it. This will wear down his army. As for the commander, you can choose between Qiao Rui and Zhang Xun. Sun Ce must not be allowed to lead the troops into Danyang!"

There was a hint of vigilance in Yan Xiang's eyes. He came today not so much to discuss the commander of the army as to stop Sun Ce from entering Danyang.

After Sun Ce went up the river and captured Wancheng, the capital of Lujiang County, he twice submitted petitions to Yuan Shu for battle and attempted to lead his troops into Danyang. His ambition was obvious.

Yuan Shu stood up and paced back and forth in the room. This was his habitual action. Whenever he encountered something he was hesitant about, he liked to think while walking.

Deep down, he didn't want Sun Ce to lead his troops into Danyang. First, he admired Sun Ce. He once openly said to his subordinates, "If I had a son like Sun Lang, I would have no regrets in death." This clearly shows his fondness for Sun Ce.

But the more you like someone, the stronger your desire to control them becomes.

Second, Sun Jian's former subordinates showed great expectations for Sun Ce, which made him feel a little uneasy.

However, Yuan Shu also had his difficulties. He had promised Sun Ce the position of prefect of Jiujiang, but broke his promise. Not long ago, he promised Sun Ce the position of prefect of Lujiang, and he still planned to break his promise again.

Only Sun Ce didn't know his plan yet. If he knew, he would have wanted to kill him with his sword.
Can you please be honest?
Yuan Shu could foresee Sun Ce's anger, and he needed to do something to appease him.

Therefore, when Sun Ce requested to lead troops into Danyang, he showed some hesitation.

If he refused Sun Ce again, it would be bad news, as people would say he looked down on Sun Lang.
"What a pity, he's not my son."

Yuan Shu sighed slightly and said to Yan Xiang, "Regarding the dispatch of troops to Danyang, we can proceed as you wish. As for the commander to lead the troops, I will consider it for a while."

Yan Xiang's face was filled with anxiety. Just as he was about to continue speaking, Yuan Shu suddenly asked, "Have you received a reply from Zhu Zhi in the past few days?" Yan Xiang shook his head and said, "No."

Yuan Shu was furious, his chest heaving violently. "This man is increasingly disregarding me. I regret letting him go to Qiantang!"

What he didn't know was that Zhu Zhi was not unwilling to reply to his letter, but was too busy to reply to him.
At this moment, Zhu Zhi was no less angry than Yuan Shu, because Xu Sheng, who had repeatedly ruined his plans, immediately led his troops back after rescuing Yan Baihu, and followed his troops around like a shadow, looking for opportunities to launch sneak attacks from time to time.

Every time Zhu Zhi looked at Xu Sheng in the distance, he couldn't help feeling strange in his heart, as if the other party was laughing at him.

This feeling made him feel suffocated, but at the moment he only had two hundred cavalrymen under his command. He was unable to drive away the annoying fly, and instead had to be on guard against the enemy's surprise attack at all times.

It was precisely because of the constant harassment from the enemy cavalry that Zhu Zhijun's marching speed slowed down a lot.

Zhu Zhi seemed to have smelled the scent of Yan Yi's army. He considered dividing his troops to intercept Xu Sheng's troops several times. However, the terrain nearby was not good. If he left too few troops, he would not be able to stop them. If he left too many, it would be like drinking poison to quench thirst. Finally, he sighed and gave up this plan temporarily. He planned to divide his troops to intercept them by taking advantage of the mountain pass when he reached Lushan. In this way, only a small number of troops would be needed to stop the enemy.

In this extremely tense atmosphere, the nervous Zhu Zhijun finally arrived at the Nanxiang official road five miles east of Yong'an.

However, when they saw the unfamiliar troops crowded and on high alert at the important roads around the official road, every soldier of Zhu Zhi's army felt disheartened.

The sudden arrival of the opposing force seemed to have been waiting for a long time. A cursory glance revealed at least three thousand men. Their soldiers wore scarlet armor and dark green scarves around their necks, a hallmark of Han You's army.

Coupled with the large Korean flag fluttering in front of the formation, its identity is self-evident.

Why is Han Youjun here? What do they want to do?!

Under the anxious gaze of his subordinates, Zhu Zhi rode out with a gloomy expression, stood in front of the formation, and shouted loudly, "Excuse me, is that Lord Han across from us?"

A hearty laugh rang out, and Han You, dressed in armor and a Liangguan helmet, rode out on his horse. He calmly came to about three or four hundred steps in front of Zhu Zhi and looked at him with a mocking look: "Mr. Zhu, you must be tired from riding. I have been waiting for you for a long time."

Zhu Zhi clasped his fists and said patiently, "It's been many years since we last met. Mr. Han is even more impressive than before. I wonder why Mr. Han blocked our army's path?"

Han You looked at his embarrassed appearance and almost burst out laughing. He thought to himself, "You, Mr. Zhu, have come to this day." His expression became serious and he said with a stern face, "This is my Yong'an territory. I have the responsibility to protect the land and the people. I wonder why Mr. Zhu has invaded my territory?"

Zhu Zhi was furious, feeling like a bully in plain sight. On any other day, how could this person dare to speak to him like that? However, now that he needed help, he could only suppress his anger and try to keep his expression normal. He said loudly, "Our army has defeated Yan Baihu and Yan Yi's troops and is about to return to Qiantang. This is a short journey, so I hope Mr. Han will give us a favor."

Han You had long observed Xu Shengjun's eager gaze from afar, and he knew exactly what was going on. Hearing this, he said, "Mr. Zhu and I are old acquaintances, and we should have yielded. However, when I was in charge of Yong'an, I issued a decree requiring all people passing through here to pay customs duties. I wonder if Mr. Zhu would be willing to pay the taxes?"

Customs tax refers to the transit tax levied on major water and land transportation routes, which is similar to the toll in later generations.

Zhu Zhi was unaware that Han You was treating him like a toy, and thought he was just trying to take advantage of the situation. Although he felt the greatest shame in his life, he felt relieved and asked, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do. I wonder how the customs and taxes are collected in your territory?"

In his opinion, what Han You feared was nothing more than the Zhu-Wu coalition attacking Yong'an. Now that he held the trump card of giving up the attack on Yong'an, how could he not let the other party go when it was in their interest?
(End of this chapter)