I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 18 Confrontation!

Seeing Sun Ce still apologizing to Liu Miao like a complete fool, Zhou Yu knew in his heart that something was wrong!

If we fail to handle this properly today, we risk losing both our wife and our army!
Zhou Yu just managed to clear his mind in an instant!

Liu Miao's visit is very likely motivated by his desire for Sun Jian's legacy!

Besides his wife Lady Wu and Sun Ce, Sun Jian's greatest legacy was those several thousand veteran soldiers who were good at fighting!

Liu Miao must have come for this reason!
"hiss……"

Zhou Yu's gaze towards Liu Miao completely changed!

A roundabout way to save the country—their ambitions are far-reaching!
When did this land of Huainan come to have such a person?
How should Bo Fu and I deal with Liu Miao...?

"Lord Liu, Gongjin has been helping me with my household affairs lately, working day and night. He is probably feeling dizzy and unable to compose a piece that will satisfy you. Please forgive him."

Only Sun Ce was still engrossed in the controversy surrounding "composing music," which Liu Miao and Zhou Yu found somewhat amusing.

"It's out of the way."

Liu Miao let the matter drop and then pulled Zhou Yu's arm into his embrace again: "Gongjin, you must also take care of your health, lest you overwork yourself! You must know that overworking will shorten your lifespan, and everything must be done in moderation. You cannot always go against the will of Heaven."

The same sentence, spoken, evoked different thoughts in the four people.

Liu Miao was genuinely worried that Zhou Yu would die young, so he advised him to cherish his life.

Sun Ce was deeply moved, thinking that Liu Miao was truly a good person! Despite being humiliated by Zhou Yu, he still cared so much for Gongjin, truly a kind and gentle man!
Seeing that Sun Ce seemed to have developed goodwill towards Liu Miao, Chen Yu prayed in his heart that the marriage arrangement would go smoothly.

Only Zhou Yu was horrified, wondering what Liu Miao really meant. Was he going against the will of Heaven? Did Liu Miao's ambition really lie in conquering the world? Or was Liu Miao threatening him, trying to get him to make this happen and help him achieve his great cause?
After paying their respects to Sun Jian, the four of them, each with their own thoughts, headed to the main hall.

Both the Zhou and Sun families were prominent clans in Huainan, so the reception they received was naturally quite grand and impressive.

Although no entertainment is allowed during the funeral, the guests were not served rice porridge as ordinary people would. Instead, they were given mulberry juice transported from Jiaozhou to quench their thirst.

The mulberry juice was cloudy, with foam hanging in the cup, which made Zhou Yu and Chen Yu both uneasy and unable to lift their cups to drink this beverage that usually brought them joy.

As the foam in the cup rose and fell several times, about to sink to the bottom, Chen Yu finally steeled himself and took the initiative to ask a question—

"The passing of the Marquis of Wucheng must be a great loss to his family and relatives, right?"

coming!

Zhou Yu stared intently at Chen Yu, his heart pounding with excitement, yet his words remained perfectly composed.

"Who wouldn't be saddened by the sudden misfortune of war suffered by the Marquis of Wucheng?"

The battle to protect Sun Ce's mother has officially begun!
"But family and relatives are closer after all, and they must be even more grief-stricken."

Chen Yu did not give Zhou Yu a chance to change the subject.

"How is Madam Wu doing lately? Please don't let this matter harm your health!"

Zhou Yu replied, "Although my wife is saddened, she still possesses the spirit of a woman who is no less capable than a man. She is still able to manage the affairs of the household, and her health should be fine."

Oh?
Chen Yu's eyes immediately lit up.

Although Zhou Yu was more talented and resourceful than Chen Yu, he couldn't withstand Chen Yu's long preparations for this matter and launched a major attack first!
"Madam is actually managing the household affairs herself? Well, Bofu is still young, and there are some things she can't handle on her own... With no male head of the household suddenly gone, things might get a bit difficult in the future! What do you say, Bofu?"

When Sun Ce heard Chen Yu suddenly call his name, he thought of his sudden loss of his father and sighed, "I never expected this to happen. Now that Father is gone, Mother is all alone, and it's really difficult for her to take good care of herself... Hmm?"

Sun Ce glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and realized that Zhou Yu was glaring at him!

What is this doing?
Sun Ce was baffled, completely unaware of the advantage his words had given Chen Yu—

"That's exactly right!!"

Chen Yu forced a smile and kept smoothing his beard.

"The Marquis of Wucheng is a great general under the Rear General! Hearing of the Marquis of Wucheng's family in this state, I am deeply saddened!"

"Gongjin, you don't want the General to be upset, do you?" Chen Yu decided to give Zhou Yu another bombshell—

"General Hou, missing his hometown of Runan, set off from Nanyang a few days ago and is about to arrive in Huainan."

"There are some things we shouldn't worry the General about, shall we?"

Zhou Yu's expression suddenly changed!

Yuan Shu is about to arrive in Huainan!

This is crucial intelligence! Zhou Yu was genuinely unaware of it!

Although Zhou Yu had many friends, none of them were in the secret central government in Huainan, so they naturally couldn't get this kind of information that only a very few people could know.

Upon hearing this news, Zhou Yu was thrown into complete disarray in a short period of time!
"Is General Hou coming to Huainan?"

"Is it absolutely true?"

Zhou Yu's mind exploded with a "boom"!

He knew that Yuan Shu's arrival would undoubtedly be a catastrophe for the existing political landscape of Huainan!
It would be no easy task to protect oneself and Sun Ce in this catastrophe!

At the same time, Zhou Yu looked at Liu Miao again.

He knew perfectly well that Liu Miao was not the kind of lecherous man that was rumored to be.

But Zhou Yu couldn't understand why Liu Miao never bothered to cultivate a reputation to attract renowned scholars from Jiangdong to join him and help him achieve his great ambitions.

Now that Zhou Yu knew Yuan Shu was about to arrive in Huainan, he finally understood Liu Miao's intentions!

If Liu Miao had truly cultivated a reputation and treated scholars with respect upon arriving in Huainan, would he have been able to escape Yuan Shu's wrath in the future?
Rather than attracting Yuan Shu's attention, it's better to tarnish one's own reputation and make Yuan Shu despise one.

At this moment, Zhou Yu truly felt that he was surrounded by wolves in front and tigers behind!
Not only are wolves cunning, but they can also use their power to bully others!

Zhou Yu was willing but unable to do so, so he looked towards Sun Ce, hoping to get support from him.

However, the moment Zhou Yu shifted his gaze, his frustration only intensified!

Sun Ce was completely unaware of their predicament and was still having a pleasant conversation with Liu Miao!

What books does Bo Fu usually read?

"I just finished reading 'The Art of War by Wei Liaozi'."

"Good! Excellent! We must learn this military strategy!"

While Zhou Yu and Chen Yu were clashing, Sun Ce and Liu Miao, the two main figures, were chatting happily, showing no signs of tension whatsoever!

Zhou Yu and Chen Yu both felt a pang of sympathy upon seeing this!
"Anyone who didn't know better would think I was getting married!"

"Anyone who didn't know better would think he married my mother!"

Both of them knew that they couldn't rely on Liu Miao and Sun Ce, the two main figures involved, anymore...

Since that's the case, let's have a thrilling showdown!
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Note 1:

Xin, courtesy name Daming, traveled to the capital in his youth, studying under Grand Tutor Chen Fan. He was widely read, skilled in divination and fortune-telling, and adept at predicting calamities and anomalies. He was appointed to the Grand Commandant's office, passed the imperial examination with high honors, and was later promoted to Prefect of Danyang. —From *Kuaiji Dianlu*

Zhou Yu, courtesy name Gongjin, was a native of Shu in Lujiang. His grandfather, Jing, and Jing's son, Zhong, both served as Grand Commandant of the Han Dynasty. His father, Yi, was the magistrate of Luoyang.

Zhou Yu's father, Shang, was serving as the Prefect of Danyang, and Zhou Yu went to visit him. —From *Records of the Three Kingdoms, Biography of Zhou Yu*

Zhou Yu's paternal uncle, Zhou Shang, served as the Prefect of Danyang, but he is not the same person as the current Prefect of Danyang, Zhou Xin. Furthermore, Zhou Yu's lineage is clearly defined as belonging to the Zhou clan of Lujiang, a prominent family in Huainan. His brothers, Zhou Xin and Zhou Ang, were from Kuaiji, indicating that the two families are not related by blood.

(End of this chapter)