Tiger Owl

Chapter 93 Complete Breakup
After winter set in, Madam Wu's condition worsened, especially after the death of her beloved third son, Sun Yi, which dealt her a heavy blow. She was heartbroken and her body slowly withered away, and she was on her deathbed.

Just then, Jia Xu was sent to Jiangdong again, bringing with him the final investigation report on the assassination of Sun Yi.

The report clearly states that Sun Yi's assassination was closely related to those around him. In the room of Sun Yi's bodyguard Bian Hong, a short crossbow and poisoned arrows were found, which were exactly the same crossbow used to assassinate Sun Yi.

However, Bian Hong had committed suicide by poison out of fear of punishment. After a thorough investigation, it was discovered that Bian Hong did not commit suicide, but was poisoned by Sun Yi's other two important subordinates, Gui Lan and Dai Yuan. The whereabouts of the two men are now unknown. At the same time, their correspondence with Sun Ben was also found.

Inside the Wu Lord's office, Zhang Zhao placed the formal investigation report on the table and pushed it towards Sun Quan, saying, "Lord Wu, please read the report!"

Sun Quan hurriedly opened the report and read it carefully. He slammed his hand on the table and gritted his teeth, saying, "Sun Ben harmed my elder brother before, and now he has killed my younger brother. I am irreconcilably opposed to him!"

Zhang Zhao sighed, "At least we can explain things clearly to the old lady and ask her not to misunderstand and leave with regrets."

Sun Quan nodded. "I'll explain it to my mother this afternoon."

After Zhang Zhao took his leave, Sun Quan led a dozen guards to a small mansion in Wu County. There were soldiers guarding the place. When Sun Quan entered the hall, a man knelt down and kowtowed to him.

The man was Dai Yuan, who had fled from Xuchang back to Wu County.

Sun Quan, with his hands behind his back, coldly asked, "Are you also pledging allegiance to Sun Ben?"

Dai Yuan was shocked and quickly kowtowed, saying, "This humble servant has absolutely no intention of playing both sides. This humble servant has never had any dealings with Sun Ben, so how can I pledge allegiance to him?"

"Did you poison Hong over there?"

“Absolutely not. When I fled Xuchang, he and Gui Lan also disappeared.”

"But you didn't tell me about Bian Hong and Gui Lan's disappearance."

"This subordinate has been negligent."

"Hmph! You didn't even tell me that Bian Hong and Gui Lan were Sun Ben's men!"

Sun Quan leaned down, staring sharply at Dai Yuan. "You clearly knew that Sun Yi was assassinated by Bian Hong and Gui Lan, and you also knew that they were Sun Ben's men, but you concealed this from me. Do you still dare to say that you were not bribed by Sun Ben?"

Terrified, Dai Yuan trembled and kowtowed repeatedly. "I was confused for a moment and accepted five hundred taels of silver from Sun Ben, but I really didn't know about the assassination of the Third Young Master. I swear I was not involved. Bian Hong and Gui Lan have nothing to do with me!"

Sun Quan turned and walked out of the hall without expression. He gave a signal, and several trusted guards rushed forward and strangled Dai Yuan with a white silk ribbon. In just a moment, Dai Yuan died.

"Clean up his body and don't let anyone know he came back."

After instructing his men, Sun Quan got into his carriage and left, heading directly to the Wu Palace in Mudu.

In fact, Cao Cao only found out that Sun Ben had bribed people around Sun Yi and that they had a plan to assassinate Sun Yi, but he did not find any evidence that they had tried to assassinate Sun Yi.

But at this point, the truth no longer mattered. The assassination attempt had become an important political tool for Cao Cao. As long as the two Suns were completely at odds, Cao Cao was willing to let Sun Ben bear the crime of assassinating Sun Yi.

Everything proceeded smoothly. The investigators found the murder weapon used to assassinate Sun Yi in Bian Hong's room. Gui Lan and Dai Yuan fled in fear of punishment. With all the evidence conclusive, the investigation report was officially released.

This report was also a timely help for Sun Quan. As his mother lay dying, he could clear himself of suspicion for assassinating his third brother, allowing his mother to pass away without regrets.

Sun Quan also concluded that his third brother was killed by Sun Ben in order to ruin his reputation.

Madam Wu is on her deathbed.

Sun Quan knelt down, kowtowed, and wept, saying, "Your Majesty, the truth behind my third brother's assassination has been uncovered. It was Sun Ben who bribed one of my third brother's men to frame me and make me bear the guilt of killing him." Old Madam Wu gently held her son's hand and asked, "You really didn't kill my third brother?"

Sun Quan burst into tears, “I swear before our ancestors that I did not kill my third brother. It was Sun Ben who framed me. My eldest brother was also assassinated by someone sent by Sun Ben. I have evidence.”

Madam Wu said in a low voice, "I am very happy to hear you say that. I am going to see your father now. From now on, you must regard your second aunt as your mother, be filial to her, and take good care of your younger siblings."

Sun Quan kowtowed repeatedly in agreement, weeping uncontrollably.

That very evening, Lady Wu passed away. Sun Quan was devastated and ordered the three counties of Jiangdong to hold a mourning ceremony for his mother.

He then ordered monks to perform a ritual for his mother for forty-nine days, after which he would personally escort her coffin to Qu'a for burial.

At the same time, Sun Quan released the investigation report on the Sun Yi case, which caused an uproar in Jiangdong, with everyone condemning Sun Ben.

The official release of the investigation report signifies a complete break between Sun Quan and Sun Ben.

In early December, Sun Quan announced that the capital would be moved to Dantu County the following spring.

Just then, Zhu Zhi returned from Yuzhang County.

Inside the Wu Marquis's residence, Sun Quan summoned his key ministers to discuss forming an alliance with Gan Ning.

Zhu Zhi first reported to everyone about his trip to Yuzhang County.

"Gentlemen, Gan Ning agrees in principle to form an alliance with Jiangdong, but we cannot reach an agreement on Lujiang County. The other side's attitude is very clear: Gan Ning believes that Sun Ben no longer belongs to the Jiangdong regime, but is an independent regime. Therefore, Lujiang County no longer belongs to Jiangdong, and the Lujiang boundary agreement he signed with us is null and void."

Lu Fan asked with dissatisfaction, "Does Gan Ning mean he wants Lujiang County?"

"That's the idea. The conditions for the alliance they proposed were that the two sides would jointly attack Sun Ben, he would take Lujiang Commandery, and we would take Jiujiang Commandery and Guangling Commandery."

Lu Fan shook his head. "This is meaningless. Lujiang County is our inherent territory in Jiangdong. Giving Xunyang County to him before was the biggest concession we could make. Now Gan Ning is greedy and wants the entire Lujiang County. Marquis Wu, I suggest we stop talking to Gan Ning about an alliance."

Sun Quan knew that Lü Fan and Gan Ning had a personal grudge, so he asked Zhang Zhao, "What is Zibu's opinion?"

Zhang Zhao stroked his beard and laughed, "Lujiang County is not the same as before. Cao Cao has relocated hundreds of thousands of disaster victims to Lujiang County, making it populous. It would be a great pity to lose it. If we form an alliance, we will legally lose Lujiang County. I do not recommend forming an alliance unless Gan Ning can accept our proposal. We will help him take Jiangxia County, but the three counties north of the Yangtze River will belong to us!"

At this time, Yu Fan, Lu Ji, Bu Zhi, and Quan Rou also opposed giving up Lujiang County to Gan Ning in order to form an alliance.

Sun Quan nodded and said, "If an alliance cannot be formed, the other side has proposed another solution: both sides sign a non-aggression pact. Do you all agree to this solution?"

This plan was unanimously approved by everyone. Zhang Zhao said happily, "Before we take back the three counties north of the Yangtze River, we will not advance westward for the time being. We will not attack Yuzhang County for at least three years. By signing this agreement, we can concentrate our efforts on dealing with Sun Ben and will not need to station heavy troops to guard against Gan Ning."

"What is Chief Secretary Lü's opinion?" Sun Quan asked Lü Fan again.

Lu Fan said calmly, "When you redeemed Sun Fu, you promised not to attack Yuzhang County again. However, this is only our promise. Gan Ning also needs to promise not to attack Danyang County. Therefore, non-aggression is necessary. I agree to this agreement."

Sun Quan immediately said, "Since everyone disagrees with giving up Lujiang County, let's put the alliance aside for now and sign a non-aggression pact. I would like to ask you, Junli, to go to Nanchang again so that we can sign the agreement directly."

Zhu Zhi bowed and said, "This humble officer will depart for Nanchang tomorrow and strive to sign the agreement before the end of the year!"

(End of this chapter)