The Duke of Shu Han began guarding Jingzhou in place of Guan Yu.

Chapter 336 Will the Extreme of Fortune Lead to Prosperity?
"In my opinion, the King of Wu is far too cautious!"

"Now that all families have gathered together to form an alliance, with Heaven and Earth as witnesses, it can be said that we will share both prosperity and adversity."

"If we continue to be so wary of each other, won't we become a laughingstock to the world?"

"Here, I'll drink this wine first. Whether it's poisonous or not, we'll know after we try it!"

At the banquet, Cao Zhi spoke without restraint and drank recklessly.

Sun Deng had originally planned to have someone taste the wine, but now he felt awkward.

Seeing this, Yu Fan stepped forward to defuse the situation, saying:
"Your Excellency's words are illogical!"

Have you not heard the story of Marquis Zhao of Han, who was in charge of disciplining men's clothes and hats?

"When Marquis Zhao of Han was still drunk, the official in charge of crowns was worried that he would catch a cold, so he asked the official in charge of clothing to bring him clothes to cover him up."

"When Marquis Zhao of Han awoke and learned of this, he rebuked both of them, saying that the official in charge of hats had overstepped his authority and the official in charge of clothing had neglected his duties."

"The King of Wu's close attendants are responsible for tasting the wine for their lord. Today, Your Excellency has taken on this responsibility for him. Doesn't this make him fail his lord and be punished?"

"If the King of Wu does not punish his mistake, wouldn't that disrupt the law?"

Although Cao Zhi liked to be unrestrained.

But his father and brothers were well-versed in the strategies of Shen Buhai and Han Fei, so they were naturally familiar with this story.

Then, with a solemn expression, he said:
"Lord Yu's words are reasonable. This is my fault. I will punish myself with a cup of wine!"

After drinking, he addressed the crowd:

"Yu Zhongxiang is a true national scholar!"

"Recently, everyone has been comparing him to Su Qin, who was appointed prime minister of six states in the past."

"But after careful consideration, I found that all his positions were low-ranking, insignificant officials, far less important than his contributions to promoting the alliance."

"How have you all treated Lord Yu so poorly!"

"I have made my decision. From this day forward, I will appoint Lord Yu as my prime minister, so that he may truly live up to his title as the Su Qin of our time!"

Upon hearing this, Yu Fan trembled violently, unable to contain his excitement.

The guests all turned their heads in surprise.

However, some people reminded Cao Zhi that the prime ministers of the fiefdoms of the imperial clan had to be appointed by the court, and the princes and marquises could not appoint them themselves.

But Cao Zhi was already drunk and didn't care about any of that. He directly used the ancient title of "Prime Minister" to honor Yu Fan.

What? The character "邦" in "相邦" violates the taboo of Emperor Gaozu of Han's name?
A mere county marquis of the mighty Wei Dynasty, what business is it of yours?

Let's discuss it again once Chang'an truly bestows upon me the title of Prince!
With Cao Zhi stirring things up, the other "lords" present also came to join in the fun.

Although they couldn't actually be appointed prime ministers, they were generous in offering positions equivalent to "prime ministers," such as registrar, libationer, and chief secretary.

In an instant, Yu Fan's value soared, making him the focus of the entire event.

At this moment, Zhang Zhao, the Grand Tutor of Wu and another initiator of the alliance, suddenly coughed lightly, reminding Sun Deng:
"Your Majesty, Yu Zhongxiang deserves great credit for the success of this alliance meeting, but he is still a commoner to Your Majesty. Is this not inappropriate?"

Sun Deng understood what was meant and took the initiative to ask for advice:
"I have long intended to commend you, but I do not know what reward I should bestow upon you to do justice to your merit."

Zhang Zhao pointed at the guests present and deliberately joked:

"Su Qin now holds the seals of prime minister of five states, while our state alone does not appoint a prime minister. People will not look down on Su Qin because of this, but they will look down on our state because of it!"

Sun Deng smiled and nodded, then asked:
"However, both the left and right prime ministers are already capable and competent. If we were to appoint another prime minister, someone would have to be transferred... How should we choose?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhao sneered:
“Previously, Yu Zhongxiang and I strongly advocated for an alliance meeting, but the left and right prime ministers not only did not support us, but also made sarcastic remarks in private. How can they be considered virtuous and capable?”

"Today, Yu Zhongxiang has proven his talent, which just proves the incompetence of those two."

Sun Deng understood now, and said with a half-smile:
"If that's the case, then the positions of the left and right prime ministers should be changed."

Zhang Zhao then pretended to be confused, saying that the matter was of great importance and that the king should summon his ministers to discuss it.

He only recommended Yu Fan, and ignored everything else.

But Sun Deng had already said so much, and the alliance was right in front of them, so how could they dare to ignore it?
With a slight hint, the emperor and his ministers reached a tacit understanding.

In conclusion, the spring banquet ended with the distribution of rewards and recognition for those who had contributed.

The following day, Sun Deng invited everyone to visit the ancient battlefield at Wujiang River nearby.

However, apart from Cao Zhi, who remained in high spirits, all the other "lords" requested to resign.

Moreover, the reasons given are all quite valid.

For example, Wang Ling, the governor of Yuzhou, bluntly stated that recently, General Mi Wei of the Great Han Guards marched south to Yingru, putting immense pressure on his defense zone.

For example, Zang Ba, the governor of Yangzhou, said that since he came to Huainan, he had been suffering from some acclimatization problems and could not ride a horse for long periods of time.

As for Generals Cao Hong and Zhu Ling, they didn't attend the banquet at all.

One said he was busy dealing with the newly arrived governor of Yanzhou, Guanqiu Jian.

One account says that because he let Cao Zhi out without permission, he was being held accountable by Wang Su and was also struggling to deal with the situation.

The rulers and ministers of Eastern Wu, who had completely let their guard down, naturally did not take this to heart.

They continued their travels and sightseeing with Cao Zhi. By late March, the spring river had risen, and the rulers and ministers of Eastern Wu were preparing to return south.

Cao Zhi tried to persuade him to stay several times, but to no avail, so he also took his leave and returned north.

However, he did not return directly to his fiefdom in Xuzhou.

Instead, they headed east towards Chaohu Lake and eventually arrived at Hefei New City.

One person was already waiting there.

It was none other than Cao Hong, Cao Zilian, the General of the Flying Cavalry of the Great Wei, who had been keeping a low profile lately.

Upon seeing Cao Hong, Cao Zhi showed a relieved expression:

"I have done my best. I will leave the rest to the general."

"I have only one thing to say."

At this point, Cao Zhi solemnly bowed to the north and said:
"I have the blood of the Cao family flowing in my veins, and I will never betray my father and grandfather or cause any internal strife between uncle and nephew!"

Upon hearing this, Cao Hong nodded and remained silent.

At that moment, a third person's voice came from behind the door:

"His Majesty has decreed that if this matter is accomplished, Your Excellency may cross the river to the north and be enfeoffed as a king in a prefecture in Ji Province."

Although Cao Zhi had somewhat anticipated this, he was still pleasantly surprised and said:

"The Prince?"

Since the fourth year of the Huangchu era, after Cao Pi reduced the fiefdoms of the commandery kings to county kings, all the kings of Cao Wei had their counties as their kingdoms.

Normally, they cannot leave the county all year round, and the precautions are very strict.

The man responded:
"Your Majesty has established regulations. The founding of the Great Wei Dynasty and the establishment of kingdoms by various princes have been done according to the circumstances, without any fixed rules. This is not a way to establish a lasting model for future generations."

"From this day forward, all kings shall take a prefecture as their kingdom."

After saying that, the man walked out from behind the door, revealing an exceptionally young face.

It was Guanqiu Jian, the governor of Yanzhou in the Great Wei Dynasty.

……

After crossing the Yangtze River and returning south in late March, King Sun Deng of Wu did not return directly to the capital, Jianye.

Instead, he headed west again to Niuzhuji to inspect the training of the naval forces and, incidentally, to tour the nearby military and civilian settlements.

Your Majesty's emphasis on agriculture and military affairs is certainly a good thing.

However, considering that Wu has just gained an alliance that is enough to ensure decades of peace in the Jianghuai region, it seems somewhat puzzling that it would turn around and strictly control military affairs at this time.

But soon, the voices saying "Lord Yu's merits are so great that he should be made prime minister" suddenly spread throughout the streets and alleys of Jianye.

Everyone in Jiangdong quickly realized what was happening.

Inspecting the naval forces and supervising the land reclamation were all just excuses.

The reason why the King of Wu did not return to Jianye was that he was waiting for the Right Chancellor Sun Shao and the Left Chancellor Gu Yong to come and resign on their own initiative.

This way, both the ruler and his ministers can maintain some decorum.

With things having come to this point, Sun and Gu had nothing more to say and took the initiative to come to Niuzhu to resign their official positions and yield their posts to more capable people.

Sun Deng did not discard them after they were no longer useful; instead, he reassigned the two men to the position of Grand Master of the Palace, while still maintaining their high rank of two thousand piculs of grain.

Yu Fan then seized the opportunity to be appointed as the Right Chancellor of the King of Wu, and his career soared to great heights.

As for Zhang Zhao, who should have been appointed as the Left Chancellor.

At this point, he suddenly became awkward again and insisted on recommending Lü Fan, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, as prime minister.

Sun Deng had no choice but to comply with his wishes and transferred Lü Fan to the position of Left Chancellor.

Then the vacant positions of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat and Governor of Yangzhou were granted to Zhang Zhao.

Thus, the personnel of the Wu Kingdom's top leadership underwent a complete reshuffle.

The imperial court was inevitably thrown into turmoil.

However, given the current lack of external threats, there is no need for excessive worry.

Not to mention that after Sun Deng completed this rotation with rather sophisticated political skills, he immediately announced his return to Jianye.

Then there's absolutely nothing to criticize.

On this day, Sun Deng's carriage had just arrived near Baidushan, north of Niuzhu.

An urgent military report was suddenly delivered to the newly appointed Right Chancellor, Yu Fan.

The latter, upon seeing it, immediately launched into a tirade of profanities:
"What kind of nonsense is this?"

"Cao Hong has dispatched troops to besiege Wancheng?"

(End of this chapter)