Outside Fuchun County, on the banks of the Zhejiang River.
The two young men sat cross-legged on the ground.
“Bofu, two more months, right?”
After taking a sip of wine, Zhou Yu smiled and handed the wine jar to his companion.
The young man practicing martial arts earlier was none other than Zhou Yu’s closest friend—
Sun Ce (courtesy name Bofu), the son of the “Tiger of Jiangdong,” Sun Jian.
“That’s right. Two more months.”
Taking the wine jar, Sun Ce raised it and took a long swig.
The “two months” they spoke of referred to the remaining period of Sun Ce’s mourning for his father.
During these turbulent times, one was naturally not expected to observe the full three-year mourning period.
Completing one year of mourning was generally considered sufficient to fulfill one’s filial duty.
“Yuan Shu reinforced his forces in Yang Province a month ago.”
Looking at Sun Ce, Zhou Yu continued, “At the beginning of this month, Wang Lang surrendered Kuaiji Commandery. My clan uncle is isolated in Yuzhang and has no hope of holding out alone. The only path left to him is to surrender to Yuan Shu.”
Of Yang Province’s six commanderies, Yuan Shu now controlled five.
The Governor of Yuzhang Commandery was Zhou Yu’s clan uncle, Zhou Shu.
However, Zhou Shu was already advanced in years and had little ambition.
Naturally, he had no intention of throwing eggs against a rock by resisting Yuan Shu.
Most likely, once Yuan Shu’s army arrived, Zhou Shu would simply submit.
“As expected of the legitimate heir of the Four Generations of Three Excellencies.”
Sun Ce’s expression changed slightly.
His face showed both admiration and a hint of envy.
“Even after suffering such a crushing defeat, his strength is still far beyond that of ordinary warlords.”
“Are you afraid, Bofu?”
A smile appeared on Zhou Yu’s face.
He seemed completely unfazed by Yuan Shu’s growing power.
“With Gongjin by my side, what have I to fear?”
Sun Ce shook his head, his youthful confidence overflowing.
“Hahaha! That’s the Bofu I know.”
Standing up, Zhou Yu looked toward Sun Ce.
“So what if Yuan Shu is powerful? I still don’t think highly of him.”
“I’ve heard he’s even planning to move against Jiaozhou.”
“But Liu Biao of Jing Province isn’t made of clay.”
“Yuzhang borders Jing Province.”
“Yuan Shu’s front lines are already stretched too thin.”
“If he dares divide his forces to attack Jiaozhou, Liu Biao will certainly station troops in Changsha and keep a close watch on Yuzhang.”
The primary reason Yuan Shu had conquered Yang Province so quickly was the prestige of his family’s illustrious reputation as the Four Generations of Three Excellencies.
Furthermore, Zhang Jing of Yan Province, Tao Qian of Xu Province, and Liu Biao of Jing Province had all refrained from attacking Yuan Shu.
That allowed him to secure Yang Province without interference.
However, if Yuan Shu became too greedy, the other warlords aside, Liu Biao certainly wouldn’t tolerate it forever.
Yuan Shu had become far too powerful, posing an enormous threat to Jing Province.
Besides, the two men already bore old grudges against each other.
“Liu Biao…”
The very mention of that name made Sun Ce uncomfortable.
After all, his father, Sun Jian, had died at Liu Biao’s hands.
“Gongjin, do you think Shi Xie will surrender?”
As if suddenly remembering something, Sun Ce’s expression grew serious as he fixed his gaze on Zhou Yu.
The question weighed heavily on his mind.
If even Shi Xie surrendered, then Yuan Shu would become virtually unstoppable.
Even Liu Biao might find it difficult to withstand him.
“Bofu, you’re worrying too much.”
Zhou Yu shook his head confidently.
“Who exactly do you think Shi Xie is?”
“He studied under Liu Tao, and Liu Tao was a member of the imperial Liu clan.”
“Six years ago, Shi Xie took control of Jiaozhou and immediately began extensive reforms.”
“His three younger brothers—Shi Yi became Governor of Hepu, Shi Hui became Governor of Jiuzhen, and Shi Wu became Governor of Nanhai.”
“As for Shi Xie himself, he remains in Jiaozhi.”
“Would someone like that willingly surrender to Yuan Shu?”
“Only if he were prepared to give up the authority already in his hands.”
In Zhou Yu’s opinion, Shi Xie was by no means as gentle and harmless as he appeared.
“You’re absolutely right, Gongjin.”
After hearing this, Sun Ce nodded.
His expression remained serious as he said, “Who would have thought that Shi Xie—the man everyone praises for his humility, courtesy, and generosity—is actually so willing to promote his own relatives?”
“Bofu.”
Half-jokingly, Zhou Yu asked, “Have you prepared yourself to serve under Yuan Shu?”
“Of course.”
Sun Ce nodded firmly.
“Hahahaha!”
The two exchanged glances, then burst into hearty laughter together.
…………
Late July, Sili Province.
Jingzhao Commandery, the residence of the General of Chariots and Cavalry in Chang’an.
“Brother Mengde!”
A hint of surprise flashed across Li Jue’s face when he saw Cao Cao paying him a visit.
Smiling, he said, “I’ve heard you’ve been doing quite well outside the city, reclaiming nearly ten thousand mu of farmland.”
“Now that you’ve come here today, have you run into some difficulty?”
“Hahaha, thank you for your concern, General.”
Cao Cao bowed politely before replying with a smile, “What good is ten thousand mu of farmland?”
“We’d need at least five hundred thousand mu before we’d begin to see meaningful results.”
“Unfortunately, Jingzhao has too few common people.”
“Even the cleverest housewife cannot cook without rice.”
“However, my visit today is not about the military farms.”
“Oh?”
Li Jue was momentarily taken aback, then said righteously, “Then you must have come on important business, worthy brother. Please, have a seat. I’ll listen with my full attention. If there’s anything I can do to help, I certainly won’t refuse.”
“Thank you, General.”
After bowing once more to Li Jue, Cao Cao took a seat to one side before speaking.
“My reason for coming today is my concern over the situation in the Central Plains.”
“I wonder, General—what is your opinion of the strength of Taiping Prefecture in Yan Province?”
“Taiping Prefecture?”
Li Jue pondered for a moment before replying, “It’s no weak force. It has successively defeated more than a hundred thousand of Yuan Shu’s troops and even captured Lü Bu alive. They’re certainly not opponents to be taken lightly.”
Originally, he had intended to add that they had also defeated Brother Cao Cao.
But thinking that would be rather impolite, he graciously spared Cao Cao the embarrassment.
“Indeed, Taiping Prefecture is formidable.”
Cao Cao nodded seriously.
“Even such a miraculous weapon as the trebuchet originated there.”
“Now Zhang Jing has entrenched himself in the four northeastern commanderies of Yan Province.”
“I’m afraid he’ll become even harder to deal with in the future.”
“Are you thinking of attacking them?”
Li Jue asked curiously.
He couldn’t understand why Cao Cao had suddenly brought up Taiping Prefecture.
After all, the two sides were separated by over a thousand li.
As far as he was concerned, it was perfectly fine for each to mind its own business.
“Please don’t jest with me, General.”
A bitter smile appeared on Cao Cao’s face.
“I came here solely out of concern for the empire.”
“Tell me, General—do you believe that the Imperial Court as it stands today, together with men like Yuan Shao of Ji Province or Tao Qian of Xu Province, is capable of dealing with Taiping Prefecture?”
“I don’t think so…”
After some thought, Li Jue answered uncertainly, “Let’s set Yuan Shao aside for the moment.”
“I heard that several months ago, Tao Qian of Xu Province sent fifty thousand shi of grain to Taiping Prefecture.”
“Do you know whether that rumor is true?”
Living far away in Chang’an, most of what Li Jue knew about the Central Plains came from hearsay.
Moreover, he had never paid much attention to affairs east of Hangu Pass.
“General.”
Cao Cao’s expression turned solemn.
“That rumor is incorrect.”
“The grain Tao Qian sent to Taiping Prefecture was far more than fifty thousand shi.”
“According to my information, it was at least five hundred thousand shi.”
“What?!”
Li Jue cried out in shock.
His face was filled with disbelief.
“Brother Mengde… are you certain it wasn’t fifty thousand shi, but five hundred thousand?”
His astonishment was understandable.
It wasn’t that he had never witnessed grand events before.
Rather, the idea that the Governor of Xu Province would send half a million shi of grain to a former Yellow Turban force was simply beyond comprehension.
Anyone unaware of the circumstances might think that Taiping Prefecture was the Imperial Court, and that Tao Qian was paying taxes to it.
Cao Cao looked directly into Li Jue’s eyes and said firmly, “At least five hundred thousand shi.”
— The end of the Chapter–
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