It was August, early autumn, and the Jianghuai area had become slightly cooler and no longer hot.

Chaisang County in Jiujiang is the lake entrance where the Xiangjiang River flows into Dongting.

A few months ago, Liu Bei, the Lord of Shu, who was known as the Emperor of the Han Dynasty, led a personal expedition, which alarmed the Sun Wu court and everyone. Therefore, Sun Quan, the Marquis of Wu, went to Chaisang Jiujiang Palace to supervise the battle not long ago.

Inside the Jiujiang Palace, it was surprisingly quiet at the moment.

On the bluestone steps, the tall and burly body of Wu Hou Sun Quan was trembling slightly, and his purple beard and hair were rising to the sky. At this moment, he was facing the people below the steps, trying his best to suppress his anxiety and anger.

Under the stone steps, Lu Yi, the governor of Soochow, knelt on his left knee, lowered his head and remained silent, but his waist was straight.

At the age of fifteen, Sun Quan took over his father's and brother's inheritance and became the lord of Jiangdong. He has experienced countless storms and waves in these years, which also made Sun Quan's heart a lot stronger. He is no longer the simple-minded young man Xiaolian he used to be.

, Therefore, Liu Xuande's personal expedition was not the reason why Wu Hou Sun Quan was so angry.

He was furious at this moment because just now his most important minister, the governor who controlled the armies and resisted foreign enemies, actually said that he would surrender to the state of Wei!

"What does Lu Qing mean, is he going to surrender to Wei alone?!" Sun Quan growled in a questioning tone, which was horrifying.

"Lord, please listen to me."

Facing the prince's wrath, Lu Yi did not panic, but remained calm. He raised his head and looked at the superior prince with calm and easy-going eyes, and admonished the prince in a gentle and peaceful tone:

"This time, Liu Bei is advancing eastward, and the military front is at its peak. Our army's morale is low. Cao Pi is stationing troops in the north of Han Dynasty and eyeing the south of the Yangtze River. He intends to wait for the fishermen's advantage and intends to send his troops south after the war. If our army is one against two,

Then Jiangdong is in danger, and the general situation is in danger. For the present plan... we can only temporarily surrender to Wei to avoid being attacked from both sides."

"But... surrender to Cao..." Sun Quan's frowning purple eyebrows trembled, seeming to be unwilling to accept: "It's such a humiliation, does Lu Qing have any other good ideas?"

"My lord, as an emperor, you must endure what ordinary people cannot endure. Only if you can endure humiliation can you pretend to dominate the world."

Lu Yi looked at his master with his cold and calm eyes like cold stars and said this.

"For...the emperor." The ambitious Sun Quan seems to have calmed down a lot. If he can stabilize Cao Wei this time and successfully defeat Liu Xuande, who is famous all over the world, who else can easily defeat me, Wu?

When he thought of this, Sun Quan said nothing more.

Lu Yi saw that his lord had acquiesced, so he had no scruples and continued to speak: "In my opinion, in order to show friendship to the Wei State, the Wei generals who were imprisoned in our country should be returned to their country.

Lu Yi did this to repay Xia Houxuan and Cao Xi for helping him find Ming'er, fulfill his promise, and release Yu Ban. In any case, the two children also risked their lives for Ming'er and tried their best.

Sun Quan was silent for a long time before he spoke:

"Yu Jin was formerly a famous general of the Wei State, with a high position. Letting him return to the country should be the most sincere demonstration of my great Wu. I heard that Yu Jin is now in Jiangling Mansion. If this is the case, then I will release Yu Jin and return to the country, and then send him

Let’s go to Wei with the envoys and express our position in Jiangdong.”

"Wu Hou Yingming." Lu Yi couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief. After all, he couldn't directly ask for his lord's release by name. Regarding the matter of deliberately planning to release the enemy's important generals, it can be regarded as an internal connection with foreign countries!

Outside the palace, on the bank of the river.

Yu Gui was poisoned by a needle and was currently going to Jiangling for treatment accompanied by Cao Xi. Xia Houxuan, on the other hand, waited alone by the riverside outside the palace for a long time, and finally waited for Lu Yi.

Before Lu Yi came to Jiujiang, he had informed the Jiangling Prefecture that Yu Jin would be transferred to Jiujiang County. This was not considered a private release of enemy generals. After all, he was responsible for all matters concerning Yu Jin in Jingzhou this time.

Calculating, it won't be long before Yu Jin arrives in Jiujiang.

Lu Yi stroked the messy hair on Xia Houxuan's forehead. In order to save Lu Yan, Xia Houxuan had indeed been wandering around these days, and it was difficult for this child.

At this moment, Lu Yi's eyes were as gentle as a loving father: "My child, when I see you, I feel like I saw Ming'er... By the way, I haven't asked you what your name is.

"

The young man raised his eyes, looked at Lu Yi with his clear eyes, and replied, "My name is Xia Houxuan."

"Xia Houxuan..." Lu Yi smiled and waved to a subordinate in the distance, who was holding a pure white colt that had just grown up.

When Xia Houxuan looked at the horse, he saw that although the horse was only a few months old, it could still be seen that the horse was very powerful.

"This colt is as white as the first snow and as swift as a flying dragon. It is such a good horse."

Xia Houxuan couldn't help but admired.

Lu Yi patted Xia Houxuan's shoulder and said, "Xuan'er, it's fate that you and I met each other. This colt was sired by my horse 'White Pigeon'. I originally prepared it for Ming'er."

My twelfth birthday gift, I say goodbye today, I can’t give it as a gift, so let it go to the Central Plains with you..."

"It turns out that this horse was given to me..." Xiahou Xuan loved this horse very much, but he felt a little embarrassed, so he declined: "This kid has no merit and is guilty, so Brother Lu...

..., I will never dare to accept the kindness of my uncle!"

"Xuan'er, life and death are fateful, I don't blame you." Lu Yi sighed softly: "This horse is destined to you, and I think that when you see this horse, you will think of the dog and feel sad... but

I hope Xuan'er won't refuse."

"In that case, I would like to thank Uncle Lu." Xia Houxuan heard this and no longer refused. He touched the horse's forehead, and the horse rubbed the young man's arm very docilely. It seemed that it was indeed

I like Xia Houxuan very much.

At this time, the sound of carriages and horses in the distance could be heard, and Lu Yi understood that Yu Jin had arrived.

"Xuan'er, my lord has agreed to allow Old General Yu Wenze to return to the country. Today, you can set off with Old General Yu."

Lu Yi waved to the young man: "Take care of yourself all the way..."

"Uncle Lu, take care, I'm leaving." The young man slowly climbed onto the little white horse, turned around and waved goodbye to Lu Yi.

The river surface was sparkling under the morning light. A cloud of dust and mist arose on the riverside. Xiahou Xuan rode his horse to meet with Yu Jin and several pro-Wei envoys, escorting his entourage, and then galloped westward along the river bank.

————

Luoyang, Shiqian Hall.

Emperor Cao Pi carefully read over and over again the form of surrender sent by Sun Quan, the Lord of Wu, who traveled thousands of miles away. While he was excited, he also felt a little hesitant.

Sun Quan proclaimed himself a vassal, which was indeed too tempting for him.

But at this time, helping Shu to destroy Wu seems to be more practical. After all, no one knows whether Sun Quan is really sincere in surrendering.

"Your Majesty, Wang Sikong and Liu Shizhong have arrived outside the palace."

"Please come in quickly!" Cao Pi was refreshed when he heard that Sikong Wanglang and his attendant Liu Ye were coming.

"Old minister, sir, I'd like to see your majesty."

The extraordinary-looking Sikong Wanglang, who was wearing a court dress with nine chapters and a Jinxian crown on his head, and Liu Ye, who was wearing a purple singlet, saluted and knelt down towards the emperor.

"You two dear ladies, please get up quickly."

Cao Pi bent down slightly and made a gesture of support:

"Now that Soochow has presented its surrender, some people think that they should send troops to aid Soochow and annihilate Shu Han in one fell swoop, or they think that they should help Shu to annihilate Wu. I can't make a decision for the moment, so I invited Sikong to ask what your opinion is. .”

Wang Lang, who had already had an idea for a long time, heard this, twirled his long beard with his hand, and expressed his idea without thinking:

"Your Majesty, the emperor's army is more important than that of Hua and Dai. It is appropriate to sit in the sky and be as powerful as a mountain. If Quan Qin and the Shu thieves are at odds, the battle will last for a long time. If they are evenly matched in intelligence and their troops cannot be defeated quickly, our army will have to fight. When helping each other to achieve their power, then it is better to select prudent generals to take over the enemy's mission, move at the right time, choose the place before moving, and there will be no more things left in one move. If the army of power has not moved, then the army of Wu will not be able to attack first. .And the rain will be heavy, not when the army is marching to mobilize the masses."

After hearing Wang Lang's opinion, Cao Pi couldn't help but clapped his hands and praised it. It was indeed a wise opinion from a famous person in the world.

"I have been taught Sikong's clever plan. Well, I will first help the two of them. But..." Cao Pi frowned slightly and said: "How should I deal with Sun Quan's declaration of vassal status and surrender?"

"Your Majesty, please don't neglect me. I believe that you should confer the title of Prince Sun Quan and add nine tins to it to reassure him."

"No, this is absolutely impossible, Your Majesty!"

Liu Ye knelt on the ground and hurriedly remonstrated:

"Your Majesty, Quan is asking for surrender for no reason. This is because there are strong invaders outside and people are uneasy. It is not because they are afraid of our great Wei Dynasty. Therefore, they ask for surrender. One is to kill our Chinese soldiers, and the other is to pretend that we are China. It is to strengthen the masses and doubt the enemy. Today, there are three points, and our country, Wei Dynasty, has eight out of ten. Wu and Shu each protect a state, with mountains and rivers blocking the way, and they can rescue each other in an emergency. This is the benefit of a small country. . Now we are still attacking each other, because Heaven wants to destroy us. I think that your majesty should raise a large army and cross the river to attack its interior. If Shu attacks the outside, I will attack the interior. Wu will be destroyed in less than ten months. If Wu dies, Shu is lonely. If half of Wu is cut off, Shu will not be able to survive for long. What’s more, if Shu can get the outside, I can get the inside!"

Cao Pi was a little hesitant after hearing Liu Ye's suggestion.

I understand Liu Ye's strategy of helping Shu to defeat Wu and then attacking Shu alone.

But he felt that if Sun Quan truly surrendered to Sun Quan, and if he attacked him himself, wouldn't it chill the hearts of those in the world who abandoned darkness and turned to light?

Cao Pi thought about it and retorted to Liu Ye:

"I think this plan is not appropriate. If someone claims to surrender and attacks him, wouldn't he doubt the hearts of those who want to come? If you do this, people who want to surrender in the future will be afraid of this, and it is almost impossible! Why don't I accept Wu's surrender? , and after attacking Shu?"

After hearing Cao Pi's plan, Liu Ye started to refute without thinking:

"Your Majesty, Miao! Shu is far away and Wu is close, and I heard that China is attacking. If Liu Bei returns his army, Your Majesty will not be able to stop him. Now that Bei is angry, he raises troops to attack Wu. When he hears that I am attacking Wu, he knows that Wu will be destroyed, so he will be happy. If you come to fight with me for the territory of Wu, you will not change your plan, suppress your anger and save Wu, it is inevitable! I hope your majesty will understand clearly!"

Cao Pi was a little unhappy when he saw Liu Ye repeatedly trying to dissuade him. He frowned and said:

"I already want to make Sun Quan the King of Wu!"

After hearing these words, Liu Ye's expression changed. He paused and admonished Cao Pi again:

"Your Majesty, you can't. In the past, the late emperor conquered the world and conquered eight of them. He was powerful throughout the sea. Your Majesty's Zen is true, his virtue is in harmony with heaven and earth, and his voice spreads far and wide. This real power is not the praise of a humble minister. Although he has great power, Cai, his identity is only Nanchang Hou'er, the former Han hussar general, and his official position is low. Because of his low official position, the people in Jiangdong did not obey the Sun family and were afraid of China. Now we, the Wei Dynasty, have no choice but to accept his surrender and can enter it. The title of general can only be granted to 100,000 households, but it can never be regarded as a king. The throne of husband goes to the first level of the emperor. Now your majesty respects his title and appoints his monarchs and ministers, which is the tiger and Fu Yi. After receiving the throne, he will leave Shu. After the war, he served China with all his courtesy, so that everyone in the country heard about it, but he was rude at home to anger His Majesty. His Majesty was furious and raised troops to fight against it. Xu told the people: "I am committed to serving China and do not care about precious goods and treasures." , contribute at any time, and dare not lose the courtesy of a minister. If you attack me for no reason, you will definitely destroy our country and capture our people's children as slaves and concubines.' The people of Wu did not believe his words for no reason. They believed his words and were angry, and everyone was united. , then his fighting spirit will increase tenfold."

Facing Liu Ye's long speech, no matter how reasonable it was, Cao Pi, who was determined, could not listen to a word.

Cao Pi looked at Liu Ye, and after snorting, the waiter said:

"When someone came, he quickly ordered Zhongshu Sheng to draft an imperial edict. He ordered Taichang Xing Zhen to go to Jiangdong with the festival, and named Sun Quan the King of Wu, the general. He added Jiuxi, led the pastor of Jingzhou, and was the governor of Jing, Yang, and Jiao San. The state’s military!”

————

Jianshi Hall.

The emperor met with Wu's peace envoy: Captain Zhao Zi.

"What kind of master is the King of Wu?"
To be continued...