My father Liu Xuande

Chapter 361 Zhongmou Comes to Join Us
Upon hearing this, Zhu Zhi took out a letter from his bosom and placed it on the table in front of Liu Feng.

"He was incompetent and failed to persuade Bo Fu to surrender."

Zhu Zhi followed up, saying, "This letter was given to me by the general before I set off, instructing me to deliver it to Bo Fu after he agreed to surrender. This mission failed to persuade Bo Fu, so I am returning this letter intact."

Liu Feng's gaze swept over the letter, which remained unopened and intact, with the fire seal still intact, clearly indicating that it had not been opened.

A slight smile crept across Liu Feng's lips. If Zhu Zhi and Sun Ce knew the contents of this letter, they would probably be utterly astonished.

This letter contains an order to Sun Ce, instructing him to gather the opposing forces of the Northern Alliance and then cooperate with him to defeat them in one battle.

Sun Ce probably never dreamed that, regardless of whether he surrendered or not, he would have to become his opponent.

However, Sun Ce missed an opportunity to protect his family.

If they obeyed his orders, then no matter what, his mother, Lady Wu, and his younger siblings, including Sun Quan, would be safe.

But the path he has chosen now will likely only lead to the extermination of his entire clan.

"Now that Sun Ce has made his decision, the two armies should naturally clash on the battlefield."

Liu Feng waved his hand, comforting Zhu Zhi, "Although you did not achieve anything on this trip, this matter is not your fault. You should go back and rest first."

Hearing Liu Feng's reassurance, Zhu Zhi felt somewhat relieved and took his leave.

At this time, Zhao Yun and Zhou Yu's armies had already set off separately. One started from Qiantang, taking Zhang'an (parts of Taizhou and Wenzhou in later times) and Yongning (Wenzhou city) as intermediate stops, before heading towards Houguan Dongye.

Zhou Yu then traveled by water back to the Yangtze River, going upstream from Poyang Lake to Yuzhang.

In Yuji County, only Liu Feng's main force of 30,000 men remained, along with Zhu Zhi's 3,000 men and the remaining 2,000 surrendered soldiers of Sun Jun.

Liu Feng's main force originally numbered nearly 60,000, but in the Battle of Qiantang River South, more than 5,000 were lost. The wounded were sent back to Qiantang to recuperate, while the dead were temporarily buried locally, but tombstones were erected for each of them, and a large memorial stele was erected with the soldiers' achievements inscribed on it.

The loss of five thousand men was quickly replaced by skilled warriors selected from Liu Feng's own surrendered soldiers, as well as able-bodied men from Jiangdong and chivalrous figures who had pledged allegiance to him.

Now, Gao Shun and Jia Kui's troops have been fully replenished and have recovered 60-70% of their original fighting strength.

They will have some time to prepare and train, and their combat capabilities will continue to improve over time.

Meanwhile, since Wu County and Danyang had become major rear areas and the situation was stable, Pan Zhang and Xu Sheng's forces had begun to move south, while Zhang Yun and Xu Zhao each led a thousand troops across the river to join the battle.

At the same time, Liu Feng also ordered Yan Baihu of Wucheng and Quan Wangsheng to lead troops south across the river to assist in the battle. The troops should number no less than 6,000 and should be elite soldiers.

Whether it's Yan Baihu or Wang Sheng and the others, if they behave well, they can be taken to serve in the north in the future. If they don't behave, after dealing with Sun Ce, the army will return to the north and wipe them out along the way.

Based on this troop strength, Liu Feng's army could still maintain at least 39,000 main force members, plus more than 3,000 men under Zhu Zhi, for a total of more than 40,000 troops.

If Yan Baihu and Wang Sheng obeyed orders, the troop strength could reach nearly 60,000.

Liu Feng rested and replenished his weary troops in Yuji County. He commanded Jia Kui (6,000 men), Taishi Ci (6,000 men), Gao Shun (4,000 men), Fan Neng (4,000 men), Yu Mi (4,000 men), Pan Zhang's separate ironclad soldiers (2,000 men), and Xu Huang's 3,000 infantrymen.

During the ten-plus days that Zhu Zhi was waiting for, Xu Zhao and Zhang Yun, along with two thousand men, had already crossed the river and arrived.

Liu Feng remained motionless, continuing to rest and recuperate in Yuji.

Liu Feng's unwavering stance, however, provoked the powerful clans and gentry of Beihui.

In their view, Liu Feng's actions were undoubtedly a sign of weakness, indicating that he was afraid of them.

The powerful clans of Beihui were overjoyed at this news. They not only accelerated the gathering of troops and supplies in Shanyin, but also used their connections to actively win over the Yue and Nanman tribes in the three major mountain ranges of Beihui.

These three mountain ranges are Longmen Mountain on the south bank of the Qiantang River, Kuaiji Mountain on the south bank of Jingruo Lake, and Siming Mountain which encircles the Ningbo Plain.

These three mountain ranges are the largest mountain group in northern Kuaiji. They are not connected to each other, but they are very close to each other.

In these three mountain ranges live hundreds of thousands of Yue tribesmen who have intricate connections with the powerful clans and gentry of Kuaiji County.

They were sometimes enemies and sometimes allies, their relationship constantly shifting.

However, at this moment, the powerful clans of Kuaiji were willing to give up many interests and give everything they had to win over the chieftain of the Yue tribes to send their people down the mountain to help them in the battle.

The price they offered almost made the chieftains of the Yue tribes think it was a trap.

Only when large amounts of gold and silver were placed in front of these Yue tribe chiefs did they believe that the land ceded by these powerful clans was real and reliable.

With their gold, silver, and fertile plains, the powerful clans of northern Kuaiji successfully recruited nearly 30,000 Yue barbarian soldiers.

Despite their outdated equipment and crude weaponry, these 30,000 Yue barbarian soldiers were genuinely 30,000 able-bodied men.

As a result, Sun Ce increased his troops by 30,000 within half a month, bringing his total strength to over 50,000.

If we only consider the number of people, he has now surpassed Liu Feng's troops stationed in Yuji County.

Intelligence was continuously sent into Yuji County. Although Liu Feng's main army remained motionless, the spies, intelligence agents, and scouts never rested.

Upon receiving the latest intelligence, Liu Feng was not surprised but delighted. This was truly a buy-one-get-one-free deal. He never expected that even the Yue tribes had been lured down from the mountains.

Previously, Liu Feng was worried about how to deal with the Shanyue people after pacifying Sun Ce.

These Yue people were indeed pitiful, driven into the mountains by the Han people.

However, these Yue people in the mountains do not deserve sympathy, because they are like maggots clinging to bones, coming down from the mountains year after year to plunder, burn, and kill, and they cannot be eradicated or killed off.

The best approach would naturally be to eliminate the most stubborn group, then establish oneself on integrity and sincerity, use trade to win over the moderate Yue tribes, and then cooperate in rebuilding the military system of Kuaiji, which would maximize the stability of the region.

The problem is that the Yue people hide deep in the mountains. How can you wipe out their most stubborn ones? You might not even be able to find them.

As a result, the powerful clans and gentry of the North have relieved Liu Feng's worries and have actually managed to summon these Yue tribesmen down the mountain.

It's like someone just delivered a pillow to someone who's been dozing off.

Liu Feng was overjoyed, but he remained unmoved.

Soon, Pan Zhang's 4,000 men and Xu Sheng's 6,000 men all arrived in Yuji. After receiving the military order, Yan Baihu and Wang Sheng hesitated for a long time, but finally chose to bow their heads and submit.

Yan Baihu's younger brother Yan Yu and Wang Sheng's subordinate Zou Ta each led 6,000 elite troops south to reinforce the area.

In this way, the troops that Liu Feng had been waiting for were finally assembled, totaling more than 53,000 men.

Thirty-six days after the Battle of Qiantang River, in mid-April of 198 AD, Liu Feng's army set out again.

Aside from leaving Xu Zhao and Gao Dai's 1,000 troops to garrison Yuji, the main army, with Taishi Ci as the vanguard, Jia Kui as the central army, and Xu Sheng as the rearguard, marched towards Shanyin.

Now, there are nearly 60,000 people in Shanyin City. In addition to the more than 2,000 young men who were plundered by the powerful clans of the Northern Alliance, more than 7,000 Shanyue reinforcements have come after hearing about its reputation.

Despite his superior troop strength, Sun Ce had no reason to smile.

The nearly 40,000 Yue barbarian soldiers turned the city of Shanyin into a chaotic mess. They did not train all day long, wandered around aimlessly, and even clashed with the more compliant Kuaiji army on several occasions.

Conflicts between the two sides were almost constant, with the most serious incident involving thousands of people in a brutal brawl, resulting in hundreds of deaths and injuries on the spot. Even Sun Ce felt a pang of regret. Such a force was probably far inferior to the 30,000 veterans who had been wiped out just over a month prior; how could they possibly contend with Liu Feng's fierce troops?

Sun Ce regretted not accepting Zhu Zhi's offer to surrender earlier.

Bringing this rabble to fight against Liu Feng is no different from courting death.
"Zhongmou".

Sun Ce was in a dark room at this time, and opposite him was his second brother, Sun Quan.

"I intend to send you to the army that is conquering the south..."

Sun Quan stared wide-eyed at his elder brother. At this time, Sun Quan was only a seventeen-year-old boy. Although he was already quite shrewd and calculating, he was still far from becoming the cunning and ruthless master of diplomacy Sun Zhongmou in the future.

Sun Quan's abilities are beyond doubt. He scores over 90 points in almost everything except military affairs, especially in political intrigue, where he is almost at the maximum level.

However, he had no good ideas to offer his elder brother Sun Ce, as he was truly at a loss for words.

Sun Quan respectfully asked, "Please speak, elder brother."

Sun Ce, however, looked grim. After hesitating for a long time, he finally uttered four words: "Please act as an inside agent."

Sun Quan looked up in surprise and met his brother's ashamed expression. His heart skipped a beat.

Sun Ce sighed. He had said the hardest things to say, and he felt as if a heavy shackle had been removed from his body. But his former domineering spirit also dissipated.

"Although there are fifty or sixty thousand people in Shanyin City now, they are all a rabble, incapable of fighting, and internally divided, with each side being an enemy."

Sun Ce's eyes flashed with obvious anger. Given his temper, he wished he could punish these scoundrels by taking one out of ten.

"I originally wanted to take advantage of the situation and make another attempt, but now it seems that was just wishful thinking."

Sun Ce shook his head and sighed: "The only way now is for you to go to the Southern Expeditionary Army and surrender, to reveal all the secrets of Shanyin, in order to ensure the safety of your family. I dare not ask for anything else."

Sun Quan's heart sank, knowing that his elder brother had developed a death wish.

At this time, Sun Quan was far from becoming the great emperor he would become, and he was extremely close to Sun Ce, regarding Sun Ce as his elder brother and following Sun Ce's lead in everything.

How could he stand by and watch his elder brother die alongside these insects in Shanyin City?
However, he had no other choice at the moment and could only follow Sun Ce's orders.

Sun Ce acted decisively. That very night, he had Sun Ci bring several personal guards to secretly escort Sun Quan away from Shanyin under the cover of darkness.

After leaving Shanyin, Sun Quan headed straight in the direction from which the Southern Expeditionary Army had come.

Soon, they ran into scouts from the Southern Expeditionary Army and were subsequently taken back to camp.

Just as Liu Feng was about to rest, he suddenly heard a scout report that members of the Sun family had come to join him in Shanyin City.

Liu Feng was somewhat surprised. Could it be that Sun Ce had lost control of even his own family members?

Not right.

There should only be one branch of the Sun family left in Shanyin City, and those are all his own brothers.

Therefore, Liu Feng immediately decided to summon the person who came.

Soon, a handsome young man with fair skin, a square face, and a tall frame was brought into the tent.

After just one meeting, Liu Feng was certain that the other party must be Sun Ce's younger brother, as the two shared striking resemblance in their features.

Judging from his age, this person must be the Great Emperor himself.

After entering the tent, Sun Quan kept his head down, only secretly observing Liu Feng out of the corner of his eye.

However, Liu Feng's expression remained indifferent, revealing no clue whatsoever.

“Sun Quan, an official from outside the capital, pays his respects to the General Who Conquers the South.”

Sun Quan knew that the safety of the Sun family depended entirely on the other party, so he dared not be negligent in the slightest.

Upon meeting Liu Feng, Sun Quan immediately bowed deeply.

Liu Feng looked at Sun Quan with a hint of curiosity in his eyes. This man was the number one party maniac in the late Eastern Han Dynasty.

Sun Quan loved three things most in his life: first, throwing parties and drinking; second, hunting and shooting tigers; and third, going to Hefei to buy lottery tickets. Even backstabbing didn't rank in his top three.

Sun Quan's first impression on Liu Feng was that he resembled Sun Ce.

The resemblance, both inside and out, is striking; he seems to be a younger version of Sun Ce, especially his bright, piercing eyes, which are exactly like Sun Ce's.

Liu Feng was taken aback at first, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt that it was indeed reasonable.

Looking at Sun Quan's life and actions, it can be seen that, apart from his lack of military ability, his personality was actually quite similar to that of Sun Ce.

The reason why people mistakenly think that Sun Yi is like Sun Ce, while Sun Quan is the opposite of Sun Ce, is that Sun Yi is like Sun Ce.

It was precisely because Sun Quan's political acumen and rationality were so strong that he was able to suppress his own shortcomings, making his decisions completely different from Sun Ce's.

At that moment, Liu Feng also realized something else.

Why did Sun Ce like to keep Sun Quan by his side? Why did Sun Ce treat Sun Quan like an adopted son, and why did he ultimately defy public opinion and personally appoint Sun Quan as his successor before his death?

No one knows a son better than his father, and no one knows a brother better than his elder brother.

As the eldest brother, Sun Ce was essentially the father of Sun Quan, so he knew Sun Quan all too well.

He knew very well that his younger brother was superior to him in political maneuvering, which explains why Sun Ce pointed to his subordinates and said to Sun Quan, "These gentlemen are your generals."

As the eldest brother, Sun Ce was fond of his younger brother, who was not only talented, good at winning people's hearts, resourceful, and good at maintaining balance, but also resembled him in personality and appearance.

Liu Feng stared at Sun Quan in silence, and Sun Quan's heart sank deeply.

He didn't understand why Liu Feng reacted this way.

If I were in their shoes, I would definitely try to appease them in order to successfully pacify Shanyin.

Does the other side not want to pacify Shanyin?

This is unacceptable...

Sun Quan suddenly recalled Liu Feng's strange actions some time ago, and upon further reflection, realized that the current situation in Northern Kuaiji could be entirely attributed to Liu Feng.

This... could it be the other party?!

A flash of inspiration struck Sun Quan, and an unbelievable idea arose in his mind.

Could this rebellion be what Liu Zhengnan actually wanted?

(End of this chapter)