Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

As the army was about to return, Lu Xun, Yue Chen, Xiahou Wei, and Gong Zun bowed to Cao Rui's horse in farewell.

Lu Xun bowed deeply: "Yidao City is backed by mountains and controls the river; it is a strategically vital location that military strategists must contend for. I hereby assure Your Majesty that not a single enemy ship will be able to pass through here!"

Cao Rui nodded slightly: "If I don't trust Boyan's ability in naval warfare, then there is probably no one in the world I can trust and entrust with my duties."

"Your 30,000 naval troops are all in the river. Although you are subject to General Man's command, you can make your own decisions if there is an emergency in the river. Just inform General Man afterwards. I will not go into the details, you should know them yourself."

Man Chong, who was standing to the side, also bowed to Lu Xun: "The armies are in harmony, and the orders have been distributed. Thank you, Prince of Chencang, for your help."

"Your Majesty, rest assured. General Man, rest assured." Lu Xun bowed his head slightly.

Given Lu Xun's cautious nature, Cao Rui had already said enough to him. Man Chong's military tactics were steady and reliable, while Lu Xun's strategies were unconventional, and Huan Fan, who understood the overall situation, was stationed in Jiangling.

A total of 90,000 troops were stationed in Jingnan, representing the largest force Cao Rui could maintain logistically for an extended period. This was sufficient to deal with Sun Deng's exiled group after the fall of Wu, as well as the Shu Kingdom in Yizhou further upstream.

Now that the Yangtze River is under the control of the Great Wei, the Great Wei can now enjoy the same advantages that Sun Quan once had in swift troop movements.

As parting drew near, further elaboration would only appear distrustful of his subjects. After a few hasty words, Cao Rui was about to order the army to march when, as if remembering something, he pulled on the reins, turned around, and addressed Lu Xun, who was still bowing in place:
"Boyan, come closer, I have something to tell you."

"Yes." Lu Xun, puzzled, cautiously stepped forward.

Cao Rui dismounted, waved to dismiss his attendants, then gestured for Lu Xun to come closer, and said in a low voice, "Boyan, Zhonggong sent me a letter from Guiyang, saying that he received a letter from Lu Dai, the former governor of Jiaozhou of Wu."

"Lord Lü Ding?" Lu Xun frowned slightly, then said, "Your Majesty, Lord Lü Ding should be seventy-four years old this year. He was already forty when he joined the Sun family. He had served as a county official in Huainan County, Yangzhou for many years before that. He was not the kind of person who rebelled with the Sun family when he was young."

"I dare to speak frankly, but Duke Lü Ding is old and frail and has no ambition. Judging from his resume, he would not be willing to die for the Sun family. Your Majesty should perhaps ask Guanqiu to lead the army to try to persuade him to surrender. Jiaozhou is a very remote place. Wu did not have to exert too much effort to take it back then. Now that Wei has pacified Wu, it should be even easier."

Cao Rui nodded slightly after hearing this: "I understand this principle, but that is not what I want to tell you today."

"In his letter to Zhonggong, Lü Dai said that when he was sending troops north to rescue Jiangling in Nanjun, he ordered his confidants to take advantage of the chaos to bring Lu Sunshi, your ex-wife, from Changsha to Jiaozhou to avoid the chaos. Your eldest son Lu Yan, your brother Lu Mao's wife, two concubines, two sons, two daughters-in-law, and two grandsons were also taken in by him. Except for one grandson who died at the beginning of the year due to acclimatization issues, the rest are all living well in Jiaozhou."

"Lu Dai is willing to send your family back to Wei to establish friendly relations." Cao Rui looked at Lu Xun's face and then asked, "What should be done with your family? Should they be sent to your Lu clan in Wu Commandery?"

Lu Xun had married the Emperor's younger sister, and now his ex-wife was to be sent back. Lu Xun was momentarily embarrassed and lowered his head. Overwhelmed with mixed feelings of joy and sorrow, and considering his own and his family's future, he cupped his hands and said:

"If Your Majesty will not despise me, I beg Your Majesty to send my brother Lu Mao and his family to live in my fiefdom of Chencang. Wu County is a place of sorrow, and I do not wish to send them back again... As for my ex-wife and eldest son, I beg Your Majesty to entrust them to the care of the princess. I am leading troops in the field and should not inquire about family matters anymore. I only beg Your Majesty to spare Lu Sunshi's life. She has never done anything rebellious with Sunshi."

"Alright." Cao Rui smiled. "Then I will have Zhong Gong send someone to escort her and her son back to Chang'an."

After saying this, Cao Rui turned his horse and rode away, and the army immediately set off.

...Guiyang Prefecture, Zhenyang.

In the regional divisions prior to the Wei's attack on Wu in the eighth year of the Taihe era, Jingzhou during the Later Han Dynasty was divided in two along the Yangtze River. The northern part was Jingzhou, governing six commanderies: Weixing, Nanxiang, Nanyang, Xiangyang, Nanjun, and Jiangxia. The southern part was Xiangzhou, governing four commanderies: Wuling, Changsha, Lingling, and Guiyang.

Guiyang Commandery was located at the southernmost tip of Xiangzhou, bordering Nanhai Commandery of Jiaozhou. Panyu, the capital of Nanhai Commandery, was also the capital of Jiaozhou.

From the perspective of later geographical divisions, present-day Jiaozhou almost encompassed Guangdong, Guangxi, and northern Vietnam. Considering this vast territory that was isolated from the Central Plains, the prefectural capital, Panyu, seemed somewhat too far north, directly adjacent to Guiyang, the southernmost part of Xiangzhou.

In other words, they were also close to the southward-bound army commanded by General Guanqiu Jian, and directly under the onslaught of 20,000 troops.

Although Zhenyang was a county, its city walls were incomparable to those of ordinary county towns in the Central Plains; it was less than a mile long and wide. Guanqiu Jian's large army was stationed near Zhenyang County, almost completely surrounding the county town.

In the central military tent west of Zhenyang City, General Guanqiu Jian, the commander of the army, was discussing matters with his generals and subordinates.

Guanqiu Jian slowly said, "Lu Dai has exchanged letters with me twice. His attitude was respectful and polite, but he still relied on his control of a province and was unaware of the situation and unwilling to surrender to the Great Wei."

"Jiaozhou is a land of pestilence and disease among the southern barbarians. The climate here is extremely unbearable for us northerners. We may attack it, but the area is full of mountains, rivers, and lakes. Our army is unfamiliar with the terrain and may suffer casualties. We should proceed with caution."

"I intend to send another envoy to Lü Dai to persuade him to surrender. If he still refuses to surrender after three attempts, then I will launch a massive military campaign to annihilate him with overwhelming force. Does anyone have any objections?"

"General, your decision is wise." General Cao Zhao, who was in charge of pacifying the east, responded with a cupped hand.

"Your subordinate agrees with the general. If the general wishes to attack Lü Dai, please allow me to lead the vanguard to subdue him!" General Zhang Hu immediately patted his chest and said in a rough voice.

Everyone in the tent expressed their support for the general's wise decision.

Guanqiu Jian glanced over and noticed that the person standing behind Zhang Hu was not speaking, but frowning and looking down at the ground.

Guanqiu Jian's eyes narrowed, and he immediately asked, "What are your thoughts, Sima? Why don't you say something? Speak frankly."

This person was none other than Sima Shi, who served as the Commander-in-Chief.

Previously, the 20,000-strong army was almost at Linxiang in Changsha Commandery when Sima Shi suddenly arrived at the army as General Sima. The generals disregarded his experience as an official in Yangzhou and his resume in the Imperial Secretariat, instinctively assuming that he was sent by his father, Sima Yi, to gain prestige and merit, and even felt some contempt for him.

Zhang Hu and Pu Zhong even agreed that when Guanqiu Jian first introduced Sima Shi to everyone, they would cup their hands and address him as "Sima Sima," which caused the officers and soldiers in the military tent to burst into laughter.

Sima Shi stepped forward, cupped his hands towards Guanqiu Jian, and said, "General, I believe that instead of sending a letter to Lü Dai, it would be better to send a eloquent and outspoken person to Panyu to explain the potential consequences to Lü Dai!" (End of Chapter)