Three Kingdoms: I am not Cao Rui

According to the calendar of the Great Wei Dynasty, it is now the fourteenth year of the Taihe era.

The Wu Kingdom was destroyed in the ninth year of Taihe. Sun Deng lost his father, then his kingdom, and then his family. He was then bullied by the Shu Kingdom as an ally, and was forced to wander around in the desolate lands of Nanzhong. He even attempted to invade Jiaozhou. In the end, he was disheartened in the face of the Wei army.

Sun Deng was utterly dejected and exhausted, and didn't utter another word. Liu Zan and Meng Zong couldn't bear it, so they went outside the military tent and talked quietly.

Liu Zan still maintained great respect for Meng Zong and the Wu Kingdom's exiled court that Meng Zong represented: "What should we do now?"

Meng Zong slowly shook his head: "Your Majesty is unwilling to move again, which means you are unwilling to follow Shu, unwilling to follow Wei, and unwilling to flee again. You have lost all will to live and are determined to die. I have served Your Majesty for many years and have long been grateful for your kindness. How could I leave Your Majesty in times of crisis?"

Liu Zan said urgently, "We both understand that Shu is hopeless and Wu is gone. Why should we stay here? Don't forget that your ancestors' graves are still in Wu. You are from the Shan family. If you are not here, wouldn't your ancestral graves be as desolate as the wilderness?"

Meng Zong's tone was full of sorrow: "So what? When a person dies, the lamp goes out. If even I die, what use are the ancestral graves? Although I am like this, I do not want General Liu to die like me. We have been together for several years after the national crisis. General Liu has repaid the kindness of the Sun family enough. It is the Sun family that owes the general, not the general who owes the Sun family."

"As you can see, there are still five or six thousand remnants in the army. Given the state of Shu, General, you should take them and surrender to Wei. This will help these soldiers return to their hometowns and serve His Majesty in some way..."

Liu Zan didn't stand on ceremony. From a distance of about ten paces outside the tent, he turned and bowed towards the direction of the military tent, performing nine prostrations and kowtows before rising and saying to Meng Zong:
"I'm going now."

"Alright." Meng Zong nodded, then walked back to the central command tent in a daze.

Not everyone in this world will die for their principles, nor do all acts of loyalty and filial piety end in death. If Sun Deng wanted to fight, Liu Zan was willing to follow him from the bottom of his heart. But Sun Deng neither fought, nor surrendered, nor fled, nor died; what could a subject like Liu Zan do?

It would be better to preserve the soldiers.

Guanqiu Jian's army numbered 7,000, with Shi Bao's 3,000 men serving as the vanguard, and they achieved a series of victories.

Shi Bao and Deng Ai, former colleagues and friends, unexpectedly led several thousand men each into Shu, one in the south and one in the north. However, the armies of the Great Wei were unaware of Guanqiu Jian and Shi Bao's forces.

While still on the march, Shi Bao encountered an envoy sent by Liu Zan from his army about ten miles from Jiangyang City. The envoy explained his intention to surrender. Despite this great news, Shi Bao remained calm and composed. He stayed put and set up camp safely, only instructing the envoy to return and tell Liu Zan to have his men abandon their weapons and move towards him. He also ordered the envoy to quickly relay the message to Guanqiu Jian's troops, thirty miles behind them.

Ma Zhong, inside Jiangyang City, knew all that was happening, but he was powerless to stop it. He understood that he was a crucial pass guarding the heart of Shu in Jiangyang County. If he went out to fight recklessly and lost troops, affecting important matters of the court, even taking his head would be of no use. He could only watch as the Wu army gathered, marched south, and then disappeared from the city's sight.

That evening, ten miles outside Jiangyang City, Guanqiu Jian met with Sun Deng himself after receiving and comforting Liu Zan, a Wu general who had surrendered.

"So you are Sun Deng?" Guanqiu Jian strode into the tent, glanced at Sun Deng who was bound and kneeling on the ground without uttering a single word, chuckled, handed the sword at his waist to his personal guard, and sat down in front of Sun Deng with an air of nonchalance.

"Why aren't you speaking?" Guanqiu Jian looked down at Sun Deng's face. "You are already a prisoner of the Great Wei. What do you have to say now?"

Sun Deng remained silent, his gaze still lowered, his face gloomy and dark, as if he had not heard Guanqiu Jian's question.

Guanqiu Jian was somewhat puzzled and looked up at Shi Bao: "How long has this person been in this state?"

Shi Bao cupped his hands and said, "Reporting to the general, this is how he was when I saw him this afternoon. According to Liu Zan, a Wu general who surrendered, Sun Deng has been in this half-dead state for the past few days, which is very strange."

Guanqiu Jian nodded, stood up proudly, and looked around: "I just learned from Liu Zan that the Wei army has already occupied Jiangzhou and is confronting the Shu army in the Deyang area. The fall of Shu is imminent! We have rushed here from Jiaozhou, seeking only to serve the Emperor and achieve great deeds! Jiangyang City is right before our eyes, and we must take it for the country!" "Today we captured Sun Deng and accepted the surrender of several thousand Wu soldiers, which is cause for celebration. Now, what should we do? I would like to hear your opinions."

Shi Bao was the first to bow, saying, "General, since the imperial army is in Jiangzhou, why not contact the court first and then join forces to attack Deyang? Moreover, Sun Deng can also be sent to Jiangzhou!"

"As for these surrendered Wu soldiers..." Shi Bao's expression turned serious: "We are short of laborers and people to fill ditches in order to attack Jiangyang City! We can offer them benefits for the time being and gradually wear them down!"

Sima Shi nodded in agreement: "Prefect Shi's words are very insightful; this is killing two birds with one stone."

"However... if General sends Sun Deng to Jiangzhou, wouldn't that cause His Majesty some trouble?"

"Troublesome?" Guanqiu Jian was taken aback for a moment, then shook his head: "Just send it over. We are all subjects. How His Majesty arranges Sun Deng is His Majesty's business. How can I do it for him?"

"Yes, I have spoken too much." Sima Shi cupped his hands in greeting.

Guanqiu Jian said, "Since we are going to Jiangzhou, I would like to ask Sima to make the trip for me. He can inform General Man of our situation and request some reinforcements."

"Understood, Your subordinate!" Sima Shi was naturally willing.

……

Four days later, Lu Xun received a message from the imperial court outside Baidi City, sent from Jian Ge.

Because of their closer geographical proximity, Lu Xun already knew about Man Chong's death. Wang Jun even suggested that Lu Xun put aside his military affairs and go west to take over the army as a prince with the title of imperial envoy. Lu Xun hesitated and struggled with this idea for two days, but ultimately gave up on it.

To be honest, seeing that the imperial court was about to pacify Shu, Lu Xun became increasingly apprehensive, and even felt that his previous idea of ​​confronting Man Chong and vying for the great merit of entering Shu was somewhat radical.

Isn't it better to stay in Baidi City?

But since the emperor had issued an edict, Lu Xun had no choice but to comply.

Before departing, Lu Xun summoned Huan Fan to his side: "General Huan, according to His Majesty's decree, I will depart from here in half an hour and travel west by boat."

Huan Fan bowed respectfully with a serious expression and asked, "If the general is heading west, do you have anything to say to me?"

Lu Xun calmly replied, "General Huan, haven't you seen how I've been acting lately? In any case, we should just hold our ground and not move."

Huan Fan then asked, "But what if Wei Yan wants to fight to the death?"

Lu Xun laughed, "Our net can't be broken, but he's no different from a dead fish." (End of Chapter)