Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

The atmosphere in the hall was solemn, and everyone was thinking about their own things. Sun Quan suddenly took a step forward, his face full of anxiety, and his voice was full of obvious dissatisfaction and questioning: "Sister-in-law, my nephew is my eldest brother's only flesh and blood. If you take him away, won't you be putting my nephew in unknown danger? Who will be the lord of Jiangdong in the future?" His words were loud and clear, and his eyes were fixed on Da Qiao and Zhou Yu. The atmosphere in the hall became increasingly tense.

The old lady also spoke slowly, her tone filled with worry and earnestness: "Shao'er is Bofu's only flesh and blood after all. Zhongmou also said that when Shao'er grows up, he will return the power to Shao'er." Her words made the already tense situation even more solemn. Everyone's eyes were once again focused on Da Qiao, waiting for her decision.

Da Qiao lowered her eyes and looked at Sun Shao, who was sleeping in her arms. The baby in the swaddling clothes was breathing lightly and evenly, and his delicate hands unconsciously clutched her clothes. Suddenly, she heard Sun Quan's question. A sad smile appeared on her pale lips, and the fine lines at the corners of her eyes trembled slightly with sorrow: "Mother, how dare I talk about being the master of Jiangdong now? If you think this hegemony on the river is appropriate, even if you hand it over to someone else tomorrow, what can I do?" She gently pressed her cheek against Sun Shao's soft hair, her voice stained with unremovable bitterness, "I only hope to protect my husband's bloodline and raise my two children safely."

The old lady took a half step forward with her cane, her cloudy eyes filled with worry: "Shao'er can only grow up safely in the Sun family! Following Zhou Yu is like walking into a tiger's mouth. The incense of the Sun family's ancestral hall is the foundation of his life!" Her trembling fingertips almost touched Da Qiao's shoulder, but Da Qiao gently dodged.

Sun Quan clenched the jade pendant at his waist, the jade leaving red marks on his palms. "Sister-in-law, please listen to mother! With the protection of our Sun clan, Shao'er will be safe and secure. Zhou Yu's actions today clearly indicate he has evil intentions. How could you take your child into such danger?"

Da Qiao suddenly looked up, her gaze sweeping across the crowd like cold stars. The candlelight cast a shattered light in her eyes, even colder than the jade pendant at Sun Quan's waist. "Zhongmou, in front of all the elders and the civil and military officials of Jiangdong, how dare you say that today's events have nothing to do with you?" Her frail figure suddenly bowed heavily, the golden hairpin in her hair clattering against the blue bricks.

The hall erupted in exclamations of surprise. Zhang Zhao and the others hurriedly stood up, but their haste knocked over the bamboo slips on the table. Cheng Pu stumbled and reached out to help her, but saw Da Qiao lying on the ground. Her voice was heartbreakingly calm: "Whether Jiangdong will face war or peace in the future, and who will rule, you can decide. I only ask for your husband's past friendship and for me to protect Shao'er and raise him. He is just a child, still in swaddling clothes, unable to shoulder the heavy responsibility of ruling the country, much less withstand the power struggles."

She slowly straightened her back, the pearls and jade on her temples gleaming coldly in the candlelight. "Now that I've entrusted everything to you, we, mother and son, no longer have the slightest desire to fight for power. If anything goes wrong with Gongjin, I'm sure no one in Jiangdong will let him off easily." She emphasized the last sentence, as if hammering a nail into everyone's hearts. "So, are you all relieved?"

Sun Ben's palm, with throbbing veins, slammed heavily on the carved long table, making it clang loudly: "Bofu's body is still warm, and my sister-in-law wants to take her nephew to join the foreign minister? How can the ancestors of the Sun family rest in peace!" Sun Jing stroked his gray beard and shook his head repeatedly, his turbid old eyes full of grief and indignation: "Bofu fought all over the world for the foundation of Jiangdong. How can he let his young son be stranded outside?" The old lady hunched her back, her fingers like dead branches tightly grasping Da Qiao's sleeve, tears streaming down her face: "If you insist on doing this, you will cut off the roots of the Sun family!"

The officials of Jiangdong were like frightened birds. Zhang Hong kowtowed in haste, his forehead almost breaking the bricks: "Madam, you are too kind! How dare we have the slightest intention of forcing you!" The brothers Lu Meng and Lu Dai looked at each other and quietly retracted their hands on the hilts of their swords into their sleeves. Only the four veterans, Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Han Dang, and Zu Mao, had tears in their eyes as they had experienced hundreds of battles. Cheng Pu let out a suppressed sob as his Adam's apple rolled; Huang Gai wiped the corners of his eyes fiercely with his rough palms, and the sound of the iron armor rubbing against each other was accompanied by a sob that was difficult to conceal: "When I fought shoulder to shoulder with General Bofu, who could have imagined that the situation would be like this today?"

Da Qiao's forehead was bruised by the rubbing of bricks, but she remained straight, as stubborn as a rock. Suddenly, she raised her head, a resolute expression beneath her mourning attire, and her voice was firmer than the chains: "As the widow of Sun Ce, I bow to you all once more!" This bow silenced the angry shouts of the Sun clan members, the cries of the old lady, and the bewildered ministers. "I only ask for peace for my mother and me. Please grant this!"

Sun Quan's throat lurched, and just as he was about to speak, Zhang Zhao suddenly grabbed his sleeve. The old minister's bony fingers gripped the brocade tightly, the cold sweat from his palms soaking the fabric. This hidden force froze Sun Quan's steps in mid-air, preventing him from moving forward or backward. He stared at his mother's trembling figure, gritted his teeth, and retreated, his boot heels clattering against the blue bricks with a dull, unyielding thud.

The old lady leaned on a cane, turbid tears sliding down her wrinkled cheeks: "Now that Bofu's body is still warm, why don't you wait until after his funeral to make a decision?" She stretched out a trembling hand, wanting to touch Da Qiao but was unable to drop it. "No matter what you decide, you are still my daughter-in-law, and Shao'er is still the blood of the Sun family... At least we have to make good arrangements for you after Bofu's funeral, why are you so anxious?"

Before she finished speaking, Da Qiao suddenly pointed at Sally's broken body lying in a pool of blood, her bloodstained fingertips trembling slightly: "Mother! Bofu is gone, and Shao'er is still in his infancy! This time it was sister-in-law Sally who risked her life to protect him, but who will it be next time? Are you going to let my son's tender body face the blade directly?" Her voice suddenly rose, with a determination to burn his boats.

The hall was dead silent. Da Qiao suddenly tore off the mourning cloth from her head. The white strip of cloth drew a poignant arc in the air and fell heavily to the ground, just like her shattered past: "Bofu and I have been husband and wife for our entire lives. If he is still alive, I blame myself for not being able to see him off..." She suddenly knelt on the messy ground, straightened her back, and spoke with tears in her eyes. "When Shao'er grows up, I will pay with my own life! But now, as a mother, I must take him away from this dangerous place!"

These words struck everyone like a hammer. The old lady stumbled back, nearly falling; the Sun clan members stared at each other, speechless; the Jiangdong officials lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at this resolute mistress. Sun Shao, in Da Qiao's arms, suddenly burst into tears, his cries echoing through the silent hall, adding a poignant note to this thrilling confrontation.

Zhang Hong suddenly raised his wrinkled face, staring at Zhou Yu with cloudy eyes, and his Adam's apple rolled up and down twice before he spoke: "General, you still haven't given an explanation for the assassination. If you can't even investigate the assassination of your mistress, how can you convince the people in the future? The military affairs of Jiangdong cannot tolerate such a mess!" Before he finished speaking, Lu Meng and Lu Dai had already stepped forward with swords drawn, and the sound of their boots scraping against the blue bricks was like a venomous snake spitting out its tongue. "Yes! You must give an explanation! If there is no explanation, how can you be allowed to control the millions of soldiers in Jiangdong?"

Cheng Pu's fingers unconsciously stroked the hilt of his sword, Huang Gai twisted and twisted his iron whip, and Han Dang and Zu Mao exchanged glances, their eyes filled with struggle and reluctance. The four of them moved their lips, but ultimately swallowed back the words that were about to come out of their mouths, only to cast complicated glances at Zhou Yu.

Zhou Yu lowered his eyes to look at Ma Yue, who huddled in his arms, clutching his shirt. He suddenly chuckled, a laugh filled with desolation and disdain. His slender fingers slowly untied the golden sash at his waist, and the heavy seal of the Grand Commander fell to the ground with a clang, resonating crisply against the blue bricks. The coiled dragon pattern on the seal, though dusty, still shone with a cold, hard light.

"Go!" Zhou Yu raised his hand and tossed the seal toward Zhang Hong, his movements as graceful as when he commanded an army. The old minister frantically reached out to catch it, the edge of the seal glancing across his palm, instantly oozing a streak of blood. He ignored the pain and held the seal tightly in his arms, a strange light glimmering in his cloudy eyes.

"Jiangdong is full of snakes, insects, rats and ants, and hidden arrows are harder to defend against than those of Cao's army." Zhou Yu looked around at everyone, his eyes like a hawk sweeping across Sun Quan's gloomy face and Lu Meng's tense jaw, "Since you all want to play this game of power, I will give you this seal! From today on, the defense of Jiangdong has nothing to do with me, Zhou Yu!"

He suddenly turned to Cheng Pu and the other four generals, and said in a deep voice like a drum: "Four old generals, Bofu entrusted me with the defense of Jiangdong before his death. Now the internal strife continues, and I don't want the soldiers to bleed in vain..." At this point, his voice suddenly choked, "But please remember, old generals, this Jiangdong foundation was earned by Bofu's life! Don't let the treacherous people destroy half our life's work!"

Cheng Pu's calloused hands pressed heavily on Zhou Yu's shoulders, his cloudy old eyes welling with tears. "Gongjin, why are you doing this..." Before he could finish his words, Han Dang had already rushed forward, the sound of armor clashing with anxiety: "If the Grand Commander's seal is handed over, won't Jiangdong be thrown into chaos?" Huang Gai was so angry that his beard trembled, and he slammed his iron whip to the ground, shaking the blue bricks. "Today's incident clearly shows that someone is deliberately forcing the emperor to abdicate!"

Sun Quan stared at the seal on the ground, his Adam's apple twitching. He caught a glimpse of Zhang Hong putting it into his arms, and a complex expression crossed his face. The old lady, leaning on her cane, took a half step forward and said in a trembling voice, "Zhongmou, you..." Before she could finish her words, Sun Quan raised his hand to stop her. He looked at Ma Yue in Zhou Yu's arms and suddenly smiled, though the smile didn't reach his eyes. "In that case, Zhou Yu's resignation is a major event. The seal will be kept by Zhang Changshi for the time being, and will be handed over after the new governor is selected."

Lü Meng and Lü Dai exchanged a glance, slowly sheathing their swords, but still keeping a wary eye on Zhou Yu. Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong exchanged glances, and Zhang Zhao, stroking his beard, spoke, "Since the Grand Commander has decided to leave, I wonder what his plans are for the future?"

Zhou Yu lowered his head and gently stroked Ma Yue's head, letting the child's soft hair slip through his fingers. Looking up, his gaze swept across the crowd like cold stars. "I will garrison the half of Wu County that was once ceded to Shanyue. As long as Jiangdong doesn't encroach on my borders, I will not interfere in military affairs." His voice was low, yet it carried a chilling pressure. "But this half of the county must be a safe haven for my nephew and me. If anyone insists on forcing us..." Before he finished speaking, the sword at his waist was already unsheathed, the cold light causing Zhang Zhao's pupils to shrink.

Taishi Ci stepped forward, spear in hand, his metal gauntlets gleaming coldly in the candlelight. "I followed Commander Zhou in battle against Liu Yao and pacified Yuzhang. Today, I'm willing to follow him to protect the young master!" Wei Yan slammed his sword against the ground, sparks flying from the bluestone floor. "Anyone who dares to touch the young master must get past me first!" The two men stood on either side like iron towers, their fighting spirit radiating from them making the air seem frozen.