Chapter 284: Poisonous Eyes Nearby
Zhang Zhao hurriedly returned to the Marquis of Wu’s Official Residence, where Sun Quan had already been waiting for him for quite some time.
“How did the talks go? Any progress?”
Zhang Zhao did not want to disappoint Sun Quan, so he slowly said: “Marquis of Wu, things must proceed step by step. First is the attitude. The other side is willing to negotiate with us, and their attitude is sincere. This shows they have no confidence in capturing Dantu County by force. With the attitude in place, then comes continuous negotiations and compromises from both sides, ultimately leading to an agreement that both can accept.”
“Does the strategist think we can really reach an agreement?”
There was a barely perceptible tremble in Sun Quan’s tone. The immense pressure over this period had stripped him of the confidence and composure of the Marquis of Wu, as well as the domineering air of one in power, turning him into an ordinary young man full of anxiety and doubt.
Zhang Zhao sensed Sun Quan’s lack of confidence and sighed inwardly before saying: “Marquis of Wu, negotiations are a long process. We must have extreme patience, discussing with the other side repeatedly. A satisfactory negotiation outcome cannot be rushed; it must be talked out, with consensus building up bit by bit until it becomes a plan both sides can compromise on.”
“Was there any consensus today?” Sun Quan asked expectantly.
“Yes!”
Zhang Zhao slowly said: “We reached a consensus. The other side agreed to lift the siege of the South City, allowing citizens to leave smoothly.”
“Is this plan feasible?” Sun Quan hesitated somewhat.
“It can only be said to have both advantages and disadvantages!”
Zhang Zhao calmly analyzed for him: “The disadvantage is that many officials will take the chance to flee, and with a large number of citizens escaping, it may hinder us when conscripting laborers. But the advantage is that our pressure will be greatly reduced, especially from those noble families—they will definitely flee, eliminating much of the morale-sapping clamor.”
Sun Quan finally nodded. “In that case, execute it at dawn tomorrow!”
At dusk, Lv Fan secretly met with Song Kuan, the supervisor of the Western Chu Liaison Office, in a civilian house near the East City.
This was actually Song Kuan’s second time persuading Lv Fan to defect to Gan Ning.
Lv Fan was not unmoved. Back when Sun Quan accepted the peace faction’s plan and decided to sign a seven-year agreement with Cao Cao, Lv Fan had been extremely disappointed in him and had considered abandoning Jiangdong to emulate Bu Zhi.
It was just that at the critical moment, Sun Quan’s appointment of him to lead eighty thousand troops to defend Dantu County had tied him down.
Lv Fan said apologetically: “Thank you for the Marquis of Chu’s trust in me. I am also willing to serve him. But with heavy responsibilities on my shoulders now, I cannot abandon the eighty thousand troops and leave. Please, Supervisor Song, send a message to the Marquis of Chu begging his understanding.”
Song Kuan smiled faintly: “I’m not talking about now; I’m talking about the future. We all know Jiangdong’s great momentum is gone. The final outcome will be either the city being breached or surrendering through negotiations. I hear the Cao Army has agreed to open the South City Gate to let citizens leave. Chief Clerk Lu, this is an opportunity to evacuate your family. We are willing to protect your family and let them leave Dantu first, so that Cao Cao cannot threaten you with them in the future.”
Lv Fan was silent for a long time before finally nodding. He was not pedantic. Though he had a strong sense of duty, that did not mean he did not care about his family’s safety or that he had to bind them to the city with him. With his family safe, he would have no worries holding him back.
“Good! My family is in your hands.”
Zhang Zhao and Xun You reached the citizen evacuation agreement, which Sun Quan approved. The next day at dawn, the South City Gate and the southern Water City Gate opened simultaneously. The Cao Army besieging the South City outside also withdrew. Tens of thousands of citizens waiting anxiously inside the city and the barbican surged out like a flood bursting a dam when the gates opened, families carrying large and small bundles as they rushed out of the city.
The Water City Gate was the same. Ships loaded with the wealth and families of rich households lined up for over ten li inside the city. When the Water City Gate opened, the ships sailed out one by one, entering the canal and heading south.
Lv Fan led tens of thousands of troops standing on the South City Gate, vigilantly watching the Cao Army’s movements. If the Cao Army tried to approach the South City, they would immediately close the gate.
On the city wall, Lv Fan gazed at the massive citizen evacuation, his family on one of the ships among them.
At that moment, Lv Fan did not notice the faint cold glint in the eyes of Deputy General Chen Wu, who was not far from him.
Lv Fan had forgotten that Chen Wu was not only the deputy general appointed by Sun Quan but also the supervisor of Wu Jian, responsible for monitoring the officials.
In the Official Residence, Sun Quan listened to Chen Wu’s report with an expressionless face, a flash of incredulity in his eyes.
“Are you certain?”
Chen Wu nodded. “This subordinate can confirm it. He did meet Song Kuan yesterday at dusk, very secretly. This was the second time. The subordinate I sent to surveil his family said Lv Fan’s family was taken away by Song Kuan’s people before dawn today.”
Sun Quan was naturally suspicious and would not entrust eighty thousand troops to Lv Fan without worry, so he simultaneously appointed his confidant Chen Wu as deputy general—essentially having Wu Jian under Chen Wu surveil Lv Fan.
Sun Quan slowly clenched his fist. It was normal for Lv Fan to want to surrender to Gan Ning. Now everyone was kicking him when he was down, including his second-in-command, Chief Clerk Lv Fan.
No! Sun Quan suddenly realized: Lv Fan had never been his confidant; he was his elder brother Sun Ce’s confidant. Back then, he had only appointed him Chief Clerk to gain his support for ascending to power. He was not loyal to him at all.
Realizing this, Sun Quan understood his grave mistake. At the most critical moment, military power should have been held by his own confidants, not handed to Lv Fan.
Pacing back and forth with hands behind his back, Sun Quan said to Chen Wu: “Continue surveilling his every move!”
Chen Wu saluted and left. Sun Quan began considering what pretext to use to strip Lv Fan of military power and then who to hand it to.
“Xu Family!” The thought suddenly flashed in Sun Quan’s mind—his wife’s family.
“Dang! Dang! Dang! Dang!”
The piercing alarm bells echoed in the Cao Army water fortress. The water fortress gate immediately opened, and dozens of mengchong warships rushed out, sailing into the dark lake surface.
Commander Yu Jin hurried to the observation tower by the water fortress gate, gazing grimly into the dark night.
Zhang Yun stepped forward to report: “It’s Western Chu scout ships, three in total, about one li from our water fortress.”
“One li?”
Yu Jin was extremely furious. He had guaranteed the Chancellor that Western Chu Army scout ships could not approach within three li of the water fortress, yet they were now discovered only one li away.
“Execute tonight’s duty general for me!”
Zhang Yun was startled. Tonight’s duty general was Cai Zan. He quickly explained: “General, the scout ships themselves did not enter the three-li alert zone; they were anchored on the periphery. The Western Chu Army used sampans to sneak in close to the water. Such sampans are impossible to detect at night. Discovering them one li out is already extremely commendable. This subordinate believes they should be rewarded, not severely punished.”
Yu Jin’s expression softened slightly. He nodded. “Since they are sampans, no need for decapitation, but we must carefully study how to prevent enemy sampans from sneaking in next time!”
With that, Yu Jin turned and hurriedly left.
Zhang Yun wiped the sweat from his forehead. The sampans were a fabrication on the spur of the moment, but it at least saved Cai Zan’s life.
