Chapter 244: Two Plans
The next day at noon, Qiao An met Lv Fan. As a Jiangdong elder, he firmly opposed compromising with Cao Cao and strongly advocated resisting Cao Cao. Lv Fan had a straightforward personality and never yielded on principles, just like when he had firmly demanded annihilating Gan Ning in the past. Now, he also clearly expressed his determination to resist the Cao Army’s southward advance.
Although his hostility toward Gan Ning carried some personal emotion, as it related to Jiangdong’s fate, he shifted from the enmity faction to the support faction regarding Gan Ning, firmly supporting an alliance with Gan Ning to resist Cao Cao.
So when Song Kuan wrote him a note indicating that the Western Chu envoy wanted to see him, he agreed without hesitation.
In the guest hall, Lv Fan and Qiao An took their seats as host and guest, while Song Kuan quietly sat to the side. He was accompanying Qiao An, but given his status, he also had the right to listen in.
A maidservant came in and served tea to the three of them. Qiao An took a sip of tea before slowly saying, “How much does Chief Clerk Lu know about the Cao Army’s movements?”
There was a hint of bitterness in Lv Fan’s eyes. Jiangdong’s intelligence was handled by Bu Zhi. After Bu Zhi’s defection, Marquis of Wu purged a batch of Bu Zhi’s confidants and subordinates, directly resulting in the complete collapse of Jiangdong’s intelligence system. The intelligence scouts stationed in various places either fled or dispersed, leaving them ignorant of all the Cao Army’s movements.
Lv Fan sighed and said, “What I know comes only from the news in the letter sent by Marquis of Chu. I know nothing else.”
“Does Marquis of Wu believe the content of that letter?”
“Of course he believes it. Marquis of Wu gathered high officials to discuss the letter, but there was huge internal division, and no conclusion was reached.”
“Why?”
Qiao An was truly puzzled. “Isn’t Marquis of Wu worried that the Cao Army is already at the city gates?”
“It’s not that either. The main disagreement among everyone is whether to cooperate with you. Besides Governor Zhou and me advocating cooperation, the other officials oppose it, or at least oppose it without conditions.”
“What conditions?”
“Bu Zhi!” Lv Fan slowly uttered this name.
“He is the biggest obstacle standing between us. If both sides cannot resolve this issue, the hope for cooperation is slim.”
At this point, Lv Fan let out a long sigh. The Bu Zhi incident was too severe; it had already affected Marquis of Wu’s legitimate status, and he was powerless to do anything.
A flash of anger appeared in Qiao An’s eyes. Restraining his strong inner dissatisfaction, he said solemnly, “Chief Clerk Lu, forgive my bluntness. Right now, the Cao Army is taking the eastern Hefei line, not the western Xiangyang County line. Their target is Jiangdong, not us. My patriarch proposed an alliance to resist Cao Cao not as a plea to you, but to help you, yet you still don’t appreciate it and make excessive demands. This is completely a case of confusing right and wrong, with no grasp of the current situation.”
Lv Fan lowered his head and said nothing. In his heart, how could he not know? It was just that the compromise faction’s power was too strong, influencing Marquis of Wu’s will from all angles—omnipresent, even the Old Madam advising against rash military action.
Moreover, Zhang Zhao, who should have stood with him, actually proposed negotiating with Cao Cao to resolve the Jiangdong crisis. He was neither the war faction nor purely for surrender—could only be called the middle path.
Lv Fan let out a long sigh. “What does Mr. Qiao wish to discuss with us on this envoy mission? Tell me first, and I will relay it to Marquis of Wu.”
Qiao An slowly said, “My Marquis of Chu has proposed two plans: one alliance plan and one cooperation plan.”
At this point, Qiao An took out a scroll of document and handed it to Lv Fan. “Both plans are detailed in here. Please, Lord Lu, present it to Marquis of Wu. If Marquis of Wu has any questions for me, I am ready at any time for summons.”
In the afternoon, Lv Fan hurriedly arrived at Marquis of Wu’s Manor and found his lord Sun Quan. He presented Qiao An’s envoy document scroll to Sun Quan.
Sun Quan looked very fatigued. In recent months, he had faced immense pressure. On one hand, signs of the Cao Army’s major southward advance had appeared, along the Hefei line they feared most; on the other, Bu Zhi’s defection had caused an uproar within Jiangdong, with many officials subtly criticizing Sun Quan for listening to slander and wronging the loyal.
It was a resounding slap in the face. Since Bu Zhi was Sun Ben’s top faction member, why didn’t he go defect to Sun Ben? Instead, he defected to Chaisang.
This was the classic case of failing to catch the snake and getting bitten instead. Sun Quan’s clever plan was to wait a few months after Bu Zhi took office, then quietly have him killed and claim it was due to unfit water and soil—handled so discreetly no one would know. But Bu Zhi, old and cunning, used the cicada-shedding ploy to escape.
Sun Quan had not anticipated such severe consequences. The Bu Zhi incident had already shaken his foundation.
Sun Quan’s ruling foundation was the unanimous recognition by all of Jiangdong that he was Jiangdong’s supreme lord. To gain unanimous acknowledgment from the Jiangdong Army and officials, he needed to demonstrate exceptional wisdom, decisive methods, and problem-solving ability.
Yet the Bu Zhi incident exposed his erroneous judgment—lacking exceptional wisdom—and his insufficient ability, actually letting Bu Zhi escape successfully.
Without exceptional wisdom or ability, it would naturally affect many officials’ support and recognition of him, thus shaking his ruling foundation.
Sun Quan saw this matter very clearly, so he had always strongly demanded that Gan Ning send Bu Zhi back to Jiangdong. This was not just posturing but something he absolutely had to do. The Bu Zhi incident was steadily eroding his ruling foundation, and if not resolved, his rule would eventually collapse.
Precisely because of the Bu Zhi incident as this massive barrier, he was not enthusiastic about Gan Ning’s proposal for an alliance to resist Cao Cao.
Sun Quan slowly unrolled the document. It contained two resist-Cao-Cao plans: one alliance and one cooperation. After reading the details, Sun Quan’s eyes suddenly narrowed into slits. How could this be!
In Gan Ning’s two plans, no matter which one he chose, he would have to agree to the Western Chu Army garrisoning Danyang Commandery. He understood the reasoning—after all, the Cao Army’s river-crossing target was definitely Danyang Commandery—but how could he let the Western Chu Army enter Danyang Commandery? Wasn’t that inviting the wolf into the house?
Sun Quan was deeply scheming. Though annoyed inside, he remained composed and asked Lv Fan, “Has the chief clerk read it?”
Lv Fan nodded. “In response to Marquis of Wu, this subordinate has examined it carefully!”
“What do you think of these two plans?”
Lv Fan bowed and said, “Gan Ning proposed two plans. The alliance plan is obviously unrealistic; there are too many obstacles between us, so alliance is impossible. But this cooperation plan, this subordinate believes it is worth considering.”
“Can we cooperate?”
Sun Quan said flatly, “He wants to garrison Danyang Commandery!”
Only then did Lv Fan suddenly realize Marquis of Wu’s mindset. The form didn’t matter; the key was garrisoning Danyang Commandery, which likely touched Marquis of Wu’s bottom line.
Lv Fan thought for a moment and said, “Marquis of Wu, we can have a good talk with them and see if we can find a plan both sides can accept. Or I can go to Chaisang!”
Sun Quan nodded. “I entrust this matter to Chief Clerk Lv!”
