novelSusiti Chapter 43 The child is just being silly and playing around.
Chapter 43 The child is just being silly and playing around.
In mid-March of the fifth year of Jian'an (200 AD), the turmoil in Huainan, which lasted for nearly two months, finally came to an end.
Sun Ce took the initiative to back down, releasing some of the prisoners of the Zhong clan's army in exchange for negotiating with Yuan Yao to discuss a ceasefire and withdrawal of troops.
There was only one small condition: to avoid misunderstandings, they hoped the two of them could negotiate face-to-face in person.
Upon learning of this, the Zhong clan's ministers wished they could spit dog shit in Sun Ce's face.
Is this even human language?
Who doesn't know who Sun Ce is? He conquered Jiangdong and was invincible. His martial prowess was famously off the charts. He was known as one of the Three Evils of Jiangdong—referring to Sun Ce, Sun Bofu, and Sun Taoni.
If he harbors malicious intentions during the negotiations, who can stop him in the heat of the moment?
Yang Hong immediately stepped forward to advise, "Your Highness, you mustn't go! This is a trap!"
"What 'Feast at Hongmen'?" Yuan Yao asked casually. "It's clearly a bully inviting rebels."
It was obvious that Sun Ce was still unwilling to back down and wanted to use this petty trick to get back at Sun Ce.
Although it was a very low-level and boring situation, the situation in Huainan was such that both sides were afraid to fight it, similar to the Treaty of Chanyuan in later times. If either side retreated even slightly, they might suffer losses.
But why would Yuan Yao be afraid?
The Feast at Hongmen?
Did Xiang Yu invite Liu Bang?
What did Liu Bang do after that?
What about Xiang Yu?
Yang Hong was taken aback: "So Your Highness means... to attend the banquet?"
"Let's go to the banquet!" Yuan Yao patted Yang Hong on the shoulder. "By the way, I heard that Lord Yang is quite familiar with Jiangdong. You should come along too."
Yang Hong was stunned. He wanted to refuse, but when he saw Yuan Yao looking at him with kind eyes, and considering that he had pretended to be dead throughout the battle, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree.
With the attendees confirmed, Yuan Yao had everything ready, and was just waiting to borrow Fan Kuai before setting off.
Half a day later, Fan Kuai returned.
Upon hearing Yuan Yao's summons, Guan Yu, who was originally blocking Jiangdong's reinforcements at Wankou, rode Red Hare at breakneck speed and quickly arrived at Wancheng.
Incidentally, Guan Yu also learned that the Battle of Huainan was basically over. Considering his great contributions in this battle and his subsequent tireless efforts in putting out fires everywhere, he made his demands with a clear conscience as soon as he met Yuan Yao.
Guan Yu: "Young Master Yuan, I have a favor to ask. If you ever find out where my brother is, please lend me Red Hare."
Yuan Yao: "That's easy. Yun Chang only needs to agree to the next condition..."
"Young Master Yuan!" Guan Yu was immediately displeased: "I have already slain Ling Cao and executed Xu Kun, relieving the calamity in Huainan. Is this not enough to repay your kindness?"
"Of course it's enough," Yuan Yao said with a smile. "Yun Chang, don't be angry. I'm always fair in my dealings, and my reputation is impeccable. Why don't you hear my terms first?"
"Hmph, speak then."
"I beg you, Yun Chang, to protect me and accompany me to see Sun Ce. In return, I have just discovered the whereabouts of Lord Liu."
Guan Yu immediately sat up straight: "Where is my elder brother?"
Yuan Yao said, "I am in Hebei, and I have joined Yuan Shao's forces."
Guan Yu solemnly replied, "In that case, I will protect you one more time, and then I will go to Hebei to find my brother."
Yuan Yao smiled and said, "General Guan, please make yourself at home."
With the preliminary preparations completed, Yuan Yao no longer hesitated and sent someone to inform Sun Ce to prepare for the meeting immediately.
The meeting place was chosen to be an open area south of Wancheng. Before setting off, Yuan Yao had someone observe the area for a long time with his only telescope to make sure there were no ambushes before leading Guan Yu, Yang Hong, and five hundred swordsmen there.
Soon after, Sun Ce arrived with two hundred light cavalry.
They gazed at each other from afar, neither in a hurry to meet, but stood quietly in place, scrutinizing each other.
Sun Ce wanted to get to know Yuan Yao again. He never expected that Yuan Shu's son would have such abilities. He had been victorious in every battle since he started his career, but he had only stumbled against Yuan Yao, which made him feel extremely complicated.
Yuan Yao was assessing whether he could let Guan Yu make another impressive move and try to behead Sun Ce.
Unfortunately, upon closer inspection, Sun Ce was followed by several burly generals. According to Yang Hong's introduction, they were Han Dang, Huang Gai, and others. With their abilities, even if Guan Yu could kill Sun Ce, Yuan Yao himself might not be able to survive the counterattack.
Forget it, let's just negotiate seriously.
Yuan Yao led Yang Hong closer, with Guan Yu trailing behind at a short distance.
Upon seeing this, Sun Ce also rode forward with only one person to meet him.
The four arrived at a place, and Yang Hong dismounted first. He then took out several small stools, also called "Hu beds," from his saddlebag and invited the others to sit down.
Seeing that everyone was seated, Yang Hong, relying on his connections with everyone, took the initiative to assume the role of host and spoke first to Sun Ce:
"Since ancient times, it has been said that weapons are deadly instruments, and caution is paramount. Bo Fu is a hero of our time, and should naturally be mindful of the bigger picture and prioritize harmony. How can we engage in infighting and killing each other? In my opinion, let's each take a step back and call it a day."
Before Sun Ce could speak, the man beside him said, "Lord Yang's words are exactly what I wanted to say. As long as your army agrees to cede Jiujiang Commandery south of Hefei and compensate our army for all the expenses of this expedition, we are willing to withdraw our troops immediately!"
Yuan Yao looked up and found that the man was handsome and elegant, unlike ordinary people.
Yuan Yao: "And who is this?"
"Young Master Yuan, you are a man of high status and may have a bad memory. I am Zhou Yu, courtesy name Gongjin, from Shucheng, Lujiang."
Sure enough it was him.
Yuan Yao felt a pang of sadness. He wished he had come a few years earlier. At that time, Sun Ce was the top double-flower red stick of the Yuan family, and Zhou Yu was just a minor Juchao chief under Yuan Shu.
Now things are really messed up. Not only have they all become enemies, but they've also gained the upper hand. Even if we fight with all our might, we can only manage a slight victory.
That said, Yuan Yao didn't see anything wrong with Zhou Yu's outrageous demands.
Negotiations are always about asking for the moon and settling for the coin. Zhou Yu clearly made a bold demand, so that it would be much easier to talk about opening the window later.
But now that Yuan Yao has realized this, how could he let the other party lead him by the nose?
Besides, Yuan Yao and Yang Hong, who came this time, in terms of military strategy, even if you combined them and doubled them, they might not be able to match either Sun Ce or Zhou Yu. But when it comes to negotiation, which is purely a matter of words and cunning, hmph...
Yuan Yao calmly replied, "I refuse to discuss such meaningless topics."
Yang Hong took the opportunity to complain, saying, "Zhou Gongjin, you have no sincerity. We all agreed to negotiate together, and we were very serious. But you just started spouting nonsense. What kind of behavior is that?"
How old are you? You still don't understand. How can you joke about such a national matter? Is this the time for jokes? Do you still want to talk or not?
Zhou Yu, still concerned about his reputation, was somewhat embarrassed by the two's back-and-forth rhetoric and had no choice but to retract his previous statement: "Then please, Young Master Yuan, propose a solution."
"Alright," Yuan Yao said without hesitation, "Cease Danyang and Wu counties to us, and this war will be over."
Zhou Yu immediately became angry: "Is Young Master Yuan joking?"
Yuan Yao: "Yes, but you started it first."
Yang Hong stepped in again to smooth things over, saying that this was all Zhou Gongjin's fault. As the saying goes, the one who starts a fight is the one who's shameless. What were you trying to achieve by being cheeky before? Look, you've angered our young lord!
Why are you glaring at me? My young master was just joking. Young people don't know any better and are just talking nonsense. How old is he and how old are you? Is it meaningful to make a fuss about this?
Zhou Yu was completely red-faced and about to explode in anger, but Sun Ce raised his hand and stopped him.
Sun Ce said in a deep voice, "Gentlemen, let's cut to the chase and get to the point."
Yuan Yao nodded and said, "Sun Taoni's words make sense."
"Young Master Yuan has mispronounced my name." Sun Ce smiled slightly and said frankly, "The imperial court just issued an edict to me a few days ago, and I am no longer the General Who Subdues Rebels."
What?!
Yuan Yao didn't expect Sun Ce to be so honest, dropping a bombshell right off the bat.
Does this mean that Xuchang officially broke off relations with Sun Ce and took away his general's title?
This is a major change. With Cao Cao as an enemy, Sun Ce will have no chance to challenge Yuan Yao!
What's there to talk about then?
Yuan Yao and Yang Hong exchanged a glance, stood up, straightened their clothes, and prepared to leave.
"However—" Sun Ce casually mentioned, "he's been promoted to General."
Yuan Yao: "You want to sit here?"
Yang Hong: "Okay, I'll sit over there."
The two spun around in place, switched places, and sat down again.