133

"Your Majesty, what Sima Yang says is reasonable. In my view, if Sun Ce truly allies with someone, he is bound to bite the hand that feeds him; the late Emperor is living proof of this!"

Li Yin started gossiping again. Back when Li Shu was in the direst straits with troubles both internal and external, our Sun Ce had abandoned him and even poached several of Li Shu's top generals. Remembering this always put Li Yin in a foul mood.

However, Li Miao remained utterly indifferent to such matters. Hailing from a later era, Li Miao understood reputations better than anyone. Liu Bei prided himself on his so-called virtue, yet he was still a merciless warlord responsible for countless deaths; people merely acted differently on the surface than behind closed doors.

In an era of turmoil, which general had not clawed his way out of mountains of bleached bones? Sun Ce leaving to establish himself was completely normal, for Sun Ce had merely been living under another's roof, and his late foster father had given him no reason to stay.

The type of men Li Miao truly despised were the likes of Chen Lan and Lei Bo, because they not only betrayed a patron who had treated them reasonably well, but also pillaged and plundered on their way out.

Even Lü Bu appeared rather excusable in the eyes of classmate Li Miao. Lü Bu's first rebellion against his adoptive father occurred because Ding Yuan treated him too absurdly—relegating a blood-and-iron general who should have been fighting northern tribes in Bingzhou to the post of a mere clerk for seven years. When they needed him, they used him; why should Lü Bu continue pressing his warm face against someone's cold backside?

As for his second betrayal, it stemmed from anger turning into hatred, snapping his crown in fury for the sake of a beauty—something that could hardly be overly condemned. Thus, in Li Miao's eyes, the criticisms leveled against Lü Bu in turbulent times were all far too harsh.

"Haihun and Shangliao?" Li Miao muttered under his breath. If tonight's banquet truly concerned Haihun and Shangliao, it meant the historical plot was about to unfold. Furthermore, given Lujiang's current military strength, attempting to hold Wan City with its virtually non-existent garrison was wishful thinking.

"Liu Xun will definitely dispatch troops to Haihun and Shangliao," Li Miao blurted out.

"Your Majesty, do you think we should reveal this intelligence? Would it be better for Lujiang to remain in Liu Xun's hands, or fall into Sun Ce's?"

Huang Yi was completely bewildered. After listening to the two strategists chatter away, he still had not grasped the core issue.

"Your Majesty, in my view, seizing Lujiang requires at least five thousand troops. If we truly march, five thousand soldiers holding Wan City while watching the snipe and the clam grapple outside will ensure Lujiang inevitably falls into our embrace," Li Yin said, ignoring Huang Yi and cupping his fists.

Li Miao looked at Li Yin's burning gaze as if expecting him to conjure five thousand troops out of thin air, and instantly felt a strong urge to slap him.

"You old man speak without feeling any backache; where the hell am I supposed to find you five thousand troops?!"

Li Miao felt like crying without tears. He suddenly realized that these fellows had perhaps been brainwashed by their own grand rhetoric of capturing Lujiang within half a year.

"Ahem, let us discuss this matter later," Li Miao coughed awkwardly twice.

Li Miao and Liu Ye each weighed and assessed one another. Liu Ye ultimately decided to pursue the old patron he had long since chosen. Although he knew his status might make things slightly awkward upon arrival, Liu Ye understood that Cao Cao was unquestionably a man of great talent!

Li Miao also reached a firm decision. Knowing that Liu Ye would head to Cao Cao's camp once Wan City fell, his remaining time was limited. Li Miao resolved to win Liu Ye over by any means necessary.

While both harbored their own hidden thoughts, Liu Xun's banquet tables were filling up one after another.

"Oh?"

Upon closer inspection, Li Miao was startled. Not only had Liu Xun invited numerous generals, but another table was entirely occupied by individuals clad in silk robes, the leader of whom appeared to hold an exceptionally high status among them.

Yet while these guests exchanged pleasantries amongst themselves at the tables, not a single one bothered to pay any attention to our dear Liu Xun.

Liu Xun's expression turned somewhat awkward, but he managed to swallow his anger and refrained from erupting. The aristocratic clans were far too formidable and vital for warlords; even illustrious leaders like Cao Cao and Li Shao sometimes had to watch the moods of the gentry, and the gentry officials within their ranks spoke volumes.

During the Three Kingdoms period, scholars of humble origins had virtually no path to prominence, as all the lucrative posts were monopolized by aristocratic clans. Even someone like Liu Bei merely waved a great banner as a tiger skin, widely publicizing his identity as a scion of the Han imperial house just to garner enough support to launch his career.

Liu Xun couldn't be bothered to entertain them either. How could Liu Xun possibly offer a pleasant expression to those who threatened his authority? Had he not needed something from them today, he wouldn't even have bothered issuing the invitation.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Liu Xun prepared to open the banquet. "Gentlemen, I have summoned you all here today to discuss a matter of utmost importance, and I sincerely hope you will lend your assistance!" Liu Xun went straight to the point, instantly stoking everyone's enthusiasm with a single sentence.

However, those within Liu Xun's own ranks already knew what was coming; curiosity was primarily confined to Li Miao's group and the leaders of the aristocratic clans.

"Gentlemen, I shall not beat around the bush. Lujiang's military situation is currently stable, and much of the credit naturally belongs to Liu Xun here." Liu Xun very naturally took all the credit upon himself, firmly believing that Lujiang's current peace was entirely due to the presence of his garrison.

"Hmph—" The heads of the aristocratic clans in Lujiang sneered inwardly. With the piercing vision honed through maritime commerce and business wars, they could readily discern what kind of mediocre creature our classmate Liu Xun truly was. They merely tolerated him because he currently commanded tens of thousands of elite troops stationed in Wan City, and they preferred not to force an open rupture just yet.

As for these clan leaders, who controlled eighty percent of Lujiang's wealth, their private militias alone probably outnumbered Liu Xun's entire army if combined.

Yet these private militias formed the foundation of their family fortunes, and they were naturally unwilling to deploy them in a desperate struggle against others. This served as one of their primary bargaining chips when dealing with warlords. In their eyes, Liu Xun was fundamentally no different from Han Fu; mediocrity equaled incompetence, and in a turbulent era, incompetence was unworthy of anyone's investment. This was precisely why Liu Xun had failed to attract many capable retainers.

Even Liu Ye's decision to defect to him stemmed from a desire to use Lujiang as a gift to present to Cao Cao.

"However, Sun Ce of Jiangdong now eyes us like a predatory tiger, and Cao Cao in the north is preparing to move against Li Shao. As the Administrator of Lujiang, tasked with governing and protecting this territory, safeguarding Lujiang should be my utmost priority. Yet today, I am compelled to consult with all of you regarding provisions—our Lujiang army's grain supplies are running critically low, and I humbly request your assistance!"

Liu Xun said, cupping his fists.

As soon as Liu Xun finished speaking, someone at the adjacent table immediately took up the conversation. "General, you are being overly modest. Since you garrison Lujiang, you are naturally the master to whom we pledge allegiance. Tell us how much grain you need, and we shall see what we can do to help!"

Liu Xun looked closely at the speaker.

"Oh? Isn't that prickly thorn Lu Jun?"

The Lu clan possessed the most formidable aristocratic influence within Wan City. Years ago, when Sun Ce was under Li Shu's command, Li Shu sent a request to Lu Jun's father, Lu Kang, to borrow grain. Because Lu Kang viewed Li Shu as a rebel, he flatly refused.

Consequently, Li Shu dispatched Sun Ce to attack Lujiang, while the Administrator of the commandery at that time was none other than Lu Kang, an old friend of Sun Jian and a renowned scholar of Jiangdong.

Lu Kang was a native of Wu Commandery. Years prior, when his nephew served as the Magistrate of Yichun and was besieged by bandits, Sun Jian had deployed troops to rescue him and drive the bandits away.

As a result, the Lu and Sun families forged a close bond. Who could have foreseen that after Sun Jian's death, down to Sun Ce's generation, Sun Ce would transform into a battlefield enemy of Lu Kang simply to reclaim the troops that rightfully belonged to his father?

That battle against Lu Kang lasted a full two years before Sun Ce finally captured Lujiang.

Moreover, shortly after taking Lujiang, Lu Kang passed away due to illness brought on by the trauma and grief. Consequently, the Lu clan never harbored any warmth toward Liu Xun, who succeeded Li Shu as Administrator of Lujiang. Instead, they frequently worked against Liu Xun behind the scenes, while Liu Xun, constrained by the warnings of his inner circle, dared not treat the Lu clan too harshly.

The two sides had long maintained a facade of harmony while harboring entirely different designs. How could Liu Xun not be astonished when Lu Jun suddenly expressed willingness to support him? Yet deep down, Liu Xun felt a chill; it would already be a blessing if this prickly thorn refrained from stabbing him in the back—why would he suddenly become so magnanimous?

"Indeed, General! Since Lujiang is in need of provisions, we shall naturally spare no effort. Since the head of the Lu clan has spoken thus, we certainly cannot afford to be stingy either."

Another clan head chimed in, echoing Lu Jun. They deferred to the Lu family because the Lus were the undisputed leaders of the Lujiang gentry, a status no one could usurp.

"Come, come, come! Everyone seated here is a pillar of Lujiang. Without you, there would be no Lujiang. Let Liu Xun propose a toast to all of you on behalf of the Lujiang army!"

Raising his cup, Liu Xun offered a toast to the various clan heads and leaders seated below.

Liu Xun was brimming with joy. Since everyone was extending such courtesy, what else did he have to worry about?

As the Administrator of Lujiang, he nominally remained their administrative chief. Seeing Liu Xun rise to propose a toast, everyone returned the courtesy one by one.

Li Miao had been secretly observing Liu Ye all this time and noticed the latter's brow furrowing deeply.

"Brother Ziyang, why are you frowning?" Li Miao leaned in to ask while Liu Xun was busy exchanging toasts with the guests.

"Alas." Liu Ye shook his head with a bitter smile. Liu Xun's method of borrowing grain was entirely misguided; he would likely be played for a fool by these people without ever realizing it.

For a lord like his, Liu Ye truly found himself speechless.

He didn't even bother replying to Li Miao's inquiry. Although somewhat impolite, he was in no mood for pleasantries. He now understood the true nature of Lujiang's gentry: they were merchants at heart. Extracting grain from the mouths of merchants—was that even possible?

Yet the uniformly agreeable demeanor of these aristocratic families could only mean one thing: they had long since anticipated this day and were undoubtedly prepared to openly resist Liu Xun.

Lujiang might appear prosperous on the surface, but it was fast approaching a crisis both internally and externally.

Furthermore, according to Liu Ye's covert investigations, Sun Ce in Jiangdong had already mobilized his main forces and was actively gathering provisions. Liu Ye knew all too well that Sun Ce's patience had worn thin, and seizing Lujiang was merely a matter of time for him, leaving Liu Ye deeply unsettled.

Upon receiving this intelligence, however, Liu Xun clapped his hands in delight and broke into hearty laughter.

"Truly Heaven aids me!"

This was precisely why he had invited Li Miao and the others here.

Although Liu Xun was uncertain of Sun Ce's exact motives upon learning of the troop mobilizations, he had already gathered intelligence indicating that Jiangdong intended to attack Huang Zu in Jiangxia.

Back when Sun Jian campaigned against Jingzhou, he fell into an enemy ambush at Xian Mountain and lost his life, with Huang Zu serving as the chief mastermind. It seemed Sun Ce was marching out to avenge his father.

Once Sun Ce truly clashed with Huang Zu, the conflict would not end anytime soon. Even if Sun Ce wished to halt the campaign and turn back to launch a surprise raid on Lujiang, Huang Zu would certainly not let him off, dogging his footsteps relentlessly—how could Sun Ce possibly find the opportunity to attack Lujiang?

To be frank, Liu Xun's covetous eye on the wealth of Shangliao was not a recent development. He had previously been plagued by grain shortages and dispatched his cousin Liu Xie as an envoy to borrow grain from Shangliao.

The clan leaders of Shangliao had readily agreed on the surface, but when Liu Xun inspected the grain upon arrival, he found not only that the quantity fell short, but the quality of the rice was exceptionally poor—a clear brush-off.

Moreover, Shangliao was situated in Yuzhang, occupying a strategically perilous location on the eastern shore of Poyang Lake.

Though officially part of Yuzhang Commandery, Shangliao's rugged terrain made it extremely defensible, rendering successive Administrators of Yangzhou and Yuzhang utterly helpless against them.

In reality, the aristocratic clans of Shangliao had long since transformed their domain into an isolated, independent kingdom.

This isolation only added to Shangliao's shroud of mystery. Rumors persisted that Shangliao had accumulated tens of millions in wealth, boasting boundless stores of grain, gold, silver, and exotic treasures of every description.

Yet such an independent kingdom had fobbed him off with a meager handful of grain, treating him like a beggar! Insufficient provisions had long tormented Liu Xun, and when he finally lowered himself to borrow grain, he had suffered such humiliation.

Consequently, Liu Xun harbored deep resentment toward Shangliao and had long desired to strike against them, though he never dared make a move.

Why? He feared that the moment his main army marched out, neighboring factions would seize the opportunity to raid Lujiang. If he failed to capture Shangliao while losing his own base, the consequences would be disastrous!

At that time, Sun Ce had proactively offered an alliance of friendship with Liu Xun, an outcome Liu Xun welcomed with open arms. He immediately convened a military council and resolved to deploy troops against Shangliao. Yet lingering hesitations remained, and Liu Xun had been secretly mulling over the matter these past few days.

Though greedy for the silk and treasures sent by Sun Ce as well as the riches of Haihun and Shangliao, Liu Xun remained anxious about Sun Ce's true intentions and doubted the reliability of his newfound ally.

Now, however, hearing this intelligence made Liu Xun feel finally secure enough to dispatch his troops boldly. Even if the reports lacked absolute certainty, they sufficiently quelled his immediate anxieties.

Yet Liu Ye understood that tonight the Lujiang gentry intended to put up stubborn resistance, while Liu Xun remained oblivious to Sun Ce's sinister designs in Jiangdong. Lujiang was truly on the verge of plunging into crises on all fronts.

"Since you gentlemen honor me so, I shall speak plainly. Lujiang may soon undertake military operations, so the matter of grain cannot be glossed over. I, Liu Xun, give you my word—the grain borrowed from you shall be repaid. For now, I ask for nothing excessive; can you gentlemen help me raise one hundred thousand stones of grain?"

Emboldened by drink, Liu Xun blurted it out directly. To be honest, one hundred thousand stones of grain were more than enough for Lujiang to conquer Haihun and Shangliao, and might even sustain them until the wheat harvest of the following year.

"Military operations?" Li Miao's heart skipped a beat; the expedition against Haihun and Shangliao appeared to be a certainty. Tonight presented a golden opportunity for him to gather vital intelligence.

Liu Xun drained another cup and raised it toward the gentry families, urging them to drink. "One hundred thousand stones of grain is no small figure, and I trust you gentlemen will apportion it amongst yourselves. I am deeply grateful."

"One hundred thousand stones! A mere trifle!" Lu Jun chuckled heartily. "Since General Liu governs Lujiang, he naturally will not covet our meager stores of grain."

"Mark my words, gentlemen, my Lu family shall set an example today!" Lu Jun declared, casting a glance at the surrounding gentry families before waving his hand and making a booming announcement. "My Lu family is willing to contribute one hundred stones of grain to Lujiang!"

"Brother Lu is truly magnanimous! Since you have said as much, my Liu family is willing to donate eighty stones of grain!" another clan head chimed in immediately behind him.