Chapter 4
Sun Quan, the Marquis of the South Land, was in a better mood than usual as he stood looking out over the Chang Jiang and his massive naval fleet that was docked there. Having secured his northern borders from the threat that Cao Cao posed with their treaty at He Fei, the Marquis had become obsessed with taking back Jingzhou from the clutches of Liu Bei's general Guan Yu.
On three separate occasions he had attempted to obtain the return of that land which was rightfully his. One all three occasions, he had been denied. His mind had quickly turned to the thought of a military expedition, but knew Guan Yu represented a viable threat to any attack.
Sun Quan watched his navy closely as ships began to move away from the shore and out into the open waters of the great river. He thought he spotted his general, Gan Ning, upon one of the boats drilling his men and preparing them for the coming battle. Sun Quan allowed himself to smile as he stroked his purple beard. Rumors had begun trickling in only a week before indicating that a novice general had replaced Guan Yu in Jingzhou. Official spy reports soon followed, but no one knew the reason for his replacement.
It mattered little to Sun Quan though, whose determination to retake the province had become his single-minded focus. Nothing could stop them now.
"My lord," a soft voice said cautiously from behind him. He turned to see his councilor Zhang Zhao standing before him.
"What do you think of our fleet?" Sun Quan said, turning toward the activity down in the valley and stretching his arms out wide as if to encompass it all.
"The world will know you as the dragon that unified the land your majesty."
Sun Quan laughed. "I care nothing for the world. Jingzhou alone controls my attention and it is Jingzhou alone that will be mine on this day."
"Today is certainly a blessed day my lord, but for reasons other than that which you see before you."
"What do you mean?" Sun Quan asked, eyeing his councilor curiously. The man was beaming with a smile that the Marquis had never witnessed before.
"An emissary from Xu Chang arrived not an hour ago, followed almost immediately by one from the new ruler of Jingzhou."
"They've come together?" asked Sun Quan in amazement.
"As far as I can tell, no. They have come independent of each other and neither knows of the existence of the other."
"Good, keep it that way." Sun Quan began to stroll back up the hill toward his palace and his councilor took his place beside the Marquis. Lost in thought for some time, he finally asked his advisor, "What do you make of their visits?"
"I know not my lord, but whatever their reasons, it certainly offers us a host of opportunities."
Man Chong, the ambassador sent by Cao Cao, was conducted into the palace and then into the presence of Sun Quan. The wizened older man prostrated himself before the Marquis and presented his letters at the conclusion of the ceremonies of reception and began to explain his mission.
"Wu and Wei have no fundamental quarrel, and their dissension has been brought about by Liu Bei. My master sends me to covenant with you for an attack on Jingzhou, while he goes against Hanzhong. This double attack being successful, the conquered regions can be divided between us two, and we can both swear to respect each other's territory."
The Marquis gave no reply, but presented a banquet in Man Chong's honor and then had the man taken to one of the palace guesthouses. Some time later, the representative from Jingzhou entered and Sun Quan recognized his old friend Mi Zhu. He remained seated though in the formality of the court and allowed the ceremonies to be conducted properly.
Upon the conclusion of the proceedings, Mi Zhu presented the reason for his visit. "My lord Liu Bei has always said that his occupation of Jingzhou was merely temporary," he began. "Not having a kingdom of his own to rule, he took it upon himself to see to the security and protection of your province of Jingzhou until that fortunate time in which his future home would be realized. It was in great respect for you that he undertook that task and he now desires to return that province to you."
Thinking that he was done, Sun Quan smiled at his old friend and was about to go down to embrace him when Mi Zhu suddenly continued. "Unfortunately, the transfer of such authority will surely draw the attention of our common foe Cao Cao, who we defeated at Chi Bi. In order to protect our forces that will withdraw from Jingzhou, we require that you launch a diversionary campaign against Xu Chang."
The Marquis' mood had vanished like a passing season and he now glared at his former friend, rendered speechless by such an act of disgrace. "See his man to the guest house," Sun Quan demanded through clenched teeth.
Mi Zhu was led out of the room and no sooner had the door closed than Sun Quan began screaming. "How dare he place such a demand on the return of my own territory. He has come here to disgrace me!" He turned to Zhang Zhao. "Call my Generals together. We will make our way to Jingzhou tonight."
"Please my lord. You do not see the opportunity presented here," his advisor said calmly.
"Opportunity?" he asked sneeringly. "I see the chance to take back Jingzhou once and for all with the help of Cao Cao. Execute Mi Zhu immediately!"
"Slaying one foe with another will only increase the threat that foe poses in the future my lord," Zhang Zhao said calmly, trying not to upset his master further. "It would be best to use this opportunity to diminish the threat of both in order to establish our supremacy of China."
Sun Quan was silent for a while, bringing his mood back into line. The court was quiet with him, awaiting his decision. "What are our options?" he finally asked, but strongly indicating that his mind was already set.
Zhang Zhao knew that he was fighting an uphill battle to persuade the Marquis. "Jingzhou is as good as ours," he started slowly, "whether we go along with Shu's demand that we attack Xu Chang or not. That much is certain. Wei though, has offered to attack Hanzhong if we agree to begin a campaign against Jingzhou. Cao Cao has only recently returned from a lengthy campaign against Hanzhong though, and he knows that to succeed now, he will need our assistance. Shu will certainly not be able to stand against our two forces attacking on two separate fronts."
"What do I care about Shu?" Sun Quan shot back bitterly.
"My lord, I care less for them than you, if that is possible, but I am thinking of the future. If Cao Cao was to come into possession of Hanzhong, half of China would fall under his banner." Zhang Zhao could tell he had finally captured his master's attention and so sped on quickly. "Now if we agreed to both Shu and Wei's proposals, that would ensure the bloodless capture Jingzhou and also give us the chance to take Xu Chang while Cao Cao's forces are away at Hanzhong. Is we are successful, we would come out of the ordeal with all of the South Land, the territory of Jingzhou and the important foothold in the north at Xu Chang."
After a lengthy consideration, Sun Quan finally agreed. "I see now that your advice is good Zhang Zhao." His advisor smiled proudly, but the Marquis quickly added, "But I am altering your plan slightly."
"My lord?"
"I will tell Mi Zhu that in addition to beginning a military campaign against Xu Chang, it will be necessary to put up the impression that we are invading Jingzhou and not simply having it handed over to us. This will give Cao Cao the impression that we are going along with his plan."
Zhang Zhao smiled broadly. "Excellent plan my lord."
Sun Quan was not finished though. "As the Shu army retreats from our feigned attack, we will begin an actual assault on them. Not expecting such a move, they will be easily cut down in their escape from Jingzhou."
Zhang Zhao's smile had vanished. "Is that honorable my lord?" he asked with slight hesitation.
"They lost the right to die honorable deaths when they refused to return my territory after the capture of Hanzhong," he answered bitterly. "After we have taken possession of Jingzhou and Cao Cao has begun his campaign against Hanzhong we will move on the capital." A chill ran down Zhang Zhao's spine as he listened, but Sun Quan merely smiled broadly at his counselor. "An excellent plan," the Marquis said as if it had been all the advisor's idea. "An excellent plan…"
After Mi Zhu and Man Chong had been called in separately and given Sun Quan's word that he had agreed to their individual requests, the two men were sent away without ever knowing of the existence of the other. Then, the Marquis called for his military officers for a banquet at which they would receive their orders.
Gan Ning was placed in charge of the campaign against Xu Chang and given authority over the officers that would assist him. They included Han Dang, Ling Tong, and Lu Meng. For the strike against Jingzhou, he chose Zhou Tai and Huang Gai and named Cheng Pu as the leader of the van. He did not inform them though that Shu would think that the Wu invasion was just for show.
"Show them no mercy," Sun Quan told Cheng Pu after pulling him aside when the officers were leaving the banquet. "Not a single soldier is to reach the safety of Hanzhong."
Cheng Pu agreed and bowed to his leader before leaving for the night. Unseen by either of the two men and standing in the shadows of the chamber, Zhang Zhao's heart sank. He knew that the Shu army wouldn't have a chance. They would be slaughtered in cold blood, without the victim or the attacker knowing that the whole thing had been orchestrated by no one other than Sun Quan, the Marquis of Wu.