Chapter 158: Driven crazy, biting everyone I see! Go to Jiangdong, let's kill the enemy while he's weak! Do you dare to come back and seek death?

Lu Xun was shocked and suddenly raised his head and looked at Sun Ce in astonishment.

What he worried about most happened.

Not many people knew Zhou Yu's strategy, and there were only a handful of them including him.

Huang Gai was a long-time minister of the Sun family for two generations, and it was impossible for him to betray Sun Ce.

Lu Su is Zhou Yu's good friend and is now highly valued by Sun Ce, so he has no reason to defect to Liu Bei.

He was the only one who participated in the whole plan as a non-confidant of Sun Ce. He also went to the north bank to meet Liu Bei in person and presented a series of plans.

Among the several people, it can be said that he has the greatest chance of leaking the secret to Liu Bei.

The worst thing is that he is a member of the Lu family.

Sun Ce had the lives of more than a hundred people from the Lu family on his hands, so it could be said that the Lu family and Sun Ce had a deep blood feud.

Then it seems only natural that he harbored resentment towards Sun Ce, and took the opportunity of meeting Liu Bei to betray Sun Ce and leak secrets to Liu Bei.

The eyes of the generals on both sides were now focused on him. Their originally surprised eyes turned into suspicion when they thought of his identity.

Zhou Yu also frowned.

If you think about it carefully, it seems that Lu Xun is indeed the one who is most suspected of collaborating with the enemy and leaking his shocking plan to Liu Bei.

Either believe that Xiao Fang is far smarter than you and has seen through your plan.

Or you can believe that Lu Xun betrayed Sun Ce to seek personal revenge!
Zhou Yu naturally preferred to believe the latter.

"Bo Yan, at that time, Bo Fu and your uncle were at war, and they were enemies, so it was inevitable that there would be casualties."

"Now that you have pledged your loyalty to the Sun family and are willing to serve as a minister to Bo Fu, you should show the magnanimity of a noble family and wipe out those so-called grudges."

"Bofu ordered you to carry out the chain of schemes. This shows how much trust he has in you. How could you betray Bofu's trust and do such a treacherous act?"

"Do you know how many of our Jiangdong men were killed in this battle just to avenge your personal grudge?"

"Lu Boyan, where is your conscience?"

Zhou Yu slammed the table and questioned Lu Xun indignantly.

This question was well-reasoned and righteous, and it seemed to have denounced Lu Xun as a narrow-minded villain.

Zhou Yu's words were like adding fuel to the fire, making Sun Ce's rage even greater.

"Lu Xun!"

"I have forgiven you for what you have done. I do not despise you because you are a descendant of the Lu family. I have placed such high hopes on you. How dare you turn your back on me and betray me!"

"You are courting death!"

Sun Ce was so angry that he lost control of his emotions and threatened to kill Lu Xun with his own hands.

"Lord, please calm down!"

Lu Su hurriedly stepped forward, stopped in front of Lu Xun, and said anxiously:

"I believe that Lu Boyan is definitely not the kind of ungrateful, disloyal and treacherous person who betrays his master!"

"Moreover, the Lu family is all in Jiangdong, and many of them have served the lord. How could Lu Boyan disregard the survival of the Lu family and betray his master and collaborate with the enemy?"

Lu Su's persuasion was like a bucket of cold water, poured heavily on Sun Ce's head.

In an instant, Sun Ce's murderous intent was mostly extinguished, and he calmed down a little.

If you think about it carefully, what Lu Su said does not seem to be unreasonable.

The reason why he dared to use Lu Xun to implement the chain of schemes was not because Zhou Yu said that the lives of the Lu family were in his hands, and Lu Xun would never dare to have any ulterior motives?

Zhou Yu was shocked and remembered what he had said at the beginning. He immediately fell silent and did not dare to question anymore.

On the one hand, what Lu Su said was indeed reasonable, but on the other hand, if I were to question it again, wouldn’t it be like slapping myself in the face…

You know, he and Sun Ce had solemnly promised that Lu Xun was absolutely under control.

When Lu Xun saw Lu Su speaking up to defend him, a hint of gratitude flashed across his eyes.

Then he took a deep breath, pointed his finger to the sky, and said seriously:
"Xun swears to heaven that he has never secretly communicated with Liu Bei and revealed Governor Zhou's plan."

"If I tell you anything false, I will be punished by heaven and earth!"

Lu Xun swore to heaven!
The doubts in the eyes of the generals were finally dispelled because of Lu Xun's oath.

The Lu family is one of the four major surnames in Jiangdong. In Jingzhou, it would be a prominent family on par with the Huang family and the Pang family.

What's more, the Lu family had experienced many casualties in the Battle of Lujiang, and many of the older generation had been killed or injured, so Lu Xun had to take on the responsibility of supporting the family at a young age, which was equivalent to half the head of the Lu family.

With such status and position, one must still have some dignity, and since he has made a solemn oath, it is probably credible.

The murderous intent on Sun Ce's face finally faded. He stared at Lu Xun for a long time before sheathing his sword.

"If it's not you, then who betrayed me and secretly communicated with Liu Bei?"

"If you dare to do it, you dare to take responsibility. Stand up!"

Sun Ce turned around and shouted at the rest of the people.

Lu Xun secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and when he touched his back quietly, he found himself sweating.

Sun Ce shouted several times in a row, and naturally no one dared to stand up and admit it.

At this moment, the personal guard came hurriedly to report that Ling Cao had returned from the north bank and was asking for a meeting outside the tent.

There was an immediate panic in the big tent.

The anger in Sun Ce's eyes turned into surprise at this moment.

You have to know that in the battle of Xinjin, he saw with his own eyes that Ling Cao was captured alive by Huang Zhong.

At this time, Ling Cao was either killed by Liu Bei or was still imprisoned in Liu's camp.

But Ling Cao came back miraculously?

It’s unreasonable…

Sun Ce suppressed his doubts, helped Chen Wu back to the upper seat, sat down with difficulty, and ordered Ling Cao to enter the tent.

A moment.

Ling Cao, covered in dust and dirt, walked into the tent dejectedly.

"I pay my respects to you, my lord!"

Ling Cao half-knelt on the ground silently, not daring to look directly at Sun Ce, and there was obviously some shame in his words and expression.

"Yun De, weren't you captured by that old bastard Huang Zhong? How come you were able to come back?"

Sun Ce did not even let Ling Cao stand up, and questioned him impatiently.

Ling Cao sighed, with shame and helplessness on his face, and said silently:
"I was there to cover my lord's retreat, but I didn't expect that Huang Zhong's martial arts skills were comparable to Lu Bu's. Unfortunately, I was captured by him."

"Later, I was taken back to the enemy camp on the north bank by him. I thought I was doomed to die, but unexpectedly, Liu Bei not only did not kill me, but also treated me with courtesy."

"He asked me to come back and tell my lord that General Huang Gongfu had died. He buried him with proper ceremony because of his loyalty and bravery."

"He also told me to tell my lord that the victory has been decided. If my lord does not want the 20,000 surviving Jiangdong men to be buried in a foreign land, he should immediately lead his army out of Jingzhou and return to Jiangdong."

Sun Ce's fists gradually clenched, his face began to twist again, and flames of grief and anger burned in his eyes.

Huang Gai died anyway.

Even though he had been mentally prepared, hearing Ling Cao personally bring back the news of Huang Gai's death still felt like a heavy blow to his heart.

They were two generations of old servants of his Sun family who had watched him grow up and were regarded as his uncle.

Just like that, he died at the hands of Liu Bei!
What’s even more hateful is that Liu Bei actually used Ling Cao’s mouth to mock and humiliate him, and issued him an ultimatum, telling him to pack up and get out of Jingzhou!

The Little Overlord of Jiangdong has never suffered such humiliation in his life.

Even when I was living under Yuan Shu's roof, this never happened!
"Liu Bei, you are a mat weaver and shoe seller!"

"I, Sun Ce, swear to heaven that I will tear you into pieces and avenge Huang Gongfu!"

"I will make you pay tenfold or a hundredfold for the humiliation you inflicted on me today~~"

Sun Ce roared in grief and anger and overturned the table to the ground.

The generals on both sides were so frightened that they trembled and dared not even breathe.

At this time, Zhou Yu, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly said:

"General Ling, everyone in Jiangdong knows that you are a fierce general of our army. I'm sure Liu Bei knows that too."

"He captured a great general like you alive, and he actually let you go unharmed, just to let you bring back the news of General Gongfu's death?"

Ling Cao was stunned. Faced with Zhou Yu's question, he didn't know how to answer for a moment.

Sun Ce, who was furious, heard something suspicious in Zhou Yu's words.

Ling Cao was his trusted general. Although he did not participate in Zhou Yu's plan, he knew more or less about the whole strategy.

Now that he was clearly captured, and Liu Bei knew that he was his trusted general, why did he release him alive?
Could it be that…

Sun Ce's face suddenly changed, he jumped up, and shouted at Ling Cao:

"Ling Cao, did you betray me, secretly join Liu Bei, and leak my plan of setting fire to the enemy camp to that big-eared thief?"

Ling Cao was stunned by the question.

He looked at Sun Ce in disbelief. He had never expected that Sun Ce would actually suspect that he was secretly communicating with Liu Bei!
"My lord, my loyalty to you is known by all. How could you suspect that I am secretly communicating with Liu Bei?"

Ling Cao asked back with a choked voice, feeling aggrieved.

Sun Ce's face was grim, and he asked in a stern voice:

"Since you didn't betray me, why did Liu Bei let you return alive? Why?"

"this--"

Ling Cao was speechless after being questioned.

There was nothing he could do, it was his fault that he bumped into Sun Ce's gun.

At this time, Sun Ce had somewhat lost his mind due to the shock of his defeat and arrow wounds, and he preconceived that there must be a spy in the army who was secretly in contact with Liu Bei.

At this sensitive moment, it happened that this captured person was released intact by Liu Bei, which in itself was extremely suspicious.

Sun Ce, who was extremely anxious, naturally concluded that Ling Cao must have betrayed him.

As for the battle of Xinjin, he had long forgotten Ling Cao's loyal act of sacrificing himself to cover his retreat.

"Lord!"

"I have no other loyalty to you, my lord, and I have never betrayed you!"

"If you don't believe me, just kill me with one blow!"

Ling Cao was also provoked, so he didn't argue. He knelt on the ground with a sad face and stretched his neck to beg for death.

In a rage, Sun Ce gripped the hilt of his sword again, ready to draw his sword and kill someone.

"My lord, General Ling sacrificed himself to cover your retreat. How could he have secretly communicated with Liu Bei?"

"If you punish General Ling without any evidence just because of a momentary suspicion, wouldn't that chill the hearts of the soldiers?"

"My Lord, please put the overall situation first and think carefully."

Lu Su stood up again and spoke up for Ling Cao.

The sentence "chilled the hearts of the soldiers of the three armies" was like a slap in the face, which immediately woke Sun Ce up a little.

"Bofu, Zijing's words make sense."

"We will investigate who the spy is later. Now we should focus on the morale of the army."

Zhou Yu also realized that he could not allow Sun Ce to continue his rage, so he had to speak out to dissuade him.

Sun Ce's hand that was holding the sword slowly loosened the hilt, and he finally calmed down from his furious state.

"Okay, get up."

"I will make the final decision on who is the enemy's spy!"

Sun Ce turned his head away, without looking at Ling Cao again, and waved his hand reluctantly.

Ling Cao secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then quietly stood up and stood aside.

"My lord and Gongjin are both injured, General Huang has died in battle, more than half of our troops have been killed or wounded, and the morale of the army has fallen to the bottom."

"Su believes that under such circumstances, the balance of power has reversed, and we are indeed no longer able to fight Liu Bei again."

"My lord, why don't you lead your army back to Chaisang immediately before Liu Bei attacks?"

"After we have rested our soldiers and regrouped, we can make long-term plans."

Lu Su bowed solemnly and persuaded Sun Ce to withdraw his troops.

All the generals nodded secretly, but no one dared to speak in agreement. They all glanced at Sun Ce secretly.

"Cough cough."

Zhou Yu also coughed a few times and said:

"There are a million households in Jiangdong, so losing these 20,000 soldiers won't be a big deal."

"But now morale has been crushed, and the spies in the army have not been found. It is indeed not appropriate to fight again at this time."

"Bofu, I also think it would be better for us to withdraw to Chaisang first. After we have eliminated the traitors and sent more troops from Jiangdong, we can attack Jiangxia later."

Zhou Yu had no choice but to accept the reality and choose to retreat despite the humiliation.

Although Sun Ce was domineering and arrogant, he was not a coward who did not know when to advance and when to retreat. When the battle had come to this point, how could he not know that the situation was hopeless?

However, retreating also requires a step, and it must be done with dignity.

Lu Su and Zhou Yu's words gave him a way out.

"According to your request, we will temporarily withdraw our troops back to Chaisang!"

"I will let the big-eared thief occupy Jingzhou for a few days. When I have dispatched more troops and warships from Jiangdong, I will definitely enter Jingzhou again and fight the big-eared thief to the death!"

Sun Ce finally chose to retreat.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

So that night, Sun Ce led 20,000 defeated soldiers and retreated quickly towards Chaisang by land and sea.

The next day, Fankou Water Camp was deserted and in a mess.

At dusk, Liu's warships crossed the river and captured Fankou without bloodshed.

As the sun was setting, Liu Bei also crossed the river by boat and landed at the enemy camp at Fankou.

"Although Sun Ce was defeated and fled to Chaisang, he will not be willing to let Jingzhou be taken by the Lord. Sooner or later, he will mobilize his troops and attack Jingzhou again."

"We cannot give him a chance to recover. Once our Lord has calmed the people and appointed reliable and capable people to take charge of the key prefectures and counties, we should march eastward as soon as possible, first taking Chaisang and then going down to Jiangdong!"

"This is called taking advantage of the enemy's weakness to kill him."

Xiao Fang accompanied Lao Liu all the way ashore, and planned strategies for Lao Liu to capture Jiangdong.

Liu Bei agreed with this and immediately asked Xiao Fang to make another list, recommending talented people from Jiangxia County and the four counties of southern Jing. All of them were recruited according to their abilities and entrusted with important tasks.

"My lord, a young scholar has come from downstream, claiming that he has met you once and has something confidential to tell you, so he wants to see you alone."

While they were discussing, a personal guard suddenly came to report.

Young scholar, coming from downstream, is there anything we can do about it?
Liu Bei became suspicious and looked at Xiao Fang.

Xiao Fang's thoughts turned, and he had guessed something in his mind, so he asked Liu Bei to meet this man first.

So Liu Bei returned to the tent and dismissed everyone else, leaving only Xiao Fang and the two guard leaders Xu Chu and Chen Dao.

A moment.

A man in black wearing a bamboo hat walked into the tent with a mysterious look.

After taking a deep breath, the man in black slowly took off the hat that covered his face.

When Liu Bei recognized the man, his expression suddenly changed.

Xu Chu, who was standing by, immediately flew into a rage and cursed:

"You bastard, you are so brave that you dare to come back and seek death!"

As he said this, he drew his sword and was about to take the man's life.

(End of this chapter)