As the mother-in-law, Madam Wu's resolute attitude demonstrated her determination to protect her eldest daughter-in-law, Qiao Jingjing.
Madam Wu then called Qiao Jingjing to her side.
"Come here and sit next to me. I'm saying this specifically for Zhongmou and Gongjin to hear! I don't care what they've been discussing outside. I disagree, and that's it!"
Madam Wu was so excited.
Qiao Jingjing asked her mother-in-law to listen to the opinions of Sun Quan and Zhou Yu first.
"Madam, please let them finish speaking."
Zhou Yu had just analyzed with Sun Quan and Lady Wu: "Back then, the King of Chu was enfeoffed with a territory less than a hundred li from the edge of Jing Mountain, but the descendants of the Chu army were virtuous and capable. They expanded the land, broadened the territory, established a base in Yingdu, occupied the land of Jing and Yangzhou, and even reached the South Sea..."
That was only half the story.
He was interrupted by Madam Wu's excited outburst.
Madam Wu only wanted to protect her eldest daughter-in-law.
Zhou Yu continued, "The descendants of the King of Chu have ruled for over nine hundred years. General, you have inherited the prestige of your father and brother, and now govern the six commanderies of Jiangdong. We have a strong army and ample provisions, our soldiers are in high spirits, and we have even forged copper from mountains and boiled seawater for salt. The people are at peace, and our morale is high. We can say that we are invincible. Why should we send hostages to Cao Cao? No matter who they are, once the hostages are in Cao Cao's hands, we will be subject to Cao's control."
When that time comes, the greatest benefit we can obtain will be nothing more than a feudal lord's seal, a dozen servants, a few carriages, and a few horses.
Can they be compared to us, who established our own industry and became independent and powerful?
The best course of action now is not to send hostages!
Instead, we should observe Cao Cao's movements and changes. If Cao Cao can uphold morality and save the world, then it won't be too late for us to submit and work together to revitalize the Han Dynasty.
If Cao Cao becomes arrogant and plots to cause chaos, playing with fire and getting burned, General, you only need to wait for fate. Why send hostages? There's no need to pay attention to the commotion outside.
Zhou Yu's words demonstrated his foresight.
That perfectly captured Sun Quan's feelings.
Sun Quan finally acknowledged the weighty trust Sun Ce had placed in Zhou Yu on his deathbed.
Lady Wu understood Zhou Yu's meaning.
She quickly grabbed Sun Quan's hand: "Zhou Gongjin's words make sense. He is about the same age as your brother. I have always treated him as my son. From now on, you should also treat him as your elder brother!"
The matter of sending hostages was less a disturbance in Jiangdong.
Rather, it was more like a stepping stone used by Sun Quan to test the hearts and minds of the people in Jiangdong.
Later, Sun Quan found an opportunity to apologize to Qiao Jingjing:
"I'm so sorry to have troubled you, sister-in-law! Thank you for putting the greater good before Zhongmou. I can never repay your kindness."
If Qiao Jingjing loses her temper in this matter, she will be the first to make a scene.
Or if someone with ulterior motives interprets it, wouldn't that be another internal strife within the Sun Group?
Qiao Jingjing is now a widow, living alone in Fu Garden with her son and daughter.
If her brother-in-law, Sun Zhongmou, wanted to visit her, it would be somewhat inconvenient.
If you happen to meet her in your mother Madam Wu's room, then you should act normally and openly.
If Sun Quan had brought his own family and female relatives to visit Fu Garden, that would have been a different story.
However, Sun Quan always had some matters, both domestic and external, that he was unsure about and needed to discuss with his sister-in-law, in addition to those concerning Zhou Yu and Zhang Zhao.
Some things are okay for others to hear, but some things are not.
Sun Quan weighed the matter several times in his mind.
Ultimately, it all comes down to the urgency and importance of the matter.
He still decided to come to Fu Garden in person to visit his sister-in-law.
Upon seeing Lü Meng, Ling Tong, and others taking turns guarding outside Fu Garden, and inside Fu Garden, twenty or thirty maids personally selected by the elder brother standing by.
Sun Quan, however, blamed himself for overthinking.
Sun Quan and his sister-in-law Qiao Jingjing always had an open and honest relationship, and Sun Ce did the same afterward.
But some people think differently.
Sun Quan's principal wife, Lady Xie, had been overshadowed by Qiao Jingjing for many years.
At that time, she looked down on Qiao Jingjing because of her low status when she first arrived, thinking that a poor refugee woman with a bad family background had no right to compete with her Xie family.
Later, it turned out that this Sister-in-law Qiao was quite capable.
Not only did she win the favor of her elder brother Sun Ce and the affection of her mother-in-law, Lady Wu, but she was also admired by everyone in the household, as well as by the important officials and generals of Wu Commandery and Jiangdong. The Gu family vanished without a trace.
When Sun Ce was alive, Xie Shi tolerated it, since she was with her elder brother and sister-in-law and would have plenty to eat.
But even though her elder brother Sun Ce is dead, her sister-in-law still won't step down!
The eldest sister-in-law also manages the household.
The current leader of Jiangdong is her husband, Sun Quan, who is from the Xie family. She is the wife of Sun Quan, the General Who Subdues the Barbarians.
The undisputed number one woman in Jiangdong.
Sure enough, Xie found Qiao Jingjing.
She came ostensibly to visit, but actually to swagger and show off:
"Sister-in-law, look at me all these years. I may not have done anything great following the general, but I have certainly put in a lot of hard work. I am! It's just that my body is not up to par, and I haven't been able to give the general a son or daughter all these years. Every time I see that even Eleven has a child, I feel very envious."
Sister-in-law, I am the general's legal wife, a marriage arranged by our parents, as you know. I am diligent and conscientious, maintain good relations with my sisters-in-law, and serve my mother-in-law and the general.
Now that the general has taken over Jiangdong, he is very busy.
"I personally took in and raised the son born to my eleventh brother, so that the general's successor will be there!"
Xie himself was very shrewd, but he spoke in a muddled way.
She thought that by using her position as the legal wife to seize Yuan Shiyi's son, even though she hadn't given birth to a son herself, her status would rise. She also believed her son could become the heir.
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