Thinking of this, Guo Jia hurriedly went to find Cao Cao and told him about his worries.
Cao Cao frowned, his face extremely solemn. Finally, he sighed and said, "Fengxiao, what you said makes sense!"
"However, it won't be so easy for him to deal with my Cao army, unless he's willing to fight to the death with my Cao army."
"But that would mean heavy losses for his Yellow Turban army. He probably wouldn't take that risk, would he?"
Guo Jia shook his head and said, "No, my lord, we must be careful. What if he really does that? We'll be in trouble then."
Cao Cao nodded in agreement and said, "In that case, inform Xun Yu and have him borrow another 100,000 troops from Qingzhou and Xuzhou to guard against a surprise attack by the Yellow Turban Army!"
"Yes!" Guo Jia said, clasping his hands in greeting.
………………
On the other side, Sun Quan also received news of Cao Cao's expedition. He frowned and muttered, "Zhang Jiao is really willing to give up Yu Province to Cao Cao."
Upon hearing this, Cheng Pu couldn't help but scoff and coldly said, "Hmph! That old scoundrel is very cunning. How could he possibly give up Yuzhou for nothing? This is just a delaying tactic. He's waiting for us to fight Cao Cao to the death, and then he'll reap the benefits."
"My lord, Cao Cao has allied with the Yellow Turban Rebellion. What should we do?" Zhang Zhao asked Sun Quan with a worried expression.
Sun Quan narrowed his eyes and pondered for a moment, then couldn't help but look at Zhou Yu.
When Sun Ce was dying, he told him, "If you are unsure about a war, consult Zhou Yu."
Over the years, Jiangdong has firmly established itself in Yangzhou, but this is quite different from what Lu Su said back then.
Even Lu Su hadn't expected Cao Cao to be so powerful, becoming the most powerful warlord in the land in just a few years.
Their current shared goal with the Yellow Turban Army is to eliminate Jiangdong. The two sides are vying for power and will ultimately decide the fate of the world.
At this moment, Zhou Yu also felt immense pressure. The combined forces of both sides numbered over a million, and if each of them spat, they could drown the Jiangdong army.
Despite the development over the years, the Jiangdong region now has a total population of only 300,000.
Trying to defeat over a million people with only 300,000 is simply a pipe dream!
Seeing Zhou Yu remain silent, Sun Quan frowned and asked, "Gongjin, if you have any suggestions, please speak them."
At present, Jiangdong is divided into two parts: the pro-war faction and the pro-surrender faction.
The pro-war faction consisted mostly of military officers, while the pro-surrender faction consisted mostly of civil officials.
Military generals take pride in dying on the battlefield, so they are not afraid at all, even when facing a million-strong army.
If we win, it will be a battle that goes down in history!
Civil officials, however, did not think so. They believed that while they might suffer in every defeat, historical records about them were scarce, even in the event of victory.
Zhou Yu took a deep breath, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "My lord, I believe we must fight this battle!"
Upon hearing this, the pro-surrender civil officials all showed their anger and cursed, "Zhou Yu, you arrogant brat! How can our Jiangdong possibly stand against a million-strong army? You are not worthy to be the Grand Commander of Jiangdong!"
"Exactly, why should we help you fight this battle?"
"Hmph! You, Zhou Yu, are nothing but a fart, daring to presume to help our lord quell the chaos of the world."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yu retorted without fear, "My Jiangdong has 300,000 troops. In naval warfare, who in the world can rival us? How can we be unqualified to fight this battle?"
"If you surrender, you civil officials can continue to govern the region, but what about you, my lord?"
"Little did they know what became of Liu Biao and Kong Rong?"
Zhou Yu's words were so powerful that they left many civil officials speechless.
Indeed, if Jiangdong surrendered, these people could still remain in Jiangdong as officials, but Sun Quan would certainly not have an easy time.
Especially considering the tragic fates of Kong Rong and Liu Biao, whose lives were filled with misery, Sun Quan was terrified.
Zhou Yu sneered: "If you, my lord, are willing to give up this hard-won foundation in Jiangdong, then surrender! But I, Zhou Yu, swear to die rather than surrender!"
As Zhou Yu finished speaking, all the generals bowed and said, "We swear to die rather than surrender!"
Sun Quan listened to the crowd's shouts, his eyes darting around.
"With Zhou Yu in Jiangdong, how could we not defeat the likes of Cao Cao and Zhang Jiao?"
Having said that, Sun Quan directly shaved off a corner of the table and said very seriously, "My mind is made up. I appoint Zhou Yu as the General-in-Chief of the Jiangdong Army, to command all troops and fight a decisive battle against Cao Cao and Zhang Jiao!"
"The people of Jiangdong are united as one. Anyone who dares to surrender will be treated like this table!" Sun Quan said to the crowd, pointing to the corner of the table that had been cut off.
Sun Quan's words immediately shocked everyone.
Zhou Yu, however, smiled and thought to himself, "My lord is wise!"
"Zhou Yu, take this sword!"
This sword was originally Sun Jian's sword, and later became known as Sun Ce's sword, representing the supreme power in Jiangdong.
Even Sun Quan had to obey the orders of the one who wielded this sword; that was a great trust.
Zhou Yu was taken aback for a moment, then knelt down and respectfully accepted the sword from Sun Quan's hand.
"Your subordinate will certainly not fail in your kindness, my lord!" Zhou Yu said solemnly.
“Very well! We will live and die together!” Sun Quan said.
"To live and die together!!!"
The military officers standing nearby echoed this sentiment.
This time, Sun Quan made a decision that caused a great stir throughout Jiangdong, and the soldiers became even more enthusiastic.
Even Cao Cao did not expect that Sun Quan would actually dare to fight them.
And this time, the battlefield was once again set at Chibi.
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