Chapter 499

“Stop the execution!” Someone shouted just as the sword fell, a messenger riding a horse entered the execution grounds.

“Ah!” Sun Quan screamed as the sword stopped right at the back of his neck. Chu Ju managed to stop the sword right at the last moment.

“The Military Advisor has an order for Chu Ju!” The messenger got off the horse and gave Chu Ju a letter. The letter was written by Xu Shu and the order was for Sun Quan to be let go.

Chu Ju frowned and then ordered his subordinates to release Sun Quan.

Sun Quan gasped for breath right after escaping mortal danger. He had never realized that living was such a happy thing and that dying was so scary.

“I knew my brother would save me! He loves me dearly!” Sun Quan muttered.

“Haha. Lord Sun Quan. You don’t need to die but that doesn’t mean you were saved by your brother. Take a look at this letter.” Chu Ju sneered and handed Sun Quan the letter. Sun Quan read the letter and found out that the nobles in Jiangdong found out about his capture and all contributed their money to redeem him. Some of them even sold their properties.

“The Jiangdong nobles? Not my brother?” Sun Quan muttered absentmindedly.

“Men. Give Lord Sun Quan here a bath and a change of clothes then send him off!” Chu Ju ordered. As Sun Quan was worth ten thousand gold, they could not send him away in prison clothes.

“Yes!” The soldiers cupped their fists and then took Sun Quan away.

Once Sun Quan had gone far away, Chu Ju went to a courtyard near the execution grounds. There, he met a person who was reading a book.

This person looked like a scholar but also has the skills of a warrior. Chu Ju himself could only last twenty rounds against this person. “Has he been sent back yet?” Xu Shu who had been reading a book noticed Chu Ju’s arrival and asked without looking away from his book.

“Yes, Military Advisor. I have already dispatched people to send him away.” Chu Ju replied. Although Xu Shu did not bother to look at him, Chu Ju was not angry. This is because Xu Shu was extremely busy after Liu Mang gave him all the work. Since Liu Mang went to Jingzhou, Xu Shu needed to do everything in Yangzhou. On top of that, Yangzhou was in the process of rebuilding so Xu Shu needed to supervise almost everything.

As Liu Mang left Yangzhou to Xu Shu, Xu Shu intended to live up to Liu Mang’s trust.

Xu Shu was observing this incident personally as it was extremely important. He needed to make the arrangements personally as Liu Mang had already ordered him earlier to make the preparations.

Jiangdong was their biggest threat with the Yangtze River acting as a natural barrier and also with their many talented people. If they wholeheartedly wanted to crush Lu Bu’s Army, they would be able to. On top of that, Jiangdong had no internal problems. They could send out their entire army to conquer the world.

What Liu Mang intended to do was put a bomb named Sun Quan into Jiangdong. This was just like Sun Qian at Liu Bei’s Army. In fact, Sun Quan was more dangerous than Sun Qian as Sun Quan was ambitious. Sun Qian could only harm Liu Bei at worst but Sun Quan could possibly end Sun Ce’s life. Even if this whole thing fails, Liu Mang would lose nothing.

“Good, good, good!” Xu Shu praised Chu Ju three times after hearing his words.

“No, this is just Er Gouzi’s job.” Er Gouzi was so happy he was praised three times that he said his name.

“Haha. You do not need to be so humble. You are only one so flexible amongst the Danyang troops.” Xu Shu replied. Er Gouzi was chosen for the task because of two reasons. The first was that Er Gouzi, could give out a killing intent that make others feel their death approaching. This was a skill that only veterans of war could obtain. The second was Er Gouzi’s acting skills. Trickery was also one of the advantages of the Danyang troops.

“Alright, Chu Ju. If this succeeds, I will make sure to compliment you in front of the Lord. It might even be possible for you to obtain a promotion.” Xu Shu promised.

Although Er Gouzi was a 1000-men commander, he was in charge of supplies. It was a place far from the front lines. If he was promoted again, he might be able to rejoin the battlefield. How could he not feel happy?

“Thank you, Military Advisor!” Er Gouzi said excitedly.

After Er Gouzi left, Xu Shu entered the nearby room where Lu Su was waiting.

“Master Xu Shu is good at scheming.” Lu Su said with a bitter smile when he saw Xu Shu enter. Xu Shu did not hide anything from Lu Su. The reason Lu Su had a bitter smile was because everything Xu Shu said had a possibility of happening. Lu Su finally realized how frightening a talented person with ambitions were. On top of that, this person also had the support of the nobles. With Sun Quan’s personality, it was possible for Jiangdong to enter a state of civil unrest.

“Haha. Master Zijing, this is not my scheme.” Xu Shu laughed and shook his head. He was good in overt plots but not such conspiracies. In other words, Xu Shu was able to make and prepare a country but he was not as capable in toying with the hearts of his enemies before finishing them off.

“This is not your scheme?” Lu Su did not know if Xu Shu was simply being modest.

“I am simply following the Lord’s instructions.” Xu Shu nodded.

“The King of Shu, Liu Mang?” Lu Su’s eyes widened in surprise.

Xu Shu nodded again to confirm Lu Su’s question but Lu Su could barely believe it. This is because Sun Quan was only famous within Jiangdong. Others only knew about the Little Conqueror Sun Ce while Sun Quan was simply known as the Second Lord of Jiangdong. Sun Quan’s ambitious traits was also only known to a few in Jiangdong. Liu Mang must have terrifying insight if he was able to see this and grasp Sun Quan’s heart.

“Master Yuanzhi. Are you not afraid I would leak this information?” Lu Su asked with suspicion as Xu Shu had explained the entire scheme to him.

“Haha. You won’t do it.” Xu Shu said without a care.

“Oh?”

“Don’t forget. You are already a dead person!” Xu Shu said and drank a mouthful of tea.

“I see!” Lu Su understood. To the public, Lu Su was already dead. He died in Yangzhou. Then why did they let him go?

“What does His Highness intent to do to me?” Lu Su asked, hoping to get the answer from Xu Shu’s own mouth.

“Milord has been wanting to work with you for a very long time. Master Lu Su, how about you join our army?” Xu Shu said to Lu Su.

Lu Su was a morally honest person and was even talented enough to take Zhou Yu’s post after Zhou Yu’s death. There are those that said Lu Su was tricked by Zhuge Liang. However at the time, Zhou Yu was still supervising Lu Su and on top of that, Lu Su had a good relationship with Zhuge Liang. He knew of Zhuge Liang’s trickery but simply did not expose it. He allowed Zhou Yu to refute Zhuge Liang instead of doing it himself since he would lose a friend and also provoke Zhou Yu’s authority.

He and Zhou Yu were the only people in Jiangdong who knew who would become powerful in the original timeline. This helped form the alliance that defeated Cao Cao at Chibi.

That was why Lu Su was someone that Liu Mang would not let go. He only released Lu Su the first time because he had an urgent need for craftsmen. A person as talented as Lu Su could not be left in the hands of the enemy.

“Haha. Master Yuanzhi and His Highness place too much expectations in me. I have to apologize for not appreciating favors but His Highness is not the Lord I expect nor am I able to find success in Yangzhou.” Lu Su said tactfully. He did not have good opinion of Liu Mang and Yangzhou. It was not the place he could see success in. Jiangdong was rich and had a natural barrier. Even if Cao Cao attacked, Jiangdong would be relatively safe as long as they manage to conquer Jingzhou by then. On the other hand, Yangzhou was in a terrible location. They would have Cao Cao attacking from the North and Liu Bei attacking from the West. On top of that, they had no natural barriers.

Yangzhou’s output would also definitely be lower than Cao Cao’s provinces such as Yanzhou, Xuzhou, Youzhou and many more. In other words, Lu Su could not see Liu Mang winning at all. Why would he stay there?

Another reason is that Lu Su did not like Liu Mang’s attitude towards nobles. While the nobles were certainly repulsive, a Ruler needed their support. Without the support of the nobles, losing would be inevitable. Gongsun Zan was a good example. He killed Liu Yu and lost the noble’s support before Yuan Shao finished him off.

“Master Zijing is truly talented!” Xu Shu had a whole new level of respect for Lu Su after hearing the man’s explanation. When Liu Mang wrote to Xu Shu, bragging about Lu Su’s talent, Xu Shu did not believe him. If Lu Su was talented, why would Sun Ce not use him? Why would Lu Su get defeated so badly by Liu Mang and Zhang Liao? Yet Xu Shu had to admire Lu Su after hearing the man’s thoughts. Xu Shu himself would have been persuaded by Lu Su if he did not know about Yangzhou’s advantages.

“Master Yuanzhi overpraise me! If I was talented, I wouldn’t be wearing this.” Lu Su mocked himself as he looked at his prisoner clothes.

Xu Shu himself loved talent and hoped to bring Lu Su to Liu Mang’s side. “Master Zijing. I hope you can reconsider. Your good friend is also working for Milord.” Although Liu Mang already had a lot of advisors, there was no harm in having more as Yangzhou would eventually expand further.

“My good friend?” Lu Su was stunned. He did not have many good friends. This is not because Lu Su was not sociable. This was simply because the smart people tended to be friends with other smart people. When communicating with normal people, they would be able to tell easily when these people were just blindly bragging. They would even be able to read the minds of these normal people. The normal people were like clowns dancing on a stage. How could they be called friends?

Those that could become friends with Lu Su were all distinguished people. Zhou Yu was one such person while Sun Quan was half a friend1. He could not think of anymore.

“You must have forgotten him. Liu Ye Liu Ziyang is now one of Milord’s advisors!” Xu Shu said with a smile.

“Brother Ziyang?” Lu Su’s eyes widen. Liu Ye was indeed someone considered his friend. They used to have discussions while drinking wine.

In the original history, Liu Ye wrote to Lu Su saying that warlords and heroes have emerged all over and that it was time to put their talents to use. Liu Ye said he planned to join Zheng Bao who had rallied thousands of followers in Chenghu. He also told Lu Su not to miss this opportunity. Lu Su initially agreed but after his grandmother’s funeral, his mother was brought to Wu by Zhou Yu. Zhou Yu then persuaded Lu Su to work for Sun Quan instead of taking Liu Ye’s words at face value.

This was an insult to Liu Ye since Liu Ye was not inferior to Zhou Yu especially when it comes to studying. In fact, Liu Ye was Liu Mang’s second best advisor. He could afford to lose Xu Shu but not Liu Ye. This is because Liu Ye could turn the contents of the books he brought from the future to reality.

The truth was that Liu Ye wanted to give his friend a chance to become famous. Even if they had talent, their talent had to first be recognized before they could succeed. Unfortunately, Zheng Bao was the wrong choice. Liu Ye who had also fancied Sun Ce ended up declining Liu Ye’s invitation.

And so, Liu Ye eventually remembered he had three and a half friends. Zhou Yu, Liu Ye, Zhuge Liang, and half a Sun Quan.

When he heard that Liu Ye was here, he became excited. He wanted to meet Liu Ye and talk about old times. As they had no telephone in that era, they valued connections more. This is because once they part, there was a very high likelihood that it would have been their last time together.

“Ziyang is at Yangzhou?” Lu Su was a bit confused. As they had send letters to each other, Lu Su knew that Liu Ye went to Cao Cao after killing Zheng Bao. He could not figure out how Liu Ye ended up working for Liu Mang.

“Haha. Master Zijing. Ziyang have been with us for some time. Look at our new ballista. This is Ziyang’s creation!” Xu Shu replied and then explained how Liu Ye left Cao Cao.

“The ballista?” Lu Su muttered. This contraption had changed the ways of war entirely. He could remember how the ballista demolished the Jiangdong navy. That was the first time Lu Su got captured by Liu Mang.

“Yes. He also helped fight against Liu Bei at Yuzhou.” Xu Shu said. However, nobody knew that Liu Ye was tricked by the empty city strategy and the only thing Liu Mang got out of it was Sun Qian.

“Why is Ziyang here?” Lu Su wondered. Liu Ye was smart enough to see who the winners are. That was why he killed Zheng Bao and then went to Cao Cao with Liu Xun. This is because Liu Ye could tell that Cao Cao would become powerful.

It was a pity Cao Cao was too afraid of Liu Ye’s Han bloodline to make use of him. By the time Cao Cao regretted it, Liu Ye was already in Yangzhou.

“Master Zijing can also see that Ziyang is talented. I hope you won’t immediately reject Milord!” Xu Shu said to Lu Su. With Liu Ye around, it would be easier to persuade Lu Su.

“What if I still refuse to join you?”

“In that case, we will need to have you remain incognito in Yangzhou. You cannot leave unless Yangzhou is captured.” Xu Shu smiled in reply.

“Is that so?” If it was earlier, Lu Su would have snorted at Xu Shu in disdain with the belief that Cao Cao would eventually capture Yangzhou. This meant that Lu Su would eventually get out. However, he now believed that there must be something in Yangzhou that caused Liu Ye to join them. Liu Ye was not the kind of person to jump onto a sinking ship.

“Master Lu Jing. How about you walk around Shouchun?” Xu Shu said as he gave Lu Su a new name. He also gave Lu Su a job as a teacher in a school. While Yangzhou had money, they did not have provisions. Nobody was allowed to freeload. Lu Su would need to work if he wanted to eat.

The school was set up by Liu Mang. While the nobles all disagreed with this as they believed going to school was a noble’s privilege, they weren’t able to go against Liu Mang. If anyone disagreed, Liu Mang would have them killed.

Yangzhou had a very high population which also means a lot of children. These children would be the foundation of the future so Liu Mang wanted them to study, at least enough to be able to know how to read. Yet it was not an easy task as there were hundreds and thousands of children. Even if he dragged everyone who knew how to read and write in Yangzhou out to teach these children, it would not be enough.

Lu Su did not want to help Liu Mang because he believed that Liu Mang would lose. If he helped Liu Mang and then Liu Mang was defeated, Lu Su would enter prison for the third time. Besides that, he would also risk his family at Jiangdong if he enters the spotlight.

Since Lu Su did not want to appear publicly, Liu Mang helped change his name and made him a teacher in school.

“A teacher?” Lu Su’s eyes shone. All scholars wished to write a book and push their theories. This was also a way of educating people. Pang Degong was influential in Jingzhou because he established the Lumen Academy. The Lumen Academy produced a lot of officials and was a noble’s foundation. That was why even Liu Biao cannot offend Pang Degong.

Lu Su was young but he was also ambitious. He wanted to be famous. Helping a Lord conquer the world was one way. Educating the people was another way.

“Master Yuanzhi. How should I make preparations?” Lu Su cupped his fist at Xu Shu. In a sense, he was already agreeing to become a teacher.

“You just need to prepare your knowledge of the Five Classics. We will handle the rest.” Xu Shu smiled.

Lu Su nodded and later followed Xu Shu into Shouchun inside a carriage.

On the second day, Xu Shu’s men brought Lu Su to his class. When Lu Su arrived, he was dumbstruck. He was in an open area with thousands of fully armored soldiers in front of him. It was as though Lu Su was a commander.

“What is this? I already said I would not become His Highness’ subordinate! Tell your Military Advisor to give up!” Lu Su angrily said. He thought that Xu Shu wanted to force him to command the soldiers.

“Haha.” The official laughed “Master Lu Su misunderstand us. We don’t want you to command the troops. Look over there.” The official then pointed at two banners. On the first banner were the words “Sharing Life and Death.” On the second banner were the words “Sharing Prosperity.”

Lu Su furrowed his brows. These words was the slogan of the Urban Army. Lu Su knew about the Urban Army as they had fought back Sun Ce’s army of one hundred thousand. At that time, they really shared life and death and made Lu Su revere them as a true elites.

“Are these the Urban Army?” Lu Su asked. The official nodded.

Lu Su came to an understanding that he was mistaken. They would definitely not make him lead the Urban Army. Even if Lu Su agreed to work for Liu Mang, it would not happen. The Urban Army were like Liu Mang’s personal troops. Even if Liu Mang agreed to let Lu Su command them, the generals in the army would not agree to it.

“Is that Lu Su Lu Zijing?” Huang Xu, the deputy of the Urban Army asked Cheng Yu.

“Yes. That person is Lu Su Lu Zijing.” Cheng Yu narrowed his eyes as he looked at Lu Su. As Lu Su was responsible for the death of many of their comrades, it can be said that Lu Su was their enemy.

“Would there be any problems from this arrangement?” Huang Xu was worried. He knew that many of the ones that survived the battle at Wancheng would have tears in their eyes every time that battle was mentioned. It was one of the moments where the Urban Army was almost wiped out. Huang Xu was worried that these people would be unable to control themselves and go after Lu Su.

“Don’t worry. We are the only ones who know his identity.” Cheng Yu reassured Huang Xu. Lu Su was a strategist. Not only was he part of the top brass, he was also someone who did not join the battle directly. Even if the soldiers knew his name, they would not be able to recognize his face. That being said, the generals knew his face. Cheng Yu himself wanted to kill Lu Su but restrained himself when he thought of Liu Mang.

“Master Lu Su. Your first batch of students are the Urban Army!” The official said to Lu Su with a smile.

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Even if you have questions, I don’t have answers. It sounds just as ridiculous when I tried to imagine what “half a friend” is.