Volume 5: Overlord of the Sea Chapter 594: A Fight
Because Xiahou Yuan did not surrender to Chu, Bai Tu did not use the money from the national treasury to reward him. Instead, Xiahou Juan used his own royalties to buy a small house for Xiahou Yuan in Jinling that was close to the Chu palace. As for the servants, they were all hired by the Chu palace... and they also worked part-time as wind catchers to ensure Xiahou Yuan's "safety" on all levels.
Xiahou Yuan naturally knew Bai Tu's purpose, but this was what was supposed to be done, and these Wind-Catching Guards did not impose too many restrictions on him. Apart from preventing him from escaping, they only prohibited him from contacting "suspicious persons".
and……
Regardless of whether he could escape or not, Xiahou Yuan didn't have any "suspicious persons" to contact!
After the household registration system was fully implemented, it was not easy for Chu to be infiltrated, especially in Jinling...
Even if we take a step back, is there really a super spy from Wei in Nanjing?
Even if there really is one, Xiahou Yuan doesn't know who the other party is, after all, he is not responsible for this aspect.
As for the candidates who could be contacted, who were both from the Wei State and not "suspicious persons", there were some, such as Cao Pi and Sima Lang.
It was just because Wei had made Cao Zhi the crown prince and Chu had made Cao Pi the Marquis of Anwei that Xiahou Yuan felt a little embarrassed to see Cao Pi, and Sima Lang felt the same way...
In the first few days, Xiahou Yuan was quite happy - the news that Xiahou Dun had escaped back to Wei had already reached Jinling.
Although Xiahou Yuan was somewhat frightened by the speed at which the news was transmitted, at least the news that Xiahou Dun was fine made him feel much better.
Unfortunately, Guo Jia died shortly after organizing the Wei navy to retreat and land...
It’s not that Xiahou Yuan didn’t care about Guo Jia, but Guo Jia’s death was already anticipated when he went to Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan to discuss his affairs. And in comparison, Xiahou Dun, who grew up with him, undoubtedly had a deeper relationship with Xiahou Yuan.
After learning that Xiahou Dun was fine, Xiahou Yuan was in a good mood for a few days, however... he never saw Cao Pi!
This situation lasted for half a month, and Xiahou Yuan had become increasingly sensitive and questioning.
It would have been fine if he didn't go to see Cao Pi, but Cao Pi didn't even bother to take the initiative to come and see him?
Even if the other party still cares about the Crown Prince, shouldn't he show off his title of "Marquis of An Wei"?
As for being embarrassed because of "Marquis of An Wei"...Xiahou Yuan felt that Cao Pi was not such a shameless person.
Finally, half a month later, Xiahou Yuan could no longer sit still and took the initiative to find Cao Pi.
The servant who was "protecting" him did not stop him, but simply went with him, and then... was turned away.
It’s not that Cao Pi is really so rude, but Marquis An Wei is not in the mansion now!
In fact, Xiahou Yuan’s “servant” had known this for a long time, but... he didn’t remind him.
"Not in Jinling?" Xiahou Yuan had an ominous premonition in his heart.
It can’t be called a premonition, it can be called a simple “reasoning”…
Anyone with a discerning eye could guess what the nature of Cao Pi's position as "Marquis of An Wei" was - he definitely could not leave the capital at will, and in worse cases, he might not even be able to leave his room.
Since he is not in Jinling, he must have his own purpose, or rather... he has a purpose for the State of Chu!
Even though Xiahou Yuan had somewhat "let it go", he still felt uneasy when he knew that Chu had plans against Wei.
After hesitating for a while, Xiahou Yuan gritted his teeth and decided - just ask directly!
Anyway, if I ask directly, it doesn't matter if the other party doesn't want to answer. Probably... it's not something too excessive.
In the end, he actually got the answer, and there was no need to ask Bai Tu. Even Xiahou Juan knew about it, and... it seemed like she really wanted to give him an answer!
"Wait! If you just happened to hear what Bai Tu said, or he told you to keep it a secret, you don't have to tell me..." Xiahou Yuan couldn't help but remind him.
After all, he couldn't run away, and no matter what news he got, he couldn't send it back. It would not be worth it to affect the relationship between Xiahou Juan and Bai Tu because of this.
"No, many people in Chu State should know about it by now, and it doesn't look like they are trying to keep it a secret." Xiahou Juan didn't seem to be worried about anything.
The reason why Xiahou Yuan didn't know was that he avoided suspicion and didn't leave the house often.
"What about Zihuan now..." Xiahou Yuan immediately became nervous.
"If everything goes well, they should have returned to the north. After all, it was General Guan who led the troops personally and traveled north by sea." Xiahou Juan said.
The so-called "North" naturally refers to the State of Wei.
And the crowned general...now there is only one crowned general in the State of Chu, and that is Lu Bu!
That’s right, the State of Chu had already started the follow-up to the Battle of Bohai Sea. After establishing its maritime hegemony, it took advantage of this advantage and continuously sent troops to the State of Wei by sea, making the latter exhausted.
This was basically semi-public news in the State of Chu. After all, the State of Wei did not have precise reports, and the speed at which the "news" spread was not as fast as the speed of transporting troops by sea.
The State of Chu can now transport troops across the Bohai Sea without fear or hesitation without having to worry about any powerful sniper attacks that would cause heavy casualties.
However, there was one thing that Xiahou Juan didn't know clearly, and that was the specific tactics involved ...
It is true that Lu Bu was nominally the commander-in-chief of the "Battle of Bohai Sea and Landing Battle", or the "Battle of Bohai Sea Rim", and it is true that the purpose of the "Battle of Bohai Sea Rim" was nominally to send "Marquis of An Wei" back to his fiefdom.
However, in reality, Lu Bu was no longer acting with Cao Pi, but was leading the "main force" to land at Tuyin Port and storm Youbeiping. Once successful, Liaodong, Liaoxi and the Chaohaixian Peninsula would be separated from the Wei mainland...
Then, by leveraging Chu's great reputation for "eliminating violence and maintaining peace" and the long-term infiltration of the Ministry of Enlightenment, Wei could be quickly driven out of the area west of Youbeiping.
On the other side, the "special forces" led by Zhang Liao will first rest near Donglaixi Port, and when Lu Bu achieves victory and the attention of Wei State is attracted, they will directly march out of Bohai Port and go straight into the heart of Wei State!
The best scenario, of course, is to wait until Cao Cao moves the capital, settle down in the area around Yecheng, and raise the banner of An Wei Hou. After that... hold out as long as you can. Every extra day of holding out will be a greater blow to the Wei State than a defeat in a small-scale war.
Once they are able to occupy the city for a long time, it will accelerate the internal conflicts in Wei State - to be precise, only by triggering the internal conflicts in Wei State will it be possible for a small brigade to occupy Yecheng for a long time!
If this could really be achieved, Wei's national fortune would basically only last a few years.
Compared with ten years ago, the current warlords are not only huge in size but also deeply rooted. They cannot be completely defeated in one or two battles.
Just like how the State of Chu was able to quickly recover the “mere” Hanzhong, it was all thanks to the “momentum” gained by Zhang Lu’s surrender.
Especially for a big vassal like Wei that dominates the north, if they really have to fight one battle after another, it will not only be laborious for Chu, but also a huge loss for the people...
Therefore, both Bai Tu and other think tanks felt that they could make a fight for "maritime hegemony" with the help of "Marquis of An Wei"!
