Chapter 46: Zhang Zhao’s Countermeasure

Sun Quan closed his eyes and then opened them again. He gritted his teeth and took a deep breath. Only with great effort did he manage to calm himself and barely regain his composure.

"Ah!" Sun Quan let out a heavy sigh and said to Zhang Zhao, "Zibu, I simply cannot swallow this humiliation!"

"If things go on like this, I fear I might die from pent-up anger."

After uttering these words, Sun Quan seemed hunched, drained of energy, like a rooster defeated in battle.

To die from pent-up anger is to be killed by sheer frustration.

Sun Quan was furious, and so was Zhang Zhao! As the saying goes, when the lord is humiliated, his ministers are disgraced. When the ruler suffers indignity, those who serve him do not fare any better.

Yet, sometimes, under the eaves, one must bow their head. There was truly no other way.

Zhang Zhao's eyes darted, searching for a solution. Indeed, the schemes of Zhang Zibu were not lacking.

After pondering for a moment, he finally came up with a plan.

"My lord," Zhang Zhao said, "I only said that Su Ming must not die in Jiangdong."

"But I never said he couldn't die elsewhere," Zhang Zhao whispered in Sun Quan's ear.

As soon as Zhang Zhao spoke, Sun Quan seemed to be injected with new life, his spirits soaring.

"Zibu, what do you mean by this?" Sun Quan grabbed Zhang Zhao, his eyes gleaming.

Zhang Zhao leaned in and whispered, "My lord, let Su Ming come if he wishes."

"Since he comes bearing the title of envoy of the Son of Heaven, we shall receive him as such. When he leaves, we shall escort him grandly out of our territory."

"But once he has crossed our borders, any mishap that befalls him will no longer concern us."

"And then, even Cao Mengde will have no grounds to blame us."

Zhang Zhao spoke truthfully; Cao Cao's navy was lacking, and attacking Jiangdong would not be easy. To strike at Jiangdong, Cao Cao would need to rally the lords of the realm, particularly to win over Liu Biao of Jingzhou, whose navy was formidable.

Thus, Cao Cao's precondition for attacking Jiangdong was to secure the moral high ground and then issue proclamations in the name of the emperor.

If Su Ming, the so-called "envoy of the Son of Heaven," were to die in Jiangdong, Cao Cao would have the justification and moral authority to act against them.

But if Su Ming died elsewhere, it would have nothing to do with Jiangdong.

Sun Quan was clever; with Zhang Zhao's words, he immediately understood.

"Zibu, do you mean to ambush him on the way?" Sun Quan asked excitedly.

All Sun Quan wanted was for Su Ming to die; how he died—whether ambushed en route or assassinated in Jiangdong—did not matter to him. As long as Su Ming died, the means were irrelevant.

Zhang Zhao thought, "My lord, some things are best left unsaid; why be so direct?"

Fortunately, only Sun Quan and Zhang Zhao were present; this conversation would go no further.

"Ah!" Zhang Zhao sighed and said, "My lord, Su Ming could be killed by mountain bandits or river pirates."

"But under no circumstances can it be traced to Jiangdong."

"Su Ming's death must have nothing to do with us."

Upon hearing this, Sun Quan nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes!"

"Zibu is right. If Su Ming dies at the hands of bandits or pirates, it has nothing to do with us."

At this moment, Sun Quan seemed to think of something and asked Zhang Zhao, "Zibu, why don't we ambush him as he comes, rather than wait until he leaves?"

"Why endure this indignity?"

Sun Quan truly detested Su Ming; even the thought of meeting him gave Sun Quan a headache, let alone having to feign politeness.

However, Zhang Zhao shook his head and said, "My lord!"

"Ambushing him on the way in and on the way out are two very different matters!"

"If we strike as he leaves, Jiangdong can clear itself of suspicion."

"While he is in Jiangdong, we treat him with utmost respect and do him no harm. Once he leaves, we have even less reason to act."

"But if he is ambushed as he arrives, Jiangdong cannot easily distance itself from suspicion. Then, even if Cao Cao has no excuse to act against us, it would damage the people's trust."

Sun Quan considered this and found Zhang Zhao's reasoning sound. If Su Ming could be killed, a little humiliation was a small price to pay. Why quarrel with a dead man?

To Sun Quan, Su Ming was already as good as dead.

Sun Quan continued, "Zibu, how should we carry out this plan?"

Zhang Zhao led Sun Quan to the map and pointed to the locations of Jiangxia and Jiangdong.

Jiangxia lay to the north of the river, Jiangdong to the south. Between them flowed a tributary of the Yangtze called the Han River.

"My lord, look—if Su Ming wishes to enter Jiangdong, he must travel by water."

"He will proceed southward along the Han River, cross at Xiakou, and enter Wuchang in Jiangdong. You shall personally welcome him at Wuchang, and when he departs, we will escort him out of the city."

"Once he leaves Wuchang, whether Su Ming lives or dies will have nothing to do with us," Zhang Zhao explained, pointing at the map.

The counties of Jiangxia and Jiangdong were separated by the Han River. The closest point in Jiangdong to the Han was Wuchang County. Outside Wuchang, by the Han River, was where Zhang Zhao planned for Su Ming's bones to be buried.

Sun Quan listened eagerly, as if Su Ming had already been slain.

He asked Zhang Zhao with great interest, "Zibu, who should we send to ambush Su Ming?"

Indeed, selecting the right person for the task was crucial. It was not easy to find someone in Jiangdong who could match Su Ming in single combat.

Taishi Ci was formidable, but he was close friends with Su Ming and would never agree to it.

But that didn't matter. Individual prowess meant little against an army. Under a rain of arrows, even Lü Fengxian himself would meet his end.

"Let Ling Tong lead five thousand axemen and five thousand archers, ten thousand troops in total, disguised as mountain bandits, to lie in wait outside Wuchang by the Han River."

"When the time comes, five thousand axemen will charge, and ten thousand arrows will fly. Even if Su Ming were possessed by Lü Fengxian, he would not survive."

"Ling Tong bears the hatred of a slain father and will show no mercy!" Zhang Zhao named the best candidate.

Su Ming had spent time in Jiangdong, but Zhang Zhao could not be certain which generals might have friendly ties with him. Should someone falter in battle and let Su Ming escape, it would be like failing to catch the fox and being left with nothing but foul trouble.

With Ling Tong, this would not be a concern.

When Su Ming disrupted Sun Ce's funeral, he slew Ling Tong's father, Ling Cao.

A father's death is an irreconcilable enmity.

Ling Tong would never show mercy.

"Very well."

"Let Ling Tong do it!" Sun Quan agreed decisively.

Just then, Zhang Zhao seemed to recall something and said, "We must also send a fleet disguised as river pirates to intercept the boat coming to fetch Su Ming."

"Let Zhu Ran command this fleet. He is trustworthy."

With Zhang Zhao's plan laid out, Sun Quan felt victory was assured and nodded repeatedly, "I will follow your advice, Master Zibu!"

(End of chapter)