“Is there any news from Shouchun?” Liu Mang asked after putting down the report regarding Yuzhou.
“Military Advisor Xu Shu did not bring much news. In the past few days, he was busy repairing the road at Yangzhou.” Jia Xu replied. Compared to before, Yangzhou was now tranquil. With so much time to reorganize, Yangzhou flourished industrially and commercially. There were no big matters aside from providing provisions to the front lines.
Liu Mang nodded at this. He was the one that ordered Xu Shu to repair the roads as he knew that it was the first step in order to make the region flourish.
Shouchun can go to Guangling by following the nearby river which is why it could develop. However, the land routes were still lacking.
Huang Zhong still had two hundred and fifty thousand men left in Yangzhou. They were used by Xu Shu to repair the roads. Normally road repairs meant filling the potholes with sand but Liu Mang also ordered for cement to be placed on top of the roads.
The cement had been useful for building the city walls but could not be taken out as it was military goods. The extra cement they had been keeping were now used to repair roads.
Liu Mang did not expect the roads to be perfect but he wanted it improved so that they could save effort when transporting things between cities. This would not only make trade easier but also make it easier when deploying troops.
“Good. Continue building the roads. We also need to build a bridge to connect the two areas.” Liu Mang nodded. He was the one decided the focus of development in Yangzhou.
Liu Mang then decided to tease Jia Xu. “Right. I heard that your woman is pregnant?” Even Jia Xu who was wise in the ways of human relations blushed. Liu Mang started to regret. Why did he even bother mentioning this?
The person Liu Mang was referring to was naturally not Jia Xu’s wife. His wife was already over forty years old. In that era, having a child at that age can be life threatening. Jia Xu’s penis was unable to stand which was a shame as a man. However, Liu Mang had given him a pill that helped his penis stand. So Jia Xu started to have sex with the women he obtained from the brothel.
“How many of them got pregnant? You can still do it even though you are old!” Liu Mang teased.
“Haha! Two of them!” Jia Xu replied. With that pill, he did it every day. Although it was exhausting, the hard times were over.
“Better to have two or you might make a loss! You would not have been able to defend your position if you get a daughter!” Liu Mang teased. Jia Xu jumped. “Who said so? Who said I will have a daughter?”
“Haha!” Liu Mang laughed as he looked at the lively Jia Xu. At the same time, he felt some doubt as Jia Xu was already over forty years old. A little too old to have children. However, for Liu Mang, it did not matter as to whether he had children. He who was born in the ancient times felt that having a daughter was better than having a son. Daughters can obtain dowry and someone else’s home but you have to give away your house to your son. People say that having daughters is like investing in a bank while having sons is like constructing a bank.
Liu Mang did not care whether he got a son or a daughter. This is because he already have position and wives but not children. What he needed was to have a child then Yangzhou would be stable.
That was why Liu Mang envied Jia Xu for getting two women pregnant while Liu Mang himself had nothing despite making the efforts with his wives. Liu Mang was even starting to doubt his own fertility as it was unlikely that all three of his wives were infertile.
Liu Mang felt pessimistic and wondered if he should go to a hospital. At this moment, Guan Hai came saying that a young lady was here to see Liu Mang.
Guan Hai had already recovered from his injury. Since Liu Mang did not have any particular mission for him and Zhou Cang, they ended up becoming his attendant.
“A young lady?” Liu Mang was not familiar with any young ladies in Jingzhou.
“Haha! Milord is blessed. Flowers at home and flowers lining up outside!” Jia Xu took his revenge for when Liu Mang cursed him to have a daughter instead of a son.
“Wenhe. Should I ask Liu Biao to let you stay here as our envoy when I leave Jingzhou?” Liu Mang asked back with a smile.
“Please don’t! I am already old and cannot bear such heavy responsibilities!” Jia Xu was flustered. He was not stupid enough to think that the peace between Jingzhou and Yangzhou will last forever. Jingzhou is sure to have funny ideas when Liu Mang is dealing with Cao Cao. Liu Biao himself will not last long. If a war starts between Yangzhou and Jingzhou, he did not want to be Jingzhou’s envoy.
“Then shut up!” Liu Mang replied in a bad mood. He was with Jia Xu the entire time so Jia Xu would know whether he had been meeting anyone.
“Yes! Yes!” Jia Xu said as he gave Liu Mang a glance. Liu Mang is allowed to say anything he wants but Jia Xu was not allowed to say anything. It was truly unfair.
“Did that lady say her name?” Liu Mang asked. The only woman he knew in Jingzhou was Lady Cai. However, they only contacted each other secretly and not even through proxies like this. After all, they could not be seen close to each other with their positions.
“No.” Guan Hai shook his head. “The lady simply said there is something important she has to tell you!”
Liu Mang wanted to chase her away as he was not someone that anyone can just meet. There had been common citizens who came to his residence filing complaints. Liu Mang did not know whether to laugh or cry. Even though he is the King of Shu, he was powerless in Jingzhou. However, Guan Hai added that the lady was crying so she may actually have something important to say.
“Really?” Liu Mang asked doubtfully.
“Milord. Why don’t you just see her? It could be that …” Jia Xu barely finished his sentence when he was kicked by Liu Mang. Liu Mang knew that Jia Xu was talking about the barbarian princess.
“Let her in!” Liu Mang waved his hand and sat on his chair. After all, he did not have anything else to do for the day. If it was another citizen filing a complaint, he could help them within his limits.
“Yes.” Guan Hai nodded. He soon returned with a woman that was covered in tears. The woman knelt in front of Liu Mang. “Your Highness! Run!”
When Sun Qian was left behind in Nanyang, he felt resentful. Yet, he could not do anything about it. When Liu Bei was trapped in Fancheng, Sun Qian had an idea. It was not his desire to see Liu Bei trapped in Fancheng but he was certainly happy to see Pang Tong’s plan fail. That was why when Liu Bei’s provisions was robbed, he left Nanyang.
He did not return to Yuzhou. Returning to Yuzhou was of no use and others could even accuse him of leaving before Fancheng had fallen. Instead, Sun Qian chose to go to Xudou. As he had stayed there before, he could easily enter the city.
“Cao Cao, Cao Mengde!” Liu Bei muttered to himself. There were many grudges between him and Cao Cao. When Cao Cao wanted to obtain Xuzhou, Liu Bei got in the way. When Liu Bei inherited Xuzhou from Tao Qian, he needed the recognition from the Han populace and also received an imperial order from Cao Cao to attack Yuan Shu. Liu Bei accepted the order and attacked Yuan Shu only to lose Xuzhou to Lu Bu.
Liu Bei exploited Cao Cao to take back Xuzhou but Cao Cao only wanted Liu Bei as a subordinate. He had such high hopes that he objected to Guo Jia’s advice to kill Liu Bei. In the end, Liu Bei betrayed Cao Cao and they now have grudges no better than the grudges between Liu Bei and Yangzhou. It was unexpected for Cao Cao to deliver provisions now.
“Brother! There is nothing good about this Cao Cao! He just wants to watch us and that Liu Mang kill each other!” Guan Yu said. His analytical skill was just as good as Zhang Liao’s. However, he was too arrogant. His arrogance is both his strength and weakness.
“Second General is right.” Sun Qian replied. “Milord. This subordinate went to Xudou with the resolve to succeed or die trying.” Sun Qian exaggerated but his words sounded pleasant to Liu Bei’s ears. This is because the Cao Cao’s Army were still their enemies even though they were having a truce.
“It must be hard on you, Gongyou.” Liu Bei consoled Sun Qian especially after seeing Sun Qian’s appearance. The journey from Nanyang to Xudou and then the journey back must have been filled with hardships.
“A little bit of harships is no matter if it is for Milord’s ambition. However, when I went to Xudou, I was treated well as a guest and even when I requested for provisions, the provisions were given without any conditions.” Sun Qian talked about his experiences at Xudou.
“The Xun Family is good at strategy.” As Cao Cao was in Hebei, Xudou was left under the management of the Xun Family. Of course, this was also part of Cao Cao’s plan. He was currently busy in pacifying Hebei so the last thing he wanted was for the Central Plains to be unified. It was just like the current situation at Hebei. If the Yuan Family remained united, Cao Cao would have to fight another war of attrition. However, the two Yuan siblings competed against each other for the position of Yuan Shao’s successor. This allowed Cao Cao to slowly become stronger while the other two fought. He wanted the same to happen towards Liu Bei and Liu Mang. It was best when neither party wins.
Unfortunately, Liu Bei was a huge disappointment due to his constant catastrophic defeats. Now, Yangzhou was at a critical juncture while Yuzhou was about to be wiped out. This meant that Cao Cao needed to put aside his grievances to help Liu Bei. He could not send soldiers as the bulk of his army is at Hebei and he did not want to provoke Liu Mang with his own troops, in fear that they would turn to Yanzhou in their anger.
Liu Bei himself have plenty of good generals like Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. Liu Bei himself was able to fight enemies. If they stick to defending, it is possible to last an entire year before being defeated. This would buy enough time for Cao Cao to pacify Hebei. Liu Bei simply lacked provisions which Cao Cao could help with. Even if Sun Qian did not go to Xudou, Xun Yu of the Xun Family would have paid Liu Bei a visit.
“Making sure that neither side wins so that he has the advantage.” Liu Bei smiled bitterly. Liu Bei understood Cao Cao’s plan. It was not even made a secret. Even then, he had no choice but to act according to Cao Cao’s plan for what little hope it might bring.
“Report! Urgent report from Yingshang! The Yangzhou Army are at the walls! They cannot defend for long, requesting Milord for assistance!” One messenger rushed in and gave the report that the Yangzhou Army had arrived in Yuzhou.
“Bring it on!” Liu Bei closed his eyes and muttered to himself. This situation reminded him of when Lu Bu attacked Xiaopei and Cao Cao providing provisional assistance.
“Liu Mang! Cao Cao! Did you think you have already won? The victor have not yet been decided!” Liu Bei clenched his fist tightly. The feeling of being someone’s pawn was terrible.
