Chapter 40: The Last Great Menace of Xuzhou

"I still have a few jars of green plum wine at my residence. We can have them brought over so you and I can share a drink, Lord Governor," Li Yi instructed.

This green plum wine had been sent over by various officials in Xuzhou over the past two days.

It was a society driven by human favors, all the more so within officialdom. Such practices were hardly strange or unexpected in government circles.

Although green plum wine was not particularly rare, this batch had been brewed in the south. The climate there was hot and humid, yielding green plums of superior flavor, and the wine brewed from them was naturally much more distinctive.

Li Yi expounded fluently for Liu Bei:

"My lord, this plum wine carries a distinct fruity tartness. If one can infuse peach petals into the wine to neutralize it, the wine gains a threefold delicate fragrance of peach blossoms while losing ten percent of the green plum's astringency. The two complement each other perfectly, making for the finest quality."

Liu Bei was overjoyed upon hearing this. Even someone like him, who was not particularly gluttonous, developed a keen interest in Li Yi's way of consumption.

"Sir is truly a master of this art and a gallant hero among drinkers. Bei is deeply impressed. Now that Xuzhou is pacified, it is entirely thanks to sir's efforts. Today, Bei shall drink a thousand cups with you, and we shall not stop until we are thoroughly drunk!"

Li Yi, however, let out a chuckle.

"My lord's words are somewhat mistaken. Xuzhou is not yet pacified; there is still a major matter left unfinished."

Oh...?

Liu Bei's smile instantly froze. He had thought he could snatch a moment of leisure from his busy schedule with Ziyu today, but it seemed he still could not let down his guard.

Li Yi took a deep breath and said earnestly, "I know my lord's intentions—you fear I am overworked and do not wish to heap pressure upon me. Yet my lord, as the head of a province, shoulder the weight of myriad affairs and still attend to everything personally. How could Yi be a lax, indolent, and lazy person?"

Joking aside, did they really think he, Li Yi, had become a corporate executive just because of some "My Boss Father" trope? He had gotten there through genuine, self-disciplined hard work!

"Xuzhou has since ancient times been a battleground contested by strategists. Situated in the Central Plains, it extends in all directions with access to everywhere, yet possesses no natural barriers to defend. It can be described as easy to attack but difficult to hold!"

"If we think of merely relying on defense while waiting for an attack, we can only await our doom and will sooner or later be destroyed by other warlords. The only way is to take the initiative and strike out first—striking first to gain the upper hand!"

Li Yi laid out his strategic policy.

It was true that Xuzhou needed development, but focusing solely on development without outward expansion would certainly not work. Because Xuzhou possessed absolutely no natural defensive barriers, remaining passive and failing to launch proactive attacks would leave them far too vulnerable.

Liu Bei's expression grew grave. How could he not have considered this issue himself?

"I understand the strategist's intent. It is just that Xuzhou has only recently been pacified, and it is truly unsuitable to stir up great military actions right now."

It was not that Liu Bei did not want to strike outward; the problem was whom could he possibly fight right now? Yuan Shao in the north, Cao Cao in the west, or Yuan Shu in the south? Or perhaps Kong Rong above him, who maintained the best relations with him?

"My lord has misunderstood my meaning."

Li Yi began to explain, "I have merely put forward a strategic policy; I am not saying we must march out and fight immediately."

If you lack the porcelain skills, don't take on the diamond job. Li Yi still understood this principle.

"Then sir's meaning is...?"

"To pacify the external, one must first settle the internal!" Li Yi said solemnly.

Hiss...

This answer was even more ambiguous.

As for settling the internal, Liu Bei had already pacified, wooed, or suppressed the various factions in Xuzhou as appropriate. For the rest, they could only wait for time to gradually test the results. What other problems in Xuzhou needed immediate settlement?

Liu Bei pondered for a moment and asked, "Is sir referring to Cao Bao?"

Li Yi shook his head. "Ever since the defeat at Pengcheng, the Danyang faction has lost all its vigor and can no longer stir up any great waves in the short term."

Liu Bei thought again and replied, "Could it be Guangling? Many county towns there have leaned toward Yuan Shu, and Chen Yuanlong may not necessarily be able to suppress them. In case Yuan Shu swallows up Guangling, he can directly threaten Xiapi. Could this be the most urgent priority?"

Li Yi chuckled. "My lord should not underestimate Chen Yuanlong and the clan behind him; this young man has plenty of tricks up his sleeve. With him around, Guangling is merely a mild skin irritation. What is it worth worrying about?"

Liu Bei fell into deep contemplation. After a long while, he slowly uttered, "Langya."

This time, Li Yi finally nodded.

Liu Bei, however, did not feel a sense of relief.

Of the five commanderies and kingdoms of Xuzhou—Xiapi, Langya, Guangling, Donghai, and Pengcheng—Pengcheng and Xiapi were firmly controlled in Liu Bei's hands. Guangling had already seen Chen Deng sent to suppress it. Meanwhile, Li Yi's marriage alliance with the Mi family had caused the forces in Donghai to lean toward their side, rendering them no cause for concern.

That left only Zang Ba in Langya to the north.

Why didn't Liu Bei feel a sense of release? Because toward Zang Ba, he had always adopted a policy of appeasement.

Although Langya was nominally a commandery of Xuzhou, in reality, it had already become Zang Ba's independent stronghold. Zang Ba was essentially a warlord of Langya. It was less that Liu Bei did not worry about Zang Ba, and more that he had never included Langya within his ruling sphere from the very beginning.

The northern and northeastern parts of Xuzhou had both been voluntarily ceded by Liu Bei to Zang Ba and Chang Xi. The proof was that Liu Bei had taken the initiative to move the administrative seat of Xuzhou from Donghai to Xiapi.

This was Liu Bei's sincerity. The subtext was that Langya and the northern part of Donghai were being handed over to the Taishan Band. We mind our own business, and you mind yours.

So why hadn't Liu Bei thought of Zang Ba when discussing the matter with Li Yi at first? Because he had never intended to claim Langya at all. The other commanderies were at least nominally under the jurisdiction of the Governor of Xuzhou, but Langya was entirely Zang Ba's personal territory.

"Sir says we do not wish to expand outwardly at this time, yet we must still deploy troops against Zang Ba?" Liu Bei asked.

Li Yi smiled softly. "My lord's words are mistaken. What I stated just now is that to pacify the external, one must first settle the internal. My lord is the Governor of Xuzhou, and Langya is a commandery of Xuzhou. Does Langya not belong under my lord's jurisdiction?"

You, oh you...!

Liu Bei was both exasperated and amused. He silently cursed: You are also a clever man, sir; why play the fool in front of me? Surely you knew that I long ago yielded Langya to Zang Ba and never included Langya in the discussion of Xuzhou's problems?

No, no, to be more precise: ever since Tao Qian's time, Langya had already been conceded to Zang Ba. Liu Bei was merely following the established routine of his predecessor.

To Liu Bei, Zang Ba at most counted as an external threat, not an internal one. Internal threats were the Danyang faction and the various influential clans of Xuzhou; those were internal threats. Zang Ba should be categorized alongside Yuan Shu in the southeast and Cao Cao in the northwest.

Yet if it were reckoned this way, which of Cao Cao's or Yuan Shu's threats was not greater than Zang Ba's? Why did the strategist place such unique importance on Zang Ba?

"My lord, look here."

Li Yi picked up his chopsticks and tapped them lightly against the stone table.

"To the north of Langya lies Qingzhou. My lord came from Qingzhou and should understand what kind of situation Qingzhou is currently in."

Mentioning Qingzhou seemed to spark a sudden realization in Liu Bei. He had previously assisted Tian Kai in Qingzhou to fight against Yuan Shao, only to bail out midway and start a new game in Xuzhou.

Even when he was there, Tian Kai was no match for Yuan Shao. Now that Liu Bei had left, Tian Kai would likely be even less capable of fighting Yuan Shao.

Once Tian Kai was defeated, Qingzhou would fall into the hands of the Yuan family. Consequently, Langya, serving as Xuzhou's northern gateway, would directly border the Yuan family's territories. And once Zang Ba, who guarded this gateway, leaned toward the Yuan family, the Yuan family could drive straight through and sweep across all of Xuzhou!