Chapter 123: This Is the Real Zhang Shicheng

Two hundred miles away in Zhenjiang, Liu Yi had reached the same conclusion. "Master Shanchang, while I am willing to join forces with Assistant Commissioner Zhu to take Changzhou and accomplish this great undertaking, your Left Battalion cannot expect to appease me with a few bedraggled specimens. Master Shanchang, you must think this through carefully!"

Li Shanchang had initially assumed this would be a simple matter. He had not expected things to go so poorly in Zhenjiang, and now Liu Yi was mocking him without the slightest reservation. Although he was unsure exactly where he had erred, he made a full effort to recover the situation: "Director Liu, these four young ladies are beauties of the highest order. Would you not care to see them?"

He and the entire Left Battalion had gone to great lengths to select these women. They had scoured the city for beauties ranging from daughters of noble houses to those of modest backgrounds, all of them exquisite. According to the prevailing sentiment in Yingtian, they had expected Liu Yi to go along with the gesture and settle the matter immediately.

The problem was that not only did Liu Yi offer a cold snort of disdain, but even Sun Yuerong, who stood by his side, spoke quite bluntly: "Master Shanchang, I know that since your Left Battalion put in the effort, the girls you selected are likely presentable enough. But think carefully: are these bedraggled specimens worthy of my husband? My husband can have as many women of this sort as he pleases; why would he need to form a marriage alliance with the Left Battalion?"

Li Shanchang was initially confused, but upon hearing her mention a "marriage alliance," he understood. "Ah, Lady Sun’s words have awakened me from my dream. We are all one family, so naturally, we should strengthen our ties through marriage. Let these four beauties serve to warm Director Liu’s bed for now, and I shall return to Yingtian to clarify matters with everyone."

Liu Yi nodded. "Master Shanchang, the status of Assistant Commissioner Zhu and myself is no longer what it once was. Setting aside marriage and concubinage, even our casual words must be spoken with the utmost caution. I hope you can understand this."

Li Shanchang could not help but smile; he realized he had not yet fully adapted to this immense transformation. Before they had crossed the river to take Jinling, the Chuzhou Red Turbans, himself included, had been a ragtag group. Zhu Yuanzhang had eaten meat and drunk wine heartily with everyone, and if they saw a fine woman, they would pursue her naturally. But once they entered Jinling, everything changed.

Although the Han-Song regime had only granted him the title of "Acting Secretariat," and Zhu Yuanzhang held the office of "Assistant Commissioner of the Acting Secretariat," the Yingtian group had begun a comprehensive expansion in a very short time. In reality, they had become a powerful feudal lord. In such circumstances, every word and action of Liu Yi or Zhu Yuanzhang carried immense weight. Beyond the major implications of marriage or taking concubines, even routine travel had become a matter of grave importance. The Left Battalion had chosen four top-tier beauties, but for Liu Yi and Zhenjiang, they offered little benefit and could potentially invite endless trouble.

For a man of Liu Yi’s stature, sleeping with a woman was easier than drinking water, but dealing with the aftermath was a task of extreme difficulty. A single misstep could trigger a tidal wave of trouble. Thus, Sun Yuerong’s suggestion of a formal marriage alliance became the more prudent path. While there were no suitable candidates within Zhu Yuanzhang’s clan to marry into Liu Yi’s household, the Left Battalion had enough civil and military officials that a suitable match could certainly be found. If a daughter of a legitimate line could not be found, they could always follow the precedent set by Guo Zixing and adopt a girl as a goddaughter. In truth, Li Shanchang was already considering whether there was a suitable candidate within his own clan.

Although the Left Battalion and the Water Battalion were in a state of full confrontation, and an alliance through a daughter of the Li clan might not guarantee smooth sailing, the mere existence of such a bond would render Li Shanchang and his clan invincible.

Yet, as soon as this thought crossed his mind, Li Shanchang’s brow furrowed. "How could I harbor such a thought? No matter how resourceful Director Liu is, he only holds Zhenjiang. Others might entertain such ideas, but as the trusted confidant of my lord, I must never harbor such intentions!"

Zhu Yuanzhang and Liu Yi were like two tigers competing for supremacy. As Zhu Yuanzhang’s core confidant, he could not afford the luxury of wishful thinking. The notion that "Zhenjiang might ultimately prevail" was a thought he absolutely could not entertain. However, unable to convince himself otherwise, he resorted to self-deception: "In reality, it is not certain that my lord and Director Liu will eventually reach a point of decisive conflict. Perhaps they will continue to cooperate indefinitely. I am doing this for the sake of my lord!"

After seeing Li Shanchang off, Sun Yuerong’s expression relaxed. "Does my husband mean that the battle for Changzhou will not end so quickly?"

Although she was Liu Yi’s confidante and female military advisor, she was, at heart, a woman who felt deeply dissatisfied with the machinations of Zhu Yuanzhang and Li Shanchang in trying to press women upon her husband. Now that the scheme had failed, her mood naturally improved.

Liu Yi gave a clear reply: "The fighting will certainly continue. Zhang Shicheng is no simple man. It will not be easy for us to snatch food from the tiger's mouth. Furthermore, if Zhang Shicheng manages to take Songjiang Prefecture, we shall have a bitter struggle ahead of us."

Zhang Shicheng had relied on the resources of Songjiang, Jiaxing, Hangzhou, and half of Shaoxing to maintain a stalemate with the Zhu Yuanzhang group for nearly a decade. For Liu Yi, the longer the war dragged on, the greater the tragedy, and he naturally hoped to end the conflict as quickly as possible.

Sun Yuerong immediately asked, "Then shall we see the envoy sent by Zhang Shicheng? I think meeting him would be for the best—it would at least serve as a stalling tactic."

Although they would inevitably break with Zhang Shicheng eventually, Sun Yuerong felt they could feign cooperation for now to deliver a lethal blow later. Liu Yi, however, was firm: "There is no need to see him. Now is not the time for meetings. The moment I lead my troops out, that will be the time for negotiations with Zhang Shicheng!"

Sun Yuerong found this incredible. "We are planning to seize Songjiang Prefecture from his grasp; how could Zhang Shicheng possibly negotiate with us?"

Liu Yi said with full confidence, "He will negotiate. If he does not, then he is not the Zhang Shicheng I know."