Two days later, Zhao Yun and Guan Yu returned.

"Your Majesty, there are indeed people in the upstream intercepting the water flow, but according to the survey results of the Ministry of Works, the cut-off time will not exceed three days at most." After Guan Yu returned to the city, he immediately went to the government office and reported to Liu Xie, looking coldly at Pang Tong who was silent.

"Three days?" Liu Xie nodded with a smile: "Send someone to Jiangling again. If the Jiangdong army has left, take advantage of the situation and occupy Jiangling. If there is no, wait for two more days."

"Your Majesty, this..." Guan Yu looked at Liu Xie incredibly. Pang Tong on the side was also inexplicably shocked and looked incredible.

"When did Your Majesty know?" Pang Tong ignored Guan Yu's murderous gaze, but looked at Liu Xie and said in confusion.

"It's strange?" Liu Xie looked at Pang Tong and said, "I have sent troops from Nanyang, and it's not a month since now. Not to mention that Zhou Yu is not by Sun Quan's side, even if Zhou Yu is there, he can't be before. Even if I will send troops from Jiangxia, if he really has such ability, wouldn't it be better to ambush me directly in Jiangxia? Also, don't think I'm easy to deceive. Although I don't understand these, there are talents among the staff of the Ministry of Works who specialize in water level. If there is really a problem with the water level, they won't say it."

"Since your Majesty already knows, why bother..." Pang Tong smiled bitterly and shook his head and said, "Why did he pretend to be trapped or even deliberately missed the military plane?"

"For you!" Liu Xie smiled.

"Me?" Pang Tong looked at Liu Xie incredibly: "Your Majesty already knows me?"

"I can rest assured to the world. Although Sima Decao's words are exaggerated, this person still has some eyesight. I am not a deaf person. It is difficult for Sima Decao to open his eyes for you and you are both like this."

"Xiaomin still can't believe it. Your Majesty would rather miss the opportunity for this reason?" Pang Tong was still a little unbelievable.

"What kind of fighter?" Liu Xie stretched and smiled, "It is more important to get the land of Jingzhou without spending one soldier. In my opinion, it is more important than a victory. The soldiers are weapons. No matter how grand the reason is, the people who are ultimately suffering will eventually be the people who can recover Jingzhou peacefully. For me, for the soldiers of the three armies, for the millions of people in Jingzhou, it is fortunate that the Han Dynasty has shed too much blood in the internal strife in these years. It is a good idea to shed less."

Pang Tong said a little dissatisfied: "Have you ever thought about letting the tiger go back to the mountain this time, and thinking about going to Jiangdong again in the future, it would be a huge challenge."

"In this way, I'll make a bet with you. I'll bet that even if Sun Quan returns to Jiangdong, he may not be able to sit firmly in the position of the Lord of Jiangdong. Do you believe it?" Liu Xie looked at Pang Tong and did not argue with him, but just smiled.

Pang Tong frowned slightly when he heard this, but he didn't respond. He pondered for a long time, but he couldn't figure it out. Sun Quan might have taken the army back to Chaisang on a boat. Liu Xie missed the opportunity to annihilate Sun Quan. He really couldn't think of any other means?

After thinking for a long time, Pang Tong looked up at Liu Xie and said, "If it were the Jiangdong family, it would probably be difficult to cause too much trouble."

"No need to test me. In this world, as long as I don't want to, no one can make any words out of my mouth." Liu Xie's hands stacked with ten fingers, looking at Pang Tong and said, "Of course, Shi Yuan can ask. If you ask, I will definitely answer."

Pang Tong's mouth twitched a few times and did not speak.

When I asked, wouldn’t I seem to be incompetent?

"Then, tell me why I want to help Sun Quan?" Liu Xie looked at Pang Tong: "If you have been loyal to Sun Quan, I have nothing to say, but as the lord, he ran away and left you here, and his friendship should be over. Why don't Shi Yuan consider taking part in the court?"

"Your Majesty doesn't need to provoke me with words, and don't make the plan of disagreement. The little people owe Zhou Yu a favor. This help is also a favor. Now Sun Quan is afraid that he has left safely, so this kindness will be paid back." Pang Tong sneered: "Sun Quan's son seems magnanimous, but in fact he is also a person who judges others by his appearance."

"It's normal for human nature. There are not many people who can be as calm as me when they see the first face of Shi Yuan." Liu Xie waved his hand with a smile.

Pang Tong: “…”

Is there anyone so harmful?

He is angry but can't let it go. Even if he doesn't want to admit it, his past experience has confirmed this.

"Okay, let's get back to the point. Since I promised you, I will solve your doubts. From the beginning of this battle, I have been invincible. As early as when I went to war, I had already thought that on the river, I might not be able to stop the Jiangdong naval army. Therefore, when I decided to send troops, I had already spread the empty news of Jiangdong to Xuzhou through some channels. Shi Yuan might as well guess whether Cao Cao would take advantage of the situation?" Liu Xie looked at Pang Tong with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Pang Tong couldn't help but gasp. This move... is a little poisonous!

Whether Cao Cao would take advantage of the situation is almost 200% sure, so he will!

No matter whether the alliance is not an alliance, even if it is an alliance, Jiangdong can still covet Jingzhou and then seize Shuzhong. However, Cao Cao could only choose to argue with the court. Jiangdong has deep space, but Cao Cao did not. Therefore, in order to seek development, after Cao Cao confirmed the news, he would definitely attack Jiangdong. Nothing else, just for such a stable rear, Cao Cao would not be able to sit on the opportunity to lose it.

Pang Tong looked at Liu Xie with some doubts: "Your Majesty has no intention to annihilate Sun's family?"

"It's not that there is no, but it's impossible!" Liu Xie shook his head: "Jiangling is close to the Yangtze River. Even if I come in time, I can fight a war with Jiangdong, at most I will lose some people. But as long as Sun Quan escapes into the river, with these infantry, if I really cross the river and chase after him without knowing what I know, I will not only not be able to attack and annihilate the Sun family, but will also lose troops and generals, which is not done by wise people."

"So, since things cannot be done, Your Majesty passes the news to Cao Cao and makes a move to send troops. When he happens to meet a villain, he is smart and comes to delay. So Your Majesty pretends to be trapped and asks Sun Quan to return to Jiangdong, and then the Cao and Sun families can turn against each other. Moreover, after this battle, it is afraid that the Cao and Sun families will find it difficult to get back together. Your Majesty is wise!" Pang Tong smiled bitterly, and suddenly found that he was like a clown. In Liu Xie's plan, this result will not change regardless of whether he has or not. Since Sun Quan decided to fight against the enemy and send troops to Jingzhou, the ending seemed to have been destined.

But the problem is that even if Sun Quan did not have this decision, he could only watch Liu Xie annex Jingzhou little by little. Even if the Cao-Sun Alliance is not broken, how long can the Cao-Sun Alliance last for the eighth part of the court in the world?

Even Guan Yu and Zhao Yun only understood Liu Xie's plan until now. They looked at Liu Xie with a confused look. Although the world has not been unified yet, they now feel that the world has not been unified for a long time. Others think that the court has no naval army, but as one of the top generals in the court, the two of them know very well that the court does not have naval army, but the court has a navy!

"Shi Yuan doesn't have to be discouraged." Liu Xie looked at Pang Tong with a heavy blow and said with a smile: "There is a gap between reality and ideals. You have experienced too little, so it is so easy to hit. It is important to know that since I was less than eight years old, I have to face all kinds of intrigues. From Dong Zhuo to the warlords of Xiliang, I have today, but I have not obtained it out of thin air. Moreover, I believe that even if I lose this time, I will never be as depressed as you. I will make myself stronger. This failure may not be a bad thing for you. I will be arrogant and will only cut off my future."

Zhao Yun and Guan Yu also sighed when they heard this. Liu Xie had experienced too many things in the past ten years. What others saw was just a monster who could be literary and martial, but they didn't know how many bitterness and ups and downs had been experienced behind this monster.

"Come to me, you will go further." Liu Xie looked at Pang Tong and smiled and handed out the olive branch.

"Your Majesty is willing to use me?" Pang Tong looked at Liu Xie incredibly.

"The Han Dynasty's court welcomes any talent at any time, regardless of appearance." Liu Xie smiled.

Pang Tong: “…”

The previous words also made him feel a little moved, but please don’t always talk about his appearance?

"Your Majesty should know that I am a scholar!" Pang Tong took a deep breath and pressed down the divine beast that was rushing in his chest.

"I know." Liu Xie nodded: "But I have never understood. When did the imperial court have any government orders that prevent scholars from becoming officials?"

Pang Tong was stunned when he heard this. Indeed, the court had never said that scholars were not allowed to be officials, and there was never a single decree specifically targeting scholars. The court just said that only talent was a pro-election, and ministers who were not officials but meritorious, and those who were not rewarded or warned.

These decrees were not wrong, but for some reason, they pushed the scholars to the opposite side little by little. At this moment, Pang Tong was a little confused and looked at Liu Xie and said, "Just..."

After only a long time, I didn't know how to defend the scholars.

"Just how?" Looking at Pang Tong who was silent, Liu Xie smiled and said, "Let me come to help you tell me, it's just that the court gave scholars too much, including rights, status and wealth. Every year, the court has to consume most of the resources to safeguard the interests of scholars. Until one day, the court was unable to bear these things anymore. When they wanted to take them back, the scholars believed that the court had moved their interests, so they rose up to resist, so they thought that the court had sorry for them. All this was my fault, but no scholar had ever thought that these were from the court from the beginning. The court did not owe them, but they were used to the court's giving, so they could not accept that the court had taken back these things that were not inferior to them, so they wanted to resist. Shi Yuan felt that what I said was right?"

Pang Tong didn't say anything, his face turned pale. Every word of Liu Xie was like a heavy hammer hitting him in his heart, but he couldn't refute it because he thought about it carefully, it was all facts.

"Shi Yuan must have been tired these two days, so go and have a rest. If you still think I am wrong, I will order that no one will stop you from leaving, but next time you meet, it may be the enemy." Liu Xie leaned on the back of the chair and waved his hand.

"Xiaomin... took his leave." Pang Tong bowed and retreated silently, his back looked a little desolate.
Chapter completed!