Xiahou Dun was in Qingzhou, and he knew that his advance would affect Cao Cao's southern expedition, so he urged his soldiers to attack the city for several days, but with little success.
Not only did Zhou Yu make proper arrangements, he also poured ice water on the city walls every few days, causing the Wei army to suffer setbacks and their morale to decline.
After a month of siege without success, Wang Ling offered a suggestion: "Qingzhou is located in Beihai. Zhou Yu is trapped here now. We can divide our forces to take Beihai first. The Wu army will surely fall into chaos without a fight."
"This is a great plan!" Xiahou Dun was overjoyed and looked around: "Who is going to take Beihai?"
All the generals bowed their heads. Zhong Jin said, "General Tian once guarded Beihai and is familiar with the geography and customs. He is the best candidate."
"This is exactly what I want!" Xiahou Dun immediately ordered Tian Yu to lead troops to take Beihai.
Tian Yu frowned and said, "The fortifications of Beihai City are much stronger than those of Linzi. Zhou Yu is good at using troops, so he must have prepared for it. I'm afraid it will be difficult to succeed."
Zhong Jin sneered, "General Tian lost Beihai, now is the time to atone for his sins. Zhou Yu's main force is in Linzi, but the general is still shirking his responsibilities. Could it be that he has second thoughts?"
Ever since Zhong Yao and Xin Pi surrendered without a fight, Cao Pi had conducted a strict investigation of the court and had also brought the families of his high-ranking officials and garrison commanders to Handan. The Cao clan was very sensitive about this.
Xiahou Dun's face darkened upon hearing this, and he said in a cold voice: "Tian Guorang, do you dare to defy my orders?"
Tian Yu had no choice but to lead 10,000 troops to Beihai. Xiahou Dun also sent Wang Ling as a military officer, giving him a deadline of half a month to capture the city, otherwise he would be subject to military law.
After dividing the troops, Xiahou Dun surrounded Linzi and did not ask Zhou Yu for support. He ordered the four gates to attack the city together. As long as any one of the cities was breached, Zhou Yu would undoubtedly be defeated.
The next day, after the soldiers had finished their meal and were beating drums to gather and prepare to attack the city, a soldier suddenly came to report that Cao Cao had sent Jiang Gan to meet them.
Xiahou Dun welcomed him into the tent, feeling uneasy, and asked, "Is the king sending you here to be his military advisor because the war is going badly?"
Jiang Gan stroked his beard and smiled, "Your Majesty knows Zhou Gongjin's strategy very well and does not blame you. I am not here for military reasons. Please stop your troops and retreat. I will ask Zhou Lang to surrender."
Xiahou Dun was shocked and asked, "What's your plan, sir?"
Jiang Gan said with a smile: "Zhou Gongjin and I are close friends. We can just go into the city and meet him. There is no need to fight. With my eloquence, I can ask the king to take Zhou Yu and the general to take Xuzhou!"
Xiahou Dun said, "So the king has already made arrangements. Thank you very much, sir."
Jiang Gan wrote a letter, asking Xiahou Dun to send someone to shoot into the city, and wait for Zhou Yu's reply. Sure enough, the defenders on the city wall replied, asking Xiahou Dun to withdraw his troops and only allow Jiang Gan to enter the city.
Xiahou Dun said worriedly, "Sir, it might be dangerous for you to go into the city alone."
Jiang Gan laughed and said, "Don't say that I am close to Zhou Lang. Even if we have never met before, I would still be willing to be Su and Zhang. I go in and out of the enemy's city like I am taking a walk in the backyard!"
"Sir, you are a true hero!" Xiahou Dun was overjoyed, and ordered his men to prepare horses for Jiang Gan, and ordered each camp to mobilize troops and retreat three miles away.
Seeing the city gate slowly opening, Jiang Gan, wearing a linen robe and a gauze scarf, rode upright on his horse and walked in proudly. Just as he passed the city gate, he saw two rows of armored guards standing in neat rows, with swords and spears pointed, full of murderous intent. His face changed drastically.
Hearing the gates closing behind him, Jiang Gan hurriedly dismounted and asked anxiously, "I am an old friend of Governor Zhou. How can you be so rude?"
Xu Sheng stepped forward with an ancient ingot knife and shouted: "You came from Cao's camp, you must be a spy of Cao's army, why do you care about our old friendship?"
Jiang Gan took a deep breath to calm himself, then laughed loudly, "I risked my life to save you out of consideration for my old friend. I never thought that a great man like Zhou Lang would treat an old friend like this. If this gets out, wouldn't the world laugh at me?"
Xu Sheng was very surprised: "Sir, are you here to rescue the Grand Commander?"
Jiang Gan saw that Xu Sheng didn't dare to take action, so he snorted slightly, turned his head away, pulled his beard and glanced at the sky, and ignored him.
"Please!" Xu Sheng gritted his teeth and ordered his men to make way for him and take Jiang Gan into the city.
Seeing the murderous soldiers on both sides, Jiang Gan was frightened, but he had to stay calm. He came to the government office and saw Zhou Yu reviewing documents at his desk.
Xu Sheng went in to report, and Zhou Yu raised his head. Seeing his confused and exhausted eyes, Jiang Gan sighed: "Zhou Lang of Jiangdong was so handsome, but I didn't expect him to be so haggard!"
Zhou Yu looked indifferent, put down the book and asked: "Zi Yi, you have come all the way to the rivers and lakes to be a lobbyist for Cao?"
Jiang Gan was startled and said unhappily, "I haven't seen you for a long time. I heard that Gongjin was trapped in Qingzhou, so I came to rescue him. You are so suspicious of me. Goodbye!"
After saying this, he turned around and prepared to leave, but saw Xu Sheng standing at the door with a sword in his hand, shouting: "I'm afraid you can't leave even if you come!"
Jiang Gan was horrified, pointed at Zhou Yu and said in a trembling voice: "How can you treat an old friend like this?"
"Hahaha, Ziyi, don't be alarmed!" Zhou Yu suddenly burst into laughter, went down the hall, took Jiang Gan's arm, and said with a smile: "Since you are not a guest of Cao's family, you should reminisce about the past. What I just said was just a joke!"
"Playing tricks?" Jiang Gan was stunned. He pushed Zhou Yu away arrogantly and wiped his sweat, saying, "I'm sweating from playing tricks!"
Zhou Yu instructed Xu Sheng, "This is my classmate and close friend. Although he came from Cao's camp, he is not Cao's guest. General, don't be suspicious."
He then ordered a banquet to be set up, and after chatting and greeting Jiang Gan, he sat down. Only half a jar of thick wine was served, and the cups and plates were very simple, with only three plates of pickled vegetables and dried fish, which looked very shabby.
After three rounds of drinking, Zhou Yu stopped drinking and sighed, "An old friend has come here, so I should treat him well. Unfortunately, we are trapped in the city, with no food and no reinforcements. We can only drink and eat pickled vegetables. I feel ashamed of Ziyi."
"When old friends talk about the past, it is important to know each other's hearts. Even spring water can be turned into sweet dew!" Jiang Gan shook his head slightly and asked tentatively, "Now that Jiangdong has been stolen by Liu Qi, Gongjin is out of reach. I wonder what he is going to do?"
"Humph, Sun Quan is so stupid, how can he be the ruler of Jiangdong?" Zhou Yu was really furious, slammed the table and shouted coldly: "If I had known this would happen, I should have appointed Bo Fu's descendant as the ruler, how could I have suffered such a shame today?"
Jiang Gan was secretly delighted when he heard this, and took the opportunity to provoke him, saying, "With your civil and military strategies, if you meet a wise ruler, you can be compared to Wei and Huo, and your name will surely go down in history! But Sun Zhongmou is so foolish that he handed Jiangdong over to others. This has never happened before, and I feel sorry for Gongjin."
Zhou Yu drank several cups of wine and muttered, "A true man should live in the world with a lord who understands him. He should trust the loyalty of the monarch and his subjects, and the kindness of his family. He should keep his word and follow his plans. He should share the good and bad times. What regrets should there be in life? But God is jealous of talents. Bo Fu was killed. I trusted the wrong person. My heart is broken. Who else in the world is worthy of Zhou Yu's trust?"
Jiang Gan said, "The tripartite alliance has been broken. Gongjin is trapped here. Liu Qi and Cao Gong are fighting in the north and south. The only two people who can rule the world are these two. It would be a pity if my brother's talent is buried here. We need to think of a countermeasure as soon as possible."
Zhou Yu gritted his teeth and said, "Liu Qi is a scheming man who is plotting against Jiangdong. I swear to destroy him!"
Jiang Gan was overjoyed and asked hurriedly, "What about Prime Minister Cao?"
"Cao Mengde? Humph—" Zhou Yu snorted coldly, his eyes slightly stern, and said in a deep voice: "Since I entered the government, I have wanted to do great things with Bofu. Jiangdong was created by the two of us. Now that Sun Quan is unable to defend it, I have been entrusted with the responsibility of taking care of the orphan. If I don't take it back, how can I face Bofu in the future?"
Jiang Gan was shocked when he heard this, and dropped his wine glass to the ground. He said in a trembling voice: "Gongjin wants to... want to establish himself as the master?"