Xu Rong was completely taken aback.

Given Qiao Yan’s status as the Governor of Bingzhou and the importance of this battle, he never expected her to come alone.

The boatman who accompanied her seemed to be just a young man, not the strong warrior he had seen in Luoyang years ago.

Xu Rong had prepared himself for the possibility that Qiao Yan might not show up as promised, or that she might use the meeting as a chance to capture him.

He had even planned for the boat to turn back at a moment’s notice.

But seeing Qiao Yan disembark and approach alone, Xu Rong realized that the messenger’s words were true—Qiao Yan was indeed a person of her word.

She wasn’t using the meeting as a trick; she was genuine in her invitation.

Moved by this, Xu Rong watched as Qiao Yan casually walked among the flowers and trees on the island and found a flat, green stone to sit on.

She then tossed a jug of wine towards him.

Xu Rong caught the jug and hesitated for a moment.

“What? I dare to come here alone with just a sword and two jugs of wine, not afraid of you taking my head as a trophy for Dong Zhuo, and yet you fear that I might have poisoned the wine and used it against you?”

Qiao Yan shook the jug in her hand and smiled, “General Xu, please sit down. Today we won’t discuss military matters or even mention Dong Zhuo. We’re just here to talk about wine and nothing else.”

Xu Rong was even more surprised that Qiao Yan, despite saying she only wanted to talk about wine, actually seemed to be focused on the wine alone.

The jug Qiao Yan threw to him contained strong sorghum liquor, but to avoid any suspicion of poisoning, she had diluted it with a lot of water.

Even so, compared to today’s “strong liquors,” this drink was still quite potent.

Xu Rong, who rarely drank due to his military duties, ended up drinking half a jug during their conversation about the wine.

As he watched her return to the boat and leave the island to head back to the northern camp, he felt an indescribable sense of unreality.

It seemed that Qiao Yan had truly come simply to appreciate Xu Rong’s skills and share a good drink with him.

This puzzled Niu Fu as well. “She really didn’t say anything to you?”

Before Xu Rong returned, Niu Fu had already sent his subordinate, Hu Che’er, to take over the patrol duties and had come to the location at Xiaopingjin himself.

Xu Rong shook his head and replied, “She only asked if the sorghum liquor was brought in from outside regions and whether we had used it to make wine when we were in Liangzhou.”

Niu Fu, hearing this, slammed his cup in frustration. “Are you trying to fool me like a child? When Qiao Yan sent her emissaries to invite you, she mentioned she was overseeing shipbuilding and coordinating troops with the Central Plains. Are you telling me that she only discussed wine with you?”

This was not the usual way for enemy commanders to communicate with key generals.

Niu Fu refused to believe that Qiao Yan had said nothing more to Xu Rong.

At the very least, she wouldn’t have been discussing the spread of sorghum liquor.

This led him to suspect that she might have made some sort of offer or persuasion to Xu Rong that she couldn’t disclose to him, the son-in-law of the Prime Minister.

With this suspicion in mind, Niu Fu found Xu Rong’s behavior somewhat off.

Even though Xu Rong insisted that nothing else was discussed, Niu Fu couldn’t shake his doubts and left Xiaopingjin with the remaining half jug of wine.

It seemed that Xu Rong wouldn’t reveal the truth to him.

Since he had no direct authority to question Xu Rong, he decided to keep a close watch on his actions.

Niu Fu felt he might have chosen the wrong person to guard this place and felt it was his duty to monitor Xu Rong closely.

Little did he know, his movements were being observed by others across the river.

Guo Jia, walking by the river with Qiao Yan, commented, “It’s brilliant of you not to discuss the atrocities of Dong Zhuo with Xu Rong and instead focus on the wine.”

People often have fixed ideas, especially when Qiao Yan had previously issued a declaration against Dong Zhuo.

Who would believe that she was genuinely just discussing wine?

Thus, it was reasonable to suspect whether Xu Rong was being truthful.

Qiao Yan replied, “Xu Rong is indeed talented, but unfortunately, he is not the right person. Now he can see what kind of people he is working with.”

If not for the fact that she had already prepared for crossing the river and needed to wait for several local officials to gather before taking action, she might have used this opportunity to launch a covert attack.

But as things stood, it was no problem.

Even if Xu Rong figured out her intentions from Niu Fu’s behavior, he wouldn’t be able to influence the thoughts of others.

The rift was created, and with Xu Rong not being from Liangzhou and unable to join the core group, he would have to deal with the subsequent obstacles from various parties.

If Dong Zhuo were to wisely trust Xu Rong, Qiao Yan’s risky plan might not be effective.

However, if Dong Zhuo, amidst his internal and external troubles, chose to trust Niu Fu instead, then Qiao Yan’s chance would come.

Her river-crossing operation must be flawless!

After all, she has friends waiting for her on the other side of the river and a mission involving the national jade seal as leverage.

Guo Jia, never one to hold back, suddenly asked, “I’m curious, if Dong Zhuo invited me for a drink and said nothing about persuading me but only offered fine wine and delicacies, how would you react?”

This was a very practical question.

aWhile Qiao Yan’s plans were effective now, what if such tricks were used against her own people in the future?

Qiao Yan wasn’t surprised by Guo Jia’s precautionary question and responded, “If Dong Zhuo invited you for a drink and discussed the true nature of the wine without any persuasive intent, given your experience and knowledge in Bingzhou, if you couldn’t argue with him point by point, I wouldn’t forgive you when you return.”

She stopped and looked at Guo Jia, saying, “Fengxiao(Gu Jia’s nickname), having seen the majestic Taihang Mountains and the grand Five Peaks, why would you want to confine yourself to the hilly regions of the Northern Mang?”

Guo Jia paused for a moment and then laughed heartily, “You speak not of wine, but of vision.”

And indeed, Guo Jia was exactly the type to appreciate such an answer!

Just like a fierce general like Lu Bu requires a ruler with grand ambitions to suppress him, a scholar like Guo Jia also needs a ruler with a vision to match his own.

If Qiao Yan, the Bingzhou Governor, has such confidence, and if she fully utilizes the talents under her command, Bingzhou would stand strong and solid, and she need not worry about others’ schemes against her.

This was her promise.

Unfortunately, Dong Zhuo was not such a ruler.

Although he had found the Emperor and an edict to appoint himself to power in the north of Luoyang, he was essentially a nouveau riche.

His actions, including the murders of He Miao, Empress He, and even their mother, had so terrified the already weak Liu Bian that he was left bedridden and ill.

In this way, he not only ensured that the divisions led by He Jin and He Miao would not cause any trouble but also secured the position of Liu Xie, whom he supported, making it impossible for anyone to replace him.

In Luoyang, he strove to make his words equivalent to the emperor’s edicts, dealing bloodily with anyone who dared to criticize him.

However, a new proclamation against Dong Zhuo, along with the calls for action from the eastern provinces, made Dong Zhuo feel extremely threatened even before he received news of their formal advance towards Chenggao.

It was at this time that he received a military report from Niu Fu.

In the report, Niu Fu mentioned that he suspected a connection between Xu Rong and the Governor of Bingzhou.

Xu Rong also intended to set up a post on an island in the middle of the river near Xiaopingjin.

But since Qiao Yan’s camp was stationed on the opposite bank at Mengjin, any movement would naturally be detected.

Why scatter forces to station on the river island?

This could very well be Xu Rong trying to assist Qiao Yan in some way.

Dong Zhuo’s temple throbbed as he read this.

He had just put down the proclamation against him written by Cao Cao, which described him as “a venomous fiend, whose guests and retainers are like swine and dogs, flaunting his tyranny, his high position as worthless as bones in a grave, defiling the state and oppressing the people, killing with a glare, truly a treacherous minister.”

This had almost given him a migraine, and now, before he could even understand the situation in the east, the northern defense line seemed to be in trouble?

With the natural barrier of the Yellow River and a steady general like Xu Rong guarding it, he thought there would be no problems at least until winter.

Considering how long Qiao Yan had controlled Bingzhou, if he could hold out for a bit longer, even if they had to withdraw due to insufficient supplies, it wouldn’t be impossible.

But Niu Fu was adamant, pointing out that while the wine Qiao Yan invited Xu Rong to drink was good, there was no reason for an enemy leader to simply discuss wine tasting with their general.

Xu Rong wouldn’t dare speak out about certain things, indicating something suspicious.

This matter required the Prime Minister’s discernment; Niu Fu was not targeting Xu Rong without reason.

Dong Zhuo, who couldn’t even tolerate Zhou Hui coming to Luoyang merely for a visit, was already plotting against Huangfu Song in Xiliang to settle old scores, showing he was far from magnanimous.

He reread Niu Fu’s accusations against Xu Rong, wondering how Niu Fu knew the taste of the wine Qiao Yan served Xu Rong.

Despite his skepticism, Dong Zhuo had to admit he trusted Niu Fu’s loyalty and judgment at this moment.

Xu Rong…

With the defenses of Luoyang’s eight gates just completed, and Xu Rong not officially committing treason, any action like dismissing him or reassigning him to other gates would be detrimental to the current situation.

But doing nothing about Xu Rong would also leave Dong Zhuo feeling uneasy.

After much deliberation, he decided to let Niu Fu take full control of the defenses at Mengjin and Xiaopingjin, keeping Xu Rong stationed at Xiaopingjin but placing him under Niu Fu’s command.

On the surface, from Qiao Yan’s camp on the north bank of the river, it seemed that nothing had changed, with the two camps still looking the same.

But for Qiao Yan, Xu Rong’s forced abandonment of his plan to establish a post on the island was good news.

As for whether she should be worried, Xu Rong might suspect that her scheme of sowing discord was intended to use the River Heart Island as a springboard, setting up special defenses within the camp against this area—

It might not be so!

Between Mengjin and Xiaopingjin, the landing point she chose had not changed from start to finish.

So no matter how tightly the defenses are, there will always be vulnerabilities!

In May, the early summer warmth was already palpable.

Even by the Yellow River, it was hard to escape the sweltering heat.

The military camp, a place crowded with people, was even more stifling and oppressive.