Lu Su's death made Jiangdong quiet. During the funeral, Sun Quan went to express his condolences many times and generously gave his family members property and property, showing a strong master-servant friendship.
Death is a constant companion in troubled times. Lu Su's position is to guard Jiangxia in the west, and he will directly face Guan Yu in Jingzhou and Cao Ren in Xiangfan.
The geographical location of Jiangxia is very important and is the key to the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The defense of the east and west gates of Jiangxia cannot be ignored because of the death of one person. Therefore, during Lu Su's funeral, people kept urging Sun Quan to appoint a new governor.
Sun Quan was unhappy because of what he heard about Lou Chuan. Lu Meng was not among those urging him, but he did not want to be coerced into giving orders.
Sun Quan used the excuse of being grieved during Lu Su's funeral to wait until after the burial to make arrangements, but in fact he was just trying to delay time.
During this period, Sun Quan kept examining alternate candidates, but it was difficult for anyone among the current generals to compare with Lu Meng.
Although a few of them are valuable to cultivate, they are from the Jiangdong noble family.
People from Jiangdong's gentry have filled Sun Quan's government offices, so Sun Quan can no longer hand over military power to the locals.
After thinking about it, Sun Quan came up with Zhang Zhao's son Zhang Cheng, who was already forty-three years old, mature and stable, and was very famous in the Huaisi sect.
Because Zhang Zhao held an important position, he had never given Zhang Cheng any important responsibilities. Now Sun Quan planned to activate him in advance, so he approached his father to discuss it.
Zhang Zhao was summoned by Sun Quan at night. He thought there was something confidential, but Sun Quan changed his sad expression during the day and personally poured wine for him.
Sun Quan said sincerely: "My eldest brother asked Mr. Gu before he died of illness. Now that Zijing has left me again, Zibu should help me in times of crisis..."
Zhang Zhao caught the wine bowl with both hands and replied with some excitement: "My lord, please do not be sad. Although Zijing died young, there are still many heroes in Jiangdong. My lord should appoint the governor as soon as possible to reassure the three armies."
Sun Quan stroked his purple beard with one hand and affirmed: "I called Zibu to see you at night just to discuss the matter of the Governor."
"Lü Ziming was trained by the lord himself. There is a strong demand for him to take over as the governor. Could it be that the lord has other considerations?" Zhang Zhao guessed the problem based on his intuition.
Sun Quan frowned and said with a serious face, "Although Ziming is suitable, he is too young and not stable enough. I am worried that he will not be able to fulfill his duties..."
Zhang Zhao was confused by Sun Quan's explanation. Zhou Yu was not as old as Lu Meng when he died, right? When did age become a hard indicator for taking office? Or maybe the Lord has any new ideas?
"What do you mean, my lord?" Zhang Zhao asked curiously. He knew that when Sun Quan said this, he must have other answers in his mind.
Sun Quan did not respond directly, but changed the subject and asked, "What is Zhongsi busy with recently?"
"Uh... I hosted Yu Zecheng's wedding with me some time ago, and now I often go to Yu's Trading Company to learn business."
Zhang Zhao had a bad feeling, because Sun Quan would not ask about this for no reason, but thinking that Yu Zecheng was Sun Quan's secret chess, it shouldn't be a bad thing to make more friends with him.
Zhang Zhao's words were flawless, but the taste changed in Sun Quan's ears. Could it be that Zhang Cheng planned to make good friends with the Jiangdong Zhang family through Yu Zecheng?
I have planted peach trees, and your son is going to pick peaches? How can that be done?
"Zhongsi is mature, stable and able to understand people. I want him to succeed Zijing as the governor. What does Zibu think?" Sun Quan said his thoughts straight to the point.
Zhang Zhao's head was buzzing. As a father, Zhang Cheng's nature was clear. Although he had good abilities and personality, he had never led an army before. The happiness came too suddenly and he couldn't accept it for a while.
Looking at Sun Quan's expectant eyes, Zhang Zhao couldn't help but think deeper.
His position among the courtiers is extremely respected. If Zhang Cheng takes over the position of Grand Governor, then his Zhang family will become the target of Huaisi and Jiangdong factions. Even if it can be famous for a while, how can it last long?
"Thank you for your love, my lord. However, Zhongsi has not experienced enough training. I am afraid that the generals in the army will not accept their submission and may rebel, so I would like to ask my lord to choose someone wiser..."
It is impossible for the experienced Zhang Zhao to agree, because he has already seen through Sun Quan after being together for so many years.
If the Zhang family had too much power, it would undoubtedly be a disaster. Sun Quan was probably testing his loyalty, so Zhang Zhao expressed an exaggerated expression and tried his best to refuse and not be fooled.
"With my support behind you, why worry about the generals being dissatisfied? Zibu should think again." Sun Quan continued to fight.
Zhang Zhao shook his head decisively, "In the past, Zhao Guo suffered a disastrous defeat when Zhao Kuo replaced Lian Po. Please take history as a lesson and think twice. No matter who becomes the governor, Zhao and Zi will do their best to support him."
"In that case...then I'll think about it..."
Seeing Zhang Zhao's persistence, Sun Quan had no choice but to let the old fox go back.
Because the incident happened suddenly, Sun Quan really had no other ideas, but Lao Zhang thought too much.
I originally wanted my heart to illuminate the moon, but the bright moon illuminates the ditch.
Seeing that the time for Lu Su's burial was getting closer, Sun Quan couldn't sleep all night because he didn't choose a suitable candidate.
The day after meeting Zhang Zhao, Sun Quan put on casual clothes and secretly appeared outside Yu's Trading Company. He felt that it was necessary to lay down his secret plan and not to foolishly set up a matchmaking relationship with Zhang Cheng.
When Hu Ke saw Sun Quan coming in person, he was surprised and did not forget to close the shop, and then led Sun Quan into the back hall to talk.
Taking advantage of the chaos of the funeral for Lu Su in the city, Hu Ke cooperated with Wushei to send off Zhao Shuang's family members. He thought that the funeral was done flawlessly, but he was also afraid that Sun Quan had other informants. If he was exposed, he must immediately think about it. A rhetoric.
Sun Quan came to the back hall and sat down, looking at Hu Ke up and down with his green eyes.
Although Hu Ke was very nervous, there was nothing unusual about his face. He thought for a moment and saluted with his fists clasped, then took the initiative and said: "My lord is here in casual clothes. Is there something urgent? There has been nothing urgent in Jiaozhou recently..."
Sun Quan asked seriously: "Just keep paying attention to the Jiaozhou matter. I heard that you have been very close to Zhang Zhongsi recently?"
"Well... he and Mr. Zibu were planning a wedding for me, so I gave him some toys from Jiaozhi. In fact, the relationship was not that deep..."
When Hu Ke heard that it was Zhang Cheng's business, he was relieved.
Sun Quan nodded lightly, "This Zhang family is not that Zhang family. Just keep interacting with each other as usual, otherwise your uncle's clan will be displeased."
"The general will remember it." Hu Ke responded with clasped fists.
Sun Quan gave some instructions, and Hu Ke's face softened.
Sun Quan said happily: "I heard that Zicheng is in harmony with his bride Qin Se, and he is loved by the Zhang family because he is good at doing things. You have done a good job in this and you must continue to maintain it in the future."
"General, I will do my best to make the Zhang family available to my lord." Hu Ke's words were sonorous.
"Very good. If I had more loyal people like Zecheng, why worry about Jiangdong not being at peace and the world not being peaceful..." Sun Quan sighed deeply.
Hu Ke heard what Sun Quan was referring to and quickly asked: "My lord, is there something that worries you? Why don't you tell me and let me relieve your worries?"
