After Ji Ling took over as the governor of the war zone, Sun Ce immediately made a comprehensive adjustment to the front border with Yanzhou. Lu Fan was transferred to Junyi, echoing Lu Su, guarding the western front, and Sui Yang was taken over by Zeqiaorui. Qiaorui was not a famous general, but he was from Sui Yang and had certain experience in leading troops. In recent years, he was safe to farm in Dangshan and Xiayi areas. He led a portion of the strong military farming soldiers to station in Sui Yang.

In order to make up for the lack of combat power after Xu Kun and Lu Fan's two generals were transferred, Sun Ce added Lu Meng, Jiang Qin and Cang Ci. Cang Ci was transferred to the prime minister of Pengcheng, Lu Meng stationed in Chenguo, and Jiang Qin replaced Qiao Rui's military farming affairs in Dangshan.

The reason why it is so complicated is naturally because the military expenditure is too large. In the case of forming an alliance with Cao Ang, appropriate reduction of the border troops will not only make Cao Ang feel at ease, but also turn his attention to Yuan Tan in the north, but also save some of the costs. The troops drawn are not to be disarmed from the army and return to the fields. Some of them are strengthened on the Western Front, especially Luoyang, and some are transferred to the Eastern Front to prepare for crossing the sea.

War is about burning money, especially for the farming people in the Central Plains. Due to a series of factors such as grain output, the military strength cannot be expanded without restrictions, otherwise it will be difficult to continue. A big defeat may damage the muscles and vitality. After several years of farming, Sun Ce can indeed increase a lot of troops now, but this will inevitably affect the good momentum of rapid development, so he does not want to mobilize troops unless he has to.

Moreover, cross-sea combat is not something that conscripts who are farming and fighting can bear. Such tasks can only be handed over to full-time professional soldiers.

Wei Zhen came to congratulate him on the order of Cao Ang. Seeing Sun Ce's adjustment, a big stone fell to the ground. Sun Ce came to Qingxu, Cao Ang was very nervous, worried that Sun Ce was planning to attack Yanzhou, so he specially sent Wei Zhen to congratulate him with gifts, actually trying to find out Sun Ce's thoughts. Now that he has confirmed that Sun Ce does not have a threat to Yanzhou, he is naturally happy. He made an appointment with Sun Ce to marry Sun Shangying and returned with satisfaction.

In the late April, Sun Ce made arrangements and left Pengcheng, went down the water and went to Qingzhou via sea route. Although there was a water route to go north to Qingzhou, the hull was too large and the drift was deep. It was in danger of stranding, so it was still faster to take the sea route.

Until now, Sun Ce finally took off from his busy official duties and had the opportunity to talk to the eldest princess Liu He. In addition to the night he got married, he had a short visit to Liu He's cabin once, and he had only a handful of opportunities to get along with Liu He. Even if he had breakfast together, they would not be the only two of them. Guo Jia was almost a regular visitor, Sun Shangxiang and Xu Jie also appeared frequently, and sometimes there were other guests.

The boat sailed, and Sun Ce set up a seat on the deck of Feilu and sent someone to invite Liu He.

It was not long before Liu He came, but he was not alone. In addition to the dowry palace maids such as Yue Wu, Ma Yunlu was also with her. Liu He looked a little nervous, glanced at Sun Ce and lowered his head, bent his knees and bowed his salute.

"I've seen my husband."

Sun Ce nodded, stood up, but bowed to Ma Yunlu. "Mrs. Ma is here too. It's rude. Come and set up a seat for Ma Ma."

Ma Yunlu returned the greeting with a smile. "I took the liberty and came uninvited. I would like to ask the general to forgive me. The general is so powerful that the eldest princess is afraid that the eldest princess can't resist it. I can barely be considered a general who comes from a general to foster courage for the eldest princess. I hope the general will not blame him."

"How dare, how dare?" Sun Ce laughed. The servant brought the bed to sit, Ma Yunlu and Liu He took the seat together. Two palace maids stepped forward, poured tea for them, and then retreated aside. Sun Ce raised the teacup and greeted Ma Yunlu. "The army is quiet, but it is not satisfactory, and it is aggrieved Mrs. Ma. Fortunately, you are also from a general and are familiar with the situation in the army. You should still be used to it, right?"

Ma Yunlu nodded. "Thank you for your concern, I'm fine. Kanto is rich, and the general is waiting for his son to get close to him. I am grateful to my husband. My husband is clumsy and not good at speaking, so I thank the general on his behalf." As he said that, he raised his cup and signaled to Sun Ce. She seemed not used to drinking tea, and the expression on her face was a bit forced.

Sun Ce smiled and said, "Yifeng, come and get some wine. Mrs. Ma is generous and only the strong wine is worthy of her. The tea is probably too light."

Ma Yunlu felt a little embarrassed and picked off the tea foam that was stained on his lips. "Shame, the general laughed." But she did not refuse. She was indeed not used to drinking tea and was more interested in wine.

Zhu Ran took the wine and handed it to the palace maid. The palace maid poured wine for Ma Yunlu. Sun Ce also poured a glass and raised his glass and said, "You are in business and can't drink too much. You can only accompany Mrs. Ma. If you drink it smoothly, Mrs. Ma doesn't have to mind, you can drink it yourself." He paused and said, "The same is true for Mrs. Han."

I heard that Han Shaoying was the same, and Ma Yunlu was not polite anymore. He drank a glass with Sun Ce, and after doing his etiquette, he poured himself another glass.

Sun Ce turned to look at Liu He. "Madam, don't be obsessed with it. Drink wine and tea, and let it go."

Liu He nodded. "I'd better drink tea." She glanced at Ma Yunlu and smiled and said, "I'm not as good as my sister. If I drink too much, I will make a fool of myself."

Ma Yunlu smiled but said nothing. Sun Ce didn't know that this was the second time he saw Ma Yunlu drink. Ma Yunlu also drank the day he got married, but he looked gentle and stopped tasting. He didn't know that she could drink. It seemed that she was trying to save face for Pang De that day and controlled the amount.

"Is this wine easy to drink?"

“Very good.”

"When I turn around, I can give you a stone to go, and my wife can drink it by herself, and I can drink it with Ling Ming."

"Then I'll be disrespectful." Ma Yunlu raised his wine glass and looked at Sun Ce with a smile. "When my brother was still under the general's command, his letters often said that the general was open and extraordinary, and he had a real man's aura in his heart, especially in his adhering to the combination of yin and yang, and was not like ordinary people who looked down on women. Cai and Huang Dajiang all showed their edge because of the general and were a role model. After reading these days, he really deserved his name, but I have something to do and I want to ask the general to solve his doubts."

Sun Ce laughed silently. "It seems that one stone of wine is not enough. I am ashamed, ashamed, I am so petty. How about adding another stone?"

Ma Yunlu laughed out loud. "Even if the general adds ten stones, I will refuse everyone. But this question is still something to ask." Liu He understood what Ma Yunlu meant, quickly winked her, shook his head repeatedly, and signaled her not to say anything more. Ma Yunlu ignored him and stared at Sun Ce without any intention of giving up.

Sun Ce's heart was clear and it seemed. "Okay, then ask, I'll listen carefully."

"Why can the general respect women, why can't he treat everyone equally?"

“For example?”

"For example, when the general treats Mrs. Gan, Mrs. Zhen is closer than the eldest princess. The eldest princess bid farewell to the palace and travels thousands of miles to serve brooms for the general. Shouldn't the general be more concerned?"

"Sister..." Liu He's face changed, and he couldn't help but stop him. Sun Ce raised his hand and shook it gently, indicating that Liu He should not be nervous. Although he had not had much contact with Liu He these days, he was very clear about Liu He's every move, and knew that Ma Yunlu had a different relationship with Liu He, and had long been determined to stand up for something. Since she seized the opportunity today, she would not give up if she didn't say these words.

"I'm very busy these days and I really can't take time to care about her. I'm very grateful to her with Mrs. Ma, so I invited you to drink." Sun Ce smiled slightly. "Although you didn't say it, I can also guess that Brother Meng Qi may have said a lot that I'm stingy, right? Do you think I'm invited you to drink for no reason? This is a thank you."

Ma Yunlu was choking and laughing. Ma Chao did complain that Sun Ce was very stingy and that the price of weapons was so high that he would not give him any face. But no matter how hard she said, she could not admit these words, and it was difficult to respond. She hesitated for a moment and had to return to the topic. "Listen to the general's words, if he was not busy, he would not be neglected?"

"This is natural." Sun Ce said lightly: "No matter what the reason, since she entered my Sun family and did not make any mistakes, I would not look at her differently. Naturally, I would have to give her a fair shot. There will be no absolute fairness, but I can at least guarantee that I will not target her specifically. Is Mrs. Ma still satisfied with this answer?"

Ma Yunlu pondered without saying a word. Sun Ce seemed to be polite, but his attitude towards this sentence was very clear. He would not deliberately target Liu He, but she would not have any special treatment. The identity of the eldest princess would not bring her any favor. This is not the answer Ma Yunlu wanted. She had been holding it in for so long, but she did not come for this result.

Seeing Ma Yunlu frowning slightly, his eyes turned around, and his tongue licked his lips from time to time, Sun Ce knew that she was not satisfied and did not think of stopping when he saw it was good, and he couldn't help but sigh secretly. The land and soil of the country nourished the other, and the Guanxi people were different from the Guandong people. If it were Gan Mei and Zhen Mi, they would have understood it long ago. Even if there were still some dissatisfaction, they would not be stubborn under such circumstances.

"You mentioned Mr. Cai and Mr. Huang, I might as well say a few more words." Sun Ce took a sip of tea and continued: "I advocate equality between men and women, but only give women the same opportunities as men. It does not mean that women are taller than men. Mr. Cai, Mr. Huang can show his strength because they have this ability, not because I favor them. Mr. Cai's knowledge, Mr. Huang's wooden learning is not inferior to men, or even better. They are respected by others not because of me, but because they have such strength. I just provide them with an opportunity."

Sun Ce gently placed the teacup on the table, the clouds were quiet, but every word was clear. "Mrs. Ma, people respect Master Cai, not Zhou Gongjin's wife, and Master Huang, not my Sun Ce's wife. Do you... understand the difference?"

Ma Yunlu narrowed his eyes and smiled. "Thank you for your advice, and you will benefit a lot."

Sun Ce nodded and smiled. "I hope that in a few years, Mrs. Ma can become one of them and be a role model for women, rather than being noble for the husband, and will be just a shadow behind Ling Ming for the rest of her life. Ling Zun and Han Zhengxi, Ling Ming and Yan Yanming are both heroes who are comparable to each other. I don't think you will lose to Mrs. Han, right?"

Ma Yunlu raised the corner of his mouth slightly and snorted. "General, don't provoke me. I have already discussed it with my ex. After this, I will go to Yulin Guard to be a knight. Han Shaoying will not be able to be a prestigious person."

Sun Ce laughed.

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Chapter completed!