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WARNING: THE FOLLOWING COMMENTARY MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS. DON'T SAY I DIDN'T WARN YA. :p
Chapter 55 is the second chapter in a two part subplot involving Liu Bei and his sojourn in the Southland. You may recall that in the previous chapter, the Southland, in the person of Lu Fan, went to Liu Bei to propose that Liu Bei marry Lady Sun Shang Xiang, or Sun Ren, as she's called in the novel. Shang Xiang, you might also remember, is daughter to Sun Jian, and sister to both Sun Ce and the current ruler of the Southland, Sun Quan. On the surface, this was put forth by the Southland as a method of cementing a strong alliance between the Houses of Sun and Liu, but the real plot, and one that Zhuge Liang saw through completely, was to attempt to lure Liu Bei to the Southland and alienate Liu Bei from his ministers. Because Zhuge Liang saw through all of this, his tactics led to the bogus marriage becoming a real one, and Liu Bei did indeed get his wife, and whether they had wanted it or not, the Southland was indeed stuck with a bit of an unpleasant situation on their hands...an further strengthened alliance with an ally they didn't really want. What Zhou Yu and Sun Quan wanted was the Jing Province, and now they were allied by marriage with the man who had "stolen" it from them...
Be careful what you wish for, because you might just get it...
As I have mentioned previously, this marriage would end up having some far reaching consequences. For one thing, the removal of both Liu Bei and Lady Sun Shang Xiang from the Southland to Jingzhou pretty much ensured that, for the time, there would be no military activity by the Southland against Jingzhou. To attack the place where dwelt the daughter of the House of Sun would have been a grave act of fillial impiety, which in that society at that time, was equivalent to an act of grave illegitimacy (You might recall the sad fate of Lady Xu, mother of Xu Shu, who killed herself over such a thing as fillial impiety).
Another consequence of this marriage was that, at least for a time, the Southland's hands were tied as far as action against the House of Liu. Meaning that even if Lady Sun had not been in Jingzhou, Sun Quan would still have found it difficult to put for a legitimate justification for an attack on Jingzhou. Because to attack one's allies is to set a very bad precedent, which would prevent potential allies in the future from trusting them. Whether the Southland liked it or not, they got played by Zhuge Liang. Because this is the second time that Zhuge Liang has tricked them into an alliance which benefits the House of Liu far more than it benefits the House of Sun. The first time had been right before the Battle of Chi Bi, when Zhuge Liang went to the Southland and convinced them to stand defiant against Cao Cao. Wu might have asserted their independence because of Chi Bi, but Liu Bei got Jingzhou out of the deal, so Liu Bei benefitted more than Sun Quan had. Hell, Sun Quan had lost not only Song Qian, one of his bodyguards, but also his prized general Taishi Ci, as a direct consequence of Chi Bi (since He Fei was a part of that campaign).
People talk a lot of smack about Zhuge Liang, and some of it is even true. He was a cunning devil, I'll give him that. His tactics during the marriage of Liu Bei were nothing short of extremely clever, and I have a pretty healthy respect for the way he neatly turned the tables on Zhou Yu and Sun Quan here.
Of course, I also tend to read this chapter with a bit of sadness, each and every time, because the "Fair Damsel Ploy" is kinda a bit of a swan song for Zhou Yu, who is one of my favorite characters in this great story. You may have noticed previously in the novel that people start making some really stupid mistakes before their end. Yuan Shao is a good example. But not only Yuan Shao...Lu Bu also fell prey to that kind of specialized insanity, as did Wang Yun, for that matter. Now, Zhou Yu appears to be nearing his end, because his genius is being clouded by short-sightedness. It's kinda a sad thing.
Anyways, enjoy this, Chapter 55 of the Sanguo Yanyi, where? That's right. Here at djraspe.com!