Chen Deng
After defeating Lü Bu, Cao Cao suggested to the Han central government to grant Chen Deng an additional appointment, General Who Calms the Waves (), in addition to his existing appointment as the Administrator of Guangling Commandery. At the time, Chen Deng was highly popular among the people living in the Jianghuai region (covering parts of present-day Anhui and Jiangsu). During this time, he came up with the idea of conquering the Jiangnan (or Jiangdong) region, which at the time was under the control of the warlord Sun Ce.