Three Kingdoms: Start by marrying Cai Yan, then vie for supremacy.

43

If they were to encounter such an enlightened ruler, not only would immortality be possible, but even a hundred years of extended lifespan would not be unrealistic. By then, the Chen family would likely have already risen to the ranks of the world's top aristocratic families.

"Absolutely true!"

Meeting their eager gazes, Chen Dao said in a deep voice, "If you two hadn't rendered such great service and were destined for high rank and important positions by our lord, you would have known about this sooner or later, and I wouldn't have told you beforehand. In short, you two are about to rise to great heights."

Among the many prominent families, the Chen family was indeed fortunate.

"If such a divine object truly exists, it would be an immense blessing!"

Chen Deng and Chen Gui nodded excitedly, their hearts pounding with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. Chen Gui, in particular, who was quite old, feared that everything before him was nothing but a pipe dream.

When will our lord summon us?

Chen Deng suddenly sighed softly, his gaze fixed intently on Chen Dao.

"In the last few days," Chen Dao said bluntly. "Now, only Xiapi and Pengcheng remain unconquered in Xuzhou. Our lord must have already set off for here. The implementation of new policies and reforms in Xuzhou will rely heavily on you two. If you can help Xuzhou transition smoothly, it will be a great achievement."

For Lu Feng, capturing Xuzhou would be a piece of cake. However, properly governing it and completing reforms and industrial planning would not be a task that could be accomplished overnight; it would take at least a year, and possibly several years.

"This is our duty! We will then await your arrival in the city."

Chen Gui and Chen Deng exchanged a smile and answered in unison.

What they are most worried about at this moment is not making meritorious contributions, but missing the opportunity to do so.

Otherwise, it would be a real pity if the Longevity Pill were proven to be genuine, but one was unable to obtain it due to insufficient merit.

"That's excellent!"

Chen Dao nodded slightly in approval.

Within Jizhou,

Yuan Shao, his face dark with anger, pressed for an answer.

Six or seven days have passed since Wen Chou led his troops back to reinforce Ye City.

The Black Mountain Army of Wei Commandery has not yet been driven away, so how can he not be anxious and angry?

"Reporting to my lord!"

The messenger beside him hurriedly reported: "Our army has gained the upper hand, and the Black Mountain army is retreating steadily. However, due to the enemy's superior numbers and their unusual cunning this time, they are using harassment and containment tactics, thus General Wen Chou's advance is being hindered."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao's brows relaxed slightly: "Order Wen Chou to speed up the progress. We still need his assistance in the Battle of Jieqiao; we mustn't let the foreign tribes take advantage of the situation and ruin our plans."

He originally intended to use the power of the foreign tribes to annihilate Gongsun Zan.

They even wanted to take the opportunity to annex this group of people from outside the Great Wall.

This way, the northern threat can be eliminated forever.

They can also acquire a large number of fine horses.

Only in this way,

Only then can an elite cavalry be formed.

In preparation for future confrontations with Landwind.

When the warlords attacked Dong Zhuo,

He had witnessed the power of the Lu family's iron cavalry firsthand.

Therefore, he paid special attention to this matter.

Unfortunately, the Central Plains lacked horses.

Yuan Shao was even more lacking.

Only in the northern border regions, among the foreign tribes,

Only then can one acquire a large number of fine horses.

Thinking of this,

Yuan Shao couldn't help but feel a little envious of Lu Feng.

That man laid out business routes in his early years.

They acquired many BMWs in exchange for the lands beyond the Great Wall.

Only in this way can the cavalry be continuously expanded.

"Yes, sir!"

The messenger clasped his hands in acceptance of the order, bowed, and withdrew.

Yuan Shao turned to Xu You and the others and asked, "I heard that Lu Feng recently led troops to Yu and Xu provinces, engaging in battle with Tao Qian, Liu Bei, Yuan Shu, Lü Bu, and others?"

"That is indeed true," Xu You replied, bowing.

Feng Ji nodded and said, "I heard that Lü Bu suddenly joined the war and captured Yingchuan and several cities in Runan in just a few days."

"What's even more troublesome is that Lü Bu has formed an alliance with Tao Qian and Liu Bei to jointly attack Yu Province. Yuan Shu is already at his last gasp; no wonder Lord Wu is so anxious!"

"Who would have thought that Lord Wu's military prowess would be so divine, while Tao Qian would be so utterly incompetent? Most of Xuzhou's territory changed hands in just a few days, practically surrendered without a fight!"

This turn of events happened so quickly that we didn't even have time to devise a countermeasure.

Tian Feng sighed from the side, "It's a pity our army is currently engaged in battle with Gongsun Zan and Zhang Yan, and is simply unable to spare any resources. Otherwise, this would be a godsend opportunity to seize Qingzhou and Yanzhou!"

"If we miss this opportunity, and Wu Hou seizes all four provinces of Xu, Yu, Yan, and Qing, his power will increase dramatically, which will be even more disadvantageous to us."

Knowing this, yet having no way to do anything about it, isn't that frustrating?

Yuan Shao frowned deeply: "Lu Ziyi is most adept at seizing opportunities. In my opinion, the Black Mountain Army's unusual movements and Gongsun Zan's swift capture of Youzhou must have been orchestrated by him, and not entirely due to Gongsun Zan or Cao Cao."

Xu You stroked his beard and smiled, "My lord is wise! This matter must be secretly orchestrated by Lord Wu."

"For Lord Wu, the best strategy is to let us wear down Gongsun Zan and Cao Cao."

"He'd love for us to be mired in war so he could free up his resources to annex the two prefectures of Yu and Xu and reorganize the administration within his jurisdiction."

"Your subordinate suggests that you write a letter to Cao Cao, explaining the advantages and disadvantages, temporarily suspending hostilities, and joining forces to deal with Lu Feng. This would be the best course of action."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Shao slammed his fist on the table and stood up: "You want me to bow down to Cao Cao? Don't even think about it!"

("Back then, it was clearly Cao Cao who betrayed me and forcibly seized my Bingzhou territory;")

"Now even the Black Mountain bandits are causing trouble, and he's probably behind it all. Under these circumstances, you expect me to reconcile with him?"

He wished he could kill Cao Cao immediately.

Unfortunately, we are currently unable to do so.

Cao Mengde's advance in Guanzhong was unstoppable.

Li Jue and Guo Si, two incompetent generals, commanded over 100,000 elite troops from Xiliang, yet they were utterly routed by Cao Cao's mere 30,000 soldiers, and even Chang'an was on the verge of falling. Yuan Shao felt a surge of resentment whenever he thought of this.

waste!

What a pair of useless trash!

Xu You frowned inwardly upon hearing this: It seems that our lord harbors deep resentment towards Cao Cao...

But with no other options at the moment, he could only offer another piece of advice: "Please, my lord, consider this carefully! The best course of action now is to ally with Cao Cao against Lu Feng. Lu Feng, the Marquis of Wu, is our true and most pressing threat!"

Never let personal matters interfere with public duties!

Tian Feng also stepped forward to agree: "Xu Ziyuan is absolutely right! If we can persuade Cao Cao to attack Lu Feng first, that would be the icing on the cake. As for the matter of Bingzhou that our lord is so concerned about, we can deal with it after we have pacified Gongsun Zan in Youzhou and then wiped out a portion of the Xianbei and Wuhuan forces—"

"At that time, our army will be strong and well-equipped; recovering Bingzhou will be a piece of cake!"

"By then, Cao Cao will be powerless to do anything, even if he is unwilling. After all, the truth is in our hands."

"Even... we can still join forces with Cao Cao to deal with Lu Feng."

He believed that with Cao Cao's insight, it was impossible for him not to see who the real formidable enemy was.

"this......"

Yuan Shao was taken aback upon hearing this, and looked hesitantly at Tian Feng: "He's already allied with Cao Cao after just reclaiming Bingzhou? How can he swallow this insult?"

He felt that Tian Feng was being far too naive.

Cao Cao was known for his vindictiveness; how could he possibly be willing to cooperate after losing a province?

Tian Feng noticed Yuan Shao's hesitation and scoffed, "Cao Mengde is such a shrewd man, and a true hero of his time! How could such a person be so unaware of the times? He must clearly discern who the real threat is!"

Even if our army takes Bingzhou, he will have no choice but to swallow his anger.

"Not only that, if we propose a joint effort, he will definitely seize the opportunity to form an alliance to jointly attack Lu Boyan!"

"Of course, he won't forget this grudge, but he knows how to prioritize. With Cao Cao's wisdom, he should know when to make which choice."

"Only by eliminating the threat of Lord Wu will he dare to plot revenge in the future."

Tian Feng believed he had fully grasped Cao Cao's thoughts and the general trend of the world.

What do you gentlemen think?

Yuan Shao hesitated and then sought the opinions of Guo Tu, Xu You, and others.

"Yuan Hao's words are indeed insightful!"

Guo Tu was the first to agree.

Xin Ping said decisively, "That must be it!"

Xu You stroked his long beard and pondered, "Right now, our army has no spare strength to conquer Bingzhou. It would be better to temporarily ally with Cao Cao and use his strength to restrain Lu Boyan."

"To prevent our army from being harassed in our rear when we march north to Youzhou!"

Although Lu Feng is currently focusing all his efforts on attacking the two provinces of Xu and Yu.

Judging from their advancing momentum, they will surely be able to pacify the two prefectures within a month. Even if they fail to take them all, they still have 100,000 elite troops stationed in Yan and Qing prefectures, as well as the East China Sea and Yellow Sea naval forces that come and go like the wind, which will always be a major threat to our army.

Xu You was certain that Lu Feng would not stand idly by and watch our army easily seize Youzhou. If Lu Feng had not already started a war with Xu Yu, he would have definitely advised Yuan Shao to send more troops to defend against it.

"Fine!"

Yuan Shao finally nodded: "Immediately send an envoy to contact Cao Cao and find a way to get him to send troops to contain Lu Boyan!"

Having said that, he looked around at the generals, his gaze finally settling on Xun Chen: "Youruo, I'll trouble you to make this trip. While you're at it, also investigate Cao Cao's strengths and weaknesses!"

Now that Cao Cao's power is growing stronger, Yuan Shao feels that this man must be guarded against.

【War Erupts Across the Land: The Game of Warring States】

When the battle report from the southern border arrived, Gongsun Zan's knuckles were tapping on the edge of the sand table. Outside the tent, the north wind howled, and the candlelight on the table suddenly flickered, casting his shadow long and short.

"Lu Boyan actually launched a war against Cao Cao and Liu Bei simultaneously." He suddenly grabbed the snow-soaked silk and burned it to ashes in the candlelight. The firelight made the old arrow scar between his brows look particularly ferocious: "This move... was ultimately a miscalculation."

Upon hearing this, Gongsun Fan drew his sword and stood up. The clashing of armor startled the guards outside the tent, who all turned to look: "Brother, do you perhaps still wish to form an alliance with Jiangdong? Back then at the walls of Guangling—"

"Foolish!" Gongsun Zan slammed the bronze wine cup onto the map of Youzhou, the wine spilling along the old course of the Yellow River and overflowing the border of Jizhou. "You really think the evidence of Yuan Shao's secret collusion with the Xianbei cavalry was obtained by Youzhou scouts risking their lives?" He suddenly lowered his voice, like a blade slicing through ice: "The Jingzhou accents in those caravans half a month ago..."

(Shift perspective here)

Inside the post station in Xuchang, Xun Chen was sealing a secret letter into a bamboo tube. The copper bells on the eaves jingled in the north wind. He suddenly pressed down on the table—among the sounds of snow falling from the branches outside the window, there was clearly the rubbing of three long and two short boot soles.

"Tell the lord about Cao Cao's garrison troops..." He wrote hastily on the table, his handwriting still wet with wine, before being brushed away by his sleeve. From behind the screen came the sounds of Guo Tu and Xu You talking and laughing, their conversation revolving around the "merits and demerits of their mission."

(Battlefield scene changes)

The setting sun over Pengcheng was like blood, and Dian Wei's heavy halberd was stuck in the crack of the city gate. He took out the blood-soaked letter of surrender from his bosom and suddenly laughed: "Lu Boyan's trick of sowing discord—" Before he finished speaking, the last Yuan-character flag on the city wall snapped in two.

Gongsun Fan's pupils suddenly contracted, and he lowered his voice, saying, "Lord Wu's methods are so sophisticated! This intelligence network is simply all-pervasive! It seems that every move Yuan Shao makes is under... his surveillance?"

This is truly chilling.

It is well known that intelligence is of paramount importance in determining the outcome of military campaigns.

With such a formidable intelligence system, who in the world could rival Lord Wu?

Gongsun Zan's expression turned grave: "Indeed! My junior brother is no ordinary man. He probably began planning this over a decade ago, secretly weaving this vast intelligence network. The Lu Family Trading Company may be the key."

"Back then, everyone laughed at his obsession with commerce, but now it seems that was just a smokescreen. By using the guise of business to spread his network of informants, he avoided arousing suspicion and easily infiltrated various parties."

Truly a brilliant and ingenious plan.

"But how could he have foreseen the chaos of the times? He was only twenty years old at the time..." Gongsun Fan still found it hard to believe.

Lu Feng is a man of many unpredictable traits.

That's why he's a genius!

Gongsun Zan sighed deeply, "Perhaps initially it was only for business and official advancement, but now it has become a tool for vying for hegemony." He then waved his hand, saying, "The most urgent task is to deal with Yuan Shao's coalition. With Wu's main force campaigning eastward against Xu Yu, our army will have to fight alone."

For the first time, the white-horse general showed a hint of hesitation.

After all, they had to face the combined encirclement of Yuan Shao and the Hu cavalry at the same time.

"Make sure to arrange messengers in advance to deliver military intelligence at any time," Gongsun Zan solemnly instructed.

"Yes, sir!" Gongsun Fan clasped his hands in acceptance, but couldn't help asking, "Brother...do you also lack confidence in victory?"

Before he could finish speaking, his palms were already sweating.

"Stop talking nonsense!"