My game can make money starting from the Three Kingdoms period.

The position of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat has become vacant.

All sides are eyeing it covetously.

Liu Bei visits the ailing Fa Zheng.

The monk was pale and lay listlessly on the couch.

"Xiaozhi! I have failed you." Liu Bei wept bitterly, his tears filled with regret.

Fa Zheng coughed incessantly, "Your Majesty, there is no need to blame yourself. It is simply my fate. Cough cough..." His eyes, devoid of their former luster, were filled with worry. "Your Majesty, Liu Ba can fill my vacancy."

"Xiaozhi, don't do this. I will wait until you recover from your illness, then devise a brilliant plan to welcome the Emperor to Yecheng and recapture Luoyang."

Fa Zheng was like a candle flickering in the wind, powerless to raise his hand. "Your Majesty, I fear I cannot wait until that day. If we cannot conquer the city after a prolonged siege, we must withdraw our troops. Do not be greedy for glory, Your Majesty."

……

Liu Ba succeeded Yang Yi as Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, which drew criticism from Yang Yi.

Yang Yi and Liu Ba were both court officials, and logically, given Yang Yi's strong support for Liu Bei, the position of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat should have belonged to him.

But they refused to appoint him.

What could be more upsetting than a colleague becoming your boss?

In the past, a simple clasping hand gesture was enough when meeting someone; now, one must bow deeply and respectfully address the person as "Your Excellency."

"Fa Zheng's death only benefits Liu Ba and Huang Quan!"

Seeing a mute clerk going in and out of the library of the Ministry of Personnel, Yang Yi was reminded of that crippled clerk who was still restless and had taken three concubines.

No, that's not right. Now he's not a minor official anymore, he's on equal footing with him, a high-ranking official!

Yang Yi was furious and went straight into Lu Congtian's room.

Dismissing his attendants, Lu Congtian cupped his hands and asked, "Why is Lord Wei so agitated?" He then turned to the mute clerk and said, "Quickly, serve tea."

If Yang Yi knew that Lu Congtian's promotion was due to discovering his underhanded schemes, he would probably be so angry he'd vomit blood.

What could be more agonizing than having a subordinate become your peer?

But Yang Yi abruptly changed the subject, "We were sworn brothers in the fields, so why didn't you invite me to congratulate you when you took a concubine? Do you think I wouldn't be furious?"

"It was my fault, Lord Wei, please drink."

Lu Congtian smiled and offered tea, then sat down opposite Yang Yi.

Yang Yi's eyes were mocking. "Congtian, how's your health?"

Lu Congtian laughed heartily, "I've fought half my life and haven't even had a chance to enjoy myself yet. Even if I can't, I have to."

"Haha, Congtian can fight enemies on horseback and enjoy the company of concubines on foot. What a romantic figure! If I had known Congtian had such tastes, I should have befriended you long ago."

"It's not too late now. Haha."

While chatting and laughing, Yang Yi had already made up his mind.

"Excellent! Tonight I'll host a banquet; we won't leave until we're all drunk."

"It would be my great honor!"

Watching Yang Yi leave.

Lu Congtian began to understand why his ancestors had wanted him to take a concubine.

It's like a ticket to the abyss. Just like how Lu Ji tested him back then.

A person who is without desires and wants is not someone worth associating with in the eyes of others.

Especially those in power view such people as if they were undercover agents.

Want to get on board? Want to lower others' guard? Then hand over your dark past, reveal your vulnerabilities, and at the very least, don't be a noble person.

Despite being disabled, Lu Congtian still wanted to take a concubine. To outsiders, Lu Congtian was a twisted and perverted scumbag.

Furthermore, Zhuge Liang had kept Lu Congtian's past a secret, which meant that Yang Yi knew very little about Lu Congtian.

There are quite a few people who only think of Lu Congtian as an ordinary soldier who had accumulated military merits by chance when he blocked Lü Meng, and was assigned to a civilian job to retire after becoming disabled.

Now that Lu Congtian is in the same grade as him, what reason does Yang Yi have not to befriend a scoundrel he can use?

In short, those in power will make full use of everything they can.

Lu Congtian's inhuman behavior is that he becomes someone others perceive as exploitable, thus lowering their guard against him.

When Liu Bei heard that Lu Congtian had taken a concubine during Fa Zheng's funeral, he was deeply disheartened.

However, taking wives and concubines is a natural human practice. Liu Bei couldn't really say anything about it.

The main problem is the timing.

Meeting the next day

Liu Bei, wearing a royal crown, stood in the hall with a sorrowful expression.

Minister of the Imperial Secretariat Liu Ba reported on the situation in Jingzhou:

"General Guan was unable to supply the rebels in Yingchuan due to insufficient provisions. The rebels burned their camps and rebelled, and Yue Jin and Xu Huang seized the opportunity to attack. General Guan was caught off guard and suffered heavy losses, and had no choice but to retreat to Luyang."

"Your Majesty, let's withdraw the troops and relocate the people!" Li Yan immediately advised.

Huang Quan agreed, "Fortunately, General Wu's supplies have arrived in Jingzhou, which has helped stabilize the morale of the army in time." He then said with deep regret, "Xiaozhi was so prescient. If he were still alive, we would definitely bow down in admiration."

Upon hearing this, Lu Congtian scoffed. "Now you agree with Fa Zheng's suggestion? Where were you before?!"

Years of war have left Jingzhou exhausted, with frequent natural disasters, no harvests, displacement of people, and abandoned land.

The autumn harvest has not yet arrived, causing the food supply line to be stretched too long.

Although Guan Yu's advance was unstoppable, and the bandits of Liang, Jia, and Luhun responded, his momentum seemed invincible.

But just as Fazheng had said, the barbarians had not yet been pacified.

These opportunists, seeing how powerful Guan Yu was, sided with him.

Now that the two sides are locked in a stalemate, Guan Yu cannot provide supplies. Cao Pi, who has stabilized the situation, only needs to promise benefits, and people will side with him.

Fa Zheng, of course, could not have foreseen any changes; he was merely offering a conservative suggestion.

It's fine to keep conquering cities and territories, but the real danger is when a prolonged siege fails to bring a victory, which can lead to too many unpredictable changes.

If you make even the slightest mistake, the variables will be magnified infinitely.

"What about the Jiangdong direction?"

"They are still locked in a stalemate in Chaisang, with each side winning and losing, but neither can influence the course of the battle."

"Your Majesty, I suggest maintaining the current situation and waiting for the opportune moment to act."

"I second that opinion."

"Good, Zichu, give the order to carry it out." Liu Bei was too weak to raise his hand, so he asked Liu Ba to draft the order.

Withdraw as many troops and civilians as possible to Jingzhou and defend the city.

"Your Majesty, I have something to report."

All eyes turned to Lu Congtian.

"What is it?"

"I suggest that since Cao Pi has just ascended the throne and the internal situation is unstable, he will certainly have no intention of looking south. Since our army cannot capture it, why not have General Guan leave troops to guard Wancheng, and then join forces with Lu Boyan to gather troops at Chaisang and attack Jiangdong together?"

It can be said that among those present, only Lu Congtian and Liu Bei had a thorough understanding of the situation in Jingzhou.

Everyone else is just talking theory.

"No! What if Cao Cao's army takes advantage of the situation and attacks? Xiangfan has already been destroyed. How can we resist Cao Cao's iron cavalry?" Li Yan objected.

Huang Quan seconded, "Your Majesty, please reconsider. If Nanyang County is not heavily guarded, the gates of Jingzhou will be wide open."

Lu Congtian found it strange that the representatives of the Dongzhou and Yizhou factions were opposing his suggestion.

Of course, they were afraid that Guan Yu and Lu Xun would conquer Jiangdong!

Wouldn't it be better to shoot it down?

No, because they didn't contribute anything.

Lu Congtian, theoretically speaking, was also a member of the Jingzhou faction. Despite having little merit, he was promoted to the position of Shangshu Lang, qualifying him to stand in the imperial court. What if Liu Bei adopted this suggestion and conquered Jiangdong?

Moreover, the nominal commander of the eastern battlefield is Lu Xun, who is a member of the Lu family!

How could they allow anyone else to squeeze into the vortex of power?

Lu Congtian's suggestion was clearly an attempt to gain credit for his Lu family!

Therefore, Lu Congtian's situation is the same as Fa Zheng's situation before.

They will inevitably be targeted by a coalition.

"Your Majesty, my ministers, have you forgotten that the three commanderies of Shangyong, Xicheng, and Xincheng have already been captured by our army? Our army has opened up the passage between Hanzhong and Nanyang. Surely Cao Cao's army wouldn't be foolish enough to 'take advantage of the situation'?"