Chapter 25

……

【The eighteen warlords, hahaha, as long as the Chancellor's ambition remains, it will take no more than three months for me to make you understand the gap.】 Plans flashed through Li Ru's mind. With renewed hope, Li Ru had the energy to play dead the eighteen warlords at the Hu Lao Pass, but all of this had one condition: that Li Ru did not discover that Dong Zhuo was just temporarily insane, and the rest of the time he was still the greedy, cruel, and fat man in Luoyang...

While Chen Xi was thinking about how to deal with Dong Zhuo and expand Liu Bei's influence and reputation, Li Ru was also pondering how to wipe out the eighteen warlords in one or two months. In his view, this task was not particularly difficult.

"Lord Xuande..." Chen Xi, still dazed, raised his wine bowl to salute Liu Bei, who had just entered.

"Zichuan, wake up, wake up!" Liu Bei shook Chen Xi from side to side.

"What is it, Lord Xuande?" Chen Xi's reaction was somewhat slow.

"Zichuan, wake up, wake up quickly, I have something to ask you." Liu Bei's face was flushed with joy and urgency.

"What is it?" Chen Xi's hazy eyes suddenly cleared. Although he couldn't expel the alcohol like Guan and Zhang, he could still clear his mind with mental strength.

Liu Bei quickly recounted today's events to Chen Xi. Chen Xi was taken aback, scratched his head, and said, "This is a good thing, what's wrong with it?"

To explain, after Liu Bei led his troops out, he immediately headed for the nearby camps of Tao Qian and Kong Rong. These two were the closest to Liu Bei in recent times. However, it was clear that Tao Qian's subordinates still had some skill. Although the camp was in chaos due to the attack, the elite troops from Danyang always guarded the center. After Liu Bei arrived, the situation inside and outside quickly stabilized.

As for Kong Rong, the situation was much worse. The descendant of a sage could easily spread teachings, but leading troops was a different matter. Kong Rong's entire camp was in unimaginable chaos. If not for a general holding back two enemy commanders, Kong Rong might have fallen in the chaos.

Thus, Liu Bei's rescue was like a snow in a time of need for Kong Rong. The goodwill Liu Bei, a member of the Han imperial family, had already earned from Kong Rong was now almost at its peak. After repelling the night raiders, Kong Rong invited Tao Qian and Liu Bei to his camp for tea.

As they chatted, the conversation turned to their respective territories. Upon learning that Liu Bei was residing in the state of Pingyuan in Youzhou, Kong Rong waved his hand and offered to recommend Liu Bei as the governor of Tai'an County. Tao Qian, after a moment's thought, also agreed to recommend Liu Bei as the governor of Tai'an County.

With both of them agreeing, as long as Liu Bei did not refuse, the position was almost certain. Do not underestimate Kong Rong as just a scholar; his status made his words carry weight. If his recommendation was rejected, Kong Rong could rally support for Liu Bei, making him famous throughout the land, and then it would be impossible to refuse.

With Tao Qian, a state governor, willing to help, even if the higher-ups were unwilling, a bit of maneuvering would allow Liu Bei to secure the position.

"Zichuan, you don't know the situation in Tai'an County. The people of Qingzhou have always been fierce, and after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the region is rife with bandits. Some powerful bandits even hold cities, and only a few county towns in Qingzhou can be considered safe." Liu Bei said with a bitter smile, thinking Chen Xi was still half-asleep.

"Aren't they just some Yellow Turbans and bandits?" Chen Xi said with a shrug. "What's there to be afraid of? With Tai'an County, you have your own territory and your own people. You can develop from there. Even if Tai'an County is troublesome, it's better than being stuck in one place."

"Zichuan, are you sober yet?" Liu Bei said with a bitter smile. "You probably don't know how severe the bandit problem in Qingzhou is."

"Alright, I'm not fully sober. How severe is it?" Chen Xi said nonchalantly.

"Very severe. There are over a million bandits in Qingzhou, and with the civilians they have coerced, the total number of bandits in Qingzhou can exceed two million. Tai'an County alone has about 300,000 bandits!" Liu Bei said with a grim face, recounting the information he had gathered.

"Two million?" Chen Xi scratched his head. He remembered that when Cao Cao dealt with Qingzhou, there were only about a million bandits, from which he selected 300,000 fit men to form the Qingzhou Army. How did it become two million now?

"Two million is actually a low estimate. Including the civilians who inform the Yellow Turban bandits, one could say that bandits are everywhere in Qingzhou." Liu Bei explained with a headache. He was indeed eager for the territory of Tai'an County, but the problem was that he couldn't handle it! With bandits everywhere, his 5,000 troops would be like a drop in the ocean!

"Alright, if we count it as three million, that's a lot of people. Even one-tenth of them have seen blood, and with a bit of training, they could become soldiers." Chen Xi said with a teasing smile, but unfortunately, Liu Bei didn't understand.

"Zichuan, this isn't about soldiers. Tai'an County used to be a good place, but now it's plagued by bandits. It would take at least 100,000 troops to pacify it! And you would constantly face the counterattacks of the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou, making it impossible to hold!" Liu Bei said helplessly.

"Lord Xuande, what is your ideal?" Chen Xi looked in a random direction. "Is it the same as before?"

"To restore the Han dynasty! My ideal is to restore the Han dynasty!" Liu Bei, though puzzled by Chen Xi's change of topic, did not hesitate.

"Does Lord Xuande have the backing of Lord Yuan?" Chen Xi turned to face Liu Bei and asked.

"Of course not. Yuan Shao is from the four-generation, three-high-ranking-official Yuan family, with a foundation far beyond what I can compare to." Liu Bei shook his head.

"Does Lord Xuande have the reputation of Kong Beihai?" Chen Xi asked with a smile.

"Of course not. Kong Beihai is a descendant of a sage and a great scholar. How can I compare to him?" Liu Bei shook his head again.

"Does Lord Xuande have the strength of Tao Gongzu?" Chen Xi looked at the still puzzled Liu Bei with a calm smile.

"Of course not. Tao Gongzu controls the rich lands of Xuzhou and has elite troops from Danyang. How can I compare to him?" Liu Bei shook his head and said.

"Then how will Lord Xuande restore the Han dynasty?" Chen Xi asked with a smile.

"Of course, of course..." Liu Bei opened his mouth but found it hard to repeat his usual words about recruiting talented people.

"Lord Xuande, you have nothing." Chen Xi said softly.

"Nothing..." Liu Bei repeated the words, realizing that since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, he, Liu Bei, had achieved nothing. Although he could now sit among the warlords, command the elite troops of the land, and have the most powerful generals, he truly had nothing.

ps: Fellow readers, I am Fentu Huangcao, and I recommend a free novel app that supports novel downloads, audiobooks, zero ads, and multiple reading modes. Please follow the WeChat official account: dazhuzaiyuedu (long press to copy). Fellow readers, follow us quickly!