Chapter 99

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Submitting to the Three Rivers, collecting is just like this...

Marrying a wife is very complicated, but taking a concubine is much simpler; just flip through the almanac to find a good time. After all, in those days, a wife and a concubine were completely different concepts.

The date was set for the eighth day of the fifth month. There wasn't much to say about why this date was chosen. After all, given Chen Xi's status, there was no way to speed up the wedding unless you didn't care about propriety, but it was clearly impossible. Chen Xi wouldn't do anything that violated universal rules unless absolutely necessary.

The speed of handling government affairs was getting faster, and the troops of Mount Tai had not stopped training. They were going to make a move next year, even though the plan was set for the year after. However, with Guo Fengxiao as a variable, Chen Xi couldn't say much. Additionally, with the series of battles next year, Chen Xi had to make more preparations.

"Zilong, are you sure we now have 860,000 people?" Chen Xi was shocked when he saw the population count that Zhao Yun had thoroughly investigated. Unbeknownst to him, Mount Tai had become one of the top ten most populous commanderies in the Han Dynasty. Although it was far from the Nanyang, Runan, and Chen commanderies, it was still a significant commandery. He couldn't afford to make a mistake.

"I ran through every town and village," Zhao Yun said with a smile, convincing Chen Xi with the facts.

"Alright, then there won't be any problems in maintaining 50,000 troops in the short term." Chen Xi sighed in relief. As long as the speed was fast enough, 50,000 troops could deal with the Yellow Turbans in a month, and there wouldn't be much of a problem.

To be honest, Chen Xi really envied Yuan Shu, the wastrel. If Liu Bei had the power of Yuan Shu, he wouldn't need to be so frugal. The Nanyang commandery had 2.4 million people, the Runan commandery had 2.1 million, and the Chen commandery had 1.5 million. The rest of the Yuzhou region had at least another million people. With such a large population, swallowing up a couple of million Yellow Turbans wouldn't even require a breath. So, Chen Xi truly envied, hated, and resented Yuan Shu!

"Are we really going to attack Qingzhou next year?"

"Yes, from the intelligence from the north, both Gong Sun Bo Gui and Yuan Ben Chu are preparing for a battle. They will likely clash as soon as the weather warms up in the spring. Once Yuan Ben Chu is free in the north, his primary target will be Qingzhou." Chen Xi interlocked his fingers and propped up his head, speaking coldly, "If we don't want to be targeted by Yuan Ben Chu, we must quickly turn everything into a fait accompli, leaving him no chance to interfere."

"What about Dong Zhuo? I don't believe he will remain indifferent after all the effort he put in, especially now that he's seeing results." Zhao Yun pointed out what Lu Su had been thinking.

"Dong Zhuo's days are numbered." Chen Xi smiled and handed the intelligence from Chang'an to Zhao Yun and Lu Su, "Take a look. I think you can figure it out with your abilities."

After Lu Su and Zhao Yun skimmed through it, they looked at each other and said in unison, "The Beauty Scheme!"

However, Zhao Yun then smiled and said, "If the Thirty-Six Stratagems could be sold, it would probably be worth a fortune. At least before, I might not have noticed such details, but now that these things are distilled, it's much simpler. You can just apply them directly, even if they're not very adaptable, they're more than enough to deal with ordinary generals."

"Zilong, don't daydream. This kind of book is a family treasure in any clan. It's already very generous of Zichuan to lend it to us. Selling it is out of the question. Military books are not sold externally, as has been the case since ancient times." Lu Su immediately quashed Zhao Yun's fantasies.

Lu Su clearly understood the subtleties of this book. Unlike the Art of War, which is used to cultivate top-notch commanders, this book is used to mass-produce the backbone of the army. You don't need to think for yourself; you just need to be able to draw analogies and apply them, and you can get by pretty well.

Relying on the Thirty-Six Stratagems might not produce top-notch commanders, but it can mass-produce quasi-top-tier generals who are not outstanding but are not easily outmaneuvered.

If you use the Art of War to teach, nine out of ten will be mediocre, and the remaining one will be elite. That's the difference. Clearly, Chen Xi hoped that his generals could guard against ordinary strategies, while more sophisticated strategies would be handled by specialists.

"Yes, this book won't be sold. It's mainly used for fishing. I wonder how the Lu family is researching this book. Although it can't be used to cultivate top talent, a wise person can see a lot from it." Chen Xi smiled and said, "Let's not talk about this book. Let's continue discussing Dong Zhuo's problem. I estimate it won't be long before he is outmaneuvered by Wang Situ."

"Alas, what a pity for Li Wenyu's plans to end up like this." Lu Su sighed, "With his intelligence, he must have seen it coming, but now he says nothing. He must be disheartened. What a pity."

Scholars have always had both admiration and rivalry, and Lu Su was one of those who admired Li Ru.

"Hmph, a traitorous minister, not worth pitying!" Zhao Yun said disdainfully.

"That's the situation." Chen Xi organized the documents, "What we need to do now is to accelerate the purchase of grain. The summer and autumn harvests in Jiangnan were bountiful. Before April, we need to focus on buying as much grain as possible!"

In Chenliu, Cao Mengde was struggling through a harsh winter. Although he had the support of the aristocratic families, Cao Mengde was having a much harder time than Liu Bei due to a lack of money and grain. Even with Xun Yu's efforts, it was impossible to alleviate Cao Cao's difficulties. Without a stable Chenliu, the Cao family had no intention of investing.

Because of this, although Cao Cao took Chenliu in 191, he missed the first opportunity for a rapid rise. However, as long as he could survive the winter, the land reclamation by Zao Zhi would bear fruit. Unfortunately, because it was two months late, the summer harvest was missed, and the seeds of tragedy were sown.

Turning to Yuan Shu in Yuzhou, his life was quite comfortable. He controlled a fertile commandery and, upon learning that Sun Jian had been killed by Liu Biao, decisively took in Sun Jian's family. With the issues in Nanyang, Yuan Shu felt the need to settle the score with Liu Biao after dealing with Yuan Yi. He disliked Sun Jian and wanted to fight him, but Liu Biao's interference was unacceptable, so Yuan Shu was determined to avenge Sun Jian.

As for the jade seal, Yuan Shu knew it was in Sun Ce's hands, but he restrained himself despite his desire. The arrogance of the aristocratic families wouldn't allow him to do such a disgraceful thing. Fighting Sun Jian was a war between feudal lords, but robbing women and children was beneath him.

Because of this, Yuan Shu had to use a method to win the hearts of the Sun family, hoping to gain their recognition and have the jade seal presented to him. After all, in Yuan Shu's view, the Sun family, who had no power to avenge themselves, would eventually have to rely on him.

Chen Xi had people closely monitor Yuan Shu. The only significant intelligence so far was that Zhou Yu had joined Yuan Shu's forces. More accurately, Zhou Yu went to find his brother, and it was estimated that in a short time, he would ignite Sun Ce's ambition.

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