Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Watching Jia Xu leave, Li Ji's eyes flickered slightly.

Previously, when Jia Xu had just been coerced into joining Liu Bei's group in Julu, his attitude was almost entirely one of lying flat.

He wouldn't resist, but he also wouldn't actively cooperate in the slightest, like a dead fish lying there for Li Ji to move around as he pleased.

Now, Jia Xu was actually consciously making slight movements, which fully demonstrated that Jia Xu had unknowingly become shaped by Liu Bei, and Jia Xu had also become resistant to the previous suggestion and guidance to pledge allegiance.

As expected, time breeds affection…

Jia Xu's heart would naturally slowly and completely belong to Liu Bei.

Or perhaps this was an inevitable result, not only because of Liu Bei's unique charm, but more importantly, Liu Bei's protection and trust of his subordinates would give Jia Xu a strong sense of security.

In the end, Jia Xu was just a strategist who severely lacked a sense of security, and Liu Bei, who had a place for him, could just provide Jia Xu with the security he valued most.

In addition, Li Ji had resolved the issue of the imperial envoy, and Liu Bei not only successfully concurrently held the position of Governor of Yangzhou, but also before He Jin's downfall, Liu Bei's position in Yangzhou could be described as impregnable.

If Li Ji's vision was perfectly realized, then when the world was in chaos, Liu Bei would control the entire Yangzhou region and thus have the foundation to dominate the world.

Under these conditions, even Jia Xu probably felt a sense of urgency, so much so that he proactively offered to guide the envoys sent by the important families who were still in Wu County on behalf of Li Ji.

And Li Ji was naturally very confident in Jia Xu's ability.

Although Jia Xu's style of doing things was roundabout compared to Li Ji's, there was never only one road to Rome. As long as Jia Xu could successfully guide public opinion and completely place Liu Bei and Li Ji in the role of victims and upholders of the imperial authority, that would be sufficient.

'If the lord has the name of governor, he may not be able to use it to exercise the reality of a regional overlord…'

When this thought appeared in Li Ji's mind, he couldn't help but feel a burst of fatigue.

Last night, he had secretly discussed with He Miao and others for a long time, and he was also busy making various arrangements in advance to avoid revealing any flaws.

This caused Li Ji to almost not sleep all night last night. Now that he relaxed for a moment, Li Ji unconsciously fell into a deep sleep.

He didn't know how many hours had passed.

Li Ji was suddenly awakened by a thunderous voice that was unique to Zhang Fei, and there was a burst of commotion outside the house.

"Brother, as long as you say the word, I will immediately lead troops to capture that birdman who injured Mr. Zikun…"

"…"

"Brother, say something, brother…"

"…"

"Mr. Zikun is still lying inside. Is this matter just going to be let go?"

"…"

"Third brother, don't make things difficult for big brother. If we attack the imperial envoy, how is that different from being a rebellious traitor? The eunuch is hateful, but he is still an imperial envoy, so don't be impulsive."

"No, I refuse to accept this. Big brother, second brother, you can endure it, but I can't. At worst, I won't lead troops, and I'll go alone with my face covered to smash that birdman's head open…"

"Don't go!! Ji Chang, Yun Chang, Zilong, quickly, stop Yide!"

Just as the scene was on the verge of chaos, the door was pushed open, and Li Ji pretended to be weak as he leaned against the door frame, his eyes sweeping over the crowd.

In addition to Liu Bei, Xiahou Bo, and Xiahou Lan, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Jian Yong were all present, and Zhang Fei wanted to rush out, but was being held down by Guan Yu, Zhao Yun, and Xiahou Bo.

"What's all the commotion about?"

Li Ji continued to pretend to be weak and shouted softly.

Immediately, Liu Bei hurriedly walked over, helped Li Ji, and said, "Zikun, why did you get up? Quickly go back and rest."

Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and others also gathered around, and a few angry expressions appeared on their faces as they looked at the white cloth wrapped around half of Li Ji's head.

"This matter is Yun's fault. If Yun had been guarding him at the time, he would definitely not have allowed Mr. Zikun to be injured."

"That eunuch is extremely hateful. How dare he hurt Mr. Zikun!"

"Mr. Zikun, please rest assured, I will go and bring you the eunuch's head…"

The most irritable Zhang Fei almost wanted to rush out again.

Li Ji felt the meaning of everyone's protection, and while feeling moved, he said in a gentle voice.

"Alright, alright, Ji is not in any serious condition, just a little rest, no need to make a fuss. Especially Yide, I appreciate your intentions, but you must not be rude to the imperial envoy."

"But…"

Before Zhang Fei could say anything more, Liu Bei's face darkened and he interrupted.

"Enough, Zikun still needs to recuperate, what kind of decorum is this to be noisy? I and Zikun will make a decision on this matter, Yide should not act rashly."

Zhang Fei was anxious when he heard this, he couldn't help but cross his arms, stomp his feet fiercely a few times, and a raging fire burned in his wide eyes, but he didn't say anything more.

Seeing this, Li Ji knew that Zhang Fei's temperament was like this, and said in a gentle voice.

"Alright, alright, today is the Lunar New Year's Eve festival, everyone doesn't need to be angry, and after this incident, I shouldn't go to Luoyang anymore. Being able to continue staying in Wu County, isn't this a good thing?"

It was only when Li Ji didn't say this that it was fine, but as soon as he said this, a look of guilt appeared on the faces of both Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

Guan Yu cupped his fists and lowered his head, saying.

"Mr. Zikun, Guan is ashamed of you, because he knew that you would be leaving big brother to go to Luoyang after receiving this decree. Guan and his third brother were indignant and deliberately did not come to see Mr. Zikun, nor did they accompany big brother and Mr. Zikun to receive the imperial edict, but instead hid in the mansion drinking, causing Mr. Zikun to almost lose his life."

Li Ji was actually quite clear about this matter.

Or rather, Li Ji had the prerequisite of pretending to be injured by Zuo Feng, that was, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun, these three real fierce generals, were not present. Otherwise, even if Li Ji wanted to give away his head, he would definitely not have the slightest chance.

Even if Li Ji had the opportunity to step forward and get injured, he was afraid that Guan Yu and Zhang Fei would really take Zuo Feng's head off on the spot in a fit of rage, then it would really be "Oh no! It's over!".

Therefore, Li Ji had long been clear about the movements and thoughts of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, knowing that they would not accompany him to receive the imperial edict.

Zhao Yun's temperament was calm and reserved. Even if Li Ji left Wu County to go to Luoyang, he would not be dissatisfied. However, Li Ji sent Xiahou Lan early this morning to find Zhao Yun, ordering Zhao Yun to patrol the city's security after the imperial envoy arrived in Wu County to prevent thieves from causing trouble.

As for Xiahou Bo, who was always guarding Liu Bei, he was also arranged by Li Ji to be on guard outside the mansion to ensure that he would not interfere with Li Ji.

"I know that Yun Chang is actually reluctant to part with Ji, and this was just an unexpected accident, what fault does Yun Chang have? Furthermore, I am also unwilling to leave you all, this accident may be a blessing rather than a curse."

Li Ji comforted Guan Yu, otherwise, with Guan Yu's arrogant self-esteem, he would probably feel deeply indebted to Li Ji for the rest of his life.

"But in this way, Mr. Zikun's chance to go to Luoyang to get promoted and make a fortune will be completely ruined?" Zhang Fei said with some regret.

"Getting promoted and making a fortune is not my wish, I only wish for peace in the world."

Li Ji said casually, expressing his ambitions. "Rather than rushing to Luoyang, Ji would rather spend the festival with you all."

"Alright, alright…"

Liu Bei looked at the weakness revealed in Li Ji's words, and quickly stopped Li Ji from continuing to speak, saying.

"Zikun, don't force yourself, quickly go back to bed and rest."

Faced with Liu Bei's unquestionable order, Li Ji could only continue to go back to bed to rest, and then let Xiahou Lan bring some books related to water conservancy over to continue reading, thinking about the specific plan for how to develop water conservancy in Wu County.

Although the Jiangdong area has a dense water network, this does not mean that the Jiangdong area is a livable place at the moment.

On the contrary, the Jiangdong area at this moment is often subject to floods, the rivers are also often blocked, and many areas are not reached by the water network, and there are occasional droughts.

It can be said that the current Jiangdong area fully illustrates what is meant by "the dry die of drought, and the flooded die of flood".

In addition, the late Eastern Han Dynasty coincided with the early stage of the "Little Ice Age", and the probability of various extreme weather events was constantly increasing. Therefore, if you want to develop the Wu County area, complete water conservancy facilities are particularly important.

While Li Ji was focused on reading the books, time flew by quickly, and before he knew it, the sky outside the window was already dark, and only festive red lanterns conveyed the celebration of the Lunar New Year's Eve festival.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

The door was knocked open, Liu Bei pushed the door open and walked in, and brought an object that made Li Ji's eyes darken.

Wheelchair!

No, this term should not exist in this era, it is only called "four-wheeled cart"?

"Lord, what is this?" Li Ji asked.

"This is what I and Yun Chang just made together, so that Zikun can temporarily use it for transportation." Liu Bei said with some pride, obviously having full confidence in his craftsmanship. "Come, Zikun, let me help you sit on it, and see if it is suitable and comfortable?"

At this moment, Li Ji really felt a headache, and said.

"Lord, it's my head that's injured, not my legs…"

However, Liu Bei didn't give Li Ji a chance to refuse at all. With the cooperation of Xiahou Bo, he easily lifted Li Ji onto the four-wheeled cart.

At this moment, Li Ji, who was only sixteen years old, felt that he had taken a detour of decades. He enjoyed the treatment of his twilight years before he was even old enough to be crowned, and directly sat on the four-wheeled cart.

For a moment, if Li Ji hadn't still had some concerns, he would have even wanted to get up and directly give Liu Bei a set of Kunquan to prove himself.

"Come, Zikun, I'll push you."

Immediately, Liu Bei personally pushed Li Ji towards the door, heading towards the main hall where the Lunar New Year's Eve dinner was already being prepared.

By the time Liu Bei wheeled Li Ji into the main hall, he discovered that not only were all of Liu Bei's civil and military officials present, but also representatives of influential families led by He Miao, as well as representatives of local families who were on good terms with Liu Bei, had already taken their seats.

Subsequently, Liu Bei wheeled Li Ji to the head seat reserved on the left, a position where even Guan Yu could only occupy the second seat.

As for the seats on the right, the one seated at the head was He Miao, followed by others in order according to the status of the influential families they represented.