Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

The next day, early in the morning.

Li Ji convened a meeting of his strategists and generals, mainly Jia Xu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Jiang Qin, and Gan Ning.

Originally, Li Ji had planned to bring Xu Sheng along, but after Liu Bei strongly requested Zhao Yun to accompany the army, Li Ji, in order to avoid having no capable generals in Wu Commandery, specifically left the steady and prudent Xu Sheng in Wu Commandery.

At the meeting, Li Ji first introduced Sun Ce to everyone present, and then explained the main marching plan to them.

Regarding the actual situation in Yingzhou, it was undoubtedly still unclear.

Currently, through the rough information obtained by Gan Ning, what was known was that Yingzhou was somewhat similar to the Xia and Shang dynasties in the Central Plains, with lords in various regions, who all respected one person as their king.

On Yingzhou, there were roughly two countries: Yamatai and Kuna.

Yamatai was in the north, and Kuna was in the south, and the two countries had been hostile and fighting each other for many years.

Therefore, based on the route determined by Gan Ning, Li Ji's initial marching plan was to first go to the port in Youzhou where a large amount of grain had been stored in advance, and then head east to Yingzhou to capture a foothold to ensure the smooth flow of the grain supply line.

This marching plan was not particularly brilliant, but it emphasized stability.

Naturally, everyone had no objections to this.

However, sea voyages were undoubtedly dull and boring, especially since the space left for the soldiers to move around on the ships was limited, which further tested the soldiers' physical and mental endurance.

In addition, the seagoing ships of this era were extremely susceptible to wind direction, and even though Li Ji's warnings had helped them avoid a large amount of bad weather, it still took them nearly a month to reach Youzhou.

However, when Zhang Fei stepped back onto the familiar land of You and Yan, a deep sense of emotion could not help but appear on his face.

If they had marched by land, it would probably have taken three months to get the 40,000-strong army all the way from Wu Commandery to Youzhou.

The convenience of seagoing ships amazed Zhang Fei.

Upon arriving at this temporary port, Gongsun Zan personally came to welcome Li Ji and warmly hosted a banquet for everyone.

Upon first seeing this "White Horse General" who was widely known in later generations, Li Ji discovered that he was indeed as Liu Bei had described, exceptionally generous and possessing the unique forthrightness and boldness of the people of You and Yan.

At the banquet, Gongsun Zan also drank heavily and devoured meat, not treating Li Ji and the others as outsiders at all, but rather as if they were old friends reuniting.

Of course, Li Ji was even clearer that Gongsun Zan's closeness was mainly due to Liu Bei's reputation, and that in recent years, the trade in warhorses and oxen between Wu Commandery and Gongsun Zan had never been interrupted, which had secretly allowed Gongsun Zan to make a fortune.

With the double connection of friendship and interests, Gongsun Zan, who was now a Colonel and in charge of a certain amount of military power in Youzhou, would naturally not put on airs in front of Li Ji.

However, Gongsun Zan's bold manner was very much to Zhang Fei's liking, so much so that the two of them were the most enthusiastic drinkers.

However, Li Ji carefully observed the occasional look of worry between Gongsun Zan's eyebrows, and the hesitation when he toasted himself from time to time, and could not help but frown secretly.

Immediately, Li Ji gave Jia Xu a discreet look.

The tacit understanding between the two after working together for several years allowed Jia Xu, who had also noticed Gongsun Zan's subtle abnormality, to instantly understand Li Ji's meaning.

Immediately, Jia Xu pretended to be unable to hold his liquor and had Sun Ce help him leave the banquet first.

As one of the main characters of Gongsun Zan's banquet, Li Ji naturally continued to stay at the banquet to accompany him.

It wasn't until the banquet lasted late into the night, and everyone except Zhao Yun, who had always been protecting Li Ji's side, was drunk and began to gradually disperse, that Gongsun Zan walked directly to Li Ji's side with a wine cup in his hand and said.

"Mr. Zikun, I have corresponded with Xuande many times before, and Xuande has repeatedly mentioned that Mr. Zikun has the talent to govern the world and quell chaos, claiming that the luckiest thing in life is to know Mr. Zikun. Today, I am fortunate to meet Mr. Zikun, and I can also comfort my remaining years."

"General Gongsun is too kind."

Li Ji quickly returned the greeting and said. "My lord has also mentioned many times that his dearest friend in life is none other than General Gongsun, and that General Gongsun is bold and valiant, truly a model for men."

"I am just a small Colonel, not worthy of the name of General…"

Speaking of this, Gongsun Zan paused slightly, wanting to say something, but stopped again, and instead directly toasted Li Ji, drinking it all in one gulp.

Seeing this, Li Ji hesitated slightly, but did not drink his cup to the fullest, but said softly.

"Ji sees that General Gongsun has hesitated to speak many times, could it be that there is something difficult to say? Given the friendship between my lord and General Gongsun, General Gongsun, please speak freely."

"Alas…"

Seeing that Li Ji had noticed his abnormality, Gongsun Zan sighed and said with a rather ashamed tone.

"Xuande sent me a letter before, and I learned that Mr. Zikun's trip is to pacify the chaos in Yingzhou. To this, I also greatly admire it, only feeling that Xuande has lost one or two points of a woman's benevolence compared to the past, knowing that those foreign races should be slaughtered and killed, so that those inferior species dare not offend my strong Han."

"Therefore, regarding Mr. Zikun's plan to store grain here, I once made a big promise to Xuande, guaranteeing that the grain would not be damaged in the slightest."

Hearing this, Li Ji's heart could not help but tighten, and he suddenly realized something, asking.

"Could it be that something has happened?"

"In recent months, the situation in Youzhou has taken a sharp turn for the worse. Zhang Chun, the former Chancellor of Zhongshan, and Zhang Ju, the former Governor of Taishan Commandery, colluded with Qiuliju and the Wuhuan of various commanderies to form an alliance, launching a rebellion, burning cities, and looting the people. The Wuhuan Colonel Gong Qichou, the Governor of Youbeiping Commandery Liu Zheng, and the Governor of Liaodong Commandery Yang Zhong, and other officials were all killed…"

After a pause, Gongsun Zan's face twitched slightly, revealing a strong sense of anger and hatred, saying.

"A group of people who eat and do nothing, they deserve to die. They have allowed the Wuhuan rebels to become so powerful that the Wuhuan people now number more than 100,000, and they are looting all the way towards Jixian, the seat of government of Youzhou."

"Moreover, now that things have come to this, the Governor of Youzhou, Liu Yu, actually still wants to negotiate peace with the Wuhuan, letting the Wuhuan retreat on their own. He is truly an ignorant and incompetent fool!"

Hearing this, Li Ji's heart could be said to have cooled by half.

This temporary port was not far from Jixian. Once Jixian was captured, this temporary port where a large amount of grain was stored would inevitably become the property of the Wuhuan bandits.

What Li Ji found difficult to understand was how the governors of Youzhou were able to lose more than half of their territory in less than a month?

Were their official positions all bought?

'That's actually possible…'

At this moment, Li Ji once again understood what it meant to have pig teammates.

Amidst his anger, Gongsun Zan also sighed for a long time and said.

"Therefore, I am afraid that my previous promise to Xuande will be difficult to fulfill. I am ashamed of Xuande and Mr. Zikun for this matter. Moreover, in my humble opinion, Liu Yu's persistent pursuit of peace and appeasement will make it even more difficult to resist the Wuhuan. Not only this port, but even Jizhou will probably be affected by the Wuhuan rebellion."

"Mr. Zikun should quickly change the location of the grain storage. The best place is Qingzhou, far away from the Wuhuan rebellion. And right now, Jixian can still resist the Wuhuan for some time, so there should still be enough time for Mr. Zikun to move the grain."

"In addition, I also hope that Mr. Zikun can lend some grain, armor, and soldiers. If I resist the Wuhuan and do not die, I will definitely compensate Xuande with warhorses and oxen in the future."

After saying this, Gongsun Zan seemed to have released all the pent-up anger in his heart, and with a bit of shame for facing Li Ji, he cupped his hands towards Li Ji and left the banquet directly.

This made Li Ji's face also become quite solemn, understanding Gongsun Zan's staunch nature.

If it were not a last resort, he would never break his word, and would even take the initiative to suggest that Li Ji quickly move the grain.

This showed that the situation in Youzhou was probably much worse than imagined.

And now, the imperial court's main force was concentrated in the Three Auxiliary Regions to quell the Xiqiang rebellion, so it was probably impossible to take care of Youzhou in the short term.

It could be said that the development of the Wuhuan rebellion and even the Xiqiang rebellion to this day was inextricably linked to the current Emperor's selling of official positions.

The frontier officials were incompetent, otherwise how could the situation have evolved to this point?

This unexpected and dire situation caused Li Ji to return to the accommodation arranged for him in the temporary port with Zhao Yun, frowning almost the entire time.

And in the room, Jia Xu was also leading Sun Ce, who had been waiting for a long time.

"Zikun, I'm afraid your plan to manage Yingzhou will have to be put on hold. The Wuhuan rebellion, this port where grain is stored, General Gongsun is unlikely to be able to protect it."

Jia Xu spoke bluntly, stating the conclusion he had reached after secretly inquiring about information after excusing himself from the banquet.

Immediately, Li Ji sat down in front of Jia Xu, drank a cup of sobering soup handed over by Sun Ce, and then listened carefully to the news that Jia Xu had secretly inquired about.

It was no different from what Gongsun Zan had said, and even more detailed than what Gongsun Zan had said.

For a time, the four people in the room were all silent.

At the moment, Li Ji was undoubtedly caught in a dilemma.

If purely from the perspective of Wu Commandery's interests, then Li Ji's best course of action would undoubtedly be to quickly change the location of grain storage and then continue to manage Yingzhou.

After all, actively participating in the Wuhuan rebellion would not only deplete Wu Commandery's military strength, but also be of no benefit.

In addition, the situation in Youzhou was extremely complicated. The Governor of Youzhou, Liu Yu, advocated peace, but the land of You and Yan had never lacked generous and tragic figures like Gongsun Zan who vowed to fight back against the Wuhuan.

Therefore, Gongsun Zan's rise in the Wuhuan rebellion was almost inevitable, but at the same time, it also meant that there were two factions in Youzhou with irreconcilable conflicts.

If Li Ji were to get involved again, the situation would undoubtedly become more complicated, and even if his original intention was only to play a supporting role, he might inadvertently become the main force.

P.S. The Wuhuan Rebellion is a real historical event that occurred in 187 AD and lasted until September 188 AD, when the imperial court finally had the resources to begin suppressing it. The rebellion was not completely quelled until March 189 AD, lasting a full two years.

According to records, the Wuhuan Rebellion's looting and pillaging affected the four provinces of Qing, Xu, You, and Ji, causing immense damage.

However, in the original timeline, Liu Yu didn't become the Governor of You Province until 188 AD. In this book, due to the protagonist's influence, it's happening a bit earlier.

Gongsun Zan's rise to power also stemmed from the Wuhuan Rebellion. His reputation as the "White Horse General" and the "White Horse Volunteers" was earned by fighting his way through the Wuhuan Rebellion.

In the original timeline, Zhao Yun's decision to join Gongsun Zan's forces was likely due to the Wuhuan Rebellion. (End of Chapter)