Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Chapter 33: Already Have a Brilliant Plan?

Along the way, Aunt Fu gave Zhao Yun's young heart a great shock.

Even when Zhao Yun had already reached his doorstep, Aunt Fu was still enthusiastically talking non-stop. The polite yet humble smile on Zhao Yun's face gradually began to stiffen, and he said:

"Aunt Fu, thank you for your kindness. However, the world is in chaos today, and I, Yun, have learned something and should contribute a meager effort to the people of the world. Matters of the heart have not been considered."

Aunt Fu muttered in dissatisfaction.

"Hey, you boy Yun, why can't you understand? Forget it, it's useless to say more to you. Marriage is a major event decided by parents and matchmakers. I'll go talk to your elder brother."

Instantly, Zhao Yun felt numb all over, even more afraid that his elder brother would accidentally agree.

Just then, Xiahou Lan seemed to understand Zhao Yun's thoughts and said:

"Aunt Fu, Brother Yun has just returned home and doesn't understand anything yet. It's too early to talk about these things now."

"That's true."

Aunt Fu thought for a moment, also feeling that Xiahou Lan was right. "In that case, boy Yun, you go home and rest first, then mention this matter to your elder brother. I'll come visit again in a few days."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yun bid farewell to Aunt Fu without hesitation, watched her leave, and then secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiahou Lan said somewhat happily, "Brother Yun, luckily you didn't agree to Aunt Fu."

Zhao Yun, who never gossiped or talked about people behind their backs, couldn't help but ask, "Why? Could it be that Aunt Fu's niece has a personality that is… indescribable?"

Xiahou Lan honestly said:

"That's not it. Actually, I quite like Aunt Fu's niece and was thinking of asking my elder brother to help me propose marriage sometime. If Brother Yun had just agreed, my elder brother would definitely just beat me up."

Zhao Yun: "…"

Immediately, Zhao Yun heavily tapped Xiahou Lan's head and said, "You don't know how to work hard when you're young, and your mind is immersed in such matters of the heart. How will you achieve anything in the future?"

"Marriage is a major event, continuing the family line, that's a big deal," Xiahou Lan said unconvinced.

"Then you should go home and tell Brother Bo," Zhao Yun said helplessly, then turned around and pushed open the somewhat dilapidated wooden door of the farmhouse in his memory and walked in.

What met his eyes was still almost the same as in the past, as if leaving home at the age of eleven was just a dream.

"Brother, brother…" Zhao Yun was in a daze for a while, then called out softly a few times, but there was no response.

Not at home?

Zhao Yun thought to himself, then found a wooden stake, tied up his warhorse, Night Shadow Jade Lion, and then rolled up his sleeves and went to chop the firewood piled in a corner of the small courtyard that hadn't been chopped yet.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

When that seemingly slender body truly stretched out, it fully revealed the ape arms and wolf waist hidden beneath the white robe. Without seeing how Zhao Yun used force, the wooden stakes almost split in two with a sound, and almost every wooden stake split into two pieces of nearly the same size.

In less than the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, the firewood that ordinary people might have to work on all day had already been completely chopped.

Just then, the wooden door of the small courtyard was pushed open again, and Xiahou Lan walked in hastily.

"What's wrong? Brother Lan."

Xiahou Lan said with a worried expression, "Brother Yun, I understand why the Yellow Turban bandits are gone."

"The Yellow Turban bandits did come to plunder the village, and it happened that a Zhuojun Officer named Liu Bei led troops through and wiped out the Yellow Turban bandits who plundered Zhending…"

However, before Xiahou Lan could finish speaking, Zhao Yun frowned slightly and interrupted, "Zhuojun is hundreds of miles away from here, so how could the Han army from Zhuojun appear in Zhending?"

Unlike Xiahou Lan, when Zhao Yun was learning martial arts in the mountains, he not only practiced spear techniques, but also dabbled in military strategy, astronomy, and geography.

Although Zhao Yun had never been to Zhuojun, he generally knew the location and distance of Zhuojun.

It was because of this that Zhao Yun was quite puzzled as to why a Han army from Zhuojun would appear in Zhending.

"This, I don't know…"

Xiahou Lan didn't think as deeply as Zhao Yun, but said hastily, "The important thing is that my elder brother followed the Han army from Zhuojun and left, I don't know where he went."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yun thought carefully.

After a long while, Zhao Yun suddenly widened his eyes, completely understood, and said:

"Brother Bo is a calm and righteous person. Since he judged that it was the Han army, it must be true. The reason why Brother Bo followed the Han army is largely related to Brother Bo's understanding of the terrain of Jizhou."

"In that case, the Han army's target is a surprise attack on Julu?!"

Xiahou Lan, who was listening to Zhao Yun's analysis from the side, was stunned and quickly asked, "Then won't my elder brother be in danger?"

Zhao Yun didn't answer Xiahou Lan, but frowned and pondered for a while, then suddenly stood up and walked to Night Shadow Jade Lion's side, untied the reins, and jumped on the horse.

"Brother Yun, where do you want to go?" Xiahou Lan asked, chasing after him.

Zhao Yun, riding on Night Shadow Jade Lion, holding the Cliff Edge Spear in his hand, said with emotion:

"Brother Bo is doing a righteous thing, and that Han army has been kind to us, we must repay them. Brother Lan, did you ask when the Han army left?"

"It is said that this morning, the person called Liu Bei sent people to the village to deliver a lot of grain, oil, and meat. They should have left less than half a day ago," Xiahou Lan replied.

"I didn't expect that Liu Bei would be such a benevolent person."

Zhao Yun praised, and a firm and heroic spirit flowed from his still somewhat young face, and he said, "I want to go and help that Han army, and also to confirm Brother Bo's safety."

Xiahou Lan widened his eyes and quickly said, "Wait, Brother Yun, take me with you!"

"Brother Lan, your martial arts are not enough to protect yourself in the battlefield, so stay in the village."

After a pause, Zhao Yun pulled the reins, turned his head and glanced at the home where he hadn't even had a chance to spend a night, and said, "Brother Lan, say to my brother: Yun… will be back soon, don't worry, when I return home one day, I will serve him with filial piety."

"Giddy up!"

Immediately, Zhao Yun's feet clamped, and Night Shadow Jade Lion, who understood Zhao Yun's heart, moved its hooves, and almost instantly changed from extreme stillness to extreme motion, and in a leap, it jumped directly over the nearly two-meter-high wall.

When Xiahou Lan hurriedly pushed open the wooden door of the small courtyard and rushed out, Zhao Yun's back had already almost disappeared at the end of his line of sight.

"Brother Yun, come back early!"

Xiahou Lan shouted from afar.

Listening to Xiahou Lan's voice behind him, Zhao Yun felt a strange palpitation in his heart, as if if he wanted to return to Chengdi Village again, it might be a very, very long time later.

However, Zhao Yun's mind instantly became firm, and almost in an instant, he rode Night Shadow Jade Lion away from Chengdi Village, heading in the direction of Zhending County, trying to find the traces of the Han army from Zhuojun and catch up.

…

The army, which had left Zhending and entered a rarely traveled path, was rapidly heading towards Gaoyi under the leadership of Xiahou Bo.

Even though the path they were taking was not an official road, the small roads hidden in the mountains or muddy countryside were not difficult to travel on. It was just that each time only three or five people could walk side by side, but undoubtedly, it greatly shortened the marching time.

Just on the second day, the army arrived at Gaoyi, which was extremely close to Julu County, and then, with the help of Xiahou Bo, found a mountain depression that was not easily discovered to set up camp.

When Xiahou Bo and Zhang Fei, who had gone out to meet the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun at dusk, returned, they only brought back twelve people.

"Why are there only twelve people?" Liu Bei asked.

Zhang Fei shook his head and replied with a slightly low mood.

"They have not been seen returning, or they may have encountered misfortune."

Immediately, the expressions of Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Li Qi in the camp were somewhat silent.

It should be noted that Zhang Fei had already truly regarded the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun as brothers. If there was wine and meat, Zhang Fei would not forget to share it with the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun.

The Eighteen Riders of Yanyun were divided into three groups, each group of six riders, and scattered to investigate the situation in Julu. Now, a whole group of six people have not returned as scheduled, and most likely encountered some unexpected changes and encountered misfortune.

"This is Bo's fault, resulting in six warriors…"

However, before Xiahou Bo could finish speaking, Zhang Fei interrupted.

"In the affairs of the battlefield, where is there no danger? And when Mr. Zikun proposed to me to send the most reliable Eighteen Riders of Yanyun to investigate the intelligence first, I had already prepared myself in my heart, otherwise, why would I need to divide the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun into three teams? Isn't the purpose to avoid the annihilation of the entire army?"

"Just, don't let me know which bastards attacked the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun, I will definitely stab eighteen holes in them!"

After speaking, Zhang Fei sat down with a thud, then picked up a jar of wine and gulped it down, obviously still extremely unhappy in his heart.

In this regard, whether it was Liu Bei or Li Qi, they could not persuade Zhang Fei, but could only let him be, but looked at the dusty twelve people.

"I thank you all for the news you investigated when you went to Julu," Liu Bei said.

"Yes."

Among the remaining twelve people, two people walked out and reported separately.

As the experiences of the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun were gathered one by one, the expressions of the people in the camp gradually became heavy.

Julu, it's completely yellow!

It's yellow in the true sense!

After the Eighteen Riders of Yanyun set foot in Julu County, almost all the villages and towns they passed through were empty. The vast Julu County almost only had two kinds of people: dead people or Yellow Turban people.

Whether they were the old, weak, women, and children, or the young and strong teenagers, they all wore yellow scarves on their heads and wandered on the earth like locusts, seeking something to fill their stomachs.

As for Julu City, which was regarded as a holy city by the Taiping Dao, it was not something that any ordinary Yellow Turban follower could enter casually.

Following Xiahou Bo's instructions, the Eighteen Riders of Yan Yun, with war paint on their faces resembling the Yellow Turban Warriors, successfully infiltrated Julu City under the guise of Yellow Turban Warriors.

Julu City had been completely transformed into a stronghold of the Way of Peace, personally overseen by General Zhang Liang. Everyone in the city wore yellow turbans, and every household worshipped the Great Virtuous Teacher and the Yellow Heaven.

Although the Eighteen Riders of Yan Yun did not see any soldiers in the city, it was clear that, to the Way of Peace, every believer was a soldier.

However, the Eighteen Riders of Yan Yun had clearly scouted the locations of the city's treasury, granary, and other key facilities. Moreover, the defenses of these important facilities were not strict, and could even be considered extremely lax.

After all, in the eyes of countless believers of the Way of Peace, Julu was a sacred city protected by the Yellow Heaven. Who would dare to offend it?

And in the eyes of the higher-ups of the Way of Peace, Julu was located in the rear, with high walls and deep moats, and countless believers in the city to serve as a bulwark, making it extremely safe.

After the Eighteen Riders of Yan Yun, who had gone to investigate, constantly supplemented each other with the information they knew, everyone in the camp seemed to fall into silence.

"Julu seems to have no soldiers, but the countless believers in the city are soldiers..."

"Not to mention six thousand men, even if sixty thousand men were to attack it, I'm afraid it would be difficult to do anything about it."

Liu Bei murmured.

At this moment, even Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were somewhat silent.

The fact that the entire Julu City was filled with Yellow Turbans was too shocking.

Even if Liu Bei's troops were less than six thousand, even if they really had the ability to take Julu, would they have to massacre the city?

"Everyone has worked hard, go down and rest first."

Li Ji waved his hand at the remaining twelve of the Eighteen Riders of Yan Yun, letting them retreat, and then smiled nonchalantly.

Awakened by Li Ji's laughter, Liu Bei and the others asked in confusion.

"Zikun, why are you laughing?"

"If war only required comparing the number of soldiers on both sides to determine the outcome, that would be easy, and the Yellow Turbans would not have been suppressed by the General of the North in the Guangzong area to the point of being unable to breathe."

As soon as Li Ji said this, Liu, Guan, and Zhang were immediately invigorated.

As for Xiahou Bo, who was just a wandering knight before, he felt from Li Ji the spirit of regarding countless Yellow Turbans as nothing.

"Mr. Zikun is right, just a bunch of Yellow Turbans, a group of thieves who only know how to play tricks, didn't we kill them so that they ran away with their tails between their legs with two thousand against sixty thousand before?"

Zhang Fei said aggressively while pouring wine.

Guan Yu also stroked his long beard and said proudly. "No matter how many thieves there are, they are nothing more than chickens and dogs."

Only Liu Bei still frowned, understanding that what Guan Yu and Zhang Fei said was completely different from the current situation.

The victory in the Battle of Daxing Mountain was essentially due to Li Ji's series of methods to separate the Yellow Turban thieves from the looted Yellow Turban masses, and then ambush and annihilate the Yellow Turban thieves. Then, taking advantage of the terrain, he forced a large number of Yellow Turban masses to surrender with the momentum of beheading Cheng Yuanzhi.

After that battle, Liu Bei often savored the details of winning more with less, and felt that he benefited a lot.

But it was precisely because of this that Liu Bei understood that the current situation in Julu City was completely different from Daxing Mountain.

In Julu City, most of them are probably devout believers of the Way of Peace!

As long as the higher-ups of the Way of Peace give an order, even if Liu Bei leads his troops to raid Julu City and break into it, it will not be able to withstand the counterattack of the Yellow Turban thieves at all.

At this moment, Liu Bei was most fortunate that he had not chosen to recklessly insert himself into Julu County directly from Zhongshan State, otherwise, with the terrifying number of Yellow Turbans in Julu County, he was afraid that he would not even see Julu City, and would be drowned by countless Yellow Turban thieves.

However, just as Liu Bei looked up at Li Ji, he saw Li Ji's eyes slightly closed, and he tapped his forehead with his index finger, as if he was deducing something.

'Perhaps, Zikun already has a brilliant plan?'