Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

Amidst the crowd's eager flattery and agreement, Li Ji momentarily lost track of who was who.

However, when he raised his eyes and scanned the room, he clearly saw the few who sat drinking silently.

Immediately, Li Ji nodded with a smile to those on his left and right before continuing forward, noticing that Liu Qi was absent and the seat reserved for him was the head seat.

Since Liu Qi was not present, Li Ji did not feign refusal. With a wave of his sleeve, he sat comfortably in the head seat, raised his wine cup, and said with a smile.

"Since this is a celebration banquet prepared by all of you for me, please, everyone, enjoy yourselves to the fullest!"

Immediately, all those attending the banquet raised their cups in agreement, emptying them in one gulp, thus beginning the feast.

One after another, pre-arranged performances began.

Singers and dancers, amidst the intoxicating music, their supple waists seemed boneless, graceful and charming, their light veils slipping to reveal glimpses of their soft breasts…

If Li Ji wasn't constantly surrounded by beauties capable of captivating kingdoms, and even occasionally admiring Diao Chan's exquisite dance, he might have lost his composure for a moment.

Under Cai He's enthusiastic introductions, these alluring singers and dancers were all personally cultivated by Lady Cai after Liu Jingsheng took control of Jingzhou.

‘Old Liu truly knows how to enjoy life like a respectable man…'

As Li Ji subconsciously thought this, his mind stirred, and he looked at Cai He, who was wearing a flattering smile.

What a casual recommendation. If these singers and dancers are already so captivating, wouldn't it imply that Lady Cai, who cultivated them, is even more exquisite?

At that moment, Li Ji even suspected that he only needed to show a slight interest in Lady Cai, and he could have another beauty in his bed tonight, successfully becoming Liu Qi's stepfather.

And even if he didn't show interest, Cai He could use this to leave an impression on Li Ji's mind, which would bring various benefits in the future.

As his thoughts raced, Li Ji made no commitment, which disappointed Cai He, who had been quietly observing Li Ji's expression.

In Cai He's mind, Liu Bei was naturally the best choice, but Li Ji was also an excellent choice, second only to Liu Bei.

If he could gain Li Ji's favor, binding the Cai family firmly to the Marquis of the State through a woman, it would undoubtedly guarantee the Cai family's interests in Jingzhou, and even take them a step further.

In fact, Cai He believed that many of the aristocratic families participating in the banquet had the same intention, but simply hadn't had a suitable opportunity to speak.

As the banquet progressed, other programs, such as sword dances, poetry duels, wrestling, and other vulgar or refined performances, followed one after another.

It wasn't until the host and guests were all happy that Li Ji, feigning fatigue, brought the banquet to an end.

This banquet was undoubtedly more about political significance than entertainment. Li Ji needed to attend to appease the hearts of the people of Jingzhou, and the people of Jingzhou also hoped to use this opportunity to curry favor with Li Ji and test his attitude towards them.

So, the performances were good…

But participating in this kind of banquet, where he had to deal with all parties, actually made Li Ji feel quite tired.

After Li Ji returned to the residence arranged for him and rested for a while, Liu Qi, as expected, came to visit.

Liu Qi's absence during the banquet was to avoid embarrassment for all parties.

After all, with him, the young master, present, it would somewhat affect everyone's ability to fully display their talents to please others.

However, after the banquet ended, Liu Qi couldn't wait to come to the door to seek answers.

"Marquis, was my father's death orchestrated by Imperial Uncle?"

Liu Qi's question was exceptionally direct and sharp. Perhaps he only asked after completely handing over the power of Jingzhou because he didn't want to receive a false answer.

"The Lord was unaware. It was indeed Sun Bofu who killed Liu, the governor of Jingzhou, out of personal revenge…"

After a pause, Li Ji replied with some apology. "Regarding this matter, the Lord will certainly give the Young Master an explanation."

Only after receiving this answer did Liu Qi seem to have a great weight lifted from his heart, and he said.

"In that case, Qi will not be without honor to face my father in the afterlife. I entrust Jingzhou to the Marquis, and I ask the Marquis to treat the people kindly."

"Furthermore, Liu Pan, Wen聘, and Huang Zhong are all loyal and brave men. Even if they are unwilling to change their allegiance for the time being, they will definitely not betray their lord after they return to their hearts one day."

After saying this, Liu Qi left somewhat unsteadily.

And Li Ji officially entered Xiangyang, and then, using Xiangyang as the center, issued orders to the cities of Jingzhou, officially beginning to bring Jingzhou under his control.

The explosive news that Li Ji, the Grand Commander of Yangzhou and Marquis of the State of Wu Commandery, had led 60,000 troops and defeated Yuan Shu's 120,000 strong army in one battle, taking control of Jingzhou in the process, spread like a hurricane in all directions.

Qingzhou.

When this news reached Cao Cao's ears, Cao Cao was both shocked and furious.

"Pigs! They're simply a bunch of stupid pigs!!!"

"Even if 120,000 pigs were charging on the plains, they couldn't possibly be wiped out in a single day. What on earth was Yuan Gonglu doing?!"

"With Yuan Gonglu's defeat, most of Jingzhou will fall into Liu Da'er's hands. With Jing and Yang connected, both the north and south banks of the entire Yangtze River will be under Liu Da'er's control. When he advances north into the Central Plains, who can stop him?"

Not only did Cao Cao lose his composure and curse Yuan Shu, but the counselors in the hall also looked grim.

If the entire Han Dynasty were to be divided into three sections along the Yellow River and the Yangtze River.

Then the first section, north of the Yellow River, is where Gongsun Zan and Yuan Shao are fighting. The second section, south of the Yellow River, is occupied by Lu Bu, Yuan Shu, Cao Cao, and various minor warlords.

The third section: the banks of the Yangtze River are mainly occupied by Liu Bei, Liu Biao, Tao Qian, and Yuan Shu.

Now that Liu Biao is dead and Yuan Shu has been defeated, most of Jingzhou has fallen into Liu Bei's hands. Liu Bei has already gained one-third of the world.

After Liu Bei stabilizes his Jingzhou territory, he will inevitably send his troops north.

Can Yuan Shu stop Liu Bei?

Once Yuan Shu can't stop him, it will be Lu Bu, Cao Cao, and others' turn…

Too fast!

Ultimately, it's just too fast!

In Cao Cao's estimation, neither Liu Biao nor Yuan Shu would be a match for Liu Bei and Li Ji, but they should have been able to hold out for several years.

As a result, Cao Cao felt that it was only the time it took to take a nap before the situation in Jingzhou underwent earth-shattering changes.

Cao Cao had just painstakingly pacified the Yellow Turbans in Qingzhou, trying to find ways to restore the people's livelihood and accumulate money and food, but Liu Bei was already about to become a hegemon across the two states of Jing and Yang.

After a moment, Cao Cao sat back in the main seat, his long and oppressive eyes narrowed, and said in a deep voice.

"Time waits for no one! There is no longer time for us to slowly restore the people's livelihood in Qingzhou and accumulate money and food for a year or two before sending troops to conquer Yanzhou."

"As early as this year, or as late as the beginning of next year, we must send troops, otherwise, when Liu Da'er sends his troops north, we will all be sitting in Qingzhou waiting for our deaths."

As he spoke, Cao Cao's gaze fell on Xun Yu, the highly anticipated chief steward.

In Cao Cao's view, Xun Yu's ability to govern might not be inferior to Li Ji's.

Even though Qingzhou was desolate and riddled with problems, Xun Yu still successfully put Qingzhou back on track after initially settling it, demonstrating his governing ability, which Cao Cao himself was ashamed of.

Therefore, Cao Cao hoped that Xun Yu could, like Li Ji inexplicably producing countless money and food for Liu Da'er to squander, also wave his hand and state that money and food would be prepared when troops were sent.

However, facing Cao Cao's gaze, Xun Yu, whose face was a few shades paler than before due to his tireless work, only wanted to sleep.

Reality can't do it, but dreams have everything.

Qingzhou has suffered from the Yellow Turban scourge for more than a year or two. The people are fleeing, and the fields are abandoned. How could Xun Yu possibly dig money and food out of Qingzhou's land in such a short period of time for Cao Cao to send troops?

After a full moment, Xun Yu slowly opened his mouth with a bitter face.

"At the earliest, we can supply three months' worth of supplies for 50,000 troops by the second half of next year."

However, Cao Cao was clearly not satisfied with this answer.

By the second half of next year, everything might already be too late.

With Jing and Yang connected, and Tao Qian of Xuzhou being Liu Bei's ally, Liu Bei, who will have digested Jingzhou to a considerable extent after a year, might already have the conditions to send troops north to the Central Plains.

When the time comes to send troops again, will he have to compete with Liu Bei in the Central Plains?

Seeing the atmosphere in the council hall becoming more and more heavy, Cheng Yu, who had recently joined Cao Cao, slowly stood up and said.

"Lord, I have a plan that can greatly alleviate the pressure on money and food."

(End of this chapter)