Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

If Liu Yan had been fortunate enough to overcome his illness, Liu Zhang would have had no chance to contend for the inheritance even if he returned to Yizhou.

Fortunately, illness was about to overcome Liu Yan.

In that case, it would be Liu Zhang's chance to return to Yizhou.

However, the plank road to Ba Commandery was now broken, and the only way to enter Yizhou was by waterway.

And when it came to familiarity with the waterways of Ba Commandery, perhaps no one could compare to Gan Ning.

Moreover, Liu Zhang's elder brothers might be on guard against their foolish younger brother returning to Yizhou, making it no easy task to safely send Liu Zhang back to Yizhou under such circumstances.

"Xingba, can you safely escort Liu Jiyu back to Yizhou?" Li Ji asked.

Gan Ning hesitated slightly upon hearing this, and then said.

"It's not difficult to safely send Liu Zhang back to Yizhou, the difficulty lies in the previous conflict between me and Liu Zhang, I'm afraid something might happen."

"There's no need for Xingba to worry about this, I have already communicated with Liu Jiyu in advance, and he will listen to your arrangements throughout the journey back to Yizhou," Li Ji explained.

"If that's the case, Lord Marquis, please rest assured, I will definitely ensure that Liu Zhang returns to Yizhou safe and sound."

Gan Ning patted his chest and made a guarantee.

Li Ji nodded, and then said.

"After sending Liu Jiyu back to Yizhou, Xingba doesn't need to rush back, you can assist Liu Jiyu in seizing power as appropriate."

"Lord Marquis, what's the use of helping Liu Zhang?" Gan Ning still couldn't hide his dislike for Liu Zhang.

"Liu Jiyu promised that after gaining control of Yizhou, he would cede Ba Commandery to Jing Province."

Li Ji's light and airy words made Gan Ning widen his eyes subconsciously.

How could Gan Ning not understand the importance of Ba Commandery?

Liu Biao had calculated repeatedly, and what he wanted was Ba Commandery, which served as the gateway to Yizhou.

As long as Ba Commandery was in hand, the natural barriers of Yizhou would be reduced by seventy percent, and it would be easy to drive straight from Ba Commandery into the heart of Yizhou.

Moreover, promising to cede Ba Commandery to Jing Province was both a political reward and a statement of Liu Zhang's position.

"I didn't expect Liu Zhang to be so generous, could it be a trick?"

Gan Ning said with some surprise.

Li Ji smiled slightly and said. "If Liu Jiyu is playing tricks, his head will hang itself in the southwest."

These words made Gan Ning feel a chill down his spine for some reason, understanding that Li Ji had definitely made more than one preparation.

And Gan Ning didn't ask any more questions, after confirming the details of sending Liu Zhang back to Yizhou, he withdrew.

After Gan Ning left, Li Ji sat and savored the fragrant tea for a while, before getting up and returning to the desk, on which was spread a map of the thirteen states of the Great Han.

In addition to Jing and Yang provinces, Zhang Zhao, Zhang Hong, and Yu Guo, with the secret support of Liu Bei, had initially taken control of Jiao Province.

It's just that Jiao Province is sparsely populated and the situation is complicated, so it is obviously impossible to provide much help in the process of contending for hegemony, but there is no longer a risk of affecting the rear.

However, by connecting the coastal areas of Jiao Province through developed seagoing ships, it is also possible to allow the people of Jiao Province to assist in building some military equipment and objects for compensation in their spare time through a similar "outsourcing" method, reducing the pressure.

For example, the arrow shafts for the most massive consumable, arrows.

The problem in Yizhou, on the other hand, was the least of Li Ji's worries.

With the support of the Yizhou gentry and the assistance of Zhang Song and Gan Ning, Liu Zhang's chances of ascending to the throne were actually much higher than those of his brothers.

Moreover, even if Liu Zhang harbored ambitions, after completely relying on the power of the Yizhou gentry to ascend to the throne, he would inevitably be constrained by the gentry in all aspects, making it difficult to achieve great things.

And when Yizhou and Jingnan are stabilized, and Jing Province has completely digested, then will be the day to launch the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains.

It's just that the heat in Li Ji's eyes flashed and then subsided, and he refocused his energy on stabilizing Jingbei.

The reason why Li Ji had to stay in Xiangyang, Jingbei, was not only to deter Yuan Shu and control the overall situation, but also to gradually guide the Jingzhou gentry to Yizhou like the Yangzhou gentry.

The matter of Yizhou is not a secret in the circle of the Han Dynasty gentry.

It's just that the Yangzhou gentry have only been in Yizhou for a short time, and have only initially gained a foothold in Yizhou, let alone how much benefit or advantage they have obviously gained.

Moreover, the inconvenience of information transmission makes a lot of information distorted or exaggerated, so the gentry outside Yangzhou are more skeptical or dismissive of this matter.

Therefore, how to make the Jingzhou gentry also willing to enter the game, Li Ji also needs to carefully plan.

In addition to this, there is another major event, that is, Li Ji is preparing to suggest to Liu Bei to move the seat of government.

Previously, after initially setting Yangzhou, it was still barely acceptable for Liu Bei to set Wu County as the seat of government.

But now, even if there is the Yangtze River connecting Jing and Yang provinces, it seems quite inappropriate to still have Wu County as the seat of government.

More importantly, the location of the seat of government will not only affect the control of the territory, but also implicitly express the ambition of the monarch.

Just like Zhu Di of the Ming Dynasty moved the capital to Beiping, intending "the emperor guards the country's gate, and the monarch dies for the country."

Also, as in the original trajectory, the Eastern Wu set its capital in Jianye City south of the Yangtze River, and as a result, it was Jiangdong Jerry for the rest of his life, never having the ambition to launch a Northern Expedition to the Central Plains and unify the world, only thinking about living in a corner.

Liu Bei's ambition is to unify the world and restore the Han Dynasty. Now that Jing and Yang provinces are connected, how can Wu County be the seat of government?

The seat of government should be officially moved, and it needs to be moved north of the Yangtze River, indicating the ambition to launch a Northern Expedition to the Central Plains and unify the world.

And counting the places north of the Yangtze River in Jing and Yang provinces that are suitable as the seat of government, there are only Xiangyang and Shouchun.

Xiangyang need not be said, its geographical location is superior, connecting all directions, the water network is crisscrossed, after advancing north to Nanyang County, it can take Yuzhou to the west, advance to Sili to the north, and it is also one of the few majestic cities in the world.

However, after repeated deliberation and consideration, Li Ji still suggested in a letter sent to Wu County that Liu Bei should move the seat of government to Shouchun.

Perhaps Shouchun is not as critical as Xiangyang in terms of terrain, but later generations also have the saying that "if the southerners get it, the Central Plains will lose its barrier; if the northerners get it, Jiangnan will lose its throat."

This shows the importance of Shouchun, and it will be the bridgehead for the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains.

If Liu Bei takes Shouchun as the seat of government, he can teach the world his ambition to launch a Northern Expedition to the Central Plains, and also unite the hearts of the upper and lower levels.

More importantly, compared to Xiangyang, Shouchun's location is more conducive for Liu Bei to control the many ports near the coast.

Moreover, Guan Yu successfully took advantage of the opportunity to seize Ruyin City, expanding hundreds of miles north towards Shouchun, leaving enough barriers and depth for Shouchun City, so that the enemy could not directly approach the seat of government under the city.

[... The above are the humble opinions that Ji thought of at the moment, there may be many omissions, please forgive the Lord.

The time is September, and the autumn wind is gradually rising. I wonder if the Lord is well? I hope you take good care of yourself.

— Li Zikun]

As this letter arrived in Wu County, Liu Bei solemnly read it back and forth three times, confirming that there were no omissions, before frowning and thinking carefully.

Moving the seat of government is a major event, which can be said to affect the whole body, and it is necessary to consider all aspects.