Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

After Liu Bei and Li Ji discreetly toured Ren De Academy, they arrived at the main entrance, where a stone tablet stood, inscribed with Li Ji's previous writing, the Four Sentences of Hengqu.

"Establish the heart for Heaven and Earth, establish the mission for the living, continue the lost learning for past sages, and create peace for all generations."

Of course, since these four sentences were written by Li Ji, the students privately referred to them as the "Zikun Four Sentences," and Ren De Academy also adopted them as its school motto.

While Liu Bei had heard these four sentences before, standing in front of the stone tablet still filled him with awe.

"Zikun's ambition is worthy of being a model for the world. If everyone were like Zikun, how could we have the worries of this chaotic world?"

However, after saying this, Liu Bei couldn't help but laugh.

Zikun, how could everyone be like him?

"I only hope that the students of the academy can comprehend more of the principles within, and it won't be in vain that they are inspired by these four sentences written by Zikun, even I..."

Speaking to this point, Liu Bei paused, and his previously somewhat dispirited heart was inexplicably deeply touched.

Rather than wallowing in the corruption of the court and the filth of factional struggles, it would be better to focus his energy on the grand ambitions described in the four sentences before him.

Observing the dissipation of the melancholy in Liu Bei's eyes, a smile couldn't help but appear on the corners of Li Ji's lips.

These four sentences have an unimaginable impact on the men of the Great Han.

Although with Liu Bei's resilience, he would not have wavered in his resolve due to the chaos of the times even without intervention, perhaps this stage of emotional stagnation could make Liu Bei's ambitions even grander.

Merely reviving the Han Dynasty and recreating the Great Han is not enough, my lord!

Set your sights further afield, and let your subordinates open up a more glorious future for you...

This time, Li Ji did not urge Liu Bei, but allowed him to gaze at the four sentences and contemplate for a long time, until a thin layer of snow accumulated on their shoulders.

Only then did Liu Bei suddenly react, turning to look at Li Ji, who had been waiting patiently, and quickly reached out to help Li Ji brush off the snow from his shoulders, saying.

"Zikun, I have troubled you to wait so long."

"It's nothing."

Li Ji forced a smile on his slightly stiff face, then also raised his hand to brush off the snow for Liu Bei, saying.

"As long as my lord is determined to move forward, I will accompany you. I will brush away the wind and frost on the road for you."

At this moment, Liu Bei felt a slight chill in his hands and feet, but his heart felt incredibly warm.

Immediately, Liu Bei bowed deeply, just as he had when they first met in Zhuo County. "Then I would like to ask Zikun to accompany Bei on this journey, treading through the wind and snow, to reach the other shore."

Li Ji also returned the salute solemnly, saying. "The other shore is not enough, how about reaching the end, my lord?"

"Good!"

Hearing this, Liu Bei felt that the world had become vast, and he couldn't help but let out a hearty laugh.

The current situation is difficult, the Great Han is on the verge of collapse, and Zikun has predicted the coming of chaos...

So what?

A little wind and snow, that's all. If I and Zikun support each other, how can we not reach the other shore?

Moreover, we will surely reach the end!

If the Great Han truly falls, then Bei will rebuild it bit by bit.

Immediately, Liu Bei took Li Ji's hand and walked out of Ren De Academy side by side.

Feeling Liu Bei's change, Li Ji suddenly had a feeling of "nurturing a lord."

As Liu Bei completely cheered up, no longer in the state of youthful enthusiasm being doused with cold water by the darkness of the court, Liu Bei and Li Ji simply did not return to the government office after leaving Ren De Academy, but directly pulled him to his residence.

Moreover, Liu Bei also specially sent people to invite Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who were also in Wu County, to come and boil wine and host a banquet in the mansion.

It must be said that in an environment of fine snow, inviting three or five friends to boil wine in a pavilion is indeed an elegant affair.

Facing Li Ji, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei, Liu Bei never put on airs, but simply busied himself like an elder brother.

This made Li Ji inexplicably think of a poem.

"Green ant new brew wine, red clay small stove. Late in the day, it will snow, can you drink a cup?"

However, in order to leave more opportunities for later talented scholars, Li Ji, who did not need another poem to decorate himself, naturally did not need to speak out and make later talented scholars feel that they were living in his shadow.

Before long, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who had nothing to do in the city at the moment, arrived at the mansion.

Compared with the many civil officials who were busy with the approaching New Year.

With the end of the wars with the Shanyue and Kuaiji Commandery, many military generals could almost be regarded as having no place to use their strength. Apart from occasionally leading troops to patrol, they could only train troops to vent their energy.

Especially Zhang Fei, who was idle and bored, and not long ago ran back to help dig river channels.

Therefore, after Zhang Fei took his seat, he almost immediately complained to Li Ji.

"Mr. Zikun, you are too unfair to me. Before, Second Brother at least commanded troops and was stationed in Fuchun Mountain, and then had a good fight with the Shanyue."

"What about me? I'm just running around as a postal inspector every day. I committed a crime before, and I was ordered to repair the river. When the punishment ended, the war was already over."

Liu Bei frowned and scolded lightly, saying. "Yide, don't talk nonsense. No war is a great thing for the people. How can you be unhappy because there is no war?"

Zhang Fei's big black face showed a bit of pitiful expression and opened his mouth to say.

"Brother, I, I'm just itching for a fight. I remember the three of us brothers fighting in the north and south, but in the past year or so, except for fighting Yan Baihu's gang of mountain bandits before, there has been almost no war."

"Brother, isn't the rebellion in Liang Province only temporarily suspended in winter? It will definitely rise again next year. Why don't you ask the imperial court to take the initiative to send a partial army to help? Let me lead the troops myself, how about that?"

Liu Bei almost flatly denied Zhang Fei's suggestion. "Impossible."

Yang Province is more than a thousand miles away from Liang Province. Sending troops on such a long expedition will inevitably cause the army's morale to fluctuate, and the combat power that can be exerted is limited.

Moreover, if the number of troops sent is large, the consumption of money and food will be extremely large, and if the number of troops sent is too small, it will be a drop in the bucket.

What's more, even if the situation is so critical that the Liang Province rebels break through the Three Auxiliary Lands, and the imperial court orders the four directions to come to the king's aid, it is impossible for Liu Bei to let Zhang Fei out alone.

Zhang Fei, who was rejected, looked helpless, but did not dare to disobey his elder brother's majesty, so he could only open his mouth and pour a large gulp of wine for himself.

"Zikun, look at this Yide, he hasn't become more stable even after marrying a wife." Seeing this, Liu Bei complained to Li Ji.

"Yide's temperament has always been straightforward, and Yide has indeed not fought for a long time."

Li Ji responded, causing Zhang Fei to immediately feel a glimmer of hope, saying. "Brother, look, Mr. Zikun is supporting me."

"Yide, I am not supporting you to go north to the Three Auxiliary Lands, but there is indeed a place where troops may be needed after the New Year," Li Ji said with a smile.

"Where?" Zhang Fei asked quickly.

Moreover, Liu Bei and Guan Yu also turned their attention over.

It is currently winter, and there are no enemies to speak of around Wu Commandery, so there should be no place to use troops.

Immediately, Li Ji picked up a charcoal block used for boiling wine that was placed aside, and casually drew a map of Wu Commandery and Kuaiji Commandery.

Even though the area actually controlled by Liu Bei is only two commanderies, it is actually not small at all, from the Yangtze River in the north to Yongning County (now Quanzhou and Xiamen) in the south.

It is conceivable how sparsely populated the area south of the Yangtze River was in this era.

Even though Liu Bei constantly recruited refugees to replenish the population of Wu Commandery and Kuaiji Commandery, the actual population of Wu Commandery and Kuaiji Commandery is now barely close to 2.4 million.

And without the influence of Liu Bei and Li Ji, the local population of the two commanderies combined would be about 1.5 million.

After Li Ji finished drawing the map of Kuaiji Commandery, he did not stop, but instead drew a circle on the overseas location east of Yongning County, with a size comparable to Wu Commandery.

"Zikun, what is this circle?" Liu Bei asked in confusion.

Li Ji threw the charcoal block in his hand aside, washed his hands with clean water, and then opened his mouth to say.

"The Book of Documents · Yu Gong divides the Nine Provinces, and once said: Huaihai is only Yangzhou, and it was also recorded: Bird Yi Hui clothing. Jue 篚 woven shells, Jue wrapped oranges and pomelos, tin tribute. Along the Jiang and Hai, reaching the Huai and Si."

"It mentions that the people of the coastal islands of Yang Province wear grass-woven clothes, and are accustomed to putting shell brocade in baskets and wrapping oranges and pomelos as tributes, and these tributes have also reached the Huai and Si rivers along the Yangtze and Yellow Seas."

"At that time, I was quite curious about where the island Yi of Yang Province recorded in the Book of Documents · Yu Gong were located? Since it is recorded in ancient books and belongs to the Nine Provinces, it should also be the territory of our Great Han, and its people should also be the people of our Great Han, but why has there been no trace of them?"

Hearing this, Zhang Fei also reacted and said. "Mr. Zikun, could it be that the island Yi recorded in the Book of Documents · Yu Gong is the place you drew?"

"That's right, I sent people south to search carefully, and finally lived up to the guidance of the sages and found the traces of the island Yi," Li Ji replied with a smile.

Suddenly, a hint of heat appeared in the eyes of Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei.

Island Yi, seen in the Book of Documents · Yu Gong, transformed into Yangzhou within the Nine Provinces, but not within the current territory of the Great Han, that is undoubtedly the land lost by the Great Han unintentionally.

And incorporating the island Yi, which has been a part of the Nine Provinces since ancient times, into a part of the Great Han again is undoubtedly in absolute compliance with the great righteousness, that is the recovery of lost land, that is a major event that will be sung by the world and recorded in history books.

"Me! Me!!"

Zhang Fei suddenly stood up and said repeatedly, “Mr. Zikun, what do you think of me? As long as you let me lead troops to the island barbarians, I will definitely bring them back under the rule of the Nine Provinces.”

At that moment, Guan Yu, who had been maintaining a high and aloof demeanor and hadn't spoken a word, also opened his mouth.

“Mr. Zikun, my third brother is brave but acts rashly. Recapturing the island barbarians is a major matter, and Yide might make mistakes. It would be better to let Guan go.”

(End of chapter)