Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

More importantly, whether Liu Bei could dominate Jiangdong had no real connection to the title of "Governor of Yangzhou."

Even if the imperial court withheld the title of "Governor of Yangzhou" from Liu Bei, if Liu Bei substantially controlled the entire Yangzhou, then even if he dispatched other officials to serve as the Governor of Yangzhou, they would only be puppets in Liu Bei's hands.

Even having someone else nominally serve as "Governor of Yangzhou" could give Li Ji an excuse to conquer Yangzhou everywhere and push the blame onto the so-called "Governor of Yangzhou."

However, Chen Gong also knew that his prediction had been wrong in the first place. At this time, the more he explained, the more Lü Bu would dislike it.

Therefore, after Chen Gong sighed inwardly, he cupped his hands and admitted his mistake. "I am shallow and ignorant, and I did not expect Marquis Guoshi to have such a brilliant plan. Please punish me, Marquis Wushuang."

"Enough, enough…"

Lü Bu might be dissatisfied with Chen Gong, but he would not pursue the matter and simply said,

"But if Gongtai is not sure of what he says in the future, please do not say it, lest it lead to a big mistake."

Chen Gong's face stiffened, and he did not say anything more, simply cupping his hands and retreating to the side.

However, looking at Chen Gong's somewhat lonely expression, Zhang Liao, who was standing in the row of military generals next to Zhang Xiu, felt a little unbearable and wanted to say something for Chen Gong.

But after slightly raising his foot, Zhang Liao still did not step forward.

It was not that Zhang Liao was worried about being blamed by Lü Bu, but that Zhang Liao knew better that Lü Bu, perhaps because of his two betrayals of his lords, was quite wary and disliked his subordinates forming cliques.

Even though Zhang Liao had no personal relationship with Chen Gong and was acting out of public interest, he still needed to worry about whether he would be misunderstood by Lü Bu.

At this moment, Chen Qun opened his mouth with a high-spirited and calm expression.

"It is difficult for Marquis Wushuang to be so critical of Brother Gongtai. After all, Wu Commandery is thousands of miles away, and the opponent is Marquis Guoshi, the most famous strategist in the world."

"Not to mention Brother Gongtai, no one would dare to say that they could predict Marquis Guoshi without any mistakes."

These words, which showed public-mindedness and defended Chen Gong, undoubtedly made everyone present feel a great sense of goodwill towards Chen Qun.

Only Chen Gong glanced at Chen Qun secretly, revealing a trace of disgust in his eyes, understanding that Chen Qun's words were tantamount to kicking someone when they were down, adding fuel to the fire.

Chen Qun's words made Lü Bu quite appreciative and satisfied, but also reminded him of some rumors, saying.

"I heard that Liu Bei once took Li Ji to Yingchuan to visit the Chen family? I wonder if Changwen has already met Liu Bei and Li Ji?"

"I dare not deceive Marquis Wushuang, I have indeed met them," Chen Qun replied with cupped hands.

"Oh? Then what does Changwen think of Liu Bei and Li Ji? And they must have come to seek the support of the Chen family of Yingchuan, so why didn't Changwen agree?" Lü Bu asked further.

"Uncle Liu, a benevolent gentleman; Marquis Guoshi is also worthy of his reputation. Although it was only a brief encounter and a few brief conversations, Marquis Guoshi was familiar with everything I asked about, whether it was astronomy, geography, military formations, or governing the people."

Chen Qun replied unhurriedly, causing Chen Gong to glance at Chen Qun again, feeling that this Chen Qun was really extremely hypocritical.

With the connections of the Chen family of Yingchuan, Chen Qun was naturally not an unknown person. On the contrary, Chen Qun's reputation among the talents of Yingchuan could be said to be the greatest.

However, compared with Li Ji, who was famous all over the world, Chen Qun was just an unnamed person who had not yet entered officialdom, only with a false reputation.

What consultation, what familiarity…

Seemingly praising Li Ji, but in fact subtly expressing that he was not below Li Ji.

Unfortunately, compared with the strategists who buried countless thoughts in a few words, Lü Bu and the other military generals present naturally could not hear the problem.

After Chen Qun paused slightly, he continued to say.

"It's just that Uncle Liu may not be a benevolent lord, but Marquis Wushuang is now the pillar of the Han Dynasty, maintaining the court."

"And my Chen family of Yingchuan, who have been eating Han salaries for generations, now that the Han Dynasty is in trouble, should do our best to help Marquis Wushuang pacify the troubled times and support the Han Dynasty. How can we follow Uncle Liu and live in a corner?"

This righteous flattery undoubtedly described the Chen family of Yingchuan as being wholeheartedly for the public, and even patted Lü Bu, who was unpretentious, to the point of almost having an internal climax.

What kind of days had Lü Bu lived before? He was either fighting with the Hu people in Bingzhou, or suffering from Ding Yuan's oppression and empty promises.

When he was under Dong Zhuo, Lü Bu was also often excluded by the Xiliang generals, and he had to be careful in his actions, and he had to compliment Dong Zhuo from time to time.

Even Lü Bu often needed to personally escort Dong Zhuo in and out of the palace to wear down his energy. Where had he ever enjoyed such high-level flattery from a top aristocratic son like Chen Qun?

"Good, good, good!"

Lü Bu couldn't help but show a satisfied smile on his face, saying.

"I will never forget the public-mindedness of the Chen family of Yingchuan. I will go to the palace to report to His Majesty another day. If such a loyal and patriotic minister is not rewarded, how can he convince the public?"

Hearing this, Chen Qun responded with a calm and unhurried attitude. The other generals present looked at Chen Qun, who was good at socializing, with mostly kind eyes.

Only Chen Gong's face was quite ugly, but he was helpless.

Compared with Chen Qun's good at socializing, Chen Gong was neither good at communication, nor could he say such words of praise to Lü Bu.

However, Chen Gong also knew that the current Lü Bu Group needed the support of the Chen family of Yingchuan, not only because the Chen family of Yingchuan could help Lü Bu quickly control the Sili region.

More importantly, with the Chen family of Yingchuan's huge influence in Yanzhou, it could greatly reduce the resistance for Lü Bu to leave the pass and capture Yanzhou in the future.

What Chen Gong was quite worried about was the situation in Yangzhou…

Liu Bei's reputation for benevolence, coupled with the assistance of Marquis Guoshi and a group of fierce generals, would undoubtedly make him a formidable enemy once he had taken all of Yangzhou.

However, when Lü Bu shifted the topic to other aspects, and even when the meeting ended, Chen Gong, who was lost in thought and remained silent, had not been able to find a way to further control Liu Bei.

The only thing he could do was to place his hope on Yuan Shu, Liu Biao, and Tao Qian, hoping that they could delay and hinder Liu Bei's expansion as much as possible.

Especially when he thought of the relationship between Liu Biao, Tao Qian, and Liu Bei, which made it difficult for Liu Bei to attack, it seemed that the only option could be Yuan Shu, which made Chen Gong feel a lot more at ease.

With the Yuan family's foundation and influence in the Central Plains, he was by no means an easy person to deal with. It would be best if the two sides could fight to the end and suffer a double loss.

As long as Yuan Shu completely controlled the Nanyang Commandery and Runan Commandery, the population of these two large commanderies alone would be comparable to the entire Yangzhou.

(PS: Nanyang Commandery and Runan Commandery are the largest commanderies in the world after Wu Commandery, with a population of over two million each. Adding up the two commanderies, including some unregistered households, the population of five million is definitely indispensable.)

However, what Chen Gong didn't know was that Yuan Shu, whom he had placed high hopes on, had learned about the relevant news of the "Anti-Wu Alliance," but he didn't pay attention to it at all.

In Yuan Shu's eyes:

Jiangdong aristocratic families?

What kind of trash are they?

Liu Bei?

He is just a nouveau riche who is lucky for a while.

Yuan Shu did not pay attention to the news about the "Anti-Wu Alliance" at all. After Yuan Shu returned to Nanyang Commandery, he did not rush to take office in Runan Commandery, but frantically sent a large number of scouts to the vicinity of Xiangyang, wanting to find the whereabouts of the Imperial Jade Seal.

The Imperial Jade Seal, this treasure of the country, was the focus of Yuan Shu's attention.

At this moment, Yuan Shao, who had already returned to Bohai Commandery, attached great importance to the news of Sun Jian's death and the Anti-Wu Alliance.

However, Yuan Shao, who was far away on the north bank of the Yellow River, was beyond his reach, and he secretly despised the incompetence and inferiority of the Jiangdong aristocratic families.

Not to mention that the appearance of the Anti-Wu Alliance was a provocation to Yuan Shao, the leader of the alliance, but also revealed a sense of narrow-minded ignorance.

Even if Yuan Shao sometimes wanted to secretly drag Liu Bei down, he needed to do it secretly to avoid being criticized.

As a result, the Jiangdong aristocratic families were good, openly forming the "Anti-Wu Alliance," with a firm attitude of advancing and retreating with Dong Zhuo. Yuan Shao wanted to make things difficult for Liu Bei on this matter, but he didn't know how to speak out.

In addition to being more afraid of Li Ji, who was rumored to have destroyed the Anti-Wu Alliance from thousands of miles away, Yuan Shao also sent many people to Jingzhou, trying to confirm or find the whereabouts of the Imperial Jade Seal.

However, after Yuan Shao returned to Jizhou, he realized that the situation in Jizhou seemed to have been dug a big hole by Chen Gong.

Originally, Yuan Shao, with the prestige of the Yuan family, was about to completely subdue Han Fu, the former governor of Jizhou.

Therefore, what Yuan Shao wanted was to control Bingzhou in the name of the Governor of Bingzhou, and then control the entire Jizhou through Han Fu.

In this way, Bing and Ji two states were connected. For Yuan Shao, it could be said that there was no shortage of horse breeding grounds and grain producing areas, and the foundation for hegemony had been established.

However, after Han Fu was promoted to Governor of Jizhou, a series of actions after returning to Jizhou clearly showed that Han Fu, who had originally been obedient to Yuan Shao, had developed other ideas.

And Gongsun Zan actually sent someone to Bohai Prefecture Yamen to take over Bohai in the name of the Governor of Bohai.

In Yuan Shao's view, Gongsun Zan was simply ungrateful and completely didn't take himself, the leader of the alliance, seriously. Yuan Shao even secretly arranged for people to kill all the people sent by Gongsun Zan in a rage.

It was not until afterwards that Yuan Shao realized that Gongsun Zan had sent his cousin Gongsun Yue.

This made Yuan Shao, who had only wanted to give Gongsun Zan a warning, feel very regretful, and also completely deteriorated the relationship between the two sides. Even Han Fu seized the opportunity to start contacting Gongsun Zan.

As things developed, the situation in the entire Ji Province was undoubtedly extremely complex, requiring Yuan Shao to devote most of his energy to it.

For a time, after the disbandment of the anti-Dong Zhuo alliance, the conflicts in various regions gradually became acute, giving the impression that war was about to break out.

Meanwhile, Cao Cao was leading his army and stationed in the Yingchuan Commandery.

As news arrived from all sides, Cao Cao couldn't help but reveal a ecstatic smile, and he spoke to a handsome man sitting in the lower seat, who was both refined and elegant, and showed extraordinary beauty.

"Wenruo, you are truly an unparalleled talent, no less than the Marquis of Guoshi!"

"That Xu Ziyuan actually persuaded Yuan Benchu to angrily kill Gongsun Zan's envoy. Now Yuan Benchu and Gongsun Zan have completely fallen out, and Wenruo secretly sent someone to persuade Han Fu."

"Yuan Benchu, who was originally high-spirited and claimed to be able to control the lands of Ji and Bing provinces with a single command, is probably having trouble sleeping and eating. He won't be able to take care of us for a while."

Xun Yu, whose beauty was comparable to jade, bowed slightly to show humility and said.

"Compared to the Marquis of Guoshi, Yu is still far behind. However, now is a great opportunity for you, my lord, and it must not be missed!"

(End of this chapter)