Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator

"Does Lord Marquis have any further instructions?" Wei Yan asked, turning around with feigned arrogance, though his heart was filled with joy.

Even though Wei Yan was willing to serve under Liu Bei, he didn't want to be looked down upon.

What Wei Yan wanted was importance, what he wanted was to be put in a vital position.

However, this time, the look in Li Ji's eyes as he looked at Wei Yan revealed undisguised admiration.

Upon closer inspection, Li Ji wasn't someone who was blindly loyal.

His loyalty to Liu Bei was Li Ji's way of repaying Liu Bei's appreciation and trust.

Therefore, Li Ji truly didn't think there was anything wrong with Wei Yan's ideas, which seemed to defy loyalty and righteousness in this era.

If the ruler isn't wise, abandoning him to serve another is only human nature.

"Would Wen Chang care to sit down for a detailed discussion?" Li Ji asked, rising to invite him, which made Wei Yan feel flattered.

Wei Yan's background wasn't good, and his earlier all-or-nothing remarks had led him to believe that the Marquis of the State would be displeased, or even fly into a rage and drive him out.

To Wei Yan's surprise, he received courteous treatment from Li Ji, which made him feel both delighted and uneasy.

After inviting Wei Yan to sit down in front of him, Li Ji personally made tea and pushed a cup of tea towards Wei Yan.

Wei Yan carefully took it, tasted it, and found it to be quite bitter, not as refreshing as drinking wine, but he still showed a respectful expression on his face and said.

"Good tea, this tea is refreshing and incredibly sweet."

This made Li Ji chuckle silently, and without exposing Wei Yan's thoughts, he said.

"I have established a rule in the camp prohibiting alcohol, so I cannot break the rules. Otherwise, I would invite Wen Chang to drink wine."

"Tea is also excellent," Wei Yan replied.

"In that case, has Wen Chang drunk tea leaves from Wu Commandery before?" Li Ji asked.

Wei Yan shook his head and replied. "I've heard of it, but a small gatekeeper has no chance to drink it."

"You are both honest and dishonest," Li Ji said with a smile.

Wei Yan's already crimson face glowed slightly, and then he replied with his head lowered.

"In this chaotic world, with my humble background, naturally, I think about how to climb up."

Li Ji took a deep look at Wei Yan, who seemed to be somewhat moved, and slowly said.

"A soldier who doesn't want to be a general is not a good soldier. You are just too eager to improve. This is not a fault, but a motivation."

Wei Yan's eyes lit up subconsciously, and he looked at Li Ji in front of him, suddenly feeling like he had found a kindred spirit.

Compared to the "loyalty and righteousness" that was practiced in this era, Wei Yan was also aware that he seemed somewhat utilitarian, and he felt deeply ashamed about it.

However, Li Ji's words were like opening a new door for Wei Yan.

I'm not utilitarian, I'm just too eager to improve... …

"What Lord Marquis said is true, I really want to improve, and I hope Lord Marquis can give me a chance to serve under Uncle Liu and contribute a little to support the Han Dynasty."

When he said these words, Wei Yan's expression was quite relaxed.

This was a relaxed state where he didn't need to hide anything in front of a kindred spirit.

In response, Li Ji smiled, and then began to examine Wei Yan, even having Wei Yan spar with Xu Chu.

In general, Wei Yan wasn't outstanding in martial prowess; what he was good at was using and commanding troops, and he liked to use risky tactics, a typical bold and meticulous type.

Li Ji directly appointed Wei Yan as a Commandant with the status of a Chief Controller, temporarily keeping him in the camp at Chaisang for deployment.

Wei Yan naturally had no dissatisfaction with this, but instead, he was very grateful to Li Ji.

After interacting with Wei Yan, Li Ji admired Wei Yan more and more. He was very utilitarian, but he also had his own bottom line.

Whether it was from Wei Yan not intercepting Sun Ce, or from Wei Yan not choosing to capture Liu Biao and offer him to Liu Yan in exchange for wealth and glory, it could be seen that Wei Yan also had his own bottom line.

In Li Ji's view, Wei Yan's rebellious bone wasn't misplaced. Wei Yan would indeed abandon his lord, but he wasn't the kind of person who would betray his lord for personal gain, let alone someone like Lu Bu who would assassinate his lord.

In addition, Wei Yan's ability was quite good, and Li Ji had no reason to abandon him.

If Wei Yan performed well next, or made some achievements, it wouldn't be impossible for Li Ji to personally recommend him to Liu Bei at that time.

After arranging Wei Yan, seeing that it was already dark outside, Li Ji got up and walked towards the camp where Sun Ce lived to visit him.

When Li Ji arrived, besides Sun Ce lying on the couch in the camp, Zhou Yu was also there.

"Teacher."

Seeing Li Ji's appearance, Sun Ce struggled to get up and salute.

Seeing this, Li Ji quickly wanted to step forward to stop him.

However, whether it was Li Ji or Zhou Yu, their strength was naturally far from being comparable to Sun Ce's, and they couldn't stop Sun Ce at all.

Seeing this, Li Ji said helplessly.

"If Bo Fu still has the strength to get up and salute, then I can rest assured."

"A mere twenty lashes is nothing, and Ce'er knows that the teacher also had no choice but to do so. The teacher, who reluctantly issued this order, must be even more upset," Sun Ce said with his head lowered.

Hearing this, Li Ji couldn't help but pat Sun Ce on the shoulder, letting Sun Ce lie back on the couch to recover from his injuries.

At first, Sun Ce was a little unwilling, feeling that it was too rude in front of Li Ji, but under Li Ji's insistence, he still lay back down.

As Sun Ce moved like this, the wound on his back, which was wrapped in clean cloth strips, oozed blood again.

Twenty lashes, even if Sun Ce's body was inhumanly strong, was enough to beat his entire back to a pulp, but Sun Ce gritted his teeth and persevered without saying a word, which made Li Ji feel like Sun Ce had grown up in an instant.

"Gongjin, can you let me and Bo Fu communicate alone for a while?" Li Ji said to Zhou Yu, who was beside him with a headache on his face.

Zhou Yu had some displeasure on his face, but he also knew that he couldn't refuse this matter, so he had to bow and retreat.

After Zhou Yu retreated, Li Ji sat down next to Sun Ce and said.

"Ce'er, presumably with Gongjin's intelligence, he has already guessed a lot of things, and has also told you a lot of things."

"Teacher, I know that I was able to avenge my father this time entirely because of the teacher's tacit approval. I only have gratitude for the teacher in my heart, and have no other thoughts," Sun Ce replied while lying down.

"Yes."

Li Ji nodded, and then said with some shame.

"Twenty lashes of punishment, this is both to silence the public and to have a reasonable reason for you to return to Wu Commandery to recuperate in peace."

Feeling Li Ji's strong concern, Sun Ce, who was lying down, dared not raise his head even more, fearing that the teacher would see him in tears again, and replied vaguely.

"Yes, Teacher."

Immediately, Li Ji was silent for a while, and after accompanying Sun Ce for a while, he prepared to get up and leave.

For Li Ji, for Yang Province, the Jing Province war had just begun, and there were as many things as stars in the sky that Li Ji needed to plan for at all times.

However, just as Li Ji turned to leave, Sun Ce suddenly remembered something and said in a low and urgent voice.

"Teacher, wait... …"

"What's wrong?" Li Ji turned around and looked at Sun Ce with some confusion.

Sun Ce stood up, looked around, and then reached out to touch the clothes placed next to him, took out something and handed it to Li Ji.

Instantly, Li Ji's eyes narrowed.

Gold inlaid with jade... …

The Imperial Jade Seal! ! (End of this chapter)