Reincarnation in the Three Kingdoms Era with a System

Sending Chen Deng to Guangling wasn’t a random decision; Guangling was currently in a rather chaotic situation.

The point was to have Chen Deng use his connections to settle things there. To advance south and attack Yangzhou, Guangling was an essential route.

Xuzhou was a strategically important but indefensible location.

Therefore, Guangling was crucial to control. Taking Guangling would allow them to further advance towards the Yangtze River.

Mi Zhu was naturally unhappy with Chen Deng, but he was mild-mannered and had finally achieved some success.

Chen Deng wasn’t the main concern; he only needed to make things difficult for him later.

“Brother Yuanlong, there’s no need to worry. We were simply serving different masters back then. You’ve done your duty of loyalty. Let’s leave it at that.”

This was a veiled criticism of Chen Deng as a defector, first serving Tao Qian, then Liu Bei, and now, with Liu Bei’s defeat, he had switched allegiance to Lu Ming.

The timing of this sabotage was clearly intended to suppress Chen Deng. No matter how capable he was, his superiors would consider his past actions and prevent him from rising in rank.

Chen Deng secretly harbored resentment towards Mi Zhu, but didn’t show it.

Right now, he still needed to appease Lu Ming, his superior.

Even with his keen insight, Chen Deng could see that Lu Ming undoubtedly harbored ambitions of becoming emperor. He just hadn’t done so yet, and even if he did now, it wouldn’t necessarily cause any major problems, except perhaps some rebellions.

However, Lu Ming wasn’t in such a hurry, which made Chen Deng look at him with newfound respect. Those who achieve great things don’t concern themselves with trifles, and those with unwavering resolve can resist temptation and ultimately achieve great things.

“Gentlemen, filling your stomachs is the most important thing. We can discuss this later.”

Lu Ming waved his hand, effectively turning the matter aside.

It’s common for a leader and his subordinates to be at odds. If they were all in cahoots, then there would be a problem.

Especially since Xuzhou was neither too far nor too close to Zhengzhou, it was impossible for them to maintain harmony at this time.

Chen Deng had originally arranged for singing and dancing, but Lu Ming dismissed the women, opting for a simple meal and drinks.

This surprised Chen Deng. Lu Ming’s reputation for womanizing was directly proportional to his power. He hadn’t expected him to refuse women, even though he had already selected women to send over.

In truth, Lu Ming had little interest in these common beauties. He had already collected all the beauties of Jiangdong and Yangzhou. Only Lady Cai, the wife of Liu Biao of Jingzhou, remained.

He preferred married women—mature, sexy, and uninhibited.

He had collected most of the beauties from the Three Kingdoms period, and had no interest in the rest.

After staying in Xuzhou for a few days, he received a letter from Yuan Shu, inviting him to Shouchun.

Yuan Shu, who had declared himself emperor, had been soundly defeated by Cao Cao’s forces, who had even reached the gates of Shouchun.

If it weren’t for the brilliant strategists Pang Tong and Zhuge Liang, who launched attacks from both sides and delivered a satisfactory result, Yuan Shu would likely have died in Shouchun. Therefore, this invitation was specifically to express his gratitude.

Under normal circumstances, Lu Ming would certainly have gone. However, as the ruler of a state, he had no reason or need to take such a risk.

He tossed the letter to Zhuge Liang and took a sip of his tea.

“Kongming, take a look at Yuan Shu’s letter.”

Zhuge Liang had been incredibly busy these past few days, traveling throughout Xuzhou with Mi Zhu. Afterwards, he still needed to visit the lower counties to see which were the key areas.

County towns were the grassroots level, crucial hubs. Much corruption actually occurred at the county level. After all, the county magistrate wielded immense power; if he intentionally acted corruptly, it would have a very negative impact on public morale.

Zhuge Liang confidently glanced at the letter, then pondered for a moment before bowing with his feather fan in hand and saying, “My lord, Yuan Shu intends to sue for peace. When Cao Cao and Liu Bei joined forces to attack Yuan Shu, they were already at the gates of Binling, almost breaching Shouchun.

“Now that Cao Cao and Liu Bei are defeated, Yuan Shu cannot hold out any longer. Although Sun Ce of Jiangdong is weak, Jiangdong also has capable men, and they will surely seize this opportunity to attack Shouchun. Once Shouchun is captured, Jiangdong will be able to advance or retreat as needed.

“And if we want to take Jiangdong, Shouchun is a key point.”

“The suitable place for a large army to cross the river is Ruxukou outside Shouchun. Shouchun is an important town in Yangzhou, connecting waterways and land routes.”

“Historically, Sun Quan and Cao Cao fought for a long time around Shouchun, and Sun Quan contributed a famous scene, earning him the nickname ’Sun the Ten Thousand.’” “If our lord wishes to recuperate, then capturing Shouchun and Lujiang, and establishing a strategic position facing Sun Ce and Liu Biao across the river, would be the best course of action.”

Zhuge Liang approached the map and gave Lu Ming a detailed analysis.

The implication was to push the battle line to the Yangtze River. This would allow them to rely on the fortified city of Shouchun for defense. Whether the enemy launched a frontal attack or a surprise attack across the river, they would have to overcome Shouchun.

Now that Yuan Shu had proactively sought peace, it presented an opportunity to manipulate him.

Taking Shouchun without bloodshed was possible, and at least for now, Lu Ming and Yuan Shu didn’t have any major grudges.

They had even cooperated before, so there was some semblance of goodwill between them.

Lu Ming stroked his chin and nodded. “Very well, then I will reply. This time, Lü Bu will lead the army, assisted by Zhuge Jin, to Shouchun. Your brother is surely a capable persuader; if we can capture Shouchun, he will be credited with the greatest merit!”

“Your lord is wise.”

Zhuge Liang bowed, somewhat excited.

Capturing Shouchun would greatly benefit his army’s deployment.

Pang Tong had already advanced to Xinye, driving Cao Cao from Xinye to Xiangyang.

Gan Ning and Guo Jia had already taken Jingnan, using Jiangling City as bait to force Liu Biao to continuously send troops, gradually eroding the forces in Xiangyang.

As for Jiangxia, there was no movement at all. Because if they didn’t attack Huang Zu, Huang Zu wouldn’t launch a preemptive strike.

Huang Zu and Sun Ce had a blood feud; if Guo Jia didn’t attack Huang Zu, Huang Zu certainly wouldn’t attack. Huang Zu needed to preserve his strength to avoid being attacked by Sun Ce.

Thus, a balance of power was established, even though Jingzhou was already riddled with problems.

Lu Ming then returned to the Mi family’s residence, which he had already requisitioned.

“Where are the ladies?”

Lu Ming didn’t find his wives upon entering, so he asked a guard.

“The ladies are in the back garden.”

When Lu Ming went to the back garden, he saw a group of women dressed in revealing undergarments, doing stretching exercises led by Lin Daiyu.

This was the Five Animal Frolics, invented by Hua Tuo, and considered the precursor to yoga.