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"Hey, isn’t this the Great Leader?" Chen Xi said with a teasing smile upon seeing Zang Ba enter the tent, with Guan and Zhang laughing heartily as well.
"I have not failed your expectations!" Zang Ba responded, saluting with a fist.
"Hmm, I have already instructed Fa Zheng to prepare a coffin and a corpse as well as a eulogy, ready to bury your body double as a hero." Chen Xi said with a smile, having started looking for a body double half a month ago, for they certainly couldn’t bury Zang Ba for real... n𝚘𝚟𝚙𝚞𝚋.𝚌o𝚖
"Ah, the Yellow Turbans have it tough." Zang Ba sighed as he flung the yellow cloth wrapped around his head onto the table.
"It’s ’official oppression leads to rebellion’; thus, what I’m doing is good. At least I won’t harm them. You should stay out of sight for now, get paler, gain some weight, grow a beard—in short, stay hidden until you can’t be recognized anymore!" Chen Xi said with a smile.
After the new Yellow Turbans’ Great Commander left the camp for Mount Tai Camp, it wasn’t long before the Soldiers of Mount Tai brought the coffin with the body double’s corpse and delivered a large amount of grain and clear water, declaring that, touched by the Great Commander’s spirit and righteousness, all Yellow Turbans, unless truly wicked, could come to Mount Tai to start anew, with all past misdeeds forgiven!
"It’s done, Qingzhou will be our backyard from now on. As soon as we’re able to focus on it, Qingzhou will be ours! Let’s drink to that!" Chen Xi excitedly said as he took out alcohol for everyone else, pouring a bowl for each, and filling one for himself with sweet rice wine.
"This is Zichuan’s capability!" Guan Yu drank the strong liquor, over sixty degrees, without changing his expression, praising while feeling like there was fire in his belly.
"Good liquor!" Zhang Fei gulped it down and then eagerly looked at the jug of wine at Chen Xi’s feet.
"Alright, stop staring. It’s fine to drink this kind of alcohol occasionally, but it’s too wasteful of grain. When we have a surplus of food, I can arrange some for you. For now, don’t even think about it!" Chen Xi said with a laugh before instructing someone to take the jug back, as it was meant for disinfecting purposes.
"Then Old Zhang will wait for that day." Zhang Fei exclaimed joyfully.
"With the borders of Qing and Yan now pacified, I no longer need to continue leading these soldiers. Zilong, Ziyi, listen to my command!" Chen Xi put down his liquor bowl and turned serious, waiting until everyone finished their drinks before solemnly speaking.
"Your subordinate is here!" Zhao Yun and Taishi Ci stood up, stepping forward.
"I order the two of you to take your Private Troops and select ten thousand Yellow Turbans, station troops in Licheng to guard against Yuan Shao! I also ask that Zilong continues to oversee the Tuntian agricultural affairs in Qing and Yan." Chen Xi handed the prepared orders to Zhao Yun and Taishi Ci respectively.
"Understood!" Zhao Yun and Taishi Ci answered loudly.
"Zhongtai, you lead Bo Tai and Wen Hou to help the refugees in Qingzhou with their agricultural settlements. Be open to all newcomers. If there are any confusions, consult Zilong. You are to select the Tuntian Soldiers yourselves, keeping the number below fifty thousand. Treat the local civilians just the same!" Chen Xi handed another set of orders to Sunx Guan, Sunx Kang, and Wu Dun. The internal affairs of Qingzhou would be managed by these three, leaving the issue of lawlessness to be dealt with after the summer harvest, since food and warmth were the priorities now—without food, nothing else mattered.
"Understood!" The three of them stood up, bowed, and responded.
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"Yunchang, Yide, lead the troops and follow me north, pressuring Jizhou!" Chen Xi’s eyes sparkled. While it wasn’t yet time to challenge Yuan Shao, their power was already sufficient to influence the world’s situation, especially now that he was riding the momentum of a great victory, pushing up to Jizhou. Even Yuan Benchu would have to weigh his options carefully. With wolves before him and tigers behind, any slight mishap could lead to Jizhou’s downfall, and Gongsun Zan was precisely in an aggressive stance!
"Yes!" Guan Yu and Zhang Fei stood and responded loudly.
"Great Commander, may I ask about my assignment?" Zang Ba saw that everyone had received their tasks and he was the only one left without one, so he stood up and inquired.
"Xuangao will return to Fenggao, leading three thousand cavalry. If Cao Cao makes any moves, don’t hold back; launch a surprise attack on Chenliu, and show him some color. We don’t need to be concerned with keeping face with Cao Cao anymore, and besides, he won’t be taking the same road as us. Give him a warning to avoid causing trouble. Of course, if Cao Mengde does not take action, your task is merely to maintain pressure," Chen Xi gave the final command to Zang Ba. At the very least, Zang Ba best not appear in Qingzhou this year; having the Great Leader around was just too troublesome.
"Yes!" Zang Ba excitedly clasped his hands, thrilled by the prospect of suppressing a Feudal Lord—it sounded quite exhilarating!
After assigning the military duties, Chen Xi clapped Fa Zheng on the back, signaling that it was time to bring in the music, dance, and wine feast. As for the military bans on drinking alcohol and women entering the camp—such trivial matters could be overlooked as long as you could win a battle. These were very different from the military regulations some orders represented; there was a great deal of flexibility.
The following day, the army split up. Chen Xi led Fa Zheng, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, and Taishi Ci northward. If this lineup were to appear when these men had become world-renowned, Yuan Shao would probably be scared half to death. Now, Yuan Shao was still unaware of the situation, but news of Chen Xi’s massive victory over the Yellow Turbans would soon spread across the entire Great Han.
Meanwhile, Hua Xiong, after more than ten days of practicing an unknown Formation, worked hard along with his soldiers, but now, Jia Xu could take a group of ants and arrange them on a chariot shaft into an Eight Trigrams yin and yang chart, then generate Cloud Qi and Light Shield that divided yin from yang, inviting Hua Xiong to observe and frustrating him to the point of nearly slashing his own throat—he still hadn’t learned it…
"Ah, this division of yin and yang isn’t bad," Jia Xu muttered as he corralled the ants together with a straw, arranging them into the Eight Gates Golden Lock, then transforming into Celestial Lock, pushing back the Five Directions, before finally changing the Formation into the great yin-yang decimating spin.
"How is it?" Jia Xu turned his head to ask Li Ru, who was resting with closed eyes.
"This kind of thing is meaningless, except for you—can it be passed down?" Li Ru, without even opening his eyes, spoke indifferently, "Pour me some tea."
Jia Xu grabbed a white porcelain cup from the side, filled it with tea, and handed it to Li Ru.
Incidentally, these white porcelain cups were tribute items originally sent by Liu Bei for Liu Xie, but during the chaos in Chang’an, Hua Xiong happened to come across the tribute convoy and offered to assist them, thus keeping a cup for Li Ru with great care and then letting him use them all. Such purely crystallized, non-absorbent white porcelain cups were outright rarities.
As for Li Ru, he had now completely disregarded imperial authority. What did a man who felt his death looming have to care about? He also wasn’t actively offering tribute to Liu Xie; he could use them first before any tributary actions.
However, Hua Xiong still secretly sent a letter to Chen Xi, urging him to prepare a set for Li Ru. He dared not inform Liu Bei, fearing Liu Bei’s outrage if he found out. Yet these novel items would definitely be in Chen Xi’s storage, whether to be gifted to Li Ru or sent as tribute to Liu Xie as a face-saving gesture. As for asking Li Ru directly, Hua Xiong felt he had already made a mistake...
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