NOVPUBTao Qian also congratulated Liu Bei with a bow, and then claimed to be unwell, letting others help him leave the scene. In fact, he was leaving the situation for Liu Bei to handle, allowing Liu Bei to deal with the following matters.
"Gentlemen, since I, Liu Xuande, have received the official seal of the Governor of Xuzhou and you recognize me as such, I ask you to hear me out," Liu Bei stood up, raised his glass to all present, and after finishing it in one gulp, he began to speak.
"Please speak, Lord Xuande!" Chen Deng stepped out first. Now that he was both a former official of Tao Qian and a representative of the number one aristocratic family of Xuzhou, it was essential for him to stand out without hesitation at this moment.
"As the new leader of Xuzhou, there remain too many things I do not understand. I ask you all to maintain the operation of the Xuzhou Government Office. As for Cao Jugao and the previous assassination incident in Xiapi, I do not wish to engage in more killing. Should there be another offense, I will show no mercy!" Liu Bei first spoke gently to Chen Deng, then with a stern voice turned to the heads of the aristocratic families seated, pausing for a moment on some, and said with severity.
"Lord Xuande’s benevolence," Chen Deng bowed and said, followed by everyone from Xuzhou who unanimously praised "Lord Xuande’s benevolence." Clearly, the family heads who were originally shivering, worried about when the executioner’s sword might fall, finally calmed down after Liu Bei spoke.
Afterward, host and guests enjoyed themselves, and that night, Liu Bei stayed at the Xuzhou Government Office, marking the beginning of Xuzhou’s allegiance to him.
In the large residence of the Xuzhou Feng Family, Chen Xi sat in the place of honor. This residence was granted to Chen Xi by Liu Bei after the Feng Family had been eradicated during Tao Qian’s previous purge, leaving behind only their properties. Naturally, after Liu Bei took charge, he awarded these unclaimed estates to his civil and military officials as annexes.
"Gong Youu, I must trouble you this time," Chen Xi said to Sun Qian.
"Zichuan jests, had you not asked me to invite the teacher to bear witness, I might still have forgotten that I could use this as evidence," Sun Qian said with a smile. "The teacher holds a favorable view of our lord’s actions, otherwise he wouldn’t be preparing to go to Mount Tai to serve as the headmaster of the academy."
"But without your invitation, Lord Kang Cheng would not have appeared," Chen Xi shook his head. "Have you found what I asked you to look for?"
"The news about Chief Secretary is somewhat uncertain, but Sun Bofu is indeed becoming a formidable general. As for the information you wanted about Jingzhou’s side moving toward Sun Bofu, there’s only sparse news," Sun Qian said with a hint of confusion.
"Let’s hear it," Chen Xi frowned and spoke.
"One is Liaoo Gongyuan, another is Wen Zhongye, and the last one is uncertain and still young—it’s the nephew of Lord Pang De, named Pang Shiyuan," Sun Qian listed these individuals who were currently unknown.
"Oh, I see," Chen Xi nodded, his expression unreadable in the light. "How is Xu Yuanzhi doing?"
"He’s still studying at Lumen Academy, but there’s been no notable performance to speak of," Sun Qian shook his head as he spoke. Concerning this young man that Chen Xi had specifically asked to keep an eye on, Sun Qian really did have Yi Ji pay attention, but unfortunately, according to the current situation, Xu Shu seemed to be just average.
```
"Hahaha, Gong Youu certainly missed the mark on that one," Chen Xi laughed heartily. "Although Xu Yuanzhi may not possess the talent to move heaven and earth, he is definitely not someone ordinary people can compare with. He’s merely in a dormant state right now. In as little as a year, or at most three years, he will soar to the heavens."
Sunx Qian was clearly skeptical, but Chen Xi said no more. After some idle chat about Qingzhou and Xuzhou, he sent Sunx Qian out of his villa. There were some things he needed to consider carefully on his own.
Chen Xi silently pondered Liu Bei’s current strength, as well as the strength he would possess in the future. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that something was off. The balance between his civil and military officials oddly resembled that of Cao Wei in its initial strangeness.
Chen Xi pinched his brow, realizing he needed to think carefully about what to do next. If these developments were still not considered significant changes, Chen Xi felt that he needed to take drastic action. His goal was to end this era of war as quickly as possible—at the very least, the turmoil of the Han Dynasty. As for the rest, let them be; they could fight as long as they could and die in droves if need be.
"Firstly, based on the situation I have analyzed, my sphere of influence has indeed changed, and even areas beyond my influence have been affected. However, this impact does not alter the overall trend significantly."
Chen Xi pinched his brow as he thought. He had realized this quite early on, and it was precisely because of this realization that he had the confidence to assist Liu Bei. Otherwise, if one’s mana was boundless but could not withstand the surging destiny, Chen Xi wouldn’t struggle. He would calmly await the division of the realm into three.
"From what I understand now, a historical revision does exist, but it cannot achieve the same degree as original history. It can only be said to smooth out the curve. If only there was a parameter, perhaps I could calculate at what extent the historical correction would completely vanish." Chen Xi was clearly somewhat helpless.
Obviously, to this world, the established historical pattern still holds hope for salvation; otherwise, such a bizarre phenomenon as revision would not have emerged. Of course, this also means that Chen Xi has not bent the era severely enough. If he were to bend it to a certain degree, in theory, history would embark on another path, and this world would have to abandon any attempt at salvation, allowing Chen Xi to drag it into a new chapter.
"It’s obvious that history has not been completely bent to that point yet. The corrective force is still very effective; otherwise, Sunx Ce wouldn’t have acquired Liaoo Li and Wen Pin so smoothly. I was just making use of Lub Su and Gan Ning, and then it was compensated for immediately. It means that to start a new chapter, I need to first dismantle the major trend of history?" Chen Xi thought to himself, touching his brow in frustration.
"Aside from Cao Cao and Liu Bei, whether Sunx Ce or Sunx Quan rises to power might not be important. Between Cao Cao and Liu Bei, ’Among the heroes of the world, only you and Cao are worthy." The thought of this saying made Chen Xi twitch; it might really turn out that way.
"I seem to have understood something. If this is also part of the grand trend, then it’s as if nothing has been done, which is clearly impossible. I saved Li Youu to see the impact of a protagonist at a historical turning point not dying. However, I obviously made a wrong estimate. Li Youu was not important to that juncture—the most important person at that period was Emperor Liu Xie of Han..."
Chen Xi frowned repeatedly. Comparing the battle of Xuzhou and a series of prior intelligence with history, he finally came to an amusing conclusion. It’s not that he wasn’t trying. It seemed that he had to either cause historical corrective forces to collapse or break the world to start a new chapter.
"The road ahead is long and challenging, but I shall search high and low!" Chen Xi recited loudly, "I’ll play it slow; the game has just begun. Failing to finish off Cao Cao was an accident. Coupled with the extraordinary spiritual talents of Xun Youi or Cheng Yu, and the blessings of the Lord of Heaven, sooner or later the correction forces will collapse!" 𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙥𝒖𝒃.𝒄𝒐𝒎
Chen Xi’s biggest fear was that his actions would be utterly meaningless. If the overwhelming tide of destiny was truly unstoppable, no matter what he did, he would be crushed in the end. Then he would have already retired. Fortunately, based on the data he had collected, it was simply that the magnitude of his influence was not big enough yet. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, I invite you to vote for it at Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.)
```
