NOVPUB```
Chen Xi shuddered at the thought. If Yuzhou had been under Yuan Shu’s control, he could have easily toyed with it, burying piles and piles of his pieces there. If not for the fear of being collectively attacked, Chen Xi would certainly have taken Yuzhou for himself—it was a place with abundant population and food!
If Sunx Ce took over the area, do you know what the situation of a trapped dragon soaring to the skies would be? At the very least, Chen Xi definitely did not want to face that scenario. With Xuzhou next to Yuan Shu and Chen Deng present, Chen Xi was hardly worried, but placed next to Sunx Ce, he felt that he would have to redirect at least a third of his strength there just to secure Xuzhou.
[This is a big deal, Zhou Yu, you madman. You’ve planned so much into one matter—does your family even know!] Chen Xi was on the brink of madness thinking about the pieces Zhou Yu had embedded in Xiangyang and Jiangxia, his heart turning cold—it was sheer madness; Zhou Yu had long been scheming!
[Sunx Ce’s rise to power is just a possibility. On the contrary, he will have many troubles after his ascent, given the overabundance and excessive strength of the Yuzhou Aristocratic Family. Even those scum families from Eastern Wu could hardly compromise with Sunx Ce. If Sunx Ce were to take over Yuzhou, I guess there would be a plethora of problems; it’s hard to achieve anything without subduing the Aristocratic Family.] With these thoughts, Chen Xi finally calmed down and reassured himself that even if Sunx Ce emerged as the trapped dragon that reaches the heavens, he would struggle to break free from his restraints in the short term.
Before Chen Xi could completely relax, Zhuge Liang, who came out with a map, made him fully understand what true unparalleled calculation was. Zhou Yu, aren’t you worried this will backfire!
[I...] Chen Xi no longer knew what expression to wear.
[Now I finally understand why Zhou Yu didn’t attack Jiangling. With Sunx Ce’s ascent, it could be used as a release of tensions, then embracing Yangzhou. Perhaps it was Yuan Shu’s previous madness that tipped off Zhou Yu. The conflict between Sunx Ce and the Aristocratic Family could be transformed into a conflict between factions. Apart from the terrifying strength of the Elder Faction, Zhou Yu’s plan might be to use the balance between the Yuzhou Sect, the Jing-Xiang Sect, and the Yangzhou Sect. What a joke, do you think I’ll let you succeed so easily!]
After mentally piecing together this series of plans, Chen Xi could not help but be exceedingly wary of Zhou Yu. Such long-term planning coupled with execution capabilities had completely surpassed Chen Xi’s expectations. After all, at this juncture, if Chen Xi were not careful, there might be a significant chance of success for these plans. It was uncertain who would become greedy under Zhou Yu’s laissez-faire attitude and seek to take Yuan Shu’s place—a case of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
"Kongming, when will you become an adult? You still seem somewhat weak now." Chen Xi sighed as he looked at Zhuge Liang beside him; judging by the current situation, Zhou Yu had already reached an apex level.
Zhuge Liang looked at Chen Xi with puzzlement, then Chen Xi explained the whole matter to him. Upon hearing it, Zhuge Liang was slightly stunned; whether it was Chen Xi who speculated the entire situation from a few clues or Zhou Yu, who was taking the opportunity to scheme, both amazed him beyond expectation.
"What do you think are the chances of Zhou Yu going through with this?" Chen Xi asked with a wry smile.
"You should think about what you would do if you were in Zhou Yu’s shoes." Although Zhuge Liang said this, he was well aware that Zhou Yu’s likelihood of doing so was high, but more importantly, the most Zhou Yu would do is allow others to plot against Yuan Shu, and then there’s the prospect of Sunx Ce avenging Yuan Shu later...
Chen Xi did not respond but only frowned and did not reply. Zhuge Liang also frowned slightly, looking at the hollowed-out folding fan tightly held in Chen Xi’s hand, and said, "Zichuan, do you still remember the bold spirit of advising the heroes of the world—where is your confidence? Shouldn’t you be looking down on your enemies with a disdainful posture as if one who overlooks the world?"
```
"I am confident that I can’t lose to anyone; it just feels a bit odd. Considering Zhou Yu’s temperament, he likely would do this, but he is always accommodating Sunx Bofu. Even if Sunx Bofu is wrong, Zhou Yu would still pave a grand road on the wrong path for him. He shouldn’t be like this," Chen Xi said, furrowing his brow.
Chen Xi didn’t deny that, after the success of this strategy, it would only take a year for Sunx Ce to consolidate his forces, unify Jingzhou, plunder Yangzhou, and shift his conflicts with the noble families to those in Yuzhou and between the aristocratic families of Yangzhou and Jingzhou. With that, Sunx Ce’s power would be sufficient to execute the historical strategy proposed by Zhou Yu, to divide the realm in two.
If it was said that during the Late Han it was impossible to confront or conquer the Shixie family of Jiaozhou, then once Sunx Ce truly took control of Jing-Xiang and Yangzhou, Shixie, with his deep roots in Jiaozhou, would definitely not be Sunx Ce’s match!
[Something feels off. If this plan is just a backup, what does Zhou Yu really want to do?] Chen Xi couldn’t help but think. Precisely because he had inadvertently caught a glimpse of the tip of the iceberg, Chen Xi’s attention became more focused. [Reverse it, overturn everything that happened before...]
Chen Xi placed his hand on his forehead, and the wooden folding fan in his hand slowly opened several fan ribs. His solemn expression made Zhuge Liang also seriously consider the crux of the issue. As Chen Xi had said, if Zhou Yu had any flaws, it was definitely that he placed Sunx Ce on too high a pedestal.
[Zhou Yu wouldn’t do this...] Chen Xi touched each segment of the fan ribs and wrapped the hanging pendant of the folding fan around his little finger. He had already reorganized his thoughts.
"Kongming, let’s leave it at that. When the time comes, we’ll just point it out and force Zhou Yu to take action," Chen Xi said quietly as he gazed at the river, watching the mist slowly rising into the sky.
"Are you sure Zhou Yu’s value is greater than that of a whole region?" Zhuge Liang asked calmly, looking at the red rope wrapped around Chen Xi’s little finger with some uncertainty, now understanding Chen Xi’s intentions.
"I don’t know, but we can’t free our hands. At most, we’ll take over the three counties we’ve already prepared when Yuzhou falls apart. But instead of doing that, it might be worth trying another method," Chen Xi said calmly. "As long as there’s a rift between Sunx Bofu and Zhou Yu, Zhou Yu will never exceed his limits, and Sunx Bofu will find it difficult to advance any further."
"The two of them are truly a perfect match. Only together can they be called the Little Overlord and Handsome Zhou Yu. Separated, they are just Sunx Bofu and Zhou Yu. Although they can still be regarded as exceptionally talented, they would struggle to reach that level of universal admiration," Chen Xi sighed and continued, "Most importantly, the states of Lu, Pei, Chen, and Liang are ours for the taking at any time; we don’t need to reveal them just yet." 𝓷ℴ𝓿𝓅𝓊𝒷.𝓬𝓸𝓂
"A perfect match?" Zhuge Liang said quietly to himself, his thoughts drifting to where his own counterpart might be.
"Yes, only Zhou Yu at Sunx Bofu’s side can be regarded as a Heaven-Man Form, and only Sunx Bofu standing in front of Zhou Yu can be considered invincible," Chen Xi said solemnly, looking at the rising mist. "Let’s drop this topic; they are probably waiting for us up ahead." (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for it and give your monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile readers please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
