Mythical Version of Three Kingdom

While the practical faction was busy searching for a battleground, Liu Yan’s quiet voice finally spread the word—Lu Bu was preparing to lead a northern campaign against the barbarian tribes, intending to reclaim the Hetao region.

”Hmph, turning enemies into allies is the true path of a grand enterprise. How could a mere brute understand the subtleties of such wisdom?” Hu Zhao sneered as he headed towards Yanzhou.

”Those who are not of our kind are bound to have different intentions. Slay them under the clear sky!” Zang Hong, after reading what Chen Lin had sent him, packed it away and made his way to Lu Bu’s camp.

Both men had little interest in civil wars. Hu Zhao’s ideal was to educate the world, and he was a man of action—someone who, regardless of others’ opinions, would find a place within his means to educate the people.

Previously disillusioned with Liu Bei’s grand yet seemingly empty ideals, Hu Zhao had left Yuzhou for Mount Tai, bringing along his half-disciple Sima Yi. They traveled across the land, using their feet to measure the central plains, and ventured north to understand the habits of the barbarian tribes.

Upon returning from the north before the new year, Hu Zhao felt that he had imparted everything he could to Sima Yi. So, he returned to the central plains with Sima Yi, planning to find a place to document his thoughts.

Upon his return, Hu Zhao noticed that Mount Tai had not only survived but was thriving. This made him reassess his earlier prejudices. Having traveled through the northern regions, where he observed the behavior of the barbarians, Hu Zhao began to form new ideas about education.

Hu Zhao was already a highly learned man, which was why he could become Sima Yi’s teacher. Once he realized the potential of Mount Tai’s educational system and combined it with his observations of the northern barbarians, Hu Zhao began to crystallize a new ideology.

Additionally, Hu Zhao had encountered some seemingly absurd ideas in the Mount Tai library, but after a year of traveling and contemplating, these ideas began to coalesce, forming a new educational philosophy. Hu Zhao couldn’t help but admire the ancient scholars who had first proposed these ideas.

As these thoughts settled and matured, Hu Zhao became increasingly eager to put them into practice.As for Zang Hong, he had little interest in internal conflicts. His father had served as a Commandant Against the Xiongnu (a high-ranking Han official responsible for countering the Xiongnu), so Zang Hong had grown up with a deep-seated animosity towards the barbarians. For him, killing them was a straightforward matter—swift and decisive.

Zang Hong had decided to pursue his own ideals after confirming that Yanzhou would fall under Liu Bei’s control, ensuring the safety of his brothers Zhang Chao and Zhang Miao.

With this turn of events, Chen Gong, who had not expected any of the civil officials to join Lu Bu’s campaign to Bingzhou, was suddenly surprised to find that many scholars were willing to accompany Lu Bu. However, they all made it clear that if Lu Bu did not commit to fighting the barbarians, they would leave as soon as they arrived.

When Hu Zhao and Zang Hong arrived one after the other, Chen Gong was even more astonished. Even he couldn’t claim to easily best these two, especially Hu Zhao, whose insights left Chen Gong in awe. A figure of such caliber had remained obscure until now.

”Don’t be so amazed, Gongtai. I’ve personally traveled to the Hetao region and have a fair understanding of the forces there. I’ve even created a map detailing the strength of each faction in the region,” Hu Zhao said calmly. After some time spent understanding the situation, he was fully convinced that Lu Bu genuinely intended to march north.

”You have such a map?” Chen Gong was overjoyed. ”This will greatly increase our chances of success in the northern campaign.”

Hu Zhao pulled out a book wrapped in silk cloth from his robe, unwrapped it, and handed it to Chen Gong. ”This is only a portion of it. The remaining four parts are still in Wuyuan, Bingzhou. I will present them to you once we arrive. I ask for your understanding.”

”There’s no need to apologize, Kongming. We are all preparing for the northern campaign. There’s no need for formalities,” Chen Gong replied with a smile. He understood that scholars like Hu Zhao were not forgetful—they simply wanted to ensure that their efforts to support the campaign were acknowledged.

While Chen Gong and Hu Zhao formed a good rapport, Zang Hong found common ground with Gao Shun, Zhang Liao, and others. For generals who had grown up in the north, the concept of education was foreign, but they knew well how to defeat the barbarians. Naturally, this shared understanding brought them closer.

When Zhuge Liang and others arrived in Yanzhou, Chen Xi and Guo Jia wasted no time in fully securing control of the land. At the same time, they began transferring supplies to Lu Bu’s forces, including arrows, weapons, armor, grain, and various pieces of intelligence, all neatly packaged.

”What’s this?” Chen Xi asked, puzzled as he looked at the thin book Guo Jia had handed him. He wondered why Guo Jia had given it to him.

”Someone gave this to me while we were handing over supplies, asking me to pass it on to our lord. But you know I won’t be returning to Mount Tai anytime soon, so I thought I’d pass it to you instead,” Guo Jia shrugged.

”What’s written in it?” Chen Xi asked, curious.

”How would I know? The person said it was something they owed to our lord. Apparently, they were too blind to see his potential at the time and felt ashamed, so they asked me to deliver it,” Guo Jia said indifferently. Normally, he wouldn’t bother with such matters, but the person’s demeanor had impressed him, so he agreed to help.

”Oh, let me take a look. I’ll assess its importance before passing it on to Xuande. No point in wasting his time if it’s trivial,” Chen Xi said as he casually opened the book.

It didn’t take long for Chen Xi to finish reading the few thousand words. Initially indifferent, his heart was suddenly filled with clarity about how to deal with the northern barbarians.

”So that’s it...霸道 (Bàdào - Rule by Force), 王道 (Wángdào - Benevolent Rule), 仁道 (Réndào - Humane Governance), 百家 (Bǎijiā - Various Schools of Thought), 儒家 (Rújiā - Confucianism), 法礼 (Fǎlǐ - Law and Ritual), 大一统 (Dàyītǒng - Grand Unification). I see now,” Chen Xi murmured.

”So, we center our internal governance on the ideology of grand unification, using law and ritual as the unchanging backbone, while drawing on the wisdom of the various schools of thought,” Chen Xi continued to mutter to himself, thoroughly impressed by the author’s insights.

[Thus, even if the Hundred Schools of Thought thrive, they won’t break the structure of grand unification. Law and ritual are the unchanging foundation, while rule by force and benevolent rule are merely external manifestations,] Chen Xi reflected, utterly astonished by the author’s brilliance.

[On the flip side, rule by force will break the barbarians’ spirit, benevolent rule will conquer their minds, humane governance will earn their gratitude, the Hundred Schools of Thought will cleanse them, and then law and ritual will bind them. By the end of this process, there will be no more barbarians.] Chen Xi silently absorbed this philosophy, realizing that it was a deliberate strategy to transform enemies into allies through virtuous means.

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