Mythical Three Kingdoms

”How much are you still short on your side?” Chen Xi tilted his head to ask Xun Yu and Zhou Yu. The three factions had already integrated their dispatch systems and each had borrowed military generals to complete their formations.

”Basically no problems, I’ve filled in most of the gaps here as well,” Xun Yu responded warmly. ”And you, Gongjin?”

”It’s fine, except for Shiyuan and Kongming who can never get along. Other than that, nothing much,” Zhou Yu shook his head, indicating there wasn’t much to say. Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong, whenever they meet, they clash, and Pang Tong often ends up at a disadvantage.

”That’s not really important. My cousin who shares the Sima surname didn’t come; it would be worse if he were here,” Chen Xi said nonchalantly. Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong having conflicts is pretty normal, after all, without competition, wouldn’t it just be stagnant water?

Speaking of which, Chen Xi was completely unaware that the most frustrated person recently was actually Lul Xun. The reason was simple: recently, a large group of teenagers aged fifteen to twenty-one or twenty-two gathered, and the three factions let them mingle together. As a result, Lul Xun became completely the bottom of the food chain.

Of course, at the bottom of the food chain was also Lyu Meng. However, since Lyu Meng was older and had received instruction from Zhou Yu, when a group of people sat together, Lyu Meng usually remained silent.

There were even times when someone would ask him a question, Lyu Meng would put on a silly smile, so basically, no one attacked him. However, Zhuge Liang gave Lyu Meng a big X mark, deeming him a schemer.

Not to mention, at least Lyu Meng really looked the part when pretending to be dumb. If not for Zhuge Liang discovering Lyu Meng’s Spiritual Talent, the group would have been fooled.

Therefore, Zhuge Liang’s impression of the seemingly dumb Lyu Meng wasn’t too favorable, but he didn’t target Lyu Meng, simply planning to deal with him properly if they ever clashed.

Zhou Yu and Chen Xi were in a similar position as the leading figures of the younger generation, but they really couldn’t bring themselves to dive into the chaos like Sun Ce. Generally, the younger generation was all mingling to make themselves known, realizing that the future would hinge on them.

Of course, Zhuge Liang emerged as a leader among the group, although Fa Zheng could rival Zhuge Liang. Yet, Fa Zheng felt too proud to claim equality with his predecessors all the time.

At this point, idle banter was inevitable, and Sima Yi naturally got dragged into the conversation, even though he wasn’t present. Based on his own observations, Zhuge Liang discussed Sima Yi’s reputation.

Everyone present silently committed the name to memory. Following Zhuge Liang’s descriptions, they pictured an incongruous head and body, forming an image of a somewhat gloomy person, which became the generational impression of Sima Yi.

Not exactly a wild and rebellious look of the Wolf’s Glance, but an image of a person’s head and body being out of sync, causing a long-standing melancholic mood.

Surprisingly, this image still matched Sima Yi’s appearance quite well, so when people sought Sima Yi, they always examined him closely. Eventually, they confirmed Zhuge Liang was accurate!

This resulted in Sima Yi becoming known within this group as a dejected youth, born from the mismatch between his head and body.

Ordinary banter between a few people wouldn’t have mattered much, but these guys achieved great success in the following years, eventually rising to the pinnacle of the world.

Naturally, their internal rumored image became known as Sima Yi’s image, and upon learning of this image, Sima Yi almost wanted to strangle Zhuge Liang.

Sima Yi was supposed to embody the Wolf’s Glance, a wild and gloomy demeanor, but instead got branded as having a mismatched head and body, turning him into an angsty youth. Where did such notions originate?

Sima Yi expressed his desire to rip Zhuge Liang apart, questioning why he couldn’t keep quiet if he had nothing of value to say. His baseless words caused trouble for Sima Yi, not himself!

Of course, in these gatherings of the younger generation, only those with potential worth nurturing participated. Unfortunately, Lul Xun remained overwhelmingly outclassed, becoming a marginalized rookie.

This left the usually gentle on the outside, strong on the inside Lul Xun feeling deeply depressed. He desperately wanted to explode!

However, there was no way for that to happen. Even Zhuge Liang got bounced around when he first arrived. Lul Xun would need to endure for a few more years before having any chance to establish a foothold.

Overall, the current situation left Lul Xun feeling deeply that there were several formidable individuals in this world. He needed to keep working hard, for someday he wanted to suppress an entire era like his mentor did.

Of course, these thoughts were known to no one, not even Chen Xi. Lul Xun simply waited quietly for the day he would make an unforgettable mark. Yet, before that, he needed to be trampled by the crowd.

”In that case, there’s no problem. The day after tomorrow, let’s take action,” Chen Xi said with a smile to Xun Yu and Zhou Yu.

Zhou Yu and Xun Yu exchanged glances and both nodded. Coming here, they had been granted decision-making power by Sun Ce and Cao Cao.

”Here, let’s put an end to the Northern Huns and conclude this six-century strife,” Chen Xi said decisively, reaching out with determination.

”It’s not just a matter of the Northern Huns; the steppe and the Hu people will also be resolved in this one move!” Xun Yu said confidently, understanding that the current Han Dynasty was truly at its peak. This pinnacle was enough to face any enemy with an indomitable attitude.

”Born in this era, let successors judge the fortune or misfortune. This time, let us write a new chapter for the North and integrate it wholly into our grasp,” Zhou Yu’s pride in his eyes was visible to the others.

”Then that’s that. Tomorrow, eat and drink to your heart’s content, with plenty of meat and wine!” Chen Xi decided resolutely. Cao Cao and Sun Ce’s inadequate logistics had already given way to Liu Bei. These days, meals came three times daily, each one full of meat, marking terrifying logistical support.

”Actually, I’ve always been very curious about how exactly you and your people have stored so much meat, Zichuan,” Xun Yu inquired of Chen Xi. ”Animal husbandry consumes a lot of grain, right?”

”Chicken, duck, goose, all kinds of fish, mutton, pork, rabbit, we have reserves of all these. Although much of it is salted meat, if you’re talking about quantity,” Chen Xi gazed to the heavens, paused a while, and then said, ”A lot. The specific statistics are probably only available with Zijing who’s in charge of people’s livelihood. I stopped dealing with it once I set things in order.”

”To be honest, fish resources in Eastern Wu are somewhat better, though it’s scarce in Yongliang,” Chen Xi chuckled. ”We’ve had experts study near-sea fishing and also organized professional staff for the task. The quantity of captured fish is actually enormous.”

Speaking of this, Chen Xi couldn’t help but smirk. Despite this era’s intense fishing efforts, it was impossible to cause a destructive impact on marine fisheries. In later generations, near-sea fisheries developed to nearly ten million tons per year; even though Chen Xi seized tens of thousands of tons annually, it might not even compare to a day’s natural yield of the ocean…