The three brothers had come to Ye City to ask Yuan Shao for help because Lü Bu had sent troops to raid Pei County and seize their territory.
Now Pei County was occupied by Lü Bu, and even Liu Bei's wife and children had been taken captive. With no other choice, they could only swallow their pride and ask someone else to lend them troops.
For Guan Yu, this was humiliation beyond bearing!
"Don't worry, Yun Chang. We'll take Pei County back."
Liu Bei offered some reassurance, patting Guan Yu's shoulder with a hearty smile. "A true man knows when to bend and when to stand tall. There's no shame in asking for help. Haven't I spent my whole life doing just that?"
Guan Yu pressed his lips together and said nothing.
Clearly, his elder brother's words had done nothing to ease his resentment.
Seeing this, Liu Bei felt helpless too. Naturally, he understood his second brother's proud, aloof temperament, but circumstances left them no other option.
"All right, let's get moving. We need to reach Ye City before dark!"
"Second Brother, Third Brother, whoever gets there last buys the drinks!"
"I'll be going on ahead, then! Hahaha! Hyah!"
Liu Bei rallied his spirits. With those parting words, he whipped his horse into a gallop and vanished in a cloud of dust.
"Elder Brother, you're cheating!"
"Third Brother, I'm going ahead too! Hyah!"
"Aaah! Wait for me!"
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei spurred their horses into a gallop and followed close behind.
Chapter 23: A Willing Fish Takes the Hook? Guo Jia Comes Calling!
Ye City, the Son of Heaven's Palace.
On the shore of the palace lake, Liu Xie held a fishing rod in one hand and propped his chin on the other, staring blankly at the water.
Suddenly, the tip of the rod twitched. Liu Xie snapped out of his daze and hurriedly raised it, pulling a crucian carp barely an inch long out of the water, where it thrashed wildly.
But Liu Xie merely glanced at it, removed the hook, and released the fish back into the lake.
"Your Majesty, why did you let the fish go again?"
The young eunuch attending him asked in bewilderment.
Liu Xie glanced at him and said calmly, "When I fish, it isn't fish I seek, but a state of mind. You wouldn't understand."
With that, he cast the hook back into the water.
The young eunuch scratched his head and could only offer some ingratiating flattery. "Your Majesty is truly extraordinary. Even your words are so profound."
Liu Xie curled his lip, not bothering to respond.
In truth, he was simply bored.
Had he caught this fish during the first few days after his transmigration, he would have been so delighted he could have flown.
But now he lived in a palace, dressed in fine silk and ate sumptuous meals every day. Why would he care about one measly little fish? Fishing was merely a way to kill time.
So bored...
Liu Xie sighed inwardly.
Recruiting Zhang He had certainly made him happy for a while, but once that happiness faded, he realized it hadn't done a damn thing for him.
Zhang He's talents belonged on the battlefield. Now he had lowered himself to serve as commander of Liu Xie's imperial guards. They supposedly protected the palace, but all he actually did each day was lead men on patrol and stand guard.
As for Liu Xie, although he had moved from the Yuan Residence into the palace, all that really meant was that he had a little more room to roam. Without Yuan Shao's permission, he couldn't leave at all.
A modern man from the twenty-first century, Liu Xie was trapped somewhere with no phone, no Wi-Fi, no computer, and certainly no wife. He was almost going mad from confinement, unable to find a single form of entertainment.
Of course, the biggest problem was that he felt lost.
He had plans to quietly build up his strength and find a chance to escape Yuan Shao's control someday, but he had no idea what to do or how to do it.
He was just a miserable university student majoring in history, not some born political mastermind. He could talk a big game and bluff people well enough, but asking him to actually put those ideas into action was a complete joke.
Damn it, why are all those protagonists who transmigrate into ancient times so badass? Every one of them pulls off schemes like a pro. Why can't I think of a single one?
Liu Xie felt thoroughly frustrated. His ideals and reality were worlds apart.
We're all transmigrators. Why am I the only one who's so utterly ordinary?
Where's the intelligence buff I was supposed to get after transmigrating?
What the hell is the use of giving me nothing but a photographic memory?
After a long inward tirade, Liu Xie finally understood why strategists were so highly prized.
Having an amazing strategist devise your schemes, spare you the trouble of thinking, and lay out every plan in perfect order-how wonderful would that be?
Speaking of which, where is Zhuge Liang right now?
At the thought of strategists, the first person who came to Liu Xie's mind was Zhuge Liang.
He could be considered the number-one strategist of the Three Kingdoms: loyal, capable, and brilliantly intelligent. Through his efforts alone, he had even made the surname Zhuge synonymous with wisdom.
If possible, Liu Xie would have loved to meet Chancellor Zhuge.
For no other reason than to behold the legendary chancellor whose name had endured through the ages, and whose fate had brought countless people to tears of regret.
Unfortunately, after working out the dates, Liu Xie realized that Zhuge Liang was still just a fifteen-year-old brat. He had yet to come into his own.
Liu Bei had paid his three visits to Zhuge Liang's thatched cottage when Zhuge Liang was twenty-six. That was still a full eleven years away.
I'll think about it when I get the chance someday. I can't even leave the palace right now. There's no point dwelling on this.
Why not find a way to poach some people from Yuan Shao instead?
Liu Xie stroked his chin, considering candidates.
Through Zhang He, he had learned which civil officials and military officers Yuan Shao currently trusted. The civil officials included Ju Shou, Tian Feng, Shen Pei, Feng Ji, Guo Tu, and Xu You; the military officers included Yan Liang, Wen Chou, Chunyu Qiong, Han Meng, and Zhu Ling.
Zhang He had been a hidden card, and Liu Xie already held him in his hand.
Besides Zhang He, there was another hidden card: Gao Lan.
Like Zhang He, Gao Lan had once served under Han Fu. He had even been Zhang He's deputy, and after joining Yuan Shao, he had received little recognition.
Just a few days earlier, Zhang He had recommended Gao Lan to Liu Xie.
Liu Xie hadn't expected recruiting Zhang He to come with Gao Lan as a bonus. Naturally, he had happily accepted him.
Both men were among the Four Pillars of Hebei!
Now Zhang He was commander of the imperial guards and Gao Lan his deputy, and both were loyal to Liu Xie.
There aren't any military officers left for me to poach, and I couldn't manage it anyway. As for civil officials... it seems Xu You is the only one I might be able to get.
The men Liu Xie most wanted were Shen Pei, Tian Feng, and Ju Shou.
Especially Tian Feng. His strategic ability was top-tier, making him arguably the foremost strategist under Yuan Shao, and someone who ranked highly across the entire Three Kingdoms.
Unfortunately, Tian Feng was unwaveringly loyal to Yuan Shao. There was no poaching him.
Ju Shou went without saying. He knew Liu Xie was a false emperor, so how could Liu Xie recruit him? Even if he hadn't known, a loyal minister who had declared, "My lord is in the north; do not make me face south when I die," would never surrender his allegiance.
As for Shen Pei, he was much the same-another man of unshakable loyalty.
At this thought, Liu Xie's expression grew strange.
With so many capable ministers and fierce generals under him, how the hell did Yuan Shao lose to Cao Cao?
Was he really that useless?
Yuan Shao's civil officials were unquestionably the best available. Though his generals weren't as formidable as Liu Bei's, they were no worse than Cao Cao's.
Yet the bastard had still lost!
Yep. Useless.
Liu Xie passed his final judgment, delivering what he considered a fair assessment of Yuan Benchu.
After considering every person he could think of, Liu Xie finally settled on Xu You. Historically, this man had betrayed Yuan Shao, which meant he wasn't all that loyal. There might be a chance to poach him.
But how could he bring the man over...
Liu Xie sank into thought.
Just then, a clear, resonant voice suddenly sounded behind him.
"Your subject Guo Jia pays his respects to Your Majesty."
"Hm?"
Liu Xie abruptly raised his head, then turned to look behind him.
A slender young scholar had appeared behind him at some point. With a faint smile on his handsome face, he was bowing with his hands clasped.
His bearing truly merited the words "a gracious gentleman."
But Liu Xie merely stared at him blankly and asked with some uncertainty, "What did you just say your name was?"
"In answer to Your Majesty."
The young scholar smiled slightly and straightened, looking at Liu Xie with bright eyes.
"My surname is Guo, my given name Jia, and my courtesy name Fengxiao."
Liu Xie fell into a stupor. Just then, he noticed the fishing rod in his hand twitch. A fish had actually taken the hook.
But...
He clearly hadn't put any bait on it.
Chapter 24: Liu Xie's Killing Intent
Liu Xie's feelings were difficult to describe.
If he had to sum them up in two words, only "utterly dumbfounded" would fit.
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