Liu Bei could no longer contain himself. He slammed his palm onto the table, making the already crude wooden table creak so loudly it nearly fell apart on the spot.
His face livid with rage, he burst into curses.
"Useless!"
"Utterly, completely useless!"
"That Liu Zhang is a kinsman of our Great Han, a descendant of the imperial house. How could he be so incompetent?"
"He couldn't even recognize or control the two men harboring sinister intentions under him, and let them cut off his head in his sleep!"
"He's thoroughly disgraced our Liu family!"
Zhang Fei's bronze-bell eyes went round with scorn and disdain written all over his face. He said in his booming, muffled voice, "Elder Brother, if you ask me, Fa Zheng and Li Yan are no good either!"
"They're nothing but a pair of gutless rats!"
Guan Yu narrowed his phoenix eyes, his hand pausing as he stroked his long beard, and gave a cold snort as well.
"Indeed."
"They come from great aristocratic clans of Yizhou, yet they were frightened into submission by some fellow of unknown origins?"
"It's not as though I haven't seen that Yang Feng. He's merely a frail scholar. How could he be so formidable?"
Listening to his two younger brothers, Liu Bei shot them an irritated look.
"What do you two know?"
"From what we've seen on the Heavenly Screen, that fellow does possess considerable ability."
"Whether poetry or political essays, his work ranks among the very best."
"Besides, we've only watched him through the Heavenly Screen. We haven't actually questioned him ourselves. Who knows whether he really has genuine learning and ability we know nothing about?"
Although Liu Bei spoke a few fair words on Yang Feng's behalf, looking every inch a benevolent lord who cherished talent,
in his heart, he had already cursed all eighteen generations of Yang Feng's ancestors.
Well, now.
Well, well, now!
I, Liu Bei, have toiled for half my life, wandering from place to place, and I still don't even have a territory where I can settle and establish myself.
Yet you, Yang Feng, only have to flap your lips and take a nap, and the imperial title comes crashing onto your head as though it costs nothing?
And you dare seize our Liu family's realm!
Absolutely outrageous!
This realm can only bear the Liu name!
What right does an outsider like you have?
Just you wait. You may be dancing merrily now, but sooner or later, your accounts will be settled.
Zhang Fei had none of his elder brother's scheming thoughts. He simply disliked Yang Feng and continued bellowing, "Who cares whether he has genuine learning and ability?"
"Isn't the Heavenly Screen going to show firing a cannon at the camp gate tomorrow?"
"That must mean the scoundrel Cao is taking an army to attack him!"
"I've heard that Cao Cao commands troops like a god and is incredibly cunning. The formidable advisers under him are as plentiful as falling rain!"
"Yang Feng? He's absolutely no match!"
Guan Yu slowly nodded in agreement.
"Third Brother has a point."
"Yang Feng is merely a scholar who has suddenly risen to power. With his foundations unstable, how could he contend with Cao Cao, who holds the Son of Heaven to command the lords?"
Hearing this finally eased some of Liu Bei's pent-up resentment.
Exactly.
Just because I can't deal with Yang Feng right now doesn't mean others can't.
He nodded emphatically, a glint of ruthlessness and anticipation flashing through his eyes.
"Yes."
"Let's hope Cao Cao and Lü Bu both put in a good showing tomorrow."
"Preferably, they'll utterly defeat that traitor Yang Feng in a single battle and teach him that the imperial throne isn't so easy to sit upon!"
Meanwhile, in Xu Province.
Lü Bu watched the slowly fading Heavenly Screen, his tiger-like eyes filled with envy and longing.
He said loudly to Chen Gong beside him, "Gongtai, did you see that?"
"That Yang Feng really is impressive!"
"He lay down on a bed for a nap, opened his eyes, and became emperor!"
"Tsk, tsk. That's far better than fighting tooth and nail like we do!"
The implication in his words was so obvious that he might as well have written "Gongtai, arrange one for me too" across his face.
Chen Gong's eyes twitched wildly at this, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
Inwardly, he cursed Lü Bu until he had drenched him in dog's blood.
Oh, my general.
Why don't you piss a puddle and take a look at your reflection?
You want to compare yourself to Yang Feng?
Yang Feng actually has brains. When he analyzed the state of the realm on the Heavenly Screen earlier, his clear reasoning and foresight were beyond what a hundred of you Lü Bus bundled together could match.
He won his followers' unwavering loyalty through solid talent and reputation.
And you?
Bravery without strategy, headstrong and self-willed-what do you have besides a common brute's courage?
And you want to be draped in the yellow robe?
Even if they put it on you, could you hold that throne?
They'd likely robe you today and topple you, dragon throne and all, tomorrow.
Chen Gong's urge to complain surged like an endless river, but he dared not show the slightest trace of it on his face, maintaining his respectful, composed demeanor.
He bowed deeply to Lü Bu and said in an exceedingly tactful tone, "Please calm your anger, General."
"The Han imperial house still stands, and the Son of Heaven still lives. This truly is no time to proclaim yourself emperor."
"Look at Yang Feng. Though he now enjoys boundless glory, having proclaimed himself emperor in two places in succession, he has also become a thorn in the eye and a splinter in the flesh of every lord in the realm."
"Before long, he will certainly bring all the lords of the realm down upon him."
"Then, surrounded by the songs of Chu on every side, he may face destruction."
"We would do better to endure for now and build our strength. Once the realm changes, it will not be too late to pursue your great undertaking."
Although Lü Bu was deeply displeased by Chen Gong's words, he ultimately felt they made some sense and said nothing further.
But in his heart, he truly envied Yang Feng.
That was the emperor!
He'd become emperor after a nap.
How satisfying.
The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. He abruptly swung his heaven-piercing painted halberd, sending it whistling through the air.
"Hmph!"
"In that case, tomorrow I'll join Cao Cao and go meet this Yang Feng!"
"I'd like to see what ability he has besides writing a few sour poems!"
Lü Bu's face brimmed with absolute confidence, his voice ringing like a great bell.
"With the strength of a frail scholar, he certainly won't be my match!"
"I, Lü Bu, am unrivaled beneath heaven!"
Standing beside him, Chen Gong heard that familiar line and felt his blood surge. A metallic sweetness rose in his throat, and he nearly spat blood again.
Unrivaled beneath heaven?
With brains like yours, you still call yourself unrivaled beneath heaven?
He forcibly swallowed the complaint on the tip of his tongue and merely muttered inwardly.
I'm afraid that when the Heavenly Screen appears tomorrow, General, your defeat will be more humiliating than anyone else's.
And just as the various lords harbored their different thoughts, some jealous, some contemptuous, and some gloating,
far away in Yizhou, Liu Zhang could no longer sit still after hearing his subordinates' detailed report on the Heavenly Screen's contents.