With Cao Cao?
Jia Xu’s words left everyone present somewhat bewildered, though it wasn’t entirely out of the question.
Zhuge Xuan weighed the options. “Yuan Shu is in decline, Yuan Shao is fond of schemes but indecisive, Liu Biao…” As his former employer, Zhuge Xuan found Liu Biao difficult to describe succinctly, so he refrained from direct criticism.
There was still some sentiment there.
Huang Chengyan rolled his eyes and picked up where Zhuge Xuan left off. “Liu Biao is living off his past achievements, while Cao Cao’s momentum is surging. He has many strategists under him, and he might just end up the ultimate winner.”
Zhuge Jun had his own thoughts on the matter. He had even deduced that Cao Cao would eventually target the Nanyang region. “With many active forces in the south, Cao Cao will surely prioritize unifying his own rear, starting with the northern factions led by Liu Biao. A confrontation with Zhang Xiu is inevitable sooner or later. Surrendering and pledging allegiance early might… allow us to start spending his money sooner.”
Corrupted! How could the child be corrupted so quickly? Jia Xu really wanted to clarify once again that their Nanyang Commandery wasn’t that poor!
Surprisingly, though, it seemed everyone was quite optimistic about Cao Cao?
No wonder, no wonder. This short-legged cat of the Eastern Han had so many strategists under him, and he had managed to raise his favorability among them quite high.
“Ah, if possible, Liang would still prefer to uphold the Han dynasty,” Zhuge Liang said, not commenting on Cao Cao but simply stating his own stance.
As expected.
Upon hearing Zhuge Liang’s words, Jia Xu felt a chill in his heart, no less than when Cao Cao clearly knew Xun Yu supported the Han dynasty and Xun Yu personally admitted it to his face.
What’s so great about this Eastern Han! Who’s even left?
An illustrious figure like Emperor Wu of Han has long since passed away! Not to mention the Eastern Han founded by Liu Xiu—among the rulers of this Eastern Han kindergarten, you can’t even pick one who’s “passable”!
Complaints aside, if Jia Xu were given the choice himself, he too would want to restore the Han dynasty! The mighty Han and glorious Tang dynasties were the shining beacons in the hearts of many, including Jia Xu’s.
Besides!
If Cao Cao knew that the empire he fought so hard to build would be usurped by the Sima family—and worse, after seizing it, they would make a complete mess of it—he’d probably crawl out of his grave and jump up to punch Sima Yi in the knees, wouldn’t he?
After letting his thoughts wander for a moment, Jia Xu followed the others’ conversation to wrap things up, effectively covering up his own slip of the tongue.
“Liu Biao is petty-minded, Cao Cao is suspicious, Yuan Shu craves grandeur and credit, Yuan Shao is arrogant and not particularly bright. Looking at these personalities alone, perhaps Sun Ce of Jiangdong, who aside from being young and entering the game a bit late has no other flaws, holds a greater advantage.”
“No wonder my brother—I have another brother named Zhuge Jin—serves under Zhou Yu in Jiangdong,” Zhuge Jun added. A few more sentences like this, and the family’s savings would inevitably be spilled to Jia Xu.
Jia Xu analyzed the personality flaws of the various warlords vying for power one by one, but that wasn’t his main point. “But as strategists, understanding what we want is more important than understanding what they have.”
These words lit up the eyes of everyone present.
A kindred spirit!
Huang Chengyan took the opportunity to glare at Zhuge Xuan again. He felt that Zhuge Xuan failed to see this clearly, stubbornly aligning with Liu Biao just because “Liu Biao was his former boss.” Even after realizing they were incompatible, he still persisted in sticking with him!
Zhuge Liang clearly knew what he wanted. He also understood that Jia Xu’s choice of Cao Cao was related to Jia Xu’s personality—at least the personality he understood. In this chess game, Cao Cao had the highest chance of winning, which aligned with Jia Xu’s “frugal” nature. Serving under Cao Cao, one could achieve the greatest success with the least effort.
But Zhuge Liang did not want to choose Cao Cao. Cao Cao was too ruthless and harmful to the people.
“Just like me, I want to find someone who listens to their strategist. This alone rules out Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao, who are too set in their own ways, as well as Liu Biao, who listens but doesn’t act. Cao Cao listens. ‘Holding the emperor to command the nobles’—this strategy was suggested to the Yuan brothers, but neither acted on it. Cao Cao listened.”
Jia Xu knew he had a bit of a desire for control, but as a strategist, serving a lord who didn’t listen to him would be pointless.
“Secondly, the lord must have the ability to realize my plans. I made some changes to the training methods for new soldiers, and Zhang Xiu allowed me to make those changes. This wouldn’t have been possible under Liu Biao.”
Jia Xu sighed, “Ah, it’s a pity Zhang Xiu doesn’t have much money, and he lacks the ambition to rule the world. In comparison, Cao Cao seems like the superior choice.”
A strategist seeking their lord is like a fish searching for suitable waters. A shallow-water fish would be helpless in deep waters.
Jia Xu felt a wave of melancholy.
The first point was that the lord must listen to the strategist. The second was that the lord must act on the strategist’s advice. From Jia Xu’s every word, Zhuge Liang didn’t hear how much Jia Xu “liked” Cao Cao, only that Jia Xu wanted to control Cao Cao.
Hmm… Once again, this refreshed Zhuge Liang’s view of Jia Xu—
This honest man had such a strong desire for control.
“At ease, attention!”
“Right face, double time!”
In the end, Jia Xu managed to take all five cats from the Zhuge family, and even successfully persuaded Huang Chengyan and his daughter Huang Yueying to come along.
“Is this the ‘honest man with a strong desire for control’ you mentioned?”
While packing, Huang Yueying briefly discussed Jia Xu with Zhuge Liang. But hearing about someone is not the same as meeting them. After seeing Jia Xu’s face, which looked even more youthful and sunny than Zhuge Liang’s, she didn’t quite believe Zhuge Liang’s description of him as having a “strong desire for control.”
That was until they set off, and Jia Xu effortlessly commanded the twenty soldiers accompanying them.
Wasn’t this desire for control a bit too strong?
Huang Yueying observed briefly and noticed that even while running alongside the carriage, these soldiers adjusted their pace to match their companions!
Jia Xu had no idea that his training results were being misunderstood by Huang Yueying. He was just happy.
Ah, now there were two important figures in this carriage!
One was Zhuge Liang, a master of strategy. How long he, and his Nanyang Commandery, could survive in the chaotic era of the Three Kingdoms depended entirely on Zhuge Liang.
The other was even more remarkable.
When Jia Xu first sought out Zhuge Liang, he had forgotten about Huang Yueying, this hidden weapon. Now that he was taking her home too, he couldn’t be happier.
This was Huang Yueying!
The famous transport tools, the “Wooden Oxen and Flowing Horses,” were researched by Zhuge Liang, but it was said the inspiration came from Huang Yueying’s early creations.
And her creations… were automated! Wooden mechanisms!
Like the wooden puppy that could guard the house and move, or the wooden figure that could automatically grind flour.
What was this? If plastic were replaced with iron, glue with welding, and wood with something more modern, wouldn’t this be robots?
“Robots” aside for now—distant water can’t quench an immediate thirst.
Jia Xu had too many things he wanted to research and develop in the Three Kingdoms era. Lethal weapons could be studied slowly, but first and foremost was something he intended to use as bait to “fish for” Hua Tuo and Zhang Zhongjing.
Originally, he planned to experiment extensively on his own, confident he could achieve results by next year. By offering an advance, the two renowned physicians likely wouldn’t refuse.
Now, with Huang Yueying on board, research progress was bound to accelerate significantly!
“You want me to research papermaking?”
Huang Yueying hadn’t expected this. She thought she was merely relocating to continue studying Mohist mechanical arts under her father’s protection—or perhaps under the protection of her “future husband, Zhuge Liang.”
To her surprise, she was being assigned a task right away?
“Exactly.” Jia Xu didn’t hide his intentions and explained his reasoning.
“I’ve inquired about it. The renowned physician Hua Tuo currently has no apprentices. Since he wants to pass on his skills, it’s highly likely he’ll write a book.”
Not just highly likely—it was a certainty! History had recorded as much.
“I have some ideas about improving existing paper—making it slightly more durable and less prone to tearing while reducing production costs.”
“Once paper becomes cheaper, and considering it takes up far less storage space than bamboo slips, it would be perfect for recording texts.”
“Once we develop it, we can use it as an incentive to attract Hua Tuo by offering to help him compile and widely disseminate his medical writings!”
Jia Xu spoke with great enthusiasm.
Naturally, he was thrilled. Having read so many time-travel novels, he felt that being a “transmigrator” was far easier than being a strategist.
Using modern technology to influence ancient times—wouldn’t that drastically reduce the difficulty of life?
Jia Xu was delighted, and Huang Yueying found herself thinking…
Was Jia Xu really planning to teach her, free of charge, the method to make paper more durable? And even thank her for it?
This Jia Xu truly was an “honest man.”
Huang Yueying deepened her stereotypical impression of Jia Xu, while Zhuge Liang believed this idea was utterly uncharacteristic of him.
Jia Xu’s previous logic had been centered on “efficiency,” but this move seemed like “extravagant waste.”
Even if Hua Tuo wanted to establish a school of thought, Jia Xu could have proposed the simplest solution: recruiting candidates directly from the military camp. With enough people, talented individuals could surely be found.
Moreover, if Hua Tuo merely wanted to pass on his knowledge, bamboo slips could serve that purpose just fine.
“Researching more durable paper” was a time-consuming and labor-intensive approach.
This didn’t seem like Hua Tuo’s style.
Zhuge Liang kept these thoughts to himself, intending to observe Jia Xu more closely in the future.
They switched from carriages to boats, transitioning from land to water routes.
When Jia Xu had first arrived, he had ridden day and night on horseback. Now, with more people in tow, there was no rush to depart immediately. He took his time along the way, making frequent stops and extending the journey considerably.
A trip that normally took three to four days had been completed in less than two days during his urgent arrival. On the return, it took half a month. He purchased a batch of quicklime, cheaply acquired some scrap cloth and even tattered fishing nets beyond repair, and bought numerous pottery jars. Thus, he returned to Rangcheng fully loaded.
“This can be useful. When we research paper, we can add this in.” As soon as they arrived in Rangcheng, Jia Xu pointed to a mulberry tree and said to Huang Yueying.
Before Huang Yueying could respond, some locals recognized Jia Xu.
The people were enthusiastic about Jia Xu within his own area of activity, gathering around but not too closely, consciously leaving space for him to move and also fearing that someone might attempt something untoward against him.
“Military Advisor! The Military Advisor has returned!”
“Military Advisor, the General hasn’t returned yet, but he sent a letter. We all saw there was a letter, said to be for you!”
So enthusiastic.
Wait, how do they even know about the letter?
Zhuge Liang was surprised.
“That’s just how Zhang Xiu is. He likes to publicize things, telling everyone he sent a letter back, which also serves to reassure the people.”
Jia Xu turned to introduce this to his carriage full of strategists.
Reassuring the people—what a peculiar phrase.
Zhuge Liang looked at the people before him. Their eyes were bright, and their clothes were neat, clean, and well-kept.
They were living, not merely surviving.
Under the governance of Zhang Xiu and Jia Xu, things were better than he had imagined.
Knowing that Zhang Xiu hadn’t returned, Jia Xu took the carriage full of people to their military camp.
The preparations for “preparing for war against Cao Cao” along the way took a bit more time, and now there was only a month and a half left until the first month of the year!
There was no time to waste. Zhuge Liang had to meet these soldiers; otherwise, when he commanded them in the future, he wouldn’t even know the capabilities of his own subordinates, which wouldn’t do.
Moreover, he could finally show Huang Yueying his “preparations for war” and let this technical master make some improvements!
Of course, his “preparations for war” also needed to be showcased. He felt they were perfectly suited to Jia Xu’s identity—absolutely no out-of-character behavior!
Jia Xu had schemes to ruin reputations, and he had methods to make people fall apart!
————————!!————————
Who could resist Zhuge Liang and Huang Yueying, this couple? No one [sparkling eyes]
Preparing for war against Cao Cao! Cao Cao, seemingly the monthly, midterm, and final exams Jia Xu has to face [dog head]
Jia Xu’s daily life: To be, or not to be: that is the question—whether to devise schemes to ruin reputations or employ methods to make people fall apart [eating melon]