Chapter 932: This is the Greatest Benevolence!

With Zhou Yu’s area-wide detection, it was no surprise that Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong, who had never encountered such abilities and had no concept of hiding their spiritual presence, were easily located by Sun Ce and Zhou Yu.

When Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong first laid eyes on Sun Ce and Zhou Yu, they got the impression of a nobleman traveling, even though there wasn't a grand entourage. That kind of commanding presence was something only a few could emulate. Both Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong were from prestigious families, but in their youth, they never exuded such charisma.

"Is it these two?" Sun Ce asked, stroking his chin with a curious expression. Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong didn’t look particularly impressive; if anything, they resembled two aging scholars. In this era where the average lifespan was around thirty, men in their forties could already call themselves elders.

"Yes, it’s them," Zhou Yu replied, mentally recalling the profiles of notable figures. By now, most of the prominent figures in the realm had emerged, and even those not yet serving a lord had earned their reputation.

"They don’t look like much," Sun Ce remarked as he scrutinized Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong. "They aren’t as handsome as you, not as ugly as Shi Yuan, not as arrogant as Gong Yuan, not as long-faced as Zi Yu, and not as stubborn as that other guy." Sun Ce was genuinely puzzled; after all, his top advisors each had their own unique characteristics.

As for "that other guy" Sun Ce referred to, it was naturally Zheng Du, who had stubbornly refused to surrender. He had said Sun Ce could either kill him or keep him captive indefinitely, leaving Sun Ce with no choice. Zheng Du was impenetrable to persuasion, and though he had been a troublesome captive, at least his three suicide attempts had failed, so it seemed he had given up on that for now.

"They’re watching us," Zhang Zhao and Zhang Hong were casually chatting, but they soon noticed Sun Ce and Zhou Yu eyeing them.

When Sun Ce and Zhou Yu were together, their presence was so strong that even without revealing their identities, they naturally became the center of attention. This was vastly different from how Liu Bei and Chen Xi could blend into a crowd without being noticed. Wherever Sun Ce and Zhou Yu stood, they stood out like cranes among chickens.

"Don’t judge by appearances, Bofu. Those two are genuinely top-tier ministers. No matter what their specialties are, bringing them under our command would greatly benefit us right now," Zhou Yu said with a roll of his eyes, finding Sun Ce's remarks exasperating. But after thinking about it, he had to admit Sun Ce wasn’t entirely wrong.

In reality, Sun Ce's camp was severely lacking in high-ranking officials to handle governance. Neither Zhou Yu, Pang Tong, nor Zhuge Jin were well-suited for such tasks. The first two were battlefield strategists, and even Zhuge Jin, the one handling administrative duties, wasn’t truly skilled in governance. Instead, he relied on his exceptional interpersonal skills to manage state affairs effectively, though it was more a workaround than a true solution.

This was a significant problem. Sun Ce’s forces didn’t have enough capable civil officials, which forced Zhou Yu to step down and manage development personally. That was why he found himself in such a predicament.

"So, what do we do? Should we go straight to them?" Sun Ce asked. He had never personally invited anyone to join him before; people usually came to him of their own accord. He lacked experience in situations like this.

"We’ve seen them now, so we should prepare gifts, research their backgrounds, and then pay them a formal visit," Zhou Yu replied with a smile. It was true; they both lacked experience in this sort of recruitment.

"Oh, so should we head back for now?" Sun Ce raised an eyebrow. "And what about Liu Xuande in the north? How should we deal with him?"

"Let’s focus on resolving our internal issues first. I imagine it won’t be long before you inherit the title of marquis," Zhou Yu said with a smile, leaving it at that.

Zhou Yu understood that, with Sun Ce's temperament, making peace and forming an alliance with Cao Cao wouldn’t be settled quickly. Sun Ce had long been preparing to give Yuan Shu an explanation regarding the matter with Yuan Yao, and Cao Cao had been the one who executed that decision.

"Don’t we need to set up defenses along the Yangtze River?" Sun Ce asked. After having Liu Biao assassinated and sending a fake body to Yongzhou, Sun Ce felt much more at ease, and his intelligence seemed to have slightly improved.

"No need. Liu Bei’s forces need time to rest as well. Their territories have already expanded to their limits for the time being," Zhou Yu replied nonchalantly. He had already arranged defenses along the Yangtze River, but he didn’t believe a high-density defense was necessary.

"Are you sure? They only deployed 150,000 troops to defeat Yuan Shao, and they captured a lot of men and equipment along the way. Now that they control Ji Province, I’d imagine Yuan Shao still had quite a few soldiers left," Sun Ce said, surprised that he was now asking such insightful questions—a clear sign that his intelligence had indeed improved.

"You’re thinking about it wrong. Their forces are actually smaller now. Although their territory is larger, they need to defend more areas. More importantly, the demand for talented people has skyrocketed. They’re in a hurry to unify the land in one swift move to avoid dragging out the war and destroying the country," Zhou Yu explained with satisfaction. Seeing Sun Ce ask such questions made him feel that Sun Ce was indeed making progress.

"I still don’t get it," Sun Ce said, blinking in confusion.

"To put it simply, their territory is too vast, and they have too many areas to govern. The demand for talent is enormous, but they don’t have enough people. While the noble families can provide manpower, Liu Bei’s standards are too high, so for now, he’s suppressing their influence. As a result, he needs a lot of officials to manage these areas. Remember, the real point of war is whether or not you can harvest the benefits afterward," Zhou Yu patiently explained.

Seeing Sun Ce still confused, Zhou Yu felt a bit frustrated. Had he overestimated Sun Ce’s intelligence?

"Let me put it this way: the battle between Liu Bei and Yuan Shao caused minimal damage to the northern territories. This is exactly what Liu Bei wanted. If he hadn’t achieved this, the war would have dragged on indefinitely, leading to bandits and refugees, which would have caused great damage to his lands afterward," Zhou Yu said, a hint of admiration in his voice.

"If banditry and chaos spread, it would be devastating to the local governance. Without stability, there’s no point in expanding territory. By my estimate, it will take them about a year to fully consolidate their control," Zhou Yu speculated.

"But what does this have to do with them not attacking us? Couldn’t they attack first and then consolidate afterward?" Sun Ce asked, still confused.

"Because Liu Bei’s ambitions are vast. He already has the power to unify the land, but if the other warlords unite against him, it will take him a long time to win. And during that time, the entire land would be thrown into chaos for at least five years. Neither we nor Cao Cao have the same level of ambition as Liu Bei," Zhou Yu said with a sigh.

"Five years of chaos, with more than twenty million people affected, a lack of food and medicine leading to widespread disease, and possibly over ten million deaths. That’s a cost Liu Bei can’t afford to bear!" Zhou Yu said, his eyes showing a hint of pity. "What Liu Bei wants is not a prolonged stalemate, but a thunderous strike that leaves us with no room to resist. For the people of the Han, this is the greatest act of benevolence!"

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