Chapter 921: The Chaos and Complications of Miscellaneous Affairs

For this lifetime, he had not wronged him, and indeed Yuan Shao was wise and martial. Xin Pi had no intention of yielding at all; at most, he regretted the misfortune of timing, which prevented him from following Yuan Shao to conquer the lands and establish the Yuan clan's dominion.

“So there’s no need to persuade him; he won’t surrender,” Xu Shu shrugged and said nonchalantly. Like Xin Pi, he was also from the same hometown and had interacted with him more, yet the lack of progress so far spoke volumes.

“There might be progress eventually,” Chen Xi smiled and said, “Since Zuo Zhi doesn’t agree, I won’t say more. We won’t mistreat you, but don’t think of leaving; that’s the bottom line.”

“I will wait for my lord to take me out,” Xin Pi said with a gleam in his eyes, speaking with unwavering pride.

Chen Xi shrugged indifferently. Xin Pi’s wish was destined to be impossible to achieve. Similarly, he did not plan to reveal this fact in the short term. If Xin Pi were to learn the truth now, given Yuan Shao’s charm, it was not impossible for Xin Pi, trapped in a cage, to follow Yuan Shao to the underworld.

“You’ve seen your father; you can rest assured now, right?” After Xin Pi returned to the inner room, it wasn’t long before the somewhat dejected Xin Xianying walked out with her head down. Chen Xi smiled and said, looking at her gloomy expression.

“Can I still come?” Xin Xianying asked cautiously.

“You can come anytime, but don’t wander around,” Chen Xi said, smiling at the cautious Xin Xianying.

“Phew…” Xin Xianying let out a long sigh. “Lord Chen, you’re a good person.” Then, biting her finger and tilting her head in thought, she added, “As a reward, I’ll make you my favorite steamed egg custard.”

“I’ll take her away first,” Chen Xi said, turning to Xu Shu. He wasn’t impressed by Xin Xianying’s response.

“Let’s talk later,” Xu Shu waved his hand. He needed to sort out his gains from the battlefield. It is known that Xu Shu’s first experience on the battlefield was indeed impressive, but there were also many mistakes. Genius does not mean avoiding mistakes but rather avoiding repeating them.

When Chen Xi took Xin Xianying away, at the moment Xin Xianying stepped out of the door, Xu Shu seemed to see a layer of purple light. He was momentarily stunned, and by the time he prepared to look again, Xin Xianying had already left.

[Perhaps I saw it wrong. How could a woman have pure purple qi?] Xu Shu thought as he tugged at his mouth. He then realized that he seemed to have only scratched the surface in many fields. Military tactics, strategy, logistics, and intelligence were all just surface-level knowledge. Not to mention his swordsmanship, which was also only at a basic level.

Afterward, Xin Xianying followed Chen Xi around like a tail. Chen Xi originally planned to return her to the Xin family, but Xin Xianying insisted on thanking Chen Xi. Chen Xi couldn’t say much about this, so steamed egg custard it was.

He sent a message to the Xin family. After all, Xin Xianying was the Xin family’s legitimate daughter. Although her value was diminished in the current precarious state of the Xin family, her status could still become a trouble if the family fell.

Chen Xi then took Xin Xianying all over the place. He wasn’t overly cautious. Although having a photographic memory was indeed rare, it was almost standard for geniuses of certain levels. Chen Xi clearly did not possess this ability.

However, it seems that Xun Yu, who also stood at the peak of wisdom in this era, did not have a photographic memory either. It seemed that such things were like Zhao Yun’s natural talent: not crucial but still valuable!

Chen Xi wandered around and finally ended up at the Ye City government office. Perhaps due to having no other place to go, although Liu Bei had arranged for Chen Xi to stay in Ye City, it didn’t feel like home.

“Greetings, Lord Chen,” as soon as Chen Xi turned into the government office, Zhen Mi, who was originally helping to count the government treasury and check the accounts, greeted him first.

“Where is Ziyang? This should be his task. Why is it being handled by you?” Chen Xi frowned and asked.

“Ziyang is still recovering from drunkenness,” Li You answered on behalf of Zhen Mi. This accounting work should have been handled by Liu Ye, but with Liu Ye away, it was up to Chen Xi and Li You. Now that Liu Ye had returned, it was certainly his job.

“What caliber was used this time?” Chen Xi asked, tilting his head. Different calibers could produce different data from the same accounts. This was a routine skill. Sometimes, Chen Xi needed to make the accounts look better. Although the essence didn’t change, it could give those who didn’t understand more confidence for the coming year.

“As before,” Li You casually glanced at a scroll and said. This person could also achieve instant memory. “But what about this tail behind you? Your illegitimate daughter?”

Li You had originally just glanced casually, but that casual glance revealed a problem. If there was anything miscellaneous about the things learned in the world, Li You was certainly among them. He was good at face reading and qi observation, among other things.

“Mind your own business. Get your main job done and move the Taishan Bank and our families over as soon as possible. Also, how long until we can truly take over Ji Province? This place is different from Qing Province. The military administration cannot be too long,” Chen Xi said, looking displeased at Li You.

“Probably by tomorrow I can formally start taking over Ji Province. However, we should delay dealing with the backup plan left by Gongsun Bo Gui. After consolidating Ji Province, we will move north. Right now, what worries me most is how to overcome the severe cold in the north. Of course, I’m not referring to people but to food,” Li You responded seriously to Chen Xi’s formal inquiry.

Li You had already arranged this when leaving Feng Gao with Huang Zhong. Many students who completed the first batch of Taishan Academy studies had been recruited by Li You. Since he had intervened, Yuan Shao would die in this battle, so the most important thing afterward was no longer combat but absorbing Ji Province.

“You don’t need to worry about that. It’s Han Mo’s responsibility. I’ve already handed over the cold-resistant crops to him. Whether he can deliver results depends on his ability,” Chen Xi said casually. Going further north, cold resistance was the most crucial.

“It’s just that time is short. When I left, Han Mo told me that the selection of good seeds had just begun. The fastest might take eleven generations, and at most three generations of good seeds per year. That means it will take about four years,” Li You said helplessly. He had investigated the northeastern plains and found them to be fertile black soil. The issue was only in planting.

“Don’t rush. Han Mo won’t take that long. If forced, the time needed won’t be so much, and development there also takes time, so it will catch up,” Chen Xi shook his head and said. For this method, it was just a matter of numbers. Chen Xi could only wait for the final result. There was no way around it, and it was already anticipated.

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