Chapter 872: Jia Xu's Dilemma

"Proceed with caution." Chen Xi spread his hands, helplessly saying, "At this point, as long as we don't make any mistakes, victory is assured. There's no need for risk or trickery. Just advance steadily, even if it means winning in a less impressive manner."

"I think if we're bold, we might achieve surprising results," Liu Ye remarked as he looked at Chen Xi. "Wenru's approach this time seems overly cautious."

Liu Ye was always curious about the relationship between Chen Xi and Li You. Both were highly skilled in everything, exceptionally knowledgeable, and uninterested in power. Sometimes Liu Ye even wondered if Li You and Chen Xi were senior and junior disciples from the same master.

"Hmm, I actually think it's fine. Wenhe's earlier plan wasn’t explicitly clear, but we both have our own assessments. He's forcing Yuan Shao's army into a decisive battle, essentially creating a turning point in the war," Chen Xi said thoughtfully, noting that it was rare for Jia Xu to show such urgency.

"True, but it's surprising for Wenhe to propose such a strategy. It doesn’t align with his usual character," Liu Ye added, his expression slightly puzzled.

In Liu Ye's mind, Jia Xu was the type to stay aloof, only getting involved when directly asked. This was someone who preferred to keep a distance, only offering advice when necessary. For Jia Xu to actively suggest a strategy this time, something seemed off—had he taken the wrong medicine?

"Huh, I didn’t even think about that. This kind of scheme seems more like something Fengxiao would propose. Why is Wenhe the one pushing it?" Chen Xi scratched his cheek, equally baffled.

Meanwhile, Jia Xu himself was conflicted. The events that Zixu had foretold were coming true, but the fact that they were happening at such a crucial moment frustrated Jia Xu to no end. He couldn't help but want to curse.

Back then, Zixu had predicted that Sun Ce would rise to power in Jiangdong, just as Jia Xu had expected. But how Sun Ce rose—absorbing the elite forces of Jingxiang and Yuzhou before establishing himself in Jiangdong—was completely different from the original script!

Could this even be called taking control of Jiangdong? What a joke! While it was true that Sun Ce had become the ruler of Jiangdong, his true power still resided in Jingxiang and Huainan. This was nothing like what Jia Xu had anticipated when planning for Sun Ce’s ascension.

To curb Sun Ce and Zhou Yu’s influence, Jia Xu had previously spread rumors throughout Yuzhou to weaken their position, contributing to the resistance from Yuan Shu's family elders. These rumors, concocted by Jia Xu and Zhuge Liang, were fabricated from shadows and hearsay...

But in the end, fate had its way. Yuzhou and Jingxiang had essentially been handed to Sun Ce by Yuan Shu, leaving Jia Xu feeling uneasy.

Then there was Cao Cao taking over Sili. Jia Xu had been mentally prepared for this, given Zixu's prediction that Cao Cao would eventually control it. However, Jia Xu hadn’t been overly concerned, thinking that they couldn’t act on Sili at that moment anyway.

But what happened next nearly made Jia Xu explode with anger. Cao Cao didn’t just seize Sili; he did so without losing troops, instead gaining stronger armies and generals, and even pulling Xiliang onto his side.

While Ma Teng hadn't yet formally allied with Cao Cao, Jia Xu was certain that based on his knowledge of Han Sui, it wouldn’t take more than three months for Cao Cao to completely swallow Xiliang.

Han Sui, who fancied himself clever and resourceful, was nothing more than a country bumpkin to Jia Xu. He had no idea who he was up against.

Facing opponents like Xun Yu, Xun You, Zhong Yao, Sima Lang, Chen Qun, Cheng Yu, and Du Xi, Han Sui was completely out of his depth. If he had returned to Xiliang to establish himself as a local warlord, he might have had some breathing room. But after the end of the campaign to rescue the Emperor, he foolishly stayed in Guanzhong to play politics with these people.

In truth, Jia Xu thought even three months was too generous for Han Sui. On top of that, Liu Zhang had started attacking Hanzhong, and even more shockingly, the western army had managed to advance into Hanzhong. Jia Xu was at a loss for words—besides cursing, he didn’t know what else to do.

This was practically handing gifts to Cao Cao. If Zhang Lu didn’t simultaneously file a complaint to the Emperor and beg for Cao Cao’s help, Jia Xu himself wouldn’t have believed it.

Calling this "Cao Cao’s westward expansion" was an understatement. Jia Xu just wanted to curse. While the direction of events made sense, the scale of Cao Cao’s expansion was excessive. It was a deadly pitfall, and if Zixu appeared before Jia Xu right now, the two would definitely end up fighting—with Jia Xu throwing the first punch.

Because of the current situation, Jia Xu had made the risky decision to conclude the war between Liu Bei and Yuan Shao as quickly as possible in order to salvage what he could.

Jia Xu understood that even if the war dragged on, Liu Bei’s overall strategy wouldn't be severely weakened. However, this situation no longer aligned with the grand strategy Jia Xu had devised based on Zixu's predictions for the future.

What troubled Jia Xu most was that he couldn’t share any of this with anyone. He had to solve the problem on his own, leaving him with a growing disdain for so-called "immortals." Every time he thought back on his decisions, he regretted ever believing in such nonsense.

In his frustration, Jia Xu decided to take the risk and push for a swift resolution to this increasingly messy situation. Although others might not see the current state of affairs as overly dire, given that after defeating Yuan Shao they would still be able to deal with Cao Cao and Sun Ce, Jia Xu—who knew the "original" future—found the situation intolerable.

Jia Xu was determined to prevent Cao Cao and Sun Ce from growing any stronger. Defeating Yuan Shao and containing Cao Cao and Sun Ce were essential goals at this stage, and Jia Xu was willing to take risks to achieve them.

The biggest issues facing Cao Cao and Sun Ce at the moment weren’t food or manpower; they had plenty of both. What they lacked was time.

As long as they had enough time, they could convert all their potential into military power. With their talented advisors and generals, they could quickly build a force that rivaled Yuan Shao’s current strength.

Because of this, Jia Xu had abandoned the idea of trading time for victory. That strategy was unreliable. If the conflict dragged on for too long, Cao Cao and Zhou Yu would be able to piece together enough power to give Liu Bei significant trouble, even if they hadn’t fully consolidated their forces.

This was the reason for Jia Xu's uncharacteristic decision. He had been pushed into a corner. The mess he’d created had to be fixed, and it was up to him to find a solution. In his view, it was Zixu who had led him astray, and now he had to clean up the mess.

Still, there was one silver lining that gave Jia Xu some comfort. At least Zixu hadn’t lied to him, and one crucial prediction had already been proven correct.

"When the Lord confers grand titles upon his ministers, what rank will I hold?" This unanswered question had filled Jia Xu with renewed motivation. Since Zixu's earlier predictions had come true, this was enough to drive him forward!

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