Chapter 804: The Northern Expedition

"Please explain further, Adviser Xu," Wei Yan's words were blunt, but he leaned slightly closer to Xu Shu, showing a willingness to listen.

Back when Guo Jia served as the strategist for the northern legions, he had spent considerable effort teaching Wei Yan. Unable to change Guan Yu's ways, Guo Jia turned his focus to Wei Yan, who had a temperament similar to Guan Yu, hoping to shape him into a more refined leader.

It was clear that some progress had been made. Though Wei Yan remained somewhat arrogant, he was no longer as prone to offending others. In fact, his straightforwardness now appealed to top-tier strategists like Xu Shu, who came from a more humble background.

"Strike here," Xu Shu casually pulled out a map from Wei Yan's saddlebag and pointed to a location.

"Qinghe?" Wei Yan asked, puzzled. "Our target is Ye City in Wei Commandery, to seize the Xuanyuan Cauldron. This place isn't even on our route."

"It's not about whether it's on the route or not. Didn't you pay attention to what our lord said?" Xu Shu calmly replied. Seeing that Wei Yan was still confused, he explained further, "We’ve been given the authority to engage the Ji Province forces."

"But our lord said that when we encounter Ji Province forces, we should judge for ourselves whether to engage," Wei Yan said, frowning.

"That's not quite right. We are the vanguard, and vanguards inherently possess the authority to make their own battle decisions. Our lord has tasked me with discussing strategies with you, which in essence, grants us full discretion in how we proceed. This is also why General Guan is leading the front forces," Xu Shu shook his head, disagreeing with Wei Yan's interpretation.

"But that's just your speculation," Guan Ping interjected at this moment.

"Speculation does play a part, but now that I’ve said it, it’s up to you both to decide whether you believe me or not," Xu Shu’s calm gaze swept over the two men, showing no signs of doubt or hesitation, as if the words he had just spoken had never even left his lips.

"Alright. We’ll head for Qinghe!" Wei Yan’s decisiveness was clearly superior to Guan Ping’s. After Xu Shu spoke with such conviction, Wei Yan didn’t hesitate any longer. While following the main route to the battlefield would ensure merits, truly great achievements could only come from opening up a new front. If they won, all would be theirs.

"Brother Wei!" Guan Ping exclaimed in alarm, shocked by the sudden deviation from their original strategy.

"Adviser Xu’s reasoning is sound. Or do you intend to live forever in the shadow of your father’s achievements, Tanzi?" Wei Yan shot a glance at Guan Ping.

"But wouldn’t this go against our lord’s established strategy?" Guan Ping frowned. Though clearly wavering, his loyalty to Guan Yu’s strict discipline made him resistant to deviating from orders.

"No, we aren’t going against the strategy," Xu Shu shook his head. "Our lord’s words have consistently indicated that we have the authority to make decisions, including the authority to initiate battle."

Guan Ping fell silent, visibly struggling with his inner conflict. After a long pause, he finally slapped Wei Yan on the shoulder. "I’ll follow your lead. If we get into trouble, it’ll be on me. At worst, I’ll take ten lashes from my father!"

"If you take ten lashes, I won’t escape either," Wei Yan grimaced at the thought. Guan Yu’s whip wasn’t just for show—if he got serious, the pain would be excruciating.

"Don’t worry. I won’t let it come to that," Xu Shu said nonchalantly, watching as the two made up their minds. Originally, Xu Shu had been about 70% confident in Liu Bei’s intentions, but now he was 90% certain.

[So, our mission is to disrupt Ji Province, divert Yuan Shao’s attention, and link up with Zang Xuan and Gao in Qingzhou?] Xu Shu furrowed his brow as he speculated. Still, he wasn’t entirely sure where Liu Bei's confidence came from, believing that he and Wei Yan could distract Yuan Shao from his battle with Liu Bei.

If Chen Xi knew of Xu Shu’s concerns, he would probably laugh. The fact that one was named Xu Shu and the other Wei Yan was reason enough.

Though Guan Ping had hesitated before making up his mind, once he committed, he acted decisively, mobilizing the troops toward Qinghe. Any potential problems would be dealt with later.

Several hours later, as Liu Bei and the others were still preparing to depart, a report arrived from the front: Wei Yan had not followed the planned route but had instead veered northward.

"You have quite the eye for talent," Jia Xu remarked with a nod of approval after reading the report. "The real question now is whether Xu Yuanzhi can successfully draw Yuan Shao’s attention and force him to consider the situation on Xu’s side even while fighting us."

"Don’t worry. My eye for talent will surprise you," Chen Xi said with a smile. "He’ll do better than you planned. Some people are simply born for this era."

"Alright, let’s move out!" Liu Bei, after exchanging a glance with Chen Xi, shook his head with a smile. With a loud command, he spurred his horse forward, leading the army. The ten-plus legions stationed near Mount Tai began breaking camp and marching, forming a long, mighty procession toward the northwest.

"With such a large force, it’ll take more than ten days to reach Ji Province. We’re bound to encounter difficulties along the way," Chen Xi said as he rode beside Jia Xu. "If we had just gathered the troops at Linyi from the start, we wouldn’t have all these hassles."

"This show of force proves that we were fully prepared from the moment we mobilized, and that our army is well-organized—even if it’s mostly for show," Jia Xu replied calmly. "If we had sent the troops in a more scattered formation, I’m certain Yuan Shao wouldn’t have missed such a disorganized opportunity."

"Pfft, as if I didn’t know that," Chen Xi scoffed. "If new soldiers haven’t seen battle and lack enough low-level commanders, it doesn’t matter how many we have—they’ll collapse at the first sign of trouble."

At this moment, Jia Xu’s attention shifted to the stirrups on Chen Xi’s horse. He had found it odd earlier, as Chen Xi wasn’t known for his riding skills, yet today he was unusually steady in the saddle. It was curious, to say the least.

"This thing…" Jia Xu stared at Chen Xi’s stirrups for a long while before sighing. "It’s a good invention, but it’s too early for it to appear. I assume this is the ‘treasure’ you mentioned for quickly training cavalry."

"That’s the one. True, it shouldn’t be revealed just yet, but since I’m surrounded by my personal guards, there’s no need to worry. Actually, I’ve already had a lot of saddles and stirrups made," Chen Xi nodded.

"Since this is a major military campaign, and I’ll be riding the whole way, I figured I’d test them out. Once we’ve captured parts of Bingzhou and Jizhou, I’ll equip them en masse," Chen Xi continued with a smile. "With these two items, cavalry will truly become the strongest military force."

"With these, all other units might as well be obsolete. Wenru’s old shock cavalry tactics will finally be usable again—that’s when we’ll see the strongest cavalry charges," Jia Xu nodded in agreement.

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