Regarding Li You, Chen Deng had nothing more to say. If things were truly as he suspected, then Li You's intelligence and ability were undoubtedly at the pinnacle of the era. Although his methods were ruthless, his capability couldn't be denied. If future developments aligned with Chen Deng's assumptions, then all he could do was look up to Li You with admiration.
Chen Deng couldn't help but ponder Li You's background, much like how others initially questioned Chen Xi's origins when he first displayed his extraordinary talents. After all, no genius simply appears out of nowhere; even late bloomers leave traces in their past. Yet, Li You seemed to have emerged from thin air.
Sighing, Chen Deng reflected that great Confucian scholars of this era often had hidden depths, and those who were recognized as friends by such scholars must possess outstanding virtue and ability. In his view, Li You was precisely such a person.
As he mulled this over, Chen Deng decided to wait a couple of days before acting.
Meanwhile, Gan Ning and his group had already departed from Lake Chao. During the time when Gan Ning and Chen Xi were encircling Lujiang, Taishi Ci, apart from eliminating the already scarce lake pirates, had little else to do. Zhuge Liang, on the other hand, secluded himself in deep thought, analyzing the current situation. With Chen Xi's reminder, Zhuge Liang quickly realized from the map that they would inevitably encounter trouble—Lujiang and Jiangxia were practically next door!
Sun Ce's strongest force was, of course, the Jiangxia navy. And with Jiangxia so close to Lujiang, it would be easy for Sun Ce to summon reinforcements. Traveling downstream ensured both speed and fighting strength.
This realization led Zhuge Liang to conclude that if they weren't fast enough, they would likely face the full force of the Jiangxia navy. Even if they were swift, a battle with the vanguard of the Jiangxia navy on the Yangtze River was inevitable. In short, once they left Lake Chao, a clash on the Yangtze was unavoidable.
However, Zhuge Liang hadn't considered the true scale of the Jiangxia navy. In his view, even if Sun Ce's forces were stronger than Gan Ning's navy, the difference couldn't be too significant. After all, Liu Bei had granted Gan Ning considerable autonomy over the navy, something Yuan Shu would never do for Sun Ce. That was the crucial difference.
Unfortunately, Zhuge Liang hadn't anticipated that Zhou Yu would be so audacious—simultaneously suppressing river pirates on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze and reporting to his superiors that due to Huang Zu's death, many of Jingzhou's naval forces had turned to piracy, necessitating increased defenses to counter these bandits. Given the vastness of the Yangtze, figures like Li Feng were inclined to believe Zhou Yu's claims, allowing him to legitimize his actions on both sides of the law.
Over time, Zhou Yu not only suppressed these pirates but also strengthened his control over the local navy, vigorously managing Jiangxia County and the Yangtze River routes. If needed, he even resorted to river piracy himself. This precarious balance allowed him to barely sustain the entire navy. In other words, Sun Ce's hidden strength far exceeded what Zhuge Liang had realized.
As for Chen Xi, his tendency to analyze history and current events together led him to suspect that Sun Ce's forces might not be weak. However, he never imagined that Zhou Yu could amass such a formidable force. The ability to make something out of nothing to this extent was truly impressive!
Although Chen Xi recognized that Sun Ce had amassed considerable strength, he wasn't worried that Zhou Yu would deploy more than 8,000 troops. The reason was simple: Yuan Shu was still alive, and Sun Ce remained under his command. Zhou Yu, no matter how powerful, couldn't openly flaunt his strength until Sun Ce had officially broken away from Yuan Shu.
Noticing that Zhuge Liang was still deep in thought, Chen Xi asked, "What's on your mind? Feeling the pressure from Lu Boyan? Take some time to talk with him; you two will be spending a lot of time together in the future."
Every time Chen Xi thought about Zhuge Liang and Lu Xun possibly serving in the same court, he couldn't help but smile. After all, in the previous life, Lu Xun had shattered Zhuge Liang's lifelong ambitions. If it hadn't been for the Battle of Yiling, which decimated the second-generation elites of Shu and most of its veterans, Zhuge Liang's Northern Expeditions wouldn't have been so difficult.
"Nothing much. He's decent, but barring any surprises, he won't surpass me," Zhuge Liang replied with a raised eyebrow. He was deeply aware of Lu Xun's talents, recognizing that they were quite similar in many respects. However, as Zhuge Liang pointed out, unless something unexpected happened, Lu Xun wouldn't be able to catch up.
"Hey, this guy is supposed to be your companion. Take good care of him. He's quite proud, so don't hesitate to knock him down a peg," Chen Xi teased, not at all shy about stirring the pot between the two. He wasn't above encouraging a little rivalry between two prodigies; it made for an entertaining spectacle.
"Boring," Zhuge Liang responded calmly. His mindset was exceptionally mature. He wasn't like Fa Zheng, who, after being repeatedly outmaneuvered by Guo Jia, needed to find validation by targeting other geniuses. It's worth noting that Zhuge Liang himself had suffered a few underhanded tricks from Fa Zheng when he first arrived, though he quickly retaliated.
At first, Zhuge Liang found Fa Zheng's antics annoying. But after learning the truth, his gaze towards Fa Zheng softened with a hint of pity, which only agitated Fa Zheng further. Eventually, Fa Zheng relocated to Qi, using his achievements there to prove himself. By the time Fa Zheng returned after the New Year, he would probably be too busy to bother with Zhuge Liang anymore.
"Show some enthusiasm! Don't be so mature. Look at Lu Boyan; despite the upheavals in his life, he hasn't grown as distant as you. Come on, give us a smile," Chen Xi quipped with a playful grin, looking even less mature than Zhuge Liang.
"He's only faced turmoil; I lost my way after reading your books, and then I lost my family too," Zhuge Liang calmly replied, nearly choking Chen Xi with his words.
"Boyan, I've got a military strategy book for you!" Chen Xi, recovering from his shock, leaned back against the boat's railing and shouted towards the cabin.
"No need, the one I'm reading is enough," Lu Xun, crouched at the cabin door, replied without looking up.
It wasn't that Lu Xun didn't want more strategy books from Chen Xi, but after witnessing Zhuge Liang's prowess, he had no desire to provoke him further. It was already overwhelming enough to see someone his own age excelling in astronomy, geography, military tactics, and strategy. Zhuge Liang even recounted a story that concluded with five seemingly contradictory yet equally valid lessons.
Was this meant to make his brain explode? Zhuge Liang was only a year older than him! Lu Xun was beginning to question whether he was truly a genius. Zhuge Liang's distant gaze, exuding a melancholy aura of a lonely master, weighed heavily on Lu Xun.