"Let's save the reunion for later. General Ju, it was I who requested our lord to have you transferred here," Xun Chen said as he stepped out from behind the scenes, interrupting the conversation between Yan Liang and Ju Yi.
"Greetings, Military Advisor Xun," Ju Yi, Yan Liang, and Zhang He all bowed in respect. Whether they liked him or not, they would never be disrespectful toward Xun Chen in public.
"May I ask why Military Advisor Xun has summoned both Junyi and me here? If it's to deal with the Yellow Turbans, I believe General Yan should have no difficulty defeating them," Ju Yi asked bluntly, not waiting for Xun Chen to speak.
"Hehe, General Ju, please be patient," Xun Chen replied with a slight glimmer of displeasure in his eyes, though he kept his composure.
"This plan is my doing. General Ju, please hear me out," Tian Feng stepped forward from behind the curtain as well.
"Greetings, Military Advisor Tian," Ju Yi greeted Tian Feng with utmost respect.
Unlike his feelings toward Xun Chen, Ju Yi had great respect for Tian Feng. After all, back when everyone doubted him, it was Tian Feng and Yuan Shao who supported him. To someone as straightforward as Ju Yi, repaying a debt of gratitude was a given, so he fully supported Tian Feng without hesitation.
Fortunately, Tian Feng was extremely intelligent, so Ju Yi's blind loyalty had never led to any mishaps. Over time, Ju Yi's political naivety had only deepened his unwavering support for Tian Feng. Whatever Tian Feng proposed, Ju Yi would back without question.
"General Ju, the purpose of your transfer here is not to deal with the Yellow Turbans. Zhang Yan may think we don't know his hiding spot, but in reality, the weather is dry right now. If we set the mountain on fire, we'll force him out," Tian Feng said with a smile. Zhang Yan had grown rapidly, but he was still too inexperienced. If the goal weren't to push him toward Yanzhou, they could have easily forced the Black Mountain Army out with fire long ago.
"Oh, I see," Ju Yi said, his expression one of sudden realization. "If we're not targeting the Yellow Turbans, then who are we after? There's no one else nearby besides us. Are we going after Liu Bei?" Ju Yi's eyes lit up with excitement—he relished the challenge of facing powerful opponents.
"Liu Xuande? Yes, but he's not our primary target. Our main goal is to eliminate Lü Bu. Ideally, we would absorb his entire force, even Lü Bu himself. Our lord has grand ambitions, and I believe he can conquer this fierce tiger!" Tian Feng nodded before explaining further.
Tian Feng had carefully considered Lü Bu's forces, both his military and his advisors. He concluded that if they could fully absorb Lü Bu's territory, his advisors, and his generals, it would lead to a significant boost in the power of Jizhou.
At the current level of strength between Yuan Shao and Liu Bei, as long as Yuan Shao didn't make any major mistakes and his subordinates remained united, they could leverage the combined intelligence of Xun Chen, Tian Feng, Ju Shou, Xu You, Shen Pei, and Xin Pi to maintain an advantage in strategy.
However, despite the strong lineup of civil advisors, Tian Feng was acutely aware of their deficiency in top-tier generals. While Jizhou had plenty of competent commanders capable of leading armies, what they lacked was a legendary warrior to boost morale. Yan Liang and Wen Chou were among the finest in Hebei, but they still fell short of the very best—at least, that's how Tian Feng saw it.
In this era, where morale could allow common soldiers to overwhelm elite troops, the presence of a peerless general could create a decisive advantage. The difference in morale could trigger a chain reaction, leading to a crushing defeat for the opposing side.
For this reason, Tian Feng's plan was to recruit Lü Bu. If that failed, the next best option was to have Liu Bei eliminate Lü Bu and then recruit Chen Gong and Lü Bu's remaining forces. Failing that, they could use Lü Bu to weaken Liu Bei's forces.
One of Tian Feng's strengths was planning for the worst-case scenario. His strategies always had multiple layers, with contingency plans in place. If he could achieve just one of his three objectives, Tian Feng would consider it a success.
Additionally, by pushing the Black Mountain Army into Yanzhou, Tian Feng also aimed to establish a connection with Yuan Shu. With Yuan Shu's only son, Yuan Yao, on the verge of death, the territories Yuan Shu controlled in Yuzhou, Yangzhou, and Jingzhou were left without a successor. Tian Feng was contemplating whether to reach out to Yuan Shu.
When Yuan Yao was still alive, Tian Feng believed that merging the Yuan family would be difficult without relying on Yuan Shu's impulsive loyalty to open the door. However, his lord wasn't the type to do such things. But now, with Yuan Yao near death, merging the Yuan family seemed much more feasible. If Yuan Shu's spirit was broken, he would likely let go.
That was why Tian Feng and the others were planning ahead. After all, if Yuan Yao were to die, Yuan Shu's only option would be to ask Yuan Shao to adopt one of his sons. Currently, Yuan Shao's most suitable candidate was his eldest son, Yuan Tan. This would effectively merge the two branches of the Yuan family. It wasn't that Tian Feng looked down on Yuan Tan, but compared to the brilliant and heroic Yuan Shao, Yuan Tan fell far short.
"Fight Lü Bu?" Ju Yi's eyes narrowed. Given his straightforward nature and close relationship with Yan Liang and Wen Chou, he knew full well just how powerful Lü Bu was—a nearly inhuman force.
"Only as a last resort, and only if we need to defeat him to demonstrate the difference in strength and make him more amenable to joining us," Tian Feng quickly doused Ju Yi's enthusiasm with a bucket of cold water. He had no desire to see Yuan Shao's limited number of elite troops wasted on Lü Bu—those troops were far too precious.
"But if there's an opportunity, I definitely want to face Lü Bu's Bingzhou Wolf Riders. If I can't defeat the world's finest cavalry, how can my Xian Deng Death Warriors truly take shape?" Ju Yi said with unbridled pride. "Only warriors forged in the crucible of battle can become an invincible army. I want to see firsthand the strength of these legendary Bingzhou Wolf Riders!"
"Your Xian Deng Death Warriors aren't fully trained yet?" Zhang He asked, astonished. He had personally witnessed Ju Yi leading the Xian Deng Death Warriors to a resounding victory against vastly superior numbers of Youzhou troops in the snow.
"Not yet. They've only just taken shape. They'll need at least two more battles on the scale of the Battle of Jieqiao to be truly ready. Only soldiers who have faced and survived desperate, life-or-death battles can develop an unshakable resolve. Right now, the spirit of my soldiers still depends on me—they need to find their own spirit," Ju Yi said, shaking his head. "As for forming a unified military soul, I haven't figured that out yet."
Zhang He felt a chill run down his spine. Ju Yi's leadership had already driven the Xian Deng Death Warriors into a near-berserker state, fearlessly charging into battle. Yet, under any other commander, while they remained elite, they lacked that unstoppable momentum. Now, Ju Yi was intent on forging that momentum into the very soul of his army.
"Does it really matter whether or not your troops have a unified soul when you're the one leading them? Why go through the trouble of creating one?" Zhang He asked, puzzled. Thanks to Ju Yi's guidance, Zhang He had fully mastered the Dajishi, and now, under his command, they could perform at their peak. With the addition of a legion's innate abilities, they had become one of the most formidable units in the land.