Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator.

Li Ji was somewhat moved by these words.

For Li Ji, life held two main passions: books and good food.

This was a well-known fact within Liu Bei's group.

In this era where boiling was the primary cooking method, Liu Bei had originally commissioned an iron wok for Li Ji to stir-fry tea leaves. Over the years, Li Ji, in his spare time, had casually instructed the cooks, leading to the creation of many stir-fried dishes to satisfy his appetite.

Especially after spending some time in Yingzhou, Li Ji's taste buds had become incredibly bored.

After all, Li Ji didn't have the habit of bringing cooks on campaigns. The diet of those Japanese people in Yingzhou was basically at a level where things were just edible; how could they create any delicacies?

Therefore, upon returning to Wu Commandery, Li Ji indulged in a period of enjoying nine dishes and a soup almost every day.

Always frugal, Liu Bei naturally wouldn't scold Li Ji for such a trivial matter. Instead, he would often drop by to freeload meals, leading to the gradual spread of rumors about Li Ji's love for good food.

However, after a slight hesitation, Li Ji still shook his head and declined Liu Bei's kindness, saying.

"There are many useful things in Luoyang. It would be a case of penny-wise and pound-foolish to spend so much effort capturing a batch of deer. It would be better to put more effort into crafting hunting bows for the lord to hunt deer."

Li Ji's seemingly contradictory words left those present somewhat confused, except for Guo Jia, who instantly understood and explained.

"What Master Li is referring to are two different kinds of 'deer'."

Immediately, Liu Bei reacted, realizing that the "deer" Li Ji mentioned in the latter half referred to the Central Plains.

"Regardless of whether I succeed in hunting 'deer', Zikun will definitely have his share of venison," Liu Bei said.

Li Ji replied, "If the lord fails to hunt 'deer', even if I eat venison, it will be tasteless."

Hearing Li Ji's repeated refusal, Liu Bei felt a great deal of emotion. He didn't press the matter further, but his feelings of guilt towards Li Ji only deepened.

Zikun has been fighting in the north and south for my great cause, managing internal affairs and pacifying external rebellions. He even spent several years developing the barren land of Yingzhou, sending a steady stream of gold mines back to Wu Commandery.

Liu Bei remembered all of these hard work and contributions.

Many times, Liu Bei even had the urge to persuade Li Ji to slow down a bit and enjoy himself, but he was afraid of being scolded by Li Ji, so he didn't dare to say anything.

His subordinate was too perfect, too outstanding…

Liu Bei, as the lord, felt a lot of pressure, worried that Li Ji would be exhausted and also worried that he himself was unworthy of his position.

Tonight, Liu Bei heard that Li Ji had summoned dancers to his residence. The reason he secretly came to eavesdrop was to personally confirm whether Li Ji needed female companionship.

Liu Bei thought that perhaps Li Ji was just shy to speak about it normally, but he might actually have those needs.

It could be said that as long as Li Ji showed even a little interest in the dancers tonight, Liu Bei was prepared to collect a batch of dancers in Luoyang and send them to Li Ji as soon as possible.

As the wine flowed after a few rounds, Li Ji, discussing serious matters, reminded Liu Bei not to forget to bring as many artisans directly under the imperial court in Luoyang to Wu Commandery as possible.

Although Li Ji had been fully collecting artisans in recent years, the real pinnacle of the era's craftsmanship was undoubtedly the artisans raised by the imperial court.

Not only could the imperial artisans solve the problem of bows and crossbows, but there were also a large number of artisan shortages in all aspects of salt, iron, and mines.

With the arrival of the chaotic times, the imperial court completely lost control over the localities, which meant that Wu Commandery could finally control salt, iron, taxes, and other things without restrictions.

It could be said that Luoyang was full of treasures to be mined…

In particular, Li Ji also wanted to go to the imperial garden of the North Palace to see if there were any exotic flowers and rare herbs planted inside that were brought in from the Silk Road but had not been used correctly.

Unfortunately, the North Palace was still completely blocked by Lu Bu, and Li Ji didn't have the opportunity to go into the imperial garden to dig…

In the following days, Li Ji, while teaching Diao Chan to read and instilling some of the values he needed, also paid attention to the overall situation in Luoyang, which continued to move towards stability.

The allied forces quickly formulated a plan to send grain, assigning Sun Jian to escort the grain and send it to the imperial palace every three days.

When the news came from the imperial palace that Emperor Liu Xie was preparing to marry Wen Hou's daughter as empress, many of the lords who had been silenced by Lu Bu's move were speechless.

At this point, none of the lords failed to realize that there was a strategist behind Lu Bu, otherwise, Lu Bu himself would never have thought of such a way to gain political capital.

In this way, Lu Bu would also completely complete his transformation in status, from a thief who killed his adoptive father Ding Yuan and defected to Dong Zhuo, to a person who removed the national traitor and was promoted to the rank of relative of the emperor.

And with the spread of this news, all the lords also understood that unless they completely tore their faces with the Han Dynasty, there was no longer any excuse to deal with Lu Bu.

After four hundred years, the Han Dynasty would once again usher in a new Empress Lu.

Upon learning of this, Li Ji noticed that Liu Bei's expression was a bit strange, as if some shadow buried deep in his bloodline had resurfaced.

The mere title of "Empress Lu" was enough to create a haze in the hearts of those with the surname Liu.

Subsequently, Chen Gong, as Lu Bu's representative, began to visit various lords in Luoyang to secretly discuss agreements.

What Chen Gong wanted was for the lords to recognize Lu Bu's identity as the one who诛 killed Dong Thief and relatives of the emperor, and for the lords to withdraw from Luoyang and return to their respective residences.

In return for the lords leading their troops to leave Luoyang, the lords would naturally propose the benefits they wanted, including official positions, titles, and so on.

Chen Gong's first stop was Yuan Shao, and the second was Liu Bei, as the deputy leader of the alliance.

This was also the first time Li Ji met Chen Gong.

And Chen Gong's appearance was even more unremarkable than Li Ji had imagined, which was why Chen Gong had wasted decades and was only a county magistrate in the Han Dynasty, which placed great emphasis on appearance.

After the two sides exchanged polite greetings on the surface, Chen Gong immediately hinted at his intention, asking Liu Bei if he had any requests to convey to the current emperor.

It was just that Liu Bei may have the ambition to take the world, but he undoubtedly always maintained an attitude of respect and maintenance towards the Han Dynasty.

Liu Bei couldn't do this kind of thing to directly ask the emperor for benefits.

Therefore, Liu Bei pondered for a while before opening his mouth.

"I have eaten Han's salary for many years, but I can't repay the emperor, and I can't settle the people. I am already ashamed, how dare I have the idea of asking for an official position? I only wish the emperor peace and health for ten thousand years, and I am already satisfied."

This made Chen Gong's face show a bit of embarrassment, unable to tell whether Liu Bei was really humble or falsely polite, so he had to continue.

"This time, the Emperor Uncle Liu led his troops to conquer the national thieves and made great achievements. For meritorious ministers, the emperor will naturally reward them. The Emperor Uncle Liu may not have to decline."

Liu Bei replied, "Thunder and rain are all the grace of heaven, I can only be grateful and weep, I dare not ask for it."

This made Chen Gong's brows couldn't help but wrinkle completely.

Today, Liu Bei's influence in the allied forces is undoubtedly huge. If Liu Bei makes such a noble gesture, what will be affected is not only the group of lords who are close to Liu Bei.

The lords in the Yuan Shao camp will also have some concerns.

For Liu Xie and Lu Bu, the most urgent task is undoubtedly to quickly drive these lords away, otherwise, it is not certain when this imperial capital Luoyang will change its owner.

Noticing the change in Chen Gong's expression, Li Ji, who was accompanying him, sighed helplessly and said.

"The Lord's heart can be learned from heaven. However, if the Lord keeps declining, how dare the other lords accept it?"

Suddenly, Chen Gong's eyes lit up, feeling that Li Ji had hit the point with one glance.

If Liu Bei doesn't mention it, how dare the other lords mention it?

If the lords don't mention it, how will they be willing to leave Luoyang?

If they don't leave Luoyang, how can Lu Bu progress? How can Liu Xie sleep peacefully?

"So, I have to mention it?" Liu Bei asked somewhat uncomfortably.

Immediately, Li Ji hurriedly saluted Liu Bei, with a helpless look of a loyal minister and filial son, and said.

"If the Lord considers it for His Majesty, he should be a model, so as to guide the other lords to leave Luoyang quickly."

"Alas…"

Liu Bei sighed a long time, and the face that was revealed was all helpless color, way.

"If you are subjected to this defamatory name, you can solve the problem for Your Majesty, and I will not regret those few Qing names? It's just that I hope that Mr. Gongtai will return to the palace and ask His Majesty to tell him about this matter, and I will definitely apologize to His Majesty in the future."

Under Liu Bei's extremely infectious words, Chen Gong's heart was also greatly touched, and he only felt that Liu Bei was the only loyal minister in the entire allied army who was thinking about the Han Dynasty.

"Gong will definitely convey it to His Majesty for Emperor Uncle Liu." Chen Gong said sternly.

Immediately, Liu Bei pondered for a few breaths before continuing to speak.

"If His Majesty trusts me, I am willing to use this body to shepherd Yangzhou for His Majesty."

As Liu Bei finished speaking, Chen Gong waited for a few more breaths before realizing that Liu Bei had no follow-up.

Is this condition excessive?

Compared to the conditions proposed by Yuan Shao and considering Liu Bei's current official position, not only is it not excessive, but it can be said to be quite euphemistic.

However, Chen Gong did not forget to confirm it again, asking.

"In addition to this, does Emperor Uncle Liu have anything else to convey to His Majesty?"

Liu Bei shook his head, then looked at Li Ji again.

Li Ji pondered slightly for a moment, and said.

"Gongtai, my lord usually likes to study ingenious techniques, so he wants to ask the imperial court to borrow a few old craftsmen to return to Wu Commandery to ask for advice…"

After a pause, Li Ji continued.

"And my wife is also very interested in exotic flowers and rare herbs, I wonder if I can take some flowers and plants from the imperial garden to give to my wife?"

Chen Gong was stunned when he heard this, and couldn't help but show a bit of surprise in his eyes.

As a traditional scholar, Chen Gong did not value ingenious skills, and he also had the idea that a great husband has no worries about his wife.

Thus, upon learning that the world-renowned and virtuous Imperial Uncle Liu Bei wished to borrow a few experienced craftsmen to learn some ingenious techniques to make a name for himself, the celebrated scholar Li Ji specifically went to the Imperial Garden to gather some flowers and plants to give to his wife…

Chen Gong was momentarily filled with a hard-to-describe feeling.

However, considering that Liu Bei was a weaver and sandal seller before his rise to prominence, and that Li Ji had married the talented Cai Zhaoji, his cherishing of his beloved wife seemed perfectly reasonable.

In the end, Chen Gong held back for a good while before finally speaking.

"Master Zikun's affection for his wife is truly profound, quite enviable indeed. If I were to decline on some pretext, it would seem rather boorish of me."

Li Ji couldn't help but reveal a smile, replying.

"Of course, I am a true romantic."

(End of Chapter)