Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator.

Just as Li Ji was feeling somewhat speechless, Sima Yi, taking advantage of the seeming pause in conversation between Liu Bei and Li Ji, rode up on a small pony and greeted them.

"Imperial Uncle Liu, Teacher."

Because Zhuge Liang and the other disciples had neither formally completed their studies nor reached the age of majority, they had not yet formally pledged allegiance to Liu Bei.

Therefore, even though Zhuge Liang and the others had become members of the advisory staff, and Zhuge Liang and Xu Shu had even officially begun assisting Li Ji in handling various trivial military affairs,

in essence, they were still merely Li Ji's disciples and not Liu Bei's subordinates.

Li Ji composed himself and asked,

"Yi'er, what is it?"

"Teacher, I have a plan, but I am unsure if it will be effective, so I wish to seek your guidance," Sima Yi said with lowered eyes and a respectful demeanor.

Li Ji's heart stirred slightly, and he was somewhat surprised.

After all, Sima Yi was not usually so proactive.

"Yi'er has always been quick-witted and has unique insights into military and political matters, so speak freely."

"Yes, Teacher..."

Sima Yi respectfully replied before saying, "Teacher, now our army has penetrated deep into enemy territory, resulting in the severing of our supply lines and a shortage of supplies for the army."

Li Ji did not respond, waiting for Sima Yi to continue.

Immediately, Sima Yi's tone shifted as he said,

"But at the same time, are we not also behind Cao Cao's lines, near the location of Cao Cao's supply lines?"

"And Cao Cao's foothold in Donghai Commandery is not yet stable. The only place nearby that can be used to store grain is Tan County. Therefore, it is not difficult to find the location of the supply lines."

"Furthermore, our army could dispatch a detachment directly to Tan County, seeking an opportunity to capture it, or even besiege it, which would also cut off Cao Cao's supply lines."

"In this way, both our army and Cao Cao's army would have their supply lines cut off, and Cao Cao would be faced with the dilemma of whether to attack our army or return to Tan County to protect the supply lines."

Hearing this, Li Ji couldn't help but reveal a hint of praise in his eyes, saying,

"Yi'er's strategy is quite good. What does the lord think?"

Liu Bei also said with a face full of appreciation, "Indeed, a brilliant disciple comes from a great teacher."

This plan might not necessarily be brilliant, but what was rare was that Li Ji had proposed that the army go straight to the rear of Cao Cao's army and continue north, which was only an hour away.

In such a short period, Sima Yi, who was still a young man, had come up with such a method to directly attack Cao Cao's vital point, which shows his flexible thinking.

Li Ji considered it for a moment and then said,

"Lord, I also think this plan is very good. How about we choose a good general to lead a detachment directly to Tan County and cut off Cao Cao's supply lines?"

"Who does Zikun think should be the general?" Liu Bei asked.

"Wei Yan has always been brave and resourceful. Sending him deep into enemy territory to besiege Tan County would be a good use of this capable general, and there might be surprises," Li Ji replied.

Liu Bei pondered for a moment and then said,

"Scouts report that the one in charge of Tan County is Xun Wenruo, a man known for his talent and wisdom. Cao Cao has repeatedly declared to the outside world that Xun Wenruo's ability is no less than Zikun's. Perhaps we need to send a strategist along with him, otherwise Wei Yan might fall into Xun Wenruo's trap."

Li Ji nodded slightly, also aware of this point.

It was precisely because Cao Cao had left Xun Yu in Tan County to oversee the rear that Li Ji was certain that the military rations collected by Cao's army after entering Xu Province were most likely stored in Tan County.

If Tan County is lost, Cao's army will collapse.

However, Xun Yu is naturally not an easy person to deal with, and Tan County will not be easily captured.

Letting Wei Yan lead the troops alone to attack Tan County might result in him being completely outmaneuvered by Xun Yu's tactics.

Listening to the discussion between Liu Bei and Li Ji, Sima Yi, who was slightly lowering his head, still maintained a calm and respectful expression, but his heart couldn't help but beat faster.

Sima Yi took the initiative to propose this strategy for what purpose? Naturally, he wanted to slip away.

The plague was something that Sima Yi, who cherished his life, was truly afraid of.

However, slipping away also required skill and method. If he escaped directly, his head would not only be chopped off and hung at the gate, but Li Ji would probably also break his legs.

Therefore, after racking his brains, Sima Yi came up with such a method to offer a plan.

Now that there were not many talented and wise men available to Liu Bei in the army, Sima Yi had also secretly learned about the abilities and personalities of each general, knowing that Li Ji was very likely to choose Wei Yan as the general.

And under the circumstances that Zhou Yu could not lower himself to serve as Wei Yan's strategist, Li Ji had few remaining choices.

Sima Yi, who proposed this strategy, was undoubtedly the most appropriate candidate.

Li Ji also thought so, subconsciously preparing to recommend Sima Yi as the strategist to go to Tan County with Wei Yan.

Although Sima Yi was not yet old enough and his abilities would not be a match for Xun Yu, reminding Wei Yan to avoid falling into a trap would probably be more than enough.

It was just as Li Ji was about to speak that he suddenly thought of something...

Perhaps from Sima Yi's perspective, he had not had much private contact with Li Ji, and on the surface, he had always maintained the image of a normal disciple.

But did Li Ji not know what Sima Yi's personality was like in secret?

Sima Yi and Jia Xu had many things in common. The obvious difference was only in terms of ambition.

'Good you, Sima Yi, you are indeed quick-witted. You probably guessed that there was something wrong ahead and wanted to slip away when you saw the situation was not good?'

Li Ji chuckled to himself and then turned to Liu Bei and said, "When recommending talent, one should not avoid one's own relatives. I have a disciple who, although young, has always had ingenious strategies and can be put to good use."

"Oh? Zikun, please speak freely."

Liu Bei replied, and the youthful version of Sima Yi couldn't help but raise his eyes, a hint of excitement flashing across them.

"It is indeed..."

Li Ji deliberately lengthened his tone a little, glanced at Sima Yi out of the corner of his eye, and then continued,

"Xiangyang's Pang Tong."

??!!

Sima Yi.

This... this is not right, is it?

Sima Yi's face couldn't help but collapse for the most part.

As for the disciples selected by Li Ji, Liu Bei also attached great importance to them and paid close attention to them.

Although Pang Tong was ugly, he was beautiful inside. He showed extraordinary talent and wisdom at a young age, which Liu Bei valued very much.

Faced with Li Ji's recommendation, Liu Bei did not hesitate too much and replied,

"Since Zikun has such confidence, then let Wei Yan be the general and Pang Tong be the strategist, leading 10,000 troops to Tan County to cut off Cao Cao's supply lines."

Immediately, as Liu Bei ordered people to summon Wei Yan and Pang Tong, Li Ji turned to Sima Yi and said,

"Yi'er's strategy is very good and should be recorded as a merit... Eh? Yi'er, why does your face look like this? Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"

The youthful version of Sima Yi had not yet reached the point where he could hide his emotions, and he stuttered as he replied,

"Teacher, I do feel a little unwell. Perhaps I need..."

Before Sima Yi could finish speaking, Li Ji stepped forward and placed his hand on Sima Yi's forehead. After confirming that Sima Yi did not have a high fever, he said with concern,

"Yi'er, don't worry. I will immediately summon the army physician, who is a top student of Zhang Zhongjing and has excellent medical skills. Let him examine Yi'er."

(End of this chapter)