Chapter 208

"I didn't expect this Lu Zigan to end up on the old path after all." "Huangfu Song and the others are also unlucky?"

Returning full of joy, the result was that the three Generals of the Household were all demoted without exception.

Obviously, the loss of the Forbidden Army made that Emperor Ling of Han furious. It was also because he had originally suppressed the noble clans, but as a result of this Yellow Turban uprising, the power of local clans increased, while his Forbidden Army suffered such a great loss, nearly half, so how could he not be angry?

This was the army he had spent decades building.

If it weren't for the fact that the three of them eventually suppressed the main force of the Yellow Turbans, he might have had the heart to kill them all.

After this Yellow Turban uprising, the Imperial Court's loss could be said to be the greatest; the Martial Saint who protected the country had died.

This news would certainly not be hidden for long.

For the Liu clan, it was adding frost to snow.

It could be said that it was reasonable for the three of them to be demoted, but this also sparked controversy; regardless, the three of them suppressed the Yellow Turban chaos.

The Imperial Court became increasingly chaotic.

Of course, Su Fan cared about the three of Wei, Shu, and Wu; Sun Jian and Cao Cao both had promotions because they had support behind them.

But Liu Bei not only had no support, but because of Lu Zhi, he even lost his original position as Magistrate of Pingyuan.

It could be said that he was quite unlucky; having two peerless fierce brothers, but the Imperial Court didn't care about these things.

Especially the eunuch group, who hated Lu Zhi quite a bit; as Lu Zhi's disciple, Liu Bei was also held in hatred.

This was also what Su Fan later inquired about from that little yellow gate.

"Lord seems to be very concerned about those three brothers?"

"Those two are peerless fierce generals not inferior to Zhongkang; do you think I can not pay attention to them?"

"Fierce generals comparable to Zhongkang?"

Xi Zhicai was also taken aback upon hearing this. How could he not know how strong Xu Chu was? He was absolutely a top-tier fierce general in the army; he didn't expect to encounter two more now.

"In that case, the other person is also extraordinary?"

"Zhicai, what do you think of someone who can make two peerless fierce generals follow him wholeheartedly?"

Liu Bei's personal charm was indeed very strong; after all, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei had lived and died with him for many years.

Relying on Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's martial power, if they had changed to another boss, they would probably have been in high positions long ago, instead of wasting decades like before.

Of course, according to history, Liu Bei did not betray the two's trust.

"In that case, this person must be extraordinary."

"Does Lord want to recruit the three of them?"

"Heh! It's impossible; that person has always had great ambitions and will not submit to others, and his two brothers are also following him wholeheartedly."

Su Fan shook his head; he knew it was very difficult to recruit the two.

And Liu Bei now was not in his eyes at all; even if Zhang Fei and Guan Yu were there, what could they do?

There were quite a few peerless fierce generals in the world; Xu Chu was not inferior to the two, and he was also confident in recruiting Dian Wei.

There were also fierce generals like Taishi Ci from Donglai who were not inferior to the two, and with his current position as Prefect of Donghai Commandery, he absolutely had no problem recruiting these people.

After all, the family background of martial generals was generally lower than that of literati.

In the eyes of these people, a Prefect was already high enough.

"Hmm! In that case, the best way is to eliminate them in advance." A trace of murderous intent appeared in Xi Zhicai's eyes.

"Haha! They can't threaten us for now." Su Fan shook his head confidently; he was now a Prefect of a commandery.

Liu Bei had only managed to get a position as a County Lieutenant in a small county; the gap between the two was huge.

If Liu Bei didn't have a strategist to plan for him, he would still need to waste decades of time.

And by that time, he didn't know what stage he would have developed to.

And with Liu Bei's current status, the possibility of getting a first-class strategist was really too low.

Strategists generally needed a certain family background; there were very few from humble origins. Looking at all the strategists at the end of the Han Dynasty, how many were from humble origins? Guo Jia and Li Ru were just a few.

The one with the lowest background was Xi Zhicai.

Strategists were different from martial generals; wanting to become a first-class strategist required a very high inheritance. Zhuge Liang was naturally intelligent, but if he hadn't received the guidance of Master Shuijing, wanting to become a top-tier strategist would probably also be very difficult.

Liu Bei's identity was destined not to be valued by any strategist, and this time in the Yellow Turban chaos, he couldn't get the military merit he deserved, just a small County Lieutenant, so he really wasn't taken to heart.

He didn't take Liu Bei to heart.

As for wanting to kill Liu Bei and the others, it wasn't that easy. With Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's strength, unless several sixth or seventh-level Gang Refining experts took action together.

However, even if Zhang Fei and Guan Yu escaped, it would be trouble in the future.

He smiled and shook his head in refusal: "He can't threaten us for the time being."

"Zhicai, next, we should return to Donghai Commandery. How many craftsmen and Mohist artisans have you found in Luoyang as I asked before, and how many are willing to return to Donghai Commandery with us?"

Su Fan asked Xi Zhicai to come to Luoyang, firstly to spend money to get through Zhang Rang's relationship, and secondly to bring back a batch of craftsmen and Mohist artisans.

He needed these people to develop.

To compete for the world, he wasn't afraid of not having strategists and martial generals; as his official position got higher, he could definitely attract a batch.

But relying solely on strategists and martial generals, it was impossible to widen the gap with other warlords.

Especially since he knew that in the future, people like Yuan Shao already had a batch of literati and martial generals by their side, and their abilities were not bad.

This was the natural advantage of top noble clans; in this respect, even Su Fan couldn't compare.

So he needed even stronger advantages, and the best way was to improve the productivity of his territory.

To defeat various warlords with strong logistics.

And all of this naturally couldn't be separated from craftsmen and Mohist artisans.

"I have already found the people the Lord wants: thirteen Mohist artisans, six master craftsmen, and some of their apprentices, totaling seventy-eight people."

"Among them, only eight have the method of runes."

Xi Zhicai had seen Su Fan's previous territory with his own eyes and knew the role of these Mohist master craftsmen, so he was also very attentive.

It was just that although these talents didn't have a very high status in the secular world, in Luoyang, they were not at the end of their rope.

Many people in Luoyang could still eat and drink their fill and support their families, so naturally, they didn't want to move.

Leaving their hometown, no one was willing.

"That's already quite good."

Su Fan nodded upon hearing this, not having any dissatisfaction, because he knew that such talents were not easy to recruit.

Couldn't noble clans really see the abilities of these people?

If they couldn't see it, why were most of them "bought" by them?

It was just that they didn't have Su Fan's foresight from later generations and couldn't truly exert the abilities of these people.

"With these people, our development will be even faster."

Su Fan said with a smile.

"In that case, we will set off in five days."

"It's time to go back."