Chapter 35

Liu Bei took Zhang Fei to find Lu Zhi,

Lu Zhi couldn't help but laugh and scold,

"This Cai Yong, I thought he was unwilling last night, who would have thought he’d be so urgent now."

Lu Zhi had his family quickly prepare the betrothal gifts for Liu Bei,

Liu Bei provided a very generous dowry. After working until evening, the marriage was finally settled; they would marry upon his victorious return.

Among the famous women of the Three Kingdoms,

Diao Chan was a maid, Lady Mi was the daughter of a great merchant, and the Qiao sisters’ family had fallen on hard times, though they were good at music.

Zhen Mi was from a great clan in Zhongshan, a scholarly family, but unfortunately, she was too young.

The most suitable person to be his primary wife was Cai Yan,

and Cai Yong had many disciples, so he could also recruit many talents later on.

"Husband, you must be very careful."

"I will definitely learn more from Sister Cai."

Early the next morning, Liu Bei said goodbye to Cai Yan and Lady Gan,

and Lady Gan stayed in Luoyang with Cai Yan for the time being.

Cai Yan’s eyes were filled with tears,

"Husband, you must be careful."

Liu Bei nodded and whispered in her ear,

"Rest assured, I am still planning to come back and marry you."

Cai Yan smiled, her beautiful eyes shimmering,

"Then I will think of a few brain teasers you mentioned to test you when you return."

Faced with such a charming young lady, what could Liu Bei do? He could only come back and properly "discipline" her then!

"Giddyap!"

Liu Bei took Guo Jia and headed toward the military camp outside the city,

"Brother Liu Xuande, congratulations on winning the most famous talented woman of the Han. I must drink this wedding wine when the time comes!"

Liu Bei laughed,

"Guo Fengxiao, you must drink your fill. We are so compatible, we will never be apart for the rest of our lives!"

Guo Jia’s mouth twitched,

"Brother Liu Xuande, actually, my head isn't that round."

Liu Bei laughed heartily,

"It seems our relationship is getting better and better; you even know how to joke now."

Guo Jia... what a disaster!

Outside Luoyang city,

Liu Bei looked at the five hundred soldiers led by Gao Shun. The spirit of this unit had completely changed; they stood there in absolute silence, looking a bit like a strong army.

"Good, Battalion Commander Gao, you truly know how to train soldiers."

Gao Shun remained as calm as ever, simply cupping his hands,

"You flatter me, Commandant."

Liu Bei didn't mind,

"The whole army, march!"

Guo Jia watched Liu Bei’s back and nodded inwardly,

"Brother Liu Xuande has the ability to recognize talent and the capacity to tolerate others. It is not impossible for him to achieve great things, but his foundation is too shallow. Let me observe him a while longer."

Liu Bei led his army across the Yellow River and stayed in Henei Commandery for three days, waiting for the arrival of the main army led by Guan Yu, Bai Yuekui, and Hua Hua Mulan.

Guan Yu dismounted and said excitedly,

"Big Brother, we finally meet again."

Liu Bei embraced him,

"Yunchang, it’s been several months, you’ve lost weight."

Bai Yuekui curled her lips,

"We helped Liu Yu defeat Zhang Ju’s rebellion; we haven't had a good rest in months."

"Unlike you, taking a concubine and getting engaged, hmph!"

Guan Yu gave Liu Bei a look that said "good luck to you" and turned to find Zhang Fei,

"Third Brother, it’s been a long time, you’ve gotten fat again!"

Zhang Fei was instantly heartbroken,

"Second Brother, you shouldn't say that!"

Hua Hua Mulan also walked over and whispered,

"Captain, you must not lose your ambition to worldly pleasures; you carry the fate of the nation on your shoulders."

"A bed of comfort is the grave of heroes. Hmm, it seems easier for you to fall into it!"

Liu Bei? Are you implying something about me?

He pulled the two of them aside and spread his hands, looking as if he were being wronged,

"Do you think I want it this way? There are three reasons, listen to me."

Bai Yuekui snorted,

"Let's see how you make this up."

Liu Bei waved his hand,

"First, as a lord, if I don't have any heirs, will my subordinates follow me wholeheartedly? Without continuation, there is no future."

Hua Hua Mulan nodded; that was indeed true.

"Second, Cai Yong’s students are everywhere under Heaven, and his family has tens of thousands of scrolls. We can set up an academy at any time to cultivate civil officials. Will we ever worry about talent again?"

Hua Hua Mulan and Bai Yuekui were shocked; they hadn't expected Liu Bei to think so far ahead,

"Indeed, by continuously cultivating talent, we can compete with those great clans and not be strangled by them."

Bai Yuekui had to admit,

"That is indeed a valid point."

Liu Bei shrugged,

"Do you think it’s easy for me?"

Bai Yuekui rolled her eyes,

"We approve of Cai Yan, although there is a suspicion of nepotism, but what about Lady Gan?"

Liu Bei sighed,

"Lady Gan has become an orphan, living a lonely life in Xiaopei. I took her in because I was afraid she would be taken advantage of by others."

Bai Yuekui and Hua Hua Mulan rolled their eyes in unison,

"And being taken advantage of by you isn't being taken advantage of?"

Liu Bei ignored them,

"Everyone else is working hard, but I appear a bit lecherous. This is just to confuse the contestants from other countries so they don't know I am also a contestant, saving me from being targeted."

Bai Yuekui and Hua Hua Mulan almost fell over,

"So, you were picking up girls for the sake of the country? That’s monstrous!"

However, after Liu Bei said this, the two suddenly felt that fighting a two-month war in Youzhou was really not as good as Liu Bei picking up Cai Yan!

Liu Bei had one more thing he didn't say:

Great clans all had a system for cultivating successors, and what Liu Bei lacked was exactly that, which led to A Dou and his other children not being talented.

With Cai Yan’s education, the children wouldn't be bad.

The live stream chat exploded with laughter,

"Liu Liu Daer’s twisted logic is truly one after another!"

"I think Liu Bei is quite right, especially the first and second points."

"A lord without heirs has no future for his subordinates."

"The idea of establishing an academy is good; cultivating one's own talent means not having to rely on these clans."

"I’ve been convinced by Liu Liu Daer, even though I think he’s just taking the opportunity to pick up girls!"

"Picking up girls for the country, that’s really hard on him!"

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