Chapter 34: Holy crap, I’ve become Ma Su.

Huan Shao naturally did not want to go to Xuchang to meet his death, but he feared that if Cao Cao truly conquered Jing Province and advanced into Jiao Province, his entire clan would be wiped out.

Yet, everyone is prone to fearing death.

"I will just die here in Jiao Province!" Huan Shao suddenly gritted his teeth, deciding to forgo the trip to Xuchang and remain in Jiao Province to see if Cao Cao could actually reach them.

Zhao Shaojie curled his lip. Still didn't believe him?

However, Zhao Shaojie was unaware that his offhand remark had inadvertently spared Huan Shao from the fate of returning to the north to be executed by Cao Cao.

...

Fancheng.

Liu Bei received yet another telegram from Mi Fang.

"Heaven blesses us, Shaojie is safe and sound!" Liu Bei's joy was evident, spilling over into his expression.

Although Zhao Shaojie was a man from a later age, he was ultimately just an ordinary person from the future. Liu Bei truly worried that if Zhao Shaojie were executed by Shi Xie, he would be devastated. Even if Zhao Shaojie did nothing else but recount the history to come, it would be of infinite use to him. He even regretted the move of sending Zhao Shaojie to Jiao Province in the first place.

"Shaojie journeyed alone from the north to the south without coming to any harm; it is clear he is a man of good fortune, naturally protected by the heavens!" Zhuge Liang said with a smile.

Others who held a favorable view of Zhao Shaojie chimed in with agreement.

Liu Bei smiled, the weight finally lifted from his heart. His expression returned to his usual composure, emotions hidden from sight. He looked at the group and said calmly, "News from the north: Cao Cao has abolished the Three Excellencies and appointed himself Chancellor. Do you think this is a sign that Cao Cao is preparing to move south?"

Pang Tong immediately spoke up, "It is not a sign of a southern campaign, but a sign that Cao Cao intends to usurp the Han! Our Great Han has long since ceased to have a position of Chancellor! For the Cao thief to appoint himself Chancellor is no different from Wang Mang declaring himself Duke!"

Zhuge Liang and the others immediately agreed, the crowd growing indignant.

Liu Bei sighed. This was the last thing he wanted to see, yet he was powerless to stop it now. He pondered for a moment before saying, "Increase the number of scouts; we must detect any move by Cao Cao to march south."

As he spoke, he looked toward one man.

This man was none other than Yi Ji, currently under the command of Liu Biao but having already completely defected to Liu Bei.

"Jibo, keep a close watch on affairs in Xiangyang. If Liu Jingsheng dies, you must send word at once. If Liu Cong surrenders, you must also notify me immediately," Liu Bei said sincerely, as Yi Ji could not yet be considered his direct subordinate.

Yi Ji bowed respectfully, "I shall!"

Liu Bei nodded and addressed the group, "Gentlemen, Cao Cao's march south concerns our very survival. We must be prepared for a fight to the death!" As he spoke, his eyes filled with determination.

The group responded with spirited resolve, "We shall!"

...

Liu Bei no longer worried about Zhao Shaojie, but Zhao Shaojie himself had run into trouble.

He had suffered several failures.

The paper was not white enough.

The white sugar had not been produced.

Looking at the still-yellowish grass paper, although it was less coarse than the Cai Hou paper of before, it could still hardly be called white paper; its whiteness had only improved by about ten percent.

"This, this..." Zhao Shaojie was infuriated.

In the web novels he used to read, making white paper was simple—it took three days, seven days, ten days, and it was done.

He had spent nearly two months!

Although the texture had improved, it couldn't even compare to the paper in traditional craft tutorial videos, let alone modern industrial paper.

And the white sugar.

He had used the wretched yellow mud-water leaching method, but there was no sign of white sugar at all!

Still, it wasn't a total failure; he had produced a lot of brown sugar and black sugar, and at least the quality had improved.

After eating a piece of brown sugar, Zhao Shaojie rubbed his forehead, lost in thought.

Ma Su burst in. "With paper like this, you still claim it will sweep through the Great Han and create endless wealth for my Ma family? Make my Ma family the richest in the Han? Hah... Zhao Shaojie, you are nothing but a man of empty words!"

Zhao Shaojie glanced at Ma Su and blinked, not wanting to speak.

Ma Su finally found an opening to attack again. "And what about your new sugar? Pouring mud water over brown sugar—is this your method for making new sugar? Are you trying to laugh me to death?" He sat down, picked up a piece of brown sugar, popped it into his mouth, and looked smug.

Zhao Shaojie rolled his eyes. "Then don't eat my sugar!"

Ma Su snorted. "It seems we are the same after all. We both understand a few things, but lack the ability to actually execute them. You are no different from me!"

At this, Zhao Shaojie was not happy. *Damn it, have I become Ma Su?!*

"What do you mean we are the same? This is just a temporary setback; I will find a new method soon. Just you wait!" Zhao Shaojie said angrily.

Ma Su smiled. "A temporary setback?"

Zhao Shaojie immediately resorted to a personal attack. "You lost a hundred men while I easily took Nanhai. Are you worthy of being compared to me?"

Ma Su immediately shook with rage and was about to retort when someone entered.

Xu Zhuge smiled, "The two of you, stop arguing. Governor Lai and Prefect Er have discussed wanting to pacify the rebels Qian Bo and Yi Liao, who refuse to submit to the imperial authority. Which of you wishes to go?"

Qian Bo and Yi Liao were former officers under the late Jiao Province Inspector Zhang Jin. After Zhang Jin died, they had turned to banditry.

One was in Nanhai Commandery, and the other was on the border between Nanhai and Hepu Commandery.

Previously, Shi Wu had tacitly allowed their existence, but things were different now. As subordinates of Liu Bei, how could they allow bandits to entrench themselves, harm the people, and undermine their rule?

Ma Su immediately said, "I am willing to join the campaign to wash away my previous shame!"

Zhao Shaojie teased, "You can only go as a lowly soldier now. Do you have the stomach for that?"

"A soldier is a soldier!" Ma Su gritted his teeth.

But inside, he felt bitter. In his view, he was destined to be the administrator of major cities like Nanyang, Xiangyang, or Nanjun and Jiangling. He barely even looked at Nanhai Panyu.

Zhao Shaojie nodded. He was in a terrible mood anyway. "Fine, going to take a look might be good for a change of pace."

...

The next day, Mi Fang, Xu Shu, Zhao Shaojie, Huang Zhong, Ma Su, and Wei Yan set out.

Along the way, Ma Su continued to mock Zhao Shaojie's many failures.

Zhao Shaojie turned a deaf ear.

Ma Su talked the entire way, eventually clicking his tongue in frustration.

"Why isn't this guy getting angry?" Ma Su felt very dejected.

In truth, Zhao Shaojie had gone numb. As a person from the future, the most important trait was having a thick skin—or rather, lying flat and letting others mock you was a basic skill.

Only with this mindset could he make things easier for himself. If he fretted over everything, how exhausting would that be?

Two days later.

Scouts brought intelligence that Yi Liao had learned of their advance and immediately chosen to retreat, intending to rendezvous with Qian Bo in Hepu Commandery.

Mi Fang frowned. "What do you all think? If Qian Bo and Yi Liao enter Hepu Commandery, should we still pursue?"

The current administrator of Hepu Commandery was Shi Yi, the younger brother of Shi Xie.

Although Shi Xie acknowledged their control over Yulin, Cangwu, and Nanhai commanderies and lived in peace with them, it was another matter entirely to bring war into the territory of the Shi clan.

Xu Shu was also uncertain of Shi Xie's bottom line and looked to Zhao Shaojie. "Shaojie, what do you think?"

Zhao Shaojie thought for a moment and said, "How about this? I will go and have a talk with Shi Yi to test the situation."