Chapter 7: Zhuge Liang

Zhuge Liang, master strategist with Divine Potency. All his strategy effects will be improved duration-wise or damage-wise. Possessing 100 INT & 100 POL, his only weakness is WAR of 38. But we won't be using him to attack, so it won't matter. LDR is the stat we needed for defense anyway, so he's the perfect strategic bomber. We will showcase his powers soon enough.

But Xiang Yang is far from secure. Its developed lands completely razed to the ground and the hard work of recruiting the remainder of ex-Shu officers is underway. Supplies will be delivered shortly from Yong An, but resources take longer to reach now and Wei is just across the river, Sun Quan's navy nowhere on sight.


As I drilled my troops in preparation for more Wei invasion, bad news came from the South.

"Damn, we won't be able to take them. There's too many of them," Wu Tugu muttered as he gazed beyond the southern city walls.

The newly appointed chief strategist calmly assessed the situation and smiled. He gazed at the newly piled supplies from Yong An on the keep's store room.

"Lord Tugu, do we have a lot of gold?" he suddenly asked.

"Yes, but it's no good. We have no barracks to draft more men, and no smiths to forge weapons. It looks hopeless, we may have to retreat to Yong An." Tugu sighed. An orderly retreat to reduce losses. Yes, we still have the Shu officers and only lost a useless city, he thought to himself.

"Do you want to hold Xiang Yang, milord?" Zhuge queried.

"Do you have a plan?" Tugu snapped, getting impatient. Time is crucial.

"Send an emissary to Wu. Bring them gold offerings, ask for two months of cease fire. They'll understand. The only one who will profit from our fight is Wei. Fei Yi would be perfect for this task."

"It'll take 20 days, they'll be here by tomorrow if we don't move. If your emissary fails, we lose all the gold and troops to their attacks." Tugu argued.

"Better to lose it to the Wu than to the Wei. As for their marching army, I'll take care of it." assures Zhuge.

"I have no better ideas. Do as you wish, strategist." grumbled Wu Tugu.

Fei Yi set off from Xiang Yang to Wu's capital that night. And Zhuge conducted regular drills with the troops before meeting the rest of the officers to brief them. No construction orders can be given, since the enemy is too close to the town.

The next day, Wu's army was greeted with a strange sight outside Xiang Yang.

Zhu Ju, a Wu officer leading their forward unit was laughing so hard. Five enemy officers stood in the open field waiting for their advance. Pity he did not bring bows, he would love to pick one of them off. 'They must be surrendering. Hahahaah' he bellowed with laughter. Suddenly a firecracker went off from the east. Followed with a series of explosion that totally cut off his rear. He looked behind him in confusion.

Misinformed!

One of his aide brought him a message in the midst of chaos. "Sir! Orders from the capital, break off the attack and retreat!" Zhu Ju had no time to hesitate and did a quick glance at the parchment, before shouting, 'MEN! We are turning back!"as a second series of chain explosion started from the west.

By then his rear guard Bu Zhi and Bu Xie caught up with him and wondered why he retreated while the offense is still underway. "Didn't you get the letter?!" he shouted back. Both officers shrugged before a scholar emerged from the city gates pointed at Zhu Yu and shouted "Thank you for betraying your lord, Zhu Ju! You are a true hero of Shu!"

Perturbed!

"WHAT?" both officers reacted in unison. Unsure on what to do next, they both issued an order to hold their ground. Zhu Ju got a good look at the newcomer and realized who the scholar is.

"It's Zhuge Liang! We've all been had! Come on, see through the deception you fools!" he cried out in despair as his siege units are engulfed in the fireball.

Zhu Ju rallied his men, and prepared to march forward to capture the lone scholars only to notice a stack of explosive caches are placed not too far from where his unit stood.

"Who placed them here?", Zhu Ju shouted.

A random trooper ran up to him and said "Our Shu allies did, sir amidst the confusion!"

"We are not traitors you fool!", Zhu Ju drew his sword and was about to stab the horrified trooper when suddenly the sound of an explosion filled his eardrums.

"ZHU-GE-LIANNNNNGGG!!!" Zhu Ju raged as a fireball swallowed his unit. Hundreds deserted or died in the ensuing chaos.

Twenty days of trek away from the confusion, Fei Yi reached the Wu Capital city and was promptly given an audience. The palace guards noted the expensive gifts his cart carries bearing the banner of Meng Huo's army. This is the largest by far.


Fei Yi wasn't confident of this ploy working, but he had to try. Sun Quan was not impressed. He gazed at him in a mocking manner.

"Why should I accept? Your forces are outnumbered and Xiang Yang is about to be mine, all these gold would be mine anyway whether I accept or not in a month's time"

"Your highness, Wei army is coming from the north as we speak. If a cease fire is signed, we both can work together just like the Shu of the Old, only this time Meng Huo is a much stronger ally than Liu Chan. Even Zhuge Liang has placed his confidence in him. And you still have your gold", Fei Yi argued without a tone of desperation.

"Are you saying we can't handle the Wei ourselves?" Sun Quan raised his voice.

"Milord, surely you must agree every resources both Meng Huo and Wu spent fighting each other is a good thing for the Wei? Rather than weaken ourselves further, at least hold off our hostilities till we keep the Wei off the southern shores..."

"You've got a point, but I'm not convinced yet...", Sun Quan stroked his beard to ponder his decision when a messenger from the Xiang Yang invasion force came into the court room with his clothes covered in soot. He smiled. You've lost, Zhuge Liang.

The messenger knelt, handed over a parchment and left. Fei Yi watched as Sun Quan untie the strings holding the parchment together, curious to what it contains. Then he suppressed a smile when Sun Quan expression turned from pure delight into a look of utter disgust.

Invasion of 30,000 held off by less than 15,000?! Absurd! But with Zhou Yu's rival, we can work on Xin Ye once more...

"Zhuge Liang, you sly fox", muttered Fei Yi as he rode his horse back to Xiang Yang with a huge burden off his shoulder. Xiang Yang is not yet safe, but taking one potential enemy off the equation is a good start.

-End of Chapter 7-