Mythical Three Kingdoms-Chapter 1419 - 1367: Zhou Yu’s Schemes

As for Zhou Yu’s ostentatiously domineering tower ship, not even a single arrow was lodged in it. Guo Jia was absolutely furious at that time, but Zhou Yu merely circled around showing off briefly before returning to the opposite side of the river, giving Guo Jia no opportunity at all.

After that incident, Zhou Cang and Guan Cheng never boasted about their naval combat skills again, especially Zhou Cang. As a master at the level of Inner Qi Manifestation, he tried to leverage his prowess to turn the tides when the naval battle was unfavorable, and nearly got shot down by Zhou Yu.

In short, from that time on, Guo Jia believed that naval warfare should be left to the professionals. However, to be fair, Zhou Cang and Guan Cheng were indeed skilled in naval battles, but they chose the wrong opponent. In this era, Zhou Yu’s naval warfare capabilities are terrifyingly superior.

"Relocate the camp?" Guan Yu furrowed his brow. Through his prolonged efforts, he had fortified his defense zone nearly as securely as an iron fortress. If they were to relocate the camp, dealing with Sun Ce who might come to raid from the shore would become challenging.

"Yes, staying here any longer is meaningless. Without a navy, we are definitely no match for Zhou Yu," Guo Jia sighed and said, "And continuing to hold out here is unlikely to yield any breakthrough. Rather than this, it’s better to relocate and attempt something different."

"Then where do we relocate?" Guan Yu furrowed his brow again. Guo Jia’s words made a lot of sense; staying here only allowed Zhou Yu to take advantage occasionally without opening up any new possibilities.

"Migrate a hundred miles westward. The river there, although swift, spans only two miles across. Perhaps we might find a way across," Guo Jia, speaking with his head lowered, made it difficult for Guan Yu to read his expression.

Guan Yu furrowed his brow; he had worked alongside Guo Jia for quite a long time, but this was indeed the first time he heard Guo Jia speak with such uncertainty.

[Zhou Yu, don’t you want to play? I’ll play with you this time. Although my thinking has been particularly slow recently, sometimes slow is not to be feared. I bet you are slower in realizing things than I am!] The sharp gleam in Guo Jia’s eyes flickered and disappeared.

"Gongjin, are we just going to hold steady like this?" Sun Ce shoveled a few bites of rice and picked up a piece of meat, asking as he ate. Although Eastern Wu had a harsh environment, after opening up land and farming, food was generally abundant here.

"Let’s keep at it. Guo Fengxiao is not easy to deal with; I don’t dare to take the bait he casts," Zhou Yu shook his head, saying that his strategy in the Yangtze River attack and defense was essentially hitting three birds with one stone, yet the most needed situation had not emerged.

"Can you create another opportunity for me to confront Guan Yu again?" Sun Ce, waving his chopsticks, shoveled a big bowl of rice into his mouth, before asking.

"No, you can’t beat Guan Yu." Zhou Yu this time did not at all attempt to preserve Sun Ce’s confidence. Previously, Zhou Yu provided opportunities for Sun Ce’s duels partly at Sun Ce’s insistence and partly because Zhou Yu could ensure that it would improve the situation.

"How can you say that?" Sun Ce replied discontentedly, "I didn’t lose last time, and besides, didn’t you notice that after our fight, I’ve become stronger than before?"

"That’s not a reason for you to take risks." Zhou Yu calmly picked up some vegetables and said, "If you want to fight Zhou Cang, I may find an opportunity for you."

"Zhou Cang? That would be too weak. Although he has Innate Divine Strength, there’s no thrill in fighting him. Why not stick to Guan Yu?" Sun Ce poured Zhou Yu a cup of wine, speaking cajolingly, as only the two of them remained in the large tent, allowing them to disregard formalities.

"No." Zhou Yu drank the wine Sun Ce poured without any delay, before refusing.

"You even drank the wine, yet you won’t help me out," Sun Ce immediately became dissatisfied.

"You can’t beat him." Zhou Yu said exasperatedly, "Weren’t you the one claiming to have attained Ultimate Inner Qi Manifestation, among the top experts in the world? But last time you were suppressed; don’t tell me I don’t understand this Inner Qi Manifestation stuff—I would’ve been on that path too if I hadn’t chosen Spiritual Talent back then."

During that confrontation between Sun Ce and Guan Yu, Zhou Yu was left flabbergasted. Despite Sun Ce’s exceptional performance, Guan Yu still held the upper hand, which was remarkable.

"Who knows? Anyway, I indeed reached Ultimate Inner Qi Manifestation, but I guess there are strengths and weaknesses even at that level. Take the Marquis Wenn for example; he was also at that rank, but ascended after shattering the void." Sun Ce remained indifferent to the matter, feeling nothing but exhilaration from having been outmatched by Guan Yu.

"That’s why I don’t suggest continuing confrontations with Guan Yu." Zhou Yu said helplessly.

"Hey, you promised to find me a chance to duel with Guan Yu," Sun Ce was almost about to accuse Zhou Yu of breaking his word.

"I already did, you’ve already had a duel before. All right, I’ve military affairs to attend to, would Bofu like to stay back and handle them together?" Zhou Yu said with a gentle smile.

"No way, find someone else." Sun Ce grumbled, "How about I bring Zihengg over to help you out with the military affairs?"

"That’s fine too." Seeing Sun Ce about to slip away, Zhou Yu internally sighed but didn’t pay much heed. Whether or not Sun Ce was present, he could manage the affairs seamlessly, although having Lyu Fan around might speed things up a bit.

After watching Sun Ce leave, Zhou Yu sighed. Sun Ce’s eagerness to duel with Guan Yu was something that Zhou Yu couldn’t acquiesce to. Zhou Yu had observed Guan Yu’s prowess and knew that someone who had dueled one-on-one with Lyu Bu and lived was no ordinary individual.

From Zhou Yu’s viewpoint, Sun Ce still had quite a distance to cover before reaching Guan Yu’s level. Such a match with Guan Yu was inherently perilous. What troubled Zhou Yu was that Sun Ce seemed tireless and fearless in his pursuit of dueling Guan Yu.

[Keeping him suppressed like this isn’t feasible; Bofu might become restless if subdued for too long and might go secretly challenge Guan Yu, which is entirely different from that fortuitous encounter with Zhao Yun on the Yangtze.] Zhou Yu pondered silently after putting his pen down.

[Rather than that, it’s better organized under my parameters, ensuring safety. Let me think about it.] Zhou Yu massaged his temples, pondering how to arrange an "unplanned" meeting between Sun Ce and Guan Yu. Sometimes, Zhou Yu felt like he was merely acting as Sun Ce’s babysitter.

"Someone come." After contemplating for a while, Zhou Yu picked up his brush and quickly wrote on the paper before stamping it, then called out to the outside of the tent.

"General." A guard saluted Zhou Yu respectfully.

"Summon General Wen." Zhou Yu handed the order to the guard. As it was nearly impossible to restrain Sun Ce, he had to find solutions elsewhere. The general currently stationed in Jingzhou, Wen Pin, seemed to Zhou Yu a suitable candidate with both capability and strength.