Chapter 143: Yuan Shu's Provocation

"Great General, do you know Xuande?" Kong Rong asked in surprise. He could not understand why Liu Yao and Liu Bei were acquainted, yet Guan Yu showed such disrespect toward Liu Yao.

"Haha, Northern Sea Kong, Xuande and I are indeed old acquaintances. He is a disciple of Lu Zhi, and we met when we fought the Yellow Scarves in Guangzong. Xuande and Yunchang are both men of great talent. Northern Sea Kong, you must hold tightly onto them and not let them slip away," Liu Yao said with a smile. However, he emphasized the words "hold tightly onto," intending to remind Kong Rong so that he would not realize too late that Liu Bei had usurped his territory.

"This subordinate will naturally do so," Kong Rong replied with a smile, clearly completely missing Liu Yao's underlying meaning. Yet this was hardly surprising; Kong Rong lacked craftiness and devoted himself entirely to the books of the sages, making him no match for someone like Liu Bei when it came to reading human nature.

"Ahem!" At that moment, a cough from Yuan Shao interrupted the conversation between Liu Yao and the others. "The alliance's grand enterprise should take precedence," Yuan Shao said coldly, his tone a clear satire implying that Liu Yao disregarded the greater picture.

Liu Yao did not care in the least; he had no time to bother with such petty matters. In his heart, he only looked down on Yuan Shao a bit more. How could someone who fussed over such trivialities ever accomplish anything significant?

"I wonder who among you is willing to serve as the vanguard and conquer the Sishui Pass for this alliance leader?" Yuan Shao asked with an air of grand authority.

Upon hearing this, Sun Jian stood up with a rustle, cupped his fists, and said, "I am willing to go."

Yuan Shao was overjoyed upon hearing this; as long as someone was willing to stick their neck out, it did regard him who it was. "Wentai is brave and capable, fully worthy of this heavy responsibility. I order you to lead your own troops to capture Sishui Pass and win glory for the allied forces."

"Understood." With that, Sun Jian turned and left to assemble his troops.

With the "major matter" settled, the remaining warlords dissolved into joyful laughter, drinking and making merry. Only Cao Cao sat by himself, sighing. Meanwhile, Liu Yao watched Sun Jian's departing figure with his eyes, knowing that Sun Jian's expedition was destined to be a tragedy—especially since he had the misfortune of encountering someone as petty and jealous as Yuan Shu, that hollow-headed fool.

The next day, inside Liu Yao's main tent.

"Fengxiao, what do you think of these warlords?" Liu Yao asked as he played a game of Go with Guo Jia.

"My Lord, these warlords are united in appearance but divided at heart, and each has his own ulterior motives. However, I believe three of them are extraordinary, and I must ask the Lord to be careful," Guo Jia said casually.

Hearing this, Liu Yao's heart stirred, realizing that the three Guo Jia referred to must undoubtedly be Sun Jian, Liu Bei, and Cao Cao. Still, he asked, "I wonder which three Fengxiao is speaking of?"

Guo Jia feigned displeasure and said, "My Lord is teasing me. How could you not know it is Liu Bei, Cao Cao, and Sun Jian?"

"Hahaha, do not take offense, Fengxiao. I merely wanted to test your ability to read people's hearts," Liu Yao said with an apologetic smile.

"Indeed, among these sixteen regional lords, only Cao Cao, Sun Jian, and Liu Bei catch my eye. However, Liu Bei cannot yet be considered a true warlord; my only worry is that kind-hearted old fool, Northern Sea Kong. His fine territory will likely be swindled away by Liu Bei," Liu Yao sighed helplessly.

Guo Jia could not help but smile bitterly. "My Lord, Kong Rong is indeed a great scholar of his time, but unfortunately, he is far too inept at worldly affairs and far too pedantic. How could he possibly be a match for someone with the deep city of Liu Bei? Even if the Lord were to warn him, I fear he would merely laugh it off."

"Quite right. He..." Just as Liu Yao was about to continue, a commotion outside the tent interrupted him.

Liu Yao frowned deeply. One had to know that this was his own military camp; for such a disturbance to occur here was simply intolerable.

"What on earth is happening outside?" Liu Yao shouted toward the entrance.

At that moment, a personal guard hurried in. "Reporting to the Lord, it is that man Yuan Shu who sent people to deliberately cause trouble for us. General Ma has knocked them down, and now Yuan Shu demands an explanation from us."

Hearing this, Liu Yao sneered inwardly. *This Yuan Gonglu is truly a hollow-headed fool, courting abuse for no reason. And he had to walk right into the crosshairs of Ma Chao's fiery temper. Only someone like him would come looking for trouble with us at a time like this.*

"Fengxiao, since we have nothing better to do sitting here in the tent, why don't we go out and see how this fool Yuan Shu makes a fool of himself?" Liu Yao mocked.

"Since the Lord has such an inclination, I shall naturally accompany you."

As the two stepped out of the tent, they saw Yuan Shu accompanied by his premier general Ji Ling and over a hundred personal guards, brandishing their weapons and making a mighty display of arrogance right in front of Liu Yao's camp. Meanwhile, Ma Chao was glaring at Yuan Shu with a face full of fury, though he made no move to attack. It was clear that Ma Chao was forcefully suppressing the anger raging within his chest.

"My Lord." At that moment, Huang Zhong and Ma Chao saw Liu Yao approaching and quickly saluted him. Liu Yao waved his hand casually and turned his gaze toward Yuan Shu.

"Great General, why do you condone your subordinates beating up my men? I demand an explanation, or else..." Seeing Liu Yao approach, Yuan Shu immediately spoke in a shrill, sarcastic tone, pointing toward several bruised and battered soldiers beside him.

Liu Yao did not even glance at Yuan Shu as he asked, "What is the meaning of this?"

"Reporting to the Lord, Yuan Shu's men tried to force their way into our camp and kept shouting provocations. That was why this subordinate could not help but strike. It is nothing like what Yuan Shu claims," Ma Chao quickly explained.

Over the years, Ma Chao had been studying martial arts under Zhao Yun. His skills had improved tremendously; though still not quite a match for Zhao Yun, the gap was narrow, largely due to Ma Chao's young age. Furthermore, Zhao Yun had not taught Ma Chao his ultimate techniques—the Hundred Birds Seeking the Phoenix Spear and the Seven-Probe Snake-Coil Spear—because those styles simply did not suit Ma Chao. Just as Zhao Yun had created his own Seven-Probe Snake-Coil Spear after mastering the Hundred Birds style to best fit his own nature, Zhao Yun was currently helping Ma Chao forge a spear technique uniquely tailored to him.

Of course, Ma Chao's growth over the years was not limited to martial prowess; his psychological maturity had also advanced. Zhao Yun had tempered much of Ma Chao's volatile temper. Had it not been for this, given the provocation just now, Ma Chao would likely have already rushed forward and beaten Yuan Shu to a pulp rather than standing there exercising such immense self-restraint.

"There is no need to worry, Mengqi. Do I not know the character of this Yuan Gonglu? He is purely here to look for trouble; how could this be your fault?" Liu Yao said loudly, ensuring that everyone present heard every word.

Naturally, Yuan Shu heard it as well. With his intentions exposed, he grew instantly flustered and angry, shouting, "Liu Yao, you brat! If you do not give me an explanation today, I, Yuan Shu, will certainly not let you off!"

"Shut your mouth, Yuan Gonglu! Aren't you simply here to pick a fight? Then I shall play along with you. Since this matter involves Mengqi, let him settle it. I will send Mengqi forward, and you may send someone out to fight a decisive battle. If you win, I will give you an explanation. If you lose, get lost and crawl far away," Liu Yao said impatiently.

Yuan Shu's eyes rolled as he weighed the options and immediately agreed. He turned to Ji Ling and said, "Fuyi, this is yours." In his eyes, Ma Chao was nothing more than a green-haired teenager in his teens—what kind of martial arts could he possibly possess, and how could he ever be a match for Ji Ling? Already, he began to picture Liu Yao humbling himself and apologizing to him.

"This subordinate obeys," Ji Ling said.

"Mengqi, go keep him entertained," Liu Yao said indifferently. Although Ma Chao's martial arts had not yet reached their absolute peak, dealing with Ji Ling was more than enough.

"This subordinate obeys!" Ma Chao called out with excitement. Then, he looked at Ji Ling with a gaze blazing with fighting spirit. This could be considered Ma Chao's very first formal battle, and he could hardly wait a moment longer.