Chapter Five: Thirteen Kingdoms Laid to Waste in Seven Days

Before long, inside the study.

Chu Feng quietly slipped out a potato.

“What is this?” Yuan Shu asked in confusion.

“Hehe, Father, this is a potato. It’s a wonderful thing. Each mu can yield more than ten dan, and it thrives even in poor soil—so long as the earth is loose enough, it’ll grow.”

Chu Feng’s face was alight with excitement.

“More than ten dan per mu?” Yuan Shu was taken aback.

Yang Hong frowned as well. What did more than ten dan mean? Even the best fields, with the finest weather, could yield at most four dan. And this thing could produce so much?

“That’s a conservative estimate,” Chu Feng replied.

“That’s conservative?” Yuan Shu was bewildered.

“Father, let’s be cautious,” Chu Feng rolled his eyes. “But the most remarkable quality isn’t its yield, it’s the drought resistance. Unless there’s an extreme drought, the harvest is unaffected.”

“And you can plant two crops a year, so a yield of thirty dan per mu is no problem.”

“Thirty dan per mu?” Yang Hong was stunned.

At this point, Yuan Shu didn’t know what to say. He wasn’t even sure he should believe it; after all, they’d never seen such a thing.

“Father, as the old saying goes, ‘Build high walls, amass grain, and bide your time before declaring yourself king.’ We can’t be as impatient as Yuan Shu was in proclaiming himself king. Next, you focus on acquiring territory, and I’ll find a way to secure the grain. If we unite our efforts, we’re bound to achieve something great.”

Chu Feng started planning in earnest.

Lei Bo kept his head down, not daring to speak.

Yang Hong narrowed his eyes, casting a peculiar look at Chu Feng. That phrase about high walls and grain... there was something to it. Clearly, someone was advising this young master from behind the scenes! And what he’d just said...

Was it intentional? Removing dissenters?

So that’s it. It seemed Shouchun would soon know no peace.

Yuan Shu could only grin helplessly.

“Father, you must be serious now. That old fox Yuan Shu is about to lose to Lü Bu. When he’s abandoned by all, we must raise the banner of righteousness. Only then will we be able to rally support with a single call.”

Chu Feng spoke with utmost seriousness.

“Yuan Shu will lose to Lü Bu?”

Yuan Shu was startled, then said,

“Feng’er, as far as I know, Yuan Shu already sent a marriage proposal to Lü Bu before the end of last year. Now he’s sent a matchmaker to cement the alliance. How could he be defeated by Lü Bu?”

“Oh, Lü Bu’s just a brute. He’ll certainly agree. But there’s still the Chen family in Xuzhou. They’ll almost certainly meddle.”

Chu Feng curled his lip. If Yuan and Lü Bu did become allies, perhaps they wouldn’t defeat Cao Cao, but at least they wouldn’t be crushed one by one.

“Chen Gui?” Yuan Shu was doubtful.

“But Feng’er, Lü Bu’s just a rough warrior, and as far as I know, he has only ten or twenty thousand men, with only a few thousand able to fight. Yuan Shu, on the other hand, commands tens of thousands of troops. How could he lose?”

Yuan Shu was unwilling to accept it.

“How could he lose? Has Yuan Shu ever won a battle?”

Chu Feng’s tone was full of disdain. Among the warlords of the Three Kingdoms, Yuan Shu was the most inept. Lü Bu, at least, had his moments of victory and defeat. Yuan Shu, whenever he faced a famous opponent, never won once.

Yuan Shu: “???”

Are you really my own son? Hitting your own father right in the face!

“Father, let’s not talk about that fool Yuan Shu. Next, we need to stockpile grain. So, Father, you find more strong men, and I’ll cultivate as much land as possible.”

Yuan Shu nodded.

Lei Bo and Yang Hong sat upright, their faces tense, for these two were discussing rebellion with great relish, making the corners of their mouths twitch.

“Father, I’ve mapped out our path. Lujiang and Jiujiang are already in ruins, with Cao Cao to the north and Sun Ce to the south—it’s hard to do anything grand here.”

“My thought is that once we’ve gathered enough strength, we cross the river south. We can’t defeat Eastern Wu in the east, so we go to Yuzhang first. Liu Yao of Yuzhang is a soft target.”

“Once Yuzhang is ours, we pretend to be friendly with Liu Biao and Huang Zu, but secretly make contact with Zhang Xian in Changsha. He’s likely to rebel, and when he does, we can seize Jingzhou.”

“The eight commanderies of Jing and Xiang are rich in grain and untouched by war, with abundant food, population, and natural barriers. We could build a true power base. Even if we don’t contend for the empire, we can secure our own state.”

“Then, Father, you’ll be emperor, and I’ll be crown prince.” Chu Feng gestured at the map.

It might be idle talk, but with Chu Feng’s foreknowledge—knowing Zhang Xian was about to rebel in Jingnan, knowing Liu Yao in Yuzhang was weak—there was real feasibility.

When Yuan Shu finished listening, he burst out laughing.

“Ha! Good! If I become emperor, I’ll certainly make you my crown prince.”

A joke, but Yang Hong and Lei Bo shuddered.

They exchanged glances. Just a moment ago, they’d been thinking how to slander Chu Feng. But now, with Yuan Shu’s words, was he really going to depose the legitimate heir for a concubine’s son?

At that thought, they were filled with dread.

Yuan Yao might be useless, but for the lord to depose the legitimate heir violated all custom. Wouldn’t that make the situation worse for the Yuan clan? Where should they take their stand?

“Father, what do you mean you’ll ‘certainly’ make me crown prince? I’m your only son—who else would you choose?” Chu Feng pouted.

He suddenly grew alert, glancing at his father’s face, hollowed by wine and women, and squinted suspiciously: “Father, you don’t mean you have an illegitimate son out there, do you?”

He grew anxious as he spoke.

It’s over. Judging by this, there must be some.

With a family background like theirs, his father surely had three or four wives and concubines, and from his dissipated look, probably seventy or eighty children out there.

Damn, that’s a lot of pressure.

What if all those people come to split the inheritance?

“Ahem, nonsense! Your father has never been greedy for women,” Yuan Shu’s old face flushed as he sat up and defended himself.

Yang Hong and Lei Bo exchanged glances, dumbfounded. Did they just witness the birth of a truly shameless lord? The man had hundreds of beauties in his harem!

“Well, Feng’er, our endeavor is only half begun—we must redouble our efforts. I’ll take my leave for now. By the way, make sure to cultivate those potatoes well—they’re our capital.”

Yuan Shu eased the awkwardness.

“Don’t worry, Father. I understand the bigger picture.”

“Good. And don’t let thieves steal them and spread them around. If everyone everywhere has them, it’ll work against us. We must keep this in our grasp for a lifetime.”

Yuan Shu warned again.

“Father, your vision is too narrow!”

“The main purpose of potatoes is to stockpile grain. In the future, they must become a staple for every household. Only when the common people have enough to eat can the realm be at peace.”

Chu Feng’s eyes shone with hope.

Yuan Shu was moved. His filial son thought on a different scale. This was truly his son—born a fool, but wise through experience.

“You’re right, my son. I was too shortsighted. Very well, I’ll have another twenty million coins sent to you. Make good use of it.”

“Father, together we’ll succeed.”

“In time, our people will never know hunger again. They’ll wear fine clothes, eat fish and meat, sing and dance.”

“Then, you’ll be emperor, I’ll be the crown prince, and we’ll do as in those novels—conquer thirteen states in seven days, and all nations pay homage.”

Chu Feng’s face was full of longing.

“Novels?” Yuan Shu was puzzled.

“Ahem, nothing. Just a dream I had—someone told me in a dream that a crown prince from another land conquered thirteen nations in seven days,” Chu Feng replied sheepishly, a little guilty.

“In a dream? So all you’ve said these past days came from your dreams?” Yuan Shu frowned.

“Ah, um, yes, you could say that! Some of it is my own insight,” Chu Feng said, touching his nose, choosing to gloss it over.

He had no desire to keep playing the fool. It was already the year 197—Guandu was near. Time waited for no one. If he kept acting like a fool, by the time others caught on, it would be too late to change anything. He’d let his father think what he liked.

“All right, you rest early. I still have matters in the city—I’ll take my leave!” Yuan Shu thought it over, but still couldn’t figure out what was going on with his son.

“Mm!” Chu Feng nodded.

“Li Weng, take good care of the young master. If anything goes wrong, you’ll answer to me,” Yuan Shu ordered sternly, then strode away.