Although the Yellow Turban Rebellion lasted only nine months from its outbreak in February to the suppression in November, it couldn’t change a fact: the chaotic composition of the uprising’s forces led to a peak of chaos once it erupted.

While previously the rural areas of Yanzhou might have provided a temporary refuge for her to weather the three months, now it was impossible!

The siege warfare of the Yellow Turbans brought with it a great demand for military provisions, especially since it was only March, far from the autumn harvest.

As a result, the food stocks in the surrounding countryside and even the grain stores in the captured towns and forts were all under the control of the Yellow Turban leaders in Yanzhou.

Thinking of this, Qiao Yan looked at the corpses of the elderly in this place and couldn’t help but sigh.

The hasty and disorderly nature of the uprising had not brought the expected outcome of “overthrowing the rich and distributing their land” in the seventh year of Guanghe, but rather the scene before her.

The chaos caused by the selling of official positions and titles in the late reign of Emperor Ling of Han, exacerbated by the Yellow Turban Rebellion, was one step closer to collapse.

Of course, Liu Hong was still the emperor at this moment, and it was not until the suppression of the Yellow Turban Rebellion in November of this year that he changed the era name to signify stability, and he had not yet received the posthumous title of “Ling,” meaning “chaotic yet undamaged.”

“It is said that Luobuna’er is called ‘birds do not cross.’ I think the Dayeze is about the same.”

Qiao Yan looked up at the sky, which had darkened a bit more with dusk.

The tired birds returning to their nests at dusk, which could usually be seen in the countryside, were nowhere to be seen in her sight.

Even in the far distance, the slogans of the Yellow Turbans overwhelmed the usual evening birdcalls, faintly reaching her ears.

It’s true.

After the poor harvest and severe winter cold last year, which caused famine, any trees that could have grown in the spring of the following year and could have been eaten were thoroughly searched.

Similarly, anything that could be used to make siege weapons had also been dispatched.

With no trees, there were far fewer bird nests.

It’s even hard to say that many of these birds might have already become food for the hungry.

Even the vultures and crows that would normally land on corpses were nowhere to be seen.

So, according to this situation, it’s likely that even in this swamp, there aren’t many fish living in it.

Whoever went from Juye City to Dongjun, the Yellow Turbans and the refugees, had already searched it clean.

[System: Actually… there are solutions.]

It tried to justify itself.

Perhaps when it chose this identity, the strategist system with the code 068 did indeed have the idea of a free win in mind.

Now, it belatedly realized that leaving a body that had been hungry for a long time and was only about ten years old in the chaos of the Yellow Turban Rebellion seemed a bit inappropriate.

There was a hint of guilt in its tone.

[System: Within Yanzhou, where resistance to the Yellow Turbans has succeeded, there is still one town.]

“You mean Dong’e?” Qiao Yan quickly responded.

There were quite a few famous people in Yanzhou.

Since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Yanzhou has been an important base for recruiting talented advisers and generals for Cao Cao.

The first one mentioned in the records is…

Cheng Yu.

When the Yellow Turbans invaded in 184 AD, the county magistrate of Dong’e, Wang Du, responded to the call of the Yellow Turbans and set fire to the county’s granary.

Cheng Yu, however, realized that Wang Du only wanted to plunder wealth and did not have the ability to defend the city, so he could only camp outside the city five or six miles away.

Seeing this situation, Cheng Yu immediately returned to the city with the help of the wealthy households in the city and defeated Wang Du when he returned to attack.

Dong’e, or rather Dong’e with Cheng Yu’s defense, seems like a good place on the surface.

But that’s just on the surface.

Qiao Yan drew a circle with her fingers on the sand in front of her—this is her current location.

North of Juye City, which was earlier captured by the Yellow Turbans, lies the Da Yeze.

In the impression of the original “Qiao Yan,” her father, Qiao Yu, the magistrate of Rencheng, although not a remarkable talent, was a responsible official.

There was a map of Yanzhou in his study, which the original “Qiao Yan” had seen, but it was a luxury for her as a later arrival.

Looking at the divisions of Yanzhou, Da Yeze lies at the junction of Jiyin, Shanyang, Dongjun, and Dongping counties, with Dongping in the north.

Although Dong’e, where Cheng Yu is located, is under the jurisdiction of Dongjun, it was incorporated into the Ji North Kingdom by the time of Western Jin Dynasty.

It lies north of Dongping and is very close to the junction of the two counties.

Seeing the point drawn by the host on the sand, the system’s face showed a hint of caution.

“Dong’e, according to modern naming, is still Dong’e County, subordinate to Liaocheng, Shandong.” Qiao Yan pointed to the point that had just fallen.

She pointed to the depression on the south side of the circle she had drawn earlier, “Juye, under the jurisdiction of Heze, Shandong.”

“There is about 300 li between these two places. People can walk about 5-6 kilometers in an hour.

According to a day’s travel of 8-10 hours, it would take about three days to walk there, which is not far indeed. But don’t forget—

I’m not an adult, so I can’t walk that fast. Second, there isn’t enough food supply.”

This is not a journey that can be made casually.

Although it seems that because of the existence of the system, when Qiao Yan took over this body, the symptoms of the suspected infectious disease had disappeared.

Even in the memories she received, the original “Qiao Yan’s” excessively weak condition had improved somewhat.

But she still had to admit that, whether it was her age, physical strength, or food supply, none of it supported the system’s idea of going to Dong’e, unless she wanted to become someone else’s food halfway there.

Qiao Yan had no intention of sitting idly by, but she also knew that she must not act rashly at this moment!

Considering that she was still in the territory of Juye, temporarily seeking refuge among the local wealthy and powerful figures who might be able to secure a place for her in the future could also be an option.

Unfortunately, Li Dian, who would later rise to the rank of General Who Breaks the Rebels, was only four or five years old this year.

His great-grandfather Li Qian, who had already gathered three thousand followers, was also unknown at this time, unaffected by the Yellow Turban Rebellion, making him a complete wildcard.

Compared to the traceable Cheng Yu, this option was even more unreliable.

After she said this, the system remained silent for a while.

This reaction made it hard for her not to feel that this self-proclaimed strategist, System 068, seemed to exude a novice aura.

But as much as she thought so, she just wiped away the circles and dots on the ground and said, “I’m not blaming you. If you hadn’t chosen me, I wouldn’t even have a second chance at life.”

Whether it was her illusion or not, the faint light she had been able to see since she woke up flickered slightly when she said this.

Instinctively, she raised her hand to touch the light spot, and the next moment, she saw a transparent screen emitting a faint light floating in front of her.

Qiao Yan’s eyes flickered.

This light spot turned out to be the panel of this strategist system.

However, in this brief moment of confrontation, Qiao Yan felt that this panel was a bit too simple.

The only two things that appeared before her were a seemingly empty character backpack, apart from a sachet marked with “Novice Gift Pack,” and the centered character information.

Name: Qiao Yan

Camp: Han (Initial Camp)

Occupation: Strategist (System Setting)

Age: 10

Constitution: 28/100, Strength: 15/100, Intelligence: 79/100, Luck: 65 (?)

Remaining Attribute Points: 3

Skills: History Level 7, Eloquence Level 4, Artifact Appraisal Level 4, Painting Level 3, Book Level 4, Field Archaeology Level 5, Ancient Numismatics Level 3

Remaining Skill Points: 1

Strategist Points: 0 (For every 10 strategist points gained, automatically receive 3 attribute points to allocate and 1 skill point)

Special Status: Novice Protection Period (Not affected by environmental epidemics during the protection period, countdown: 364 days 23 hours 42 minutes)

---

It seems that this is the “plug-in” that will accompany her in this era.

However, this simple character panel has raised many questions for Qiao Yan.

The attribute panel given by the system undoubtedly judges her constitution, strength, and intelligence.

Except for the suffix “?” after Luck, everything else is clearly based on a percentage rating system.

So the question is, what exactly does this percentage-based full score correspond to?

For example, in the skills list, there are some skills that she had already mastered before and can still use in this late Han period, but their grades still involve a kind of subjective evaluation, such as—

Eloquence.

This is what Qiao Yan thinks, and this is what she asked.

The system replied, “The specific full-level standard values cannot be clearly stated according to the regulations. I can only say that the numerical values of the top-tier strategists and generals, as you understand them, will not be lower than 85 in the corresponding projects.”

With this said, she had a rough idea.

“As for skills, I can provide you with some information.

We have a set of default evaluation criteria.

If skills are improved through the allocation of skill points by the system, the information will be conveyed through memory transmission.

However, the specific effects are slightly inferior to those mastered by oneself.”

“What about strategist points?”

The current display of the panel was obviously not the complete form of the system.

Surrounding the central character panel was a circle of mist acting as a barrier.

When the system was explaining attributes and skills to her, Qiao Yan reached out and touched it, then saw the prompt on the panel —

【Check-in】【Unlock after reaching 10 strategist points】

【3D Map】【Unlock after reaching 100 strategist points】

【Strategy】【Unlock after reaching 300 strategist points】

…the names were all very tempting, but she currently had zero strategist points, as poor as dirt.

The system replied, “Strategist points are divided into two parts.

One is through strategizing to achieve positive results for one’s own camp, or to assist in the upward development of a helper within a force.”

“In other words, it can be assisting Cao Cao, who has already become the lord, in seizing territory and developing power, or assisting Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan, who become Yuan Shao’s heirs, to obtain strategist points.”

【You could say that. Another way is to achieve strategist points by completing strategizing actions and triggering strategist achievements.

Since we have chosen the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty as the time point, a series of hidden achievements have been automatically generated in the system’s achievement column.

However, you need to explore which achievements there are on your own. In any case, choosing a suitable camp is always the right move.】

Qiao Yan responded indifferently.

The system did not perceive the host’s thoughts when she heard the explanation, but continued.

Whether it was because it had prepared this introduction for a long time or not, it changed from its previous timid silence to speaking more smoothly as it went on.

If the system had a substantial form, Qiao Yan would have suspected that what she might see was a childish ghost with a chest held high and a face full of pride, even holding up a script to recite loudly.

【Lastly, I want to remind you that the goal of the strategist system’s chosen host is to become the number one strategist in the world. Otherwise, this second life will stop when you reach 20 years. You wouldn’t want to live only twenty years, would you?】

【So… if I were you, I would cherish the gains from the strategist points and quickly raise the intelligence value to the level where you can compete with the strategists of various factions. Otherwise—】

【Wait a minute!!】

【What are you doing?!!】

Almost as the system was kindly suggesting she quickly increase her intelligence value to achieve the strategist goal, Qiao Yan had already propped up her chin with one hand and casually allocated the initial 3 attribute points to constitution.

Then, without hesitation, she allocated the initial skill point to level 4 【Eloquence】.

“Don’t worry about these little things,” Qiao Yan casually changed the subject in the face of the system’s sudden change in tone, “Speaking of which, I have a question—”

“If I were to become an adviser to the Yellow Turban Army, would that count as being a strategist?”