Liang Zhongning stared at this unexpected guest.

If he hadn’t suffered a defeat outside Tian’s Fort earlier.

He might have thought this person was someone who didn’t know the height of the sky and the depth of the earth when they introduced themselves.

But perhaps, even if he did have such thoughts, after carefully considering the implications of the person’s words.

He wouldn’t really treat her as a reckless troublemaker who blocked the way.

“Yan Qiao of Gao Mi?” Liang Zhongning frowned.

In this era, people often added the name of their locality before their name to indicate their background, such as :

Zhao Zilong of Changshan and Lu Fengxian of Jiuyuan.

Firstly, because after Wang Mang’s usurpation of the throne in the late Western Han Dynasty,

the “prohibition of two names” was still widely practiced in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

After the second name, there were many people with the same name and surname,

so adding the locality, official position, or title before the name made it much easier to distinguish.

Secondly, at this time, people’s recognition of their local factions was astonishingly high.

Regardless of the importance of having a double name, Gao Mi Yan Qiao, like Chen Liu Dian Wei, was a name Liang Zhongning had never heard before.

There was one difference, though: Gao Mi was not within the territory of Yanzhou.

And if you mentioned Gao Mi, it was hard to avoid mentioning a person.

“Yes, Gao Mi where Zheng Shikang resides,” Qiao Yan seemed to guess what he was puzzled about and continued, standing still with a calm tone that made it hard to believe she was lying.

Compared to Qiao Yan’s calmness, Liang Zhongning, upon receiving the response and hearing the name Zheng Kangcheng, was undoubtedly much more flustered.

Who is Zheng Kangcheng?

He is the master of Confucian studies in his time, Zheng Xuan!

If we consider that Gaomi currently belongs to the kingdom of Beihai, strictly speaking, she should refer to herself as Yan Qiao of Beihai, just like the famous Confucian scholar Kong Rong of Beihai.

But in front of the name Zheng Xuan, her way of addressing him clearly posed no problem.

Zheng Xuan studied under the guidance of Diwu Yuanxian, Zhang Gongzu, and Ma Rong.

By the age of forty, he had become a renowned Confucian scholar of his time, with thousands of disciples and listeners during his travels in Donglai.

During the political persecution in the first year of Jianning, because Zheng Xuan had previously served as an official under Du Mi, he was also implicated.

Thus, thirteen years ago, Zheng Xuan was sent back to his ancestral home in Gaomi.

The world respects many famous scholars, especially someone like Zheng Xuan, who was renowned throughout the land.

Even after being sent back to Gaomi, his confinement did not affect his teachings in Gaomi.

During these thirteen years, he wrote millions of words of Confucian classics, founded the Zheng School, and became famous for his confrontation with the contemporary textual Confucianism!

Even the Yellow Turban Army, with its vast influence, would not dare to claim that it could rival Zheng Xuan in Gaomi and Donglai, where he had a great following.

Perhaps, because of Zheng Xuan, Gaomi’s reputation surpassed even that of Beihai.

If this young visitor is truly a disciple of Zheng Xuan, Liang Zhongning dare not treat her with any disrespect.

He let the half of the spear shaft in his hand drop, his expression losing some of its hostility.

Then, he slowly pulled on the reins and moved forward until he stopped in front of her.

At such a close distance, her face in the backlight was clearly visible to him.

Despite the current intimidation of the bandits, her expression remained calm, as if nothing could faze her.

She just raised her eyes slightly, as if signaling something to him.

So young, yet so poised and elegant, it seemed plausible.

With this understanding in mind, Liang Zhongning found it easy to deduce why she would appear here.

Zheng Xuan, even at a young age, was well-versed in the study of astrology and divination.

His skills in these arts were outstanding.

After studying under Ma Rong, he even followed him to practice celestial calculations.

To someone like Liang Zhongning, who had heard much about Zheng Xuan, if this young child was a disciple of Zheng’s and had made some progress in the study of astrology, it was not impossible for her to deduce his intentions.

Although Liang Zhongning had some reservations about such a master, he did not want to show any sign of weakness.

Instead, he asked aloud, “Why has the esteemed guest come looking for me?”

Even if the Yellow Turbans currently controlled the region, they could not change their nature as refugees.

The disciples of Zheng Xuan were at least associated with scholars, and it could be said that there was a gap between the two.

He was not blind; he could see that although the young girl’s face was somewhat pale, she had grown up in a privileged environment.

Why would they have any connection?

However, Qiao Yan seemed completely oblivious to his reluctance to deal with her and replied solemnly, “I observed the stars at night and learned that General Qu is in trouble, not just once but twice. I want to give him some advice as an exchange…”

“Please, General, escort me back to Gaomi,” she said.

Liang Zhongning was not moved by her mention of General Qu’s troubles; he simply asked about the conditions of this exchange. “The world is in turmoil, and it seems you are unarmed and defenseless. Why rush to travel?”

Whether he was in trouble did not seem to be something that needed to be inferred.

The defeat at Tiandi Wu Fortress, coupled with the fear of almost losing his life at the hands of Dian Wei, left him not just in disarray, with his troops scattered, but even his mount, which he relied on to escape, bore an arrow wound.

Returning to Puyang City in such a state, if he were to encounter the troops of Bu Ji and Zhang Bo coming from the west, who knows what trouble might arise.

Anyone with eyes could see that this was a fact.

Qiao Yan smiled and replied calmly, “Zheng Shi predicted a change in the world several months ago and sent me to the capital to investigate.

With the rise of the Yellow Turbans, the Han emperor had no choice but to lift the ban on the persecution of officials, confirming Zheng Shi’s prediction.

Although this decree has been sent to all provinces, the attitude of the court needs to be explained in detail when I return to Gaomi.”

When she mentioned “lifting the ban on the persecution of officials,” Liang Zhongning, who had just put down his spear, raised it again.

For a moment, the spear, still with wooden thorns, was only a step away from her neck.

Even the strategist system in his consciousness began to warn him in fear.

However, Qiao Yan remained unfazed and continued, “However, with your army marching majestically, my return journey is difficult.

Passing through the boundaries of Puyang is already the limit. I’m afraid I will have to trouble the General to lend me a hand.”

Liang Zhongning was almost amused by her unapologetic tone.

He spoke with suppressed anger, “The revival of the partisans is no different from the court; since you know about the Yellow Turbans, how can you not know that our slogan is already dead? Why talk to me about cooperation, aren’t you afraid I’ll take your life first!”

“Do you intend to kill a patriot?” Qiao Yan asked.

Liang Zhongning countered, “Can a ten-year-old child be called a patriot?”

But all he received was a calm reply, as unperturbed as ever—

“What’s wrong with having ambition at a young age.”

---

A temporary camp was set up between Puyang and Tiandi Wu Fortress.

While Liang Zhongning went to gather the remnants, Qiao Yan enjoyed a moment of peace.

She was now considered an honored guest of this Yellow Turban leader, naturally enjoying the privilege of having a tent to herself in this camp.

The tension in the strategist system finally subsided.

It had almost thought that its host would die before achieving success!

【You’re too bold. You’ve clearly seen the methods of Bu Ji and Zhang Bo’s subordinates. No matter how cultured Liang Zhongning may sound in his name, he might just kill you outright.】

“Fortune favors the bold. Besides, the customs of the late Han dynasty are such that killing a famous scholar is not a good idea.”

Cao Cao killed Bian Rang, which almost cost him Yan Province.

Later, he didn’t let Ni Heng die by his hand but instead let him go to Jingzhou under Liu Biao and then to Jiangxia under Huang Zu before finally losing his life.

Although the Yellow Turbans are currently difficult to control in terms of military discipline, with their bandit-like behavior, anyone truly worthy of the title of leader would not risk the wrath of the world by killing a disciple of Zheng Xuan.

Although she was just a fake, using Zheng Gong’s reputation as a protective shield, within these three months, Liang Zhongning had no opportunity to go to Gaomi to find out if she really was Zheng Xuan’s disciple, so Qiao Yan had no psychological burden of being exposed.

Who would have thought she could make such a move!

Not to mention her claim to have come from Luoyang, which now made sense with her official tone.

As she answered the system’s doubts, her hands did not stop moving.

Liang Zhongning’s decision to lead the attack on the Tian family in Puyang was very hasty.

Whether he had everything he needed was unclear, but Qiao Yan borrowed a firestone and a marching pot from him and finally boiled water at a corner of the tent.

This was the first time she had drunk hot water since crossing over into this chaotic end of the Han dynasty.

Qiao Yan temporarily ignored the Yellow Turban soldiers outside the tent, whether they had any thoughts about her behavior, as scholars often had some quirks, and it was not surprising that she had one too.

She squatted beside the makeshift fire rack, warming herself by the boiling water.

The flickering firelight reflected in her eyes, then was immediately shrouded in a misty fog.

Afterwards, she crumbled the last piece of dry bread in her arms into the pot.

It was still not considered delicious, but it was much more edible than just gnawing on it.

The system thought about Qiao Yan’s conversation with Liang Zhongning before they parted, and asked, “Do you really want to help him break through the Tian family’s fortress? You know that once you take this step, you will be truly entangled with the Yellow Turbans.”

Qiao Yan sipped her soup, shook her head, and replied, “How to judge a matter cannot be determined just by looking at the beginning.

I have my own ideas and won’t delay the progress of becoming the number one strategist in the world.”

The system was speechless.

After a moment of silence, it commented, “I’m starting to think that your debating skill should be called ‘bluffing,’ or maybe ‘drawing big cakes.'”

As a system that should have been highly valued for its cheat-like abilities, its only consolation now was that Liang Zhongning, like itself, was completely led by Qiao Yan.

The Yellow Turban leader, when he went to gather his troops, even felt that using the excuse “Puyang is not yet settled, and there are few idle people. If you consider yourself a patriot, why not try your hand?” to force Qiao Yan to “have to” plan the attack on the Tian family’s fortress for him was a huge advantage.

But where was the advantage for him?

System: I don’t know what to say, let’s just sympathize with him for now.

“No, you should say, it’s not my eloquence that worked, but I’m just really lucky.”

In fact, Qiao Yan had not expected Liang Zhongning to be in such a state when she saw him.

But when she saw the defeated troops from the hillside, she realized that this was undoubtedly a better opportunity for her than if they had returned victorious, as it provided her with a space to mediate!

This could be her chance!

The news she learned from the other side about the Tian family’s fortress, as well as the appearance of Dian Wei here, were also good news.

Dian Wei…

After joining Cao Cao and taking on the responsibility of being his close bodyguard, he ultimately died from exhaustion in the Battle of Wan, undoubtedly one of the top bodyguards of his time.

Despite Qiao Yan saying that Liang Zhongning wouldn’t dare to kill her, and even when the broken spear was pointed at her, she remained unfazed, she couldn’t help but think—

If she had a bodyguard, her personal safety as a “strategist” would be more secure, right?

After all, she only had a Constitution of 31 and a Strength of 15 now.