The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 200 Elite Organization Team

"Hmm." Chen Er nodded, then said to Zhao Yun, "At the current speed, it will take us at least five more days to reach Shiyang. I wonder if the intelligence department will be able to find out anything about Liu Bei's side during this time."

Zhao Yun affirmed, "Li Zhong's spies have never disappointed us in their intelligence gathering efforts, and we expect to receive the latest intelligence soon."

Chen Er said with a smile, "It doesn't matter whether we have intelligence or not now. As the saying goes, we'll deal with whatever comes our way. We just need to be careful. We still have three thousand cavalry and two infantry divisions following us. No matter what tricks Liu Bei plays, he can't possibly mobilize a large organization across Jingzhou to ambush around Shiyang, can he?"

Hearing Chen Er's words, Zhao Yun thought it made sense. No matter what Liu Bei was doing, he couldn't possibly mobilize a large organization across the entire Jingzhou without alerting Liu Biao. With that thought, Zhao Yun felt relieved and said to Chen Er, "It seems that I was worrying too much."

No longer worried, Zhao Yun said to Chen Er, "My lord, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave now."

"Alright, Zilong, you should get some rest. If the weather is clear tomorrow morning, we'll set off immediately," Chen Er replied.

While Chen Er and Zhao Yun were staying in the wilderness, the spies in their own district were actively conducting detailed reconnaissance of Liu Bei and Liu Biao's strength across the vast land from Jingzhou to Ba County.

After receiving Chen Er's order, Li Zhong selected more than a dozen skilled spies from his subordinates to disguise themselves and enter places like Ba County in Jingzhou. Their only mission was to find out as much as possible about the strength of Liu Bei and Liu Biao.

Shen Cheng was the head of these spies and their contact person. All the spies in the southwest region were Shen Cheng's subordinates.

Looking at the intelligence reports being compiled in his hand, Shen Cheng realized that Liu Bei's ambitions were not small and that their previous intelligence on the southwest region was lacking. If Chen Er had not personally ordered the intelligence department's spies to investigate carefully, Shen Cheng would never have dared to imagine what would have happened.

Liu Bei, this unassuming fellow, has quietly taken control of four counties and a large number of barbarian tribes in Yizhou. Currently, the number of troops under Liu Bei's command has reached as high as 150,000.

Moreover, all these organized teams were equipped with flintlock muskets, and with the addition of the barbarian mercenaries, Liu Bei now had 180,000 elite organized teams.

Liu Biao of Jingzhou lived up to his reputation as a dog who only cared about maintaining the status quo. The total number of troops organized in the entire Jingzhou region was only a little over 200,000, and more than half of them were not under Liu Biao's direct control.

In Shen Cheng's mind, Liu Biao's status was far lower than Liu Bei's. Liu Biao had a large territory and population but didn't know how to use it, while Liu Bei was different. Liu Bei's ability to endure was the most forbearing person Shen Cheng had ever seen.

Not only did he quietly develop his strength, but he was also able to tolerate Liu Yu of Yizhou. However, it was precisely Liu Bei's ability to endure that allowed him to grow up in the cracks between Liu Biao and Liu Yu, two members of the Han imperial family.

"The fact that our lord chose Shiyang as the meeting place with Liu Bei is quite a sensitive area."

Shen Cheng said to his deputy Qiu Min, who nodded and said, "There must be something wrong here. It's really not in line with Liu Bei's character to choose such a place, such a patient and reserved person as Liu Bei."

Shen Cheng said, "I think Liu Bei might have some other preparations in secret. Have his subordinates reported any new developments?"

Qiu Min glanced at the report in his hand and said to Shen Cheng, "No, the latest intelligence is that Liu Bei led his personal guard of 600 men down the river three days ago."

"Down the river?" Upon hearing Qiu Min's words, Shen Cheng immediately had a bad feeling: "Isn't Liu Bei afraid of encountering the Jingzhou Water Organization if he leads so many people down the river?"

"I don't know about this, but Liu Bei must have some kind of backing."

"No, there's definitely something wrong here!" Shen Cheng said decisively.

Hearing his superior say such things, Qiu Min also felt that something was amiss. Suddenly, he thought of a possibility and quickly said to Shen Cheng, "Boss, do you think Liu Biao and Liu Bei might have made some kind of deal?"

Upon hearing Qiu Min's words, Shen Cheng felt the fog before him dissipate instantly. He said to Qiu Min, "It's highly likely. Immediately send a message to the spies in Nanyang and Jiangxia, instructing them to closely monitor the movements of the Jingzhou organization, especially the Water Organization!"

"Boss, do you mean Liu Biao wants to harm our lord?" Qiu Min was also frightened by his own bold conjecture. If that were the case, then our lord would be in danger!

Shen Cheng said to Qiu Min, "We cannot rule out this possibility. As intelligence agents, we cannot overlook any clues. Immediately send a message to our lord by carrier pigeon, reporting our conjecture to him and asking for his decision."

Since Chen Er's safety was at stake, Shen Cheng dared not be careless. If his and Qiu Min's conjecture was true, then Liu Bei's invitation to Chen Er to go south for a meeting was a huge conspiracy targeting Chen Er. Shen Cheng and Qiu Min dared not let their guard down. While giving orders to their spies, they wrote down their conjecture in the simplest language on a piece of paper, tied it to a pigeon's leg, and released it.

Since Chen Er proposed the use of carrier pigeons and it quickly became widespread in the areas he governed, information transmission in those areas immediately improved significantly, especially in intelligence transmission. At the latest, Chen Er could receive the latest intelligence from thousands of miles away within two days of any disturbance.

Less than two days after Shen Cheng gave orders to the spies in Jingzhou, he received the latest report that the Jingzhou Water Organization camp in Jiangxia had been frequently mobilizing recently, and soldiers wearing Liu Bei's organization uniforms had appeared in the camp.

Based on this report, Shen Cheng further confirmed the intelligence that Liu Bei and Liu Biao were joining forces, and he quickly conveyed this news to Chen Er via carrier pigeon.

When Chen Er received the message, they were less than two hundred miles away from Shiyang. Upon seeing the latest message from Shen Cheng, Chen Er immediately handed the note to Zhao Yun. After reading it, Zhao Yun said to Chen Er, "My lord, for safety's sake, I believe we should evacuate as soon as possible."

"Evacuate?"

Chen Er shook his head and said, "It's impossible to retreat. I, Chen Er, am not the kind of person who would back down when faced with danger. Moreover, as we head south, news of my meeting with Liu Bei has gradually spread. If we retreat now, how will the world view us?"