Three Kingdoms: Start by buying a governor.

"Mr. Wenhe, what exactly is our lord's plan this time?" Cheng Yaojin asked impatiently, his voice booming. "So mysterious! I, Old Cheng, am itching to find out!"

Jia Xu smiled slightly and said slowly, "Generals, please be patient and let me explain."

He cleared his throat and began to explain:

"This time we're going to Lulong Pass not to fight—at least not on the surface. Our lord has sent 'peace invitations' to the three Wuhuan tribes of Liaoxi, Liaodong, and Youbeiping, inviting them to a meeting at Lulong Pass to discuss matters such as trade and tax reduction."

Cheng Yaojin's eyes widened: "A meeting? What meeting? Aren't we going to fight the Wuhuan?"

Qin Qiong slapped him: "Shut up, listen to what Mr. Wenhe has to say!"

Jia Xu continued, "This 'meeting'... is just a pretext. The real purpose is to lure the three leaders of the Wuhuan tribes here and capture them all in one fell swoop."

He explained in detail the ins and outs of the plan: how to use Zhang Chun's "deposit" to gain Qiuliju's trust, how to lure the three tribes with generous terms, and so on...

Everyone was stunned.

Cheng Yaojin gaped and exclaimed, "Your grandpa's grandma's grandpa! My lord's plan... is too cunning! But I like it!"

Huang Zhong stroked his beard and said, "All warfare is based on deception; my lord's plan is brilliant."

Zhao Yun nodded and said, "To subdue the enemy without fighting is the best possible outcome."

Lu Bu arrogantly declared, "What do I care about their schemes? I'll take them all down with a single halberd strike!"

Xue Rengui and Xu Da exchanged a glance, both seeing admiration in each other's eyes. These two were renowned commanders in history, and naturally understood the brilliance of this strategy—simple, direct, and effective.

Jia Xu concluded, "So, generals, remember this: when you arrive at Lulong Pass, hold your troops still until the leaders of the three tribes arrive. Only then will our lord make his move."

He assigned tasks one by one, and everyone nodded in agreement.

Cheng Yaojin rubbed his hands together excitedly and said, "I get it! I get it! We play the fool first, then trap them, and then beat them!"

Jia Xu laughed and said, "General Cheng's summary is insightful."

Everyone laughed.

Liu Ce rode his horse, looking ahead at the road, a smile playing on his lips.

The plan is simple, few people know about it, so we need to act quickly.

This time, he wanted to let the Wuhuan know that Youzhou was not such an easy piece of meat to chew.

They marched during the day and set up camp at dusk.

This had become the fixed rhythm of the team. The 15,000-strong army marched in a grand procession, banners fluttering, armor gleaming in the sunlight, the sound of hooves so loud that even the birds on the roadside dared not land.

Liu Ce was strict in disciplining his troops, but he was also humane. He insisted on marching during the day and never traveled at night—in his words, "How can we fight during the day if we don't sleep at night? We're not going to put out a fire, what's the rush?"

That evening, the troops set up camp in an open area. The soldiers skillfully pitched tents, dug hearths, and gathered firewood. Soon, the camp was established, with wisps of smoke rising and the aroma of food wafting through the air.

The soldiers sat around the campfire, wiping their weapons and checking their armor, occasionally exchanging a few jokes, but their eyes all revealed a seriousness.

...

The atmosphere inside the central command tent was even more serious.

Qin Qiong, Yuchi Gong, Cheng Yaojin, Huang Zhong, Zhao Yun, Lü Bu, Xue Rengui, Xu Da, Jia Xu, Dian Wei, Xu Chu... a dozen or so core figures sat in a circle, with a wooden table temporarily put together in the middle, on which was spread a map of the area around Lulong Pass.

Liu Ce sat in the main seat, holding a small wooden stick in his hand, and tapped the map.

"Gentlemen," he said, looking around at everyone, "we shall now begin to arrange the details of the 'meeting'."

"Listen carefully, everyone. This is crucial to whether we can 'eat' the Wuhuan people in one meal."

Cheng Yaojin, being the most straightforward, slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "My lord, just tell me! How exactly do we fight? My old Cheng's Mo Dao battalion will chop the Wuhuan people into mincemeat! Those Mo Dao swords are heavy; one strike can cleave a man and a horse in two! I'll make you a 'Wuhuan meat pie' then, so you can have a taste!"

Everyone laughed.

Zhao Yun calmly replied, "My lord, my elite troops are ready to charge. The newly equipped saddles and stirrups make archery much more stable. Aren't the Wuhuan people known for being 'swift as the wind'? Let's show them what true speed is!"

Lu Bu grinned and said, "My halberd hasn't seen blood in a long time. This is a good opportunity to have some fun. The Flying Cavalry has also been itching for a fight. Don't the Wuhuan call themselves 'Eagles of the Steppes'? This time, let them see what real cavalry is all about!"

Qin Qiong, Yuchi Gong, Huang Zhong, Xue Rengui, Xu Da... all expressed their opinions, eager to fight and wishing they could rush over right now.

Liu Ce waved his hand to quiet everyone down, then picked up a wooden stick and pointed to Lulong Pass on the map.

"Lulong Pass is a strategically important location," he explained. "It's surrounded by mountains on both sides, with a narrow passage in the middle, like the mouth of a gourd, the only way in and out. This kind of place is definitely not a good place for a 'meeting'—it's too much like an ambush point. The Wuhuan people aren't stupid; they can tell at a glance that it's easy to fall into an ambush."

He moved his stick down, pointing it at the south side of Lulong Pass: "So, we'll hold our meeting on the plains south of Lulong Pass. It's flat, open, and stretches as far as the eye can see. When the Wuhuan people come and see this terrain, they'll think it's advantageous to them—cavalry is most effective on plains. This will make them lower their guard a bit."

Xue Rengui frowned and said, "My lord's consideration is thorough. However, the plains are indeed advantageous to the Wuhuan cavalry. But they have 10,000 cavalry, while we have 15,000. If we fight head-on, even if we win, the losses will be considerable."

Xu Da nodded and said, "Yes, my lord. The Wuhuan cavalry are as swift as the wind. If they see something is wrong and turn to run, we won't be able to catch them. The grasslands are so vast; if they disappear deep into the grasslands, we can't possibly chase them to the ends of the earth, can we?"

Liu Ce smiled mysteriously: "Who said we were going to fight?"

He said slowly, "Let's build a pavilion about three hundred paces apart between the two armies. Qiu Liju, Su Puyan, Wu Yan, and I will pretend to discuss things in the pavilion."

"Three hundred paces?" Huang Zhong's eyes lit up. "That's exactly within the effective range of the composite bow. If they dare to make any rash moves, my elite archers can give them a baptism of arrows first."

"That's not all," Liu Ce nodded.

"To put their minds at ease," Liu Ce added, "we pretended that the benefits we offered were genuine. The 50,000 shi of grain for each unit has already been delivered and is piled up in the camp; samples of goods for the trade—fine salt, wine, ironware, and cloth—are also ready. They need to inspect the goods and negotiate terms, so they have to sit down and talk, right? And once they start talking, the time will be dragged out."