The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

Chapter 338 The Strategist with the Strongest Combat Power

Power flows from the bottom up. You are a leader if your subordinates support you, otherwise you are nothing.

Therefore, Ning Huan's first task is to gain the approval of Peng Qi's troops, make them willing to listen to him and accept his suggestions, and then use this opportunity to win a few brilliant battles to establish his authority. Only in this way can he quickly take military power into his own hands and gain the confidence to seize power from Peng Qi.

Ning Huan followed Peng Qi to the main hall of the gathering, and after Peng Qi sat down on the tiger-skin chair in the middle, he followed her from behind.

Not long after they stopped, people began to enter. Instead of bowing to Peng Qi, they shouted in a loud and boisterous manner, "Big brother, what are you calling us here for? Are you going to divide the spoils?"

Ning Huan curled his lip upon hearing this. They've only robbed once and they're already thinking about dividing the spoils. Can't they have any self-respect?

Soon, more than a dozen people arrived in the hall. Once everyone was there, Peng Qi cut to the chase without any unnecessary words: "If we rob Pan Zhang, it's like raising the flag of rebellion. Pan Zhang will come to punish us, both publicly and privately. Anyone who has a way to resist Pan Zhang, please share it."

Upon hearing this, the previously chattering crowd fell silent instantly. They had been dealing with Wu Jun for many years and were somewhat afraid of him, given how many Yue tribes had been wiped out by Wu Jun.

After a long silence, someone timidly said, "Brother, why don't we run away?"

These words almost made Peng Qi faint. "I've already raised the flag of rebellion, and you're telling me to run away?"

Given the current situation of being surrounded on three sides and blocked by the Yangtze River on the other, where can they run to?

Peng Qi knew that these brothers were unreliable, so he stopped asking questions and said directly, "If we want to grow stronger and defeat the Wu army, we must recruit more talented people, so I have found a helper for everyone."

He then pulled Ning Huan over and introduced him, saying, "His name is Ning Huan. I snatched him from You Chong. He will be our strategist from now on. Quickly pay your respects to the strategist."

All the leaders looked at Ning Huan with unfriendly expressions. After staring at Ning Huan for a moment, one of them couldn't help but say sarcastically, "Strategist, can this pretty boy be a strategist? What skills does he have? He just arrived and he already wants to ride on the heads of the brothers?"

Ning Huan clasped his hands and smiled, "I, Ning, greet all the leaders. I am not very talented, and I am somewhat apprehensive about being appointed as military advisor by Commander Peng Zong. However, I cannot let Commander Zong down. Naturally, I would like to learn from you all. You are all straightforward people, so how about we choose a straightforward method and just fight? Let's find a time to have a martial arts contest in the training ground. If any one of you can defeat me, I will immediately resign from my position as military advisor and leave."

"What the hell?" someone questioned. "Isn't the strategist supposed to use his brain to come up with ideas? Why are you resorting to violence? What were you thinking?"

Ning Huan's choice to engage in martial arts was completely different from their impression of him as a strategist who was weak and only offered bad advice, leaving the group of leaders somewhat bewildered.

Ning Huan smiled and said, "The strategist's task is to provide solutions to problems. Violence is a means too. So let's talk about whether to fight or not."

These words enraged the leaders, who rubbed their hands together and said, "Let's go now, or you'll cry if we hurt you later."

Ning Huan walked to the center of the hall, clasped his hands in greeting, and then extended his hand in invitation, saying, "Which leader would like to come first?"

The leaders exchanged glances for a moment, then a burly young man, whose waist was a full size thicker than Ning Huan's, stepped forward and said, "My name is Bi Kui, I am the fourth leader of the stronghold, and also the most capable fighter in the stronghold. If you can last twenty rounds against me, we will acknowledge you as our strategist. How about it?"

Bi Kui didn't suggest that Ning Huan should defeat him, as that would be too unfair to the pale-faced scholar.

Ning Huan smiled and said, "Fourth Master, please."

After saying that, the two of them simultaneously raised their feet and rushed towards each other. Ning Huan easily dodged Bi Kui's fist, which was comparable to a sandbag. Then, he reached out with both hands at the same time, grabbed Bi Kui's wrists, and quickly turned around. With a smooth over-the-shoulder throw, he easily sent Bi Kui flying three meters away, directly crashing into Peng Qi's feet.

This move left everyone in the hall stunned. Bi Kui was the strongest among them, weighing at least 150 pounds, yet Ning Huan had just effortlessly tossed him away.

Ning Huan smiled calmly and said, "Continue."

He had the confidence to resort to violence. First, he had honed his skills as a child and had a foundation in martial arts. Second, his scout battalion was personally trained by Guan Xing, who was a graduate of the police academy and whose grappling techniques had been tested in real combat.

Although Ning Huan did not know where Guan Xing had learned his skills, he could distinguish between good and bad grappling techniques. If they fought hand-to-hand without weapons, three or five people could not get close to him.

Upon hearing Ning Huan's invitation, Bi Kui lay on the ground, unwilling to get up. He was the top expert in the stronghold, having earned his fourth-place position through sheer force. He had thought he could easily defeat Ning Huan, this pretty boy, but instead, he had been completely outmatched. He was utterly humiliated.

Seeing that Bi Kui was not getting up, Peng Qi kicked him and said, "Are you sure you can do it? People are waiting."

The other leaders chimed in, "That's right, that's right. How did they get knocked down so easily? Did they use all their strength on the women?"

Bi Kui blushed with embarrassment at the ridicule of his colleagues. He quickly got up and charged at Ning Huan again. Ning Huan retreated quickly to avoid the attack, and then charged at him again to fight.

Ning Huan was the most successful of Guan Xing's many disciples. He even learned a few moves of the ancestral technique called "Black Dragon Eighteen Hands" from Guan Xing, making him a force to be reckoned with when fighting Bi Kui.

Under the watchful eyes of many leaders, Bi Kui was thrown from the left side one moment, from the right side the next, and even fell directly into Peng Qi's arms once, almost constantly changing his position when he came into contact with the ground.

After more than a dozen rounds, Bi Kui finally couldn't hold on any longer. He sat on the ground, wiping the blood from his nostrils, and said, "I'm not fighting anymore, I admit defeat."

Ning Huan clasped his hands and bowed deeply, saying, "You flatter me."

After speaking, he stood up, looked at the others, and smiled slightly, "Is there any other leader who would like to give it a try?"

The leaders trembled under their gazes and said in unison, "There's no need for that. Isn't it enough that we acknowledge you as our strategist?"

Even the most capable fighter, Bi Kui, was beaten to this state. What can they do if they go up there?

"Then thank you very much, leaders." Ning Huan smiled with satisfaction; he had passed his first test.

While violence is not the best way to solve problems, it is the fastest way to achieve results because people have a natural tendency to admire the strong and will instinctively worship the strong. At the very least, when facing the strong, they will obediently listen to the strong's reasoning.

Ning Huan wanted these people to be willing to listen to his reasoning. Only with this premise could he persuade them with reason. Otherwise, no matter what you say, they won't listen. What's the use of you no matter how eloquently you speak?

Ning Huan bowed to Peng Qi and said, "Commander, we are facing the Wu army. We, the mountain tribes who are often beaten by the Wu army, are the most qualified to speak on how strong the Wu army is. Therefore, I think that if we want to defeat the Wu army, we must first train our troops. Only by training our troops to be as elite as the Wu army can we have the confidence to defeat the Wu army. What do you think?"

"Training troops?" the leaders said in unison. "We're mountain bandits and river pirates, used to being free and undisciplined. Where would we find the patience for that?"

Ning Huan retorted, "You have no patience for training troops but a determination to get beaten up, right? You've been beaten by the Wu army for so many years, haven't you ever thought about fighting back? Haven't you ever thought about defeating the Wu army and getting your head held high in front of them?"

"Besides, whether or not we train troops seems to be out of our control anymore; we've already raised the flag of rebellion..."

Ning Huan repeated what he had said to Peng Qi to the other leaders, and continued, "If we don't want to be annihilated by the combined forces of Zhou Tai, Pan Zhang, and Zhuge Jin, the only way is to defeat Pan Zhang head-on. But do you all think that with your current strength you can defeat Pan Zhang quickly? If you don't defeat Pan Zhang, where do you plan to escape to when Zhou Tai and Zhuge Jin attack?"