I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 206 Zang Ba: Heavenly Soldiers!
Farmers have a natural aversion to the ocean.

However, people also have a natural craving for meat.

The soldiers who are currently following Lu Su to Qingzhou are mostly those who fled from the Qingzhou and Xuzhou areas due to the war.

No one understands the feeling of hunger better than them.

Tree bark, grass roots.

Anything that can be swallowed is good!
As for the meat?
The chances of encountering such a thing during wartime are probably no higher than the chances of a piece of gold falling from the sky! Even if you manage to get to Jiangdong and acquire land, you can only afford to buy eggs and duck eggs to eat during festivals! Eating meat in large quantities is just a dream!
But right now, everyone is indeed eating meat with gusto!

The sea, which is only ten miles from the land, is rarely visited by fishermen, which has led to an exaggeratedly abundant catch!

On land, the palm-sized fish that people would never dare to eat under normal circumstances were now completely disregarded by everyone!

If you're going to eat, go for the big one!

Eat those fish that are the size of little piglets!

The fish bones are large, so there's no need to be as cautious as when eating river fish.

Cut the white fish meat into translucent sashimi, pick up the whole fish and put it in your mouth, then chew it vigorously. Surprisingly, it really tastes like the oily aroma of pork!

"My darling!"

"How much meat must be in this ocean?!"

The tongue gently grazed the mouth, and the rich aroma of meat completely masked the soldiers' previous fear and apprehension.

Some soldiers even forgot their earlier request to go ashore and advised Lu Su that they should go further into the deep sea, maybe they could find fish as big as mountains, and eating them would be so delicious.
"A fish as big as a mountain? That's a Kun! A Kunpeng!"

Fortunately, Lu Su did not lose his mind. Knowing that the fresh water was about to run out, he dared not steer the ship into the deep sea, which made the soldiers look at the blue ocean with regret.

What's on the other side of the sea?

"There might really be a Kunpeng."

"I've heard there are even immortals!"

"Damn it, the immortals eat meat every day at sea, while we on land suffer from hunger and hardship?"

"..."

Seeing the soldiers' morale rising on the ship, Xu Sheng asked Lu Su with some curiosity, "How did the clerk know that there must be big fish to catch in the sea?"

“In my early years, my family had considerable wealth, and merchants from Qingzhou and Xuzhou often brought treasures from the coast to the Central Plains to sell.”

"Although most of what was sold at the time were pearls and giant clams, some people also brought out fish bones as long as a person to sell."

Lu Su pursed his lips and ate the fish oil from his lips: "These sea fish are truly plump and delicious. It's a pity they can't be herded like livestock, otherwise, there would be countless huge profits!"

Fish in the sea are great in every way, except they can't be kept fresh.

Lu Su discovered that the fish placed on the deck would rot by evening if caught in the morning.

Even if there are pointed-bottom boats that can go deep into the ocean, the only people who can enjoy the delicacies of the sea are probably the people on the shore.
"It's a pity, it's a pity."

It's a pity, but Lu Su has clearly realized the prospects of marine fisheries.

If tens of thousands of fishing boats go out to sea to fish every year, I wonder how much meat they can catch to replace grain!

Aside from the Three Wu regions, the southern parts of Kuaiji and Yuzhang further south in Jiangdong are inherently unsuitable for farming. If we could obtain meat to supplement our diet, who knows how much grain we could save!

Lu Su silently recorded the hydrological and astronomical phenomena he observed on the ship, intending to advise Liu Miao upon his return to order more fishing in the sea.

"However, my lord may not believe that there are such large fish in the sea, and in such large numbers..."

Lu Su immediately ordered: "Don't throw away any of the fish bones! Store them in the hold!"

Lu Su was also somewhat eager to try: "When the time comes, I'll show this bone to the lord. Knowing his personality, I'm sure he'll be very pleased."

Nourished by meat, the fleet finally passed the most dangerous stage and was slowly able to see the land to the north.

The appearance of land to the north meant that the group had finally arrived in Qingzhou!
"We can reach Qingzhou from Jiangdong in just eight days!"

This is almost half again as fast as walking on land!
Moreover, this was Lu Su's first voyage, and he made mistakes, such as choosing the wrong direction. In addition, there was a slight headwind, which made the voyage take longer than usual.

If he were to travel this route again, Lu Su was even confident that he could reach Qingzhou within five days!

"How can my lord be so capable? How did he come up with a way to bypass the sea?"

Upon seeing the land of Qingzhou, Lu Su's various emotions during the voyage transformed into admiration for Liu Miao.

"It actually works!"

"In that case, Yuan Tan probably has nothing to worry about!"

Lu Su ultimately chose to land at Haiqu County, quickly replenish his freshwater supply, and then marched towards Langya.

If we can capture Langya, we can cut off Yuan Tan's retreat and completely trap Yuan Tan's army between the Huai and Si rivers!

------

Kaiyang, the garrison of Zang Bajun.

Thousands of soldiers were neatly encamped according to the ten-unit system. Six crimson banners flew high outside the central gate, with eight rows of armored soldiers holding halberds flanking the banners, forming a continuous crimson wave. There were also rotating captains who checked the roll with tiger tallies. Such a formal military camp system was unmatched even by the soldiers under some feudal lords and governors. It was hard to imagine that such an army, more formal than a regular army, was called the "Mount Tai Bandits".

However, there was indeed an argument in the central army at this time, and it was full of vulgar language. "Is Lu Bu out of his mind? He actually sent another messenger, saying that he wants me to return his money and provisions?"

Zang Ba summoned his subordinates Sun Guan, Wu Dun, and Yin Li, and together they began to hurl insults at Lü Bu!
“I gave him money and provisions last time, and he tried to extort money from me? He insists that I embezzled his money and provisions?”

Zang Baqi was so powerful that his body began to tremble slightly.

"A true man acts with integrity and uprightness! If I truly took it, I will announce it to the world! Why must Lü Bu come to me to ask for it back? Humph!"

"Lu Bu also said that if the money and grain are not returned, he will definitely bring troops to take them! Fine! Let him come! Others may fear him, but I do not!"

Yin Li, standing to the side, was somewhat puzzled: "Although Lü Bu is cunning, I've never heard of him being a rogue. Is there some misunderstanding?"

"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding can there be?"

Zang Ba asked Sun Guan to hand over a stack of official documents: "The accounts are right here, not a penny more, not a penny less. On what grounds does Lü Bu arbitrarily frame me?"

Wu Dun also wondered, "Could it be that something went wrong on Yuan Tan's side?"

"Impossible. Yuan Shao's family is so wealthy and powerful, how could he not even afford this little bit of money and grain?"

The generals also thought that the Yuan family, being so wealthy, would not do such a thing. So they checked carefully and, after confirming that the number was correct, they also became suspicious: "Could it be that Lu Bu is shameless and wants to use this as an excuse to attack the general?"

"That must be it!"

Zang Ba was utterly disgusted by Lü Bu's underhanded tactics!
"Although Lü Bu is cunning, I respected him because he was a hero who killed Dong Zhuo, so I agreed to help Yuan Tan transport money and grain. In the end, I never expected him to be such a person, and I ended up getting into trouble!"

To dishonor someone's reputation is like killing their parents!
Zang Ba was now determined to fight Lü Bu to the bitter end!
"If he really comes, I will definitely retaliate!"

If you want war, then let's fight! Why all this nonsense!

Even against Lü Bu, Zang Ba showed no fear whatsoever, vowing to fight Lü Bu to the death!
Although Zang Ba's words were domineering, they also made the generals around him nervous: "General, you mustn't."

"Now that Lü Bu is on good terms with Yuan Tan, and Xu Province and Qing Province are sandwiched between us, if we rashly start a war, we will probably be attacked from both sides!"

"Even if the general is not afraid of Lü Bu, what if Lü Bu and Yuan Tan attack together?"

Zang Ba's lips twitched.

Kaiyang, where he lives, is indeed in a very unfavorable geographical location.

Although it has Mount Tai to its back, it is surrounded by Xuzhou and Qingzhou.

If Lü Bu and Yuan Tan really came to trap and kill them, even Zang Ba would be helpless and could only wait to die in the cage.

"What else can we do? Are we just going to wait here to die?"

Sun Guan also advised, "If all else fails, just give Lü Bu whatever amount of money and grain he asks for."

"impossible!"

Zang Ba, who was initially worried about an attack from Lü Bu and Yuan Tan, immediately retorted.

"If I hand over the money and provisions now, wouldn't that be telling the world that I, Zang Ba, did indeed take Lü Bu's money and provisions?"

"What will the world think of me, Zang Ba, then? How will I, Zang Ba, face the world?"

Zang Ba's father, Zang Jie, was once a county jailer. Because he upheld the law and refused to obey the prefect's request to kill a prisoner, the prefect was furious and ordered Zang Jie to be arrested and brought to the prefectural office for trial. Upon learning of his father's imprisonment, the eighteen-year-old Zang Ba gathered a dozen or so retainers and went to Fei County to rescue his father. Afterwards, Zang Ba and his father, Zang Jie, fled to the East China Sea. Through this act, Zang Ba's reputation for filial piety, bravery, and valor spread throughout the countryside.

Zang Ba was a man who only cared about two things.

First, one must have a clear mind.

Secondly, one must be upright and honest, and never lose one's sense of loyalty.

If money and provisions were to be supplied to Lü Bu now, it would mean that Zang Ba had crossed two lines, which would be unacceptable to him.

"General."

Sun Guan, feeling helpless, advised, "Please reconsider, General!"

"Although our army is now in good order, we do not have strong reinforcements and cannot fight against both Lü Bu and Yuan Tan at the same time."

"General, please consider our situation and the thoughts of the soldiers who volunteered to follow you. Do not offend Lü Bu at this time!"

Although Zang Ba was furious, he knew that what Sun Guan said was true.

Just then, scouts suddenly arrived at the camp gate—

"Report! Someone has spotted a large army marching from the east, heading towards Langya!"

East?

Zang Ba was taken aback for a moment, then assumed that it was Gongsun Du who had crossed the sea from Liaodong and was running Yingzhou east of Qingzhou.

"It's not Gongsun Du! Judging from their banners, they seem to be Liu Miao and Liu Zhongshan from Jiangdong!"

Liu Miao?

Zang Ba was instantly as if the clouds had parted and the sun had shone through!

"Gentlemen! This powerful reinforcement has been delivered right to our doorstep!"

"If we join forces with Liu Miao, would we still be afraid of Lü Bu and Yuan Tan?"

(End of this chapter)