I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 210 Attacking Xiangfan!

Yuan Tan knew that Yuan Yao was giving him a way out.

Because it was a surprise attack on Jiangdong, Yuan Tan had not posted any proclamations beforehand, so... although it seemed like he was burying his head in the sand, if he used the pretext of "visiting relatives," at least he could save face.

Yuan Tan dropped his longsword, feeling somewhat embarrassed, but still said, "That's right! I've come to visit relatives! How have you been in Jiangdong?"

"Very good!"

Yuan Yao did not deceive Yuan Tan.

After Liu Miao brought Yuan Shu's family members back to Jiangdong, he did not treat them excessively. Although their food, clothing, and daily necessities were far from what they had received from Yuan Shu, they were at least comparable to those of ordinary wealthy families.

"Brother! Your wife is also waiting for you in Jiangdong! She said it has been more than ten years since we last met in Runan!"

At first, Yuan Tan didn't realize who the "madam" Yuan Yao was referring to was.

However, he soon realized that this was probably referring to Yuan Ji's daughter, who was also Liu Miao's legal wife, Lady Yuan.

Yuan Tan was adopted by Yuan Ji by Yuan Shao, so legally speaking... Yuan Tan's relationship with the Yuan family was actually closer than his relationship with Yuan Shao.

When Yuan Yao brought up the Yuan family, Yuan Tan knew that this was not only giving him a way out, but even carrying him on his back to save face.

Moreover, seeing that Yuan Yao was plump and fair-skinned, clearly not showing any signs of being mistreated by Liu Miao, Yuan Tan finally abandoned his last bit of pride: "In that case, let's go visit the lady together!"

------

News of Yuan Tan's visit to his relatives was sent to Jingzhou.

Liu Miao had been staying in the Yicheng camp for quite some time.

Every time Zhou Yu and Sun Ce tried to attack, Liu Miao drove them out of their camp.

"What's the point of all this fighting and killing? Don't you know what self-cultivation is?"

Zhou Yu and Sun Ce's eyes twitched, and they even suspected that Liu Miao might have been bewitched by someone.

They were on a winning streak before, and now they were just one step away from victory, but Liu Miao just wouldn't get in.

Having done everything before, yet still hesitating at the end, is truly unworthy of being a man!

It wasn't until Liu Miao received news from Jiangdong that he finally summoned all the generals to his camp.

"Prepare to capture Xiangfan!"

The generals were both surprised and delighted by Liu Miao's sudden change of heart.

Zhou Yu couldn't help but wonder: "Why did our lord linger in the camp for the past few months, and now he wants to attack Xiangfan?"

Liu Miao recounted everything that had happened in the east, sending chills down the spines of everyone who heard it.

"My lord, why didn't you say so sooner?"

"Nonsense! If I had told you beforehand, you would all be thinking of going back to Jiangdong. Do you even want Jingzhou anymore?"

Liu Miao ignored Zhou Yu's resentful gaze and stretched his arms: "Let's go! Now that the matter in the east has been settled, we have to take Jingzhou whether we like it or not!"

"Order the entire army to advance on Xiangfan!"

"Even Lü Bu wants to control the two provinces of Qing and Xu and become a fake King of Qi. I can't always cling to Jiangdong, can I?"

Looking north, Liu Miao felt as if the majestic Xiangfan was right before his eyes.

"Once the city is captured, the army will be rewarded!"

"Here!"

……

In fact, these past few days, it wasn't just Liu Miao's soldiers who were suffering from the torment of waiting; everyone in Jingzhou was also suffering from the torment of waiting.

Following Cao Cao's earlier withdrawal from Nanyang, Kuai Liang, Kuai Yue, and others speculated that Liu Miao would likely lead his troops to retreat soon as well, at most occupying Jiangxia, while Nan Commandery and Jingnan would eventually return to Liu Biao's hands.

But no matter how long they waited, there was no sign that Liu Miao intended to withdraw his troops!
Cai Mao was also often worried about this matter at home, not understanding how Liu Miao could be so patient, and also not understanding whether Liu Miao was even afraid of Yuan Shao.

"Brother."

Just as Cai Mao was deep in thought, a woman walked out from the inner hall.

The woman was dressed in a soft, crimson silk dress, the neckline cut diagonally to her shoulder, revealing a glimpse of her fair and delicate skin. Her eyebrows and eyes seemed to have been painted with rouge, the corners of her eyes upturned like a fox's, making her an alluring and captivating beauty.

"How did you come?"

Cai Mao inquired about Madam Cai's situation.

"Where is Liu Biao? Why isn't he being kept an eye on?" "That man is getting old and his energy is failing. He's already asleep, which is why I came to see you, brother."

Lady Cai sat down opposite Cai Mao, her ample waist and hips bunched up, making the maids behind her unable to help but glance at her a few more times, quite envious.

"I heard before that you planned to use the strategy of 'besieging Wei to rescue Zhao' to make Yuan Shao attack Jiangdong and force Liu Miao to withdraw his troops. But now several months have passed, and Liu Miao in the south hasn't made a single move. Is this your plan?"

Madam Cai seemed to have a natural charm; even when questioning Cai Mao, she sounded coquettish and alluring.

However, the tingling sound did not make Cai Mao feel any better; on the contrary, it made him even more irritable.

"Who knows why Liu Miao hasn't retreated yet? Could it be that he has completely abandoned Jiangdong?"

Cai Mao could only keep convincing himself: "Liu Miao must be bluffing; he probably won't be able to hold out for long..."

"Several months have passed, and you still say that Liu Miao cannot hold out for long? I think he will last much longer than you think."

Madam Cai rested her chin on her palm, revealing her fresh and luscious red lips.

"If we really can't hold Xiangfan, what will you do?"

"Humph!"

Cai Mao masked his fear with anger: "Now that Cao Cao has retreated, Wen Ping's army is to the south. How can Liu Miao possibly capture Xiangfan?"

Madam Cai's lips twitched, as if stirring the autumn waters of the world: "You're still the same as ever, always putting on a fierce front but being weak inside no matter what happens."

"I've come here today only to remind you that if Xiangfan truly cannot be defended, you should also consider a way out for yourself."

Cai Mao didn't like hearing this: "Foreign affairs are for us men! What can a woman like you do?"

Madam Cai also chuckled and stood up, saying, "Yes. There's nothing I can do, sister. But I wonder how you begged me to marry that old man Liu Biao when he first came to Jingzhou."

Madam Cai swayed gracefully and, without saying another word to Cai Mao, walked directly out the door.

“I’m going to visit Aunt Zou, Zhang Xiu’s husband. Lately, quite a few men have been fawning over her. As the mistress of the house, I should help her shoo away some of these flies.”

Watching Madam Cai leave through the gate, Cai Mao grew increasingly agitated and immediately ordered his servants, "Prepare the carriage; I need to go to the Kuai residence!"

"If Liu Miao doesn't retreat soon, Jingzhou might really be in danger!"

As Cai Mao was riding in his carriage, about to reach Kuai Liang's residence, he heard the sound of war drums beating from the city walls!
Who is beating the drums at this time?

Cai Mao stood on the car and stuck his head out.

But the scene before him truly shocked Cai Mao!
At the highest point south of Xiangyang, atop Mount Xian, beacon fires were lit!

The billowing smoke, like a thunderclap from a clear sky, jolted everyone in Xiangyang City awake!

"Liu Miao... has attacked the city!"

Cai Mao immediately scolded the coachman: "Go out of the city! Go out of the city!"

"To the main camp outside the city, quickly!!!"

Fortunately, in order to deal with Liu Miao, Wen Ping had taken ample precautions in the south of Xiangyang over the past few months.

On the west bank, nestled against Baizhang Mountain, Wen Ping built his camp against the mountain, making the area as impenetrable as a hedgehog, just waiting for Liu Miao to run into it.

On the east bank, Zhang Yun led the last remaining naval forces of Jingzhou on patrol day and night, and had already prepared iron chains in some places. He clearly planned to throw these iron chains into the Han River if they were really no match for Liu Miao, thus rendering the Jiangdong navy useless.

When Cai Mao arrived at Wen Ping's camp, he found no trace of Liu Miao's army and hurriedly asked, "Where is Liu Miao?"

He led a large army from Yicheng to the east bank.

Wen Ping was calm and composed, unlike Cai Mao who was panicked.

"Liu Miao clearly didn't want to force his way through, which is why he went to the east. He probably wanted to test whether he could attack Fancheng on the other side of the river from the mountain path there."

Xiangyang and Fancheng are separated by a river, yet they are also connected as one.

Therefore, upon hearing that Liu Miao had led his troops across the river, Wen Ping immediately deduced that Liu Miao was probably planning to attack Fancheng.

"Therefore, I request General Cai to immediately lead the navy to intercept Liu Miao's ships."

"Once Liu Miao realized that his retreat would be cut off, he dared not send troops to the other side to attack Fancheng."

Cai Mao frowned slightly but did not refute. Instead, he immediately followed Wen Ping's advice and joined forces with Zhang Yunhe. He then led the Jingzhou navy to cut off Liu Miao's soldiers' retreat on the opposite bank, forcing Liu Miao to return to the opposite bank and obediently serve his sentence in front of Wen Ping!
"What does a mere woman know?"

"I refuse to believe that with our united will, we cannot defeat Liu Miao!"

(End of this chapter)