I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 254 Is Yuan Shao's sword still sharp?
At this moment, all shipping in the entire Jiangbei region began operating at full speed.

There were more boats on the river than fish in it, constantly taking in and transporting soldiers from the south to the north.

Apart from a very few leaders like Zhang Zhao, Gu Yong, and Lu Su who truly established this system, everyone was terrified by the terrifying mobilization capabilities of the South.

In terms of population density, the South may still not be as dense as the Central Plains or Hebei.

However, the powerful transportation capacity brought by the water network compensated for this somewhat fatal weakness.

At the same time, after the Three Chiefs and the Equal Field System liberated the young and middle-aged people who were previously restricted by the Three Elders and landlords, the manpower and material resources that the government could mobilize increased significantly.

Previously, many local officials complained about Liu Miao's fuss, not understanding why he insisted on implementing the "three chiefs" and "equal land distribution" policies instead of simply and decisively eliminating the wealthy households and allowing the local areas to grow wildly.

And today, the answer to all of this has finally been found.

The Liu Miao regime's control over the grassroots and its utilization and allocation of resources and population far surpassed those of the Central Plains and Hebei!
This was certainly due to the development of the South, but the advanced nature of the system was undoubtedly the real reason!

Years of hard work have finally yielded fruitful results!

When Zhang He and Gao Lan saw Liu Miao sending wave after wave of troops to them and into Langya territory, they both felt dizzy.

"What exactly does Liu Miao want to do?"

Langya is a flat area.

The plains on both sides of the Yi River are now densely packed with Liu Miao's army!

One hundred thousand troops!

These were not farmers and laborers created by Zhang He and Gao Lan who were only there to fill numbers and not to fight the enemy, but rather soldiers trained by Gao Shun, the commander of the Trapped Camp, who were ready to go into battle at any time!

If it were only an army of 100,000, perhaps Zhang He and Gao Lan wouldn't be so terrified.

The most incredible thing is that the logistics and supplies for these 100,000 people were all kept up!
Even from a distance, you can see the cold glint of the armor on these soldiers' bodies and the weapons in their hands!
Is Jiangdong so wealthy that it can equip an army of 100,000?

It should be noted that even in Hebei, not all soldiers were necessarily armed with lamellar armor and iron blades.

But the fact that Jiangdong was able to replenish the equipment of these soldiers is terrifying!
What Zhang He and Gao Lan didn't know was that this was yet another advantage of the Fubing (府兵) –

"Soldiers, clothing, pack animals, oxen, donkeys, and provisions."

The soldiers had to provide their own weapons, armor (two-piece suits, not iron armor), and provisions.

If this were released separately, it would definitely be a harmful and detrimental policy!
However, when combined with the equal distribution of land and the complete abolition of taxes for the military, it undoubtedly became a good policy.

Exemption from taxes was something that only privileged classes could enjoy in all dynasties.

Leaving aside the invisible benefits of the improved social status that this alone brought to the soldiers of the Fubing Army, the money saved by the land equalization alone was enough to cover the cost of these self-supplied weapons and provisions.

And most importantly, this arrangement creates demand.

In the past, the government handled everything related to recruiting soldiers.

The necessary military equipment was produced by using the craftsmen like donkeys, forcing them to work day and night to produce it. This completely dampened the craftsmen's enthusiasm for production, and efficiency only declined day by day.

But now, this link has been opened up to free trade, which creates demand, and demand will promote the prosperity of production and markets, which is beneficial to development!
The only real loss would probably be the loss of tax revenue for the government and the corrupt officials who took the opportunity to line their own pockets and seize power.

Strictly speaking, the tax revenue lost by the government can be recovered from the commercial taxes generated after the development of commerce in the future. At the same time, the increase in the number of soldiers will inevitably mean an increase in war potential, and the increase in war potential will inevitably lead to the final outcome of the war.

As long as you can keep winning, you can keep acquiring land and people, and profits will keep piling up.

The Fubing system was inherently designed for warfare!
There was no scheming or backstabbing, no checks and balances between left and right.

Yes, it is the desire of everyone to move from one victory to another!

As for whether they will take too big a step and cause trouble in the future, that's another matter entirely!
Zhang He and Gao Lan were extremely worried as they watched the smoke from Liu Miaojun's cooking fires linger in the air for a long time every morning and evening.
Should we evacuate?

"At this point, retreating would mean certain death!"

At first, Zhang He and Gao Lan only wanted to intimidate Liu Miao.

But now, when they discovered that Liu Miao was not deterred at all, but instead stubbornly continued to transport the Jiangdong army to this place, it was they who panicked!

So many of Liu Miao's soldiers have gathered here.

To put it bluntly, the amount of excrement they produce every day could fill the Yi River, and the amount of urine they urinate could level Mount Yi. With so many troops here, no one knows if Liu Miao might suddenly decide to do something!
What if?
What if Liu Miao sees Zhang He and Gao Lan retreat and then keeps pressing them?

One hundred thousand troops!

This size of army renders most of the military strategies in military books obsolete.

If this army were to actually move, no one could predict how far Liu Miao would take them.

Perhaps Zhang He and Gao Lan can only gamble now.

It's a bet that neither Liu Miao nor any of the generals around him could command an army of 100,000.

But who dares to take the gamble?
Even if Zhou Yu wasn't there, what about Lü Bu? Sun Ce? Even Jia Xu? Lu Yi? Zhuge Liang? Sima Yi?

Not to mention, there's Liu Miao, who, since his debut, has been constantly proclaiming that he knows nothing about military affairs, yet he has never lost a single battle...

Therefore, neither Zhang He nor Gao Lan dared to gamble!

To gamble your life on the opponent's ability is a complete joke!

"Now, there's only one way out!" Keep going!

Keep adding fuel!

The number of troops Liu Miao mobilized was matched by the number of troops Yuan's army mobilized!

Both sides were hesitant to act rashly, fearing the consequences.

But Gao Lan had some concerns.

Adding fuel to the fire is undoubtedly the only way to restrain Liu Miao at this point, but this method also carries a fatal risk.

That would be endless escalation, potentially turning a small-scale conflict into a head-on battle between two powerful warlords from the north and south!
If such a scene were to actually occur, the happiest person would undoubtedly be Cao Cao, the perennial third-place finisher.

"Liu Miao shouldn't be a fool; he should know the consequences of rashly starting a war with Yuan Gong."

Gao Lan, this famous general from Hebei, spoke with a hint of wishful thinking—

"I just hope Liu Miao understands this point and doesn't let the situation develop to such an irreversible point."

Zhang He and Gao Lan immediately reported the matter of Langya to Hebei.

Upon seeing this military intelligence, Shen Pei, the commander of the general staff, dared not neglect it and immediately went to find Yuan Shao to ask for his opinion.

"Send troops! Deploy troops from Bohai and Qinghe to support Zhang He and Gao Lan!"

Surprisingly.

Yuan Shao, who is usually scheming but indecisive and always wants to deal with Gongsun Zan before launching a southward campaign, has surprisingly changed his ways and directly transferred all his troops from the east to Qingzhou!

Thus, the army sent to confront Liu Miao directly exceeded 200,000!

Just as Shen Pei was lost in thought, Yuan Shao suddenly asked him, "What's wrong? Is there a problem with the grain and fodder distribution?"

"No problem. Hebei's treasury is full. Mobilizing these troops will neither cripple them nor affect the war against Gongsun Zan in the north."

"only……"

Shen Pei was somewhat puzzled.

"When the eldest son wanted to seize Qingzhou before, the lord didn't give him much support. Why is he making such a big fuss now for Liu Miao?"

"..."

Yuan Shao remained silent for a moment, a cold glint flashing in his long, noble eyes.

"They are not the same."

"Liu Miao, this is a direct challenge to me."

"If I take a step back today, Mengde will have more confidence in defeating me tomorrow."

"Compared to him, Liu Miao is nothing more than a minor ailment."

Yuan Shao placed his slender, jade-like fingers on the sword sheath.

"For a long time, no one has dared to draw their sword in front of me, wanting to test whether my sword is sharp enough."

"If Liu Miao dares to draw his sword today, how could I possibly back down?"

Shen Pei then realized what was happening and immediately issued a military order to mobilize troops.

Bohai Commandery and Qinghe Kingdom were both places with large populations.

Yuan Shao's mobilization of soldiers from these two locations is a clear indication that he intends to completely crush Liu Miao!
Yuan Shao wanted to completely sever the long sword that Liu Miao had brandished at him! He wanted the world to know that the sword of the Yuan family was still sharp!

As troops from these two regions rushed to the battlefield, the entire Langya underwent a dramatic transformation!
A total of 200,000 troops were deployed together within the Great Wall of Qi, creating a truly magnificent sight!

Zhang He and Gao Lan were also excited after receiving such a large number of reinforcements.

They were unaware that Yuan Shao wanted to break Liu Miao's sword and suppress this "minor ailment" who dared to draw his sword against him. All they knew was that Yuan Shao had, for their sake, unprecedentedly conscripted so many soldiers to help them complete their strategy!
This result is far more important than the motivation!
Zhang He's initial displeasure at Yuan Shao's alienation of the scholars in Hebei vanished instantly, and he even praised him, saying, "Lord Yuan, you still care about us!"

Gao Lan was also delighted by Yuan Shao's unexpectedly generous support this time, and said with a smile, "In that case, Liu Miao is probably no longer a threat!"

Two hundred thousand troops!
Unless Liu Miao also transfers troops from Jingzhou, how can they possibly contend with this force!

The two were almost ready to open their bottles of wine and celebrate, but the appearance of a flag completely threw their thoughts into disarray—

[Grand Historian]

Taishi Ci, who was appointed by Liu Miao as the governor of Jiangxia and was responsible for guarding the gateway to Jingzhou, actually appeared in Langya with his troops on the fifth day after the arrival of Yuan's army from Bohai and Qinghe!

At this moment, Liu Miao was like a copper bean that could not be steamed, boiled, hammered, or fried!

No matter how much Yuan Shao offers, Liu Miao will relentlessly pursue him!
"Do you think I was easily scared?"

When Liu Miao saw Yuan's army from Bohai and Qinghe appear here, he was not afraid at all, but his fighting spirit was even stronger!
He wanted to see just how big the gap was between himself and Yuan Shao, the most powerful warlord in the land!

At the same time, Liu Miao also wanted to tell Yuan Shao—

"I'll never leave this table until the cards are dealt!"

(End of this chapter)