I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 447 Half the battle won!
November 14th, the second year of Zhangwu.

Yuan's army, which was originally stationed in Feng County, suddenly changed course and headed west, attacking towards Mangdang Mountain.

According to scouts, the vanguard numbered between 20,000 and 30,000 men. Meanwhile, a cavalry force of about 3,000 to 5,000 men was positioned on its left flank as a guard.

This army of such size is already close to one-fifth of Yuan's main force.

However, the scout also brought news—

Yuan Shao's imperial banner did not appear here.

Upon hearing this news, Liu Miao scoffed.

"I thought Yuan Shao was truly fearless."

In the end, when it comes to relationships, it's always better to let others take the lead.

Liu Miao was well aware of Yuan Shao's little schemes!

The fact that Yuan Shao is not present at Mangdang Mountain means that even if he loses this battle, he still has room to maneuver.

If Yuan Shao were to personally lead his army to attack Mangdang Mountain now, and he lost, then he would be truly finished!

Who is the commander-in-chief of Yuan's army?

"Ju Shou!"

Liu Miao chuckled: "At least we're not hiding this treasure anymore!"

"Gongjin! Ziyi!"

"You can discuss and decide on the specifics of how to fight this battle!"

Liu Miao still refused to let him perform micro-operations.

"I'll watch you fight! Don't ask me anything! I don't know anything about it!"

Liu Miao put his hands behind his back, completely acting like a big shot.

"Youping! Zilie! Let's go! Let's go somewhere else!"

Zhou Yu and Taishi Ci exchanged a helpless glance.

Where is Liu Miao feeling the slightest bit of urgency now?
Judging from Liu Miao's figure, which looked like he was about to go to a brothel, who would guess that he was about to fight a war that would affect the fate of both the Han and Zhao states?

But precisely because of this...

After a long standoff with Yuan Shao in Dingtao, Zhou Yu, who was constantly preoccupied with the terrifying number of Yuan's troops, became less anxious.

Even Liu Miao "didn't care" about winning or losing, so why should I worry?

With a calm demeanor, Zhou Yu and Taishi Ci discussed the specific details of the Battle of Mangdang Mountain...

Liu Miao actually started wandering around the camp aimlessly.

Despite the imminent battle, the Han army in the camp was unusually relaxed.

On more than one occasion, after seeing soldiers changing shifts, Liu Miao would have a dozen or so men crawl into the tents and shout loudly!

Liu Miao was curious and forced his way in, almost getting his eyes suffocated by the smell of athlete's foot and other strange odors! It took him two or three breaths to regain his vision, and then he saw that what everyone was gathered around was a checkerboard.

On the chessboard, there are five pieces of wood with one side flattened as throwing tools.

Chupu!

Liu Miao immediately recognized this game, which was also extremely popular in Jinling.

Similar to Liubo, the game involves throwing a throwing tool, and the resulting combination determines the number of spaces your piece can move. The first person to move all the spaces on the board wins.

However, compared to Liubo, Chupu's rules are undoubtedly simpler, so it's no wonder that it became popular in military camps.

At this time, someone also noticed Liu Miao who had crawled in.

However, Liu Miao was dressed in a dark robe at the time, so the soldiers didn't recognize him. Instead, one of them nudged Liu Miao and asked anxiously, "Want to play?"

"Play!"

"Five coins!"

"Yes! Money's no object!"

Liu Miao was about to pull out fifty wuzhu coins from his pocket to show the other person what true wealth was! But in the end, he ended up with an awkward expression.

The other party glared at Liu Miao with disdain:

"Poor guy!"

"..."

Liu Miao pouted: "My wife told me not to gamble!"

"No money? Fine! Pshaw!"

Soon, the soldiers on both sides used their large buttocks to push Liu Miao out, and Liu Miao could only squat down and crane his neck to get a closer look.

A soldier took a five-piece wooden toss and, while tossing it, closed his eyes devoutly and chanted, "Lu! Lu! Lu! Or even a pheasant would be fine!"

But when the log fell, it was just a "mu" (甿)! This made the other party slap their thigh in frustration!

Moreover, the other person seemed to be extremely unlucky, failing to roll a good number several times in a row, and became the first person to leave the table.

Liu Miao waited quietly until the game was over, then approached the soldier who had won the most money with a fawning expression: "Brother! Lend me five coins! I'll pay you back when I win more, okay?"

The other person looked at Liu Miao suspiciously: "Do I know you?"

"We're all comrades! Why be so formal?"

"..."

The other party hesitated for a moment, already holding five coins in his hand, but still wanted to get a bargain out of him verbally.

"If you're going to borrow money, you should do it properly! I didn't mind you calling me 'brother' earlier, but what should you call me now?"

Liu Miao immediately understood!

"Big brother!"

"Sigh!" Seeing that Liu Miao was cooperative, the other party happily lent him the money.

"If you win, remember to give me back six!"

"It's fucking black!"

"What did you say?"

"I have to say, brother, you're so generous!"

Liu Miao quickly changed his tune.

Having received the money, Liu Miao happily joined the battle, while asking with some curiosity, "I heard that Yuan's army is about to attack! Aren't you guys worried?"

"Ah!"

A soldier nearby immediately mocked, "You're not young anymore! Haven't you heard what General Gao Shun said when he was training the troops?"

"What?"

"You're really good for nothing!"

The soldier who had just lent money to Liu Miao naturally put himself in Liu Miao's shoes.

"On the battlefield, there are thousands or tens of thousands of people charging together in a dark mass! What good is individual bravery? Do you think everyone is like Lu Bu, the Marquis of Wen, or Guan Yu, who beheaded Yan Liang?"

"Kid! When you get to the battlefield, you only need to do one thing! Follow orders! If I tell you to charge, you charge! If I tell you to retreat, you retreat! If I tell you to put your hands in your crotch, you put them in your crotch! Got it? That'll save your life!"

Liu Miao was still puzzled.

"That's a battlefield! Aren't you guys really afraid of dying?"

Several soldiers rolled their eyes.

"Nonsense! Who isn't afraid of death?"

"But let me ask you, how many times has our Han Dynasty actually lost?"

"Exactly! And don't you know His Majesty and the Commander-in-Chief are both in Mangdang Mountain? They're not afraid of death, so why should I be?"

"Even if I die, it doesn't matter! I was granted land by His Majesty! Even if I die, I still have private land to leave to my wife and children! Besides, my son is already studying at the academy! He will be literate and become a high-ranking official in the future! What do I have to worry about now?"

"..."

Are you guys still playing or not?

Just as they were about to start talking, the soldier who had lost money earlier arrogantly pulled out five more five-zhu coins from the sole of his shoe, clearly determined to win back his losses!
Liu Miao was amused when he saw this!

"You little rascal, don't gamble away your wife's dowry!"

"Tch! If I lose, I'll just go back and work in the workshop!"

Liu Miao gasped!
This young man... has a very high level of awareness!

"You'd better take it easy! If we lose this battle, you won't even be able to go to the workshop."

But the other party looked at Liu Miao with utter contempt: "Losing the battle, people dying, and the money still unspent, isn't that even worse?"

"..."

It makes sense!
Liu Miao seemed unable to refute it!
The other side was even more certain: "Don't worry! We can't possibly lose this battle!"

Liu Miao smiled happily: "Why?"

Clearly, Liu Miao was prepared to be praised for his wisdom and prowess as the emperor.

But the other party abruptly changed course and went somewhere else—

"Think about it! Last time in Kunyang, we fought on Emperor Shizu's territory, and Yuan Shao lost!"

"We're fighting on Mount Mangdang now, on Emperor Gaozu's territory! How could Yuan Shao possibly win?"

"Yuan Shao doesn't even consider feng shui when he goes to war, how can he win? Ha!"

Liu Miao's lips twitched, as if he had encountered the greatest opponent of his life, and he was unable to refute him...

"Alright! Are you going to play or not! You talk too much! Come on! I'll go first! Lu! Lu! Lu! Damn it! Why is it you again?"

Liu Miao took the five pieces of wood, casually tossed them aside, and Lu Cai appeared in a "black, black, black calf" arrangement!

"Humph!"

Liu Miao glanced around smugly—

"Who else!"

"Hey! Don't get cocky, kid! Don't forget who borrowed money from you!"

"Exactly! This is just the first step! Watch me do a Lu right away!"

"Screw you! It's my turn! Stop fighting over it!"

"..."

A full hour later, Liu Miao finally emerged from the tent, still seemingly unsatisfied.

Zhou Tai, who had been exposed to the strong winds outside, said with a resentful look, "Your Majesty, you don't even spend this much time strolling through the brothel, do you?"

"Be bold!"

Liu Miao chuckled and cursed, then lightly flicked his fingers, and a five-zhu coin appeared at his fingertips.

"Look! I won!"

"?"

Zhou Tai sighed helplessly, "You only won one five-zhu coin in an hour?"

One is enough!

Liu Miao tossed the five-zhu coin high into the air and then caught it in his palm.

"With this five-zhu coin, we've already won half the battle!"

(End of this chapter)