I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 464 The gun comes out like a dragon
What do you mean by fake?

Chen Gong was the first to question Zhuge Liang.

"According to Kongming, His Majesty should have launched an attack around this time! Has Kongming forgotten?"

Zhuge Liang then asked Chen Gong, "Gongtai, do you know that there are five dangers ahead?"

"Of course I know!"

Chen Gong had already memorized the contents of "The Art of War" perfectly.

"Those who are determined to die can be killed; those who are determined to live can be captured; those who are quick to anger can be insulted; those who are honest can be humiliated; those who love the people can be bothered!"

There are five fatal weaknesses of generals: Courage without strategy, who only knows how to fight head-on, may be lured and killed; cowardice in battle, who is afraid of death, may be captured; impetuousness and anger, who is stubborn and eager for success, may be provoked by the enemy's insults and fall into a trap; excessive integrity and concern for reputation may be slandered and fall into a trap; excessive love for the people, excessive benevolence and loyalty may be disturbed by the enemy's atrocities and put on the defensive.

After Chen Gong finished speaking, even Chen Gong himself was stunned for a moment.

Brave but reckless, impetuous and easily angered—isn't that a perfect description of Lü Bu?
Chen Gong glanced at Lü Bu without leaving a trace, and seeing that Lü Bu's face was full of innocence, he didn't want to give him a hint, so he simply pretended to be stupid.

Lu Bu, however, was completely baffled.

"What does this have to do with the Five Dangers?"

Zhuge Liang and Chen Gong exchanged a glance.

Obviously, they couldn't explain it to Lü Bu openly and honestly.

Zhuge Liang could only cough lightly: "Ordinary people, when faced with war, will certainly hide first in order to seek peace and safety. How could they possibly exchange information when the two armies are facing each other?"

"Moreover, Yuan Tan has been besieged in Jiaodong for a long time, which must be his intention to lure Your Majesty to come to your rescue and then set up an ambush. Even if Yuan Tan does not set up camps and beacon fires in Jiaodong, he will at least monitor the Jiao River and find out Your Majesty's whereabouts."

"If Yuan Tan truly wanted to defeat His Majesty, he should have blocked the news and taken the initiative to fight His Majesty to avoid being caught in a pincer attack. But now, a mountain hermit with extraordinary abilities has managed to transmit such military intelligence to Yexian. Doesn't the General find this strange?"

Zhuge Liang never believed in chance.

This is especially true for matters of national importance, particularly military and political affairs.

A prophet cannot be found in spirits or deities, nor can he be found in events or verified by measurement; he must find it in people, in those who know the enemy's situation.

Now that we understand Yuan Tan's motives and intentions, we must start from Yuan Tan himself and predict his purpose. This is the reason for the so-called "divine foresight".

But after listening, Lü Bu still hesitated.

Seeing this, Zhuge Liang did not force Lü Bu to believe him.

"We will know the result once we send a small force to test it out."

seeing is believing.

It is difficult to uncover a lie, but it is undoubtedly much easier to test a lie.

Zhao Yun, without hesitation, stepped forward and declared, "Strategist! I can go!"

Zhao Yun always had unconditional trust in Zhuge Liang.

"Zilong is so strong."

Zhuge Liang smiled, clearly confident of success.

"I have three secret pouches with Zilong. If Zilong is in trouble, he can open them and turn defeat into victory."

"Here!"

……

Zhao Yun, riding a white horse and wearing silver armor, slowly made his way westward along the mountain valley path.

The chaotic sounds of marching spread far and wide in the quiet valley, and soon the sentries and scouts set up by Yuan's army discovered the Han army's whereabouts.

Chen Deng was the one who led the troops stationed at the mountain pass.

Chen Deng's military tent was exceptionally elegant.

Even when marching in the field, the military tents were still furnished with porcelain, calligraphy and paintings, books, and lamps.

The finest white porcelain, with its oily sheen like fine jade, resembles a woman lying prone, her slender figure standing beside her, adding fragrance to the scene, making a military tent appear no different from a study in a grand mansion.

On Chen Deng's table, instead of the usual meat broth rations eaten on marches, there were several plates of crystal-clear, paper-thin fish slices coiled together, forming white and red flowers on the wooden table, exuding luxury.

Upon hearing the news, Chen Deng calmly picked up a piece of sashimi and put it in his mouth, his face immediately showing a look of delight.

The soldier who came to report dared not disturb him. Only after Chen Deng had carefully chewed and swallowed the report did he dare to continue reporting the military situation cautiously.

"What banner are these people carrying?"

"The banner bears the name Zhao, which should refer to Zhao Yun, who came to Qingzhou from Liu Bei's camp with Zhuge Liang."

How many soldiers are there?

"Not many, a total of one thousand."

Chen Deng put down his wooden chopsticks, picked up the porcelain cup next to him, drank the water in it in one gulp, then held it in his mouth to cleanse himself of the taste, and finally spat it into the wooden bucket next to him.

"It seems to be just a vanguard. Let's not alert them and let them pass."

"Here!"

The scouts, relieved to receive their orders, fled Chen Deng's tent as if escaping, swallowing hard as they did so.

For ordinary soldiers who only ate coarse rice every day, every moment spent in Chen Deng's camp was an ordeal.

"When will we be able to eat fresh fish?" However, when the scout thought about the vast difference in their backgrounds compared to Chen Deng, he dared not have any more wishful thinking. He obediently regarded himself as just a tool for relaying messages and did his job conscientiously.

At this time, Zhao Yun was already close to the mountain pass.

Seeing that he was about to enter the mountain path, Zhao Yun hesitated, then opened Zhuge Liang's first brocade pouch—

"The troops split into two groups, advancing from the front and rear into the mountains."

Zhao Yun immediately understood and ordered his soldiers to split into two groups. The vanguard would leave camp that day, while the rearguard would emerge from the valley the following day.

Such an arrangement was naturally noticed by Yuan's scouts, who reported it to Chen Deng.

"The reason they sent out troops first is probably to make contact with Liu Miao. We don't need to worry about them for now; we just need to keep a close eye on the rear army."

Five hundred Han soldiers swaggered out of the valley without any hindrance.

The next day, the 500 Han soldiers who had been left behind swaggered out of the valley. When Chen Deng heard about this, he just smiled and said, "It seems that Lü Bu must be leading a large army that is about to arrive!"

After leaving the valley, Zhao Yun was immediately lost and opened the second brocade bag given to him by Zhuge Liang.

"The army retreated, feigning defeat."

Zhao Yun, following Zhuge Liang's instructions, led his troops back to the valley.

Upon hearing this, Chen Deng immediately became nervous.

"The vanguard must have discovered something amiss and wanted to retreat back to the valley to inform Lü Bu."

Chen Deng ordered the Yuan army soldiers who were lying in ambush to go out and fight. They easily repelled Zhao Yun, which also made Chen Deng more certain that the army led by Lü Bu was probably not far away. Therefore, he waited at the mountain pass with more peace of mind.

After regrouping his troops, Zhao Yun took out the last secret plan given to him by Zhuge Liang—

"Change the flag and charge straight into the enemy camp!"

Zhao Yun took a deep breath, and without further hesitation, changed his banner—

【Chinese】!
"Advance the entire army!"

With crimson banners fluttering, this Han army charged toward Chen Deng's main camp with an indomitable spirit!

At this moment, Chen Deng was still waiting for Lü Bu's troops to emerge from the valley.

What they received was news that Han troops had suddenly appeared in the rear!

"How could Han troops possibly appear in the rear at this time?"

Chen Deng, who thought he had everything under control, suddenly felt dizzy!

Han troops coming from the west?
Could it be Liu Miao's troops who have come?
That's impossible. Would Yuan Tan really allow Liu Miao to approach this place so quickly? Could it be that Yuan Tan's troops have already been defeated?
Chen Deng refused to believe it.

But soon, he realized something—

Here comes Liu Miao!

How many miracles have been created since Liu Miao rose to power?

Yuan Tan himself was defeated by Liu Miao multiple times!

Why couldn't Liu Miao defeat Yuan Tan one more time?
Chen Deng's heart suddenly became chaotic.

If Yuan Tan really suffers a defeat, wouldn't that mean he is now being attacked from both sides by the Han army?
The thought of Liu Miao and Lü Bu attacking him from both sides sent chills down Chen Deng's spine!
To verify this, Chen Deng climbed up the high platform to see Zhao Yun's troops.

Although their numbers were small, their flags were indeed raised under the banner of the Han Dynasty!
Moreover, their formation was orderly and unstoppable, unlike the momentum that a defeated army could muster.

Chen Deng looked at the boundary in the distance and suddenly felt a pang of fear.

It felt as if, at any moment, that crimson dragon banner would appear at the edge of the horizon, baring its fangs and claws as it lunged at him.

The palpitations grew stronger and stronger, and finally, they suddenly grabbed him!

His stomach began to churn without warning, as if countless cold, slippery things were writhing wildly inside him, tearing at his internal organs. At the same time, a sharp, intense pain exploded from around his navel.

Chen Deng groaned, staggered forward and fell, clutching his churning abdomen with both hands.

"Ugh—uh…" A suppressed, throat-ripping retching sound suddenly rang out. Chen Deng's face instantly turned from yellow to green, veins bulged on his forehead, and cold sweat poured out like liquid.

The guards on either side quickly stepped forward to support Chen Deng, and at the same time ordered someone to summon a doctor.

However, what happened next was a scene that these guards would never forget.

A thick, yellowish-green liquid, like porridge, mixed with undigested fish sashimi, gushed out from Chen Deng's wide-open mouth.

In that pool of foul-smelling, nauseating filth, dozens—no, hundreds—of thin, thread-like, pale, and twisted worms were writhing about! Like maggots thrown into boiling water, they writhed wildly, their heads and tails invisible.

Some of these nematodes were only as thick as a toothpick, while others were curled up and tangled, as long as a little finger. Their bodies arched, stretched, and twisted like waves, struggling to crawl through the sticky vomit.

The mucus stretched into thin, silvery threads on their slippery surfaces, reflecting an eerie luster in the sunlight.

Some insects were flung further by the force of his vomiting, landing on the back of Chen Deng's hands, his clothes, and even stubbornly crawling up his neck and chin along with his painful gasps and the saliva dripping from his mouth...

Some of the spray landed on the surrounding guards, causing their faces to contort and even causing them to vomit violently.

"vomit!!!"

The horrific scene left all of Yuan's soldiers at a loss.

Taking advantage of this gap, Zhao Yun charged unimpeded into Yuan's army formation, his spear flashing like a dragon!
(End of this chapter)