I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 470 I have nothing to lack now

Wang Xiu led his family toward Jimo, but they were discovered by Han scouts as soon as they crossed the Jiao River.

Upon hearing Wang Xiu's purpose, the Han scouts did not hesitate for a moment and immediately led Wang Xiu to the emperor's tent.

After Yuan Tan moved his camp from Jimo, Liu Miao chose to re-establish his camp at this location.

When Liu Miao saw the soldiers about to dismantle some of the facilities left behind by Yuan's army, he kicked one of the soldiers' pert buttocks without any hesitation!
"What are you doing? Don't you know how scarce timber is right now? Why are you tearing it down?"

The soldier said with a sense of grievance, "Your Majesty, there are marks left by Yuan's army on it, as well as words that insult the Han people."

"What?"

Liu Miao walked up to the camp and saw that the words "Island Barbarians" were clearly written on the wooden planks of the camp.

"Hey! You're with the Wuhuan people, and you dare to call me an island barbarian?"

Liu Miao found the words "island barbarians" amusing.

"Alright! I think this place is fine, I'll stay here!"

"But Your Majesty..."

"Why so many 'buts'! I'll sleep here!"

Liu Miao asked Zhou Tai to move his bedding into the room, and after walking around, he even saw half a sheepskin lying on the ground.

"It seems this place was once inhabited by the Wuhuan people. I was wondering why I smelled a strong muttony odor!"

After checking the surroundings, Zhou Tai said with regret, "Those little wolf cubs cleaned it up really well; not a single scrap of meat was left."

"Nonsense, those Wuhuan people who live in those poor and remote places know best how precious food is, how could they possibly waste it?"

Liu Miao looked around and, seeing that no one else was nearby, lowered his voice and asked Zhou Tai in a low voice, "How long can the army's food supply last?"

"About half a month."

There are still half a month's worth of food left.

If no opportunity for battle can be found within these two weeks, then even if Liu Miao does not want to retreat, he will have to retreat obediently.

Moreover, the Han army discovered something particularly distressing.

Yuan Jun was like a locust swarm passing through, cutting down almost all the trees around Jimo.

Qingzhou was one of the areas most severely affected by the Yellow Turban Rebellion; every usable resource had been dug up time and again. After a mere two years of respite, it was struck by this calamity again, leaving nothing for future generations to use.

Trees, in spring and summer, may only be used as building materials.

But in the autumn and winter seasons now, they are essential supplies.

As the weather gets colder, the demand for timber will inevitably surge.

Currently, food and timber supplies are already in short supply.

It has to be said that Yuan Tan's sudden decision to retreat was a stroke of genius, hitting Liu Miao right where it hurts.

It was clearly impossible for Liu Miao to use cavalry to attack Yuan's infantry who were defending the mountain.

Therefore, Liu Miao had already vaguely considered giving up the battle.

If all else fails, retreat to Pengcheng, or even to the Huainan line, using space to buy time.

As long as Yuan Shao dies, Liu Miao doesn't believe that Yuan Tan and Yuan Shang, those two little devils, will obediently put on a show of brotherly love and respect for the people.

But the consequence of doing so is that the entire world situation will once again move in an uncontrollable direction.

Therefore, Liu Miao wanted to defeat Yuan's army as much as possible, and even eliminate all of Yuan's forces to weaken the entire north. Only in this way could he pacify the country as soon as possible, instead of like Emperor Guangwu, who became emperor in the first year of Jianwu, but it took him twelfth year of Jianwu to completely pacify the country. It took another ten years of fighting and stopping.

"Are you really going to withdraw?"

Liu Miao was still hesitant.

He knew, of course, that the Han soldiers under his command were suffering greatly.

The daily rations were barely enough to fill their stomachs.

Even wearing winter clothes cannot keep you warm.

Some even had faint signs of chilblains appearing on their toes.

Logically speaking, at this point, it is indeed necessary to retreat.

But this retreat might force countless people to endure an unknown period of chaos.

Not to mention far away.

Tens of thousands of people from Qingzhou, who are currently trapped in Yexian County along with Lü Bu, Zhuge Liang, and others, are likely to freeze to death in the east of Jiaodong.

Let's endure some hardship for ourselves and our soldiers.

Or should we continue to make the people suffer?
Even Liu Miao could not remain indifferent in the face of this issue...

"Your Majesty, a scout has brought back a whole family!"

Chen Wu then approached Liu Miao in a sullen voice and reported to him.

"A family?"

Liu Miao chuckled and said, "Which family is so important? Could it be Yuan Tan's family? Don't even mention it! If you really bring Yuan Tan to me, I'll greet you with my shoes turned upside down!"

"Actually, it's about the same..."

"Ok?"

Liu Miao stared at Chen Wu in disbelief, then showered him with praise.

"Zilie! Not bad! Not bad! After all these years! You've finally learned to tell jokes! You've improved! But you should leave this kind of bragging to Youping from now on."

"Your Majesty, this is not a joke."

Chen Wu shook his head.

"It's Wang Xiu, the family of Wang Xiu, Yuan Tan's former chief clerk."

He said he had intelligence about Yuan Tan's army's food supplies!

Liu Miao's pupils suddenly shrank to the size of pinpoints!
……

Wang Xiu sat in a tent, a fur cloak draped over his shoulders, holding a cup of hot tea that the Han soldiers had just served him, shivering as he used it to keep warm.

In fact, after experiencing the bitter cold, hunger, and constant fear on the road to escape, Wang Xiu had a vague sense of regret.

But when he thought of how many people in Qingzhou had also embarked on a journey of exile because of his momentary lapse of judgment, Wang Xiu dared not utter a single complaint. He simply did his best to take care of his family and make their lives a little easier.

However, upon arriving in Jimo, Wang Xiu's regret surged again.

There is no other reason.

The Han army here is far too rudimentary!
The accounts were tattered and worn, and the logistics were scattered and disorganized.

If it weren't for the certainty that the Emperor of Han's crimson dragon banner was in the camp, Wang Xiu would have suspected that he had wandered into some chaotic army camp.

Where is the promised champion team?

Could such an army truly defeat Yuan Tan and the Wuhuan cavalry?

This question remained in Wang Xiu's mind even after he saw Liu Miao in person.

Having spent many days in the army, Liu Miao had become quite unkempt.

Even when Liu Miao walked up to Wang Xiu, if it weren't for the soldiers beside him reminding him, Wang Xiu would never have recognized that the easy-going man in front of him, who looked like an ordinary elder, was actually Liu Miao!
"Your humble servant Wang Xiu greets Your Majesty!"

Suppressing his surprise, Wang Xiu quickly lowered his robe and bowed.

However, Wang Xiu soon felt a tremendous force supporting his arms, preventing him from falling to the ground.

Looking up, Wang Xiu was horrified to discover that Liu Miao, in his imperial capacity, had personally come down to help him up!
"Uncle Zhi, there's no need for such formalities."

Liu Miao sized up Wang Xiu's expression and then led him directly to the seat in front of him.

The two sat down, their knees even touching.

Wang Xiu seemed somewhat uneasy.

He had never been this close to Yuan Tan, let alone to Liu Miao, whom he had just met.
Liu Miao then eagerly took Wang Xiu's hand, making Wang Xiu blush.

"Uncle Zhi, I have long heard of your reputation! Meeting you today, I can see you are truly extraordinary!"

Liu Miao laughed loudly: "Since Shuzhi has come here, he should not have many worries and should rest well in the camp! After this victory, I will have a long talk with Shuzhi!"

Wang Xiu was even more puzzled: "Does Your Majesty have the confidence to defeat Yuan Tan?"

"Of course!" "But how much grain does Your Majesty have left?"

"It's enough to last for two years!"

Liu Miao's expression was sincere, as if he were telling the truth.

But she didn't realize that she hadn't even prepared a banquet to entertain Wang Xiu, and all she could rely on was her enthusiasm.

Wang Xiu couldn't help but chuckle.

"Why does Your Majesty need to exaggerate these things to me? Your Majesty is traveling light and hastily now, how could you possibly transport so much grain?"

Liu Miao chuckled, but didn't seem embarrassed at all.

"In ordinary households, when guests come to the host's house, the host can't very well say that he doesn't have enough supplies, can he? To be honest, Uncle Zhi, my army only has enough rations for half a year left!"

Wang Xiu's expression became increasingly strange.

He sighed: "Does Your Majesty truly refuse to tell me the truth? Is it because you no longer wish to defeat Yuan Tan?"

Liu Miao's smile became somewhat awkward.

"To be honest, the food supplies in my army can only last for another half a month."

"..."

From two years to half a month, that's quite a big leap.

Looking at Liu Miao, who could lie through his teeth, Wang Xiu felt a surge of admiration.

With only half a month's worth of provisions left, the emperor chose not to retreat but instead remained in Qingzhou, which was truly too brave of him.

However, this also gave Wang Xiu more confidence.

"Does Your Majesty trust your minister?"

"Of course I trust Shuzhi!"

Wang Xiu hesitated for a moment, but since Liu Miao was now sitting in front of him, there was no point in hiding anything, and he told Liu Miao everything he had noticed.

"The fact that military rations were embezzled in Ye City is too bizarre. It is only natural that Your Majesty does not believe it."

Upon hearing this, Liu Miao was overjoyed!

letter!
Of course he believes it!

Ye City! Yuan Shang! Shen Pei!
Do you think they don't know what they're doing?

For the sake of their own future, they were willing to sell out Yuan Tan completely! They even wished that Yuan Tan would die suddenly right now!

However, Liu Miao believed that Yuan Shang had already gone too far by revealing Yuan Tan's intelligence to his enemy.

However, it is clear that Liu Miao overestimated Yuan Shang's human-like qualities.

They even dared to embezzle Yuan Tan's grain supplies!

They're terrified that Yuan Tan won't die in Qingzhou!
Liu Miao couldn't suppress the urge to smile at this moment!
He knew that if he waited, there would always be an opportunity!

At the same time, Liu Miao also gained a deeper understanding of that saying in Sun Tzu's Art of War—

"First make yourself invincible, then wait for the enemy to become vulnerable. Invincibility lies in yourself, vulnerability lies in the enemy."

When you can't defeat an enemy, you should just wait for the enemy to make a mistake, instead of messing around on your own.

And look! The Yuan family just gave Liu Miao a big gift, didn't they?
Wang Xiu was still immersed in astonishment.

"I never imagined that someone in Ye City could actually achieve such a feat..."

"what!"

Upon hearing Wang Xiu's words, Liu Miao burst out laughing.

“This is not Yuan Shang’s fault.”

"That kid Yuan Tan, in order to make a comeback, even sold his warhorses to the Han Dynasty... He thought that he would be fine after explaining the matter to Yuan Shao, but little did he know that if he could do the first thing, then others could do the fifteenth."

Liu Miao shook his head.

"The bottom line is being destroyed step by step like this, and the one who started it was none other than Yuan Tan himself."

"Furthermore, since Yuan Tan can find reasons to believe that selling warhorses is not treason, why can't Yuan Shang find reasons to convince himself that withholding Yuan Tan's grain is not treason?"

Liu Miao sighed at the two brothers' eagerness to be first, but quickly turned his attention back to the battle at hand.

"Since Yuan Tan is also short of food, it's now a contest of who can hold out the longest!"

Liu Miao made an estimate.

Both sides have half a month's worth of food left.

But what determines the fate of both sides is not just food rations.

What Liu Miao urgently needed was firewood to keep warm.

As for Yuan Tan's side, once Tadun discovers that Yuan's army has run out of food, the Wuhuan, that ungrateful wolf, might just turn on its master at any moment.

Therefore.

The standoff between the two sides will not last for half a month, but even less!
As Liu Miao pondered these thoughts, a sound suddenly came from outside the door.

"Youping, go see what's going on?"

Zhou Tai accepted the order and went to do it, only to bump right into the person who came in.

"you?"

"you?"

"you?"

Zhou Tai, the man who came, and Wang Xiu all looked astonished.

Chen Gong, who had been knocked to the ground, quickly got up, and when he saw Wang Xiu, he looked completely bewildered.

"Shu Zhi?"

"Hey! Looks like everyone knows each other?"

Wang Xiu dared not look Chen Gong in the eye, while Chen Gong recounted everything that had happened to everyone.

When everyone heard that Wang Xiu had done so many things before, their attitude towards him changed somewhat.

Wang Xiu himself felt he had lost face and was about to confess his guilt and beg for death to Liu Miao when he heard Liu Miao say lightly, "Don't mention this matter again."

"Given the circumstances at the time, even if Shuzhi fought to the death, could he possibly have withstood Yuan Tan's attacks?"

Wang Xiu was stunned and speechless: "But, but, the fact that I did not put up a fight to the death is already a capital offense..."

"Nonsense! If you had really died in Linzi back then, who would tell me about Yuan Tan's grain supplies now?"

Liu Miao told Wang Xiu to relax.

"If Shuzhi truly feels guilty towards the people of Qingzhou, then he should start thinking now about how to compensate them in the future and how to rebuild their homes."

After Liu Miao determined the nature of the matter, he looked at Chen Gong and asked, "Wasn't Gongtai supposed to be in the east with Fengxian and Kongming? Why have they suddenly come looking for us?"

Chen Gong then remembered that he had not yet reported back to Liu Miao, and immediately sighed.

"It's Zhuge Liang."

"Kongming estimates that the time has come. His Majesty has either already defeated Yuan Tan, or he has been bogged down by Yuan Tan and is in dire straits in his army."

"Therefore, Kongming asked me to send some coal to help Your Majesty and the Han soldiers resist the severe cold."

Carboniferous?

Upon hearing this, Liu Miao immediately felt refreshed and invigorated.

He couldn't help but laugh and exclaim, "Well done! What a Zhuge Kongming! He truly is a hidden dragon!"

The coal has been delivered.

The situation on the battlefield is now clear.

Liu Miao smiled broadly and looked northward.

Yuan Tan...

This time, I have everything I need!
(End of this chapter)