I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 499: Fight!
"Withdrawn?"

"Okay! Let's go!"

Lu Yi, with his innocent-looking big eyes, came up to Liu Miao and told him about the wonders at the front lines.

"No... how could he withdraw? Is Yuan Shao's grandmother in a hurry to get married?"

"..."

I do not know!

Who would have thought that just yesterday Yuan Shao was barking like a mad dog on the front lines, ready to fight to the death, but today he has retreated with his entire army?
Liu Miao didn't understand, but he was deeply shocked!

Similarly, Zhou Yu and others also failed to understand.

Why did they withdraw?
The situation between the two sides is now far more serious than just half-finished! And now you, Yuan Shao, are telling me you're not playing anymore?
Isn't this just pure lewdness?

"So now...we've won?"

Pang Tong asked in a low voice, and instantly all eyes were on him, making him quickly lower his head and tremble.

Won?

If Yuan Shao really retreated like that, then Pengcheng would definitely have been won.

However, compared to the overall power dynamics between Han and Zhao, this can hardly be called a victory.

Why did Liu Miao risk fighting Yuan Tan's army at Mangdang Mountain on the plains? Why did he travel hundreds of miles, crossing the entire Xuzhou and Langya regions, to Jiaodong to fight Yuan Tan?

The purpose was simply to open up the road, cut off Yuan Shao's army's retreat from the rear, and leave Yuan Shao's 200,000 troops and able-bodied men intact in the Central Plains, thus completely breaking the backbone of Northern Zhao and rendering it powerless to fight against the Han army.

And now you're telling me Yuan Shao is going to withdraw?

"Damn it! Does Yuan Shao have no backbone? He's going to die anyway, so why not just die right under the walls of Pengcheng? Wouldn't that be more impressive than dying in bed?"

Liu Miao was so angry he cursed!

He never expected that Yuan Shao, who had been proud all his life, would back down at the last moment!

You are Yuan Shao!

Four generations of high-ranking officials!
The Yuan family of Runan!
The leader of the feudal lords!
Oh, the Emperor of Great Zhao!
The General's elder brother!
You just ran away like that? How can you face the ancestors of the Yuan family?
As Liu Miao was cursing, he suddenly noticed the treacherous trio sitting silently among the assembled officials, their heads bowed.

Jia Xu, Sima Yi, and Fa Zheng.

"Lord Jia! Zhongda! Xiaozhi! Have you three become mute? Especially you, Zhongda, weren't you quite lively when you were with Kongming before? Why aren't you saying a word now? Should I call Kongming out for you right now?"

The three people who were singled out for criticism by the emperor immediately became the focus of everyone's attention, and they all awkwardly shifted their bodies.

"His Majesty……"

Ultimately, it was Fazheng who was the most thin-skinned and least experienced, and he was the first to succumb to the interrogation of the crowd.

"I was just wondering if Yuan Shao's move might be a strategic retreat to advance?"

Upon hearing these four words, all the ministers frowned.

Even Liu Miao, upon hearing this, lost most of his initial anxiety, and instead smiled and crossed his arms, resting his elbows on the table, signaling Fa Zheng to continue.

Fa Zheng looked at Jia Xu and Sima Yi, but the two of them gave him a completely "Who are you?" or "Don't we know each other?" expression, as if Liu Miao hadn't mentioned their names at all...

Fa Zheng could only bite the bullet and say, "Yuan Shao is a ruthless and ambitious man."

"Ha~"

Liu Miao's dismissive response put Fa Zheng under immense pressure, but he could only pretend not to hear and continue his statement—

"With the experience of Yuan Shao, it is impossible for him not to see that the Battle of Pengcheng is nothing but a dead end for him and for Northern Zhao, now that the battle has come to this point."

"Our army has been building fortifications in Pengcheng for several months. Although we still lack winter clothing and furs, we have enough food and supplies thanks to the water network to the south, and we also have coal for heating. We can hold out in Pengcheng until the end of time."

“Yuan Shao should have already learned about our army’s situation these days, so even he might feel despair.”

Liu Miao frowned: "According to Xiaozhi's words, Yuan Shao is really going to retreat?"

"No."

Fa Zheng shook his head decisively.

"Back then, Yuan Shao had no soldiers, yet he managed to escape from Dong Zhuo and flee to Hebei, where he seized Ji Province with his bare hands... Having experienced such a dark time, Yuan Shao has now declared himself emperor, controls the north, governs tens of millions of people, and commands two hundred thousand soldiers. How could he possibly be disheartened?"

"Therefore, I suspect that Yuan Shao may have already guessed that Your Majesty intends to prevent the Northern Zhao army from returning to Hebei. So, he used this as an excuse to withdraw his troops, intending to compete with Your Majesty in the Central Plains and decide who is the strongest!"

Pengcheng, we really can't fight any longer.

Yuan Shao may have initially genuinely intended to use military force to overwhelm Pengcheng and secure the empire in one decisive battle.

But after a day and a half of attack, it was clear to everyone that if Yuan Shao continued to fight to the death, he would only wear down the population of Hebei and the hopes of Northern Zhao under the city walls!

If Yuan Shao still wants to win, he needs to find a different approach.

Go to the plains!
In this small area of ​​the Central Plains, a single battle determined the fate of the world!

Even if one is destined to die, it must be in the midst of a battle between two armies, not in a miserable state under the city walls, shot to death by arrows from who-knows-where!

But this obviously cannot be decided by Yuan Shao.

Ultimately, the initiative remained in Liu Miao's hands.

Liu Miao, the ruler of the Han Dynasty, should he fight or not?
A battle of choices.

The odds of victory between the Han and Zhao might have been reduced from 91 to 73, 64, or even 55.

But what if we choose not to fight?

Yuan Shao might actually take this charade seriously and bring these 200,000 Yuan troops and 200,000 able-bodied men back to Hebei, making them a bulwark against Liu Miao's unification of the country in the future.

Two hundred thousand people!
Even if 200,000 pigs suddenly returned to Hebei, it would cause Hebei's national strength to jump up by a lot, let alone 200,000 strong and healthy young men and women from Hebei.
After understanding Liu Miao's strategy, Yuan Shao presented Liu Miao with a difficult choice.

This is not a conspiracy.

On the contrary, this is a completely open conspiracy!

Should they jeopardize their chances of victory and engage Yuan Shao in a major battle on the plains? Or should they hold Pengcheng and allow Yuan's main force to return to Hebei?
"Ha, you bitch!"

Liu Miao finally understood Yuan Shao's sinister intentions.

In an instant! Just for a split second!

Liu Miao even began to believe that Yuan Shao truly couldn't bear to see his soldiers sacrifice themselves and chose this time to withdraw his troops, leaving a way out for Northern Zhao, for his son, and for the country he had founded.

However, it is clear that Liu Miao overestimated Yuan Shao's moral character.

After I die, what do I care about the raging floods?

Anyway, when the time comes, I'll just close my eyes and everything in the world will be none of my business!

Having only been emperor for a few years, Yuan Shao had clearly come to a complete understanding of the true nature of the emperor!

Selfish! Hypocritical! Treating everything as worthless!

Liu Miao scanned the faces of the assembled officials, but his gaze finally settled on Sima Yi's face.

"Zhongda, what do you think? Should I refuse Yuan Shao's challenge this time?"

Sima Yi clearly did not expect that Liu Miao would choose him from among those present!

Meanwhile, Fa Zheng, who had just looked dejected, was now gloating, watching Sima Yi, who was now somewhat at a loss, with a smile...

Sima Yi stood up and gave Liu Miao a very resentful look, but he had no choice but to express his opinion.

"Now that Yuan Shao is nearing his end, why should Your Majesty hold a grudge against him?"

"Even if those 200,000 Yuan troops return to Hebei, whether it's Yuan Shang or Yuan Tan, whose fate is unknown, who can support the foundation left by Yuan Shao?"

"But Your Majesty is now in the prime of your life, so there is no need to rush. You can proceed slowly and methodically..."

Sima Yi's words were very pertinent, and even reflected the thoughts of most of the Han Dynasty officials present.

Although we didn't seem to do anything during these past few months in Pengcheng, everyone still felt exhausted!

With the New Year fast approaching and everyone eager to return home, wouldn't it be better to win this battle early, then go home and snuggle up with your wife and kids in bed?

Why waste time fighting a battle with Yuan Shao whose outcome is uncertain?

Anyway, Liu Miao is still young, he'll have plenty of time to deal with Northern Zhao in the future!

If three years isn't enough, then five! Ten!
Even if it took twenty years of fighting, Liu Miao would only have reached the age of Emperor Gaozu!

Moreover, given Liu Miao's skill in seducing other men's wives, all the officials knew that Liu Miao's health must be exceptionally good!

Who knows, Liu Miao might not only outlive Yuan Shao to death, but even Yuan Shao's son might be outlived by him...

Sima Yi was breathing heavily at this moment.

His statement was probably the one that best served the interests of the Han Dynasty's officials.

Everyone is tired.

It's best to go home early and get some rest...

Not engaging in battle was the option that Sima Yi believed would best please the other ministers.

But for some reason, when Sima Yi saw Liu Miao's tightly furrowed brows, he suddenly felt a chill in his heart!
Immediately afterwards, Zhuge Liang's near-perfect face appeared in Sima Yi's mind.

"If Zhuge Liang were here, would he deliberately say these words to please his ministers?"

"And... what I just said, was it really what I truly felt?"

Do not!
wrong!

Sima Yi suddenly had a bold, even presumptuous, idea!
If he were the emperor now, if he were in Liu Miao's position, would he choose not to fight?

Do not!
Ten thousand years is too long! Seize the day!
There's no time left for the Han Dynasty, no time left for Liu Miao, and no time left for ourselves.

The future of the Han Dynasty will be more than just about unification!
The future Han dynasty will rebuild the Confucian classics and morality that the scholar-officials have lost.

The future Han dynasty will ensure that the people of Hebei become like those in the south, with their own land, access to meat, and the opportunity to receive an education.

The future Han Dynasty will completely pacify the foreign tribes of Youzhou, Liaodong, the Southwest, Longxi, the Western Regions, and Jiaozhi! Let China return to its golden age!

……

With so many things to do in the future, where will we find the time to squander or waste?

and.

Sima Yi appeared humble on the surface, but only he knew what a sharp sword he harbored in his heart!
Sima Yi hid the sword in order to protect himself.

But now, in front of Liu Miao and Kongming, why should I hide myself?

And for some reason...

Sima Yi had a premonition.

If I don't draw my sword now, Liu Miao might never give me another chance to do so in the future...

"war!"

Just as some officials were discussing what to do after returning home, Sima Yi's extremely loud voice rang out in the tent, silencing the surrounding area!
The shoulders, which had been hunched inward to show deference, finally opened up!

At this moment, Sima Yi's demeanor was nowhere near as sickly as the nickname "Tomb Tiger" that some people had given him to criticize him for.
Now that the Crouching Dragon has already soared into the sky, how could the Tomb Tiger still hide its body in those rotten muds?

Sima Yi looked at Liu Miao again, this time with an unusually firm gaze, completely out of place with Jia Xu and Fa Zheng beside him, as if they were not even at the same table...

"Your Majesty! This battle must be fought!"

Liu Miao's initially disappointed expression turned into a smile: "Why?"

"Because the people of Hebei are also Han Chinese!"

"Fighting for the people of the Han Dynasty, what need is there for deliberation? What need is there for hesitation?"

Sima Yi was completely out of his mind at this point.

"This battle is a must!"

"Your Majesty, I also request to serve as the vanguard! To defeat Yuan's army for Your Majesty!"

(End of this chapter)