I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 87 Whipping
Danyang's elite troops are renowned throughout the world!
But this also shows that the people of Danyang are all warlike, unlike the people of the Central Plains! They do not even value farming and sericulture, but live by hunting. Therefore, when Liu Miao looked at these people, he did not see the gentleness of the Jiangnan water towns. Instead, they were all fierce and evil, as if they wanted to devour him alive at any time!
When dealing with someone like that, you absolutely cannot be more cowardly than him!
In full view of everyone, Liu Miao spat on the ground and pointed at Zu Lang, cursing, "If you're not a bandit, then am I?"

"Let me ask you, what is your position? How dare you lead this group here? Do you intend to rebel?"

Although Liu Miao's camp only had three hundred soldiers to make up the numbers, Zu Lang and his men were unaware of this!
Zu Lang raised his iron helmet and saw thick smoke billowing behind Liu Miao, with flags fluttering everywhere and his attitude so arrogant. He couldn't figure out Liu Miao's true strength for the time being, so he could only humbly speak to Liu Miao again: "General Liu, although I have no official position, I have some popularity here, which is why some villagers follow me."

Popularity?

Liu Miao knew he was lying through his teeth, but he never expected that Zu Lang could lie even better than him!
Who can summon thousands of people at once just because they have good connections? Are you saying all these people are your brothers?

Liu Miao was too lazy to waste words with the other party: "We are here to garrison troops on the orders of the General of the Rear. All irrelevant personnel shall leave immediately! Otherwise, don't blame the crossbows for being blind!"

Seeing that Liu Miao had brought up Yuan Shu again, Zu Lang was angry, but after thinking it over, he did not dare to make a move. He simply continued to ask, "I wonder if the general could give me some face and have a talk with me?"

Although you, Liu Miao, are a foreigner, I, Zu Lang, am a local bully!
Despite the vast difference in status, there's no need to resort to violence right away. Wouldn't it be more normal for everyone to sit down and talk about the future in a peaceful manner?

Unexpectedly, Liu Miao flew into a rage upon hearing this: "Who do you think you are? You dare ask me to give you face?"

"You want me to come over? Sure! You kowtow a few times to the General of the North, and I'll allow you to speak with me! How about it?"

What an arrogant general from Yuan's army!

Zulang's face turned ashen, and his hand unconsciously gripped the hilt of his knife!

The intimidating presence of the character "Yuan" was simply too great! Although Zu Lang's hand gripping the hilt trembled a few times, he ultimately dared not draw it!

"Let's go! So what if he's Yuan Shu? If he dares to bully me, I'll skin him alive, even if it kills me!"

Seeing Zu Lang leave, Liu Miao immediately grabbed Zhou Tai and Chen Wu guiltily: "Leave! Leave tonight! Run fast! We can't let these fellow villagers block us!"

……

Zu Lang, a powerful general with tens of thousands of troops who had roamed freely in Jiangdong, became increasingly angry after returning home!
"Damn it! How many years have I been in Jiangdong? Yuan Shu has only been in Jiangdong for a short time and he dares to insult me ​​like this? If he really takes over Jiangdong, won't he still be shitting on my head?"

After careful consideration, Zulang finally gave the order—

"Send troops! Consider it a small gift to Yuan Shu! Let him know that in Jiangdong, even a dragon has to coil up before him! Even a tiger has to lie low! That Liu Miao is far too arrogant; today we'll cut out his tongue and use it as a snack!"

Zu Lang ordered his men to disguise themselves as Yue people from the nearby mountains before sneaking close to Liu Miao's camp.

Seeing that Liu Miao's camp was brightly lit and that there were many people in the tents, Zu Lang became hesitant again.

After standing in the cold winter wind for an hour, his hands and feet were stiff and numb, but the light in Liu Miao's tent was still on, prompting Zu Lang to curse, "Damn it! Doesn't Liu Miao sleep at night?"

After waiting for a while, although Jiangdong was not as cold as the north and there was no such thing as freezing to death in winter, the dampness in the mountains and forests was like a slippery venomous snake, crawling into the clothes through the collar and cuffs. After a while, it was hard to stand!

"Never mind! Let's give it a try!"

Zulang finally gave the order to attack, but there was not a sound until they stormed into the camp gate, which made Zulang feel a chill inexplicably towards the brightly lit camp.

Only after his troops had completely stormed into the central command tent did everyone realize one thing: "General! There's no one here!"

The lights were nothing more than torches and oil lamps that Liu Miao's army lit in the camp before they left.

The throng of people I just saw weren't real soldiers, or even people! They were just some raccoon dogs, deer, or other animals from the vicinity that had gotten their hands on some grains of rice left in the tents and crawled inside, making it look like there were living creatures moving around!
"Damn it! That Liu Miao actually dared to play me for a fool!"

Zulang checked repeatedly and confirmed that there was indeed not a single soldier in the place. When he thought about how he had been so frightened by an empty camp that he had waited outside for an hour, he was furious!

"Liu Miao! Yuan Shu! You've gone too far!"

Now that Liu Miao has disappeared without a trace, Zu Lang doesn't know where to look for him either. Even if he is unwilling, he can only grit his teeth and lead his troops back to You County!
------

Coincidentally, the very next day, a man arrived in You County, claiming to be Han Yin, an envoy under Yuan Shu...

Zu Lang, enraged, laughed: "So this is Yuan Shu's envoy! He insulted and mocked me before! And now he wants to see me? Go and whip him twenty times first, to show him his power, then come and see me!"

Han Yin stood outside the ancestral tent, carefully protecting the seal of office in his arms.

These were all tokens used to win over Zu Lang and others, based on Ji Ling's advice and with Yuan Shu's approval.

When Han Yin arrived, he did not think that anything would go wrong on his trip.

"If the General condescends to win over these powerful leaders, they will surely be grateful and treat me as an honored guest, easily at the General's beck and call!"

However, as Han Yin waited, he did not see Zu Lang rushing to greet him. Instead, he was met by several vicious soldiers who walked towards him menacingly and bound him.

"What are you going to do?"

"You've got it wrong! I'm an envoy from the General of the Rear!"

"Ah!!! You dare hit me? Aren't you afraid of General Hou?"

"Shut up! We're attacking Yuan Shu's men!!"

Twenty lashes were delivered to Han Yin's back, tearing his clothes to shreds. He fell to his knees, thick, clear saliva gushing from his eyes, nose, and mouth.

Zu Lang then appeared, and upon seeing Han Yin's miserable state, he laughed mockingly: "How about it? Do you still want me to kneel down and kowtow to Yuan Shu?"

Although Han Yin was not as noble as the Yuan family when he served as Yuan Shu's envoy, he was still from a prominent family and was a famous scholar of his time.

Yet this renowned scholar was now being whipped mercilessly by Zu Lang, his heart ripped open and humiliated in front of everyone. Han Yin's humiliation at this moment even surpassed the physical pain. Upon seeing Zu Lang, he immediately gritted his teeth and said, "How dare you bully me like this? Aren't you afraid of General Hou's revenge?"

"Oh? Still stubborn! Mentioning Yuan Shu again!"

Zu Lang took the whip from the soldier and lashed Han Yin's face hard again: "If you dare to abuse your power again, I'll cut out your tongue and use it as a snack!"

Han Yin was filled with grief and indignation, never expecting things to turn out this way!

As Yuan Shu's envoy, he had been sent on missions to countless feudal lords!

He had visited Dong Zhuo, Yuan Shao, and Cao Cao. Even though these people had deep hatred for Yuan Shu, they still upheld etiquette and never made things difficult for him, the envoy.

Unexpectedly, they have now been caught off guard and beaten into such a state by Zu Lang, a petty thief from Jiangdong. Han Yin suddenly realized that Jiangdong was indeed a poor and desolate place, otherwise why would it produce such unruly people?

Han Yin grew angrier the more he thought about it. Despite the pain in his back, he still stood up with great pride and limped out of You County, determined to return to Shouchun to report back to Yuan Shu!

However, Zu Lang's soldiers were too ruthless, and Han Yin hadn't gone far before he collapsed and fainted. It was Liu Miao's scouts, who were monitoring Zu Lang's movements, who saw Han Yin, a man whose fate was unknown but who was dressed in fine clothes, and deduced that he was no ordinary person. So they brought Han Yin to Liu Miao.

Liu Miao was surprised to see Han Yin: "Why would Yuan Shu's envoy be here? Could it be that he couldn't find me and was robbed by some bandits?"

It wasn't until Liu Miao saw the large pile of official seals in Han Yin's arms that his expression finally darkened.

Lu Su was also beside Liu Miao at this time. When he saw the seal that fell off Han Yin, he immediately guessed Han Yin's purpose in coming to Jiangdong!
"So many official seals, and most of them are military titles. Could it be that Han Yin was sent by Yuan Shu to Jiangdong to win over the people?"

Upon learning that Han Yin was found in the direction of You County, Lu Su immediately confirmed his guess.

"As expected, they're going to try and win over those powerful figures like Zulang!"

"Yuan Shu is truly a wicked man! To use such methods to wreak havoc in Jiangdong, his heart deserves to be punished!"

Giving these powerful leaders official positions is just like sending these bandits to "plunder under orders."

Yuan Shu's decision to resort to such a drastic measure is truly despicable!
Liu Miao looked at the whip marks left on Han Yin's once handsome face and clicked his tongue.

"However, judging from Han Yin's appearance, this matter has probably failed."

Liu Miao was immediately curious: "Zijing, why do you think Zu Lang refused Yuan Shu? Not only did he refuse Yuan Shu, but he even beat Han Yin like this. Is he really that audacious?"

Lu Su was also puzzled: "Yes! Why is Zu Lang acting like this? It's really strange..."

The culprit, Liu Miao, was completely unaware that he was the one who had caused Han Yin's predicament. However, Lu Su took notice of the matter and whispered a plan in Liu Miao's ear, which made Liu Miao nod repeatedly.

Han Yin finally woke up slowly under the care of the military doctor.

Upon waking up, he saw Liu Miao's dashing and unrestrained face.

"Zhongshan?"

Han Yin called out in disbelief, and after receiving a response from Liu Miao, Han Yin remembered the inhuman treatment he had suffered before he fainted, and immediately covered his face and wept bitterly.

"Zhongshan! Zhongshan!!!"

Han Yin, who was supposed to be a renowned scholar, was now holding Liu Miao in his arms, crying like a child who had never left the house before and was bitten by the neighbor's vicious dog on his first outing. It was a pitiful sight!
Although Liu Miao was somewhat disgusted that Han Yin's tears and snot had soaked his shoulder, he still patted Han Yin's shoulder and said, "It's alright! It's alright..."

Han Yin wept bitterly for a long time before finally releasing Liu Miao, sobbing, "Zhongshan, Zhongshan, you don't know, that Zu Lang is not human! He's not human!"

Han Yin seemed like a virgin whose innocence had been violated by a bastard. At this moment, she was trembling and completely unrecognizable, still living in the fear of the past.

Liu Miao then asked, "Why did you think of going to a bandit like Zu Lang?"

"Forehead……"

Han Yin's sobbing stopped abruptly.

He couldn't very well tell Liu Miao that he was trying to win over Zu Lang to attack you, could he?

If that's really the case, then Han Yin has completely lost face!
Han Yin could only downplay the seriousness of the matter: "I was merely sent by the General to appease him... Who would have thought that Zu Lang would whip me without a word upon seeing me, and even ask me if I needed to kowtow to the General..."

Now Liu Miao understood why Han Yin had been beaten...

"Cough cough."

"Cough cough."

The two, who had just been so affectionate, now felt guilty and fell silent...

“Zhongshan.”

Ultimately, Han Yin felt more guilty, or perhaps Liu Miao was more shameless; in any case, Han Yin was the one who spoke first.

“Zhongshan, actually, General Hou is still somewhat dissatisfied with you transporting all the people and the Lujiang treasury to Jiangdong. Tell me the truth today, what are you really thinking?”

Liu Miao blinked: "What do you mean?"

Although Han Yin found it somewhat difficult to say, he still made his point even clearer—

"Zhongshan, do you still truly serve General Hou?"

"of course!"

I thought Liu Miao would be shocked, or at least hesitate for a while, but to my surprise, Liu Miao blurted it out!

"Of course I served General Hou wholeheartedly! Otherwise, why would I have presented him with the imperial seal in the first place?"

These words are completely honest and aboveboard, and I have a clear conscience!

However, Liu Miao then lowered his voice and whispered to Han Yin, "But I actually have some other opinions about the General of the Rear... However, this matter is of great importance, and I don't know if I can say it?"

"We're as close as brothers, so what can't we talk about?"

Liu Miao took a deep breath and whispered something in Han Yin's ear.

Upon hearing this, Han Yin was struck dumb! His eyes, filled with a mixture of fear, anticipation, shock, and dread, stared at Liu Miao: "Zhongshan, is what you're saying really true?"

"Of course it's true!"

Liu Miao gave Han Yin his full assurance!

"But since I am surnamed Liu and a member of the Han imperial family, there are some things I cannot say myself. If you see General Hou after you return, I hope you can put in a good word for me and ask him not to pursue my mistakes. Everything I have done is ultimately for my own protection!"

Han Yin's eyes lit up: "Of course! Of course!"

Seeing that Han Yin had taken the bait, Liu Miao also swore to Han Yin: "That Zu Lang dared to insult my elder brother and humiliate the General in this way. I will definitely send troops to punish him! For my elder brother! For the General, I will get justice!"

"Good! Great good!"

At this moment, Han Yin was completely captivated by Liu Miao, so how could he possibly disagree?
Moreover, even if the rest were fake, the fact that Zu Lang personally whipped him and humiliated him and Yuan Shu was still real!
Since that's the case, he should go back and report to Yuan Shu truthfully, seek justice for himself, and at the same time tell Yuan Shu Liu Miao's true intentions!
(End of this chapter)