My Three Kingdoms is not right

The foundation of the collapsed section of the city wall was not solid to begin with. After being soaked in water for so many days, the internal structure had long since crumbled.

That night, a muffled thud was heard, as if some giant beast had turned over underground. Then, with a "whoosh," a large section of the city wall collapsed, and chunks of rammed earth rolled into the moat, splashing high into the air.

Fortunately, there was water separating the city from the Cao army camp, and the boats dared not approach in the dark; otherwise, that night might have been the day the city fell.

Panic began to spread throughout the city.

"The city walls are about to collapse!"

"If Cao Cao's army breaks through the breach, we'll all die!"

"Have you heard? Someone from the south of the city secretly swam out and surrendered..."

Rumors spread through the city like a plague, and there was no way to stop them.

Lü Bu ordered his men to arrest more than a dozen soldiers and civilians who were spreading rumors, and to execute them in the street, but it was to no avail. The rumors continued to spread, and the fears persisted.

On the ninth night, deserters actually appeared.

This time it's not just one or two.

Under the cover of night, a whole squad of soldiers jumped into the river outside the city and swam towards Cao Cao's army. The squad leader had scouted the area beforehand and chose a spot near the collapsed gap in the east wall—where there was no wall to block the view, it was closest to the water, and there were few patrols.

Thirty-odd people jumped into the water without a word and disappeared into the night.

They only discovered that someone was missing when they changed shifts the next morning.

Lü Bu was furious.

She personally led her men to the camp and interrogated all the remaining soldiers. Two were killed, and the rest knelt on the ground, trembling and crying, saying, "I don't know," "I really don't know."

From then on, Lü Bu began to suspect everyone.

She no longer trusted the generals around her, nor the old subordinates who had followed her for many years.

At night, she would often lead a few personal guards and suddenly burst into a tent, ask a few questions with a stern face, and then leave without a word. No one knew what she was thinking, and no one knew who she suspected.

The atmosphere in the camp became increasingly oppressive.

Military law is becoming increasingly arbitrary.

In the past, mistakes were always tried by military judges, and there were rules to follow regarding punishment. Now, it all depends on Lü Bu's mood.

One of the captains was a little slow in distributing the grain, and Lü Bu lashed him across the face with his whip, tearing his skin open on the spot. Others pleaded for his life, but Lü Bu ignored them completely.

Two days later, another captain was publicly whipped by Lü Bu's order for speaking out against him.

Fifty strokes of the cane.

After thirty blows, the man was silent.

After hearing the report, Lü Bu only said, "Kill them fifty times before burying them," and then continued to drink with his head down.

The generals were terrified and no one dared to utter another word.

In such a huge cage,

Liu Xun's small courtyard became one of the few quiet places in the city.

The area is situated on high ground and has not been flooded so far. The courtyard walls are intact, the houses are dry, and there is ample storage of grain, charcoal, and medicinal herbs.

Liu Xun stopped hosting banquets.

Firstly, they couldn't bear to waste food; more importantly, the atmosphere in the city wasn't suitable for holding a banquet.

But he would occasionally make things and have them delivered to familiar generals.

Sesame wheat cakes – made by kneading coarse wheat flour into a dough, sprinkling it with sesame seeds, and baking it in the oven. The result is a crispy exterior and a soft interior, with the aroma of sesame seeds wafting across half the street.

Sour soup noodles—the broth is made with stockpiled vinegar and soy sauce, wide noodles are added, a sprinkle of green onions is sprinkled on top, and it's served piping hot. This is the most popular dish; on a cold, damp day, a bowl of hot soup noodles can warm you from the stomach to the heart.

When delivering the goods, Liu Xun would chat with them for a while, trying to learn about all sorts of news in the city.

"How is the situation in the city?"

"This is bad." Wei Xu took a slurp of noodles, holding his bowl, and sighed. "Our lord killed two deserters again today. He executed them on the spot without even a trial."

"Some say Yuan Shao is heading south, and that Cao Cao will soon retreat. Others say Yuan Shu has already sent reinforcements..."

Song Xian interrupted her with a cold laugh: "Does anyone believe that? It's clearly all fake news spread by Chen Gong."

"Huh?" Wei Xu blinked and looked at Hou Cheng beside him.

With noodles in his mouth, Hou Cheng waved his hand vaguely, "If you see through something, don't say it out loud. What does it have to do with us?"

Liu Xun couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth; he was quite envious of Hou Cheng's temperament.

Never engage in internal strife.

He stood up and said, "Please continue eating. I'll go and take some noodles to Xiaofu (Gao Shun's courtesy name)."

"Your Highness doesn't know yet?" Song Xian raised his head: "Gao Shun has been imprisoned."

"When did this happen?" Liu Xun knelt down again.

Hou Cheng paused for a moment while holding the bowl of noodles, but then continued slurping the noodles with his head down.

"It was two days ago." Song Xian put down his chopsticks and sighed, "Gao Shun is a great fighter, but he's just too clueless."

"The other day, when our lord was inspecting the city's defenses, he saw several soldiers huddled together whispering. Suspecting they were plotting to defect to the enemy, he was about to behead them on the spot. Gao Shun stepped forward and dissuaded him, saying that there was insufficient evidence and that they should not be killed indiscriminately."

"When the lord refused to listen, Gao Shun knelt down and said, 'Military law is the foundation of an army. If we kill people at will based on our joy or anger, the morale of the army will surely collapse.' Upon hearing this, the lord's face immediately turned black."

"and then?"

"Then the lord had Gao Shun tied up and said, 'You also want to rebel against me?' and ordered him to be taken out and beheaded."

Song Xian shook his head. "Zhang Liao, Hou Cheng, and the rest of us knelt down and begged for a full quarter of an hour before our lord changed his mind and said, 'She may be spared the death penalty, but she cannot escape punishment.' He then locked her up in prison to reflect on her actions."

Wei Xu muttered from the side, "What's there to reflect on? She didn't say anything wrong! The one who's wrong is..."

Before she could finish speaking, Song Xian kicked her. Wei Xu glanced at Liu Xun, swallowed the rest of her words, and continued eating her noodles.

Hou Cheng wiped his mouth and continued, "Our lord has been in a bad mood these days, everyone can see that, and they're trying to avoid him, but Gao Shun insists on getting close to him."

Liu Xun was silent for a moment, then asked, "Where are they locked up?"

"The county prison in the south of the city." Song Xian glanced at him. "Would Your Highness like to take a look?"

"Okay." Liu Xun stood up. "Go and take some food."

"Your Highness, please be careful," Song Xian whispered a reminder. "Our lord is very suspicious these days..."

"Thank you, I understand." Liu Xun nodded.

The Chengnan County Prison is located in a low-lying area, and most of the cells are submerged in water.

The head guard looked troubled when he saw Liu Xun: "Your Highness, according to the rules, no one is allowed to visit here."

Yao Tian stepped forward and whispered something to her. The guard nodded repeatedly with a happy expression, "Thank you, Your Highness. This way."

Liu Xun knew that this was the power of food.

In Xiapi today, a bag of millet is worth more than a bag of money.

Liu Xun followed the jailer, trudging through the muddy sewage up to his calves. Grass clippings and unidentified filth floated on the surface, and the smell was pungent.

The jailer stopped in front of a cell, took out a key, and opened the door: "This is it."

Liu Xun peeked out and his heart tightened.