Three Kingdoms: The Kingdom Cannot Be Partial

Chapter 284: Man is the key to success

Furthermore, due to the high walls and deep moats of Yiling, and the fact that Zhu Ran, the Right Commander of the Wu army, had implemented a scorched-earth policy, it would be difficult to capture the city unless the cost was spared.

But it is clear that Yiling City is no longer a city that the Han army needs to capture at all costs.

Not far downstream from Yiling, Sun Quan and Lu Xun had already led the Wu army to Jiangling, eyeing the Han army with hostility. The loss or gain of Yiling was not insignificant to the overall situation, but as the saying goes, "attacking a city is the worst option," and expending already limited forces to capture this fortified city was the worst possible strategy.

The Han army stationed at Yiling numbered just over 30,000, while Zhao Yun and Deng Zhi had 15,000 troops stationed at Fangling and Linju. The total strength was roughly the same as when the late emperor first conquered Yiling.

Therefore, the best course of action at present is to control Jingmen and Huya Mountain, cut off the southern route, and besiege Yiling to attack Sun Quan's reinforcements.

If Sun Quan comes to our aid, we can wait in comfort and exhaustion; if Sun Quan does not come, the people of Yiling will be disappointed, and they will eventually run out of food.

Of course, this is true for local battlefields, but it is a different story when viewed from a global perspective.

It is now the fifth day of the second month. If nothing unexpected happens, Ma Zhong, Ma Bing, and Miao King Sha Lie of Wuling have already started an uprising in all the counties of Wuling and launched an offensive against the Wu people.

Furthermore, Cao Xiu in Xiangfan, and Jia Kui, Man Chong, and Zang Ba in Hefei would probably not allow the Han and Wu armies to make a move without taking action.

As for the idea of ​​"the fisherman reaping the benefits," the last time Han and Wu fought at Yiling, Cao Pi had already reached Xiangfan, but he hesitated too much and wanted to reap the benefits, which led to Sun Quan becoming the only winner in the Battle of Yiling and completely controlling Jiangnan.

This time, Liu Shan, the Prime Minister, and his two trusted generals, Zhao Yun and Chen Dao, did not believe that Cao Rui and the officials of Cao Wei would repeat the same mistakes.

Therefore, at present, before any news arrives, the Han army must wait for good news from Jingnan, Xiangfan, and Hefei.

In addition, while guarding against Zhu Ran's attacks from Yiling, we also need to allow our soldiers to rest and recuperate from their tension and exhaustion.

After more than a month of fierce fighting with almost no rest, the soldiers' mental and physical stress had reached a point where it needed to be released.

Military life is not always about fighting and killing. While constant vigilance is necessary, adequate entertainment and leisure are also essential. If one's mind is constantly on edge, the most serious consequence is the word "camp riot," which all generals must fear.

So Liu Shan personally took out a thousand bolts of miscellaneous silk, a hundred cattle and sheep, and a million in cash, all bearing the emperor's private seal, as a reward, and ordered Fa Miao to lead the Embroidered-Robe Envoy to supervise the distribution to his generals.

Let each general organize their soldiers to play Chupu (a card game).
(pú) Entertainment activities such as gambling, archery competitions, and Cuju (ancient Chinese football) were conducted, and the rewards for these activities were distributed in the emperor's personal name.

As a result, the soldiers' tense spirits visibly relaxed in the past few days, and almost all the soldiers, whether they were injured, resting, or not on drills or defense duties, participated in the activities.

Under the protection of Chen Dao, Guan Xing, Zhao Guang, and Long Xianglang, Liu Shan crossed the camp area and arrived at the outer camp where General Zhaoyi Liao Shi was located.

As soon as they arrived at the entrance of the central command tent, they heard a cacophony of cheers and sighs coming from inside.

When the guards saw the emperor's entourage, they were first startled, then hurriedly knelt down to pay their respects, but were stopped by Liu Shan's gaze.

Upon lifting the curtain and entering, one would find chupu (a type of wild gourd) inside the tent.
Just as things were getting exciting, everyone knelt down and surrounded the chessboard in the center, so much so that no one noticed the emperor's arrival at first.

"Lu! Lu! Lu!" A bearded captain grabbed five dice, breathed on them, muttered incantations, and then threw them forcefully into the empty space in the center of the chessboard.

The five dice spun wildly, drawing everyone's attention.

"Black! Black! Black!"

"...Oh, it's a calf!" Someone with sharp eyes immediately pointed it out.

Finally, the five dice settled.

Three of the coins are completely black. The other two are black with a cow-shaped "calf" engraved on a black background and white with a chicken-shaped "pheasant" engraved on a white background.

"Se-se! Eleven arrows!" the military officer acting as referee shouted.

The bearded captain slapped his thigh in frustration:
"Damn it, what bad luck! Just one calf short!"

Liu Shan smiled upon seeing this.

This so-called Chupu is quite similar to the later games of Ludo or Shuanglu.

Five dice are thrown together, or they are placed in a bamboo tube and shaken, resulting in many different arrangements and combinations depending on their suits.

The "Black Black Calf" is the highest-ranking move in the game of Chupu, with a range of sixteen arrows, allowing it to move sixteen squares on the board.

The black pheasant is called the pheasant, and it has fourteen arrows, allowing it to move fourteen squares on the chessboard.

White, white, white calf, this is called calf gathering, the number of arrows is ten.

The white pheasant is called the White Pheasant, and its number of arrows is eight.

The above four combinations are called "Gui Cai".

The burly man with the bushy beard threw a random bet. According to the rules of Chupu, only a "noble bet" is allowed to allow a piece to enter the path or move.

The outcome of Chupu depends not only on luck with the dice, but also on strategy when moving horses. When to advance with a single horse, when to advance with several horses together for safety, and when to capture the opponent's key horse and send them back to the starting point all require careful consideration.

Just now, the burly man with the bushy beard only had one red horse left in the base that hadn't been moved. Before him, there was a yellow horse that was more than sixteen squares away. He rolled three blacks, one ox, and one chicken. He was just one ox away from the highest possible result, but unfortunately, it turned into a mixed set. He could only watch helplessly as the opportunity slipped away.

At this moment, everyone noticed the Emperor, Chen Dao, Guan Xing, and Zhao Guang standing at the entrance of the tent, and the noise abruptly stopped.

General Liao Shi of Zhaoyi reacted the fastest, immediately rising and leading all the generals, officers, and military commanders in the tent to bow in salute:
"I will see your Majesty at last!"

The camp where Liao Shi was stationed mainly consisted of his original confidants, but also included a small number of local Jingzhou people who had surrendered during the battles of Wuxian and Zigui.

Without exception, these mid-level officers had all served as clerks under the late emperor and Guan Yu, and after meeting the emperor, they were assigned to Liao Shi's command.

The emperor then ordered them to select trustworthy soldiers from among the prisoners to form the Zhaoyi Army of the Han Dynasty.

These surrendered generals from Jingzhou knew that although they were tolerated by the Emperor of Han, they could not truly integrate with the Han army that was conquering the east, and they understood that they would definitely be treated differently.

Unexpectedly, the emperor treated everyone equally, bestowing upon them the same amount of silk as other Han army camps as prizes for military entertainment.

At this moment, seeing the emperor himself arrive, the newly surrendered Wu generals felt both uneasy and slightly excited.

"My lords, you may rise. I was on an inspection tour of the camp when I heard that this place was bustling with activity, so I came to take a look. There's no need for formalities; let's continue playing dice."

Surrounded by Chen Dao, Guan Xing, Zhao Guang, and a group of imperial guards, the emperor smiled gently, but no one dared to mistake that smile for weakness or vulnerability. No one would believe that an emperor who had personally led troops into battle and won numerous victories would show his emotions on his face.

Since Liu Shan had made the announcement, the dice game in the tent continued.

However, with the emperor present, the atmosphere was not as relaxed as it had been before.

Seeing this, Liu Shan, sitting in the main seat, instructed Zhao Guang behind him: "Send someone to fetch a hundred bolts of Shu brocade as a prize."

Not long after.

The dragon-riding men brought out colorful and exquisite Shu brocade, which was piled up to one side and shimmered under the firelight inside the tent.

Such exquisite fabrics were so beloved that not only ordinary soldiers, but also the high-ranking officials and even Cao Pi and Cao Rui themselves were captivated by them.

The officials and emperors of Cao Wei loved the beauty, luxury, and status symbol of Shu brocade, while the newly surrendered people loved the monetary value of Shu brocade, which was almost equivalent to gold.

"I've had a wonderful time today," Liu Shan said loudly.

"Whoever rolls the most valuable tile will be rewarded with a bolt of Shu brocade! If they can get the Lu (a type of celestial sphere), they will receive an even greater reward!"

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere in the tent instantly heated up again, even more so than before. The soldiers first looked at the pile of Shu brocade, then at the emperor, their eyes burning with fervor, rubbing their hands together in anticipation.

The eunuchs served simple food and drink.

Generals Guan Xing and Zhao Guang were also sent down by Liu Shan to join Liao Shi and other generals in the fun.

Liu Shan sat in the main seat, eating and watching with great interest.

With the emperor's personal presence, his close advisors joining in the games, and generous rewards of Shu brocade as incentives, the participants reacted enthusiastically to the games.

The crisp sound of dice hitting the board, along with urging, sighs, and cheers, rose up all at once, never ceasing.

Although there were a hundred bolts of Shu brocade, it couldn't keep up with the soldiers' high spirits. In less than an hour, only the last bolt remained, standing alone in the center of the tent. And this lone bolt of Shu brocade attracted everyone's attention.

Everyone was eager to join the game, and they almost came to blows.

After Liu Shan raised his hand to stop the chaos, he smiled and took off a set of jade pendants with dragon patterns from his waist.

"The stakes are about to be reached. I will use this jade as my wager." Liu Shan held the jade pendant in his palm. "Next, all the soldiers in the tent, come forward. Whoever can throw out the Lu Cai (a type of jade) in one go, I will bestow this jade upon them!"

The game rules were immediately simplified; the horse racing game was discontinued, and only the dice rolls were played.

Inside the tent, whether it was generals like Liao Shi and Guan Xing, or their respective captains and commanders, everyone was eager to try their hand at it. They stepped forward with high hopes, carefully hiding the five dice in their palms, praying silently, or growling softly, before finally throwing them with all their might.

The results were mostly mixed mining, such as white mining, mining, and blocking mining, with even calf mining and pheasant mining being rare, let alone Lu mining.

"Ugh!"

"Almost!"

"Another mixed bag!"

Sighs rose and fell.

The last piece of Shu brocade and the imperial jade pendant remained unclaimed, and even the Grand Commander Chen Dao, who had been silently sitting at the head of the left, was tempted.

"Your Majesty, I... also wish to give it a try."

Liu Shan laughed heartily and clapped his hands loudly: "General Shuzhi, please go!"

Chen Dao stood up.

He walked to the center of the table, took a deep breath, picked up the bamboo tube, put the five dice into it, and unlike the others who shook it for a long time, he simply flicked his wrist and poured the dice onto the table.

With a crisp clang, the dice tumbled.

"Black! Black! Black!"

"...Pheasant!"

"Oh, it's white!"

In the end, with three black birds, one pheasant, and one white bird, they still couldn't get Lu.

Chen Dao shook his head, a helpless smile on his face, bowed to the emperor, and returned to his seat.

Even Grand Commander Chen Dao failed. The generals in the tent looked at each other in disappointment, and no one else stepped forward.

Seeing this, Liu Shan knew that everyone had already cast their ball once, so he said, "In that case, why don't you all play another round!"

Upon hearing the emperor's words, the atmosphere became lively once again.

But then the Tiger General beside the Emperor whispered a reminder: "Your Majesty, Liao Zhaoyi... seems not to have rolled yet."

The scene was lively just now, but Liao Shi, as the commander of the battalion, did not actively participate. He simply arranged for his subordinates to maintain order, with a polite smile on his face.

Upon hearing this, Liu Shan turned his gaze to Liao Shi, who was rather taciturn in the crowd.

"Oh?" Liu Shan suddenly realized, and then smiled at Liao Shi, "Minister Liao, all the generals have already surrendered, but you alone have not yet made a move. Is it because the Shu brocade is not beautiful enough, or is it because my jade pendant is not enough to tempt you?"

"Your subject dares not!" Upon hearing this, Liao Shi's body trembled immediately. "Your subject..."

Liu Shan smiled and waved his hand, "Go quickly, my jade pendant might be waiting for you."

Liao Shi observed the situation closely, took a deep breath, and slowly walked to the chessboard, but did not immediately bend down to take the five dice.

After standing there for a moment, he straightened his clothes and walked to Liu Shan's seat amidst the puzzled gazes of the crowd. Suddenly, he solemnly performed a deep bow, and when he raised his head, his expression was more solemn than ever before.

"His Majesty!
"Your subject, Liao Shi, is originally a traveler!"

"Now I have abandoned darkness and embraced light, and submitted to the Celestial Dynasty. I am grateful that His Majesty has not abandoned me, has bestowed upon me the title of Zhaoyi, and has treated me with the respect due to a national hero!"
"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful and restless, thinking day and night to do my utmost to be loyal to Your Majesty and repay even a fraction of your great kindness!"

"Now that Your Majesty has personally come and bestowed such precious treasures as rewards, I dare not presume to ask for wealth. I only wish to use this to express my sincerity!"

"If my loyalty is as clear as the sun and moon, and as witnessed by heaven, earth, and spirits, then please grant me Lu Cai, and make all five of my sons black!"

As soon as this statement came out, everyone in the audience was shocked!

Even important ministers like Chen Dao, Guan Xing, and Zhao Guang were dumbfounded. If Liao Shi couldn't throw out the Lu Cai, wouldn't that prove to His Majesty that he wasn't truly loyal?

At that moment, Liao Shi walked to the chessboard and knelt down. Instead of taking the dice, he drew his sword from his waist with a clang and placed it horizontally in front of his knees without hesitation.

"If I harbor any impure thoughts or have a weak will, and the divine spirits are discerning and do not grant me the favor... then I will use this knife to commit suicide before Your Majesty, to repay Your Majesty's kindness in recognizing my talent!"

A collective gasp filled the tent, followed by a deathly silence. Everyone was stunned speechless by Liao Shi's sudden action.

Liu Shan was stunned.

Good heavens, you Liao Shi with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, are you actually Wang Sizheng who traveled through time?
Before anyone could react, Liao had already placed the dice in the bamboo tube, shook it casually, and then slammed it shut.

Just as everyone held their breath, and he nervously and tremblingly prepared to lift the tube, Liu Shan suddenly stood up and shouted, "Wait!"

This shout froze everyone's expressions. Liao Shi's hand remained on the bamboo tube as he looked at the Emperor in bewilderment.

Liu Shan quickly stepped down from his seat and entered the center of the arena.

"I already know Liao Qing's intentions! Why should I use such oaths to prove myself?"

He held Liao's hand, secured the bamboo tube, helped him up, and continued speaking loudly:

"I have long known that in the land of Jingchu, people often believe in prophecies, divination, and witchcraft."

“In the past, whenever Sun Quan went to war, he would first consult divination to seek the will of Heaven.”

"When I first arrived at the army last year, I also found that many soldiers privately believed in this doctrine, and would consult divination before battles to predict good or bad fortune, or officers would use the words of sorcerers to boost morale."

"This is a custom, and I am not unaware of it."

His voice gradually rose:

"However, since I executed Cao Zhen, I have clearly ordered that all witchcraft and prophecy be banned from the army! Do you all know why?"

The tent was completely silent, save for the crackling of the torches and Liu Shan's clear voice:
"Because I firmly believe."

"Where there's a will, there's a way; man can conquer nature!"

"The outcome of a battle depends on strategic planning, the soldiers' willingness to fight, sufficient supplies, and strict laws! How could it be determined by a few dice or some vague divine intervention?"

He looked at Liao Shi, his gaze intense:
"Minister Liao, you led the people to join the cause and helped me conquer Wuxian and Zigui. This is a real achievement that I and the soldiers of the three armies have witnessed!"
"Isn't such a great achievement more valuable than throwing ten Lucky Coins? Why should we ask the gods and spirits about your loyalty?"

These words, like a resounding bell, resonated in the hearts of everyone present.

Especially those soldiers who originally belonged to Eastern Wu, they were used to Sun Quan's style of consulting divination and fortune-telling at every turn, and had never heard such a statement emphasizing "human will can conquer nature".
Liao Shi was deeply moved, his body trembled slightly, and his eyes welled up with tears.

Amidst the puzzled gazes of the crowd, Liu Shan reached out and grasped the bamboo tube, casually shook it, and lifted the tube to flip the five randomly colored dice one by one.

black!
black!
black!
犊！
犊！
"Liao Shi De Lu!" Liu Shan shouted.

The tent fell silent for a moment.

A moment later, Liao knelt down and bowed his head:
"Your subject... Liao Shi! I thank Your Majesty for your great kindness! Your Majesty's trust and favor are a debt I can never repay even with my death! In this life, I will devote all my strength and loyalty to Your Majesty, even unto death!"

(End of this chapter)