Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 64: Bo Cai: Short of food? I have a homemade side dish to satisfy your hunger!

The autumn wind, like a tireless painter, freely paints the woods. Withered yellow leaves, unable to withstand the wind's manipulation, swirl and fall, soon forming a thick layer on the ground, making a soft rustling sound when stepped on.

After sleeping peacefully in the forest for several days without being harassed by the Han army, the morale of the Yellow Turban Army also improved a lot. The Han cavalry that had appeared in their nightmares almost every night gradually stopped appearing in their dreams, and the shadow of the tragic defeat no longer troubled anyone.

The panic and fear after the crushing defeat gradually faded from the soldiers' faces, replaced by a slowly returning color.

Some soldiers hummed tuneless songs and wiped their weapons, while others gathered together and talked about their plans to marry a woman with big hips or big breasts in the future. When they got excited, they would gesture with their hands and occasionally let out a few hearty laughs.

Inside the big tent, the bonfire crackled and flickered, illuminating everyone's faces.

Wu Ba's usually sinister face was now lightly painted with a smile. He leaned forward slightly, slapped his thighs with both hands, looked at Bo Cai and praised, "General Bo is truly a man of great talent! With this dense forest as a natural barrier, how dare the Han cavalry rush into the woods?"

As he spoke, his eyes sparkled with admiration and his body trembled slightly with excitement.

"Exactly! In my opinion, Huangfu Song is a coward. He didn't dare to attack. Instead, he surrounded this forest, dug trenches and built barriers to trap us here. Little did he know that we are not short of food and there is even water in the forest." Liu Pi stroked his curly beard while picking up the wine bowl and took a big gulp. The wine slid down the corner of his mouth and wet his lapel, but he was completely unaware. He just shook the wine jug in his hand, listening to the swishing sound of the wine inside. He picked up a piece of smoked meat from the bowl and put it in his mouth. After chewing it vigorously for a few times, he smacked his lips and complained with regret, "It's a pity that I didn't grab more wine. Now there is enough food, but my wine is almost gone."

As he spoke, Liu Pi was still staring at the wine pot.

"Kid, it's good to have something to eat." Peng Tuo stretched out his strong arm, patted Liu Pi's shoulder heavily, and said with a smile on his face, "At least we have enough food now, so it doesn't matter if we drink less."

As he spoke, Peng Tuo raised his eyebrows, winked at Liu Pi, and then proudly boasted to everyone, "If I didn't know how to smoke dried meat, you wouldn't even be able to fill your stomach now, and you're still thinking about drinking?"

He Yi stood aside and nodded slightly, confirming Peng Tuo's words, but his brows were slightly furrowed, and a trace of regret appeared on his face. He sighed softly and said, "It's a pity that after the meat is smoked, the texture is no longer visible. The meat of those rough guys is tough and sour, how can it compare to the meat of a twelve or thirteen-year-old child, which is as tender as lamb."

As he said this, a strange light flashed in his eyes, and the corners of his mouth rose slightly, revealing an imperceptible weird smile.

Everyone was stunned at first, and then burst into unbridled laughter.

They sipped wine and ate meat, chatting about the quality and taste of the meat. At first glance, they really sounded like a group of ordinary diners enjoying the food in a restaurant.

However, there is a difference between guests who come to eat food and diners who come to eat people.

Recalling the night when Sun Jian launched the night attack, flames shot up into the sky and most of the Yellow Turban Army’s food and supplies were burned.

Afterwards, the leaders of the Yellow Turban Army sat together, worried about the food problem.

But that devastating defeat not only burned up the food and fodder but also decimated half the army. Miraculously, this reduced the food shortage. As for how to solve the long-term food problem, Daqu Shuaibo pointed to the corpses scattered across the ground and replied, "The ground is littered with corpses, and the camp is full of wounded soldiers."

At first, everyone looked at each other, not understanding what he meant.

It was not until Bo strode to a corpse, his eyes cold and without a trace of emotion, that the long knife in his hand flashed a cold light in the air, and with a "swish" sound, he chopped off an arm of the corpse and threw it into the blazing fire.

The sizzling sound of barbecue broke the deathly silence, and everyone understood instantly. They immediately ordered the soldiers to collect the bodies and, under Peng Tuo's guidance, smoked a large amount of dried meat.

As for the lower-level soldiers, although they were terrified and worried that they would be eaten up physically after death, they did not stop chopping the corpses into strips of meat that were easier to smoke, even though the owners of these corpses had fought side by side with them, chatting and laughing the night before.

In this world, cannibalism is not uncommon.

Faced with continuous natural disasters and corrupt officials who even took relief grain stained with the blood of disaster victims, who hasn't eaten a few bites of human flesh?
"Exchange one's own children for food" is just four simple words in the eyes of literati and scholars. They can express their sorrow and pity with just one sentence "Alas", and the matter can be passed over.

They were dressed in gorgeous clothes and sat in high places. How could they know the sorrow of the lower-class people who had to exchange their own children for food in order to survive?

How could they know that these lower-class people had to sneak into their next door rooms in the middle of the night to kill their neighbors to satisfy their hunger in order to survive?
Even if the government learns that someone kills and eats meat in order to survive, they will not pursue the crime of murder.

Firstly, the government is unable to investigate. After all, there are countless people who kill and eat meat. Do they have to bring all of them to justice?
Secondly, we need to weigh the pros and cons of saving one person and killing two people. Obviously, it is clear which is better.

As they chatted, Wu Ba suddenly remembered something. A flicker of impatience crossed his face. He squinted at Huang Shao and asked, "By the way, Old Huang, what were you doing in the camp last night? Why were you so busy that you couldn't sleep?"

"It's just a few idiots under my command. How could there be any sparks in this weather? The bonfire went out and they didn't step on the sparks. When the wind blew, the sparks fell into a dead leaf and almost caused a big fire." Huang Shao waved his hand and said casually without caring, shaking his head as he spoke, with a helpless look on his face.

However, the speaker was unintentional, but the listener was intentional. He Yi, who had always been resourceful, looked blankly at the fallen leaves scattered around him, his eyes full of anxiety.

Bo Cai's eyes were filled with fear. He stood up suddenly, his hands clenched into fists subconsciously, and said in horror: "It's dry and rainy right now. If Huangfu Song trapped us in the forest, it was just to..."

Before he could finish his words, a cry of surprise reached his ears.

"Fire! Fire! General Bo, and all the generals, the forest is on fire! It's a huge fire!" Several Yellow Turban soldiers ran over in a hurry, panting, their faces full of fear, and their fingers trembling as they pointed at the orange-yellow light that looked like the setting sun not far away.

The flames, raging beneath the strong wind, were like a giant dragon with bared fangs and claws, rapidly devouring the surrounding trees. Thick smoke billowed, obscuring the sky, and the crackling sound of the burning was deafening. The heat wave swept over us, and wherever it passed, trees crackled and burned, sending birds and animals fleeing in all directions. The air began to fill with a pungent smell of burning.

(End of this chapter)