In the Three Kingdoms period, the opening scene features the killing of Huang Gai, shocking Zhou Yu!

the next day.

Zhao Yu is here again.

This time, I switched to spicy beef.

Zhao Yu, holding a tin megaphone, shouted into the gate.

His tone was full of a helpless resignation.

"Hey—! Guys upstairs! Have you had breakfast yet?!"

"It's not that I'm trying to tempt you guys! It's just that the logistics department sent way too much! We can't possibly finish it all!"

"Smell this! If we don't eat this beef soon, it'll grow mold! These are top-quality draft oxen, and to entertain the troops, they're all ramming into the wall, impossible to stop!"

He covered his head as he spoke, filled with deep regret.

"Brothers, following Zhang Lu and drinking talisman water and gnawing on tree bark every day is a dead end!"

"Why don't you come down and help out? We have tens of thousands of brothers who can't possibly finish it all; it'd be a shame to throw it away!"

On the third day, we had mutton stew with bread.

The aroma of meat made me lose focus.

Some people started discussing it privately.

"Why do they have meat to eat every day, while we eat dry rations?"

"And we're here every day, eating dry food and drinking cold water, all in the name of 'attaining immortality'?"

"Are gods treated worse than mortals?"

On the fourth day, a big stew of meat and vegetables was served.

He was already numb. He didn't say much more, just stared at the outside of the city.

On the fifth day, Zhao Yu set up a mutton buffet right in front of the battle lines.

The soldiers were divided into teams of five, and each team was given five jin of mutton.

One jin per person.

Let them perform the moxibustion themselves.

Lamb has a strong gamey smell.

So many people still grill and eat it themselves.

That would be terrible.

This is practically torture.

The initial wariness and hostility subsided after five consecutive days of insane "saturation feeding"...

It turned into pure longing.

They weren't greedy; they were resentful.

We suffer here, but the people above us don't care about us at all.

The straw that broke the camel's back occurred during the daytime on the sixth day.

The two night watchmen, Chen Da and Chen Er, huddled in the corner, their stomachs rumbling.

Chen Er looked at the "talisman water cake" in his hand, which was as hard as a rock.

"Brother, do you think the High Priest's talisman water can really stave off hunger?"

Chen Da swallowed hard, staring at the still-smoking stove below the city wall:

"When I was farming in Hanzhong, I thought I could do it."

"But ever since I smelled that cumin across the street... I think Lao Tzu probably hasn't eaten anything good."

"Brother, don't worry, I'll make sure you get to eat meat."

……

That night, it was dark and windy.

Chen Da secretly sent out the message.

Zhao Yu acted swiftly.

They sent a few skilled men to infiltrate the area.

One person carried two small bamboo baskets, inside which were freshly heated clay pots of braised pork.

Meow~~

Meow~~

The Cao soldiers below meowed like cats a few times, and then a rope was lowered down.

On the city wall.

Several ghost soldiers hurriedly pulled the basket up.

Open the earthenware jar.

The aroma of braised pork filled the entire corner.

Several crooked characters were written on the bamboo strip under the pottery jar.

Don't starve yourself; sneak a few bites, the gods in heaven won't see. — Respectfully submitted by Zhao Yu

"Waaaaah..."

Chen Er held the jar of meat and frantically stuffed it into his mouth.

"This is so delicious...this is what human beings should eat..."

"Brother, I don't want to be a ghost soldier anymore... I want to go work as a bricklayer on the other side..."

"How dare you!!!"

A furious shout shattered the tranquility of the night.

Torches were lit.

Zhang Wei, leading a team of supervisors, emerged from the shadows with a grim expression.

Chen Da, Chen Er, and several ghost soldiers were so frightened that the jars in their hands fell to the ground and shattered with a crack.

The braised pork belly rolled onto the ground.

Even so, the fragrance still lingered in the air, mocking Zhang Wei's incompetence.

"You're colluding with the enemy! You're colluding with the enemy!"

Zhang Wei drew his sword, the tip pointing directly at Chen Er, whose mouth was dripping with grease.

"You ate the flesh of Cao Cao, and you've been bewitched! You've betrayed the Celestial Master!"

"Guards! Seize him! Execute him..."

The word "slay" was stuck in Zhang Wei's throat, and he couldn't spit it out no matter what he did.

Because he noticed the way the people around him were looking at him.

It wasn't just these few who stole the food.

Even the supervisory team he brought, those confidants who were originally considered the most loyal and had drunk the most talisman water.

Their eyes were fixed on the piece of braised pork on the ground, which was covered in ash.

In the firelight, Zhang Wei could clearly see that each of their Adam's apples was bobbing.

Zhang Wei's heart sank.

He realized a terrible truth:

If he were to strike now...

It wasn't just a few heads that were chopped off.

It was the last vestige of morale at Yangping Pass.

If a mutiny is sparked, these tens of thousands of people might tear him, the chief priest, apart alive for a piece of meat!

Faith is utterly vulnerable in the face of hunger and extreme temptation.

"...Sever...sever all your hopes!"

Zhang Wei abruptly changed his words.

He kicked over the bamboo basket on the ground, and the tip of the sword landed squarely on the braised pork.

"Considering this is your first offense, and that you were bewitched by sorcery!"

"This high priest has shown mercy today and will spare your lives tonight!"

"All of you, get back to your seats and reflect on your mistakes! Copy the *Tao Te Ching* and the *Lao Tzu Xiang Er Commentary* one hundred times! You're not allowed to eat until you've finished!"

The ghost soldiers, as if granted a pardon, fled in a panic.

But before leaving, some people couldn't help but look back at the trampled piece of meat, their eyes full of regret.

Zhang Wei was left standing alone on the pass, looking at the scattered lights of Cao Cao's camp in the distance.