Rather, It's Beautiful
Rather, It's Beautiful
Starting with the report from Hua Xiong,
intelligence from the surrounding area rapidly began to pour into Cheng Pu.
As Cheng Pu reviewed the whole of it, Ji Ling's face grew increasingly rigid.
"Ah... no, my lord. You're telling me the Yellow Turban bastards have already gathered this many?"
"So it seems. According to the scouts' reports, their numbers are still swelling by the thousands every day even now."
"Hrmmm..."
Ji Ling began to frown, and I was no different.
Our allied forces currently stationed here in Henei numbered roughly 50,000.
The 20,000 under my direct command, plus the 18,000 troops Dong Zhuo had brought with her.
On top of that, there were the 12,000 reinforcements Henei had agreed to send.
In contrast were the Yellow Turbans, currently massing northeast of Henei, with soldiers still flocking to them.
Although their strength was primarily conscripted peasants, hastily pulled together, their scale was absolutely not something to take lightly.
With the Yellow Turbans being the type to overwhelm with sheer headcount, I had expected a degree of numerical disadvantage.
But the report that came in left even me, who had braced myself to some extent, feeling faintly dizzy.
200,000.
Judged by scale alone, it was a staggering number that could be counted among the greatest of the era.
And among them, it was said, were a considerable number of relatively elite troops, seasoned by repeated victories since the early days of the Yellow Turban Rebellion.
Even now, their strength was growing hour by hour as reinforcements flooded in from all directions.
These were bastards on a fundamentally different level from the disorganized rabble of Yellow Turbans we had faced so far.
"In that case, my lord, who is their leader? For a force this size to gather, it can't be some nobody."
"As you say, he's a considerable figure. Zhang Liang. The younger brother of the Yellow Turban leader, Zhang Jiao."
"Zhang Liang... Well, he's the leader's right arm, so I suppose that's how he scraped together a full 200,000."
I didn't know exactly, but based on the Original Timeline, I had a rough idea of what sort of person Zhang Liang was.
A guy who got thrashed by Cao Cao and crushed by Liu Bei, going down in spectacular ruin.
Still, according to the Records of the Three Kingdoms, after Zhang Jiao's death, he led the remnants and put up a decent fight for a while, until ultimately, a moment of negligence brought his defeat at the hands of the government forces.
In other words, he was a mediocre sort whose military ability was not entirely absent, but also far too ambiguous to call truly excellent.
Not the type you expect to employ some grand strategy, but not the type to fall easily, either.
In any case, what worried me more than him was the army of 200,000 he was leading.
A direct confrontation against a great army four times our own strength was practically suicide.
At least, our knowledge of the terrain, a privilege of the government forces, gave us the advantage of Cheng Pu and our guides—who were intimately familiar with the local geography. But the same likely held true for the enemy, who had absorbed the Yellow Turbans and peasants of this region into their own forces.
As I considered this situation, so rife with disadvantages, I needed to think about how to conduct this battle, but...
"So? How are we going to fight this time? Surely you, my lord, have already prepared a stratagem to crush the enemy overwhelmingly, like you always have?"
"Hrm..."
Ji Ling asked, her eyes practically sparkling.
But from my position, receiving such expectations felt especially heavy today.
If this battle were something like the well-known Battle of Red Cliffs or the Battle of Guandu, I could at least produce a usable tactic based on my knowledge of the Original Timeline.
This battle, however, was an unnamed last-ditch struggle (?) of the Yellow Turbans.
I had no knowledge whatsoever about how it would unfold.
And whatever Ji Ling might think, the truth was that I was no great man like Zhuge Liang or Guo Jia, possessed of genius-level strategy and capable of churning out one brilliant plan after another.
Still, somehow I had managed overwhelming victories until now... but honestly, if you look at it plainly, it was all dumb luck, wasn't it?
In my first battle, it was Gung Seon, presumed to be future S-rank talent, who did it.
In the second, Dong Zhuo fought a bloody battle against the enemy first, and I practically reaped the fisherman's profit against an already exhausted foe.
Expecting that kind of luck again this time would be greedy.
'Is there no other way...? Here, it might be better to entrust the overall strategy to Dong Zhuo's side. She was beaten badly last time, but still, undeniably, compared to me...?'
In that moment.
While reflecting on that past luck concerning Dong Zhuo, a single thought suddenly surfaced in my mind...
I recalled what I had said to that little brat not long ago.
That even a worthless object can change its value depending on how you use it.
'... I can't depend on luck. But if I can create a similar situation...?'
With that thought, I immediately left the encampment to give it more concrete shape.
My destination was the person I had been avoiding as much as possible since the sparring match between Ji Ling and Hua Xiong, because of a vaguely unsettling feeling.
The place where Sister Dong Zhuo was.
*
Dong Zhuo was pacing back and forth inside her tent, her expression anxious.
For the past several days, she had been unable to collect herself, beset by thoughts that refused to leave her head.
'Why am I acting like this? It's not like me... reduced to this state just because of a single failure...'
Her heart had not been this complicated even when she lost a battle.
She knew well that defeat itself could be a good teacher, and indeed, she had multiple experiences of seizing victory by using bitter experience as nourishment.
Yet, no matter who she was, it was not easy to review the recent 'defeat' with a cool head.
Just recalling that situation made her chest feel stifled even now, making normal thought alone a struggle.
'... Even so... I cannot remain like this forever.'
A critical battle was now right around the corner.
She had to pull herself together and formulate a strategy.
Striving to find her composure, Dong Zhuo tried to look at the map again.
But then...
"Pardon the intrusion, Governor."
"Ah..."
The moment she saw the man who entered her tent,
the heart she had barely managed to settle began to waver again.
"Ge... General? What brings you here..."
"Hm? Did you not receive word? I sent a messenger ahead to say we should hold a meeting to devise our strategy..."
"Ah... di... did you? R... right..."
Dong Zhuo stammered her reply, but in truth, she hadn't even remembered such a thing happening.
Now that she thought about it, someone had come and said something or other, and she vaguely recalled giving some kind of offhand answer and ending it there.
'If what they said back then was about this... tch... I should have at least tidied my appearance beforehand...'
For the past several days, she had not only applied no powder to her face but hadn't even slept properly.
Naturally, her appearance was utterly haggard, and her hair was considerably tangled and disheveled.
As she realized this, a deep shame washed over her, and Dong Zhuo unconsciously covered her face slightly with her hand.
"What is the matter? Is something troubling you?"
"N... no... it's just... tch."
Had it been her original self, she would hardly have paid such things any mind.
She understood the importance of appearance, but a true leader must not lose dignity even with a slightly unkempt look.
When dealing with subordinates, she might reproach the other's shabbiness, but she was never the type to fault herself over her own looks.
Yet, somehow, in this moment, before this person standing in front of her...
Before this man standing before her eyes, she did not wish to show such a shabby appearance.
"I apologize. I've been so out of sorts that I'm in no state to receive a guest..."
As she spoke with a self-reproaching heart, Dong Zhuo felt an agony that seemed to grip her chest tightly.
'He must... dislike it, won't he? Surely, a sight like this...'
This was the man who hadn't batted an eye even when she pressed her chest against him before.
Though she could not be certain, he likely did not feel particularly favorable toward her... feeling some degree of distance, and given the situation, this incident was sure to make them grow further apart.
She had thought so... but.
"Not at all... Rather, it is I who can feel nothing but sincere regret."
"Regret... you say?"
Yuan Shu apologized, not out of formality or courtesy, but genuine sincerity.
To her, who felt flustered, the man bowed his head respectfully.
*
Even at a single glance, Dong Zhuo's state was a mess.
Eyes heavily shadowed with dark circles as if she hadn't slept properly, hair in disarray.
And from the disorder of her clothing, a glimpse of the upper swell of her chest and her thighs peeked through... ahem.
Seeing her like this forced me into some bitter self-reflection.
I had thought I was constantly wracking my brains a great deal for the coming battle in my own way.
But even amid that, I had rested when I needed to rest, slept when I needed to sleep, and ate all three meals without fail, giving myself some measure of leeway while I thought.
On the other hand, the person before my eyes was different.
Unlike when I had seen her, composed, a few days earlier, the face I encountered now had changed so much.
Her gaunt face was etched with exhaustion, as if she had foregone not only rest but even proper meals and sleep.
In her appearance, where the evidence of a full day spent in ceaseless contemplation to devise a strategy was so clearly visible, I could glimpse the devotion of a leader who was grinding herself to the bone in pursuit of victory.
Though it felt anew, it was a part that revealed just how fiercely Dong Zhuo had lived her life.
Even if she would fall down a dark path in the future, right now there was no choice but to feel a measure of respect. So thinking, I bowed my head toward her respectfully.
"This is my lack of insight. While you, Governor, have been agonizing so deeply for this war, I, a mere Major, failed entirely to perceive it. Please, forgive my thoughtlessness."
"..."
Dong Zhuo maintained silence for a moment at my apology.
Then soon, she asked me in a cautious voice.
"Do you... not find it displeasing? This unsightly appearance of mine..."
"How could it be called unsightly? Rather... it is beautiful."
"...! Be... beau... tiful? You speak... of me?"
"Indeed I do. The Governor who is doing her utmost for her duty... losing sleep for victory, your appearance is truly beautiful and beyond measure, worthy of respect."
"Ah..."
Certainly, her current impression was different from the ordinary in many ways.
Unlike the times when she radiated an extraordinary dignity and an alluring charm that was difficult to approach,
now, looking tired and exhausted, she even inspired a somewhat pitiable feeling.
Though, since her base features were such a great beauty to begin with, even if her dress was shabby, the concept of "unsightly" was far removed from her.
"To ensure that devotion is not in vain, I too shall do my utmost to assist you, Governor."
"Uh... uung... is... is that so. Thank you... for understanding..."
Watching Dong Zhuo stammer out an answer, looking slightly bashful, I had the thought that she might be unexpectedly weak to praise.
Come to think of it, she seemed to have shown a similar reaction before, too...
At any rate, that was that, and I immediately got to the point.
"In that regard, Governor, I have come having devised one stratagem concerning the battle, but I have not yet found a way to make it concrete. If it pleases you, would you hear my thoughts?"
"Of, of course. Here, sit down, comfortably... let us speak comfortably."
Dong Zhuo's cheeks colored slightly as she guided me to one side.
Having taken a seat beside her, I looked at the large chest... no, the map spread out on the table, and began to recount the things that had surfaced in my mind a moment ago.
At that.
"If it's a method like that... as it happens, there is one that comes to mind."
"What would that be, Governor?"
"It is a tactic I had once considered attempting but ultimately set aside. Yet, in a situation like the present, it seems sufficiently possible. Especially now, with their reinforcements continuing to pour in..."
The moment I suggested the rough direction, a strategy immediately came forth.
As I thought to myself that a hardened veteran of countless battlefields really was different, a smile automatically spread across my lips.