Chapter 65

Chapter 699: One General's Success, Ten Thousand Bones Wither (一將功成萬骨枯) One Battle's Victory, a Hundred Empty Jars (一戰功勝百空罐) (3)

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With a thud, Noruk clutched the back of his head and collapsed. As the pain subsided, he looked at Sedong with tears welling up in his eyes.

Then Sedong explained why he had hit him.

"Brat, you won't get any good liquor anywhere."

"Is that all you have to say after hitting me on the back of the head?"

"You haven't been hit enough yet!"

Sedong rolled up his sleeves. Noruk, terrified, waved his hands frantically.

"Ouch! No, sir!"

"I'll tell you. Since ancient times, so-called 'fine liquor' has had a pungent aroma."

"That's ridiculous..."

As Noruk sneered, Sedong's eyebrows twitched. Sensing an ominous atmosphere, Noruk forced a smile.

"Hehehe! General, I've never heard of such a thing. Isn't the fragrance of fine liquor supposed to be pleasant?"

"Damn it! Brat! How can you know one thing and not the other? I'm an expert in liquor. Now, listen well. This liquor is definitely something the Lord will drink or bestow."

Sedong's words made Noruk nod repeatedly. Seeing this, Sedong continued, feeling more confident.

"Such liquor can't be bad."

"True, but this jar seems to have gone bad. The smell is so pungent that it's hard to keep from gagging."

"The other jars will surely have the same smell. What do you say? Want to bet on it?"

Noruk asked cautiously.

"What kind of bet?"

"Opening another jar to see if it has the same smell. I bet it does."

"If I win, you have to follow the Lord's order to abstain from alcohol."

"Agreed! What will you bet?"

"General, you should speak first."

Noruk pretended to be polite and passed the ball back to Sedong.

"If I win, I won't give you any liquor."

"If I win, you must follow the Lord's order to abstain from alcohol."

"Once a word is spoken (一言旣出)!"

"It's hard to take back (駟馬難追)!"

* * *

The two men, who had sworn to abide by the result of the bet, stood there. Sedong gestured to Noruk, who then brought another jar of liquor from the cart and placed it on the ground, carefully opening the lid.

A foul odor, like that of urine, filled the air, causing Noruk's face to crumple.

On the contrary, Sedong smiled triumphantly.

"Well, what do you think?"

"General, this liquor might have gone bad too."

"Tsk tsk tsk! Brat, can a man say two things with one mouth?"

Sedong clicked his tongue and continued. After all, Noruk was his loyal subordinate.

"It's clearly medicinal liquor made from beneficial herbs. Otherwise, it wouldn't have such a smell."

"The liquor might be poisoned. Why would anyone willingly drink extremely poisonous liquor...?"

"Poison in so much liquor? That's absurd. If the Lord wanted to kill someone, he would use a sword, not poison. Even the Red Silk Corps don't coat their arrows with poison. Can't you see that?"

Noruk tried every excuse to stop Sedong, but it was all in vain. In the end, Sedong dipped a gourd into the jar of liquor.

Seeing the liquor swirl in the gourd, Sedong swallowed hard. The moment he tasted it, his body trembled with pleasure.

As if possessed, Sedong drained the gourd in one go. The order to abstain from alcohol, issued by the military advisor, vanished from his mind.

"Kyaah!"

Sedong let out a cry and lifted the jar with one hand, pouring it directly into his mouth.

In no time, Sedong had emptied the jar, and his eyes changed. He reached out without hesitation to lift another jar. Noruk was beside himself with worry.

"General, you said you'd only drink one jar. Now, please put it down."

"I did? I never said that!"

"It's the Lord's liquor. If the Lord finds out you drank it... "

"Shut up! Here, I'm the king!"

Noruk was worried to the point of madness. For the person guarding the supply route to tamper with the supplies was a capital offense.

But Sedong was already in a frenzy. 'Mad Dog Sedong.' When drunk, he became the worst troublemaker in the Jiangyidan.

"Good! Good! Noruk, you drink too!"

Sedong handed a small jar of liquor to Noruk.

Noruk was conflicted. The smell from the jar made it hard to breathe, let alone drink. It was enough to drive him mad.

But with Sedong's eyes now changed, resistance was futile. If he didn't want to get beaten...

Drunkards have all sorts of habits. Some cry, some repeat themselves, some shout, and some pick fights.

Sedong had all the bad habits known to man. Among them, forcing others to drink was the worst.

If you drink, you don't get hit. If you refuse, you get beaten. That was the unwritten rule. So Noruk, with tears in his eyes, had no choice but to drink the foul-smelling liquor.

"Khh~!"

Though he drank it as if it were a death sentence, the taste was extraordinary. It was worth breaking the order to abstain from alcohol.

From the moment it passed his throat to the warm sensation rising from his stomach, everything was exceptional except for the smell.

"Not bad, huh?"

* * *

"Hahaha!"

Sedong slapped Noruk's back heartily and laughed. He then opened another jar of liquor.

Noruk, who had been trying to stop him from drinking, was nowhere to be seen. Instead, he was so captivated by the taste that he had forgotten the military advisor's order.

Many generals had already gathered around Sedong, sharing the liquor.

"If there's good liquor, it should be shared!"

"General, you're not planning to drink alone, are you?"

"So what? Are you saying you won't drink this liquor?"

"Burp! No, Noruk will drink and die!"

Sedong, seemingly pleased with Noruk's answer, put his arm around his shoulder in a show of camaraderie. He then slapped his back again and shouted.

"Ahahaha! This is the first time our Jiangyidan warriors have had a drink in a long time. Don't worry about the aftermath!"

"Noruk won't complain anymore!"

"Right, right! Is the Lord more frightening, or the military advisor? Let's empty all these jars and blame it on the Red Silk Corps! The military advisor is the master of the Red Silk Corps, so the Lord won't believe him outright!"

Sedong's bad drinking habits inadvertently made Guo Jia's strategy a complete success.

The generals who had shared the liquor with Sedong began to fall one by one.

"Hmm?"

Sedong was startled by the unexpected turn of events.

"Noruk!"

He turned his gaze and called out Noruk's name. But Noruk had already collapsed.

"Noruk! Noruk! Wake up!"

Sedong shook Noruk frantically, thinking he might be dead. But Noruk didn't budge.

Slap! Slap!

Sedong slapped Noruk's cheeks repeatedly. Noruk's eyes opened slightly.

"Let me sleep a bit more."

Noruk grumbled and fell back asleep. Fortunately, he wasn't dead, but he was in such a deep sleep that even slaps couldn't wake him.

Sedong felt something was wrong. Looking around, he saw that the generals had all passed out. Every single one of them, without exception.

'They shouldn't be this bad after drinking this much... Is it because it's been so long since they had a drink? The liquor must have weakened. How can a few dozen people not finish a cart of liquor?'

Even if not as much as Sedong, they were all renowned generals, so they should have a higher tolerance than ordinary people. Yet, they all fell into a deep sleep after drinking what they usually could handle.

'Could it be that the liquor...?'

His instincts sent a warning signal. But it was too late to do anything. His eyelids felt as heavy as lead.

'This can't be... This can't be... Why am I so sleepy...?'

Thud!

Sedong fell on top of Noruk, snoring loudly as he fell asleep.

* * *

Yidu had been staying in Dongguan, so he could move around freely.

Dongguan was guarded by the Jiangyidan, which was entirely composed of Qiang people.

Therefore, they were very wary of outsiders. As a result, Yidu didn't have to stand guard at night and had nothing much to do.

Except for the granary and armory, there was nowhere he couldn't go. He just had to be careful of the Jiangyidan soldiers.

Moreover, he was now serving as a servant to Si Jian, giving him even more freedom.

Taking full advantage of this, Yidu began to gather intelligence on Dongguan.

Of course, Xue Miao hadn't specifically ordered him to do this.

He did it on his own initiative, wanting to earn merit for Xue Miao.

'The liquor-loving Zhenzhang wouldn't just sit there and look at the liquor.'

Yidu could easily guess where Sedong was. He had already figured out Sedong's habits when he was left behind in Dongguan.

After all, anyone could have known.

The military advisor had issued strict orders multiple times, and all the liquor in Dongguan had been collected and taken away.

'Sure enough...!'

Yidu found Zhenzhang and the generals of Dongguan sprawled around the cart of liquor.

He couldn't get too close due to the overwhelming stench.

'What the hell did they drink? Or are they so drunk that they can't even control their bowels?'

The foul smell mixed with the liquor was clearly the smell of urine. So it wasn't unreasonable for Yidu to think this.

He immediately went to Xue Miao.

Of course, he didn't forget to carry a basin of water to avoid arousing suspicion.

"I've brought the water for washing."

At the door, Yidu announced, and Xue Miao slightly opened the door.

As soon as Yidu entered, he whispered.

"Brother, Zhenzhang and the generals have all drunk a lot and passed out."

"Really?"

Xue Miao finally understood Guo Jia's strategy. However, he didn't know that Guo Jia had mixed the liquor with a drug. He only guessed that Guo Jia was using the liquor to intoxicate the enemy general and then launch a surprise attack.

"Yidu."

"Yes, Brother."

"Can you guide me to where the supply unit is?"

"If you go yourself, it might arouse suspicion from the others."

Yidu warned that Xue Miao's meeting with the supply unit soldiers might look suspicious.

"Suspicion? What kind of suspicion?"

"This place is guarded by the Jiangyidan. Outsiders are always under suspicion."

"Then you'll have to do the hard work again."

Xue Miao's words made Yidu's eyes widen.

"What should I do?"

"You can move freely here. Go and meet the supply unit soldiers."

Yidu nodded, knowing that the supply unit was also made up of Lü Bu's soldiers.

"I'll do it. But who should I meet, and what should I tell them?"