Inside the temporary government office in Hanxiang City.
After everyone was seated according to their roles as host and guest, several Japanese female slaves came in carrying various foods.
Upon seeing these petite and exquisite women, Liu Bei's eyes lit up, and he kept scanning them up. In contrast, Cao Cao merely glanced at them and lost interest.
Yuan Shao and Sun Jian appeared calm, but looking at the food, they realized how difficult their days adrift at sea had been.
Soon, the food and wine were served. Chu You raised his wine cup and bowed to the group.
"Generals, you have endured hardship at sea. This man proposes a toast to you all!"
"Chu Qin is too kind. We'll drink with you!"
Cao Cao and his companions quickly raised their wine cups in return and drank them down in one gulp.
After several rounds of drinks and pleasantries, Cao Cao spoke up, saying, "Envoy Chu, we are new to this place and still have many questions. We hope you can kindly enlighten us!"
"No problem!!"
Chu You smiled and nodded: "Currently, we have 4,000 guards for the mission and 7,000 surrendered Han troops under our command."
Five hundred men were responsible for guarding Hanxiang City, fifteen hundred men for guarding the silver mines, and two thousand men, along with the Han troops, were stationed at Shejin City, two hundred li to the north, to defend against an attack from the Yamatai Kingdom.
Cao Cao asked, "How many troops does the Yamatai Kingdom have?"
"There are approximately 40,000 people in total!"
Chu You paused for a moment and continued, "Originally, the only force fighting against our army was the Himitai tribe in the southwest, and they didn't have many people, only about 20,000."
Later, they formed an alliance with the Guishan Valley tribe in the southeast and the Cangjituo tribe in the central region to fight against our army.
Liu Bei couldn't help but ask, "Why would those two tribes ally with this Himitai tribe?"
Chu You smiled and said, "This matter is quite funny. Himitai has a daughter named Himiko, who seems to know some divination techniques."
The people and soldiers of Yamatai all said she could communicate with spirits and was a queen appointed by the gods. The two armies, unable to withstand the pressure from the people and soldiers, had no choice but to obey her commands!
"Heh, the Queen?"
Cao Cao couldn't help but chuckle: "These people are actually willing to honor a woman as their queen? Have they lost their minds?"
Chu You smiled and shook his head: "That's hard to say. Although I've been here for over a year, I still find it difficult to see through them!"
"If we can't see through them, then they're very dangerous, so there's no need to keep them around!"
Cao Cao spoke casually, picked up the wine cup in front of him, and drank it all in one gulp.
Yuan Shao and Sun Jian remained silent, preoccupied with finishing their food, while Liu Bei held his wine cup, his eyes darting around.
Seeing this, Cao Cao couldn't help but ask, "What are you thinking about, Xuande?"
"I'm wondering if Himiko is pretty!"
Liu Bei spoke frankly, a strange smile playing on his lips.
"I didn't realize you liked younger men?"
Cao Cao raised his eyelids and gave Liu Bei a strange look. After spending so much time together, he never expected that this guy would have such a hobby.
Liu Bei shrugged: "So what? Are you the only one who likes big ones?"
"Ahem~, can you two please eat in peace?"
Yuan Shao, who was eating nearby, overheard Cao Cao and Liu Bei's conversation and was momentarily speechless. He glanced at the two of them with a blank expression.
"Tch, hypocrite!"
Cao Cao and Liu Bei simultaneously rolled their eyes and began to concentrate on eating.
After the meal, Cao Cao and his men led 10,000 naval troops to set up camp north of Hanxiang City.
The noble families, merchants, and adventurers who remained in the city showed great enthusiasm upon seeing the well-equipped Han army, and spontaneously rushed forward to help.
The feeling of seeing one's own army while being far away overseas is undoubtedly one of great excitement and pride.
At the same time, they also knew that the Han army had sent them here to occupy the area.
After the army rested for two days, Chu You arrived at the military camp.
"Generals, this is a map of Yamatai and the surrounding countries that I ordered to be drawn!"
With that, Chu You handed the surveyed map to Cao Cao.
"Huh? Envoy Chu, why does this map only show the three southern tribes and the two northern tribes of Yamatai?"
Looking at the map, which only marked the terrain of the three southern regions, Cao Cao couldn't help but look at Chu You with a puzzled expression.
Chu You gave a bitter smile: "To be honest, the Himitai Tribe has completely cut off the passage to the north. Our people can't get through!"
Cao Cao frowned. "Are they afraid that our army will make contact with the two northern tribes and attack them from both sides?"
Chu You nodded: "That should be the case. Although Yamatai is called a country, its northern and southern regions are long and far apart, and there are also great differences in living habits. The people there may not really accept this queen!"
Liu Bei, who was standing nearby, said, "Mengde, perhaps we can try to send someone over to make contact with the two northern tribes and attack the Himitai tribe together."
Cao Cao waved his hand: "There's no need for that. We'll take them all down anyway, so we won't have to find an excuse to fall out with them later!"
Upon hearing this, Liu Bei nodded and said nothing more.
Cao Cao then put the map away and looked at Yuan Shao and Sun Jian: "Benchu, Wentai, now that the army has rested and reorganized, it's time for our army to move out!"
"good!"
Yuan Shao and Sun Jian both nodded.
Then, Yuan Shao hesitated for a moment before looking at Chu You beside him: "Envoy Chu, I would like to ask you about someone!"
"General Yuan, please speak!" Chu You nodded with a smile.
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