Jinting Han people

While the relocation of people in the rear was a massive undertaking, the outcome truly depended on the success or failure of Liu Xian's forces.

After leaving Sanhekou, Liu Xian's 15,000 troops immediately set off towards the counties of Fengyi. Because Zhang Fu had transferred his forces to Tongguan, the defenses of the counties of Fengyi were extremely weak. Apart from Linjin, which had a force of over 3,000, the remaining counties of Lianshao, Chongquan, Pinyang, and Suyi each had fewer than a thousand men defending them. Liu Xian's goal was to capture these nearly abandoned cities one by one.

Liu Xian arrived first at the city of Linjin.

Linjin had been captured by Li Ju once before. After Zhang Fu recaptured Linjin, he specially repaired the city's defenses: he dug a new moat around the city, built a sheep and horse wall, and raised the city gate tower and the city wall. Logically speaking, with the three thousand soldiers inside the city and some conscripted laborers, it would be relatively easy to hold out for ten days to half a month.

But when Liu Xian led his army to the walls of Linjin and personally persuaded the garrison to surrender, the Linjin army offered almost no resistance. After deliberating for about half an hour, they quickly surrendered to Liu Xian. The reason was simple: Wang Fen, the person in charge of the city's defense, knew Liu Xian. Back when Liu Xian was the magistrate of Xiayang in Fengyi, Wang Fen was the inspector of Fengyi Commandery. Now, more than a decade later, Liu Xian had risen to the rank of one of the Three Dukes, while Wang Fen was the Commandant of Fengyi Commandery.

Wang Fen had witnessed Liu Xian's rise from humble beginnings in Xiayang and had no desire to oppose him. He immediately bound himself and left the city, solemnly recounting his crimes to Liu Xian and begging for forgiveness.

Liu Xian could barely remember the man's name. After thinking for a while, he realized that this man was his former superior. He untied the ropes for him, both amused and exasperated, and comforted him, "Why did Inspector Wang have to do this? I had no intention of taking anyone's life."

Wang Fen breathed a sigh of relief, and then repeatedly said, "Lord Liu is kind and benevolent, but we are just occupying positions without doing our jobs. We are truly ashamed before the country and the people. We are filled with unease. I am here to take up my post and immediately return to my hometown to live in seclusion in the mountains."

“There’s no need for that,” Liu Xian said. “I have another matter to ask for your help with.”

Wang Fen revealed an expression of certainty and asked, "What is it? We will do our utmost."

"I hope that when you return to your hometowns, you will help spread the word that I will soon lead my army to Chang'an to fight a major battle with the Western Army and decide the fate of Guanzhong. However, this war will have a huge impact, so please be careful and do not get involved in the chaos."

"Is that all?" Wang Fen was stunned. The reason he had just expressed his intention to retire was mainly because he thought Liu Xian wanted to keep them employed.

After all, Liu Xian had captured such a large city. In Wang Fen's view, Liu Xian would need to contact the former officials and local gentry, urging them to increase taxes and conscript soldiers on a large scale before engaging in a decisive battle with the Western Army. Comparing the two options, time was short, and Liu Xian's chances of victory were undoubtedly low. Working for him would certainly offend many people. Therefore, as soon as Liu Xian's army arrived, they reached a consensus: they would first proactively express their intention to retire from public life to sever ties with Liu Xian. If Liu Xian allowed them to leave, that would be ideal; if he kept them, they would observe the situation.

Unexpectedly, everything went so smoothly. Liu Xian showed no intention of keeping them, and even let Wang Fen and the others return to their hometowns, asking them to help with propaganda, indicating he had no intention of escalating the war. This was too strange. Did Liu Xian not need any other help from them?
After receiving Liu Xian's affirmative reply, Wang Fen and other officials of Linjin felt somewhat disappointed: Had they underestimated Liu Xian? But they still did not want to get involved in this great battle, and after looking back every few steps, these scholars finally left Linjin.

In fact, it wasn't just these scholars who were puzzled; some people around Liu Xian also found his actions perplexing.

For example, Liu Xuan, Liu Xian's cousin, was participating in such a battle for the first time as Liu Xian's follower. He had not attended Liu Xian's military councils before and was unaware of his plans. He was very puzzled and asked, "Huai Chong, do we really not need these people? They are local strongmen after all, and they will always be of some use."

"It might be of some use for now," Liu Xian replied, glancing around as he led his men toward the treasury of Linjin. "But the future is uncertain."

"not necessarily?"

“These people are nothing more than opportunists. Survival is their top priority. They will follow whoever has the upper hand. Right now, my army is at the gates, so they can surrender. But when the Western army attacks in the future, they can surrender just as easily.”

Liu Xian had already given this matter considerable thought. He couldn't conjure up a large number of loyal officials in a short time to govern these newly conquered cities. Leaving these suspicious and hesitant people here would only add to his burden. Rather than creating unnecessary trouble, it would be better to simply send them back to their hometowns.

And this is just the beginning.

Upon arriving at the treasury, Liu Xian reviewed the list and instructed Li Sheng, "Bin Shuo, according to the pre-arranged plan, you should post the notices and distribute the grain, fodder, and cloth in the treasury to the surrounding people. Debt contracts and rent certificates should be burned in public. We will only take the armor and weapons from the treasury."

"Yes!" Li Sheng didn't hesitate and led several thousand soldiers into action. They moved the taxes collected this year out of the treasury, posted notices throughout the county, and sent people to inform the surrounding villages. Initially, the people were somewhat dissatisfied and fearful at the sight of the approaching army, but soon, upon hearing that Liu Xian was going to organize the distribution of grain, the area outside the government office was immediately packed with a dense crowd, forming an impenetrable barrier, filled with cheers and laughter.

Liu Xuan was naturally puzzled. He was one of the older members of his generation and was considered a thrifty person. Seeing Liu Xian giving away so many supplies for free with a pained expression, he couldn't help but ask again, "Huai Chong, is this really necessary? Wouldn't it be better to keep so much stuff?"

Liu Xian laughed heartily, patting his cousin on the shoulder and saying, "Fourth brother, we're fighting a war, not doing business. These things can't be taken away. If we don't distribute them to the people, we'll have to burn them. We can't leave them to our enemies, can we?"

This strategy was Li Ju's suggestion. After his last attack on Linjin, he distributed the city's supplies to the surrounding people. He believed this was a good way to kill two birds with one stone; since he couldn't effectively control the captured city, it was better to distribute these resources to the people. This, combined with the scholars and soldiers previously sent back to their hometowns, essentially paralyzed the Western Army's organization north of the Wei River. Even if the Western Army recaptured the county, they would only have an empty city, practically no different from a wasteland.

If this strategy could be implemented throughout the entire Weibei region, then even if the Western Army returned to Weibei, it would be unable to restore its rule over Weibei in a short period of time, and it would be difficult to interfere with the migration of immigrants in northern Yongzhou.

Of course, the most important thing is to win the hearts and minds of the people.

In most people's memories, war only brings pain and destruction. But this time, if Liu Xian can distribute all the grain from the Wei River basin, it will be an unprecedented experience. It's important to understand that although Liu Xian plans to leave Guanzhong today, he still intends to fight his way back. If he succeeds, he will undoubtedly gain unprecedented prestige, just like Emperor Gaozu of Han established the Three Laws in the Three Qin regions. Even thousands of miles away, the people of Guanzhong will not forget him. In fact, from this moment on, a considerable amount of public support has already begun to lean towards him.

When the grain was being distributed, many young men in the county inquired in front of the government office whether they could join Liu Xian's army. Unfortunately, Liu Xian did not intend to stay there long and could not make proper arrangements. After learning of this, he personally advised these young men that if they had living parents and no other brothers, he did not recommend that they join the army. If they met these conditions and were not afraid of long journeys, they could follow behind them and gain some experience.

This move further strengthened Liu Xian's propaganda offensive. When Liu Xian left Linjin, more than two thousand young men joined his ranks. They were the best propaganda for the Hedong army. When Liu Xian turned to attack other counties in Fengyi, they initially had to be persuaded before opening the gates, and later the resistance became weaker and weaker. When he attacked Pinyang, Liu Xian encountered no resistance at all. Almost as soon as his troops and flags arrived, the local magistrate opened the gates and surrendered.

At this time, only sixteen days had passed since Liu Xian set off from Sanhekou.

Following behind them were over five thousand young men from Fengyi, many of whom were scholars. Liu Xian reorganized these five thousand men into the Fengyi Army, appointing Huan Yi as its commander, and also examined some of the scholars. The results were quite fruitful, revealing individuals such as Lian Shao Jilang, Zhu Yan of Xiagui, and Yan Yi of Heyang; some came from prominent families, while others possessed exceptional talent. Liu Xian believed that given enough time, these young men would quickly mature, just as he had in his youth.

However, fate is cruel in that it doesn't give you enough time to prepare. They've only completed the second step of their plan, and soon they will face a real test. Right now, they can only take a short rest.

Fortunately, they were not the only ones facing this situation. Liu Xian also had reinforcements, which were the only reinforcements he could find at the moment.

On the day of Dingyou in July, Liu Xian and his entourage arrived in Niyang. According to the itinerary, he should have rested in Fuping for one night and then proceeded to Niyang the next day. However, Liu Xian was unusually excited and unwilling to stay in Fuping any longer. Even though they had already traveled nearly eighty li that day, he did not bother to rest and instead ordered the entire army to continue north, aiming to reach Niyang half a day ahead of schedule.

Because this was where he truly rose to fame, arguably the starting point of Liu Xian's glorious life. Even after six years apart, even gazing at Niyang City through the darkness at midnight, seeing its indistinct silhouette in the distance, Liu Xian could still recall every day and every scene that had unfolded there—scenes he would probably never forget for the rest of his life.

Although Liu Xian had deliberately ordered his men to keep their footsteps quiet, the traces of an army of 20,000 men could not be concealed, and many people in Niyang were awakened from their sleep. They looked up curiously out of their houses and saw the long procession of torches stretching for miles, intertwining with the torches from the city that were going to greet them, forming a surging and leaping fire dragon. The fire dragon reflected a familiar flag, which completely woke them up.

"Lord Liu is back! Lord Liu is back!"

Amidst a sudden uproar, Liu Xian walked along the official road on the plateau and saw many county residents pouring out to wave to him. Caught off guard, he hurriedly waved back to the people, which then caused another burst of excitement.

In the firelight, Zhang Gu and Lü Quyang led Liu Shen, the governor of Yongzhou, and Zhang Guang, the prefect of Xinping, along with Suo Lin, Huangfu Dan, Fu Xuan, Wei Bo, and others. With very few exceptions, most of them were acquaintances of Liu Xian.

"Long time no see, A-Tian, ​​Qu-Yang." After dismounting, Liu Xian first hugged Zhang Gu and Lü Qu-Yang, patted them on the back, and then bowed to Zhang Guang, saying, "Brother Jingwu, how have you been!"

Zhang Guang wore a mixed expression, and after returning the greeting, he exclaimed, "Huai Chong, you really are as resilient as ever!" Clearly, even as an observer, he still found it unbelievable that Liu Xian was able to break through the siege of Luoyang and repeatedly come back from the brink of death.

Liu Xian responded with a hearty laugh, jokingly saying, "How could I bear to die before I've even seen Brother Jingwu?"

In a sense, this is not a joke, because Liu Xian's trip to Niyang this time was not for anything else, but specifically to take away these old buddies in front of him.

The 20,000 troops currently stationed in the three commanderies of Beidi, Xinping, and Anding are a very special army. Most of their officials and officers are veterans of the Western Expeditionary Army who have been sidelined and are frustrated by the Prince of Hejian. Most of their soldiers are officers and soldiers from Yuzhou who were sent by Sima Jiong three years ago to suppress Li Te's rebellion. They were also placed on the border by Sima Yong because they were not trusted and have not been able to return to their hometowns for a long time.

The vast majority of these people were actually loyal to the Jin Dynasty. They were unwilling to compromise with the Prince of Hejian and would fight to the death if the court gave the order. However, whether they supported Liu Xian's restoration of his kingdom was another matter entirely. For the previous three months, Liu Xian had been in close contact with them through letters, trying to persuade them to join him.

In the end, Liu Xian succeeded. Firstly, Liu Shen and the others had no other choice, and secondly, Liu Xian promised them that he would uphold their integrity and not require them to fight against the court.

Successful negotiations don't guarantee a harmonious meeting, just like the letters described. Therefore, on his way there, Liu Xian was mentally prepared to greet anyone with a smile, no matter how much misunderstanding or prejudice he encountered. However, that night, Liu Xian found the meeting surprisingly easy, even unexpectedly peaceful.

After greeting Zhang Guang, Liu Shen, the governor of Yongzhou, carefully examined Liu Xian. Incidentally, Liu Xian and Liu Shen had a blood feud, as Liu Shen's former master was Sima Jiong, the Prince of Qi, whom Liu Xian had personally captured. However, upon hearing the countless praises from the people around him, the feigned indifference on Liu Shen's stern face quickly softened. His gaze passed over Liu Xian, landing on the continuous fire dragon behind him. After a long while, he sighed and bowed, saying:

"My lord, the flames at night are quite beautiful."

Liu Shen was undoubtedly showing his obedience to Liu Xian. Liu Xian was overjoyed, grasped the other's hand and pulled him up, and solemnly said, "Brother Daozhen, this is not the light of one person, but the light of millions."

"May you also contribute a flame to help me shine brightly."

"We dare to be the vanguard for you, my lord!" Not only Liu Shen, but also many generals behind him bowed their heads.

With this, Liu Xian successfully annexed the 20,000-strong northern army. After resting and reorganizing his troops in Niyang for three days, he led his army south again, heading straight for the north of the Wei Bridge. (End of Chapter)