Tiger Guards

Chapter 587 Entering Luodu
The unusual mobilization of the three divisions under the Grand Marshal—Gan Ning, Wei Xing, and Han Meng—indicates their intention to seize Luodu.

Therefore, General Lü Bu had no choice but to personally lead his troops back to Luodu.

Under such propaganda conditions, Lü Bu led more than 20,000 officials and soldiers from Xudu, passing through Yangdi, Xingyang, and Hulao Pass to Luodu.

Outside the east gate of Xuchang, Emperor Liu Xie saw off the army.

On the emperor's war chariot, Liu Xie watched the army slowly depart.

This time, Lu Bu mobilized troops who were willing to follow him. Only a small portion of the troops that Gao Shun brought back from the front lines were willing to leave with him.

The army is complex. At most, Lü Bu could only ascertain the attitudes of mid- to high-ranking military officers and select reliable troops based on their attitudes.

Therefore, among the lower-ranking officers and soldiers of the army that followed Lü Bu to Luoyang, there must have been some who harbored resentment, but because they were caught up in the military collective, it was difficult for them to express their individual wishes.

Similarly, the various troops remaining in Xuchang, including officers and soldiers of all ranks, were not necessarily opposed to Lü Bu or wholeheartedly support the emperor and the court.

As long as Lü Bu could suppress the majority of the army that followed him, the small number of dissatisfied lower-ranking officers and soldiers could not cause any trouble. As time went on, they were gradually assimilated.

The same applies to the troops that remained in Xudu; time will heal all wounds.

People adapt to group life, and the collective will can quickly suppress individual desires.

Living in a group, the camaraderie among your fellow villagers can make you abandon your original views.

Unless, of course, the group sees no hope or goes hungry.

Before Lü Bu and the Xu Du court officially broke ties, the officials and soldiers temporarily assigned to their respective sides, no matter how dissatisfied they were, dared not abandon their troops and flee to join the other side.

Therefore, at this time, Lü Bu was unwilling to formally break with the regime, and the imperial court felt the same way.

Finally able to seize so much military power, they were even more worried about the collapse of morale than Lü Bu before their power was consolidated.

After all, the overall quality of the military is higher than that of the civilians, and military officers also have a certain level of judgment.

If news of a formal break spreads, the Grand General's trip to Luozhong will undoubtedly be an alliance with the Grand Marshal... In this situation, most of the officials and soldiers in Xudu will be thrown into panic, which cannot be suppressed by harsh military law or the majesty of the court alone.

For Lü Bu now, the biggest problem is the lack of mutual trust between him and the army.

It wasn't that he lost the army, but rather that he was surrounded by high-ranking officials and various nobles, and too many people could exert influence over the army.

The centurion of one of your elite hundred-man squads might be a fellow townsman, descendant of an old friend, or son of a former student or official of a noble family or high-ranking official.

Therefore, only by isolating himself from information and living in seclusion for a period of time could Lü Bu regain trust in his army.

Otherwise, if he is not careful or careless, he could be ambushed by a centurion.

Those who truly held military power were not generals or captains, but rather centurions who had influence at the grassroots level.

A centurion leading veterans, deceiving superiors and subordinates, can sometimes actually get things done.

Strictly speaking, Zhao Ji gradually eroded the Tiger Warriors' new army as a centurion, then joined forces with Liu Qubei's unpaid volunteer troops, and held the court hostage before growing in power step by step.

The network of relationships among the officials and nobles in the imperial court was too complex. If something were to happen, it wouldn't be just a few centurions joining forces to rebel, but many centurions launching attacks from different armies.

These centurions are the true representatives of the army's morale.

Faced with the public sentiment and morale of the troops represented by these people, the generals, captains, or battalion commanders in command sometimes have no choice but to turn a blind eye and appear slow to react.

Since Dong Zhuo, Li Jue, Guo Si, and Zhao Ji, the officials and nobles of the court have suffered so much.

Even the slowest person will change.

In particular, Lü Bu's imitation of the Tiger Steps New Army, and his initiation of the Eagle Soaring New Army under the guidance and support of the emperor and high officials, inevitably led to too many unstable scholars from humble backgrounds joining the army and becoming junior military officers.

This was something Lü Bu couldn't prevent. To strengthen his army, he needed to expand his officer corps. Officers weren't easy to train; promoting them directly from scholars from humble backgrounds was the cheapest and fastest way to achieve results.

Therefore, although Lü Bu appeared to be in power in the court, his army, though seemingly vast, had long been tainted by various motives and influences.

Lü Bu could allocate and command troops through the imperial court; however, after losing the imperial court as a platform, the number of troops that Lü Bu could truly control by his personal connections remained limited.

In fact, Zhao Ji was not much better off, but with this great victory, the unstable military officers in Zhao Ji's army also tended to stabilize; moreover, the strongest force in Zhao Ji's army at this time was no longer the Five Battalions or the Tiger Steps Army, nor the daredevil soldiers, but the various Hu Yi Cong!

By indulging and driving the various barbarian followers, there was naturally no need to worry about them being turned against the court by officials and nobles.

Thus, as Lü Bu led his troops away from Xudu, various factions in Xudu began to vie for control of the remaining armies.

Just like during Lü Bu's time, what they were fighting for was still the nominal command of each army. The centurions who actually commanded the troops on the front line of each army still had and maintained complex interpersonal relationships.

However, since the imperial court's platform is located in Xuchang, these nominal command powers have meaning.

Whoever holds absolute military power can gradually purify the army. Although this purification is very effective, it is still better than letting others take control of the military.

Liu Bei was no exception; he was also more trusted by the lower-level officials and soldiers.

Even if they didn't trust Liu Bei, the officers and soldiers of Xuchang didn't harbor any ill will towards him.

This was an advantage that General Dong Cheng could not match. Liu Bei was a member of the imperial family from a humble background, and he had earned his reputation step by step, as well as various virtues of benevolence and chivalry.

Therefore, even though Liu Bei hastily seized control of the army, the officers and soldiers in the army did not harbor much resentment.

Liu Hui, a renowned scholar from Zhongshan, was also from the imperial clan, but his experience in leading troops, reputation, and official position were incomparable to Liu Bei's. Moreover, Liu Bei had the endorsement of Lü Bu and the tacit approval of Zhao Ji as the regent.

Therefore, after Lü Bu withdrew, Liu Bei consolidated military power very quickly, almost like Dong Zhuo consolidated the various armies of the capital garrison after the deaths of the He Jin and He Miao brothers.

As long as Liu Bei sent someone with an order to enter the camp and take over, no army dared to resist or oppose it.

In just two days, Liu Bei completed the reunification of military power among the various armies in Xuchang amidst a tense atmosphere.

Of course, these people chose to temporarily obey Liu Bei's military orders... If the military orders jointly signed by Zhao Ji and Lü Bu were sent together, most of the troops would also choose to obey.

Unless, politically, Zhao Ji and Lü Bu are stripped of their ruling positions and labeled as traitors, becoming targets of public condemnation in the court.

Over time, this will diminish the obedience of the various armies in Xuchang to Zhao Ji and Lü Bu.

Even if the imperial court issues an edict to condemn Zhao Ji and Lü Bu's crimes in the short term, Zhao Ji and Lü Bu can still incite and influence the army in Xuchang by virtue of their military influence.

Therefore, Liu Bei was under tremendous pressure.

Not only did he have to deal with the nobles and relatives in the court who were trying to interfere with military power, but he also had to guard against Lü Bu playing dirty tricks on him... It was normal for someone like Lü Bu to dig a few pits for you, and Lü Bu wouldn't have any psychological burden about it.

If you can successfully handle these problems, then you are worthy of Lu Bu's attention; if these minor troubles leave you humiliated, Lu Bu will simply think he misjudged you.

If high-ranking officials interfere with military power, Lü Bu will set traps for you, and you must also be wary of Zhao Ji's involvement.

No matter how distant Zhao Ji was, he was still the universally acknowledged Grand Marshal of the current dynasty. What would happen if he suddenly issued a military order to a certain army in Xuchang? Before experiencing it firsthand, Liu Bei couldn't guess what would happen... So he could only do his best to investigate and eliminate all kinds of unstable factors.

Once they have established a firm foothold, they can gradually replace military officers to secure military power.

When Liu Bei had just secured control of the various armies in Xuchang, Lü Bu had only just managed to retreat into Xingyang.

In preparation for the upcoming war, Lü Bu, upon arriving in Xingyang, did not have time to rest and immediately dispatched scouts to reconnoiter the roads, waterways, and various abandoned cities and towns near Xingyang.

Although Zhao Ji had previously conducted reconnaissance and made records, Lü Bu felt that he could use them, so he began to personally send people to conduct reconnaissance in order to obtain the most reliable geographical information.

Of course, Lü Bu would also intentionally capture some people from the surrounding area to fill his army, so that they could serve as living maps and guides for the future.

(End of this chapter)