Three Kingdoms: I am not Liu Bian

Chapter 217 Bro, your head smells so good!

Huangfu Song simply ordered his men to make shooting at the rebel soldiers who were cursing at them a game!

How do you shoot someone from seventy paces away?

Logically speaking, only those with exceptional archery skills can make such a prediction.

But it's alright. The army has large yellow crossbows, a total of twenty-five large yellow crossbows, equipped with so many crossbow bolts, all saved to breed.

The large yellow crossbow, with a force of ten stones, has an effective range of up to 150 paces (207 meters). If launched by projectile, the range can be doubled.

Well, that old man in a turban who shot the halberd at the gate only managed to hit a small branch on the halberd from a distance of 150 paces.

An effective range of 150 paces means that within those 150 paces, the trajectory of a crossbow bolt is almost a straight line, requiring only a hand and eyes to fire.

Two guards were loading arrows and turning the winch. Sun Jian, Cao Ren, and other generals and officers were having a great time. Even the taciturn Gao Shun couldn't resist the urge to join in.

The rebels who were shouting insults outside the camp were in a terrible situation. There were twenty-five large crossbows, each one hitting its mark. If the rebels wanted to shout insults, they had to be within eighty paces, otherwise their insults would be completely inaudible.

At a distance of eighty paces, once the target is aimed and the crossbow is pulled, the thick, long arrow whistles through the air, easily taking the lives of rebel soldiers.

In the end, the rebels ran out of people to even taunt them. The two armies faced each other across the fortifications for more than two months. Apart from building fortifications and dealing with the rebels' harassment, the Han army spent their days practicing military formations and attacks in the camp.

But the Han army consisted of spirited and courageous men, who were frustrated by their pent-up energy. So Huangfu Song organized the soldiers in batches to engage in games and exercises to train their bodies, such as wrestling, archery, grappling, slashing, swordsmanship, horsemanship, stone lifting, pounding, and stone throwing.
This infuriated the rebels on the other side. We were in a standoff between our two armies, and you started playing around.
That's incredibly disrespectful. Do you think you're here for a spring outing?

But faced with such a well-defended fortress, no one would be willing to risk getting hurt.

The armories of Liangzhou's counties and prefectures contained a considerable number of bows, arrows, swords, and spears, but no siege weapons.

Attacking such a fortified camp would inevitably cost countless lives.

It wasn't that Bian Zhang, Bei Gong Boyu, and the others were pitying the lives of the rebels; if they could break through the camp with 30,000 or 40,000 men, they wouldn't even blink an eye. The problem was that they themselves knew how organized this rebel army was.

They can fight well when things are going smoothly, and they can also fight tough battles, but if they suffer too many losses, they will scatter and flee for their lives.

Even if Bian Zhang, Bei Gong Boyu, and others continued to order their rebel troops to attack the camp after suffering heavy losses, these people might just turn their guns on Bian Zhang and Bei Gong Boyu and kill them first.

Unable to fight or scold them, the last of the Liangzhou noble families who had been hoping to make a last-ditch effort finally gave up and gradually cut off the rebels' military supplies.

The rebels' food has been getting worse and worse these days, and their morale has been visibly declining.

The two rebel leaders, Bian Zhang and Bei Gong Boyu, were also getting restless and paced back and forth in the tent.

Faced with this situation, Bian Zhang and Bei Gong Boyu were naturally anxious. Anyone with eyes could see that if this standoff continued, they would be defeated without a fight.

Bei Gong Boyu was furious. He kicked over the folding chair next to him, sat down on the ground, slammed his fist on the table, and cursed, "Huangfu Song is supposed to be a famous general of our time! When did we Liangzhou people produce such a spineless coward!"

In Bei Gong Boyu's view, a battle between two armies should be fought honorably, with both sides engaging in a real battle. Even if they are defeated, there is nothing to say, as it is the will of Heaven. But Huangfu Song is like a tortoise, hiding in his shell and refusing to fight, determined to outlast them, which is truly infuriating.

Bian Zhang slumped helplessly onto the couch and sighed, "Alas, this is precisely what makes Huangfu Song so terrifying; his scheme is actually a perfectly legitimate and open plot!"

"Now we are in a dilemma. We cannot fight. If we continue to confront each other, our morale will collapse and our supplies will run out sooner or later. As for retreating... if we retreat, our morale will be completely lost and we will be finished."

At this moment, Bian Zhang was filled with remorse, repeatedly slapping his thigh. He regretted that he should not have been coerced into participating in the rebellion out of fear of death. Otherwise, he might have been able to leave behind a reputation for loyalty and righteousness. Given the benevolence of that crown prince, he might even have been granted a title of nobility to his son.

Now, he regrets it so much he's green with envy!
Bian Zhang glanced at Bei Gong Boyu, his eyes flickering. He gestured for Bei Gong Boyu's deputy, Li Wenhou, to stand guard outside the tent. Then he leaned close to Bei Gong Boyu and whispered, "Brother Boyu, why don't we send someone to try making contact with the Han army? I imagine the Luoyang court doesn't want to see a lose-lose situation. Maybe we can use these soldiers to get a general or colonel position."

If the 100,000 Qiang and Hu rebels could lay down their weapons under their command, that would be a great achievement, wouldn't it?

At worst, he could just claim that he was held hostage by his subordinates, and wouldn't Li Wenhou outside the tent be a perfect scapegoat?

Bei Gong Boyu remained silent, pondered for a moment, and then nodded slightly in agreement.

Given the current state of the battle, do they really expect to be able to carve up Liangzhou and dominate the region?

Seeing that Beigong Boyu nodded in agreement, Bian Zhang continued, "Then I'll trouble you, Brother Boyu, to write a letter to the Han army to discuss the peace talks. You have a much higher prestige in the army than I do, and you are better able to represent our army. In the end, I, Bian Zhang, am just a latecomer. My future wealth and honor will depend on you, Brother Boyu."

After speaking, Bian Zhang knelt down and kowtowed to Bei Gong Boyu. This was his way of acknowledging Bei Gong Boyu as his master, which made Bei Gong Boyu feel slightly proud.

Bian Zhang was also a well-known Liangzhou native in Jincheng County. The reason why he wanted to win over Bian Zhang was firstly because he valued his reputation.

By gaining the support of Bian Zhang, one can win the hearts of more people.

Secondly, there were the former subordinates and officials of Duan Jiong under Bian Zhang. These people were skilled in battle, knew the terrain, and were extremely cunning. Having these people command the battle would also enhance the fighting power of their rebel army.

However, Bian Zhang was ultimately a Han Chinese. A Han Chinese who was temporarily coerced into rebellion could not represent the Qiang people, who were the main force of the Liangzhou rebellion, and could not compare to his prestige and power.

Moreover, as the de facto leader of the rebels, Beigong Boyu had a greater advantage in terms of status when negotiating with the Han people, and thus appeared more sincere in his negotiations.

As for Zhang, he's quite sensible, and I wouldn't mind giving him a promotion.

Bei Gong Boyu quickly helped Bian Zhang up, brushed the dust off his body, and patted him on the shoulder, laughing heartily, "Don't worry, since you respect me as your leader, naturally if I have a bite to eat, you'll have half a bite too. Don't worry, brother!"

Bian Zhang knelt on the ground once more and said sincerely, "Thank you, General. I will never forget your great kindness in my life!"

This time, however, Beigong Boyu did not help Bian Zhang up. Instead, he laughed and turned to leave the tent.

However, just as Beigong Boyu was gradually walking away, Bian Zhang slowly stood up, looked at Beigong Boyu's departing figure, a strange smile appeared on his face, and a bloodthirsty greed flashed in his eyes.

I, a poor, honest man who was coerced into rebellion, endured humiliation and served the rebels with my life. Finally, I found an opportunity to cooperate with the imperial army from within. Is that too much to ask?

Hey bro, your head smells amazing!
(End of this chapter)