Second-hand time travel: Liu Bei, the big-eared bandit

Chapter 110 Lu Bu of Jiuyuan
"Ah! You thief, how dare you!"

Outside the pavilion, Qin family servants rushed forward in a panic upon seeing Qin Yilu fall to the ground.

Zhang Fei charged in with his spear, easily knocking several servants to the ground.

The wounded soldiers inside the outpost saw the fight in the pavilion and were about to rush out, but when they saw Xiuniang blocking the doorway, they hesitated and did not go forward.

They had all been treated by Xiu Niang.

“You are not members of the Qin clan, so do not go to your deaths for this family... Do not come out.”

Xiu Niang went straight inside, carried Guan Ping away, and as she walked out of the outpost, she turned back and said something to the wounded soldiers.

The tribespeople don't live at the military post; these are hired guards because outsiders aren't allowed into the fortified village.

Indeed, they could not send troops out. At this moment, the sound of horses' hooves filled the air, and Liu Bei's troops had already surrounded them.

Two hundred armored cavalrymen surrounded Liu Bei and stood outside the fortified village.

"Sister, shall we destroy this place?"

Zuo Yuan asked Xiu Niang.

"The ringleader has been executed; these soldiers were merely following orders."

Xiu Niang shook her head: "I just want to leave this place."

“Yes, Sister Xiu Niang is beautiful and kind-hearted. Then let’s go to Jiuyuan to find Brother Yun Chang.”

Zuo Yuan winked at Zhang Fei, then helped Xiu Niang onto her horse and rode with her.

Liu Bei picked up Guan Ping and headed south with Zuo Yuan.

The few cavalrymen left by Guan Yu to protect Xiu Niang led the way. They knew Guan Yu's location. Guan Yu was not reckless; he communicated with the cavalrymen who were stationed here every day.

Zhang Fei twisted his neck, watched Zuo Yuan and Liu Bei walk away, then turned to the armored soldiers who were still outside the fortified village: "My elder brother is in mourning and cannot see weapons, and Sister Du is kind-hearted and cannot bear to see death and injury, but her Du family's property is still inside!"

"If you're not a member of the Qin family, then you should flee for your life!"

"Brothers! Attack the goal!"

If some people are to be good, then naturally some people must be to be bad.

Since Liu Bei was going to squander his fortune, Zuo Yuan naturally had to find a way to accumulate some wealth. He didn't mean to rob, but rather to take back the wealth that the Qin family had taken from the Du family.

Zhang Fei, having received instruction from Duan Jiong, did things that Liu Bei could not do, and naturally could not be considered a good person.

Using threats to intimidate others, deceiving to deter others, and seeking revenge and financial loss—this is simply returning the Qin family's methods to the Du family in their original form.

……

Jiuyuan County, Wuyuan Prefecture.

Jiuyuan County has rammed earth city walls. The interior of the city is not much different from that of Han Dynasty county towns, but the exterior is completely different.

After the rise of the Xianbei, the Southern Xiongnu migrated inland, and many people from the Eastern Qiang also migrated, resulting in a large number of mixed Hu people in Wuyuan County.

Jiuyuan was the seat of Wuyuan, and there were more Hu people there. Now, the Han people in this area often practice riding and archery, and the Hu people have also learned to build houses and farm, so it is now a place where Hu and Han people live together.

There were settlements of non-Han people in various places outside the county, interspersed with Han people's villages and communities. They often had conflicts with each other, making it difficult to distinguish between friend and foe.

Wuyuan County was once a horse-breeding area of ​​the Han Dynasty, but after the border areas shrank significantly and a large number of Hu people submitted to the Han, the Han horse farms could no longer raise horses.

Because there isn't enough space.

Nomadic peoples require much more land than Han Chinese. If there are too many people and everyone wants to raise horses, then no one can raise them.

This led to frequent disputes between the Southern Xiongnu and the Han people. The area was half Xiongnu and half Han, and no one cared about the laws. Private fights had become commonplace.

Due to frequent conflicts and the mix of Han and non-Han people, the security situation in this area is basically nonexistent.

Although Jiuyuan was nominally still the seat of Wuyuan Commandery of the Han Dynasty, just like most places in Shanggu Commandery, the imperial court had no control over things outside the city.

In this place, might makes right.

At this moment, dozens of miles outside Jiuyuan City, people are reasoning with each other.

"Wait! Where did you get this salt? Did you steal it from the clouds?!"

Guan Yu spurred his horse, brandished his sword, and blocked the road, pointing at the leader opposite him and demanding an explanation.

The bandit leader was a Han Chinese man, quite tall, looking as imposing as Guan Yu, with a handsome face, like a mixed-race person.

Behind that man was a group of bandits, half Han and half Hu (non-Han ethnic groups).

I don’t know if they were bandits or government soldiers, but in any case, soldiers and bandits in this place are all the same. Hu people are often hired as soldiers, and Han soldiers often work as bandits on the side.

This group of people was transporting salt into Jiuyuan City; there were quite a few salt carts. Guan Yu had come specifically for matters concerning salt and iron, and had been investigating the salt shipments for the past few days, finally finding their trail in Jiuyuan.

"Hmph... Red-faced thief, who are you? Are you a thief blocking the road?"

The bandit leader pointed his halberd at Guan Yu and shouted, "Have you never heard of Lü Bu of Jiuyuan?!"

"Lu Bu? Hmph... I only ask you, where did this salt come from? Did it come from the clouds?"

Guan Yu narrowed his eyes and raised his long sword: "Lest I kill the wrong person!"

"So what if I am? Red-faced thief, you're courting death..."

Lu Bu glanced at the fine horse beneath Guan Yu, his eyes lighting up. He spurred his horse forward, pointing his halberd directly at Guan Yu: "A fine horse! I shall take it!"

"You really are bandits! Die!"

Seeing this man's demeanor, Guan Yu felt he hadn't made a mistake in choosing him, so he rode forward on horseback and swung his long sword.

This long sword was forged by Duan Jiong. It is a two-handed broadsword with a long handle, a straight blade, and a single-edged design, making it a heavy weapon.

This type of knife was not common at the time and was mostly used in the border areas of Xiliang. It was originally a horse-slaying knife used by infantry to subdue cavalry, and it was also an armor-piercing knife.

Long swords are not suitable for thrusting and are relatively heavy; they are mainly used for slashing. They are not very flexible for mounted combat.

Mounted combat is better suited to using spears or halberds with a balanced center of gravity. If one is extremely skilled, then one can use a cavalry halberd like Lü Bu, which is a halberd that combines the advantages of a spear and a dagger.

However, the long sword suited Guan Yu quite well. Guan Yu's martial arts were different from others; he practiced heavy blows that could kill the enemy in one strike and never made a feint.

At this moment, Guan Yu's eyes suddenly opened like lightning. His horse galloped forward, and the sound of wind and thunder could be heard as he swung his sword, just like a dragon soaring through the clouds.

Lu Bu's eyes also possessed a piercing power. At this moment, he thrust forward with his halberd, swift as the wind, and with the ferocity of a tiger baring its fangs.

The two men rode their horses past each other. Lü Bu's halberd came first, but it was cleaved in two by Guan Yu's heavy blade. The blade's trajectory remained unchanged, and Lü Bu was nearly struck on the head by the heavy force of the blade.

Lu Bu jerked his head back, barely dodging the blade. Turning around, he looked back with a hint of surprise in his eyes and roared, "Such divine strength... I underestimated you! Red-faced thief, state your name! I, Lu Fengxian, do not kill nameless nobodies!"

"Guan Yu of Hedong! He has come to seek revenge and claim my life!"

Guan Yu turned his horse around and charged at Lü Bu again, completely ignoring the group of salt-carrying barbarians beside him.

"revenge?"

Lu Bu's face showed a strange expression, but seeing Guan Yu charging towards him, he didn't think about it any further and charged forward with his halberd.

This time, Lü Bu showed no sign of underestimating Guan Yu. He trembled his halberd repeatedly, thrusting a flurry of blades at Guan Yu, making it impossible to discern the true nature of his attack.

Perhaps, every stab is real.

Guan Yu had no way to avoid it, but he didn't avoid it at all. His long sword was powerful and heavy, using clumsiness to overcome skill.

This is the purpose of the heavy sword; even if it can wound Guan Yu, the sword, already imminent, will still come crashing down.

Lu Bu abandoned his feint and used his halberd to slash. He then deftly twisted the halberd's small branch along the blade, pulling the long sword to the side with a clever move. He then spun the halberd and swept it backhand.

Guan Yu ducked to avoid the attack, drew his sword, and left. He then turned back and slashed again.

This time, the saber came suddenly, quickly, and without warning.

But Lü Bu seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, and with a sweep of his halberd, he blocked the blade once again.

The two horses passed each other again.

The two men turned back to look at each other, both with solemn expressions.

The five cavalrymen led by Guan Yu dispersed and retreated. They had great confidence in Guan Yu's skills and none of them intended to interfere.

Lu Bu only brought about a hundred Han and Hu soldiers for transport. These men did not attack Guan Yu, but instead kept an eye on a few cavalrymen for defense—they clearly had great confidence in Lu Bu.

The two fought for several more rounds, but it was still difficult to determine a winner.

Lu Bu seemed to have a slight advantage. On the one hand, his halberd was longer than Guan Yu's sword, and on the other hand, his horsemanship was indeed better than Guan Yu's, as he clearly grew up on horseback.

……

Who are you?!

Just as the two were locked in a fierce battle, another group of people came to watch.

The group of transport soldiers questioned them, but dared not stop them—the cavalrymen were all armored and looked like regular soldiers of the Han Dynasty.

"Don't be so tense, I'm just here to watch the show... Hey, watch out for his backhand slash! Oh dear, his knife is heavy, you should stab his horse first!"

Liu Bei, hands tucked into his sleeves, rode his horse and shouted loudly like a street urchin—he was actually cheering on Lü Bu…

(End of this chapter)