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

Chapter 120 The Way and the Waylessness
Guan Yu took the head of the enemy general amidst a vast army, and his prestige was unparalleled for a time.

Most of the bandits in the vicinity were thrown into disarray by Guan Yu. Some fled, some abandoned their weapons, and some cried out, but no one dared to attack Guan Yu.

Guan Yu ignored them and led his armored cavalry straight ahead, soon cutting through the enemy formation.

After walking slowly for a while, Guan Yu turned around and went back again, shouting that he would not kill those who had abandoned their weapons. He then charged back into the enemy formation that he had just broken through.

Liu Bei's side had already driven the enemy into Liu Wei's army formation. At this time, the enemy army was in chaos, and Liu Bei was not under much pressure.

The sound of Guan Yu shouting in unison that they would not be killed could be heard. Liu Bei quickened his pace, dispersed his armored cavalry, and continued to patrol the east, chasing the bandits westward.

More and more thieves are fleeing, and the situation of the beaded curtain being rolled up has become a reality.

Most of the bandits began to flee westward. Liu Bei's horses were relatively tall, making it easy for the armored cavalry to spot him from the east.

Liu Bei didn't even kill anyone; instead, he held his sword and controlled the position of his troops, keeping an eye on the cavalrymen who were fleeing in the same direction.

The retainers beside Liu Bei would naturally help him deal with the interference from both sides.

In fact, the enemy knew that Liu Bei only had two hundred armored cavalry, but in their collapse, they were completely unable to organize any resistance.

Those fleeing for their lives will scatter the enemies who are trying to resist, and then these people can only flee together, which will scatter those who are preparing to resist again... This is actually a kind of coercion.

Before long, Liu Bei saw the true elite of the enemy ranks.

A hundred or so bandits, dozens of armored soldiers, and a dozen or so cavalrymen were escorting a lean, horse-faced bandit as he fled westward, having already reached the banks of the Juma River.

There were many rioters along the river, but the Juma River was full and fast-flowing in the summer, making it difficult to cross.

Seeing the armored cavalry pursuing them, many rioters jumped into the river in fear, but most were unable to swim across and many were swept away by the swift current.

The armored soldiers and cavalry did not jump into the river. Upon seeing Liu Bei, they formed a thin battle formation on the riverbank, seemingly intending to fight a desperate battle with their backs to the river.

The riverbank could indeed deter armored cavalry charges, but Liu Bei's troops, even when dismounted, were still elite armored soldiers.

Unlike Guan Yu, Liu Bei was not a man of many words. When he led his troops forward, he specifically asked, "Are you Liu Weitai or Yue Hedang?"

Liu Weitai didn't answer, but instead glared fiercely at Liu Bei with his sword raised: "Liu Xuande! Give me back my elder brother's life!"

This man knew Liu Bei and still harbored thoughts of avenging his sworn brother Gongsun Zan.

"Caught alive!"

Liu Bei didn't say anything more; he only asked that question to confirm if it was the right person.

The armored cavalrymen swarmed forward.

Liu Bei charged at Liu Weitai with his sword, severing Liu Weitai's left hand in just two strikes.

The newly forged horizontal sword was indeed more to Liu Bei's liking, not because it was some kind of divine weapon, but because it was more comfortable to hold and more balanced, and more suitable for exerting force.

One slash can pierce an arm guard, two slashes can sever a hand. This is much more useful than a sword, and the horizontal blade has a triangular sharp point, thus retaining the piercing function of a sword.

But life is full of disappointments...

The armored cavalry had no problem dealing with the enemy; relying on their thick armor and sharp blades, they drove the bandits back in defeat.

Liu Bei was also about to capture the prisoner alive.

But at that moment, Liu Weitai raised his neck and plunged a sword into his own throat!

He actually committed suicide!
Liu Bei was very unhappy.

Liu Weitai's ability to suddenly incite rioters to cause trouble is most likely due to someone's instigation, and he hasn't even found out who instigated it yet!
Moreover, Gongsun Zan had three sworn brothers, and the whereabouts of Li Yizi were unknown. Now that Liu Weitai was dead, it was unlikely that he could get any information from him. Seeing that Liu Weitai had committed suicide, the other bandits no longer resisted as fiercely.

The bandits have lost their advantage, but the war is far from over. There are still many rebels, and it will take a long time to clean up the mess.

……

Meanwhile, on the eastern foothills of the Taihang Mountains.

“Nine feet, now that Liu Bei is leading troops outside, Xihe Pavilion is empty, it’s the perfect time to start an uprising! Xihe Pavilion has come to ask for help, you and I can go there as reinforcements! No one will be on guard…”

A thief dressed as a peddler was standing in front of Jiu Chi, whispering to each other.

“Young Master Xuande is kind and righteous, and has been very kind to me. My family is also at Xihe Pavilion. How can I do such an unrighteous thing?”

Nine-foot was clearly unwilling, but he was surrounded by dozens of people and could not get away.

"Benevolence and kindness? Nine-foot, you were originally a soldier from the county, a law-abiding citizen... while I, Li Yizi, was just a small peddler. But under the tutelage of my elder brother Bogui, I rose to become a high-ranking official, and now the Yuan family of Runan has promised me an official position... that's what you call kindness!"

The vendor narrowed his small eyes: "But you're still just a petty thief under Liu Bei's tutelage, toiling away every day... What favor can he possibly show you?"

"But you've joined the Gongsun and Yuan families, yet in the end you're still thieves. What difference is there between you and me? Li Yizi, don't even think about Xiheting. Many heroes and their families from the Northern Taihang Mountains are there. If you don't want to die, leave now!"

Jiu Chi shook his head, signaling Li Yizi to get lost.

“Nine-foot, I don’t need you to do anything else… I might as well be frank, my sworn brother is currently leading tens of thousands of troops toward Xiheting, and Xiheting will surely fall into his hands! However, my sworn brother does not want to antagonize the heroes of Taihang, and to avoid a tragedy at Xiheting, he only needs you to bring me to Xiheting as reinforcements…”

Li Yizi, dressed as a peddler, said hastily, "If you do this, you can lead several thousand troops and become a commander of a separate division! Isn't that a hundred times better than being a petty thief under Liu Bei?!"

"Leading an army of tens of thousands? Do you think I don't know? They're just tens of thousands of bandits, what kind of army are they!"

Nine Feet frowned and stared coldly at the other party: "Do you know that Lord Xuande settled tens of thousands of refugees with only a hundred men? You bandits who have been coerced are no different from the refugees."

“Yes…we are bandits. But we are tens of thousands of able-bodied men, not the old and weak…Nine-foot, you know that the families of the Northern Taihang are all in Xihe Pavilion. If you and I join forces to control Xihe Pavilion, we can control nearly 100,000 people from the Northern Taihang! I only need the identity of a reinforcement to prevent the families of the Northern Taihang from escaping!”

Li Yizi grew impatient: "Chen Jiuchi, I didn't want to kill you! But I've said my piece, and if you're unwilling, then I have no choice but to take action..."

"Taking someone's family hostage... Hmph, Li Yizi, do you even know what morality is?"

Nine Feet had no intention of yielding and drew his sword to confront him.

Dozens of men surrounded Li Yizi pressed him step by step, forcing Jiu Chi to the edge of a cliff on the eastern foothills of the Taihang Mountains.

Jiu Chi's surname was indeed Chen. After Wang Mang, a two-character given name was considered a lowly name. However, Jiu Chi was not of low social status. He had simply become a deserter and dared not use his surname anymore.

"Moral principles? Zhang Niujiao talks about morality, yet he went from being a wealthy man to a thief! Zuo Zi talks about morality, yet he commands tens of thousands of soldiers but still suffers poverty in the mountains! You, Chen Jiuchi, talk about morality, yet despite your exceptional skills, you're nothing more than a petty thief! Morality? What good is morality?"

Li Yizi sneered: "Now Xiheting is rich in money and grain. With this as our base, and with the powerful clans of Taihang as our henchmen, and with the assistance of the Yuan family of Runan and the Gongsun family of Liaoxi, even the imperial court can only grant us high-ranking officials and noble titles! This is the path to kingship! Chen Jiuchi, I'll ask you one last time, are you willing to lead me into Xiheting?!"

"The path to kingship and nobility? Hmph... You wicked and rebellious people, what kind of kingship or nobility do you think you can achieve?"

Nine Feet wasn't so easily fooled: "If you want to attack Xihe, then go ahead! Lord Xuande will kill you sooner or later... If you want to kill me, then come on!"

“...Kill him!”

Seeing that he could not persuade Jiu Chi, Li Yizi had no choice but to order the killing.

But Jiu Chi was quite cunning. On the surface, he seemed to be ready to fight to the death, making a move to draw his sword and charge, but suddenly he plunged down the cliff behind him.

With a series of tumbles, Jiu Chi fell down the mountain and disappeared into the woods below, his fate unknown.

(End of this chapter)