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

Chapter 139 Guangyang Bandit Rebellion
The new recruits nowadays aren't considered new anymore; they've all trained for over a year. Although they're not fully equipped with iron armor, they at least have leather vests (similar to sleeveless vests).

Each squad selected one soldier skilled in swords and shields, bows, crossbows, spears, and halberds. However, Liu Bei also provided each squad with two pack horses, arrows and crossbow bolts with triangular cone tips, and each soldier with a brand-new horizontal sword.

The corporal is a quintet, capable of relaying orders and fulfilling his role within the team as needed.

Swords and shields are mainly used to protect against bows and crossbows, and to deal with melee combat and flanking maneuvers.

Archers are not primarily focused on killing enemies, but rather on providing cover and rapidly firing to stop or suppress them. They prioritize speed over accuracy. Archers often also serve as scouts.

Crossbowmen are the main source of damage. The crossbow is extremely powerful and highly accurate, but it is slow to reload and requires cover.

Spears and halberds were used to counter cavalry or in mid-range combat, and were responsible for defensive formations or breaking through enemy lines. Spears were defensive weapons, while crossbows and swords were the main weapons for killing.

These units, which look like adventure squads, are actually standard combat units of the Han army. The regular Han army emphasizes teamwork, and those who send out only one type of soldier are either special cases or have a screw loose.

However, Liu Bei built his army to resemble the Tang army somewhat.

Of course, the Royal Guards Cavalry can indeed be deployed as a single unit, because each cavalryman is an all-rounder, with two horses and a lot of equipment. The cost of equipping one cavalryman is higher than that of a squad.

The Imperial Guards were replaced by several dozen men, but the total number was still just over two hundred. Zhang Fei was the commander of the Imperial Guards, and Bian Bing was also among them.

Most of the four hundred armored soldiers became squad leaders or platoon leaders, with the old leading the new. The total number of infantrymen was 1,600, and Liu Bei and Guan Yu led them together.

The Imperial Guards were treated as platoon leaders. Although several dozen more were added, the organizational structure remained largely unchanged because more than thirty Imperial Guards had already been promoted to Marquis or Platoon Leader through merit.

This is also the path that Liu Bei has always adhered to: always maintaining a mix of old and new soldiers in his ranks, upholding the system of rewarding merit and promotion, and giving soldiers two clear upward paths: accumulating merit and being selected for military service.

Accumulating merit refers to the process of new recruits being trained as soldiers, soldiers accumulating merit to become armored soldiers, and armored soldiers accumulating merit to become squad leaders, platoon leaders, and so on, with promotion based on merit. However, to become a troop leader, one must be literate, and to become a troop leader, one must be even more cultured.

The selection of soldiers refers to the selection process that new recruits can participate in during the monthly training exercises after they have entered the training program. Those who are outstanding in martial arts and literate can be specially selected to participate in the guard mission. After completing the mission and passing the review, they can directly join the guard cavalry.

All of this was intended to encourage soldiers to improve their abilities, but to become a military officer, even a squad leader or platoon leader, one still needed to earn merit. However, the Imperial Guard cavalry had an easier time gaining merit.

To comply with these regulations, literacy classes were set up in the army, and each garrison commander was responsible for teaching soldiers to read. Liu Bei also often went to teach some literacy classes.

Meanwhile, Xiu Niang also trained a medical team of more than sixty people, including Liu Bei's disciple Chen Feng, who did not receive any preferential treatment.

These are all teenagers. They can all read and write, participate in basic training, and work part-time teaching literacy.

Liu Bei divided the medical teams into different garrisons and prepared for several days before sending Jian Yong and Zhang He to guard Xihe. He also had Zhang He go through the selection process, while he himself led a thousand infantrymen to Ji County.

This was the first time Liu Bei officially raised the banner of "Liu, the Chief Clerk of Guangyang".

Due to the harsh climate, Liu Bei was very cautious along the way, sending out many scouts to probe the surrounding area, and his marching speed was not very fast.

Two days later, as soon as Liu Bei's army entered the Guangyang territory, scouts reported that Ji County was extremely quiet, with neither Yellow Turbans nor county soldiers seen.

Moreover, the scouts said that several military outposts and fortresses around Ji County were unguarded, the county town was tightly closed, and there seemed to be unrest within the county.

Liu Bei knew something was wrong, so he did not go to Ji County easily. Instead, he stationed his troops in an empty camp twenty miles west of Ji County, which was originally intended for the county's soldiers—but it was deserted at the moment.

Guan Yu personally led a group of people to investigate the situation in Ji County.

Liu Bei, on the other hand, issued a yellow turban to every soldier in his army, for their own use at any time.

Ji County.

Prefect Liu Wei of Guangyang stood trembling on the city wall, sword in hand, facing the so-called "Yellow Turban rebels" who were closing in step by step, his face very grim.

Actually, aside from being rather greedy, Liu Wei wasn't a particularly bad official. Although he was indeed not very capable, at least he wouldn't harm the common people for personal gain—that alone made him better than most local officials in the country.

Moreover, Liu Wei has made progress since his fortified village was destroyed by the Taihang bandits in Zhuojun.

Liu Wei used to only care about money, but now he's not as greedy as before. Having survived a near-death experience, he has indeed been tempered.

Having learned his lesson from Zhuojun, Liu Wei dared not be greedy for anything related to military affairs again, nor did he do anything that would anger both heaven and man, and he didn't even buy a separate residence.

He used only a few minor officials and village officials to exchange money and grain with local powerful families to support the county army—this was actually the norm, as the governor had to be on good terms with the local powerful families. Moreover, Liu Wei did not pocket the money and grain; supporting the county army was an official matter, not a way to sell official positions for money.

Previously, Liu Yu and Zou Jing were both in Guangyang, so Liu Wei didn't need to do anything else. He just idled around and ended up gaining a good reputation in Guangyang.

But perhaps the world didn't allow Liu Wei to be a good official, or perhaps Liu Wei simply wasn't destined for it.

The day after Guo Xun, the newly appointed governor of Youzhou, arrived in Ji County and sent Liu Yu and Zou Jing to prison by imperial decree, he forced Liu Wei to transfer all the county troops to the direction of Yuyang, claiming that Zhang Chun's blocking of the roads meant he was definitely plotting a rebellion.

Liu Wei knew that this was indeed the right thing to do.

But Liu Wei also knew that if the county troops were transferred away, chaos would inevitably break out in the county.

Therefore, Liu Wei ordered Liu Bei to take over the defense of Guangyang.

But... Liu Wei didn't expect that just after the county soldiers were transferred away, countless people wearing yellow turbans suddenly appeared in Ji County.

Those people sealed off the county town, but did not detain any officials; they simply plundered the people within the county...

Liu Wei recognized them; they weren't Yellow Turbans, but rather the private soldiers of some powerful clans in the county!

Subsequently, Guo Xun, in his capacity as Governor of Youzhou, announced that Prefect Liu Wei was incompetent and greedy, and had been levying exorbitant taxes, which led to the Yellow Turban Rebellion in Guangyang. Fortunately, General Zong Yuan led the army to quell the rebellion...

Yes, those thugs took off their yellow turbans again and transformed themselves into soldiers under Zong Yuan's command!
Liu Wei really wanted Liu Bei not to come... coming might mean certain death.

But I also really want Liu Bei to come quickly... to come quickly and kill these bastards!
But whether Liu Bei comes or not, Liu Wei can no longer see it.

He had been forced into a corner on the city wall, with nowhere left to retreat.

"Lord Liu, it's not that we're unwilling to give you a way out, it's that you disobeyed orders, so don't blame me..."

Guo Xun looked at Liu Wei, holding a blood-stained sword in his hand.

"An order? Whose order? The emperor's... or the powerful clans'?"

Liu Wei straightened his chest and, for the first time in his life, glared at Guo Xun like a true loyal subject: "Traitor... Since you have instigated chaos with the Yellow Turbans, you will surely die by their hand one day! The traitor of Runan thinks he has succeeded... Let's see what the Yellow Turbans will do next!"

(End of this chapter)