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

Chapter 156 This is Medicine
Actually, the fire at the outpost wasn't a big problem; the soldiers could easily put it out.

The problem was that most of the soldiers at this outpost were assigned by Guo Dian to move firewood and tung oil.

There were too few soldiers left at the outpost, and they were unable to extinguish the firewood soaked in tung oil in time. As a result, the fire spread along the firewood piled up near the outpost and the city wall, and the fire was so intense that it made it impossible to approach the entire south gate.

Guo Dian fell for this trick because he understood military strategy... Without civilians in the city, supplies were difficult to transport. Following the military camp's layout, placing flammable materials in the places most easily accessible to soldiers was indeed the right thing to do.

The problem is that a fire in a military camp and a fire in a city are two different things. If a fire in a military camp is too big, it can be abandoned and another camp can be built. However, a fire in a city must be put out.

Without the city's inhabitants, the only way to put out the fire is to rely on Guo Dian's soldiers—which will immediately lead to a shortage of manpower within the city.

Moreover, the place where the soldiers are most concentrated inside the city gate is actually the place where accidents are most likely to happen, because everyone will subconsciously relax their vigilance on this place, including the soldiers stationed at the outpost.

The enemy's strength is the enemy's weakness. Only a veteran like Duan Jiong, who had fought all his life, could understand this. This is why he trained his soldiers to guard against surprise attacks and night raids, and why he always kept them vigilant except during rest periods.

Don't assume that everyone in those days suffered from night blindness. While many poor people did indeed suffer from night blindness, the eyesight of the nomadic people, officials, and elite soldiers who ate meat regularly was excellent. Lamb liver and pig liver were essential foods for elite soldiers during the Han Dynasty and were written into the early Han military preparations. Night raids and fire attacks were also extremely common tactics, almost always encountered in every major battle.

Duan Jiong had encountered countless fire attacks and night raids. Zhang Fei's arrangement was actually something Duan Jiong had repeatedly instructed him not to do—even if it meant making the soldiers carry the materials several times, they should not place flammable materials where the soldiers were concentrated. Military affairs should not be simplified, and unconventional schemes are not the right way; leaving no loopholes is the way.

Guo Dian was quite astute. Upon seeing the fire, he immediately suspected that Liu Bei was in trouble and quickly led several hundred of his personal guards to the guesthouse to arrest Liu Bei.

But Liu Bei was no longer at the inn.

After the fire started at the south gate, chaos broke out in the city. Liu Bei then led several dozen men to the north gate to continue setting fires and creating confusion.

Zhang Fei went to the west gate.

Upon seeing the fires breaking out everywhere, most of the soldiers at the East Gate split up to put out the fires or investigate, and Ju Shou and Shen Pei worked together to open the East Gate.

Waiting outside the East Gate were Guan Yu and Zhang He. Guan Yu led Liu Bei's troops, while Zhang He led the porters that Lu Zhi had assigned to Liu Bei.

Ju Shou led the way, and a large group of people rushed towards the city's warehouse by the light of the fire.

Shen Pei's cavalry were waiting outside the east gate. Ju Shou led the way while glancing at the firelight in other directions, seemingly lost in thought.

The other gates are now engulfed in flames, and only the east gate is passable.

Guo Dian's forces were originally quite strong. He had three thousand soldiers from Julu County, plus five hundred of his personal guards and private troops, and the servants of officials and nobles in the city. He could organize five thousand men, and they were well-equipped and trained.

However, the firefighting efforts dispersed the troops, and it was difficult to recall them immediately.

Unable to find Liu Bei, Guo Dian had no choice but to guard the city's warehouses to prevent any food shortages.

But it was too late. When Guan Yu and Zhang He arrived at the guesthouse, Guo Dian only had a few hundred men with him, and they were all in a panic.

By midnight, the fires at the city gates were still burning, and Guo Dian had been captured alive by Zhang He.

Capturing Guo Dian was actually quite difficult. The soldiers, fed with money and provisions, were quite loyal. Even in the chaos, they still protected Guo Dian at the county granary.

It wasn't until Liu Bei and Zhang Fei arrived together and threw torches into the warehouse, making it seem as if they would be burned to death inside if they couldn't get out, that Guo Dian led his troops to open the warehouse door and attempted to break out.

However, several thousand people had already surrounded the warehouse, and two hundred crossbows were all aimed at the warehouse door. With fierce men like Guan Yu and Zhang Fei by his side, Guo Dian led his soldiers to break out several times but failed to get out.

Guo Dian himself was quite capable. In his final forced breakout, he managed to break through the defenses set up by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei despite suffering hundreds of casualties, and reached the outer perimeter of the warehouse.

But the laborers on the outskirts swarmed forward, using fists, kicks, and carrying poles, and nearly beat Guo Dian to death on the spot.

These laborers who had helped Guo Dian transport grain all deeply resented him. They were originally laborers who transported grain, meaning they were families in various counties who had been selected as grain laborers and had all been ruined by grain taxes.

Therefore, Guo Dian immediately drove them away after transporting the grain to Guangping—Guo Dian knew that these laborers hated him.

Guo Dian wasn't killed thanks to Zhang He's timely intervention; Zhang He had a good relationship with these laborers.

These laborers were in the same boat as Zhang He, because Zhang He had been appointed as the transport official in Hejian, but he wisely declined the job.

Guo Dian used the same method to divert attention in Julu. The Julu County Transport Commissioner was besieged and killed by the Yellow Turbans as soon as he took on the transport task. Otherwise, Guo Dian might not have been able to bring the grain to Guangping.

"Brother, there aren't many medicinal herbs in the city, so it's probably not enough for General Lu's needs."

Guan Yu inspected the storeroom and came out to report.

"It's alright, Guo Dian is the best medicine..."

Liu Bei turned to look at the fires burning throughout the city: "Prefect Guo, let the soldiers in the city come here to surrender and help transport grain out of the city. It's no use putting out this fire; no one wants Guangping City to exist."

……

At this moment, in the West Garden.

"Zhu Jun led five thousand cavalry, yet he was surrounded by a group of rioters? But those were cavalry... Even if he was defeated, how could he be surrounded?! When he was in Jiaozhou, he didn't lead any imperial troops, but quelled the Jiaozhou rebellion with his own troops. How could he be so incompetent in Yingchuan!"

"Huangfu Song, a renowned general, actually fell for the Yellow Turbans' shallow scheme... Is it really that hard to see through a siege and trap strategy? How could he have plunged headlong into Changshe and been besieged alongside Zhu Jun?!"

"The Northern Army and the Three Rivers Cavalry are both elite troops in the land. How could the mere Yellow Turbans possibly surround them?!"

Liu Hongzheng flipped through the military report with a frustrated expression: "And that Lu Zigan, he actually wants the court to pay money and grain to ransom the Prince of Anping... Has he gone mad?! How can this matter be reported publicly!"

There was indeed no good news in the military reports; the imperial court's elite forces were basically all trapped.

With the Prince of Anping in Zhang Jiao's hands, Lu Zhi dared not advance his army and even publicly reported the matter, causing much discussion in the court.

Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun were trapped in Changshe, but it didn't seem like something these two famous generals would do... It was more like they were deliberately telling the emperor that the imperial army might not belong to him after leaving Luoyang.

Zhang Rang and the others stood by, most of them not daring to speak.

Only Duan Gui hesitated before asking, "Your Majesty, should we send someone to Jizhou to investigate?"

"Who should we investigate? Zhang Jiao or Lu Zhi? Prince Anping is in Zhang Jiao's hands, how can we investigate him?"

Liu Hong threw down the bamboo slips in his hand: "Scholars are just scholars after all... They only know the name of scholars, but have they ever thought about the difficulties of the court?!"

"Your Majesty, Changshe...should we send more reinforcements?"

Duan Gui hesitated for a moment, then asked again. Eunuchs also had their own roles; Duan Gui was the Attendant-in-Ordinary in charge of military affairs, and assisting the Emperor in managing military matters was his duty. "Whom should be sent? If even Huangfu Song is like this, who else is capable?!"

Liu Hong's face looked very grim.

"Cao Cao, son of Cao Song, the Grand Minister of Agriculture, is currently secretly building up his cavalry. He has a large number of armored horses and privately raises troops, while also secretly storing armor. He also frequently travels with Yingchuan and Runan... but it is not appropriate to discuss his crimes at this time."

Zhang Rang suddenly suggested, "Why not send Cao Cao to aid Huangfu Yizhen, but without giving him any troops, allowing him to go with his own retainers... This way, we can both ensure his loyalty and support Changshe..."

Zhang Rang is indeed more skilled at personnel work; he's adept at finding fault with people and then making them do work.

"Private cavalrymen secretly armed with armor... Could Cao Song's household also harbor such thoughts?"

Liu Hong's face darkened further: "I hereby appoint Cao Cao as Cavalry Commandant and order him to immediately rush to Huangfu Song's aid!"

"Your Majesty, what is Lu Zigan's response?"

Duan Gui then inquired about the Prince of Anping.

"...sent someone to rebuke Lu Zhi, questioning him about why he traded with the bandits...ordering him to quickly pacify Ji Province!"

Liu Hong hesitated for a long time before giving a rather weak instruction.

There was nothing that could be done; none of the troops were very obedient. It was hard to say whether the military leaders were doing it on purpose or not. In any case, they were all in trouble, yet they all seemed like loyal ministers.

……

The main camp outside Guangzong City.

Lu Zhi stared at Guo Dian, who was being brought in by Liu Bei, his fingers cracking as he clenched them.

After thinking for a while, Lu Zhi summoned Liu Bei to the main tent of the military camp: "I asked you to procure provisions, but I didn't ask you to capture officials... Why did you bring him here?!"

"Didn't the general tell me to fetch medicine? Prefect Guo is exactly the right medicine for the Yellow Turbans; he's more than enough to exchange for Prince Anping..."

Liu Bei spoke with righteous indignation: "I have brought double the amount of grain and medicine. General, you can't blame me just because the medicine is a little troublesome to use, can you?"

"It's more than just a little trouble... Liu Xuande, you're trying to put me to death!"

Lu Zhi was anything but calm, his beard bristling and eyes wide with anger: "No matter what, Guo Dian is an official appointed by the imperial court, a prefect in charge of governing the people. How can he be used to trade with thieves?"

"Who said he wanted to trade with bandits? It was clearly Prefect Guo who exploited Julu and caused the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Prefect Guo felt guilty and volunteered to go to Guangzong to exchange his life for Zhang Jiao's release of King Anping..."

Liu Bei stared at Lu Zhi and said, word by word, "This is a model of loyalty to the emperor, and it is also a case of Prefect Guo realizing his mistake and returning to the right path..."

"Nonsense! Do you know what the consequences will be? Officials throughout the land will live in fear, and everyone will hate us to the core..."

Lu Zhi stared at Liu Bei, gritting his teeth: "This has far greater consequences than killing Guo Dian!"

"I know! But, General, why are all the officials in the land so fearful?"

Liu Bei smiled with a hint of disdain: "If they all had the same character as the general, or even just a fraction of the loyalty to the emperor and love for the people that they boast about, then why would they need to be in danger?"

"...You're courting death!"

Lu Zhi was speechless for a moment, not knowing what to say.

"What does this have to do with me? I only managed to rescue Prefect Guo from the bandits. What Prefect Guo wants to do, or what the general wants to do, is not my business..."

Liu Bei laughed even more disdainfully: "Moreover, Prefect Guo himself knows very well that he won't die if he enters Guangzong... Zhang Jiao won't kill him, he'll just make him join the rebels, and incidentally make him write some proclamations to punish the powerful and influential!"

Lu Zhi's face turned ashen: "Go kill Guo Dian, right now!"

“General, thousands of soldiers have seen Guo Dian being brought here… Everyone feels that Guo Dian volunteered to go to Guangzong to exchange for Prince Anping, which is a great act of loyalty to the emperor. If we kill him now, how will you explain it to us?”

Liu Bei looked at Lu Zhi and said slowly, "General, you should know that this is to save you, not to harm you... So why are you so angry? Do you think that someone else's reputation is more valuable than your own life?"

Lu Zhi looked at Liu Bei with a gloomy face: "You are also a scholar! If you ruin the reputation of the scholarly community, how will you, Liu Xuande, stand?"

"I, Liu, established myself on the basis of the virtues and conduct that Mr. Le taught me, not on the praise of others."

Liu Bei said solemnly, “My master’s virtue shines throughout the world, and he deserves the reputation of a scholar; General Lu is a great Confucian scholar who is well-versed in ancient and modern knowledge, and he deserves the reputation of a scholar; but Guo Dian is cruel and harms the people, and powerful and influential people plot to cause chaos... What makes them worthy of the reputation of a scholar?! General Lu, in your eyes, is the scholar community only composed of officials and powerful families?”

"Liu Xuande...shut up!"

Lu Zhi's face was already extremely ugly, but he managed to suppress his anger, a testament to his remarkable composure: "You want to use Guo Dian's words to ruin the reputation of our noble family! Do you know that if the world is corrupt, the people will surely rise up and there will never be peace?!"

"Isn't this a mass uprising of the people? General Lu, Minister Lu, have you been working on the Xiping Stone Classics in Luoyang for too long, and have you been blinded by the scriptures? What does it mean to be from a prestigious family? Can a traitor who harms the people be called a prestigious family just because he has learned a few words of Confucian classics?"

Liu Bei remained unyielding: "General, you asked me to procure provisions, but in reality, you wanted me to kill Guo Dian. I know this perfectly well. But do you know why the Emperor ordered you to attack Zhang Jiao? Do you think the Emperor wants you to quell the rebellion quickly?"

"If it weren't for quelling the rebellion, what else could it be for?!"

Lu Zhi's veins were bulging; he clearly disliked Liu Bei's way of making things too explicit.

"If you want the general to quell the rebellion quickly, the five battalions of the Northern Army and the cavalry of the Three Rivers will be transferred to you! Four thousand armored elite soldiers, five thousand cavalry, and twenty thousand auxiliary troops are enough for the general to defeat Guangzong and kill Zhang Jiao long ago!"

Liu Bei put it even more plainly: "The Emperor is not providing a strong army, leaving everything to the General to raise himself, because he wants the General to stay in Ji Province and diagnose the province's problems for him! The Emperor is also concerned about his reputation! He doesn't want the people to think that he caused the chaos by levying taxes!"

"Does the general really think that the eunuch sent by the emperor to accompany the army is staying in Hanoi because he's afraid of dying? He's deliberately not coming! Otherwise, no matter what the general does, people will say that he was ordered by the eunuch..."

"The Emperor does not wish to quell the rebellion quickly, nor does he allow the eunuchs to interfere with the general... What he wants is nothing more than for the general to clear his name!"

“General Lu, you want to be loyal to the emperor, but you also want to be accepted by the gentry. I know that... But the current situation is clearly a struggle between the emperor and the powerful clans. If you waver in the middle, the emperor will dislike you, and the powerful clans will abandon you!”

"But I wonder, General, are you loyal to the Emperor, or to the powerful and influential? Or perhaps... to all the people?"

Lu Zhi's face twitched: "Liu Xuande, these words are blasphemous!"

Liu Bei shook his head and gave a wry smile: "I am no longer your disciple, General, but merely your comrade. How can the kind words of a comrade be considered disobedient?"

(End of this chapter)