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

Chapter 160 The Emperor's Party

In early June, Zou Jing and Cao Cao received a reply from Liu Bei.

Meanwhile, Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun once again defeated Peng Tuo, the Yellow Turban leader of Runan, in Xihua County. Zhu Jun led his army to massacre the city, beheading 20,000 people.

For this reason, Zou Jing almost came to blows with Zhu Jun.

Because Peng Tuo, the so-called "chieftain" of Xihua County, was not a Yellow Turban at all!
The only "Dafang" (a high-ranking official) among the Yellow Turban rebels of Runan was Bo Cai; there were no other "Dafang" among them.

Peng Tuo was a member of the powerful Peng family in Xihua. He had absolutely no connection with the Yellow Turbans; he was just incredibly unlucky.

Xihua County is located north of Ruyang County, separated from Ruyang only by the Ying River.

Previously, when Zhao Qian led his men to hunt down Ma Yuanyi, Yuan Mi died on the banks of the Ying River between Ruyang and Xihua County during the pursuit.

Ma Yuanyi brought a large number of men with him to escort many doctors to Hebei. Although he himself was captured by Yuan's family soldiers, his Yellow Turban followers scattered and hid, constantly trying to take revenge on Yuan's family.

After all, the doctors that Ma Yuanyi brought were indeed innocent. They had not only not caused any trouble, but they had not even resisted taxes. Moreover, these doctors were originally there to support Jizhou in quelling the plague!

Zhang Mancheng, a renowned physician from Nanyang, rose up in rebellion because Ma Yuanyi was torn apart by chariots. Zhang Mancheng and Ma Yuanyi, as "superior physicians," were Zhang Jiao's true disciples and fellow disciples.

When the physicians stayed in Zhaoling, Runan, many people from Runan received treatment, including many powerful families, and even members of the Yuan family received treatment—which is why Yuan Mi knew that Ma Yuanyi was in Zhaoling.

Ma Yuanyi and the other doctors were hunted down by the Yuan family's followers, and in fact, most people in Runan were dissatisfied.

But in Runan, few dared to confront the Yuan family; most could only pretend not to see it.

Anyone with a conscience would sympathize with the innocent doctors and civilians who were being hunted down, and the Peng family took in many people who fled to Xihua County.

Taking in some innocent people who were fleeing for their lives wouldn't have been a problem, but the problem escalated after Yuan Mi died.

The Yuan family sent people to Xihua County to inquire about the matter and demand that the Peng family hand over the "Yellow Turban villains".

The Peng family, of course, refused. If they handed the man over, wouldn't that be tantamount to admitting that they were accomplices of the Yellow Turbans?
But the Yuan family must be completely wiped out—they need to avoid retaliation.

As a result, Yuan's retainers went directly to the Peng family's house in Xihua to arrest people.

This greatly displeased the brothers Peng Tuo and Peng Qiu, leading to a conflict between the two sides, during which Yuan's retainers were killed.

Subsequently, Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun, who were originally supposed to pursue Bo Cai directly towards Dongjun, led their troops to detour through Xihua and demanded that Xihua County allow their army to garrison there and provide supplies.

Peng Tuo and other powerful families in Xihua refused to let the army enter the county, as they all knew what Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun had done in Changshe.

The Fifth Battalion of the Northern Army was restrained by Zou Jing and did not take any action.

However, Zhu Jun directly led his army to attack the city, referring to Peng Tuo as the "Yellow Turban leader".

Xihua County was massacred, and most of the city's wealth was divided up by the various cavalry units of Sanhe.

The five battalions of the Northern Army failed to gain much profit, so they all blamed Zou Jing. Zou Jing, the commander of the Northern Army, was now almost unable to control this "imperial army".

"Zhu Gongwei! Are you a general of the imperial court or a lackey of powerful and influential figures?!"

Zou Jing drew his sword and angrily questioned Zhu Jun.

"This cavalry unit is from the Sanhe Commandery and is not under the jurisdiction of the Northern Army. It would be best if Marquis Zou kept to himself... Could it be that Marquis Zou sympathizes with the Yellow Turban rebels?"

Zhu Jun also drew his sword, unafraid of Zou Jing.

Huangfu Song watched from the side, but his face remained expressionless.

"The imperial army is even more wicked than bandits! Who in the world wouldn't rebel? You're quelling the rebellion, but is it really to bring chaos to the whole country?! You could have been great generals of the Han Dynasty, revered by the people, but instead you choose to be lackeys and dogs..."

Zou Jing indeed had no authority over the Sanhe cavalry. He was about to continue his angry rant when Cao Cao stopped him, covered Zou Jing's mouth, and dragged him outside the tent.

"Commander Zou, stop cursing... Zhu Gongwei wants to win the hearts of the Sanhe cavalry. They were indeed acting under orders in the Changshe incident, but this time... it's not."

Cao Cao whispered to Zou Jing, "Zou has been a military commander for many years. Doesn't he know why he's acting this way?"

Zou Jing gritted his teeth and looked at Cao Cao: "I know, of course I know! But it is precisely because I know that I cannot bear it! He says he wants the people of the world to fear the court, but in reality, he only wants the people of the world to fear him! But how can slaughtering the innocent inspire fear? It will only inspire hatred!"

"He's using the army's morale to obstruct the orders of the powerful families... This isn't to intimidate the restless populace, but to threaten certain powerful families! He doesn't want to be a lackey of the powerful families, nor does he want to be the emperor's eagle..."

Cao Cao said in a low voice, "Forget about the Three Rivers Cavalry, let Zhu Gongwei be a tyrant... You have also seen Xuande's letter. There is no benefit for us to stay here. I want to go to Dunqiu to persuade the people to surrender. Commander Zou, please return to Luoyang as soon as possible. While the emperor's edict can still restrain the Northern Army, at least let the court control the Northern Army."

……

After this incident, Cao Cao went to Dunqiu in an attempt to pacify the Yellow Turban rebels there.

But by this time, the attempt to appease them had failed. News of the massacre of civilians and the city had reached Dunqiu, and no one was willing to trust the imperial court anymore.

Fortunately, Cao Cao's reputation for governing Dunqiu was still intact. Although the people of Dunqiu did not accept the offer of amnesty, many were still willing to believe in Cao Cao, and many Yellow Turbans dispersed and left Dongjun for other places.

For example, Heishan in the northwest of Dongjun, or Lihu, Dingtao, Chengshi and other places in Jiyinjun in the south.

Unlike a few years ago, Li Qian of the Cheng clan gave Cao Cao a lot of face this time, not only accepting the Yellow Turbans but also supplying Cao Cao with some grain.

Cao Cao asked him why things were different from usual.

Li Qian said, “In the past, I was unwilling to sell grain at a fair price, not for profit, but because no one in the world was selling grain. If my Li family sold it alone, we would be attacked by all the families in the prefectures and counties. At that time, if thieves came to seize the grain, I originally intended to recruit those wandering bandits, but Cao Jun came, so I gave up.”

"But now... the world is in chaos. If my Li family only focuses on hoarding grain, we will be targeted by bandits. It would be better to distribute grain and land and recruit more people. That would be doing our part for the people."

Cao Cao was very impressed and immediately offered to appoint Li Qian to an official position, but Li Qian refused.

Why are you unwilling to become an official?

Cao Cao found it somewhat strange.

“What benefit is there in serving as an official now? One will either be used as a tool or do dirty work for others… I appreciate Lord Cao’s good intentions, but I dare not trust the officials of the world. If Lord Cao were to personally take charge of Yanzhou in the future, I would be willing to serve him.”

Li Qian bowed and took his leave of Cao Cao.

Cao Cao knew that this was all he could do for now, and Liu Bei and Li Qian were right... there was nothing he couldn't bear to part with as a cavalry captain.

After settling the Yellow Turban rebels in Dunqiu, Cao Cao submitted a letter resigning from his position as Cavalry Commandant and left Huangfu Song's troops, returning to Luoyang.

……

Zou Jing had already returned to Luoyang and reported the whole story to the Emperor.

Around the same time, more military reports came from various places, and none of them were good news.

All the Yellow Turban leaders in various prefectures and counties formed real armies and appointed chieftains to lead their troops in a full-scale armed rebellion, changing their focus from plundering grain to attacking and occupying prefectures and counties.

The various prefectures and counties were no longer able to resist them—the Yellow Turbans of today, when faced with direct slaughter by the imperial army, were no longer the same as before.

The Yellow Turbans of today can now truly be called the 'Yellow Turban Army'.

The empire was already in chaos, and the Yellow Turbans could no longer be appeased, nor could the matter be viewed with a fighting mentality. Liu Hong had no choice but to issue an edict ordering all prefectures and counties to recruit righteous armies, allowing local officials to form armies for self-defense, summoning military experts from all over the country to volunteer at the Imperial Carriage Gate, and ordering the court officials to donate horses and other military supplies in order to quickly suppress the Yellow Turbans in various places.

When Cao Song saw Cao Cao return to Luoyang, he inquired about the reason for Cao Cao's return. He immediately instructed Cao Cao to donate some of his warhorses to the army and to use Cao Cao's private troops as a righteous army to take the lead in responding to the emperor's edict.

Cao Cao donated four hundred horses and immediately received a new appointment.

Liu Hong appointed Cao Cao as the Chancellor of Jinan because of his merits in quelling the rebellion and providing military supplies.

Moreover, this time, the emperor did not accept bribes from officials.

Subsequently, Liu Hong ordered Huangfu Song to attack Dongjun, under the command of General He Jin.

Zhu Jun was ordered to attack Nanyang, and was placed under the command of General Dong Zhong.

Lu Zhi was fighting Zhang Liang, and Liu Hong had already sent a eunuch to urge him on.

The three lieutenant generals led three armies to pacify one side.

Meanwhile, Huangfu Song, who beheaded 50,000, was enfeoffed as the Marquis of Duxiang, and Zhu Jun, who defeated the chieftain Peng Tuo and beheaded 20,000, was enfeoffed as the Marquis of Xixiang.

but……

Huangfu Song was the Marquis of Duxiang, and his fief was Duxiang in Changshe County.

Zhu Jun's fiefdom as Marquis of Xixiang was Xixiang in Xihua County.

"Duxiang" and "Xixiang" do not refer to the names of townships, because at that time, townships did not have names.

Duxiang refers to the 'central township' within a county. Many people were granted the title of Marquis of Duxiang, but their fiefs were located in different counties. Huangfu Song's accurate title for Marquis of Duxiang was 'Marquis of Changshe Township'. Duxiang or Duting usually shared the same name as the county.

Just like the 'Hanshou Pavilion Marquis', which is actually the same as the Duting Marquis, it refers to the central pavilion of Hanshou County in Wuling.

Xixiang refers to the 'Xixiang area' within the county, but it is not necessarily located in the west of the county. Rather, it is a western area divided within the county. Each county has east and west townships. If Liu Bei's Xihe was incorporated into Zhuo County, it would be designated as the west township of Zhuo County; if Xihe was incorporated into Laiyuan County, it would be designated as the east township of Laiyuan County.

In other words, the fiefdoms granted to Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun were actually located in the places where they had each carried out massacres—both of which are now desolate, uninhabited areas littered with corpses.

Of course, this was indeed the place where they established their military achievements, and being enfeoffed in the place where they made their contributions was the most appropriate reward.

The only option now is to quell the rebellion quickly, but both Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun are somewhat uneasy.

Zhu Jun used military tactics to bribe the army while simultaneously threatening powerful local magnates with his large army, attempting to become a tyrant caught between two sides; Huangfu Song, on the other hand, was clearly already colluding with the Yuan family.

For now, they can barely obey the imperial edict. Liu Hong's deliberate bestowal of such honors upon Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun was also a last-ditch effort.

……

A few days later, Liu Bei also received a new appointment.

This appointment was brought by Zou Jing.

The emperor sent Zou Jing to Youzhou to recruit Hu cavalry and appointed Zou Jing as a public envoy. He also transferred Liu Bei, the chief clerk of Guangyang, to be the commander of Ganling.

The rank of Commandant of a Commandery was equivalent to that of a commandery officer with a salary of 2,000 shi (a unit of grain), so this was a promotion for Liu Bei.

However, the actual authority of the Commandant of the Inland Commandery was not much different from that of the Chief Clerk of the Border Commandery; he simply changed from a military assistant to a main force in combat.

However... the emperor did not accept bribes from officials.

At the same time, the emperor also appointed Liu Yu as the chancellor of Ganling State.

Ganling County was the first place to fall into chaos. Liu Zhong, the King of Ganling, is still in Zhang Jiao's hands, but Feng Xun, the Chancellor of Ganling, has disappeared.

The emperor sent Liu Yu and Liu Bei to negotiate with the Yellow Turbans and redeem Liu Zhong, the Prince of Ganling.

— Liu Hong has already found out that it was Liu Bei who asked Guo Dian to write the proclamation.

At the same time, it was also discovered that Liu Bei had previously been reported by Gong Qichou, the Protector of Wuhuan, and Liu Zheng, the Prefect of Youbeiping, for procuring military provisions for Lu Zhi, and subsequently left Lu Zhi's army.

They also discovered that Liu Bei had saved Zou Jing, and even found out about Liu Bei's criminal record in Luoyang, as well as the fact that Liu Bei's mother was assassinated because of Liu Yu.

Liu Hong was both excited and regretful.

He was excited because he learned that Liu Bei came from a humble background, was a member of the imperial clan, and had a feud with the Yuan family.

Unfortunately, the situation is different now, and Liu Bei may be difficult to control.

He had no family, no children, and his wives and concubines were all from entertainer backgrounds. He didn't even have a clan. Liu Hong relied on the eunuchs to investigate, but he couldn't find out about Xihe. He only knew that Liu Bei had a reputation for chivalry in Zhuojun and that Liu Bei had broken away from his clan.

The only leverage he has is his past crimes, but there's certainly no need to bring that up now.

All Liu Hong could find were official documents. Liu Bei's crime in Luoyang was merely robbing a caravan on the road. No one was injured, so it wasn't considered a major case. The fact that he secretly stabbed Gongsun Yue to death is still unknown to this day.

Liu Hong is now very cautious in his use of people. In fact, he has always been cautious in his use of people because he knows very well that no member of the aristocratic family can be completely trusted.

Although Liu Bei did help him, it was more like he was helping Zhang Jiao.

Since he has no family or clan, we can only use Liu Yu to control him for now and observe the situation.

Liu Yu had publicly denounced the Yuan family for the assassination attempt, and Liu Bei also had a grudge against the Yuan family, so they were destined to be enemies. Moreover, since they were both relatives of the Han imperial family, it was only natural to bring them into the "Emperor's Party".

For Liu Hong, the only question was what Liu Bei's attitude towards him was.

Therefore, Liu Hong gave Liu Bei another mission to redeem himself from being granted the title of king.

The Chancellor and Commandant of Ganling were of course obligated to ransom the King of Ganling, but Liu Hong offered no ransom, only an official position.

In fact, Liu Bei knew Liu Hong's intentions.

Liu Zhong, the Prince of Ganling, is actually not important.

The important question is whether there is another way to help the emperor, just like when he redeemed Prince Anping.

The Yellow Turbans can no longer be appeased, but at least the world should know that the Han Dynasty has no intention of exterminating them. The ones who should be exterminated are the powerful and influential figures mentioned in the proclamation.

"It is said that Zhang Chun has set up some kind of Mitiandao in Yuyang. During this period, many Hu people have claimed to be 'subordinates of General Mitian,' and they may plunder various places."

Liu Bei accepted the imperial edict and said to Zou Jing, "If I lead the troops to Ji Province now, then only Xianyu Fu's army will be available in You Province. Commander Zou does not have the authority to lead troops now. If he wants to join forces with General Zong to recruit Hu cavalry, Zhang Chun will definitely cause trouble, and Gong Qichou will probably also interfere."

"Zhang Chun shouldn't be plotting a rebellion now, right?"

Zou Jing thought for a moment, then asked somewhat uncertainly.

“He can’t rebel immediately, but right now the Yellow Turbans are forced into a corner and have no choice but to fight to the death. No one can spare any hands to deal with Zhang Chun, so we can only try to keep them in check for now.”

Liu Bei explained, "We need to keep him calm for at least a year or two, otherwise no one in Youzhou can control him... Since Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun are so ruthless, Commander Zou might as well meet with Zhang Chun and, in his capacity as the Marquis of the Northern Army, use Huangfu Song's infamous reputation to negotiate with Zhang Chun."

(End of this chapter)