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

Chapter 165 Celebrities and Philanthropists

Outside Guangzong City, the main besieging force had been gathered by Dong Zhuo.

Dong Zhuo abandoned the siege of Guangzong and began leading his troops north to attack Zhang Bao, who had captured Quyang.

Before leaving, he gave Liu Bei a military order, instructing the State of Ganling to supply the army with food and military supplies.

However, this military order was not assigned to any specific person; in other words, it was issued to the 'Ganling Kingdom' rather than to Liu Bei personally.

Dong Zhuo did not make things difficult for Liu Bei.

However, Liu Bei still faced a difficult situation.

What's making things difficult for him isn't people, but the current situation in Jizhou.

From last year's drought and plague, to the massive taxation at the end of the year, and then to this year's Yellow Turban Rebellion, there is no place in the entire Ji Province where people can live in peace. Most of the land is barren, and food is really hard to find.

Ganling was one of the first regions to suffer from these calamities.

The Ganling Treasury had been looted at the beginning of the year, before the Yellow Turban Rebellion even began. The Prince of Anping and the Prince of Ganling were captured by the so-called "rebels" at that time. When Zhang Jiao raised his army, he killed the so-called "rebel leaders" who were used for the flag-raising ceremony.

Those people were actually bandits, just like Liu Weitai and Le Hedang before them, who were guided by people with ulterior motives. They were not the local powerful clans of Anping and Ganling.

After the bandits looted the treasury and broke into the Ganling Prince's Mansion, the local powerful families in Ganling either banded together to defend themselves or fled with their entire families—with the Prince's Mansion breached, the wealthy families were naturally all in danger.

As for the common people, they were either coerced or joined the Yellow Turban Rebellion, and the few who had some food supplies hid in the unknown mountains and wilderness.

The powerful clans that banded together to defend themselves were mostly concentrated in Dongwu City in the north-central part of Ganling Kingdom, which was the settlement of the Cui clan.

Within Ganling, only the area north of Dongwu City was spared from being plundered by the bandits.

The southwestern part of Ganling Kingdom, including its capital Ganling County (Qinghe County), was basically all ruins.

It was truly a scene of exposed bones in the wilderness, a desolate place for miles around.

The main reason why there were so many Yellow Turbans in Guangzong County, but no Yellow Turbans gathered in the western part of neighboring Ganling, was that there was really no food to eat in Ganling.

Liu Bei settled 40,000 Yellow Turbans. Although these Yellow Turbans were very good at saving food and most of them honestly fished along the Qinghe River to survive, there were too many people and Liu Bei did not have enough food to provide them.

Most of these Yellow Turbans were women and children. There were some who could be called young adults, but they were only teenagers. There were very few elderly people and adults.

Guangzong City was full of devout followers of the Way of Peace, who would not easily leave Zhang Jiao. It was only through Zhang Jiao's force that these women and children were moved out.

These women and children respected Liu Bei. When they were moved out of Guangzong, they probably received instructions and did not cause Liu Bei any more trouble.

Even if no one explicitly told them, most of them knew that Liu Bei was taking a huge risk to give them a way to live.

Those teenagers who were only half-understanding of the ways of the world would often ask Liu Bei's men near the camp if there was any work they could do.

But there weren't many suitable jobs for them right now, so Liu Bei could only have them help his retainers cut grass and feed horses, or do things like logging, construction, and cleaning up Ganling County, and then give them some food.

Even when they ran out of food, they wouldn't come to Liu Bei to ask for more. In fact, every day some fresh fish would be hung outside Liu Bei's camp as a way of thanking the Commandant.

But the more this was the case, the more Liu Bei hoped they could all survive.

Those who had experienced natural disasters, man-made calamities, and wars, yet still harbored no evil intentions and tried to uphold the principle that "all people under heaven are equal," were, in Liu Bei's eyes, true law-abiding citizens.

If they are to survive now, they must be requisitioned from the powerful clans.

Having military orders in hand, which were issued to Ganling County, Liu Bei could directly issue levies to various powerful clans, so he dispatched most of his troops.

However, after Liu Bei issued a military order to the powerful clans of Ganling to requisition grain, he received virtually no response.

Only the Cui family of Ganling sent someone to inform Liu that the clan had no surplus grain, but the manor's cellars were filled with millet chaff and hay, which Liu could use at will, including the houses.

The Cui family of Ganling has indeed always had a reputation for integrity and has established itself through scholarship. However, this reputation is mainly due to their being imprisoned by the Party Prohibitions. In reality, the Cui clan of Ganling (Qinghe) has thousands of servants, and the entire Dongwu City is their land.

Moreover, Dongwu City was neither ravaged by bandits nor attacked by the Yellow Turbans, and most of the powerful clans of Ganling were affiliated with the Cui family.

They have no surplus food?
Anyway, Liu Bei didn't believe it.

However, the Cui family of Ganling was at least polite; they were willing to let Liu Bei use their manor, houses, and cellars outside Dongwu City at will, which was a gesture of respect.

In Anping, north of Ganling, there is also the Cui family of Anping (Boling). This family also originated from the Cui family of Ganling, but it was originally a branch. However, at this time, it was more prosperous than the main branch of the Ganling family.

From Anping Xindu in the north to Ganling Dongwucheng in the south, all the land within a radius of two hundred li belongs to the Cui family of Anping—except for the two royal mausoleums, all the land is owned by the Cui family.

This is the Cui family, the most prominent of the five noble families and seven prominent clans of the Tang Dynasty, which produced sixteen prime ministers. (Note: Anping and Ganling are still kingdoms today; Boling and Qinghe were their names during the Cao Wei period.)
Although their ancestral hall was in Anping, they owned a large amount of land in Ganling, so Liu Bei naturally had to requisition military supplies from them.

However, Cui Shi of Anping completely ignored Liu Bei.

The head of the Cui clan in Anping is named Cui Lie, and he currently serves as the Minister of Justice—a position that certainly gives him the confidence to ignore Liu Bei, the Commandant of the Commandery.

But now, if Liu Bei doesn't deal with the two Cui families, he won't be able to get enough grain in Ganling.

Because all the other powerful clans followed the lead of the two Cui families.

“Young master, Cui Lie and his eldest son Cui Jun are both officials in the capital, but Cui Lie’s second son Cui Jun is quite different from his father and brother. Perhaps we could try to find Cui Jun.”

Zhang He had a good understanding of the gentry in Ji Province and offered a suggestion: "When I came of age two years ago, I met Cui Jun. At that time, the clan wanted to send him gifts to ask him to comment on my conduct, but he refused the gifts, saying that he did not judge people based on wealth. Moreover, he praised Mr. Yue, saying that Mr. Yue's virtue was known throughout the world and that he should be a role model for all ages."

Who is Cui Jun?

Liu Bei was ignorant and had never heard of this name.

“Cui Jun, courtesy name Zhouping, was born in the same year as He. His elder brother, Cui Yuanping, had already entered the capital to serve as an advisor, but he was unwilling to accept the position due to his father's influence. Instead, he made friends with famous scholars everywhere and was quite well-known in Jizhou.”

Zhang He explained: "However... this man's character is often praised, but he is not good at practical matters and can only engage in empty talk and commentary. He is unknown and does not meet his standards. But you, sir, have a great reputation and have the favor of Mr. Yue. If you want to get grain from the Cui family, you can first befriend Cui Zhouping."

Cui Zhouping?
Liu Bei was very familiar with this name.

It was normal for scholars to critique each other in those days, and it was also common practice for scholars to gain fame through their critiques. Most famous scholars were made in this way. Zhang He was also from a prominent family in Ji Province, so it was quite normal for him to ask Cui Zhouping for his critique when he came of age.

With more friends, you can influence each other's careers, no matter which one becomes an official.

The reason why famous figures of that era often went out to visit friends was largely due to this.

In fact, most of the commentaries by celebrities these days are paid—just like how modern bloggers with followers make a living by charging advertising fees. Commentary is the main business of these refined and virtuous celebrities...

Cao Cao once met Xu Shao (Xu Zijiang) of Runan through the introduction of Qiao Xuan, and asked Xu Shao for his opinion, but Xu Shao refused to speak.

Cao Cao knew this was a token gesture, but at that time Cao Cao was still a spendthrift and hadn't made any money, so he couldn't offer anything substantial. He could only pull out a knife and brandish it in front of Xu Shao.

Upon seeing the knife, Xu Shao had no choice but to speak, saying that Cao Cao was "a treacherous villain in times of peace, and a hero in times of chaos."

This isn't actually a compliment; it implies that Cao Cao was a gangster who caused social unrest...

Xu Shao was just very good at talking.

The art of language lies in the fact that if you reverse the order of this sentence, the meaning immediately changes—"You are a hero in chaotic times, a treacherous villain in peaceful times!" At that time, Cao Cao hadn't yet become the Northern Commandant; it wasn't a chaotic era then...

However, Cao Cao, who was originally a chivalrous knight-errant, thought Xu Shao's words were quite true and accepted the assessment.

Cui Zhouping is still young and of course cannot be compared with Xu Shao, but it seems that Cui Zhouping also intends to take this route of commenting on bloggers.

However, Cui Zhouping's decision not to accept payment for his character reviews is probably not because he doesn't care about money, but because he is indeed not short of money... He probably only wants fame.

In fact, it's very easy for members of the Cui family to become officials. With the Cui family's reputation and status, as long as they are willing to pay money to Xiyuan, they can become any kind of official.

However, since his brother has already chosen the path of becoming an official and entering politics, Cui Zhouping, as the second son, should take the path of becoming a respected scholar and a man of integrity. If something happens to his brother, Cui Zhouping can immediately take his place in politics based on his reputation.

But since Cui Zhouping had praised Yue Yin, Liu Bei naturally had to go and befriend him.

So Liu Bei sent Zhang He with a visiting card to Cui Jun's residence.

Cui Jun currently lives in Zaoqiang County, a small county located between Ganling, Anping and Bohai counties, which is also a no-man's-land.

The reason why the authorities were in a state of "no one caring" was, of course, because the local officials had absolutely no control over the Cui family.

Cui Jun lived in Zaoqiang, which is similar to Liu Bei living in Xiheting.

But when Zhang He went to the door with the sticker, he was turned away.

Cui's gatekeeper accepted Liu Bei's visiting card, but as soon as he came out, he threw Liu Bei's card at Zhang He's feet, declaring, "Those who associate with the bandits should not tarnish the noble family's reputation!"

Zhang He was furious. This was not only an insult to Liu Bei, but also an insult to Zhang He himself.

So Zhang He beat up the doorman of the Cui family.

It's a testament to Zhang He's rationality that he didn't kill the man on the spot—if it had been Zhang Fei, the Cui family's house would probably have been set on fire.

After Zhang He returned, he told Liu Bei about the matter, but Liu Bei was not angry.

Judging from this, the Cui family probably knew that Liu Bei had taken in a large number of Yellow Turban rebels. After all, they were close by and could get some information from him.

In fact, Liu Bei understood that as a family member of the Minister of Justice, he naturally had to abide by the law—at least on the surface.

It's understandable that the Cui family wouldn't dare to deal with the Yellow Turbans, nor would they easily associate with officials like Liu Bei who were suspected of harboring them.

However, it's unlikely that a prestigious family like the Cui family would deliberately insult someone. If they didn't want to deal with Liu Bei, they could simply refuse the invitation; there was no need to intentionally throw it on the ground.

This is mostly because they have to express a stance, which certainly has nothing to do with any moth thieves.

Of course, prestigious families will protect other prestigious families.

Things are different now. Liu Yu and Liu Bei have long been at odds with the Yuan family, but it is only now that Liu Bei has officially caught the Yuan family's eye—the emperor can find out that it was Guo Dian who wrote the proclamation, and the Yuan family can find out the same thing.

Or rather, it was because the emperor found out that the Yuan family immediately knew...

At the same time, the Yuan family knew more than the emperor—for example, Liu Bei had eliminated the bandits in Zhuojun and Guo Xun in Guangyang, and Youzhou had not fallen into chaos, all because of Liu Bei.

It seems that trying to make friends with them properly won't work.

So Liu Bei took the seal of the Commandant and stamped it a few times at the Ganling government office, and directly designated Zaoqiang as the garrison of the Ganling Commandery.

As a captain, it was natural for him to arrange for the county troops to be stationed there.

Now that the Yellow Turban Rebellion has broken out in both Anping and Bohai, it is quite reasonable for Liu Bei to station the Ganling County troops in Zaoqiang to guard against the Yellow Turban invasion.

Whether the county troops will leave after they are stationed there depends on the course of the battle.

Liu Bei's troops marched quickly, and by the afternoon of the second day, they had reached Zaoqiang.

"Is this Lord Xuande of Zhuojun? I have long admired your great name, Lord Xuande. It is truly an honor to meet you today... Please come in and enjoy the feast!"

Cui Zhouping was very respectful to Liu Bei this time, and led a group of scholars to greet him outside the city.

Of course, this "face" was mostly for the military...

Anyway, Cui Zhouping's smile looked very similar to the one Liu Bei wore when he welcomed Gongsun Zan, and even Liu Bei himself felt that it looked familiar.

"I am of little renown and do not deserve your welcoming ceremony outside the city."

Liu Bei humbly shook his head and stepped forward to take Cui Zhouping's hand: "The world is in turmoil, and the people are starving. I have no heart for a banquet. Brother Cui, why don't you convert the funds for the banquet into millet to supply my troops?"

In fact, Cui Zhouping was a few years younger than Liu Bei, but Liu Bei still addressed him as his elder brother.

Cui Zhouping was clearly stunned for a moment, probably because he had never seen anyone so shameless as to insist on keeping his promise to host a banquet.
"Lord Xuande is joking. The banquet has been prepared and is being held within the city. Lord Xuande's troops have come from afar and are weary, so I have prepared wine and meat to welcome them..."

After Cui Zhou calmed down, he quickly led Liu Bei into the city.

"Brother Cui, do you know that I have come here to garrison troops in this city? Due to military duties, I must apologize that I cannot have a banquet... Brother Cui, you might as well replace the wine and meat prepared for my troops with millet. In these turbulent times, military supplies are more important than wine and meat."

Liu Bei demanded that the promise be fulfilled again.

Now anyone with a normal mind would understand Liu Bei's intentions.

Cui Zhouping was quite composed, his face remaining unchanged. He simply cupped his hands and said, "Lord Xuande, this is the territory of Anping. If guests come to visit, I, Cui, will treat them with courtesy. However, the supplies for the Ganling army should be obtained within Ganling territory."

Liu Bei tossed him a newly written recruitment notice: "Zaoqiang County no longer belongs to Anping and is currently under military control. I have come here to protect the territory and its people. Brother Cui has a renowned reputation for making friends with many heroes. Would you be willing to serve as the Military Advisor of Ganling Army?"

“I, Cui, am unworthy and dare not accept this command… I beg Lord Xuande to rescind this order.”

Cui Zhouping truly hadn't expected that Liu Bei would be so adept at the very things that wealthy and powerful families excelled at.

"Well... war is dangerous and perilous. It's understandable that Brother Cui, as the son of a wealthy family, wouldn't dare to go to the battlefield. Since Brother Cui is unwilling to contribute to the world, then I have no choice but to ask Brother Cui to leave this place for the time being."

Liu Bei turned and beckoned to Guan Yu and Zhang He: "Yun Chang, lead the troops into the city to set up defenses..."

"Stay on!"

Cui Zhouping's expression finally changed: "Why must you do this, Lord Xuande... I do not consider you an enemy, but I am forced to do so. My father has given orders, and my friends have all asked me to look after them... I have always respected Mr. Yue, but Lord Xuande's actions are quite different from Mr. Yue's..."

“I am certainly different from my master… My master is a gentleman, learned and virtuous, and always kind and gentle. But I, Liu, am a rough and uncouth soldier from Youzhou…”

Liu Bei replied straightforwardly, "Your father and other friends have put you in a difficult position, so I am helping you now. I am the one who forced you to leave this place, and I am the one who forcibly requisitioned your Cui family's grain reserves... Just tell them that."

"This... Lord Xuande, do you no longer care about your reputation and future career?"

Cui Zhouping was shocked. With his mindset, he really couldn't understand how someone could be so disregardful of the prestige of the aristocratic family.
"My reputation comes from the moth thief you all call me."

Liu Bei gently shook his head: "My career also stemmed from what you call the 'moth bandits.' Right now, I have over 40,000 people to feed. Cui Zhouping, do you want to be a renowned scholar or a philanthropist?"

(End of this chapter)