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

Chapter 204 Heroes of the Western Regions
November of the third year of Zhongping (186 AD).

General Dong Zhuo and General Liu Bei led 50,000 troops to attack Liangzhou.

The army split into four routes, but all were headed to the same destination—Jincheng County in Liangzhou.

According to the plan, Dong Zhuo led his main force of 30,000 troops westward along the Wei River, first entering Xiangwu and Lintao counties in Longxi, and then heading north through Didao to attack Jincheng.

Dong Zhuo's hometown was Lintao, and he was extremely familiar with both the people and the terrain. He would first recover Longxi and control the Longdao, and then gather all his forces to quell the rebel army entrenched in Jincheng in one fell swoop.

Instead of advancing into Longxi, Liu Bei led his elite troops and over 10,000 soldiers from various counties and prefectures in the Three Auxiliary Regions to Tianshui, where he controlled Ji County and Shanggui County to ensure the army's supply lines.

After Dong Zhuo recovers Longxi and controls Longdao, Liu Bei will advance northward from Nan'an Xundao to attack Jincheng, forming a pincer movement.

The cavalry commander Bao Hong and the infantry commander Guanqiu Yi, among others, formed a flank force and marched from Anding County in the north along the Liupan Mountain trail to support the main army while preventing the Qiang people from rebelling again.

This is a very rigorous combat strategy: first, hold key transportation routes to prevent the enemy from having any surprise attacks, and then continuously squeeze the enemy's operational space in order to seek a decisive battle.

The various groups of people each performed their duties and eventually surrounded Yuzhong County in Jincheng Prefecture.

This is a straightforward and honorable way of fighting, defeating the enemy through direct confrontation.

In addition, the troops of Zou Jing, the commander of the Northern Army, and Ma Ridi, the captain of the Archers, served as the rear guard, staying behind to defend important cities and passes along the Wei River, such as Meiyang and Chencang, to ensure the supply of military provisions.

To put it simply...

Head coach Zhang Wen was unable to control the locker room and his tactical skills were poor. The team suffered a series of defeats and finished at the bottom of the standings in the Western Champions League. He has now been dismissed.

Now, the core players Dong Zhuo and Liu Bei, who just transferred from the Hebei division, are working together to develop tactics.

Dong Zhuo was in charge of organizing the attack, with the starting forwards being Guo Si, Niu Fu, and Hua Xiong, while Dong Zhuo himself played as the attacking midfielder.

Liu Bei served as the defensive midfielder, responsible for connecting offense and defense, while the central midfield was led by Li Jue, the current Commandant of Fufeng, and the troops of the Three Auxiliary Commanderies.

Bao Hong and Guanqiu Yi are full-backs, Ma Ridi and others are sweeper center-backs, and Zou Jing is the goalkeeper.

Originally, this lineup also included midfielder Yuan Shu, but Yuan Shu went back to Luoyang to file a complaint against the head coach and missed this round of the league.

……

In order to manage the grain supplies, Liu Bei set off a few days later than Dong Zhuo. The Long Road was long, and Liu Bei's journey with the grain supplies was also slow. By the time he arrived in Tianshui, it was already mid-November.

Liu Bei led his 5,000 elite troops to garrison in Ji County.

The total number of soldiers in the three prefectures was about five thousand, divided into six divisions, led by Li Jue, the Commandant of Fufeng, and stationed in Shanggui.

Ji County is a strategic location in the west, controlling all the key roads in the Longshan Mountains, and serving as the base for the army's advance and retreat.

Shanggui was the gateway to the three prefectures of Longyou and also the most important water and land passage.

There were no local troops left in these two areas. The powerful clans of the two counties had opened the city gates after seeing Dong Zhuo's army, seemingly showing no intention of resisting the imperial court, but they also did not provide any support...

Clearly, they are opportunists; they will definitely open the city gates if the rebels come.

But as long as they don't support the rebels, it's fine. Being a fence-sitter is for survival, so it's understandable.

When an army is attacking, the most important thing is actually defense.

In reality, the so-called offense and defense are constantly changing. When two armies clash, they are attacking the enemy's weaknesses while protecting their own. Most of the time, it's a contest of who has fewer vulnerabilities and who can seize opportunities better.

There's no such thing as addition or subtraction in war.

It's common for a team to besiege the opponent's goal with 28 shots without scoring, only to have the opponent launch a quick counter-attack and score a one-on-one goal.

Whether or not to launch a full-scale attack, and when to launch such an attack, depends on whether Dong Zhuo can quickly pacify Longxi Commandery.

How much ability Dong Zhuo could exert depended on how well Liu Bei, as the defensive midfielder, organized the defense.

As long as Liu Bei can hold Ji County and Shanggui and cut off the Longdao Road, preventing the rebels from taking a detour to seize grain, Dong Zhuo can focus all his efforts on the attack.

This can be seen as a mutual trust between Dong Zhuo and Liu Bei. Dong Zhuo entrusted his future to Liu Bei, while Liu Bei entrusted his future to Dong Zhuo.

If this battle is lost, Liu Bei will certainly be held responsible for instigating the entire army to fight without authorization.

To ensure complete success, Liu Bei ordered Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to each lead over a thousand elite troops into the Longdong Pass to search for the enemy, and also ordered Li Jue to lead troops north to block the ancient Lueyang Road.

The Lueyang Ancient Road is the ancient Long Road from the Qin Dynasty. The route is shaped like the number "nine". It connects to Nan'an in the west and Anding in the north. The two intersections in the south lead to Ji County and Chencang, respectively.

The crossroads of the character "九" is the famous Jieting (Jiequanting).

Li Jue was a powerful clan in Beidi Commandery. In his early years, he served as a county official under Huangfu Song. However, at this time, he was not anyone's subordinate, but a legitimate official of the Han Dynasty, the Right Commandant of Fufeng.

Liu Bei oversaw the Three Auxiliary Regions, and Li Jue was directly under Liu Bei's control, showing considerable cooperation.

Among the troops of the Three Auxiliary Commanderies, only Li Jue's troops could be considered elite.

Li Jue's main force consisted of 1,200 men, most of whom were cavalry, and it was clear at a glance that they were all seasoned veterans.

However... Li Jue followed the traditional path of powerful clans in those days; his retainers were actually raised through plunder.

In other words, they would reward those who went to war, plunder those who fought, and loot those who captured cities, using wealth and bloodshed to gain the fighting power and loyalty of their subordinates.

This is not an unusual situation, as most powerful clan militias operate in this way, and it is also the lowest-cost way to boost morale.

On the contrary, Liu Bei, who emphasized military discipline, was an exception.

Liu Bei knew he couldn't change the prevailing military command practices, so he could only restrain his troops from becoming corrupt, even if it required several times the cost and effort.

Sending Li Jue out to blockade Jieting was also to prevent looting from happening in Shanggui City. Tianshui, Longxi and other counties were already siding with the rebels because of the looting after Zhang Wen's defeat. If they were provoked a little more, they might turn from being fence-sitters to rebels, and then it would be impossible to fight them.

Li Jue's troops were not very disciplined, but their marching efficiency was indeed very high. They returned after only three days and reported: "Commander Liu, there are bandits stationed along the ancient road to Lueyang, with at least five thousand men."

"Where are the bandits stationed at Jieting or Lueyang? Do you know who is leading them?"

Looking at the hand-drawn map that Dong Zhuo had given him, Liu Bei turned to ask Li Jue.

Not far southwest of Jieting lies the abandoned ancient city of Lueyang, but the map Dong Zhuo provided was too abstract, only showing place names and not marking the terrain or environment at all.

"In the old city of Lueyang, the main road was blocked... It should be Han Sui's men, along with some Qiang people, who seem to be planning to bypass Chencang and attack."

Li Jue stepped forward and pointed to the map, drawing two curved lines with his finger: "If the bandits go south along this route, they can emerge from the north of Chencang... If we return to Chencang or send troops elsewhere, the bandits can directly attack Ji County to the south."

Clearly, Li Jue was quite familiar with the environment and routes.

"In that case, we should advance quickly and defeat the bandits... Does Commander Li have a good plan?"

It's not surprising that the rebels would station troops along the Lueyang Ancient Road. As long as the rebels have someone knowledgeable in military affairs, they will definitely blockade the Longdao. Liu Bei came here precisely to clear and control the Longdao; it's just a matter of how to fight.

"The ancient road to Lueyang is narrow and long, making it difficult for a large army to form ranks. If we attack the enemy head-on, it will be difficult to quickly defeat the five thousand bandits."

Li Jue pointed to Ji County: "Why don't we ask the military governor to lead troops out to lure the enemy, so that the bandits will attack Ji County, and I can take a detour from Chencang to cut off their rear, and attack them from both sides?"

Liu Bei nodded, but then frowned and shook his head: "This plan is good, but nowadays there are probably people in the county who are colluding with the enemy. No matter which direction we lead the troops, it will be difficult to hide from the rebels."

"Since various families within the prefecture may be colluding with the enemy, why not drive the powerful clans of the prefecture to Lueyang Road and defeat the enemy head-on..."

Li Jue's first words were to use people as cannon fodder.

Zhao Yun, listening from behind Liu Bei, frowned deeply.

Liu Bei shook his head and laughed: "We are here to pacify Liangzhou, not to cause chaos in Liangzhou... Commander Li, I am not Huangfu Song."

Li Jue pursed his lips and sighed, "Since the governor-general does not agree, then please give the order."

"How about Lieutenant Li and I have a fight? When we go outside, you can curse me, Liu Bei, for being clueless about military strategy... The more offensive the better, so that all the idle people in the county can hear it..."

Liu Bei looked at Li Jue as he gave instructions. "This...isn't it disrespectful to the Commander-in-Chief?"

Li Jue hesitated for a moment.

“I will draw my sword to kill you… You can exchange blows with me, then flee the city and lead your army to oppose me.”

Liu Bei finished recounting the rest, then looked at Li Jue: "I chased you all the way to Langgan, far from Ji County, and fought you and me. Many people in Tianshui Commandery are loyal to the rebels, and someone must have informed Han Sui of this. I don't believe Han Sui can tolerate it."

"The warlord is putting on a show to lure the enemy in..."

Li Jue suddenly realized: "I obey... Liu Bei! You incompetent fool, you're trying to kill us all... Cough, Commander-in-Chief, is this alright?"

"...Okay...but no one can hear us here, you'll have to go outside and yell..."

Liu Bei was speechless. Li Jue was quite straightforward, cursing people without hesitation. But besides Liu Bei, there was only Zhao Yun in the official residence. Who was he cursing at?
……

Jieting.

Han Sui was stationed here.

However, unlike what Li Jue had previously scouted out, Han Sui brought troops that far exceeded five thousand men…

"Brother Wenyue, something has happened in Tianshui!"

Someone was telling Han Sui about what had happened in Ji County.

The day before yesterday, Li Jue and Liu Bei had a big argument at the gate of the county magistrate's office because of their "disagreement on military strategy", and the two drew their swords and threatened each other.

Liu Bei said that Li Jue was disobedient, while Li Jue claimed that Liu Bei was not good at military strategy.

The two then started fighting, slashing at each other with their swords, but fortunately they were both restrained by their respective guards.

Liu Bei threatened to kill Li Jue, but Li Jue led his troops out and refused to obey orders.

Liu Bei led his troops in pursuit and attacked Li Jue's forces near Langgan County. The two sides had been fighting for two days.

"Is this really true? It seems Liu Bei can't win over the people..."

Han Sui thought for a moment and asked the messenger, "Shoucheng, are there any other troops in the prefecture?"

The person who came to see Han Sui was Ma Teng, currently a triad boss in Langgan County, Tianshui.

Ma Teng was actually from Maoling, Fufeng, but his father, Ma Ping, had served as the commander of Langgan, so Ma Teng became a gangster in Langgan.

"Does my Ma family's retinue count?"

Ma Teng laughed and said, "Dong Zhuo has entered Longxi, Liu Bei is fighting Li Jue in Tianshui, and Ji County is undefended... Liu Bei even tried to recruit me to help him in the battle, and I have already agreed."

"If that's the case, then we should quickly take Ji County. If we can cut off Dong Zhuo's supply lines, we might be able to drive Dong Zhuo and Bei Gong Boyu into fighting each other."

Han Sui cupped his hands in greeting to Ma Teng: "Would Shoucheng be willing to go to Ji County with me?"

"Liu Bei's army is stationed near Langgan. If I move my troops, I fear Liu Bei will notice."

Ma Teng shook his head: "Brother Wenyue, go and take Ji County yourself. I will keep an eye on Liu Bei in Langgan. If you can use the grain route to force Dong Zhuo, then you can take this opportunity to drive Dong Zhuo to kill Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou... then you won't have to be a thief."

"Thank you for coming to inform me, Shoucheng!"

Han Sui no longer hesitated, stood up and called to his troops: "Send troops!"

Cheng Gongying clasped his hands in acceptance of the order.

Before long, tens of thousands of troops marched south from Jieting, heading straight for Ji County.

but……

As soon as Han Sui's troops left the Lueyang Ancient Road, another cavalry force quickly entered the mountain road and headed straight for Jieting.

……

Outside Ji County, Han Sui looked at the tightly closed city gates and hesitated.

"My lord, we see no soldiers inside the city. Shall we not attack?"

Cheng Gongying asked from the side.

"If there is no one stationed in Ji County, then the gates should not be closed... The people in the county have always been indecisive, how could they possibly refuse our army?"

Han Sui shook his head and sighed: "You lead the infantry to keep watch here, don't attack the city... I'll lead the cavalry to Langgan to see what's going on."

There were indeed soldiers in the city, but not many, only about a thousand men led by Zhang Fei.

As Han Sui said, if there were no soldiers in the county, the city gate would definitely be open. The families in Ji County were powerless to stop the imperial army, but they were also powerless to stop the Liangzhou rebels. They would have to open the gate no matter who came.

Zhang Fei was standing on the city wall of Ji County, peering out: "With so many people, why aren't they attacking the city? Surely the Liangzhou rebels aren't that cowardly?"

However, Han Sui's decision not to attack the city was the right one.

With over a thousand elite troops guarding it, the county town cannot be captured in a short time.

At this point, the standoff outside Langgan County had entered its fourth day.

In reality, only about a thousand people from both sides were there, carrying out their respective ceremonial guards; however, the number of barracks and cooking fires remained the same.

Even Liu Bei and Li Jue are no longer here...

It was Li Jue who led the cavalry to Jieting.

Liu Bei, at this time, was already in Langgan County.

As soon as Ma Teng returned to the county, he found himself unable to leave.

Liu Bei took over the defense of Langgan County and forcibly conscripted Ma Teng, the Langgan Commandant, into the army.

"I have long heard of the great name of Ma Shoucheng, a hero of Xizhou. It is a great honor to meet him today."

Liu Bei, looking at the somewhat bewildered Ma Teng, cupped his hands and smiled, "Brother Shoucheng, would you be willing to join me in suppressing the rebellion? There are many rebels outside the city; this is the time for heroes to distinguish themselves..."

"I am of low rank and insignificant title; how could my humble name possibly be worthy of General Liu's attention?"

Ma Teng was eight feet tall, four inches taller than Liu Bei.

Seeing Liu Bei take the initiative to bow, Ma Teng bowed slightly, but finding it wasn't low enough, he stepped down a step and looked up at Liu Bei: "The traitor you speak of, General, is it Li Jue?"

"No, the rebel outside the city is Han Yue... well, he's called Han Sui now. We're both heroes of Xizhou, so Brother Shoucheng should know him better than I do."

Liu Bei looked at Ma Teng and asked, "Brother Shoucheng, do you think Han Sui will attack my camp?"

Liu Bei's main camp is currently located more than ten miles outside Langgan County. Standing on the city wall, one can see the smoke rising from the camp in the distance.

Sweat beaded on Ma Teng's forehead: "I don't think so..."

"But he can't go back... Li Jue's troops are already stationed at Jieting, and Han Sui's retreat route is cut off. He can either capture Ji County or attack our camp..."

As Liu Bei spoke, he stared into Ma Teng's eyes again: "Or, come to Langgan County to find his friend... Brother Shoucheng, what do you think he will choose?"

Ma Teng remained silent for a moment, then suddenly cupped his hands and said, "Han Wenyue was forced to join the rebellion, and he also wants to get rid of Beigong Boyu! If General Liu gives him a chance, he will surely be able to take the heads of Beigong Boyu and Li Wenhou and present them to the court! I am willing to go and persuade Han Wenyue not to be an enemy of the general!"

"It's not that they don't want to be my enemy, but that they don't want to be enemies with the imperial court... I'm grateful for your help, Brother Shoucheng..."

Liu Bei pointed to a forest outside the city gate: "However, you'd better hurry. I think Han Wenyue is about to enter my brother Guan Yu's ambush zone..."

(End of this chapter)