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

Chapter 272 A model for the world
into the night.

Xiaopingjin.

It is true that Yuan Shao's supply train remained at Xiaopingjin, but Guan Yu and Zhang Fei conquered Xiaopingjin in relatively short time because Yuan Shao only left behind a few hundred old, weak, and disabled people.

Moreover, most of these old, weak, and disabled soldiers were not Yuan Shao's men, but rather He Miao's troops.

Yuan Shao gave He Miao's remaining troops to Lü Bu, but Lü Bu was unwilling to take the old and weak, so he left these people behind—but Lü Bu took their equipment with him.

Therefore, these elderly and weak people surrendered immediately upon seeing Guan Yu's troops.

After capturing Xiaopingjin, Guan Yu immediately dispatched more scouts to Luoyang.

At this time, Liu Bei had already learned that Yuan Shao had replaced the eunuch with Liu Bian, forced the eunuch to commit suicide, and then withdrew his troops. He was currently transporting the remains of his clansmen eastward along the imperial road.

"Yuan Shao actually abandoned Shi Hou..."

Jia Xu's face showed a rare solemnity: "He holds a powerful army, yet he doesn't take Luoyang, doesn't support a new emperor, deliberately kills eunuchs to gain fame, and even abandons half of his troops to retreat voluntarily... Yuan Shao's schemes are truly grand!"

"Yuan Shao had planned this all along, and most of his plans went as he wished, except for the matter of Shi Hou, which was beyond his expectations. With Wenhe's help, Shi Hou now has little chance of gaining the approval of the officials and is unlikely to ascend to the throne. Unable to carry out the act of enthroning him, Yuan Shao immediately withdrew..."

Liu Bei nodded and said, "Killing all the eunuchs will win the hearts of the gentry in Guandong; returning Marquis Shi to the capital will earn us a reputation for loyalty to the emperor; not massacring people because our families have suffered will be seen as benevolent; and sending hundreds of corpses back to their hometowns will be considered filial piety..."

"If he were to capture Luoyang and forcibly install himself as emperor, he might instead get bogged down in a power struggle. By withdrawing now, he can gain the greatest benefit. Furthermore, with the Guandong gentry spreading his name on his behalf, Yuan Shao will surely be hailed as a 'model for all under heaven'... It is truly a brilliant tactic, worthy of admiration."

"He did not strive for temporary strength, nor was he bound by any particular city or region. He was not swayed by the power of the Luoyang officials, but only sought fame and reputation to extricate himself... He may have seemed to gain nothing, but in reality, he reaped countless benefits..."

Jia Xu stroked his beard and looked at Liu Bei: "Yuan Shao will surely gain the reputation of being a model for the world, and scholars from Guandong will compete to serve him. This man will become your great enemy, yet you still say you admire him?"

"Having such a formidable foe is a blessing in my life. His methods are superb, and I admire them. To defeat a strong opponent is what makes a hero, and to belittle a strong foe is only to belittle oneself."

Liu Bei took a deep breath and smiled: "Perhaps Yuan Shao is also afraid of me..."

"Our lord possesses the ambition to conquer the world; I deeply admire him..."

Jia Xu cupped his hands and bowed deeply to the ground, which seemed to be the most respectful thing Jia Xu had ever done.

"I admire him, but if we allow Yuan Shao to establish himself in Guandong, it will indeed be a major crisis. Wenhe, in your opinion, should I pursue him?"

Liu Bei lifted Jia Xu up and asked him seriously.

"We cannot pursue... Our lord's forces are insufficient, and Yuan Shao has retreated voluntarily. He will surely be on guard along the way. If we fight against a superior force with fewer troops, even if we win, we will suffer heavy losses. Yuan Shao does not care about losing soldiers and generals... Perhaps he is waiting for someone to pursue us."

Jia Xu shook his head: "Besides, Yuan Shao is now transporting the remains of his clansmen back to their hometown. Regardless of whether he has committed any other crimes, this matter will at least be regarded as filial piety by the people of the world. If our lord pursues the filial son who is protecting the remains back to his hometown, it will be difficult for him to uphold righteousness. As the Junior Tutor, our lord cannot do this."

Liu Bei thought for a moment and nodded helplessly.

Jia Xu was right; Yuan Shao was likely just waiting for someone to pursue him.

Whoever pursued him, if the pursuer could not defeat Yuan Shao, it would be enough to prove that Yuan Shao was capable of conquering Luoyang, but he did not attack – this precisely demonstrates Yuan Shao's 'loyalty, filial piety, integrity, and righteousness'.

Even if the pursuers defeat Yuan Shao's troops, as long as Yuan Shao is not dead, he can be regarded as a tragic hero, and this can be used to prove his innocence—the pursuers will surely be regarded by the world as immoral villains who obstruct people's filial piety.

Moreover, what Yuan Shao wanted was the reputation of being a role model for the world; he wouldn't care about the loss of troops.

At this moment, among all the forces in Luoyang and the surrounding areas, who is confident that they can kill Yuan Shao if he doesn't care about losing any troops?

Yuan Shao still had seven thousand elite troops by his side.

“He still has other crimes to commit… wait… Wenhe, I don’t think Yuan Shao will return Marquis Shi so easily…”

Liu Bei pondered for a while, then suddenly looked up and said, "If Lord Shi were alive, Yuan Shao's crime of treason would be impossible to clear. How could he have left such a flaw?"

Jia Xu was also startled.

"...Lord Shi is likely to die!" "Lord Shi has no chance of survival!"

Liu Bei and Jia Xu spoke at the same time.

"Wenhe, quickly go to Luoyang to send a message to Dong Zhuo, asking him to pursue Yuan Shao... Shi Hou is innocent, I will try to hold Yuan Shao back for a while."

Liu Bei quickly took action.

……

Luoyang.

"Is Lord Shi in trouble? What trouble could he possibly be in? Lord Shi has already returned to the capital safely. Given the rumors surrounding him, how could anyone want to harm him?"

Dong Zhuo was still very polite to Jia Xu; he genuinely regarded Jia Xu as a kind person.

But he didn't take Jia Xu's words seriously.

In fact, the rumors surrounding Liu Bian did serve as a form of protection—he was not qualified to compete for the throne, so no one would harm him or use him as a bargaining chip. Although there were many rumors about him, in reality, there were fewer risks and controversies.

"General Dong, Marquis Shi is being held hostage by Yuan Shao. This is Yuan Shao's only indelible crime of treason. If we want to control Yuan Shao, we must preserve this evidence of Marquis Shi's crime..."

Jia Xu explained: "Furthermore, Yuan Shao has countless loyal followers, and there may still be remnants in Luoyang... You must know that sometimes killing is not for the sake of killing, but for the purpose of framing... If Shi Hou has just returned to Luoyang and something happens to him, General, who do you think would be considered the murderer?"

"Hiss... I never expected this!" Dong Zhuo gasped. "We must be wary of treacherous people plotting against us..."

Seeing that Dong Zhuo listened to the advice, Jia Xu breathed a sigh of relief: "General Dong, it is better to catch the thief than to guard against him. I urge you to immediately send troops to pursue Yuan Shao, otherwise you will be framed by him sooner or later."

But when it came to pursuing Yuan Shao, Dong Zhuo wouldn't listen to any advice: "Right now, Lü Bu and the others are still stationed outside Luoyang City. How can we pursue Yuan Shao? Besides, Yuan Shao is taking the corpses of his clansmen back to his hometown. If we pursue him, wouldn't we be branded with a terrible reputation?"

Clearly, Dong Zhuo dared not touch the deep pit of 'filial piety and righteousness'.

Seeing Dong Zhuo's resolute attitude, Jia Xu stopped trying to persuade him and quickly returned to Liu Bei's army.

After Jia Xu left, Dong Zhuo was still somewhat uneasy, so he led his men to visit Bai Jun's residence.

After being sent back to Luoyang, Liu Bian returned to his residence at Baijun Mansion and did not stay in the palace.

Now, most of the palace eunuchs have died, leaving only palace maids, and there is no one in the palace to take care of him.

Liu Bian is now a true orphan. His mother's relatives are mostly considered traitors, the Empress Dowager is not close to him, and there are rumors... that most officials will not serve under him.

Liu Bian's residence was sparsely populated, with only his wife, Tang Ji, and a few servants accompanying him.

Liu Bian was only sixteen years old at this time (by Chinese reckoning), and he was naturally somewhat panicked after being captured and taken to Yuan Shao's army.

In fact, Yuan Shao did not treat him harshly and was quite polite to him. He has now returned safely, but he is still a little scared and feels terrified no matter what he sees.

Dong Zhuo was rough and uncouth, and he didn't pay much attention to etiquette. In addition, he somewhat looked down on Liu Bian, who might be from the Yuan family, so he went straight in.

Upon seeing Dong Zhuo burst into the house, Liu Bian trembled all over: "General Dong... what brings you here?"

Perhaps they were a bit startled because Dong Zhuo's men were fully armed.

Seeing Liu Bian's timidity, Dong Zhuo frowned: "I'll just patrol the city. I'm relieved that Lord Shi is safe... Men, add more guards to this place."

"Thank you for your protection, General... but it is not convenient to entertain you here. Please return, General. My husband will definitely come to express his gratitude tomorrow."

Tang Ji, on the other hand, appeared quite calm. Even though Dong Zhuo was in full armor and armed with swords and spears, she still pointed to the door, asking Dong Zhuo to leave.

It was already late at night, and it was indeed not suitable to entertain guests.

Dong Zhuo carefully inspected the courtyard, ordered Dong Min to lead a team to guard the area, and only after confirming that there should be no problem did he turn and leave.

However, before leaving, he glanced at Tang Ji a few more times and muttered to himself, "What a pity..."

Tang Ji was good-looking and came from a good family. She was the eldest daughter of the famous Tang family in Yingchuan. Her grandfather, Tang Zhen, had served as Grand Minister of Works.

Moreover, Tang Ji seemed to have much more courage than Liu Bian.

……

Once Dong Zhuo confirmed that Liu Bian was unharmed, he increased the number of guards and strengthened defenses, and did not send out any more troops.

Because Lu Bu and his troops were still stationed outside Luoyang, they still had to be on guard.

But the very next morning, Dong Min rushed to Dong Zhuo and said, "Brother, something terrible has happened! Marquis Shi Chen has suddenly... passed away!"

"what?!"

Dong Zhuo was shocked: "How did he die? Who assassinated him?!"

“No one attempted assassination; it looks like he was poisoned… I’ve looked around, no one entered the room, but Lord Shi is already dead!”

Dong Min spoke with a worried expression.

"What kind of poison would only take effect overnight? Everything was fine last night!"

Dong Zhuo hurriedly ran towards the Baijun residence, his obese body swaying wildly.

"Perhaps it's a wax pellet..."

Dong Min had seen a lot of the world while serving Liu Hong: "The late emperor also often took pills. Some pills were wrapped in beeswax to prevent their effects from dissipating. Or, if he took a pill before bed to prepare for the morning, it would also be wrapped in beeswax... After this wax pill was put into the stomach, the effects would not appear until the next night."

Now he really has to take the blame... In fact, not only Dong Zhuo, but the Empress Dowager also has to take the blame.

Liu Bei was unlikely to be falsely accused, as all the officials knew that Liu Bei was not in Luoyang, and Liu Bei had already sent a letter to Liu Xie saying that he had gone to Beiman to pay respects to his ancestors at the mausoleum.

However, as long as Liu Bian dies in Luoyang, Dong Zhuo and Empress Dowager Dong will be regarded by officials and the people as wicked patricides who murdered their own family.

Yuan Shao had just sent Liu Bian back to Luoyang alive, which was witnessed by all the officials and soldiers, but he died the very next day after returning to Luoyang, so there was no way to defend him.

Upon arriving at Liu Bian's residence, they found that Liu Bian was indeed a cold corpse, and Tang Ji stood beside him, choking back tears.

Upon seeing Dong Zhuo, Tang Ji wiped away her tears and glared angrily: "You old scoundrel! What has my husband done wrong? Why has he done this?!"

"...This was not my doing! You were in the same room as Lord Shi, didn't you know? This was the work of that traitor Yuan Shao!"

Dong Zhuo gritted his teeth and said, "Send the order... to send troops to the east gate! Pursue Yuan Shao!"

(End of this chapter)