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

Chapter 283 Which Side is the Thief?
Xingyang.

When the allied forces swore their oath, everyone declined to go up to the altar.

Zhang Miao then asked Zhang Chao, "I heard that you, my worthy brother, are in Guangling and have not had to handle anything yourself, as everything is done by the clerk Zang Hong. Who is Zang Hong?"

Zhang Chao immediately understood: "Zang Hong is skilled in both literature and martial arts, and his talent and wisdom surpass mine. He can be called a rare talent in the country. I request that Zang Hong ascend the altar to make the oath!"

Kong Rong, Kong Zhou, and other "wise men" all agreed that Zang Hong was a genius and should preside over the oath-taking ceremony, so they jointly recommended Zang Hong to take the stage.

Zang Hong did not refuse. He ascended the altar, swore an oath with blood, and delivered an inspiring speech in a passionate and eloquent tone, without even asking for a script.

"The Han dynasty was unfortunate. The imperial authority was lost. The treacherous ministers Liu Bei and Dong Zhuo took advantage of the situation to commit atrocities, bringing disaster upon the emperor, oppressing the people, destroying the state, and overthrowing the entire country."

"We raise an army in righteous indignation, rush to the aid of our nation in times of crisis, quell the villains, and restore order to the country!"

"All my allies shall unite as one and exert all their strength to uphold the principles of loyalty, even unto death, without wavering in their resolve!"

"May anyone who violates this covenant be condemned to death and leave no descendants. Heaven and Earth, and the spirits of our ancestors, bear witness!"

Zang Hong's speech was actually quite impressive, and the audience was quite excited, with everyone shouting oaths.

However... it just doesn't seem right that a county official who isn't even an official is leading a group of officials with salaries of two thousand piculs in a pledge...

……

After the oath was sworn, Yuan Shao prepared to march on Hulao Pass.

They were, after all, a regular army, and nominally it was to 'correct the wrongs'. Yuan Shao didn't act like a bandit; he simply declared himself General of the Rear to show his intention to avenge General Yuan Wei.

Of course, the imperial court would not recognize this self-proclaimed title of General of the Rear; it's a local area network title, a group-specific title...

Zhang Miao was in charge of logistics and supplies, while his troops were led by Wei Zi.

Cao Cao served as the chief military advisor, responsible for troop deployment.

Cao Cao and Yuan Shao were old friends for many years. Back when they were fooling around in Luoyang, Cao Cao was Yuan Shao's subordinate and was also considered a former subordinate of He Jin. All the information he had was based on Yuan Shao's words, so it was only natural for him to come and help Yuan Shao.

But when it came time to send out the troops, Cao Cao seemed somewhat silent.

Seeing that Cao Cao was lost in thought, Yuan Shao pulled him into the tent and asked, "What are you pondering, Mengde?"

“Benchu, I was wondering…why haven’t we received any official announcement from the court yet? Not even an obituary…”

Cao Cao lowered his head and asked softly, "Is Benchu ​​hiding something?"

Yuan Shao was taken aback, his expression turning somewhat cold: "What do you mean by that, Mengde?"

“Benchu, we’ve been friends for many years, I should help you no matter what…”

Cao Cao looked up at Yuan Shao: "But I need to know what exactly happened in Luoyang... Yuan Shao, are you really raising this army to restore order?"

"...All of my Yuan family's relatives in Luoyang died at the hands of the Dong family. I personally witnessed my paternal uncle fall to his death from the city wall..."

Yuan Shao was silent for a while, then said bitterly, "I wanted to bring back the remains of my clansmen, but I was pursued by Liu Bei, so the remains of my clansmen could not return home! Then Dong Zhuo sent troops to hunt me down, and I narrowly escaped death, but countless of my comrades were killed or wounded..."

"I swear to Heaven, I have uttered not a single falsehood! I am not doing this to set things right, but solely to avenge my grievances! But if I speak of personal grudges, I fear no one will come to my aid; I have no choice but to rise up in righteousness and punish the rebels!"

"Mengde...would you be willing to help me take revenge?!"

As he spoke, his anger and resentment were evident on his face, and even his eyes turned red.

Cao Cao nodded slowly: "But... Yuan Shao, why didn't Gonglu come?"

“He left the capital without permission when the Luoyang incident occurred. He fought with me over a woman… I don’t know where he went and have no way to contact him.”

Yuan Shao gritted his teeth: "If he hadn't left the capital without permission, my paternal uncle's entire family wouldn't have perished..."

Seeing that Yuan Shao's hatred and anger were genuine, Cao Cao sighed: "Since it is for such a deep hatred, even if it is a crime of treason, I should still help Yuan Shao... I will first send someone to send my father away from his hometown to avoid disaster."

The two were old friends with a long-standing relationship. Since Yuan Shao was seeking revenge for his family, nothing else mattered.

Cao Cao was still a man of honor.

……

After finally persuading Cao Cao, Yuan Shao faced another dilemma during the military council.

"With traitors in control of the court, we will surely be falsely accused of being a rebellious army... The best course of action now is to launch a swift attack to achieve victory as soon as possible. If we fight for too long, tens of thousands of soldiers will be worried about their families and may all be scattered in a single day..."

Yuan Shao asked the assembled 'wise men' in his tent, 'Who among you would like to be the vanguard?'

The group exchanged bewildered glances. After a long silence, Zhang Miao suggested, "Bao Tao is exceptionally brave and should be the first to go!"

Bao Tao is Bao Xin's younger brother...

Bao Xin was displeased upon hearing this: "Lord Zhang's troops are well-organized, and with the assistance of the brilliant strategist Zang Hong, they will surely be the first to break through the enemy lines!"

This refers to Zhang Chao, Zhang Miao's younger brother.

Zhang Chao looked around and then fixed his gaze on Wei Zi: "Wei Zixu is insightful and far-sighted, far surpassing me in strategy. He is also familiar with the terrain and connections in the Guanzhong Plain. He should be the vanguard!"

That's not wrong. Wei Zi had served as the Eastern Commandant of the Governor of Henan, so he was indeed more familiar with the terrain and interpersonal relationships in the area from Luoyang to Xingyang.

Wei Zi looked around and realized that it seemed impossible to push it out. He turned to Cao Cao and said, "Mengde once defeated the Yellow Turbans and is a man who knows military affairs. Why not put Mengde first?"

Looking at this group of 'talented men,' Cao Cao sighed: 'My forces number only a little over three thousand, which is insufficient... The advantage of our gathering here lies in our ability to divide our forces into multiple routes. Since you all have your recommendations, let's split our troops into several routes and attack together. As long as one route breaks through the enemy, we can then attack their weaknesses together...'

This is indeed a sound military strategy. If the twelve forces were to act together without any subordinate command, they would certainly be impossible to control.

On the contrary, by dividing their forces into multiple routes, they force their opponents to also divide their forces, which is very suitable for the many to bully the few.

Everyone praised Cao Cao's abilities, so Yuan Shao appointed Cao Cao as General Who Conquers the West, Bao Xin as General Who Destroys the Enemy, Bao Tao as Assistant General, and Wei Zi as Lieutenant General. Together with Zhang Chao, they were divided into four routes and sent out troops at the same time to clear out the various strongholds east of Hulao Pass.

These general titles are just local area network titles and group names, and they don't require a salary, so Yuan Shao can just buy them in bulk.

But Yuan Shao really understood Cao Cao. Although the title of General Who Conquers the West was not exactly a genuine one, it at least made Cao Cao feel at ease.

……

……

On the other side, Hulao Pass.

Liu Bei's proclamation also received responses from many people.

Zhu Jun, the governor of Hanoi, expressed his willingness to join forces to punish the traitors, but the White Wave Army and the Southern Xiongnu were making unusual moves, so Zhu Jun could not send troops, which was understandable.

Yuan Shu also sent someone to Liu Bei to deliver a message on behalf of the Yuan family, saying that he was willing to put righteousness above family ties and kill Yuan Shao, but he did not send any troops. He was probably busy dividing up his family property in Runan.

Prefect Yang Xu of Nanyang also expressed his willingness to cooperate, but bandits had appeared in Nanyang, so he could not come for the time being.

Wang Yun, the former governor of Yuzhou and now a commoner convicted of a crime, heard of the late emperor's death and Zhang Rang's execution. He rushed to help alone, but he had no soldiers and was heading towards Luoyang, clearly seeking an official position...

Several messengers sent messages to Tao Qian, the governor of Xuzhou, but received no response. Liu Bei realized that the messengers had probably been intercepted.

In addition, Liu Yu, the governor of Youzhou, Liu Yan, the governor of Yizhou, Zhang Yan of Heishan, Yang Feng of Baibo, Cao Yin, the prefect of Wuling, Sun Jian, the prefect of Changsha, and Wang Rui, the governor of Jingzhou, all received and responded to the imperial edict, expressing their determination to punish the traitors.

There are more than a dozen routes in total.

But it's estimated that very few troops will actually be deployed.

Zhang Yan of Heishan responded quickly, sending 6,000 elite troops south to cross the river at Baima and cut off the retreat of the Guandong Allied Army.

However, the roads are muddy and difficult to travel, so it's uncertain whether we can arrive in time.

Yang Feng, the former leader of the White Wave Army and now the Black Mountain Colonel, sent two thousand men to directly support Liu Bei. This was not Yang Feng's entire force, and Yang Feng himself did not come. The Southern Xiongnu did indeed make some unusual moves, and the one who came to support them was Xu Huang, Yang Feng's subordinate.

Apart from that... Liu Bei had no way of knowing the movements of other people's troops, as they were too far away.

In other words, the direct support Liu Bei received at this time mostly came from former bandits—which was actually based on the favors Liu Bei had accumulated in the past.

There may be backup later, but it's unclear when they will arrive.

Liu Bei now had a feeling that was hard to explain... He didn't know which side was the thief, but now the thief had become the government troops, and the government troops had become the rebel army.

Currently, Lü Bu, Guan Yu, Xu Rong, Guo Si, and others are all guarding Hulao Pass and the various fortresses in front of it.

Dong Zhuo is mobilizing troops from the capital region, Hedong, Fufeng and other places, but he is preparing for the Liangzhou affair and will not deal with the Guandong coalition.

Zhang Yang and Xia Mou's troops would also follow Dong Zhuo. They were not particularly willing to attack Yuan Shao, and Liu Bei was not comfortable leading troops that might defect.

However, before Dong Zhuo sent troops to Liangzhou, Lü Bu and others would still fight at Hulao Pass. Dong Zhuo was still fair in his approach to warfare and did not let Lü Bu abandon his allies.

Liu Bei had approximately 10,000 troops at his disposal, not counting the 6,000 Zhang Yan had when he landed at Baima.

After Liu Bei led his troops to Hulao Pass, scouts discovered that the Guandong Allied Army had set out from Xingyang and was advancing from multiple directions. Liu Bei then dispatched his men to meet them on multiple fronts.

(End of this chapter)