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

Who's behind Chapter 312?

Once the tender was issued, the vast majority of the fighting forces from Qing and Xu prefectures came to Xiapi.

Although the bigwigs are at odds with each other, they are at least temporarily united on the issue of killing Que Xuan.

During his breakout, Que Xuan was surrounded and intercepted by more than a dozen armies. He received the highest level of hospitality but was scattered and fled within a day. Under the protection of his clan soldiers and personal guards, Que Xuan fled in a sorry state. It is likely that even Que Xuan himself was not sure where he was going.

However, Ji Ling's troops seemed to have divine insight, easily intercepting Que Xuan, almost as if they had foreseen the future.

—This is definitely not quite right.

The next day.

Liu Bei met Yuan Shu in Xiapi.

Yuan Shu looked somewhat different at this time.

Perhaps because he was thirty, Yuan Shu had lost his frivolousness and now carried a blood-stained package, looking even somewhat imposing.

The package contained, of course, Que Xuan's head.

"General, I heard today that the imperial court has issued a tender order, promising rewards for meritorious service... Now that the tender is here, I wonder if the rewards announced by the imperial court are true or false?"

Yuan Shu placed the package containing the head on the table.

The quicklime mixed with the blood that was about to solidify gave off a bitter, fishy smell.

"The bidding order is an imperial edict, so it must be genuine. The emperor will surely appoint officials and generals to high positions."

Liu Bei glanced at Yuan Shu and deliberately laughed, "Gonglu came uninvited and seemed to have foreseen the future. He waited for the rabbit to run into the tree stump and obtained Que Xuan's head. His strategy is truly divine and amazing..."

"Ha... You really want payment?"

Yuan Shu grinned and laughed: "General Right, you may not know this, but Que Xuan's army has my troops in it... I originally intended to take Que Xuan, and even if you hadn't sent troops here, Que Xuan would have been dead without a doubt."

"really?"

Liu Bei laughed: "Gonglu is wholeheartedly devoted to the country, truly a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty... However, if I hadn't come, when would Que Xuan have died?"

Yuan Shu stopped smiling and stared at Liu Bei without saying a word.

After a moment of silence, Yuan Shu seemed to revert to his old ways, tilting his head and smiling: "Of course, I'd die when it's in my favor... What, Xuande, do you suspect me?"

Finally, he was no longer called the Right General.

"Brother Gonglu, I don't doubt you, but this matter needs to be clarified."

Liu Bei stopped probing and stepped forward to embrace Yuan Shu, asking in a low voice, "Since Gonglu sent someone to infiltrate Que Xuan's army, he must know the inside story. I just want to know, who instructed Que Xuan to proclaim himself emperor?"

"Hmph, who else could it be but that adopted son of a maid?"

Yuan Shu snorted: "I sent someone to infiltrate Que Xuan's army. Originally, it was only because the retainers of that concubine's son had gone to Que Xuan's side. I was there to hunt down those retainers, but I didn't expect to discover the concubine's son's plot to cause trouble."

"Isn't Yuan Shao in Hebei?"

Liu Bei asked again, "Gonglu, you're not just making this up, are you?"

"He is in Hebei, but many famous scholars from Yingchuan are all in Henan, and the adopted son's retainers are all in Yuzhou. Kong Rong, Kong Zhou, and Zhang Miao are all in Yanzhou and Yuzhou..."

Yuan Shu said solemnly, "That adopted son of a concubine killed my entire family. Fortunately, Xuande buried my clansmen. Although I am not a kind person, I know about gratitude and grudges. Besides... who does the Emperor hope is behind this? Or rather... who do you hope is behind this?"

Liu Bei looked at Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu also looked Liu Bei in the eye.

"Since that's the case... now that all the heroes of Qing and Xu are here, I will hold a banquet for you at noon today to celebrate your victory. Please reveal Yuan Shao's scheme to the world."

Liu Bei nodded and said softly, "Gonglu, I don't doubt you, but I want to know, who did you send to Que Xuan's army? This person might have malicious intentions towards you..."

Yuan Shu looked at Liu Bei with some surprise: "Why do you say that?"

“Since this person is in Que Xuan’s army and was able to pass on the message to you, he must know that I issued the tender order a long time ago. After I issued the order, I rushed to the outskirts of Xiapi and waited for half a month.” Liu Bei asked, “During this long period of time, did he tell you about the tender order?”

"...No, I only learned about this today."

Yuan Shu frowned: "Wang Sheng..."

"You can deal with this person yourself. Just tell me who's behind him."

Liu Bei nodded: "Your rewards will all be paid out. From now on, the Yuan family of Runan will only have your branch, Yuan Gonglu."

Will the bidding process be restarted?

Yuan Shu asked, "Who is the next target?"

"Whoever dares to call himself the Son of Heaven is the target."

Liu Bei answered without hesitation.

……

At the victory banquet in Xiapi, Yuan Shu publicly declared that he was irreconcilably opposed to Yuan Shao and mentioned that Yuan Shao had plotted a rebellion and killed all of Yuan's relatives in Luoyang.

The accusations made by Yuan Shao by the eldest son of the Yuan family were certainly highly credible, and Zhang Chao did not utter a single word at the banquet.

At the same time, Liu Bei fulfilled his promise regarding the bidding order in public at the banquet and even wrote a memorial to the throne.

He appointed Yuan Shu as General Who Destroys the Enemy and requested that he be granted the title of Marquis of a Township.

Chen Deng was appointed Prefect of Xiapi for his outstanding contribution to logistics, and was recommended for the title of Marquis of Guannei.

Tao Qian, who had the most beheadings in the vanguard, was appointed as a lieutenant general and petitioned to be made a marquis.

Ji Ling, who beheaded Que Xuan, was appointed as the Commandant of the Vanquishing Army.

Consistent with the promises made during the bidding process, Liu Bei specifically instructed everyone to jointly submit a memorial to demonstrate fairness.

Wang Lang seemed somewhat dissatisfied, saying that Chen Deng was too young and it was inappropriate for him to hold the position of 2,000 shi (a unit of grain measure). However, Tao Qian stopped him as soon as he said this.

There are many details about this battle, but Liu Bei did not mention them at the banquet.

For example, Tao Qian led his troops in a particularly brutal killing spree, leaving no one alive, which went beyond the scope of warfare.

For example, Zang Ba and Sun Guan were originally quite strong, but they gained very few victories, as if they were just slacking off.

Moreover, Zang Ba had not reported the Taishan bandits' rebellion to Liu Bei beforehand, nor had he conveyed any information about Que Xuan—Zang Ba was a cavalry commandant recommended by Liu Bei, so he should have at least sent a message.

Chen Deng and Mi Zhu were mainly in charge of logistics. Their troops were all agricultural settlers. Mi Zhu had previously fought a hard battle at a relatively far distance, so it was normal that his achievements were not significant.

Chen Deng has invested a lot of money, and he is currently responsible for maintaining the army's food and supplies.

Zhang Chao, Xu Qiu, and Xu Qiu's distant nephew Xu Sheng were indeed fighting a serious war. Although they did not achieve any great feats, Zhang Chao and Xu Qiu's previous crimes were, of course, forgiven as promised. However, they needed to compensate Mi Zhu for his losses.

Furthermore, Que Xuan's strength was actually quite formidable, even stronger than Liu Bei had imagined.

The rebel army that Que Xuan raised was not a peasant army, but a legitimate army, with seven or eight thousand combat soldiers alone.

They had several hundred iron armors and over three thousand sets of leather armor, and their weapons and equipment were also very complete; it was just that the soldiers were not well trained.

No wonder this guy got so arrogant that he called himself the emperor.

In fact, Liu Bei knew that the person behind Que Xuan was not Yuan Shao, as Yuan Shao was probably not capable of doing this in Xuzhou at the moment.

Yuan Shu claimed to be Yuan Shao only because both he and Liu Bei "needed" to be Yuan Shao, and this person must have also "funded" Yuan Shu.

If nothing unexpected happens, the real mastermind behind Wang Sheng, whom Yuan Shu sent to Que Xuan's army, is his true mastermind.

(End of this chapter)