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

Chapter 316 Easily Achievable Goals

Outside Pengcheng County, Liu Bei was discussing military affairs with Cao Cao in his camp.

"Lord Xuande, when shall we launch our final assault?"

Cao Cao is now speaking more politely.

Given Liu Bei's status as a regent minister, it was normal for him to be addressed as "Duke".

But in reality, Cao Cao was so polite mainly because there were just too many people responding to the bidding order...

Cao Cao even saw in it the various bandit leaders he originally intended to eliminate.

Although these bandit leaders could not possibly obey unified command, even just standing there to intimidate people was effective.

Its main function was not combat, but rather to enhance Liu Bei's 'appeal'.

Once you come here and see this grand scene of banners waving, everyone will subconsciously attribute this appeal to Liu Bei.

That's terrifying...

Whether it was Liu Hong during his lifetime, or Duan Jiong, Huangfu Song, or even Dou Wu earlier, or even Emperor Huan Liu Zhi, none of them could get the various rebel groups to voluntarily help the court quell the rebellion...

"No rush...Is Cheng Zhongde also in the city? Why don't we ask him to persuade Chang Xi to break through the siege and return to Mount Tai to defend it?"

Liu Bei gestured on the map: "If we're going to fight, we should fight Mount Tai together. I want to take all of Mount Tai, so that we can solve the problem once and for all."

"Why not take Chang Xi's head first, and then pursue his remaining forces into Mount Tai?"

Cao Cao was somewhat puzzled: "Lü Zige and Zang Xuan are both by Chang Xi's side. As long as we attack the city, Chang Xi will surely be beheaded. Why choose the difficult path instead of the easy one?"

"As long as Changxi lives, the various armies outside won't scatter..."

Liu Bei shook his head and smiled: "You don't actually think I can command those bandits, do you?... Brother Mengde, are you planning to incorporate Chang Xi's remaining troops?"

"Does Lord Xuande not want to?"

Cao Cao looked down at the map: "Changxi's troops are well-equipped and their men are quite strong. We should certainly take them into our service. Wasn't it for this very reason that Lord Xuande sent Zang Xuan to lead the expedition?"

"No, that's not it... I sent Xuan Gao on his mission so that I could use his name in Mount Tai to quell the Mount Tai bandits in one fell swoop."

Liu Bei shook his head: "Brother Mengde, Chang Xi's troops are plunderers by nature and difficult to change. Even if they are not killed, they should be used as laborers to build roads and mine, and strictly supervised so that they can no longer be soldiers."

"...If we don't incorporate the rebel troops, won't we become weaker with each battle? Most of the people behind Chang Xi are from prominent families in Yan and Yu provinces, so we still need to launch a large-scale campaign to punish them..."

Cao Cao was still somewhat displeased.

"After pacifying Mount Tai, we never selected soldiers from among the able-bodied men who had never directly surrendered to the rebels. Those were the soldiers we could truly control."

Liu Bei was quite patient with Cao Cao: "Brother Mengde, don't lose sight of the bigger picture for the sake of a small gain... You will surely be the one to make the greatest contribution in this battle. I intend to appoint you as the Governor of Yanzhou, to oversee the troops in Yan and Yu provinces. You can recruit soldiers as you see fit."

"The governorship of Yanzhou has been granted to Liu Dai... Oh... then we will follow Lord Xuande's wishes."

Cao Cao hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "However, if we want to take Mount Tai, the bandits of Mount Tai will all come from Langya, and Langya will become a place of war. We need to send my father elsewhere first... I hope that you, Lord Xuande, will help me send my father to Linzi."

Cao Cao reacted quickly. Liu Dai was not appointed Governor of Yan Province by Liu Bei and Liu Xie, but was appointed by Empress Dowager Dong after requesting to go out.

The title of Prince Pengcheng, Liu He, was being used by bandits, and Liu Bei certainly didn't want Liu Dai to be used by others in Yanzhou... This was also a test.

"Is your father in Langya?"

Liu Bei genuinely didn't know about Cao Song's affairs; the historical trajectory had changed, but it was somewhat unexpected that Cao Song still went to Langya.

"When I was invited by Zhang Miao to Xingyang, my father scolded me for bringing trouble upon myself, so I left my hometown and went to Linyi in Langya. In Linyi, there was Yuan Rang's family property..."

When Cao Cao joined the Guandong Coalition, Cao Song took his clansmen to Langya County, which was relatively peaceful at the time, to prevent Cao Cao from following Yuan Shao, Zhang Miao and others in causing trouble and implicating his family.

If Liu Bei wanted to take all of Mount Tai, the bandits of Mount Tai would indeed be very likely to move and flee. Langya was the first stop after leaving Mount Tai, and also the place where the bandits of Mount Tai were most likely to flee in large numbers, because at this time Yin Li's troops were in Langya Kaiyang.

Under these circumstances, it was indeed reasonable for Cao Cao to send his father to Linzi, since Cao Ang was also by the emperor's side.

“I will take care of this matter immediately… Langya should be safe. I have already sent Mi Zizhong to cooperate with Sun Guan in dealing with Yin Li.”

Liu Bei knew that Cao Cao's initiative to send Cao Song to Qingzhou was both a gesture of goodwill and an attempt to establish a bond of entrusting his family with his care.

Owe someone a favor, which is actually a way of building a deep relationship. Although you will have to repay the favor in the future, the relationship itself is a benefit.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Xuande."

Cao Cao bowed and prepared to leave the camp, but then turned back and asked, "There is still one thing I don't understand. Why is this bidding order so effective? Is it because the campaign against Que Xuan established public trust?"

"Actually, it's because I only gave everyone a goal that was easy to achieve."

Liu Bei didn't hide anything, but he also didn't offer much explanation.

...within Pengcheng County.

Changxi was a little flustered, and he yanked the crown off his head.

He couldn't understand it. Zhang Jiao of the Taiping Dao had such a great reputation back then, and the imperial court sent Huangfu Song, Lu Zhi, Zhu Jun, and others to quell the rebellion, yet they still couldn't mobilize so many troops...

The imperial court's prestige was far greater back then than it is today...

Changxi himself was well aware that he had been pushed to the forefront by those prestigious families because he dared to declare himself king and dared to rebel, which was why he received so much support.

But it was all about mutual benefit. If powerful families wanted to establish a new regime and change the world, they had to seize this opportunity. Although it was a dangerous path, they had indeed obtained money, food, and military supplies. They couldn't just stay in Taishan and be thieves forever; they had to find a way out no matter what.

Right now, in this great Han Dynasty, the various states are completely disobeying the imperial court's orders, and the prestigious families are all 'supporting' them...

But why would dozens of armies come to oppose me?
Especially those gangsters from Yuzhou and Yangzhou...

For example, Zheng Bao and Mei Gan from Huainan, Lei Bo and Chen Jian (Chen Lan) from Lujiang, and Liu Pi and Huang Shao, remnants of the Yellow Turban Rebellion from Runan... These were all rebels who held sway over their respective regions!
When did these rebels start obeying the imperial court's orders?!

Zheng Bao had already taken advantage of the chaos during the Yellow Turban Rebellion to establish himself in Chaohu, commanding tens of thousands of troops. Together with Mei Qian, he recruited refugees and carved out a separatist regime in the Jianghuai region, frequently allowing his troops to plunder and pillage. Although he did not openly raise the banner of rebellion, he had been rebelling for several years in fact.

Lei Bo and Chen Jian were originally local bandits from Qianshan (a spur of the Dabie Mountains), just like the bandits of Taishan...

Liu Pi and Huang Shao were remnants of the Yellow Turban Rebellion who had been roaming around Runan and Yingchuan. Others did not know their background, but Chang Xi knew that they were bandits secretly supported by the Yuan family of Runan, and that they were the ones who cut off the grain transport in Guandong!

After the Yellow Turban Rebellion was quelled, most of the remaining Yellow Turban forces south of the Yellow River entered Runan... This was no coincidence.

We're all rebels! I've declared myself king, raised my flag, and stood at the forefront. Shouldn't these rebels be responding to me?

Why are they all attacking us?!
When did the imperial court gain such 'prestige'?

"That so-called bidding order... how could it possibly mobilize rebels from all over the country? What is the reason behind this?"

Changxi thought and thought but couldn't figure it out, so he asked, "Left and right hands?"

It's actually quite difficult to explain the relationship between Zang Ba and Lü Qian.

The two of them hadn't thought about it carefully before; they just felt that the bidding order represented fairness, openness, and impartiality, and that it brought the previously uncertain rewards and benefits to light and made them a reality.

Especially after defeating Que Xuan, Liu Bei immediately had everyone submit a memorial, fulfilling the promises made in the bidding order, which made him appear very trustworthy.

Moreover, Liu Bei did not care whether the various tribes submitted to him or not.

It doesn't matter if you slack off, or if you cheer and shout, you've provided support and will still be exempt from your previous offenses, just without receiving any credit.

Those who received rewards for eliminating Que Xuan—Yuan Shu, Tao Qian, Chen Deng, Ji Ling, and Zhang Chao and Xu Sheng, who were pardoned and commended—none of them joined Liu Bei's service.

Tao Qian and Chen Deng might be considered Liu Bei's allies, but Yuan Shu, Ji Ling, Zhang Chao, and others certainly weren't—they were even Liu Bei's enemies, or at least political adversaries.

At the same time, Liu Bei used his own troops as the main force, and did not let others become cannon fodder.

In other words, the bidding process does not involve taking sides or political leanings; it is simply based on the pre-agreed rewards and benefits.

Then everyone only needs to consider the input and output, and measure it by cost and benefit.

This is the understanding of Zang Ba and Lü Qian.

However, Cheng Yu offered an additional explanation: "Liu Bei used traitors as targets, kept his word, and demonstrated his public-spiritedness without personal gain, which is not surprising. But what is remarkable is that he took the lead himself and set only one target at a time, eliminating one before setting the next... that is what makes him so formidable."

Chang Xi still didn't understand: "Why? Isn't this just a bounty? What's so strange about it?"

"If the court were to directly offer bounties to all rebels, it would have to offer bounties to dozens or even hundreds of traitors at the same time... This would be a hostile attitude, forcing all those who plotted rebellion to unite in resistance."

Cheng Yu explained, "But he only sets one bid at a time, so it's not about rebelling against the world, but about giving others a chance... As long as other traitors are willing to come, they will no longer be traitors, and they won't be relegated to the next bidding order..."

"If they could be granted titles, honors, and official positions, how many would be willing to become thieves? If the leader is determined to be a thief, would all his subordinates be willing? Even if it's just to see if they'll be the next ones to be tendered, these rebellious people will still come..."

"Moreover, under the bidding order, heads are all credit, there's no chance of being recruited... Your Majesty, before Liu Bei and the others launch their attack, we'd better break out immediately..."

Cheng Yu saw things more clearly. The bidding order that Liu Bei issued was not just to establish credibility, but also a variant of a pledge of allegiance.

Distinguishing between enemies and focusing on only one as an enemy simplifies everyone's thinking and makes complex matters simple.

As long as others don't cause trouble, suppressing a rebellion by only one family becomes very easy.

The practice of eliminating only one company at a time, and then bidding on the next one after eliminating one, is itself a threat of certain death, because it is a real death, not just empty talk and a bounty.

Anyone with a prior record of treason or rebellion would participate in the bidding, even if only to avoid becoming the next target—it's fine to slack off, as it allows them to clear their name of their past crimes at minimal cost, resulting in a high return on investment.

Liu Bei's own troops were the main force. To others, this was taking advantage of Liu Bei, as if Liu Bei was working for them.

However, due to the limitations of the times and mindset, Cheng Yu still missed some things.

(End of this chapter)