Han officials

Chapter 327 Escape

"I am deeply grateful for Lord Chu's kindness."

At the Nanyang Prefectural Office, Liu Bei, who had received the appointment from Xiangyang, was not surprised at all.

He believed he understood Liu Biao well; otherwise, he wouldn't have dared to launch a counterattack on Nanyang.

If he loses this battle, he might be killed or banished by Liu Biao.

However, if his military adventure succeeds, Liu Biao, given his personality, will inevitably be hesitant to act rashly.

This is probably why Liu Biao, despite holding Jingzhou for several years, has not yet left the region.

At the same time, Xiangyang's attitude also relieved Cao Ang, Shi Sunduan and others who had just arrived.

With Nanyang County as their place of refuge, they were finally able to recover properly.

In contrast, Liu Bei, who had finally managed to turn his fortunes around, dared not slacken his efforts in the slightest.

While Guo Jia and Chen Gong were consolidating the resources of the counties in Nanyang, and Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were recruiting and expanding their armies, Liu Bei secretly led his men to Danshui County, downstream of the Dan River, to personally oversee the relief efforts for the disaster victims from Guanzhong.

……

As evening fell, rows of thatched huts lined the banks of the Dan River, and Liu Bei could be seen leading his officers through them.

They either delivered firewood or ordered soldiers to build thatched huts for the disaster victims.

Although Liu Bei's food supplies were also limited, he still managed to collect a batch of grain from various counties in Nanyang.

Even if we can't feed the disaster victims enough, we can at least give them a bowl of rice porridge.

Even so, tens of thousands of disaster victims in Guanzhong were still moved to tears of gratitude.

After all, they had finally escaped Guanzhong, and it would be too frustrating for them to starve to death in Nanyang now.

Perhaps at first, Liu Bei's act of benevolence and love for the people had some element of showmanship, but after so many years, he had indeed gotten used to it.

If he can really act for a lifetime, then who can say that he isn't a true person of great benevolence and righteousness?

However, while comforting the disaster victims, Liu Bei also gained a deeper understanding of the current situation in Guanzhong.

For example, at this moment, Liu Bei, without any sign of disgust, helped up a ragged, lame old man and asked in surprise:
"Is what you say true, sir? Have Li Jue and Guo Si already suspected this much?"

Upon hearing this, the lame old man said helplessly:

"I dare not deceive the general. When I left my hometown, Guo and Li had already led their troops to attack each other."

“A month ago, Li Jue ordered his nephew Li Xian to lead several thousand soldiers to surround the palace, take the emperor and empress to his own camp, and regard them as rare commodities to prevent Guo Si from robbing them.”

"Guo Si made a wrong move and mobilized his troops to seize the court officials and ministers back to his own camp as leverage."

"Nowadays, Guanzhong is devoid of officials and people, and nobody cares about it."

At this point, the lame old man couldn't help but let out a long sigh, his voice filled with the vicissitudes of life.

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked:

"So who is in charge of Wuguan now?"

"Lord Yang Ding of Liangzhou!"

The lame old man thought for a moment and then added:

"At the beginning of the year, Li Jue hosted a banquet for Guo Si. However, after returning home, Guo Si suspected that the wine was poisoned, so he drank excrement to save himself. He vomited several liters, but fortunately, he was not seriously injured. After this incident was reported, Yang Ding was afraid that Li Jue would harm him, so he took the initiative to lead his troops to garrison Wuguan."

"This man was promoted from General of Zhennan to General of Anxi in July of last year. He was granted the title of Grand Master of the Three Dukes and commanded more than 3,000 soldiers. He was also a minor commander in the Liangzhou army."

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei was secretly delighted.

But then a question arose in his mind, and he immediately asked without showing any emotion:

"May I ask your name, sir, and whether you have any family to rely on?"

"If we have no one to rely on, why not rest here for the time being?"

Upon hearing this, the lame old man immediately understood that he had become suspicious, and shook his head with a wry smile.

He then slightly straightened his sleeves and bowed respectfully to Liu Bei, saying:

"Wei Xie, the Prefect of Jingzhao, pays his respects to Liu, the Governor of Yanzhou!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei was immediately shocked.

It should be noted that the Wei family of Jingzhao was a prominent clan in Chang'an, even considered a prestigious clan of the prefecture. As early as the Former Han Dynasty, Wei Xian, Wei Xuancheng, and Wei Shang held the position of one of the Three Dukes for three consecutive generations, thus becoming a renowned family in Guanzhong. Even in the present dynasty, they were still known as the most distinguished family in the Three Auxiliary Regions.

But the old man in front of me was disheveled and his face was wrinkled like old tree bark. He didn't look like a pampered member of the Wei family at all.

However, after listening to the lame old man's explanation, Liu Bei realized that the main branch of the Wei clan had already gone to Yizhou to avoid disaster, and those left in Chang'an were just some minor branches, who were completely powerless to clear the passes along the way.

If it weren't for the severe drought in Guanzhong this year and the constant infighting within the Liangzhou army, they probably wouldn't have been able to escape.

Even so, Wei Xie has tasted all the bitterness of life in the past few years and has long lost the demeanor of a man of the Wei family.

The saying "a man in troubled times is no better than a dog in peaceful times" is certainly true in Wei Xie's case.

Of course, Liu Bei did not simply believe Wei Xie's one-sided account. He continued to mingle among the disaster victims in Guanzhong for the next few days, and only then did he gain a general understanding of the situation.

First of all, Guanzhong is indeed very chaotic.

Secondly, the emperor is in imminent danger!
After learning these two points, Liu Bei did not act on his own, but instead invited Shi Sunrui and Cao Ang.

At the wedding banquet in Wancheng that day, although Liu Bei agreed to share Nanyang with Cao Ang, he also made a request: that if he attacked Wuguan and rescued the emperor, they should provide him with some troops to assist him.

It was precisely because of this that the Han army in Luoyang and Liu Bei truly came together.

For example, when Shi Sunrui learned that the emperor was in grave danger, he was terrified and immediately prepared to personally travel through the treacherous mountain paths of Zhongnan Mountain to sneak into Guanzhong, contact his old friends and officials in Chang'an as inside agents, and help Liu Bei enter Guanzhong as soon as possible.

Shi Sunmeng was worried that his elderly father was too old and frail to endure the hardships of trekking through mountains and rivers, so he repeatedly persuaded him before finally taking his place.

Cao Ang also agreed that they should act as soon as possible to avoid any unforeseen complications.

After all, if the emperor were to die from an arrow wound during the chaotic battle between Guo and Li, then these people would truly have no hope left.

Once the three of them reached a consensus, there were no further obstacles in Nanyang County.

Liu Bei, along with Shi Sunrui, Man Chong, Mao Jie, Guo Jia, and Chen Gong, visited the powerful clans and gentry in various counties of Nanyang.

Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Lü Bu, Gao Shun, Cao Ang and others led their troops to repair their weapons and sweep away bandits and thieves in the county, as well as some powerful figures who were unwilling to "assist" the righteous army.

With their two-pronged approach, they quickly procured a considerable amount of grain and military equipment in Nanyang County.

It should be known that the Nanyang Ironworks is famous throughout the land, and there has never been a shortage of weapons there.

Under these circumstances, the more than 10,000 infantry and cavalry of the Liu-Cao allied forces were quickly transformed and ready to go.

……

Meanwhile, as Zhang Liao pacified Henan Yin and recovered Yingchuan County, Nanyang County came into his sights.

Upon learning that Liu Bei had become the governor of Nanyang and that the remnants of the Han army in Luoyang had joined forces with Liu Bei, Zhang Liao frowned deeply, unsure of what to say.

What troubled Zhang Liao the most was the "Chu" flag hanging above the city walls of Nanyang County.

Because Zhang Liao was unaware of the many coincidences surrounding the Nanyang incident, he believed that Liu Biao wanted to take the opportunity to recover the lost territory of Nanyang Commandery, which was why he instructed Liu Bei to attack Yuan's army.

He was naturally not afraid of Liu Biao, but there were priorities.

With the army about to launch a campaign against Yuan Shu, it is truly unwise to start a war with Liu Biao of Jingzhou.

Even though the State of Wei was wealthy, fighting on two fronts was still a considerable challenge.

Not to mention, whether or not to go to war with Jingzhou is not a decision he has the authority to make.

Liu Biao was, after all, a warlord of a province, and only Wei Zhe could decide whether to fight or make peace!

After careful consideration, Zhang Liao did not rashly attack Nanyang Commandery. Instead, he stationed his troops in Wuyang County, which is located at the junction of Yingchuan Commandery, Nanyang Commandery, and Runan Commandery, and quickly relayed the situation there to Wei Zhe.

Not long after, Wei Zhe's latest orders arrived in Longkang, Pei State.

"Ignore it, attack Runan immediately!"

To be honest, Wei Zhe was quite surprised by the changes in Nanyang.

However, after calming down, he chose to put aside Jingzhou and deal with Yuan Shu first.

Wei Zhe's years of military service taught him one lesson:
No matter how great the expected results may be, only what you actually eat is truly yours!

That's the situation right now; taking down Yuan Shu is the most urgent task.

No matter how delicious Jingzhou is, we'll have to wait until he gets Yuan Shu into his mouth first.

Therefore, after receiving the order, Zhang Liao did not hesitate and immediately led his army straight to Pingyu County, the seat of Runan Commandery.

Meanwhile, Wei Zhe was leading the troops from Ji and Youfu out of Pei State and crossing the Huai River to the south.

Speaking of which, Zhongli City on the other side of the Huai River was captured by Wei Zhe during the last siege of Cao Cao. I didn’t expect it to be put to use so soon!

When the Yuan army outside Zhongli City saw the Wei army ships that blotted out the sky on the Huai River, their morale immediately plummeted.

After much hesitation, Yuan general Zhang Xun reluctantly led his troops to retreat to Yinling in the rear.

Zhang Xun naturally knew that if Zhongli City was not eliminated, the Wei army would have a foothold on the south bank of the Huai River.

But despite understanding the situation, Zhang Xun simply didn't have the courage to face Wei Zhe's army alone.

He felt it would be safer to first seek the emperor's approval before gathering a large army to besiege Wei Zhe.

Meanwhile, on the top floor of the ship.

Watching the retreating Yuan army on the horizon, Wei Zhe couldn't help but laugh.

"Was it the Yuan family who fled at the first sign of trouble?"

"With such cowardice, how dare he call himself emperor? He's truly a laughingstock!"

(End of this chapter)