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

Chapter 102 A Million-Dollar Bounty
East of Taihang Mountains lies Damao Mountain.

Damao Mountain was the "Northern Hengshan" of this era, located in Beiping County, Zhongshan—this was neither the Hengshan of later times nor Beiping of later times...

This is the highest mountain in Zhongshan and a landmark that serves as the gateway to the main ridge of the Northern Taihang Mountains.

This mountain has valleys on both the north and south sides. The northern side is called Pinggu, which is the route Zuo Zi took back to the mountain when he last came to Zhuojun.

To the south lies the famous Puyin Pass, one of the Eight Passes of Taihang. Like the Flying Fox Pass, it is a passage through the Taihang Mountains. Its eastern entrance is located in Puyin County, Zhongshan, and its western entrance leads to Yanmen in Bingzhou.

—This Damao Mountain is a crucial strategic location for the bandits in the northern Taihang Mountains, serving as their base for advance and retreat.

The hilltop with the left mustache is located here.

To be precise... it's the hilltop of Zuozhi that's located here in the last two years.

Two years ago, Zuo Zi acquired a lot of armor and a large amount of money and grain from Zhuojun. In the past two years, he has become the leader of the bandits in the northern Taihang Mountains, and this Damao Mountain has become his responsibility.

It's not about territory, it's about responsibility—the most powerful bandit leader is responsible for guarding the gateway to the Northern Taihang Mountains.

However, the northern Taihang Mountains were not the entirety of the Taihang bandits, and Zuo Zi was not the most famous bandit in the Taihang Mountains.

However, life in the northern Taihang Mountains has been slightly better than in the south in the past two years.

There aren't many people in the northern Taihang Mountains, probably only around 70,000 to 80,000, and most of them, young and old, have become law-abiding citizens in Xiheting.

Just as Liu Bei had told Zuo Zi before, the output of the 30,000 old and weak people farming in Xiheting was enough to make up for the food shortage of 100,000 people.

This allowed Zuo Zi to have the spare capacity to connect with his counterparts on the south side of the river.

At this moment, there are an unusually large number of thieves in Damao Mountain.

This is because all the bandits in the Taihang Mountains have gathered here this year.

Every year at the end of July, the bandits of Taihang would hold a meeting, mainly to discuss where to obtain money and supplies and to allocate their respective targets, so as to avoid disorderly actions and unnecessary overlap or conflict among the various mountain strongholds in the north and south of Taihang.

The leader of the alliance is also chosen during the annual meeting. The leader of the Taihang Alliance is not the chief leader, but the commander of large-scale operations. Usually, the leader is changed every year according to the actual situation.

Just like Zuo Zi's actions in Zhuojun, which mobilized most of the able-bodied men from various mountain peaks in the northern Taihang Mountains, a unified command was needed. At that time, Zuo Zi occupied Beixincheng and obtained money, food and weapons, making him the most suitable person to be the leader of the alliance.

In previous years, the alliance meeting was usually held in the Changshan-Jingxing area.

That place is in the middle of the Taihang Mountains, and it is also the place where Han Xin fought with his back to the river. Both in terms of distance and its symbolic significance, it is more suitable for bandits from the north and south of the Taihang Mountains to meet there.

However, this year, since Zuo Zi was able to provide some food supplies to the bandits in Taihang, the meeting place was changed to Damao Mountain.

"Left Beard, that big-eared guy... is he really reliable?"

A notorious thief from the Southern Taihang Mountains asked.

This man looked ordinary; he was neither tall nor distinctive. Wearing a straw hat and a raincoat, he resembled an old farmer.

Behind this man was someone holding a flag, which was a bull's horn—just like the flag used by Zuo Zi two years ago, representing the leader of this year's alliance.

This is Zhang Niujiao, the most notorious thief in the entire Taihang Mountains. He set many of the rules of the Taihang Mountains, and that ox-horn hat is also his trademark.

“Brother Niujiao, it was Brother Da'er who secured a place for us to grow grain, which is why we have the resources to give you grain. You are truly a reliable friend.”

Left Beard seemed to have great respect for Zhang Niujiao: "Brother Big Ear is kind and generous, just like how my elder brother helped us in the past."

"Since he is a friend who has helped me secure food and survival, I should go and thank him in person, and also ask him what he is up to... Left Beard, where is Brother Big Ears right now?"

Upon hearing about the grain, Zhang Niujiao nodded, his old farmer-like face, full of deep wrinkles, relaxing.

In fact, Zhang Niujiao didn't originally need to be a thief. He was a local tycoon in Boling and often made friends with heroes from all walks of life, which was quite similar to Liu Bei's situation.

However, because he associated with too many bandits, he was reported and attracted the attention of troops from various prefectures such as Zhongshan, Anping, and Hejian to suppress him. Therefore, Zhang Niujiao moved his family into the mountains and made a living in the Changshan area in the middle of the Taihang Mountains.

"Brother Big Ears is at the Pinggu Pass at the foot of the mountain..." Left Beard led Zhang Niujiao down the mountain.

……

Pinggukou.

Why don't you, Brother Big Ears, go visit us on the mountain?

At the Pinggu Pass, Zhang Niujiao met the Big-Eared Bandit.

Liu Bei didn't bring any retainers, only Zuo Yuan and Zhang Fei, making them look more like a group of wandering knights.

Zhang Niujiao and Zuo Zi didn't bring many people down the mountain either; bandits usually don't travel with too many people...

"Taihang has its own rules, and I am an outsider after all, so it is not appropriate for me to go into the mountains."

Liu Bei cupped his hands to Zhang Niujiao and said, "I have long heard of Brother Zhang's reputation for righteousness. We are men of the Jianghu, so there's no need for us to beat around the bush. I wonder if Brother Zhang would be interested in doing a big deal together... perhaps, attacking Wangdu?"

“Wangdu? Zuo Zi said that Brother Da Er was going to deal with the Liu family of Zhongshan. It seems that it is true... But I don’t know why Brother Da Er wants to attack Wangdu? The royal palace of Liu Xian, the King of Zhongshan, is in Lu Nu. If you want to take the royal palace’s wealth, you should go to Lu Nu.”

Zhang Niujiao may not seem particularly remarkable, but his words were full of probing, clearly indicating that he was quite shrewd.

“The Prince of Zhongshan has no real power, and Liu Xian, though a prince, can’t even leave his palace. He’s just a puppet. How much wealth could his palace possibly have? But Wangdu is the Liu clan’s ancestral home, with countless riches and provisions, and it also has enemies who plotted against my close friend. So naturally I must take Wangdu.”

This time, Liu Bei didn't use any tricks or mention trade. He simply stated the facts calmly: "The Taihang Mountains need money and supplies, and you can take whatever you get. I only need to take the head of my enemy; I don't want anything else."

"So... what are Big Ears planning to do?"

Zhang Niujiao nodded, as long as it wasn't a ploy to trick the people of Taihang Mountain into attacking the Prince's Palace...

“It’s simple. Brothers from Taihang, please collect grain outside the city first. Once you see the fire inside the city and the city gates open, you can enter the city.”

Liu Bei spoke of attacking the county town in a very casual way, as if he were just talking about where to eat tomorrow.

"That's it? Is this how the Big Ears brothers always fight?"

Zhang Niujiao probably felt the plan was a bit hasty, so he frowned, looked at Liu Bei, and then at Zuo Zi: "What if Brother Da Er fails?"

"If we fail, and the fire doesn't start, or the city gates don't open, you don't need to worry about me. Just leave on your own."

Liu Bei spread his hands, indicating that it was that simple.

"……this……"

Zhang Niujiao pondered for a moment, then suddenly seemed to remember something, turned his head and stared intently at Liu Bei, scrutinizing him closely: "Two years ago in Black Mountain, I heard that a big-eared bandit used fire to rob the Li family of Lihu... Could that big-eared one be you?"

Aha?

Liu Bei never expected that the things he did in Dongjun, Yanzhou, would reach Zhang Niujiao's ears...

That's true, Dongjun is relatively close to Heishan.

"It was me, but at that time I was being pursued by the government, and after setting the fire, I could only flee north alone. I wonder how Brother Zhang knew about this?"

Liu Bei readily accepted the matter. He knew that Zhang Niujiao might have doubts about him, but even without Zhang Niujiao, he could still succeed with just Zuo Zi's help in the Northern Taihang Mountains.

"Brother Big Ears, are you familiar with Li Qian, the powerful and wealthy man of the Cheng family?"

Zhang Niujiao suddenly laughed: "Lihu Li Family Fortress was originally owned by Li Qian of the Cheng Clan. This man is currently offering a reward for your capture... He even posted a notice in Black Mountain, saying that as long as you are brought before him, he can exchange you for a million dollars..."

"Only one million? Am I really that worthless?"

Liu Bei shook his head and sighed, "Brother Zhang, you wouldn't be after this little bit of money, would you?"

(End of this chapter)