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

Chapter 393 Just a Letter (5K)

Seeing Wu Jing hide the letter in his pocket, Ji Ling became somewhat wary: "Brother Wu, why are you doing this? Who sent the letter? Cao Bao?"

"...It was Cao Bao who insulted me for breaking my promise and arriving late. Xiapi has already fallen into the hands of General Wei. Brother Ji, let's withdraw the troops."

Wu Jingshun answered.

In fact, Wu Jing did not know that Cao Bao was dead, nor did he know that Liu Bei had already pacified Xiapi. However, he knew that since such a letter had appeared, it at least meant that the law had fallen into Liu Bei's hands.

He knew that this letter was not Fadu's own will; Fadu wasn't that foolish.

Wu Jing was Sun Jian's brother-in-law and had always lived in Danyang. He was familiar with the laws and regulations.

He knew that Sun Jian had instigated the conflict between Yuan Shu and Liu Bei, and he had come from Danyang to contact Cao Bao, a man from Danyang.

But Ji Ling was truly unaware of the inside story.

Seeing Wu Jing's unnatural expression, Ji Ling extended his hand: "Brother Wu, the letter came from Huaibei, shouldn't I at least take a look at it?"

Wu Jing is in a very difficult situation right now...

Under normal circumstances, the law would not write such a letter, at least not at this time.

This letter was deliberately sent to the main camp during the war, which was actually very difficult to keep secret—when two armies are at war, it is usually impossible for the correspondence between the two sides to be kept from the commander-in-chief.

The army sent by Yuan Shu was commanded by Ji Ling.

Ji Ling was a confidant of Yuan Shu and the only one in Yuan Shu's army besides Yuan Shu himself to hold a formal military position in the imperial court. After Yuan Shu ordered the killing of Que Xuan, Liu Bei appointed him as the Commandant of the Vanquishing Army by imperial decree.

Yuan Shu was the General Who Destroys the Enemy, and Ji Ling led Yuan Shu's main force.

Wu Jing was a subordinate of Sun Jian, not directly under Yuan Shu, and was subject to the control of Ji Ling.

Wu Jing knew the letter was fake, and most likely it was sent at Liu Bei's behest.

The problem is that Yuan Shu must never know the contents of this letter.

If Yuan Shu were to learn the contents of this letter, he would immediately understand Sun Jian's motives, regardless of the circumstances.

It was Sun Jian who advised Yuan Shu to seize Xiapi; it was Sun Jian's men who widely spread the teachings of Buddhism in Xiapi; and it was Wu Jing, who was responsible for contacting Cao Bao, who was also Sun Jian's man...

The letter said, "Cao Cao and Liu Bei will surely fight over Xu, and the emperor intends to appoint Sun Jian as General Who Destroys the Enemy." This is not a conspiracy, but an open strategy.

Regardless of who authorized this letter, whether Liu Bei forced him to write it or not, the source and process of the letter are all unimportant. The key point is that this letter made Sun Jian's intentions clear and added the extra clause "The Emperor has appointed another commander to defeat the enemy."

—Yuan Shu was the General Who Destroys the Enemy. It was Liu Bei who submitted a memorial requesting the title, saying that the emperor intended to bestow the title of "General Who Destroys the Enemy" upon him. What does that mean?
It means Sun Jian wanted to take his place!

Fadu was a retainer of Sun Jian, and he addressed Sun Jian as "Duke".

Sun Jian's suggestion to Yuan Shu was indeed to allow Yuan Shu's main force and Liu Bei to fight a major battle in Xuzhou, while Sun Jian himself could accumulate strength in Jingzhou.

The greater Yuan Shu's losses, the more he will rely on Sun Jian. If Yuan Shu dies... that would be even better, as he could indeed take his place.

Originally, Yuan Shu was unaware of this situation, but as soon as this letter appeared, Yuan Shu would immediately realize it—Sun Jian would have no way to explain it.

Every family has its internal troubles; Liu Bei had them, Dong Zhuo had them, Cao Cao had them, and Yuan Shu had them too.

In name, Yuan Shu controls Changsha, southern Jiangxia, Lujiang (including Yiyang), and Jiujiang, and is now extending his influence to Danyang.

After losing Nanyang, Yuan Shu moved eastward to secure grain supplies, with his core control area in Huainan. He is currently stationed in Shouchun County, Jiujiang Commandery.

Yuan Shu's overall military strength was indeed very strong. He occupied the territory between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers and controlled a large number of military leaders and generals.

—All of Yuan Shu's subordinates were military leaders or local clan chiefs. Although his own troops were indeed numerous, numbering as many as 20,000 to 30,000, his own troops did not form a cohesive system and his actual control was limited.

Otherwise, he wouldn't always be short of food.

In terms of military strength, Yuan Shu currently has the largest military force in the entire country, with a total of about 100,000 troops.

However, overall strength is not determined by the number of soldiers.

This underworld management system, which relied on powerful clan leaders and military commanders, was hardly effective in governing the local areas. Supplies were mainly obtained through plunder and protection money collection, and most of the actual resources were in the hands of local military commanders.

In addition, all the territories were acquired by force and coercion. Yuan Shu did not have a proper official status in the imperial court, and his organizational structure was very loose. He could not be said to be ruling, let alone managing the territory.

This was not actually a political entity, but rather a bandit alliance formed by a large group of outlaw warlords.

In the underworld, fighting ability is highly valued; whoever can fight the best will be respected by everyone.

Yuan Shu was a capable fighter, but Sun Jian was the most capable fighter in the alliance.

Moreover, Yuan Shu always relied on Sun Jian as the main force to conquer all directions, from Jingxiang to Nanyang, and from Lujiang to Danyang. Whenever he encountered a strong enemy, he would call on Sun Jian or his troops to quell the situation.

This resulted in Sun Jian's covert control over various regions having already surrounded the areas directly under Yuan Shu's control.

Sun Jian is currently attacking Jingzhou on the orders of Yuan Shao, the leader of the alliance, and is stationed in Wuchang.

Changsha and eastern Jiangxia were in Sun Jian's hands, while the area west of Xiakou was controlled by Huang Zu, who had been won over by Liu Biao. Sun Jian was short of food and not fighting, so he was colluding with various clans and bandits in Jiangxia.

Liu Biao won over the powerful families of Jingzhou and killed many clan leaders, while Sun Jian rallied various clan leaders and local armed forces to oppose Liu Biao—the war was actually ongoing, but it wasn't a direct, open battle.

The various underworld leaders were already worried and afraid because Liu Biao had set up a Hongmen Banquet and killed them. With Yuan Shu and Sun Jian as their backers, most of them became Sun Jian's allies.

Liu Biao controlled the northern part of Jingzhou, including Xiangyang, Nanjun, and Jiangxiabei, but he could not enter the southeast of Jingzhou.

Huang Gai, a native of Lingling, joined Sun Jian, and most of the Yue people in southeastern Jingzhou were subdued by Huang Gai.

Cheng Pu controlled Lujiang and Liuan, and the Zhou family, a prominent clan in Lujiang, also became friendly with Sun Jian.

The Zhou family supported Yuan Shu. When Dong Zhuo and Yuan Shu fought in Nanyang, Zhou Shang was almost killed but was saved by Sun Jian.

Later, Zhou Shang was secretly appointed by Yuan Shu as the governor of Danyang in order to seize Yangzhou.

Lei Xu, Chen Lan, Mei Qian, and other leaders of the Lujiang clan were all opportunists. If Yuan Shu were to die, the Zhou family and all the other leaders would switch their allegiance to Sun Jian.

Wu Jing and Sun Ben were both in Danyang. They were also on Yuan Shu's orders to seize Yangzhou. Sun Jian even married his eldest daughter to Hong Zi, a famous scholar from Danyang.

Changsha, Jiangxia, Lujiang, Danyang... Yuan Shu originally deployed Sun Jian's troops around Huainan as a shield.

This allowed Sun Jian to rival Yuan Shu in actual power across various counties. While powerful clans and noble families sided with Yuan Shu, local warlords and gangsters respected Sun Jian, a particularly capable military leader.

If Yuan Shu and Liu Bei were to fight each other, then Sun Jian would become even more important.

Yuan Shu was able to control Sun Jian by using Sun Ce as a hostage.

Sun Jian, for his son's sake, would certainly not directly rebel against Yuan Shu—but if Yuan Shu were killed by Liu Bei, Sun Jian would not be held responsible…

Facing Xuzhou was Huainan, which bordered Xiapi and was Yuan Shu's stronghold, while Sun Jian was in the rear.

If Liu Bei were to invade Huainan, as long as Sun Jian did not support Yuan Shu, or secretly sent someone to turn against him...

Anyone in Yuan Shu's camp who saw this letter could imagine that once Yuan Shu died, Sun Jian would become the biggest beneficiary of this Green Forest Alliance.

If handled well, Sun Jian could even inherit Yuan Shu's entire estate.

……

"Xiapi is no longer a viable destination... I, Wu, wish to return to Danyang, capture Cao Bao's relatives, and force him to surrender. What do you think, Brother Ji?"

Wu Jing glanced at Ji Ling, trying to change the subject.

"...Brother Wu, what exactly do you mean? What is the matter mentioned in that letter? Why did you hide it from me? Let me see it!"

Ji Ling frowned and drew his sword: "Could it be that you're colluding with the enemy?!"

The conversation couldn't be changed; Ji Ling wasn't simple-minded, and Wu Jing wasn't as capable as Jia Wenhe...

Ji Ling was already suspicious, and his sword was half-drawn. Ji Ling's martial arts skills were much better than Wu Jing's, and this was Ji Ling's tent, so there was no way to escape.

Wu Jing hesitated for a moment, then reluctantly took out the bamboo slips.

"Brother Ji, this is Liu Bei's conspiracy!"

If this weren't bamboo slips but paper, Wu Jing would definitely have swallowed the letter whole...

However, the greatest advantage of bamboo slips is that they are difficult to destroy quickly.

It can't be swallowed, can't be chewed, can be broken and put back together, won't sink in water, and won't burn out instantly even if thrown into a fire...

"A conspiracy? Wu Jing, go explain this to the lord..."

Ji Ling's expression changed drastically after glancing at the bamboo slips, and he drew his sword and pressed it against Wu Jing's neck. In fact, Ji Ling could tell that this might indeed be Liu Bei's scheme.

But the contents of the letter made Ji Ling immediately realize the consequences of this military expedition...

“Brother Ji, Wu was just trying to persuade you to withdraw your troops. You know that Wu has no intention of betraying you, so you should be able to see that this is a divisive tactic…”

Wu Jing remained relatively calm and still tried to salvage the situation: "I will not hide it from you, Brother Ji. General Yuan ordered me to contact Cao Bao to take Xiapi. We have suffered heavy losses and are stuck here. In any case, General Yuan will punish me... Now Liu Bei has used this divisive tactic. If General Yuan sees this letter, he will definitely suspect my brother Sun Wentai. You and I both understand this."

“Brother Ji, you know what kind of people General Yuan and my brother Wentai are… Brother Ji, this matter will only lead to internal strife and infighting among us. My brother Sun Wentai will not stand idly by. Even if my nephew Sun Ce is killed, my brother still has a second son to carry on the family line… If internal strife breaks out, General Yuan may not be a match for my brother…”

Wu Jing is quite a character; although he can be a bit long-winded, there aren't many people who can speak clearly in this situation.

"...You want me to pretend I didn't see it?"

Ji Ling hesitated for a moment, glancing at the bamboo slips in her left hand, but did not put down the sword in her right.

“I would like to ask Brother Ji for a chance… Brother Ji, you hold this letter in your hands. My brother has reservations, and to preserve his reputation for loyalty, he will not do anything detrimental to General Yuan. But if you, Brother Ji, hand this letter to General Yuan, he will surely harm my brother. In that case, my brother will have no choice but to rebel…”

Wu Jing explained, “Brother Ji, whether we will fight each other depends on your will… You can kill me, but if anything happens to me, my brother Sun Wentai will have enough reason to raise a large army…”

That's true for some things; it's better for everyone to hold back and not act.

The only useful thing is the leverage you hold in your hand; if you reveal everything, then you'll have no choice but to take action.

Sun Jian resorted to underhanded tactics and offered bad advice because he didn't want anything to happen to Sun Ce, nor did he want to be branded as disloyal and unrighteous. It wasn't because he couldn't defeat Yuan Shu.

Now, the problem has fallen on Ji Ling's shoulders.

Ji Ling and Sun Jian certainly didn't have any relationship... but would betraying Sun Jian benefit Ji Ling?
Even if Yuan Shu could kill Sun Jian, he wouldn't give Sun Jian's territory and troops to Ji Ling.

Why would Ji Ling want to make an enemy like Sun Jian?
Ji Ling knew that if a real war broke out, Yuan Shu might not be able to handle Sun Jian.

Ji Ling herself was certainly even less capable of handling it.

"Order the troops to retreat!"

Ji Ling gave Wu Jing a deep look, then sheathed her sword: "Lord Wu, you should return to Danyang and write a letter to Sun Wentai; he owes me a favor..."

"Thank you, Brother Ji! Kindness will surely be rewarded!"

Wu Jing let out a long breath and bowed deeply.

Stepping out of the tent and being hit by a cold wind, I immediately broke out in a sweat.

……

The following day, Ji Ling withdrew his troops from Huailing and retreated to Huainan.

Wu Jing then took another route and retreated towards Yangzhou.

The letter ended up in Ji Ling's hands, but Wu Jing was unsure how long Ji Ling could keep it a secret or when he would reveal it to Yuan Shu.

Moreover, it's hard to guarantee that Liu Bei won't use other methods to sow discord between Yuan Shu and Sun Jian.

Therefore, Wu Jing sent someone to Jiangxia as quickly as possible to inform Sun Jian of this matter.

After Ji Ling returned to Shouchun, Yuan Shu learned that Xiapi was no longer attainable. He wasn't too bothered by it, but quickly sent an envoy to Liu Bei to explain the situation.

This envoy was Yang Hong again.

This time, however, Liu Bei refused to see Yang Hong, refused to listen to his explanations, and instead of letting Yang Hong return to Huainan, he detained him and imprisoned him.

Subsequently, an envoy was sent to Yuan Shu to deliver an imperial edict, ordering the removal of Yuan Shu from the rank of General Who Destroys the Enemy and the removal of Ji Ling from the rank of Colonel Who Destroys the Enemy.

At the same time, the extremely harsh demands were made for Yuan Shu to hand over Zhang Kai and Ji Ling, and for Yuan Shu to go to Linzi to plead guilty, otherwise Yuan Shu would be regarded as a complete traitor.

This was the attitude that had to be taken. Ji Ling led his army to invade Xuzhou. Although they didn't even cross the Huai River, they at least entered Xuzhou territory, which was clearly an act of rebellion.

This is also a test.

Liu Bei did not intend to send troops into battle because spring plowing was approaching and he was busy relocating households; he didn't have the time to fight a pointless war.

But after the edict was issued, both Yuan Shu and Ji Ling were furious.

The imperial court no longer recognizes Yuan Shu's title of General Who Destroys the Enemy, which means that Yuan Shu is now essentially a commoner... or rather, an illegal armed leader.

He already lacked official status, and now he's completely become a bandit.

Although there may not seem to be any direct loss, if Yuan Shu were to simply accept it without saying a word, it would directly lead to officials in various counties of Jianghuai having other ideas.

After all, people follow you not only for mutual support, but also for a legitimate future. Who would want to be a bandit?

If no measures are taken, his subordinates will either secretly defect to the Qingzhou court or secretly seek refuge with Cao Cao or Liu Biao.

This is a difficult problem to solve. Unless we can kill Liu Bei in one fell swoop and seize the emperor for ourselves, we will inevitably be controlled by Liu Bei using the emperor's edict.

Liu Bei had already launched several campaigns to punish the disloyal on behalf of the emperor, and Yuan Shu had experienced this firsthand. While gangsters and outlaws might acknowledge Yuan Shu as their leader, they were also willing to acknowledge the emperor...

Liu Xie was, after all, a legitimate emperor with impeccable credentials, and the court controlled by Liu Bei had never lost its credibility and still held considerable influence.

Moreover, Liu Bei also came from a criminal background and was particularly adept at rallying criminal elements.

Yuan Shu felt very aggrieved, but he dared not actually start a war with Liu Bei.

He didn't have much food and couldn't afford to fight a major war.

The original intention of seeking the three counties of Xuzhou was to obtain grain.

If we can't fight, then we can only back down and try to stay safe.

But to admit defeat, one must go to Linzi to apologize...

Yuan Shu dared not go, nor did he intend to betray those who had actually worked for him, such as Ji Ling and Zhang Kai—Yuan Shu was actually quite loyal.

But if Yuan Shu admitted to this and became a traitor, he could imagine that Liu Bei would have a hundred ways to thoroughly defeat him...

Does Yuan Shu still remember how Yuan Shao ended up in the "Biographies of Traitorous Officials"?

What to do?
……

Ji Ling felt even more aggrieved—his expedition had ended in failure, with the loss of many scouts, and upon his return, he was accused of treason and stripped of his official rank of two thousand shi (a unit of grain).

This is an official position from the Han Dynasty, not a private appointment...

Moreover, Ji Ling could tell that Yuan Shu had genuinely considered sending himself and Zhang Kai to Liu Bei for questioning, but ultimately, Yuan Shu, out of a sense of loyalty, did not do so.

Yuan Shu's loyalty made Sun Jian seem somewhat unethical...

The root of this problem was Sun Jian's bad idea. The Tibetan monks of the Buddhist sect were also Sun Jian's men, but after the trouble happened, Sun Jian didn't show any concern... He didn't even react when he owed them a favor!
This is infuriating! Why is it that Sun Jian's underhanded tactics have backfired on him?
But we've already kept that letter a secret for a while now. If we bring it out now, wouldn't Yuan Shu know that we've been hiding it?
After much deliberation, Ji Ling decided to send someone to deliver a letter, which he then "intercepted" with Yuan Yin.

At the same time, Ji Ling also sent someone to Danyang to warn Wu Jing that Yuan Shu had discovered that Sun Jian was behind the incident, and that Wu Jing should take care of himself.

It's a win-win situation.

It's not fair to blame Ji Ling for being unethical; Ji Ling was made a wanted criminal, and Sun Jian didn't even offer any thanks.

Yuan Yin, however, didn't have such thoughts. After all, he was Yuan Shu's cousin, and upon receiving the letter, he immediately went to find Yuan Shu.

Yuan Shu was much more straightforward. He immediately imprisoned Sun Ce, sent men to capture Lady Wu and Sun Quan, and ordered Sun Jian to attack Liu Biao and take Jingzhou before the spring plowing season.

Subsequently, Yuan Shu purged all Buddhist temples in Huainan, while simultaneously procuring grain and arresting Buddhist practitioners.

He then ordered Wu Jing, Sun Ben, and others to arrest all those associated with the Buddhist sect in Danyang, and then send them, along with the letter authorized by Liu Bei, to Liu Bei as evidence that this was a conspiracy by the Buddhist sect...

Forced by Yuan Shu to attack and seize Jingzhou, Sun Jian had no choice but to send troops to Fancheng.

However, due to a lack of supplies, Sun Jian was unable to organize a large-scale army. In the dead of winter, various warlords and bandit groups were also reluctant to send troops—perhaps Yuan Shu had also sent word, but in any case, most of the warlords in Jingzhou were reluctant to do so.

This is actually the result Liu Bei wanted.

The imperial edict to suppress Buddhism had already reached Huainan. Yuan Shu learned from that letter that it was related to Sun Jian and Buddhism, so he would definitely suppress Buddhism, and he would do so thoroughly.

At the same time, Sun Jian will not have an easy time either.

Yuan Shu also gained a way out – the letter seemed to be a conspiracy between Sun Jian and the Buddhist sect. Liu Bei wanted to farm and didn't want to fight a big war, nor did he want to force Yuan Shu into a corner and make a desperate move. This way out was deliberately given.

For Liu Bei, it was just a letter.

(End of this chapter)