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

March of the first year of Jian'an.

At this time, Jian Yong and Tian Yu also escorted Liu Bei's entire family to Chang'an.

All the families of Liu Bei's advisors also moved to Chang'an to settle down.

This was also the last large-scale movement of people in the area controlled by Liu Bei.

From March onwards, the Sanfu, Sanhe, and Hebei prefectures were completely sealed off and placed under military control.

The transportation of supplies has been halted, ships are not allowed to launch, and people are not allowed to pass through customs.

If a patient is diagnosed with typhoid fever, nucleus plague (pneumonic plague), or septicemic plague (septicemic plague), mandatory isolation is required. These three diseases are all considered typhoid fever, often coexist, and are transmitted in the same way, through airborne droplets and bodily fluids.

Anyone who conceals their illness and refuses to be isolated, or who disrupts public order, may be shot directly.

Anyone who attempts to pass through without permission will be considered a traitor and executed.

If officials and soldiers in various places shirk their responsibilities, or if city gates are lax, they may be executed on the spot.

This blockade was bound to cause discontent among many people, but Liu Bei issued a strict order: anyone who used force would be exterminated along with their entire clan; whoever caused trouble would be the first to die.

When Zhuge Xuan sealed off the city, it was difficult to suppress the epidemic, but Liu Bei was fully capable of suppressing the counties. The order to seal off the passes and control the epidemic was extremely strict, and people could not be seen traveling between the counties.

In addition, the weather was cold that year, and the glaciers at the headwaters of various rivers melted late, resulting in many rivers drying up, ditches drying up, and a severe drought in the Central Plains.

Spring plowing in various regions has been greatly affected as a result.

The situation is probably only relatively better in the Yangtze River basin.

Most of the people who came to Chang'an in response to the bidding order were from the Jianghuai region.

After Liu Bei ordered the blockade of counties, someone wrote to Liu Bei requesting permission to return to his hometown.

This person is named Lü Fan.

After arriving in Chang'an, Lü Fan had already received the appointment as the Commandant of Shangnan from Jia Xu, but he wrote a letter stating that he had to return to his hometown to help his friends, and that he would not accept any official position. He only hoped to see Liu Bei and also wanted to pass through the pass to return to his hometown.

Liu Bei only learned of Lü Fan's arrival in Chang'an when Lü Fan submitted his memorial—there were too many people, and Lü Fan didn't bring many people with him, so it wasn't at the level of Liu Bei personally receiving him.

In his memorial, Lü Fan reported that Yuan Shu had overstepped his bounds and acted disloyally, using the emperor's ceremonial regalia without permission and even forging the imperial seal. He requested the court to appoint Sun Jian's son, Sun Ce, to lead an expedition against Yuan Shu.

Lü Fan came to Chang'an not to respond to the bidding order for an official position, but to seek help on behalf of Sun Ce.

Liu Bei then invited Lü Fan to his residence for a meeting.

Lu Fan was an outstanding man with a very elegant demeanor, which made him instantly likable.

When Lü Fan met Liu Bei, he said, "Sun Wentai, the former governor of Changsha, was ordered by Yuan Shu. Yuan Shu coerced Sun's wife and children into attacking and seizing Jingzhou, which led to Sun's death in battle. This was Yuan Shu's act of usurpation and rebellion."

“Now Yuan Shu has gone even further, using Lü Bu as his henchman, placing the emperor’s crown on his head, and calling himself ‘I’ (the Emperor). He is now an immoral and wicked rebel.”

“Sun Bofu, the eldest son of Lord Sun, has a heart to serve the country and also wants to avenge his father. Although Sun Lang is now in Yuan Shu’s hands, he is still willing to be the vanguard for the Prime Minister and help the court pacify Huaiyang.”

"Lu sought help from the Prime Minister, also hoping to fulfill his duty to his friend and help Bo Fu out of his predicament."

This indicates that Sun Ce and Lü Fan were both willing to respect the imperial court and serve as Liu Bei's henchmen, as long as Liu Bei could send troops to deal with Yuan Shu.

Liu Bei asked, "I heard that Yuan Shu adopted Sun Bofu as his son and treated him as his own. He once said that one should have a son like Sun Bofu... Why did Sun Bofu want to fight against Yuan Shu? Isn't that unfilial?"

"Yuan Shu's adoption of a son was merely a scheme to seize control of Sun Fujun's former troops. Yuan Shu admired Sun Lang's bravery and feared that he would not get along with Sun Lang, so he often praised him, but his heart was neither kind nor compassionate."

Lü Fan replied, "The Prime Minister must also know why Lord Sun died in battle, and Lord Sun also knows that Yuan Shu is the real enemy who killed his father. Therefore, it is impossible to recognize a traitor as one's father."

"Ziheng is righteous and resourceful, which is rare indeed. You have traveled thousands of miles for your friend, and it is a great fortune for Sun Bofu to have a friend like you. But now I have issued a decree to seal the pass and not allow people to move around. If I were to appoint Ziheng as a rank of two thousand shi, would Ziheng be willing to stay in Chang'an and serve me?"

Compared to Sun Ce, whom he had never met, Liu Bei admired Lü Fan much more.

“Bo Fu is my close friend, and I must go back to assist him. I appreciate the Prime Minister’s kind offer.”

Lu Fan shook his head and said, "Now that there is an epidemic in the world, I know that this order to close the passes is necessary, but if the world is not peaceful and rebels are waging war everywhere, the Prime Minister's order to close the passes will be in vain. I request that the Prime Minister appoint me as the envoy to issue an edict to Huainan, so that Yuan Shu and other rebels will not dare to act rashly, and only then can the Prime Minister deal with the epidemic."

That's good advice. Only by reducing war can we control the plague. Otherwise, even if Liu Bei can control it in his territory, he won't be able to control it in other people's territories.

Liu Bei nodded and asked, "Whom do Sun Wentai's former subordinates serve now?"

"Serving the imperial court as our master."

Lü Fan replied earnestly: “Sun Boyang (Sun Ben), Wu Zhongming (Wu Jing), Cheng Demou, Han Yigong, Huang Gongfu... and even myself, are all ministers of the court, and only obey the imperial edicts.”

Lü Fan was indeed very eloquent; what he was really saying was that Sun Jian's former subordinates were still willing to obey Sun Ce's command, but they needed a formal title.

None of these people actually have legitimate titles, because all their official positions were privately granted by Yuan Shu and are therefore illegitimate.

Liu Bei thought for a moment and then gave Lü Fan a request: "Yuan Shu's rebellion must be punished, of course, but I can only use court officials and generals to pacify Huaiyang..."

“Lu Ziheng, you should have heard in Huainan that generals are selected from military academies and officials are selected through examinations. If you and Sun Bofu both enter the Han Military Academy, I will appoint you as generals... If you pass the examinations and become officials, I will also be happy to appoint you as officials.”

"But now the world is ravaged by a plague, it is not suitable for large-scale wars, nor is it suitable for people to come from afar to study, so I will give you two a test of strategy."

"You should tell Sun Bofu this. If he intends to help the court pacify Huaiyang, then he should first join Taishi Ziyi's army and block the roads and passes in Jiangdong for the court, forcing Yuan Shu to be unable to launch a reckless attack, so that Qing, Xu, Huaiyang and other places will be free from war."

"As long as we can keep the world from going to war and keep it peaceful until next autumn, the court will send troops to quell the rebellion. You two can then govern and protect a region for the Han Dynasty."

Taishi Ci is currently in Hefei, but he has too few troops and it is difficult for him to get support from the local powerful clans. Only Li Tong and Liu Pi can provide support, but Li Tong and Liu Pi are too far away.

If Sun Ce could bring Sun Jian's former troops to Taishi Ci's army, Yuan Shu would certainly not dare to act rashly.

The best outcome would be to force everyone to be afraid to fight.

"I am willing to obey the Prime Minister's orders!"

Lü Fan bowed and accepted.

Subsequently, Liu Bei appointed Zhang Fei as the Governor of Qingzhou and Xuzhou, Zhang He as the Governor of Qingzhou, and Chen Deng as the Governor of Xuzhou.

Guan Yu remained the Governor of Hebei, Zhang Liao became the Governor of Ji Province, Qian Zhao became the Governor of You Province, and Xu Huang became the Governor of Yi Province.

Tian Yu was appointed as the governor of Bingzhou in a remote manner, overseeing military affairs in the Three Rivers region. Bingzhou and Hedong and Henan were not under Liu Bei's control. Tian Yu's actual job was to blockade the passes and ports in the Three Rivers region and provide military support to Xun You, the governor of Henan.

Jian Yong served as the Commandant of the Capital Region. At that time, the Commandant of the Capital Region was one of the Three Prefectures, which was responsible for overseeing the capitals of Jingzhao, Fufeng, and Fengyi.

Jia Xu was in charge of the Imperial Secretariat and controlled Chang'an.

Liu Bei also sent an official letter to Liu Biao, appointing him as General Who Conquers the South, and sent an imperial envoy and Lü Fan to leave Chang'an to deliver the message.

Liu Bei issued a proclamation to Liu Yan of Yizhou, accusing him of usurping the law, attacking the emperor, and presumptuously conducting the emperor's funeral. Furthermore, Liu Yan's youngest son, Liu Zhang, had privately assumed the position of governor of Yizhou, which was an act of utter treason and immorality.

Therefore, the imperial court appointed Liu Biao as General Who Conquers the South and ordered him to attack Liu Zhang.

Liu Yan's funeral after his death was indeed beyond the usual standards, and there have been rumors for years that "the land of Shu has the aura of an emperor," which was indeed something Liu Yan had people spread.

Liu Yan was appointed governor of a province by the late emperor. His previous military campaign against Chang'an could be seen by many gentry as a way of purging the emperor's inner circle—because many gentry did indeed regard Liu Bei as a treacherous minister who held the emperor hostage.

In political struggles, whoever wins is right.

But since Liu Yan didn't win, he could only be considered a traitor.

Even if Liu Yan hadn't rebelled, Liu Zhang's private control of Yizhou after Liu Yan's death made him a genuine rebel who held sway over a region. After all, official positions in the imperial court weren't hereditary, and the emperor hadn't appointed Liu Zhang as the governor of Yizhou.

Even if Liu Bei entered Shu in history, it was a legitimate act of a court general suppressing a rebellion, and there was no question of him plotting to seize it—Yizhou was not Liu Zhang's property.

This looks like it's giving Liu Biao an opportunity to seize Yizhou...

In reality, as long as Liu Bei did not send troops, Liu Biao would certainly not send troops to Yizhou alone.

Liu Bei's actions were essentially the same as sending Sun Ce to assassinate Yuan Shu on the way; he simply wanted to prevent chaos in Yizhou and Jingzhou.

If we try to keep the whole world from fighting, and everyone keeps each other in check, it will be more peaceful. Anyone who wants to cause trouble will have to consider whether they will be attacked from behind.

After arranging all this, Liu Bei left Chang'an and took Zhao Yun to Hebei.

With Jia Xu and Jian Yong in Sanfu and Sanhe, and construction currently impossible, Liu Bei can't do much by staying at home.

Lu Fan traveled thousands of miles to Chang'an to seek help for his friend, even giving up his official position of two thousand shi (a unit of grain) to return to Huainan and assist Sun Ce. Liu Bei and Zhao Yun did the same, trying to find a way to help their friend.

He also wanted to avenge his friend.

At present, Liu Bei does not know that Ju Hu killed Zhuge Xuan, because the letter Liu Bei received did not mention the cause of Zhuge Xuan's death - Guan Yu sent back a letter from Diao Chan.

But Zhuge Xuan was Liu Bei's friend, so he couldn't have died in vain.

Moreover, Diao Chan and Chen Dao were trapped in Handan. Chen Dao was a messenger, but Liu Bei did not receive Chen Dao's reply.

This is obviously problematic.

Since neither Diao Chan nor Chen Dao mentioned the cause of Zhuge Xuan's death, and Chen Dao did not report back, Liu Bei could naturally deduce that they were being controlled.

……

……

March 15th, Heishan Fukou Pass, Shexian County.

Liu Bei and Zhao Yun came from Heishan and met Zhang Yan first.

In fact, Zhang Yan never intended to oppose Liu Bei. In fact, the alliance between Zhang Yan and Liu Bei was already extremely strong.

It's rare to find allies who have stood firmly on the same side for a full decade.

However, Zhang Yan has her own difficulties, or rather, limitations.

Montenegro has manpower and troops, but its geography and personnel structure mean that it will always lack resources.

A lack of resources will inevitably lead to various restrictions, and will also inevitably lead to many thieves colluding with various parties.

After all, if they can't make money or gain any benefits, why would these bandits stay in the mountains and suffer?
They didn't raise an army because they were poor.

At the same time, the various tribes in the Black Mountain region were of mixed quality, and most of the bandit leaders lacked foresight. Many of them were clueless and believed that having a large army and many soldiers was enough to achieve great things.

Because Zhang Yan forbade them from going out to rob, many people wanted to take her place.

That's the mentality of a robber; they always think the world was won through fighting, and they think if they can just rob, why bother farming...

But in reality, even the most capable fighters couldn't "conquer" this world.

Since taking control of Montenegro, Zhang Yan has experienced numerous betrayals.

Of course, Tao Sheng's betrayal was the most dangerous and also the most infuriating for Zhang Yan.

Even though his anger caused Zhang Yan to develop blisters in his mouth, he still refrained from launching a large-scale military campaign.

Moreover, he strictly enforced the blockade order issued by Liu Bei, and even personally killed nearly a thousand people who were causing trouble inside, among whom Tao Sheng was likely an inside agent.

When Liu Bei arrived in Shexian, Zhang Yan was personally inspecting various places.

Upon hearing that Liu Bei had arrived, Zhang Yan rushed to Shexian County: "There is currently an epidemic here. If anything happens, you can simply send a message to me. Why has the Prime Minister come here in person?"

"The one who came here is not the Prime Minister, but the big-eared thief."

Liu Bei said, "I also wanted to come and see if you were lacking in supplies... This year's harvest is not good, and there may be another famine. How does Feiyan plan to get through the famine?"

"I truly do not know."

Zhang Yan sighed, "Another major epidemic, and now a drought, who could have predicted this..."

"Let the bandits in the mountains steal the grain."

Liu Bei looked at Zhang Yan and smiled: "Go be a thief."

"what?"

Zhang Yan was stunned: "Where...where are we going to steal?"

"We'll rob whoever has grain. Right now, the only ones around us with enough grain to help you, Heishan, survive the famine are the Shen family of Weijun, the Sima family of Henan, and the Wang family of Taiyuan..."

Liu Bei listed a string of wealthy and powerful families.

"Why do you say that, Prime Minister? Didn't we just issue a decree to seal the passes and forbid any use of force?"

Zhang Yan looked at Liu Bei with some suspicion, probably trying to figure out if Liu Bei was deliberately bluffing him.

But Liu Bei's expression was very serious: "I am no longer the Prime Minister, but the Big-Eared Bandit. The order to seal the passes is given to the officials and people of the Han Dynasty, not to bandits... If those bandits in your army who are out of control are short of food, don't they want to go out and rob?"

"Prime Minister... Oh, Brother Big Ears, do you mean to deliberately let those lawless thieves who intend to plunder go out and cause trouble?"

Zhang Yan roughly understood Liu Bei's intentions.

“Just tell them there is no food to eat, and someone will inevitably come out of the mountains to collude with other families... Anyway, you can’t control them, so just let them cause trouble.”

Liu Bei nodded: "If supplies are limited, then only support those troops who truly obey your command."

Zhang Yan nodded, but still had some doubts: "If we let them plunder everywhere, the epidemic might spread..."

"The disease won't spread from the dead..."

Liu Bei shook his head and said, "They disobeyed orders and rebelled against Black Mountain. Shouldn't you hunt down such traitors? As long as no one is left alive, there will be no epidemic... I don't believe that those being hunted would dare to run to crowded places."

Zhang Yan was shocked: "Leave no survivors? Then what about the wealthy families...? Are they also leaving no survivors?"

"What do they have to do with us? It's not like we robbed them... If they were smart enough, they would come looking for you."

Liu Bei said, "You've been an official for many years, have you forgotten how to be a thief?"

Zhang Yan lowered her head, a bitter smile on her face: "It was Brother Big Ears who told me to use the methods of an official to become a thief..."

"Times have changed; you have to become an official by the means of a thief."

Liu Bei said, "Tell me about the situation in the surrounding counties, and I will make arrangements for this matter."

...(End of chapter)