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

Chapter 62 Three Kingdoms Under Siege
The Taihang bandits certainly couldn't occupy the county town for long, but this kind of deal wasn't about the town itself, but about the prestige gained from conquering and seizing territory...

Thieves can also have a reputation.

Zuo Zi needed this prestige, so he occupied Beixin City, making him the temporary leader of the Taihang Mountains.

Zhuoxian County was the place that made him the undisputed leader of the Taihang Mountains.

Besides, Liu Bei was very honest in business.

"...The villa of Liu Wei, the Prefect of Zhuojun, currently holds over one hundred million coins..."

After a moment of silence, Liu Bei's tone softened: "But I cannot rob, after all, I am not a bandit... I need the heroes of Taihang to break through the governor's fortified village."

"Really, over a hundred million?!"

Zuo Zi's breathing became heavy.

"Yes, this year all the taxes from Zhuojun have been converted into cash, and it's all in his fortified village... All the wealthy families in the county know about this, and you should have heard about it too."

Liu Bei turned his head and pointed in the direction of the pavilion where the Lu family lived: "There is a memorial archway over there, on which the donated grain is recorded. You can calculate it yourself... The Lu family alone sent more than ten million coins to the governor! There are dozens of powerful families in the prefecture, and every family has a memorial archway. You can see them all."

"That means... as long as we raid the governor's fortified village, we'll get all of Zhuojun's taxes for this year?!"

Left Beard was now incredibly energetic: "Brother Big Ears, how do you plan to do this deal?"

"I only need 30%."

Liu Bei nodded, staring into Zuo Zi's eyes: "I'll create an opportunity for you to break through the prefect's fortified village... so that 'you' understand?"

"After it's done, give me 30%. Once I get the money, I'll hand over Zhuoxian to you. This was something you were supposed to do anyway. Isn't my deal reasonable enough?"

It's about helping you, the one with the left mustache, not helping the Taihang Mountains...

The fortified village holds the taxes for the entire year. If we conquer the fortified village, we can cover all the expenses in the Taihang Mountains for the next year or two, without needing to raid other villages.

Moreover, it was just a fortified village, not a large, impregnable city like Zhuoxian...

With just 30% of that, you can buy more in Zhuoxian.

Of course, taking the money but not buying the city is also an option... but the consequence of breaking your promise is losing your way out, so you have to weigh the pros and cons carefully.

"Hiss... Brother Big Ears is so righteous!"

After thinking for a while, Zuo Zi asked about the plan: "How should we attack the prefect's fortified village?"

"I can give you siege equipment, and lots of wagons... With all that, do you still need to ask me how to attack?"

Liu Bei chuckled: "I know you might not completely trust me. Just lead your men to attack the fortified village yourself. I'll provide you with equipment, clear the surrounding area, and help you hold off pursuers. I'll make sure no one disturbs your work... How about that, is that fair?"

"Well then... let's do it this way! Brother Big Ears, rest assured, I am a man of my word. No matter how much money the Prefect's fortified village has, I will use more than 30% to buy Zhuo County!"

Zuo Zi also felt that this was indeed the best way to cooperate.

Without the support of Zhuo County, it would be difficult to quickly capture the prefect's fortified village, and even if it were captured, it would be difficult to take the spoils of war.

The hundreds of millions of dollars require thousands of handcarts to transport, which also needs to be provided by Zhuoxian County.

If we could directly obtain siege equipment and vehicles, and have people clear the surrounding area to secure our retreat route, that would be more useful than providing an army of several thousand men. After all, the Taihang Mountains are not short of manpower; what they lack is time and equipment.

This is a mutually beneficial cooperation.

What was once difficult to obtain may now be easily acquired, and there are even people blocking the pursuers.

“Zuo Zi, you can get weapons in the east of Zhuo County… but you don’t have much time. In a few days, Governor Zou’s troops will be stationed in Zhuo County. Then you won’t be able to buy the city. You should understand what I mean.”

Liu Bei continued to explain the details.

Zuo Zi thought for a moment, then looked at Liu Bei: "What if I hadn't captured the fortified village by then... or hadn't paid to buy Zhuo County...?"

"Then you may not be able to return to the Taihang Mountains. As soon as Governor Zou's banner enters the city, I will lead troops to suppress the bandits."

Liu Bei took off his bamboo hat and tossed it back to Zuo Zi: "If I can take Beixin City once, I can take it a second time. I can join forces with you, and I can join forces with others... You decide what to do."

……

Sell ​​the city?

Of course, it wasn't for the purpose of selling the city.

Liu Bei didn't care whether Zuo Zi could break through Liu Wei's fortified village. He "sold" Zhuo County to prevent Zuo Zi from attacking it—why attack when you can "buy" it? Wouldn't it be better to "buy" it, enter the city, and then turn around and seize it, just like with Beixin City...

But Zhuoxian is not Beixincheng, and Liu Bei is not Jiuchi.

Liu Bei never intended to let the Taihang bandits enter Zhuo County.

All he needs to do is prevent Gongsun Zan from entering Zhuo County. The Taihang bandits concentrating all their forces to attack Liu Wei's fortified village will only lead to one outcome.

— This forced Gongsun Zan to fight desperately.

Gongsun Zan's military power came from Liu Wei, but he had already lost his official position the moment Zhuo County was occupied by the "bandits".

If he didn't want to face the death penalty, he had to ensure that Liu Wei suffered no losses.

Moreover, even if Gongsun Zan fought to the death and captured many heads, and gained many military achievements, it could not outweigh Liu Wei's anger after losing his property.

Ultimately, all of this stemmed from Gongsun Zan's 'pursuit of advancement'.

But Liu Bei made no mention of Gongsun Zan to Zuo Zi...

Because saying you want to deal with Gongsun Zan directly is a completely different feeling from saying you want to "get a hundred million coins".

Although Zuo Zi actually had to deal with Gongsun Zan first if he wanted to break through Liu Wei's fortified village, the difference in objectives led to different determinations and different methods of action.

Once you have the determination to raise enough money to support all the people in the Taihang Mountains, ensure their survival, and become the true leader of the Taihang Mountains, you will be able to brave any danger, no matter how great the challenge!

After all, the goal is clear, the operation method is well-defined, and the returns are clearly known, so there are no concerns...

Unlike attacking other fortified villages, where you have no idea how much you'll gain after the battle, so you only attack if it's easy and skip if it's not.

When the bandits of Taihang have a clear goal, they become incredibly reckless.

Two days later, Gongsun Zan faced a major problem.

He had no siege equipment, not even an axe, so he was truly powerless to attack Zhuo County.

Moreover, it was too late to recruit help from the wealthy households.

Because a large-scale band of Taihang bandits was already upon them.

Gongsun Zan was worried that the bandits outside the city would enter the city, and he was also worried about being attacked from both sides. When he saw a large number of Taihang bandits coming, he had no choice but to quickly lead his troops to charge and kill the enemy in the wild, trying to disperse the large group of bandits.

Logically, the Taihang bandits would retreat when they encountered organized armies; they generally wouldn't confront powerful troops head-on.

But this time, the Taihang bandits acted out of character, gathering a large army to fight Gongsun Zan head-on.

They even gradually formed a counter-offensive and encirclement posture, as if they wanted to trap Gongsun Zan.

The number of bandits in Taihang Mountains was too large... they were everywhere, numbering over ten thousand.

After Gongsun Zan led his troops out to fight, he was unable to hold the position again and had to keep charging. He could not stop, or he would be caught in the sea of ​​people.

But the bandits seemed to have a grudge against him, and kept their eyes on his flag as they surrounded and attacked him, refusing to retreat even when they suffered heavy casualties.

The Taihang bandits' tactics were simple and brutal: besiege, besiege, and besiege again.

This kind of aggressive fighting style is very effective when there are many people bullying a few, and they don't aim to kill, but rather to block.

Gongsun Zan's tactics were also simple and brutal: charge, charge, and charge again—if they couldn't break through, they would be surrounded.

The two sides fought from noon until dusk, locked in a fierce and evenly matched battle.

Gongsun Zan's troops were small in number, but their fighting power was quite astonishing, especially the two hundred cavalrymen he led, whose every charge brought a bloodbath.

Gongsun Zan himself charged through the enemy ranks with a double-edged spear, and no enemy could stand against him; he was truly ruthless.

The battlefield situation was not actually decided; the Taihang bandits suffered casualties several times that of Gongsun Zan's troops.

However, the number of bandits from Taihang Mountain was several times greater. As the saying goes, "Many ants can kill an elephant," and although Gongsun Zan was wearing scale armor, he still suffered some injuries.

Moreover... his cavalry couldn't hold out any longer.

It wasn't that the people couldn't persevere, but that the horses couldn't.

After a whole afternoon of fighting, all the warhorses were no longer usable.

In foot combat, without forming a battle formation, it is impossible to deal with an enemy several times one's size.

Gongsun Zan had no choice but to lead his army to retreat and once again take refuge at Shili Pavilion, where he set up defenses in the charitable institution.

The Taihang bandits split into two groups at this point.

A force of at least five or six thousand surrounded the Shili Pavilion in the west of the city.

Another group, numbering several thousand, went to Prefect Liu's manor, twenty li east of Zhuo County, under cover of night.

There were notorious thieves in both the east and west of the city, but the county town was incredibly peaceful, without even a hint of petty theft...

(End of this chapter)