Chapter Ninety-Six: The Feeble Imperial Troops!
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Within Xuanzhou’s territory, the county closest to Yuezhou was Ningguo County. Logically, if funds and supplies were to be redirected from one prefecture to support Yuezhou, they should first be sent to Ningguo County and then forwarded to Yuezhou. However, the Prefect Cui insisted that the supplies be sent first to Xuanzhou city, and then uniformly dispatched to Yuezhou. This arrangement would unnecessarily consume additional manpower and resources.
Prefect Cui even explained his reasons in official documents: firstly, for the convenience of coordinated dispatch and communication with the royal forces in Yuezhou; secondly, due to insufficient troops in each county, to ensure the security of the supplies, the escort would be organized by the prefecture’s troops. Both reasons were unconvincing.
Ultimately, it was because Prefect Cui wanted to write in his report to the court the phrase “supplies raised by this humble servant and sent to Yuezhou.” This selfish little trick not only caused Xuanzhou’s supplies to be wasted by at least twenty to thirty percent but also extended the transportation process considerably. This gave Chief Li—no, better said, Chief Li of the stronghold—a chance.
Having confirmed that all counties were sending grain to Xuanzhou city, Li Yun sent a letter to the Ten Kings Stronghold, instructing Liu Bo to dispatch more men near Xuanzhou city to determine the exact timing for shipments from Xuanzhou to Yuezhou, ideally also confirming the precise route.
Li Yun himself prepared to make a trip to Xuanzhou city to see the prefectural capital he had never visited before. After all, if his power were to expand in the future, Xuanzhou city might become his main base.
Before leaving Qingyang, Li Yun paid a visit to Prefect Xue. It was early spring, still slightly cold, but fortunately the sun had come out and the weather was warming somewhat.
Upon entering the rear office, Li Yun saw that the courtyard near Prefect Xue’s study was filled with books. The elderly Prefect, whose hair had already turned white, was carrying a stack of books out of his study and meticulously spreading them out one by one in the courtyard.
Li Yun approached with a smile. “Prefect, are you sunning your books?”
The old man glanced up at Li Yun and replied calmly, “I’m sorting and organizing.”
“Sun them as well, just in case we’re moving house in a few days,” Li Yun added.
He stepped forward to help spread some of the books open, then said, “Prefect, don’t worry. I’ll be leaving Qingyang soon to visit Xuanzhou, to see if there might be any turning points.”
Prefect Xue’s hands slowed for a moment before resuming their work. After a while, he spoke to himself, “During the half-month you were away after the New Year, I asked several officers from the Anti-Theft Squad.”
He continued slowly, “They said that during the six months of last year’s bandit suppression, the squad always had helpers—volunteer militia you gathered from among the people, who followed the authorities to fight bandits.”
Li Yun put down the books he was holding and smiled, “The Anti-Theft Squad has only seven or eight dozen men; at first, they couldn’t have suppressed much. It was only because Your Honor cultivated good relations and the people supported the government that the militia helped fight bandits.”
Prefect Xue didn’t look up and continued, “I checked the records. Over six months, you led your team to wipe out seven bandit strongholds. All those militias took part, and every time after a battle, they vanished without a trace.”
“The Anti-Theft Squad officers said these militias were mostly the same group each time; they even recognized a few of them.”
“And these militias never returned to Qingyang, nor did they accept any government rewards.”
Prefect Xue finally looked up at Li Yun and asked, “Where did they all go?”
Chief Li smiled, “Since they’re militias, naturally they returned to their own homes.”
“Which homes?” Prefect Xue asked abruptly. “Give me their names; I’ll check the household registers.”
Li Yun sighed, putting the books back on the ground. “Prefect, some things aren’t worth probing so deeply.”
“I’ve never wanted to argue with you,” Prefect Xue said, lowering his head to continue arranging the books. Then he added, “Otherwise, I would have exposed your story back during the second bandit suppression.”
“Those so-called militias… they’re the bandits from the Cangshan Stronghold, aren’t they?”
Li Yun neither admitted nor denied it.
Prefect Xue stood and turned to face him. “So, your seven campaigns last year were not ridding Qingyang of harm; in fact, you led Cangshan Stronghold to annex seven other strongholds.”
“In the first seven campaigns, those ‘militias’ followed you to fight bandits. Yet, in the final campaign at the Ten Kings Stronghold, all the Anti-Theft Squad men returned saying they saw no militias.”
“You silenced them.”
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“And the Cangshan Stronghold, according to your reports, was nearly destroyed in the conflict with the Ten Kings Stronghold, no longer a threat.”
“Yet, it seems that the Cangshan bandits who kidnapped my daughter vanished overnight as if they were smoke blown away by the wind,” Prefect Xue said slowly, looking at Li Yun. “The ones now occupying the Ten Kings Stronghold… are they them?”
“Prefect…” Li Yun frowned, speechless.
The old man was too shrewd. With only a little known information, he had guessed the whole story quite accurately.
“You never severed ties with Cangshan Stronghold,” Prefect Xue said, hands behind his back as he walked toward his study. “Honestly, if it weren’t for your northern accent, and the fact that you don’t resemble a bandit at all, I’d suspect you were the chief of the Cangshan bandits.”
Li Yun followed with a smile. “Prefect, regardless of the outcome, I have done some good for Qingyang, haven’t I?”
“Of course,” Prefect Xue replied, taking down another stack of books from the shelf and dusting them off. “If it weren’t for that, why would I be speaking so calmly with you here?”
Li Yun helped arrange the books and asked, “So why bring this up now, Prefect?”
“I want to tell you this,” Prefect Xue said quietly, watching Li Yun. “Not everyone in this world is a fool. Your little tricks might fool people for a while, but never forever.”
“You’re going to Xuanzhou to use those mountain men, but is this the proper way?”
“Someday, someone will catch you by the throat and crush you utterly.”
“A mountain stronghold means nothing.”
Prefect Xue shook his head. “And my position as prefect means nothing either.”
“Stop causing trouble everywhere. If I ever resign as Qingyang’s prefect, you can leave with me and stay far away from that den of thieves.”
“From now on, live as an upright and honest man.”
Li Yun put the books down and looked at Prefect Xue with a smile. “Prefect, you should be upright and honest. Why do you let people bully you without fighting back?”
Prefect Xue was speechless.
Li Yun continued, “In peaceful times, what you say would be perfect wisdom, but the world is different now.”
He stood and headed outside. “What needs to be done, I must do.”
“If it succeeds, Prefect, you won’t have to leave Qingyang. If not,” Li Yun stopped, shaking his head slightly, “at least I tried to help.”
With that, he strode out.
Prefect Xue watched his back, first frowning, then lost in thought.
He didn’t know how long he daydreamed before a clear voice brought him back.
“Father, are we really leaving Qingyang?”
Prefect Xue turned to see Xue Yun’er, who had come without his noticing. After thinking for a moment, he reached out to pat her head.
“Technically, yes, but…”
He looked into the distance. “It seems Qingyang has someone unreasonable.”
“So… this matter will have to wait a little longer.”
“Li Zhao, huh?”
Prefect Xue murmured his assessment.
“Very strange.”
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Outside Xuanzhou city, Li Yun, dressed in plain clothes, sat at a roadside tea stall sipping tea.
Liu Bo and Li Zheng sat across from him. Liu Bo whispered, “Second Brother, about thirty-some carts of grain passed here today. Xuanzhou’s supplies are probably sent out from here.”
Li Yun replied with a hum and asked, “How many armed guards were escorting?”
“Twenty or thirty,” Liu Bo said with a smile. “They’re likely Xuanzhou troops, formerly under Cao Sima’s command.”
A prefecture’s supplies naturally couldn't be sent all at once; these thirty carts were just one batch.
Li Yun finished his tea and asked, “How many brothers do we have nearby?”
“About twenty,” Liu Bo answered. “If there were more, we’d have to summon them from Lingyang Mountain.”
“That’s enough,” Li Yun said, clenching his fist, barely containing his excitement.
“If we call for more, it’ll be too late.”
“We’re going to strike first!”
Liu Bo smiled gently. “Second Brother is finally back to our old trade.”
Li Yun’s eyes gleamed with excitement. “Yeah, it’s been a while.”
…
The next afternoon,
The grain escort convoy finally reached a narrow slope. Just as the Xuanzhou soldiers escorting the grain breathed a sigh of relief, shouts suddenly rang out from the roadside.
“Robbery!”
About twenty men shouted in unison.
At the forefront was a man wearing a black mask that left only his eyes visible. He wielded a spiked club and charged forward with a loud yell.
“Bang!”
After a fierce clash, Li Yun, holding the spiked club in both hands, struck a horse’s skull, splattering its brains. The horse howled and collapsed.
Li Yun swung with momentum, the club whistling as he knocked a man aside.
He roared and toppled several more enemies in quick succession. His heroic display broke the morale of the Xuanzhou soldiers, many of whom began to retreat in disarray.
Li Yun leapt onto the roof of a cart, his mask pitch black, and shouted, “We only want the supplies, not a massacre. If you don’t want to die, get lost!”
Understandably, over thirty Xuanzhou soldiers scattered like birds, turning tail to flee.
Chief Li stood on high ground, laughing heartily as he watched them escape.
“Xuanzhou soldiers, this is Xuanzhou soldiers…”
(The End of this chapter)