Chapter 65: Robbery is also an art

  The plan to make up for the loss of Tao Qian's defeat was finalized, and Tao immediately pulled in two accomplices, Lu Su and Chen Deng. They quickly came up with a battle plan, which involved sending 4,500 troops to attack the poor Yellow Turbans He Yi and Huang Shao, taking their money and grain... No, it should be said that they were going to enforce the Han Dynasty's laws, confiscating their ill-gotten gains according to the law, upholding national justice and bringing peace to Tao Qian.

  The commander-in-chief of the Western Expedition was Tao Ying himself, with Lu Su as his military advisor. The army consisted of the Junzi Army, which had expanded to a thousand men and was led by Tao Ying, with Tao Ji as his deputy; Xu State sent out an army of over 1,500 men, led by Xu Sheng; in addition, there were about 2,000 men from Langya, led by Sun Guan, who was appointed by Tao Ying as the Great General of Langya - although Sun Guan had clearly changed his attitude towards Tao Ying, considering his close relationship with Liu Xiang, Tao Ying could only feel at ease with him by his side.

  As for the defense of Xuzhou, Tao Ying made a major adjustment, which was to let Zang Ba lead the remaining 5,000+ Langya troops to move to Lü County, and have Zang Ba closely monitor Liu Bei's every move at close range. This could also play a buffering role when Cao Pi and Yue Jin marched south, buying time for the rear. The city of Xuzhou was still guarded by Tao Qian himself, with Cao Biao and Chen Deng assisting him in making decisions. Then Tao Ying asked Chen Gui to move to Xiapi to assist Xu Shao in defending the city. However, Tao Ying did not make any adjustments to Langya and Donghai counties, continuing to let Yin Li guard Langya and Xu Xun sit in Donghai county.

  These adjustments were made after careful discussion with Lu Su and Chen Deng, two great talents. Letting Zang Ba guard Lucheng County can utilize the strong fighting force of the Langya army to buffer the enemy's sudden attack, and also avoid conflicts between the unorganized Langya army and the regular army in Xuzhou, which would lead to internal chaos. Cao Jiao and Chen Deng assisted Tao Qian in defending Xuzhou. Cao Jiao's loyalty is not in question, so there is no need to worry about his betrayal. Chen Deng is wise and knowledgeable about military strategy, with him making plans and strategies, it is enough to prevent the enemy from using tricks, and also enough to deal with the enemy's envoys, gaining time by pretending to be weak.

  As long as the two cities of Lü and Pengcheng are not lost, the lower reaches of Xu State, which produces 80% of iron ore and half of the grain tax, can basically be stable. Even if the enemy's lone army invades the lower reaches, with the solidity of the city walls and Chen Gui's cunning, plus the natural barriers of the Yi River and Si River, it is enough to entangle the enemy for a long time and hold on until Tao Ying leads his troops back to reinforce - considering Lü Xiaoliang and Cao Cao's military grain situation, as long as the granary in Pengcheng does not fall into the enemy's hands before that, it may not be necessary for Tao Ying to lead his troops back to reinforce, and the harsh weather alone can starve or freeze to death Lü Xiaoliang or Cao Cao's lone army.

  Of course, with the current strength of the Xuzhou army, it is impossible to defend against all possibilities. At least the defenses of Langya and Donghai counties are relatively weak. Among them, Yin Li's defense of Langya County is slightly better. The combat effectiveness of the Langya army is absolutely first-rate among the five counties of Xuzhou, and even Cao Cao dares not provoke it easily, so it can be said to be relatively safe. Donghai County is different, with only 3,000 to 4,000 troops and average combat effectiveness, making it the biggest weakness in Tao Ying's defense plan. Therefore, after Tao Ying handed over the defense plan, General Cao Bao of Xuzhou immediately became anxious.

  "Gongzi, it's not feasible. The defense of Donghai Prefecture is too weak." Cao Jiao strongly opposed: "Not to mention that the military strength of Donghai is too small, Xu Xun, the governor of Donghai, was a notorious defeated general when he was the governor of Runan, and couldn't even deal with a group of Yellow Turbans. How can he contend against the great army of Cao Cao and Lv Wenhou? Moreover, Donghai is also our important grain-producing area, with abundant wealth and taxes. If Lv Wenhou wants to tear his face with us, it's impossible for him not to have designs on Donghai Prefecture!"

  Tao Ying smiled, but didn't speak. Lu Su and Chen Deng also smiled. Then Chen Deng laughed and said: "General Cao, what's the hurry? Do you think Master can't see the danger in Donghai Prefecture?"

  "Why does the young master still hold such disdain for Donghai County?" Cao Jiao asked in puzzlement.

  "Because the young master is eager for General Lü to attack Donghai!" Chen Deng's words shocked everyone, and he smiled as he continued: "Donghai indeed has a lot of wealth, but it seems that General Cao has forgotten, most of this wealth belongs to whom? I'm afraid more than 70% of it belongs to the richest man in Xuzhou! If General Lü dares to enter Donghai and plunder, who will be the first to fight him to the death?"

  "Haha." Cao Jiao burst out laughing, patting his forehead and saying: "I'm so confused, the majority of Zuo Bian's wealth is in Donghai County, our hometown. If Lü Wenhou attacks Donghai County to plunder, we won't need to lift a finger. That Xuande from Xuzhou will be the first to clash with Lü Wenhou."

  Chen Deng and Lu Su burst out laughing, but Tao Ying's face turned stern as he rebuked them: "Uncle Cao, Brother Yuanlong, although Mu Bian has been a thorn in my side and has wronged my father, I would rather have the whole world turn against me than for me to betray the world. Now that he has resigned his post and returned to his hometown, he is still one of our citizens in Xuzhou. If Lv Wenhou's troops invade Donghai, I will not permit you to order Xu Xuan to only defend the city walls without rescuing Mu's family estate. Nor will I allow you to deliberately send someone to guide them to plunder Mu's estate and strongholds! Do you understand?"

  "Lord, you are really ruthless!" Chen Deng and Cao Jiao muttered to themselves in their hearts, but replied in unison: "Yes!" After making these arrangements, on the twenty-fifth day of the tenth month, Tao Qian bid farewell to Tao Qian and the civil and military officials of Xuzhou, led 4,500 infantry and cavalry out of Xiao Guan, and advanced into the territory of Yanzhou.

  Now let's introduce the situation in Yuzhou. The position of Governor of Yuzhou was quite ridiculous during this period, with as many as three Governors of Yuzhou! One was Sun Ben, who was appointed by Yuan Shu as the Governor of Yuzhou - friends, you didn't misread it, he was indeed the uncle of Sun Ce and the younger brother of Sun Jian. However, this Governor Sun was very frustrated, after being appointed, he never set foot in Yuzhou territory, and was arranged by Yuan Shu to revolve around Liu Yao, Yan Baihu and other fierce men south of the Yangtze River.

  The second governor of Yuzhou, named Guo Gong, was an official appointed by Yuan Shao. However, this Governor Guo also did not station in Yuzhou but had already betrayed the three Yuan brothers and was now following Lü Bu to fight against Cao Cao in Yanzhou, currently stationed on the front line against Cao Cao, and had no way to manage and control the land of Yuzhou.

  The third Yuzhou governor mentioned earlier is our famous Liu Xuan, whose position was granted by Tao Qian to Li Jue and Guo Si. At the same time, Liu Xuan was also the only one who truly stationed in Yuzhou land as the governor of Yuzhou, but he only controlled a small city called Xiaopei in the northeastern corner of Yuzhou. Similarly, Peiguo City, the capital of Peiguo County, which was under Tao Qian's control, and Xiao Guan were not handed over to Liu Xuan by Tao Qian, but were directly controlled by himself - from this we can see that it is not unreasonable for Liu Xuan to want to harm Tao Qian.

  By the way, the current governor of Yuzhou's Pei State is that old fox Chen Gui. However, this old fox basically doesn't care about governing and spends his days hiding in Xuchang City with his son, plotting and scheming to ensure their family's interests in the five counties of Xuchang. The Xu state army, which has been severely weakened, can't spare any extra strength to recover the other cities of Pei State, so they just control the western gate of Pengcheng, Xiao Guan, and the county seat, Pei City. As for the rest of the places, they're free to be ravaged by bandits and thieves - after all, Pei State is also a disaster-stricken area with a sharply reduced population and large areas of abandoned land. Even if they were recovered, it would still be a money-losing endeavor, so even Vice Director Tao isn't very interested in this piece of land until their comprehensive strength has been restored to a certain extent.

  With such an important official position as the Governor of Yuzhou being so chaotic, it can be imagined how chaotic the situation was within the borders of Yuzhou. It almost became a paradise for the remnants of the Yellow Turbans and bandits, and quickly nurtured a group of outstanding bandits such as He Yi, Huang Jiao, He Man, Gong Dou, and Liu Bi. The local government was powerless to suppress them, and could only hide in the city and defend it, while the common people in the countryside were suffering greatly. Those with some wealth, like Ru Su, built fortifications to protect themselves, while those without wealth could only flee to other places or resign themselves to their fate. In many places, there were indeed white bones exposed in the wilderness, and for a thousand miles, not a single rooster crowed.

  After the nonsense was over, Tao Deputy Director led the Western Expeditionary Army of National Law out of Xiao Guan Pass and arrived at the foot of Pei State City in less than two days. The defender of Pei State, Han Zhi, and the county officials hastily led their troops to welcome them and respectfully invited Tao Ying to enter the city to rest. However, Tao Ying saw that the houses in Pei State City were old and dilapidated, the streets were desolate, and the people looked worried, so he couldn't bear to enter the city again to disturb the people. He thanked Han Zhi and others for their kindness, lectured them on protecting the border, stabilizing the people, and diligently governing the country, and then asked Han Zhi to arrange a few local guides who were familiar with the geography and customs of the people to lead the army to continue westward, all the way to Cao's old home in Qiao County.

  Among the guides arranged by Han Zhi for Tao Ying, there was an old soldier named Li Lang who was over 40 years old and still single. He had been in the Yellow Turban bandit gang for several years and had not done fewer evil deeds. His mouth was very glib and he talked a lot. Although Tao Ying and Lu Su were not very fond of him, this guy was indeed very familiar with the situation in the hinterland of Yuzhou Province. He knew the general situation and character habits of the mountain bandits and thieves lurking in this area like the back of his hand. So Tao Ying could only patiently listen to his nagging and asked: "Li Lang, I heard that among the mountain bandits in Yuzhou Province, there is a man named Zhou Cang who is very skilled in martial arts. Where is he active?"

  "Gongzi asked about the sleeping cow mountain's Zhou Dawai?" Li Lang was shocked and quickly replied: "Gongzi, you are mistaken, it is a man named Zhou Cang, but he is active in the area of Jizhou Changshan State, thousands of miles away from Runan."

  "No wonder people online say that Lao Luo's geography is not up to par, I was deceived to death. I still remember that Guan Yu met Zhou Cang on the way to Runan, but I didn't expect it to be in Zhao Yun's hometown. Deputy Director Tao was extremely depressed, thinking that his strategic mind was not bad, he even brought Chen Deng and recruited Lu Su, but his military commander luck was too poor, until now there wasn't a single capable military commander, would I have to use the same tactics as when dealing with Sun Ce and Han Dang in the future? But if I use that tactic too many times, who will dare to fall for it again?"

  "Even the governor of Hebei Province is so clear about it, it seems that you are quite well-informed in this regard." Lu Su didn't have the same thoughts as Tao Ying, and he asked Li Lang with a smile: "Li Lang, since you understand the bandit business so well, I'll ask you, what do you think we should do to quickly eliminate the Yellow Turbans in the Juying area? The faster the better."

  "This...". Li Lang, who was usually quick with his words, hesitated for a moment, scratching his head and said: "Military strategist, in my humble opinion, this is not going to be easy. He Yi, Huang Jiao, He Man, Gong Dou and Liu Bi are all cunning men. When there are many officials and soldiers, they will flee, but when there are few, they will fight. If the situation is unfavorable, they will run away. So, although the young master has never failed in battle, it's not going to be easy to completely eliminate them."

  Lu Su and Tao Ying exchanged a glance, both thinking that the old soldier's words were reasonable. Although the Junzi army was not afraid of fighting a guerrilla war, but Ru Nan and Ying Chuan were after all enemy-occupied areas. No matter how fast the Junzi army moved, if the enemy who knew the geography and roads hid and didn't show themselves, it would be in vain. If time dragged on too long and they were led by the nose deep into enemy territory, it would be troublesome if Xuzhou changed suddenly.

  At this time, Sun Guan, who was also a mountain bandit, came up and suggested: "Young master, since we are here to rob grain and money, why not just rob the common people directly? Not far ahead is Chen State's county seat, Chen County. We have eight catapults with us, and if we attack and break into the city, we can at least get tens of thousands of hu of grain. While robbing the common people, we can also look for He Yi and Huang Shao's dens, and when we find them, we can rob them too."

  Tao Ying and Lu Su were both strict in governing the army and paying attention to the people's hearts, and they were most disgusted with the idea of plundering innocent civilians. This time, the target of the western expedition was only the Yellow Turban bandits in the area of Ruyin, and they had never thought of looting the civilians. However, the military rations that Tao Ying and Lu Su brought this time were not many, just enough for one month's use. If they could not quickly break through a large group of bandits to plunder food, it would be troublesome if the time was long.

  "Master, are you going to rob the common people?" On the other side, Li Lang's eyes lit up and he hastily volunteered: "Master, I'm willing to guide you. Up ahead is a county town of Qiao County. The people inside are quite wealthy, and if we attack, there will be plenty of money and grain."

  "Gentlemen, this is a good idea." Taishan Zei's grandson, Guan You, urged: "Jie County is adjacent to Chen State, and if we take it down, we can not only plunder grain but also store grain. In the future, when we seize grain from the Yellow Turbans, we will have a place to hoard it, making it convenient for us to transport it back to Xuzhou."

  Tao Ying smiled bitterly, pointing to the banner on his head that read "Junzi Army", and said helplessly to Sun Guan: "Zhongtai, I know your idea is good, but don't forget, I am the commander of the Junzi Army. The Junzi Army is a teacher of morality, a teacher of righteousness, upholding justice, rejecting evil, freezing to death without dismantling houses, starving to death without looting. How can we commit such evil acts as plundering the common people? If we loot the common people, how will I have the face to raise the Junzi banner again? How will I have the face to raise the banners of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and faith?"

  I heard that the Junzi Army mistreated Sun Ce's Sun Guan and almost laughed out loud. Just as I was about to say, "Young master, what are you pretending in front of the general?", Li Lang, relying on his quick wit, spoke up first: "Young master, we can disguise ourselves as Yellow Turbans and rob! In the past, when we were in Pei City, our General Han Zhong did this before. He led the brothers to disguise themselves as Yellow Turbans, robbing civilians, merchants, and everything."

  "Huh? What a great idea!" Deputy Director Tao's eyes finally lit up, thinking to himself that it was okay. Under the banner of the "Gentlemen's Army", they couldn't rob the common people, but under the banner of the "Yellow Turbans", they could plunder without worrying - just like his former superior, Director Zheng, who had demolition teams disguised as thugs to deal with nail households.

  "This plan is brilliant!" Lu Su's eyes also lit up, and he hastily suggested: "Young Master, this plan can be carried out. Our army can disguise ourselves as the Yellow Turban bandits who are roaming into the depths of Yu Province. Not only can we not worry too much, but we can also make contact with other Yellow Turbans in a legitimate manner, take advantage of the opportunity to investigate their grain storage locations, and then launch a surprise attack. One move will defeat the enemy."

  "Gentlemen, we've got this covered." Sun Guan and Li Lang replied in unison. Then, quick-mouthed Li Lang, without regard for Sun Guan being his superior, hastened to add: "Young master, I'm familiar with all the Yellow Turbans' secret signals and slang, I can take charge of contacting other Yellow Turbans and making sure we get a clear picture of their grain stores and hideouts."

  "Gentlemen, the actions of the Yellow Turban bandits can be pinned on General Zhou. Sun Guan rubbed his hands together, his eyes gleaming with excitement, 'It's been years since I've done something like this, and General Zhou is really itching to get involved.'"

  "Good thing I brought General Zhongtai along." Tao Ying burst out laughing, reined in his horse and pointed at Li Lang with his whip, saying: "You're not bad either. Don't go back to Han Zhi's place anymore, follow me instead. First serve in my personal guard unit, and when the opportunity arises, I'll promote you heavily."

  "Thank you, sir, for promoting me." Li Lang was overjoyed and hastily knelt down, repeatedly kowtowing.

  "Halt! Stop advancing!" Tao Ying waved his whip and ordered, "Set up camp on the spot and rest. We'll continue tomorrow."

  Orders were passed down, and the army of Xuzhou quickly came to a halt. Tao Ji and Xu Sheng, among other generals, rushed over together to find out what had happened. Tao Ji asked, "Second brother, what's going on? Why have we stopped advancing?"

  "Of course it's a good thing." Tao Ying smiled, pointing at Xu Sheng and commanding: "Wen Xiang, immediately bring 500 people and this Li Lang back to Pei Guo, and bring all the things that Han Zhi dressed up as a Yellow Turban bandit. If there aren't enough tattered clothes, use money and grain to buy them from the common people in Pei Guo City. Before dawn tomorrow, you must bring 4,500 sets of tattered clothes here, as well as all the yellow headscarves that wrap around their heads. If there aren't enough, then bring back other cloth and yellow dye, and dye it into a yellow color."

  Xu Sheng mysteriously nodded in agreement, while Tao Ji suddenly exclaimed and asked: "Second Brother, what are you planning to do again? You're not wearing the brand new military uniform, but instead wearing tattered clothes. Are we a noble army or a beggar army?"

  "That's right, from now on, we are no longer the Junzi Army. Put away all the flags." Tao Ying laughed and waved his hand, then shouted: "Remember, from now on, I am no longer your second brother Tao Ying. From now on, I am Zhang Bao's old general... Wu Tiande, the Devil King of the Mortal World!"