People in the Three Kingdoms: Starting from Preaching

Chapter 54 Shortcomings and Strategies
The turmoil in Zhuo County subsided with the departure of the Yellow Turbans. To be precise, it did not subside, but the turmoil blew to other places.

Gongsun Zan, who came hurriedly from the rear, saw only the gloomy mess in Fan Yang and the result that Zou Jing's entire army was annihilated, which shocked him into silence.

Zou Jing also followed in his footsteps and used the same moves, but he managed to break out in Zhuo County, but Zou Jing couldn't hold on in Fan Yang.

Without Zou Jing's elite troops, he and the remaining militiamen looked at each other in bewilderment. How could they deal with the Yellow Turbans with such a small number of soldiers and generals left?

Just when everyone was worried, the scout brought them a piece of news.

"Report, the Yellow Turbans left Fanyang and headed east, and have now completely left Zhuo County!"

After hearing the news, everyone was stunned for a moment in surprise, but their first reaction was to breathe a sigh of relief at the same time, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from their shoulders. Even Gongsun Zan looked a little relaxed.

Everyone looked at each other, and finally all eyes were focused on Gongsun Zan.

After the loss of Zou Jing, a major general, Gongsun Zan seemed to have the highest status among the crowd. At this time, they all wanted Gongsun Zan to give them some advice.

At this time, Gongsun Zan suddenly realized that this might be an opportunity for him to strengthen his strength.

The Yellow Turban Movement was very powerful. Although the Yellow Turbans in Youzhou were soon subdued, it also brought great damage to Youzhou in the beginning. Not only was the Youzhou governor Guo Xun killed by the Yellow Turbans, but many county governors also died in the war.

To this day, the post of Youzhou Governor remains vacant, and the imperial court has not yet had time to fill the positions of the deceased prefects of various counties.

This is the situation in Zhuo County now. Without a prefect to unify the county government, the counties below are in disarray and each fights on its own.

Originally, under the threat of the Yellow Turbans, people from all over the country could gather under the elite troops commanded by Zou Jing to fight the bandits together. Now Zou Jing's army has been completely wiped out, and the Yellow Turbans have fled all the way out of Zhuo County. Whoever can stand up and regroup these forces at this time will be able to actually control the situation in the entire Zhuo County.

Now, most of the county officials in Zhuo County have been killed by this group of Yellow Turbans. Looking around, it seems that only they are taller than him.

At this time, Liu Bei could no longer sit still, and he stood up to offer suggestions to Gongsun Zan.

"Xu Chen is even more dangerous than Zhang Jiao. We must not let him go. If we allow him to grow stronger, not only will Youzhou suffer greatly in the future, I am afraid that the Han Dynasty will be shaken. Liu Bei is willing to represent his own righteous army, under the control of County Magistrate Gongsun, and continue to pursue the thieves!"

When Gongsun Zan heard what Liu Bei said, his eyes suddenly lit up. This was truly a great cooperation. With Liu Bei taking the initiative to make such a statement, the other militiamen would inevitably say something as well.

"Okay, Xuande is so righteous, how can I not follow his lead?"

What Gongsun Zan wanted was to transform the temporary control of the remaining militia forces into a force that could be completely used by him.

Liu Bei obviously realized his intention, so he took the initiative to step forward and take the lead.

It was just that they were all singing in unison and were having a lot of fun, but the representatives of the various militia groups were all evasive in their expressions, and after a long while, no one responded.

Gongsun Zan frowned, and then he realized that these guys might see the Yellow Turbans leave and feel safe, so they would be reluctant to put in any more effort to fight the bandits.

Thinking of this, Gongsun Zan's expression straightened and he bowed to the many powerful people with a righteous look.

"Xu the thief's methods are cruel and harmful. I am afraid that he will come back and cause a bloody storm in Zhuo County. For the sake of Zhuo County, I am willing to take on the heavy responsibility of training elite troops to prepare for risks. However, to do this, we must work together. I hope that you will cooperate with us!"

When Gongsun Zan finished speaking, everyone's expression was horrified. They suddenly realized that although the Yellow Turban bandits had left, they might not come back. When they thought about what the Yellow Turbans had done during this period, they all felt a chill in their hearts. On second thought, Gongsun Zan's words made sense.

"Gongsun County Magistrate is upholding justice, and I will fully support him!"

"That's right. For the sake of stability in Zhuo County, no matter how much effort you put in, I have nothing to say."

"There is no one in charge of Zhuo County now. It would be great if Magistrate Gongsun could take on this responsibility. We will all support him!"

Everyone no longer hesitated, and they all looked righteous and generous, making the promises without any regrets.

When it is none of their business, they don't want to meddle in other people's business, and they are even less willing to spend their own money to do good deeds.

But as long as it is a matter of life and death, that little bit of immediate benefit is nothing. For the wealthy and powerful families, as long as the foundation is still there, any amount of wealth can be accumulated again.

Gongsun Zan burst into laughter and quickly asked someone to get some wine so that he could drink with everyone and maintain relationships with them.

In this way, although he is still only a county magistrate, he can actually control Zhuo County with his troops. Of course, the deeper reason is that he has obtained the support of these powerful families who escaped the disaster in Zhuo County.

After toasting and exchanging cups, the complacent Gongsun Zan sat in the main seat with his horse and golden sword.

"Everyone, rest assured. As long as Gongsun Zan is here, Zhuo County will be stable. Once I have trained an elite force, if the Yellow Turbans still exist, I will definitely lead them to defeat the bandits."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone cheered in unison. They felt relatively relieved to leave the safety of Zhuo County to Gongsun Zan.

After all, Gongsun Zan was famous and even the northern Hu people were beaten to a pulp by him. Now, as long as we give him enough manpower and material resources and let him train an elite army to defend Zhuo County, it should not be a problem.

But Liu Bei, who was the first to cooperate, was anxious at this time: "How can we wait until the Yellow Turbans are strong and powerful if we don't attack them now? Liu Bei thinks that we should go after them directly now, join forces with the counties along the way, and completely wipe out the bandits!"

After Liu Bei finished speaking, Gongsun Zan and the other militia generals all frowned.

Gongsun Zan did not get angry, but laughed and advised: "Xuan De, there is no need to be so anxious. Zhuo County is now seriously injured and needs to recuperate for a long time. If you forcefully pursue and attack, I am afraid you will be powerless."

Everyone echoed the sentiment, with no intention of taking the initiative to attack.

In fact, they are now frightened by the Yellow Turbans. Since these brutal guys have left on their own, there is no need to provoke them. It is enough for them to stay in Zhuo County to train their troops and be prepared to protect themselves.

Liu Bei was not stupid. When he saw this situation, he immediately realized what they were thinking.

All of a sudden, he felt an indescribable discomfort in his heart. These guys only cared about their own interests and had no sense of the overall situation at all.

As people from Zhuo County, they were unwilling to care about the lives of people in other places in Youzhou, let alone consider the Han Dynasty.

In particular, Gongsun Zan's smug look made Liu Bei feel sick.

Bastard, I cooperate with you so that you can fight against bandits for the country, not so that you can gather soldiers and make money!

(End of this chapter)