The He Nei Army, numbering a mere three thousand, was internally split between the He Nei County Soldiers under Fang Yue and Ye Lin, the Taishan soldiers under Wang Kuang and Wang Fen, and the He Yang Soldiers under Han Hao. However, due to the campaign against Dong Zhuo and the initial stages of the alliance of lords, they were generally able to maintain a semblance of unity under the banner of Prefect Wang Kuang's righteous cause.
Ye Lin had someone put up curtains around the prison cart, which allowed air to pass through. This was a small gesture of goodwill for the prisoner, considering Wang Fen's eighty gold reward.
This meant Hu Mu Ban wouldn't have to freeze in the northwest wind, nor would he be surrounded by passersby throwing stones and cursing him as a remnant of Dong the Bandit.
As for whether the stiff-necked gentry and high-ranking officials of the court would die later, Ye Lin didn't really care. After all, Hu Mu Ban was the Prefect's brother-in-law, not the brother-in-law of himself, the Military Sima!
As the team set off and slowly advanced, Ye Sima continued to ponder his own future.
As the saying goes, "Brothers help each other in battle, and family's own soldiers fight on the front lines." The late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period were primarily based on the Buqu System. Without soldiers from your own hometown, you wouldn't dare to claim you could easily win their loyalty and use them.
Ye Lin counted on his fingers, trying hard to recall his previous life's understanding and memory of the history of the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period.
Since he couldn't transmigrate as Dong Zhuo or Yuan Shao, as a second choice, this renowned Military Sima of He Nei, Ye Lin, which side should he join, Dong Zhuo or Yuan Shao?
If he joined Dong Zhuo, Dong Zhuo's confidants were all from Yong Liang, and his main troops were Liangzhou Soldiers. Even Lü Bu, with his Bingzhou Soldiers, was treated with suspicion, leading to internal conflict and betrayal.
Ye Lin assessed his current situation. Forget about being just a small Military Sima; even if his brother-in-law, Fang Yue, as the County Commandant, led the He Nei Army, what then?
In the past few years, He Nei County had suffered greatly from the Yellow Turban Army, the White Wave Bandits, and the Xiongnu under Yufuluo.
Moreover, He Nei County was a Land of Four Battles. Any warlord or power player heading to Luo would pass through He Nei to take advantage, and constantly changing sides could be exhausting.
As a member of a prominent family in Wen County, if he led his troops to join Dong Zhuo, even if he gained trust, it would be extremely difficult to rise unless he could trample Jia Xu, Li Ru, Li Jue, and Guo Si under his feet.
Furthermore, old Dong the Bandit was at the peak of his life, having deposed the Young Emperor and installed a new one, using the emperor's name to command the lords!
At this moment, even if he could persuade his brother-in-law to defect to Dong Zhuo with the He Nei Army, it would only be a minor boost. In that case, the He Nei Army would likely be stuck on the front lines, clashing with the Guandong Lords, with no other options.
So, if they didn't defect to Dong Zhuo, they would naturally have to stay with the Guandong Lords' coalition against him. This presented a problem: If the He Nei Army performed well in the war against Dong Zhuo, the Prefect Wang Kuang would reap all the fame and fortune, not his brother-in-law or himself.
If the He Nei Army performed poorly, his brother-in-law, being a local, and he himself, might become scapegoats and targets, facing punishment and having their troops seized. This was likely the Governor's basic plan all along.
Therefore, the first obstacle blocking Ye Sima, a famous general of He Nei, from advancing was the outsider, the He Nei Prefect Wang Kuang, and his Taishan Crossbowmen.
In his previous life, how did Wang Kuang end up kicking the bucket? Right, he was killed by Cao Cao under the pretext of avenging the family of Hu Mu Ban!
Of course, Ye Sima wasn't stupid. The story about Hu Mu Ban's family being able to kill Wang Kuang, who commanded thousands of soldiers?
I'd have to be a ghost to believe that! That was just Cao Cao's excuse for attacking and killing Wang Kuang.
Ye Sima counted on his fingers. During the Guandong Lords' campaign against Dong Zhuo, Wang Kuang did lead the He Nei Army into several battles against Dong Zhuo's forces, but the results were always disastrous defeats.
For example, at Mengjin, Assistant Han Hao, leading the new He Nei Army and the Taishan Crossbowmen assigned to him by Prefect Wang Kuang, was outmaneuvered and had his rear attacked by Dong Zhuo's forces. Ye Sima was already itching for a fight, knowing that Han Hao would be completely defeated.
Later, when Wang Kuang recruited several thousand more soldiers and attempted a comeback, they were defeated again at He Yang Ford by Dong Zhuo's generals Niu Fu and Zhang Ji.
This won't do. The He Nei Army is the foundation of my rise, and it can't be squandered and ruined by that idiot, Wang Kuang!
I will get rid of Prefect Wang Kuang, this stumbling block, sooner or later. But, if I'm not going to join Dong Zhuo, should I really go to Yuan Shao?
Ye Lin felt a little apprehensive. In his previous life, whether in history or the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms,
this Yuan Benchu, the leader of the alliance, was a man who had a winning hand but managed to screw everything up, a prime example of someone who was initially glorious and full of ambition, but ultimately suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Guandu.
I am the famous Ye Sima of He Nei. If I don't join Yuan Shao, who else can I join? Not to mention Wang Kuang, even Cao Cao later was just a little brother who relied on Yuan Shao!
Go to Yuan Shu, that idiot? Even Sun Jian, a powerful and formidable underdog, couldn't be won over by Yuan Shu. Ye Lin didn't think there would be any optimistic prospects for him if he joined Yuan Shu.
Following Liu Bei is a joke. At this point, Liu Bei is still tagging along with either Gongsun Zan or Cao Cao, depending on the version. According to the Romance, Liu Bei should be leading his Horse Archers Guan Yu and Foot Archers Zhang Fei, along with a few hundred of his Buqu, gaining experience under Gongsun Zan, the Prefect of Beiping.
But according to historical records, Liu Bei went with Cao Cao to Pei County to recruit soldiers. Liu Bei's position as the Magistrate of Pingyuan was nominal; he never actually took office. It's also possible that Liu Bei is currently with Cao Cao in Chenliu, participating in the campaign against Dong Zhuo.
After thinking it over, Ye Lin came to the conclusion that allying with Yuan Shao was still the most promising choice for the next few years, provided he could remove Wang Kuang, the outsider, from the equation.
He'd finally transmigrated; anyone who stood in the way of his path to fame and fortune would not be tolerated! Even his brother-in-law!
Of course, if he wanted to latch onto Yuan Benchu's thigh, he'd need a token of merit!
Hmm, I need to achieve merit, great merit, and let the leader, Yuan Shao, know that I am the true Ye Sima, the famous general of He Nei! If the leader accepts me as his subordinate, I'll be a hundred times better than the likes of Wang Kuang!
"Where are we now?" Ye Lin asked his personal guard.
"Reporting to the Sima, we are approaching Xiuwu. According to the plan, our army will camp in Xiuwu tonight and set off again early tomorrow morning," the personal guard replied respectfully.
After all, their own Military Sima had extorted eighty gold from Wang Fen as soon as they set out. Moreover, Ye Sima, who had always been known for his greed and love of women, had actually given all eighty gold to the troops as a reward. It was no exaggeration to say that this greatly boosted morale and won the soldiers' hearts.
Even the one hundred Taishan Crossbowmen each received an unexpected reward.
Initially, in the Western Han Dynasty, one gold was equivalent to five thousand coins. Later, it rose to ten thousand coins per gold. At this point in the late Han Dynasty, the market price was at least thirteen thousand coins per gold.
Ye Lin had just extorted eighty gold from Wang Fen as a reward, and then immediately distributed it to the troops. Calculated per person, the fifty cavalrymen each received half a gold, and the two hundred infantrymen each received thirteen hundred coins.
Two hundred auxiliary soldiers each received three hundred coins! Two hundred civilian laborers each received one hundred coins!
This time, there was no Prefect or County Commandant to make decisions regarding the grain transport. Everything in the army was decided by Ye Lin, the Military Sima. Each Shi Commander received the pay of two men, each Dui Commander received five, each Tuan Commander received ten, and each Jun Commander received twenty!
Even the one hundred Taishan crossbowmen each received a reward of one thousand coins. Truly, the generosity was widespread, and everyone was happy. Morale was greatly boosted, and the army was ready to fight!
Long live the Military Sima! Victory to the Military Sima!