Chapter 12: Securing a Piece of Land First

It did not take long to recruit prisoners as soldiers, for Liu Bei was already familiar with these men. After registering their names, Liu Bei’s forces gained over two hundred new recruits.

However, most of these names were not to be taken seriously. After all, the prisoners were largely illiterate and typically used aliases. Thus, the roster Liu Bei kept was filled with abstract names like “Big Eye,” “Eight-Foot Spear,” and “White Beard.” But Liu Bei paid it no mind; after all, names were merely labels.

At present, there were no barracks available, nor could these men be housed within the county, so Liu Bei sought out Zou Dan, who was in charge of funds, grain, and land, intending to buy a piece of wasteland west of the city to station the troops, preventing the prisoners from disturbing the townsfolk.

Since Gongsun Zan had instructed Liu Bei to raise troops at his own expense, there naturally needed to be a place to billet the soldiers. Liu Bei had no land of his own, so it was fitting to find a plot.

About ten miles west of the city lay a vast expanse of unclaimed wasteland known as Shili Pavilion, a county-owned public asset spanning thousands of acres. The land was likely an ancient battlefield, composed mainly of relatively firm earthen mounds, dotted with many old graves. Without nearby rivers or canals, it was unsuitable for farming.

Because purchasing and farming the land required paying taxes and grain levies, no one had been willing to buy it.

Yet the so-called wasteland was far from empty. In fact, it hosted a large estate with many inhabitants—it was the headquarters of the Taiping Sect.

Previously, Le Yin had allocated this land for the Taiping Sect’s use, though only as a preaching area, not a formal sale; the land itself remained unowned. The Taiping Sect had built a charitable hall there, engaging in relief and philanthropy, so no one questioned their occupation.

Gongsun Zan and Zou Dan, new to the area, naturally were unaware that the Taiping Sect had operated there for years. Seeing the land as vacant in official documents, they generously allowed Liu Bei to purchase it.

Moreover, Liu Bei did not spend a single coin on the land. Officially, military expenses should be covered by the county. Stationing troops on Liu Bei’s land meant the county owed him a debt.

This debt would never be repaid in money, so Liu Bei proposed offsetting the cost of the land with this debt and requested a full tax exemption during the troops’ stationing period.

It was a reasonable request. Gongsun Zan knew it would be difficult to accommodate over two hundred men, and since Liu Bei was buying land to billet and train soldiers, he approved the arrangement.

Thus, Liu Bei obtained the land for free and was exempted from taxes, his price being the self-sustenance of his troops.

However, Liu Bei had no intention of paying out of pocket himself.

He led the troops directly to the charitable hall at Shili Pavilion, the Taiping Sect’s headquarters, which provided free lodging and meals and served as a place to worship the Yellow Heaven and spread their teachings while collecting offerings from believers.

Over the years, the Taiping Sect had expanded rapidly, establishing charitable halls across various provinces, indeed distributing porridge and medicine to aid the poor.

Of course, they also engaged in deception and trickery to secure funds from wealthy families, as the sect needed resources.

The Taoist priests in Zhuo County were relatively well-behaved and familiar with Liu Bei, occasionally informing him of bandit whereabouts.

At this moment, Liu Bei was negotiating with the Taiping priests to use the charitable hall to billet his troops and get some free meals.

“These are all thieves and bandits. If they were to cause trouble here...” The priest expressed concern uneasily. “Besides, I don’t have enough grain to support them. General, please don’t make things difficult for me.”

“I’m not a general, nor do I wish to trouble you,” Liu Bei replied with a smile. “But your Taiping Sect built this hall here, occupying county land without ever paying a penny in rent. Doesn’t that count as unlawful occupation?”

The priest broke out in sweat. “Sir Liu, the young master Liu, the sect’s preaching here has been authorized by Magistrate Le of the county…”

“A permission to preach, yes, but not to illegally occupy land. Here’s what we’ll do: from now on, if you provide lodging and meals for my men, it will count as paying the land rent. How does that sound?”

Liu Bei was reasonable, though his demands were steep.

“How can I feed so many?” The priest panicked. “Since you occupy county land, I can pay the tax and rent instead…”

“That’s acceptable too. The annual rent is 1.8 million coins, payable monthly at 150,000.”

Liu Bei counted on his fingers: “Oh, and by the way, most of the land at Shili Pavilion is now my private property. I decide the rent.”

The priest looked ready to cry. “Young master Liu, please don’t be so harsh! At worst, I can preach elsewhere…”

“That’s fine, but the county has already designated the preaching area and reported it to the prefecture. You can only build halls here. If you go elsewhere and run into prefectural troops, they won’t be so lenient.”

Liu Bei shrugged indifferently. “You know this; I’m not trying to make things difficult.”

Indeed, the preaching boundaries were fixed. Should the Taiping Sect break the rules, it would be a direct affront to the authorities. Establishing halls everywhere and gathering crowds could easily cause trouble, so the government was vigilant.

“Here’s my offer: I’ll allow your followers to farm my land, and I won’t charge you grain rent or levy taxes on your produce. But you must provide food and lodging for my men.”

Liu Bei bargained as if buying vegetables at the market: “See? This is a great deal for you.”

After some thought, the priest agreed. “Very well! Please ensure your men behave.”

“Of course. They’re soldiers now. If they cause trouble, military law will apply.”

Thus, the deal was sealed.

Over two hundred convicts were housed in the Taiping Sect’s charitable hall.

A few days later, they split into a dozen small groups and dispersed in different directions.

“Brother, this is tantamount to releasing them outright. They likely won’t return... Why do this?” Jian Yong did not understand Liu Bei’s strategy.

These men were former bandits, yet Liu Bei had fed them at the charitable hall for days before releasing them, even allowing them to regroup into their old gangs.

“I detained their leaders in prison and told them to find horses to ransom their bosses,” Liu Bei explained without concealment.

“For them, it’s easier to procure horses than money. For us, trading horses for supplies is easier since I still need to raise military funds.”

“But they’ll go robbing to find horses...” Jian Yong shook his head. “And these bandits may not be loyal to their comrades.”

“Only loyal ones can join me. Those who aren’t will soon have their leaders lead us to their homes to wipe out those scoundrels,” Liu Bei said, patting Jian Yong’s shoulder softly.

“As for the robberies... poor families don’t have horses; only the noble clans or horse merchants do. If they don’t stir up some commotion, how else am I going to raise funds from the wealthy?”

And so the plan unfolded.