Han Dang nodded quickly upon hearing this, his eyes filled with anticipation.
In his heart, Liu Jin was extremely outstanding and would rise sooner or later, which was why he was willing to serve him as his lord and follow him for life.
Just then, footsteps sounded outside the main tent, and Zhang Fei and Guan Yu pushed aside the tent flap and walked in.
Seeing his eldest brother drinking, he grumbled with a wide grin!
"Big Brother, you're secretly drinking without calling me!"
"I'm dying of thirst!"
After saying this, he sat down on the ground nearby, picked up the wine jar from the table, and gulped it down, looking utterly refreshed.
Guan Yu appeared more reserved, cupping his hands and saying with a smile!
"Big Brother."
Liu Jin laughed heartily, then beckoned to Guan Yu, signaling him to also take a seat.
Guan Yu nodded, and after sitting down, he glanced at Han Dang beside him, giving a slight nod as a greeting.
In his eyes, this man was a true warrior, having slain Yellow Turbans and being brave and skilled in battle; he had caught his attention and earned his respect.
Liu Jin filled the wine cup, placed it on the table, and asked with a smile!
"Second Brother, Third Brother, you've arrived so suddenly, is something the matter?"
Guan Yu stopped drinking upon hearing this and quickly replied!
"Big Brother, there is indeed something.
"In the last battle, we captured over a thousand prisoners and held them in the military camp.
Due to the small number of soldiers, management is quite lax, and people occasionally escape."
"Moreover, these thousand-plus people need to eat, drink, and relieve themselves every day, consuming a considerable amount of provisions.
We can sustain them for a short time, but if it goes on for too long, we won't be able to bear the cost."
"So I came today to ask Big Brother how we should deal with these people."
Liu Jin's brows furrowed slightly upon hearing this; the number of prisoners was indeed a bit too high, more than half of the troops he commanded.
If he were to assign soldiers to manage these prisoners, it would be a waste of his military strength.
Even if he could guard these prisoners, it would still waste his army's provisions; no matter how he looked at it, it seemed uneconomical.
Han Dang, who was sitting nearby, suddenly spoke!
"Ming Gong, I observe that these common folk are all ordinary farmers, merely incited by these Yellow Turbans, and thus rebelled."
"Why not release them all, let them return to the surrounding villages, and cultivate their fields properly?"
Guan Yu shook his head upon hearing this and said!
"Releasing them would be inappropriate.
Although they were incited to join the Yellow Turbans in rebellion, they became rebels.
If they are released without any punishment, it will only encourage their rebellious hearts."
"In the future, if they are incited by the Yellow Turbans again, they probably won't think twice before picking up weapons and continuing to rebel.
In this way, the bandits of Yi County will never be suppressed."
After a few cups of wine, Zhang Fei mumbled from beside them!
"Big Brother, in my opinion, it's better to kill them all.
They are all just rebellious commoners who joined the bandits anyway."
Han Dang frowned upon hearing this and quickly said!
"This must not happen.
These are over a thousand lives; killing them like this would only harm the Military Marquis's reputation."
Zhang Fei's eyes widened upon hearing this, and he shouted!
"Then what do you say we should do?
We can't kill them, we can't release them, and keeping them in the military camp means they'll consume provisions.
If this goes on for a long time, our provisions will probably be completely depleted."
Everyone fell into thought upon hearing this.
After a long while, Liu Jin slowly said!
"Since we cannot release them and cannot kill them, then let us integrate all these people, execute some of the Yellow Turban leaders, leave these ordinary common folk, issue them weapons, and organize them into a militia."
"Warn them that as long as they obey, they can change from the status of bandits to that of government soldiers.
If they still harbor rebellious intentions, they will be executed without mercy."
The few of them pondered this for a moment and then all nodded; organizing them all into a militia was indeed a good idea.
It could both solve the prisoner problem and increase the army's strength, only requiring some provisions.
Han Dang hesitated for a moment and then spoke!
"Ming Gong, privately organizing a militia, I wonder if those above will agree."
Liu Jin waved his hand and explained!
"There's no need to worry about this.
It's just organizing a militia, not imperial government troops; it's a private armed organization."
"As long as the scale isn't too large, in these chaotic times, they can still turn a blind eye."
"Moreover, Zhuo Commandery City is currently surrounded by Cheng Yuanzhi leading tens of thousands of Yellow Turbans.
The Prefect must be anxious and will definitely send someone to ask me to provide support.
At that time, I will bring more militiamen with me."
"Not only will they not punish us, but they will even praise us."
Han Dang nodded upon hearing this, agreeing with his Ming Gong's view.
Seeing that everyone understood, Liu Jin then looked at Guan Yu and instructed!
"Yun Chang, the matter of the prisoners still requires your attention.
Organize them into a militia as soon as possible."
"In my opinion, it won't be long before the nobles above send someone, and then we will have to gather our army and set out."
Guan Yu quickly nodded upon hearing this, saying loudly!
"Big Brother, rest assured, I will quickly integrate this militia."
After saying this, Guan Yu, without even having time to drink, directly withdrew and began to organize the militia.
The remaining Zhang Fei and Han Dang, already aware that a major battle was about to erupt, had no interest in drinking.
The two of them bid farewell and left, going to drill the soldiers in the army, training them into an elite force to prepare for the upcoming battle.
Soon, the army began training with great fervor; the soldiers gritted their teeth and persevered, their shouts echoing throughout the entire military camp.
On the city walls of Zhuo Commandery, soldiers stood in formation, holding long spears, guarding the area.
Wen Shu, with a solemn expression, dressed in a long robe and with a sword at his waist, was inspecting the city walls, surrounded by numerous officials.
He looked at the large camp a dozen li away, stretching for several li, a vast, endless sea of people, with many Yellow Turbans moving in and out, completely disregarding the government troops inside the city.
Just then, the Yellow Turban camp ahead seemed to be making some moves.
A large number of soldiers were seen marching in a mighty procession towards this location.
Panic instantly erupted on the city wall, as they thought the Yellow Turbans intended to attack the city, and many people's eyes revealed fear, trembling uncontrollably.
Even the high-ranking officials on the city wall showed fear; that was tens of thousands of bandits, and if they truly launched an assault, they didn't know if they could hold out.
Wen Shu looked at the chaotic scene on the city wall, his brow twitching.
He was already filled with anger from being besieged by these Yellow Turbans.
Now, seeing this disgraceful scene, his rage could no longer be suppressed; he directly drew the sword from his waist, its cold gleam flashing, and pointed it at the surrounding crowd.
He shouted in a cold voice!
"Mere Yellow Turbans have frightened you all to such a state; what a great shame!"
"Whoever dares to make a sound on the city wall or show cowardice, the sharp sword in this Prefect's hand will surely cut them down, to be used as a sacrifice to the banner, to awe the entire army!"