Chapter 98: Zhu Ying Strikes

History marched on its established course.

After Ma Zhou was captured and Ma Yuanyi executed by dismemberment, Zhang Jiao, aware that the uprising had been exposed, was forced to advance the rebellion by a month.

On the ninth day of the second month in the seventh year of the Guanghe era of the Great Han, Zhang Jiao of the Taiping Dao proclaimed himself “General of the Heavenly Lord,” with Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang assuming the titles of “General of the Earthly Lord” and “General of the Human Lord,” respectively. Raising their arms, they cried out: “The blue heaven has died; the yellow heaven shall rise. The year is Jiazi; peace will prevail across the land.” They gathered hundreds of thousands of followers, who were divided into 36 divisions—each large division numbering over ten thousand, smaller ones six or seven thousand—each led by a commander under Zhang Jiao’s unified command. The rebellion’s banners rose simultaneously across the eight provinces of Qing, Xu, You, Ji, Jing, Yang, Yan, and Yu.

Within a month, flames of war engulfed twenty-eight commanderies across seven provinces. The Yellow Turban Army swept through the land like a battering ram; prefectures fell, officials and soldiers fled, government offices burned, and wealthy citizens were plundered. The imperial capital was shaken to its core.

Emperor Ling of Han, alarmed by the strength of the Taiping Dao, hastily appointed He Jin as Grand General on the day Wushen of the third month. He Jin led five battalions of imperial guards, stationed them at the capital’s pavilion, inspected weapons, and organized the defense against the Yellow Turban rebellion. Meanwhile, commandants were appointed to guard key passes including Hangu, Dayu, Guangcheng, Yique, Huanyuan, Xuanmen, Mengjin, and Xiaopingjin. Edicts were issued demanding strict vigilance in all regions, preparation for battle, soldier training, weapon inspections, and the mustering of militias.

Huangfu Song submitted a memorial urging the lifting of political purges, suggesting the release of funds from the imperial treasury and distribution of fine horses from the Western Garden to raise soldiers’ morale. Lü Qiang advised the emperor that longstanding political purges, if combined with the Yellow Turbans, would be irreparable. Emperor Ling accepted these proposals, granting amnesty to the purged on the day Renzi, restoring their rights and requiring nobles to donate horses and crossbows. It was decreed that heirs of generals and men of strategic insight from the common folk be summoned for interviews at the public transport bureau.

Meanwhile, elite troops were dispatched to suppress disorder. Lu Zhi, with his deputy Zong Yuan, commanded the northern army’s five divisions to engage Zhang Jiao’s main force. Huangfu Song and Zhu Jun each led an army of over forty thousand troops—comprising five divisions, Three Rivers cavalry, and newly recruited elite warriors—to quell the Yellow Turbans in Yingchuan. Zhu Jun also petitioned to recruit Sun Jian from Xiapi as Assistant Military Commander, who brought along local youths and enlisted seasoned merchants and soldiers from the Huai and Si Rivers, over a thousand strong, to join Zhu Jun’s forces. On the day Gengzi, Zhang Mancheng attacked and killed Chu Gong, the governor of Nanyang Commandery, joining Zhang Jiao’s cause.

For nearly a month, Luan Yi had kept a close eye on the court’s every move. The reason he had not yet risen to join the rebellion was simple: the land of Qi and Lu was also a major battleground in the Yellow Turban uprising.

First, consider the three neighboring provinces of Qing, Yan, and Ji adjacent to the State of Jinan. According to Luan Yi’s recollections from the Three Kingdoms chronicles, these regions were known for their hardy and impoverished populace, and during the Yellow Turban rebellion, were hotspots of turmoil.

Yet now, the situation was somewhat different. Since Luan Yi founded the Holy Mother Church, due to geographic proximity, the teachings spread widely across Qing, Yan, and Ji. To solidify its foothold, numerous small and medium churches were built in provincial and commandery seats, as well as strategic towns. Moreover, the Holy Mother Church offered free medical treatment and grain relief to new converts, making it highly attractive and rapidly growing in followers.

However, the Holy Mother Church was only newly established within these few years, having penetrated Qing and Yan for just over a year. Though the congregation was expanding rapidly, it lacked the deep-rooted foundation that Zhang Jiao’s Taiping Dao, cultivated over more than a decade, had already secured.

In sum, the number of Holy Mother believers was about half that of the Taiping Dao’s followers.

Fortunately, as a religious institution, the Holy Mother Church differed significantly from the Taiping Dao, which lacked any formal doctrine or code, functioning more as a political movement under a religious banner. The Holy Mother Church was a carefully crafted organization, modeled after Christianity with advanced 21st-century ideological frameworks. All ecclesiastical ethics were recorded in the “Holy Mother Scriptures,” carried by every adherent, detailing doctrine—the pursuit of harmony and unity among believers; goals—to receive the Holy Mother’s joy and attain eternal soul life after death; as well as comprehensive rules and corresponding disciplinary measures.

With a complete ideological system, the Holy Mother devotees were more devout than Taiping Dao followers. Though some may have initially joined with ulterior motives, after attending worship for a time, they truly devoted their hearts to the Holy Mother. With steadfast faith, they were more willing to sacrifice themselves to accomplish the divine will when conflict arose.

Thus, when the Yellow Turban rebellion erupted across Qing, Yan, and Ji provinces, Zhang Jiao, in retaliation for Luan Yi’s prior capture of Ma Zhou and exposure of the uprising, deliberately targeted Holy Mother followers for persecution.

Thus unfolded the first large-scale religious conflict in Earth’s history during the second century Han dynasty across Yan, Qing, and Ji provinces. Over a hundred thousand Taiping Dao followers, clad in yellow turbans, stormed churches throughout the provinces, killing on sight anyone bearing the Holy Mother’s cross insignia.

In response, Holy Mother believers, summoned by their bishops in Qing and Yan, gathered progressively, amassing nearly sixty thousand armed men bearing weapons and farming tools to rise up in resistance.

Daily, rivers of blood flowed, corpses lay strewn across the land, wails of sorrow filled the air—gruesome beyond measure.

Though valiant and fearless, the Holy Mother followers were hastily assembled and lacked military training. They suffered repeated defeats, incurring heavy casualties; dozens of newly built churches were razed by the Yellow Turbans.

Desperate, the church leaders of Yan, Qing, and Ji—Wang Bo, Zhang Xu, and Li Xin—sent urgent letters to Luan Yi, pleading for the Holy Mother Church’s headquarters to dispatch protective forces to aid them, to expel the villains and safeguard the faithful.

Luan Yi wished to send troops against the rebels but was constrained by circumstances. Just the day before, scouts reported that the bandit Zhu Ying had returned—not alone but leading a massive force of fifty thousand Yellow Turbans.

The rebel army was approaching Jinan, Luan Yi’s stronghold. Thus, he could not spare forces to aid the provincial churches and had to write candidly, informing them that the church headquarters was under siege and unable to provide assistance. He advised local churches to seek self-preservation, avoid direct conflict with the Yellow Turbans, and relocate believers to provincial and commandery seats—military strongholds—cooperating with local officials and soldiers to resist the enemy.

Luan Yi then took up his brush and penned letters in seal script to the governors of Qing and Yan, the Administrator of Beihai, and the Chancellor of Jibei—Tian Kai, Liu Dai, Kong Rong, and Bao Xin—detailing the Yellow Turban atrocities against Holy Mother believers and earnestly requesting their protection.

Upon finishing, he entrusted these letters, along with those to religious leaders, to messengers who rode swiftly to deliver them.

With diplomatic affairs settled, Luan Yi donned heavy armor under the care of his attendant Xiaocui and strode into the grand hall of the headquarters, where drums were beaten to summon the commanders.

Soon, several figures entered. Who were these men?

First, Xu Shu, formerly named Dan Manfu, from Yangzhai in Yingchuan, courtesy name Yuanzhi.

Second, Mao Jie, courtesy name Xiaoxian, also from Yangzhai in Yingchuan.

Third, Dian Wei from Jiwu in Chenliu, personally named Qi He by Luan Yi, dressed in a blue robe with a magnificent bear-head cold-light armor forged by the seventh-ranked master craftsman Pu Yuan, designed by Luan Yi himself—a formidable presence.

Fourth, Guan Yu of Xieli in Hedong, courtesy name Yunchang, clad in a cyan Sichuan brocade robe embroidered with beasts, overlaid with a silver dragon-patterned shining armor.

Fifth, Zhang Fei from Zhuo County in Youzhou, courtesy name Yide, wearing a qilin-adorned padded brocade shirt with a tiger-head breastplate.

Sixth, Huang Zhong of Nanyang in Jingzhou, courtesy name Hansheng, dressed in pale gray embroidered silk with an eagle-headed iron clawed forged armor.

Seventh, Xu Chu of Qiao County in Qiao State, courtesy name Zhongkang, wearing a gray and white floral brocade robe with jet-black fish-scale armor.

Eighth, Taishi Ci of Donglai in Beihai, courtesy name Ziyi, clad in pale ivory-gray robes overlaid with golden lock and yellow-bronze armor.

Ninth, Zhao Yun of Changshan in Jizhou, courtesy name Zilong, also wearing pale ivory-gray robes, his treasured armor a silver dragon and purple-gold linked chain mail.

Additionally, longtime church members Wu Tian, Li Zhuang, and Zhang Cai stood arranged according to their ecclesiastical offices—civil on the left, martial on the right.

Luan Yi spoke: “Scouts report that Yellow Turban bandit commander Zhu Ying leads an army of fifty thousand and will soon reach Jinan. What strategies do you propose?”

Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Huang Zhong, unfamiliar with Zhu Ying, asked for details.

Luan Yi explained that Zhu Ying was the former Chief Clerk of Jinan State. During his tenure, he exploited witchcraft accusations to extort and oppress the people, causing widespread suffering. Later, Luan Yi and his father arrived in Jinan, striving to eradicate heresy with great effort and sacrifice, eventually overthrowing him. The emperor condemned Zhu Ying and his entire family to execution.

Yet the scoundrel was fortunate to escape from the sacred fields during the chaos. More astonishingly, after fleeing Jinan, he transformed into a Yellow Turban commander and now returned with vengeance against Luan Yi.

“Nothing to it,” Zhang Fei declared with his characteristic unrestrained optimism. “Brother Four, just give me three thousand men, and I’ll send them fleeing with their tails between their legs.”

His genuine cheerfulness lightened the tense atmosphere.

“General Zhang, do not act rashly,” Zhang Cai stepped forward to caution. “Zhu Ying commands fifty thousand; how can a mere three thousand resist?”

“Brother Zhang’s point is well taken,” Wu Tian agreed. “Outnumbered, we must consider long-term plans.”

“Long-term plans, my foot!” Xu Chu, blunt as ever, spoke up. Realizing his brusqueness, he quickly apologized to Wu Tian. “Brother Wu, I mean no offense. But the Yellow Turbans are at our doorstep. There may be no time for long deliberations.”

Wu Tian blinked, “True enough. Should the Church Leader write to other provinces or the court for aid?”

Luan Yi shook his head. “At present, the imperial armies are locked in stalemate with the rebels in Ji and Yingchuan. Other commanderies are overwhelmed. We cannot rely on them. To survive, we must save ourselves.”

“What are we to do then?” Li Zhuang sighed deeply.

Luan Yi inwardly lamented the limited capability of these elders. He turned to Guan Yu. “Second Brother, your thoughts?”

“I share Third Brother’s view,” Guan Yu said. “To me, these rebels are but broken dogs. A single regiment can rout them.”

“Indeed,” Luan Yi nodded. “Wu and Zhang suggest patience; Second and Third Brothers advocate striking now. Zilong, what say you?”