The Capital Is a Mess, So Let's Go Smash Some Bandits

The General of the Vanguard was hard at work!

This era’s capital, Luoyang, was an absolute madhouse. And for good reason—two colossal powers were locked in a vicious standoff. Even before this particular clash, endless power struggles had already drenched the court in blood. In such chaos, peace would have been the real anomaly.

At the heart of the current mess stood two factions. One was the Ten Attendants, the emperor’s closest cronies and the root of all corruption. The other was the empress’s kin—General-in-Chief He Jin, the legendary butcher who had clawed his way from the slaughterhouse all the way to the pinnacle of military command. These two giants were slamming into each other over control of the empire, while the emperor himself was busy playing merchant, literally putting official posts up for sale. Honestly, if things had been calm, that would have been far stranger.

And if the capital itself was this broken, one could only imagine how much worse the rest of the provinces had become. They had long since passed “chaos” and entered full-blown anarchy. In a situation like this, political maneuvering in the central court was naturally intense. Everyone was busy picking sides, trying to hitch their wagon to the right star and climb higher. After all, one person’s crisis was another’s golden opportunity.

Yet even in this swirling vortex of madness, there was one official enjoying a rather unusual reprieve. His name was Yuan Shu.

The legitimate heir of the prestigious Yuan family—holders of the Four Generations of Three Dukes—was constantly being courted by both the Ten Attendants and He Jin. They dangled sweet promises, hoping to pull him into their orbit. But Yuan Shu simply told them all to fuck off and focused exclusively on his military duties.

His ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stubborn refusal to get dragged into the political shitstorm should have irritated both He Jin and the Ten Attendants. Yet neither side could push him too hard. After all, he was the direct-line heir of the Yuan clan. As long as he kept his head down and did his job, they had no real justification to harass him, nor any compelling reason to bother. Besides, even if Yuan Shu himself refused to play ball, the rest of the vast Yuan network was already deeply embedded in the bureaucracy.

In truth, Yuan Shu had never particularly enjoyed desk work. Before taking up his post, he hadn’t realized just how powerful the position of General of the Vanguard truly was. He commanded several hundred elite cavalry—more than enough to casually crush bandit groups and repel invading nomads. No small-time barbarian raiding party could stand against him. When the man himself declared he would personally restore order by exterminating thieves, who could possibly stop him?

And so, while ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the rest of the empire’s generals scrambled to deal with the endless stream of bandits popping up everywhere and the foreign tribes pouring across the borders the moment they smelled weakness, Yuan Shu’s lineup looked like this:

Yuan Shu, supported by his aide Gao Shun and the battle-hardened Ji Ling, followed by the three absolute monsters—Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu; Richard, the Lionheart King; and Choe Jun-gyeong, the Sword Demon.

With human weapons this insane on the field, losing was never an option. Most of the threats they faced were only a few hundred bandits or raiders at most. Against that kind of opposition, defeat was physically impossible.

Of course, in this turbulent age, minor barbarian bands and bandit groups appeared constantly. Most of them were wiped out by central forces long before Yuan Shu even had to lift a finger. But he used the chaos as an excuse to stay far away from the poisonous political arena of Luoyang. Naturally, he always secured proper authorization from his superiors before marching out. That way, if anything went wrong, the blame would never fall on him.

Moreover, the actual command of the troops was handled by the far more disciplined Gao Shun, with the capable Ji Ling assisting her. This freed Yuan Shu and his three lunatic retainers to rampage to their hearts’ content.

Honestly, swinging weapons, spilling blood, and smashing faces was far more relaxing than dealing with the capital’s endless scheming.

In other words, they had become the walking catastrophe for both bandits and nomads alike.

Bandit groups?

Whatever pathetic stronghold the bandits had built was smashed to splinters. Even if they hid behind wooden palisades, one swing from Choe Jun-gyeong’s blade would slice the entire wall like tofu. The debris was then hurled by Xiang Yu at cannonball speeds, turning the battlefield into a meat grinder. What could mere bandits possibly do against such lunatics?

Nomadic raiders?

These monsters’ horsemanship was so absurd it could slap a northern nomadic tribe across the face twenty times and still have energy left over. To the horse-riding raiders, they were an absolute nightmare. Their martial prowess was already overwhelming in a straight fight, and on horseback they became even more terrifying. They were flawless, unstoppable freaks of nature.

The raiders who came to plunder ended up being plundered themselves. For a brief moment, the power dynamic had completely flipped. Their very existence had become pure terror.

Thanks to the overwhelming strength of his generals, Yuan Shu’s forces had completed numerous extermination campaigns without losing a single soldier, steadily accumulating merit. In this era where frontal clashes were the norm, the most important factor in keeping an army functioning like an actual army was the martial might of its commander. Soldiers fought with confidence when they believed their general could win. The belief that they could return home alive if they won was what held the ranks together.

In that sense, the morale of Yuan Shu’s troops was through the roof. Every single one of their commanders was a monster, and their enemies were never anything special. With Xiang Yu, Richard, Choe Jun-gyeong, and Yuan Shu himself charging at the front like it was a game, ripping apart everything in their path—what danger could there possibly be? They didn’t even feel tension anymore.

And after every victory, Yuan Shu generously distributed the spoils. His men earned both glory and wealth. From the soldiers’ perspective, there wasn’t a single downside. As the direct heir of a prestigious noble house, Yuan Shu was famously open-handed. He thought nothing of renting out an entire pleasure house for a victory banquet at his own expense. As a result, he was an incredibly popular commander.

Of course, there was a deeper reason behind all this activity.

While it was true he simply hated staying in the capital and had zero desire to get involved in a suicidal power struggle whose tragic ending he already knew, the bigger reason was simple: these small but steady achievements would make it much easier to secure a better—or higher—provincial post when the time came to transfer out of the capital.

Rather than wasting time sucking up to people who didn’t matter, leaving behind a trail of actual accomplishments was far smarter. At least in Yuan Shu’s opinion.

Obviously, with the Yuan family name behind him, he could have obtained a decent position without any of this effort. Still, earning merit first and then using it created a much better impression.

‘Well, at best I’ll probably end ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠up as a Governor.’

Still, Yuan Shu wasn’t in any rush to climb the ranks immediately. Once the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, official positions would rise on their own anyway. There was no need to act desperate. As long as he kept performing well, everything would fall into place.

‘Still… it would be nice to have a few people who can actually use their heads.’

The current roster was more than enough to guarantee victory in any battle. But governing wasn’t just about fighting. If he took a provincial post, he would need to develop the land and keep the people from revolting. In the coming chaotic era, making one’s territory prosperous would be crucial. And above all else, Yuan Shu had zero interest in burying himself in paperwork.

One of the reasons he didn’t want to serve under anyone was so he could dump all the annoying administrative work onto capable subordinates. He was an elite by birth, sure, but once the workload crossed a certain line, his efficiency dropped like a rock.

‘And none of the kids under me have any talent for internal affairs either.’

Especially Xiang Yu, Richard, and Choe Jun-gyeong. If he left any of them in charge of a province, they would probably wreck it beyond repair. At best they might suppress any resulting rebellion with overwhelming violence, but if that kept happening, there would be no people left to rule.

‘In the long run, having someone with a good head on their shoulders would be nice… Hmm.’

Right now, there were truly a lot of powerful warriors around Yuan Shu. And recently, their numbers had grown by one more.

The man currently standing beside him spoke with a respectful laugh.

“Lord Pang’s eye for talent is truly excellent! I heard that even in Xiliang, few could match me in martial skill. I’m glad I could make the General of the Vanguard’s campaign against the barbarians a little easier!”

“Hahaha! To be of help to the renowned General Yuan is truly an honor for my entire clan!”

His name was Yan Xing, courtesy name Yanming.

He wasn’t someone Yuan Shu had personally recruited. One day, Pang De had realized that Yuan Shu was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠always on the lookout for skilled martial artists. Wanting to repay the favor of being taken in, Pang De had brought Yan Xing all the way from Xiliang.

In the original history, this was a man so formidable he had nearly killed Ma Chao in his youth. Known since childhood for his robust build and outstanding skill, he had originally been on track to serve under Han Sui. But while he was still hesitating over the offer, Pang De suddenly appeared and said, “Lord Yuan has taken an interest in you. Come with me.” Without even looking back, Yan Xing had kicked Han Sui’s proposal to the curb, gathered his entire household, and come straight to Yuan Shu.

Which made perfect sense. When offered the same job by both a small local firm and a global conglomerate, who wouldn’t choose the conglomerate? That was the power of the Yuan family name.

Truthfully, Yuan Shu hadn’t known much about Yan Xing before. But since Pang De had recommended him, he trusted the judgment. And after seeing the man’s skill in person, he had to admit—Yan Xing really was impressive. The moment he remembered that this was the same warrior who had nearly killed Ma Chao, he gladly welcomed him into the fold.

‘When we get back, I should throw a drinking party with my sister and Aman.’

His older sister Yuan Shao, who had entered service earlier, was about to be promoted and transferred to a provincial post. They would probably be separated for a while, so he wanted to have one big gathering before then.

‘The direct heir of the illustrious Yuan family accepts even a warrior from the remote borderlands of Xiliang purely based on talent and treats him with respect? Then perhaps…’

And there was one person quietly watching Yuan Shu’s every move.