Cao Cao’s latest victory triggers a chain reaction in the western reaches of empire.

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Welcome to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms Podcast. This is episode 74.

Last time, we left off with Cao Cao riding high after defeating Ma Chao and pacifying Liang (2) Province, which lay in the northwestern part of the empire. As a result of his triumph, Cao Cao’s prestige skyrocketed. Word of his victory soon trickled into the region of Hanzhong (4,1) and was greatly distressing to the guy running that region, the governor of Hanning (4,2), a man named Zhang (1) Lu (3).

We haven’t talked about the region of Hanzhong previously in the novel, so let’s talk about it now. This area lay to the south of Liang Province and to the north of Yi (4) Province. The guy who runs things in this region, Zhang Lu (3), inherited his power from his father and grandfather. His grandfather was kind of a swindler. He forged books of Daoist teachings in the Swan Call Hills in the Riverlands. No one ever got wise to his scheme, and in fact, he gained quite a reputation. After he died, his son followed in his footsteps. People who wanted to study Daoism under him had to donate five pecks of rice. And peck is equal to about 9 quarts. This price of admission earned him the moniker the Rice Rebel.

After he died, his son, Zhang Lu (3), took over and gave himself the grandiose title of Lord-Preceptor, and his followers were known as the Ghost Squad, which sounds like a Ghostbusters ripoff. Captains in this Ghost Squad were known as libationers, and those commanding large numbers of followers were dubbed head libationers.

Ironically, for a sect that started out as a scam, its main concern was sincerity. Neither lying nor deception was condoned. They also had a rather peculiar way of treating illnesses. Anyone who was sick would be placed in a secluded room, where they were to reflect upon their mistakes and make a confession. After that, everyone would pray for the patient, under the direction of a libationer. The sick man’s full name was written out, his penance explained, and then three copies of his petition to the three realms were made. One copy, a petition to heaven, would be placed on a hilltop. Another copy, made to the earth, would be buried in the ground. The third copy, a petition to the masters of the netherworld, would be placed in the water. After that, if and when the illness passes, the patient would have to donate five pecks of rice as a sign of gratitude.

In addition to their faith-based healthcare system, this sect also had public bins filled with rice, firewood, and meat. Any and all passers-by were welcome to take as much as they pleased, though if they took more than their fair share, they would be punished by heaven.

As for the sect’s legal system, within the boundaries of their sphere of influence, they had a four-strikes policy. Transgressors were forgiven three times, but if they continued on their errant ways after that, they would be punished. There were no court officials, and everything was handled by the libationers.

And so in this way, Zhang Lu and his forefathers had reigned in the region of Hanzhong for 30 years. Because this was a remote area, the court deemed it not worth the trouble of an expedition to squash this bug. Instead, it simply appointed Zhang Lu as an imperial corps commander and a governor,