Northern Dynasties

Chapter 1290 Gao Family's Heir

Although the campaign to encircle and suppress Qingzhou had some twists and turns in the process, the result was relatively satisfactory. All important figures from the false leader Gao Zhan onwards were arrested, and few people escaped.

Gao Zhan's performance was as mediocre as ever. Although he had organized some considerable forces in Qingzhou with the remaining power of Northern Qi, he still lacked courage and responsibility when facing danger and challenges. He only considered his own safety and interests, so that these personnel forces did not produce the desired effect. When faced with huge external pressure, he collapsed internally.

In addition, on the way to Qingzhou, the Tang army cleared up the chaotic situations in Henan, Huaibei, Shandong and other places to a certain extent. Local forces such as the Yang family of Taishan also surrendered to the Tang Dynasty one after another, bringing the people and land of these areas under the control of the Tang Dynasty.

As for the miserable experience of the false lord Gao Zhan before he was captured, it was certainly a tragedy that every ordinary person might encounter during wartime, but if it happened to Gao Zhan himself, it could only be said that he suffered from his own fault, which was extremely ironic and dramatic.

Even if he was not so smart and arranged his generals to lead the troops eastward to create the illusion that he had escaped, the Tang army would be able to enter the city in time and restore order, thus saving him from being robbed and raped by the rebels.

As Han Xiong led his troops into the city and took control of the situation, Gao Le and Ruo Ruofeng also led their troops to join the army, and the battle to encircle and suppress the remaining enemies in Qingzhou came to an end. Next, Han Xiong dispatched divisions and brigades to the nearby prefectures and counties, ordering the officials of these border prefectures and counties to submit their petitions and accept the rule of the Tang Dynasty.

Of course, the most important thing is to arrange troops to enter the pass to report their victory and send the captured false leader Gao Zhan and his important ministers to the court.

When the troops arrived in Chang'an, it was already midsummer in May. Since the war report had been sent to the capital in advance, the court had already arranged for the reception.

Among the first batch of prisoners of war who surrendered to Beijing, in addition to Gao Zhan's family, there were also celebrities from Hebei such as Cui Jishu. So when the team arrived in Chang'an, in addition to the personnel of the Guanglu Temple, there were also many celebrities from the capital who came to greet them. Some were relatives and friends of these people, and some were simply curious and watched.

Although the next day was not the day of the full moon, the court still held a grand court meeting. His Majesty the Emperor personally met with his ministers in the Qianyuan Hall, and the generals who came to the court to report their victories also went to the hall to present their battle reports.

Although Li Tai had read the detailed war report long ago, he was still overwhelmed with emotion when he read it again at the court meeting today. Although the scale of this series of wars this year was not as grand as the campaign to destroy Qi that he personally led last year, the land and population gained were not much less, and even exceeded.

As the remaining forces of Gao Yu and Gao Zhan of the Northern Qi Dynasty were eliminated, large areas such as Henan, Huaibei, and Shandong were also brought under the control of the Tang Dynasty. Since the division of the Northern Wei Dynasty into the east and the west, the area north of the Yangtze River was once again unified in the hands of Li Tai!

This also means that even without considering the subsequent events, just the current achievements, Li Tai's achievements have been among the best since the Five Barbarians' Invasion of China. Of course, Li Tai would not be satisfied with just comparing with these scumbags, including his ancestor Li Hong, who was just a local tyrant, there was no need to compare with each other.

"In this hunt for the bandits in Qingzhou, all the soldiers who fought with us have made remarkable contributions. The meritorious service records published earlier have all been sent to the capital. The officials should quickly verify and award the honors!"

After reading the report, Li Tai immediately urged the officials to implement the reward as soon as possible, and then said: "Now that all the places in Guandong have been brought under the king's rule, they are in urgent need of preaching and cultivating civilization. The Imperial College, the Imperial Academy, and the various state schools should quickly select the best and recommend them. There is also a pre-selection department for the tribute candidates from all the places, and after the selection, they will be sent to the states for use!"

Today, the personnel structure of the Tang Dynasty court is complete. Although the territory and population have increased greatly this year, there is no need to worry about having no one available. In addition to the reserve officials that the court already has in reserve, there are also various channels for selecting talents to recruit new people into the official sequence.

The details of government affairs are usually not discussed at the grand court meeting. After all, there are too many participants. Even if everyone just briefly expresses his or her opinions, time will pass quickly and it will be difficult to discuss a few things in the entire court meeting.

The main reason why a grand court meeting is being held today is to make a conclusion on how to wipe out the remaining forces of Northern Qi.

At present, the remaining forces of Gao Yu and Gao Zhan have been wiped out, but Gao Ji's group that fled to the northeast has not been eliminated. This group of people broke out of Jinyang and fled. They are not weak in combat power. They are also led by the brothers of Hulugu. It is said that they have mixed with the Donghu forces such as Kumo Xi not long ago. If you want to eliminate them, it will definitely not be as simple as eliminating the previous two groups.

Before this, Li Tai had not intended to start a war on two fronts, but in the process of suppressing Gao Zhan, according to Han Xiong's report, he actually discovered that there were some personnel connections between Gao Zhan and Southern Chen, which had to be guarded against.

Moreover, the war has been going on for a long time since last year. Although Li Tai returned to Chang'an before the New Year to proclaim himself emperor and regent, most of the soldiers are still on the march, and the Tang Dynasty's war machine has been running non-stop. Now is the time to stop and recuperate. There is no rush to force oneself to wipe out the remaining bandits in the northeast.

After all, the geographical span is too large, and the various pressures such as the fatigue of soldiers, the exhaustion from traveling, and the long transportation of supplies cannot be offset by a simple concerted effort.

So Li Tai then announced in the court meeting: "Since the expedition against the bandits last year, although we have made outstanding achievements and killed all the bandits, it is inevitable that the soldiers and horses are tired and the treasury is exhausted. Although there are still some bandits fleeing on the road, the world and human affairs cannot be stagnant because of these few stubborn bandits. We must quickly bring the soldiers back to rest and convict the captives, so that we can recuperate and build up our strength and make more plans for a prosperous governance!"

"Your Majesty is wise!"

After hearing this, the ministers in the palace also praised it. Indeed, since the war began last autumn, the war has been going on for nearly a year, and it is indeed not appropriate to continue and expand it.

As Li Tai announced that the war against Qi had come to an end, some corresponding personnel matters naturally needed to be finalized and a final judgment result announced.

For example, although the two capitals of Northern Qi were conquered and a large number of royal family members and officials were taken to Chang'an, no systematic trial had been carried out. Even the release and marriages were all done to palace maids and relatives who were not political figures. As for the royal family members and some officials of Northern Qi, they were still detained by the officials, awaiting punishment.

Next, Li Tai formed a three-court system led by Yuan Zan, the Minister of the Prime Minister and Prince of Guangping, and assisted by Liu Fan, the Chief Censor, and Liu Qing, the Minister of Justice, to try the remaining people of the Northern Qi Dynasty and gave them different sentences.

From the Western Wei Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty, the attitude that they always held was to never recognize the legitimacy of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi regimes, and they always called them thieves. The wars between them were just the orthodox court's conquest of traitors, not wars between countries. The captured people were naturally not relatives of the enemy country, but remnants of thieves.

Historically, after the Northern Zhou Dynasty conquered the Qi Dynasty, it treated the Northern Qi royal family members relatively kindly. Although it found opportunities to kill them one after another soon after, it still gave them generous official titles as a consolation at the time.

But that was because the Northern Zhou also completed the usurpation before destroying Qi. The second brother, not to mention the eldest brother, was a den of traitors, but Li Tai accepted the abdication after destroying Qi in an upright manner, so he had no moral burden or pressure from etiquette and law. So in the following trials of the royal family and ministers of the Northern Qi Dynasty, in principle, they were all guilty traitors, the only difference was the severity of their crimes, and then combined with their respective attitudes of resistance or submission to the king's expedition, their crimes were increased or decreased, and finally their punishment was formed.

Take Gao Zhan for example. He originally pursued an attitude of non-resistance and fled from Yecheng early. When he was convicted, he could be given an appropriate reduction in sentence or even a certain reward because he was afraid of the royal army and did not dare to resist. However, this guy went to Qingzhou and set up a small court. This became a complete unforgivable crime and he was destined to be beheaded.

As for other members of the Northern Qi royal family, those who voluntarily surrendered and actively helped the royal army, such as Gao Guiyan, were granted the title of Marquis of Liaoyang County. Although the title was not very prominent, it was at least a reward without punishment, and it could be considered a safe transition.

However, people like Gao Xiaoyu, the son of Gao Cheng, although they also surrendered to the royal army one after another, did not do anything to obviously help the royal army, so they were not punished or rewarded, but were released as civilians, registered in Jingzhao, and were not allowed to move to other places without permission. If they violated the rules, the local county and prefecture governments could capture and kill them!

As for other members of the Northern Qi royal family who were captured on the battlefield or in their residences, they were sentenced to imprisonment or exile, but could be exempted if they were pardoned. They were not given any special treatment, but they were not abused either.

Especially if they were pardoned, since the territory of the newly established Tang Dynasty had increased rapidly, it would inevitably issue pardons frequently to appease the people who had suffered from chaos for many years. Therefore, as long as these Northern Qi royal family members were willing to behave themselves and accept the arrangements, they would be exempted from punishment within a few months and start a new life as ordinary people.

As for the wealth and splendor they had enjoyed in the Northern Qi Dynasty, they should just regard it as a passing dream. After all, it has only been thirty years since Gao Huan became rich, and before that they were just an ordinary family. If these people really have a hard time going from luxury to frugality and can't stand the life of ordinary people, then they can only start a new life quickly, and maybe they can be reborn into the family of the founding nobles of the Tang Dynasty.

The three officials selected by Li Tai had little connection with the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi. Liu Fan was originally from the Southern Dynasty, and Liu Qing had advised Emperor Xiaowu to move the capital to Guanzhong in his early years. As for Yuan Zan, as a member of the Northern Wei royal family, he secretly hated the Gao family for their rebellion in Wei, so naturally he would not have any good feelings towards them.

Adhering to these principles, they quickly reported the treatment of the Gao clan members. After reading it, Li Tai agreed in principle, but after a little hesitation, he added: "Although the Gao clan eventually rebelled, He Liuhun had the merit of establishing righteousness in Xindu and destroying the Erzhu clan, and was also praised at the time. His three sons also used tactics in Hebei, and the people looked up to the governance and lived in peace, which can be said to be meritorious. Now that our Great Tang has annexed Hebei, it is also a little bit of the past, and this situation should not be overlooked."

Although Li Tai has never met Gao Huan since coming to this world, he has called him "Big Brother" for several years, so now he wants to make some arrangements for Big Brother's descendants.

  Although the Guanxi regime did not recognize the Eastern Wei hegemony and the Northern Qi regime, Gao Huan's founding of Xindu and the joint attack on the Erzhu clan were also a righteous act that met the wishes of the people of the world. After all, the Erzhu clan was the common enemy of the entire northern clans. Gao Huan's revenge on his former master was absolutely tenable morally, regardless of how it was morally correct!

As for his three disciples, Gao Cheng, Gao Yang and Gao Yan successively served as heads of the Bafu and emperors. Although this title was not recognized, they were the actual rulers of Hebei after all. The people's livelihood order in Hebei in recent years depended on their rule and management.

If this point is ignored, then the people of Hebei will inevitably be somewhat disrespectful. The people are born with a kind of empathy. When they see the descendants of their past monarchs being treated so harshly, they will inevitably feel some sadness and sympathy. If they are in adversity again, they will attribute all this to the harshness and ingratitude of the new dynasty.

After receiving the additional instructions from His Majesty the Emperor, the officials of the Three Departments discussed it and decided to make Gao Xi, the oldest of Gao Huan's sons who was currently in Chang'an and had committed no major crime, the Duke of Linzhang County. The three legitimate sons of Gao Cheng and others were all made county marquises, and each was given a salary to continue their heirs.

After Li Tai got the plan, he thought about it and made some changes, and also conferred the title of county duke on Gao Yan's son Gao Bainian. When they captured Jinyang, Gao Yan had the opportunity to give the imperial seal to his brother Gao Ji and let him take it with him to break out, but Gao Yan kept the seal for his son to surrender.

The loss of the imperial seal in later generations has become a concern for emperors of all dynasties. In the current situation where the North and the South have been divided for many years, the imperial seal is also of great significance in reshaping the monarch's authority. Since Gao Yan made this choice, Li Tai should also show some appreciation and treat his descendants with favor.

The treatment of Gao's clan was soon announced. Although it was not very generous, it was in line with human nature and righteousness. In history, after Emperor Wu of Zhou conquered Qi, although he treated the Northern Qi clan members with many favors, everyone had an official position and a title, but soon after, he killed them frequently to eliminate the roots.

Now in the Tang Dynasty court, Li Tai does not need to rely on preferential treatment to the Gao family to win over the hearts of the people and unite the front in Hebei. Basically, his attitude towards them will not change much. As long as these people can abide by the law and stay away from political disputes, they can basically be guaranteed to live out their lives in peace under the rule of the Tang Dynasty.

As the court officially announced the execution, the Northern Qi royal family members who had been detained for a long time were released one after another. Gao Xi, who was granted the title of Duke of Linzhang as the adopted son of Gao Huan, led several nephews who were also granted titles and official positions to the Imperial City Menxia Province to receive the title and express his gratitude.

Because Li Tai had been selecting candidates to serve as officials in Henan, Qingxu and other places, he had been discussing personnel matters with the prime ministers for several days and naturally had no time to meet Gao Wei's uncle and nephew. So they were received by Xiao Zhao, another attendant of the Ministry of Personnel who stayed in the central government.

"You and I are both lucky to have a benevolent ruler ruling the country. Although our business has failed, we are still able to enjoy the honor and favor and live a leisurely life in the world. Therefore, the reason why our business has not been maintained is due to reasons. Today, the world is under the rule of a wise and capable ruler, which is also a blessing for the people of the world. If you and I still hold on to the past and cannot let it go, we will inevitably become enemies in the world and seek our own death!"

Xiao Zhao, Gao Wei and others were all royal families of a fallen country, but because they arrived early and had a special friendship with the Tang Emperor, and now they were in the position of prime minister, their state of mind became open and cheerful. When they met Gao Wei and his party, they gave them earnest advice.

"Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Xiao. I will definitely keep your teachings in mind, respect your grace, and abide by the law!"

After listening to Xiao Zhao's words, Gao Wei also bowed to express his gratitude. Then the uncle and nephew walked out of the imperial city, and their own officials led them to the residence granted by the court.

Just as this group of people were walking towards the square, another team of armored soldiers escorted a prison cart out of the side gate of the imperial city. The prison cart was carrying some death row prisoners, who were about to be taken to the West Market to be executed.

"I am the Emperor of Great Qi, how can I punish common people with the same punishment?"

Gao Zhan's roar could be heard from afar. At first, he was still roaring in protest, but as he saw the execution ground in the West Market getting closer, his roar turned into a wail: "Mercy, mercy! I demand to see the Emperor of Tang and beg to be your slave..."

As the execution team entered the West Market, Gao Zhan's wailing and begging for mercy gradually faded away. Gao Xi looked back at his nephews and found that they were all sweating like him. He forced a smile on his face and said in a hoarse voice, "The Tang Emperor ruled the country with clear punishments and rewards. We uncles and nephews will inherit the legacy of our ancestors and will surely live in peace for the rest of our lives!"

The nephews nodded quickly and signaled the driver to speed up, eager to start their new life.