Northern Dynasties

Chapter 1362: Surrender to Tang
On both sides of the Yangjiang River in Gaozhou, there are many mansions that look very magnificent. At first glance, one feels as if they have come to the prosperous area on both sides of the Qinhuai River in Jiankang City. One cannot tell that this place is Yangjiang in the wild land of Lingnan.

This is the base camp of the Feng family in Lingnan. The mansions distributed on both sides of Yangjiang are the residences of the Feng family, their in-laws the Xian family, and the various Dongli, Liao and Man chieftains they rule.

Before being civilized, the Li and Liao tribes lived a life of wood gathering, fishing and hunting, eating raw meat and drinking blood, and living in caves and rocks. Even their leaders lived together with other people of the same tribe, and their living conditions and material enjoyment were not much different.

However, as the Li Liao tribes came into contact with the outside world more and more frequently, the materials they could obtain and the concepts they accepted became more and more abundant, and the internal hierarchy became more and more strict. In particular, those Li Liao leaders who had previously maintained a simple style and shared the joys and sorrows with their tribesmen could not wait to change their past styles and live a more comfortable life.

The terrain on both sides of Yangjiang River in Gaozhou is flat and the scenery is pleasant, which is convenient for farming and material exchange. It is also a very suitable area for living. In addition, the Feng and Xian tribes spared no effort to win them over, so the chieftains of the surrounding caves walked out of the swamps and led their people to join the two tribes.

At present, the Feng and Xian tribes control nearly a thousand Li Liao tribes, large and small, which is second to none even in the Lingnan region where there are many powerful chieftains. The reason why the two tribes have gathered such a huge force is, on the one hand, because the Gaoliang region they occupy has relatively superior natural resources in the whole Lingnan, and on the other hand, it is because of the outstanding personal abilities of the leaders.

The Feng family was born into the royal family of Northern Yan. After Northern Yan was destroyed by Northern Wei, they crossed the sea to the south. Therefore, they were more concerned by the rulers of the Southern Dynasties. Their ancestors and grandchildren served as officials in Lingnan for generations. Such a background is not possessed by other local chieftains.

Feng Rong and his son Feng Bao of the Feng family successively served as the governor of Luozhou, the prefect of Gaoliang and other important posts in Lingnan. In particular, Feng Bao married into the Xian clan, a great chief of the Li Liao tribe. The two tribes learned from each other's strengths and their power developed rapidly.

The current head of the Feng family is Feng Pu, the son of Feng Bao. He first served as the governor of Yangchun. After Chen Chang ascended the throne, he was promoted to the governor of Gaozhou. However, Feng Pu is only a teenager now. With his qualifications and ability, he is naturally not enough to be the head of a state. The person who truly controls the power of Gaozhou and is also the soul of the Feng and Xian clans is Feng Pu's mother, Lady Xian.

Unlike other local tyrants who were domineering and keen on bullying and annexing the weak to strengthen themselves, Lady Xian was known for her ability to judge the situation and act fairly. In her early years, she assisted her husband Feng Bao in helping Chen Baxian, the first ruler of the Southern Chen Dynasty, to quell the rebellion of Li Qianshi, the governor of Gaozhou, and funded Chen Baxian to go north to defend the emperor. After the establishment of the Chen Dynasty, she was also the first local tyrant in Lingnan to express her submission, so she was treated with courtesy by the Southern Chen court.

Lady Xian did not use force to annex the Li and Liao tribes around her territory, but chose to recruit them and lure them to gradually expand their power. Because she was fair and strictly prohibited clan members from bullying the weak, the sphere of influence of the Feng and Xian clans was one of the few areas in Lingnan with good order and a prosperous people's livelihood. Many Li and Liao tribes were also happy to submit to her, which made Lady Xian have a very high reputation among the Li and Liao groups in the entire Lingnan region.

Hou Andu chose to propose to Xian for his son, and naturally he valued these things. When his marriage proposal envoy arrived at the Feng family manor in Yangjiang and stated his intention, it immediately caused quite a stir among the Feng family.

In the eyes of the world, Hou Andu was not a big shot, just a defeated general who was chased by the Tang army and fled in panic. However, Lingnan was isolated from the news and people's vision was not broad. In their minds, Hou Andu was still a founding hero and a great hero of the country with outstanding achievements and invincibility. He was a rare hero in Lingnan who could be famous all over the world!

Therefore, the entire Feng family was quite happy about Hou Andu's proposal. Although they had also heard about some changes outside the Lingnan region, Hou Andu's performance after returning home was still strong and outstanding, which made them deeply admire him.

They did not care much about the Tang army that would soon invade Lingnan. After all, it was difficult for people to feel awe for a powerful existence that they had never seen with their own eyes. What could really impress them were the real people and things before their eyes.

"General Hou is a founding father of the country and a powerful figure in southern China. He defeated the Ouyang clan as soon as he returned home, which was truly a stunning achievement. Now he wants to marry into my family, which is truly a great blessing! If we don't marry into this heroic family, who else can we marry into?"

When talking about the marriage with Hou Andu, some members of the Feng clan could not help but become excited and look as if they were honored.

However, someone nearby frowned and said, "But I heard that General Hou returned home this time because he was defeated by a powerful enemy outside the Lingnan Mountains and had no choice but to retreat. Moreover, the Northern Tartar Army has been wreaking havoc in Jiangdong and may invade Lingnan soon. It is still unknown whether the Hou family can resist. It may be inappropriate to hastily marry them at this time!"

"Outside the Ling Mountains is outside the Ling Mountains, and Lingnan is Lingnan. How can the two be confused? The customs have been different for hundreds of years. Is it possible that there are no strong men in power outside the Ling Mountains? However, powerful monarchs have always crossed the Ling Mountains to attack. Whether to ally or fight depends on the feelings of our Lingnan people. No matter how powerful the northern Tang army is, can it break the laws and regulations that have been in place for hundreds of years?"

Another member of the Feng clan immediately spoke up to refute, his words full of pride, and the others nodded after hearing this: "Yes, since ancient times, if Lingnan is willing to submit, China will be safe, if it is not willing to submit, it will be arrogant. In recent years, the first leader of the Chen clan led the heroes of Lingnan to settle the dangerous Jiangbo and create a national cause!
"General Hou is a talented person in Lingnan. He may have suffered a little setback outside. But if the enemy is really strong and invincible, why don't you kill them outside the Lingnan area and let them return home safely? It can be seen that although the enemy is strong, it still has its strengths and is not invincible. If you rashly go deep into Lingnan, you can't guarantee that you will not be defeated!"

People's experiences are often not necessarily accurate, especially when the perspective from which they draw conclusions based on their experiences is biased. The conclusions drawn are bound to be extremely erroneous, but they themselves are limited by their cognition and are unaware of this.

"Although General Hou suffered setbacks abroad, he has been very aggressive in his actions since returning home. The Ouyang clan has dominated Lingnan for a long time, and their power spans across many states, but they are vulnerable in front of General Hou. This shows that the sharpness of a precious sword should not be tested lightly! Now that they want to marry into our family, it may be a choice for the time being, but if we can share hardships, our friendship will be as strong as iron and stone!"

Another person's eyes sparkled with excitement, and he said in a hurry: "General Hou is famous, talented and powerful, and my family has a strong industry and many clansmen. If the two can join forces, we can look at Jiangdong if we advance, and look at Lingnan if we retreat. The Ouyang family is not to be feared! If a strong enemy comes, there is Shannan to block it. Even if they are very powerful, they can't use two or three after entering the country. It will be easy to defeat them. If the world outside the mountains is ruled by the Tang Dynasty, we can also wait for the price to sell this dangerous place!"

There is no one in this world who does not hope that his career can be bigger and stronger, but often it is often limited by various subjective and objective conditions and there is no improvement, and it is difficult to break through the upper limit. Therefore, it is particularly important to know how to seize the opportunity and leverage the breakthrough. Hou Andu took a fancy to Feng Xian's strong local assets, and Feng Xian's clan members also valued Hou Andu's own ability and qualifications.

If before this these Lingnan chieftains had little imagination about speculation in the world, then Chen Baxian's rise in Lingnan and his subsequent establishment of the Jiangdong foundation undoubtedly gave them a huge shock and inspiration.

Hou Andu himself was born in Lingnan, and was a capable general under Chen Baxian with brilliant achievements. Moreover, the methods he displayed when dealing with the Ouyang family were still very fierce. Naturally, he won the favor of these people, and they planned to make a small bet on him.

Lingnan is located in a remote area, and it is very inconvenient to attack by land or water, so these chieftains have developed the character of relying on danger and not respecting the superior country. They do not necessarily have to serve Hou Andu as their master, but Hou Andu's ability can be turned into a bargaining chip for them to ask for more benefits from the Central Plains Dynasty before they choose to surrender.

After hearing the discussion of his people, the young state lord Feng Pu was also very excited and said quickly: "If you need to send my sister to Hengzhou to marry General Hou's son, I want to lead the people there in person, hoping to see the demeanor of this great hero of Lingnan!"

The main members of the Feng Xian clan all supported the marriage with Hou Andu's family, and even began to discuss a series of matters such as the wedding date and dowry.

However, they were discussing it lively. Lady Xian, who had been out inspecting the tribe and had hurried back after hearing the news, shook her head and said, "If it is an ordinary marriage, there is no need to be too serious about it. The Hou family is a heroic family, and it is an honor for our daughter to marry them. If General Hou sends slaves to ask for armor, cannons, money and food, we can give them according to our ability to help them. The success or failure does not need my opinion.

But we must not talk about these two together. My family is just a barbarian leader in Lingnan. The reason why we have some power is that heroes in the world do not regard this dangerous mountain and bad water as a place that must be fought for. You have not seen the strength of the Tang Dynasty, so you do not value it, but have you not seen the power of the former Lord Chen? Such a hero who saved the country from danger was severely suppressed by the ruler of Jiangbei, and General Hou was defeated and returned home. What should I do now if my whole family fights against the enemy?"

Compared to the optimism of the people in the tribe, Lady Xian was much more rational. First of all, the strength of the Tang people was not without reference. When Chen Baxian conquered the powerful forces in Lingnan, he also made people realize that these so-called local chieftains were really vulnerable in front of truly powerful people. But even Chen Baxian was suppressed in his heyday, so why did they think they could compete with such a powerful enemy?

Hou Andu was certainly strong, and Lady Xian did not want to offend him by refusing, but she did not want to tie the entire tribe too closely to Hou Andu through marriage. After all, their tribe was now powerful and there was no need to resort to risky tactics and gambling to gain wealth.

Especially since the great changes in the situation outside the Lingnan region were beyond the comprehension of these local chieftains, Madam Xian did not agree to gamble with the entire family's assets on personnel matters beyond their own knowledge.

After being poured cold water by Lady Xian, the Feng Xian clan members were no longer as enthusiastic as before. Lady Xian asked people to prepare several thousand dan of grain and some equipment, and sent them to Hengzhou. She also said that although there were many women in the clan, there was no clear standard for whether they were virtuous or not because of personal preference. Therefore, if Hou Andu wanted to find a wife for his son, he could send his son to Gaozhou to live for a period of time and let him choose one himself.

Lady Xian's attitude made Hou Andu quite satisfied. In his early years, he often heard the first emperor Chen Baxian sigh that Lady Xian was a heroic woman who was no less than ambitious men. Therefore, he had a very good impression of her and wanted to arrange marriage for his son in her family.

If it was just a simple attempt to win over, his options were not limited to Feng Xianshi. Therefore, after thinking about it, Hou Andu simply sent his son to Gaozhou to continue discussing the marriage. Moreover, Hengzhou would become the front line of the war, so it would be safer to let his son go to the safer rear.

Because of Madam Xian's reminders and restraints, Feng Xian maintained a calm and indifferent attitude towards Hou Andu's call, but other Li Liao chiefs were not as calm as Madam Xian.

Most of them also held similar views as the Feng Xian clan members. First, they admired Hou Andu's toughness very much. Secondly, they hoped to use Hou Andu to show the fangs of their Lingnan heroes. Even if they could not force back the invasion of the Tang army, they hoped that they would be afraid and adopt more gentle means to deal with Lingnan's personnel issues.

Therefore, all the chieftains in Lingnan gathered in Hengzhou at once, and the momentum they created was so great that it even surpassed the commotion Hou Andu had made in Kuaiji before. This also made Hou Andu very happy, and he sighed that in this time of crisis, the villagers were still reliable, and those short-sighted Wu people in the Three Wus were really hard to catch up with!

Although his place was extremely noisy, the Ouyang family, as the former overlord of Lingnan, was somewhat lonely. Ouyang He originally wanted to control Hou Andu, but his uncle Ouyang Sui was killed and Hengzhou was seized. He personally led the army to the place and ended up losing again.

For a while, the entire Lingnan region lost its respect for the Ouyang family, and there were even people who deliberately wanted to make fun of them.

Unfortunately, misfortunes never come singly. Ouyang He's father, Ouyang Wei, had been ill and bedridden for a long time. His condition suddenly worsened recently, so that Ouyang He could not care about what was happening outside and served his father at home every day without taking off his clothes. However, his father's condition still became worse and worse.

As his body was dying, Ouyang Xi regained a brief moment of clarity. He knew why his son was worried these days, but he was no longer able to share his worries. He could only use his last bit of strength to grab his son's wrist, sobbing and shouting: "Don't, don't fight with the Marquis, surrender to Tang, surrender to Tang and you will live!"