The Rebellious Officials and Traitors of the Late Han Dynasty

Chapter 577 Hebei Turmoil
In a secret room of the Cui family mansion in Yecheng, candlelight flickered. Cui Jin slammed the official gazette he was holding onto the table, the ink on the white paper particularly glaring in the candlelight.

"The case of the Zhang family of Kuaiji plotting rebellion has been concluded, and their three clans have been executed."

“Lord Cui, the news from the south is probably more than this.” Shen Le, sitting at the lower end of the table, lowered his voice, pulled a scroll of secret letter from his sleeve, handed it to the other man, and sighed, “My informant in Xiangyang sent an urgent report: the Cai and Kuai families of Jingzhou have submitted their lists of hidden households to the court.”

An uproar erupted in the secret room. The patriarchs of several prominent families from Hebei exchanged bewildered glances, their faces filled with disbelief.

"That coward Cai Degui!" Cui Lin of the Qinghe Cui clan slammed his fist on the table, making the teacups clatter. He sneered, "How powerful he was in Jingzhou back then! Now he grovels before that tyrant!"

That's right, they now call Qin Shou a tyrant!
Cui Jin raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet. His face, over fifty years old, appeared particularly stern in the candlelight. As the leader of the northern gentry, he knew that he had to keep the people calm at this moment.

"Gentlemen, there is no need to panic. Cai Mao handed over only eight thousand hidden households, which is just a drop in the ocean compared to the strength of the Cai family in Jingzhou." Cui Jin slowly unfolded the secret letter, his gaze sweeping over each word like a knife.

"But the imperial court has already sent Zhao Yun to Jiangxia, and the Huang clan was the first to bow down," Gao Min of the Bohai Gao clan said worriedly. "If the imperial court follows suit and sends a large army to press on the border..."

"Therefore, we must strike first." Cui Jin suddenly interrupted him, taking a map from his robes and spreading it on the table. He then addressed the crowd, saying, "Please look, everyone. This is a map of the mountains and rivers of the various counties and prefectures of Ji and You provinces."

In the candlelight, the map was densely marked with red dots. Shen Le leaned closer to take a closer look and couldn't help but gasp—those red dots were all the strongholds of bandits from various mountain villages.

"What is this, Master Cui?"

"Since the Yellow Turban Rebellion, banditry in Hebei has never truly subsided." Cui Jin traced an arc on the map with his fingertip, saying smugly, "Although Zhang Yan of Heishan has surrendered, his former followers are still scattered throughout the Taihang Mountains. With just a little financial support, these bandits will be enough to give the imperial court a major headache."

The secret chamber fell silent. The clan leaders exchanged glances, each seeing hesitation and fear in the other's eyes.

"This is a heinous crime of treason! The Zhang family is about to be wiped out!" Gao Min's voice trembled, filled with fear.

Cui Jin sneered and said, "Does Lord Gao think we have any way out? Once the 'land tax reform' is fully implemented, which of you here won't have to hand over tens of thousands of hidden households? At that time, land taxes will double, tenant farmers will leave, and in less than ten years, our century-old prominent families will be reduced to ordinary wealthy households!"

He abruptly stood up, his wide sleeves whipping up a gust of wind that nearly extinguished the candlelight, and shouted, "Do you all remember how Emperor Guangwu gained the empire? Without the support of the powerful clans of Hebei, how could the Eastern Han Dynasty have lasted for two hundred years! Now this tyrant wants to destroy our foundation; are we just going to sit and wait to die?"

Everyone's faces showed surprise upon hearing this.

Back in the previous dynasty, the powerful families of Hebei were incredibly arrogant. People like Xu You even dared to assassinate the emperor. Imperial edicts simply couldn't be passed through Hebei. Even the Yellow Turban Rebellion didn't have as much of an impact on these powerful families as one might imagine.

In their view, the emperor was not as powerful as they imagined, and the powerful families of Hebei, united as one, could still rival the imperial power.

Seeing the wavering expressions on the faces of the crowd, Cui Jin pressed his advantage, saying, "Gentlemen, we don't truly intend to rebel. We only need to let these bandits cause some trouble, letting the court know that Hebei is not to be trifled with. Then, that tyrant will naturally understand that without the support of aristocratic families like us, his new policies will be impossible to implement!"

Shen Le pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded and said, "What Lord Cui said is absolutely right. We can secretly fund these bandits, allowing them to harass official roads and plunder tax grain. If the court sends troops to suppress them, we will use the pretext of assisting in quelling the rebellion to request a temporary halt to the implementation of the new policies."

"Brilliant plan!" Cui Lin exclaimed, slapping the table in approval. "This way, we can achieve our goal without directly confronting the imperial court. Even if things are exposed, we can claim it's due to rampant banditry, and it has nothing to do with us." Gao Min still hesitated: "But Qin Shou is ruthless. What if he discovers our scheme..."

"Gao Gong is overthinking it," Cui Jin sneered. "Hebei is vast and sparsely populated, with high mountains and dense forests. The imperial court's eyes and ears can't reach here. Besides, our families have been operating in this area for hundreds of years. Which official, high or low, isn't one of ours?"

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement. The atmosphere in the secret room gradually warmed up, as if they could already see the dawn of victory.

Seeing that the time was ripe, Cui Jin took out a list from his sleeve: "These are the contacts I've drafted. Wang Fang, Du Zhong, and others, former subordinates of Zhang Yan, are still active in the Taihang Mountains. They have several thousand men under their command; if we offer them money and provisions, they will surely be at my disposal."

Shen Le took the list, examined it carefully, and added, "I know a few wandering knights from Changshan County who can be responsible for relaying messages. They are all locals, familiar with the terrain, and won't arouse suspicion from the authorities."

"Good!" Cui Jin nodded in satisfaction. "Without further ado, let's split up. Cui Lin will be in charge of contacting officials in the various counties of Ji Province, making sure they turn a blind eye. Gao Gong will be in charge of raising money and grain, allocating supplies under the guise of disaster relief."

The group discussed some details until dawn before dispersing. Cui Jin stood by the window, gazing at the gradually brightening sky, a sinister smile appearing on his lips.

"Tyrant, do you think you can shake the foundations of our aristocratic families with just a few imperial edicts? Hebei is not Jiangnan!"

Meanwhile, inside the Chang'an Imperial Palace.

Qin Shou was reviewing memorials in the imperial study when he suddenly sneezed.

Jia Xu, who was standing nearby, asked with concern, "Your Majesty, have you caught a cold?"

Qin Shou rubbed his nose and smiled, "It's alright. Wenhe, has there been any news from Hebei?"

Jia Xu cupped his hands and replied, "My scouts report that the Cui family of Ye City has been frequently convening secret meetings with various aristocratic families recently, suggesting they may harbor treacherous intentions."

Qin Shou put down his vermilion brush, a cold glint in his eyes: "As expected, he couldn't sit still any longer. Send down the order to have Zhang Liao strengthen border patrols, especially in the Taihang Mountains area."

"Your Majesty is wise." Jia Xu hesitated for a moment, then added, "However, if the aristocratic families are truly colluding with the bandits, I'm afraid..."

"I'm afraid they can't cause any real trouble." Qin Shou stood up and walked to the hanging map. "I foresaw this day would come. The powerful families of Hebei are deeply entrenched; they won't submit unless we teach them a lesson."

He turned to Jia Xu and said, "Wenhe, order Li Ru to immediately and secretly go to Jizhou to investigate the dealings between the aristocratic families and the mountain bandits. Remember, do not alert them."

"Your old minister obeys the decree!" Jia Xu clasped his hands in acceptance of the order, taking a deep breath. Li Ru was a god of death.

(End of this chapter)