A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 298 Certificate of Surrender

The climate in Hedong is cold in winter and hot and humid in summer.

The sound of cicadas chirping came from outside the window, their calls echoing, but I had no idea what they were trying to understand.

Li Yi faces a difficult choice.

Liu Liu'er led 7,000 Ji Hu to surrender. Jia Hubao Sa Bao Yu Run sent someone to secretly contact them, offering to act as an inside agent.

An enticing opportunity has presented itself.

But Li Yi was also worried that this might be a trap.

When a beautiful woman strips naked in front of you, you might be incredibly lucky, or you might be being set up. Li Yi needed more information to analyze, so he gathered and organized a large amount of disparate data, hoping to obtain supporting data.

Liu Liu'er was the son of Liu Long'er and the younger brother of Liu Jizhen. His father and brother rebelled one after the other, one calling himself emperor and the other Khan. Liu Liu'er was also granted the title of king twice.

Liu Jizhen's uprising went quite smoothly this time. He gained the support of the Turks and Liu Wuzhou, and immediately seized Shizhou, killing its governor. The Jihu people of Shiloufan also responded enthusiastically and were able to quickly send troops to Haozhou.

However, Liu Liu'er failed to intercept Li Zhongwen at the city of Haozhou and was beheaded several hundred men. Liu Jizhen was furious and ordered him to attack the city, but after seven days of continuous attacks, he failed to capture it and lost three thousand men.

They then ordered him to reclaim the stolen grain and supplies and attack Yong'an Fort.

Liu Liu'er was forced to surrender to the Tang Dynasty because he was cut off from supplies, could not capture Yong'an Fort, and had a falling out with his brothers.

A closer analysis of Liu Liu'er's situation seems to support his actions.

As for Yu Run of Jiahubao, he was a Sogdian from Sabao. Jiahubao was a Sogdian settlement, and these Sogdian settlements were generally autonomous, practicing their own Zoroastrianism and even following their own laws and regulations.
The imperial court also appointed these powerful Jia Te clansmen as Sabao in both the central government and local prefectures and counties. Yu Run had previously welcomed Li Yuan and his son, and had also opened the gates of his fortress to welcome Huang Ziying. This man was a merchant and had no loyalty to speak of.

According to intelligence gathered by Qiu Shenyan, Jiahu Fort has been besieged for nearly three months, with Huang Ziying's several thousand troops, several thousand Tang prisoners, and an additional ten thousand troops.

The small Jiahubao could hardly supply them. These days, Huang Ziying's men have been raiding and plundering the people, hunting in the mountains and fishing in the river. They have barely managed to survive on the summer harvest.

Previously, on Yu Run's sixtieth birthday, his family brewed some sorghum wine and hunted some wild boar and pheasants in the mountains. Yu Run hosted a banquet to invite relatives and friends, and also specially invited Huang Ziying and his officers. However, on this joyous day, Huang Ziying ruined the occasion after arriving.

He angrily rebuked Yu Run, saying that the army was short of food and when he asked Yu Run to borrow some, Yu Run said he had none. Yet now Yu Run was using the grain to brew wine and feast on lavish dishes.

They threatened to kill Yu Run, but the crowd pleaded with them and Yu Run begged for mercy. In the end, he brought out wine and meat to reward the troops, handed over most of the grain stored in his home, and paid a large sum of money and silk. Only then was he spared death, but he was still flogged twenty times.

Yu Run never expected to end up like this.

Filled with resentment, he decided to secretly lead the Tang army to attack Huang Ziying, willing to act as an inside agent to break through the city.

As a businessman, he didn't want to offend anyone, no matter who came.

But now, all he wants is to kill Huang Ziying; otherwise, if things continue like this, he estimates that they will be the ones who die before Huang Ziying does.

Li Yi carefully reviewed the intelligence in his hand again and concluded that Liu Liu'er had truly surrendered, and Yu Run had also truly surrendered.

With the sudden addition of seven thousand Hu soldiers, Li Yi was now richer than ever before. He had two choices: one was to mobilize his troops, send Liu Liu'er to lead the charge, and return to Haozhou to relieve the siege.

Secondly, he led Liu Liu'er's troops to Jiahubao and first wiped out Huang Ziying, who had been besieged for a long time.

"Summon Liu Liu'er!"

Liu Liu'er was brought in again, still somewhat uneasy, and knelt down as soon as she entered the hall.

"General Liu, I am facing a dilemma and would like to ask for your advice on how to proceed." Li Yi raised the question of whether to relieve the siege of Haozhou first or attack Jiahubao first in front of him.

Liu Liu'er shook her big head, the large gold rings swaying on her ears.

"General, this is a rare opportunity that will be lost in the blink of an eye. I think we can take a two-pronged approach. I have seven thousand men, and you can divide them into two groups. Send one group back to Haozhou and set up camp outside the city to coordinate with the Haozhou garrison. This will tie down the enemy forces besieging the city and greatly alleviate the situation in Haozhou."

"Furthermore, as far as I know, Liu Jizhen's supplies are running low, and General Xun Xiang's troops under Liu Wuzhou are also facing insufficient supplies. The thousand Turkic cavalry are entirely supplied by Liu Jizhen and Xun Xiang, and they are all now facing problems of insufficient supplies and a lack of siege equipment."
If I were to defect and return to the walls of Haozhou, the enemy would likely have no choice but to lift the siege and retreat.

Li Yi sized up this scoundrel.

He looked completely foreign, but his Chinese was spoken without a trace of foreign accent.

They even have a good eye for vocabulary; it's clear that the Liu family has been powerful and influential for generations, and their Sinicized education is quite good.

"Anything else? Go on."

Liu Liu'er licked his lips. "Although Jiahu Fort is strategically important, Huang Ziying has been trapped for more than two months and his supplies are running out. His troops must also be demoralized. If Yu Run is willing to act as an inside agent, then as long as we have a few thousand men, we can launch a night raid and break through the fort. Huang Ziying's troops will surely collapse."

"But we must act quickly to prevent any unforeseen complications. If things are leaked, we'll miss a great opportunity."

Li Yi sat there with his fingers interlaced, smiling as he said, "My suggestion is to take action from both sides at once?"

“Opportunity is fleeting.”

"So how do you think these seven thousand people should be divided?"

“We can have 3,500 men each, or 5,000 from Haozhou City and 2,000 from Jiahu Fort.” Before leaving, he added, “This humble general is willing to follow the general closely and serve him faithfully. Please send officers to command the two battalions respectively.”

Li Yide admitted that Liu Liu'er had a good eye, considered things comprehensively, and was good at seizing opportunities.

Perhaps that's why he surrendered so decisively.

“You will lead three thousand men to Jiahu Fort, and I will hold Yindi Pass to protect you. If things do not change, you may retreat to Yindi Pass.”

Li Yi slowly spoke and made a decision, ordering him to take three thousand men to Jiahu Fort, while the remaining four thousand men would temporarily stay outside Yong'an Fort.

"This humble general is willing to pledge his military command to capture Jiahubao!"

Sending Liu Liu'er with three thousand of his old troops to capture Jiahu Fort was his final test.

Thirty li north of Jiahu Fort lies the Yin region of Guanzhong.

Li Yi put the secret letter he had just read into his pocket and called Liu Liu'er over.

"General Liu, it will soon be dark. You should lead your troops out now. When you reach Jiahu Fort, Sabao Yurun will meet you. Use lights as a signal when you arrive..."

"I wish you a resounding victory and a swift success, General. I await your triumphant report!" Liu Liu'er, already in armor, replied, "This humble general will certainly not fail the Commander's high expectations."

Li Yi took off his own purple robe and draped it over him: "The night is cold and the dew is heavy, so wear a robe over your armor."

"Thank you, Steward, for bestowing upon me this robe!"

at night,

Fog rose in Sparrow Valley, and the fog spread over the rammed earth walls of Jiahu Fort on Habu Ridge.

In the Saburg mansion, Yu Run, who had just had a very unpleasant sixtieth birthday, was being helped by Zhejie warriors to put on his armor.

First, put on Persian chainmail, then wear camel skin lamellar armor over it.

Subsequently, the twenty Tuojie warriors also donned fish-scale armor, and the Dingnu in the Sabao mansion also picked up shields, long swords, and carried bows and arrows.

Once the equipment is complete,
Yu Run picked up his family heirloom, a gilded silver ewer, and poured wine for everyone.

They prayed before the sacred fire, then drank it all in one gulp.

"I treated Huang Ziying like an honored guest, but he dared to usurp my position. He lived in my fortress, ate my grain and drank my wine, yet he still beat his master with a stick."

Even the sacred flame cannot be tolerated! Tonight, open the fortress gates, let the Tang army in, and kill Huang Ziying!

After the third watch gong sounded twice...
North of Jiahubao
Liu Liu'er has led three thousand men and has quietly arrived here.

He kept his eyes fixed on the North Gate tower.
As agreed,
In the dead of night, Yu Run would raise three lanterns on the North Gate Tower.

Once the lanterns are lit, he will also light three lanterns in response. After both sides confirm the signal, Yu Run will open the North Gate.

Time slips away quietly.
Liu Liu'er was getting a little impatient.

He desperately needed to capture Jahu Fortress to prove his sincerity in surrendering. He knew that Li Yi did not fully trust him; otherwise, Li Yi would have come in person tonight for such an important operation.

But Li Yi is only staying at Yindi Pass. If he really has any tricks up his sleeve, he will eventually reveal them tonight.

Yu Run wore a long, embroidered robe with a turned-down collar and narrow sleeves over his double-layered armor, and quietly led dozens of his men onto the city wall.
The Sogdian guards on duty atop the wall straightened their backs and nodded to their leader, Sabao.

"Send a signal."

Three red lanterns are raised.

“Sabao, there’s a response, three lamps.”

"Open the gate." Yu Run saw the signal and immediately gave the order.

The Sogdian soldiers twisted the iron chains, and the drawbridge was lowered.

Immediately afterwards, the gate's sluice gate was also pulled up.

The heavy bolts on the fortified gate were removed, and the gate slowly opened in the night, like a giant beast opening its mouth.

Three thousand Hu horses, their hooves tucked behind them, swept across the drawbridge like ghosts and surged into the castle.

"Retract the suspension bridge!"

Yu Run stood on the city wall, watching the last rider enter the city, sneered, and ordered the drawbridge to be lowered.

The heavy gate was lowered again, and the gate was closed once more.

Yu Run went downstairs and met Liu Liu'er.

“Huang Ziying lives in the east of the city, which used to be my garden. I will take you there. The city gates are already closed, so he can’t escape.”

The Yu family garden in the east of the city had long been occupied by Huang Ziying.

In the middle of the night, Huang Ziying was fast asleep, holding Yu Run's granddaughter in his arms, when a few insects chirped.

The woman next to Huang Ziying removed his arm and quietly got up.

The door opened, and several Sogdian women walked in. By the moonlight, they exchanged glances.

Several strong women tiptoed to the bedside and gently tied his hands and feet with a rope made of cowhide.
······
“Sabao has gone against the grain,”

"Enemy attack!"

Huang Ziying's personal guards in the garden shouted, while many of the two hundred guards stationed in the manor were still asleep.
Amid the chaos among the guards
Under Yu Run's guidance, Liu Liu'er led his troops into the garden. The Sogdian servants in the garden had also received Yu Run's orders and opened the gates.

When Liu Liu'er followed Yu Run all the way to his inner courtyard, she kicked open the door and discovered Huang Ziying, the fierce general who had lured and annihilated nine thousand elite Tang soldiers in Sparrow Rat Valley.

He was being held hostage by several Sogdian women, who had bound him hand and foot.

"You're Huang Ziying?"

"And who are you?" Huang Ziying's face turned bright red, both ashamed and angry.

"Me? I am Liu Liu'er from Lishi."

"Liu Liu'er of Lishi? Liu Long'er's son, Liu Jizhen's younger brother, Liu Liu'er, the Prince of Tuoding?" Huang Ziying looked at the barbaric mountain barbarian with a large gold ring hanging from his ear, his face showing disbelief.

"I am indeed Liu Liu'er, but I am no longer the Prince of Tuoding. I am now Liu Liu'er, a general under the Duke of Anding, the governor of Lüzhou."

"How did he become a lackey of the Tang people?"

"Huang Ziying, you are now my prisoner. If you immediately send someone to make your men in the camp outside the fort surrender, I may spare your life!"

Huang Ziying glanced at Liu Liu'er, then at Yu Run, who was glaring at him angrily, and gritted his teeth, but there was nothing he could do.

(End of this chapter)