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

Chapter 319 Imperial Edict: Abandon Hedong and Retreat to Guanzhong

Wenshui.

Huang Ziying was gathering his troops. After two defeats, he knew that this time he could only win and could not afford to lose.

Has Liu Liu'er arrived yet?

"Liu Liu'er is still in Hidden Spring Mountain,"

"I hereby issue another order: he must arrive at Wenshui City and rendezvous with me within three days, or he will be executed without mercy!"

"Send another messenger to Lishi and order Liu Jizhen to send troops here immediately."

Huang Ziying, who hadn't had a proper rest for several days, had bloodshot eyes. The emperor had ordered him to seize the three passes of Queshu Valley and open up the southward grain route, but now he couldn't even command Liu Liu'er, Liu Jizhen, Ashina Lu, and the others.

"Report!"

A personal guard rushed in, "Reporting to the commander-in-chief, Xiaoyi has fallen! The thousand men left behind broke out of the city but were ambushed by the Tang army near Yong'an Fort and were all wiped out!"

Huang Ziying slammed his fist on the table.

Deputy General Guo Shiwen couldn't help but ask, "Will Li Yi attack Wenshui City next?"

"Are you scared?" Huang Ziying mocked.

Guo Shiwen was a powerful figure in Taiyuan City, Bingzhou. His father, Guo Jing, was a border general of the Sui Dynasty who made many meritorious contributions in the war against the Turks. His ancestors had been officials and generals of the Northern Dynasty for generations. However, Guo Jing and Xue Shen had previously opened the city gates together to help Liu Wenjing enter the city.

“Li Yi now has a strong and well-equipped army, while we only have 10,000 men. The enemy outnumbers us several times over. If they really attack, we may not be able to stop them.”

"Then what are your brilliant ideas?"

Guo Shiwen sighed, "Liu Jizhen and Liu Liu'er, these two brothers from the Jihu tribe, don't listen to the general's orders at all. The Turks are always the type to go through the motions but not put in any effort. After the city is breached, they take all the good stuff first, but when it comes to actual fighting, they don't even bother to fight. The general should make preparations as soon as possible."

The emperor ordered them to capture Queshu Pass and Sangu, but now they fear they can't even leave Wenshui City.

After much deliberation, Huang Ziying decided that he could no longer wait for Liu Jizhen and Liu Liu'er, and he also disregarded Ashina Lu, since these people might not necessarily contribute when attacking Lengquan Pass anyway.

"His Majesty's decree is for me to first capture the three passes of Sparrow Valley. Whether Xiaoyi is lost or Wenshui is in danger, who cares? Issue the order to immediately head south to Lingshi and prepare to attack Lengquan Pass."

"Is the steward really no longer going to manage Wenshui?"

"So what if Li Yi takes them over? The more cities he takes over, the more dispersed his troops will be, and the faster he will die."

Huang Ziying made up her mind to head straight for Lingshi.

General Liu Dewei, the Left Martial Marquis, led his troops westward to Xizhou, following the Xiyangquan River.

"Immediately go to Xichuan City in Xizhou to inform Liu Shishan and Yan Xun, and ask them to mobilize grain to supply our army, and also to transfer another batch of grain to Haozhou."

Liu Dewei was the Left General of the Martial Guard, dispatched by Li Yi, the Inspector General of Bingzhou. Liu Shishan was the General Commander of the Xizhou Road Army, and Yan Xun was the Governor of Xizhou. Both of them should now be under the command of Li Yi.

Liu Dewei had legitimate reasons for asking them to prepare provisions and even weapons.

When his 15,000 men left Xiaoyi, they only carried 15 days' worth of provisions, which had to be replenished by Xizhou.

Liu Dewei's 15,000 men entered Xizhou, causing quite a stir in this poor and remote area in the Lüliang Mountains, especially since he demanded that Xizhou supply them with grain, fodder, and weapons. The military order was relayed to Xichuan City.

Liu Shishan frowned as he looked at the military order.

He handed the military order to Governor Yan Xun.

"Xizhou is a remote and impoverished place. Where can we find provisions for an army of 15,000 in such a short time, not to provide them with armor, arrows, and other weapons? It's easy to say."

Yan Xun's father was Yan Rong, a cruel official of the Sui Dynasty who served as the governor of Qingzhou and Youzhou. He was a highly capable general, but also extremely ruthless. In Qingzhou, he suppressed all thieves and criminals. Later, as governor of Youzhou, he deliberately had members of the Lu clan from Fanyang serve as low-ranking officials and soldiers to humiliate them.

Yan Rong had a penchant for whipping his subordinates, sometimes wiping them over a thousand times. Once, during an inspection tour, he saw a clump of thorns by the roadside and used it as a whipping tool. He even summoned a man to test the whip, but the man said he hadn't done anything wrong. Yan Rong told him to whip him first, promising to spare him punishment for future offenses. Not long after, the man committed a minor offense, and Yan Rong wanted to whip him again. The man then said, "You said before that I could spare you punishment for future offenses."

But Yanrong said, "I beat you even when you haven't done anything wrong, so I'll beat you even more when you have."

Whenever he inspected Youzhou, if he heard or saw that an official's wife or daughter was beautiful, he would stay at that house and rape those women.

Later, Yuan Hongsi was appointed as the Prefect of Youzhou. Yuan Hongsi was afraid of Yan Rong and refused to go. Emperor Wen of Sui, Yang Jian, even issued a special decree saying that if Yuan Hongsi committed a crime that required more than ten lashes, he should report it to the emperor.

As a result, Yan Rong would pick fights with Yuan Hongsi every day, hitting him less than ten times each time, but several times a day. After several years of this, he finally imprisoned Yuan Hongsi and cut off his food and water, intending to starve him to death. Later, it was his wife who went to the capital to appeal to the emperor, and finally Yan Rong was summoned back to the capital for trial and then given death.

Yan Xun was the youngest son of Yan Rong. He married the third daughter of Yang Xiong, the Prince of Guan, who was the brother-in-law of Yang Gongren, the current Duke of Guan. He was granted the title of Duke of Changping. His daughter also entered the Prince of Qin's mansion.

Yan Xun did not serve in the Sui Dynasty, but in the Tang Dynasty he became the Prefect of Xizhou. Unlike his father, he was not cruel and believed in the policy of non-interference during his tenure.

He didn't care about anything and spent all his time drinking and composing poetry in the governor's mansion.

For this reason, when Liu Wuzhou invaded the south, the court specially appointed Liu Shishan as the military commander of Xizhou Road, knowing that Yan Xun was not knowledgeable in military affairs.

This Liu Shishan was originally a general of the Sui Dynasty. His family was a powerful clan in Xizhou. He and Liu Jizhen were not much different; they were both from the Buluoji Hu tribe.

These two as a team,
One was in charge of civil affairs, had connections in the imperial court, and was a nobleman from the Guanzhong region. The other was in charge of military affairs, and came from a wealthy local family in Xizhou, a member of the Bu Luo Ji Hu clan.

"Liu Dewei not only wants us to send them military rations and equipment, but also wants us to conscript the sons of local powerful families to serve in the army. Is he trying to use them as hostages?"

Yan Xun was also very dissatisfied.

Li Yi, a mere seventeen-year-old boy, was actually appointed as the Inspector-General of Bingzhou, holding the authority to command the military affairs of six prefectures. The previous Inspector-General of Bingzhou, Li Yuanji, was also seventeen years old when he abandoned the city and fled. Now, another seventeen-year-old has been appointed as the Inspector-General of Bingzhou. What is the Emperor thinking?

"Why send 15,000 men to Xizhou instead of retaking Jiehao and counterattacking Taiyuan? With so many soldiers, they need hundreds of shi of military rations a day, and each soldier needs tens of thousands of shi. How can Xizhou afford to supply them?" Yan Xun complained.

Liu Shishan returned to his residence.

When Li Yuan first raised his army, he sent Zhang Lun to pacify the counties of Lishi, Longquan, and Wencheng. Liu Shishan responded in Longquan County and was later appointed as the governor of Xizhou. However, before he had served as governor for a year, the emperor sent Yan Xun to replace him and summoned him to Chang'an.

When Liu Wuzhou conquered Hedong, he sent him back to put out the fire.

Now that Liu Dewei has led his army into Xizhou, it's clear that Li Yi no longer trusts him, this Qi Hu. But his family is different from Liu Jizhen's; his family has served the court since the Northern Wei Dynasty, and for generations, they have been a military family guarding the border.

"Ah Lang, a guest requests an audience."

"I'm not in the mood to see you," Liu Shishan said impatiently, waving his hand.

“Ah Lang,” his retainer lowered his voice and whispered in his ear, “is from Taiyuan.”

"Taiyuan? One of Liu Wuzhou's men?"

"Ah."

"I won't see you," Liu Shishan waved his hand.

As soon as the servants left, he immediately called out again, "Wait a minute, bring the person here first, and remember not to let anyone see them."

A moment later, the servants brought in a man wearing a cloak.

Pei Qi pays his respects to the Prince.

"You've mistaken me for someone else. I'm not some prince."

"By imperial decree of the Emperor of Taiyuan, Liu Gong is hereby appointed as the Prince of Longquan, Grand General of Xizhou, Left Martial General, and Pillar of State." The man smiled and pulled out a yellow silk edict. "Lord Liu, you are now a prince."

Liu Shishan looked at the imperial edict, his breathing quickening.

"Your emperor is quite generous. You made Liu Jizhen the Prince of Peng, and now you're making me the Prince of Longquan."

"The Emperor has said that as long as Your Majesty can march north to take Haozhou, or march south to take Cizhou, or take Liu Dewei's head and annihilate those 15,000 rebels, if you accomplish any one of these three things, the Emperor will immediately bestow upon Liu Gong the title of Prince of Ning!"

Liu Shishan's heart was racing.

"I have news to inform Your Majesty. On my way here, the King of Song finished his rest and launched a thunderous offensive against Jinzhou. General Yuchi Gong breached the city of Jinzhou, and Pei Ji once again fled in disarray."
The garrison commanders of Jinzhou, General Liu Hongji of the Right Valiant Guard and General Jiang Baoyi of the Right Martial Guard, were both captured. Because Jiang Baoyi had previously feigned surrender after being captured, the Emperor had already beheaded him this time.

Pei Ji has already fled to Yuzhou, and the entire Hedong region will belong to our Great Han.

Why should Your Majesty continue to guard this sinking Tang ship?

Liu Shishan was greatly shocked.
Unexpectedly, the Han army's advance to Jinzhou in just a few months was not the limit. In the blink of an eye, they broke through Jinzhou and their forces reached Jiangzhou.

"There was a Yao Junsu in Puzhou who defended the city against the Tang, right, Lord Liu?"

Liu Shishan nodded, "Later, his men chopped off his head."

"Yes, but his general Wang Xingben returned to Puzhou City, killed those who had surrendered to Tang, and then held out until now. Just when Jinzhou City fell, Wang Xingben had already submitted a memorial to the Emperor of the Great Han in Taiyuan. Now he is the Governor-General of Puzhou, Right General of the Martial Guard, and Duke of Wei of the Great Han."

"Your Majesty should know the current situation, and understand whether the Mandate of Heaven rests with Liu or Li. Our Emperor of Han is only one step away from entering Guanzhong."

"Your Majesty's submission now is vastly different from submitting after entering the pass."

Liu Shishan was tempted.

When Li Yuan raised his army in Taiyuan and marched south, his momentum was unstoppable, and he marched straight into Chang'an. Who could have predicted that a year and a half after he became emperor, Liu Wuzhou would also be able to advance straight into Guanzhong?

“Li Yuan has never trusted Your Majesty. Otherwise, when Your Majesty responded in Xichuan, he wouldn’t have only let Your Majesty serve as governor for less than a year before transferring you away, and he certainly wouldn’t have allowed Liu Dewei, an outsider, to rise above you now.”

Liu Shishan stared at the imperial edict.
He has now received the imperial edict, and he is now the Prince of Longquan. If he kills Liu Dewei, he will become the Prince of Ning.

He will also be the Grand Administrator of Xizhou.

"Your subject, Liu Shishan, obeys the imperial edict!"

Song Jingang's offensive was still fierce. On the sixth day of the tenth month, he captured Jinzhou, and the next day he captured Longmen County in Jiangzhou.

However, they encountered some trouble when they attacked Jiangzhou City.

The vanguard general Yuchi Gong encountered Luo Shixin, the governor of Jiangzhou, and his attack was thwarted. Instead of launching a direct assault, Song Jingang turned his attention eastward and captured Yicheng County in Huizhou at the foot of the Taihang Mountains.

Faced with Song Jingang's fierce offensive, Pei Jidu fled into the Zhongtiao Mountains, ordering a scorched-earth policy, forcibly relocating residents into the castle, and burning down their stockpiles. This action sparked serious discontent among the people.
In Xia County, Lü Chongmao raised his arm and called for an uprising, gathering a crowd to declare himself King of Wei and raise an army against the Tang Dynasty in response to Liu Wuzhou.

The billowing smoke and flames reached Chang'an.

The urgent message for help flew into the Taiji Palace like a whirlwind.

Facing Liu Wuzhou's massive army, which had already reached the gates of Guanzhong, Emperor Li Yuan convened another emergency court meeting.

"Given the bandits' strength, it is difficult to contend with them. We should abandon the area east of the Yellow River and focus on guarding the Guanzhong Plain."

Li Yuan's current problem is that the situation in Hedong has completely collapsed, and it may even spread to Guanzhong at any time.

After a series of defeats, the foundation of the Hedong royal enterprise has been completely lost. Several reinforcements have been defeated, and the defending army has also collapsed. Now, even if more troops are added, the hole cannot be filled, and Li Yuan has no more troops to add to it.

Even now, Guanzhong is extremely empty.

A battle to defend Chang'an could be fought at any time.

"Immediately issue an edict to Pei Ji, Tang Jian, and other generals in Hedong, ordering them to abandon Hedong and retreat to Guanzhong!"

The ministers in the hall remained silent.
After a long pause, Chen Shuda reminded the emperor: "Your Majesty, Li Yi still has more than 30,000 men in Haozhou, and Liu Dewei has also returned to Haozhou with more than 10,000 defeated soldiers. If we abandon Hedong, should Li Yi's troops stay or retreat?"

Upon hearing Li Yi's name and his 50,000 troops in Haozhou, Li Yuan's spirits lifted slightly. However, with Pei Ji, Liu Hongji, Jiang Baoyi, Li Xiaoji, and others suffering defeats, could he rely on Li Yi's lone army?

"Why don't we have Li Yi withdraw from Xizhou?" Chen Shuda suggested.

Li Yuan hesitated, still feeling somewhat unwilling.

"No, wait a little longer, let Li Yi guard Haozhou a little longer."

(End of this chapter)