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

Chapter 357 Killing Luo Tuxia County

To the west of Taiji Hall, within the Secretariat.

Both the Secretariat and the Chancellery were located within the Taiji Palace, serving as internal government agencies. The Secretariat drafted edicts, while the Chancellery reviewed them. Being close to the emperor's sleeping quarters, they were well-suited for participating in decision-making.

In the afternoon, the scribes of the Secretariat were judging cases when Feng Deyi, the Grand Secretary, accompanied by an eunuch, escorted Prince Guiyi, Daman, to the backyard of the Secretariat.

Feng Deyi and the others then left.

Soon, the Gutlugh Special Forces and the Rehan Special Forces arrived at the Central Secretariat with several Turkic warriors, and no one stopped them.

They didn't make a sound and went directly to the backyard of the Secretariat.

When an official went outside to look out, a clerk immediately waved for them to return to their quarters.

backyard,

Damian was so drunk he was completely unconscious, snoring loudly.

Gudulu and Rehan came up to him, looked at him and snorted coldly. Usually, Daman was always surrounded by Turkic knights. His residence in Chang'an and his manor outside the city were guarded by many guards.

Killing him is really not easy.
The Tang emperor did not want to take direct action, so he had no choice but to do this.

The two men were forbidden from bringing knives into the palace. The special agent from the Rehan Special Service grabbed a bronze candlestick from the table to smash it, but Gudulu stopped him, saying, "The Tang people say there can be no bloodshed."

Gutluth's gaze swept over the area.
Seeing a white ribbon inside the room, he sneered twice, "Look, they prepared it long ago."

Rehan curled his lip, "These people are just making a fuss over nothing. A prison guard could have solved it, but they have to make it so complicated."

"Stop arguing and get to him."

He picked up the white ribbon, wrapped it around Daman's neck, gave a signal with his eyes, and Rehan grabbed the other end. The two of them exerted force together.

The white ribbon was tightened.

Daman stopped snoring, and the feeling of suffocation made his face turn red. He began to struggle.

The two special agents, Hot and Cold, were still somewhat out of control, so they quickly ordered their warriors to tighten the reins. Five or six men grabbed Bai Lian and held her tightly.

Daman's face turned purplish-black, eventually becoming completely bloodless, his eyes bulging out, and his tongue being squeezed out.

Still not reassured, the group continued to tighten the nostrils for a long time before finally checking the patient's breathing.

"No need to try anymore, the neck bones are already broken."

Gu Dulu was panting heavily.

After a while, Gu Dulu said, "Let's go."

"Aren't you going to cut off their heads?"

"Originally, we wanted it, but the Tang people wouldn't allow it, so we didn't cut it."

"When did we become so easy to talk to, saying we wouldn't cut the price?" Rehan complained.

Gudulu looked at the motionless Daman and said, "Who told the Great Khan to misjudge that good-for-nothing Liu Wuzhou this time? Not only did he cause us to lose soldiers and generals, but he also greatly damaged the Khan's prestige, and the leaders of all the tribes are dissatisfied."

Right now, if we want to break ties with the Tang people, the noble tribes won't agree, so we naturally have to leave a way out.

"Don't worry, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future."

The group then strode away.

After they left, Feng Deyi suddenly reappeared from nowhere and sent two senior officials from the Secretariat to investigate.

"Lord Ling is dead."

“Yes, just say to the outside world that Prince Guiyi died suddenly after getting drunk,” Feng Deyi said.

"Kang Guogong Shi Danai is a confidant of Daman. Should we send someone to explain?"

Shi Danai, originally named Ashina Danai, was a special envoy of the Western Turks. He followed Daman in submitting to the Sui Dynasty and led his tribe to settle in Loufan. At the end of the Daye era, he was stationed in Jinyang. He joined Li Yuan's uprising and was enfeoffed as Duke of Kang for his merits, and was granted the surname Shi.
He is now a Grand Pillar of State, Duke of Kang, and General of the Right Guard.

"Go and explain to the Daman family."

In fact, this matter could not be kept from the Daman family. "Just say that Chuluo Khan sent someone to assassinate the Prince of Guiyi, and the court will investigate this matter."

If the Daman family is sensible, they should know that this matter cannot be pursued.

That same day, Da Man's body was returned to his home, and shortly afterward, an imperial decree arrived, granting him funds and provisions for his burial. According to regulations, Da Man's eldest son should inherit the title of Duke of Dou, while his other sons would not be granted any title. However, the emperor bestowed upon him the title of Duke of Dou, and the title of County Marquis upon his other sons as a special favor.

He bestowed upon Duke Kang of Kang, Shi Danai, three palace maids and one hundred bolts of silk.

After Daman was killed by the Eastern Turks,
Only then did Kutlugh Khan formally represent the Tang Dynasty in peace negotiations.

After the Dragon Boat Festival,

Another victory has been reported from Hedong.

"Your Majesty, the King of Qin has captured Xia County."

Li Yuan and Li Yi were boating and fishing on Beihai Lake when they heard the news. So they ordered the boat to dock and rest in the Crane Feather Palace.

"Wu Yi still gained more."

The emperor saw everyone's catch; Li Yi had caught quite a few.

“I prepared a good nest and used plenty of bait,” Li Yi replied.

The emperor ordered the fish that had been caught to be prepared, either grilled or sashimi.

“In the prosperous land of Hedong, who would have thought that there would be such stubborn resisters as Puban and Xia County?” Li Yuan thought of his cousin Li Xiaoji and son-in-law Zhao Cijing.

The son-in-law died at the gates of Puban City, and the cousin died in Xia County.
Another cousin, Dugu Huaien, plotted a rebellion. Fortunately, Li Yi discovered it and reported it in time; otherwise, he might have been killed in Puban.

Li Yuan was furious at the mere mention of these two places. "Since these two cities are so fond of resisting, let's just slaughter them and use them to appease the spirits of Cijing and Xiaoji in heaven."

Crown Prince Li Jiancheng immediately echoed, "In the initial pacification of Xue Ju, the slave thief was not killed, which led to rebellion. If he is not completely exterminated, he will surely become a future threat."

First, there were the fickle and unreliable Liu Jizhen, Liu Liu'er, and Huang Ziying; then there was Yang Shilin, who wavered between the two sides and secretly colluded with Wang Shichong and Xiao Xian, causing the court to lose the two important cities of Dengzhou and Xiangzhou.

"Slaughter Xia County as a warning to others!"

Li Yi sat to one side.
Frankly speaking, whether it was Puban's three-year refusal to join the Tang army or the Xia County rebellion that caused the Tang army great trouble,
The court was indeed furious.

Lu Chongmao, a local tyrant from Xia County, first defeated Pei Ji, then Li Xiaoji, almost destabilizing the court's last line of defense. At that time, Li Yuan was even forced to abandon Hedong.

Li Shimin almost couldn't continue to defend Baibi.

Moreover, both Xia County and Puban had the same problem: after the previous traitor was killed, the people who followed continued to resist and refused to surrender.

King Xingben of Puban finally surrendered because all his followers and confidants had died, and the city's food supplies had long been exhausted, leaving no one to follow him.

However, Li Yi also felt that since Xia County had already been captured and Puban had surrendered long ago, the priority now was to appease them. The bandit leaders and key figures could be investigated, but the common people, women, and children, should not be spared.

Even if you kill all the armed resistance fighters, that's still somewhat justifiable, but killing women, children, and the elderly is going too far.

"Your Majesty, I believe that massacring an entire city is excessive. Generally, even in cases of rebellion, only men are killed; women and children who are not slaves are spared."

Jiancheng said, "Wuyi, you are in Haozhou. Do you know how much harm these people have brought to the court? If they are not severely punished, how can we warn others in the future?"

"Puban surrendered, and His Majesty executed Wang Xingben. To turn back now to investigate, or even massacre the city, would be a breach of faith. The world is not yet at peace, and trust is more valuable than gold; it cannot be lost."

Li Yuan thought about it.
“Then slaughter Xia County. Forget about Puban, but exile all 700 of Wang Xingben’s trusted men who are still alive to Liangzhou.”

Li Yi wanted to persuade the emperor further, but the emperor waved his hand, declaring the matter settled and forbidding any further discussion.

The emperor also summoned Feng Deyi and asked him to draft an edict, which was a pardon. All those in the four prefectures of Hehedong, Bing, Jin, Lu, and Hao who had been misled by Liu Wuzhou before May of the third year of Wude, regardless of the severity of their crimes, were pardoned. They were all ordered to resume their work without further questioning.

In prefectures, counties, and castles, those who steadfastly uphold loyalty and resist wickedness should be recorded and reported to the emperor for special commendation.

The imperial edict clearly stated the circumstances at the time, and the situation was understandable.

However, this imperial edict granted amnesty to the four general administrations of Bing, Jin, Lu, and Xi, with the southernmost one being the Jinzhou General Administration, which governed the four prefectures of Jin, Jiang, Qin, and Lü.

Further south, the Puzhou General Administration, which includes the prefectures of Pu, Yu, Tai, Hui, Shao, and Rui, was not included in the amnesty edict.

Although Song Jingang's territory south of Jinzhou only included Huizhou, Taizhou, and parts of Jiangzhou,

However, the emperor did not grant a single pardon. Since there was no pardon, the investigation would naturally proceed. Anyone who responded to or even followed Song Jingang when he marched south would be thoroughly investigated.

Li Yi felt uneasy when he heard Feng Deyi read aloud the newly written imperial edict.

In battle, casualties are inevitable, but massacring entire cities after the war crosses his line. Especially now that the emperor has issued a general amnesty, but not for the prefectures of Hui and Yu, who knows if there will be widespread repercussions later?

"Your Majesty, I have something to say."

"What, you spent sixteen years studying Taoism as a monk, and you can't stand this kind of thing?" Li Yuan asked.

"Your Majesty, on this journey back to the capital from Jincheng Palace, I saw many starving people along the way, with corpses of the starved lying everywhere by the roadside."

I have heard that Wang Shichong, taking advantage of the great war in Hedong, has seized Yizhou, Dengzhou, Xiangzhou, and other places from our Great Tang.

Li Yuan waved his hand, "I have pacified Hedong and will soon make peace with the Turks. Next, I will attack Wang Shichong."

"What I'm trying to say is, why not distribute the entire population of Xia County among the meritorious soldiers? This way, the court can save some money and avoid being accused of killing and cruelty."
And it can also serve as a warning to those who come after.

Before the chaos of the Sui Dynasty, Hedong Commandery had a population of nearly 160,000 households. After the chaos, Hedong suffered far less from the war compared to other regions such as Henan, Hebei, and the Jianghuai region.

After the Tang Dynasty raised its army, order was quickly restored here.

Ten years ago, Xia County had nearly 16,000 households. However, due to the ongoing wars in the Central Plains, a large number of people have flocked to the Xia County area in Hedong in the last two years. After all, this area is located in the Yuncheng Basin Plain, with the Sushui River irrigating the fields, and the Jiechi Salt Lake to the south, which can be described as having the benefits of salt and grain.

Many people from Henan and Hebei fled to the Hedong region to make a living, and the population of Hedong increased rather than decreased.

When Song Jingang marched south, Pei Ji employed scorched-earth tactics, forcing the people to move into the castle and even burning their houses and destroying their crops.
This finally drove local powerful figures like Lü Chongmao to rebellion, and many other powerful figures from the surrounding areas also flocked to Xia County.

This is also why Xia County was able to defeat Pei Ji's army, and why, after Yuchi Gong defeated Li Xiaoji, the Tang army was able to hold out for so long when they attacked again.

Even if Lü Chongmao dies, they can immediately recommend another one.

When Xia County fell, there were at least 20,000 to 30,000 people inside, or even more.

Slaughtering them outright would be both a sin and a waste.

If it is truly impossible to persuade the emperor to pardon the people of Xia County, then changing the massacre of the city to enslaving the soldiers as a reward would at least save their lives.

"Replace the portion of the rewards that should have been given to the soldiers with slaves from Xia County."

Seeing the emperor stroking his beard in thought, Feng Deyi also spoke up to persuade him, "With years of war, the imperial treasury is indeed very empty, and the rewards for the soldiers of Hedong cannot be fulfilled for the time being. The Duke of Jin's plan is not bad. If tens of thousands of people from Xia County are reduced to slaves, and each person is given a dozen or twenty bolts of silk, it can be worth hundreds of thousands of bolts of silk."

Slaughtering the city leaves nothing but a sense of venting anger.

If they hadn't become slaves, and the money had been used to offset some of the soldiers' rewards, it would have been equivalent to receiving five or six hundred thousand bolts of silk.

Of course, besides the fact that they could be exchanged for hundreds of thousands of bolts of silk for slaves, the money, houses, and land they confiscated were still worth a considerable amount.

A rough calculation shows that the tens of thousands of people in Xia County and the city who were not enslaved and whose property was confiscated are worth at least a million bolts of silk.

“Alright, as Wu Yi said, the resisters in Meixia County will be enslaved, their property confiscated, and all the money and silk obtained will be used to reward the meritorious soldiers.”

"Give Li Yi twenty slaves from Xia County as a reward, and also grant him five hundred mu of land."

Li Yi breathed a long sigh of relief, feeling as if he had just saved tens of thousands of lives, and his soul was elevated at that moment.

Those twenty slaves and five hundred acres of land are no big deal.

(End of this chapter)