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

Chapter 374 Li Yi concurrently serves as Inspector-General

At the end of June, the weather was still hot.

The Tang River was shrouded in heat, the air itself seemed distorted. Inside the towering ship, Li Yi wore only a thin cotton shirt.

Through the ship's porthole, he gazed at the dense reed beds on both banks.

The fleet sailed on the river, escorted by light cavalry on both banks. The cavalrymen were clad in armor and covered with battle robes, and one can imagine how arduous their work must have been under the scorching sun.

Compared to them, the infantrymen traveling by boat were much more comfortable. They didn't need to wear armor, only cloth shirts and military uniforms. They could lean or lie in the cabin. Although it was crowded and stuffy, it was still better than marching under the scorching sun.

"I have never fought a battle like this before. I truly understand what it means to pacify the country with a single proclamation."

The female steward, Huo Yu, also removed her silver armor and changed into a red military uniform. This otherwise ordinary uniform looked extraordinary on her, subtly revealing her athletic figure.

Li Yi tried to banish certain inappropriate thoughts. Although Huo was only in her early thirties, her son was already eighteen, and Li Wen was three months younger than her.

In this era, some women are already grandmothers in their thirties. Even rural women, suffering from malnutrition, years of hard work, and exposure to wind and sun, may have dark and rough skin, making them look like they are fifty even in their thirties.

But Huo Yu possessed a captivating charm that Li Yi, the time traveler, found irresistible. Perhaps it was because she was the only woman like her in the army, or perhaps it was her free-spiritedness and athleticism.

"Just received the news,"

When Zhou Faming, the governor of Huangzhou, led his troops through Anzhou, he launched a surprise attack on the city, capturing Anlu in one fell swoop and taking Ma Guiqian, Xiao Xian's governor of Anzhou, prisoner.

"I didn't expect Zhou Faming to be so capable at his age. He has some of the qualities of his father and brothers."

Li Yi looked at the map in front of him.

At the beginning of his uprising at the end of the Sui Dynasty, Zhou Faming captured Anlu and Mianyang, but Xiao Xian later sent troops to retake them. Unable to defeat them, Zhou Faming could only swallow his anger and barely maintain control of Qizhou and Huangzhou. Later, in order to maintain the appearance of being the governor of four prefectures, he promoted two counties under his jurisdiction to prefectures, and still managed to say that he was the governor of four prefectures.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Faming has resorted to the tactic of "borrowing a path to destroy Guo" this time, which is truly surprising.

"Does the Duke of Jin know how Zhou Faming captured Anlu City?" Huo Yu asked with a smile. In this relatively small and sealed cabin, and with the weather so hot, it was easy to sweat, but Li Yi did not feel any sweat odor. On the contrary, he felt that the sweat seemed to have a fragrance.
It's hot, and people seem to get a bit irritable and restless.

Faced with that mature and sophisticated voice, Li Yi tried his best to control himself, "I haven't received any specific reports yet."

"I know, it's not really anything unusual. Before Zhou Faming sent out his troops, he arranged for people to disguise themselves as merchant caravans and enter Anlu City. After entering the city, these people secretly contacted the powerful families of Anlu City, some of whom were Zhou's protégés, old friends, and relatives."
Given the current situation, these people from Anlu also know to choose a better place to live.

At the appointed time, Zhou Faming's army marched swiftly to the outskirts of Anlu City. Inside the city, spies set fires and created chaos. Taking advantage of this confusion, Zhou Faming's men, together with the retainers of powerful families, seized the city gates, hoisted the gates, lowered the drawbridge, and let Zhou Faming's army into the city.
Xiao Xian's Anzhou governor, Ma Guiqian, did not have many soldiers. The loss of the city gate caught them completely off guard, and he himself was captured.

Li Yi nodded approvingly, "Zhou Faming is indeed worthy of his military family background; he has some ability. I reckon he could have taken back Anlu and Mianyang at any time before, but his strength wasn't enough, and he probably couldn't withstand Xiao Xian's counterattack."

“Yes, now that the Grand Steward is backing him up, what does he have to fear? He can even take Anlu and then ask the Grand Steward for credit.” Huo Yu laughed. Her laughter was hearty and cheerful. Although she was over thirty, her laughter was as melodious as a silver bell.

Li Yi discovered that he did indeed prefer young, healthy women; those who were frail and delicate did not fit his aesthetic.

"How does the Grand Steward intend to reward him?" Huo Yu asked.

Looking at the map, Li Yi saw that to the north of Anlu was Yiyang of Shenzhou, which was blocked by passes such as Pingjing Pass, while to the north of Huangzhou were three passes including Baisha Pass.

With Zhou Faming taking Anlu and capturing the governor Ma Guiqian alive, the remaining counties of Anzhou would be unable to resist.

Anlu is west of Suizhou.

However, Li Yi believed that given Zhou Faming's actions in launching a surprise attack on Anlu, he would certainly not be satisfied with that. He might not even proceed step by step to sweep through the other counties of Anzhou. Li Yi dared to say that the old man would definitely turn south next and launch another attack on Mianzhou.

Sailing down the Yun River and taking advantage of the terrain to capture Mianzhou is highly probable.

Lei Changying, the prefect of Mianzhou, was under the command of Ma Guiqian, but his troops and strength were far inferior to Ma's.

"If I'm not mistaken, Zhou Faming will bring more good news within three days and take Mianzhou."

Looking at Li Yi, Huo Shi now almost unconditionally believed his predictions, having made several bets with him and lost them all.

"Three days? It's not a short distance from Anlu to Mianzhou, is three days enough?"

"Speed ​​is of the essence in war. A surprise attack must be quick. We must take it before Mianzhou learns of Anlu's fall."

"Can the Grand Steward guess what method Zhou Faming will use to take Mianzhou? Will he resort to the same old trick and send people into the city to help him?" Huo Yu asked curiously, resting his chin on his hand.

Li Yi chuckled.
"There's no need for such trouble. If I were Zhou Faming, I would have captured Anzhou Governor Ma Guiqian alive, and taking Mianzhou would be a piece of cake."

Ma Guiqian was instructed to write a letter stating that Zhou Faming intended to attack Anlu and that Lei Changying was summoning Mianzhou troops to provide reinforcements.

While Lei Changying leads his Mianzhou troops north to Anlu, Zhou Faming can secretly send troops to Mianzhou. If successful, he can lure Lei Changying into Anlu, control him, force him to surrender, and recruit his subordinates. If he refuses to surrender, he can behead him and use his head to persuade his men to surrender.
Of course, troops were deployed to prepare for an immediate attack if Lei refused to surrender.

Even if Lei Changying doesn't enter the city, once he reaches the walls of Anlu, his Mianzhou will be vulnerable and inevitably captured. How could Lei Changying not be defeated? He will most likely surrender with his troops, or he might flee south, but Zhou Faming will surely have laid an ambush, making escape impossible.

Huo Yu took a deep breath.

"Good plan."

"It's nothing special. It's not much of a strategy. For a strategy to succeed, it has to be based on the current special circumstances."

"As the saying goes, times make heroes."

Huo Yu asked curiously, "Did you really become a Taoist priest for sixteen years? Didn't your master take you around the world and teach you alchemy, talismans, and divination? How do you know so much about military strategy?"

"Taoists, well, in prosperous times they retreat to seclusion to seek immortality through the Tao. In chaotic times they descend the mountain to save the world from suffering. Taoism is a diverse field, encompassing not only alchemy, talisman making, and divination, but also medicine, painting, and more." "As for military strategy, I haven't studied it before, but I've read Sun Tzu's Art of War. Some things are like this: once you understand one principle, you understand all principles."

Huo Yu admired her greatly. She had led an army in a chaotic world and fought her way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood. She knew how difficult it was to command troops and that it was not as simple as just talking about it on paper.

But for this young man, everything seems to be that simple.

Could you elaborate?

Li Yi said, "Actually, it's not that complicated. First, you need to have comprehensive and detailed intelligence. No matter what method you use—scouts, spies, etc.—you need to collect as much intelligence as possible. Then, you need to analyze all kinds of true and false intelligence to extract the truly useful information."

Then, based on this real and useful information, corresponding countermeasures are formulated, and finally, effective execution is crucial.
In addition, there needs to be logistical support, supplies, and equipment; there needs to be a replenishment of high-quality soldiers; and even the soldiers need a reason to fight for what they are fighting for.

It's simple in some ways, complex in others, and also involves a bit of luck.

Huo Yu wholeheartedly agreed with this statement. She and her son led a righteous army, fighting across thousands of miles, experiencing countless battles, and facing life and death. In the end, it was all due to their inherent disadvantages.

They were always thieves, lacking both a stable base and a guiding principle.

It means going with the flow and wandering around.

Huo Yu looked at Li Yi and said, "Back then, you also traveled north of Yunhe. How come I never met you? If I had taken you into the army back then and made you my strategist, I wouldn't have had to wander so much all these years."

Changan.

Li Yuan looked at the map in front of him,
The seven prefectures under the Dengzhou General Administration were recovered, the three prefectures under the Xianzhou General Administration were recovered, and the three prefectures under the Suizhou General Administration were recovered. Now, only Xiangyang City remains south of the mountains.

Zhou Faming, the governor of Huangzhou, not only sent troops to assist him, but also captured Anzhou and Mianzhou, and captured Xiao Xian, a governor and a prefect, alive.

Lu Zushang and Du Fuwei also each sent troops to Shannan to await orders.

Li Daliang also performed admirably, leading a force that swept through Xiangfan.

Even Xiao Xian dared not defy him.

The emperor ordered Li Yi to lead an army south of the mountains, giving him 30,000 men. Li Yi only hoped that this small force could recapture Xiangdeng, which Wang Shichong had seized in the process.

Who could have imagined that this detachment would now be so powerful in Shannan, even capturing three prefectures under Xiao Xian: Ruozhou, Anzhou, and Mianzhou.

Next, there is also a chance to capture Yingzhou and Fuzhou on the east bank of the Han River.

Thus, Xiao Xian's territory south of the Han River and north of the Yangtze River was reduced to only Jingzhou.

That's unexpected.

This battle in Shannan once again revealed the talent of Li Daliang.

"Li Daliang was appointed as the General Governor of Anzhou, with the authority to hold the imperial insignia, and to oversee the military affairs of Anzhou, Yingzhou, Ruozhou, and Mianzhou. He was also enfeoffed as the Marquis of Wuyang County."

The emperor looked at his son, Prince Qi, Yuanji, in the hall. After a moment's hesitation, he continued, "Abolish the Xianzhou Circuit Intendant and establish a new Xiangzhou Circuit Intendant."

He ruled over the prefectures south of the mountains, including Jingxiang and Nanyang.

Prince Yuanji of Qi was appointed as Attendant-in-Ordinary, Minister of the Imperial Secretariat of Xiangzhou Circuit, and Governor of Jizhou.

Duke Li Yi of Jin was appointed Left Vice Minister of the Xiangzhou Circuit and Governor of Xiangzhou; Prince Xiao Gong of Hejian was appointed Right Vice Minister of the Circuit and Governor-General of Xinzhou. Governor-General Li Jing of Tongzhou was appointed Chief Secretary of the Circuit; Governor-General Li Daliang of Anzhou was appointed Military Advisor of the Circuit. Duke Li Shiji of Cao was appointed Governor-General of Dengzhou and Minister of War of the Circuit…

A series of appointments were announced.

Some things caught people off guard.

No one expected that the emperor would first bestow titles upon the fourth prince, Li Yuanji, the prince who abandoned Taiyuan and fled, causing the Tang Dynasty to almost lose Hedong.

He was even granted the title of Attendant-in-Ordinary, appointed as Prime Minister, and concurrently served as the Minister of the Xiangzhou Administrative Office.

Although some people could tell from the title of Governor of Jizhou that the Prince of Qi was merely holding the position of Acting Minister of the Xiangzhou Prefecture in name only, and that the title of Attendant-in-Ordinary might not even be a real one.

After all, Jizhou is located in Wugong, west of the capital. There is Wugong Palace there, which was the former residence of the emperor. Li Shimin and Li Yuanji were both born there.

The abolition of Xianzhou Circuit and the establishment of Xiangzhou Circuit was not a big deal. In fact, this Xiangzhou Circuit should actually be called the Shannan Circuit Administrative Office, since it encompassed the entire eastern part of Shannan Circuit, as well as parts of Huainan and Henan.

Li Yi and Li Xiaogong each command a war zone south of the mountains. Li Xiaogong has been managing the area south of the mountains for several years, but Li Yi has swept across the area east of the Han River in just over a month, and his military power is at its peak.

The fact that Li Yi was reassigned from his position as Inspector of the Xianzhou Administrative Office to Left Vice Minister of the Xiangzhou Administrative Office is somewhat puzzling. Li Xiaogong's appointment as Right Vice Minister of the Administrative Office, however, is more normal.

The envoy was still announcing the specific boundaries of Xiangzhou Circuit.
It includes eleven general prefectures: Tong, Kui, Xia, Jin, Jing, Deng, Xian, Guang, An, Huang, and Sui. There are quite a few general prefectures, but the large number of general prefectures and counties at this stage has its special significance. They cannot be abolished or merged immediately, as they need to accommodate the local military leaders and powerful clans.

Many people felt that Li Yi had made such great contributions, but now the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat has become the Left Vice Minister, and the Governor of Dengzhou has become the Prefect of Xiangzhou, which meant that he was demoted instead of being granted a title.

The emperor took in the expressions on his ministers' faces.

He took out another imperial edict from his sleeve and handed it to the interpreter to read aloud.

Li Yi concurrently served as Inspector-General of the Palace.

(End of this chapter)