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

Chapter 377 Mermaid Under the Moon

The moonlight was like a ribbon.

In the small courtyard behind the Xiangyang Xingtai government office, the swimming pool was enclosed by curtains, and insects were chirping softly.

Li Yi soaked in the cool water, smiling and waving to her.

She leaped into the pool, draped in a gauze dress, creating ripples that shattered the moon's reflection on the water's surface.

She swam gracefully in the water like a mermaid.

"So you can swim too."

Huo Yu turned in the pool and swam towards him, saying, "My home is Guantao in Weizhou, right by the Grand Canal."

The water rippled over her collarbone, and there was a scar a little below her left collarbone.

"That's an arrow wound."

During their intimate moment, Li Yi noticed several wounds on her body, this one being the most recent. It was from earlier this year in Huazhou, Shandong, after she and her son's failed attempt to assassinate Cao Dan at a banquet.

Speaking of that past event, she still cares, "This arrow wound was inflicted by Liu Heita, the Duke of Handong, who was chasing Dou Jiande. If I hadn't dodged quickly, I would have died."

After that defeat, Li Shiji and Guo Xiaoke abandoned them and fled. She and Li Wenxiang crossed the river and defeated a Xia army, then retreated westward, but were still pursued by the Xia army. In particular, Liu Heita appeared in Weizhou.

They were all wiped out, and almost all of Huo Yu's female battalion was killed in battle. If it weren't for her female soldiers fighting to the death to hold the rear, she would have been left with more than just this scar.

"If I ever see Liu Heita again, I'll help you get revenge," Li Yi said.

"Am I ugly with all these scars covering my body?"

"No, it only makes you more charming."

A quiet summer night, with a cool breeze.

Huo Yu smiled with satisfaction, "I don't know what made me so bewitched, you promised me one thing."

"You said."

"Keep our business quiet, don't let anyone know, especially not Wen Xiang."

Li Yi nodded.

Huo Yu breathed a sigh of relief, but was also somewhat disappointed. He turned around and plunged into the pool, swimming far underwater before beginning to swim freely.

Li Yi gazed at the white streak in the waves, quite pleased.

If possible, Li Yi would like to stay in Xiangyang longer. In the sweltering summer heat, marching and fighting is not what he wants.

However, the emperor specially dispatched an envoy to convey an oral edict.

The Turkic Khan Chuluo was furious and launched a full-scale attack. Although the Tang Dynasty was also seeking peace, the border war had not yet ended.

It could even be said that the situation in northern Xinjiang is constantly deteriorating.
It was worse than the court had anticipated.

Lanzhou has been captured by the Turks led by the Lishi Hu, and even the Ji Hu in Shizhou are rebelling. This is all the result of the court's hasty and rash handling of Liu Jizhen and his son.

Although Liu Jizhen repeatedly changed his mind, after recovering Hedong, the court should not have been in such a hurry to kill Liu Jizhen and his son. This would have made it seem as if the court did not trust the Lishi Hu people, and if the Turks provoked them, they would naturally rebel again.

Guo Zihe from Yulin was also forced to prepare to abandon his land and move south to Yanzhou.

Even worse news was that Mohe Dushe Ashina Dubi led a large-scale invasion of Liangzhou. This man later became the Khagan of the Western Regions, and he was originally stationed in the Hetao area. Zhang Changxun, the governor of Fengzhou, became sworn brothers with him and was bestowed the title of Geli Teqin by him.

This time, instead of attacking Zhang Changxun, he sent troops to Liangzhou, which inevitably made the court doubt Zhang Changxun's loyalty. Yang Gongren went out to meet him, but was defeated by Mohe Dushe and retreated to Liangzhou with heavy losses. Mohe Dushe then plundered extensively in Hexi, kidnapping people and livestock.

The emperor was somewhat helpless and could only order Prince Li Shuliang of Changle to garrison troops at Xiaoguan Pass in Yuanzhou, while simultaneously drawing troops from the south of the mountains to reinforce the border.

Tang troops in Lingzhou and Liangzhou no longer dared to leave the city for open battle.

Under these circumstances, the emperor could only intensify his efforts to seek peace with Chuluo, bearing the pressure while hoping that the Central Plains battlefield could capture Wang Shichong as soon as possible.

Luo Shixin had already taken the lead and launched an attack on Cijian Fort, located between Guzhou and Luoyang. Prince Zheng, Wang Xuanying, personally led troops to its rescue.

Luo Shixin, the vanguard, was brave and unparalleled. He led his troops to meet Wang Xuanying. When the two armies lined up and clashed, Luo Shixin adopted the anvil tactic. He used three thousand infantrymen to form an anvil to face the enemy in the front. After the two armies clashed, he led a thousand cavalrymen to become the hammer and outflank Zheng's army from the rear.

Luo Shixin led only a hundred cavalrymen and charged straight at Prince Zheng's banner.

Zheng Jun couldn't withstand his thunderous attack. He charged all the way to the banner and knocked Wang Xuanying off his horse with a single spear thrust.

Fortunately, Wang Xuanying was well-armored, and his guards risked their lives to rescue him and take him back.

However, Prince Zheng was terrified by the killing and hastily retreated. Luo Shixin, with fewer troops, defeated the many and won a great victory, beheading over a thousand.

Luo Shixin seized the opportunity to pursue and capture Xiashi Fortress.

Tang and Zheng's first battle was a resounding success.

Li Yuan was greatly encouraged in Chang'an and directly promoted Luo Shixin to Duke of Shan. At the same time, he urged the main forces of Li Shimin and Li Yi to speed up their advance.

Even in Xiangyang, Li Yi could feel the immense pressure Emperor Li Yuan was under, probably no less than that of Wang Shichong.

Although Wang Shichong occupied most of Henan at this time, his core territory was only around Luoyang. The rest of the area was occupied by newly surrendered military leaders who were all opportunists. When Li Mi was in power, they surrendered to Li Mi. When Yuwen Huaji went north, they surrendered to Yuwen Huaji. Later, many others surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, and now they have all surrendered to Wang Shichong.

Wang Shichong's core army in Luoyang numbered only about 50,000 to 60,000.

Li Tang launched an attack with an army of 100,000. Li Yuan hoped to capture Luoyang before the end of the year, at which point eastern and southern Henan would naturally be pacified with a single proclamation. July 21st,

Li Yibing passed through Fangcheng, and the Tang army passed through the Fangcheng Pass and entered Henan.

Ahead lies the territory of Zhang Yin, the prefect of Yizhou under Zheng Jun. This area was originally controlled by Zhang Shanxiang, a subordinate of Li Mi, and later surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, who appointed him as the governor of Yizhou and the Duke of Xiangcheng. However, last year, the Tang army was overwhelmed by Liu Wuzhou's troubles and could not even spare time to repair the Guandong region. Wang Shichong sent troops to attack Zhang Shanxiang. Zhang's requests for help were unsuccessful, the city fell, he was captured, and was killed for refusing to surrender.

Zhang Yin, the governor of Yizhou, led his light cavalry to keep a close watch on them from a distance.

"Who is this Zhang Yin?" Li Yi asked Li Shiji, the deputy chief steward, who was more familiar with the Henan region than Li Yi.

"This Zhang Yin was originally a subordinate of Lu Mingyue. Around the eleventh year of the Daye era, Lu Mingyue gathered more than 100,000 followers and operated between Chen and Ru."
Later, Wang Shichong defeated Lu Mingyue, and Zhang Yin was captured and surrendered to Wang Shichong. Wang Shichong appointed his cousin Wang Shibian as the governor of Xuzhou, and Zhang Yin was under his command.

Last year, Wang Shichong ordered Wang Shibian to lead troops to attack Yizhou and Qizhou, and defeated Zhang Shanxiang and Li Gongyi. Zhang Yin was then appointed as the governor of Yizhou.

This Yizhou was formerly known as Ruzhou, and during the Daye era it was Xiangcheng Commandery.

Li Shiji explained in detail, "The former Xiangcheng Prefecture now includes the prefectures of Yi, Ru, and Lu."

"Is Zhang Yin difficult to defeat?" This was what Li Yi was more concerned about.

"Just a nobody." Li Shiji looked down on Zhang Yin. In terms of seniority in the rebel army back then, Zhang Yin wasn't even worthy of carrying his shoes.

The capital of Yizhou was located in Liang County, on the north bank of the Ru River. The Ru River originates from the Funiu Mountains, flows through Xiangcheng in the north of Yizhou, passes through Xuzhou and enters Yuzhou, and finally flows into the Huai River.

Topographically, Yizhou is located in the Ru River Valley Basin. To its west lies the Funiu Mountains, and to its north, it is separated from Dengfeng by the E'shan Mountains. Dengfeng and Luoyang are further separated by the Songshan Mountains and the Shaoshi Mountains.

Yizhou is separated from Xiangcheng to the east by a hilly area, while Lushan and Yexian to the south are built on the banks of the Shahe River.

"I plan to first attack Xiangcheng along the Shahe River, then we will split our forces. I will attack Xuzhou and Weizhou, and then Bianzhou and Huazhou. Deputy Commander Li will go up the Ru River to take Jiacheng, Yizhou, and Linru, then advance on Yique, and then go east along the Ying River to attack Yingyang, Dengfeng and other cities. Our final target is Zhengzhou, to cut off the food and supplies to Luoyang in the southeast. Together we will completely block the reinforcements and food supplies from the two directions in the southeast of Luoyang."

As for Li Daliang, he went down the Ru River, first pacifying Yuzhou, then attacking Ying, Chen, and Bo, with his final target being Xuzhou.

The military strength of the prefectures in southeastern Henan was very weak, and most of the governors and prefects were local military leaders who had submitted to the central government. However, this area was an important grain-producing region. Even though it was devastated at the end of the Sui Dynasty, growing grain on the plains was still better than growing grain in other places, and there was also convenient water transportation.

Soldiers in Luoyang, grain from southeastern Henan.

They must be separated.

Luoyang was the main battlefield, so it was left to Li Shimin and his men to fight there. Li Yi was responsible for sweeping away Wang Shichong's grain and supply territories in the southeast.

"Won't this be spreading too thin?" Li Daliang was somewhat worried about Li Yi's bold plan. Was he going to take over half of Henan in one fell swoop?
There must be hundreds of cities in this area. Although southeastern Henan is a flat region, the cities are still quite large. If there are any that stubbornly resist, they will probably be difficult to defeat.

“We’re all easy targets here, but the King of Qin is the tough nut to crack.”

"As long as Deputy Chief Steward Li doesn't cross Mount Song, it's fine."

He drew three lines on the sheepskin map with his finger, representing three armies, all attacking from west to east.

Li Shiji's route passed through Xiangcheng, Yizhou, and Guanzhou (Zhengzhou).

Li Yi's route passed through Xiangcheng, Xuzhou, Bianzhou, and Huazhou.

Li Daliang's route passed through Xiangcheng, Yuzhou, Chenzhou, Bozhou, and Xuzhou.

These three arrows,
Although it was not aimed at Wang Shichong in Luoyang,

However, it directly targets his vital financial and grain reserves. If he could successfully cut off the flow of funds and grain from the southeast into Luoyang, Wang Shichong would suffer the same fate as when he was beaten down by Li Mi.

Wang Shichong had more defeats than victories against Li Mi, and with food shortages, how could he face Li Shimin?

Li Shiji actually wanted to march north, reach Yique, and then head straight for Luoyang along the Yi River to join the main battlefield. However, Li Yi's orders were to ignore Luoyang for now, and instead focus on picking on the weaker targets, attacking the rabble, and beating up the local warlords.

Li Yi didn't take the dozens of prefectures in Henan seriously at all.

But Li Shiji dared not question it, after all, Li Yi's record in Hedong was unparalleled, and he had pacified Shannan in just over a month.

What right does a homeless dog like myself have to question things?

After the defeat at Liyang, Li Shiji had always doubted his own abilities.

"Duke Cao, we'll split the 20,000 troops in half, each taking 10,000."

Li Daliang said he would divide the 40,000 men into three groups, with him and Li Shiji each leading 12,000 and Li Yi leading 16,000.

“One army of ten thousand is enough,” Li Yi said frankly.

“Then, like the Chamberlain, I and General Manager Guo will also divide our forces into two groups, each leading 10,000 men. I will attack Yu and Ying, while General Manager Guo will attack Chen and Bo, and finally we will join forces to attack Xuzhou,” Li Daliang proposed.

“I suggest you take Yuzhou City first before splitting your forces,” Li Yi said, looking at the map. “Our two armies should attack Ye County and Xiangcheng together first, and then split up. General Guo, you can join forces with me to take Yuzhou first, and then split up to attack Chenzhou.”

For those local rabble forces, we need to win a few impressive battles first, fiercely and swiftly, so as to have a deterrent effect, and then it will be easier to recruit and persuade them to surrender.

Huo Yu stated frankly, "I am following the Attendant's lead."

Li Yi glanced at her and said, "The King of Longxi, Feng Ci, will be the deputy general of the Duke of Cao; the King of Bohai, Feng Ci, will be the deputy general of the Duke of Wu'an; the Marquis of Wenxian, Wen Xiang, will be the deputy general of the Duke of Yangdi; and the Lady of Pingyuan County will be my deputy general."

We'll launch a four-pronged attack, and make a name for ourselves across southeastern Henan!

Li Wenxiang looked at the young and passionate Li Yi, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw his mother smiling at Li Yi, a look that seemed somewhat unfamiliar to him.

(End of this chapter)