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

Chapter 479 Left Black Gate, Right Dingfang

"Hey, hey-yo-yo,"

"Hey, drag it out, drag it out."

On the Guangtong Canal, a 300-li stretch from Chang'an to Tongguan, Li Yi sat at the bow of a large wooden sailboat. The autumn wind was rustling, and his fleet sailed smoothly and powerfully, cutting through the waves on the canal, which was several tens of meters wide.

On the other side, against the current and wind, grain transport boats were heading to Chang'an, pulled by the sheer strength of boatmen. The boatmen chanted work songs as they toiled, pulling the boats on the canal, a task requiring each boatman to lift a thousand pounds.

One boatman was hired for every 10,000 catties of grain on the grain transport boat. The boatmen secured the tow ropes to the iron rings on the boat, lined up in a row, and pulled the boat upstream.

They were like a herd of old donkeys, the tow ropes chafing their shoulders and backs, heads down and backs bent as they struggled forward.

It was late autumn, but the boatmen were all shirtless as they pulled the boats.

The synchronized chants were powerful yet monotonous.

Those sitting on the boat can hardly truly appreciate the hardships endured by the boatmen on the shore.

"I heard that General Liu once pulled a boat on the Yuhe River in Hebei?"

Li Yi asked Liu Heita.

"Yes, back when Emperor Yang of Sui conquered Liaodong, the able-bodied men of Hebei were either fighting in Guandong or transporting grain and fodder, pulling deer carts, oxcarts, and towing boats on the Grand Canal." Liu Heita, the military commander of the Prince of Wu'an's inner court, looked at the boatmen on the riverbank.

His eyes were filled with memories.

Pulling a boat is hard work. Even with a thick shoulder pad, your shoulders will still get chafed. If you pull for a long time, thick calluses will form, and you might even develop a big lump of flesh.

In the summer, they were almost completely naked while pulling the boat, and they often had to jump into the water. They were sweating a lot, and their clothes would get wet again and again, so they got used to simply not wearing any clothes.

"Actually, I also dug the Imperial River,"

In his early years, Liu Heita was just a country hoodlum. He came from a vegetable farming family but was unwilling to farm. He was idle and fond of gambling. During the Daye era, he did not escape digging canals and transporting grain.

Liu Heita is clearly a bit lost these days.

Dou Jiande was defeated and surrendered. He originally fled back to Mingzhou, took a sum of money, and returned to his hometown in the countryside. He said he wanted to be a peaceful vegetable farmer, but how could someone like him truly be content with the solitude of growing vegetables?

He bought a lot of land and servants in his hometown, but in reality, he was always keeping a close eye on the situation.

When the Xia king was treated well by Li Shimin, the Prince of Qin of the Tang Dynasty, and Li Yi, and the various tribes of the Xia king submitted to him one after another, and were even granted important official positions, Liu Heita became somewhat restless.

Although his younger brother Liu Shishan died at the hands of the Tang army, there's not much to say about that.

I endured more than a month of hardship in my hometown.
When Li Yi sent people to pacify him, to invite him to come out of seclusion and to offer him an official position, especially after seeing the letter from the King of Xia urging him to come out of seclusion, he finally did come out of seclusion.

He helped reorganize the troops in Hebei, and then returned to Chang'an with them.

The sudden death of the Xia king
This caught Liu Heita off guard, and the ensuing major reshuffle of surrendered generals in Hebei by the imperial court infuriated him.

But what could he do besides get angry?

The Xia king is dead, and all the generals of Hebei are in Chang'an.

The morale of the people has even collapsed, and their fighting spirit has completely vanished.

After the seventh day following the death of King Xia, Liu Heita also accepted a new transfer order and became a fifth-rank military officer in Li Yi's Wu'an King's inner court.

It turns out that the title of Duke of Handong has also been lost.

Becoming Li Yi's bodyguard was a huge change from his previous life, and he felt lost the whole way after leaving Chang'an.

I don't know where to go or what to do.

Among Dou Gong's former subordinates in Hebei, Liu Heita was nothing special. Although he had followed Dou Gong for a long time, he did not follow Dou Jiande when he later became an outlaw. He later served Li Mi and Wang Shichong, and only after being defeated and captured by Li Shiji two years ago did he follow his former elder brother Dou Jiande.

He was just a general.

He was far inferior to people like Fan Yuanqi, Shanxing, Cao Dan, Cao Zhan, and Gao Yaxian. Even under Dou Gong's command, his rewards were not as good as those for Gao Yaxian's adopted son, Su Dingfang.

"General Liu, what are your thoughts on returning to Hebei?" Li Yi asked.

Liu Heita, however, was lost in thought.

The boatmen's chants on the Guangtong Canal in Guanzhong are very different from those on the Imperial Canal in Hebei.

"I heard that General Liu said he wanted to go back to his hometown to grow vegetables during the seventh day after Lord Dou's death?"

Liu Heita snapped out of his daze.

"I drank a few too many glasses of wine that day; the persimmon wine was quite strong," he replied.

“Haha, growing vegetables is actually not bad. I have over a thousand hectares of land, and some of my estates in the suburbs also have land specifically for growing vegetables to supply the city market. The income is even higher than growing grain,” Li Yi said with a smile. “However, with General Liu’s abilities, growing vegetables is really a waste.”

The vegetables can be grown by the tenant farmers and retainers of the household.

"It is easy to find a thousand soldiers, but difficult to find a general. You should know that you and General Su are both people I specially asked the Sage to come to me."

Liu Heita lowered his head.

"Lord Dou has passed away, and Hebei has also surrendered. As a surrendered general, I have no place to use my talents."

"General Liu, you are mistaken. In my view, the fate of the world is now sealed, and destiny has turned to the Tang. Before long, Lin Shixian, Li Zitong, Feng Ang, Liang Shidu, Yuan Junzhang, and others will all be swept away."

The war of unification will end soon.
But the Tang Dynasty still faces another calamity.

The steppe Turks have always been a major threat, and there has been a constant battle between them. This is precisely the opportunity for General Liu and General Su to demonstrate their abilities. Previously, when the Sui Dynasty lost power, various warlords vied for control, but ultimately it was an internal war among our Han people. No matter how well they fought, it was not worthy of much praise.

But when faced with the Turkic people, we must stand up.

Liu Heita suddenly looked directly at Li Yi and asked, "What's the difference between us Hebei people fighting the Tang army from Guanzhong and fighting the Turks from the grasslands?"

"Of course there are differences. When Tang and Xia fought, it was a battle between brothers. In the end, they were family. To put it bluntly, whoever won would become emperor, and it wouldn't have much impact on the common people."

However, when the Turks invaded, at best they looted and slaughtered, plundering property and livestock, and enslaving people. At worst, they directly occupied the land, thus establishing foreign rule.

General Liu, do you really believe that foreign rule can truly benefit the Han people of Hebei?

"Wasn't the lesson of the Five Barbarian Invasions enough?"

"Since the beginning of the Daye era, the world has been in turmoil, but in just a few years, the Tang Dynasty will unify the world, and the people in all regions will soon return to their former peace and stability."
But the Turks invaded, and the court was defeated; then there would be no peace.

"General Liu, with your abilities, are you really content to be a vegetable farmer or a wealthy man? Don't you want to fight for fame and fortune in the army, to be remembered in history, or at the very least, to earn a duke or marquis title and secure a position for your wife and children with your horsemanship and archery skills?"

Our Tang emperor has always been generous to meritorious officials. In recent years, how many people have been granted official titles and ranks? If I, Li Yi, were to talk about my riding and archery skills, I would definitely be inferior to General Liu. However, I was fortunate enough to win some battles and was granted the title of Prince and the rank of one of the Three Dukes.

"General Liu's abilities are certainly worthy of being granted the title of Duke in the future."

Liu Heita felt quite pleased to receive such praise from Li Yi.

He wouldn't judge a book by its cover and think that Li Yi couldn't lead troops into battle just because he didn't have a general's belly. In today's world, who can deny Li Yi's military skills?
"Does Your Majesty truly believe that I, Liu Heita, still have a place to be of use? Me, a surrendered general from Hebei?"

Li Yi smiled. He knew that the people of Hebei were very unstable because of Dou Jiande's death. Although no one of any significant figures had openly rebelled, the small groups of rebels in Hebei were actually bandits or low-ranking soldiers from Dou Jiande's old bandit group who were unwilling to farm after being dismissed and had gathered in the mountains to resume their old ways.

General Liu also served in Wagang before.
Many of the generals of Wagang, including Li Shiji, Guo Xiaoke, Luo Shixin, Qin Shubao, Cheng Yaojin, Niu Jinda, Wang Junkuo, Huang Junhan, and Liu Dewei, also surrendered to Wang Shichong after Li Mi's defeat, just like you.

But look at them now.

More than ten people were granted the title of Duke of a State, and there were many more others who were granted the titles of Duke of a Prefecture, Duke of a County, or Marquis of a County.

His Majesty will not care about their origins or investigate their past.

General Liu, I'll say it again: you are known as the Swift General, extremely skilled in commanding cavalry. Your horsemanship is superb, in no way inferior to those dukes and grand generals. You just need an opportunity.
Given the opportunity, your abilities will surely enable you to achieve great merit; becoming a duke or a general will be just a matter of time.

Liu Heita gave a wry smile.

He is currently just a military officer in the Prince Li Yi's mansion. Although he is a fifth-rank official, he and Luo Dafu only command about three hundred tents.

Luo Dafu was Li Yi's confidant and also the elder brother of his concubine. Although Li Yi was a fellow military commander in the inner palace, he was certainly no match for Luo Dafu.

Liu Heita didn't know where he would get a chance to become a fifth-rank military officer.

"Do you believe me?" Li Yi asked.

Liu Heita remained silent. "King Xia believed in you, but the Seventh Day of the Seventh Month hasn't even passed yet."

"General Liu, life is full of paths, and we must choose the right one. You may not know me well yet, and you may not trust me completely, but you can see how I have treated the subordinates who have followed me since I entered officialdom."

the next day.

The fleet is still sailing on the canal.

It's 300 li from Chang'an to Tongguan.

Traveling by land, whether on horseback or by carriage, takes several days and is very bumpy. But traveling by water by boat is much more comfortable.

The water in the canal is shallow, so there are no waves, making it a very comfortable place.

It only takes three days to get to Tongguan, and most importantly, it's comfortable.

These days, horse-drawn carriages are fine for short distances, but for long distances, you really need a metal butt.

"Please invite Su Dianjun here."

Yesterday I had a frank and open conversation with Liu Heita all day, and today it's Su Dingfang's turn.

Li Yi considered these two to be the most capable generals among those from Hebei, especially since they were both skilled in commanding cavalry. Liu Heita was known as the Swift General, and his greatest strength lay in raids.

Su Dingfang led troops at the age of fifteen and was known as a warrior capable of defeating ten thousand men. He was also extremely skilled in cavalry warfare.

These are two treasures!

He is not well-known or high-ranking among the surrendered generals in Hebei, but Su Dingfang will follow Li Jing to destroy the Turks. He sat on the sidelines for decades, but he achieved great success in the late reign of Emperor Gaozong. He displayed great power, captured three kings and destroyed three kingdoms. From Goguryeo to the Western Turks, he traveled thousands of miles and there was no one he could not defeat.

Liu Heita—anyone who knows Tang history would know him.

In terms of tactical ability alone, Liu Heita was no less capable than Li Shimin. After Dou Jiande's death, he rebelled against the Tang Dynasty twice in Hebei, and once turned Hebei upside down. His military level was quite remarkable.

He specifically requested the emperor to bring these two men under his command, partly out of appreciation for their talent and partly as a precaution.

If we keep Liu Heita under our watchful eyes, or even subdue him, we'll eliminate a major threat.

Of course, history has both chance and inevitability. Even if Liu Heita did not rebel again, if the court's policy toward Hebei had major problems, others would have stood up to rebel against the Tang Dynasty.

However, someone as formidable as Liu Heita is extremely rare. If he were to wholeheartedly follow the imperial court, the future situation would certainly be different.

Yesterday, Li Yi talked to Liu Heita, mainly trying to entice him with promises of fame and official rank. Liu Heita, however, was the kind of person who couldn't stand being alone. Looking at Qin Shubao and the others from Wagang, who were all dukes and generals, how could he be willing to really go back to the countryside to grow vegetables?
Su Dingfang's personality is different, so I'll have to use a different approach when I talk to him.

(End of this chapter)