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

Chapter 485 Alliance
The wooden boat sailed on the canal and finally docked at the mouth of the Huan River.

"We part ways here. Take care on your journey," Zhang He, the governor of Xiangzhou, said to his nephew Li Yi. "When you arrive in Mingzhou, don't rush things. I know you want to make something of yourself, but haste makes waste."

Your uncle gives you this advice: In important matters, remain calm; in urgent matters, proceed slowly; in difficult matters, adapt; in bad matters, stay away. Haste makes waste, and slowness leads to a smoother outcome.

Li Yi saw Zhang He off at the dock, and he agreed with his uncle's advice as someone with experience.

"Xiangming and Xiangming are not far apart, less than two hundred li. If there is anything, send someone to report it quickly. They can arrive in a day."

Keep in touch."

"Hmm." Zhang He waved his hand, and his boat turned into the Huan River, sailing upstream towards Xiangzhou Anyang, while Li Yi and Tian Liuan, the governor of Weizhou, continued to travel along the canal.

The next day, the fleet arrived at the Huanshui County dock, and Li Yi had to part ways with Tian Liuan, the governor of Weizhou.

Tian Liuan continued his journey by boat along the canal to Yuancheng in Weizhou, while Li Yi disembarked and traveled by land to Yecheng, before switching to the Zhanghe River and taking a boat to Mingzhou.

Li Yi and Tian Liuan, the governor of Weizhou, had already reached an agreement that the various governorates in southern Hebei would advance and retreat together, and their policies would be consistent.

For example, issuing bonds together.

He was quite familiar with Tian Liuan. During the Battle of Guzhou, Li Yi was still a newcomer, while Tian Liuan was a general under Wang Shichong, alongside Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, and others. Ultimately, persuaded by Li Yi and Luo Shixin, Tian Liuan abandoned Zheng and joined Tang on the battlefield.
In the past two years, he has made many meritorious contributions in the Tang Dynasty. He was first transferred to the Imperial Guard as a General of Chariots and Cavalry, and later transferred to Hebei under Li Shentong. He then participated in the Battle of Hedong, the Battle of Luoyang, and the last campaign against Hebei.

He went from serving under Li Shentong to serving under the Grand Marshal of Shaanxi East Circuit, and eventually became the Right Fourth Commander of the Prince of Qin's Palace.

Now, the emperor has appointed him as the governor of Weizhou, in charge of the military affairs of the three prefectures of Wei, Bo, and Bei. Li Yi could tell that the emperor wanted to separate him from the Prince of Qin's residence and transfer him to Hebei. Because he had previously followed Li Shentong in managing Hebei, he was relatively familiar with the area, and he had briefly served as the prefect of Weizhou before.

"If you need anything, just let me know." Tian Liuan didn't treat Li Yi as an outsider. After all, the Ten Generals of Guzhou were brothers back then, and Li Yi was one of their old brothers.

"Yes, if you encounter any problems that you can't handle, you can also send me a letter directly."

The "thing that Li Yi couldn't handle" actually referred to Gao Jibo.

Gaojibo was located in Zhangnan County, Beizhou, under the jurisdiction of Tian Liuan's Weizhou General Administration. It was one of the two notorious rebel strongholds in Hebei at the end of the Sui Dynasty, the other being Douzigang in Dizhou.

Dou Jiande and his followers settled in Gaojibo, which was originally the confluence of the Zhang River, stretching for hundreds of miles, with reeds and rushes growing everywhere.

Dou Jiande was a commander of two hundred men at the end of the Sui Dynasty. Seeing the turbulent times, he recruited hundreds of deserters and refugees and had his fellow villager Sun Anzu lead them to raise the banner of rebellion in Gaojibo. Later, Gao Shida also joined the rebellion in Gaojibo.

Dou Jiande's entire family was later killed by the government on charges of colluding with bandits, which was not unjust.

Sun Anzu, Gao Shida, Zhang Jincheng, Dou Jiande, and many other powerful figures and heroes at the end of the Sui Dynasty rebelled here because this place was easy to hide troops in and difficult to besiege.

At the end of the Sui Dynasty, Gaojibo was bustling with activity. Sun Anzu was killed by Zhang Jincheng, and his several thousand men joined Dou Jiande. Zhang Jincheng was later killed by Yang Yichen, and most of his remaining troops also joined Dou Jiande.

Dou Jiande rose to power from among the bandits of Gaojibo. After the leaders of the bandits were killed one after another, he took over a group of followers and became the new leader. Later, Dou Jiande was defeated by Xue Shixiong and fled to Douzigang in Dizhou. He then made a comeback, annexed Wei Dao'er, and gradually became the ruler of Hebei.

In his early years, Dou Jiande fought fiercely with the Gao clan in Gaojibo.

In his early years, his involvement with bandits was exposed, and his family was killed. He had no choice but to flee to Gaojibo, but instead of joining Sun Anzu, he joined the more powerful Gao Shida. At that time, Gao Shida and Gao Dezheng were from the Bohai Gao clan, and under the banner of the Bohai Gao clan, they had gathered an army of 50,000 men.

Later, Gao Shida killed the Sui general Guo Xuan, but underestimated the enemy and was killed by Yang Yichen.

Gao Dezheng styled himself Duke of Donghai and appointed Dou Jiande as his chief secretary. After Gao Dezheng's death, the Gao family supported Gao Dangtuo as Duke of Donghai, while those outside the Gao family supported Dou Jiande. After a fierce battle, Dou Jiande became the new leader.

Some of Gao's former subordinates then went to Douzigang.

The original leader of the Douzigang bandits was Liu Badao, a local hero with hundreds of followers. After raising an army, he quickly amassed over 100,000 men. After Liu Badao's death, Li Deyi succeeded him. After Li Deyi's death, Ge Qian took over.

When Ge Qian was in charge, Gao Kaidao went to join him and was appointed as a general. Later, Ge Qian was also killed by Sui generals. Gao Kaidao then led the remaining troops north to Cangzhou, and finally fought his way to Beiping, where he proclaimed himself the King of Yan.

In the early years, the Hebei militia mainly consisted of two branches: Gaojibo and Douzigang, plus some scattered bandits.

The two groups, Gaojibo and Douzigang, were originally led by the Gao family of Bohai. After several rounds of government troops encircling and suppressing them and internal strife, they were divided into Dou Jiande's Xia and Gao Kaidao's Yan.

Now, the bandits in Gaojibo have resurfaced, and many people have fled to Gaojibo to commit theft.

These thieves are the same people as before.

However, after Dou Jiande's defeat and the fall of the Xia Kingdom, many Xia soldiers were disbanded, but some former bandits inevitably returned to their old ways.

Others were sent home and suffered humiliation from powerful local families. They had previously been thieves and rebels, and had become followers of the Xia King. The powerful local families dared not provoke them, and had even retaliated against them.

Now the tables have turned.
With the Xia Kingdom destroyed, these people were sent home. Wouldn't those powerful landlords take advantage of their misfortune?
Some people can tolerate it, while others choose to move away.

But some people, when pushed to the limit, simply kill and set fires, and after taking revenge, they go back to Gaojibo to become thieves. After all, practice makes perfect.

This kind of thing has happened quite often lately.

When news of Dou Jiande's sudden death in Chang'an reached Hebei, many of the generals who had surrendered from Hebei refused to return to their posts, causing even greater turmoil.

In many places, powerful local families began to intensify their attacks and retaliations against Dou Jiande's former troops, even believing that this was politically correct.

Some people want revenge.

Some people, however, simply took the opportunity to embezzle the money and land of Dou Jiande's former subordinates.

After all, many of Dou Jiande's former subordinates came from humble backgrounds.

With the fall of the Xia Kingdom, they lost their patron. Dou Jiande's former subordinates, returning home alone, were no match for the local powerful clans, and naturally, more and more of them turned to banditry in Gaojibo.

Especially in the area near Gaojibo, which was Dou Jiande's stronghold, most of his confidants came from the surrounding area. Despite Dou Jiande's previous popularity in Hebei.

However, even with popular support, it was mostly limited to the lower classes; the powerful and wealthy families were merely forced to support him.

Now they're all as vicious as the returning militia.

“A few bandits are nothing to fear.” Tian Liuan laughed. “I am the most experienced in catching thieves and suppressing bandits. Don’t forget, my Da Ye Chao, Brother Qin Er, and Luo Dadan have long been following General Zhang in suppressing bandits in Henan.”

Tian Liuan was brave and skilled in battle. He had a similar experience to Qin Qiong. At the end of the Sui Dynasty, he served as a captain and followed Zhang Xutuo to capture bandits. He was known for his courage. Although he was not as famous as Qin Shubao and Luo Shixin, he was also known for his courage.

Although they were mainly suppressing bandits in Hebei back then, he really didn't care about the remaining bandits in Gaojibo.

"I suggest that we should focus on appeasement and pacification if possible, and only suppress those who resist with force."

Li Yi believes that
For the past two years, Gaojibo has been under Dou Jiande's rule, and there haven't been any large groups of bandits. But now they've reappeared.

That's not just a matter for thieves.
The thieves are merely the effect, not the cause. We must first understand the cause before we can prescribe the right remedy.

This is similar to treating an illness. If you have tonsillitis and a high fever, the fever is just a symptom, while the tonsillitis is the cause. You need to reduce the inflammation; simply lowering the fever won't help.

Tian Liuan, however, had a different opinion.

"Regardless of why they entered Gaojibo to become thieves, being a thief and bandit is unacceptable. They must be surrounded and suppressed. We must first wipe them out before discussing the cause and process."

Gaojibo was, after all, under the jurisdiction of the Weizhou General Administration.
Li Yi, the Grand General of Mingzhou, does not currently govern the Weizhou General Administration, so he did not say anything more.

"If you need anything, just let me know, or I can lend you Su Dingfang; he's familiar with Hebei."

Su Dingfang was from Jizhou, not far from Gaojibo. At the beginning of the late Qing Dynasty, he followed his father to organize local militia to suppress bandits. He was not one of Dou Jiande's bandits.

It was only later, when Dou Jiande became the ruler of Hebei, that Su Dingfang followed the governor and submitted to the Xia king.

Li Yi didn't suggest sending Liu Heita to Gaojibo to help suppress the bandits. He wasn't entirely at ease with Liu Heita and felt more comfortable keeping him under his watchful eye.

"Minister, don't forget me, Old Liu. General Tian is a valiant general of our time, and he is not afraid to deal with mere bandits. I am a civil official, so lend me Commander Su for a while."

Liu Zhan, the governor of Dezhou, laughed from the side.

This man was also an old friend of Li Yi, the former governor of Haozhou in Hedong. He and Li Yi defended Haozhou together and cooperated well.

He was later transferred to Shannan to take up a post, and now he has been newly appointed as the governor of Dezhou, holding the imperial authority to govern the military affairs of Dezhou, Dizhou, and Cangzhou.

Within the territory of Dizhou under his rule was Douzigang, a place bordering the sea and rivers, with a deep and difficult terrain, which had historically been a place where bandits roamed.

This area is a vast salt marshland; in times of peace, people boil salt here, but in times of chaos, they become thieves.

Liu Zhan's career has been very smooth in recent years. He was promoted from the governor of Haozhou to the governor of Dezhou in just three years. Although he didn't even take Liu Wuzhou seriously in Haozhou back then, he had Li Yi by his side.

Now that he has taken office as the governor of Dezhou, he really has little confidence in the face of the ever-growing number of bandits in Douzigang, which stretches for hundreds of miles.

They had no choice but to borrow generals from Li Yi.

"Why are you being so polite, Lord Liu? We fought side by side in Haozhou back then," Li Yi said with a smile, beckoning Su Dingfang over.

"Su Dianjun, Chief Steward Liu wants to borrow you to suppress bandits at Douzigang. Are you willing?"

"This subordinate will obey the Commander's orders," Su Dingfang said.

“Alright, then you and Luo Dafu can go together.”

Liu Zhan stroked his beard and laughed, "With these two great generals, I can rest easy."

Tian Liuan had Gaojibo under his jurisdiction in Weizhou, and Liu Zhan had Douzigang under his jurisdiction in Dezhou; both were places where bandits were suppressed.

In fact, not all of Li Yi's jurisdiction over Mingzhou was a pure land. Julu in Xingzhou had the Dalu Marshland, and the surrounding area was also a haven for bandits and thieves. Not to mention the Taihang Mountains to the west, which were even more of a gathering place for mountain bandits and horse bandits.

Dou Jiande's death, coupled with the court's distrust of the surrendered generals from Hebei,

All of these factors are contributing to the deteriorating situation in Hebei.

Li Yi looked at Liu Heita.

This is the real bombshell. If he explodes, it will be disastrous. We must keep him close so he doesn't have another chance to rebel.

Now, most of Dou Jiande's former generals have been kept in Chang'an by the emperor, or sent to places like Longyou, Hexi, and Bashu, effectively eliminating their threat from within.

However, if the imperial court's policies in Hebei fail to appease the people, then even if Liu Heita, Cao Bao, Fan Yuan, and others are gone, there will be Zhang Heita, Zhao Bao, Qian Yuan.

In autumn, the vast plains of Hebei stretch as far as the eye can see, a magnificent landscape, but beneath the calm surface, undercurrents are already surging.

"Brother Tian, ​​Master Liu, farewell."

The three stewards went their separate ways.

(End of this chapter)