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

Chapter 502 Can't Wait Any Longer
On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival, the imperial guards did not enforce the curfew.

At night, the city was brightly lit, with a lantern tower twenty feet high erected in front of the palace. It was decorated with brocade and hung with gold and jade, and thousands of lanterns were lit at the same time, creating a dazzling display of lights that mingled with the stars and moon.

The curfew was lifted, the gates of the neighborhood were opened, and people flocked to the streets with their wives and children to watch the lanterns.

The noble and wealthy families of Chang'an had long ago erected lantern towers in front of their homes, each with a unique and dazzling design.

On the Vermilion Bird Gate,

Emperor Li Yuan showered down a rain of coins, scattering handfuls of newly minted bronze Kaiyuan coins, occasionally adding handfuls of gold and silver Kaiyuan coins as well, sharing the joy with the people.

After scattering another handful of coins, Li Yuan turned and returned to the city wall, his smile fading.

"Eldest brother, second brother, come here."

Li Yuan sat down, picked up a glass of wine. On this festive day, this fine wine, brought by the King of Gaochang from the Western Regions when he came to pay tribute, tasted rather bland.

King Ju Boya of Gaochang was an old acquaintance of Li Yuan. When Boya's father died, Boya succeeded to the throne. The Turks ordered him to submit to Turkic customs. Boya initially refused, but later had to temporarily comply under pressure from the Turks. He harbored resentment towards the Turks and sent envoys to establish friendly relations with the Central Plains.

When Yang Guangxi made his western tour, Bo Ya led the way and organized the kings of twenty-seven kingdoms in the Western Regions to kneel and welcome the Sui emperor in Zhangye. They then followed him to Chang'an. As a result, he was granted the titles of Grand Master of the Left, Prefect of Cheshi, and Duke of Bian. He also married his relative Yuwen Yubo to Princess Huarong.

He later accompanied the expedition against Goguryeo, and upon returning to Gaochang, he ordered the people to undo their queues and change into clothing from the Central Plains.

However, his actions thoroughly angered the Turks, who instigated a rebellion within the country. Boya was expelled, and it wasn't until the third year of the Wude era that the rebellion was quelled and he was able to reclaim the throne.

For the past two years, they have come to Chang'an to pay tribute and participate in the New Year's Day grand court ceremony.

Li Yuan greatly admired Ju Boya, but Ju Boya was already seriously ill when he came, bringing his son Ju Wentai. Ju Boya requested that after his death, the Tang Dynasty appoint Wentai as its successor, and even wanted to request a marriage alliance for Wentai from the Tang Dynasty.

Li Yuan has not yet agreed to the arranged marriage.

The Eastern Turks, Western Turks, Tuyuhun, and Gaochang all requested marriage alliances with the Tang Dynasty, but Li Yuan refused to agree. Even though he was at a disadvantage in the fierce battle with the Eastern Turks, he still did not agree to send a princess to marry them. Previously, he had only sent prostitutes to Chuluo.

During the Sui Dynasty, princesses were bestowed upon these Hu and Di barbarians. Some were princesses from the imperial family, while others were princesses from the imperial relatives. For example, Ju Boya's wife was Yuwen Yubo.

Ju Boya's illness was serious; the imperial physician said he might only have a year left to live. He was actually quite young, but he was about to die. Even a king had been banished for seven years.

"Father?"

Seeing Li Yuan standing there lost in thought, holding a wine cup, Li Jiancheng couldn't help but remind him.

"Oh, sit down."

Li Yuan regained his composure.

"We just received an urgent military report from Hebei: Dingzhou City has fallen, and Dugu Kaiyuan and Shuang Shilu have retreated all the way to Wuji County on the north bank of the Hutuo River."

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin frowned and looked at the Crown Prince. Although he did not directly reprimand the Crown Prince, he knew that if the Crown Prince had not insisted on personally leading the expedition to claim credit, yet delayed the campaign, and even issued an imperial edict forbidding the generals and governors of Hebei from crossing the border to attack, this outcome would not have occurred.

Li Yuan also looked towards Jiancheng.

The Crown Prince stood there, stunned. He hadn't expected that after the death of Murong Xiaogan, the governor of Yizhou, and the demotion of Shuang Shilu, the governor of Dingzhou who came from the Prince of Qin's family, and the replacement of him with his own man, Dugu Kaiyuan, Dingzhou would fall.

"Your Majesty, I will lead the troops into battle tomorrow..."

Li Yuan's gaze, however, was fixed on his second son, Li Shimin. Li Shimin opened his mouth, but remained silent. Li Yuan knew his second son wanted to request permission to take command, and then turned his gaze to the Crown Prince.

I felt a little disappointed.

After pondering for a moment,
"The situation in Hebei is much worse than expected. Gao Kaidao led the Turks to invade. Now, not only are they ravaging Yidingheng, but a force of troops has also marched south from Jizhou to plunder Mo, Ying, and Cang. The latest news is that Wen'an in Mozhou, Lucheng in Cangzhou, and Pingshu in Yingzhou have all been captured and looted by the rebels."

Li Yuan made up his mind.

"The two general administrations of Ming and Ding were merged into one, renamed Dingzhou Grand General Administration, with Li Yi as the Grand General Administration and Prefect of Dingzhou, governing the six prefectures of Yi, Ding, Heng, Zhao, Xing, and Ming."

Yizhou was placed under the jurisdiction of the Dingzhou Grand General's Office, while the Youzhou Grand General's Office governed six prefectures: You, Ping, Tan, Yan, Bei, and Ying. The Yingzhou Grand General's Office was abolished.

"Li Yuan is appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of the Yanzhou Road Army, Li Yi as the Commander-in-Chief of the Dingzhou Road Army, and Qiu Shili as the Commander-in-Chief of the Jizhou Road Army. Each of them shall command the troops of their respective prefectures and immediately dispatch troops to join forces to suppress Gao Kaidao."

Li Yuan did not intend to wait for the completion of the project. The war situation could not wait. Even if this meant that Li Yi might be able to quell the Gao Kaidao rebellion and defeat the Turks before the Crown Prince, Li Yuan could not wait any longer.

"Dugu Kaiyuan was appointed Prefect of Hengzhou, and Cheng Mingzhen was appointed Inspector Prefect of Mingzhou."

This adjustment is also to better deal with the fighting in northern Hebei. With the south temporarily stable, the focus must be shifted forward.

Dingzhou was Boling County during the Sui Dynasty, with an important geographical location. Now it is the front line. The merger of Ming and Dingzhou Prefectures does not mean that Dingzhou is merged into Mingzhou Prefecture. Instead, the Dingzhou Grand General Administration was established after the merger, which also highlights the mission of this Grand General Administration.

Since Youzhou and Dingzhou are so close, if Youzhou still cannot play its due role, then the Youzhou government will have to be replaced, and Li Yi will be put in charge of the heavy responsibilities in northern Hebei. It is even possible that the two prefectures of Dingzhou and Youzhou will be merged.

Upon hearing this, Jiancheng became somewhat anxious.

"Your Majesty, I will set out with troops tomorrow..."

"Even if you send troops out tomorrow, it will take almost a month to get to Dingzhou. We can't wait for you. Let Li Yi sort things out first."

"I'm getting a little tired. You may continue enjoying the lanterns."

Li Yuan got up and left.

She left her two sons there.

Jiancheng glanced at Li Shimin, then got up and left without saying a word to his brother. Li Shimin picked up a glass of wine, walked to the city wall, and looked at the lively Lantern Festival scene. While the people of Chang'an were celebrating the festival, the people of several prefectures in Hebei were suffering terribly.

All of this should not have happened, but due to the dereliction of duty by Li Yuan, Wang Junkuo, the Crown Prince, and others, the situation deteriorated into an uncontrollable mess.

Li Shimin, who rarely drank alcohol, picked up his wine glass and drank the wine in one gulp.

He turned his head and looked towards the northeast.
Hopefully, Li Yi can turn the tide once again and quell this rebellion as soon as possible. Hebei, which has just been recovered, cannot withstand such a major war.

···
Hebei

This New Year was a time of great anxiety for the people of Hebei, especially those in the north, who were even forced to leave their homes and join the massive southward exodus of refugees.

Dingzhou City fell.
The government troops retreated to Wuji, leaving the remaining counties of Dingzhou unattended. Many local strongmen, faced with the Turkic and Yan rebels, did not bother to defend themselves, nor could they, and had no choice but to surrender, allowing the Turks and Yan troops to plunder them at will.

It's freezing cold.

All the crisscrossing rivers and streams were covered with thick ice, which allowed the Turkic soldiers and the Yan army to move freely.

Large numbers of people flocked to Zhao Prefecture, and some continued to move south towards Xing and Ming, fearing that the Turks would continue to invade Zhao Prefecture.

In the late first lunar month,

Li Yi arrived at Shiyi City in Hengzhou.

This is a famous city dating back to the Spring and Autumn Period. It originally belonged to the State of Zhongshan. Because it was located at the foot of the Taihang Mountains and the Jingxing Pass, it was a vital transportation route connecting Guanzhong to Jin and then to Yan, Zhao and Qi. Jin, Wei and Zhao coveted it and fought over it repeatedly.

This city was only about 20 li away from Shijiazhuang in later generations.

From the Qin Dynasty onwards, Shiyi was established as a county, and an armory was set up there to manufacture weapons and transport them to the northeastern battlefield.

At the beginning of the Wude era, Shiyi was once the seat of Hengzhou. Later, Jingzhou was separated from it. Not long ago, Heng, Jing, Luanli and other prefectures were abolished and merged, but the seat of Hengzhou was moved to Zhengding and did not move back.

However, the importance of Keshiyi remains very prominent.

For now, Shiyi City has become Li Yijun's temporary base camp.

Li Keshi, Zhang Liang, Qin Wutong, and their group welcomed Li Yi into the city.
"Sikong's reputation is widespread. As soon as you left Mingzhou, the rebels in Hengzhou took the initiative to retreat and went back to the north bank of the Lishui River in Dingzhou. They really gave way three times." Zhang Liang flattered Li Yi.

Li Yi entered the county government office.
The main hall has been transformed into a military council chamber, furnished with maps, sand tables, and other items.

The room was warm with a charcoal stove burning inside. Li Yi took off his cloak and said, "Gao Kaidao is quite cautious. It seems he's not entirely brainless."

I originally thought he would take advantage of the situation to besiege Zhen Ding City, which would allow us to launch a counter-encirclement.

Li Keshi pointed to the Hutuo River on the sand table, "Now we are deploying our defenses along the Hutuo River. Commander Liu Xuanye is stationed in Jingxing County, and Commander Luo Dafu is stationed in Fangshan County."
Liu Heita was stationed at Gucheng, Su Dingfang at Gaocheng, Li Cunxiao at Jiumen, and General Qin Wutong at Zhengding…

Along the Hutuo River, Li Yijun's various units stationed troops, deploying more than 10,000 men.

Although they are somewhat scattered, if Gao Kaidao and the Turks dare to come, the various tribes can quickly provide support.

Where is Gao Kaidao now?

"In Dingzhou City, their troops number about 30,000, and there are about 15,000 Turks. They claim to have 100,000 Yan troops and 50,000 Turks," said Consultant Qi Shanxing.

Li Yi was unimpressed by this claimed number; no matter how much they shouted, it wouldn't scare anyone.

"How many of Gao Kaidao's 30,000 men are elite?"

"About ten thousand people, the rest were mostly young and strong men who had been recruited from places like Youyi and Dingheng."

Li Yi looked at the sand table.

Despite facing such an enemy, Dugu Kaiyuan, the governor of Dingzhou, and Shuang Shilu, the prefect of Yizhou, suffered repeated defeats and even lost Dingzhou, a vital city.

Li Yi couldn't understand how they could lose Dingzhou City. Although the Turkic cavalry were fierce, they were not good at attacking cities. Gao Kaidao had come south, and it was also impossible for them to produce a large number of siege weapons in a short period of time.

Not only them,
Wang Gongzheng, the prefect of Hengzhou, and Cheng Renzhong, the former prefect of Jingzhou and now the chief administrator of Hengzhou, were both defeated by the rebel army in Xingtang City, Hengzhou. They suffered heavy losses and almost lost their lives, but fortunately they ran fast and escaped to Zhengding in time.

But if Li Yi had delayed sending out his troops any longer,

The empty city of Zhen Ding may also be breached.

Looking at the sand table,

Li Yi wasn't afraid of the Turks or Gao Kaidao; what troubled him most was the looting these guys had done—two or three dozen counties in Youzhou, Yizhou, Dingzhou, Hengzhou, Mozhou, Yingzhou, and Cangzhou had been plundered.

Now, large numbers of people are fleeing south, dragging their families along in this freezing weather. No matter where these refugees go, they can't survive.

The greatest destruction caused by these damned acts was not the capture of a few cities, but the collapse of the economy and livelihood in northern Hebei due to this chaos.

Li Xuantong couldn't help but curse, "Are those people, the Grand Administrator of Youzhou, all dead? It's been so long and there's not a single sound. Are they just watching a show?"

The reason Li Yi hadn't made any moves before was because of the Crown Prince's decree, and the war hadn't yet reached Li Yi's territory. But Youfu was the first to be hit.

Li Yi had long since given up hope on Li Yuan and Wang Junkuo. "Ignore them. Let's fight our own battle. First, come up with a strategy, and we'll try to recapture Dingzhou City as soon as possible."

(End of this chapter)