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

Chapter 549 Deploying the Armies
night.

Li Yi hosted a banquet in Fanzhi City to entertain the envoy Li Shouxuan. The charming widow from the Li family of Zhao County, named Ru Lianhua, also became a guest of honor of Li Yi because she sent 5,000 shi of grain to support the army.

At the banquet were prominent family members serving in the military, including members of the Lu family of Fanyang, the Cui family of Boling, and the Zhang family of Fanyang.

Five thousand shi of grain could provide the garrison of Fanzhi City with an additional ten days' worth of food.

Li Yi also toasted Ru Lianhua in front of everyone to express his gratitude.

The banquet was very lively.
But what was even more exciting was that Li Sikong got drunk, and then the beautiful widow actually went up to help him back to the back courtyard.

This scene was witnessed by countless people, including military officers and civil officials, many of whom were members of the five prominent families of Hebei, such as Li Shouxuan and Cui Renshou, and even members of the Lu family of Fanyang, the husband's family of Li Rulian.

Everyone just watched in surprise as the man and woman went into the backyard.

Many people suffered from insomnia that night.

Although Li had a bad reputation, her looks, figure, and even her charming manner and allure still made many people secretly fond of her.

The next day,

The sun was high in the sky, but the door to the bedroom in the north wing of the back courtyard was still not open.

Li Yi opened his eyes.
He found Li sitting beside his bed, looking at him with a resentful expression.

"Ah, good morning," Li Yi greeted.

“It’s almost noon. Sikong was really drunk last night. He fell asleep as soon as he got back and slept until noon. I didn’t expect Sikong to have such a low alcohol tolerance. I don’t think he drank many cups.” Li’s complexion was very poor, and she had dark circles under her eyes.

Although Li Yi asked her to stay after entering the room last night,
But Li Yi slept soundly all night. She climbed onto the bed on her own initiative, but Li Yi pushed her off the bed as if by accident.

She sat there all night, but still couldn't figure it out.

Li Yi stretched.

"Alright, you wanted to come into this bedroom last night, and you did. If you leave now, who will know what happened or didn't happen last night?"

Like a lotus flower, its breath is rapid.
These words made her feel utterly humiliated, and she gritted her teeth angrily, saying, "So, Sikong wasn't really drunk last night, he just disliked my withered and faded appearance."
"Sikong really showed no mercy to a woman; he kicked me off the bed and made me stand guard by it all night."

Li Yi laughed heartily.

"I can't bring myself to do something to someone I don't know well. I have to get to know them and develop feelings for them before I can do it."

As Lianhua's expression changed, she said, "I see. Then I won't leave. It just so happens that the Minister doesn't have a woman to take care of him right now, so I'll stay here and serve him."

"This place will soon become a battlefield, a place of chaos and war. If the city falls, you will be captured by the Turks and taken to the northern desert."

"With Li Sikong here, how can Fanzhi City still be breached?"

"Nothing is impossible; anything is possible."

"If the city really falls, Sikong will probably take the slaves with him."

"Shall I take you to the grasslands beyond the Great Wall to herd cattle and horses for the Turks?"

"As long as I follow Li Lang, I'll be willing to herd cattle and horses."

Li Yi rubbed his face; he hadn't slept well last night either.

"You think life on the grasslands beyond the Great Wall is beautiful, with blue skies, white clouds, and herds of cattle and sheep? When you get there, you'll find that life on the grasslands isn't so wonderful; there's endless milk to be produced and endless cow dung to be collected."

There isn't even a toilet.
We also have to move frequently.

Carrying water, collecting manure, milking cows, churning butter, shearing sheep, spinning thread, and weaving felt.
When the weather is sunny, we have to go to the pasture and spread out the cow dung that has just been defecated to dry in the sun…

Li Rulian couldn't help but shudder when she heard this.

Li Yi laughed and said, "Are you scared already? If you were captured by the Turks and taken to the grasslands, you would be a slave. You are so young and beautiful, so you would have to serve Turkic men, or even be used to entertain guests."

You have to bear children for their tribe to increase their population, and in times of famine, you might even be sold to others in exchange for cattle, sheep, and grain…”

Ru Lianhua chuckled, "Sikong is quite good at scaring people, but I believe in Sikong's abilities. Besides, my cousin said that the court has made peace with the Turks and the one going to the grasslands is that golden princess from Chang'an."

Li Yi sized her up.
She also looked up at Li Yi.

That gaze was still so captivating.

Li Yi extended two fingers and lifted her chin. Her oval face and almond-shaped eyes were more attractive than those cookie-cutter, V-shaped faces of internet celebrities.

"Go wash up quickly, and have breakfast with me later."

Like a lotus flower smiling gently.

"Then I'll go pack first, see you in a bit."

The woman swayed her slender waist and walked away slowly.

Li Yi felt that she was deliberately acting that way.

What a vixen!

Li Yi smiled nonchalantly and went to wash up and tidy himself up.

The family retainer Song Yi hesitated to speak.
"What do you want to say, Lao Song?"

“My lord, that woman has a bad reputation. Why should you get involved with her? She is a daughter of the Li family of Zhao County and the daughter-in-law of the Lu family of Fanyang!” Song Yi whispered.

"Old Song, someone sent me five thousand shi of grain from afar. Five thousand shi! At this time of year, how precious is that grain?"

"Didn't Ah Lang promise to give him 1,500 good horses and an iron mine as well?"

Li Yi smiled and said, "This is not a simple business deal. Forget it, you wouldn't understand even if I explained."

The grain sent by Li was a timely help for Li Yi. Even if she had her own motives and clearly wanted to curry favor with Li Yi and use his power, it was not a big deal.

After all, Li explained it directly to Li Yi in person, and did not take it upon herself to use his name as a shield, nor did she plot against him behind his back.

Shortly after,
Lady Li then appeared in a beautiful new dress, carrying a fragrant scent. She had even changed her hairstyle and jewelry.

"You're moving way too fast!"

"In order to have breakfast with Li Lang, I naturally have to hurry."

A simple breakfast,

Li Rulian, on the other hand, felt like she was on a date while eating there.

"I will arrange for someone to hand over those 1,500 fine horses and that iron mine to you. After you receive them, hurry back to Hebei. This is a battlefield."

“I promised to stay here with you. I’ll arrange for the steward to handle the transaction,” Madam Li smiled brightly. “I’m collecting grain in Hebei, Henan, and Hedong. The second batch of grain will be delivered soon.” Li Yi nodded. “Thank you.”

“I am now your woman, my lover. My property and business naturally belong to you. If you need food, I will do my best to support you.”

Although my status is not as high as that of Lady Wen, I can still deliver grain to my master.

Li Yi smiled and said, "Do as you please. I have to go to work and won't have time later."

"Go on with your work, Ah Lang."

Li Yi went to the main hall of the front office, and Li Rulian said from behind, "What would you like to eat for lunch, my lord? My cooking skills are quite good. What would you like to eat? I will make it for you."

When Li Yi arrived at the main hall of the front office...
The generals and officials all looked at Li Yi with a knowing look in their eyes.

Wang Xingmin, the governor of Weizhou who came from a bandit background, laughed and said, "The sun is already high in the sky. We are really worried about the Minister of Works. We are afraid that he will be drained of his strength."

Everyone burst into laughter.

Li Yi simply laughed it off.

"Magistrate Ma, have those five thousand shi of grain been counted and put into storage?"

"Reporting to the Minister, the five thousand shi of grain belonging to the Li family has been inspected. It is all new wheat harvested this summer. The grain is of good quality, the quantity is correct, and it has already been stored in the granary," Ma Zhou replied, rising to his feet.

Everything is ready now, we're just waiting for the right opportunity.

Because of the emperor's decree, everyone was relieved to learn that the court and the Turks had reached a peace agreement.

Although they were still preparing for war and stockpiling supplies, they felt that since the court had already arranged for the princess to be married off, it seemed that the negotiations had been successful and the Turks would probably be leaving soon.

"No wonder they said that half a month has passed since we entered Fanzhi City, and there hasn't been a single movement from Jieli Khan, who is only eighty miles away."
So, it turns out they're going to negotiate peace.

"Jieli should be withdrawing his troops soon, shouldn't he?"

"It should be so. It's almost June now, and the weather is hot. Jieli has been besieging Yanmen Pass for almost four months. What's the point of keeping him here if he doesn't withdraw?"

Everyone laughed.

Li Yi, however, was not so relaxed.

He didn't believe in Jieli.

Cough a few times,

Everyone fell silent.

"We cannot let our guard down until Jieli leads the Turkic army back across the Great Wall."

Now His Highness the Crown Prince is stationed in Puzhou, overseeing the overall situation. The Emperor has appointed me as the Chief Secretary to the Marshal and the General Manager of the Hebei Campaign, to command the current war in Daibei.

We cannot rely entirely on the Turks; we must be prepared for any eventuality.

"Liu Bingcao, let me write down my deployment."

Liu Shiche stood up to obey the order and took out paper and pen to record it.

"First, send someone to Yanmen City to meet with Khan Jieli and tell him that since a peace agreement has been reached with the court, he should immediately cease all attacks and plundering within the territory of our Great Tang."

"And immediately withdraw from Tang territory, otherwise our Tang army has the right to retaliate in self-defense at any time."

"Send another messenger to Yunzhou to contact Li Daoxuan, the Grand General of Youzhou, and Wang Junkuo, the Chief Secretary, and order them to launch an attack on Yuan Junzhang's Yunzhou."

Whether attacking Yunzhou City or other fortresses, they must attack under my orders before the Turks withdraw from the Great Wall, and are not allowed to withdraw without authorization.

Liu Shiche quickly memorized these orders.

Wang Xingmin couldn't help but ask, "Now that a peace agreement has been reached, isn't it inappropriate to let the Youzhou army attack Yunzhou? If we anger Jieli and he goes back on his word, who will bear the consequences?"

Li Yi snorted: "As long as Jieli continues his attacks on Yanmen City in Daizhou and Xiurong City in Xinzhou, and has not withdrawn from the thirty-eight cities he has already captured in the two prefectures of Xinzhou and Daizhou,

As long as the Turkic army continues to plunder Lanwushi and other prefectures...
The war is not over yet, the peace agreement has not officially taken effect, so we are still in the midst of war.

If you lay down your weapon at this moment, it would be like stretching out your neck to be cut.

"Liu Bingcao continued to record my deployment,"

"it is good."

"Let Liu Heita, Su Dingfang, and Li Cunxiao, the three generals of Yingzhou, lead cavalry to sweep through Mayi in Shuozhou. Instead of attacking major cities like Mayi and Shanyang, they can attack the countryside, raid fortresses, and seize their grain supplies, so as to make the Turkic rear uneasy."

"Send messengers to Li Shenfu, the Grand General of Bingzhou, and Zhang Lun, the Grand General of Xizhou, instructing them to dispatch elite cavalry to intercept and strike the Turkic army that has penetrated deep into Wulan, Shi, and Bingzhou."

"Order Zhang Lun, the governor of Xizhou, to send troops to reinforce Loufan Pass in Wuzhou, and order Li Shenfu, the grand governor of Bingzhou, to send troops to attack Shiling Pass, and then reinforce Xinzhou."

Multiple orders were issued in succession.

In a departure from the previous disorganized, fragmented, and even inactive situation, Li Yi demanded that all forces launch a coordinated attack.

The plan was not only to attack the deep-penetrating Turkic troops, but also to encircle them at Yanmen Pass and advance step by step.

It was Li Yi who was at Fanzhi's place.

They should also send out light cavalry to advance towards Yanmen.

To achieve peace through fighting, fighting is the key, and we must win.

If Jieli is willing to retreat, that would be best. If he doesn't, then we'll fight him until he does.

The emperor dared not strike.
Even the crown prince dared not fight.

He, Li Yi, dared to fight.
He could not allow the court to negotiate with the Turks while the various armies stood by and watched as Yanmen fell.

Xin Dai has 41 cities under his control. He had previously lost 39 of them, but now he has recaptured one.

Next, he will recapture the remaining thirty-eight cities one by one.

If Jieli does not retreat, then let the Youzhou army seize Yunzhou, let the Yingzhou army plunder Shuozhou, and let the various armies of the Tang Dynasty fight a good battle with the Turks under the Great Wall.

Since Jieli doesn't value martial ethics, let's see who's the real deal on the battlefield.

"If Jieli wants peace, then he should quickly withdraw from the Great Wall."

If he refuses to leave, then we'll beat him to a pulp!

(End of this chapter)