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

Chapter 551 Sikong Wuqing
After the military council, Li Yi returned to the rear office.

Lotus had already personally cooked a table full of delicious dishes, including wild rice. The rice grains were very long and thin; they were actually the seeds of the water bamboo plant, which would grow into water bamboo if infected with a certain fungus. In later generations, wild rice was still a food on the table, but it was particularly expensive. At this time, it was considered one of the six grains, along with wheat and rice.

Stir-fried mallow and patchouli, cucumber salad, and steamed eggplant.

"There's also mutton soup and cold pottery with locust leaves. Looks like we're in for a treat today," Li Yi exclaimed.

Like a lotus flower with a strap around its neck, binding and hanging up its sleeves to reveal two snow-white arms.

She even had an apron tied around her waist, giving her the air of a virtuous wife and loving mother who cooks with her bare hands.

"I heard that Li Lang doesn't like to eat fish, so I didn't cook any fish today. Actually, the sashimi I made was quite good."

"Next time you can make some deep-fried food. There are a lot of small fish in the Hutuo River. Coat them in flour and deep-fry them; they'll be fragrant, crispy, and crunchy." Li Yi washed his hands and sat down at the dining table.

Separate meals

The presentation was exquisite, and the tableware was beautiful. It wasn't the original tableware; it was clearly something she brought with her. There were gold plates and silver dishes, as well as celadon and white porcelain bowls and plates, and even some extremely beautiful lacquer plates.

The chopsticks are made of ivory.

This set of tableware alone is extremely luxurious.

For two people dining,
However, a group of servants stood and served them.

Li Yi had been busy all day and was indeed hungry, so he stopped talking and focused on eating.

Her cooking skills are indeed excellent, but I don't know if she really made it.

The mutton soup is very tender, especially the clear broth which is not greasy.

The cold pottery made from locust leaves is chilled in ice water, making it refreshingly cool.

Even the stir-fried soybean sprouts were sweet and refreshing, and the winter mallow, which was not a favorite food of the Tang people, was prepared very well and did not feel sticky.

Li Yi ate three bowls of wild rice in one go.
This type of wild rice has an extremely low yield, but it was very popular among the Tang people. It was quite expensive and belonged to the food of the nobility. Many great poets of the Tang Dynasty praised it in their poems, calling it "Diaohu rice".

After eating, rinse your mouth.

The plates and dishes were removed.

The maid brought over a beautiful tea set, and Madam Li personally boiled water and brewed tea.

She even brought her own loose tea. Li Yi immediately recognized the tea packaging as belonging to the Li family's tea shop, which was extremely expensive, costing one tael of gold for every tael of tea.

She skillfully boiled water to make tea, instead of using the traditional method of simmering tea, indicating that she had come prepared in advance.

“My grandfather also served as governor and prefect, and was granted the title of Duke of the County. However, he died young. When my grandfather died, my father was only twenty-four years old and was still studying at the Imperial Academy in Luoyang. Later, he inherited the title of Duke of the County, which was reduced by one rank.”

As Li brewed the rock tea, he spoke at length.

"My father married three wives and took more than a dozen concubines. He also had many children, including fourteen sons and nine daughters."

I was born to my father's second wife, the second of his daughters, and was commonly called "Second Aunt" in the family. When my mother was alive, my father doted on me, but unfortunately, like my first wife, she died young when I was only four years old.
Not long after, my father remarried, taking a third wife from the prestigious Lu family of Fanyang. She was also his cousin, and my stepmother later arranged for me to marry her sickly nephew…”

The tea has a wonderful aroma after being brewed.
Li Yi picked up his teacup and listened to her story while sipping his tea.

This is much better than stories about gambling fathers, sick mothers, and younger brothers going to school.

Although Lianhua was born into one of the five surnames and was the legitimate daughter, her birth mother died early, she had many brothers and sisters, and her stepmother came from a prestigious family. Therefore, although she lacked nothing in terms of food and clothing when she was young, and could even be described as living in luxury, she lacked love.

Later, her marriage was arranged by her stepmother, and she married her sickly cousin.

"You know what? My husband has been sickly since he was a child. After we got married, he couldn't even touch me. Yet, his family kept pressuring him to have children. It's ridiculous. Later, they even blamed me for not being able to have children."
"Hmph, then I'll find someone to have a child for their family," but when he actually did, the Lu family refused.

"The child was never born, and my reputation is ruined."

"Not two years later, he finally died of illness, and I was finally free. Later I found that being a widow was not so bad. At first I was not used to it and even a little bored, but later I started to run a business and it became less boring."

Li Yi sipped her tea slowly without interrupting; perhaps she just wanted to talk to someone.

"But growing this business too big isn't always a good thing. There are always people eyeing it. The Lu family wants it, and the Li family wants it too. They despise me for tarnishing their family's reputation, but they don't mind my money."

"Hmph, I won't give it to anyone."

As Lianhua refilled Li Yi's tea, her gaze was intense: "I know it's shameless of me to be so eager to sleep with you, but Li Lang is such a hero, who wouldn't be tempted? And to be able to seek Li Lang's protection, in the end I'm the one who benefits."

After finishing a pot of tea,

Li Yi smiled and said, "Go your own way and let others talk. If you want to do business, then go for it. Having your own business will give you some confidence."

The Turks are attacking, and this place will soon be a battlefield as well. You should return to Hebei early tomorrow morning. Zhang Liang is also going back anyway, so you can go together and have someone to look after you.

"With the invincible Li Sikong here, I don't need to leave."

"Aren't you afraid that, just in case, you actually want to go to the grasslands to dry cow dung?"

"If I were to follow Li Sikong, I'd be willing to dry cow dung on the grasslands," Ru Lianhua said with a smile.

Li Yi simply waved his hand, "I am very grateful that you brought food in your time of need. As for the shelter you wanted, I have given it to you. You should go back now."

"Can I call myself your woman in public from now on?"

"Haven't you already done that?"

Like a lotus flower, she pouted, "But this is just a name without substance, does Sikong really dislike me that much?"

"It's not that I'm disgusted, it's just that they're too unfamiliar to handle." She chuckled.

"Then I'll get to know Sikong Chu better here."

"I'm serious, the fighting is about to start. Fanzhi is just a small town. In war, swords and spears have no eyes. I can't take care of you. You should hurry back to Hebei. I'm hoping you can procure more grain and supplies for me."
Don't worry, you won't suffer any losses.

"Sikong is truly heartless. Does he really think that people travel thousands of miles to transport grain to the battlefield just to earn a few copper coins?"

“This is more than just a few copper coins. If I give you that batch of good horses, you can make several thousand strings of cash by selling them. And that iron mine, once it's mined, will also generate a steady stream of income.”

"Master Sikong, don't send me away."

"I like obedient women."

"Alright, I'll leave tomorrow, but could you please show me some affection tonight, Master? Although I'm a widow, I'm only twenty and still quite pretty."

Actually, most of those rumors circulating are just hearsay. I did keep male lovers, but only one. At that time, I just wanted a child…”

Li Yi waved his hand, indicating that he didn't care about those things.

A gentle night breeze was blowing.

Liu Shiche led a troop of light cavalry across the Hutuo River under the cover of night, heading towards Qin Wutong's camp at Mayubao, twenty miles west of the city.

General Qin,

"Liu Bingcao, your 20,000 Turks are encamped 20 li to our west, and 40 li beyond Yanmen Pass. What are your instructions, Minister of Works?"

"Can we give him a piece of our mind?" Qin Wutong was a burly general with a protruding belly and a waist that was nine feet in circumference. Although he was broad-shouldered, round-waisted, and fat, he was a fierce and warlike general.

Puban City, which had been held for three years by the Tang army despite several different generals, was finally captured by Qin Wutong.

Facing the Turks,
Qin Wutong couldn't wait to make a big splash.

"General Qin, I have come to deliver the orders from the Commander-in-Chief. He said we must find a way to wipe out these 20,000 Tu people."

"Wow, Sikong has quite the appetite."

Qin Wutong was thinking of making a quick move, but Li Yi was thinking of wiping out those 20,000 people.

“Sikong’s appetite is not just for these 20,000 men. What he wants is to annihilate these 20,000 men and then attract more Turkic troops.” Liu Shiche smiled and wiped the sweat from his face. “Come on, let’s discuss how to fight.”

"Sikong must have already made a plan. Just give the order, and we'll act according to his plan." Qin Wutong's attitude was quite proper.

"How about we launch a night raid on the Turkic camp tonight, dampen their spirits, and lure them deeper into our territory?"

"I can see it."

Qin Wutong only had three thousand cavalry here.

He didn't hesitate at all when it came to launching a night raid on 20,000 Turkic troops.

He was a general, and he had a clear understanding of his role: he was not a decision-maker, but merely an executor.

He would attack wherever Li Sikong told him to, and he would attack however Li Sikong told him to.

This was determined not only by his official position, but more importantly by Li Yi's undefeated reputation and his growing trust in him after spending a long time with him.

"Sikong said that General Qin has fought on the battlefield for a long time and is an expert in warfare, so General Qin will be in charge of making all the decisions on the front lines."

"Fight if you can, but don't force it if you can't."

"I, Qin, understand. Don't worry, I've been keeping an eye on the Turkic camp. Those wolves are incredibly arrogant and disrespectful; they don't take us seriously at all."

To be honest, I didn't take them seriously either. There were 20,000 Turks, and their camp was quite large. But 10,000 of them were the defeated Zhishi troops from Xinzhou City, and the other 10,000 were Sogdians and other mixed-race troops led by Ashina Simo, who looked like a mixed-race barbarian.
With 20,000 troops, what is there to fear?

"If I had more than three thousand cavalry, I dare say I could have wiped them out in a single battle."

They obtained permission from Li Yi to launch the attack.

Qin Wutong was eager to get started and immediately summoned the military officers and soldiers. He first conveyed Li Sikong's instructions and then quickly began to make arrangements for the night raid.

Although Li Yi had Liu Shiche convey Qin Wutong's message that the main purpose of this night raid was to dampen their morale, provoke the Turks, and lure them to Fanzhi,
Li Yi needed to eliminate these 20,000 troops before Jieli breached Yanmen City.

Whether tonight's night raid can wipe out the enemy camp or how many soldiers are killed is not important; what matters is the raid itself.

But Qin Wutong, with three thousand light cavalry at his disposal and having obtained permission for a night raid, would surely not just go through the motions.
"After the Turkic bandits besieged and annihilated the 20,000 troops of the King of Dingxiang, they became arrogant and reckless. The fact that they only sent 20,000 troops shows how arrogant and conceited they are."

When the sky is wild, it will rain; when people are wild, disaster will follow.
"This time, let's teach them a lesson and show them that we in the Central Plains are not without men." Qin Wutong slammed his hand on the table. "Everyone, prepare yourselves! We'll attack at midnight and raid their camp at four in the morning!"

Raiding camps was very popular since the Northern and Southern Dynasties.

The Southern Dynasty army, in particular, was adept at raiding enemy camps. In the war between the North and the South, the Northern Dynasty army, with its large number of cavalry, had a way to deal with the Southern army's camp raids: during the day, they would use cavalry to harass the enemy, and at night, they would quickly move their positions and set up camp a hundred miles away from the enemy.

In this way, even if the Southern army went to raid the camp, it would be almost dawn by the time they reached the destination, making them more vulnerable to being surrounded by cavalry.

Raiding a camp is a tactic that doesn't require much skill; its success depends entirely on the ability of the opposing general and whether he is prepared.

If you encounter a skilled general, raiding a camp is basically useless and you might even be outmaneuvered.

Twenty thousand Turkic troops camped just twenty miles from Qinwutong. According to scouts, their camp stretched out in a continuous line, but it was not as fortified as the Tang army's. To put it bluntly, the Turks were arrogant and underestimated their enemy.

(End of this chapter)