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

Chapter 560 Surrender
When the red sun bursts forth in the east,

Li Yicai sent someone to summon Zhang Jinshu to the city for a meeting.

In the cool summer morning breeze, Zhang Jinshu specially removed his armor, put on a white robe, and did not bring any personal guards. He only chose four trusted generals to enter the city to pay their respects.

He didn't even bring his sword; he entered the city empty-handed.

His thousand cavalrymen, located a few miles outside Mayubao on the riverbank, also voluntarily removed their armor and threw their weapons on the ground.

They were like that dog, lying on the ground with their soft bellies exposed.

On the city wall,

Li Yi watched as the five people entered the city.
I also saw a thousand cavalrymen who had laid down their arms and surrendered under the beautiful sunrise.

“Zhang Jinshu,” Li Yi was a little unfamiliar with the name, but among the four people who came with him, one was a former subordinate of Li Da'en, and another was a former subordinate of Dou Jiande.

“Gao Kaidao’s head should be correct,” Liu Shiche said from the side. Last night, Zhang Jinshu led a thousand cavalry to Mayubao to request surrender, but the Tang army did not believe him.

But he produced Gao Kaidao's head, and said that he had set fire to the numerous siege weapons that Jieli had been building for half a year, burned down the auxiliary army's camp, and released tens of thousands of people.

This news is still too shocking.

But the head was sent into the fort overnight.

Many people have met Gao Kaidao, and Li Yi himself has dealt with him in Mingzhou and Chang'an.
The head had just been severed; though its eyes were wide open in anger and it died with its head agape, it was indeed very fresh and well-preserved, easily recognizable at a glance.

However, Li Yi did not rule out the possibility that this might be a stand-in, and that Gao Kaidao was trying to swindle the city.

He wasn't familiar with Zhang Jinshu.

Some generals had heard of this man and said that he was Gao Kaidao's confidant and had been leading the elite troops on his behalf.

Last night, Li Yi still ordered his men to keep a tight guard on the city gates, and even sent only two hundred light cavalrymen outside the city to monitor the thousand cavalrymen.

Until dawn,

More news came back.
A fire did indeed break out at Yanmen Pass last night, although the specific details are still unclear.

Zhang Jincheng is a sensible person. He didn't do anything rash last night and just obediently fed the mosquitoes by the river all night.

At daybreak, he took the initiative to order the entire battalion to disarm and surrender.

They even handed over their warhorses.

This was tantamount to handing their lives entirely over to the Tang army.

Fortunately, he made the right bet.

Li Yi did not order the massacre of them; instead, he ordered hot porridge and soup to be sent to them, and Zhang Jinshu also received orders to enter the city.

The south gate tower of Mayubao
This place cannot compare to the grandeur and imposing gate towers of Yanmen City and Taiyuan City.
Although it is rather short, it is still a city gate tower and offers a panoramic view.

"General Zhang is from Shandong?" Li Yi stood with his hands behind his back on the city wall, gazing eastward.

Zhang Jinshu came up from the horse path and bowed down respectfully to pay his respects.

"The culprit's hometown is Yangxin, Cangzhou, Shandong. His family has made a living by boiling seawater for generations. At the end of the Daye era, heavy taxes and corvée labor and repeated disasters made it impossible for them to survive, so they followed Gao Kaidao to join Geqian at Douzigang..."

Zhang Jinshu knelt there and explained his background in great detail.

Li Yi turned around.
Looking at this young man, he was somewhat dark-skinned, not particularly burly, but very lean and sharp-looking, with a hint of cunning in his eyes.

"What exactly happened last night?"

"We, the generals, had no choice," Zhang Jinshu remained frank. He explained that his brothers were all from Shandong, worried about their families and longing for their hometowns. Then, seeing Li Yi achieve victory after victory, advancing all the way to the vicinity of Yanmen Pass, only to be surrounded by the imperial army from all directions.
Before they could even finish building their siege equipment, Jieli was already eager to launch an attack. They didn't want to be sent by Jieli to fill the trenches, and they didn't want to die under the walls of Yanmen.

Most importantly, they believed that Jieli couldn't even capture Yanmen City, and that the Turkic army had suffered repeated defeats against Li Yi.
The Turks were nothing but a showy but useless force, while the Tang Dynasty had already unified the Central Plains, and this world would ultimately belong to the Tang Dynasty.

For these people, following Jieli was a dead end. Even if they didn't die at Yanmen Pass, returning to the Turkic grasslands to herd sheep was not the outcome they desired.

"We also advised Gao Kaidao to return to the court, but Gao Kaidao was stubborn and went his own way. After much consideration, we decided to switch sides."

Last night, he seized the opportunity to get Gao Kaidao and his adopted son's camp drunk. Then, the criminal general personally killed Gao Kaidao, beheaded Gao Kaidao's adopted son, burned the siege equipment, opened the servant army camp, and let tens of thousands of people escape...

Li Yi listened quietly.

He reached out and helped him up. "General Zhang, your decision was right. It's never too late to turn back."

The Tang Dynasty today is like the rising sun; it will only grow more prosperous and powerful in the future.

"Lord Sikong, all I want is to find a way for my brothers to survive."

Li Yi patted him on the shoulder and laughed, "You have done a great service. You have not only found a way to survive, you have embarked on a golden road."

"From now on, you are the commander-in-chief of my Hebei Road Army, and I hereby bestow upon you the title of Xuanwei General."

The title of Xuanwei General was one of the nominal generals established by Li Yuan. It was a fourth-rank general, and it was given to high-ranking generals who did not have official positions.

Zhang Jinshu had previously followed Gao Kaidao to the Tang Dynasty, and still held the title of Prefect. He was granted the title of Left Valiant Guard General by the Tang Dynasty, which was a third-rank official.

But now that I'm surrendering to the imperial court, things are different.

The rank of Senior General of the Fourth Grade, Xuanwei, is the limit of Li Yi's power. Ultimately, it depends on the court's arrangements. However, he has indeed killed Gao Kaidao, the rebel king, which is equivalent to lifting the siege of Yanmen Pass, thus redeeming himself. If someone recommends him, he might not retain his original rank of Third Grade, but it is very likely that he will be given the title of General of the Third Grade.

It all depends on whether he knows what's good for him and whether he can find a powerful backer.

Li Yi smiled and said that his thousand light cavalry would still be under his command.

"These are the soldiers you've been leading for a long time, so you can continue leading them."

Zhang Jinshu immediately prostrated himself on the ground again, "This humble general is merely a salt worker from a humble family. In my younger days, I followed Gao Kaidaogeqian and his men, and all I knew was to plunder. I have never been to school, nor have I studied military strategy. Although I am somewhat skilled in riding and archery, I have no command abilities."

These soldiers also hope to be assigned to the command of various generals, so that the brothers may have the opportunity to redeem themselves through meritorious service and earn rewards.

Zhang Jinshu offered to disperse the thousand cavalry he brought and distribute them among the various units of the Tang army.

"Since you insist, then fine, Liu Bingcao, once the cavalrymen have eaten and rested, make the arrangements."

Li Yi also granted official titles to the four cavalry generals under Zhang Jinshu. They were originally of the fourth rank, but now they were demoted three ranks and given the title of Ningyuan General of the fifth rank.

As for the other officers, they were mostly dealt with in the same way, demoted three ranks, or even reassigned to deputy positions.

However, neither Zhang Jinshu nor the four cavalrymen who came with him had any objections to this arrangement.
They were originally of humble origin, either salt workers or farmers. By the end of the Daye era, most of them had become bandits. They survived the chaos of the times by following Gao Kaidao, Dou Jiande, and others, and were even fortunate enough to become military officers.

Originally, they had followed Gao Kaidao to submit to the Tang Dynasty, and with the unification of the world, their lives would have been complete. But who knew that Gao Kaidao would rebel again, and they ended up in this predicament.

These people have truly reached a point where they have no other way out.

They are already very satisfied that Li Sikong can still accept them. Let alone being demoted three ranks, even if they are reduced to commoners, they would not be dissatisfied.

The arrival of fourth- and fifth-rank generals was a pleasant surprise.

If we can really get through this, we'll still have good days ahead.

The dust settles,

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Of Zhang Jinshu's thousand cavalry, five hundred were his elite troops who had escaped from Pingxing Pass with Gao Kaidao. The other five hundred were recruited later, all of whom were elites selected from Li Da'en's old troops.

The commanders of the Tang army's various cavalry battalions all came to seize the people.

Soon, the thousand riders were all divided up among them.

They were broken up into teams and dispersed into various cavalry battalions.

Next,
The scouts dispatched by Li Yi brought back more and more information about Yanmen. Many servant soldiers, captured craftsmen, and civilians who had escaped from the servant camp in Yanmen City also fled to Fanzhi. Their words further confirmed what Zhang Jinshu had said.

A few days later,
The Turks lifted the siege of Yanmen and retreated north.

The Turkic troops, one after another, began to retreat northward like a tide.

The Turkic tribes that had penetrated deep into the Taiyuan area all hastily withdrew.

In mid-June,

Ashide Jielifa, who was covering the rear, also broke camp and retreated.

Before they evacuated,
He also specially dispatched Ashina Simo, the special envoy of Jiabiteqin, to bring Xiangwu King Li Chen, Xue State Duke Changsun Shunde, Xin State Duke Zheng Yuanzhu, and Hanyang Duke Su Gui to Mayubao.

If Simo hadn't claimed to be a Turkic kabiteqin and a cousin of Jieli Khan, Li Yi would have thought he was a Sogdian. He looked exactly like a Sogdian, with deep-set eyes, a high nose, and green eyes, showing no trace of a Turk.

Simo sent four envoys to reiterate to Li Yi that the Tang Dynasty had established a friendly alliance and was going to make peace through marriage. He hoped that Li Yi, the chief clerk of the marshal, would order the various Tang armies to control the troops and not to intercept, pursue, or harass the Turkic forces.

"This peace negotiation was initiated by the Tang Emperor, and our Great Khan agreed. The two families will also soon form a marriage alliance."
Later, the Great Wall served as the border between the Turks and the Tang Dynasty.
We hope that the Tang Dynasty will not cross the border and violate the friendly alliance.

Apart from this matter

Simo came with another important task.

"Last time, Li Sikong defeated our army at the Hutuo River and captured more than 5,000 of our Turks. Now that the two sides are on good terms, we hope that Li Sikong can release these captured Turk soldiers."

Li Yi received Simo.

He chuckled at his two requests for an immediate ceasefire and the release of the Turkic prisoners.

"Regarding the truce, since the two sides have reached a peace agreement and Khan Jieli has withdrawn his troops, I can order that we no longer intercept, pursue, or harass them. However, there is a prerequisite: when the Turkic army withdraws, it must not harass or plunder the people of the Great Tang along the way. Otherwise, my Great Tang army has the responsibility and obligation to retaliate and annihilate these bandits and thieves!"

"As for releasing prisoners, an exchange is possible."

"You Turks, release all the Tang people you have plundered and looted, as well as the Tang soldiers you have captured."

Simo frowned.

This time, the Turks mobilized more than 300,000 troops on both the eastern and western fronts, with 200,000 troops alone deployed in Daibei.

Although Yanmen City was not captured, the Turkic cavalry captured 39 of the 41 cities and fortresses in Xin and Dai prefectures, and even penetrated deep into Taiyuan, Loufan, Lishi and other places.

If Li Yi hadn't led his troops so quickly, directly approaching Yanmen, the Turkic cavalry could have penetrated deep into the Shangdang and Zelu areas.

The number of Tang soldiers captured and civilians plundered by the Turks was much greater than the more than 5,000 prisoners in Li Yi's hands, more than ten times the number.

If the Turks were to exchange prisoners, they would definitely suffer a loss. Moreover, when the Turks marched south, the spoils of their plunder, apart from a portion handed over to the Great Khan, would belong to the respective tribes.

They naturally refused to release the loot they had plundered.

"One for one, how about it?" Simo asked.

"Hmph, are your elite Turkic cavalry so worthless? One elite cavalryman is exchanged for a commoner on the border of the Tang Dynasty? Don't you always say that one Turkic cavalryman is worth ten of my Han soldiers?"
As we often say, one cavalryman is worth five infantrymen, and one infantryman is worth five civilians.

Based on this calculation, one captured Turkic cavalryman can be exchanged for twenty-five Tang citizens. Let's disregard the odd amounts; you just need to return the 125,000 Han Chinese you captured.”

Simo smiled wryly, "How can you calculate like this?"

A debate.

Li Yi said, “Since the chaos of the Sui Dynasty, how many Han people have been trampled to death by your Turkic cavalry? How many more hundreds of thousands have been captured and taken back to the border by your invasions over the years?”
Now that you're asked to return 100,000, you're all unwilling and refuse. Since that's the case, then tell Jieli Khan not to leave, and we'll continue fighting here.

"Both inside and outside the Great Wall are battlefields. Let's settle our scores and avenge our grievances. Let's not back down."

"Li Sikong, let's talk things out calmly and not ruin our harmony." Simo was the first to back down.

However, exchanging 5,000 prisoners for 12,000 to 15,000 Han Chinese is of course impossible.

He agreed, but even Jieli couldn't do it.

"At most, one for two,"

“One cavalryman is worth two Tang cavalrymen. If you don’t have that many Tang cavalrymen, then two infantrymen are worth one cavalryman. As for the common people, two able-bodied men and women are worth one infantryman, and two elderly people and children are worth one able-bodied man and woman.”

Simo found Li Yi's calculation method very difficult to understand. This Li Sikong of the Tang Dynasty seemed like a shrewd merchant from the Central Plains who traveled to the grasslands to sell goods.

He shook his head like a rattle drum. "Two Tang soldiers would be exchanged for one Turkic prisoner of war. As for Han civilians, regardless of age or gender, three would be exchanged for one."

Finally, after making concessions step by step, and feeling dizzy and disoriented, Simo came up with a condition for exchange.

"Our warhorse weapons..."

"What warhorses and weapons? I didn't see any. Your horses were all frightened and ran away. These captured cavalrymen were all awakened in the middle of the night and ran away naked. Forget about armor and weapons, they weren't even wearing any clothes. Some of them weren't even wearing a pair of short turbans. If we let them go back, we'll have to give them a set of clothes..." Li Yi said bluntly. There's no reason to spit out what's already in your mouth.

The talks lasted half a day.

Minister of the Imperial Clan Court, Prince Xiangwu Li Chen; Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Duke of Xin Zheng Yuanzhu; General of the Left Valiant Guard, Duke of Xue Changsun Shunde; Vice Minister of Rites, Duke of Hanyang Su Gui;
These four, originally official envoys sent by the imperial court to the Turks, didn't get a chance to utter a single word. They just watched as Li Yi led Jieli's cousin, Tumen Khan's great-grandson, Jiabi Teqin, by the nose.
Sima finally agreed to the prisoner exchange: 5,000 Turkic prisoners of war in exchange for 5,000 Tang soldiers prisoners of war, plus 7,500 Tang civilians who had been captured.

Five thousand for twelve thousand.

Li Yi felt he had made a bad deal. He had traded with Awen of the Sijie tribe for one Sijie cavalry prisoner, in exchange for five captured Han Chinese, two good horses, five oxen, ten thousand coins, or fifty bolts of silk.

In exchange with Simo, they could only get one Turkic prisoner for three Han Chinese or two soldiers.

Big loss.

However, since the previous Sijie tribe still had a young chieftain in his hands, Awen had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree to his conditions.

Once the agreement was reached, Simo had no intention of staying any longer and immediately returned.

Li Chen and the other three Tang envoys were finally able to return to the Tang Dynasty, escape the Turks' imprisonment, and see the light of day again.

"The nightmare is finally over."

"The war is over."

The four of them were so excited they almost cried. They had suffered so much hardship and humiliation over the past year, and now they were finally free.

Only Li Yi couldn't bring himself to smile.

This time, Jieli withdrew without suffering any losses. On the contrary, the Tang Dynasty suffered heavy losses in this Turkic invasion, losing many soldiers, cities, and territories. Countless people were forced to flee their homes and were even abducted to the border regions.

Li Yi always felt that
We should not have made peace; the imperial court could have fought a major battle with the Turks here.

But now, with a decree from the imperial court, peace has been reached, and the war has ended, allowing those wolf cubs who have plundered enough to swagger back to the grasslands.

They could send a princess to marry a foreign ruler, and bestow upon her three thousand taels of gold and two hundred thousand bolts of silk annually. But how long could such a peace treaty last?
How should we deal with it if Jieli comes again next time?
(End of this chapter)