Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 118: Outside the Tang Dynasty, all are monsters

Luoyang.

"Empress Dowager, under the rule of Li Shuang, the Governor of Tangzhou, bandits are rampant, the Qiang and Di peoples are causing chaos, nobles have been tragically killed, and the people are in unrest. I request that Your Majesty issue an order to halt the bandit suppression efforts, depose Li Shuang, and bring him to Luoyang for questioning."

In the Xianyang Palace, a group of court officials, led by Prime Minister Yuan Yong, stood up collectively and put pressure on Queen Hu.

The tragic deaths of a large number of nobles completely angered the old Tianlong people in Luoyang City.

In their opinion, Li Shuang was not suppressing bandits at all, he was clearly slapping them in the face!
Everyone agreed. Empress Hu looked at Li Shengui and asked:
"General Wei, what do you think?"

"Your Majesty, what I heard is completely different from what the Prime Minister and others said."

"Oh?"

"I have heard that under the Tangzhou Governor's rule, the people of Pingyang County are safe, and banditry in counties like Tujing has gradually subsided. How can you be guilty?"

Seeing Li Shengui's partiality, Yuan Yong became very angry and asked:

"How can we be at peace? How can we gradually stop? If it's really as you say, how did those nobles die? He suppressed the bandits, but the more he suppressed, the more bandits there were. Isn't that a sign of his incompetence?"

"That's exactly what I want to say. Li Shuang is only the governor of Tangzhou, with jurisdiction over only the three prefectures of Pingyang, Xihe, and Tujing. Liu Lisheng of Fenzhou and Chen Shuangchi of Hedong are rebelling, and the Qiang and Di tribes are wreaking havoc on the Zhongtiao Mountains. How can he be blamed?"

"Didn't these chaos only occur after he became the governor of Tangzhou?"

"If, as you say, the Six Garrisons rebelled, would officials from Heng, Shuo, You, Yan, and other states all be held accountable?"

Yuan Yong had never imagined that Li Shengui could be so powerful.

Even Queen Hu felt her heart pounding after reading it.

"Send someone to check it out!"

After saying that, Queen Hu looked at the little emperor beside her.

"What do you think, Your Majesty?"

"I think so!"

Although Yuan Xu said this, he showed a hint of impatience. In the court, everything was first asked to the Queen Mother, and then to him. This situation made Yuan Xu gradually dissatisfied.

Queen Hu looked at the two people in the court who were clearly divided, and finally set her sights on the other person.

"Li Daoyuan!"

"Chen is here!"

"Go and see how Li Shuang's bandit suppression efforts are going."

"The minister obeys the order!"

Empress Hu sent Li Daoyuan because he was known for his toughness and strict law enforcement.

He would not show any respect to anyone who broke the law, no matter if they were powerful or royal. All the officials in the court were somewhat afraid of him.

Therefore, Yuan Yong and Li Shengui had no objection to sending him.

After the court session, Li Shengui just walked out of the palace when he heard someone coming from the mansion.

"Sir, the Duke is dying!"

Upon hearing this, Li Shengui didn't care about anyone else and rushed back to Chenliu County Mansion.

Li Chong was lying on the bed, surrounded by Li's relatives and wives and concubines.

Seeing Li Shengui coming, Li Chong waved his hand and asked everyone else to leave.

When there was no one else in the room, Li Chong held Li Shengui's hand, breathing weakly.

"Son, I have something to tell you. You must remember it."

Li Shengui showed a sad look on his face and said:

"Father, you say!"

"Luoyang is prosperous, but it will eventually become a prison. Find a chance and leave!"

"Where?"

"It's best to go to Guanzhong. If that's not possible, try to escape south!"

Li Shengui was very puzzled after hearing this.

"Father, you are confused. Who would leave Luoyang and go to a poor place like Guanzhong?"

Li Chong was very weak at this time, but also surprisingly patient. He touched Li Shengui's face, and a smile appeared on his face when he was dying.

"Silly child!" After saying that, Li Chong's hands dropped weakly.

“Father, father!”
-
Pingyang, Baima City.

"My lord, the Duke of Chenliu has passed away!"

Hou Jing told Li Shuang the news from Luoyang. He stood up from handling official documents with a serious expression.

"Mourning!"

"promise!"

After Hou Jing finished speaking, he continued:
"My lord, there's more news. The imperial court has sent Lieutenant Censor Li Daoyuan to inspect Hedong. It's said that he's here to investigate our efforts to suppress bandits."

"What did you say?"

If the previous news made Li Shuang feel sad, then this news shocked him.

He who loves to write "Waterways of the South of the Yangtze River" is not only a writer, but also a tough guy.

How fierce is it?
That year, he was an official in Jizhou, governing the area with harsh policies. The bandits in Jizhou were complaining about his actions, but they couldn't kill him, so they had to flee to other places. It was really a miserable life for the bandits!
Jizhou was thus greatly governed!
"Tell Liu Lisheng to stay quiet for now."

"promise!"
-
"Censor Li, we'll be arriving in Pingyang County soon."

Li Daoyuan did not go to Pingyang with great fanfare, but instead traveled with his entourage in disguise.

Now the imperial court has no idea about the situation in Hedong and other places and can only rely on the local bureaucratic system.

The court can only believe whatever they say!
How could the person who wrote "Shui Jing Zhu" be a bureaucrat who only stayed in the yamen and listened to reports?
He has walked through thousands of mountains and rivers.

Li Daoyuan set out from Luoyang and headed all the way to Hedong, but the scenery he saw in various places was not as good as what the local officials described.

Bandits were rampant and the barbarians were wreaking havoc, making life miserable for the people.

"Let's go, I want to see if this Li Shuang is really as evil as Yuan Yong said!"

"promise!"

The group set off, and when they were about to reach the boundary marker of Pingyang County, a group of robbers suddenly rushed out from both sides of the official road.

"I opened this mountain, I planted this tree. If you want to pass through here, you must leave some money for passage."

Li Daoyuan smiled.

"If I don't give it to you, what will you do?"

"No?"

A bandit sneered and pretended to swing his knife to chop Li Daoyuan.

But he raised his hand, but couldn't wave it.

Li Daoyuan was over fifty years old, but he was strong. His big hand, as strong as a palm-leaf fan, grabbed the bandit's wrist as if he were pinching a chicken, and snatched the knife from his hand in one go.

"You...you old man!"

Li Daoyuan looked at the knife in his hand and said:

"These bandits from Hedong don't seem to be any good either. The knives they use are all inferior."

After saying that, Li Daoyuan broke the knife in his hand into two pieces and threw it on the ground.

"Brothers, tough guys!"

Li Daoyuan had initially thought the bandits would retreat after suffering a loss, but unexpectedly, one of them took out a horn and blew it, prompting even more bandits to pour out from all directions. It looked like there were over a thousand of them.

"Censor, these bandits are numerous and powerful, let's leave!"

Li Daoyuan was not a reckless man. Seeing this situation, he did not force them to stay. He mounted his horse and galloped forward, breaking through the roadblocks set up by the bandits.

Although Li Daoyuan escaped, he was extremely angry.

"Although other places are in chaos, bandits dare not run rampant like this. There are so many bandits outside Pingyang County. How did Li Shuang govern the area?"

Li Daoyuan was riding his horse at full speed. After he passed the boundary marker of Pingyang County, his attendant suddenly said:
"Imperial Censor, we will not pursue these bandits anymore!"

Li Daoyuan reined in his horse, only to see hundreds of bandits rushing out from behind him, all stopping in front of the boundary marker of Pingyang County, not moving at all.

The boundary marker seemed to have some power that prevented these cunning desperadoes from taking a single step forward.

……

(End of this chapter)