Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 32 Why was I robbed again?
The capture of Wuchuan Town meant that the war situation in the north, which had been stalemate for more than half a year, had finally reached a turning point.

At this time, Erzhu Rong, who had just returned from Bingzhou after conquering Suhe and Poyang, could no longer sit still. He summoned Li Shuang back from Mayi to discuss confidential matters.

The county seat of Xiurong has now become the base camp of the Erzhu clan. Compared to last year, this city located beside the Jutuo River has been renovated and looks brand new.

After traveling for several days, when Li Shuang arrived at the city gate, he saw Erzhu Ying'e, the daughter of Erzhu, taking people out hunting.

"Little niece!"

Facing Li Shuang, Erzhu Ying'e did not have a good face at all.

"You're not much older than me!"

With a snort, Erzhu Ying'e whipped her horsewhip and rode away with her entourage, raising a cloud of dust.

However, a young man next to her slowed down a few steps and bowed to Li Shuang.

When the Qihu soldiers guarding the city gate saw Li Shuang coming, they half-knelt and saluted respectfully.

"Meet the military commander!"

Li Shuang threw a small piece of silver over.

"Brothers, you've worked hard defending the city. Give this to me and have a drink!"

"Thank you, Lord Military Commander!"

The Qihu soldiers were all smiling happily. Li Shuang saw this and asked casually:

"Who was the man with Darju just now?"

"To answer the military commander, that is Murong Shaozong, who has just come to seek refuge with the clan leader."

"Murong Shaozong?"

"Yes, he is from the Murong clan, a descendant of Murong Ke, and is related to the clan leader."

Li Shuang chatted with a group of Khitan soldiers for a while, and without delay, he entered the city and went to Erzhu Rong's mansion.

After the houses in the city were renovated, it was difficult to see any traces of the damage caused by the war.

On both sides of the not-so-wide bluestone-paved street, Hu soldiers could be seen everywhere. They were noisy and boisterous, but they did not affect the business order of the street merchants.

After entering Erzhu Rong's mansion, Li Shuang did not see Erzhu Rong immediately. He was received by Erzhu Rong's wife, Princess Beixiang.

"Third brother is here!"

Princess Yuan of Beixiang was the daughter of Tuoba Zhen, King Hui of Nan'an, and came from a prominent family.

However, Tuoba Zhen knew about the rebellion of Hengzhou Governor Mu Tai but did not report it, and he was punished and his country was abolished. Princess Beixiang's situation since childhood was not good.

Yuan was gentle and considerate. Knowing that Li Shuang had been traveling for several days, she ordered people to bring the wine and food that had been prepared long ago, and invited Li Shuang to take a seat.

"Second sister-in-law, where is second brother?"

"Stop talking, I'm scolding Erzhu Zhao and the others!"

"What have they done wrong?"

"Didn't your second brother give land and farmland to his nephews and brothers? Who knew these unpromising people wouldn't know how to manage their land, spending their days playing and bullying the people? Even at this time of year, large tracts of farmland in their territories are barren. After inspecting the land, your second brother was furious!"

Sizhou was originally an important agricultural base of the Northern Wei Dynasty, second only to Bingzhou. Now most of the land belongs to the Erzhu family. However, there are many people in the Erzhu family who can fight, but almost no one who can manage.

Yuan also disliked the Erzhu clan's children.

"It would be great if these troublesome people had half the talent of Murong Shaozong."

It can be seen that Yuanshi has a good impression of her cousin Murong Shaozong.

Just then, Erzhu Rong and Yuan Tianmu arrived.

"What nonsense are you talking about, woman?"

Yuanshi quickly stood up with a smile on her face.

"I'm just chatting with my third brother. You guys chat, I'll go to the kitchen and keep an eye on it."

Erzhu Rong and Yuan Tianmu came together and sat down.

"Big brother, second brother!"

As soon as Erzhu Rong sat down, he burst into laughter, sounding quite cheerful. "Third brother, you've accomplished so much in Mayi. I heard that Yuan Shen secretly hates you so much he's even ready to kill you."

"It's all thanks to the support of my two brothers, otherwise Yuan Shen wouldn't take me seriously."

Yuan Tianmu reminded:

"Third brother, you still have to be careful. Yuan Shen is a very cunning mansion and should not be underestimated."

"Thank you for your concern, brother!"

Erzhu Rong waved his hand and saw the maid coming up with wine and said:

"Today, you and I are brothers gathered together. Let's not talk about these things anymore. Let's drink."

The three of them drank and when they were enjoying themselves, they started talking about the war in Bingzhou.

The campaign to suppress the rebellion went smoothly. However, after the rebellion was quelled, the imperial court offered very little in the way of rewards, even refusing to compensate Erzhu Rong and Yuan Tianmu for the food and fodder they had brought south.

Let them pay for the suppression of bandits themselves!
In the end, after the rebellion was successfully suppressed, Erzhu Rong was not even allowed to enter the gate of Jinyang City, and was allowed to return home.

Speaking of this, Erzhu Rong showed a look of anger.

"These guys are going too far."

Yuan Tianmu was very calm.

"We've been making too much of a move in Sizhou. The imperial court is wary of us. I heard they've already appointed a new governor for Sizhou. They're not here with good intentions!"

After the war last year, Sizhou's county seat was empty and the city was in ruins. Local tyrants and chieftains fled or were defeated in battle.

After Erzhu Rong went south, he defeated Wanzi Qizhen, gathered the defeated soldiers and refugees, and then divided the land among them.

This is a taboo in the eyes of the Luoyang court!

But Luoyang had no other choice.

Wan Ziqizhen, Su He and Po Yanyan were defeated one after another, but Bingzhou and other places were not stable. Instead, they became more chaotic, with many mountaintops and they did not obey the orders of the court.

The imperial court both used and guarded against the Erzhu clan.

"Brother, there's no need to worry. Wuchuan Town has been breached, and Huaishuo Town won't hold out for much longer. I predict that after Huaishuo Town is breached, Yuan Yu will undoubtedly lead his troops north to engage in a decisive battle with Po Liu and Han Baling!"

Erzhu Rong listened, his eyes solemn, and asked:
"Third brother, what do you think of this battle, a win or a loss?"

"Defeat is inevitable!"

"Why?"

"Wuchuan and Huaishuo have been under siege for a long time, but Yuan Yu has remained inactive. His intention is clear: he simply wants to let the six towns fight each other so he can reap the benefits."

Yuan Tianmu felt ashamed after hearing this, and felt a bit sad as if the rabbit had died and the fox had grieved for it.

"The imperial court is acting this way, and they are not afraid of chilling the hearts of the people."

"Brother, what you said is true, but can the imperial court's intentions be concealed from the world, especially the Six Garrisons that are so close to us? When Huaishuo Town is also captured, when Yuan Yu heads north, he will have to face more than just Woye Town!"

The relationships within the six towns are complicated. Even though the towns are thousands of miles apart, they may be enemies today, fighting to the death, but tomorrow they may sit down together, drink, and talk about relatives.

After hearing this, Erzhu Rong burst into laughter, and all the resentment in his heart was swept away.

"Third brother, what you said makes sense. We should drink this cup to the bottom!"

After the three of them finished drinking, the door opened, but Yuan suddenly ran in in a panic with a very ugly look on her face.

"what happened?"

"The entourage that followed Ying'e came back to report that Ying'e was captured!"

As soon as Yuanshi said this, Erzhu Rong and Yuan Tianmu subconsciously looked at Li Shuang.

None of my business!

Li Shuang asked:
"Who captured my niece?"

Erzhu Rong and Yuan Tianmu also reacted. This was in Xiurong County, not in a mountain village. Who had the guts to do that?
"They said it was the new Sizhou Governor, Wei Qingbin!"

……

(End of this chapter)