Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 368 Will We Win?

Luoyang City.

After meeting with the Erzhu clan's members, Erzhu Shilong quickly summoned a group of generals from other clans who were subordinate to the Erzhu clan.

Hebasheng, Husichun, Jia Xianzheng, Jia Xiandu, Fan Zihu...

The people of Luoyang did not like the Erzhu clan, but Erzhu Shilong was not worried that these people would help Li Shuang.

After members of the Erzhu clan took turns going to Luoyang, the Tianlong people in Luoyang suffered a severe loss of wealth. Without wealth, they naturally could not support their retainers.

Moreover, compared to the Erzhu clan, Li Shuang was not well-liked by them. After all, at least the Erzhu clan had a nominal emperor whom they respected, while Li Shuang didn't even bother to pretend.

These generals from outside the Erzhu clan were different from the Tianlong people of Luoyang; they truly had money and troops and could change the course of events.

They were all northerners who joined Erzhu Rong after the uprising in the Six Garrisons and became deeply associated with the Erzhu clan.

However, even the deepest relationships become fragile after the change of power in Jinyang.

Chilie Yanqing is the best example!

Therefore, Erzhu Shilong also spent a lot of effort to appease them, trying to win them over to the Erzhu clan.

The effect was obvious; they all expressed their support for Erzhu and vowed to be mortal enemies with Daye Shuang.

"how?"

Upon seeing Erzhu Yanbo enter, Erzhu Shilong immediately asked.

"Don't worry, these people aren't fools. My Erzhu clan hasn't fallen yet, they won't side with Daye Shuang."

Erzhu Shilong was not Erzhu Rong; he lacked the authority to command these non-royal generals. Therefore, he still needed generals from the Erzhu clan to intimidate these non-royal commanders.

Only by having Erzhu Dulu and Erzhu Zhongyuan control the troops of the generals from other clans could Erzhu Shilong feel at ease.

Erzhu Shilong sighed, his face showing signs of exhaustion.

"Human hearts are unpredictable. If we lose this battle, I fear my Erzhu clan will be gone."

As the de facto commander of the Erzhu clan, Erzhu Shilong had absolutely no confidence at this moment.

Despite their large numbers and millions of cattle and sheep, the Erzhu clan remained on the defensive, fighting a war of defense and counterattack.

Erzhu Shilong looked at Erzhu Yanbo and suddenly asked:

Do you think we'll win?

Erzhu Yanbo was a rare kind and gentle person among the Erzhu clan, and he also had a good relationship with the Yuan clan. Erzhu Shilong dared not ask anyone else about this, so he asked Erzhu Yanbo instead.

Erzhu Yanbo listened and suddenly smiled.

"In order to win over the officials of various states, you allowed them to embezzle and accept bribes, and to exploit the people; in order to win over the Xianbei soldiers, you allowed them to seize fertile land and enclose it for grazing; in order to win over the northern people, you allowed them to do evil and plunder by trickery; in order to win over the Liang people, you allowed them to send their troops north and cede territory and states. According to the book, you are already a sign of doom."

Upon hearing this, Erzhu Shilong laughed even louder than Zhu Yanbo.

"If we don't allow officials in various prefectures to embezzle and accept bribes, how can Luoyang have mountains of money and grain? If we don't allow Xianbei soldiers to seize fertile land, how can these 180,000 soldiers be willing to serve? If we don't allow the northerners to do evil, how can the local Han people know who the ruler of the world is? If we don't allow the Liang people to send their troops north, how can we restrain the elite troops of Guanzhong?"

At this point, Erzhu Shilong looked at Erzhu Yanbo, seemingly mocking his pedantry.

"Yao was imprisoned, Shun died in the wilderness; even sages and worthies of the past could not escape this fate. Speaking of those who bring ruin upon themselves, from Liu Yuan onwards, to Shi Le, Murong Huang, Fu Jian, Yao Chang, and Helian Bobo, over the past three hundred years, countless emperors and kings have claimed the title, and which family hasn't had a fading legacy? Even the Tuoba clan of our dynasty, when they rose to power, had countless secret and wicked deeds. Now, Yuan Hong seems to want to emulate the Han people, but after only thirty years, does anyone still listen to the Yuan family?"

Erzhu Shilong's words left Erzhu Yanbo speechless.

"Everyone in Luoyang says that General Tianzhu is immoral and has slaughtered officials, but he has only done what his predecessors have done in the past three hundred years. General Tianzhu's only mistake was that he underestimated the officials of Luoyang and was harmed by them."

Erzhu Shilong knew that he was no match for Erzhu Rong. If Erzhu Rong were still alive, the Erzhu clan would definitely not be what it is today.

"Those Han people talk about loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness, but they are even more ruthless than us when it comes to doing things! The Cao family seized the Liu family's empire, and then the Sima family seized the Cao family's empire. When the Jin family moved south, the Sima family was killed by the Liu family! In the past three hundred years, I have never seen a sage king, but only a king with a strong army and powerful horses!"

Erzhu Yanbo gave a wry smile, and Erzhu Shilong asked again:
Do you think we'll win?

Erzhu Yanbo took a deep breath and said:

"If we have the opportunity to win, we should first subdue Hebei!"

……

The water ripples gently, and the spring breeze is warm.

Outside the city, the paddy fields were being cultivated. A newly made waterwheel was placed on the riverbank, drawing water from the river and transporting it to the higher ridges of the fields.

Wang Sizheng stood beside Li Shuang, observing the scene, and bowed, saying:

"Your Majesty, this waterwheel can irrigate hundreds of acres of land. Once it is widely adopted, even more land can be cultivated."

Water is difficult to obtain in high places, but with waterwheels, many fields that could not be cultivated before, or that could be cultivated but could not be intensively cultivated, can be opened up.

Li Shuang looked at the vast expanse of paddy fields in front of him and said:
"Taiyuan truly deserves to be the foundation of a royal enterprise!"

The yield per acre of dry land is not as high as that of paddy fields!
However, the North is not like the South. It has a dense network of waterways, with large areas of paddy fields and many dry fields where grains such as wheat and millet are grown.

But Taiyuan is different. The area outside Jinyang City is dotted with waterways and has fertile soil, making it a rice-producing region rarely seen in the north. The "auspicious grain" produced in the rice paddies near Jinci was a tribute from the feudal lords to the Zhou royal family, as recorded in the Book of Documents.

The phrase "offering fine grain to the emperor" also indirectly illustrates the advanced agriculture of Taiyuan.

After a brief period of war, Taiyuan has returned to order.

From Shangdang and Taiyuan to Hedong and then to Guanzhong, the vast land has been connected into one, with the Fen River, Yellow River and Wei River as the main transportation artery.

Without external threats, it's the perfect time to farm!
After listening, Wang Sizheng asked:
"Your Majesty, there are still many animal pens left behind by the Erzhu clan in Taiyuan. What should be done with them?"

Originally, many northerners under the Erzhu clan liked to enclose land to raise livestock, and the Erzhu clan was no exception. They had a large number of animal pens in Taiyuan, raising hundreds of thousands of cattle and sheep.

"I intend to establish forest pastures in Lingxia and Hengshuo, and gradually relocate the surplus livestock there for grazing."

"promise!"

Just then, several scouts arrived, heading towards Jinyang City.

Judging from the attire of these scouts, Li Shuang already knew that they were sent by Shangdang.

Clearly, Wang Sizheng had also figured it out.

"Your Majesty, with such commotion, could it be that the Erzhu clan has launched an attack on Gaodu?"

Li Shuang put his hands behind his back and said disdainfully:

"Erzhu Shilong doesn't have that guts."

Wang Sizheng, puzzled, asked:
"What do you mean, my king?"

Li Shuang smiled and said:
"Just pick the softest one to squeeze!"
-
Jinyang.

"My lord, a letter has arrived from Ye City. Erzhu Zhongyuan has led his army across the Yellow River to the north and is advancing towards Ye City!"

Duan Shao spoke with some urgency.

Gao Huan, however, remained seated, his face expressionless.

"My lord, what are your thoughts?"

"Before I came here, I had already stationed Dou Tai's troops at Fangtou, just in case Erzhu's move was about to happen."

Duan Shao was young and lacked Gao Huan's composure, which made me somewhat worried.

"But Dou Tai has few soldiers, and dragging this out will be disadvantageous to us. We still need our lord to return to Ye City to take charge of the overall situation."

Gao Huan shook his head and said:

"If Ohno Sō won't let me leave, how can I leave?"

Duan Shao listened, somewhat annoyed, and said:
"What is the King of Qin thinking?" Gao Huan asked, his face displeased.
How would I know what he's thinking?

With that, Gao Huan got up, grabbed a pillow, and went to sleep in the side room.

Duan Shao watched anxiously, but there was nothing he could do.

……

"Fourth Uncle!"

When Yuwen Hu walked in, he saw Yuwen Tai sitting around the stove.

The stove was bubbling away, boiling water, and on the small table beside it were a plate of grilled fish, a bowl of cooked corn, and two bowls of vegetable soup.

Upon seeing Yuwen Hu arrive, Yuwen Tai smiled and said:
"You came at the right time!"

Yuwen Hu sat down opposite Yuwen Tai, served himself a bowl of millet rice, and asked:
"I heard that Erzhu Zhongyuan led his army to attack Yecheng, but Gao Huan has not made a move. What is the reason for this?"

Yuwen Hu was puzzled, but Yuwen Tai laughed.

“If Ohno Sō doesn’t let him leave, what else can he do?”

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Hu was even more puzzled and asked:
"Why?"

"Whether it's us or them, we are, after all, outsiders in Hebei. The five noble families originally shared the world with the Yuan family, but neither the Erzhu family nor Daye Shuang were favored by them. Now, those noble families are very dissatisfied with Gao Huan and me coming to Jinyang this time."

Yuwen Hu listened and seemed to understand something.

"Does the King of Qin want the powerful families of Hebei to understand the implications?"

Yuwen Tai smiled and said:
"In the end, it's because those Huai Shuo people are too greedy. They always want to curry favor with those powerful families. Otherwise, how could they have achieved this?"

Yuwen Tai was smiling and about to eat the fish when he suddenly heard footsteps outside.

"My lord, an urgent report from Fanyang: rebels in An and Ping prefectures have started an uprising, and their influence has spread to Youzhou."

Before Yuwen Tai could even put the fish in his mouth, he heard the news, his hand slipped, and his chopsticks fell onto the table. Looking at the grilled fish on the table again, he suddenly lost his appetite.

……

Qin Wangfu.

Li Shuang summoned all his generals and Khans to a banquet, and Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai were also on the invitation list.

The lobby was brightly lit.

The dancers from Kucha, dressed in light gauze skirts, moved gracefully, their waists swaying slightly, their long legs slightly raised, displaying their supple bodies and arousing desire.

The generals were in high spirits, but Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai showed no appreciation whatsoever, their minds preoccupied.

They would occasionally look up at Li Shuang, but he continued drinking without responding to them.

After the Kucha dancers finished their performance, a group of maids began serving dishes, but instead of serving the generals, they brought them bowls of white rice.

Looking at the steaming white rice, Li Shuang said:

"This is rice from last year's harvest; it should be shared with everyone!"

Almost none of the generals in this room had ever been to the south, and they rarely had access to rice. Some of the Khans from the north were even seeing white rice for the first time.

Immediately, some people picked up their bowls and started eating. It was their first time trying it, and they found it to be soft, sticky, sweet, and delicious.

The rice produced in the paddy fields near Jinci is called "Jiahe" because the surrounding land and water sources are of excellent quality, resulting in rice with a unique taste.

Seeing that the Hu chieftains had finished eating quickly, Li Shuang smiled and said:
"how?"

"It's really delicious."

After listening, Li Shuang said:

"Since you've eaten my food, you must do as I say!"

After Li Shuang finished speaking, everyone present, whether they were generals under Li Shuang's command or leaders from the northern regions, stood up and bowed, saying:

"If Your Majesty commands, we will obey without hesitation!"

"It doesn't have to be like this!"

Li Shuang waved his hand, signaling everyone to sit down.

"Things are different now. I intend to promote agriculture and sericulture in the states of Bing and Si to provide for the people. I hope you will restrain your people and prevent them from trampling on farmland."

After Li Shuang finished speaking, all the Khans, both great and small, stood up again, cupped their hands, and said:
"The Khan has given his decree, and we, your subjects, shall obey it. If we disobey, we will surely be rejected."

Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai were deeply moved by the scene before them.

Since the rise of the Tuoba clan, the conflict between agriculture and animal husbandry has been a headache for officials throughout the Northern Wei Dynasty.

With the rebellion of the Six Garrisons, the court's prestige declined, and the problem was simply ignored.

But now, can Li Shuang really make everyone obey with just a single sentence?
Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai were unaware of the situation, but the respectful demeanor of the Hu leaders in the hall still deeply impressed them.

After the banquet ended, Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai did not return home, but were instead kept behind by Li Shuang.

In the three-story pavilion overlooking the lake in the rear residence, Li Shuang, her face flushed, slowly walked in with the help of Huli Guang, and sat down when she saw Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai, who had been waiting for her.

"It's so late. I hope you won't blame me for keeping you here?"

Gao Huan smiled, looking very friendly.

“If the King of Qin summons me, I will come even if it means crossing thousands of mountains and rivers.”

Yuwen Tai nodded slightly and said:
"What He Liuhun said is very true. We will certainly obey His Majesty's command!"

Li Shuang smiled and said:
"There's chaos in Hebei. If I keep you here any longer, you'll probably hate me to the core!"

"My subordinates dare not!"

Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai lowered their heads and repeatedly said they dared not.

The man in front of me, dressed in black with a golden dragon pattern, seemed drunk, yet he exuded an inexplicable aura of power.

Every word and action required Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai to be extremely careful.

"Prepare yourselves well in time, leave Jinyang, and return to quell the rebellion!"

Li Shuang spoke softly, and Gao Huan and Yuwen Tai, who had been tense, immediately relaxed.

"I obey my orders!"

All the anxiety that had been building up in his heart for days was finally released.

With the bright moon high in the sky, Li Shuang stood up as he watched the two figures disappear into the night.

With Huli Guang as his bodyguard, Li Shuang said:
"Things here are almost done!"

After saying that, Li Shuang was no longer drunk.

"Issue my decree!"

Hulü Guang took out a blank imperial edict and writing materials from the side, and Li Shuang said:

"Issuing edicts to Yang Kan, Grand General and Commander-in-Chief of the Longyou Circuit; Li Bi, Grand General and Commander-in-Chief of the Lingwu Circuit; Xue Guyan, Commander-in-Chief of the Puzhou Circuit, Grand General and Right Vice Minister of the Hedong Circuit; and Pei Qingsun, Governor of Jingzhou, Grand General and Left Vice Minister of the Guannei Circuit... All generals shall proceed to Chang'an to await orders before March 6th. Those who disobey shall be punished according to military law!"

……

(End of this chapter)