Tang Dynasty Bandits

Chapter 290 The Flames of War in Jiangdong
In the first year of Guangming, the Chang'an court received a report from the Zhejiang West Circuit that Huang Chao's military strength had been restored, and he had gathered an army of 200,000, sweeping through 15 prefectures including Rao, Xin, Hang, Xuan, and She.

Well, compared to the information that Wang Duo, the military governor of Jingnan, had previously received about 500,000 enemy troops, this figure is considerably smaller.

It's not entirely that the local authorities exaggerated the enemy situation.

The Jianghuai region was a major tax-paying area in the Tang Dynasty, and the heavy taxes had been unbearable for the people for some time. Coupled with the previous severe locust plagues and droughts, this further intensified the people's hatred towards the court. Therefore, when Huang Chao moved his campaign to Jiangdong, heroes rose up in the Jianghuai region.

These forces, which the government called "bandits," certainly included many desperate criminals, but most were simply local self-governing armed groups that occupied a piece of their hometown, killed or expelled officials appointed by the imperial court, and refused to pay taxes.

The number of people who responded to Huang Chao's call was difficult to count.

Previously, Liu Jurong, the military governor of Xiangyang, had submitted a memorial stating that Huang Chao had been defeated and fled, and was no longer a threat. The imperial court also focused its main efforts on suppressing Li Guochang, the Feng general who had rebelled in Daibei.

The central government certainly couldn't completely believe Liu Jurong's self-aggrandizement, but being caught in a bind on two fronts was unbearable, and they had to prioritize. Just when it seemed Li Guochang was about to be suppressed, who would have thought the situation in the southeast would suddenly deteriorate to the point of near utter chaos?
Among those who responded to the call to arms in western Zhejiang were even former subordinates of Commander Lei and Gao Pian.

In the sixth year of the Qianfu era, which was at the end of last year, Gao Pian was transferred from the position of military governor of Zhenhai Army to the position of military governor of Huainan Army, and was given the additional title of Grand Tutor.

According to the rules, when a military governor moves to a new town, he can only bring his personal guards. Most of Gao Pian's original troops were left behind in western Zhejiang.

Previously, Gao Pian was transferred from Xichuan to Zhenhai to deal with the fire. Due to the need to suppress Yuan Chang and Wang Ying, as well as to intercept Huang Chao, the court granted Gao Pian special permission to take a large number of his former subordinates with him. When Huang Chao entered Lingnan, he immediately ordered Gao Pian to move to another post, which was actually a demotion in disguise and a way of taking away his military power.

This is roughly how the imperial court maintained its checks and balances. By constantly trying to keep its own people in check, it managed to prevent trouble, but ultimately made a complete mess of things.

The then-military governor of Zhenhai was unclear about rewards and punishments, and the soldiers were dissatisfied. Not only were they powerless to deal with the rampant bandits, but some officers simply occupied their posts and joined the bandits.

As the saying goes, "A cowardly soldier is just one coward, but a cowardly general makes a whole army cowardly." It's no wonder that most of the military governors appointed by the imperial court were incompetent and good-for-nothings.

Zheng Tian, ​​the most capable of the prime ministers, had previously devised a plan to borrow troops from Nanzhao to rescue Guangzhou, but the operation failed, and he lost power and was sidelined. Emperor Li Xuan and another prime minister, Lu Xie, discussed and devised remedial measures.

First, he appointed Gao Pian as Grand Commandant and Chancellor, granting him the power to "issue proclamations to summon troops from all over the country," and second, he mobilized troops from the military garrisons of Zhaoyi, Ganhua, and Yiwu to aid Huainan.

Secondly, Zhou Bao, the military governor of Jingyuan, was transferred to the position of military governor of Zhenhai Army, tasked with restoring order to western Zhejiang. During Emperor Wuzong's reign, both Zhou Bao and Gao Pian served under the Right Shence Army. Because Zhou Bao was older than Gao Pian, Gao Pian had treated him as an elder brother. The court hoped that the two could once again work together to resolve the crisis in the southeast.

When Zhou Bao served as the military governor of Jingyuan, he was known for his expertise in land reclamation and once accumulated 200,000 hu of grain, thus earning him the reputation of a fine general.

However, the bandits who rose up in western Zhejiang did not pay much attention to this "good general". For example, Liu Chao occupied Changshu, Wang Ao occupied Kunshan, Wang Teng occupied Huating, and Song Kefu occupied Wuxi. These were all fertile lands, but they were occupied by bandits, which greatly affected the local governments' revenue.

The bandits may not necessarily cooperate directly with the rebel army, but they undoubtedly share the same sentiment—we don't want to pay taxes to the higher-ups for a long time!

The people of Jiangdong are generally considered to be weak-willed. But in order to avoid paying taxes, they are still willing to risk their lives against the government.

When Zhou Bao sent his soldiers to quell the rebellion, they often saw a dense mass of local people, men, women, and children, all lined up on the city wall. The men were armored and armed with spears, while the women and children held stones. From eight-year-old children to eighty-year-old men, everyone's eyes were filled with murderous intent.

Seeing this, the soldiers had to think twice. How much money did they get from their superiors in a year? Was it worth risking their lives against these people?
The outcome of the campaign against the bandits was predictable.

Zhou Bao's talent for land reclamation seems unable to translate into military leadership. He also cannot conjure up a large enough grain to feed his troops in the short term. Since many of Gao Pian's former subordinates from Zhenhai Army have joined bandit groups, and the remaining ones are not convinced of Zhou Bao's authority, Zhou Bao believes that the greatest threat to western Zhejiang lies not in Huang Chao's army, which will either be wiped out or break through the Yangtze and Huai Rivers to invade the Central Plains, but in the numerous bandit groups rising up across the region.

Pei Qu's previously trained troops were almost entirely wiped out when Huang Chao marched south, and Zhou Bao considered the northern troops brought by Gao Pian to be arrogant and difficult to command. Zhou Bao believed that resolving the crisis in Jiangdong depended on the local people, the so-called Zhejiang people guarding Zhejiang.

There are two types of local bullies: those who oppose the imperial court and those who actively cooperate with it. There is no clear boundary between the two, and they often switch roles flexibly depending on the situation.

But for Zhou Bao, the former was a thorn in his side, while the latter was someone he relied on.

For example, Dong Chang of Hangzhou was originally a wealthy local man. When Wang Ying raised an army, he used his family fortune to organize a local militia to resist him. He was awarded the title of General of Shijing Town for his merits. His deputy, Qian Liu, was even more famous for his skill in battle and resourcefulness.

Pei Qu, the former military governor of Zhenhai who had died at the hands of the bandits, held Dong Chang in high regard. Zhou Bao felt even more strongly that such a talented individual, who brought his own provisions to serve the country, was exactly the kind of loyal and capable person the military governor needed!

Because Hangzhou was a wealthy place and no peasant uprisings had occurred, Zhou Bao ordered Dong Chang to recruit soldiers on a large scale. Each of the eight counties in Hangzhou recruited 1,000 men to form a "du" (a military unit), totaling 8,000 men.

Dong Chang and a group of old friends subsidized the task out of their own pockets, exceeding the target and gathering more than 10,000 soldiers, all of whom were strong and capable of fighting.

Despite Qian Liu's talent, he still had to work for Dong Chang. The reason was simple: Dong Chang's wealth and connections were indeed beyond Qian Liu's reach.

The garrison commanders of the eight capitals were all from local powerful families, and their soldiers were mostly recruited from the private armies of these families. Among them, Dong Chang was the wealthiest, the first to rise to power, and the one in charge of establishing the eight capitals of Hangzhou. The garrison commanders of the other seven capitals were mostly old friends of Dong Chang's family, or even related by marriage.

The troops of the eight capitals of Hangzhou were actually led by Dong Chang.

However, for Zhou Bao, he quickly acquired a military force that obeyed his commands and could help him resist Huang Chao and fight against the bandits. As for the rear guard that Zhou Bao himself had expanded, it would take a long time for them to become combat-ready.

Dong Chang and his group's activities certainly didn't stop in Hangzhou. They fought outside Hangzhou's borders on several occasions, and even successfully wiped out several bandit groups. They were able to hold their own against a small force of outlaws, which earned Zhou Bao's high praise.

Lei Shuai Gao Pian of Huainan didn't care much about Zhou Bao's mess.

Zhou Bao was his sworn brother, but this was merely a matter of the situation and appearances at the time.

The court appointed Zhou Bao and allowed Gao Pian to mobilize additional troops to fight against Huang Chao, instead of returning Gao Pian's old troops to him. This still reflected the court's intention to use Zhou Bao to check and balance Gao Pian.

The bandits were causing even more trouble in Huainan than in western Zhejiang. For example, Yang Xingmi instigated a mutiny in Luzhou, drove out the prefect Lang You, and occupied the city. Gao Pian had to send troops across the river to suppress Huang Chao, and at the same time, he had to deal with the bandit problem in Huainan.

Gao Pian felt that if these problems were solved, then mediocre people like Zhou Bao would no longer be a problem.

If he could defeat Huang Chao in one fell swoop and gain control of the core elite troops who had followed Huang Chao in his battles across the land for years, the local soldiers and collaborators of Huainan would surely follow his lead. At that time, dealing with Zhou Bao and reclaiming his old troops would be as easy as picking up a straw. Then, whether he marched north to Chang'an or carved out a territory in the Jianghuai region, it would all be a matter of a single thought.

The world is a chessboard, an arena for heroes. Mediocre people may be more familiar with the rules of power struggles, but in the real chaos and flames of war, they are utterly insignificant.

The victor is king, the loser is villain; it's a matter of life and death. Such is the rule of chaotic times.

(End of this chapter)