White Horse, Silver Spear, Grand Commandant Gao

"Five men have joined me in raising an army: Fang Gao, the guest general, is a devout believer in ghosts and gods; Liu Yanlang, the clerk, is greedy and avaricious; Song Shenqian, the general, is brave but lacks strategy; Han Zhaoyin, the judge of the military governor, is easily swayed and opportunistic; only Li Zhuanmei, the chief secretary, comes from a prominent family in Guzang, Longxi. He is honest, refined, and incorruptible, and never uses his clan name in his speech. He is somewhat worthy of being entrusted with important responsibilities."

Li Congke avoided discussing the defense of Taiyuan, instead talking about the difficulty the imperial court faced in selecting personnel.

"Yang Siquan and Yin Hui were the first to take righteous action to save me in times of crisis, and they certainly deserve to be rewarded. Kang Yicheng was fickle and betrayed his master for personal gain, Meng Hanqiong was a treacherous villain, and Yao Yanchou was cruel and bloodthirsty. I have executed them all."

"People like Wang Jingkan and Chang Congjian, after being arrested, frankly said that they dared not disloyal to their master and that they were willing to die for him today, so I released them instead."

Gao Xingzhou thought to himself that Chang Congjian was too tyrannical and difficult to control, not much better than Yao Yanchou. It's just that Yao Yanchou killed someone to cover up the crime back then, which prevented him from finding An Chonghui who was behind it, causing you to be dismissed from your post and live in seclusion. You have your own way of getting yourself killed.

"And then there's Wang Sitong. He was loyal to the late emperor, and I originally wanted to spare his life, hoping he would change his mind. Unfortunately, Yang Siquan and Yin Hui seized his family's wealth and women, and he was too ashamed to face them. Taking advantage of my drunkenness, they incited Liu Yanlang to kill him. Alas."

"Oh, the ten young actresses I gave to Wang Sitong back then have been returned intact. I'm giving them to you as a return gift for the three thousand strings of cash."

Gao Xingzhou was not particularly interested in sensual pleasures, but he could not refuse the emperor's gift. He knelt down to express his gratitude and thought that his daughter liked music, so he would choose one or two people to keep her company.

Li Congke had drunk too much and his speech became increasingly slurred: "And Liu Yanhao, your sister-in-law's brother, even though I know he has no ability, I still have to give him a high-ranking official position."

"My personal supplies are stretched thin, and I have no one to spare."

Li Congke, slightly drunk, became increasingly reckless in his speech: "As for Shi Jingtang..."

Previously, Gao Xingzhou dared not speak rashly and listened silently to the emperor's complaints. However, the person being mentioned next was an extremely sensitive figure. His expression changed slightly, and he coughed heavily twice to interrupt.

Li Congke regained some composure, stopped speaking, waved his hand to dismiss the attendants, and only after all the eunuchs had left the hall did he sigh: "Minister Gao, I know you are devoted to the public good. But Shi Jingtang, you don't know what he has done..."

After a brief hesitation, Li Congke revealed a secret concerning the death of Li Conghou, who had been deposed and made Prince of E.

The night I escaped Luoyang.

Li Conghou urgently summoned Shi Jingtang to the capital, intending to entrust the fate of the nation to him. Shi Jingtang did indeed lead his troops there, and a few miles east of Weizhou, he encountered the fleeing emperor.

Gao Xingzhou was puzzled. Since Shi Jingtang had been able to meet with the deposed emperor, why would he leave him in Weizhou and watch him be killed by Li Congke? There must be something fishy going on.

Li Congke took a swig of wine and said, "Listen to what I have to say."

……

That night, the moon was dim and the stars were few.

Li Conghou fled with only fifty-odd horsemen from the Pengsheng Army. When they reached a point seven or eight li east of Weizhou, exhausted and weary, they did not avoid the approaching riders, despite being shouted at by their men.

The report on the opposite side read: "Shi Jingtang, the military governor of Zhenzhou."

Shi Jingtang was stationed in Taiyuan, and Zhenzhou was a newly appointed official position. Hearing him refer to himself with this title showed that he was still loyal to the court, which made Li Conghou very happy.

Shi Jingtang bowed and danced on the road, and Li Conghou dismounted, weeping and helping him up. He then verbally conveyed an edict: "The Prince of Lu is endangering the state, and Kang Yicheng and others have rebelled against us. We have no way to protect ourselves. The Princess has instructed me to meet you on the road and to devise a plan for the great cause of the state."

Princess Yongning, wife of Shi Jingtang, was promoted to Princess of Wei last year. After the late emperor passed away, she was elevated to the rank of Grand Princess.

"I heard that Kang Yicheng is leading an expedition to the west. I wonder how the battle is going? Why has Your Majesty come to this?"

"Yi Cheng has also betrayed us."

In his panic, Li Conghou encountered his brother-in-law, who was like a lifeline.

Before he could ponder why Shi Jingtang, coming from Taiyuan, didn't take the Zhiguan and Taihang passes, which are closer to Luoyang, but instead chose to go through the Baijing pass, taking a detour of several hundred miles to the east, he told him the truth.

Gao Xingzhou immediately understood that Shi Jingtang did not want to go directly to Luoyang and confront Li Congke head-on, so he deliberately took a detour and observed from outside the capital.

In chaotic times, it is understandable to be prudent and protect oneself.

Upon learning that the Imperial Guards had surrendered, Shi Jingtang bowed his head and sighed several times, then made an excuse to go and discuss the matter with Wang Hongzhi, the governor of Weizhou.

"Wang Hongzhi, when you were in the army, did you ever hear of his name?"

Before Gao Xingzhou could answer, Li Congke sneered, "If Shi Jingtang is truly willing to serve the emperor, he should simply follow Li Conghou back to Taiyuan. There's no need to consult with Wang Hongzhi."

"Yes, what kind of results could Shi Jingtang and Wang Hongzhi possibly come up with?"

"You know Shi San'er's character; he always likes to pretend to be upright and selfless, and he doesn't care about dirty or shady things."

Li Congke called out his old nickname and said disdainfully, "There are just some things he can't ask."

Gao Xingzhou roughly guessed what was going on: "What did you say?"

Wang Hongzhi said: "It is not uncommon for emperors to flee from the Di tribes in ancient times. However, even in their haste, they possessed generals, ministers, national treasures, and sacred objects, which the army commanders revered and did not realize their loss. Do the prime ministers and close ministers follow suit now? Do they possess precious jade and sacred objects?"

"That silly boy Li Conghou doesn't know how to hide anything. He should just tell the truth and say that he didn't do any of it."

Li Congke cursed his deceased younger brother with a look of disappointment and frustration.

Wang Hongzhi further said: "A great tree about to fall cannot be held up by a single rope. Now, with only fifty horsemen fleeing and no generals or ministers to accompany them, how can they possibly revive the great plan? This is what is meant by a dragon losing its clouds and rain."

"These words are actually what Shi San'er was thinking, but he put them into words by someone else."

Gao Xingzhou believes that Li Congke's speculation is not without merit.

The army in Hedong is strong, and Shi Jingtang's prestige in the army is comparable to that of Li Congke. With his status as the late emperor's son-in-law, he supports Li Conghou. It is unknown who will win, so there is no need to rely on anything else.

Instead of doing so immediately, he spoke these words through Wang Hongzhi, showing his indecisiveness and obvious cowardice.

"I am not guessing."

Li Congke then revealed a crucial point: "Wang Hongzhi's son, Wang Luan, serves as a palace attendant and is my personal servant. The details of this matter must not be kept secret from anyone."

Gao Xingzhou was speechless, but the subsequent developments were even more unexpected.

Shi Jingtang then visited Wang Hongzhi at the post station and repeated his words.

Before Li Conghou could say anything, Sha Shourong and Ben Hongjin, the archery and bow storekeepers, stepped forward and said to Shi Jingtang, "His Majesty is the beloved son of Emperor Mingzong, and you are his beloved son-in-law. You share wealth and honor, and joys and sorrows are intertwined. Now you are plotting with your relatives and vassals, hoping to restore peace, yet you are demanding your former subjects and state treasures. Are you trying to use this as an excuse to betray the Emperor?"

Before he finished speaking, he drew his sword and stabbed Shi Jingtang, then personally caught Chen Hui. The two men flipped over and immediately began to fight.

"That doesn't make sense. Even if Grand Commandant Shi had no intention of quelling the rebellion, why would the Prince of E plot against him?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Xingzhou glanced at Li Congke and thought to himself, "Wouldn't this be helping you eliminate your rivals? Li Conghou wouldn't be that foolish, would he?"

Otherwise, it was a show you put on for the world to see, in cahoots with Shi Jingtang.

"I did not collude with Shi San'er."

Li Congke took another big gulp of wine: "His lackey, Bai Yanliu, is said to have known long ago that Li Conghou was plotting to harm our lord, so he secretly sent the warrior Shi Gan to stand behind him with a hidden hammer, while he himself led troops outside."

"White-eyed Liu" refers to the purple-faced boy who always followed Shi Jingtang. Because his eyes were mostly white with little black, and his surname was Liu, Li Congke gave him this nickname, which perfectly matched Shi San'er.

"Shortly afterward, the ambush was launched. Shi Gan escorted Shi Jingtang into the room and blocked the door with a huge log. Bai Yan Liu led his troops to surround and kill them. Sha Shourong was defeated and killed in a one-on-one duel. He then fled to Hongjin and committed suicide. Li Conghou's more than fifty cavalrymen were all killed, leaving him all alone at the post station." (Note 1)

Gao Xingzhou still found it illogical. Li Conghou only had fifty horsemen with him when he fled. Even if he suspected Shi Jingtang's loyalty, it was too inconceivable for him to risk ambushing and assassinating him. Even if he killed Shi Jingtang, what use would it have for the situation?

It's one thing for Shi Jingtang to be unwilling to support the country, but what was he after in driving the deposed emperor to a dead end?

"Xiao Gao, whether you believe it or not."

Li Congke said earnestly, "When I raised the army, I only wanted to kill those two wicked men, Zhu Hongzhao and Feng Yun, and I didn't even think about seizing the dragon throne. At first, I really didn't intend to kill my adoptive father's biological son."

"When the tide turned and it became too late to turn back, and I learned that Li Conghou had killed Chongji and Youcheng, I decided to send someone to poison him. The person I sent was Wang Hongzhi's son, Wang Luan."

Li Congke drank the wine in one gulp: "When Wang Luan returned after finishing his business, he reported that his father had ordered the taverns in the city to serve him a cup of poisoned wine every day. On the day the poisoned wine arrived, it was also faked that it was served by the tavern, so Li Congke drank it without suspicion." (Note 2)

"I didn't instruct Wang Hongzhi beforehand, so why did he make these arrangements?"

Li Congke stared, his eyes reddening: "Xiao Gao, let me ask you something. In this matter, who is more likely to be behind it all?"

Since Shi Jingtang had become enemies with the deposed emperor, he was determined to kill him. However, he did not want to bear the infamy, so he used someone else to do the killing.

Although the emperor and his minister had some suspicions, they still failed to see the slightest detail, which was hidden in an inconspicuous matter.

Li Hongxin was from Jinyang, Bingzhou. Li Conghou appointed his favorite general Zhu Hongshi as the commander of the cavalry, in charge of the Pengsheng Army. Zhu Hongshi then promoted Li Hongxin to a subordinate position, gradually urging him to become a junior officer.

He was one of the fifty riders who fled with Li Conghou!

Zhu Hongshi was killed by Li Conghou for arguing with Kang Yicheng about military matters. Li Hongxin harbored resentment and secretly tipped him off, which allowed Shi Jingtang to track down the emperor's whereabouts and "accidentally" encounter the fleeing emperor and his entourage in the dead of night.

Unexpectedly, Li Hongxin raised troops in response, turned against Li Conghou, and slaughtered all his comrades who were loyal to him.

He also had another identity: the "White-Eyed Six" mentioned by Li Congke, a confidant of Shi Jingtang, and the brother-in-law of Liu Zhiyuan, a military officer! (Note 3)

Looking back, it was Liu Zhiyuan who orchestrated the "murder" of Shi Jingtang!

If we don't go to extremes, how can our lord dare to contend for the world? How can we rise above others?

Unfortunately, Shi Jingtang was conservative and cautious, and dared not compete with Li Congke.

"Entrusting such a crucial position in Hedong, responsible for defending against the Khitan, to someone like this... Xiao Gao, do you really think we can rest easy?"

Li Congke asked a question in return, and Gao Xingzhou remained silent.

Another long silence followed.

The emperor's banquet was meant to show his favor, and after a few rounds of drinks, the guests should have left. However, Li Congke seemed oblivious to this, continuing to drink one cup after another without stopping.

Gao Xingzhou couldn't help but speak up, "Your Majesty, I am not a good drinker. If I continue drinking, I fear I will lose my decorum before you..."

"Xiao Gao, do you think I don't know your drinking capacity?"

Li Congke, seemingly drunk but not quite, glanced at him sideways and said, "Let's go somewhere else and keep drinking!"

-----------------

Place Name Comparison

Weizhou: The area around present-day Xinxiang City and Hebi City, Henan Province