Tang Dynasty Swordsman.

Li Zhao was shocked and hurriedly raised his spear to parry. Unexpectedly, Li Ji's mace was very heavy, and with a "crack," it directly broke the spear. Moreover, the mace struck Li Zhao's shoulder and neck without any hesitation.

With a muffled thud, Li Zhao lurched to the side and fell from his horse. His last thought before dying was: "So the rumors were wrong, it was 'Mace Hero' not 'Sword Hero'..."

Meanwhile, Li Ji killed Li Zhao with a single mace strike, and his mount, still charging forward, headed towards Liang Chongyi. Liang Chongyi reacted swiftly, immediately throwing down his lance, dismounting, and kneeling on one knee, pleading, "This humble general had no intention of causing trouble; I was dragged here by Li Zhao. I beg you, sir, to spare my life!"

With a "whoosh," the mace reached above his head, but finally stopped falling.

"Who are you?"

"Liang Chongyi, the Right Military Commander under Commander Lai."

"So you are Liang Chongyi?" Li Ji glanced sideways at the corpse behind the horse. "And that one is Li Zhao?"

To be honest, he was quite surprised.

----------

Li Ji had gathered information from various sources beforehand and analyzed Lai Zhen's character. He estimated that with the powerful incentive of being appointed Minister of War and concurrently Chancellor, there was a good chance that "Lai the Iron Chewer" would repent and return to the capital by imperial decree.

He then left Chang'an and headed south, first arriving in Shangzhou, where Li Qiyun welcomed him and arranged for him to meet with Nan Jiyun, Lei Wanchun, and others. They recounted their parting feelings and enjoyed a banquet for several days.

However, these few days were not wasted. Li Ji had already ordered Yin Shen, Chang Heng and others to travel south to Xiangzhou to gather information.

Ran Mao'er brought a secret decree, ordering Li Qijun to hand over the main force of the Shangzhou army to Li Ji, so that he could lead it to Xiangyang. Li Qijun inspected the troops at the drill ground and selected three thousand elite soldiers, but Li Ji refused to accept them, saying, "I brought several dozen men. Uncle, you can add a few more to make it a round number of three hundred."

Li Qijun asked in surprise, "The court ordered me to assign troops to Changwei to prevent Lai Zhen from disobeying the imperial edict; if I only send three hundred men, I'm afraid we won't even be able to save our lives, let alone force him to return to the court?"

Li Ji smiled and said, "My elder brother advised me before we left that we should not rely on force when we go to Xiangyang, but rather on wisdom."

He then explained, “The angels have gone to Xiangyang several times to deliver imperial edicts. Although Lai Zhen disobeyed the orders, he did not kill any angels. So what do I have to fear?”

“This time is different from the past. Changwei is going to take away his military power. How could he possibly give it up so easily?”

Li Ji shook his head and said, "Even if they refuse to give me their troops, they won't harm me. On the contrary, if I send several thousand troops, Pei Bian will serve as a cautionary tale."

Li Qiyun reminded him, "The soldiers of Jingzhou and Xiangyang are known for their arrogance and ferocity. They have caused trouble twice before, so Changwei must be on guard. However, one should not rely on one's own bravery to recklessly enter dangerous areas."

Li Ji said, "Alright then—General Nan, please come with me, and General Lei, lead the main army to follow behind. We will stop at the border between Jun and Xiang prefectures."

Li Qijun was in charge of four prefectures: Shang, Jin, Jun, and Fang. Jun Prefecture was adjacent to Xiang Prefecture, so it was unlikely that his troop movements within his own territory would provoke Lai Zhen or his arrogant and fierce generals from Jingzhou and Xiangzhou.

Immediately afterward, Li Ji asked Li Qijun, "What generals and officers does Lai Zhen have under his command? Are you familiar with them, Uncle?"

Li Qijun had long since left the capital for Shannan East Circuit, but initially he was only the Prefect of Shangzhou, leading less than two thousand defeated troops from Luoyang under the command of generals such as Nan Jiyun and Lei Wanchun. At that time, Lai Zhen governed ten prefectures, so Li Qijun naturally had to deal with him. Later, he took charge of four prefectures himself. Because they were adjacent, it was impossible for him not to investigate the intelligence of Lai Zhen's generals and officials, and he was completely unaware of it.

Therefore, he gave Li Ji a detailed introduction, saying that among Lai Zhen's subordinates, there were only four who were most trusted and held great power: "Xue Nanyang is talented in both literature and martial arts, but unfortunately he is too cunning; Pang Chong is capable in governing, but unfortunately he is greedy; Li Zhao and Liang Chongyi are crude and domineering, especially Liang Chongyi, who has immense strength and can fight against ten thousand men..."

Thus, Li Ji's understanding of the officers and soldiers of Xiangyang deepened beyond what he had learned from books. He frowned, thinking to himself, "Those arrogant and fierce generals... even if I could drive away Lai Zhen and take command of the troops myself, I probably wouldn't be able to control them in a short time..."

Kindness must be shown over a long period of time, while authority can be established quickly. If we want to get the Xiangyang soldiers to the front line within a month or two and make them willing to obey our command, the only way is to establish authority. And the fastest way to establish authority is to kill people.

But Li Ji had no intention of repeating Li Guangbi's mistakes. When Li Guangbi went to Luoyang to replace Guo Ziyi, he had the intention of establishing his authority by killing generals. He first killed Zhang Yongji, which made the generals of Shuofang tremble with fear. However, from Pugu Huai'en down, they were not truly convinced—Li Ji had followed Pugu Huai'en and knew this all too well—on the contrary, they missed Guo Ziyi even more.

—Li Shuai, you dared to kill my Shuofang army general while Guo Shuai was away. What kind of skill is that?!

Therefore, Li Ji felt that if he waited until Lai Zhen left before killing generals to establish his authority, the effect might not be good. It would be best if he could execute one or two of Lai Zhen's subordinates according to the law while Lai Zhen was still in Xiangyang. If Lai Zhen did not dare to interfere, he would naturally have exhausted his favor towards the Xiangyang army. Then, he could then take action to rectify military discipline and achieve twice the result with half the effort.

However, if he were to kill his close associates, how could Lai Zhen possibly ignore it? And killing low-ranking soldiers would be pointless.

Unable to devise a good plan in time, they could only proceed step by step. After staying in Shangzhou for several days, they escorted Ran Mao'er and set off again. Just as they entered Xiangzhou, Yin Shen and others sent a secret report that Li Zhao and Liang Chongyi intended to send troops to coerce the imperial envoy…

This wasn't exactly a top military secret. Since Li and Liang had already made their plan, they naturally needed to summon their officers and generals first. Otherwise, if they were to suddenly raise an army to besiege the angel, the troops would be filled with fear, and they might not dare to obey orders. Of course, everyone would tell their subordinates, "This is a secret; do not reveal it." But people like Yin Shen, with their own methods, how could they not find out?

Especially since Mr. Qingyuan Chang Heng had entered Xiangcheng Town early on, with his silver tongue and dazzling "magic," he had long been revered as a divine master by many ignorant military academy students. Given the momentous occasion of besieging the angels, it was impossible not to first consult a divine master for divination to determine good or bad fortune.

After this incident, if the commander raises a flag and rebels, that's fine. But if he doesn't rebel, a few heads will have to be cut off to give the court an explanation—won't that fall on my own head?

The Jingxiang region has been plagued by numerous wars, and the officers and soldiers have become adept at handling such situations, demonstrating a high level of sensitivity in this regard.

Upon hearing this, Yin Shen secretly reported to Li Ji, who was overjoyed: "It's like someone bringing you a pillow just when you're about to fall asleep!"

He estimated that Li Zhao, Liang Chongyi, and their ilk were planning a "military remonstrance" rather than a "military coup," otherwise they wouldn't have gotten past Lai Zhen—if Lai Zhen wanted to rebel, why would his subordinates have to act first? It would at least prove that his rebellious intentions were not firm, or that his preparations were not yet complete. Since it was a "military remonstrance," and he only had his own three hundred soldiers facing them, they would certainly not have the will to fight to the death. As long as he relied on his courage to go forward, he could hope to kill the enemy generals and quell the rebellion.

Unless Li Zhao and Liang Chongyi both remain silent. But if that happens, who can rival them? Besides, they have Nan Jiyun by their side, whose archery and horsemanship skills are no less than their own.

Li Ji was now convinced of his superiority and deliberately lodged at Shili Pavilion, ten miles west of Xiangyang City, giving the enemy a great opportunity to send troops to harass him.

The purpose of asking those two questions at the beginning was to determine the nature of the matter—it was not authorized by Lai Zhen, but was purely a rebellion by the military officers, and since there was chaos, they could be killed! So not only did he charge out, but Nan Jiyun also led three hundred soldiers who were prepared to follow. In the ensuing conflict, the Xiangyang troops were thrown into chaos instantly.

Li Ji did indeed see them through the crack in the door. Behind the chaotic soldiers were two men, fully armored and riding tall horses; they must be generals—perhaps Li Zhao and Liang Chongyi. As Du Fu's poem says, "To shoot a man, first shoot his horse; to capture a thief, first capture his king." After leaving the house, he immediately spurred his horse, brandishing his mace, and charged straight at the two generals.

However, he had heard that Liang Chongyi was the fiercest warrior in the Xiangyang army, possessing immense strength and unparalleled bravery. He figured that the only one who dared to oppose him was Liang Chongyi. If he could just capture this man, wouldn't the morale of the Xiangyang army be shaken?

Unexpectedly, the approaching general was no match for him; with just one mace strike, he fell from his horse and died. Li Ji then charged at another general, but the man promptly dropped his weapons and bowed, proclaiming, "I am Liang Chongyi."

Li Ji was surprised: Wasn't Liang Chongyi supposed to be the bravest? Why didn't he go up against me, but instead sent Li Zhao to fight me first... And as soon as Li Zhao died, Liang Chongyi surrendered on the spot?

The reason is actually quite simple: Liang Chongyi appears honest on the surface, but he is actually ruthless and vicious, possessing the cunning and ruthlessness of mountains and rivers and the deepest scheming.

If Lai Zhen had given the order directly that day, saying that Li Ji was known as a brave general and that Liang Chongyi could go and fight him, Liang Chongyi would have had no other thoughts; but since it was Li Zhao who first brought up the matter, Liang Chongyi had to be careful—could that guy Li Zhao have set some kind of trap for me?

Therefore, Li Zhao conspired with him to intimidate the angel. Liang Chongyi usually didn't speak, but when he did, his words were always accurate—"You have to come with me!"

When Li Ji spurred his horse out of the post station, Li Zhao was surprised but didn't think it through enough. Liang Chongyi, however, immediately realized something was wrong—we had only surrounded them for a short while, and this general was already fully armored and equipped with saddle and bridle. He was clearly prepared in advance!

Suspicion gripped him, so he dared not charge forward suddenly. Instead, he feigned striking Li Zhao's horse's rump with his spear, forcing his companion forward first. Seeing Li Ji's skillful martial arts and valiant killing technique, and how he had killed Li Zhao in a single move, Liang Chongyi knew that his plans for today were unlikely to succeed…

Firstly, Li Ji had hundreds of soldiers behind him, in neat formation, wielding swords and spears, which his own thousand soldiers simply could not stop—especially since Li Zhao's death had demoralized the army—and he himself was unlikely to defeat Li Ji in a short time; secondly, with two generals on the front lines, if he escaped alone, the commander would not let him off easily, and might even cut off his own head to apologize to the angel!

After weighing the pros and cons in his mind, he made a decision in an instant, and before Li Ji could kill him, Liang Chongyi surrendered.

He had a very shrewd plan. Because the soldiers were making a fuss, surrounding the post station, and threatening the envoy, Li Ji dared to rush out and kill Li Zhao—he had the greater good on his side. If he claimed that he had been coerced into coming and had no intention of causing trouble, then he would not be sentenced to death, and Li Ji would be very likely to spare his life.

Ultimately, Li Ji came here to lead the Xiangyang army. If he were to kill all the soldiers around him, would he still be able to control his troops?

Fighting doesn't guarantee victory, and retreating means certain death, so it's better to just surrender and cling to Li Ji's coattails; perhaps a smoother path awaits.

As expected, Li Ji spared Liang Chongyi's life—though he harbored suspicions, given the circumstances, this man was still useful—and ordered him to rise, gather the mutinous soldiers, and disarm them. He then escorted the envoy Ran Mao'er away from the post station, traveling swiftly through the night until they entered Xiangyang City…

Author's note: Sorry, something came up and it's getting late.

Chapter 47, Then We Became Comrades

Wei Zhongxi, the governor of Xiangzhou, had just fallen asleep when he was awakened by his servants, who reported: "An imperial envoy has sent men to knock on the city gates at night."

Upon hearing the report, Wei Zhongxi frowned. He naturally knew that the imperial court had sent an envoy to Xiangzhou to see Lai Zhen; and if the envoy were traveling by main road, it was possible that he would first enter Xiangyang City, then cross the Mian River to Xiangcheng Town, or even summon Lai Zhen directly to Xiangyang—all of which were plausible. The problem was that he had just heard that the envoy had missed his lodging and was staying at Shili Pavilion, ten miles west of the city. Wei Zhongxi had already made all the necessary arrangements for his reception, waiting for the next day. Why would someone send someone to knock on the gates of Xiangyang in the dead of night?

If the angel was worried that his journey would not be known to the local officials and sent someone to inform them, then once he decided to stay overnight at Shili Pavilion, he should have sent someone out. Even if he had to crawl, he should have arrived by now.

Besides, it's just a message; is it really necessary to knock on the city gates in the middle of the night and ask to enter?

Sensing something was amiss, he hurriedly dressed and stood up, asking, "Where is the person?"

"They have already been brought into the city in a basket and are heading towards the government office... It is said that they have urgent business to discuss with the magistrate."

Wei Zhongxi hurriedly rushed out of the inner chambers and arrived at the main hall, just in time to meet the visitor, who handed him an official letter proving his identity. Wei Zhongxi glanced at it quickly; it didn't seem forged. He then asked, "What brings the angel who sent you here last night?"

The man clasped his hands in a gesture of respect: "The garrison troops are in rebellion and besieging Shili Pavilion. We humbly request Your Excellency to immediately send troops to rescue the envoy!"

Wei Zhongxi was truly shocked.

He was the one who succeeded Wang Zheng, who had been driven out by the rebels Kang Chuyuan and Zhang Jiayan, when Cui Guangyuan was the military governor of Shannan East Circuit. However, Cui Guangyuan soon resigned, and subsequently, the Xiangzhou generals Zhang Weijin and Cao Jie killed the newly appointed military governor of Shannan East Circuit, Shi Hui, and besieged Xiangyang. Wei Zhongxi recruited able-bodied men to hold out for several months, finally holding out until Lai Zhen arrived from Shanzhou to provide reinforcements, and the rebellion was quelled in one battle.

Therefore, Wei Zhongxi was quite grateful to Lai Zhen. Lai Zhen, seeing that Wei Zhongxi came from an official family, was willing to try to win him over, and they got along quite well. It is said that there were many military disturbances in Jingzhou and the security situation was quite bad. It was only thanks to Lai Zhen's troops that the situation in Xiangzhou was stabilized.

Although the military governors were in charge of both military and political affairs, they ultimately focused on military matters, relying on the prefectural governors for civil administration. Wei Zhongxi never disobeyed Lai Zhen's orders and did his best to provide for the army's needs. It can be said that the two supported each other and cooperated very well.

However, Wei Zhongxi was ultimately not a general or official in Lai Zhen's staff, nor was he one of his followers. Therefore, he couldn't help but harbor some resentment towards Lai Zhen for repeatedly refusing imperial orders and refusing to return to the capital. Emotionally, he didn't want Lai Zhen to leave—such an easy-going military governor was hard to find again—but rationally, he feared that Lai Zhen was gradually developing a separatist regime, which might implicate him in the future.

Therefore, the court issued a secret decree to inquire with Wei Zhongxi about the reason why Lai Zhen refused to return to the capital. Although Wei Zhongxi tried his best to clear Lai Zhen's name in his memorial, he also left himself an out in his words - I am not a supporter of Lai Zhen. I am loyal to the court and I am just stating the facts.

Therefore, Li Ji had ordered Yin Shen to hide outside the post station early on. As soon as the mutinous troops approached the post station, he was to immediately ride to Xiangyang to report the emergency. Based on his analysis and judgment, he believed that Wei Zhongxi would not dare to ignore the envoy's death. The reason he urgently reported to Xiangyang was to add another layer of insurance to his plan of "luring the snake out of its hole"—what if the enemy was too numerous, or Liang Chongyi was brave enough for him to defeat?

As expected, Wei Zhongxi received Yin Shen's urgent report and was so shocked that he turned pale. He thought to himself: "Commander, Commander, is this really the last resort?"

With the imperial envoy's arrival imminent, Wei Zhongxi had already sounded out Lai Zhen's intentions, estimating that Lai Zhen still refused to return to court. So how could Lai Zhen refuse the imperial decree? Last time, he had already used the excuse of insufficient grain in Huaixi and waiting until autumn; now, the autumn grain had already been stored in various places, so what reason could he possibly come up with?

Having served as an official in Jingzhou, a place rife with war and chaos, Wei Zhongxi instinctively considered that Lai Zhen might incite his soldiers to not only jointly petition for his retention but also surround the imperial envoy and incite a clamor for support. If such a thing were to happen, he hoped it would occur in the barracks of Xiangcheng Town, and certainly not in his jurisdiction, otherwise he would also be implicated.

Unfortunately, what they feared most came to pass. The Shiliting Post Station was separated from Xiangcheng Town by the Mian River, so the angel's plea for help would inevitably lead him to Xiangyang—and finding a boat to cross the river late at night wouldn't be convenient, would it? More importantly, the angel probably didn't know the situation either, whether the rebellion was instigated by Lai Zhen, or whether Lai Zhen even knew about it. Therefore, he naturally wouldn't dare to go to Xiangcheng Town for help…

Now that they've come to our aid, how can we not try to save them? Otherwise, if the angel returns unharmed, all will be well, but if he is injured, I'll be in deep trouble! If the court blames us afterward, Lai Zhen's army is powerful and might hesitate to act against us, and they'll most likely make me the scapegoat—who told you to turn the tables and not come to our aid?

So he hurriedly gathered the garrison soldiers in the city, which numbered five or six hundred, and led them out of the city to Shili Pavilion. At the same time, he secretly sent someone out of the city to quickly cross the Mianbei River and inform the arriving commander...

However, before Wei Zhongxi could leave the city, Li Ji brought Liang Chongyi and the mutinous soldiers to the walls of Xiangyang. Ran Mao'er appeared in front of the city, raised her voice, and opened the city gate.

Wei Zhongxi met Ran Mao'er and Li Ji inside the city gate and urgently asked about the current situation. Li Ji waved his hand nonchalantly: "The traitor Li Zhao has been killed by me, Liang Chongyi has been captured, and nearly a thousand rebel soldiers are being held under the city walls."

Upon hearing this, Wei Zhongxi panicked even more—Damn it, two of Lai Zhen's top generals have been dispatched! Who would believe this wasn't Lai Zhen's doing? Although he wasn't Lai Zhen's ally, he was ultimately in the same boat and was forced to cover for Lai Zhen: "Li Zhao is arrogant and Liang Chongyi is ignorant. They must have acted on their own initiative, and it's definitely not Commander Lai's order!"

Li Ji smiled and said, "Whether it is the General's order or not, we will know by questioning Liang Chongyi."

He then turned his attention to Wei Zhongxi: "Has Governor Wei informed Xiangcheng Town about the unrest?"

Wei Zhongxi dared not conceal the truth and could only lower his head and say, "I can vouch for Commander Lai. It was certainly not your intention. I fear it was your subordinates who acted on their own initiative. Therefore, I have already sent someone to inform you..."

Li Ji agreed, then took a heavy bundle from his waist and tossed it to Wei Zhongxi: "I would like to ask Governor Wei to send someone to make another trip so that the commander-in-chief may know that Heaven has saved him from this calamity and that the chaotic soldiers could not accomplish anything. I only hope that the commander-in-chief will be worried, so please ask him to sleep soundly and come to Xiangyang to receive the imperial edict at dawn."

Wei Zhongxi took the bundle with both hands and casually asked, "What is this?"

"Li Zhao's head."

Wei Zhongxi shuddered on the spot and almost dropped the bundle on the ground...

Li Ji escorted Ran Mao'er into the prefectural government office to rest, but he himself did not sleep. He ordered Liang Chongyi to be brought over. Liang Chongyi was extremely honest, kneeling and kowtowing. When Li Ji asked him the reason for this, he quickly confessed about Li Zhao.

Ultimately, Liang Chongyi dared not completely offend Lai Zhen, so he remained silent about Lai Zhen's meeting with his confidants to discuss the matter, which essentially concluded that they would not obey the imperial edict. He only mentioned that the soldiers tried to persuade Commander Lai to stay, but Li Zhao took the opportunity to instigate a mutiny, besieging the imperial envoy, and that—"This humble general was unwilling to comply, but out of consideration for our colleagueship, I did not report it to Commander Lai. Unexpectedly, Li Zhao ordered his men to force me from my bed with sharp blades, and they attacked the imperial envoy and his superiors..."

Li Ji glanced sideways at Liang Chongyi, thinking to himself, "Who said this guy was honest? I think he's much more cunning than Li Zhao!"

He didn't believe almost anything Liang Chongyi said. He was convinced that if Lai Zhen hadn't instigated them, or at least tacitly approved of it, the two generals wouldn't have dared to offend the imperial envoy. "I sent a few men to infiltrate Xiangcheng Town and I was able to get advance notice. How could Lai Zhen, who has been stationed here for so long and has such power, not know about it? If I wanted to stop him, I would have done so long ago!"

However, if it were confirmed that Lai Zhen was actually involved in this matter, it would force him to rebel. If he then sent troops to attack Xiangyang, Li Erlang would probably be the first to be killed as a sacrifice to the flag. Therefore, Liang Chongyi's refusal to involve Lai Zhen was exactly what Li Ji wanted.

Now that I've straightened out the carriages and horses, let's see how Tian reacts.

So he carefully examined Liang Chongyi and slowly asked, "I heard that you are a brave general in the town, with the courage of ten thousand men. Are you disappointed that you dare not fight me tonight?"

Liang Chongyi hurriedly said, "Sir... your name is renowned throughout the land. I am but a firefly, how dare I compete with the sun and moon?" He then tried to ingratiate himself, "To be honest, you once commanded the Baoying Army, and I myself am a former archer in the palace guards, so I should naturally serve under your command..."

Li Ji stood up and told Liang Chongyi to stand up as well. Then he stretched out his right arm with his five fingers spread and said, "Let's test your strength."

Liang Chongyi hesitated for a moment, carefully observing Li Ji's expression. Seeing that he wasn't setting a trap, he mustered his courage and extended his right hand as well. They then clasped hands and pulled them apart.

It must be said that Liang Chongyi's strength was truly remarkable. After Li Ji transmigrated, he possessed an extremely powerful physical body, and in face-to-face combat, he had only lost to two people—one was the fierce Uyghur general Di De, and the other was this Liang Chongyi. Seeing that Liang Chongyi was gradually twisting Li Ji's wrist, his fighting spirit was ignited, and he immediately shouted, "Good strength! Let's see your fists and feet again!"