Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 159

In particular, Yin Shen was sent to investigate the situation in the surrounding towns, and it was found that the arrogant and unruly soldiers, and the subordinates' domineering attitude, were gradually taking shape.

Not long ago this year, a major event served as a wake-up call for Li Ji – Hou Xiyi, the military governor of Pinglu and Ziqing, was expelled.

Hou Xiyi was originally a subordinate general of Pinglu (the Pinglu Army was originally located in the Northeast). After An Lushan's rebellion, he attacked and killed the military governor Xu Guidao and surrendered to the Tang Dynasty. He fought in Youyan for a hundred battles, but eventually could not hold his ground. He led more than 20,000 soldiers and civilians south and captured Qingzhou. He was then appointed by the Tang court as the military governor of Pinglu and Ziqing. After the An Lushan Rebellion ended, Hou Xiyi's official title was military governor of Pinglu Army, observer of Ziqing, Qidi, Denglai, and other places, and envoy to escort the Silla and Bohai tribes. He also served as the prefect of Qingzhou, and was appointed as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Grand Pillar of State, and enfeoffed as the Prince of Huaiyang. He controlled six prefectures and had an army of 100,000.

However, after the situation stabilized, Hou Xiyi began to act recklessly. He not only neglected his duties, spending his days hunting, but also became a devout Buddhist, misappropriating military funds to build Buddhist temples, which aroused widespread discontent among his soldiers. Not long ago, Hou Xiyi went on another trip, spending the night outside the city with a shaman, and was refused entry by the soldiers. The Pinglu army rallied Hou Xiyi's brother-in-law, Li Huaiyu, to lead the army, forcing Hou Xiyi to flee to Chang'an in disgrace, where he too was relegated to a life of obscurity…

Li Ji pondered to himself that if his policies remained unchanged, and as long as he didn't treat his soldiers as harshly as Hou Xiyi, he could settle in Weibo for five or six years, or even ten, without much trouble, and wouldn't follow in Hou Xiyi's footsteps. But with his soldiers' appetites growing ever larger, what about ten years from now? Or, as Yan Zhenqing said, what if he left and someone else took his place?

He was originally tasked with stabilizing Hebei for the imperial court, and he didn't want to just walk away and leave behind a mess, causing the people of Hebei to suffer twice over.

Therefore, they hoped to launch a campaign to subdue the surrendered vassal states in Hebei as soon as possible, in order to find an opportunity to reverse the established policy...

Chapter Three: Preemptive Strike

Li Ji's temporary plan to address the growing arrogance of his soldiers was to quickly bring them to the battlefield. He did not need to completely annihilate the surrendered vassals of Yan and Zhao; as long as he pacified one town—for example, Tian Chengsi—and expanded his own territory, he would have enough land and money to reduce the number of troops.

If I were to dominate Hebei, and not fear the combined forces of any two garrisons, there would be no need to maintain so many troops. If I were to completely swallow up the Tianxiong Army, would I still need to support the 70,000 or 80,000 men left behind by Tian Chengsi? In this way, the soldiers in Hebei could gradually return to farming, which would reduce the burden on both the court and the local areas. As the number of troops gradually decreased, they would be less likely to cause any major trouble.

Although many of his soldiers were unwilling to return to farming, he could have slowly released them like a frog in boiling water. Unlike now, he not only dared not release them, but was also forced to plan to continue recruiting soldiers... Moreover, if the situation in Hebei stabilized, this generation of lumpenproletarians might be beyond cure, at least the next generation would not abandon farming to join the army.

Li Ji was particularly dizzy by Tian Chengsi's recent speed of recruiting soldiers, fearing that if he did not stop him in time, the fellow would become even more powerful and difficult to control.

To be honest, the four prefectures under the Tianxiong Army's control, in terms of arable land and population, were only slightly better than Li Ji's Wei and Bo prefectures. Originally, Li Ji thought he could only support 30,000 soldiers, and Tian Chengsi could raise 50,000 at most. Who would have thought that in just two years, that number would almost double... Where did that guy get so much money and grain?

I reckon it's because, firstly, they monopolized the salt resources of Cang and Di prefectures, and secondly, the Tianxiong Army's stipends were originally inferior to those of Weibo—Li Ji probably fully supported 20,000 garrison troops, while Tian Chengsi only fully supported 7,000 yamen soldiers. But even if many soldiers couldn't get enough to eat and wear, 70,000 to 80,000 was still a terrifying number. If they were to defend the city, even half of their elite troops might not be able to take it easily.

If we wait a few more years, that guy might have 100,000 men under his command!

Another factor is that Li Ji has been doing well in diplomacy recently. It's believed that if Tian Chengsi is attacked, Xue Song and Qin Rui would be happy to provide assistance. Li Baochen, due to his good relationship with Xue Song, might even remain neutral. The only concern is Li Huaixian of Youzhou. Ultimately, he is too far away and separated by the Tianxiong Army, making it difficult for Li Ji to reach him directly. If an attack is launched now, Li Ji would at most face a combined force of the Tianxiong and Lulong armies, totaling only 120,000 to 130,000 men. If this continues for a few years, the situation will be much more uncertain.

Because Tian Chengsi had many schemes up his sleeve. He seemed to want to form alliances with Wu Shun, Lu Long, and Cheng De to plot against the Zhaoyi Army, and he also seemed to want to form alliances with Lu Long and Cheng De to lull himself and the Zhaoyi Army into complacency in order to seize Qin Rui's foundation. Li Ji didn't really trust these surrendered generals, including Xue Song. They had formed alliances and divisions based on circumstances, without any shame or morality. So, if the situation changed in a few years—for example, if the court suffered several more defeats on the western front and its prestige declined—it was really hard to say whether they would turn against him.

To take an extreme view, if Chang'an were to fall again and the emperor were to be exiled, the surrendered vassal states might join forces to plot against Weibo—first, they would drive this outcast Li Ji out of Hebei.

Therefore, Li Jicai hoped to take advantage of Tian Chengsi's unstable foundation and launch a military campaign to attack him as soon as possible.

Qin Rui shared the same thought: after all, Wu Shun's army was the weakest in Hebei, and he feared that he would be the first force to be wiped out. As a result, he not only assisted Li Ji in secretly monitoring the movements of Tianxiong's army, but also secretly instigated Tian Chengsi to build a shrine for An and Shi, father and son.

—Tian Chengsi had this intention, but because he had only recently returned to Tang, he did not dare to put it into practice. Qin Rui specially sent Guo Mo to persuade him, suggesting that our two families jointly pay homage to the "Four Saints", but since a licentious shrine had already been erected within the territory of Tianxiong Army, Qin Rui instead found various excuses to delay the matter.

Li Ji naturally couldn't reveal too much about the inside story in his memorial—the court was like a sieve, leaking from all sides—he only impeached Tian Chengsi for building a licentious shrine, hoping to incite public opinion and force the court to send troops to punish him. Who would have thought that the impeachment memorial would disappear without a trace, and he finally received a secret letter from Li Shi.

That day, Li Ji had just returned from training his soldiers at the drill ground. Feeling confident in his morale and the soldiers' stamina, he was quite pleased with himself. Upon reaching the governor's office, before he could dismount, a sudden whistle rang out, and a gray shadow whistled past, brushing against his turban. Caught off guard, Li Ji was startled and stumbled slightly.

Fortunately, the horse he was riding was a fine steed from the Northwest, which seemed more composed than its master and did not kick out on the spot.

If it were anything else, it wouldn't be a big deal. Even if a hidden arrow hit his turban, Li Ji, who was used to all sorts of things, wouldn't be too surprised. The problem was that when he saw the gray figure, he had a premonition—damn, is something bad about to happen again?!

Because that gray shadow was actually a plump pigeon...

Li Ji's fall and subsequent transmigration were all because of a pigeon. The body he was inhabited by was also due to a pigeon, and he had developed an almost instinctive fear of pigeons. He thought to himself, "This won't do! I have to overcome this fear. Maybe I should catch a few pigeons and roast them?" Back in Ding'an, when he was in the imperial court, he roasted what might have been Li Fuguo's homing pigeons, and at that time he felt extremely relieved, even experiencing a sense of satisfaction, like he had finally gotten his revenge…

He then asked those around him, "Where did these pigeons come from?"

The attendants replied, "It seems they went towards the Military Supervisor's Residence, or perhaps it's where Military Supervisor Jiao is staying."

Jiao Xiwang was appointed as the military supervisor of Weibo. After arriving in Yuancheng with Li Ji, he proved to be as Cheng Yuanzhen had predicted: relatively easy to manage and not fond of seeking favors—he rarely solicited bribes and did not interfere much in military or political affairs. However, as the military supervisor, he could not neglect his duties. He would occasionally write reports on the situation in Weibo and submit them to the court. However, he would usually ask Li Ji to review the reports first to see if there were any improprieties.

Of course, whether there were any secret reports submitted without Li Ji's knowledge was anyone's guess. Li Ji himself didn't have many secrets to share, and given the value of intelligence resources, he didn't intend to use them on this military supervisor for the time being.

Jiao Xiwang kept carrier pigeons to communicate with the imperial court—of course, they couldn't fly as far as Chang'an; they usually had to transit through Luoyang—Li Ji had heard of this before, but hadn't paid much attention. Only today, when a carrier pigeon arrived, did he get a direct experience of it. He wondered if the pigeon's arrival meant the court had something to inform Jiao Xiwang of. Shortly after returning to his office, Jiao Xiwang proactively came to him, handing him a letter from Li Shi, and openly admitting that it had just been brought over by the carrier pigeon.

Li Ji unfolded the letter and read it. Sure enough, Li Shi first explained that the court was not yet able to wage war in Hebei and hoped to wait until this autumn to see how the war against the barbarians went. Then he asked Li Ji if he could win if he were ordered to attack Tian Chengsi, and which towns would be needed to assist him. Most importantly, he asked Li Ji to estimate the amount of money and grain needed.

Li Ji's original plan was to only mobilize the armies of Weibo and Wu Shun, and to hope that Zhaoyi and Ziqing would provide some financial and logistical support—quality over quantity, there was really no need to mobilize more than 100,000 troops to attack Tian Chengsi. If the war went smoothly, internal strife might occur within the Tianxiong Army, and Tian Chengsi might bow down and apologize. At that time, I would first divide Cang and Di prefectures with Qin Rui; if the war did not go smoothly, then I would ask the court to send more troops from Zhaoyi, Ziqing, and even Chengde and Xuanwu.

The key issue is that, regardless of rank or prestige, Li Ji can only control Qin Rui. Generals like Xue Song, Li Baochen, and Hou Xiyi (who is now deceased) might not be willing to obey his commands—and he, in turn, wouldn't listen to them. Therefore, the allied forces of the various garrisons would lack a commander, each acting independently, and the more people there were, the more chaotic things would become. Unless the court is willing to send Guo Ziyi to Hebei to oversee the entire situation—which Li Yu would likely not agree to.

So he summoned Du Huangshang and Gao Ying, showed them Li Shi's letter, and discussed with them how to reply. Du and Gao, however, did not approve of sending troops north this year, advising, "The garrison's provisions and manpower are still insufficient. While it would be good to strike at the key points and advance rapidly, if the war is delayed, it may be difficult to fulfill the commander's wishes. Besides, is Qin Rui a trustworthy person?"

Although the two men had gathered considerable information about Li Ji after joining the staff and admired his bravery, they ultimately lacked experience in leading troops in battle. They felt that fighting against overwhelming odds was too dangerous—besides, Tian Chengsi was a valiant general under An Lushan and Shi Siming, and could not be underestimated. However, they could not directly confront Li Ji and could only use the excuse of insufficient funds and supplies, making a prolonged battle unwise.

Li Ji explained to them, “I have been ordering Yin Shen to investigate the situation of Tianxiong Army for more than a day. Although they have seventy or eighty thousand men, apart from seven thousand yamen soldiers, the soldiers are not well fed and clothed and have little will to fight. I will attack them with fifteen thousand Weizhou garrison troops. This is because the many overpower the few, not because the few attack the many. The key is that Tian Chengsi’s rebellious intentions are obvious. If we do not launch a campaign against him in time, it will damage the prestige of the court. Moreover, if we delay for too long, we will inevitably worry about raising a tiger.”

Then, half-jokingly, he said, "There is no need for a long war to conquer the four prefectures. As long as we can blunt their advance and force Tian Chengsi to destroy the licentious shrine, return the salt administration, and bow his head to apologize, we will have succeeded."

Du Huangshang said, "If the military governor only seeks to coerce him into repentance through force, it would be better to ask the court to mobilize troops from the surrounding garrisons and launch a concentrated attack. However, this would inevitably consume a huge amount of money and supplies..."

Li Ji said with a wry smile, "That's precisely why the imperial court can't afford this expense. If it were to be levied on the various towns, I'm afraid they would all refuse to comply."

Gao Ying said, "Therefore, we should not rush to attack Tianxiong's army. We should gather our strength in Weibo and plan our attack slowly."

In any case, nothing could be agreed upon. Both of them had their own ideas and refused to act solely based on their superiors' wishes, leaving Li Ji helpless. In the end, he could only write down his thoughts on paper, saying that this was his intention in replying to the Crown Prince, and that they could help polish it—after all, it was just a private letter, meant to express his personal attitude and determination, not to make a pledge to the court, so there was no need for them to stop him.

In any case, the final decision rests with the imperial court, and I can't possibly launch a military campaign without an imperial edict.

Left with no other choice, the two bowed and accepted the order, taking the few lines of text written by Li Ji and going outside to polish them. However, not long after, Du Huangshang requested an audience again. After dismissing everyone else, he whispered to Li Ji, "I understand the commander's intention. I fear that Tian Chengsi's large-scale recruitment of soldiers will provoke the surrounding towns, exhausting their troops. With many soldiers but scarce supplies, they will ultimately have no choice but to fight. If Yan and Zhao fight amongst themselves, the war may be contained in Hebei. But if they join forces to invade, it will be another An Lushan Rebellion."

Li Ji nodded and said, "What you said is quite accurate. So what brings you here to teach me?"

Du Huangshang said, "If it's just the Tianxiong Army, then I'm not worried. But I fear they might collude with Chengde and Youzhou. If the commander hopes to use the elite troops of Weibo to win a single battle and force them to surrender, I'm afraid it won't be easy. I know Yin Shen is exceptionally talented, and he has many extraordinary people under his command. The commander could use them to scout inside and outside the territory, but I'm afraid that strategies of alliances and counter-alliances are not his forte..."

Upon hearing this, Li Ji's eyes lit up: "In the past, Li Si secretly persuaded the feudal lords for the King of Qin. He generously bribed those who could be bribed, and stabbed those who refused with a sharp sword. Can you handle this matter?"

Du Huangshang nodded and said, "I can agree to a deal involving inheritance; but if it comes to a fight, we still need to rely on Yin Shen."

Li Ji was overjoyed: "In that case, it all depends on Zunsu." After a pause, he asked, "How much will it cost?"

Du Huangshang said, "The town's wealth is not abundant and cannot compare with that of the powerful Qin. Moreover, if I were to take ten million strings of cash..." He smiled and said, "Sima Yan will certainly not let me off the hook. I will ask for five hundred strings of cash as a guide."

Li Ji said, "Okay, I'll approve five hundred strings of cash for you right away."

It is said that he had promised Du Huangshang that he could set his own salary, but after Du Huangshang entered the town, he only asked for 15,000 coins a month and refused to ask for more. Gao Ying, who was subordinate to him, received 12,000 coins a month. Li Ji felt a little bad about it, but the two said, "We came to the east alone from the military governor and do not plan to acquire property in Weibo. Even if we receive too high a salary, we will have nowhere to spend it."

Since the An Lushan Rebellion, the salaries of officials outside the capital have generally been higher than those of officials in the capital—because the court was poor—especially the staff of regional military governors, who often competed with each other for higher salaries, while the salaries of officials in the capital only increased slightly, not keeping up with the inflation. In addition, most officials in the capital no longer received guards or servants, and the amount they received in cash and silk was not much, while the staff of regional military governors had plenty of servants and attendants to do their bidding—otherwise, where would they have put the two thousand old soldiers of the old Weibo army? All things considered, what Du and Gao asked for was not much, but it was already two to three times the salary of officials of the same rank in the capital.

From this, Li Ji realized that the two men were not greedy for money, and that they followed him only to make achievements, gain fame and promotion. So when Du Huangshang asked for 500 strings of cash for activity expenses, Li Ji approved it without hesitation.

However, Du Huangshang then said, "This requires painstaking effort and cannot be accomplished in a day. As for the Northern Expedition, it is still as the Crown Prince said in his letter. We should wait until autumn to see the results of the defense against the barbarians before the military commander reports to the emperor. We should not rush things, lest the court become suspicious of the military commander."

Li Ji thought to himself, "So you were waiting for me here..." and had no choice but to agree for the time being.

Du Huangshang returned to the outer room and said to Gao Ying, "The commander-in-chief has heeded my advice, which will allow us to delay the situation for a while."

Gao Ying warned him, "I see that the General is determined to attack the Tianxiong Army. Although it is delayed now, it will not last long. Therefore, you must not slacken in your efforts to sow discord between Yan and Zhao, and you must work hard to do so." Du Huangshang nodded and said, "I understand. Gongchu, there is no need to urge me."

After Du Huangshang resigned, Li Ji felt somewhat powerless. It was like playing an online game in his past life: his own setup was perfect, everything was on track, but the opponent was recklessly amassing troops... If he didn't strike first and disrupt their rhythm early, it would be difficult to control them later. Unfortunately, not everyone was willing or dared to make that kind of decision...

What other strategies do I have to accelerate my own development and accumulation?

While Li Ji was pondering this, Yin Shen entered and reported something. Upon hearing it, Li Ji slammed his fist on the table in fury—"I will kill this scoundrel! Quickly summon Yan Sima, and Du, Gao, and other officials to come and discuss this!"

Chapter Four: The Great Bandit of Tonghua

The imperial court did not rely on the tribute from the various garrisons in Hebei—in fact, the same was true for Hedong, Guanzhong, and even Jiannan and Shannan—as tax revenue mostly came from the prefectures in the Central Plains that did not have military governors or inspectors, as well as the Jianghuai region. Therefore, overall, the annual revenue was less than 30% of what it was during the Kaiyuan and Tianbao eras when the dynasty was at its peak.

Li Ji, upon garrisoning Weibo, felt acutely constrained by financial and logistical constraints—the key issue being the need to support 30,000 to 40,000 soldiers. In the peaceful times before the chaos, the garrison in the two prefectures numbered only around 10,000, certainly providing a surplus—and he had no intention of paying a single penny in tribute to the court. Unfortunately, Yan Zhenqing disagreed, repeatedly pleading that they must contribute something, however small, to set an example for the other garrisons in Guandong. He argued that while things were fine when the military governor first arrived last year, the treasury wasn't overflowing, but if they lived within their means and practiced frugality, they could surely scrape together several thousand strings of cash.

In previous years, the tribute from Wei and Bo prefectures mainly consisted of silk fabrics and gromwell root. The accumulated amount couldn't be fully sold off (because trade wasn't yet booming), and Li Ji wasn't accustomed to using goods as rewards—fabricates were one thing, but giving gromwell root? He considered that purely perfunctory; it would be better to distribute grain and oil during festivals—that would leave a considerable surplus. Therefore, after Yan Zhenqing's repeated entreaties, Li Ji finally approved fifty shi (a unit of dry measure) of gromwell root and five hundred bolts of various silk fabrics, which were sent to Chang'an as tribute.

However, today Yin Shen reported that our tribute was stolen when it was transported to Huazhou... Li Ji was furious and invited Yan Zhenqing and other advisors to come and discuss the matter.

Jia Huai was also present. Upon hearing the news, he immediately jumped up and said, "I've long heard that Zhou Zhiguang is arrogant and lawless. He even dared to plot against the military supervisor of the town, and he dared to detain half of the tribute of Inspector Cui (Cui Yuan). Now he has even provoked my Weibo! Does he think that the mace of the military commander is not important?!"

Yan Zhenqing shook his head and said, "The news came that it was robbed by bandits, so it may not be related to Zhou Zhiguang."

Gao Ying retorted, “Zhou is accustomed to using soldiers as bandits, cutting off east-west trade routes; and with such a powerful bandit emerging in Huazhou, how can we say he has nothing to do with it? I personally believe that if it weren’t for Zhou Zhiguang’s instigation, he would have tacitly approved of it.”

Li Ji sneered, "The notorious bandit of Huazhou is none other than Zhou Zhiguang himself! It's one thing if he kills one or two eunuchs..." Anyway, Jiao Xiwang wasn't around—"Old man Cui Yuan can be bullied, but he dares to insult this town! This is intolerable!"

Du Huangshang hurriedly said, "I will draft a memorial for the military commander to impeach Zhou Zhiguang."

Li Ji waved his hand: "What's the use of impeachment? Everyone knows how wicked Zhou Zhiguang is. It's just that he's too close to Chang'an, so the court is hesitant to punish him..." As he said this, he couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly and seemed a little stunned.

Because he finally understood: Li Shi's letter was not very clear, but it was vaguely implying that the court had a hidden danger and could not exert its strength in Hebei; he originally thought it referred to the invasion of the barbarian bandits, but now he realized that it was probably referring to Zhou Zhiguang's plan to lie on his bed.

Most of the regional military governors in the world were arrogant and domineering. Li Ji initially resented this when he was still a general in the Imperial Guards, thinking it resembled the chaos at the end of the Han and Jin dynasties. However, as he saw and heard more, he became numb and accustomed to it. Especially after he became a military governor himself, his stance shifted, and he felt it was best for him to have complete control over his own territory, and the less the court interfered, the better. He even found some empathy for those arrogant regional military governors.

Although he knew his thinking was unacceptable and of no benefit to the country or its people, he considered the Tang Dynasty's current weakness and inability to govern the entire empire. While the various military governorships were practically independent, as long as they still adhered to the Tang calendar and their positions were not hereditary, they wouldn't descend into the turbulent chaos of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. Moreover, the vast majority of soldiers and civilians were of the same ethnicity, using the same language and script. The central court officials and local advisors came from all over the country. Even if this situation persisted for a century or two, it wouldn't become a fragmented Germany under the guise of the Holy Roman Empire…

Therefore, although Li Ji had heard of Zhou Zhiguang's misdeeds, he didn't take it to heart. He was just annoyed that the fellow had risen through the ranks too quickly by clinging to Yu Chaoen's coattails. If he had served a few more years in Longyou, he could have been a promising military governor or even a regional commander. Instead, he had wasted years in the Imperial Guard protecting Li Yu and his son, only to rise through the ranks due to his service in protecting the emperor. He originally thought his promotion speed, while not befitting a transmigrator, was already quite fast compared to the natives of this era. Who would have thought that he'd barely boarded the helicopter when he saw Zhou Zhiguang strapped to a rocket and soaring into the sky…

Another one who rose to prominence was his former subordinate, Liang Chongyi, who was now the acting military governor of Shannan East Circuit, with no higher military governor above him, practically ruling over all eighteen prefectures of the circuit. Li Ji felt that these lucky individuals had lowered the overall quality of his observers and military governors. If this trend wasn't stopped quickly, he feared he would end up with a bunch of juniors and fools!

To get back to the point, he paid some attention to Liang Chongyi, after all, he was a general who had risen from his ranks. As for Zhou Zhiguang, he had no prior acquaintance with him, and the two towns were far apart, so even if that fellow's misdeeds were to resurface, it seemed to have little to do with him. Ultimately, he didn't have 100,000 troops under his command, and even if he ignored the imperial court, he couldn't truly dominate the world, and he certainly couldn't possibly fight his way from Hebei all the way to Tonghua, could he?

Who would have thought that by ignoring Zhou Zhiguang, that fellow would inadvertently become a stumbling block for him—if the imperial court couldn't even deal with Zhou Zhiguang, then it certainly wouldn't be in the mood to deal with Tian Chengsi.

He paused for a moment, which surprised his staff, who couldn't fathom what the general was thinking. So Gao Ying suggested, "We can send a letter to Tonghua, questioning Zhou Zhiguang and ordering him to send troops to capture the 'bandits' and return the tribute from Weibo."

Li Ji shook his head: "Given that fellow's past conduct, even writing a document would be of no use." He then looked around at everyone: "If we cannot curb his evil deeds, I fear that other towns will follow suit, and though the world is vast, it will soon be divided! So I intend to punish Zhou Zhiguang. Do any of you have a good plan?"

Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged bewildered glances. Du Huangshang thought to himself, "I just stopped you from submitting another memorial, urging the court to punish Tian Chengsi, and now you want to attack Zhou Zhiguang... This military commander really can't sit still!" Gao Ying hurriedly said, "Even if Zhou Zhiguang's crimes are heinous, the military commander cannot attack without an imperial edict. Besides, the two towns are far apart; talking about attacking him is practically a pipe dream..."

Let's not even talk about the huge consumption of food and supplies during a long expedition, which we simply can't afford to supply. Even if we have a well-trained army and sufficient food, you leading thousands or tens of thousands of troops westward without orders will be seen as acting out of public anger, or perhaps to settle personal scores. Even if it is acting out of public anger, you will probably be charged with treason first!

Zhou Zhiguang is hateful, and the Tibetan bandits are even more hateful, but the imperial court's autumn defenses have only mobilized a portion of the Hedong army at most; I've never heard of them summoning Hebei troops—unless we can fly there.

Li Ji slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "There's no need to send a large army to suppress him. I will return to the capital to pay my respects. When I pass through Huazhou, I will confront Zhou Zhiguang in person. If he refuses to submit, I will break his back with a single mace!"

Everyone was shocked and tried to stop him. Li Ji glanced at the crowd and said, "Does Zhou Zhiguang's presence mean I can't even return to Chang'an? Does that fellow dare to turn his sword against me?"

Yan Zhenqing advised, "When the General returns to the capital, Zhou Zhiguang will certainly not dare to stop him. However, if you rebuke him to his face, he may take a risk, which would be detrimental to the General. I hope you will think it over carefully."

Li Ji asked, "How many soldiers does Tonghua have?"

"Twenty to thirty thousand."

Li Ji looked at Yan Zhenqing and said, “In the past, when An Lushan’s 200,000-strong army swept through Hebei, you, Lord Yan, guarded Pingyuan. In addition to the 3,000 Jing Sai soldiers, you recruited 10,000 new soldiers, so you were able to fight against 200,000 with one. Now, with Hua’s 40,000-strong army, I will send 2,000 men, and I will also fight against 200 with one. Do you think my ambition is not as good as yours, Lord Yan?”

Yan Zhenqing said these are two different things, how can they be confused? Besides—"When a military commander returns to court for an audience, a few hundred soldiers are enough to escort him. If there are two thousand men, what is the purpose of the name?"

Li Ji smiled and said, "Naturally, we will send tribute to the court again, and let's see if Zhou Zhiguang dares to come and snatch it this time!"

At first, he was simply indignant at Zhou Zhiguang, whose crimes were so heinous that the court dared not punish him. Because of the distance, he hadn't bothered with him. Who would have thought that Zhou would dare to provoke him and even block his path! But as he spoke, some immature ideas began to form in his mind. He dismissed all other people and discussed the matter privately with his advisors:

"The tribute we sent the other day was stolen by bandits while passing through Huazhou. I should send it again as a replacement. I will order two thousand elite soldiers to disguise themselves as laborers, secretly hiding weapons on the carts, and send them through Huazhou again. If any more bandits come to rob us, we will wipe them out and restore face to Weibo. If Zhou Zhiguang is wise enough not to do evil again, once we arrive in Zheng smoothly, we will invite him to a meeting, and capture him during the banquet..."

Du Huangshang asked, "What if they dare not come?"

Li Ji smiled and said, "Then I will send tribute to Chang'an so that the emperor will know of the loyalty of Weibo. Do not worry, do you think I would dare to lead two thousand men to attack Zheng County?"

Everyone thought to themselves, "I'm afraid you won't be able to control yourself and will definitely take Zhou Zhiguang's life... But then again, two thousand soldiers are just light infantry disguised as laborers, and they don't have any siege equipment. I don't believe you, Li Ji, would be so stupid as to attack a fortified city."

Yan Zhenqing advised, “If soldiers disguise themselves as laborers and secretly carry weapons, passing through Huazhou and entering Chang’an, and if this is discovered, the court will surely punish the military governor for disloyalty. Moreover, the tribute from Weibo is only a small amount of local specialties; why would it require two thousand laborers? If Zhou Zhiguang is willing to meet with the military governor, he can be reprimanded; if he is captured without orders, it is also a violation of the law. I earnestly request the military governor not to take such a rash action.”

His advisors also urged Li Ji to think things through more and to plan carefully before taking action.

Li Ji shook his head and said, "If the memorial is sent to Chang'an, Lu Qi may have already submitted it, but the tribute has been intercepted and cannot arrive. What will the court think of me then? We must send tribute again to demonstrate our integrity. If Yan Sima thinks two thousand soldiers are too many, then how about one thousand?"

Yan Zhenqing said that it was appropriate to send another batch of tribute, but the military commander did not need to go in person. Li Ji said, "If I don't go, who can guarantee that it won't be robbed by the bandits again?" He paused, then said, "If Zhou Zhiguang sees my banner, he won't dare to act recklessly, and the tribute can enter the capital smoothly."

He had made up his mind, and no one could dissuade him. Du Huangshang then volunteered, "I wish to return to the capital with the military governor." He thought to himself, "I must follow you, to stop your rash actions at any time." Li Ji refused, "I have just entrusted Zunsu with an important task; how can Zunsu leave Weizhou?" Of course, Yan Zhenqing, who was in charge of the administration of Weibo, couldn't leave either; as for Gao Ying, Du Huangshang didn't expect him to be able to stop Li Ji, hoping he wouldn't get angry and encourage Li Ji to act recklessly…

Li Ji specifically named Yin Shen and Yun Lin, ordering them to hand over their current duties and assist him in selecting one thousand elite troops to return to Chang'an. As for the elite troops, the elite guards would naturally be the main force, and a portion of them would be taken along; Yuan Jing'an would also have to go.

That evening, however, he summoned Yin Shen, Yun Lin, and Yuan Jing'an to his inner chambers and bluntly told them, "Yan Sima is prudent, and Du Zunsu and Gao Gongchu are both scholars, not worth discussing matters with. When I go there, I will definitely cut off Zhou Zhiguang's head to vent my hatred!"

These three were all Li Ji's confidants, unlike Du Huangshang, Gao Ying, and others. They were the type to do whatever their superiors said and dared not easily go back on their word, especially since they were all aware of the capabilities of Li Ji's subordinates. Therefore, they did not try to dissuade him, but simply asked, "What does the Commander intend to do?"

Li Ji instructed Yin Shen, "You should set off first, taking your martial arts experts with you, and infiltrate Tong and Hua prefectures to do these things for me... Then send a secret letter to Lu Qi by fast horse, asking him to respond in the capital."

The four of them discussed the matter head to head for half the night before Yin Shen and the others finally accepted their orders and left. Li Ji had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the sound of jade pendants. Cui Cuo slowly emerged from behind the screen, her delicate brows slightly furrowed, and scolded, "We've only had a few peaceful days, and you're already up to some danger again, sir!"

Li Ji smiled and said, "Fortune and honor are found in danger... As long as we plan carefully before acting, Zhu Hai's hammer blows will bring down 100,000 Wei soldiers into Xinling's hands—it's not really taking a risk."

Cui Cuo said, "Since you say there is no danger, I will go with you, my lord."

Li Ji stood up, stepped forward and embraced his wife, and said with a low laugh, "I know you're worried, but your husband is used to weathering many storms, he won't capsize in a small ditch—it's just Zhou Zhiguang, how does he compare to Xu Shuji? How does he compare to the Pugu father and son? Besides, if you weren't in this state, you could come back to Chang'an with me, just to relax and visit your family, there's nothing wrong with that..."

Thanks to Li Ji's hard work, Cui Cuo finally became pregnant. Although her belly wasn't very noticeable yet, Li Ji had heard in his previous life that miscarriage was most likely to occur in the first three months. How could he dare to take her on a long journey through mountains and rivers? The transportation conditions of those days were far superior to those of later generations, and carriages lacked effective shock absorption systems. Even with thick bedding, a healthy person could easily be jolted awake, let alone a pregnant woman...

Therefore, I told Cui Cuo that he should stay home and take good care of himself during his pregnancy. My main purpose in going to Chang'an is to pay tribute and have a good chat with Li Shi, hoping that he can support my campaign against the Tianxiong Army. As for Zhou Zhiguang, he is just a small pebble on the road and can be kicked away with one foot.

“Zhou Zhiguang was originally a close confidant of Yu Chaoen. Although we have severed all ties, I fear he may still be supported by both inside and outside the court. Now that Yu Chaoen is by the Emperor's side and Zhou Zhiguang is on the main road, if we do not eliminate him, and my brother is not in Chang'an, how can I live in peace in Weibo?”

He dared not say this to Yan Zhenqing and the others, because the old man would certainly consider the court first, then Weibo, and only then his own life and death, honor and disgrace. As for Du, Gao, and the others, they would most likely advise that as long as they were obedient, there would be no suspicion from the court. But Li Ji felt that, given Li Yu's character, he would not take the initiative to remove obstacles for him, so he had no choice but to seize the initiative and kick them himself!

Chapter Five, Acting as an Accomplice to a Tiger

Li Ji personally escorted dozens of cartloads of tribute to Chang'an. When the news reached Zheng County, the capital of Huazhou, Zhou Zhiguang paid no attention, but his subordinates Yao Huai and Li Yanjun panicked and hurriedly sought an audience to ask for advice.