roccoschili Chapter 5458 What you fear most is what happens.
Chapter 5458 What you fear most is what happens.
Chapter 5458 What you fear most is what happens.
Liuzhou, the seat of Yingzhou, has always been an important town in Liaodong, a vital passage for Liaodong to enter and exit the Central Plains, and a strategic location for the Central Plains dynasties to rule and control Liaodong. During the Sixteen Kingdoms period, the capital of the "Three Yan" was established here, and it was called "Dragon City".
Since ancient times, there have been three important land routes for entering and leaving Liaodong from the Central Plains. The "Banghai Road" is the closest, passing through Shanhaiguan. Cao Cao's eastern expedition against Wuhuan and Emperor Taizong's eastern expedition against Goguryeo both took this route. However, Liaodong is a vast and swampy land. During the rainy season, the Liaodong River floods, turning the area into a swampy land and making it extremely difficult to travel.
The other two routes, "Yingzhou Road" and "Lulong Road", both pass through Yingzhou.
……
Zhou Daowu entered and exited the palace from a young age and was raised by Emperor Taizong. After reaching adulthood, he married Princess Linchuan, was appointed Right General of the Valiant Guard, and served as the governor of Yingzhou. He rose from Sima to Dudu and was stationed in Yingzhou for many years.
Holding such an important strategic stronghold, with the Central Plains on one side and the nomadic tribes beyond the Great Wall on the other, he not only had great power but also tightly controlled trade between the Han and nomadic peoples. Naturally, he made a fortune every day and became extremely wealthy. In this remote and inaccessible region, he held great prestige and was like a local emperor.
With the favor of Emperor Taizong, Zhou Daowu had already become a rising political star with unlimited potential in the Tang Dynasty's officialdom, and it was not impossible for him to become a regional governor or even enter the imperial court in the future.
However, everything came to an abrupt end the moment the Eastern Expedition concluded.
Due to a lack of sufficient control over its troops and a failure to maintain its willpower in the face of harsh conditions, tens of thousands of Goguryeo prisoners of war froze to death in the icy wilderness of Liaodong, causing the Tang Dynasty to bear the infamy of "killing prisoners" and to be strongly condemned by insightful people both at home and abroad.
The killing of prisoners of war was abhorrent yet repeatedly prohibited, so while it was considered insignificant, it was absolutely forbidden to do it openly, especially for a country like the Tang Dynasty, which prided itself on being a "Celestial Empire" and a "Land of Etiquette." Such actions would be considered a huge scandal and would directly affect the reputation of the emperor.
The reason why Emperor Taizong mobilized the entire nation for the eastern expedition was clear: he wanted to create unprecedented achievements, become a wise and powerful ruler, and wash away the infamy brought about by the "Xuanwu Gate Incident".
As a result, the Eastern Expedition, which had cost the nation countless resources and was meticulously planned, almost ended in failure. At the last moment, Su Dingfang, who was excluded from the main force of the Eastern Expedition, launched a fierce bombardment and captured Pyongyang City, destroying Goguryeo. Although the results were gratifying, it was in fact a failure of Emperor Taizong's strategic planning.
Then the "killing of prisoners" incident occurred, leading to serious questioning from the government and the public, as well as from various countries both in China and abroad...
The fact that Zhou Daowu, who had committed a grave error, was not taken to Chang'an for public execution was already a sign that Emperor Taizong was showing him some consideration for their past relationship, but his political career was almost completely ruined.
When Emperor Taizong passed away, Fang Jun rose to become a powerful minister, while Zhou Daowu's future became even more bleak. Even though he managed to regain his official position through the underhanded dealings between the emperor and Fang Jun, Zhou Daowu no longer had any of his former ambition. He only wanted to hide in Yingzhou, far from the emperor's reach, and live a peaceful life.
If this official position could be passed down to his son in the future, that would be the most perfect ending...
The entire "princeling party" mobilized the resources of their trading companies to develop Liaodong, but Zhou Daowu paid no attention to it.
He was self-aware enough not to grovel before Fang Jun and do useless work; even if the development of Liaodong were a great success, he would gain nothing. Liuzhou was strategically located, with the Khitan and Xi tribes under his control, so there was no risk of losing territory or disrupting logistics.
Just be steady and reliable.
……
Inside the Governor's Mansion, after having breakfast and dealing with some urgent official documents, Zhou Daowu sat in the flower hall with Princess Linchuan, drinking tea and chatting.
Princess Linchuan, though over forty, was well-maintained and had a charming appearance, looking like a woman in her thirties. With the poise and elegance of a noblewoman, she took a sip of tea and said with a smile, "I have already sent someone to Chang'an to plead with the Empress to act as matchmaker. As long as His Majesty does not object, we will settle my daughter's marriage first."
Zhou Daowu's thick eyebrows were furrowed, indicating he was preoccupied. Upon hearing this, he asked, "Has His Highness Prince Wei already agreed?"
"It was only after consulting with the Prince of Wei that I went to ask the Empress to act as matchmaker. Otherwise, if the Prince of Wei had objected, wouldn't that have damaged our harmony?"
The eldest son of Prince Wei, Li Tai, is already thirteen years old this year. His marriage will be arranged first, and the wedding will take place in a few years.
Zhou Daowu nodded without saying anything more.
Although his wife, Princess Linchuan, was a woman, she was, after all, a princess of the Tang Dynasty, of noble birth, and exceptionally intelligent and resourceful. She had always held considerable sway in the family, and naturally, she was in charge of making decisions regarding her children's marriages.
Although he believed that Prince Li Tai of Wei, who had now gone to sea to assume his fiefdom, would not be of much help to his career...
Princess Linchuan poured tea and asked with a hint of doubt, "My lord seems to have something on his mind?"
"Ugh!"
Zhou Daowu did not hide anything from his wife. Usually, the couple would discuss and decide on many things together: "Li Kuge suddenly passed away, and the position of Governor of Songmo is vacant. I have already written to the court to recommend Abugu to take over the position, but now I am always uneasy about it."
Princess Linchuan also looked serious: "Li Kuge has great prestige in the Khitan. Although his son died young, I heard that his two grandsons are also brave enough to fight ten thousand men and have many supporters. Although you have a long-standing relationship with Abu Gu and your interests are intertwined, it is indeed very risky to act rashly like this."
Zhou Daowu shook his head: "Although I love money, and the money and silk that Abugu has sent over the years is not a small amount, how could I disregard the safety of the border for a little money? Among the eight tribes of Khitan, the Dahe clan is the most powerful. In the past, with the mature and prudent Li Kuge guarding Raozhou, the tribes were able to live in peace. Now that Li Kuge has passed away, if Li Kucaoli were to succeed him, who would be satisfied? At the very least, Abugu would not be content! If the Khitan were to fall into internal strife because of this, or even if the plan to develop Liaodong were to be thwarted, Fang Er would probably be the first to target me!"
In his view, the best way to appease the Khitan was through "the art of balancing". Since Li Kuge was dead, he would bestow the title of Governor of Songmo upon Abugu in order to balance the influence of the Li brothers within the Dahe clan.
As long as the Dahe clan is stable, the entire Khitan will naturally be stable.
If the Khitan are at peace, then the entire Yingzhou is as stable as Mount Tai.
He also included this reason in his memorial, and the court would surely consider his suggestion as the governor of Yingzhou.
Of course, if it weren't for the fact that Abugu had given him a considerable amount of money and silk over the years, even he himself probably wouldn't believe it...
But why not give back to Abugu and keep the Khitan stable?
Princess Linchuan was somewhat worried: "The position of Governor of Songmo is inherited by his descendants. Now that Li Kuge is dead, the position has been given to Abugu. How can the Li brothers and Li Kuge's supporters be satisfied? If this causes any changes, then things will be very bad."
The duty of the Governor of Yingzhou was to manage and suppress the various Khitan tribes and the Xi and other non-Han ethnic groups, ensuring a safe and secure route in and out of Liaodong.
Whenever the situation becomes turbulent, the Governor of Yingzhou will have no choice but to take responsibility.
At that time, the court would only look at the results and not the reasons, and Zhou Daowu would have to bear the blame.
Zhou Daowu sighed, "I also have some unease. The Li brothers have always been brave but reckless and act rashly. A few days ago, when I went to Raozhou to offer condolences, I tried to stop them from killing Abugu. Although we forcibly suppressed them, there may still be relapses."
Logically speaking, the Li brothers would never dare to risk triggering internal strife by killing Abugu, because they did not have the prestige of their grandfather Li Kuge and would not have many people on their side. The consequences of triggering internal strife in the Khitan were something they absolutely could not bear.
But what if?
He felt uneasy recalling the day the Li brothers had menacingly tried to kill Abugu.
A series of hurried footsteps approached and stopped at the door.
"Reporting to the Grand Commander, there is an urgent military intelligence to report!"
Inside the flower hall, Zhou Daowu urgently called out, "Report this immediately!"
"Here!"
A captain strode in, saluted, and announced loudly, "There is urgent military intelligence from Raozhou!"
After speaking, he held up a battle report with both hands and handed it over.
Zhou Daowu stood up and took the battle report. He carefully examined the sealing wax and seal, and after confirming that everything was correct, he tore open the envelope and took out the letter. He read it quickly, but then his vision went black and he stumbled.
Princess Linchuan was startled and quickly got up to help him up, asking, "What happened?"
Zhou Daowu steadied himself, sighed deeply, and handed the letter to Princess Linchuan: "Just what I feared has come to pass!"
Princess Linchuan took the letter only after he had steadied himself...
He immediately exclaimed in astonishment, "Have the Li brothers gone mad? How dare they!"
He dared to kill Abugu in the middle of the night inside the governor's mansion in Raozhou City just to get the position of governor of Songmo.
They even dispatched two thousand elite cavalry to launch a surprise attack and annihilate Abugu's five thousand tribesmen.
Even a madman wouldn't do something like that!
How could someone who killed Abugu and annihilated his people possibly gain the court's approval and be allowed to inherit the position of Governor of Songmo?
Not to mention that this move would inevitably trigger internal strife within the entire Khitan state, and regardless of victory or defeat, the imperial court would not forgive it!
This isn't just crazy, this is downright stupid!
The battle report clearly stated that due to the killing of Abugu and the massacre of his people, the Daji, Hebian, and Duhuo tribes had joined forces, raised the banner of "annihilating the internal traitors and eliminating internal strife," and more than 10,000 troops marched towards Raozhou City.
Meanwhile, the Fenwen, Tubian, and Ruixi tribes expressed their support for Li Kuge's descendants to inherit the position of Songmo Governor and offered their military assistance.
Although the Xi tribes did not send troops, they waved flags and shouted slogans, seemingly eager to stir up trouble.
The entire Raozhou, Lezhou, and Songmo Prefecture areas are in complete chaos...
At this moment, Zhou Daowu no longer had the mind to curse the Li brothers. As he strode out, he ordered, "Order the army to assemble, gather five thousand elite cavalry, fully armored, and follow me to Raozhou City to quell the rebellion!"
He had to appease the various tribes before the war broke out and nip it in the bud; otherwise, if the tribes fought amongst themselves and the region descended into chaos, his position as the governor of Yingzhou would be over.
However, just as he stepped out of the flower hall, another captain rushed in with the news.
"Reporting to the Grand Commander, a messenger from the Grand Commandant has arrived, ordering the Grand Commander to restrain the troops and not to leave the city of Liuzhou even a step further, or face military punishment without leniency!"
Zhou Daowu's vision went black, and his heart sank.