A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 1286 My dear, I want to marry you as a princess
History has both inevitability and contingency.

Xue Rengui was a descendant of a famous family in Hedong, with a family history of officials. Although his family had fallen into poverty, he was certainly not willing to farm the land all his life.

After the Xue family moved from Shu to Hedong, they produced many military generals. Although they were discriminated against by the big families, they eventually succeeded in rising in Hedong and were called the Three Surnames of Hedong together with Pei and Liu.

Together with Wei, Yang and Du from Guanzhong, they were called the Six Surnames of Guanlong. However, except for the Xue family, the other five families were well-known and prominent families since the Han and Wei dynasties. Only the Xue family rose to prominence the latest.
Moreover, the rise of the Xue family was based on their ability to fight. In particular, the Xizu lineage was very successful, and eventually the Xue family became one of the six surnames.

The children of the Xue family are not only tall and handsome, but also basically receive a good education since childhood. They are good at both literature and martial arts, and are good at archery, horse riding and shooting.

Precisely because of these, Xue Rengui was destined not to be content with being ordinary, and his background and abilities were also destined not to be buried.

The emperor is going to lead an expedition to Goguryeo.

Xue Rengui was still hesitating, but his wife Liu persuaded him to join the army. Xue Rengui was determined to join the army, but there were countless passionate men in the county, state, and government offices who wanted to join the army, but the government would not accept them.

Only the elite and brave soldiers from the various local Zhechoufu were recruited, and it was not the turn of ordinary people like Xue Rengui.

Fortunately, Wang Fangyi came to see him at this time.

He invited him to join the army and said he had connections. So Xue Rengui said goodbye to his wife, mounted his horse, put on his bow, and went to Chang'an.

He finally followed Wang Fangyi into the Taiwei Mansion.
I also met General Wu for the first time.

General Wu looks so young, yet so gentle and approachable.

In response to their request to join the army, the general smiled and agreed.

The excited Xue Renli wanted to show his skills to the commander. He was very confident because he had practiced hard for many years.

"What weapon do you use?"

"Horse lance!"

Xue Rengui said with some pride that to use a horse lance, he must be proficient in horseback fighting, especially since he could also highlight his identity as a descendant of a noble family.

The horse lance is not only difficult to practice, but also expensive.

The imperial court did not even allow weapons such as horse lances and Mo Dao to be buried with the dead.
A horse lance has to go through many processes and take several years to complete, and the price is also very high.

Most of the sons of common landlords or civilians joined the army. Even if they had the opportunity to make merit and be promoted, they mostly used spears instead of halberds.

Wu Huaiyu smiled and waved, "Bring out the horse lances in my collection, and let Rengui pick one to show you."

Wang Fangyi couldn't hold back any longer and stepped forward to ask, "General, a one-man show is not that interesting. Why don't you lend me a lance and a horse so that I can compete with Brother Rengui immediately?"

"Hahaha, all right. Each of you pick a lance and a good horse. I'll get the armor and give each of them a set."

When Xue Rengui and Wang Fangyi came to the martial arts arena wearing armor and holding spears,

The Wu family members who came to watch couldn't help but exclaim in amazement, praising the good boy.

Some even say that they look a bit like Wu Huaiyu.

"They wore Alang's armor, held Alang's lance, and rode Malang's horse. Their body shapes and builds were similar, so of course they looked like Alang."

“I just don’t know if it’s really capable.”

"Yes, if you want to join the expedition as Alang's son or attendant, you must have real skills. If you are just a silver-coated wax spearhead, it won't work."

Wu Huaiyu sat on a small stool, listening to their discussion and chuckling.

These two people are both powerful enough to defeat thousands of enemies.

If we talk about the brave generals in the early Tang Dynasty, there were so many brilliant generals that it is difficult to name them all. There are Qin Qiong, Yuchi Gong, Cheng Yao, Jinniu Jinda, Xue Wanche, Hou Junji, and the military god Li Jing.

By the time of Emperor Gaozong, Li Ji, Su Ding, Fang Cheng and Yao Jin were still very famous, but among the younger generation, the most famous ones were definitely Xue Rengui, Wang Fangyi and Liu Rengui.

On the martial arts field.

The two men put on armor and held sharp weapons, and their momentum suddenly changed.
Heavy cavalry hedge,

The two men danced with their spears on horseback, performing various difficult fighting techniques.

Chop, cover, block, intercept, lift, charge, carry, pick, smash...
With a horse lance, the two of them used all kinds of skills on horseback.
"I always thought that the horse lance was either for slapping, stabbing, or sweeping. I didn't expect it to have so many moves."

"Have you never seen Ah Lang practice lance? The horse lance is thick, hard and long. Although it requires more physical strength, it also requires skills."

The horse lances in Wu Huaiyu's collection are all fine products, some of which are even harder and stronger than ordinary lances with iron-wrapped shafts.

Xue Rengui and Wang Fangyi were both tall, strong young men with great strength, both of whom had trained since childhood.
They can skillfully control their mounts with their legs. Even if the mount is Wu Huaiyu's horse, they can still control it very well.

Holding the spear in both hands, various moves, adjusting and running, you come and I go,

After a while, they fought many rounds and it was hard to tell who would win.

Wu Huaiyu stood up and high-fived.

Stopped the two of them.

"Fang Yi and Ren Gui, you both have the courage to fight against ten thousand enemies. Your cavalry skills are also very impressive. If you are placed in the army, you will be able to become a vanguard that destroys the enemy."

The two of them were sweating and their faces were red, but they were also very happy to receive Wu Huaiyu's praise.

"Are you really determined to go to Liaodong as my follower?"

"I wish to be the front foot of the general."

Wu Huaiyu stroked his beard,
These two treasures were really picked up by accident, and they were delivered to my doorstep.

"Okay, then you guys come with me to Liaodong,"

Wu Huaiyu kept them, but as his followers, they certainly didn't have any official positions, so Wu Huaiyu made arrangements for them first, with each of them leading ten people.

He acted as the captain of a guard team.

"Once you get to Liaodong, with your abilities, you will have many opportunities to make contributions. Gold will shine wherever it goes."

The two of them stayed in the Wu family.

Wang Fangyi is a relative of the Wu family. He is the daughter of his uncle and the fiancée of Wu Huaiyu's eighteenth son, and the third legitimate son. He can be considered as Chengying's elder brother-in-law.

Xue Rengui was not a relative, but he was favored and appreciated by Wu Huaiyu, so he stayed.

Wang Fangyi was very happy. Not only could he go to Liaodong, he also brought his good friend Xue Li with him.

"Captain, I have another good friend who also wants to go to Liaodong. He is more capable than me."

"Oh?"

"His name is Zhao Zhiman. He is extremely strong and skilled in archery and horse riding."

Wang Fangyi and Zhao Chiman were good friends. They had similar personalities and met in Chang'an. They met because a carriage of a powerful family hit someone. Seeing injustice, the two of them drew their swords to help and stood up for the injustice together. That's how they got to know each other.
Actually, Zhao Zhiman is also a descendant of a famous family.

His mother was the daughter of Changsun Wuji's uncle Changsun Cao. Changsun Quan was his uncle, the son of the late Minister of Punishments Han Zhongliang. The current Vice Minister of War, Han Yuan, Duke of Yingchuan County, was Zhao Chiman's uncle-in-law.

Therefore, Zhao Chiman called Empress Changsun his aunt, Changsun Wuji his uncle, and Vice Minister of War Han Yuan his uncle.

With such a strong background, Zhao Zhiman was born into a famous family like Tianshui Zhao, and he was good at martial arts, so he should have a smooth career.

But this guy has a strange temper. He wants to be a knight-errant and likes to fight for justice. He has offended many nobles and relatives. He has a stubborn temper. Changsun Wuji thinks he is a stone in the toilet, smelly and hard, so he doesn't bother to pay attention to him and lets him go. However, Zhao Zhiman may be a little older now. After meeting Wang Fangyi and others this time, he also wants to go to Liaodong, but he doesn't want to go through Changsun Wuji and Han Yuan's relationship.

"I know Zhao Chiman. How many people in Chang'an don't know this guy?" Huaiyu laughed. When Zhao Chiman went out, he liked to ride a white horse the most. He wore a white dress as white as snow, making him look like a prince charming.

He was tall, handsome, and elegant. He could shoot arrows from a hundred paces away on horseback, and he was also a good calligrapher. It was said that he had captured a tiger alive and caught a galloping wild horse.

He likes chivalrous behavior and is good at fighting for justice. He often helps the weak when he sees injustice, and even donates money generously.
It has a very good reputation in Chang'an.
However, in the aristocratic circle, he was regarded as an outsider.
Wu Huaiyu had heard a lot of rumors about Zhao Chiman and admired him quite a bit, although some people thought that he was born into a good family and had no worries about food and clothing, so he could act so chivalrously.

"If he wants to come, I'd be more than welcome to do so."

After hearing this, Wang Fangyi immediately thanked Wu Huaiyu on behalf of Zhao Chiman, and the two of them took off their armor and went to find Zhao Chiman.

"This set of armor, the mount, the lance, the bow and the sword, all of which are given to you," Wu Huaiyu smiled and handed over two sets of equipment.

The two were shocked. This was a masterpiece made by a famous master.
Even that horse is a BMW, worth more than a hundred thousand coins.

"Since you are going to follow me to conquer Goguryeo, you will be my guards when we go to the battlefield. I will naturally have to prepare some equipment for you."

"Don't refuse. If you really want to thank me, then use this armor and lance to make achievements on the battlefield and serve the country."

At the gate of the Wu family,
The two young men looked back at the Taiwei Mansion, both feeling a little top-heavy.

The hunchback smiled and said to the two young men,
"My A-Lang is very fond of you. You better behave yourself. Maybe he will take you in as his students, or even as his adopted sons."

Wu Huaiyu's disciples and his adopted sons are now all very impressive figures.

For example, Li Yifu, a Jinshi at the age of fourteen, is now a fifth-rank Zhongshu Sheren.

The adopted sons of the Grand Commandant were even more amazing. Shi Shouxin became the King of the Shi Kingdom in the Western Regions, and An Lushan became the King of the An Kingdom.
Yuwen Chengdu and Li Keyong were both garrison commanders of a town.

After thanking the hunchback with crossed hands, the two left with excitement.

"I didn't expect the general to be so approachable."

"Yes, I thought that I might not be able to meet the Grand Commandant during this visit, but unexpectedly, not only did he meet the Grand Commandant, but he also agreed to accompany us in the expedition to Liaodong."

"Hurry up and tell Brother Zhao the good news,"

The two men found Zhao Chiman, who was teaching a local scoundrel a lesson. The scoundrel even bullied the orphans and widows in the neighborhood. Zhao Chiman beat him with both hands, until his mouth was full of blood and he begged for mercy.

"Brother Zhao, I have good news for you,"

Zhao Zhiman stepped on the scoundrel with one foot, and then welcomed his two friends. After hearing the situation, Zhao Guaman laughed excitedly, "Great, thank you two brothers."

In a good mood, he kicked the scoundrel away and said, "If you dare to bully these orphans and widows again, I will tear your head off and kick it like a ball. Get lost."

The scoundrel didn't know why he was so unlucky today and bumped into this great god, so he ran away quickly without even bothering to pick up the teeth that were knocked out.

"Let's go and pay our respects to the Grand Marshal."

When Wu Huaiyu met Zhao Chiman, he tested his martial arts in person and was very satisfied with his abilities. He gave him a set of armor, a lance, a bow and a sword, and also a BMW.

Zhao Chiman didn't lack this, but Wu Huaiyu's gift to him showed his appreciation for him, so he was naturally very excited to accept it. Wu Huaiyu also asked him to lead ten people and became a guard team leader.

At night, Fan Xuanfu asked Huaiyu, "Are those three young men so attractive to you?"

"These three people are very good in both ability and character, and are worth cultivating and supporting,"

Aristocratic families actually pay more and more attention to talents.
In addition to the careful training of their family members, they will also select some outstanding seeds from outside the family to cultivate them and become their disciples and subordinates. After these outstanding talents are promoted and cared for by them, they will naturally safeguard the interests of their family.

Wu Huaiyu knew that Xue Rengui had a glorious history. He bravely conquered Liaodong and conquered Tianshan with three arrows. Although he had suffered a great defeat at Dafeichuan, he was still a famous general. He was appointed General of the Right Guard and Protector of Andong, and guarded Pyongyang.

In history, Wang Fangyi also followed Pei Xingjian in his expedition to the Western Regions, inspected the Anxi Protectorate, and guarded Suiye, enjoying a great reputation.

Zhao Chiman also served as the governor of Liangzhou, but was later implicated by Zhangsun Wuji and executed.

With three strong men like this coming to him, how could Wu Huaiyu refuse?

The next day,

The emperor was inspecting the imperial guards outside the north gate.
Wu Huaiyu, Wu Huaiyi, Li Jing, Li Ji, Qin Qiong, Yuchi Gong and other military leaders also accompanied the inspection.

Before the review, the emperor said that he would select a group of elite soldiers from the imperial guards to accompany him in the expedition against Liao. The imperial guards immediately became as agitated as if they had been injected with chicken blood.
Next, whether it was forming a battle array or fighting, each one was more fierce than the other.

The emperor was very pleased with what he saw.

"Jingde, in this expedition to Liao, you and Shubao are the left and right commanders of the cavalry. Are you still capable of fighting?"

The emperor asked Lao Hei.

When Lao Hei participated in the Xuanwu Gate Incident, he was ranked first in terms of merit. It was so glorious that he stabbed Prince of Qi Yuanji to death with a spear, and went to the dragon boat in Hai Chi with the bloody spear to ask Li Yuan for an imperial edict, asking the emperor to appoint Prince of Qin Li Shimin as the crown prince and to take charge of all military affairs at home and abroad.

He also asked Li Shimin for the heads of Jiancheng and Yuanji, displayed them on the tower of Xuanwu Gate, and drove away the palace soldiers who were attacking the palace gate.

Afterwards, Lao Hei received many rewards. The mansion of Prince Yuanji of Qi and the property of the state governor were given to him, and he was also granted the title of Duke.

But Lao Hei became arrogant and did some shameful things in the following years. He even dared to beat King Jiangxia Li Daozon in the Golden Palace and almost blinded one of his eyes.

As such trivial matters became more frequent, Yuchi Gong completely lost the emperor's trust and was marginalized over the years. Now he only holds the rank of a first-rank civil official with the rank of Kaifu Yitong Sansi, and has no official duties at all.

It's ridiculous that a dignified gate god and a brave general has a civilian official rank.

Lao Hei has become more honest over the years, concentrating on practicing Taoism. He has also asked Wu Huaiyu for advice many times. His alchemy furnace exploded several times and almost burned down his house. He was also poisoned by the elixirs he made.

But he was still focused on practicing Taoism and refining elixirs, and didn't care about anything else.

This time the emperor suddenly brought him out again and asked him to team up with Qin Qiong again.

In fact, Yuchi Laohei is still quite young, only 59 this year.

Yuchi Gong stood up and said, "Your Majesty is personally leading the expedition to Liaodong, and the Crown Prince is staying in Dingzhou to supervise the country. However, the two capitals in the east and west, where the government treasury is located, are ultimately empty despite the garrisons. Liaodong is a long way away, and I am afraid there will be a change like Xuan Gan.

Goguryeo is a small country on the border, so there is really no need for Your Majesty to lead an expedition in person. Please leave this matter to a good general, who will be able to destroy it in due time."

Li Shimin did not expect that at this time, Yuchi Gong actually advised him not to send troops.

"We are about to send troops, so there is no need to mention this again." Li Shimin waved his hand, but he was not angry. He looked at Yuchi Gong and said, "Jingde, you will be the Minister of Rites and the General Manager of the Right Cavalry."

After saying this, the emperor looked him up and down again, "You have been practicing Taoism for more than ten years, and you seem to be getting younger and younger. You look younger than I do now.

My dear, I want to give you my younger sister, Princess Yongjia, as your second wife. What do you think? "

As soon as this word comes out,
Not only did the 59-year-old Yuchi Gong become stunned by the shock, but also Wu Huaiyu, Qin Qiong and others standing beside him were all stunned.

Although Princess Yongjia is divorced, she was born in the second year of Wude, so she is actually only twenty-four this year.

Yuchi Gong is more than ten years older than Li Shimin, and he is almost sixty years old.

Yuchi Gong's face turned red, and after a long while he said, "Although my wife has passed away due to illness, we have lived together in poverty for a long time. Now she has passed away, and I am old. The princess is only 22 years old, and I am almost 60. How dare I disrespect the princess? This is not what I wish."

But Li Shimin didn't seem to be joking, and no brother would joke about his sister's marriage.

"My dear, there is no need to rush to refuse. You are still young and strong. Go back and think about it carefully."

(End of this chapter)