First Minister of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 596 Feng Xuan persuades to surrender
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After Feng Xuan entered the city and listened to Tan Heng's words, Feng Xuan learned that Tan Dian had returned to Panshe Ridge a month ago. Although Tan Heng said that Tan Dian was not used to life in the city, he was still comfortable in the cottage.

Feng Xuan also secretly sneered when he heard this, but it was just an excuse. It was nothing more than Tan Dian seeing the decline of the Ning family and the strategic envoy heading east. He felt the crisis and felt it was safer to hide in the mountains.

Tan Dian's temperament has been like this for many years. To put it nicely, he means to assess the situation and seek good fortune and avoid misfortune. To put it bluntly, he is cunning and cautious.

If Ning Daoming did not resist, Tan Dian would never dare to be so arrogant as to attack Gaozhou. Ning Daoming was defeated and died, and Tan Dian immediately withdrew his troops. As soon as Ning Changzhen died, Tan Dian retreated directly to the mountains.

Feng Xuan and Tan Dian have known each other for decades and know his thoughts very well.

"Da Lang, get ready. I have a rest for the night and will go to Panshe Ridge to see you tomorrow." Feng Xuan said directly, feeling exhausted.

Tan Heng has a rough character, with rough edges and subtle details. Although he knew that Feng Xuan was on good terms with his father, he also knew that Feng Xuan was captured alive by the army in Jiangzhou. He couldn't help but have some doubts in his heart. While leading Feng Xuan to the guest room, While intentionally or unintentionally mentioning Jiangzhou.

"When I heard about Uncle Feng's stay in Jiangzhou, I, Aye, was very anxious. Now that I see that you are safe and sound, I, Aye, should be relieved."

Feng Xuan glanced at Tan Heng and said, "I was lucky enough to escape with my life." He understood Tan Heng's thoughts and did not want to talk to this junior.

Upon seeing this, Tan Heng had no choice but to give up. After settling Feng Xuan, he sent someone to Panshe Ridge overnight to deliver the message.

In Gaoliang City, after a day of gathering, the troops from the two military offices in Gaozhou, plus the two thousand soldiers from the Feng Xian family, a total of 5000 people, were assembled.

The person who led the army was originally Feng Zhisu, because Feng Zhisu also served as the commander of the army. However, after careful consideration, Feng Ang did not allow Feng Zhisu to participate in the war. Instead, he directly handed over the 5000 men to Gao Chong's command and sent two other lieutenants. assist.

Feng Ang said to Gao Chong that Feng Zhisun was reckless and afraid of bad things, but Gao Chong understood that Feng Ang was just worried that Feng Zhisu would disobey orders, because Feng Zhisu always looked at him with resentment in his eyes. It seemed that the performance at the night banquet really put this into perspective. The goods were tricked.

Five thousand troops is not a small number, but it is definitely not many, because there are tens of thousands of Liao people living on Panshe Ridge. Although not all the people are soldiers, there are also old, weak, sick and disabled among them, but if Tan Dian is determined to resist, he can organize an army The army of 8000 to [-] people is not a problem.

Of course, this is the case when Tan Dian has not had time to recruit other tribes’ troops. If enough time is given, Tan Dian can summon [-] to [-] to [-] troops in the two mountains of Yunwu and Yunkai. It should not be a problem. I heard that a few months ago When Tan Dian attacked Gaozhou, he had [-] troops, which can be said to be a strong army and a strong horse.

In this kind of regional competition, having over [-] troops is already very tyrannical. Raising troops of more than [-] or even hundreds of thousands at every turn is an exaggeration and is basically a bluff.

Only Gao Chong experienced the Battle of Guizhou personally. Li Guangdu, the leader of the army, claimed that he had one hundred thousand soldiers to fight against the Tang Dynasty and establish independence, but in fact it was only about [-], and [-] were young and strong, enough to dominate one side.

When Gao Chong sent troops to Luozhou, Feng Xuan had already set off for Panshe Ridge, with only a dozen people accompanying him, so Tan Heng was naturally relieved to send him into the mountains.

The terrain of Panshe Ridge is dangerous, with water on three sides, like a peninsula. There are fertile fields and water veins on the mountain, so you don't have to worry about food. Tandian's grandfather has been operating here for hundreds of years. In the two mountains of Yunkai and Yunwu Here, it is already the largest Liao village.

In other Dongxi, there are thousands of people in large ones and hundreds of small ones. Some villages only have dozens of people. For example, Jindong in Yunwu Mountain is already a very rich and powerful tribe. The old, weak, women and children plus the young and strong are only three. More than a thousand people.

Tan Dian was obviously very surprised by Feng Xuan's arrival. Tan Dian, who was nearly seventy years old, had a curly beard, was not tall, and had a very short stature, but his eyes were bright and intelligent, and he looked very wise.

The Tan clan was originally a second-rate tycoon, attached to the Feng clan, the Chen clan and the Ning clan. Now it has grown stronger in the hands of Tan Dian, catching up with the Chen clan and even competing with the Feng clan for a time. This is enough to show Tan Dian's ability.

"Brother Tan, we haven't seen you for a long time. Brother Tan is getting more and more prestigious." When Feng Xuan saw Tan Dian at the gate of Dazhai, he greeted him with open hands.

"Feng Er, why do you have time to come to my Panshe Ridge?" Tan Dian laughed loudly, appearing to be very open-minded. "I, Tan Dian, who lives in a wild village in the mountains, are so prestigious. I heard that Tan Dian was conquering cities and territories in Jiangzhou in the past few months. , that’s really majestic.”

When Feng Xuan heard this, the corner of his mouth twitched, he waved his hands and said with a bitter smile: "Brother Tan, please don't laugh at me. It's hard to explain. I'm lucky to have survived."

Tan Dian's eyes flashed, he stepped forward and took Feng Xuan's hand, he laughed and said: "Come on, let's go to the stronghold first. You and I haven't had a good drink together for a long time. Back then, we didn't get married yet." Mr. Jia, drinking freely in the Xijiang River, how happy it was then."

Hearing Tan Dian mention the past, Feng Xuan also sighed, "Things have changed and people have changed. Looking back, after all these years, Brother Tan still lives a comfortable life."

Tan Dian paused when he heard this, smiled heartily, and then embraced Feng Xuan into the stronghold.

Arriving at the Dazhai above Panshe Ridge, after everyone took their seats, Tan Dian looked at Feng Xuan and said, "Erlang, tell me why you came to Panshe Ridge."

Feng Xuan drank all the tea in the cup, pursed his lips and said, "You finally came to Panshe Ridge and you gave me this weak tea?"

Tan Dian was stunned for a moment, then laughed loudly and said, "Here comes the wine and food."

After drinking several drinks, Tan Dian asked again: "Maybe you said it this time?"

Feng Xuan laughed and said: "Brother Feng is still so impatient."

"It's not because my brother is impatient." Tan Dian smiled inexplicably, "You Feng Er was originally trapped in Jiangzhou. Normally, you are either on the way to Beijing for sentencing or in death row. Today, you suddenly came to me to coil a snake. Ling, there must be something big happening, right?"

When Feng Xuan heard this, his expression immediately became serious. He slowly put down his wine glass, looked back at the door, with a bitter look on his face, and sighed: "After entering this door, my life and death will all depend on Brother Tan."

Tan Dian remained expressionless, waiting for Feng Xuan to continue.

"I wonder if Brother Tan knows the Lingnan Economic Envoy?" Feng Xuan asked directly.

"The news has been around for several months. Who in Lingnan doesn't know about it?" Tan Dian replied directly, and then he realized, "Could it be that your coming here has something to do with the envoy?"

Feng Xuan nodded with a sad look on his face, picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one gulp, sighing: "The envoy heard that Brother Tan once agreed with Ning Daoming, invaded prefectures and counties, and occupied five counties in Luozhou without any reason. He was extremely angry, and he heard that you The two of us are very close, so he ordered me to come and persuade him to surrender."

"Persuading you to surrender?" Tan Dian was stunned for a moment, and then burst into laughter, "I, the people of the army, have been seeking survival in the mountains since ancient times, so how can I persuade them to surrender?"

Feng Xuan's face was complicated, "Brother Tan, don't deceive yourself. Your attack on Luozhou has already touched the bottom line of the imperial court. Unless you go down and declare your surrender to the imperial court, otherwise...".

"Otherwise, what?" Tan Dian snorted coldly, his face darkened, and he showed great disdain, "Your Sanlang can't do anything to me. What can he do to me as an outsider?"

Feng Xuan also narrowed his eyes, "Otherwise, we will be guilty of conspiracy."Tan Dian laughed loudly when he heard this, "Feng Er, didn't you scare that military commander out of fear? I'll tell you, he will rebel. What can he do to me? Let me see how many armies he has to wipe out my territory. Snake Ridge".

"Burn the mountain." Looking at Tandian's rampant appearance, Feng Xuan said lightly: "Just a fire can burn it all."

"What?" Tan Dian's face suddenly turned pale, "How dare he?
This time it was Feng Xuan's turn to laugh, "Brother Tan is smart all his life, but he was confused for a while. Feng Mingda thought about the friendship between his fellow clansmen and was worried about the bad reputation, so he didn't dare to burn the mountain. But the strategy made Gao Chong not from Lingnan. Maybe next year There is no doubt that he will not be in power in Lingnan. Since you admit the rebellion, he will burn the mountains to quell the rebellion. Why don't you dare?"

"Why is he not afraid of being scolded when he acts so cruelly?" Tan Dian asked with wide eyes.

Since ancient times, wars have been brutal, but they have always been concerned about their reputation, such as killing prisoners, not to mention burning mountains and burning tens of thousands of people alive. According to common understanding, this is definitely harmful to the peace of the world, and it is even more Not to mention in Jisuzhou County.

Tan Dian believed that if Gao Chong dared to be so cruel, he would definitely suffer endless infamy.

When Feng Xuan heard this, he couldn't help but sneered, "It seems that Brother Tan has lived in the mountains for a long time and is completely ignorant of worldly affairs."

"You tell me." Tan Dian's face was sinister. He was already very dissatisfied with Feng Xuan. In Tan Dian's view, Feng Xuan was afraid of death, so he agreed to be a lobbyist for the envoy.

"Do you know what kind of person Gao Chong is?" Feng Xuan said with a smile: "He comes from the Bohai Gao family. There are currently four ministers in the court, and his Gao family occupies two of them. His father, the Duke of Zhao, Gao Xianggong, is even more important. As Prime Minister of the dynasty, Gao Chong himself is also a close confidant of the saint, a minister of the Dragon in the two dynasties, and he is also a leader in the literary world. Do you know what a literary leader is?"

Seeing Tan Dian's face sinking like water and saying nothing, Feng Xuan sneered and said: "Gao Chong's poems will attract scholars all over the world to follow him. Simply put, he is the mouthpiece of the literary world. By then he will beat Brother Tan into a He was a heinous rebel and just ignored the burning of the mountain. Not only would he not be infamy, but people all over the world would praise him as a hero who put down the rebellion."

"Brother Tan, you have to know that what you are facing now is not Feng Mingda or Ning Changzhen, but a powerful outsider. What does it have to do with you if you let the mountains of clouds turn into powder?"

Hearing this, Tan Dian's face turned pale. After a long time, Tan Dian finally spoke up and said through gritted teeth: "He is so ruthless, so he doesn't care about the public sentiment of Lingnan officials?"

"Popular sentiment?" Feng Xuan laughed again. He understood Tan Dian's character very well. He always attacked Tan Dian if he could win, and retreated to the mountains if he couldn't. He must completely frighten him once and for all.

"Brother Tan is a little too confident," Feng Xuan smiled lightly, without even a hint of sarcasm in his words.

"The Ning family is now headed by Ning Chun. Ning Chun is a loyal supporter of Gao Chong, and Chen Longshu of Longzhou is following Gao Chong begging for mercy. As for Feng Mingda, you also know his thoughts and has always been loyal to the court. Not two.

The three major surnames in Lingnan have bowed their heads to Gao Chong, as well as the Chen family in Leizhou, the Pang family in Baizhou, the Mo family in Yuezhou, the Wang family in Guangzhou and other state and county chiefs, all of whom have surrendered.

You, the Tan clan, alone, even if you control Yunkai and Yunwu Mountains hundreds of miles away, and even if you have tens of thousands of subordinates under your command, what impact will it have on the general situation? "

Feng Xuan's words undoubtedly knocked the dust out of Tan Dian. Before that, Tan Dian had commanded tens of thousands of officials in Baili Mountain. He was so majestic that Tan Dian once thought that he could become the king on his own.

So on the coast of Luozhou, he called himself King Liao, and even went a step further. It would not be a bad idea to follow Zhao Tuo's glory in the Han Dynasty and call himself the King of Nanyue.

It's just that Feng Xuan's words that revealed the truth have completely torn away Tan Dian's appearance of prestige. In the final analysis, Tan Dian can't defeat the slightly more powerful bandits.

Not to mention the title of King of Nanyue who unified Lingnan, he would not be able to obtain the title of King Liao alone.

Now the Tan family is catching up with the Chen family and catching up with the Feng family. In the final analysis, they have not dominated Lingnan, and they cannot represent the hundreds of thousands of officials in Lingnan.

Seeing that Tan Dian was silent, Feng Xuan said again: "How is Ning Changzhen? He became famous decades earlier than you and me. He once overshadowed the officials in the east and west of Lingnan, but in the end he died in a foreign land, and the Ning family also declined.

What about Feng Mingda?Although I have been dissatisfied with him for decades, it is undeniable that his ability is better than yours and mine. At that time, he dominated more than [-] states, and a decree was his surrender.

Brother Tan, you can't achieve great things in this poor and barbaric land, let alone try to compete with the Central Plains court."

"Huh, Feng San? A few months ago, I beat him so hard that he dared not leave the city, but that's all."When he heard that Feng Xuan promoted Feng An in such a way, he immediately felt angry and unconsciously retorted.

"Don't you dare to leave the city?" Feng Xuan burst out laughing when he heard this. He leaned forward and backward with laughter, pointed directly at Tan Dian and said with a smile: "Brother Tan, you underestimate him too much. Let me ask you, Have you ever seen Xian's soldiers from the beginning to the end?"

Tan Dian was stunned when he heard this. He thought about it carefully and was suddenly shocked. Since he attacked Gaozhou, Feng An had dispatched troops from Chunzhou and other places to come back for reinforcements, but he never saw Xian's troops.

The Xian family was once the largest wealthy chief in Gaozhou (i.e. Gaoliang County), and its power was not weaker than that of the Feng family.

Since Mrs. Xian's death, the two families have been very close, regardless of you and me. Logically speaking, if the Feng family is attacked, the Xian family cannot sit idly by and ignore it.

Seeing Tan Dian's shocked expression, Feng Xuan also felt relieved. Although he had left Gaozhou and had been at odds with Feng An for decades, he was still a direct descendant of the Feng family after all, and he had his own pride in his heart.

The Tan clan... was just a subordinate of the Feng clan back then, but he dared to attack Gaozhou, which also made Feng Xuan feel a thorn in his heart.

"Let me tell you, Xian Baoming was in Wuzhisiling at that time. Did you pass through Wuzhisiling when you withdrew your troops?"

Having said this, Feng Xuan smiled coldly, "If the Xian clan's troops come out to cut off your return, and Feng Mingda's troops from eight states surround you, do you think you can escape?"

Wuzhiling?Tan Dian was shocked and suddenly broke into a cold sweat.

Wuzhi Ridge is located in the southwest of Gaoliang City. It is called Wuzhi Ridge because its peak turns into five small peaks, which are very similar to human palms.

At that time, Tan Dian passed through Wuzhisiling when he withdrew his troops. However, when he marched into Gaoliang, he briefly camped at Wuzhisiling. When he withdrew his troops, he subconsciously thought that there was no danger in Wuzhisiling. Now it seems that he should have pulled out his camp from Wuzhisiling. When heading to Gaoliang, Xian's troops took the opportunity to garrison Wuzhisiling.

It's just that Tan Dian couldn't understand why Feng An let him get away.

Seeing Tan Dian's expression, Feng Xuan also shrugged and smiled helplessly, "Don't look at me, I don't understand. Maybe he has other considerations. Maybe this is the reason why he firmly controls the eight states of Gaozhou."

Tan Dian remained silent. He was no longer as arrogant as before. He just felt chills on his back. Once upon a time, he thought Feng An was nothing but. Now after hearing Feng Xuan's analysis, he suddenly felt that Feng An was unfathomable.

(End of this chapter)