Man Tang Huacai
Chapter 528 Hongmen Banquet
Chapter 528 Hongmen Banquet
Huo Xianliang set out from Chang'an and headed straight to Shangdang to find Guo Ziyi. When he arrived, he heard that Guo Ziyi had already led his troops away. He said that he had an urgent imperial decree to announce, so the remaining generals had to send someone to escort him to Xiangzhou.
After rushing all the way to the outskirts of Xiangzhou City, he saw the traces left after the great battle and realized that the Tang army had won a series of victories and defeated Shi Siming.
After pacing back and forth in the posthouse and waiting for a long time, he finally saw Guo Ziyi arrive.
"The Junior Eunuch, the General of the Left Guard, and the Military Supervisor Huo Xianliang greets Lord Guo."
As soon as Guo Ziyi entered the room, he was surprised to see the white-faced, beardless eunuch spit out a series of names. Admiration immediately appeared on his face and he hurriedly returned the greeting.
"The arrival of the Chinese envoy brings honor to our humble home. I am sorry for not welcoming you from afar."
Huo Xianliang couldn't help feeling proud when he saw that such a famous general was showing such respect to him.
He was born in a humble family, so he was able to enter the palace after being castrated. He then had the opportunity to serve the emperor and became a powerful figure above everyone else. He felt that he was truly amazing.
He thought that he was more fortunate than Guo Ziyi to have achieved what he has today. After all, Guo Ziyi was born in a military family, so it was not surprising that he could fight in battles, but he relied on his extraordinary efforts to endure hardships that ordinary people could not endure. Looking around the world, there are really few people who can be as capable as him.
"The reason why the Saint sent me here is because of Prince Yong's affairs." Huo Xianliang said, "Mr. Guo also submitted a memorial, right?"
Speaking of this matter, even he felt sorry for the saint.
God knows where those rumors that Prince Yong had an affair with Yang Guifei came from, and when did the saint instruct anyone to assassinate Prince Yong? It was clearly Prince Yong who was crying "Catch the thief" and turned the tables, and even teamed up with Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi to speak for him.
This frightened the saint, who was afraid that these three would rebel together.
Guo Ziyi could tell Huo Xianliang's tentative intention. After thinking for a while, he replied, "Yes, but the reason I submitted the memorial was not for Prince Yong, but for the overall situation of the war."
"Great." Huo Xianliang was overjoyed and clapped his hands, saying, "I would say that Mr. Guo is loyal and diligent for the country, and he must be able to distinguish right from wrong."
Guo Ziyi said: "Please ask the envoy to explain to the saint on my behalf."
"Does it need explanation?"
Huo Xianliang smiled widely, reached into his bosom, took out a bright imperial edict, cleared his throat twice, and said, "Guo Ziyi, accept the edict!"
Although there was only one imperial edict, its content was very rich.
First, he promoted Guo Ziyi to the positions of Si Tu and Duke of Dai, and granted him two marriages. One was to marry Princess Boping to Guo Ziyi's third son Guo Xi, and the second was to ask Crown Prince Li Qiu to marry Guo Ziyi's fourth daughter.
Hearing this, Guo Ziyi, who was bowing his head, secretly changed his expression.
The court's reward was too great. Since the Wu Zhou period, the Tang Dynasty had been extremely wary of the harem interfering in state affairs and did not even dare to establish a queen. But now they were going to appoint a military general's daughter as the crown princess. This was a compromise the saint made to win him over.
Good fortune and disaster are interdependent in worldly affairs. If you let the saint compromise today, disaster will surely come to you in the future.
Guo Ziyi was well aware of this, and after thinking about it, he did not dare to reject the grace of the saint directly, so he could only say: "I accept your order and thank you."
As soon as he agreed, Huo Xianliang became his own man. He quickly handed the imperial edict to him and said, "Congratulations, Situ Guo. Congratulations, Situ Guo."
"Thank you, Chinese Ambassador."
Since he was one of his own, Huo Xianliang lowered his voice and said, "There is one more thing. Although there is no imperial decree, there is an oral order."
"You can speak freely, envoy."
Huo Xianliang said: "Since the rebellion, the people have been living in misery. Look at all the troops gathered in Hebei, spending countless money and food every day. In the eyes of the saint, it is enough to have Situ Guo lead the army to suppress the rebellion."
As he spoke, his eyes flickered as he looked at Guo Ziyi and asked, "If the military power of Prince Yong and Li Guangbi is removed, does Minister Guo have the confidence to crush the rebellion?"
~~
That day, Xue Bai went to Li Siye's camp.
Li Siye was the one who sent troops to support Li Guangbi. When he went on the expedition, he also recruited some other troops in Chang'an, and Xue Zhan was among them.
But after he arrived, Li Guangbi ordered him to station in the Sishui area in order to prevent Shi Siming from taking a detour to attack Luoyang.
He has not achieved any success in this battle so far, so it is inevitable that he feels a little depressed.
Xue Zhan followed behind Li Siye, also looking unhappy.
"Brother, can I talk to you about family matters?" After chatting about military affairs that day, Xue Zhan couldn't help but ask.
"Go ahead."
"The rebellion is almost over, but the general has not yet been sent to the battlefield. Money and food are wasted every day, which makes people anxious." Xue Zhan said, "Why not send the general as the vanguard to cut off Shi Siming's head."
Li Siye stood aside like a tower, not saying a word, but it was obvious that he wanted to challenge for a fight.
Xue Bai said: "Who told you that the rebellion will be pacified soon?"
"Shi Siming has suffered two defeats in a row."
"You only see that his army has been dispersed. In fact, Fanyang is still there, and the elite troops are still there. No matter how many casualties there are, he has the strength to make a comeback. Fighting further north is his territory, and that is a tough battle. Otherwise, why did even Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi have to stop to rest before pursuing? Don't worry, you have a chance to make merit."
After saying this, Xue Zhan's eyes lit up, murderous intent filled his eyes, and he nodded repeatedly.
Li Siye also felt excited.
He came back from Anxi, and was transferred from Feng Changqing to Hebei by Xue Bai. He watched Bai Xiaode, Hao Tingyu and others make great achievements and achieve great reputations. He could not help but feel that he had no chance because he was not Li Guangbi's confidant.
Only after meeting King Yong did I feel like I had found a backer.
As he was speaking, Xue Zhan noticed a tall young general in Xue Bai's personal guard. He was of the same age as Xue Bai, but his rank was much higher than his, and he was already able to lead an army on his own.
"Who are you?" Xue Zhan stepped forward and asked.
"Hun Yu."
Xue Zhan asked again: "I see you are about the same age as me, why do you hold such a high position and come from a famous family?"
Hun Yu disdained to pay attention to him, grinned and chuckled, saying: "I had made military achievements when you were still a baby, why do you need your father's influence?"
At this time, a Shuofang soldier came over and said, "Prince Yong, General Guo Jie invites you to a banquet at the South Tower tonight."
"understood."
"Then I will come back to pick up Prince Yong in the evening."
Xue Bai agreed to the matter. Not long after, Diao Bing hurried over and whispered a few words to Xue Bai.
Finally, Diao Bing said, "He secretly met with the eunuch and invited the young man to a banquet. I'm afraid it was a Hongmen Banquet."
"You also know about the Hongmen Banquet."
"I am also studying now."
"Then bring Fan Kuai with you."
Xue Bai made a joke and walked away. Diao Bing turned around and looked at the generals in the camp. He immediately thought that Li Siye was Fan Kuai, so he went over and said, "King Yong asked General Li to accompany him to the banquet tonight."
"Here!"
Li Siye had a big appetite and loved meat, so he agreed immediately.
~~
On the other side, Xue Bai found Yan Zhuang and asked him some more details about Li Cong sending an envoy to contact Wu Chengen.
"It seems that Chang'an has not been peaceful recently."
"The Saint is afraid of you, so he will inevitably take advantage of your absence to do something." Yan Zhuang said, "Why don't you return to Chang'an as soon as possible? Then the villains around the Saint will be intimidated by you and will be as quiet as a cicada."
Xue Bai shook his head and said, "Being trapped in Chang'an and fighting over trivial matters is a dead end."
Yan Zhuang was stunned for a moment, but soon figured it out.
Suppressing rebellions and controlling military power are Xue Bai's real foundation. For this reason, it is worthwhile to temporarily give some power in the court to Li Cong.
"What about Guo Ziyi's Hongmen Banquet tonight?"
Xue Bai said: "I am not bringing Li Siye with me to make him a Fan Kuai. Go find Xue Zhan later and help him do a few things."
He whispered a few words and Yan Zhuang quickly understood.
"Don't worry, my lord. This is exactly what I am best at."
……
The setting sun quickly turned the sky and the earth orange.
Xue Bai went to the South City Tower for the banquet as promised.
Guo Ziyi was not as strict as Li Guangbi. He liked to enjoy himself, and he asked someone to pick the best wine and dishes in the city tonight.
"Please, Prince Yong."
"Mr. Guo, please."
There were only two tables in the hall. Guo Ziyi originally wanted to talk to Xue Bai alone, but Xue Bai brought a lot of people with him, so he had to have a few more tables set up for Li Siye, Hun Yu and other generals to sit down.
However, the brothers Diao Bing and Diao Geng did not sit down, but stood behind Xue Bai, looking very cautious.
This attitude clearly showed that he knew that Guo Ziyi had secretly met with the envoy from Chang'an.
But Guo Ziyi still did not mention the imperial edict he had received. With a cheerful and friendly attitude, he said: "I have thought of a way to quell the rebellion more quickly. I would like to discuss it with King Yong, so I prepared some wine."
"Mr. Guo, please feel free to speak."
"If the imperial court issues a letter of conciliation, as long as the rebel generals are willing to surrender, their past deeds will be forgiven. Those who offer Shi Siming's head will be rewarded handsomely. I believe that within ten days, the world will be settled. Li Guiren, the general of the Yan army, was defeated by Prince Yong and me. If you send a letter of conciliation and grant him the post of Fanyang Jiedu, he will kill Shi Siming."
Xue Bai said: "We are taking advantage of the great victory and the rebellion is about to be suppressed. Why should we do this?"
Guo Ziyi said: "Shi Siming is still strong. If we continue to fight, I'm afraid there will be more troubles and more accidents."
"Mr. Guo is reminding me." Xue Bai said, "I heard that the imperial envoy has arrived, but he gave Mr. Guo some advice."
"If the Chinese envoy's intention is followed, I'm afraid it will be..."
Guo Ziyi shook his head and said nothing more.
If Huo Xianliang followed his advice, the situation would definitely be worse. Guo Ziyi came up with such a compromise to avoid the worst situation.
However, Xue Bai refused to appreciate it and said, "The court spent a huge amount of money on this battle and finally won a great victory. How can we give up halfway and let the previous achievements go to waste?"
Seeing him like this, Guo Ziyi kept silent.
Behind the screen, there were clapping sounds. After three clapping sounds, a team of guards in armor rushed into the hall with clanging sounds and surrounded Xue Bai and others.
The candlelight reflected on the swords and axes in their hands, giving off a cold glow.
Li Siye frowned and glanced at Xue Bai. Seeing that he was still calm, he did not act rashly and continued to eat the meat on the plate.
Hun Yu had already stood up, and no one knew what he was thinking.
Someone came out from behind the screen. He was a middle-aged man with a fair face and no beard. He spoke in a very soft voice.
"Your servant Huo Xianliang greets Prince Yong."
"I've seen you before." Xue Bai asked, "Are you someone close to the Saint?"
"I have met Prince Yong many times."
Huo Xianliang didn't believe that Xue Bai would not recognize him, so he didn't dwell on such a small matter and said, "Prince Yong was assassinated in Luoyang, and there are many slanders in the capital. The saint is very worried about Prince Yong and asked me to take him back to the capital." "I think you want to kill me." Xue Bai asked, "Is this your intention or the saint's?"
Huo Xianliang narrowed his eyes. This question was too straightforward and it was difficult for him to answer.
When he left the capital, the only order he received was to win over Guo Ziyi.
He handled this matter very smoothly.
After helping the saint to marry Guo Ziyi, he also happened to find Xue Bai in Xiangzhou City. So he came up with a plan and decided to use Guo Ziyi's power to get rid of Xue Bai.
Although he had an idea, it was difficult to convince Guo Ziyi. Killing a prince without authorization was against the law, so Guo Ziyi did not dare to act rashly. Huo Xianliang told him that this was the will of the saint, and there was a secret decree, which was only delivered to Luoyang.
At that time, Guo Ziyi asked: "So, the assassination of Prince Yong in Luoyang was indeed instructed by the saint?"
Huo Xianliang was stunned, a little stumped by the question. After thinking about it, he felt that it was more important to do practical things than to gain a little reputation as a saint, so he replied in a low voice: "Yes, it is well known to everyone, Guo Situ should not worry about it anymore, just do it."
Fortunately, everyone with a discerning eye can see that Xue Bai's ambition to usurp power has always been evident to everyone, and it is bound to cause turmoil in the country.
Guo Ziyi was loyal to the country and had no personal relationship with Xue Bai, so he finally agreed and said, "In this case, I will order people to detain him and wait for the saint's will to arrive before dealing with him."
Although Huo Xianliang would rather kill Xue Bai directly, he also knows that this is the limit of what Guo Ziyi is willing to do. Detaining Xue Bai is actually the same thing. As long as Xue Bai loses his power, he can do whatever he wants with him.
Fearing that the plan might fail, Huo Xianliang gave Guo Ziyi some advice that he should not rush into the military camp and should hold a banquet to lure Xue Bai out.
At this point, it seems like the deal is done.
A matter that gave even the saints a headache was actually accomplished by him with ease. With so many Shuofang soldiers surrounding Xue Bai, how could he be allowed to escape?
Coming back to his senses from his smugness, Huo Xianliang pointed at Xue Bai and shouted, "Of course it's the saint's intention!"
Xue Bai asked calmly, "I defended Chang'an and suppressed the rebellion. What crime have I committed that the Saint wants to send you to kill me?"
At first, Huo Xianliang was indeed stumped by the question.
But who is he? He was able to jump from a lowly maid to a powerful and influential person. He is a genius.
"How dare Prince Yong ask me?" Huo Xianliang said, "You even dared to have an affair with the favorite concubine of the retired emperor. You have lost all moral principles and brought shame to the world! The saint has no choice but to sentence you to death. Considering your past contributions, I will not declare your crime and save your face."
If people were really to be punished for their lack of human ethics, the Li family of the Tang Dynasty would have been wiped out long ago.
However, this incident made Huo Xianliang feel that he had found an excellent excuse, and he immediately ordered: "Capture him!"
In the hall, the soldiers surrounding Xue Bai did not take action, but looked at Guo Ziyi.
"Situ Guo!" Huo Xianliang urged.
Xue Bai sat there calmly, saying, "I am the Grand Marshal of the Army, and I am ordered to fight against the enemy. You sent soldiers to surround me, are you planning to rebel?!"
At the end of his words, he suddenly raised his voice.
Huo Xianliang was furious and shouted, "We are acting on orders, don't try to argue. Guo Situ, start!"
Xue Bai said: "If you are following orders, what is the purpose?"
Guo Ziyi touched the imperial edict in his arms, took it out and held it high.
"Read it." Xue Bai still did not move, and said: "If it is my will, why not unfold it for the soldiers to see?!"
Most of the soldiers in the hall were Guo Ziyi's men. He didn't need to recite. His eyes became a little gloomy, and he was about to give the order to arrest Xue Bai.
"Come on!"
A soldier hurried into the hall, ran to Guo Ziyi, and whispered: "Li Siye's troops mutinied, occupied the granary, and demanded that the commander release them."
"What's going on?"
"I don't know what will happen next."
Guo Ziyi quickly figured it out and sighed, "Is Prince Yong planning a mutiny?"
"I think it is Lord Guo who wants to mutiny. He refuses to open the imperial edict and resorts to violence without authorization."
Before Xue Bai came, he knew that this was a Hongmen Banquet, and he also guessed that Guo Ziyi might be persuaded to deal with him in order to prevent future troubles.
But he believed that even if Guo Ziyi did this, it was for the overall situation. This kind of person was the easiest to control, and as long as he showed the courage to overturn the table, he could scare him.
Therefore, Xue Bai asked Yan Zhuang to convey his military order, and asked Xue Zhan to take Li Siye's order and lead the troops to cause trouble. These soldiers had been left alone to watch others perform meritorious deeds, and they had been holding back their anger for a long time, so they naturally got angry at the slightest provocation.
Guo Ziyi originally agreed to capture Xue Bai in order to reduce trouble. If a conflict arose now, it would instead cause trouble in advance. He couldn't help but hesitate for a moment.
Xue Bai seized the moment of his hesitation and suddenly slammed the table and stood up.
"You thief eunuch, you forged the imperial edict and murdered the prince. Are you a spy for Shi Siming?!"
Huo Xianliang was stunned.
Xue Bai didn't care about Huo Xianliang's answer at all. He was saying this to Guo Ziyi.
There are only two outcomes today. Either he insists that it was the emperor who wanted to kill him and cause chaos; or Huo Xianliang falsely conveys the emperor's order and kills a eunuch to get the matter over with. It's up to Guo Ziyi to choose.
"Prince Yong, you are spewing blood..."
"Li Siye!" Xue Bai shouted, "Huo Xianliang falsely conveyed the imperial decree, arrest him!"
Li Siye had already put down the meat in his hand when he heard that his subordinates were making trouble. He stood up and almost hit the beam of the house.
He had no choice at this point, and immediately strode towards Huo Xianliang.
"stop!"
A soldier from the Shuofang army tried to stop him, but Li Siye grabbed his knife and knocked him away with a push from his shoulder. Many soldiers got angry and surrounded him.
Li Siye was not afraid at all. Anyone who dared to stand in his way would be kicked away or knocked down by him, as if he were a god descending to earth.
Huo Xianliang was shocked and quickly stepped back, shouting, "Stop him!"
"What are you standing there for? Capture Xue Bai."
"Who dares to move?!"
Although Hun Yu disliked Xue Bai, he was appointed as the general of the personal guard by Xue Bai, and his duty was to protect Xue Bai. After seeing it tonight, he felt that Huo Xianliang was even less reliable than Bai Zhongzhen, and was more inclined to believe Xue Bai.
So, when a soldier extended his hand to Xue Bai, Hun Yu immediately drew his sword.
Perhaps someone would be killed in the next moment, Guo Ziyi finally spoke.
"Stop it all!"
"This is a misunderstanding."
Guo Ziyi slowly unfolded the imperial edict in his hand and said, "The sage did not issue an order to punish Prince Yong. Envoy Huo made a mistake in this matter."
Huo Xianliang was stunned and said, "Guo Situ, how could you..."
Guo Ziyi raised his hand in a consoling gesture.
Even with his patience, he could no longer stand this eunuch.
"This matter ends here. Please ask King Yong to appease the generals and not lose the big picture because of the small."
In his opinion, soldiers have hot tempers, so it is normal to have such conflicts occasionally, and it will be fine as long as they reconcile with each other.
Xue Bai refused to give in and said sternly, "Huo Xianliang falsely conveyed the imperial decree and plotted to murder the general. He deserves death. Capture him!"
Li Siye strode forward without saying a word, picked up Huo Xianliang like a chicken, and pressed him in front of Xue Bai.
This time, Guo Ziyi did not stop him, but just said: "Prince Yong..."
"cut!"
Xue Bai gave the order again.
Hearing this, Hun Yu was stunned, while Diao Bing stepped forward, thinking that Li Siye would not dare to execute the eunuch.
"puff."
Li Siye had already chopped it down with his sword.
Huo Xianliang was still wondering how such a resourceful man like him could be captured by someone, when the knife had already cut off his neck, and his head fell to the ground with a dull thud.
Two drops of blood splashed far away and landed on the imperial edict in Guo Ziyi's hand.
He looked at Xue Bai and knew that Xue Bai did it on purpose.
Huo Xianliang was just a slave, it didn't matter. What mattered was that the envoy sent by the saint died in Guo Ziyi's army.
From then on, the court would inevitably suspect that Guo Ziyi had sided with Prince Yong.
This suspicion can never be cleared.
"Prince Yong has good tactics." Guo Ziyi said with emotion.
"I was forced into a corner, and Mr. Guo saw it all."
~~
Guo Ziyi personally wrote a memorial to report that Huo Xianliang died suddenly of illness due to acclimatization after arriving in Hebei.
After this incident, although Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi had not yet supported Xue Bai, it was difficult for outsiders to guess their relationship with Xue Bai.
At least, Li Cong no longer dared to use these two people to deal with Xue Bai.
After dealing with this matter, the next step is to continue to suppress the rebellion.
The Tang army was delayed for a few days due to internal conflicts and the supply of food and grass. During these days, Shi Siming had fled to Changshan County, occupied Hengzhou, gathered the defeated troops, stabilized the situation, and prepared for a decisive battle with the Tang army.
In order to increase the chances of victory, Shi Siming also sent envoys to the Khitan, Xi, and Uighur to borrow troops, promising a large amount of gold, silk, and children.
On the other hand, the Tang army was under greater pressure.
After Xue Bai and Li Guangbi became sworn brothers, Li Guangbi became somewhat distant from Xue Bai, while Xue Bai and Guo Ziyi had a disagreement over the eunuch issue. The three of them were not subordinate to each other and there was no unified command, so military orders were not as smooth as when they were fighting on their own.
In addition, the internal strife in the court continued, and local officials also saw the clues. The speed of military supply slowed down again. Under such circumstances, Li Guangbi and Guo Ziyi both believed that Xue Bai should return to Luoyang to coordinate the rear, rather than stay in Hebei to compete for merit.
There was discord within the Tang army, and later on even Shi Siming learned about it.
"The Tang Dynasty's rulers and ministers have begun to self-destruct again," he commented.
Zhou Zhi said, "After catching our breath, we will have the chance to defeat Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi. I think Your Majesty does not need to rush into battle with the Tang army. Just wait for the Khitan, Xi, and Huihe reinforcements to arrive. The Tang army's morale will plummet, and we can win a great victory by taking advantage of this."
Shi Siming thought Zhou Zhi's words made sense, so he allowed the Tang army to recover the counties and prefectures in Hebei south of Changshan, and dispersed the Tang army to garrison various cities.
After that, he confronted the Tang army in Changshan for more than half a month, consuming the Tang army's food and grass. In the process, he gave a lot of money to reward the generals to boost morale. The morale of the Yan army was boosted. It was not until the news came that the Khitan Khan Li Huaixiu personally led 10,000 troops to the south to support the Yan army that Shi Siming prepared to fight a decisive battle with the Tang army.
On both sides of the familiar Hutuo River, soldiers and horses were lined up. The two sides were old rivals and had fought in this area before.
Shi Siming was full of confidence. He pointed at the map and said, "This battle is very simple. The Khitan cavalry will lie in ambush in the lower reaches of the Hutuo River. While I am fighting the Tang army, they will swim across the river and launch a surprise attack on the Tang army's rear."
If he wins this battle, he will conquer the world.
(End of this chapter)
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