Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 533: Presenting Prisoners to the Palace
"Where is Prince Yong?"

"I'm visiting the wounded. Please come in, two generals."

Guo Ziyi was a little surprised when he heard this. Xue Bai did not take seriously such a great achievement in capturing Shi Siming.

Trying to win people's hearts at a time like this shows how ambitious he is.

As he was thinking this, he was welcomed into the tent. When he looked down, he really saw Shi Siming.

When they looked at each other, Guo Ziyi felt relieved but also a little worried.

The good news is that the rebellion was finally put down. However, the worrying thing is that Xue Bai, as if blessed by heaven, captured the Khitan Khan and the rebel leaders one after another, and his reputation grew and became uncontrollable.

"I need to bring the bandit leader back to the camp for questioning." After thinking for a while, Guo Ziyi spoke.

He was experienced and cunning. He took advantage of Xue Bai's absence and without waiting for anyone's response, he immediately ordered his personal guards to arrest Shi Siming.

"Wait a minute, General Guo Jie."

Diao Bing, who was guarding outside the tent, immediately stopped him and said, "Prince Yong has not yet finished the interrogation, so he cannot be taken away for the time being. If Marshal Guo Jie has anything to ask, ask here."

Guo Ziyi's plan failed, so he smiled frankly and looked at Shi Siming. In fact, there was nothing else to ask.

"Hu Ni, you have been greatly favored by the imperial court, why are you doing such a rebellious thing?!"

Shi Siming rolled his eagle-like eyes and glanced at Guo Ziyi, too lazy to answer such a boring question.

Guo Ziyi didn't take it seriously. He glanced at Li Huaixiu standing beside him and knew that this man had killed the princess sent by the court to marry. He would definitely die this time. There was nothing to say, so he walked out side by side with Li Guangbi.

"I'm afraid it won't work if I do. Otherwise I will just rob it."

"Why bother?" Li Guangbi said, "No matter who holds the prisoners, it is the court that has put down the rebellion."

"Just imagine what it would be like when they return to Chang'an to present the captives," Guo Ziyi said. "Prince Yong led his generals to first bring the Khitan Khan and behead him in front of the Suzaku Gate. Then they brought Shi Siming and beheaded him in front of the Suzaku Gate. How is this different from Dong Zhuo entering Chang'an and slaying the Ten Attendants?"

He said this in a joking tone. Li Guangbi smiled bitterly and asked, "Can we waive the ceremony of surrendering captives? The court is waiting for this to restore its prestige."

"Although it is inevitable, we have to fight for it." Guo Ziyi said: "Since he has been in the limelight, we should persuade him to give up some military power."

That's why he made such a statement deliberately just now to let Xue Bai know that even if he captured two important prisoners alive, he might not be able to become famous in the world without getting past him.

The next day, Guo Ziyi sent people to ask for the prisoners again. Sure enough, Xue Bai came to talk to him in person.

"Prince Yong actually came in person?" Guo Ziyi said cheerfully, "No need to do that, just bring Shi Siming here. There are tens of thousands of surrendered soldiers here, we must let them see that Shi Siming has been captured. If Prince Yong doesn't bring anyone here, we will have to bring the surrendered soldiers to meet him in your tent."

"Guo Situ is humorous." Xue Bai smiled knowingly and said, "Guo Situ is the actual commander of this great victory. It is indeed right to hand Shi Siming over to you. I just need to ask you a few more questions."

"What does Prince Yong want to know?"

"What about the generals in Fanyang and Pinglu? Who will the court appoint as the governors of these two towns? And how should the power of the governors be limited?" Xue Bai said, "This is the fundamental way to completely avoid future troubles."

Although Guo Ziyi felt that such national affairs should not be decided by Xue Bai, he knew that what Xue Bai said made some sense.

He pondered for a moment and asked, "I heard that Prince Yong divided the powers of the Jiedushi in Henan into four parts."

"good."

Compared with Shi Siming, this was something Xue Bai was more willing to talk about, so he took the trouble to discuss with Guo Ziyi in detail his concerns about the separatist rule of the feudal lords.

Finally, Guo Ziyi pondered and said, "This move is feasible in Henan, but Fanyang and Pinglu are different. They need to fight against the Khitan and Xi for the court. Moreover, the situation in Hebei is complicated. If the chief officer does not have enough power and authority, it will be inappropriate to act in a way that is hindered."

"Now that the rebellion has been put down and the Khitan Khan has been captured, it is time to reorganize Hebei."

Xue Bai said this with a slightly regretful tone: "If possible, I would be willing to do this for the court to avoid the disaster of separatism."

Guo Ziyi thought to himself, "I'm afraid you're going to cause a disaster of separatism."

But when he thought about it carefully, he could also realize that Xue Bai was making long-term considerations for the Tang Dynasty.

This made him feel deeply moved. It seemed that King Yong really regarded himself as a descendant of the Li family and cared deeply about the foundation laid by his ancestors.

What a pity. If it weren't for the case of three concubines back then, this heroic young man in front of him would have been the best heir to the throne of the Tang Dynasty. Guo Ziyi felt that he would definitely support him.

"Mr. Guo? Mr. Guo?" Xue Bai called out twice, "What is Mr. Guo thinking about?"

"Prince Yong wants to go to Fan Yang to take charge of affairs?" Guo Ziyi asked after he came to his senses.

Of course he knew that the court could not allow Xue Bai to stay in Fan Yang for long, otherwise it would become a disaster.

But if Xue Bai could be temporarily placed in the border town, it would also give the saint a chance to take power. On the other hand, Xue Bai is a royal family member after all, and he has the ambition to revive the Tang Dynasty. Using him to deal with the unruly generals in the border town might achieve a certain balance... The key is within a short period of time.

"Does Mr. Guo think this is feasible?"

Guo Ziyi laughed a few times, stroked his beard and said, "Prince Yong is the Grand Marshal of the Army, but he is willing to retire?"

As the rebellion was put down, Xue Bai's so-called power as the Grand Marshal of the Army would obviously be dismissed. He had already thought about it, instead of passively waiting for others to take over, it would be better to take the initiative to exchange for benefits.

"I am a minister of the Saint." Xue Bai spoke in an official tone, "When the country is in trouble, I should stand up. Now it is time to return the military power to the Saint."

Guo Ziyi didn't believe in these nonsense, but he already understood Xue Bai's intentions.

Of course, he did not have the power to let Xue Bai take charge of Fan Yang, but he could give Xue Bai the responsibility of continuing to advance, stabilizing Fan Yang, and conquering Pinglu.

Xue Bai could also bear the responsibility, after all, it was he who defeated and persuaded the surrendered general Tian Chengsi to surrender.

In exchange, Xue Bai would hand Shi Siming over to Guo Ziyi, which was equivalent to giving up the opportunity to return to Chang'an to present the captives and show off.

If things develop in this way, Guo Ziyi will be able to return to Chang'an earlier than Xue Bai to assist the sage; and Xue Bai might be able to establish power in Fan Yang. The reason I say "maybe" is because this is more difficult and requires more time.

For a moment, Guo Ziyi could not predict how to better suppress Xue Bai. He hesitated and remained silent.

Xue Bai seemed to be able to see through his thoughts. After thinking for a while, he said, "If Situ Guo is thinking about how to check and balance me, why not think about how to do better for the country. If I follow what you said today, I should be able to stabilize the north and save the Tang Dynasty from disaster."

This sentence put the final nail in the coffin for this conversation.

The next day, Xue Zhan learned that he would be handed over to Guo Ziyi and taken to Chang'an to be presented as a prisoner, and he couldn't help feeling unwilling.

"Brother, aren't they trying to steal the credit?"

"No."

Xue Bai patted Xue Zhan on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry, you risked your life to capture Shi Siming, which was very useful. It brought us the most substantial power, and no one can erase our contribution."

Xue Zhan was overjoyed, grinning and saying, "My injury will heal soon, can I go north with you?"

"Well, let's go to Fanyang."

Xue Bai turned his head and looked north, realizing that he had never been to the north in his life.

……

A few days later, Xue Bai led more than 10,000 people to Fan Yang.

After An Lushan and Shi Siming, another man with imperial ambitions came here.

He stood by the Sanggan River and watched the water flowing away, as if it was flowing to the Yongding River hundreds of years later.

Looking up, the familiar city of Yanjing is mottled by time and looks extremely strange.

~~
Shi Siming in the prison car raised his head and looked at the majestic walls of Chang'an City from afar.

Memories were mottled in his mind, and he couldn't help but think of old events from many years ago.

It was probably more than ten years ago. In the first year of Tianbao, he followed An Lushan to the court to meet the emperor. The sage at that time admired his military talent very much, gave him a seat, and talked with him for a long time.

"How old is Shi Qing?"

"I am forty years old."

"Shi Qing's days of prominence are yet to come."

The sage encouraged him in this way and gave him the name "Siming".

But until now, he still hasn't figured it out. Is it wrong for him to just want to conquer the world?
Thinking of this, Shi Siming turned around and said to the soldier next to him: "I want to see the saint."

No one paid any attention to him.

"If the saint does not see me, the Xue family will lose its position sooner or later." Shi Siming threatened Li Cong in this way, and was still making a final effort for his future and life.

At this moment, Li Cong was on the outskirts of the city, personally welcoming Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi.

The outstanding military achievement of suppressing the An-Shi Rebellion and stabilizing the country was enough to make him catch up with the ancient sages and become a wise ruler who restored the Tang Dynasty. It was certainly worth rejoicing.

When he first heard the news, Li Cong was discussing state affairs with Dou Wenyang. He excitedly held Dou Wenyang's hand, burst into tears, and was speechless.

"It would be great if all these achievements were really made by me!" In the end, he still lost his composure and said something that was extremely inappropriate.

As a close eunuch, Dou Wenyang had long known the saint's level, so he was not surprised. Instead, he said in a somewhat stern tone: "Your Majesty, how can you be so self-deprecating? Who is not your subject? Whose contribution is not your Majesty's?!"

"I made a mistake." Li Cong wiped his tears and cried with joy, "I made a mistake, but luckily you reminded me."

"I know that Your Majesty is worried about the danger to Prince Yong, but you must not let him grow more arrogant and destroy your own ambition. This great victory is the credit of the entire army, not just him."

Li Cong still relied on Dou Wenyang to run errands for him in everything. Power determines status. He spoke softly in front of Dou Wenyang, which formed a sharp contrast with the hideous scars on his face.

Afterwards, news came from all over the country that while the whole court was rejoicing over the suppression of the rebellion, almost all officials requested the court to stop fighting and rest as soon as possible.

The reason is simple: there is no money in the treasury.

The day after the victory report came, Li Cong issued an order to pacify the rebels if possible and asked all marshals to withdraw their troops as soon as possible.

When the joint petition from Hebei was delivered, proposing that Xue Bai temporarily guard Fanyang, Li Cong was shocked. His first reaction was, "How can you raise a tiger to cause trouble?!"

However, Dou Wenyang analyzed the memorial and saw the clues in it. He said, "Your Majesty, this is not a bad thing. The memorial said that 'Prince Yong will stay temporarily', which does not mean that he will be appointed as the governor of Fanyang. Instead, he will temporarily keep a group of troops to stabilize the situation, 'waiting for the court to choose another minister'. It can be seen that the selection of the governor of Fanyang is still in the hands of the court."

Li Cong asked, "Have you mastered it?"

"Prince Yong is destined not to stay in Fanyang for long." Dou Wenyang said, "I have a plan. We can summon him back to the court at any time."

"Really?"

Dou Wenyang smiled and nodded, and then said, "In this way, Prince Yong will not be able to establish his own regime in Fanyang in the short term. The court can also weaken his reputation and power at this most critical moment."

Li Cong was pleasantly surprised to learn that there was such a good thing happening, so he guessed that Guo Ziyi supported him.

Because Huo Xianliang died in the army, Dou Wenyang hated Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi, thinking that they dared to kill eunuchs and were all Xue Bai's party. But the biggest enemy at the moment was Xue Bai, so he had to win them over.

Therefore, during the period when the army was returning, through repeated communications with envoys, they gradually confirmed that Guo Ziyi was loyal to the court.

The reason why he left such an impression was also related to Guo Ziyi's way of dealing with things. In comparison, Li Guangbi's contribution to Li Cong was actually much greater than Guo Ziyi's, but he was much more serious and cold. He hated eunuchs interfering in politics and had a very clear attitude towards Huo Xianliang's affairs. He believed that it was military law for the King of Yong to kill the eunuchs who dared to assassinate the commander-in-chief during the war.

Li Guangbi even scolded Guo Ziyi for apologizing to the court for this, saying that he "simply couldn't tell right from wrong."

To this end, Dou Wenyang gave Li Cong an idea, suggesting that Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi should be pulled one and attacked the other, so as to alienate the relationship between them and play the role of suppression, winning over and balancing.

It sounded strange for a king to instigate his subjects, but Li Cong readily agreed and decided to do it.

Therefore, when the army returned today, Li Cong treated Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi differently.

In addition to being granted an official title and a noble title, Guo Ziyi married into the royal family and was sent to Jingyuan to guard against Tubo.

When Li Guangbi heard that Tubo had repeatedly come to attack, he asked to go to Xichuan to guard it. Li Cong was stunned for a moment and just said that he would discuss it with the prime minister.

Regardless of whether the emperor had the right to decide these things, his indifference was obvious. Obviously, in his eyes, Li Guangbi was too close to Prince Yong.

After the red tape was over, a eunuch came over and whispered, "Your Majesty, Shi Siming wants to see the Emperor."

"How dare you!" Dou Wenyang shouted, "A traitor dares to make demands. Who passed the message on his behalf?"

The eunuch was horrified and quickly told Shi Siming what he had said. Dou Wenyang reprimanded him again and cancelled the procedure of the emperor's public trial of the traitor.

For example, when Gao Xianzhi presented the King of Xiaobolü to the palace, Li Longji personally went up to the tower and asked Xiaobolü in a stern voice why he had betrayed him.

This is the best way to demonstrate the country's power in front of its subjects.

But when Dou Wenyang heard that Shi Siming wanted to see the saint on his own initiative, he realized that Li Cong had lived in the Ten Kings' House for a long time and lacked experience. It would be inappropriate if he could not win the argument with Shi Siming and lost his dignity in front of all the people.

Li Cong was actually somewhat concerned about Shi Siming's remarks, but since Dou Wenyang said so, he just listened.

Afterwards, he rewarded the three armies and prepared for the grand ceremony of presenting the captives to the palace.

The most important thing in this matter is to downplay Xue Bai’s contribution.

~~
Youzhou.

After Xue Bai came to Fan Yang, he was almost always busy.

He had to meet a lot of people every day, especially the generals of Fan Yang, to intimidate or appease them, and he also had to sort out the complicated chaos in Hebei.

On the other hand, he never stopped receiving news from Chang'an.

His news was not delivered through the imperial post stations, but through channels established on the basis of money houses and newspapers, with a speed no less than that of an express delivery of 500 miles.

On this day, Xue Bai was preparing to meet the envoy sent by Zhang Zhizhong, the Pinglu military commander later appointed by the Pseudo-Yan. The messenger had already arrived and handed over a thick stack of messages.

He unfolded the envelopes one by one and read them, sometimes handing them to Yan Zhuang.

Yan Zhuang is Xue Bai's right-hand man in handling the affairs of Fan Yang, and he is often kept by his side recently.

"The court has a good plan. They don't want the world to know about your contribution."

Yan Zhuang sneered and flicked the letter in his hand. It was the imperial edict that Li Cong was going to issue at the prisoner surrender ceremony.

Obviously, the decree deliberately concealed many of Xue Bai's contributions. Unfortunately, Xue Bai's people in the Secretariat still added a few notes to these contributions and copied them intact and sent them to Fanyang.

"Whether the world can know it depends not on this imperial edict." Xue Bai said, "Do you know what it depends on?"

"You mean... newspapers?"

"I guess so." Xue Bai said, "As for public opinion, no one in Chang'an can control it better than me. Let them do what they want. But in Fanyang, I heard that Shi Siming also publishes a newspaper?"

"Yes, Shi Ni seems to admire you very much. He imitates you in many things. He also started a newspaper and published some rumors that deified himself. He also wrote poems in the newspaper."

"Really?" Xue Bai asked, "How do the people accept his newspaper?"

Yan Zhuang could now understand Xue Bai's strange words, and he responded smoothly: "The people of Fanyang like to read Shi Siming's newspaper very much. Oh, he also published one of his poems on the paper, and many people in the folk can recite it."

Xue Bai was considering taking Shi Siming's newspaper for his own use, and asked casually, "Really? What poem?"

~~
In Chang'an, the teahouse is bustling with activity.

The storyteller glanced at the newspaper on the table and started talking without stopping, expanding a short sentence in the newspaper into a long speech.

What he is talking about now is a story called "Talking about Yue Fei" which is serialized in the newspaper. This story is not new. It has been interrupted for a long time due to the war. The new version has only been published recently.

"Yue Fei was thrown into prison, filled with grief and indignation, so he wrote a poem."

Having said this, the storyteller paused, squinted his old eyes and went back to reading the newspaper.

"What poem?"

"Tell me, what poem?"

“It’s not a poem, it’s a lyric.”

The storyteller put down the wooden stick in his hand, stood up, straightened his clothes, and took a deep breath.

"Although this poem was written by Yue Fei in the story, every time I read it, I am deeply moved. Please keep quiet and listen to me read it to you."

"Okay, read it quickly."

The audience gradually quieted down and waited with bated breath.

The storyteller then began to speak.

"My hair is standing on end with anger. I lean on the railing and the rain stops. I look up to the sky and howl, my heart is filled with passion."

"Thirty years of fame are dust and dirt, eight thousand miles of journey are clouds and moon!"

A carriage escorted by a team of warriors slowly passed by the teahouse. Li Mi was sitting in the carriage, listening to the words absentmindedly.

This was not the first time he had heard Xue Bai's story. He had heard it before. But now, listening to it again in this context, he felt different... The feat that Yue Fei had not been able to accomplish had already been accomplished in advance.

Li Mi will be escorted to Fan Yang this time, and Xue Bai needs his assistance to stabilize the situation in the north. Although he is unwilling to assist Xue Bai, he has no choice.

Before leaving, he had heard about the recent events in Chang'an and knew that today, the royal army would present the captives at the gate.

He also knew that the saint's intention was to cover up Xue Bai's military achievements. He was deeply worried about this, believing that this exchange would give the real power to Xue Bai, while what the saint was pursuing was meaningless.

Sure enough, as he walked along, he heard that public opinion in Chang'an was gradually becoming heated.

"Do you know? The story of "The Story of Yue Fei" was written by Prince Yong."

"I said, who else but Prince Yong could write such a poem?"

"Prince Yong was worried about the country's troubles and was determined to fight a northern expedition, so he wrote about Yue Fei, a loyal and brave man. How could he be the man who plotted to usurp the throne as others said?"

"Just by looking at these words, you can tell that Prince Yong is full of loyalty!"

"Prince Yong led the army to suppress the rebellion, capture the leader of the rebels, and bring the Khitan Khan alive. He has made such great achievements, but the court is covering up his merits. How can this be possible?"

"Today we are offering captives, but you are giving all the credit to others."

Such public opinion was obviously manipulated by someone in secret. But no matter what, the people of Chang'an City have begun to pay attention to the conspiracy theory behind this captive offering.

Because Prince Yong fought desperately, the Tang Dynasty did not end up in a tragedy like Yue Fei in the story. But now, based on rewarding merits, Prince Yong was exiled to the frontier. Doesn't this show that there are treacherous eunuchs around the sage?

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

When Li Mi left the Chang'an city gate, solemn and dignified music was heard in front of the Suzaku Gate of the imperial city. Officials, civilians and soldiers shouted "Long live the emperor!" and Li Cong ascended the Que Tower.

After three drum beats, Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi led the mighty cavalry forward and brought Shi Siming and Li Huaixiu.

Dou Wenyang took out the imperial edict and read it in his shrill and high-pitched voice, listing the two men's unforgivable crimes.

In the past, the king of Xiaoboluo, thousands of miles away, married a Tibetan princess and it still angered the Tang Dynasty. The crimes of these two people were naturally ten or a hundred times greater, which aroused great anger among the subjects. Even Li Cong, who was standing on the Que Tower, could see from afar that the people raised their fists to the sky and shouted loudly.

Li Cong followed the will of the people and issued a resounding decree to behead Shi Siming and Li Huaixiu to demonstrate the emperor's strength and wisdom.

"Holy decree, behead!"

The people waved their fists with increasing excitement and shouted at the same time.

Li Cong was very pleased, thinking that the people still had a strong sense of patriotism, and it was precisely because of their loyalty to the Tang Dynasty that they had such a momentum.

However, what they shouted seemed different from what he expected. After listening for a while, Li Cong asked in confusion, "What do you mean by 8,000 miles? What are they shouting?"

Shi Siming, who was tied up, listened to the shouting behind him and was surprised to hear an excellent poem before he died.

He didn't know the story behind the poem, nor did he know how the rebellion in Fan Yang was related to this story, but he could also feel the rich and intense emotions of the poem.

Loyalty, heroism, and deep love for the country and the people.

Who could write such a poem? Was it the incompetent emperor of the Tang court who wronged a loyal minister, so that people who had no other way to serve their country could only vent their anger in this poem? So, the people watching recited this poem in unison?

So, who is this loyal minister?
It couldn't be that Xue Bai was sent to Fan Yang to interfere in the border troops, and was considered to be excluded and exiled, suffering a great injustice, right?
When he thought of this, Shi Siming was instantly startled.

He finally realized how big the gap was between his own shabby poems and Xue Bai's poems. They lacked that kind of shocking power.

How did Xue Bai create so many masterpieces? Although both were rebels, why did Xue Bai's writings always reveal his loyalty to the country?

Shi Siming really wanted to try again and write a poem that could rival Xue Bai's.

Behind him, a knife slashed down fiercely.

~~
“This is Shi Siming’s poem.”

Yan Zhuang placed an old newspaper in front of Xue Bai and said, "This is a poem about pomegranates. I think it is also a metaphor for Shi Siming himself."

Xue Bai's eyes narrowed slightly, and after looking around, he was still a little confused, so he murmured, "Is it a self-description?"

"March and April are in the red flowers, May and June are in the bottles."

"Use a knife to cut open the yellow placenta, leaving six or seven thousand naked men and women."

~~
"puff!"

The knife cut Shi Siming's waist fiercely, and his internal organs and intestines flowed all over the floor.

Shi Siming died, but only his poems are still circulating in Fan Yang.

In Chang'an City, people were still singing the poem that Xue Bai copied.

Shi Siming never understood until his death that the difference between them lies not in rhythm but in structure.

(End of this chapter)