Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 545: The Great River Flows East
Qi'an County, Huangzhou.

Climbing up the Wangjiang Tower, you can overlook the Yangtze River rolling eastward, which is a refreshing sight.

There was a private banquet going on in the building, where someone was talking about state affairs, and he would not stop until his words were shocking.

"When did Prince Yong rebel?"

Wei Zichun said in a tone of certainty: "Prince Yong never raised an army to rebel, and he returned to Chang'an on the order of the Supreme Emperor. The reason why people spread rumors is because Dou Wenyang and other treacherous eunuchs knew they would die, so they slandered and framed Prince Yong."

Sitting opposite Wei Zichun was Qi'an Governor Yan Jingzhi. After hearing these words, his already bad face became even uglier. He said, "This is a national affair, and it is definitely not up to you and me to decide. The court has issued an edict to support the king, and the army to suppress the rebellion has also come east. It will arrive soon. I advise you to take care of yourself."

"If the governor is talking about the Guangling Army led by Prince Yong, I'm afraid that's the real rebel army." Wei Zichun said, "Prince Yong followed the edict of the retired emperor to eliminate the corrupt eunuchs, but whose edict did Prince Yong follow?"

After listening to such sophistry, Yan Jingzhi didn't want to talk anymore.

He actually knew that it was Wei Zichun who assassinated Prince Yong on the banks of the Yellow River, and it was probably because of this that he provoked Prince Yong.

The truth is unclear, the saint has already fled Chang'an, and no one knows what will happen next. Regardless of right or wrong, he has only one request, that neither Prince Yong nor Prince Yong can fight under his rule.

Yan Jingzhi stood up, walked a few steps towards the window, leaned on the windowsill and looked out.

The mighty waters of the Yangtze River seemed to add a lot of courage to him. His square face became serious and he began to set the rules.

"I can't interfere in the emperor's family affairs. As a minister of the Tang Dynasty, I must be responsible for the people under my rule. Whoever starts a war under my rule, I will punish him!"

Wei Zichun had been talking for so long but still failed to convince Yan Jingzhi to follow Prince Yong, and he was very disappointed.

In his opinion, Prince Yong would soon capture Chang'an and his chances of winning were still very high. It would be a pity for Yan Jingzhi to give up such a good opportunity to serve the prince.

But on second thought, it’s okay.

At least Yan Jingzhi will not help Xue Bai to attack Jiangling, so the purpose of this mission has been half achieved.

"The governor values ​​the lives of the people, and I admire you." Wei Zichun said politely, "Prince Yong just couldn't stand seeing the corrupt officials bullying the people, so he followed the imperial edict and returned to the capital to get rid of the corrupt officials. He and the governor share the same ideals."

Yan Jingzhi didn't buy it, and replied solemnly: "I just hope that the country will be stable and no one will cause war for their own selfish reasons."

Wei Zichun became more respectful and said, "Yes, Prince Yong will definitely not harm anyone. But, if Prince Yong's troops come..."

Yan Jingzhi looked stern and impartial, and said loudly: "How I reply to you today, I will reply to him tomorrow!"

~~
The waves were surging, warships were anchored on the river, and the city of Huangzhou in the distance was visible across the river.

Xue Bai stood proudly at the bow of the ship, watching the messenger from Huangzhou City row the small boat to the side of the warship, climb up the side, and hand over a business card from Yan Jingzhi, the governor of Qi'an County.

"The governor said that Prince Yong claimed to be following the emperor's order to eliminate the traitors, and Prince Yong raised an army to attack. This is the emperor's family affair, and it is difficult for him to judge right and wrong. He only hopes that the people of Qi'an will not be affected by the war. For the details, please ask Prince Yong to discuss it in person. The governor has prepared some wine and will welcome Prince Yong at the Wangjiang Tower outside the city."

Xue Bai was still looking through the invitation. After hearing Yan Jingzhi's statement, the generals in Guangling became furious and started cursing.

"Bullshit, he is just a coward and afraid of fighting!"

"King Yong can hold him accountable for treason!"

Li Zang frowned and rushed to Xue Bai immediately, saying, "Please ask King Yong to give me three thousand soldiers. I will go into the city to get Yan Jingzhi's head to boost the morale of the army."

Xue Bai waved his hand and said, "Why are you so angry? Although Yan Jingzhi wanted to protect himself, what he said was not wrong."

Li Zangyong said, "But if we don't get the cooperation of Qi'an County, how can we suppress the rebellion and serve the king?"

"No hurry, I'll meet him later."

Xue Bai appeased the generals, and in a friendly manner asked the messenger to report to Yan Jingzhi, and even asked: "Can I bring my family with me to the banquet at Wangjiang Tower?"

The messenger was startled, and felt the peaceful elegance of King Yong, and hurriedly said: "Of course, the governor is hosting an elegant banquet."

Xue Bai seemed to have forgotten that he was going to suppress a rebellion, and said, "Since it is a banquet, I will invite Brother Taibai to come as well."

In the cabin, Yan Yan heard the commotion outside and went to the window to peek at Xue Bai talking with others.

When he came back, she couldn't help but ask, "You are so unreasonable. The governor Yan seemed fair, but it was obvious that he saw the power of Prince Yong and wanted to protect himself. How come you said it was fair?"

Xue Bai said: "I wish all the officials in the world would not take sides, just say 'this is the emperor's family affair' and stand aside and watch, leaving me to fight for the throne. So when I met Yan Jingzhi with such an attitude, I should encourage him a lot."

Yan Yan asked again: "But if he just stands by and watches, how can you pacify Prince Yong?"

Xue Bai refused to answer and said, "Let's go, get off the boat and I'll take you to eat something delicious."

Yan Yan was still muttering that Xue Bai was a little heartless to leave like this, but she and Qing Lan quickly changed their clothes and prepared to leave, unable to hide the joy in her eyes.

After sitting on the boat for many days, she was already feeling bored.

When the group finished packing and left the cabin, they saw the generals waiting there, trying to dissuade Xue Bai.

"Prince Yong, Yan Jingzhi is behaving like this, I'm afraid he has surrendered to Prince Yong. It's really dangerous for him to attend this banquet."

"It doesn't matter."

Xue Bai knew very well that if Li Lin's small achievement could scare Yan Jingzhi, then he would be able to gain Yan Jingzhi's support by relying on his military exploits in pacifying powerful enemies one after another.

Li Zangyong had no choice but to say, "Please let me lead three hundred elite soldiers to escort Prince Yong."

"No need." Xue Bai pointed to the twenty-odd guards led by the Diao brothers behind him and said, "They are enough."

"Can……"

"Don't say anything more. How can a small banquet scare me?"

Xue Bai made some bold statements but still got off the boat.

The soldiers who remained on the warships were either worried or disappointed to see King Yong go to the meeting so easily, and they became more uncertain about whether they could achieve success this time.

When we reached the shore by boat, Yan Jingzhi was already waiting by the river. His attitude was very respectful and no one could find any fault with him.

But once he met the ceremony, he was very frank in expressing his opinions.

"Prince Yong led his troops here, but he did not receive an imperial edict. Prince Yong claimed to have a secret edict from the retired emperor. It is difficult for me to tell who is right and who is wrong. I will just abide by my duty, and please forgive me, Prince Yong."

Xue Bai said: "Just abide by your duty, that's enough."

"Yes, Prince Yong, please."

The group climbed up to the Wangjiang Tower, and Yan Jingzhi ordered people to serve the dishes, and the welcoming banquet began.

Because Xue Bai suddenly said that he wanted to bring his family, the beautiful dancers who were originally arranged were withdrawn and replaced by elegant musical instrument performances.

If we ignore the fact that there are still places in the world in the midst of war, this welcoming banquet would be very soothing, and Yan Jingzhi entertained them very warmly.

"King Yong, please try this fish noodle dish. It is made by taking fresh Yangtze River fish, removing the fish bones, crushing the fish meat, mixing it with flour and rolling it into a dough. It has both the freshness of fish and the chewiness of noodles."

Xue Bai acted very comfortable. He sat behind a small table with Yan Yan and asked her in a low voice how the fish noodles tasted. She nodded and said it tasted very good.

This relaxed atmosphere lasted for a while before Xue Bai said, "I originally came to Yangzhou to enjoy the scenery. If this is the case, I would really be in the mood to have a drink with Governor Yan by the river. Life is a joy, but it's a pity that the country is not at peace."

Yan Jingzhi sighed, "Prince Yong and Prince Yong are both close relatives of the saint. As descendants of the Li family, what misunderstanding can't be resolved?"

"Is Governor Yan trying to recruit Li Lin?"

"If we can keep the country peaceful without fighting, isn't that a great virtue?"

Xue Bai nodded and said, "That makes sense. Governor Yan doesn't want war to hit Huangzhou, and I actually have no intention of raising an army. How about this, who is in charge of Jiangling City now? I will write a personal letter to recruit people to pacify them."

If this were possible, there would be no need to go to war in Jiangling, and the war would naturally not affect Huangzhou, which was exactly what Yan Jingzhi wanted.

But Yan Jingzhi knew that Prince Yong's subordinates were not so easy to convince. Xue Bai was actually asking him for information about Jiangling, and he probably even had the intention of attacking Jiangling.

"The one guarding Jiangling right now is Prince Yong's trusted general, Gao Xianqi. He leads 30,000 soldiers and horses to guard Jiangling, and has no shortage of money, food, and supplies. Previously, the Supreme Emperor was in Shu County, and all the money and food from Jianghuai were gathered in Jiangling. Prince Yong can try to pacify him, but as for a violent attack, I'm afraid it will be difficult."

Yan Jingzhi stroked his long beard and slowly described the situation of the Jiangling garrison commander, hoping that Xue Bai would give up and not drag his rule into a protracted war.

After hearing this, Xue Bai immediately asked for pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and wrote a personal letter to Gao Xianqi, explaining the reasons and appealing to his emotions, hoping that he would lead the troops in Jiangling to submit to the court.

~~
"ridiculous."

Wei Zichun watched the messenger going west from afar, and a hint of sarcasm appeared on the corner of his mouth.

Xue Bai wanted to persuade Gao Xianqi to surrender, but this was impossible. On the contrary, he planned to kill Xue Bai in Huangzhou City, which greatly increased the possibility of this happening.

Wei Zichun had already attempted to assassinate Xue Bai once on the banks of the Yellow River, but unfortunately Xue Bai himself was not in the carriage at that time, so his plan failed.

But this time is different, Xue Bai has already shown up, and all Wei Zichun has to do is convince Yan Jingzhi.

Asking an imperial official like Yan Jingzhi to kill a prince is a matter of life and death, which is almost impossible to do. But in everything, you just need to go with the flow, and there will be opportunities.

Wei Zichun is waiting.

He knew that the saint had fled Chang'an, and the emperor supported Prince Yong, so he thought that very favorable news would be sent to him soon.

So, we waited for a few more days.

Every time Wei Zichun climbed up to the high building and looked at the Yangtze River, he could feel the anxiety of the soldiers from Guangling. Unfortunately, the news from his side arrived faster.

"gentlemen!"

A messenger hurried up the stairs, his footsteps making a clattering sound, and his voice was also very excited.

Wei Zichun could sense that there was good news coming, so he quickly turned around and said, "Tell me quickly!"

The messenger panted and spoke carefully after a while, saying, "The foolish ruler fled to Fengtian County. Despite the request of the ministers to kill Dou Wenyang, he still protected the treacherous tyrant."

"Of course he doesn't want to kill him." Wei Zichun said, "Otherwise, wouldn't it be right to acknowledge Prince Yong?"

"The incompetent ruler issued an edict, asking the troops from all provinces to come to the defense of the emperor, and appointed Li Qian as the Grand Commander of Jianghuai. However, all the officials were extremely disappointed with the incompetent ruler, and many officials took the secret edict from the retired emperor and defected to Prince Yong. The army entered Chang'an in the blink of an eye."

Wei Zichun was overjoyed and quickly took the various documents sent by Prince Yong. From them, he could see that as Li Cong had lost the support of the people, the situation in the world had become very different.

Gao Xianqi's reply had already arrived, in which he sternly rejected Xue Bai's call for surrender, listed Li Cong's various foolish actions, and promoted the legitimacy of Prince Yong.

Wei Zichun then took these and went to see Yan Jingzhi again.

"Mr. Yan, it's time to make a choice!"

After explaining the situation clearly to Yan Jingzhi, Wei Zichun said, "Among the sons of the retired emperor, Prince Yong is the most virtuous. The country has been in turmoil for several years, and treacherous officials are rampant. It is time to clean up the government and the country. Prince Yong will soon enter Chang'an. If Lord Yan wants to achieve success, he should make up his mind early."

"Ugh."

Seeing that Yan Jingzhi just sighed without answering, Wei Zichun continued to persuade him: "Mr. Yan has also seen in recent days that Prince Yong is just a young man who likes to play and have fun. He only knows how to travel around with his wives and concubines every day. His so-called military exploits were nothing more than the achievements of our Tang soldiers. His identity is suspicious. Do you want to watch a monarch who blindly believes in eunuchs hand over the foundation of the Tang Dynasty to him?"

"What do you want from me?" Wei Zichun paused for a moment, then lowered his voice and whispered in Yan Jingzhi's ear, "We kill him, and make a great contribution to Prince Yong, and remove a disaster from the Tang Dynasty."

Yan Jingzhi listened and didn't answer for a long time. Then he looked at Wei Zichun deeply and sighed, "Okay, you listen to my arrangements."

Wei Zichun nodded with a smile. This was the art of diplomacy. With his eloquent tongue, he was able to change the overall situation.

In just two days, Yan Jingzhi made all the arrangements and hosted Xue Bai for another banquet, this time on a ship.

After hearing this arrangement, Wei Zichun clapped his hands in approval. In a place like a ship, as long as the swordsmen and axemen were properly arranged, Xue Bai would not be able to escape at all.

He also brought more than thirty elite soldiers, disguised as servants, and boarded the ship early. His only worry was that Xue Bai did not come.

Fortunately, at noon, Xue Bai still came to the banquet with his family and a few guards, and boarded the ship chatting and laughing freely.

~~
It was mid-April of the first year of the Shangyuan period, February in the lunar calendar, and the weather was just right.

Xue Bai was not wearing armor, but a dark robe, which made him look even more handsome. Li Bai, who was standing next to him, was wearing a white robe, looking unrestrained and carefree. He was chatting and laughing as he boarded the ship.

"I have been living in the north for the past few years. How could I have seen such a vast Yangtze River?"

"If Sanlang can put aside worldly affairs, you and I can travel around the world and enjoy ourselves."

"Perhaps it's just as Brother Taibai said."

Xue Bai was in a relaxed mood. While chatting and laughing, he saw Yan Jingzhi coming over and joked, "What delicacies has Lord Yan prepared today? We have been waiting for him with empty stomachs since early morning."

Yan Jingzhi said: "Today we will fish and cook on the Yangtze River. The fish and shrimp are the most delicious..."

On the other side, Wei Zichun became more and more nervous.

He kept looking back at the shore, and would not feel at ease until the ship was farther away from the shore so that Xue Bai could no longer escape.

Finally, the city on the river bank became farther and farther away, and the ship gradually sailed towards the center of the river.

The river water hit the side of the boat, creating wave after wave.

Xue Bai, Yan Jingzhi, Li Bai and others stood on the deck facing the wind, reciting poems and composing essays.

"The gate of heaven is broken and the Chu River is opened, the clear water flows eastward and turns back here. The green mountains on both sides face each other, and a lone sail comes from the horizon."

“Hahaha.” Li Bailang laughed, “The old work is not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning…Back then, I left my country with a sword, traveled around the world, and left Shu to come here. In the blink of an eye, time has been wasted.”

"Why not write a new poem?"

"Come!"

Wei Zichun looked back and greeted the killers he brought with his eyes.

The elite troops arranged by Yan Jingzhi had already surrounded Xue Bai, and the two groups were clearly divided into two groups.

As if infected by Li Bai's heroic and unrestrained poetry, a smile gradually appeared on Wei Zichun's face, and finally he clapped his hands and laughed out loud.

"What a poem!"

Li Bai was urging Xue Bai to write a poem, shaking the wine pot in his hand and saying, "If Sanlang can't write a poem, I swear to drink this pot today..."

He was interrupted when he was halfway through his speech. Everyone turned around and looked at Wei Zichun.

"It seems that Prince Yong doesn't recognize me." Wei Zichun said, "No wonder. That day when I tried to assassinate Prince Yong by the Yellow River, Prince Yong hid himself and didn't show up."

Xue Bai actually laughed, ignored him, and turned to whisper to Yan Yan.

I don't know what he said, Yan Yan smiled and said angrily: "You are the only one who is good at pretending."

"Otherwise, how can people admire me?"

Seeing that the couple were mumbling and not taking him seriously at all, Wei Zichun raised his voice and said, "Prince Yong is about to die, but he is still so arrogant?!"

He was too lazy to say any more nonsense since he was going to kill someone, but he had to say the most important sentence, so he straightened his sleeves and raised his head slightly.

"So that you can die peacefully, the one who planned to kill King Yong today is Wei Zichun."

"Wei Zichun!"

Suddenly, a rough voice sounded behind me.

Wei Zichun turned his head and saw a burly man, who must have been arranged by Yan Jingzhi in advance.

"What do you want me to do?" Wei Zichun asked, "Why don't you do it?!"

"I'll treat you to a feast."

As the big man spoke, he raised his head to signal, and someone lifted the red cloth covering the main desk.

A human head suddenly appeared in front of Wei Zichun, with a hideous face and eyes wide open even in death.

Wei Zichun recognized whose head it belonged to; it was Gao Xianqi, the garrison commander of Jiangling.

He couldn't believe it and murmured, "This... When did you attack Jiangling?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he realized that there was not only one waterway up the river to attack Jiangling. There were many troops in Sichuan, Henan, Jianghuai and other places that could attack Jiangling.

It's just that my attention has always been on Xue Bai, so I ignored it.

"kill!"

The burly man shouted loudly and drew his sword to kill Wei Zichun's men.

"puff."

Blood gushed out and splashed onto the deck, but fortunately there was a strong wind on the river and the smell of blood was quickly blown away.

Xue Bai held Yan Yan's hand and turned his back. He could see another warship on the river heading towards them. It was the generals from Guangling who were worried about his safety and had rushed over specially.

"Sir Yan, we have to take action under your rule, but we will only kill these few people, and the people under your rule will not be harmed."

"This man has tried to assassinate Prince Yong three times. His crime is unforgivable and he deserves to be killed!" Yan Jingzhi responded loudly and politely.

Li Bai remained calm and said, "Come on! Keep reciting poems and writing essays. It's Sanlang's turn."

"Okay, then I'll show you my ugly side. In this situation, I'll sing a song called "Nian Nu Jiao" for you all to enjoy."

Xue Bai did not hesitate. He stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the vast river, listening to the sound of the waves of the Yangtze River mixed with the chopping and screaming on the boat, and then he spoke.

"Go to the east of the Yangtze River, and the waves will be gone, and you will be a romantic figure through the ages!"

"To the west of the old fortress, people say it is the Red Cliff of Zhou Lang in the Three Kingdoms Period..."

Li Bai first opened his eyes wide, looked at the vastness of the world, felt the heroism in the poem, and then closed his eyes and savored it carefully.

The river breeze blew past him, making him feel that every pore was stretched, and all the grievances in his heart were gone, and all the depression and loss were thrown behind him. Once a person's troubles are put to eternity, what does that little trouble count for?

Only heroism remains.

And the pleasure of meeting a worthy opponent.

"puff."

Behind them, Wei Zichun had been beheaded to the ground.

It doesn’t matter anymore. On this vast Yangtze River, in front of these majestic poems, no one cares about the life or death of a jumping clown.

"Rocks penetrated the sky, stormy waves crashed on the shore, and thousands of piles of snow were rolled up."

Hearing this, Li Bai suddenly felt an inspiration. Although he had never heard of this poem before, he could actually recite the next sentence in unison with Xue Bai.

To him, the rhythm and the artistic conception are so natural.

"Picturesque, a moment how many hero!"

~~
"I recall Gongjin's youth when Xiao Qiao was first married, and how handsome and heroic he was."

Xue Bai looked back at Yan Yan and unconsciously tightened his grip on her hand.

Yan Yan couldn't be exposed to the wind because she was weak and would get a headache easily. But today, the wind was howling, and she forgot all about it and just felt happy. Although she and Xue Bai got married very early, he pitied her because she was still young, and now she is just getting married for the first time.

In addition, there was some mischief in her eyes, because she knew that Xue Bai's poem today was premeditated.

It was just to show off again in front of the generals and the people of the world.

As a man in this world, who doesn't want to be heroic and attract the attention of the world?
"Feather fan and silk scarf, in the midst of talking and laughing, the oars and oars disappeared into ashes."

Behind Xue Bai, Gao Xianqi's head was still lying there quietly.

On the opposite side, the generals and soldiers also saw the fighting on the tower ship, as well as Xue Bai, who was still standing on the bow without changing his expression and reciting poems aloud, and they were all amazed.

The screams gradually subsided.

The hacking finally stopped.

The blood-soaked man didn't hear Xue Bai's words. After killing the last man, he saluted and shouted, "Report to King Yong! Tian Shengong has fulfilled his mission and killed the assassin!"

Xue Bai turned around, glanced at Tian Shengong indifferently, and nodded approvingly.

Wei Zichun was self-righteous and had no idea that although Xue Bai seemed to be at ease, he had actually already sent a message to Sichuan and Shu, ordering Tian Shengong to lead his troops down the river and directly take Jiangling.

At that time, Gao Xianqi, who was ordered by Li Lin to guard Jiangling, had just received Xue Bai's letter of surrender. He sneered a few times, picked up his pen without hesitation, and rejected it rudely. He also said to his subordinates smugly, "How can we capture Jiangling by going up the river?"

As soon as the letter was sent out, Tian Shengong had entered the city and cut off Gao Xianqi's head.

At this moment, Yan Jingzhi, who was standing aside, glanced at the prince and felt the ferocious look of the prince. He was terrified and became more and more convinced that Prince Yong was determined to seize the throne.

It was because of fear of this ambition that he chose to surrender.

He actually didn't really protect the orthodoxy of the royal family, which was why he didn't help either side. But Xue Bai saw this point in him, and finally won him over by using threats and inducements over the past few days.

However, Xue Bai's next words seemed so open-minded, as if he had no intention of fighting for power and would retire after restoring the ruined country.

"My motherland wanders in my mind, and I should laugh at my sentimentality. I will be born early."

"Life is like a dream, one statue returns the moon in the river."

(End of this chapter)