Man Tang Huacai

Chapter 597: Stifling the Powerful Feudator
Puguo Huai'en has held many negotiations with the imperial court because neither side wants to fight. Now, their patience has finally run out.

When he met Guo Ziyi this time, he displayed his strength without any hesitation. Besides Pugu Yan, there were several other people standing on his left and right.

The leader on the left is a thin man of medium height, with dark and rough skin, wearing a woolen robe of rich colors and quite exquisite, and his braided hair is decorated with jewels. He must have come from Tibet;
On the right are several sturdy men, all wearing tattered furs, with deep facial features. They must be Uighurs.

"Mr. Guo is here."

"I would like to introduce you, Lord Guo. This is the Tibetan envoy, Gesangji, the Tibetan official of Chu."

"This is the Uighur envoy, Ashina Mochuo, a general serving the Uighur Khan Yingyi."

"They have all long heard of Mr. Guo's reputation and have long wanted to meet him."

Pugu Huai'en was not a smooth person and was not good at flattery, so there was no smile on his face, and he looked like he was ready to go to war after arranging his troops.

Du Wulang followed behind Guo Ziyi and saw the Hu people's eyes looking at him like arrows. He felt that this hall could no longer contain their murderous intent.

"That's just right." Guo Ziyi stroked his beard and smiled, saying, "The imperial court has just issued an edict to Tubo and Huihe. The two envoys can go to the capital with Pugu Huai'en to listen to the emperor's orders."

"enough!"

Pugu Huai'en suddenly turned cold and said, "There is no need to talk about any more reasons today. I cannot give up the position of Jiedushi. I just want to ask Mr. Guo one last question: are you willing to work with us to plan a great event?"

He always tries to show off his power, hoping to overpower others.

Guo Ziyi was different. He asked slowly, "Pugu Huai'en, are you determined to rebel?"

These slow words made the atmosphere tense.

After several rounds of negotiations, it was as if both sides had been building a platform for themselves, trying to suppress the other side. Now the platform is getting higher and higher, and both sides can't come down, so they just look at each other in silence.

It's like a sultry summer day with dark clouds hanging low, waiting for a thunderstorm to come after lightning and thunder.

Du Wulang also realized that it was impossible to convince Pugu Huai'en now, and thought that all he and Guo Ziyi could do was to leave here and wait for Xue Bai to really raise an army to attack.

He wanted to remind Guo Ziyi and say a few nice words so that he could get away temporarily, but the murderous aura in the hall became heavier and it seemed that he could not leave.

I'm afraid I'll die here this time.

Pugu Yan had previously sent people to kill Guo Ziyi. At that time, he did not think too much about the consequences and felt that he would be able to scare the emperor in Chang'an. But in recent times, whether it was the defection of Bai Yuanguang and Bayegu tribe, or Xue Bai's determination to sell Xingqing Palace to fight this battle, he felt uneasy.

Until the last moment, cold sweat broke out on his forehead and he even felt a little guilty.

however.

"Do it!"

Pugu Huai'en answered Guo Ziyi's question with a loud shout.

It was like a thunderclap that broke the peace of the Tang Dynasty.

Suddenly, there were the sounds of concentrated footsteps and the clang of swords being drawn, and the swordsmen rushed out and quickly surrounded the hall.

Killing Guo Ziyi and Du Wulang meant that he would no longer be under the control of the imperial court, but he would still put the blame on the Uighurs. As long as the imperial court could accept it, he would still be a vassal of the imperial court in name.

At that time, it will not be a question of whether he opposes or not, but whether the court recognizes it or not.

"kill!"

"Who dares to take action?!"

Almost at the same time, a loud shout came from the direction of the front yard.

Du Wulang turned his head and saw several majestic armored generals striding towards them. Among them, he only recognized Bai Yuanguang.

But he knew that these must be generals of the Shuofang army, and might even have been the superiors of the swordsmen and axemen, because they soon began to scold the swordsmen and axemen.

"Yuan Yin, you dare to chop Mr. Guo with your knife? Have you forgotten who spared your life?"

"Stop it now, you bastards!"

Du Wulang was blinded by the flash of the knife and finally felt relieved. He dared to observe the changes in the hall.

While everyone else's attention was attracted by Pugu Huai'en's encouragement and reward, he noticed that Pugu Yan waved to the side. Looking in that direction, he saw Ren Pen.

Ren Pen was wearing armor and holding his sword, observing the situation with a cold eye. At this moment, he walked towards Pugu Yan...

When he was very young, his parents didn't want him and put him in a wooden basin and floated him down the Yishui River. He was picked up by the Tzu Chi Institute in Yanshi County. At that time, he didn't have a name and everyone called him Pen'er.

He was originally going to be sold as a slave, but about ten years ago, due to some opportunities, he was able to struggle out of that fate and followed a ruffian named Ren Mulan to hang out at the canal dock.

Later, he was protected and trained by the county lieutenant Xue Bai, and when he grew up, he was both civil and military. A few years ago, when An Lushan rebelled, Li Heng fled to Lingwu, so he brought some people to Shuofang to join the army. His original intention was to gain experience in the army, thinking that it would be better if he could win over some Shuofang soldiers for Xue Bai in the future.

At that time, Li Heng was defeated too quickly and these young men did not play any role. However, as Tubo invaded, they stayed in the army to continue defending their country.

On the contrary, Pugu Yan wanted to win over his private soldiers, so he took the initiative to support them. Ren Pen went with the flow and lurked beside him.

……

In fact, Du Wulang had already recognized Ren Pen a long time ago, which is why he said that there was a chance to kill Pugu and his son.

At this moment, he saw Ren Pen walking towards Pugu Yan with a knife drawn, and he knew that he was going to take action.

"What are you still doing here?"

When Pugu Yan saw Ren Pen coming towards him, he pointed at Guo Ziyi and said, "Kill him!"

"Here."

Ren Pen responded casually, and suddenly chopped down with a knife.

Although Du Wulang was mentally prepared, he still blinked subconsciously.

In the blink of an eye, he unexpectedly discovered that Ren Pen was not killing Pugu Yan or Pugu Huai'en, but was slashing the Uighur envoy Ashina Mochuo on the shoulder and neck with a knife.

"puff."

Blood spurted all over Puguyan's face.

Pugu Yan turned around in surprise and heard Ashina Mochuo's heart-wrenching howl.

"what!"

"doing what?"

"call--"

Ren Pen swung out the second blow without hesitation.

Ashina Mochuo was indeed a warrior on the grassland, he was very agile. The first knife attack he had just used was a fatal move, but he dodged it by a few inches in a split second, and now he quickly leaned back again.

"puff."

Ren Pen's knife hit Ashina Mochuo directly on the back.

Ashina Mochu staggered and roared, "Pugu Huai'en... How dare you betray the Huihe?!"

Pugu Huai'en had been staring at Guo Ziyi. He turned around when he heard the noise behind him. He saw the scene in front of him and heard these words. He was stunned for a moment and almost thought that it was Pugu Yan who ordered the killing of the Uighur envoy.

Ren Pen struck again with the sword and finally stabbed Ashina Mochuo to death. He then picked up the sword and went to kill the remaining Uighurs.

In the contemporary world, the Uighur army was very strong, and the Uighur men who came this time were all strong and brave, but they had no weapons in their hands.

Ren Pen and his men had all been working at the canal docks since childhood. They were not very good at archery and charging on horseback, but they were good at close combat, and were most skilled at wielding a short knife and using dirty tricks.

The Uighur envoys had strong bodies, but they were caught off guard and were hacked to pieces.

They were very close to Pugu and his son, and it might have been possible for them to kill Pugu Yan, but they did not do so.

The guards around were so panicked that they didn't care about the Uighurs. The first thing they did was to grab Pugu Huai'en and his son and evacuate to a safe place.

"Protect the Marshal!"

"open!"

Pugu Huai'en continued to yell angrily. When he struggled out from the crowd of guards, he heard a few "puff" sounds and Ren Pen's men had already hacked the Uighurs to death.

He then hurriedly ordered his guards to capture the traitor.

"Quick, kill him!"

Ren Pen did not want to fight and immediately retreated to both sides, shouting: "We are following orders, who dares to touch me?!"

In the chaos, everyone had to shout to see who had the loudest voice. The executioners listened to the orders that came one after another and looked at the blood flowing on the ground. For a moment, they didn't know who to listen to.

"Shuofang soldiers, listen to my orders!" Guo Ziyi suddenly shouted, "Capture Pugu Huai'en!"

If you just shout like this, it will be useless.

He took out a shining imperial edict and held it high.

"Not long ago, the armies of Fanyang and Hedong defeated the Huihe! Yidijian has already submitted a letter of submission to the Saint, so how could the Huihe envoy support Pugu Huai'en's rebellion?!"

Although the swordsmen did not understand these words, some generals who supported Pugu Huai'en could understand them.

They dared to confront the imperial court because they were betting that by uniting with the Tubo and Huihe forces, the imperial court would not dare to touch them and would allow them to rule in the north and live a happy life.

Earlier, news came from Chang'an that the emperor would rather negotiate with foreign enemies than give the post of Jiedushi to Pugu Yan. Now it was Guo Ziyi who announced that the Uighurs had submitted to him, which inevitably made people hesitate and indecisive.

Guo Ziyi's words were not intended to convince them immediately, but were directed at the Tubo envoys.

"Gesanji."

The Tibetans were not as brave as the Uighurs, especially as nobles. Gesanji had just stood on the other side of Pugu Huai'en, and the blood splattered on him when Ashina Mochuo was killed. The guards ignored him when they were protecting Pugu and his son, so he was scared half to death and was hiding behind a table.

When Gesanji heard Guo Ziyi calling him, he raised his head quickly as if he had been pardoned.

"Mr. Guo..."

"You may not know, but I will tell you." Guo Ziyi said, "Just a few days ago, my Tang army recaptured Shanzhou and captured Dazalugong alive!"

"He lied to you!"

Pugu Huai'en pushed aside the guards who were blocking his way, stepped forward, grabbed Gesanji's collar, and shouted in front of everyone: "I promise you! I will send troops to Chang'an!"

This was exactly the purpose of Gesanji's visit this time. He was sent by Shang Jiezan to persuade Pugu Huai'en to send troops to attack Wang Nandi. Before this, Pugu Huai'en had been playing it safe and using him to put pressure on the Tang court. He did not expect that he would agree to him under such circumstances.

However, Gesanji didn't know what to do after receiving the promise.

It's impossible that he killed Guo Ziyi by his own bravery, right?
"Thank you very much, General Pugu." Gesanji took a while to remember and said quickly, "The Tibetans have hundreds of thousands of troops and will definitely help the general to fight against the Tang court."

As soon as he finished speaking, Pugu Huai'en pushed him away and looked around at his generals.

"What are you afraid of? Is the person sitting on the throne in Chang'an really the Emperor of the Li family? We are free and unrestrained, what's wrong with that? You were all so happy when you received the rewards, but why are your hands shaking when it comes to killing people?!"

After saying that, Pugu Huai'en strode forward, snatched the broadsword from the hand of a swordsman, and walked straight towards Guo Ziyi.

In some matters, he had to set an example himself. Otherwise, no one else would dare to take the first step.

Seeing the ferocious Pugu Huai'en pushing away the swordsmen and axemen approaching, Du Wulang was inevitably afraid and said, "Pugu Huai'en, if you stop now, you can still spend your old age in peace!"

It was meaningless to say this at this point. Seeing that he could not persuade Pugu Huai'en, he immediately turned to persuade the soldiers around him.

"Think it over, do you really want to join him in the rebellion? If Tubo and Huihe surrender to the imperial court, it won't be long before your food and grass run out. By then, you will go from being heroes defending the border to rebels with your entire family being executed. Is it worth it?!" Naturally, a general stepped forward to stop Pugu Huai'en and said, "General, think twice before you act. That's Lord Guo."

"puff."

Pugu Huai'en knocked the opponent down with a knife and continued to walk towards Guo Ziyi.

"Wait a minute, Marshal Jie."

The next person to step forward was Bai Yuanguang.

Bai Yuanguang stood in front of his former coach and faced his current coach. He did not raise his weapon, but instead tried to persuade him.

"General Jiedushi, you can't do it. The Tiele tribes have expressed their support for the court. Under the current circumstances, what's the point of Dalang becoming a Jiedushi? It will only bring him endless disasters!"

These words were so sincere that Pugu Yan, who was standing behind him, trembled when he heard them.

However, at this point, Pugu Huai'en no longer cared about the pros and cons, but was determined to get the court to reward him according to his wishes.

Perhaps this is an explanation for him.

He had fought for many years and sacrificed so many of his clansmen, but he stood on the wrong side and did not get the expected result. He felt it was unfair. Only with this explanation could he rest in peace in the afterlife to see those loved ones he had killed with his own hands.

"Step aside!"

Pugu Huai'en raised his knife and shouted at Bai Yuanguang again. He was ready to chop him down at any time.

Bai Yuanguang shook his head and said, "If the commander kills me, it means we will be enemies with the Bayegu tribe!"

"Go away!"

"Have you forgotten, Marshal Jie? You were the matchmaker for me, letting me marry the daughter of the Bayegu tribe. You said you wanted to make the nine Tiele clans live well in the Tang Dynasty. If you kill me now, you will be severing this favor."

"call--"

Pugu Huai'en chopped down with his sword. Bai Yuanguang didn't expect him to be so extreme and quickly dodged.

With a "clang" sound, the knife split the shoulder armor. Bai Yuanguang fell to the ground in pain, blood gushing out of his mouth. He didn't care about himself for a moment, but turned around and shouted.

"Protect Mr. Guo!"

"Mr. Guo, let's go."

The generals around Guo Ziyi were now all under the command of Pugu Huai'en. They were unwilling to fight, so they had to stand in front of Guo Ziyi, constantly retreating while trying to persuade him.

"Mr. Guo, please go back to the court and give the emperor a word of advice. The general came to Shuofang at your order. Who would have thought that Prince Zhong was not the true emperor? The general is also wronged. I don't ask for much, just a reward from the court."

"Mr. Guo, you also know the general's character..."

"Everyone get out of the way."

Although Guo Ziyi was old, he remained motionless despite being pushed by so many people. Instead, he stretched out his hand and pushed away the generals in front of him.

He casually drew out a knife, looked at Pugu Huai'en, and calmly uttered a word.

"Come."

A long time ago, Pugu Huai'en was under the command of Guo Ziyi.

At that time, he was deeply taken care of by Guo Ziyi, and he respected and admired Guo Ziyi very much. He was loyal and sincerely hoped to make great achievements for the Tang Dynasty. Until now, he does not think that he has changed.

What has changed is the Tang Dynasty.

The Tang Dynasty had failed him, the emperor of a different surname was prejudiced against him, and Guo Ziyi stood on the side of the emperor of a different surname, so it was just a battle.

"Mr. Guo, I'm sorry!"

Pugu Huai'en shouted and swung his knife.

The countless dissatisfactions in his heart seemed to pour out with this shout, turning into sword energy and attacking Guo Ziyi.

At this moment, Pugu Huai'en's heart, which was originally filled with resentment, suddenly felt much emptier. Deep in his mind, he realized that with this knife, he must have lost something.

"when."

The two swords collided, and Guo Ziyi lightly blocked Pugu Huai'en's angry attack, and chopped down with the sword, directly hitting Pugu Huai'en's hand.

"what!"

With a scream of pain, three fingers fell to the ground and twitched a few times, followed by a "clang" sound. Pugu Huai'en could not hold the knife, and the knife fell to the ground.

The moment they fought, he felt guilty.

In the end, his unwillingness and resentment were not able to completely suppress his awe of his former coach.

"Stop it." Guo Ziyi said, "It's not too late. The court will forgive you and let you live out your old age in Chang'an."

"kill!"

Seeing the blood, Pugu Huai'en's trusted subordinates finally came forward to protect him, and finally dared to fight with Guo Ziyi.

Afterwards, more frequent footsteps were heard from all directions. Those were the people that Pugu Huai'en had mobilized from the military camp and had arrived.

In fact, he didn't need to go forward personally. He could let his subordinates struggle for a while and then kill Guo Ziyi... although the key to solving the problem did not lie with Guo Ziyi at all.

"Everyone stop it."

In the chaos, no one heard someone shouting from the back of the lobby.

It was the voice of an old woman. No one heard her until she shouted several times in a row.

"Marshal Jie, the old lady is coming out."

Pugu Huai'en turned his head and took a look, then said immediately, "Send her in."

The next moment, his pupils suddenly shrank, and he saw that his mother had picked up a dagger and put it on his neck.

"My son, tell them all to stop."

"stop!"

Pugu Huai'en yelled, staring at his mother, gradually getting angry and red in the face. He couldn't help but shout, "Mother, why are you doing this?! The court is clearly at fault in this matter!"

"The ancestors of the Pugu clan swore an oath before the Heavenly Khan that they would not betray the Tang Dynasty."

"How did I betray the Tang Dynasty? I never thought of rebelling." Pugu Huai'en pointed at Guo Ziyi and said, "He asked me to help Prince Zhong. Prince Zhong asked me to marry my daughter to Huihe, and I married my daughter without saying a word! What was the result? The emperor in Chang'an suspected me. Once Huihe split, who was the first person the Tang court suspected? Me! Until now, all I want is to give my descendants a guarantee. This is what I owe them. You are my mother, how can you stand on the side of others?"

"I'm your mother, so I know you're a stubborn person. My son, things in this world are not always so one and two. There is right and wrong, there is straight and there is crooked..."

"Mother, stop talking like that!"

Pugu Huai'en waved his hand, and the blood from his severed finger splashed out, splashing onto his mother's face and Pugu Yan's face.

Pu Guyan was so anxious that he shouted, "Quickly find a doctor! Quickly find a doctor!"

"Shut up! I just want a promise from the emperor. If he doesn't give it to me, I will go to Chang'an to ask for it. I have always been so simple in my life! Mother, put down the knife!"

In the hall, Pugu Huai'en was still shouting that the doctor had arrived.

"General Jie, please stop being angry! Anger will cause your qi and blood to become disordered, and it will cause your back carbuncle to flare up. There is nothing I can do to save you..."

"shut up!"

"My son? You have a carbuncle on your back?"

The old woman finally put down the dagger, walked forward, pulled Pugu Huai'en and wanted to check his injuries.

Since ancient times, once a carbuncle on the back occurs, it is the most likely to cost a famous general his life.

The surrounding generals and swordsmen also put down their swords and looked over here with worry on their faces.

What they were worried about was not Puguo Huai'en, but the fact that they were following such a dying commander in rebellion. What would they do once he died?
The Shuofang Army finally mustered up the energy to seek justice from the imperial court, but gradually, this energy dissipated.

It was like the last straw that broke the camel's back, a small abscess that made them begin to wake up.

"What are you looking at?!"

Pugu Huai'en was furious and shouted, "You have been hesitating and hesitating, and you have been timid, so you will be bullied by the court. Raise your swords, and in the end, the only one who will compromise will be the court!"

"Are the brave men who fight on the frontier afraid of those imperial guards who are enjoying themselves in the capital?"

"If you don't fight, you will suffer in the Great Wall for the rest of your life. I'm fighting for you, but where's your courage?!"

He kept cursing, kicked the doctor away, broke free from A'niang's hand, and walked towards Guo Ziyi again.

But this time, no soldiers dared to follow him in rebellion.

Finally, it was Pugu Yan who pounced on him and hugged his waist.

"Grandpa, please stop doing this. Don't rebel or force the court. I don't want to be the governor."

"Let go, you piece of shit!"

However, Pugu Yan had already seen through it completely.

He knew very well that he could not be the governor, as the situation was different from before. Now was not the time for the lazy Li Longji to hand over all local power to the governors; it was not the time for the selfish Li Heng to seize power and appoint governors without restraint; nor was it the time for the weak Li Cong to be unable to control the overbearing local generals.

Although he had not yet met the emperor in Chang'an, his tough attitude had already been conveyed through Guo Ziyi, Du Wulang and others.

The attitudes of the Shuofang generals were very clear just now. Once Pugu Huai'en passed away, they would not be able to firmly support Pugu Yan in continuing to fight against the court.

Then, forcing for the position of Jiedushi would only lead to a fatal disaster in the end.

"Grandpa, please stop. I really don't want to be a governor anymore..."

Pugu Huai'en struggled a few times and lowered his head, only to see Pugu Yan in tears, looking so weak that he didn't seem like his son.

At this moment, he knew he had lost.

Come to think of it carefully, his resentment towards Xue Bai was not due to suspicion, but originated from many, many years ago.

He and his ancestors and tribesmen guarded the Tang Dynasty in this land ravaged by wind and sand, and suffered a lot. At the time, he felt that it was as it should be and that the Tiele people should guard the border for the family of the Heavenly Khan.

Later, he saw Li Heng escape to Lingwu.

That meeting had actually secretly subverted his Tiele beliefs.

The Tiele people have revered the Heavenly Khan for generations, but their descendants are so... weak?
He suffered so much, but the person he protected was an emperor like Li Heng, who was cowardly, selfish, short-sighted, and relied on women and eunuchs to seize power?

Why can't it be replaced?
At first, this idea shocked Pugu Huai'en himself. He really tried his best to suppress him and make himself loyal to the Tang Dynasty, even to the point of overcorrection.

He was a stubborn person, but he knew what was strong and what was weak. Gradually, he felt deep down that even if he couldn't replace the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, it might not be impossible for him to establish his own kingdom.

As both are Tiele people, the Uighurs can call themselves Khan, so why can't he?

It’s a pity that God didn’t give him time. If he couldn’t do it, why couldn’t his son?

Deep down in his heart, he actually had this idea in mind, and deliberately thought that his son was asking for the position of Jiedushi to test Xue Bai.

Unexpectedly, Xue Bai was so tough that he strangled his idea and killed it in the bud...

(End of this chapter)