The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 341 The Sound of Peace
In the first year of Guanghua, the zodiac animal sign was still present, and the chill of Yifu City remained deep.

The vast wilderness stretched as far as the eye could see, snowdrifts dotted the banks of the Niuxin River, and icicles hung from the eaves of the courtyard houses.

The Grand Chancellor of the Eastern Palace stood with his hands behind his back, inspecting the noble Gui army stationed within the city. In his view, the Gui army was strong and well-equipped, fearless in the face of death, but its numbers were few. Moreover, the various lords each had their own ideas and their resolve was wavering.

After wandering around the city, he arrived at Lianzhai outside the city.

Upon closer inspection, his expression darkened, and he looked utterly despondent.

The river flowing from afar to Yifu City had become a construction site filled with excavated earth and dust. The Tang army mobilized tens of thousands of servants, mixed-race women and the elderly, and civilian laborers to build dams upstream to block the river.

It seems they've made up their minds to stick to their guns and fight a protracted war with them until a winner emerges.

"Grand Chancellor, Emperor Li's intentions are clear; he never considered attacking the main force!" Generals from various clans followed closely behind. Cai Bangzanzhuo, who had just led his cavalry in a defeated battle against the Tang army by the river, cursed, "In my opinion, we should take the initiative!"

The village had soldiers, civilians, and livestock living together, and the stench was overwhelming.

The base of the wall was littered with the frozen corpses of humans and animals.

“We have enough men, but our supplies can’t sustain such a large force for too long,” Zan Zhuo said solemnly. “If we drag this out for another two months, we’ll collapse without a fight.”

The Tibetans mostly made a living by plundering when they fought. This time, when they came to resist Emperor Li, they prepared supplies in advance, all at the insistence of the Grand Minister. The quantity was just right, enough to support the Gui Army for half a year, but there were still tens of thousands of slaves and subordinates.

"You can't do that, Prime Minister!" Qu Bucha hurriedly said, "Li Sheng's power is great, and he is said to have 100,000 elite troops. This is certainly an exaggeration, but he probably has 30,000 to 50,000. As the saying goes, one Han can defeat five Hu, and one Tang can kill ten Hu."

“In the past, during the Battle of Jiannan, my army of 100,000 was defeated by a mere 5,000 Chengdu generals.”

"In the Battle of Lingzhou, 60,000 infantry and cavalry were defeated by several thousand Shuofang soldiers..."

"Without a tenfold numerical advantage, we would never dare to engage the Tang army in open battle."

"Furthermore, in my experience, Li Shengzhi's army is no weaker than that of the Dali and Jianzhong periods."

"We still have to hold on."

After saying this, Qu Bucha felt a pang of pity in his heart.

We should have joined forces and marched eastward during the chaos of the rebellion. If we could have eliminated the Li imperial family, China would have been in disarray, and we could have rested easy!
At that time, everyone was afraid that the eight towns in the northwest of Beijing still had considerable strength, and the armies of the feudal lords were gathering.

Even if we take a step back, it would be like the Jingfu era. At that time, Li Sheng was still weak. It would not have been difficult for him to go to support the He and Wei rivers, join forces to fight against the Tang army, and keep them east of Weizhou.

But the ministers understood the principle of mutual dependence, yet none of them were willing to shed blood for the sake of those lowly people or for others.

Everyone thought Li Sheng wouldn't come from the west; they all wanted to remain in their own corner of the world.

How about we look at it again now?

The tree wants to be quiet and the wind is not!

How hateful! Such a petty scoundrel, not worth discussing anything with!

Seeing the outcomes for those tribes that surrendered, he considered surrendering as well.

With her family's status and her children's talents, and with the beauty of Du Zilingxian Bodhisattva, how could she not have a future in the Tang Dynasty! It's a pity that her sister heard that he was a perverted lecherous devil, a bloodthirsty ugly monster with yellow teeth, and she absolutely refused to submit to him.

From a personal perspective, Qu Bucha was somewhat unwilling to be reduced to a follower of someone else's rules, since life and death were in the hands of others.

"Prime Minister, I would also like to say a few words." Qu Buduzi walked out wearing a red robe and said softly, "We can negotiate peace with the rebel army or submit to the two branches of the royal family. In other words, we can part ways and each attach ourselves to them in exchange for the opportunity to return to the snowy plateau."

"Du Zi, stop talking! I, the Lu family, am sworn enemies with those lowly people!"

"Royalty my foot! I don't recognize his Zanpu!"

Suddenly, the Grand Minister of the Eastern Prefecture slammed his hand against the stockade wall, and everyone fell silent.

"Understood! Good idea!" Da Xiang suppressed his anger, his old face turning red.

Going back to beg these people is no different from kneeling before Li Sheng.

"Great Minister, shall we seize the opportunity to leave the city and fight?" Zan Zhuo leaned closer, gritting his teeth, and said, "Let's take a gamble!"

Everyone looked at the Grand Minister of the Eastern Office.

“Send another envoy to pay homage.” The Grand Minister of the Eastern Court sighed, “Let’s see what conditions the Emperor wants before he will withdraw his troops.”

“Wealth and beautiful women alone are not enough,” Qu Bucha said dejectedly. “Last time I had an audience with the emperor, when I heard that these were all the things he had to offer, I was immediately driven away by his ministers and was not even allowed to enter the gate.”

"Add more money!" The Grand Minister of the Eastern Court struggled for a long time before shouting fiercely, "Add a lot more money! Five hundred thousand strings of cash, five hundred thousand bolts of silk, five hundred thousand head of livestock and slaves! Twenty cartloads of gold and silver! Five hundred craftsmen!"

what?
Zan Zhuo's eyes widened in surprise, and he exclaimed, "Isn't this too much?"

"You bastard!" the Grand Chancellor of the Eastern Palace shouted, "As long as the green hills remain, there's always firewood to burn. Shut up!"

"Prime Minister, it's still not enough!" Qu Bucha stepped forward three paces and said solemnly, "This is probably only enough to barely cover their military expenses. How can we accept this?"

"How much will it cost?" someone asked impatiently.

Qu Bucha did some mental calculations and couldn't help but bite his lip: "We'll have to pay tribute every year from now on, half of that amount!"

"Bastard!" Upon hearing this, it was no longer the Grand Chancellor of the Eastern Palace who cursed him; everyone else looked displeased.

"Then let's go to the field!" Qu Bucha pursed his lips, raised his fist, and said with an ambitious expression, "Fight! Battle!"

Everyone fell into a deathly silence.

The commoners may die, but the lives of the nobles cannot be risked. Years of peace have dulled their spirit. Yet, the thought of spending money to buy peace feels like a painful expense.

This is difficult to handle.

Amidst the dejected atmosphere, only the Grand Minister of the Eastern Office glanced around with ill intent: "I understand how you all feel."

"But everyone has their own answer in their heart regarding the value of life, status, power, and wealth. You must have heard about the tragic fates of Weizhou, Jincheng, and Lingxia, which were easily defeated by Li Sheng. Therefore, I hope you will reserve your opinion and avoid war to preserve yourselves."

“Li Sheng is only after wealth and fame. As long as he’s not here to slaughter us, everything is negotiable.”

“Talk to him again.”

After pondering for a long time, the Grand Minister of the Eastern Court patted Qu Bucha and added, "Let's add three more conditions: We don't have the Lu family, so we can send a hostage to the court, serve as Tang officials, and govern the land according to Tang laws, similar to the story of Shang Yanxin. The Eastern Army and the Western Army can form an alliance and send troops to serve under your command to help Li quell the rebellion."

“The rich land along the shore of North Lake and to the north can be ceded to Tang. We will retreat to the west of Tianbao Mountain and only ask for South Lake as our place of refuge.”

Some people had somber expressions, some were full of anticipation, and others were buzzing with discussion, seemingly analyzing its feasibility.

"This is the bottom line," the Grand Minister of the Eastern Prefecture said finally. "If that still doesn't work, then we're doomed. At that point, we'll have no choice but to fight to the death."

"The Prime Minister is brilliant!" Qu Bucha shouted, "I swear I will not fail in my mission!"

*******
The riverbank next to the dusty construction site.

Snowflakes fell thick and fast, and the large tent flapped its drums.

Iron hooves gallop across the hard sandy plains.

The officers and ministers spread out and surrounded the four brown bears that were running around in a panic.

The sage wore chainmail and a thick black cloak, and sat sideways on a large horse from Yanqi, holding a long spear.

Seizing the opportunity, he leaned forward and thrust the spear down with both hands, yelling, "Ah!"

"puff!"

Blood splattered, and the gray-yellow-furred brown bear roared wildly, then suddenly accelerated, dragging the saint along as it ran.

"Pfft!" The sage drew his spear and spurred his horse to accelerate.

While galloping at high speed, he held the spear in his right hand above his head, paused for a moment, and then threw the spear.

"Ooh..." The brown bear, having lost too much blood, was hit by another spear and finally couldn't take it anymore, rolling on the ground.

"Che!" the sage shouted, spurring his horse over the brown bear and drawing his spear. After a few turns, he threw down the spear, rolled off the saddle, strode forward, grabbed the bear's ears with both hands, and kicked off with his left foot.

With a burst of strength, he actually managed to pull the mountain-sized brown bear along, dragging it across the sandy plain and creating a path through it!

"Roar! Roar! Roar!" the courtiers cheered, "Emperor Taizong! Sergeant!"

"Long live! Long live!" Nangong shouted excitedly, clapping and cheering.

Rou Nu, Zhang Yueyi, Cai Shi, Long Ci, Wei Mushuangyang and the other women turned pale. What about this poet?

"Do Commanders Kuang Wei and Kuang Chou possess such courage and strength?" Nangong asked Zhang Hui with great enthusiasm.

"What's so big about it!" Zhang Hui's cheeks flushed red as she suppressed her displeasure: "No!"

"Madam Cai, Lady Lin, does Zhao Chang possess such strength?"

The two women respectfully bowed and said, “Your Majesty has restored the holy ruler. How can Zhao Chang, the traitor and bandit, be compared to him? Zhao Chang held the positions of general and minister, yet his wife and children suffered humiliation. Your Majesty was entrusted with a mission during a time of crisis, restoring order and establishing a righteous government. Only after serving the holy ruler have I realized that there are heroes in the world.”

"Easy!" Nangong smiled and looked at a woman: "Empress~ Your deceased husband... Quan Zhong, do you have such courage and strength?"

The crowd burst into laughter.

Zhang Hui lowered her eyelashes and stared at the ground, remaining silent and expressionless.

"Nangong Chongyan, you've gone too far!" Zhang Yueyi retorted, veins bulging on her forehead. "My elder sister has already given birth to three sons and a daughter for the Emperor, and you're still bringing up that scoundrel Quan Zhong? You're showing far too little respect for the Emperor!"

"Yes, yes," Shi Yuan said, covering her face with her sleeve, "Sister, the Holy Emperor is on your brow and in your heart."

Long Ci was speechless. He hadn't expected that the Tang Palace had such deep-seated grudges. It seemed that Zhang Hui, who was so beautiful she was almost inhuman, was a public enemy.

"What are you all arguing about now?" The sage rode back and pointed at them with his whip.

"Your Majesty," Nangong said solemnly, "the Celestial Immortal Lord held the tableware in his hands, yet tears streamed down his face as he faced the table, overcome with grief and indignation."

"Why?"

"She overheard her whispering with Lord Lingyin because she missed her deceased husband."

"Shut up!" Zhang Yueyi followed closely behind, saying, "Your Majesty! My elder sister has no lingering feelings, and she would never betray the Holy Emperor! It is the Lady of Wei who is obsessed with monopolizing the Emperor's favor. I have accused her of using witchcraft to curse Consort Shu, Consort Gui, and Consort Luo, among others..."

Nangong was furious: "You're spouting nonsense!"

Zhang Yueyi turned to look at him: "You harbor rebellious intentions!"

Three women make a drama… The sage planted the blood-stained spear. The women's hearts tightened, and they each sat back down. The sage chuckled twice, waved his hand, and said, “Quickly wash and peel them clean, and have some bear paws with your wine!”

"Yes, sir!" The generals put away their weapons and armor, some busy with their own tasks, others sitting down.

The sage, wearing a rolled-up cloak draped over his legs, sat down on the armrests of a bearskin chair in front of the tent.

The female emperor offers tea.

The eunuch offered incense.

Zhao Jia brought over a stack of memorials and documents.

The accompanying minister stroked his beard, picked up a brush and ink, and concentrated on painting – “The Emperor Yuan’s Expedition to the Western Sea.”

The emperor glanced through the official documents; they were all routine reports from the imperial court.

For some unknown reason, Consort Shu has fallen ill. My poor, fragrant Consort He, is she lovesick? Wait until I return and give you a good thrashing!
Li Chan, the son of Zhang Lian, died young last December. That's it, Ah Lian only had one son. Now that he's been sent away, she'll have to work overtime again.

The Weibo and Zhongwu armies replied, expressing their willingness to cooperate in capturing Bianliang.

Let's talk about it when I get back!
Zhao Kuangning and Zhao Kuangming have already set out with their troops. The eldest brother has divided his forces to reinforce Wuguan, while the second brother is heading to Ruzhou to join Li Cunxiao in attacking Luoyang.

Good news! Let's try to cut off the Bian army's supply lines and cut off Zhu Dalang's retreat.

The war between Yan and Jin has come to an end.

Having no other option with Taiyuan, Liu Rengong turned back home. Catching her breath, Li Luoluo, unlike her stubborn father, didn't resort to empty talk and instead submitted a memorial requesting reconciliation.

As for Hedong, the Emperor didn't really care. The two sides had a fraternal alliance against Bian, and Li Siyuan, Li Chengsi, Zhou Dewei, and a large group of Hedong generals had all shown their support. If it weren't for that scoundrel Li Keyong's treacherous intentions, things wouldn't have come to this!
Now that my brother-in-law is willing to fix it, that's certainly a good thing.

Wuhu! My dear A-Zhao has sent a letter!

I wonder what she's doing now...

"Let's eat first." The sage put down his official business and happily read Ah Zhao's family letters and love letters while waiting for the meal to be served.

Today's hunt yielded quite a few animals unique to the western region, including red foxes, yellow cattle, wild horses, stone martens, water deer, sika deer, wild donkeys, brown bears, snow chickens, yellow sheep, and cold-water fish.

It must be said that compared to the inland areas, the scenery here always feels less welcoming, more distant, and more desolate. But while possessing a unique exotic beauty, the resources are truly abundant! If all of it were used to raise warhorses, what level of herd would that be?
"This venison is incredibly delicious! Quickly send it to the Sage!" The Taoist licked his fingers, spread a large piece of roasted meat on a silver plate, and laughed.

"You warriors from Weibo even know how to barbecue?" someone deliberately shouted loudly. "Do you usually have the military governor barbecue for you?"

“You can’t slander people.” The Taoist priest crossed his hands. “Those who were beheaded deserved to die! We were just carrying out the orders on behalf of the sage.”

"Your Majesty!" Steaming hot venison was served.

"Try the Taoist's cooking!" The sage drew his golden knife.

"Ah Hui, come here." He called Zhang Hui to his side and cut half a bowl for her: "I just gave birth to my second child, so I need to replenish my energy. Now I have both a son and a daughter."

Before the Lunar New Year, the diva gave birth to another daughter.

The sage was overjoyed and named the rugged mountain islands he saw on the west coast "Xizhou" (West Continent).

"Thank you, but I can't eat that much," the diva said with a smile.

"It's alright." The sage poured her a bowl of fresh milk, then poured one for himself, before picking up a piece of venison and dipping it in the pepper dish.

It's a pity there were no chili peppers!

Without chili peppers, even the most exquisite delicacies in the world would taste bland.

"This fish has tender, smooth flesh, and the soup is white and flavorful. Let's send it to the Emperor!"

"Bear paws need more time to cook!" The officers chimed in, "We're already doing our best to prepare it!"

"No rush!" the sage instructed, "Let's eat the internal organs first."

The sage loved to eat offal, especially beef offal, mutton offal, and bear offal. At this time, there were still many brown bears in the Western Sea; killing a few more would reduce human-animal conflict. Slaughtering livestock was a form of catharsis and team building.

This tug-of-war is frustrating for everyone, from top to bottom.

It's a pity we can't catch tigers here, otherwise we could open an arena and watch bears and tigers fight.

"Your Majesty, the Grand Chancellor of the Eastern Palace has come to pay his respects again!" reported Li Dao, a Gentleman Attendant at the Palace Gate.

The sage flicked his cloak, placed his hands on his knees, and bowed to listen.

After listening, his eyes darted around, and he said, "Summon them!"

After the security check, Qu Bucha was escorted in by a team of military officers.

"Your subject Qu Bucha pays respects to Your Majesty!" Qu Bucha was only in his twenties, but he was made up, dressed in gold and silver, and had an elegant demeanor.

"Since you all acknowledge me as your sovereign, why didn't you go to the capital to seek an official title before I arrived?"

"The powerful enemy and bandits have kept us from venturing far. Your Majesty is wise and discerning!"

"Where is the formidable enemy, and how many troops does he command!"

"Your Majesty..." Realizing that making excuses would only displease the other party, Qu Bucha knelt down and directly stated his conditions: "Guandong is the real threat to the Holy Tang Dynasty. We offer our humble wishes and ask Your Majesty to return to the country!"

What a bunch of jerks! They really can't negotiate without some pressure.

Honestly, it does sound very appealing.

but--

The sage said softly, “Hanzhong is short of a prefectural governor, so let the generals and ministers of the Eastern Army govern Hanzhong. Hanzhong is a fertile land suitable for living, enough to sustain one’s old age, far better than this bitter and cold land of the Western Sea. As for you, there are arrangements for you all. Your clansmen can continue to live here.”

Qu Bucha's heart sank.

These are the conditions for the other side to withdraw their troops.

He could be summoned to the imperial court, and although he would be a high-ranking official, it was somewhat difficult for him to accept.

"Your Majesty." Qu Bucha thought for a moment and continued to add: "The generals and ministers of the Eastern Army and your ministers can all be sent to the court as hostages, receive Tang official positions, and govern the land according to Tang laws, just like the story of Shang Yanxin. However, if there is an imperial edict, the Eastern Army and the Western Army Alliance can also send troops to serve under Your Majesty, assist the country in suppressing rebellions, and be available at any time."

“The rich land along the shore of North Lake and to the north can also be given to the Holy Lord. We will retreat to the west of Tianbao Mountain, only asking the Holy Lord to enclose South Lake so that our people can barely have a place to live.”

He gritted his teeth: "My sister, the Bodhisattva Lingxian, is also willing to enter the palace to serve you."

"This is the loyalty we have shown with all our might."

The sage remained silent, his heart pounding as he began to calculate.

No, man.

I've only blocked a river and cut off some water, and you're all panicking like this. What if we besiege you for ten days or half a month after we've actually blocked it, applying maximum pressure? Wouldn't we gain even more then? I'll defeat you all, kill you all, and all your people, wealth, territory, and assets will be mine!
Whether they could be won over, and how long it would take to subdue them, were questions that even a wise sage could not answer definitively.

This is the result of perseverance. If things go well, you'll be ecstatic. If they go badly, well, that's another story.

Without a doubt, the sum of money and these terms are already quite substantial.

In short, this was enough to force the Liao Dynasty to uphold the Treaty of Chanyuan and for the Jurchens to retreat north of the Yellow River.

Should we persist, or should we stop while we're ahead?

Thinking of this, the sage said, "If I can now send elite troops to return east with me, then I can withdraw my troops."

If the Grand Chancellor of the Eastern Palace can keep his promise and achieve this, then he has won and achieved the goal of eliminating the enemy's manpower.

Once the troops return with me, will I still be afraid of not being able to process and digest them?

Qu Bucha's face was grim.

How could Li Sheng be so cunning?

With a time limit set, there's no room for half-hearted work.

However, the Grand Chancellor did not mention what the strategy would be for sending troops now. Nevertheless, it was already quite an achievement to have Li Sheng agree to withdraw his troops.

"Your Majesty," Qu Bucha said, bowing. "This matter must be reported to the Grand Chancellor before I can inform Your Majesty."

"In that case, go." The sage handed him a bowl of venison.

"Tell the Grand Chancellor, and tell everyone else. The Great Fan is gone. Those who are alive must look to the future. If I can't handle this, I can come back a second time, a third time. How many times can you withstand this? I've seen many people who are blinded by greed and unable to let go of their desires, and I've killed quite a few of them. I hope the Grand Chancellor and you all won't follow in their footsteps."

(End of this chapter)