Entrepreneurship in the Late Tang Dynasty

Chapter 85 Banquet
After Gao Pian finished speaking, he ignored the reactions of the generals below, jumped off the elephant chariot, and landed steadily.

Then two burly guards followed behind, each holding a canopy and a military banner, all symbols of the military governor Gao Pian.

Gao Pian's agility and strength astonished the generals.

A man in his fifties nimbly jumped down from the back of a three-meter-tall elephant, something not everyone can do.

On the other hand, after Gao Pian descended, Long Shun dared not sit on the elephant's back, which was high above the generals. However, he dared not jump down from the height. In the end, he managed to slide down by stepping on the back of a Kunlun slave.

After landing, he immediately ran behind Gao Pian, bowing deeply.

It was at this moment that he saw Zhao Huai'an in the crowd, and Zhao Huai'an was also looking at him.

But to Zhao Da's surprise, the Nanzhao prince actually smiled at him.

Zhao Da was puzzled. Had the Crown Prince of Nanzhao been tortured to the point of being incapacitated by Gao Pian? How could he still be laughing at a time like this?

But before Zhao Da could continue his internal monologue, Gao Pian, who was leisurely observing the generals, suddenly shouted:
Who is Zhao Huai'an?

Zhao Huai'an immediately pushed his way out of the crowd and shouted:

"This humble general, Zhao Huai'an, greets the envoy."

Gao Pian looked him up and down, then suddenly asked:
"Are you one of Huang Jingfu's soldiers?"

At that moment, Zhao Huai'an felt a chill run down his neck. He seemed to sense that the two heavily armored knights who had just rushed out had already pointed their lances at him.

Before Zhao Da could react, Gao Pian laughed and patted Zhao Da on the shoulder.

"Indeed, Huang Jingfu was a poor warrior, but he was a good commander. Your old commander was executed by me for deserting in the face of battle; you should take this as a lesson."

After saying that, Gao Pian stopped talking and led a group of civil and military officials from western Sichuan to the rear area. Along the way, he kept chatting with Yang Qingfu and the others, praising Yang Qingfu for handling things well and saying that the scenery here was beautiful and suitable for the troops to rest.

At this moment, Gao Pian was like a caring elder, kind and approachable, showing none of the ruthlessness he had shown when he had just killed two generals from western Sichuan.

A gust of wind blew by, giving Zhao Da goosebumps.

At this moment, Xianyu Yue, who had deliberately lagged behind, untied his cloak and wrapped it around Zhao Da, then laughed:
"Second brother, we've passed this hurdle."

At this moment, Zhao Huai'an looked at Gao Pian's retreating figure and breathed a long sigh of relief.

Yes, he passed that hurdle, and he believed that Yang Shuai played a significant role in it.

Just now, Gao Pian directly resolved Zhao Huai'an's biggest crisis.

Despite Zhao Huai'an's considerable reputation in the army during this period, this was under normal circumstances. However, because of Huang Jingfu, the generals always felt that Zhao Huai'an would be purged by Gao Pian.

Whether Gao Pian actually meant it or not, or even whether he cared about Zhao Da, is irrelevant, because there will always be people who think Gao Pian cares and feel that he can do this for his superior.

As more and more military generals think this way, no matter how well Zhao Da is doing now, in that situation, besides leading his troops to rebel, he will eventually be sold off to death on the battlefield by the generals of western Sichuan.

This is the consequence of offending the top leader.

Whether or not he actually offended anyone is irrelevant; the mere fact that others think this way is enough to ruin Zhao Da's entire future.

Now, things have changed. In front of all the civil and military officials in western Sichuan, Gao Pian directly pointed out Zhao Huai'an's matter and ended with the phrase "take this as a warning," which seemed like a warning but actually protected Zhao Da.

Seeing that Zhao Da was still silent, Xianyu Yue assumed he was still shaken, so he patted Zhao Huai'an on the shoulder and comforted him.
"It's all in the past, things will get better from now on."

But he didn't know that at this moment, an indescribable feeling was growing from the depths of Zhao Huai'an's heart.

Zhao Huai'an watched Gao Pian walk away. He was always in the middle of the crowd. Whenever he spoke, countless people would chime in and laugh along. Even when he spoke softly, pairs of ears would strain to listen.

At that moment, Zhao Huai'an suddenly remembered that sentence:
“He can be replaced.”

A passion for struggle he had never felt before filled Zhao Da's heart. He stepped forward, took Xianyu Yue's arm, and laughed:
"Brother, you're right, the best days are yet to come."

Xianyu Yue laughed heartily, then led him into the curtained area, where singing and dancing had already begun, and the air was filled with the noise of people; a grand banquet was about to begin.

……

That year, Zhao Da sat like a lackey under Gao Pian's curtain.

Because of his lowest rank, Zhao Huai'an sat in the outermost seat, while Xianyu Yue was arranged to sit a little further ahead.

Xianyu Yue wanted to sit next to Zhao Huai'an, but the seating arrangement was always based on rank and could not be changed in the slightest. Even a small change in seating could cause these soldiers to fight.

Therefore, Zhao Da declined Xianyu Yue's offer, saying that sitting here was fine. It was indeed fine; this position was close to the generals behind him, yet inconspicuous, and allowed him to keep an eye on the generals and staff behind the scenes.

For example, he can now observe in detail the second-ranking prince of Nanzhao, Longshun.

In the short time it took, Zhongdeng changed his outfit, wearing a sapphire-encrusted headscarf, a solid-colored fox neck draped over his shoulder, a jade bracelet as green as water on his left arm, and a huge ruby ​​pendant on his right arm, which attracted attention.

Moreover, because of his short stature, Gao Pian had a slightly higher stool arranged for Long Shun, so that he could sit there in a kind of squatting posture.

Not long after Long Shun sat down, the military governor Gao Pian also emerged from the tent, supported by two Kunlun slaves.

As soon as he came out, the military generals in the seats, including "Jinghai", "Tianping", "Changwu", "Zhaoyi", "Fufang", and "Hedong", stood up immediately.

These people made up almost half of the people present. As soon as they stood up, the generals from Sichuan, Yanzhou, Ganhua and other provinces all looked at Yang Qingfu in front of them. Seeing that Marshal Yang had also stood up, the others reluctantly stood up as well.

At this moment, the soldiers of the western Sichuan military governorship were cursing inwardly. Gao Pian had just killed two of our western Sichuan generals, and Yang Qingfu hadn't dared to utter a word. Now he was begging for mercy like an old dog.

It should be noted that Li Xiang, the Left Commander-in-Chief, and An Zairong, the General of Dingbian Army, were not ordinary military commanders, but rather two of the top generals of the Western Sichuan vassal state.

Both of them had participated in the defense of Chengdu four years ago. They had truly shed blood for the regional military governors and made contributions to the Tang Dynasty. They were killed simply because they were late.
Damn, when have the lives of our Sichuan generals ever been so cheap?
But everyone only dared to curse in their hearts; no one dared to stand up for the two generals.

Ultimately, just look at the menacing "Jinghai", "Tianping", "Changwu", "Zhaoyi", "Fufang", and "Hedong" on the other side, and you'll see that Gao Pian really has some powerful figures!
Other military governors rely on their own troops and powerful clans when they take office, but our Prime Minister Gao is truly capable and can gather a group of loyal followers no matter which military governor he becomes.

For example, the Changwu Army generals and Pingxia Dangxiang warriors opposite were recruited into the army by Gao Pian when he was the commander of the Shence Army and was ordered to be stationed in Changwu City.

During this period, Gao Pian waged war against the Dangxiang in Nanshan and Pingxia, winning every battle and causing the Dangxiang to surrender. From then on, Gao Pian had two elite battalions under his command: the "Changwu" and the "Pingxia".

The Tibetan warriors were the Hunmo tribe of the Tibetans who had previously occupied the Qin Prefecture in Hebei and Wei River regions. Fourteen years ago, when Gao Pian had just been transferred from Changwu to become the governor of Qin Prefecture, he took Hebei and Wei River regions, pacified Fenglin Pass, and captured more than 10,000 Tibetans.

This was similar to Zhang Yichao's recapture of Liangzhou in Hexi back then, and it was the most illustrious achievement at the time. With this, the dynasty fully recovered the Hexi and Longxi regions that had been lost in the past.

Looking at the warriors of "Jinghai" and "Linyi", they were Han and non-Han warriors recruited by Gao Pian when he pacified Annam. The warriors of the Tianping Army were recruited by Gao Pian when he served as the military governor of the Tianping Army and pacified the defeated soldiers of Pang Xun under his jurisdiction. Many of them were Pang Xun's former subordinates from five years ago.

Therefore, the heroes and warriors from different places under the curtain are not simply warriors, but clearly the glorious achievements of Takapian in the past.

Did these generals from western Sichuan know about these circumstances? They all did.

This is the fundamental reason why they remained obedient and compliant despite Gao Pian's intimidating and public humiliation.

At this moment, most of the people present had their own thoughts, but Zhao Da, who didn't understand anything, only put down his drink and stood up after everyone else had stood up.

Standing opposite Zhao Da was a burly military general, seven feet six inches tall, with a full beard, who had been staring at Zhao Da ever since he stood up.

Zhao was quite sensitive; seeing this person looking at him, he crossed his arms and whispered:

"Have you met Zhao Huai'an of Shouzhou...?"

The bearded soldier over there was clearly a straightforward guy; the old leader had just sat down, and he immediately responded to Zhao Da:
"Yao Guili of Yunzhou".

Yao Guili was recruited by Gao Pian when he was the military governor of Tianping Army. He was originally a general under Pang Xun, and now he will become Gao Pian's personal guard.

He had noticed Zhao Huai'an on the other side long ago. His eight-foot-tall, imposing figure was not only eye-catching among the generals from Sichuan and Western Sichuan, but also unmatched by the warriors from Yunzhou and Qinzhou present.

Because the occasion was inappropriate, Yao Guili didn't say much, only planning to find an opportunity to meet this hero later.

At this moment, Zhao Da's eyes were clear. He tried hard to listen to Gao Pian and the others speaking, but their voices were too soft to hear clearly, so he could only focus on the food on the table in front of him.

The main dishes haven't been served yet; the table is set with small side dishes to accompany the drinks. Even with just these side dishes, the banquet is already quite substantial.

The wine is Jinjiangchun, a famous wine from Chengdu. Zhao Da had drunk this wine once before, when Yang Qingfu rewarded him after he finished guarding Jinma Village.

Then there was a plate of vegetables and a steamed chicken with scallions and vinegar. These are all common dishes. Chickens are much cheaper and more common than pork, beef, and mutton. Almost every farmer in the countryside raises chickens.

But the other dish is quite rare; it's a steamed and cooled cured beef.

Zhao Da had just taken a bite, and it tasted quite good. This was the first time he had eaten beef since he came to the Tang Dynasty.

Because it's illegal to slaughter cattle here, there's basically no beef for sale in the market, but some people with connections can still get some.

Zhao Da remembered that once Zhao Liu mentioned eating beef, and his four adopted sons looked very hungry, so he took out a cloth bag and packed up the plate of cured beef.

He had just finished packing up when, unexpectedly, Gao Pian, who was at the head of the table, suddenly shouted:
"Oh? Is Zhao Da dissatisfied with the banquet?"

Upon hearing this, the previously lively banquet fell silent.

(End of this chapter)