Prince Li You of the Great Tang Dynasty begs the noble families to their deaths!

Five battalions, that's 2500 people.

These men are more than enough to attack the governor's mansion.

The people in Qizhou City already knew that the King of Qi had rebelled.

So when they saw the troops leaving the military camp, they all packed up their stalls, closed their doors and windows, and hid.

Inside the governor's mansion, the chief official, Pei Hong, was pacing back and forth in the courtyard.

Pei Hong has been in this position for five years. According to the custom of being transferred every seven years during the Zhenguan era, in another two years, Old Pei can consider moving to a different post.

But at this crucial moment, the Qi King's rebellion broke out, and I guess my performance review this year won't be very good.

Upon thinking of this, Governor Pei couldn't help but sigh.

His promising career was on the verge of further advancement, but unexpectedly, he encountered such a setback.

However, thanks to the policy of streamlining the bureaucracy implemented by Chancellor Fang Xuanling, the total number of officials in the early Tang Dynasty was not large.

As long as one has talent, a good background, and a long lifespan, one can always rise through the ranks.

Just then, Governor Pei heard a commotion outside.

The steward rushed over in a panic: "Master, Prince Qi has arrived with his troops again!"

"That scoundrel! What is he trying to do now?"

"He wants the master to go out... out for questioning..."

Pei Hong snorted coldly, put his hands behind his back, and walked towards the gate, with the butler following behind him.

Before leaving, Pei Hong put on a warm smile. After leaving, he bowed to the Prince of Qi.

"Your Majesty, what business do you have with me today?"

Li You gave Governor Pei a cold glance.

"If there's nothing else, drag him away and behead him."

Pei Hong was taken aback upon hearing this.

Then, he had two soldiers dragged to the side.

With one stroke, he departed this world.

Now, Pei Hong's ideal of continuing to advance in officialdom can only be realized in his next life.

"Issue the order to move into the governor's mansion and take control of all the officials under his command."

"promise!"

The governor's office was thrown into chaos, and Pei Hong's family and followers were gripped by fear.

"Hongzhi, take your men now and transport all the grain from the official granary back to the camp."

"promise!"

"All the property of the governor's mansion should also be collected!"

"promise!"

Li You's capture of the governor's mansion and his sending Pei Hong to his death were not simply about seeking wealth and grain.

To be honest, the extra few thousand bushels of grain wouldn't bring much help.

Li You's primary objective was to gain absolute control of Qizhou City and then further create chaos.

The Prince of Qi's mansion had already raised an army, but the entire city had not been mobilized. The government was still performing its functions, and people were even doing business on the streets. The sky was clear, the city was peaceful and tranquil, and there was no sign of rebellion at all.

To avoid being sentenced to death, Li You needed to stir up trouble throughout Qizhou City and then throughout Shandong Province, so that he could take advantage of the chaos.

Now, at least the governor's mansion is already in turmoil.

A tense atmosphere filled the air, mixed with the cries of the Pei family members.

The soldiers frantically searched through chests and cabinets, looking for all sorts of gold, silver, and valuables.

Li You then stepped into Pei Hong's study. His guards escorted several clerks who served Governor Pei, keeping him company. These clerks were all trembling with fear, lest they suffer the same fate as their master.

Pei Hong's study was quite large, containing not only paper books but also a considerable number of bamboo slips.

Paper replaced bamboo slips during the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and by the Sui and Tang Dynasties, paper had become the mainstream writing material.

Pei Hong possessed a large number of bamboo slips, mainly consisting of relatively old collectibles.

"Find Pei Hong's letters, edicts, and memorials for me!"

The clerks dared not delay and quickly found the materials and placed them on the desk.

King Qi had just demonstrated his cruelty and ruthlessness, and these clerks, who all had families, did not want to die under King Qi's sword, so they cooperated quite well.

Li You unfolded the materials and quickly began to peruse them.

That's the good thing about Chinese. As long as it's not from the pre-Qin period, you can still roughly understand it even if the characters have changed a lot.

After reviewing several documents, Li You stopped.

This kind of reading efficiency is too low. Although the characters are recognizable, there is too much formal language, making it difficult to read.

We must now race against time and make swift decisions based on these limited materials and information.

"Come and see, all of you! After you've seen them, tell me in the simplest terms what each document says!"

Upon hearing this, the clerks were somewhat bewildered.

"What are you waiting for? Hurry up and look!"

Seeing that the King of Qi was somewhat angry, the clerks immediately sprang into action.

"Your Majesty, this is a letter from home, inquiring about the well-being of the family members, both young and old..."

"Your Majesty, this is a poem exchange between the Master and Wei Kun, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices..."

"Your Majesty, this is a private letter from the Master to Yang Shidao, the Minister of Personnel. The gist of it is that he is asking what official positions are available this year..."

"Your Majesty, this is a memorial, the gist of which is..."

"What is it?"

"Yes...it's a report on the uprising at Prince Qi's residence..."

Li You took the memorial and read it aloud.

The text contains many disrespectful remarks towards the King of Qi, which shows that Pei Hong harbors deep prejudice against the original owner of the body.

However, there was still some important information in it that made Li You wary.

"...I have already noticed the unusual situation at the Prince's residence and have dispatched capable officials to inform the various prefectures in Shandong, in preparation for any unforeseen circumstances..."

This translates to: "Your subject had already noticed the unusual activity in the Prince of Qi's residence and dispatched capable officials to notify the various prefectures and counties in Shandong, in preparation for any unforeseen circumstances."

This shows that Pei Hong is quite capable and not a clueless fool who is oblivious to the world around him.

No wonder, in real history, the rebellion of the King of Qi was quickly quelled.

The main reason was that the surrounding government offices had already received the news and made preparations to deal with it.

Conversely, if the King of Qi had made proper preparations beforehand, avoided making the rebellion public, and quickly seized control of a considerable territory and mobilized a significant number of people to join the rebel army, he might have been able to hold out for a longer period.

For example, the Yuan Chao Rebellion, which occurred in the first year of the Baoying era of Emperor Daizong of Tang, grew to more than 200,000 people within a few months and lasted for two years. At its peak, it spanned more than ten prefectures in Jiangdong and had a great impact.

However, there are counterexamples. The Chen Shuozhen uprising that occurred in the fourth year of Yonghui reign of Emperor Gaozong was suppressed after only a few months. This rebel army was mainly defeated by underestimating the enemy and advancing recklessly.

As Li You perused the letters and memorials, he recalled the experiences of two fellow rebels from the Tang Dynasty.

This road has not been easy!

Time quickly passed and it was afternoon.

Although time was of the essence, the time Li You spent in his study was not entirely wasted. On the contrary, through the letters, memorials, and decrees written by Pei Hong, Li You learned the basic situation of Qizhou City and several surrounding prefectures. This information was extremely useful.

Besides the information mentioned above, Li You also learned more about Pei Hong, who had just died. This guy came from a very prominent family. At that time, people from good families had an easier time getting official positions, and the circles they associated with were also very powerful. Like Wei Kun, the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices mentioned above, he was also a second-generation official from a prominent family, just like Pei Hong.

At that time, in addition to the four prominent families in Guanzhong, including the Pei family, there were also five famous families and seven prominent clans.

These five surnames and seven prominent families refer to the most powerful clans at the time: the Cui family of Boling, the Cui family of Qinghe, the Li family of Longxi, the Li family of Zhaojun, the Lu family of Fanyang, the Zheng family of Xingyang, and the Wang family of Taiyuan.

In fact, the current Li imperial family, namely the lineage of Li Yuan of Taiyuan, has intricate connections with the Li family of Longxi. However, the Li family of Taiyuan is mainly known for its military prowess and, strictly speaking, belongs to the warlord class rather than a prominent clan.

This is also a hidden weakness of aristocratic families: compared with the Guanzhong warlords, their military strength is not as high.

Li You pondered for a moment, then asked, "Among the great families, which one is closest to Qizhou?"

The clerk replied, "Your Majesty, among the five surnames and seven prominent families, the Zheng family of Xingyang is the closest to Qizhou."

"Approximately how far?"

"Xingyang...is about 700 li away."

Upon hearing this distance, Li You's heart began to pound.

"What about the other prominent families that live nearby?"

"This... there's also the Langya Wang clan, which is more than 300 li away from Qizhou."