Chapter 329 Chaohu Festival
“Wow… Wow…”

At the end of winter, the wind is cold and biting.

At this time, the whole world was talking about the fact that the five towns in western Lingxi had failed to wipe out Wang Xianzhi. However, Wang Xianzhi, the person involved, had already led his troops to the south bank of the Yangtze River, preparing to cross the river and head north.

The Chizhou garrison had already closed the city gates, and the people fled into the city for refuge. There was no sign of human habitation for dozens of miles around the Chizhou ferry.

Shang Junchang and others arrived at the Chizhou ferry first. They thought that all the boats had been sunk, but they saw a surprising scene instead.

“Damn it! Could it be that the governor and general of Chizhou are ignorant of military affairs and actually left all the boats at the ferry?”

“I’m afraid he was reluctant to part with his boats, and now we have got them for free!”

At the ferry, the two brothers Shang Junchang and Shang Rang felt the biting river breeze, and they felt very hot all over.

They pointed at the boats at the ferry, their tone full of sarcasm.

Upon hearing this, many Tianping Army garrison soldiers who followed them also echoed the words, causing their laughter to echo in the river breeze.

“Don’t be so self-indulgent…”

Wang Xianzhi dismounted and spoke, attracting everyone’s attention, while walking to the shore among the crowd.

He looked solemn, raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then slowly spoke: “These boats were not forgotten or unwilling to be dealt with by the Chizhou garrison commander, but were deliberately left for us to cross the river.”

“very?!”

“No way!”

“How can you tell this from?”

“Yeah, they would be so kind?”

Upon hearing this, Shang Junchang, Shang Rang and others were so surprised that they couldn’t help but refute.

Wang Xianzhi stroked his short beard, glanced at the crowd, and explained: “If we stay in Chizhou, the court will definitely order the army of Xuanshe Town to encircle and suppress us.”

“The generals of Xuanshe Town naturally don’t want to waste their troops for this, so they left these boats behind, hoping that we can cross the river and head to Huainan as soon as possible.”

“In this way, the task of encircling and suppressing us will fall on the shoulders of Huainan Town, while Xuanshe Town can continue to be at ease.”

After hearing this, everyone started talking about it, and Shang Junchang frowned and said:
“General, although the world is in chaos, how dare the generals of the vassal states so blatantly pretend to obey and secretly disobey?”

Wang Xianzhi raised the corner of his mouth slightly, with a bit of disdain in his tone: “The court is no longer the court of the past, otherwise we would not be transferred to guard the border in western Ling.”

“As we marched north, each town dispatched troops to encircle and suppress us, but this was all planned by those envoys. Have you ever seen the troops of each town fight to the death with us?”

“This…” Shang Junchang and Shang Rang looked at each other in bewilderment, and voices from all around echoed the sentiment.

“Hearing what the general said, it seems to be true…”

“Yeah, at most they set up an ambush or mobilized troops, but no one really came after us.”

Seeing that there were still many discerning people in the army, Wang Xianzhi also said straight to the point: “Local military commanders are no longer as submissive as before.”

“The will of the saints is but wind in their ears.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned around and looked at the Yangtze River flowing eastward.

The Yangtze River in Chizhou is extremely wide, with turbulent waves. It is more than ten miles away from the north bank and is magnificent.

Although he had seen it three years ago when he was stationed on the border in the south, he was still shocked when he looked at it again standing on the shore.

“The ancients called the Yangtze River a natural barrier, and it really lives up to its reputation.” Wang Xianzhi sighed in a low voice, with a hint of awe in his tone.

Shang Junchang and others also looked at the vast river, and couldn’t help feeling a little insignificant.

After a moment, Wang Xianzhi retracted his gaze and waved his hand to order: “Three armies, listen up! Get on board immediately and cross the river to the north!”

As the order was given, the soldiers of the Tianping Army acted quickly.

More than 200 people and a lot of carriages and horses boarded the ship first, and the remaining 700 brothers camped at the ferry, waiting for the next ship to pick them up.

The river wind was whistling, the sails were hoisted, and dozens of small boats and three ship slowly sailed away from the south bank and headed towards Huainan Road on the north bank.

Wang Xianzhi stood at the bow, looking at the gradually receding south shore, feeling both uneasiness about the future and an indescribable sense of pride.

“If these insects can serve as military commanders and envoys, why can’t I become a high-ranking official?”

Feeling the biting river wind blowing on his face, Wang Xianzhi gradually became dissatisfied with his official position.

During the journey north, he went from being nervous at first to being at ease later on.

In his opinion, these so-called envoys, military commanders, and generals… are nothing more than that.

If such a mediocre person can hold a high position, why can’t Wang Xianzhi do so?

“Princes, generals and prime ministers, would you rather have the seed?!”

As Wang Xianzhi thought, his ambition continued to grow, but he also knew that with only more than 900 soldiers and horses in his hands, he would not be taken seriously by the court.

“We must find a way to recruit people to strengthen our army…”

Wang Xianzhi’s eyes flickered, and he began to think about where to recruit soldiers.

An hour later, Wang Xianzhi and more than 200 people landed on the north bank of the Yangtze River in Lujiang County.

Except for dozens of soldiers operating the boats, the remaining two hundred people carried the carriages and horses off the boats and began to set up camp not far from the river bank.

The south of this place is the Yangtze River, the east and west are mostly swamps, and the north is hilly.

Wang Xianzhi looked at the map and found that Chaohu Lake was to the north over the hills, so his mind inevitably became active.

There were constant streams of refugees from Henan and Huainan Provinces. After fleeing their hometowns, most of them became bandits or joined the pirates, making a living by robbing boats.

The five major lakes, Pengli Lake (Poyang Lake), Dongting Lake, Taihu Lake, Chaohu Lake, and Danyang Lake, have had pirates since the pre-Qin period. Among them, Chaohu Lake is second only to Pengli Lake, Dongting Lake, and Taihu Lake in size.

The world is in chaos now, so there must be many deserters and refugees in Chaohu who have become bandits.

If he could pacify them, not only would he be able to increase his influence, but he would also have more bargaining chips when the imperial court called for their surrender.

Thinking of this, Wang Xianzhi’s eyes kept flickering, but he was not in a hurry to tell Shang Junchang and Shang Rang about this.

For the next two days, he planned this matter in the camp on the north bank. Only after all of his more than 900 soldiers and nearly 1,000 carriages and horses had arrived at the north bank did he send someone to summon Shang Junchang and Shang Rang to the tent.

“All will!”

The two men entered the tent and bowed. Shang Junchang spoke first: “Captain, now that we have crossed the Yangtze River, how do we return to Puzhou?”

Wang Xianzhi raised his hand to signal the two to sit down, and said in a calm tone: “We have too few soldiers and horses now, and the court may not take us seriously.”

“You and I are not commoners. You should know that the imperial court will never easily forgive a general who commits rebellion.”

“If Marshal Yang Jie is unable to protect us, the three of us will probably be beheaded by the soldiers sent by the imperial court.”

“After much thought, I decided that if the three of us want to survive, we have no choice but to raise the flag and recruit soldiers to increase our momentum.”

“Only if we make the imperial court pay attention to us can we have a chance to surrender.”

“As long as we can force the imperial court to surrender, you and I can not only protect ourselves, but we can even get an official position.”

Wang Xianzhi’s words brightened the eyes of Shang Junchang and Shang Ran. The two brothers looked at each other, and then Shang Junchang, as the elder brother, couldn’t help but ask:
“What the general means is that if we can recruit more soldiers and horses, the court will definitely accept us as its own, and even give us higher positions?”

“That’s right!” Wang Xianzhi nodded, his tone firm: “As long as our momentum is strong enough, the imperial court will not dare to easily encircle and suppress us, but will instead offer us official positions to recruit us.”

“By then, we will not only be able to save our lives, but also gain a place in the court.”

Shang Junchang and Shang Rang were deeply moved by these words. The two brothers looked at each other for a moment, then stood up and bowed: “I’m willing to listen, and I’ll arrange everything!”

“Why are you doing this? You and I are from the same hometown and we are comrades. There is no need to do this… there is no need to do this…”

Seeing this, Wang Xianzhi quickly helped the two of them up and continued, “Chaohu Lake is only a hundred miles away from here, and there are many pirates there.”

“If we can pacify them, our prestige will surely be greatly boosted, and the military commanders in various towns will be more cautious and will not dare to easily encircle and suppress us. However…”

Wang Xianzhi hesitated for a moment, and Shang Junchang said anxiously: “Please tell me everything, don’t hesitate!”

Hearing this, Wang Xianzhi continued, “But this matter is extremely risky. As the commander of the three armies, I cannot go there in person. I am afraid I need to choose one of you two to go to Chaohu to pacify the pirates.”

Upon hearing this, Shang Junchang immediately stepped forward, clasped his fists and said, “General, I am willing to go!”

Seeing his brother so anxious, Shang Rang hurriedly stepped forward and bowed: “This matter is dangerous, let me go.”

“Brother, please stay in the army. If I get into trouble, you will be there to help me.”

“Erlang…” Shang Junchang frowned and was about to argue, but was interrupted by Wang Xianzhi:
“Since Shang Rang has such intention, let him go.”

“Da Lang, you stay in the army and help me organize the troops. If Er Lang has any problems, you and I will lead the troops to Chaohu immediately!”

“Yes…” Seeing that Wang Xianzhi had made the decision, Shang Junchang had no choice but to nod in agreement.

Wang Xianzhi saw that he agreed, then looked at Shang Rang and whispered: “Erlang, this trip is dangerous, you must be careful.” “I will give you five days. Whether we can convince the pirates or not, we will go north to Puzhou in five days.”

Facing Wang Xianzhi’s words, Shang Rang bowed and saluted with a swift movement: “Everyone, rest assured. I will definitely fulfill your mission!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Shang Rang left the tent, took three or five good men with him, changed into casual clothes, and rode on draft horses to gallop towards Chaohu Lake, a hundred miles away in the north.

While Wang Xianzhi was waiting for good news from Shang Rang, Cui Xuan, the governor of Xuanshe Town, had already sent someone to deliver a memorial.

The memorial had been sent out since Wang Xianzhi entered Chizhou, and on the third day after Wang Xianzhi sent Shang Rang, the memorial had arrived in Chang’an.

“These bastards, don’t they think I don’t know what they are thinking?!”

In the side hall of Xianning Palace, Li Yi listened to Lu Yan’s report with a grim expression, and also pointed out the attitudes of the various towns.

If the towns had not allowed it to happen, how could Wang Xianzhi have traveled from Lingxi to Xuanshe so quickly, and now even taken a ferry to Huainan Road.

Where did the ferry come from? They left it there in advance!
Thinking of this, Li Yi felt that it was really difficult to be the supreme ruler. He looked at Lu Yan and asked, “Where are Prime Minister Bi and Prime Minister Jiang?”

“Your Majesty…” Lu Yan bowed respectfully, then said:

“Pei Xiu suddenly caught a cold at noon, so Prime Minister Jiang led his men to escort Pei back home.”

“Sick again?” Li Yi frowned slightly.

Ever since he learned that the eunuchs from the Northern Division were taking up vacancies in the Shen Ce Army, he felt that everyone he saw was deceiving him.

“Mr. Bi has been ill for many months. Has Minister Lu ever visited him?”

Li Yi asked about Lu Yan, who bowed and said, “Of course I have been there, but I am afraid that Mr. Bi’s condition is …”

Lu Yan shook his head silently, which made Li Yi feel a little uneasy.

Although Bi Zhen contradicted him several times, he also knew that Bi Zhen’s remarks were indeed for his own good, but he did not have the courage to solve the problem.

“If there was a man like Li Deyu, I wouldn’t be so restrained…”

Li Yi sighed slightly, then asked, “Does Li Deyu have any descendants?”

“Li Deyu?” Lu Yan was stunned, not knowing why the topic suddenly jumped from Bi Zhen to Li Deyu.

The three words “Li Deyu” were considered very taboo during the Dazhong period.

Although the times have changed, Lu Yan did not dare to speculate on the emperor’s thoughts.

“Your Majesty, most of Li Deyu’s descendants make a living by farming in Yazhou.”

After he finished speaking, Li Yi sighed and said, “Mr. Li also worked for the country and the court in the past. Why does the court treat his descendants so harshly?”

Lu Yan understood what was happening. It turned out that the emperor wanted to overturn Li Deyu’s case…

He pondered carefully, and then realized that the emperor overturned Li Deyu’s case not because he sympathized with Li Deyu, but because he wanted to use Li Deyu as an example to tell those who were interested in reform in the world that Xiantong was different from Dazhong and that Xiantong was more supportive of reform.

Thinking of this, Lu Yan’s eyes flickered, and then he bowed and said:
“Your Majesty, in fact, there are many officials in the court and the country who are speaking out for Li Xianggong.”

“If Your Majesty could restore Li Xianggong’s official title, I think all officials would praise Your Majesty.”

Lu Yan knew how to serve the emperor according to his preference. As long as the emperor had a preference, he would choose to agree without hesitation.

His action also made Li Yi nod unconsciously, and his eyes looked at him more gently.

“You, Minister Lu, should handle this matter. If Mr. Bi’s illness continues, the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Finance will have to be supported by Minister Lu.”

“Yes……”

Lu Yan bowed in response, feeling very excited.

As long as he does his job well, his appointment as prime minister is basically a done deal.

“Who is the governor of Huainan Dao now?”

Li Yi changed the topic, and Lu Yan also hurriedly said: “The four governors of Xuanwu, Zhongwu, Yicheng, and Huainan are all ministers of Linghu.”

After Lu Yan reminded him, Li Yi remembered that he had appointed Linghu Tao as the governor of four towns just to make him resign and leave.

In this way, if Linghu Tao could be persuaded to lead troops to suppress the rebellion, there would be no need for other vassal states to send troops.

While thinking, Li Yi took the initiative to say: “Pass the order to appoint Linghu Tao as the envoy to the east of Henan. Before the Lantern Festival, we must suppress the Tianping Rebellion!”

“I accept your order…” Lu Yan responded without hesitation, and Li Yi also waved his hand:
“If there is nothing important, then leave.”

“I will take my leave. May you live for tens of millions of years…”

Lu Yan bowed respectfully and left the Xianning Palace. The imperial edict was also delivered to Huainan by an angel horse.

However, when the imperial edict was sent to Huainan, Wang Xianzhi received good news.

On the fourth day of the twelfth lunar month, Shang Rang, who was sent to Chaohu by Wang Xianzhi, sent someone to deliver a message to the camp, saying that the 32 gangs of pirates in Chaohu accepted the surrender and recruited 5,000 pirate soldiers.

When Wang Xianzhi received the news, he immediately led his troops north, and the two sides met in the southern suburbs of Chao County on the east side of Chaohu Lake.

“Screw rustle…”

Amid the creaking of armor plates, Wang Xianzhi led nine hundred veteran Tianping soldiers and walked slowly up the low hill.

As the armor plates stopped making sounds, Wang Xianzhi walked to the top of the hill, and what appeared before him were thousands of pirates wearing jackets and holding harpoons or daggers.

Although they were regarded as ferocious pirates by the surrounding people and government officials, most of them were thin and their jackets had many holes.

If it weren’t for Shang Rang’s introduction, Wang Xianzhi would have suspected that they were a group of refugees.

“All of them, these are the pirates who accepted the surrender. Except for those who chose to stay in Chaohu with their families, all the single men are here!”

Shang Rang explained to Wang Xianzhi, who nodded calmly and then began to think.

Although these pirates were not as good as the 900 garrison soldiers under his command, they were numerous and powerful after all.

As long as they are given enough food, there is no need to worry that they will not fight hard.

Thinking of this, Wang Xianzhi’s mind gradually became active.

Now he can recruit 5,000 soldiers just by relying on the name of Tianping Army. This is enough to show that the situation in Huainan has collapsed and people are fleeing everywhere.

In this situation, he just waved his flags and beat drums and suddenly became a figure with nearly 6,000 followers, more powerful than those soldiers in the Tianping Army.

If he could pacify the refugees along the way, his power would probably be no less than that of Wang Shouwen in the past.

Thinking of this, Wang Xianzhi’s eyes flickered, and Shang Rang took the opportunity to bow and said:
“The brothers from Chaohu said that the Huainan and Henan provinces are in great chaos.”

“In the northern Xusi and Suhao areas, there are also deserters such as Silver Knife, Door Carving, and Horse-Holding.”

“If we can go north to the Xu-Si area and recruit those thousands of deserters with silver swords and door carvings, then even the imperial court will need to recruit us!”

Shang Rang’s words made Wang Xianzhi even more excited. Seeing Wang Xianzhi’s hesitation, Shang Rang immediately raised his voice and bowed to Wang Xianzhi: “Please make the decision, Marshal!”

“Please make the decision, Marshal… Please make the decision, Marshal…”

When Shang Rang finished speaking, thousands of pirates under the low hill immediately echoed him.

The sound like a tsunami broke into Wang Xianzhi’s body, causing him to shiver all over and his face to turn an unnatural red.

Upon seeing this, Shang Junchang immediately looked at the Tianping Army soldiers, and then they all bowed and said, “General, make the decision!”

“Yes, General Jie!”

“General Ji, the brothers will listen to you!”

Countless Tianping Army soldiers bowed to Wang Xianzhi, and Wang Xianzhi felt elated by being called “General” one after another.

A moment ago he was just a small general, but now he was surrounded by his tribesmen and became a military commander.

If he could recruit more soldiers, perhaps he could really become the governor of the Tianping Army.

Thinking of this, Wang Xianzhi’s heart was burning with anxiety, and he immediately raised his left arm. Seeing this, the surrounding garrison soldiers and pirates all shut up.

The surroundings suddenly became quiet, and Wang Xianzhi immediately looked at Shang Junchang and Shang Rang.

“Today, I am recommended by all my brothers to serve as the governor of Puzhou and the deputy governor of Tianping Army!”

“Shang Junchang and Shang Rang have made great contributions. Now, Shang Junchang will be appointed as the commander of the left army and Shang Rang will be appointed as the commander of the right army. The rest will be made generals.”

“In addition, send someone to the court to ask for an official position, so that the court will know our intentions!”

Although he had already claimed to be the deputy governor of the Tianping Army, Wang Xianzhi still preferred to be recruited by the imperial court so that he could get an official position and enjoy wealth and honor.

“Jie Shuai Gao Yi!!”

Shang Junchang, Shang Rang, the Tianping garrison soldiers, and the pirate leaders all bowed, and Wang Xianzhi was also in high spirits:
“Pass on my military order. The army will head north to Haozhou tomorrow and recruit refugees along the way. I want to share the wealth and honor with all my brothers!!”

(End of this chapter)