Chapter 520: He Was Taken Down by Xing Honglang
The moment Yang He mentioned Wang Guozhong, Qiu Qianfan’s face twisted in disdain: “Bah, that rogue thug.”
Yang He: “Oh? What did he do to displease Prefect Qiu so much?”
Qiu Qianfan grumbled: “Ever since Wang Guozhong arrived in Puzhou, there’s been nothing but trouble. He surrendered in Yangcheng County, and after the court granted him the post of Puzhou Deputy Commander, he marched in from the east... burning, killing, and looting all the way, no different from common bandits. When common bandits arrive, this official can at least organize local militia to resist, but with a surrendered general like Wang Guozhong, I can’t even find a pretext to do so.”
He continued indignantly: “If Lord Yang has the time, just take a stroll through the eastern villages of our Puzhou, and you’ll understand. They were perfectly fine, not even affected when Old Zhang Fei passed through, but as soon as Wang Guozhong arrived, several villages were burned to ashes.”
Yang He: "!"
Well, Yang He was not hearing this for the first time. Many of the rebel factions he had pacified had done precisely this. The epithet “official bandits” wasn't earned for nothing.
Indeed, "official bandits" were sometimes even more terrifying than ordinary rebels after being pacified.
This was because the common people could arm themselves to resist rebels, but they could not arm themselves against “official bandits.” To do so would, officially, turn them into rebels themselves.
This matter was now a hot topic at court, with many impeaching Yang He over it. He vaguely sensed that his political career might very well be in jeopardy.
Yang He’s heart sank: *This aligns with the intelligence I received.*
Qiu Qianfan: “Not only did he cause trouble, but he also demanded my assistance, forcing me to conscript laborers to build siege equipment for him. If I didn't comply, I feared he would lead his troops into the city to pillage and burn. So, I had no choice but to organize a group of laborers to construct his siege weapons, which, of course, caused widespread resentment among them.”
Yang He: “Alas!”
Just then, a middle-aged man behind Yang He stepped forward and snorted angrily: “Father, I told you long ago, these rebels are truly not worth pacifying; they should all be completely wiped out.”
This middle-aged man was Yang He’s son, Yang Sichang, forty-three years old and no longer young. His current official post was Military Preparations Commissioner for Bazhou, and he should have been stationed in Bazhou, Hebei. However, recently hearing unsettling rumors about his father at court, he became worried and took a long leave, traveling thousands of miles to remain by Yang He’s side.
He did not entirely agree with his father's "pacification-first" strategy, belonging instead to the "suppression-first" faction, which believed all rebels should be eliminated!
Upon hearing about Wang Guozhong’s actions, he naturally couldn’t resist speaking his mind.
Yang He: “Suppress, suppress, suppress! All you know is suppression! Suppressing rebels requires troops; where are these troops to come from?”
Yang Sichang stiffened his neck: “We can feign peace with the Manchus, ease the fighting in Liaodong, and then withdraw the elite Liaodong troops to the central plains. We can then, with overwhelming force and speed, sweep away all the rebels, and only then redeploy the Liaodong forces. It won’t be too late to deal with the Manchus slowly then.”
Yang He rolled his eyes: “Easier said than done. Do you think the Manchus are fools, just born without brains? You say ‘peace’ and they agree, you want to fight slowly and they’ll obediently cooperate? Believe me, as soon as you finish negotiating peace and withdraw the Liaodong elite, the Manchus will immediately tear up the agreement and invade the passes.”
Yang Sichang: “This...”
Yang He continued: “Sweep away all rebels swiftly? Tell me, if the rebels hide in Huanglong Mountain, what quick solution do you have?”
Yang Sichang: “We’ll cast a ten-sided net, surround Huanglong Mountain, and then close it in!”
Yang He sneered: “Can you surround Liupan Mountain, the Qinling Mountains, the Qilian Mountains, and the Lüliang Mountains all at once?”
Yang Sichang: “...”
The nearby Qiu Qianfan couldn't help but click his tongue. He didn’t want to listen to the foolish argument between father and son, so he quickly changed the subject: “Gentlemen, please, let’s stop arguing! Let’s talk about Wang Guozhong again.”
Yang He said “Oh,” stopped arguing with his son, and returned to reality: “Right, Wang Guozhong made you conscript laborers and built siege weapons. What happened next?”
Qiu Qianfan: “Next, he went to attack Xing Honglang, and then... *pfft*, hahaha... he was taken out by Xing Honglang.”
This fellow, a dignified prefect, actually burst out laughing while discussing serious matters. His stance was undeniably clear; even a fool could tell he despised Wang Guozhong and was entirely on Xing Honglang’s side.
Yang He and his son exchanged glances.
After several seconds, Yang He slowly spoke: “Wang Guozhong has already been taken out?”
“Yes!” Qiu Qianfan affirmed: “Many of my city’s residents work at the Gudu Ferry, earning a living. They sent back news a few days ago that Wang Guozhong attacked the water fortress and was easily dealt with by Xing Honglang. Wang Guozhong’s remaining forces also completely surrendered to Xing Honglang.”
Yang Sichang didn’t know whether to laugh or cry: “Wang Guozhong’s troops are now considered imperial soldiers. They lost to rebels and then surrendered to rebels? Doesn’t that mean they’ve rebelled again?”
Yang He, however, said: “No matter. Xing Honglang already sent envoys to us seeking pacification. Now that Wang Guozhong’s forces have merged with Xing Honglang’s, it’s not a major issue. We just need to pacify Xing Honglang again, isn’t that right?”
Yang Sichang nodded: “That’s true.”
Yang He turned to Qiu Qianfan: “Since you have people working at the Gudu Ferry, have them send a message to Xing Honglang. Tell her that this official has arrived in Puzhou City, and if she truly wishes to surrender, she should come to Puzhou City to meet me. I will prepare a surrender banquet here for her.”
Qiu Qianfan bowed, withdrew, and quickly dispatched someone to the Gudu Ferry to deliver the message—
Li Daoxuan watched as the over two thousand surrendered troops of Wang Guozhong’s faction were escorted into the Labor Reform Camp, ensuring they didn’t cause any trouble or harm his little people along the way. Only then did he switch his perspective back to the Gudu Ferry.
He had just switched back when he saw the envoy sent by Qiu Qianfan speaking with Xing Honglang and her people, informing them that Yang He had arrived and was hosting a surrender banquet in the prefectural city.
Xing Honglang naturally agreed immediately. Surrender was surrender; anyway, this was part of the Heavenly Lord’s plan. Through surrender, Xing Honglang’s forces could also infiltrate the imperial court. This way, Gao Family Village would have three units—Wang Xiaohua (Bai Mao), Shi Jian, and Xing Honglang—infiltrated into the imperial court, expanding their sphere of influence and making future actions more convenient.
However, Gao Chuwu harbored a slight worry: “What if Yang He ambushes two hundred ax-wielding guards in his tent, like Hong Chengchou did, and massacres the surrendered?”
“Don’t fret!” the Puppet Heavenly Lord spoke. “I will go with you.”
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