← Back to 資治通鑑

卷255 唐紀七十一

Volume 255 Tang Records 71

Chapter 255 of 資治通鑑 · Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance
← Previous Chapter
Chapter 255
Next Chapter →
1
255
Zizhi Tongjian, Volume 255
2
[Tang Records 71] From the fifth month of the third year of Guangming (883) through the fifth month of the first year of Zhonghe (884)—a span of slightly more than two years.
3
使使 使 西 西使 西使 使
In the fifth month, Min Xu, commissioner of Hunan, was named acting military governor of Zhennan. Xu had long pressed for a full military governorship in Hunan, but the court refused, fearing other regional commissioners would demand the same. Earlier, during Wang Xianzhi's raids in Jiangxi, Zhong Chuan of Gao'an had rallied tribal fighters, built strongholds in the hills, and gathered a force of ten thousand. When Xianzhi took Fuzhou but could not keep it, Chuan moved in and held the city; the court at once named him prefect. By then he had also expelled Gao Maoqing, the Jiangxi observation commissioner, and seized Hongzhou. Since Xu was himself a former Jiangxi staff officer, the court revived the Zhennan command and put him in charge of it. If Chuan refused to step down, Xu was to use the appointment as a pretext to attack him. Xu saw that the court meant to pit the two rebels against each other and declined the assignment.
4
使使 使 滿 西 西
Gao Pian of Huainan was made grand counselor as well, but stripped of his lucrative salt monopoly. Deprived of both command and the salt revenues, Pian flew into a rage and had his aide Gu Yun draft a defiant memorial. It began: "Your Majesty chose not to use me; I have not failed Your Majesty." He went on: "Villains still hold sway, and Your Majesty remains blind—unmoved by the burning of the ancestral shrines, unmoved by the desecration of the imperial tombs." He wrote: "Wang Duo commands a beaten army; Cui Anqian in Shu is corrupt—what can two bookish officials do against hardened troops?" He added: "Every commander you have appointed now, from the top down, could be taken without a fight—or so I judge." He pleaded: "Do not leave posterity a minister nursing a grievance, or history the shame of a loyal man turned away at the door. I fear only that rebels will rise in the east and the Han will rise again—the calamity of Zhidao is not a thing of the distant past alone!" He concluded: "Talent languishes in obscurity while flatterers pack the court—you are being made the last emperor of a dying dynasty. What are these men plotting?" The emperor had Zheng Tian draft a sharp rebuke. It read in part: "You held the salt revenues in your grasp and supreme command over the armies—even the Shence garrisons about the capital answered to you. Your power was absolute. You were made Minister of Education and Grand Marshal besides. If that is not being used, what would you call it?" The edict went on: "I entrusted you with command for years, yet you failed to destroy the rebel leader. After Huang Chao escaped at Tianchang and crossed the Huai, you never sent a man in pursuit while he laid waste to the capital—for three full years. Your army at Yangzhou never left your own territory. Loyal officials grew bitter; soldiers mocked you. That is why we promoted others and stripped you of power." It added: "We had leaned on you for so long—now you rail at us with nowhere left to turn. We look toward the southeast and can only grieve." The edict reminded him: "Xie Xuan routed Fu Jian at the Fei River; Pei Du crushed Wu Yuanji in Huaixi—civil officials are not always weaker than generals." It demanded: "The shrines burned, the tombs violated, the regalia shattered—whose fault is that?" On his charge that "villains still hold sway," the edict asked: "Who would admit to that? As for saying Your Majesty is still deluded—I will not hear it!" It taunted him: "You could not even seize Huang Chao at Tianchang—how can you claim every general could be taken without a fight?" On his warning of a Han restoration: "Who do you imagine would lead it? To compare me to Liu Xuan and Emperor Ziying—is slander beyond measure!" The edict concluded: "The dynasty still stands, the realm's order endures, the spirits are not abandoned, and government goes on. Ruler and subject still have their roles—you must not forget yours. Young though I am, I will not be insulted with impunity!" With his loyalty forfeit, Pian stopped sending tribute to the court altogether.
5
使
Cao Cunshi, acting governor of Tianping, was confirmed as military governor.
6
退
Huang Chao attacked Xingping, and the government forces there fell back to Fengtian.
7
使
Zhuge Shuang of Heyang was made associate chief minister as well.
8
使
In the sixth month, Zhang Jun, acting governor of Jingyuan, was confirmed as military governor.
9
使
Duan Yanmo, governor of Jingnan, feuded with the army supervisor Zhu Jingmei, who raised three thousand picked troops as the Loyal and Brave Army and commanded them personally. Yanmo plotted to kill Jingmei; On jihai, Jingmei struck first, killed Yanmo, and installed Vice Prefect Li Sui as acting governor.
10
In Shu, Luo Hunqing, Gou Huseng, and Luo Fuzi each raised thousands to support Qian Neng. Yang Xingqian's forces fought them repeatedly without success and asked for reinforcements. With the garrison spent, Chen Jingxuan scraped together every clerk and gate guard he could find and sent them out. That month the government forces were routed in a major battle at Qianxi. Fearing punishment for their failures, Xingqian's men seized villagers as captives and sent them to the capital by the dozens or hundreds each day. Jingxuan asked no questions and had them all executed. The condemned included the elderly, the weak, and women. When spectators asked, they all said: "We were farming and tending hemp when soldiers burst into our village, dragged us away, and we still do not know what crime we committed!"
11
西使
In the seventh month of autumn, on jisi, Zhong Chuan was made Jiangxi observation commissioner at Gao Pian's urging. Once Chuan left Fuzhou, Wei Quanfeng of Nancheng took it back and sent his brother Zichang to seize Xinzhou as well.
12
Shang Rang attacked Yijun stockade, but a foot of snow fell and killed twenty or thirty percent of his men from exposure.
13
In Shu, Han Qiu raised several thousand men to support Qian Neng.
14
使使 使
Zhou Bao of Zhenhai reported that Gao Pian had unilaterally named the rebel Sun Duan Xuanshe observation commissioner. The court ordered Bao and Pei Qianyu of Xuanshe to raise troops against Sun Duan.
15
使使
Nanzhao asked that the princess be sent promptly; the court replied that wedding protocol was still being negotiated. Dongfang Kui, acting governor of Baoda, was confirmed as military governor and named eastern campaign commander for the capital region.
16
使
In the intercalary month, Han Jian of Weibo was also made grand counselor.
17
使使
In the eighth month, Zheng Shaoye, vice minister of war and fiscal director, was made associate chief minister and military governor of Jingnan as well.
18
使西西使
Liu Hanhong of eastern Zhejiang sent his brother Hanyou and cavalry commander Xin Yue with twenty thousand men to camp at Xiling, aiming to seize western Zhejiang. Hangzhou's Dong Chang sent Qian Liu to oppose them. On renzi, Liu crossed the river under cover of fog, stormed their camp, and nearly annihilated them. Hanyou and Xin Yue both escaped.
19
使
Han Jian of Weibo likewise sought to expand his domain. He led thirty thousand men against Heyang and defeated Zhuge Shuang at Xiuwu. Shuang abandoned the city and fled. Jian garrisoned it, raided Xing and Ming prefectures, and withdrew.
20
Li Guochang led his clan from Dada to settle in Daizhou.
21
使 使使
Zhu Wen, Huang Chao's defense commissioner at Tongzhou, repeatedly asked for reinforcements to hold Hezhong, but Meng Kai, who controlled the right wing, blocked every request. Seeing Huang Chao's cause collapse, Wen knew the rebellion was doomed. His officers Hu Zhen and Xie Tong urged him to defect to the Tang. In the ninth month, on bingxu, Wen killed his supervisor Yan Shi and surrendered Tongzhou to Wang Chongrong. Wen treated Chongrong as a kinsman by marriage. Wang Duo appointed him military governor of Tonghua and sent Xie Tong to the emperor's camp with a submission. Xie Tong was from Fuzhou. Li Xiang, seeing how well Chongrong treated Wen, also wanted to defect, but the army supervisor reported him. Huang Chao executed Li Xiang and appointed his brother Sixie prefect of Hua.
22
使使西使
Troops at Guizhou mutinied and drove out Zhang Congxun. The court named former frontier commissioner Cui Zhuo military governor of Lingnan West.
23
使
Wang Jingwu, a senior Pinglu general, expelled An Shiru and declared himself acting governor.
24
使 使
The court had earlier made Pang Xun's surrendered general Tang Qun prefect of Lan, but suspected his secret ties to the Shatuo and transferred him to Huai. Zheng Congdang sent envoys to deliver his new commission. In the tenth month of winter, on the new moon of gengzi, Qun killed the envoy, rebelled, and threw in his lot with the Shatuo. On renyin, Congdang sent cavalry commander Zhang Yanqiu against him.
25
Rebel leaders Han Xiusheng and Qu Xingcong rose up and blocked traffic on the Three Gorges route. On guichou, Chen Jingxuan sent adjutant Zhuang Mengdie with two thousand men, followed by Hu Honglue with a thousand more.
26
使 使
Han Jian attacked Yanzhou again. Governor Cao Cunshi met him in battle, was defeated, and killed. Zhu Xuan, a Tianping officer from Xiayi, rallied the survivors, shut the gates, and held out against Jian's assault. The court named Zhu Xuan acting governor of Tianping. Zhu Wen was made right Golden Crow general and deputy campaign commander for Hezhong, and given the name Quanzhong ('wholly loyal').
27
使
Though Li Keyong kept petitioning to submit, he held Xin and Dai and repeatedly raided Bing and Fen while fighting for the Loufan salt route. Wang Chucun of Yiwu was linked to Keyong by marriage. The court told Chucun to warn him: "If you mean to submit in good faith, return to Shuozhou and await orders. If you continue your raids, Hedong and Datong will join forces against you."
28
使使 西
Wang Jingwu of Pinglu was confirmed as acting governor. Every circuit had sent troops to Guanzhong against Huang Chao except Pinglu. Wang Duo sent remonstrance official Zhang Jun to bring them in. Jingwu had already accepted rank from Huang Chao and refused to come out to greet him. Zhang Jun rebuked him: "You are the emperor's vassal, yet you insult his envoy. If you cannot serve your lord, how can you command your men?" Jingwu was taken aback and apologized. When the edict was read, the troops did not respond. Zhang Jun addressed them calmly: "First know loyalty from rebellion; then know gain from loss. Huang Chao was only a salt smuggler yesterday—what do you gain by abandoning generations of emperors to serve him! Every loyal army in the empire is gathering at the capital, yet Ziqing alone stays away. When the rebels are crushed and the emperor restored, how will you face the world! March west now to win glory and riches, or you will regret it forever!" The troops' faces changed; they admitted their error and told Jingwu: "The remonstrance official is right." Jingwu at once mobilized and marched west with Zhang Jun.
29
西
Liu Hanhong sent Wang Zhen of Denggao with seventy thousand men to camp at Xiling again. Qian Liu crossed the river by night, routed them, killed or captured tens of thousands, and seized more than two hundred forged commissions Liu had issued. Wang Zhen fled to Zhuji.
30
使
Huang Chao was still strong, and Wang Chongrong was at a loss. He told campaign director Yang Fuguang: "If I join the rebels I betray the empire; if I fight them I am too weak. What can I do?" Fuguang replied: "Li Keyong of Yanmen is a fierce fighter with a powerful army. Our families were allies in an earlier generation, and he too wishes to serve the throne. The reason he has not appeared is a feud with Hedong. If His Majesty's orders were conveyed to Duke Zheng to summon him, he would surely come—and once he came, the rebels would be easily defeated." The eastern pacification commissioner Wang Hui agreed. Wang Duo was then at Hezhong; he issued an informal imperial summons for Li Keyong and urged Zheng Congdian to cooperate. In the eleventh month Li Keyong marched seventeen thousand Shatuo soldiers along the Lan–Shi road toward Hezhong. He would not enter Taiyuan's jurisdiction; with only a few hundred riders he passed beneath Jinyang to bid Zheng Congdian farewell, and Congdian sent him off with fine horses and gifts.
31
使
Li Xiang's former troops expelled Huang Siye and set up Huayin garrison commissioner Wang Yu as their leader, surrendering Hua prefecture to Wang Chongrong; Wang Duo appointed Yu prefect by imperial commission.
32
使 使 使 使 西 使 穿 使使 穿 使 使 穿使 使使 西
Qian Neng's followers grew bolder still, pushing into the borders of Shu prefecture. Because Yang Xingqian and others had failed for so long, Chen Jingxuan named his adjutant Gao Renhou overall pacification commander and sent five hundred men to relieve them. The day before departure, a man selling noodles passed in and out of camp repeatedly from dawn until noon. Patrols grew suspicious, seized him, and under questioning he proved to be Qian Neng's spy. Renhou had his bonds removed and questioned him kindly. The man answered, 'I am a common villager. Qian Neng threw my parents, wife, and children into prison and told me, "Go spy on the army and come back. If your report is true, your family goes free; Otherwise the whole household dies!' I never wanted to do this.' Renhou said, 'Now that I know your story, how could I bring myself to kill you! I will let you go home to your family. Only tell Qian Neng this: "Minister Gao marches tomorrow with just five hundred men—hardly a large host." But because I have spared your household, secretly tell everyone in the camps: "The Vice Minister knows you are honest folk forced into rebellion against your will. He means to save and restore you. When he arrives, throw down your arms and surrender. He will mark your backs with the word 'Surrendered' and send you home to your old livelihoods. Only five men will die: Qian Neng, Luo Hunqing, Gou Huseng, Luo Fuzi, and Han Qiu. No harm will come to ordinary people.'" The spy said, 'That is everything the people long for. Once they know the Minister pardons them, who will not leap to obey! Word will spread one to a hundred, a hundred to a thousand—like rivers in flood and seas in storm, nothing can hold it back. When the Minister arrives, the people will flock to him as children to a mother. Qian Neng, left alone, will be seized in an instant!' Renhou sent him on his way. The next day Renhou marched out and reached Shuangliu, where interception commissioner Bai Wenxian came out to greet him. Renhou inspected the trenches and palisades and burst out in anger: 'Qian Neng's men are farmers! The whole prefecture exhausted its army for more than a year and could not catch him—and with fortifications this elaborate, no wonder you could sleep well, eat heartily, and fatten the rebels to win glory!' He ordered Bai Wenxian dragged out for execution. The supervising commissioner pleaded hard for him, and after a long dispute Bai was spared. He had every trench and palisade torn down, left only five hundred men to hold the post, and took the rest with him. He also called up troops from the other camps, who came flocking in. When Qian Neng heard Renhou was approaching, he sent Luo Hunqing to build five camps west of Shuangliu and posted a thousand men in ambush at Yeqiao Ravine to intercept the government forces. Renhou learned of the ambush, surrounded the camps, forbade killing, and sent unarmed men among the rebels to repeat the message he had given the spy. The rebels rejoiced, shouting and cheering; they threw off armor and weapons and begged to surrender, kowtowing in waves like an avalanche. Renhou reassured them all, marked their backs, and sent them to tell the holdouts in other camps. Those camps too poured out to surrender. Luo Hunqing scrambled over the palisade and fled, but his own men seized him and brought him to Renhou, who said, 'This fool is not worth addressing.' They put him in chains and sent him to headquarters. He burned all five camps along with their arms and armor, keeping only the banners. Four thousand men surrendered in all. The next morning Renhou told the prisoners, 'I meant to send you home at once, but the people along the road do not yet know my intentions and may hesitate. Go ahead of me. Pass Chuankou and Xinjin, show the marks on your backs, and spread the word. By the time you reach Yangong you may go home.' He took Luo Hunqing's banners, hung them upside down, and formed the men into squads of fifty, each with a flag. They ran ahead shouting, 'Luo Hunqing is taken alive and sent to headquarters! The main army is coming! Everyone still in the camps—surrender now as we did, and you will be free and safe at once!' At Chuankou, where Gou Huseng had eleven camps, the inhabitants rushed out to surrender. Gou Huseng panicked and tried to stop them with his sword. The crowd pelted him with stones, seized him, and delivered him to Renhou. More than five thousand of his men surrendered. The following morning they burned the camps and sent the surrenderers ahead with flags, just as at Shuangliu. At Xinjin all thirteen of Han Qiu's camps submitted without a fight. Han Qiu threw himself into a deep trench; his men pulled him out dead and presented his head. The troops wanted to burn the camps, but Renhou stopped them: 'The surrenderers have not eaten.' He had supplies brought out first, then set the camps ablaze. The new prisoners rushed to cook; they shared food with the earlier surrenderers who had come ahead, laughing, talking, singing, and playing music through the night. The next day Renhou let the men from Shuangliu and Chuankou go home first and sent the Xinjin prisoners ahead with flags, telling them they could disperse once they entered Qiong prefecture. Luo Fuzi held nine camps at Yangong. The night before, his men had seen the fires at Xinjin and could not sleep. When the Xinjin prisoners arrived, Luo Fuzi abandoned his camps and fled to Qian Neng. His entire force surrendered. The next day Luo Fuzi reached Qian Neng's camp and urged a last stand with every man they had. Before they could decide, dusk fell and the Yangong surrenderers arrived. Qian Neng and Luo Fuzi rode through the camps calling for battle, but no one answered. Renhou pressed forward through the night. At dawn the camps knew the main force was near. Men poured out shouting, seized Qian Neng, who in desperation ran for a well but was caught alive; They seized Luo Fuzi as well, but he slit his own throat. Carrying Luo Fuzi's head and Qian Neng bound, they rushed to meet the army. When they saw Renhou they clung to his horse's bridle, weeping and kowtowing, and cried, 'We have suffered wrongs for so long with nowhere to turn. From the day the spy came back we have waited, necks stretched, each hour feeling like a year. To meet the Minister is like rising from the grave into daylight—we are dead men brought back to life!' Their cheers would not cease. Renhou sent his generals to accept surrenders from rebel camps elsewhere. In only six days on campaign Renhou had crushed all five rebel leaders. Wherever he took a county or market town, he appointed a pacification officer to restore the population registers. Chen Jingxuan then exposed Han Qiu's and Luo Fuzi's heads in the marketplace, nailed Qian Neng, Luo Hunqing, and Gou Huseng to the west wall of the city, and after seven days dismembered their bodies. Zhang Rong, Qian Neng's chief clerk, was a native of Anren who had repeatedly failed the civil examinations and joined Qian Neng as his strategist, drafting his proclamations; When Qian Neng fell, Zhang Rong sent Renhou a poem begging for his life. Renhou forwarded him to headquarters, where he was impaled at the horse market. "No one else was put to death."
33
使
In the twelfth month Gao Renhou was appointed defender of Meizhou.
34
使 使 使
Chen Jingxuan posted a proclamation in Qiong prefecture granting amnesty to all relatives and associates of Qian Neng and his followers. Before long the prefect of Qiong, Shen Bu, arrested thirty-five members of Qian Neng's uncle Xing Quan's household and imprisoned them, asking that the law be applied. Chen Jingxuan consulted his clerk Tang Xi, who replied, 'Your Excellency has already promised not to prosecute them, yet the prefect arrests them again. There must be an ulterior motive. If you execute them now, you will not only break your word—I fear Qian Neng's followers will rise up all over again!' Chen Jingxuan agreed. He sent his adjutant Niu Yun to the prefectural gate, gathered the crowd, broke their chains, freed them, and asked why they had been seized. It turned out Xing Quan owned rich farmland that the prefect had tried to buy; Xing Quan refused, and the prefect bore a grudge. Chen Jingxuan summoned the prefect to answer for his crime, but the man died of fright before he could be tried. Later Xing Quan learned his family had been saved through Tang Xi and secretly sent him a hundred taels of gold leaf as a gift. Tang Xi flew into a rage: 'That was the Grand Preceptor's mercy, not mine. Are you trying to buy me with this bribe?' He returned the gold and had the messenger driven off. Hedong military governor Zheng Congdian reported the capture of Lan prefecture, the seizure of Tang Qun, and his execution.
35
使
Li Keyong, acting commissioner of Xin, Dai, and related prefectures, was appointed military governor of Yanmen.
36
使 使 使
Earlier the court had named Zheng Shaoye military governor of Jingnan, but Duan Yanmo already held the region. Shaoye was afraid of him and did not reach his post for more than half a year. When the emperor fled to Shu, Shaoye was recalled and Duan Yanmo was made military governor. Duan Yanmo was killed by Zhu Jingmei, and Zheng Shaoye was appointed military governor again. Shaoye feared Zhu Jingmei and hung back. The army had been without a commander for a long time, and now Zhu Jingmei put his adjutant Chen Ru in charge of the prefecture. Chen Ru was a native of Jiangling.
37
使使
Fengtian military governor Qi Kejian and Hezhong military governor Wang Chongrong were both made honorary chancellors.
38
使 使
Li Keyong marched forty thousand men to Hezhong and sent his cousin Li Kexiu ahead with five hundred troops to cross the Yellow River and probe the rebel lines. Earlier Keyong's brother Li Kerang had been killed by monks of Nanshan Temple, and Kerang's servant Hun Jintong had joined Huang Chao. After Gao Xun's defeat every government army feared the rebels and dared not advance. When Li Keyong's forces arrived, the rebels were afraid and said, 'The Crow Army is here. We must avoid their edge.' Li Keyong's soldiers all wore black, which is why they were called the Crow Army. Huang Chao seized more than a dozen monks from Nanshan Temple, sent envoys bearing imperial edicts and rich gifts, and dispatched Hun Jintong to Li Keyong to sue for peace. Li Keyong executed the monks, mourned his brother, took the bribes and divided them among his officers, burned Huang Chao's edicts, sent the envoys back, crossed the river from Xiayang, and encamped at Tong prefecture.
39
使使 使
After Meng Fangli killed Cheng Lin and withdrew to Xingzhou, the people of Lu asked that army supervisor Wu Quanxun be made acting commissioner. That year Wang Duo appointed Meng Fangli acting commissioner of Xingzhou by informal edict, but Fangli refused and imprisoned Wu Quanxun; He wrote to Wang Duo asking for a scholar-official to govern Luzhou, and Duo put Zheng Changtu in charge of Zhaoyi affairs. The court then named Right Vice Director and transport commissioner Wang Hui chancellor and military governor of Zhaoyi. Wang Hui saw the emperor in exile and the central plains in chaos; Meng Fangli held Xing, Ming, and Ci in eastern Shandong and seemed beyond the court's reach. Wang declined the post and asked that affairs remain with Zheng Changtu for the time being. An edict instead made Wang Hui custodian of the Daming Palace and commissioner for pacifying the capital region and restoring the imperial tombs. Zheng Changtu reached Luzhou but left within three months. Meng Fangli then moved the Zhaoyi headquarters to Xingzhou, styled himself acting commissioner, and recommended his general Li Yinrui as prefect of Luzhou.
40
使使
Qin Yan, prefect of Hezhou, sent his son with several thousand troops to attack Xuanzhou, expelled observation commissioner Dou Yu, and took his place.
41
使使 使 西使 使
In spring, the first month, Li Keyong's general Li Cunzhen defeated Huang Kui at Shayuan. On the day jisi Li Keyong advanced and encamped at Shayuan. Huang Kui was Huang Chao's younger brother. Wang Duo appointed Li Keyong supreme commander of the northeastern campaign army, Yang Fuguang eastern army supervisor, and Chen Jingsi northern army supervisor by imperial commission. On the day yihai, an edict appointed Wang Duo, Grand Councilor and supreme commander of the multi-circuit campaign army, military commissioner of Yicheng and ordered him to take up the post. Tian Lingzi wanted to shift power back to the eunuch directorates. He claimed Wang Duo had achieved nothing after long campaigning against Huang Chao, and that the court had finally adopted Yang Fuguang's plan of summoning the Shatuo, who then broke the rebels. Duo's command was therefore stripped to gratify Fuguang. Cui Anqian, the deputy supreme commander, was appointed defender of the eastern capital, and Ximen Sigong, the chief army overseer, was made commander of the Right Shence Army and commissioned as envoy for circuit land taxes and for pressing all circuits to march their troops forward. Tian Lingzi counted as his own achievements having urged the flight to Shu, securing the dynastic treasures and portraits of former emperors, and spending his private fortune to reward the troops. He had the chief ministers and regional governors petition jointly for further rewards, and the emperor appointed him military commissioner over the ten armies and twelve guard divisions.
42
使使
Wang Jingchong, military commissioner of Chengde and posthumously titled Loyal and Solemn King of Changshan, died. The army installed his ten-year-old son Rong, the deputy commissioner, as acting circuit administrator.
43
使
Zhu Xuan, acting administrator of Tianping, was appointed full military commissioner.
44
In the second month, on the day renzi, Li Keyong advanced to Qiangan Ravine and united with the forces of Hezhong, Yiding, and Zhongwu. Shang Rang and his commanders massed 150,000 men at Liangtian Slope. The next day they fought a great battle from noon until late afternoon. The rebel host was routed; tens of thousands were killed or captured, and the dead lay piled for thirty li. Huang Chao's generals Wang Fan and Huang Kui stormed Hua Prefecture and seized it; the defender Wang Yu fled.
45
Earlier, Li Hanzhi, governor of Guang Prefecture, had been driven out by Qin Zongquan. He abandoned his post, fled to Xiangcheng, and led his surviving troops to Zhuge Shuang, who appointed him governor of Huaizhou. Han Jian besieged Yan Prefecture for six months without capturing it. Zhuge Shuang raided and recaptured Heyang. Zhu Xuan sued for peace, and Han Jian broke off the siege of Yan to march against Heyang instead. Shuang sent Li Hanzhi to give battle at Wuzhi. The Wei army was routed and retreated. The great general Yue Xingda, governor of Duan Prefecture, returned ahead of the main force, seized Weizhou, and was proclaimed acting military commissioner by the troops. Han Jian was murdered by his own men. On the day jiwei, Yue Xingda was appointed acting commissioner of Weibo.
46
On the day jiazi, Li Keyong invested Hua Prefecture. Huang Siye and Huang Kui shut themselves within the walls and held firm. Li Keyong detached cavalry to camp north of the Wei River.
47
Wang Rong was appointed acting military commissioner of Chengde.
48
Zheng Shaoye was appointed attendant to the crown prince with duties in the branch secretariat, and Chen Ru was made acting administrator of Jingnan.
49
使退使 使西
Zhuang Mengdie, the gorge-route pacification commander, was defeated by Han Xiuyue and Qu Xingcong and fell back to Zhong Prefecture. The relief commissioner Hu Honglue also fought without success. Tribute from the Jianghuai region was cut off by the rebels, and the court officials went unpaid. The routes through Yun'an and Yujing were blocked, and salt grew scarce among the populace. Chen Jingxuan recommended Gao Renhou, defense commissioner of Meizhou, as deputy commander of the western Sichuan expedition, to lead three thousand men against the rebels.
50
使
Li Changyan, military commissioner of Fengxiang, was appointed an associate chief councilor.
51
Huang Chao's forces had suffered repeated defeats and again ran out of provisions. He secretly planned retreat and dispatched thirty thousand men to hold the Lantian road. In the third month, on the day renshen, he sent Shang Rang with an army to relieve Hua Prefecture. Li Keyong and Wang Chongrong met the relief force at Lingkou and shattered it. Li Keyong pressed toward Wei Bridge with his cavalry on the north bank. Each night he sent his generals Xue Zhiqin and Kang Junli into Chang'an to burn supplies, kill stragglers, and withdraw before dawn. Panic spread through the rebel ranks.
52
使 使 使 使 使
Yang Xingmin of Hefei, a guard officer under the Huainan command, was appointed governor of Luzhou. Yang Xingmin had been a guard officer in Luzhou, bold and repeatedly distinguished in battle. The chief commander grew jealous and persuaded Governor Lang Yourfu to post him on distant border duty. When Yang Xingmin came to bid farewell, the chief commander flattered him and asked what he might need. Yang Xingmin replied, "Nothing but your head!" He sprang up and slew him on the spot, took command of every camp, and styled himself overall commander of the eight garrisons. Lang Yourfu could not restrain him and therefore recommended him to Gao Pian, asking to resign in Yang's favor. Gao Pian named him his guard officer and governor of Luzhou, and the court confirmed the appointment. Hearing that Wang Jin, a man of Luzhou, had a fine reputation, Yang summoned him for service, but Wang stubbornly feigned illness. Yang asked Jin's household instead. They said, "His son Qian is studious and discreet and can be trusted with affairs; his nephew Ren has spirit and can serve as a commander." Yang Xingmin took Qian into his staff and appointed Ren and Ji Zhang of Dingyuan as cavalry commanders. Lü Yongzhi had first gained access to Gao Pian through Yu Gongchu, commander of the Left Valiant Eagle Army. Yongzhi grew ever more arrogant, and blame fell on Yu Gongchu, who repeatedly warned him to restrain himself lest they both be ruined. Yongzhi bore a grudge. Yao Guili, commander of the Right Valiant Eagle Army, was blunt and fearless. He detested Yongzhi's conduct, often denounced him to his face, and longed to kill him with his own blade. On the night of guiwei, Yongzhi and his clique were at a brothel when Guili secretly set fire to the building. Several men who resembled Yongzhi were killed in the blaze, but Yongzhi swapped clothes and escaped. At dawn the authorities traced the arson and seized the culprits, all soldiers of the Valiant Eagle armies. Yongzhi then began night and day to slander the two commanders to Gao Pian. Soon afterward Gao Pian ordered the two commanders to lead three thousand Valiant Eagle troops on a raid into Shen County. Yongzhi secretly told Yang Xingmin that Gongchu and Guili were plotting to attack Luzhou. Yang Xingmin sent troops in ambush. The two commanders were taken unawares and their entire force was wiped out. Yang reported to Gao Pian that they had plotted rebellion. "Gao Pian, unaware of Yongzhi's scheme, richly rewarded Yang Xingmin."
53
使使
On the day jichou, Zhu Quanzhong, deputy campaign commander in Hezhong, was appointed military commissioner of Xuanwu, with orders to take up the post once Chang'an was recovered.
54
On the day guisi, Li Keyong and his allies captured Hua Prefecture, and Huang Kui abandoned the city and fled. Liu Hanhong stationed detachments at the posts of Huangling, Yanxia, and Zhennü. Qian Liu led his Eight-Districts army from Fuchun, routed the force at Huangling, and captured Shi Bian at Yanxia and Yang Yuanzong at Zhennü. Liu Hanhong concentrated elite troops at Zhuji, but Qian Liu defeated them there as well and Hanhong fled.
55
使 稿
Zhuang Mengdie met Han Xiuyue and Qu Xingcong in battle and was defeated again. The routed troops stampeded homeward and could not be halted, no matter who tried to calm them. Gao Renhou met them on the road, shouted them down, and they halted at once. Gao Renhou executed one army overseer, reorganized the ranks, and restored discipline. He questioned local elders about mountain paths and rebel positions and exclaimed with satisfaction, "The rebels keep their best troops afloat while the old and weak guard the camps, and all their supplies are stored ashore. They are fighting hard while neglecting defense. They are bound to fall!" He then paraded his troops along the river as though preparing to ford it. The rebels stood guard day and night and sent parties to provoke a fight, but Renhou refused battle. By night he secretly led a thousand picked men with arms and bundles of straw along a hidden path to storm and burn their camp. The rebels saw the flames and sent detachments to save the camp, but too late; their stores were destroyed and morale collapsed. Renhou hired divers to bore holes in the rebel boats until they sank one after another. Stranded rebels panicked and could not aid one another. His men blocked the crossings, offered terms, and the rebel host surrendered. When Han Xiuyue and Qu Xingcong saw the rout, they flailed their swords wildly, trying to stem the flight. The men only grew more furious, seized both leaders, and hauled them before Gao Renhou, who demanded, "Why have you rebelled?" Xiuchang answered, "Since Emperor Da Zhong died, justice has vanished from the realm. Laws and bonds alike have snapped. Rebels today are hardly limited to Xiuyue and me! Success or failure is not the point. We are meat on the block, to be stewed or minced as you please! Gao Renhou's face darkened, but he gave them a good meal before putting them in fetters. In summer, the fourth month, on the day gengzi, they were sent to the emperor's camp and executed."
56
Li Keyong advanced with Pang Cong of Zhongwu and Bai Zhilian of Hezhong and fought Huang Chao's army at Weinan three times in a single day, winning each engagement. The armies of Yicheng, Yiwu, and other circuits pressed behind them, and the rebel host broke and fled. On the day jiachen, Li Keyong and his allies entered the capital through Guangtai Gate. Huang Chao fought fiercely, failed to hold, set the palaces ablaze, and fled. Vast numbers of rebels were killed or surrendered, but the imperial armies looted as savagely as the rebels had, and little of Chang'an's buildings or civilian property survived. Huang Chao withdrew from Lantian into the Shang Mountains, strewing treasures along the road. The soldiers stopped to seize the booty instead of pressing the pursuit, and the rebels escaped.
57
使 使 使 使
Yang Fuguang sent envoys with news of victory, and the officials offered congratulations. An edict left twenty thousand men from Zhongwu and allied armies, under the Daming Palace defender Wang Hui and the capital disposition commissioner Tian Congyi, to garrison Chang'an. In the fifth month, Zhu Mei, Li Keyong, and Dongfang Kui were made associate chief councilors. Shaan Prefecture was elevated to a full military commission, with Wang Chongying as its commissioner. Yan Prefecture was made the Baosai circuit, and Li Xiaogong, deputy commander of the Baoda expedition and governor of Yan, was appointed its military commissioner. Li Keyong was only twenty-eight, the youngest of the major commanders, yet he had broken Huang Chao and recovered Chang'an. His merit ranked first and his army was the strongest; the other generals all feared him. “One of Li Keyong's eyes was dim, and men called him the One-Eyed Dragon.”
58
An edict ordered the execution of Cui Yan wherever found. Born to a prominent family and himself a high official, he had served Huang Chao openly for three years without fleeing or concealing his allegiance.
59
使使 使 祿
Huang Chao sent his fierce general Meng Kai ahead with ten thousand men against Cai Prefecture. Military Commissioner Qin Zongquan met him in battle and was defeated. The rebels pressed the siege. Zongquan then submitted to Huang Chao and joined forces with him. Earlier, while Huang Chao still held Chang'an, Zhao Chou of Wancheng, governor of Chen Prefecture, told his officers, "If Chao does not die in the capital, he will march east, and Chen lies on his road. He has long been at feud with Zhongwu. We must prepare." Zhao Chou repaired the walls and moats, readied arms and armor, and stockpiled fodder and grain; Every household with food within sixty li was moved inside the walls. He recruited brave men widely and put his brothers Chang and Xu and his son Lu Lin in separate commands. After Meng Kai took Cai Prefecture, he shifted against Chen and encamped at Xiangcheng. Zhao Chou feigned weakness, then struck when the enemy was off guard. He nearly annihilated the force, took Meng Kai alive, and executed him. Huang Chao, shocked and enraged at Kai's death, marched his entire host to Yinshui. In the sixth month he and Qin Zongquan united to besiege Chen, digging five rings of trenches and assaulting from a hundred directions. The people of Chen were terrified. Zhao Chou rallied them: "Zhongwu has always been famed for valor, and Chenzhou troops are counted among the empire's best. My family has long lived on Chen's pay. I swear to live and die with this city. A man should seek life in the jaws of death. To die for the dynasty is better than to bow to rebels and live! Whoever disagrees will be beheaded! He repeatedly led crack troops out the gates to strike the besiegers. And drove them back each time. Huang Chao, furious, pitched camp north of the city, raised palaces and government halls, and settled in for a long siege. With no grain left in the countryside, the rebels seized people for food, threw the living into pestles and millstones, and ate flesh and bone together. They named the supply camps the Pounding-and-Grinding Stockades. They sent their soldiers to ravage the countryside throughout dozens of prefectures from Henan, Xu, Ru, Tang, Deng, Meng, Zheng, Bian, Cao, Pu, Xu, Yan, and beyond, until the region was utterly scourged."
60
使
Earlier, Liu Qian of Shangcai had served as a junior officer in Lingnan. Military Commissioner Wei Zhou was struck by his ability and married him to his elder brother's daughter. Qian raided outlaw bands with repeated success, and on the day xinchou he was appointed prefect of Feng Prefecture.
61
使
Yang Shili, military commissioner of Dongchuan, was made associate chief councilor.
62
使 使
Zhu Quanzhong, military commissioner of Xuanwu, marched several hundred of his men to take up his commission. In autumn, the seventh month, on the day dingmao, he reached Bian Prefecture. Bian and Song were gripped by famine after famine. Public and private resources were spent, the arrogant garrisons within and without were barely controllable, and a powerful foe pressed the borders with fighting every day. Morale was fraying, yet Zhu Quanzhong's fighting spirit only grew. Because Huang Chao was not yet subdued, an edict made Zhu Quanzhong grand punitive commissioner of the northeast.
63
輿
Nanzhao dispatched the bufie Yang Qigong to escort the princess. The court told Chen Jingxuan to reply in writing, pleading that "the emperor is still on campaign, the wedding equipage is not ready, and the princess will be sent only after we return to the capital." Yang Qigong refused to accept this and pressed on to Chengdu.
64
使
Li Keyong withdrew from Chang'an toward Yanmen. Soon an edict appointed him military commissioner of Hedong and summoned Zheng Congdian to the emperor's camp. He took the eastern road through Yuci to Yanmen to see his father. Shortly afterward he posted notices across Hedong reassuring soldiers and civilians: "Let go of old grievances and return to your homes and trades."
65
鹿 使使
Yang Fuguang, senior general of the Left Brave Guards, died at Hezhong. Yang Fuguang was open-handed and devoted to loyalty; he knew how to win over his troops. The army mourned him for days. Generals of the Eight Districts, including Lu Yanhong, each led their men away in separate bands. Tian Lingzi had long feared and resented him. On hearing of his death he was delighted and removed Yang Fuguang's elder brother, Privy Councilor Yang Fugong, demoting him to commissioner of the Feilong Bureau. Tian Lingzi held unchecked power and few dared oppose him. Yang Fugong alone argued with him repeatedly over policy, which earned Tian's hatred. Fugong feigned illness and retired to Lantian.
66
使
Wang Rong of Chengde, Yue Xingda of Weibo, and Zhu Xuan of Tianping were confirmed as full military commissioners of their circuits.
67
使 使 使
Zheng Tian, grand tutor, vice-director of the Gate Department, and associate chief councilor, kept to proper procedure even in the turmoil of exile. Tian Lingzi asked him to grant a court office to his aide Wu Yuan; Zheng Tian refused. Chen Jingxuan wanted precedence over the civil chancellors. Zheng Tian cited precedent: however exalted a military commissioner might be, he remained below the true chancellor—and held his ground. The two men had Li Changyan, military commissioner of Fengxiang, memorialize that "the troops are suspicious and uneasy; Zheng Tian must not be allowed to accompany the court beyond this point." Zheng Tian too submitted repeated resignations and was removed to Grand Mentor of the Heir Apparent. His son Ningji, vice-director of the Ministry of War, was appointed prefect of Pengzhou so he could tend his father. Pei Che, director of the Ministry of War acting as finance chief, was made Secretariat vice-director and associate chief councilor.
68
使使
In the eighth month, on the day jiachen, Li Keyong reached Jinyang. An edict appointed his father Li Guochang, former commissioner of Zhenwu, military commissioner of Daibei with his seat at Daizhou.
69
使使
Hunan was elevated to the Qinhua circuit, and Min Xu, the observation commissioner, was made its military governor.
70
In the ninth month Chen Jingxuan was also made director of the Secretariat and raised to Prince of Yingchuan.
71
使
Shi Pu, military commissioner of Ganhua, encamped at Yinshui; Shi Pu was made grand marshal of eastern armies.
72
使
Chen Ru, regent of Jingnan, was confirmed as military commissioner.
73
使 使使
Meng Fangli of Zhaoyi found Luzhou's terrain formidable and its people warlike, with commanders often overthrown. To weaken the prefecture he moved his headquarters to Xingzhou and relocated leading families and the wealthy east of the Taihang Mountains. The people of Luzhou were bitterly resentful. Army Supervisor Qi Shenhui, seeing popular unrest, had the Wuxiang post commissioner An Jushou smuggle a wax-sealed plea to Li Keyong asking for troops to restore the military headquarters at Luzhou. In winter, the tenth month, Li Keyong sent He Gongya and other generals to Luzhou, but Meng Fangli defeated them. He then sent Li Kexiu, who on the day xinhai took Luzhou and killed the prefect Li Yinrui. Thereafter Li Keyong raided east of the mountains every year. Half the population of the three prefectures was killed or captured, and the fields lay untilled.
74
An imperial daughter was made Princess Chang of Anhua and sent to marry the king of Nanzhao.
75
西
Liu Hanhong marched more than a hundred thousand men through Xiling Pass to strike Dong Chang. On the day wuwu, Qian Liu crossed the river to meet him and routed his army. Liu Hanhong disguised himself, seized a kitchen knife, and fled. On the day jiwei, Liu Hanhong regrouped forty thousand survivors and fought again. Qian Liu defeated him once more, killing his brother Hanrong and the general Xin Yue.
76
In the eleventh month, on the new moon of the day jiazi, Qin Zongquan besieged Xu Prefecture.
77
鹿西 使西
Lu Yanhong, a senior general of Zhongwu, led his men south of the Yellow River in a sweep through Xiang, Deng, Jin, and Yang, leaving slaughter wherever they passed while announcing that he was marching west to join the emperor. In the twelfth month he reached Xingyuan, drove out Military Commissioner Niu Xu, who fled into the western hills of Long Prefecture. Lu Yanhong seized Xingyuan and proclaimed himself acting military commissioner.
78
使
Shi Pu, military commissioner of Ganhua, suffered food poisoning, suspected his aide Li Ninggu of poisoning him, and had him killed. Li Ninggu's father Li Sun, a right Gentlemen-at-Large Cavalier Attendant, was in Chengdu. Shi Pu accused father and son of conspiring together. Tian Lingzi accepted Shi Pu's bribe and ordered the Censorate to investigate. Attending Censor Wang Hua pleaded Li Sun's innocence. Tian Lingzi forged an edict to move Sun into Shence custody, but Wang Hua refused to hand him over. Xiao Xu memorialized: "Li Ninggu's poisoning charge was murky to begin with, and Shi Pu has already killed him. Father and son have been separated for years without contact—how can they be accused of conspiracy? Shi Pu abuses his battlefield merit to defy the law and bully the court, and now seeks to kill the emperor's own attendants. If this is granted, it will reach us next—how can the court endure it?" Li Sun was spared execution and sent home to his estate. Tian Lingzi then held unchecked power and few ministers dared cross him. Xiao Xu alone argued with him again and again, and the court leaned on him.
79
使
Zhedong was elevated to the Yisheng circuit, and Liu Hanhong was appointed its military commissioner.
80
鹿
Zhao Chou sent envoys by hidden routes to beg aid from neighboring circuits. Zhou Ji, Shi Pu, and Zhu Quanzhong all marched to relieve him. Zhu Quanzhong fought Huang Chao's followers at Luyi, routed them, and took more than two thousand heads, then advanced into Bozhou and occupied it.
81
鹿
In spring, the first month, Lu Yanhong was confirmed as acting military commissioner of Xingyuan.
82
使
Yue Xingda, military commissioner of Weibo, was granted the personal name Yan Zhen.
83
使
Yang Shili of Dongchuan could not stomach the Chen Jingxuan brothers' grip on favor and power. When Chen Jingxuan sent Gao Renhou against Han Xiuzheng, he told him: "Return victorious and I will petition the throne to give you Dongchuan as your reward." Yang Shili heard of it and raged: "We are fellow frontier commissioners, yet you casually offer my domain to someone else—as if heaven and earth meant nothing!" Tian Lingzi, fearing he would rebel, recalled him to court as right vice director because he had failed to block the rebels.
84
使 使
Huang Chao's army was still formidable. Zhou Ji, Shi Pu, and Zhu Quanzhong could not hold the line and jointly begged Li Keyong of Hedong for help. In the second month Li Keyong marched fifty thousand Tangut and Han troops through Tianjing Pass. Zhuge Shuang of Heyang refused passage, claiming the Yellow River bridge was unfinished, and massed ten thousand men at Wanshan to block him. Li Keyong swung south, crossed the Yellow River through Shaan and Hezhong, and marched east.
85
使使綿 西西使 使西使
Yang Shili received the recall, flew into a rage, and refused to step down. He killed the credential bearer and the army supervisor, took up arms in the name of punishing Chen Jingxuan, and executed any senior officer who objected. He advanced to Fucheng and sent Hao Juan against Mian Prefecture without success. On the day bingwu Chen Jingxuan was made overall commander, punitive commissioner, pacification commissioner, and disposition commissioner of Xichuan, Dongchuan, and Shannan West. In the third month, on the day jiazi, Yang Shili circulated a proclamation to the court in exile and to officers and civilians of every circuit, listing ten crimes of Chen Jingxuan and claiming an army of 150,000 drawn from his circuit's troops and ritual levies across eight prefectures, ready to march in force for justice. An edict stripped Yang Shili of rank and title. Gao Renhou, defense commissioner of Meizhou, was made acting commissioner of Dongchuan and sent with five thousand men against him, with Yang Maoyan of Xichuan as his deputy.
86
Zhu Quanzhong stormed Huang Chao's Wazi Stockade and captured it; Huang Chao's generals Li Tangbin of Shaan and Wang Qianyu of Chuqiu surrendered to Zhu Quanzhong.
87
Wang Zhen of Wuzhou seized Prefect Huang Jie and submitted to Qian Liu. Liu Hanhong sent Lou Ben to kill Wang Zhen and take his place. Jiang Huan, commander of the Puyang post, called in Qian Liu's troops to assault Wuzhou, captured Lou Ben, and withdrew. Huang Jie was a native of Min.
88
使
Gao Pian's nephew Gao Yu, a senior general of the Left Brave Guards, drafted more than twenty sheets listing Lü Yongzhi's crimes and secretly handed them to Pian, weeping as he said: "Inwardly Yongzhi uses talk of immortals to bewitch your judgment; outwardly he steals command authority and brutalizes the people; your officers fear for their lives and dare not speak. Month by month his power grows. Unless he is removed, the Gao family's generations of merit may be swept away overnight!" He broke down sobbing. Gao Pian said, "Are you drunk?" He ordered attendants to help him out. The next day he showed Yu's memorial to Lü Yongzhi. Yongzhi said, "Forty Lang once begged me for funds I had not yet granted—hence this grudge." He produced several letters in Yu's own hand and showed them to Pian. Gao Pian was deeply shamed and forbade Yu to come and go; and a month later appointed him to govern Shuzhou. The bandit Chen Ru attacked Shuzhou, and Yu begged Yang Xingmin in Luzhou for aid. Yang Xingmin lacked the strength to rescue him and consulted his general Li Shenfu, who said he needed no weapon to expel the enemy. Li Shenfu raised many extra banners and slipped into Shuzhou by a back road. Soon he marched Shuzhou troops out under Luzhou colors, gesturing over the ground as if laying out a great battle line. The raiders panicked and fled overnight. Li Shenfu was a native of Luozhou. Long afterward the bandits Wu Hui and Li Ben attacked Shuzhou again. Yu could not hold the city, fled, and Gao Pian had him hunted down and killed. Yang Xingmin sent Tao Ya of Hefei and Zhang Xun of Qingliu against Wu Hui and Li Ben, captured and executed them, and made Tao Ya acting prefect. Qin Zongquan sent his brother to raid Luzhou and seize Shucheng. Yang Xingmin sent Tian Jun of Hefei to beat them back.
89
Former Hangzhou Prefect Lu Shenzhong, living in exile at Huang Prefecture, heard that Prefect Cui Shao of Ezhou had died, raised three thousand men, and seized the prefecture. Du Hong, a Wuchang garrison officer, likewise drove out the prefect of Yuezhou and took his place.
90
西 退
Huang Chao had besieged Chen Prefecture for nearly three hundred days. The Zhao Chou brothers fought him in hundreds of engagements. Though supplies and manpower were nearly gone, the defenders' resolve only hardened. Li Keyong united the armies of Xu, Bian, Xuzhou, and Yan at Chen Prefecture. Shang Rang was then encamped at Taikang. In summer, the fourth month, on the day guisi, the allied armies advanced and captured Taikang. Huang Siye held Xihua, and the allies attacked him there as well. Huang Siye fled. Huang Chao heard the news and panicked. He pulled back to Guyangli, and the siege of Chen Prefecture was finally broken.
91
使滿 輿
When Zhu Quanzhong learned that Huang Chao was approaching, he withdrew his army to Great Liang. In the fifth month, on the day guihai, torrential rain raised the water three feet deep across the plain. Huang Chao's camp was washed away, and when word came that Li Keyong was near, he marched northeast toward Bian Prefecture and massacred Weishi. Shang Rang advanced on Great Liang with five thousand elite horsemen as far as Fantai, but Zhu Zhen of Feng and Pang Shigu of Nanhua, generals of Xuanwu, drove them back. Zhu Quanzhong again urgently appealed to Li Keyong for help. On the day bingyin, Li Keyong and Tian Congyi, army overseer of Zhongwu, marched out from Xu Prefecture. On the day wuchen he caught Huang Chao at Wangman Ford north of Zhongmou, struck while the rebels were half across the river, routed them utterly, and killed more than ten thousand. The rebel army disintegrated. Shang Rang surrendered with his following to Shi Pu. The detachment commanders Li Dan of Linjin, Huo Cun of Quzhou, Ge Congzhou of Zhencheng, Zhang Guiba of Yuanqu, and Zhang's younger cousin Guihou each submitted their troops to Zhu Quanzhong. Huang Chao crossed north of the Bian River. On the day jisi Li Keyong caught him at Fengqiu and defeated him again. At midnight on the day gengwu another downpour fell. Panic-stricken, the rebels fled eastward. Li Keyong pursued them through Zuocheng and Kuangcheng. Huang Chao mustered fewer than a thousand survivors and fled east toward Yan Prefecture. On the day xinwei Li Keyong chased Huang Chao as far as Yuanqu, but only a few hundred horsemen could keep pace. They had ridden more than two hundred li without rest; men and mounts were spent and provisions gone. He turned back to Bian Prefecture, intending to resupply and resume the pursuit. He captured Huang Chao's young son along with imperial regalia, seals, and ceremonial vessels, and recovered ten thousand captive men and women, whom he released and sent home.
92
鹿
On the day guiyou, Gao Renhou camped at Deyang. Yang Shili sent Zheng Junxiong and Zhang Shi'an to hold Lutou Pass against him.
93
使
On the day jiaxu, Li Keyong reached Bian Prefecture and pitched camp outside the walls. Zhu Quanzhong pressed him to enter the city and lodged him at Shangyuan Post. Zhu Quanzhong entertained him with wine and music, serving a lavish and elegant banquet with every show of respect. Emboldened by wine, Li Keyong grew overbearing and his words turned insulting. Zhu Quanzhong took offense. At dusk the banquet broke up, his escort dead drunk. The Xuanwu officer Yang Yanhong secretly plotted with Zhu Quanzhong: they chained wagons and raised barricades to seal the streets, then sent soldiers to surround the post. The din of battle shook the ground. Li Keyong, drunk, heard nothing; but a dozen of his personal guards, including Xue Zhiqin and Shi Jingsi, fought hand to hand. The attendant Guo Jingzhu snuffed the lamps, pulled Li Keyong under the bed, splashed water on his face, and slowly told him of the attack. Li Keyong opened his eyes, seized his bow, and rose. Xue Zhiqin shot down dozens of the men from Bian. Soon smoke and flame closed in on every side. Thunder and lightning lashed the sky in a torrential rain until heaven and earth were black. Xue Zhiqin guided Li Keyong and a few companions over the wall and through the encirclement, advancing by flashes of lightning. The men of Bian held the bridge, but after a fierce fight they forced their way across. Shi Jingsi covered the retreat and was killed in action. Li Keyong climbed Weishi Gate and was let down by rope from the wall to escape. Chen Jingsi, his army overseer, and more than three hundred others were all slain by the men of Bian. Yang Yanhong told Zhu Quanzhong, "When these barbarians panic they take to horseback. Shoot anyone you see on a horse. That night Yang Yanhong rode up directly in front of Zhu Quanzhong, and Zhu Quanzhong shot him dead.
94
使
Li Keyong's wife Lady Liu was a woman of keen intelligence. Attendants who had escaped first came back with word of treachery at Bian. Lady Liu did not flinch; she had them executed on the spot, secretly summoned the senior commanders to hold the ranks together, and planned how to withdraw the army safely. At daybreak Li Keyong arrived and wanted to march against Zhu Quanzhong. Lady Liu said, "You have been fighting the rebels for the empire and relieving the eastern lords in their distress. The men of Bian have committed a crime by plotting your murder—you should lay the case before the court. If you take up arms on your own, who under heaven will be able to tell right from wrong? You will only give them a pretext. Li Keyong agreed, withdrew his army, and merely sent a letter rebuking Zhu Quanzhong. Zhu Quanzhong wrote back, "I knew nothing of what happened the other night. The court itself sent envoys to plot with Yang Yanhong. He has paid for his crime. I beg your understanding."
95
Li Keyong's adopted son Li Siyuan, seventeen years old, accompanied him away from Shangyuan. Though arrows and stones flew thick around them, he alone came through unhurt. Siyuan was originally a barbarian named Yaojilie and had no clan name. Li Keyong took the bravest men in his army and adopted many as sons: Zhang Zheng the Huigu's son he named Cunxin; Sun Chongjin of Zhenwu he named Cunjin; Wang Xian of Xuzhou he named Cunxian; An Jingsi he named Cunxiao. All took the surname Li. On the day bingzi, Li Keyong reached his old camp at Xu Prefecture and asked Zhou Ji for provisions. Zhou pleaded scarcity. Li Keyong crossed the Yellow River from Shaanxi and returned to Jinyang.
96
使使 使 使使 使
Zheng Junxiong and Zhang Shi'an held their walls and refused battle. Gao Renhou said, "If we attack, they gain and we suffer. If we besiege, they grow desperate while we rest easy." He then pitched twelve camps and invested the place. On the day dingchou, at the second watch, Zheng Junxiong sent elite troops in a surprise strike against the northern deputy commander's camp. Yang Maoyan could not hold and fled with his men. When the neighboring camps saw the deputy commander run, they fled as well. The Dongchuan forces combined and attacked the center. When Renhou heard this, he threw open his camp gates, lit torches to blaze the field, and personally led men in ambush on both flanks along the roads. The enemy reached the camp, saw the gates wide open, dared not enter, and withdrew. Renhou sprang his ambush. The Dongchuan army broke and fled. He pursued to the walls, drove them into the moat, killed and captured a great many, and withdrew. Renhou reflected that if he punished every man who had abandoned his post, he would have to execute a great many the next day. He secretly summoned Zhang Shao, his chief clerk, and told him, 'Send foot scouts at once, several dozen in all, by different routes after the fugitives. Tell them in your own words, "The Delegate never left camp and knew nothing of what happened. Return at once. Tomorrow's morning assembly will proceed as usual. You need not fear." Zhang Shao enjoyed a reputation for honesty, and the men believed him. By the fourth watch they had all returned to camp.' Only Yang Maoyan had fled as far as Zhangba before he was caught. When Renhou heard the night watches striking as usual in every camp, he said with satisfaction, "They have all come back!" At dawn the generals assembled for the morning roll call, believing Renhou had been unaware of the rout. They sat a long while before Renhou turned to Yang Maoyan and said, "I heard that last night you led the flight as far as Zhangba. Is that true?" Maoyan answered, "Last night, when I heard the enemy strike the center, my attendants said you had left. I mounted to follow you, but when I learned it was untrue I came back to camp." Renhou said, "You and I both bear the Son of Heaven's commission to campaign against rebels. If I had fled first, you should have ordered me down from my horse, enforced military law, taken command, and then reported to the throne. You fled first and lied about it. What does military law require?" Yang Maoyan bowed and said, "Death." Renhou said, "Quite so." He had attendants lead Yang Maoyan away and beheaded him. Every officer shook with fear. Renhou then summoned several dozen prisoners taken the night before, freed them, and sent them home. When Zheng Junxiong heard of this he said in alarm, "Their discipline is this strict—from now on we dare not sally forth again!"
97
On the day gengchen, Shi Pu sent his general Li Shiyue with ten thousand men in pursuit of Huang Chao.
98
鹿
On the day guiwei, Gao Renhou drew up his line before Lutou Pass. Zheng Junxiong led his entire force out to fight. Renhou placed an ambush behind his battle line and pretended to flee in defeat. Zheng Junxiong gave chase; the ambush struck, and his army was routed. That night they fled back to Zi Prefecture. Chen Jingxuan sent three thousand reinforcements to Renhou's army, which then advanced to besiege Zi Prefecture.
← Previous Chapter
Back to Chapters
Next Chapter →