Chapter 479: I Would Rather Betray the World

"Clang!" "Clang!" "Clang!" "Clang!"

By a small river outside the Tang army's Jinci grand camp near Taiyuan City, Gao Xianzhi, bare-chested, was sharpening his blade beside a whetstone.

The slabs of muscle exposed on his body possessed a robust beauty in the sunlight. Especially the scar upon scar on his arms and chest, already long healed — they were medals of honor from blood-soaked battlefields, surviving a hundred battles!

"General Gao, you're sharpening your blade too."

Li Siye carried his enormous modao over his shoulder and had also come here to sharpen his blade. But from the look of him, he seemed to have something he wanted to say; coming here was merely an excuse to sharpen his blade.

"With a great battle imminent, if you don't sharpen your blade now, there won't be time once you're on the battlefield."

Gao Xianzhi frowned slightly and replied casually, as if something weighed on his mind.

"General Gao, how many rebel troops do you think remain at Yanmen now?"

Li Siye suddenly asked a most critical question. Like a thunderclap from clear skies, it exploded in Gao Xianzhi's ears!

"What do the scouts say?"

"The scouts didn't say much. You should understand the situation over there, General Gao."

Li Siye said impassively.

Leaving three thousand elite soldiers to defend Yanmen, even a hundred thousand Tang troops could not breach it in the short term; they could only grind through it slowly by piling up lives.

Leaving thirty thousand elite soldiers to defend Yanmen would actually have much the same effect.

The pass entrance was only so wide; even with more men, they could not deploy.

What was even more critical was that outsiders could not tell how many defenders lay behind this pass; they could only judge from scattered clues.

But cooking fires, banners, and even supply convoys could all be faked.

Deception — making the empty seem full and the full seem empty — was basic skill for commanders.

Shi Siming had retreated to defend Yanmen, but had he really concentrated all his forces here?

The answer was obvious: he would not.

The Hebei rebel forces north of Taiyuan had very likely already pulled their main force back to defend Zhending, and these men would not necessarily make a great show of it.

The problem was merely that everything was conjecture, like betting big or small — either big or small, seemingly a fifty-fifty chance, but in reality it was far from so.

"You also think it's very dangerous?"

Gao Xianzhi asked in a low voice.

"General Gao, what you can command is only the troops of Anxi and Beiting. The other border armies, you cannot move!"

Li Siye sighed ruefully.

Gao Xianzhi remained silent; Li Siye's words had hit the nail on the head.

An Chongxiang commanded the Chishui Army, Gao Xianzhi commanded the Anxi and Beiting troops, Li Guangbi commanded the various armies of Longyou, and Guo Ziyi was responsible for managing the troops of Hexi other than the Chishui Army.

These hundred-odd thousand men, united as one, would have been a force no one dared to challenge. Split into four parts, if they could not effectively support and coordinate with one another, things could easily go wrong on the battlefield.

Seeing Gao Xianzhi say nothing, Li Siye continued: "General Gao, you and the other three are not subordinate to one another, and you don't even have much of a relationship. Once something happens, who will come to reinforce you, and who would be willing to?"

"It's just that if we feel safe, then the Sage will feel unsafe."

Gao Xianzhi said with a long sigh.

This time it was Li Siye's turn to be speechless.

Had this army previously had no one to command it?

Not at all — Wang Zhongsi had great prestige in the army, and all the generals respected him. But if Wang Zhongsi could command a hundred responses with a single call in the army, then who would still listen to the Sage?

This question was somewhat fatal.

"After taking Zhending, enemy forces could appear from all directions. What plans do you have, General Gao?"

Li Siye asked in a low voice, and after speaking, he glanced around and, finding no one approaching, finally breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"What do you think?"

Gao Xianzhi asked quietly, casually sheathing his hengdao.

"If things truly collapse like a crumbling mountain, heading south to Ye City would be a plan to seek life amid death.

If we retreat west back through Jingxing, or go north to Feihuxing, it would certainly be a dead end."

Li Siye laid out his plan, picking up a thin branch from the ground and drawing a marching route map on the spot.

"The worst-case scenario is that after taking Zhending, we continue north to attack Youzhou, and our rear gets cut off.

If the rebel army wants to annihilate our hundred-odd thousand men, it won't be that easy either. If they concentrate their forces, then Ye City will certainly be left empty.

Once Ye City is taken, whether heading south to Henan or rushing to Huguan from the west, we can take it one step at a time. Even if we can't take it, no one will be able to stop us.

General Gao, at that time you must insist that the Anxi and Beiting troops serve as the rear guard.

Of course, if the battle goes smoothly, then pretend I said nothing today."

Li Siye suggested in a lowered voice.

Gao Xianzhi looked at the chicken-scratch route map on the ground, imagining the Hebei rebel forces deploying heavy troops north of Zhending, and suddenly felt his scalp tingle.

The Sage's plans were always so optimistic, as if sweeping the Xiongnu like Huo Qubing — just a few gestures and it would be done.

But in reality it was not so.

War was an exceedingly precise endeavor that tolerated not the slightest carelessness.

"Let's go, back to camp!"

Gao Xianzhi sighed deeply and called for Li Siye to come along with him, a bad premonition stirring in his heart.

Before the battle had even begun, he already had a premonition of defeat — a feeling he had never experienced before.

……

In an unremarkable courtyard in the western part of Taiyuan City, Li Guangbi was warming wine for Wang Zhongsi beneath the shade of a tree.

"Commander, the Sage's military strategy doesn't seem very brilliant."

Li Guangbi poured the wine and couldn't help but voice a complaint.

"More than just unskillful."

Wang Zhongsi shook his head and sighed, not knowing how to evaluate it properly—in a word, it was utterly absurd.

Or one could call it "exactly what he wanted." Of course, it was exactly what Huangfu Weiming wanted!

Having one more useless incompetent giving blind orders was no different from adding a hundred thousand elite troops to Huangfu Weiming's side.

Just as the two were sighing endlessly, Gao Lishi hurried over, looked at Li Guangbi, and said: "General Li, the Sage has urgent business seeking you! Quick, quick, quick, come with our family to have an audience with His Majesty!"

Eh?

Both Li Guangbi and Wang Zhongsi were taken aback.

The entire army was setting out tomorrow—it couldn't be that they were only now giving him "confidential instructions in person."

But clearly this was not the time to discuss that. After bowing to Wang Zhongsi, Li Guangbi followed Gao Lishi to the Emperor's temporary palace within Taiyuan City.

Which was to say, the former prefectural office of the Taiyuan Military Commissioner.

Arriving at the study with a heart full of concerns, Brother Ji said to Li Guangbi with a placid expression: "Have a seat."

After he sat down, Li Guangbi bowed to Brother Ji and asked: "What orders does the Sage have?"

"Something major has happened in Chang'an!"

Brother Ji said in a low voice.

Li Guangbi did not know how to respond to this, so he could only remain silent, waiting for Brother Ji to continue.

"Someone wants to enthrone the Crown Prince in Chang'an!"

The veins on Brother Ji's neck bulged, and a cold glint flashed through his clouded eyes. When he spoke, he was nearly gnashing his teeth!

"Is the Sage saying…"

Li Guangbi hesitated, secretly thinking that things were looking very bad.

"Take your troops and set out immediately, make a forced march on Chang'an! Take those traitorous scoundrels and…"

Brother Ji made a gesture of slitting a throat.

"Sire, with a great enemy before us, we are about to dispatch troops to Hebei. Diverting troops back to Guanzhong, would that not…"

Li Guangbi was about to be driven to despair by Brother Ji!

"I don't care! It's not just your unit acting alone! I'm simply telling you first!"

Brother Ji's voice was nearly a roar, unable to suppress the fury in his heart any longer.

Today, someone sent from Chang'an had reported secretly that people were plotting to have Crown Prince Li Chang ascend the throne, and these people were not few in number—frightening Brother Ji out of his wits!

If Li Chang formally ascended the throne in Chang'an, then here in Taiyuan, it would be hard to guarantee that those soldiers wouldn't forcibly detain him and escort him back to Chang'an to serve as "Retired Emperor."

In Brother Ji's view, compared to Li Chang and his cohorts pulling the rug out from under him, Huangfu Weiming's Hebei rebel army was almost endearingly stupid—they were actually conquering territory bit by bit!

"Sire, changing orders morning and night is detrimental to morale and the army's spirit…"

Li Guangbi was not a silver-tongued man, but he understood right from wrong in his heart.

"If you refuse to return to Chang'an, I will replace you with another general. There will always be someone willing to do it."

Brother Ji said cold.

Seeing Li Guangbi silent, Brother Ji then consoled him with gentle words: "Your adoptive father Wang Zhongsi will continue to garrison Taiyuan. Do not worry about what's behind you."

Hearing this, Li Guangbi finally cupped his fists in salute and said: "This general understands. I shall faithfully follow the Sage's command."

"Mm, go."

Brother Ji nodded slightly. After Li Guangbi left, Brother Ji called in An Chongzhang and told him more or less the same thing. After An Chongzhang departed, Brother Ji also summoned Gao Xianzhi and Guo Ziyi to give them "confidential instructions in person."

By the time all this was done, it was already past midnight. Brother Ji leaned wearily against the soft couch, waves of stabbing pain in his head.

Back when he was emperor, it seemed as though everything only required moving his lips. How was it that nowadays, getting anything done was a thousand times harder?

"Lishi, what do you think I should do? Should I yield the throne to that traitorous son Li Chang?"

Brother Ji said with some helplessness, as though he had already lost the courage to press forward.

Never mind that he appeared extremely resolute before Li Guangbi and those generals, looking as though he would not rest until he returned to Chang'an.

But in truth, Brother Ji was extremely nervous and worried, already just one step away from a mental breakdown.

"Sire…"

Gao Lishi had words stuck in his throat, unable to speak them. He did not know whether he should say comforting words, or speak the truth, or even just brush him off with empty platitudes.

"At a time like this, what words could you possibly still be unable to say?"

Brother Ji scolded with some displeasure.

"Sire, for you to abdicate now… it is already too late. Behind you is a bottomless cliff—you cannot retreat!"

Gao Lishi, voice choked with tears, knelt on the ground and clutched one of Brother Ji's feet in a death grip.

"Yes, it is already too late."

Brother Ji let out a long sigh. He knew very well that abdicating now meant death. Even if Li Chang did not touch him, there would be people seeking favor and currying influence who would act as Li Chang's enforcers!

And then those with grievances would settle scores, and those with wrongs would exact revenge!

After being Son of Heaven for so many years, could he possibly have no enemies?

Brother Ji knew this well in his heart.

"Why do they want to betray me?"

Brother Ji murmured to himself, asking.

"They" included Fang Youde, Li Mi, Yan Zhenqing, as well as those powerful nobles in Chang'an City, the descendants of the Guanlong aristocracy.

Brother Ji believed he had not wronged these people, so why did they want to betray him?

He could not figure it out; he was lost, and his anger went beyond all reason.

In the end, after his impotent rage, he collapsed from exhaustion.

"Sire, there is no time to lose. Lead the troops back to Guanzhong to quell the rebellion."

Gao Lishi sighed softly and said.

Many things, viewed from different angles, yield different results.

From Brother Ji's perspective, what certain people in Chang'an are now trying to do is outright treason!

An emperor's power comes from the recognition and support of the aristocracy. Once the aristocrats withhold their support and recognition, the imperial edict becomes nothing more than a piece of toilet paper!

As for the common folk at the bottom, who the hell cares who the emperor actually is!

Brother Ji now truly felt the erosion of his own power—and it was accelerating.

He was unwilling to accept it and still wanted to struggle a bit more.

"What is Fang Guozhong doing right now?"

Suddenly, Brother Ji thought of Fang Chongyong and felt a twinge of regret.

Though Fang Chongyong was the son of Fang Youde, he had served him with great deference and showed no signs of rebellion.

The Yinqiang Xiaojie Army was furthermore second to none in valor and skill in battle, not only gathering the finest of the border armies, but having fought from the far south to the far north, rich in combat experience.

He had been a bit hasty back then.

Brother Ji let out a long sigh, reproaching himself for acting too soon without considering the consequences—or perhaps he had been frightened by the network of connections among the Fang clan's lineage.

"Fang Guozhong has occupied Bianzhou and appears to have thrown in with Li Chang, appointed Military Commissioner of the Xuanwu Army, nominally controlling six prefectures."

Gao Lishi answered cautiously, saying nothing more than what was essentially public knowledge.

"Compared to Fang Youde, that traitor who betrayed Us, Fang Guozhong was indeed wronged by Us.

Why don't you send someone to Bianzhou to contact Fang Guozhong and ask whether he is now willing to serve Us.

In any case, he didn't lose a single hair at Queshu Valley—would it not suffice for Us to issue an Edict of Self-Reproach?"

Brother Ji said with a rueful sigh, not recalling at all how he had coerced and bribed Wang Zhongsi when he ordered the ruthless attack back then.

Many people, when doing wrong by others, adopt the attitude of 'I would rather betray the world than let the world betray me,' believing that others should sacrifice themselves for them without hesitation.

Yet when they ask others for a favor, they cast aside all past grudges and grievances, believing that others should 'be magnanimous and overlook small faults' and let them off lightly.

Just like Brother Ji at this moment.

Gao Lishi did not know what to say. Perhaps all emperors were like this—never feeling that they deserved punishment for doing wrong, forever believing that 'both thunder and rain are imperial grace.'

"Sage, perhaps you should still…"

"You should still write the Edict of Self-Reproach now!"

Brother Ji climbed up from the soft couch and immediately wielded his brush to write a 'letter of apology' on paper. He wrote that he had been deceived by the treacherous minister Yan Zhenqing, which was why he had ordered the ruthless attack on Fang Chongyong and the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army under his command.

Since that incident, Our heart has also ached with deep regret. Now that Yan Zhenqing is in Chang'an rallying the officials to welcome Li Chang's enthronement, We have suddenly realized that We wronged a loyal subject back then. We hope that Fang Chongyong can set aside personal grievances and prioritize the affairs of state, blah blah blah.

After finishing, Brother Ji read it over and over, feeling the tone was still too stiff, so he rewrote another version, softening the wording.

In any case, he just kept emphasizing that he had been deceived by those treacherous officials at Taiyuan Prefecture. They all insisted that Fang Chongyong, this Military Commissioner, was plotting rebellion—what could We have done?

After all, the principle that 'three people make a tiger, and a multitude of mouths can melt gold' is not something that only came about today!

After finishing, Brother Ji still felt it was not 'sincere' enough, so he cut off a lock of his own hair and placed it in the envelope. Then in the letter he continued to plead, saying he had committed an error and wished to 'sever hair in place of the head' to atone.

Only then was he satisfied. He sealed the letter and handed it to Gao Lishi.

"Send someone capable. You must deliver this letter into Fang Chongyong's own hands. Understood?"

Brother Ji gripped Gao Lishi's hand tightly and said, his eyes fixed intently on the other's face.

"This slave will attend to it at once."

Gao Lishi hastily tucked the letter close against his chest, then bowed to Brother Ji and turned to leave.

Only after Gao Lishi had left did Brother Ji lie dejectedly back on the soft couch.

Like a dead fish stranded on a beach, too spent to thrash anymore.