Chapter 125: The Affair of Xingzhou

From Zhending to the Eastern Capital, the distance was not far—a straight-line distance of only a little over seven hundred li—and the roads were flat, the waterways clear, following basically the same route south that Liu Chengyou had taken when pursuing the Liao army.

Apart from the Fourth and Fifth Armies that Liu Chengyou had split off to garrison Mo and Qi, the remaining nearly ten thousand troops were divided into water and land contingents to escort the goods south. Ma Quanyi was appointed by Liu Chengyou as Commander-in-Chief of the Water Route, leading the First and Second Armies back together with Sun Li—water transport was always more time- and labor-efficient than land transport.

Liu Chengyou himself, traveling by land with Guo Rong and Xiang Xun, advanced very slowly. Reaching the Eastern Capital was merely the destination; the journey itself was what Liu Chengyou wanted to observe. Since setting out from Jinyang, four months of military haste, his mind wholly absorbed in military and political affairs, Liu Chengyou had never once properly looked at this magnificent landscape.

Heading south from Zhending, passing through Zhaozhou and entering Xingzhou, they traveled slowly, and with each step their hearts grew heavier. War's devastation to the nation was too severe—white bones exposed in the wild, no roosters crowing for a thousand li—this was probably the truest portrayal. Along the way, all that met the eye was ruin: desolate villages and wild lands, broken walls and crumbling remains, famine and plague running rampant. Large stretches of uninhabited towns, destitute people banding together as robbers...

Amid this bleak and desolate environment, one could still see some common folk along the way, lonely or even numbly tending their fields. Plowing and farming were burned into the bones of this people, no matter how difficult the circumstances.

Entering Xingzhou territory, they passed through Neiqiu County and stayed one night. This was a typical county never free of soldiers—the entire county had fewer than six hundred households, and the town itself fewer than two hundred. The sparse population was evident, the people's suffering severe, yet the exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous levies were not one bit less.

He sent Guo Rong and Wei Renpu to investigate. The county magistrate had been appointed by Xue Huairang, Military Governor of Anguo Army—originally a military ruffian who, upon taking office, immediately displayed his "skinning" style: throwing his weight around, arbitrarily apportioning levies, and if any official or commoner displeased him, using his power to suppress them and punish them with imprisonment—utterly unscrupulous.

In this era, even a minor county magistrate wielded great power, especially those appointed by military governors and warlords—they held the power of life and death in their hands.

This magistrate of Neiqiu had been in office barely a month. Upon arrival, he first made a show of exempting the summer and autumn taxes, but before the people of Neiqiu could enjoy even a few days of relief, he began inventing all sorts of levies. Market taxes, house taxes, city entry and exit taxes—those were bad enough—but he also came up with a bridge-crossing tax. One should know that Neiqiu's terrain had a three-part structure—mountains, hills, and plains each taking a third—and there wasn't even a slightly larger river, let alone a bridge...

The most amusing part was that others apportioned miscellaneous taxes by collection, but this Neiqiu magistrate collected annually, forcibly making the people under his jurisdiction become "annual members." The problem was, whether he could even remain magistrate that long was questionable. Still, this magistrate did achieve a certain "fairness"—the poor paid less, the rich paid more.

In his quarters, after hearing the reports, Liu Chengyou fell silent, his mood somewhat complicated. After holding it in for a moment, he looked at the few people before him: "What are your views?"

"The hardship of the people—from this one can know it!" Xiang Xun sighed and said.

"Since the late Tang, rites and music have collapsed, the bonds of ethics have been entirely lost, laws and institutions are lacking, military provinces act on their own, local governance has decayed, military men hold sway, cruelly oppressing the people—this chronic ailment runs deep. Now that the Great Han is newly founded, we must re-establish order, fix the statutes, and regulate the prefectures and counties to settle the realm..." Wei Renpu thought for a moment, then said calmly.

Guo Rong's expression was more animated, his gaze very cold: "This Neiqiu magistrate deserves death."

Liu Chengyou, by contrast, had calmed down. He shook his head, let out a long sigh, as if filled with boundless emotion: "This realm has been in chaos for too long..."

"Indeed, it has been chaotic for too long, and so the people's hearts yearn for stability. If the court can sweep across the realm, end warfare and quell disorder, then the people's hearts will surely submit!" Wei Renpu said with great certainty.

He rose and paced a few steps around the room, his expression wistful. His true feeling at this moment could be summed up in one phrase: the revolution has not yet succeeded, comrades still must strive. To say Liu Chengyou was deeply concerned for the realm and solicitous of the people—that wasn't quite true. But looking at this shattered landscape and sinking state, his mood was nonetheless unpleasant, tinged with melancholy.

"The Neiqiu magistrate is but a nameless nobody—what use is killing him? Let it go." After a moment, Liu Chengyou raised his hand, his voice cold and faint: "Better than killing one petty evil, remove one great evil!"

All were men of talent, and naturally understood Liu Chengyou's implication. Guo Rong looked at Liu Chengyou's back and asked: "Does Your Highness intend to deal with Xue Huairang?"

"From Wang Shou'en in Luzhou, to Bai Zairong in Zhenzhou, and now Xue Huairang in Xingzhou—if we rely on such men to guard the prefectures and maintain the state, this realm will sooner or later be lost!" Liu Chengyou said coldly. The words were extremely heavy!

Xue Huairang was another military man very much of his era—over thirty years in the army, brave in battle, having served in several prefectures, never implementing good governance anywhere, insatiably greedy, collecting wealth by any means.

Previously, during the resistance against the Liao, he had succeeded through opportunism, leading his men to drive out the barbarian soldiers, seizing Mingzhou, and submitting to the Liu family. Then he started making trouble. The original defender of Xingzhou, Liu Duo, had already expressed submission to Liu Chengyou, but Xue Huairang led troops north, tricked open the city, and killed him. At the time, though Liu Chengyou was angry, for the sake of the greater good, he temporarily appointed him Patrol Inspector of Xing and Ming.

But this Xue Huairang, having perhaps caught wind of something unfavorable, while accepting Liu Chengyou's appointment, also sent men with gifts to Kaifeng to express submission to Liu Zhiyuan. Then, after some minister put in a good word, he was appointed Military Governor of Anguo Army, governing the three prefectures of Xing, Ming, and Ci...

The Emperor's appointment carried far more weight than that of Liu Chengyou, a mere prince. Then Xue Huairang let himself go, beginning to display his consistent style.

Accumulating grain and wealth, inventing all sorts of pretexts—among them, one thing Liu Chengyou found hardest to bear. When Zhao Yanshou campaigned north into Youyan and Liu Chengyou clashed with the Liao army, this wretch collected money and grain under the banner of supporting Liu Chengyou's northern expedition.

Yet Liu Chengyou never saw a single grain of rice or a single copper coin. Using his name to make trouble, ruining his reputation while reaping no benefit—how could Liu Chengyou not be furious?

"But this Xue Huairang is a Military Governor appointed by the Emperor. If we take him down without authorization, we cannot account for it to the court and Your Majesty," Wei Renpu said, still somewhat hesitant.

"Since heading east, have I done few things on my own authority?" Liu Chengyou waved his hand: "Many debts don't weigh one down. With the current sentiment at court, when I return, I'll inevitably face a round of admonishment anyway..."

Though Liu Chengyou's sources of information were not yet very sharp, he had still heard something of the situation in Kaifeng. As he spoke, a trace of mockery curled at the corner of his mouth.

Turning his head to look at Wei Renpu, seeing him hesitate to speak, Liu Chengyou raised his hand and said: "Xue Huairang's crimes are so grave—in this era, should we simply let him go? In the past, we were too lenient with such men, to the point that they became utterly fearless. Is killing a crime? Is corruption a crime? Even raising troops in rebellion can still earn one a spared life! Unquestioning conciliation will only corrupt and weaken the court's discipline."

Liu Chengyou said coldly: "The Great Han has just been established—let the Son of Heaven and the ministers handle the conciliation. This authority, I will establish; this villain, I will play! We'll make an example of this Xue Huairang!"

Seeing Liu Chengyou's expression, Wei Renpu opened his mouth but ultimately made no further remonstrance. He could feel that Liu Chengyou could no longer contain himself. He sighed silently—he had actually wanted to remind Liu Chengyou that killing Bai Zairong had been no great problem, but this Xue Huairang, no matter what he had done, was a Military Governor, and one appointed by Liu Zhiyuan at that...