Tanzhou’s interior suddenly became tense, but the outside world could not yet perceive it.
With hundreds of li of mountains and waters obstructing them, scouting enemy movements and transmitting information was extremely inconvenient. Han Qian at Yingyu Stronghold (Zhongfang City) could not yet detect the changes within Tanzhou’s interior.
Xi Zhen had been killed by Tanzhou military officers at Lujiao Creek. Feng Changyu and his son Feng Jin had then been successfully assassinated by Xi Ren leading the Xi clan youths into the mountains. Currently, the Four Clans’ chieftains trapped at Longqiao Stronghold were primarily led by three men: former Xuzhou Administrator Xiang Jianlong, Military Aide Yang Zaili, and Xi Zhen’s son Xi Xunqiao.
They perhaps believed that Tanzhou would fly into a rage over Yingyu Stronghold’s fall, hoping that Tanzhou would dispatch troops with thunderous force to punish the Han father and son. At first they did not accept Han Qian’s surrender conditions, even detaining both Feng Xuan and Feng Zhang.
However, Han Qian was not anxious.
Even if Han Qian could not know in time about the changes within Tanzhou’s interior, in his view, even if releasing Zhao Zhixian and Tan Yuliang back had no effect in deceiving Tanzhou, there was temporarily nothing to worry about.
Tanzhou openly possessed only twenty thousand troops. Before tearing apart their relations with Jinling, they would not further expand their army. And among those mere twenty thousand troops, how many dared they transfer to pass through Chenzhou and sail up the Yuan River to attack Xuzhou?
Currently Xuzhou openly already possessed nearly three thousand troops. Even if Tanzhou transferred double the elite troops to attack upstream, what were their chances of victory? Or how long would the war need to drag on before they could possibly take Xuzhou?
Attacking up the Yuan River was not an easy matter.
Otherwise, over nine hundred years ago, the Eastern Han famous general Ma Yuan would not have died with regrets at Hutou Mountain on the Yuan River. Nor would it be possible that after eight or nine hundred years, successive central government regimes had indulged major native clans in controlling the military and political power of Xuzhou, Chenzhou, and other provinces.
Even if Tanzhou Regional Military Commissioner Ma Yin was a figure like Emperor Tianyou Yang Mi, Han Qian believed he would find it very difficult to make this decision!
Therefore, Xuzhou still had time to confront the Four Clans’ chieftains for a while. Han Qian could first free his hands to deal with the tribal stronghold forces previously controlled by Feng Changyu and his son.
With Feng Changyu and his son Feng Jin assassinated to death at Longqiao Stronghold, and Feng Xuan, Feng Zhang, Gao Bao, and a batch of relatively important people having in fact submitted to Han Qian, the Feng clan at this moment was nearly in a state of collapse.
And although the other three clans could still gather over a thousand elite stronghold soldiers, at this time they did not dare act rashly. Much less could they concentrate troops to forcefully attack the heavily guarded Yingyu Stronghold to rescue the Four Clans’ chieftains trapped in Zhongfang Mountain.
During the previous assault on Yingyu Stronghold, the Feng father and son had drawn the most troops from their subordinate Jingyun Stronghold—six hundred stronghold soldiers, with over eighty percent drawn away. The backbone loyal to the Feng family had also mostly been transferred. In the end, only about one hundred stronghold soldiers remained to guard Jingyun Stronghold.
The Feng family at this time also had no core figure with sufficient prestige to stand up and mobilize and arm more able-bodied men to defend Jingyun Stronghold.
Although Feng Changyu still had several concubine-born sons remaining in the stronghold, these several concubine-born sons had always been targets of Feng Jin’s suppression. With insufficient ability and inadequate prestige, upon learning that Feng Changyu and Feng Jin had been assassinated to death at Longqiao Stronghold, they all wanted to compete for position, yet had not a single useful person under their command.
The stronghold soldiers left behind did not submit to them. Even the garrison commander and these several concubine-born sons of Feng Changyu had old grievances.
At this time, even if Han Qian attacked by force, he was confident he could sail up Chepi Creek and capture Jingyun Stronghold.
In early July, Xi Chang and Zhao Qi led three hundred elite armored soldiers from Chepi Creek into the valley south of Jingyun Stronghold. Then, with Gao Bao’s instigation, the final one hundred-some stronghold soldiers ultimately bound the over seventy wives, concubines, and concubine-born sons of Feng Changyu and Feng Jin, and came to Yingyu Stronghold to surrender to Han Qian.
Han Qian did not make things difficult for the wives and concubines of Feng Changyu and Feng Jin, nor for Feng Changyu’s several concubine-born sons, nor for Feng Jin’s two young sons who were still children. He only stripped them of their noble ranks and reduced them to commoners. At the same time, he relocated over three hundred close clan members of the Feng family from the mountains and arranged fields and residences where they could settle and make a living near Zhongfang City.
The tribal strongholds controlled by the Feng clan were generally located in Haoyun Mountain, within a depth of over fifty li south of Qianyang City on the southern bank of the Yuan River. They also occupied a large area of southern Qianyang County and northwestern Langxi County, with over a hundred large and small tribal strongholds, possessing a total of nearly twelve thousand native tribal people. Of these, over one-third were stronghold slaves directly controlled by the Feng clan.
The hundred-some tribal strongholds had cultivated a total of over one hundred fifty thousand mu of valley fields. However, the river channel and irrigation facilities built in the mountains were extremely weak. Irrigated land was only over ten thousand mu, and moreover was almost entirely controlled by the Feng family. Fortunately, Xuzhou’s climate was mild and moist, so even though the vast majority of what the hundred-some tribal strongholds cultivated was dry land, the harvest would not be too poor.
For ordinary tribal households, Han Qian only verified new field taxes and eliminated their previous corvée obligations to the Feng clan.
As for the tribal slaves and stronghold slaves who had previously been completely dependent on the Feng clan, Han Qian relocated them all to Zhongfang, Qianyang, and Linjiang, giving each household ten mu of subsistence farmland plus ten to twenty mu of uncultivated wasteland for settlement.
Of the fifty thousand mu directly controlled by Feng clan members in southern Qianyang County and northern Langxi, besides allocating over three thousand mu as subsistence farmland to settle the families of the hundred-some Jingyun Stronghold soldiers who had submitted to him, he also allocated twenty thousand mu to distribute to ordinary tribal households lacking or short of land. Another twenty-some thousand mu was used to settle the fewer than two hundred Tanzhou surrendered soldiers plus over five hundred family dependents, as well as nearly two thousand refugees stranded in the northern mountains of Langxi County.
The Feng family’s treasury stores at Jingyun Stronghold were treated as supplementary autumn grain collection for last year and entirely transported from Chepi Creek into Qianyang City.
As the most major tributary flowing into the Yuan River from within Haoyun Mountain, Chepi Creek’s current was extremely turbulent, with hidden shoals and sharp bends. Large ships had difficulty navigating it. Most common were black-canopied boats with a three-hundred shi load capacity.
Forty black-canopied boats made ten round trips before transporting all of the Feng family’s treasury stores into Qianyang’s granaries.
Han Qian could hardly imagine why the Feng family, with normally only six hundred stronghold soldiers on hand, would store sixty thousand shi of grain in the stronghold.
It dragged on until late August before Xiang Jianlong, Yang Zaili, and Xi Xunqiao, seeing that Tanzhou’s direction had no movement for so long, finally led over three hundred stronghold soldiers starved until their eyes were turning green out of Zhongfang Mountain to surrender to Han Qian.
At this time, Han Qian no longer remained at Zhongfang City, but instead escorted Xiang Jianlong, Yang Zaili, Xi Xunqiao, and the Four Clans’ main leaders back to Qianyang City for disposition.
…
…
Entering late August, a hint of autumn could already be felt inside Qianyang City. At the night banquet, Zhou Yourui plucked the zither strings with much melancholy meaning.
No one in Qianyang City had yet seen through the secret of why the Four Clans forcefully assaulted Yingyu Stronghold, so toward Han Qian’s return in great victory, each had their own reaction.
Those who fawned and flattered naturally spared no effort even more, while Xue Ruogu was dejected and drank sullenly. Before the night deepened, he was already somewhat drunk.
If not for Li Tang and Qin Wen sitting on his left and right restraining him, he would most likely have said a few sarcastic words to the triumphant Han father and son, mocking those dozen-some officials who crazily flattered the Han father and son as truly knowing no shame.
Perhaps Han Qian also found these people’s flattery tiresome, so he early on suggested to his father Han Daoxun that they end the night banquet. Xue Ruogu felt a weight lifted from his heart and thought to escape early.
“Lord Xue, Lord Li, Lord Qin, the three lords have said very little today. Please remain behind with the Supervising Army Commissioner for some conversation.” Han Qian stared at Xue Ruogu and the others as he spoke.
“The young lord is triumphant in success, having captured the three clans’ chieftains and returned in great victory. Xue has searched his belly and scraped his intestines but cannot think of any congratulatory words. Please, young lord, let Xue go.” Xue Ruogu stood before his table with his head held high, saying this.
Zhou Yourui looked at Xue Ruogu with some surprise, then turned to look at Han Daoxun who remained silent. Han Qian was all smiles and also said nothing, but precisely this made it more frightening.
She wanted to say something, but thought: in such an occasion, where was there room for her to speak?
“The Four Clans have all submitted, and the new policies are about to be immediately advanced to Langxi and Tanyang counties. Does Lord Xue also have nothing to say?” Han Qian removed the blade from his waist and threw it onto the long table before him, staring at Xue Ruogu as he asked.
“Xue is dull-witted and truly has nothing to say.” Xue Ruogu said.
The other officials exchanged glances. Some wanted to say a few words that would please the Han father and son, but saw Han Daoxun wave his hand indicating they should leave first. Seeing that the left and right sides of the hall were all elite armored soldiers who were Han family confidants, they thought that having subdued the Four Clans, the Han father and son would next purge those officials in the provincial office who did not obey them.
This was not a matter they should involve themselves in. Everyone filed out.
Zhou Yourui put down her zither and said to Han Daoxun: “What tune would the lord like to hear? Yourui will play it for the lord and the young lord?”
“Miss Yourui, please withdraw for now.” Han Daoxun said.
Zhou Yourui looked at Xue Ruogu with concern, then carried her zither out of the hall. At this time she saw the armored soldiers in the corridor closing the doors and windows. Her heart tightened. She wanted to run back and force her way through the door, but was firmly held back by two accompanying musicians: “Miss Zhou, we dare not get involved in this matter! Let’s go, let’s go!”
All unrelated people withdrew. Han Daoxun said to Xue Ruogu, Li Tang, and Qin Wen: “Lord Xue, please sit down and talk.”
Xue Ruogu felt the wine surge up. Stiffening his neck as he stood there, he said: “If the lord today does not wish for Xue’s blood to splatter five paces, then please allow Xue to leave Xuzhou.”
“Father, there really are a few hard-boned people in this world who are not afraid of death! However, if everyone in the world was as cowardly and afraid of death as me, it would also be too boring.” Han Qian sighed a few words to his father, then said to Zhang Ping: “Now please trouble Lord Zhang to explain His Majesty’s brilliant stratagem to Lord Xue, Lord Li, and Lord Qin?”
Zhang Ping had initially thought that even as the Supervising Army Commissioner dispatched by the court, he might not necessarily be able to make the Four Clans easily fall for the trick. He had not expected that when Han Qian came to Xuzhou two years ago, he had immediately placed the chess piece Gao Bao.
Han Qian had always deliberately courted Feng Zhang and others, sowing discord between Feng Zhang and others and the Four Clans, but Gao Bao had always been hidden deepest.
During the escort period, Gao Bao constantly sought rare treasures from Jinling to curry favor with Feng Jin. He even bought two trained courtesans from Jinling who had mastered various skills but had not yet lost their virginity, and presented them to Feng Jin.
After the Jingxiang campaign, Gao Bao returned to Jingyun Stronghold and quickly became one of Feng Jin’s most trusted direct subordinates.
If not for Feng Changyu and his son being extremely guarded against people from outside the tribal strongholds, Han Qian could have even arranged death warriors around Feng Changyu and his son.
Zhang Ping stood up and asked the shocked and doubtful Xue Ruogu, Li Tang, and Qin Wen to sit down. He carefully narrated how last year, after the Feng Wenlan case, Han Qian had been summoned by Emperor Tianyou together with Third Prince Yang Yuanpu and established the strategy of deception.
Xue Ruogu, Li Tang, and Qin Wen were so shocked they did not know what to say for a long time.
“This is His Majesty’s secret edict. Please have a look, Lord Xue!” Han Qian took out the secret edict and had Xi Ren take it to show to Xue Ruogu, Li Tang, and Qin Wen.
In his heart, Han Qian wanted to continue leaving Xue, Li, and Qin aside, arranging his own people or arranging those who only knew how to protect themselves wisely and curry favor with the powerful in the major official positions of Xuzhou’s five counties. If in the future he truly wanted to control Xuzhou independently, there would be no resistance. However, besides the obstacle of his father that he could not pass, if at this point he still did not let Xue, Li, and Qin know of the secret conspiracy, did not let them participate and grasp power in Xuzhou, how could he make that old man Tianyou believe he had no thoughts of plotting to control Xuzhou?
Before that old man Tianyou died, Han Qian really did not want to provoke his suspicion for no reason.