LFHYB -Chapter 110 Uprisings Across Shandong

Yang Xuangan was making his choice.

By his own inclination, he wanted to follow the low strategy and attack Luoyang.

Although Luoyang had the families of other officials, attacking Daxing or Zhuojun also had its merits; the necessity of attacking Luoyang versus Daxing or Zhuojun was not significantly different.

He chose Luoyang because it was prosperous and geographically central to the Sui state—it was prestigious.

Furthermore, Zhuojun had the finest soldiers of Sui. Daxing’s governor, Minister of Justice Wei Xuan, was not particularly skilled in leading troops, but Gao Jiong was still in Daxing compiling books; he would never stand idle.

Although Yang Xuangan held himself in high regard, even called “the reincarnation of Xiang Yu,” to surpass Gao Jiong militarily, he could only pray for his father’s spirit to possess him.

Luoyang had only Crown Prince Yang Xian and Duke of Tang Li Yuan; it seemed like the softest target.

Li Yuan had never led troops before. Yang Xuangan shouldn’t have feared him, but Li Erlang’s reputation was so prominent that he felt intimidated by Li Yuan.

Li Erlang, at just fourteen years old, had already been promoted to the youngest Tiger Guard General due to his merits.

Looking at Li Erlang’s achievements—capturing the Tuqu Hun Khan on his first battle with just a few hundred servants and borrowed cavalry from the Tiele tribe; during Yang Guang’s second campaign in Goguryeo, he led a hastily assembled local militia and won every engagement—his feats were terrifying.

Many senior generals in the court had no achievements as dazzling as Li Erlang’s—if not for his youth, just the head of the Tuqu Hun Khan alone would have earned him a noble title.

Previously, when Li Erlang and Li Sanlang were promoted, Yang Xuangan had mocked them, claiming their rise was only due to backing from the Duke of Tang’s household and being nephews of Yang Guang.

Li Sanlang hadn’t shown much talent over the past few years, and the “young prodigy” halo had faded. But Li Erlang was simply too outstanding, dragging the sickly Li Sanlang into the position of Tiger Fang General.

The children raised by the Duke of Tang were truly formidable.

With Li Erlang’s abilities, Li Yuan’s skills would naturally not be inferior.

Thinking of Li Erlang’s record, Yang Xuangan couldn’t help hesitating.

Feeling hesitation because of a fourteen-year-old Tiger Guard General left Yang Xuangan frustrated.

But Li Erlang’s achievements were truly unreasonable. Yang Xuangan even wondered why, during the second campaign in Goguryeo, Li Erlang wasn’t brought along. Could it be to deter the Western Regions, fearing that remnants of the Turks or Tuqu Hun might harass the Sui rear, so Li Erlang was stationed in Zhangye?

When Yang Xuangan hesitated, Li Mi, who had been offering advice, felt disappointed.

At this time, the Sui Dynasty was in chaos, and the courier system was almost collapsed. The noble families now sent their own troops to relay messages; they could no longer rely on the official courier system.

Luoyang was very close to the place where Yang Xuangan raised his army. As soon as Yang Xuangan made a move, Luoyang would definitely be on guard. Moreover, with the Crown Prince there and Li Yuan holding considerable influence at court, they enjoyed a lot of autonomy. Even without concrete evidence, they could mobilize funds and troops in advance to prepare.

Chang’an and Zhuojun were farther from the Central Plains. Although far from the action, they couldn’t directly monitor Yang Xuangan’s movements like Luoyang could—they had to rely on Luoyang’s garrison to relay messages.

When the nation’s main forces were all concentrated on Goguryeo, the Sui intelligence system transmitted information very slowly. Furthermore, the Chang’an garrison was led by only a Minister of Justice. To mobilize more troops, he had to report to the emperor or the crown prince, which would waste a lot of time.

From Li Mi’s perspective, although Zhuojun had the Sui’s most elite soldiers, its supply lines were poor, and with someone like Yang Guang dragging things down, achieving a strategic goal would be relatively easier. There were risks, but great wealth lies in great danger. Killing Yang Guang and forcing the surrender of the main Sui army in one stroke would bring immense rewards—it was worth the risk.

As for Daxing, besides the fact that Daxing responded slowly, it was the stronghold of the Guanlong aristocracy. Yang Guang had moved the political center to the Eastern Capital and heavily promoted the Jiangnan gentry, which displeased the Guanlong nobles. The neglected Western Capital might have weak resistance and could become an ally for Yang Xuangan.

Moreover, both Chang’an and Zhuojun were outside the Central Plains, making it possible to retreat and join forces with the Turks or Goguryeo if needed, giving a high margin for error.

Luoyang, in the heart of the Central Plains with convenient transport, meant the Sui army could quickly surround and support from all sides. Even if they captured Luoyang, further expansion would be very difficult. If they lost, there would be no escape.

Li Mi originally thought that as the son of Yang Su, Yang Xuangan would have some strategic insight. But after seeing Yang Xuangan’s intention to attack Luoyang, he reluctantly suggested it was a poor choice.

Yet Yang Xuangan still wanted to go for Luoyang? Did he really think that capturing Luoyang would make the whole world rally to him? Yang Guang was still alive!

Li Mi suddenly felt that Yang Xuangan fancied himself a Xiang Yu, and in some ways, he really was like Xiang Yu: “returning home in glorious attire” and “a crowned monkey in silk.”

Although Li Mi was still treated with respect by Yang Xuangan, a sense of withdrawal began to stir in his heart.

Yang Xuangan didn’t seem like someone who could succeed. He needed to be prepared to run at any time. Sigh.

After much hesitation, Yang Xuangan said to Li Mi: “I still intend to attack Luoyang. We’ll go to Luoyang first; if its defenses are too strong, we’ll take the route to Zhuojun instead.”

Li Mi breathed a sigh of relief. Well, at least Yang Xuangan had some common sense—he knew that if the first option failed, the second choice should be to attack Yang Guang directly, not Gao Jiong.

Once Yang Xuangan made up his mind, he began conspiring for rebellion in earnest.

He gathered supplies and recruited soldiers under the pretext of protecting his son and planning for rebellion, then led his army toward Luoyang.

Li Mi frowned as he looked at Yang Xuangan’s “100,000-strong army.”

He had expected that since Yang Xuangan dared rebel, he would have at least about 5,000 elite troops ready.

Surely there would be at least 3,000 well-equipped cavalry with horses, armor, and weapons?

Unexpectedly, apart from himself and a few personal guards, Yang Xuangan’s “100,000-strong army” was poorly equipped, completely lacking siege capabilities.

Hadn’t Yang Xuangan been preparing for rebellion all along? His preparations were shockingly inadequate.

Li Mi reasoned that perhaps it was because Yang Guang’s surveillance was too strict, leaving Yang Xuangan no chance to amass a true rebel force.

Yang Guang’s prestige remained intact, and his strict monitoring of ministers made it natural that the Duke of Chu couldn’t gather forces in advance. Li Mi told himself he shouldn’t blame him.

…

“Achoo.” Li Xuanba rubbed his nose.

He tightened his fur cloak and finished the last entry in his ledger.

“The nobles of the Western Regions are astonishingly wealthy, comparable to the desert magnates of later times,” Li Xuanba said with a smile. “I can finally provide five hundred elite troops for Second Brother.”

Five hundred fully equipped cavalry might not be enough to dominate the entire realm, but it was more than enough to establish dominion over a single region.

After years of effort and preparation, Li Xuanba finally assembled a truly elite force for his brother, who had commanded ragtag troops for years. His brother could now focus solely on military strategy, without worrying about other concerns. This sense of accomplishment made even the normally calm Li Xuanba swell with pride.

There was something wonderful about quietly building up power bit by bit and succeeding.

After finishing the accounts, Li Xuanba opened the letters sent by his family.

His father’s letter only reminded him and his brother to take care of their health, filled with endless “life advice.”

His mother’s letter described the current state of the Central Plains. By the time the letter arrived, Yang Xuangan had not yet rebelled, but civil unrest had grown more frequent.

In March, Yang Guang personally led a second expedition to Goguryeo. At the same time, he conscripted 100,000 civilians to repair and expand Daxing City.

In her letter, his mother sighed. The emperor claimed only men of conscription age were drafted, but when she went to Daxing to visit her daughter, she saw that among those performing labor, there was not a single man of proper conscription age.

There were no such men.

The men of conscription age were not enough for the Goguryeo campaign; even the strong women had already been conscripted. The “men of conscription age” sent to Daxing were all very young or very old.

Li Xuanba sighed.

In March, Yang Guang personally led the campaign against Goguryeo, and also expanded and repaired Daxing.

In the same month, uprisings broke out in Shanyin (Meng Haigong, Cao County, Shandong), Qijun (Meng Rang, Jinan, Shandong), Beihai (Guo Fangyu, Yidu, Shandong), Pingyuan (Hao Xiaode, Pingyuan, Shandong), Yanci (Ge Qian, Wudi, Shandong), and Bohai (Sun Xuanya, Yangxin, Shandong).

This was not just the area east of the Xiaoshan Mountains; it was almost the entire Shandong region.

The Shandong Peninsula, facing the Korean Peninsula across the sea, was the region most heavily exploited for manpower during Yang Guang’s Goguryeo campaign.

At the same time, in the past two years, the Shandong Peninsula had suffered severe droughts and floods, leaving the people in dire straits.

When Li Xuanba had gone to the foot of Mount Tai back then, Shandong, especially near the commanderies and counties, had been relatively stable. Now, it seemed most of Shandong’s counties had fallen.

Yet Shandong was so close to the Korean Peninsula, and even with widespread unrest and lost counties, Yang Guang hadn’t stirred an inch.

He truly looked down on civilian uprisings.

After reading his mother’s letter, Li Xuanba took a moment to process these troubling news before picking up the letter from Yuwen Zhu.

Yuwen Zhu also mentioned the corvée labor in Daxing City.

She had wanted to go out and practice medicine, but her teacher had stopped her, saying that she wouldn’t be able to save everyone and might even trigger more chaos, so she could only refrain from helping.

“My teacher said that the world is sick, but we physicians can only treat people’s illnesses, not the world’s. I asked my teacher and my grandfather who could heal the world’s ailments, and they both remained silent. Actually, I understood—no matter who it was, it had nothing to do with a girl like me. Asking is useless, so it’s better not to.”

From the lines, Li Xuanba could sense Yuwen Zhu’s self-reproach, and he couldn’t help but drift into thought.

When he returned home this time, he would tell Zhu Niang that she must also contribute to healing the world’s ills. Their mother would join, the third sister would join, even the sister-in-law would join. Zhu Niang would surely assist them all.

After a small complaint, Yuwen Zhu turned to matters regarding people around her.

Li Xuanba read on, and his eyes suddenly widened.

“Guanyin developed a respiratory illness, but luckily I discovered it early. My teacher said that if a respiratory disease drags on, it becomes incurable for life, so we have to manage it as best we can. It scared Guanyin into loud sobbing. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen her cry so hard.”

“Third sister first mourned her elders, then attended to the sick, and her health suffered greatly. I treated her a little. She didn’t even realize her condition had worsened. I warned her, ‘Long-term health decline could threaten your life.’ Lady Chai forbade third sister from caring for the sick; if she insisted, she wouldn’t take medicine, forcing her to rest. Lady Chai really cares for third sister.”

“Now, in the capital, many wives of nobles invite me to adjust their health. They say ordinary physicians cannot diagnose them carefully, and they’re fortunate to have me, a female doctor. As Sanlang said, my abilities truly are useful. Though I feel guilty being called a ‘famous doctor,’… I really am capable!”

Li Xuanba chuckled, and his worry eased.

Indeed, she really was capable.