LFHYB -Chapter 127 The Three Clans of Hedong Begin to Take Sides

Li Xuanba’s arrival in Hedong Commandery was like a single stone dropped into a thousand-layered wave. Not only Hedong itself, but scholars from the surrounding regions ignored the widespread unrest and all flocked to Hedong to pay a visit to this youngest xiucai of the Great Sui.

The title xiucai carried immense weight in the Sui dynasty. Although Li Xuanba’s path to earning it had been somewhat “watered down,” his later achievements proved that he truly deserved the name. Thus, the name “Scholar Li” once again resounded throughout the Central Plains.

What was more, Scholar Li’s résumé included three giants of the literary world: Gao Jiong, Yuwen Bi, and Xue Daocheng.

As for Changsun Sheng—at this point he had almost no presence at all. And Pei Shiju? Sorry, he ranked even below Changsun Sheng. Even the Hedong Pei clan felt embarrassed to claim that one of their elders had once been Scholar Li’s teacher.

Yet Li Xuanba himself always said that Lord Pei had guided and looked after him greatly, and that he regarded Lord Pei as a mentor.

One could not have too many formally acknowledged teachers, but as many unofficial mentors as one liked. Showing respect cost nothing, and every one of them was a valuable connection. Besides, Li Xuanba knew that Pei Shiju had given him much support in Yang Guang’s court, so he genuinely felt well-disposed toward him.

In any case, Pei Shiju would one day devote himself wholeheartedly to his elder brother until death. Earning some goodwill in advance was only sensible.

Flattered to the skies by Li Xuanba, the Hedong Pei clan grew even closer to him.

Some of the Pei elders who had remained at the old estate even wrote to reproach Pei Shiju for not introducing a Pei daughter to Li Xuanba while they had been working together, thus letting the Yuwen clan snatch him away.

Pei Shiju was speechless when he read the letter.

Li Xuanba’s marriage had already been settled at the time, all right?! What nonsense were they spouting?!

After thinking it through, Pei Shiju realized what his clansmen really meant: they were asking whether they should offer a girl of lesser family background to Li Xuanba as a concubine.

Considering his disciple’s personality and frail health, Pei Shiju wrote back to decline the matter on Li Xuanba’s behalf.

Shaking his head, he smiled at Yu Shiji. “This disciple of mine really makes me worry.”

Yu Shiji replied, “What you say is exactly the same as my younger brother.”

Pei Shiju laughed. “What is he worrying about?”

Yu Shiji sighed. “About everything—his disciple’s health, whether his disciple is treated fairly by the Duke of Tang, his disciple’s friendships… you know how Li Erlang and Li Sanlang are both close to the Crown Prince.”

Thinking of the Crown Prince, Pei Shiju also sighed. “They are His Majesty’s nephews and have been close to the two princes since childhood. Who could have predicted how things would turn out? But if they were to grow cold toward the Crown Prince just because His Majesty does not favor him, your brother would no longer regard them as nephews.”

Yu Shiji thought to himself: aren’t you the same?

People like them did understand right and wrong—they had simply chosen to close their eyes for the sake of glory and wealth.

Yu Shiji asked, “If His Majesty were to vent his anger at Li Erlang and Li Sanlang because of the Crown Prince, what would you do?”

Pei Shiju smiled. “Naturally, I would have His Majesty keep Li Erlang and Li Sanlang stationed in Zhangye and not recall them to court without reason. They can atone for their supposed guilt through merit, and at the same time avoid provoking His Majesty’s displeasure.”

Yu Shiji stroked his beard and smiled. “That makes sense.”

For ordinary sons of the nobility, being sent to the frontier was misery beyond measure, almost the same as exile.

But for Li Erlang and Li Sanlang, it was a case of birds flying free in the high heavens, fish leaping in the vast sea.

Yu Shiji said, “General Yuwen has always liked Li Erlang and Li Sanlang, so he will continue to stand on their side. As long as it doesn’t endanger himself, Lord Su should also speak well for them.”

Pei Shiju replied, “Pei Yun will not say anything that runs contrary to us.”

When he mentioned that name, a trace of disdain flashed in his eyes.

Among the emperor’s close ministers, their reputations in the scholarly world were all poor—but there were still degrees of bad. Pei Yun was someone even Pei Shiju, his own clansman, could not stand.

Yu Shiji’s voice carried a note of sorrow. “Li Erlang and Li Sanlang must safely return to the frontier. With them there, the border will remain stable.”

Pei Shiju lowered his gaze. “Yes.”

They were attached to wealth and status, not fools. If they were fools, with so many flatterers around, how would it ever have been their turn to sit at the emperor’s side?

The Central Plains were about to fall into chaos, and the Great Sui was on the brink of collapse. They could see it clearly—they simply did not dare to speak.

If Li Erlang and Li Sanlang could hold the frontier, then even if the realm descended into turmoil, the Turks would find no chance to invade from the south.

Yu Shiji said, “Perhaps this is the only good thing I will ever do for the Great Sui.”

Pei Shiju replied, “Careful with your words.”

Yu Shiji gave a bitter smile. “I know.”

Riding a tiger, unable to dismount—riding a tiger, unable to dismount.

At least his younger brother was still clean; the Yu family still had a future.

After Yu Shiji left, Pei Shiju sighed for a long time. With a bitter smile he said, “I should have done more than just this one good deed for the Great Sui.”

Thinking of his two disciples, Pei Shiju felt heavy at heart.

With Pei Shiju’s protection, the Pei clansmen deliberated for a long time. Once they realized how highly Li Sanlang ranked in Pei Shiju’s heart, they let their people freely associate with Li Sanlang.

As for the Xue clan, that went without saying. Xue Daocheng was Li Sanlang’s proper teacher—the one he had respectfully served tea to—and they all treated Li Sanlang as one of their own.

Now wherever Li Xuanba went, he had Xue Deyin on his left and Xue Yuanjing on his right. Among the Xue family’s famed “Three Phoenixes of Hedong,” only Xue Shou was missing.

Xue Yuanjing asked in confusion, “Brother Xue, weren’t you serving as a Junior Compiler in Luoyang? Why are you back here?”

Xue Deyin said, “Why call me Brother Xue? Just use my courtesy name, Qingzhi. I stopped being a Junior Compiler long ago—I’ve been an official of the Eastern Palace all this time. And now…”

He shrugged. “The Eastern Palace has only one remaining official left—Yu Yanglian. So now I’m basically unemployed.”

Xue Yuanjing frowned. “Uncle, please be careful what you say.”

Xue Deyin replied, “Dade is also close to the Crown Prince. What do I have to be careful about in front of him? Right?”

Li Xuanba’s heart sank. “That’s true. But still, keep your voice down. If someone reports that you bear resentment toward His Majesty, His Majesty might ignore you—but he would very likely become even more hostile toward my second cousin.”

Xue Deyin was silent for a long while, then raised his hands in a formal salute. “I wasn’t cautious enough.”

Xue Yuanjing looked at the streaks of gray at his clan-uncle’s temples and couldn’t help sighing.

This generation of the Xue clan had produced three particularly famous young talents: Xue Shou and Xue Deyin were of the same generation, while Xue Yuanjing was their clan-nephew. But the three were close in age and were collectively known as the “Three Phoenixes of Hedong.” Xue Deyin was slightly older than the other two, but even now he was only in his early thirties.

When Xue Deyin had recommended himself for service in the Eastern Palace, he and Xue Yuanjing had once drunk together, full of ambition and high spirits.

Now, however, wrinkles had appeared between his brows, and white hair at his temples—he looked as though he had aged ten years.

Only now did Li Xuanba realize that Xue Deyin had entered the Eastern Palace.

He had never paid much attention to the roster of officials there, and since he had not lived in Luoyang for years, he knew little about personnel changes among low-ranking officials.

Though Xue Deyin carried the fame of being one of the “Three Phoenixes of Hedong,” that reputation was limited to Hedong Commandery. Few people in the court, let alone the empire at large, ever spoke of him. So unless Li Xuanba made a point of following his movements, news of him would never reach his ears.

In the original history, Xue Deyin had remained in the Eastern Capital, Luoyang. After Wang Shichong took the city, Xue Deyin submitted to him. When Prince of Qin Li Shimin later captured the two rival kings in battle, Xue Deyin was executed together with many of Wang Shichong’s subordinates.

Xue Deyin was Xue Shou’s cousin and Clan Teacher Xue’s clan-nephew. Li Xuanba had intended to pull him out once the empire descended into chaos.

Clan Teacher Xue wielded great influence within the Hedong Xue clan. Since he already knew that the future would belong to Second Brother, he would surely restrain his clansmen from recklessly throwing their lot in with others.

And out of respect for Clan Teacher Xue, Father would probably spare Xue Deyin as well.

Xue Deyin had entered officialdom early and, being older, never mixed with the young Li Shimin and Li Xuanba. Li Xuanba had therefore never paid him much attention.

He never would have expected that, in this timeline, Xue Deyin would end up serving under Crown Prince Yang Xian.

But thinking calmly, that choice was not surprising at all.

Xue Deyin had talent and ambition. Crown Prince Yang Xian, in both status and ability, was the best possible master for ambitious young men of that era. Even if Xue Deyin’s judgment had been poor enough to later serve someone like Wang Shichong, he would never have overlooked the Crown Prince’s brilliance.

He had sought to attach himself to him, and with someone like Yu Jian at the Crown Prince’s side—someone who could recognize talent—it was only natural that Xue Deyin would become an Eastern Palace official.

Was this the butterfly effect of his own actions?

Li Xuanba looked at the dispirited Xue Deyin and sighed inwardly.

Perhaps this premature hardship would be a good thing for Xue Deyin—perhaps it would spare him a great catastrophe of life and death later.

But for Xue Deyin himself, seeing the lord he believed in suffer such injustice would be a blow he would never forget for the rest of his life.

This Xue Deyin did not know that in the original history he was fated to die. All he could do was spend his lifetime mourning this experience.

After all, Li Xuanba’s second cousin was already destined for a tragic and heroic downfall.

“Do you want to go to Zhangye?” Li Xuanba said. “Go beyond the frontier and clear your head?”

Xue Deyin was about to say that he only wanted to stay home and read, but he was sharp-minded, and the Crown Prince’s affair had honed his sensitivity. He frowned. “But has His Majesty still not let His Highness go?”

Xue Yuanjing stammered, “No way, right? Even if His Majesty won’t let the Crown Prince go, surely the Eastern Palace officials who have already left won’t be implicated?”

Li Xuanba said, “Hard to say. That’s why it would be best for Qingzhi to leave his hometown for a while.”

Xue Deyin clenched his fists. “If you put it that way, it makes me want to go back to His Highness even more.”

Li Xuanba: “?!”

Hey—was he about to send Xue Deyin rushing straight toward a death trap with just one sentence?

With a headache, Li Xuanba said, “Then you should just stay here and behave.”

Xue Deyin shook his head without speaking.

Xue Yuanjing rolled up his sleeves. “If you dare go, I’ll knock you out and put you under house arrest.”

Li Xuanba racked his brain. “Qingzhi, Brother Xue, calm down. Think about it—if something really happens to the Crown Prince, his posthumous reputation will surely be smeared. You are a gifted writer, you helped compile the History of Wei, and you once served by his side. Only you can protect his name after death.”

Xue Yuanjing was almost in tears. “Li Sanlang, Li Dade, why are you talking as if His Highness is definitely going to die?!”

Xue Deyin stared fixedly at Li Xuanba.

Li Xuanba said, “I just know my second cousin. He’s always been proud and can’t bear to see the Sui dynasty sliding into the abyss. He will definitely do something to remonstrate with His Majesty. And His Majesty cannot tolerate remonstrance—especially from a powerful, grown Crown Prince whom he already fears.”

Xue Deyin collapsed, clutching his head. “Yes… His Highness is exactly that kind of man. I shouldn’t have left him. I shouldn’t have left… I was cowardly. I was a coward. What ‘Three Phoenixes of Hedong’? I’m just a coward! I’m not as good as Yu Yanglian—not as good as Yu Yanglian…”

With that, Xue Deyin broke down in sobs.

Xue Yuanjing patted his clan-uncle’s back, not knowing how to comfort him.

If this had happened to him, he would probably have reacted the same way. Fortunately, he was still young and not yet in office—he would not face such torment.

They were talking inside the Xue residence, so they did not fear their words being overheard. Moreover, the windows were open and the servants were far away; no one could hear their conversation.

After Xue Deyin cried out all the pain in his heart, Li Xuanba and Xue Yuanjing stayed by his side. When Xue Deyin’s mood finally eased, his bond with Li Xuanba had grown even closer.

However, on one particular day, Xue Deyin “disappeared.”

Xue Yuanjing beat his chest in frustration and even got into a fight with Li Xuanba.

Li Xuanba apologized over and over and sent people to look for Xue Deyin.

He had originally planned to secretly send someone to look for Yang Xian anyway.

Li Shimin and Li Xuanba discussed the matter for a long time. In the end, they decided to take a small risk and ask their second cousin whether he wanted to hide someone, in case Yang Guang decided not to leave him any descendants.

In history, Yang Xian had a posthumous son, Yang Zhengdao, who would not be born until several years later. At present, Yang Xian only had daughters.

Normally, political struggles would not involve daughters—but what if?

Moreover, the women in Yang Xian’s household were certainly different from those in the original history. Yang Zhengdao might very well be born earlier.

Yang Xian did not ask Li Shimin or Li Xuanba to do anything. He had only come to say farewell to them.

But knowing that danger lay ahead, Li Shimin and Li Xuanba still wanted to do something for their second cousin.

At worst, they would just force their father into rebellion ahead of time—no big deal.

When Xue Yuanjing heard that Li Xuanba had sent people to find Xue Deyin, he cried while apologizing, all the while angrily scolding Xue Deyin for being so unreliable.

With a runny nose and teary eyes, Xue Yuanjing said, “Everyone my age thinks I know too much and won’t befriend me. I’m closest only to my two clan-uncles. One of them went to Japan and never came back; now he writes saying he’s serving under General Chen, who’s stationed on Tsukushi Island, which has made the family worry themselves sick. And now another clan-uncle is causing even more anxiety. Shouldn’t I do something too, so they have to worry about me instead? Why do I, the junior, have to worry about them all the time?!”

Li Xuanba felt guilty for no reason.

Maybe—possibly—probably—both of Xue Yuanjing’s “troublesome” clan-uncles had something to do with him.

No, wait. He never told them to be this troublesome! He had only very sincerely tried to lure both Xue Shou and Xue Deyin into his own camp. Who knew they would turn out like this?!

Li Xuanba said, “Then… then do you want to go to Zhangye?”

Xue Yuanjing wiped his tears. “Yes! I’m going! I want them to worry about me too! I’m going to the frontier! I’ll go with you! I want to eat sand!”

Li Xuanba: “There actually isn’t much sand in Zhangye… fine, if you want to eat sand, I’ll take you to Yiwu City.”

Xue Yuanjing sniffed. “Good! This is making me so mad!”

Li Xuanba continued to feel guilty.

Ahem. This really isn’t my fault. And even if it is, my elder brother Li Shimin should bear at least half of it. He’s both elder brother and lord—he should shoulder the main responsibility.

After telling his family, Xue Yuanjing really did start treating himself as Li Xuanba’s subordinate and began helping him manage affairs in Hedong.

Xue Yuanjing’s “joining up” signaled that the Hedong Xue clan had now openly and unmistakably declared its support for the Duke of Tang’s household.

Although they acted close to Li Xuanba, the Hedong Liu clan and the Hedong Pei clan—who were still watching cautiously when it came to major decisions—could no longer sit still.

“How can the Hedong Xues just sneak off like that?!”

“Could they not? Xue Daoheng is Li Third Young Master’s teacher. The Hedong Xues have long treated Li Third Young Master as one of their own.”

“Hmph! What ‘Hedong Xue clan’? They’re just barbarians from Bashu who took over when we Hedong great families moved south—truly without the slightest dignity of a noble house!”

“Then what should we do?”

“Lord Pei is also Li Third Young Master’s teacher. Quickly see if there’s someone suitable in the clan who can press Xue Yuanjing down a notch!”

They searched through their people, only to discover with a headache that there really was no one who could outshine Xue Yuanjing.

If there were, the “Three Phoenixes of Hedong” would not all be from the Xue family.

Daring to represent the Hedong great clans was not something the Xues could achieve through self-promotion alone; it clearly had the tacit approval of the other Hedong families.

However, the Hedong Peis and Hedong Lius were not short of talent outside Hedong.

Both families had once migrated south, and so they had spread their branches across Henan, Hubei, Jiangdong, and other regions. Many capable members were serving as officials in the Southern Dynasties. Because they had once pledged themselves to the south, they had failed to seize early opportunities in the Sui.

Originally, the Hedong branches of the Pei and Liu clans were not very willing to promote these southern relatives.

Even within the same clan, distinctions of main branch and side branch, senior house and junior house mattered.

The original main branches had declined after migrating south, while the relatives who stayed behind had flourished. Naturally, the latter wanted to become the new main houses.

But when faced with inter-clan competition, they had no choice but to seek help from those relatives.

At least the meat would rot in their own pot.

They could not let that outsider, the Hedong Xue clan, benefit!

Though they still thought Li Second Young Master and Li Third Young Master were too young, the Duke of Tang’s seniority and reputation were still quite good. With such sons, he was worth investing in.

The two clans quickly sent out requests to relatives living elsewhere, hoping they would send capable people to suppress the “Three Phoenixes of Hedong.”

For a time, Hedong was stirred into turbulence and became exceptionally lively.

While the Pei and Liu clans were seeking outside support, they deliberately leaked this news to other great families.

Since they had decided to board the Duke of Tang’s ship, they naturally wanted to help build his momentum.

The Guanzhong aristocratic clans—who, together with the Xianbei military nobility inherited from Northern Wei, were known as the “Guanzhong nobles”—were far more bold and straightforward in choosing sides than the Shandong gentry, who had already lost most of their political power and were only hanging on through ancestral prestige.

In times of chaos, for the sake of final victory, they were perfectly willing to use their own reputations to bolster the future lord’s name, without the slightest stinginess.