Da Tang Shuang Long Zhuan

Everybody was emotionally moved.

Chen Laomou asked in disbelief, “Xue Ju had a very deep power; unless he suffered fire deviation, how could he suddenly fall ill and die?”

Kou Zhong was concerned over another problem, “What do you mean by the Tang Army was defeated?”

Luo Qifei responded, “His death is still a rumor. I think I’d better start from the beginning. Two months ago, Xue Ju personally led his main forces to attack Jingzhou. Along the way, his troops robbed, took prisoners, and killed, all the way to the vicinity of Binchuan and Qizhou, shaking Guanzhong. Thereupon Li Yuan sent Qin Wang Li Shimin as the Marshall of the Military Expedition to the West, with Liu Wenjing and Yin Kaishan as his deputies, leading his troops to meet the enemy at Gaoshu. Strange thing happened; Li Shimin suddenly fell ill, leaving only Liu and Yin, two men, to lead their main forces. Xue Ju’s elite cavalry came from behind, outflanking them in surprise attack. The fought fiercely from Binzhou’s Qianshuiyuan [lit. shallow water spring, not sure if this is a place’s name], resulting in the Tang Army lost nearly half of their troops and generals, as well as Gaoshu. Li Shimin was forced to return to Chang’an. Since raising his army, this was the first time Li Shimin lost a battle.”

Greatly astonished, Bu Tianzhi said, “That is surely a fantastic story. How did Li Shimin suddenly get sick at this time?”

Kou Zhong said, “If I am guessing correctly, Yin Gui Pai definitely has a part in this matter, and most probably the one undertaking the task was Wan Yaonu. Li Shimin could be considered outstanding as well, unexpectedly he did not die. Ha! I get it! Shi Feixuan chasing this yaonu all the way to Hefei, maybe it was because of this matter as well.”

Listening to that, everybody else was completely at a loss. Thereupon Kou Zhong briefly explained his thought, and then asked Luo Qifei, “What other rumor there is concerning Xue Ju’s death?”

Luo Qifei replied, “Some say that Xue Ju was assassinated, because several sichen before his death, he was still patrolling the army camp at the front line like energetic dragon and ferocious tiger.”

Slapping the table, Kou Zhong said, “Must be that kid Yang Xuyan. Only he has the ability to take the enemy general’s severed head in the middle of magnificent army with thousands of men and horses like feeling in his pocket and taking it out. Good kid!”

“But didn’t Yang Xuyan suffered big loss under Shao Shuai’s hands?” Luo Qifei asked.

Chen Changlin said, “Xue Ju’s son, Xue RenGao’s martial art skill is outstanding; it even surpasses his father’s. Moreover, his great general Zong Luohou is both intelligent and brave. Although Xue Ju is dead, I am afraid the Tang Army still cannot gain any benefit.”

Luo Qifei shook hid head in disagreement, “Xue Ju’s prestige is nothing that Xue RenGao could achieve. Xue RenGao’s greatest shortcoming is precisely his arrogance; he does not get along well with various generals. Xue Ju’s death most likely will be the pivotal point where the Western Qin Army would turn from prosperity to decline.”

With grave expression, Kou Zhong said, “Do you have any news from Liu Wuzhou’s side?”

Shaking his head, Luo Qifei replied, “There seems to be no activity.”

Kou Zhong mused, “Must be because the Tujue people are still unwilling to have an acrimonious falling-out with Li Yuan. Without the Tujues’ support, Liu Wuzhou and Song JinGang would never dare to move south rashly. Ay! This is called ‘to sit and waste a good opportunity’.”

Luo Qifei said, “But I heard that the reason Xue Ju was so bold and powerful and unstoppable in his advance to Guanzhong in the east is because the Tujue are supplying equipment and warhorses in secret.”

Chen Laomou said, “Is it possible that Liu and Song, two men, are afraid that if they led their troops to the south, they might benefit Xue Ju, father and son? Because they would never have anticipated that Xue Ju would suddenly meet a violent death; they only thought that Xue Ju, father and son, could greatly weaken the Li Clan’s strength, therefore, it would be best to let them fighting each other until both sides suffer. At that time, it would not be too late for them to swagger down to the south.”

Chen Changlin shook his head and said, “If they had that thought, then they did not understand the art of war. If I had to guess, I’d say that the reason Liu Wuzhou still did not dare to rashly go south must be because Dou Jiande is restricting his movement. This man would never showoff his debt toward the Tujue, not at all like Guo Zihe, Liang Shidu, and the others, who have to look at the Tujue’s countenance to conduct themselves.”

Because Chen Changlin had served under Wang Shichong, naturally he was familiar with the situation in the north.

Thinking deeply, Kou Zhong said, “Behind his back, Xue RenGao still has Li Gui. If the entire Western Qin Army came out of their nest and invaded the east, and Xue Ju lost his life along the way, what could Li Gui do?”

Luo Qifei said, “All along Li Gui covets the Qin’s Longyou [short name for Gansu] territory occupied by the Xue Clan, father and son. But as for what he is going to do, we don’t have any news yet. Our so-called latest intelligence is, at best, already two months old.”

Kou Zhong sighed and said, “Just like Xiaodi, Li kid is lucky. Based on the bits and pieces that I gathered, this kid Xue RenGao is adept at employing blitzkrieg strategy, which is matched equally by his brave generals and valiant soldiers. The praise of ‘soldiers and weapons acute and magnificent’ is definitely well deserved. Unfortunately, his adversary is Li Shimin. The Li kid’s greatest strength is ‘stable defense’, two words [wen shou], which is precisely Xue Ren Gao’s bane. My speculation is that Xue RenGao would enjoy small victories first but suffer crushing defeat later. Once Li kid captured Longyou territory, Li Gui will have no choice but to surrender, and then it will be the various hegemons outside the pass’ turn. Ay! We should have deployed our forces a bit sooner.”

Shaking his head, Chen Changlin said, “If the Li Family, father and son, really pulled their troops out of Guanzhong, they would potentially become the target of a multitude of arrows of the whole world. While admittedly Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande would definitely not allow them to succeed, various hegemons of the north and south might also seize the opportunity to go up north and go down south. Apparently, the situation is not that simple.”

Smiling wryly, Kou Zhong said, “I was hoping it was so. The problem is that not only Li Shimin understands heavenly strategy, he is adept in buying the people’s heart, and the worst thing is that this kid has Shi Feixuan’s support behind his back, who is spreading benevolence and righteousness image on his behalf. Therefore, many times, without trying too hard, he is able to receive the enemy’s surrendering soldiers. He must not be underestimated.”

And then he asked, “I have not had the opportunity to ask Changlin Xiong about the struggle between Wang Shichong and Li Mi!”

Chen Changlin replied, “When I left the Eastern Capital, Wang Shichong was still occupying the upper hand position; he is unceasingly expanding his territory, as well as recruiting a large number of Li Mi’s high-ranking military officers and soldiers. However, Wang Shichong practices nepotism, he is also narrow-minded; as a result, he is causing severe internal conflicts, with various factions fighting and scheming against each other. Plus he is highly unpopular; especially after the news that he wanted to kill Shao Shuai was spreading, even more generals are bitterly disappointed at him. All along, it would be difficult for him to succeed in the great undertaking.”

Bu Tianzhi asked, “From Li Mi’s side, which fierce generals throw their lot to Wang Shichong?”

Chen Changlin replied, “The most famous are, primarily, Qin Shubao, Cheng Zhijie, and Luo Shixin, three men. But in my opinion, it would be very difficult for Wang Shichong to retain their service.”

At long last Kou Zhong heard the news about Qin Shubao. Emotionally moved, he said, “Turns out Qin Shubao attaches himself to Wang Shichong. This man is definitely a fierce general that even Shen Luoyan was nearly defeated in his hands, only too bad for him Ling Shao and I messed up his situation.”

Bu Tianzhi said, “I hear Cheng Zhijie is also known as Cheng Yaojin [589-665, a famous general of the Tang dynasty]. In Wulin, he has quite a reputation. He is also a valiant general that can’t be ignored.”

Kou Zhong laughed and said, “The name Cheng Yaojin is a bit easier to remember. Cheng Zhijie is too bookish and sounds old! [Yaojin – biting gold/metal, Zhijie – understanding festival/holiday] How’s Li Mi, that kid’s current situation?”

Chen Changlin replied, “According to the intelligence that Wang Shichong received, Li Shimin’s top general Li Jing made contact with Li Mi’s chief imperial strategic adviser Wei Zheng [(580-643), Tang politician and historian, notorious as a critic, editor of History of the Sui Dynasty]. This Wei Zheng then persuaded Li Mi to surrender to the Li Clan. If this affair is accomplished, perhaps without even spending one soldier one troop, the Li Clan would obtain a large tract of land, which extended to the ocean on the east, to the River on the south, reaching Ruzhou to the west, and Kongwei County to the north, which currently under Wagang Army’s control. But I heard that Xu Shiji and Shen Luoyan are strongly opposing the proposal, assuming the heroic attitude of ‘better be a broken jade than surviving as a roof tile’. These two have great influence on Li Mi, hence Wang Shichong is still very at ease over this matter.”

Kou Zhong sighed and said, “Li kid is really formidable that he even thought about this. At least he only sent one person to speak a few words, Li Mi’s army is immediately split into two factions: those who want to surrender and those who want to fight. Very cost effective. We should study it well.”

Bu Tianzhi said, “While admittedly Wang Shichong, Liu Wuzhou and Dou Jiande are Li Yuan, father and son’s most formidable opponents, Xiao Xian and Du Fuwei are not adversaries without substantial threat either. They only need to remove some obstacles, and then they could move north at any moment. If I were Li Yuan, under these circumstance, I would definitely not move my troops to attack Luoyang.”

Frowning, Kou Zhong said, “Can Xiao Xian join hands with Du Fuwei? Under the same circumstances, this certainly cannot happen. But if Li Yuan, father and son, really take their troops out of Guanzhong, what is impossible will become possible.”

Chen Laomou said, “If the Li Family wanted to deal with either Xiao Xian or Du Fuwei first, they could only take the Jinchuan via the Bashu [Sichuan] route. Then most probably they would go down along the river, take Jiangling first, and then following the river, go east to attack Du Fuwei. However, this route is tiring to the troops, definitely not something that a wise man would do.”

Kou Zhong’s countenance changed, he exclaimed, “My Niang! Now I know why Shi Feixuan is going to the southwest!”

After staring blankly at Shi Feixuan for half a day, Xu Ziling showed a hint of bitter smile and said, “There is indeed a small misunderstanding between Miss Shi and I; frankly speaking, I originally decided not to come to Yuelai Inn to stay for the night, who would have thought that I met someone whom I did not want to meet? In order to get rid of his entanglement, I had to pretend that I had a friend who reserved a room for me here; as a result, I was forced to come here. To make the best after a mistake, I thought about staying here for one night, and then leaving tomorrow morning; who would have thought that Miss found me here? Hey! I am really sorry.”

Shi Feixuan was listening to him in keen interest, and then, with a smile on her face, she said, “This is called a destiny! Why did Ziling Xiong suddenly have the urge to pour out what’s in your mind?”

Recovering his free and at ease attitude, Xu Ziling replied calmly, “Before answering this question, can Xiaodi ask a question fist?”

Shi Feixuan replied indifferently, “Ziling Xiong, please go ahead.”

Xu Ziling said, “My understanding is that all the inns and hotels in Chengdu have already booked solid. Miss arrived here can’t be much earlier than I did, but how could you easily book a room for me? And why was the mister old shopkeeper outside was so respectful and so polite to me?”

Shi Feixuan replied nonchalantly, “It’s simply because I did it through someone else, and in Chengdu, this person is very resourceful. Now, can you answer Feixuan’s question?”

It was only this moment that Xu Ziling started to understand that Shi Feixuan’s trip to Chengdu was not as simple as it appeared on the surface, because with her character, she would never visit anybody, especially a man, this casually. After slight hesitation, he said, “The answer is very simple: simply because I did not wish to accept Miss’ invitation.”

Shi Feixuan did not think it was rude at all; on the contrary, she smiled even more cheerfully and said, “Naturally Feixuan has already guessed so, but I just wanted to hear Ziling Xiong’s explanation one step further. As I’m sure Ziling Xiong already know, Feixuan’s invitation absolutely does not involve any feeling between a man and a woman; rather, it was for different purpose.”

Xu Ziling’s heart grew even colder. But he quickly dispelled this vexing thought and said, “All Miss’s actions and speeches are enshrouded in profound mystery, how could we, mere mortals, understand it? Besides, right now I just want to get a good night’s sleep. Everything else can be considered tomorrow morning. Miss, please do not laugh at me.”

“Who would laugh at you?” Shi Feixuan spoke in displeasure, “I can only blame your mouth for not following your heart. The truth is that you are expecting Shi Qingxuan to come here looking for you. You also resent Feixuan’s view on Hou Xibai. Am I right?”

Stunned, Xu Ziling said, “I really did not think that Shi Qingxuan would come to look for me. From the tone of your voice, it seems that Miss does not have a peaceful relationship with Shi Qingxuan. As for Miss’s other guess, are you suggesting that I, Xu Ziling, am jealous?”

Just like her own description about the water flowing over the solid rock without leaving any trace, like a quiet water without any ripple Shi Feixuan said, “Just consider Feixuan misunderstood you! I was just trying to figure out what kind of man Xu Ziling really is. Not many people can arouse my curiosity like Ziling Xiong, and that is the truth. Will Ziling Xiong believe me?”

Smiling wryly, Xu Ziling said, “Other than the heavy responsibility you received from your master, what else can Miss possibly care about? This time I am going to Shu [Sichuan], I just want to warn Shi Qingxuan, to tell her to be careful of Yang Xuyan. Once I am done, I will immediately leave. Other things I don’t want to care, not to mention it is out of my control anyway.”

Shi Feixuan nodded and said, “Feixuan understands. If there were no Kou Zhong, Xu Ziling would become free clouds and wild crane, without any concern over the affairs of life. I respect Ziling Xiong’s decision; moreover, I hope that Ziling Xiong would be willing to do the same. Feixuan will take my leave now!”

※ ※ ※

Everybody looked at Kou Zhong in astonishment.

Kou Zhong took a sip of his wine and said heavily, “Shi Feixuan must be going to Sichuan to pave the road for Li kid. This will mean that if Xue RenGao didn’t fall into disadvantageous position, then he will be blown back to his roots by the Li kid.”

Everybody was speechless.

Ci Hang Jingzhai was the holy land that the Wulin world was looking up to. If they clearly showed their support to the Guanzhong’s Li Family, father and son, their prestige would potentially increase many times over. If Shi Feixuan personally take this matter into her hands by going to Bashu to speak on Li Shimin’s behalf, unless it was a stubborn man or someone with a hidden agenda of his own, it would be very difficult for anybody to say no to Ci Hang Jingzhai’s request. Moreover, if Xue RenGao were routed, the Li Clan’s fame and power would rise even more like the sun in the middle of the sky. To neutral regional powers, early attachment to the future ruler was naturally much more valued than an oath of allegiance when the time came.

Bu Tianzhi said, “Duzun Bao’s Xie Hui [see Book 22 Chapter 6] plays a critical role in Bashu. Without him giving the nod, no one would dare to act on his own initiative. He and the Song Family of Lingnan have in-laws relation, surely he won’t easily surrender to the Li Family, father and son?”

Smiling wryly, Kou Zhong said, “Zhi Shu has this view because you have not seen Shi Feixuan. Not only she is more beautiful than an immortal, her words, insight, knowledge and experience are as formidable as her sword. If she is willing to forgo her honor and surrender her nobility by taking the role of Li kid’s government official like Su Qin or Zhang Yi, I guarantee that she will be able to impress many people.”

And then, as if he had just remembered something, he turned to Chen Changlin and asked, “After the Dugu Clan was defeated and they ran out of Luoyang, where did they go?”

Chen Changlin replied, “The safest place will be Guanzhong’s Chang’an. Besides, they are relatives.”

Puzzled, Bu Tianzhi asked, “What relationship there is between the Dugu Clan and the Li Clan?”

Chen Changlin said, “Li Yuan’s father and Yang Jian each took Dugu Clan’s older and younger sisters as their wives, thus the relationship was established. My understanding is that there is Yang Xuyan thrown in the mix as the go-between, so Li Jiancheng ignored Li Shimin’s strong opposition and convinced Li Yuan. Therefore, although the Dugu Clan is lodging under another person’s roof [idiom: to live relying on someone else’s charity], they are extremely well-off.”

Kou Zhong felt big headache; thinking that he was about to go to Chang’an for a treasure hunt, yet his enemies were gathered there. This would make things doubly difficult for him.

After heaving a sigh, Kou Zhong blurted out without thinking, “After taking care of Shen Lun, I am thinking of going to Lingnan to pay my respect to Song Que.”

Everybody was caught in surprise that after the mountain road twists around each new peak [idiom: things have taken a new turn] he suddenly blurted that remark; they were all greatly astonished.

It was as if Kou Zhong was just awakened from a dream; seeing everybody was staring at him, he said, “What did I just say?”

Chen Laomou replied, “You said you wanted to see Song Que.”

“Ah!” Kou Zhong exclaimed; his old face slightly blushed, he nodded and said, “Right! I should pay an official call to him, the Senior. From here to Lingnan by boat, how many days will it take?”

Knitting his brows, Chen Changlin replied, “A few days will do. But this man, Song Que’s character is proud and aloof; he is very difficult to get along with. Shao Shuai hastily coming to his door, I don’t know how he will react.”

Chen Laomou spoke heavily, “Perhaps he would try Shao Shuai’s saber technique.”

Luo Qifei said, “The Song Family has never really participated in the power struggle after the Sui perished. I’ll say they might repeat the stratagem of obtaining the world from Yang Jian. Based on their superior geographical location, whoever becomes the emperor would have to placate them generously.”

Chen Changlin added, “Therefore, the Song Family can’t possibly be drawn directly into the power struggle of the present day. If Shao Shuai wanted to persuade them, you would only waste your time.”

Slightly embarrassed, Kou Zhong said, “I just want to say hello. But since gentlemen say so, let me give it some more thought!”

Yet the beautiful image of Song Yuzhi emerged in his heart; moreover, it quickly grew even more vivid and intense.