Chapter 159: The weakness of Tang was due to the strength of Hebei, and the demise of Tang was due to the weakness of Hebei.

After noon, the sound of horse hooves was heard in the village. As the horse went out, it startled a burst of greetings.

"I've met the captain."

"Captain, Fu Baihu..."

Even some people from Mobei who were still escorting baggage made way to the side, respectfully placed their hands on their chests, and bowed.

"General Xiao."

Xiao Yan, who was surrounded by the team, had a slightly stern expression on his face, but he still nodded slightly to his left and right, which was considered a response.

In a low attic in the manor at the back, Jiang Chen held a medical book in front of his forehead, looking at Xiao Yan's figure going away, and said unhappily: "Didn't they say it's a holiday today? Why is he so busy?"

At the long table in the attic, Ji Ruxue wanted to wipe the sweat off her forehead, but because there was flour on her fingertips, she just wiped it off gently with her wrist, and then subconsciously explained to Xiao Yan: "When we were in Fengxiang, King Qi was always very busy around the New Year..."

"whispering sound."

The surrendered minister threw away the medical book out of boredom and sat on a rocking chair supported by a wooden frame. He gently rocked the chair with his straight long legs, supporting his cheek and watching Ji Ruxue kneading the dough beside the long table, and then rolling out the dough, chopping the stuffing, and wrapping the stuffing, all in one go.

On the other side, the tip of the sister's nose, cheeks, and forehead were all covered with flour. She was not tall, so she had to stand on a stool to knead the dough properly. But even so, she still enjoyed it.

As she tried her best, she hummed some slang song that she had learned from somewhere.

"For the New Year's Eve dinner, you should eat a bowl of hot Yuanxiao..."

"Although I haven't eaten Yuanxiao for a long time, this thing should be eaten during the Lantern Festival, right?" The surrendered minister couldn't help but frown.

Sister didn't care, she said proudly: "I want it, I want the New Year's Eve dinner!"

"Tsk." The surrendered minister was disdainful again and couldn't help thinking that the New Year was really boring and not interesting at all.

However, when she saw Ji Ruxue pinching out small and delicate dumpling laces, she suddenly felt moved.

She spread out her slender fingers, only to realize that she had no experience in making dumplings.

Ji Ruxue, however, was extremely skilled and could even make the wraps in different ways, with each one being just right. Although they had to wait until nightfall to be cooked, they were already very appetizing.

Her natural tsundere nature did not allow Jiang Chen to do such a thing, but she could not help but move closer, clean her hands, and somehow imitated Ji Ruxue's movements to make a pinch.

"Is this appropriate?"

------

A few riders galloped out of the manor and into the wilderness.

The big manor at the back is located in a valley, with only one access and a river at the mountain pass, which requires a bridge to cross. Inside the manor, there are hundreds of acres of fertile fields, with more than a dozen tenant farmers working all year round. There is also a vast lake and swamp behind the valley, with a very pleasant scenery.

This mountain villa is not only free to move in and out, but also self-sufficient, and is an excellent natural shelter. Half a year ago, Xiao Yan passed by here on his way north, and was very keen to notice that this place could be used as a base.

At that time, the owner of the villa just regarded it as a remote suburban villa and did not have the ability to maintain a private army. Moreover, he was worried about the internal strife of the Liu family and was anxious to go south to the Central Plains to avoid disaster. So it was easily bought by Xiao Yan at a high price. Until now, it has become the main base of the Yanzhou branch in Hebei.

In fact, Xiao Yan bought this villa not only because of its practicality, but also because of its geographical location.

Yingzhou.

This place is located in the hinterland of the Hebei Plain, adjacent to Cangzhou, and is one of the gateways to Youyan. Before the Southern and Northern Dynasties, it was mostly called Hejian State, and in later generations, it was also called Hejian Prefecture. It has always been an important plain town defending Youzhou.

On the other hand, Yingzhou is also the gateway to the Central Plains. Although it is located in the plains and is far away from the Taihang Mountains, which is the boundary between the Loess Plateau and the North China Plain, it has one biggest advantage, which is that it is the central hub of several important towns.

Not far to the southwest is another important military town, Zhending, and not far to the southeast is Cangzhou. These three towns form an inverted triangle, almost guarding the gateway to cross the Yellow River and go south. After crossing the Yellow River is Kaifeng Prefecture, Bianliang.

It can be said that even if Cangzhou and Zhending are controlled by Daliang, as long as Xiao Yan controls Yingzhou, Hebei and Central Plains can come and go freely, go straight to the Yellow River and press Bianliang, so a Hebei station of the Yanzhou branch will be set up here.

In addition to this, there is another crucial step here, which is that the Bad People also have a branch in Yingzhou.

According to common sense, there is already a branch of the Bad People in Cangzhou, and its radiation range can cover the entire hinterland of Hebei. It seems unnecessary to set up another branch in Yingzhou, which is adjacent to it.

Xiao Yan initially thought the same. He did not understand why Yuan Tiangang, who lived 300 years ago, set up two branch offices in Hebei at the same time. But after hearing the explanation from Feng Dao, a local from Yingzhou, he felt that he should understand.

In today's world, Zhu Wen would be resentful about several towns in Cangzhou. It is naturally because Hebei is not in the hands of the Central Plains, and he cannot pose any threat to Hebei, while Hebei can easily threaten Bianliang. That is why he personally led several expeditions, not aiming to take over the entire Hebei, but also to control several towns in Cangzhou and seize the initiative over Yan.

But in the Tang Dynasty a hundred years ago, although the whole world was unified, the dispute between Hebei and Guanzhong lasted from the Southern and Northern Dynasties to the An-Shi Rebellion. The suppression of Hebei gentry by Guanzhong clans also lasted from the beginning of the Tang Dynasty to the end of the Tang Dynasty.

Before the founding of the Li Tang Dynasty, there was a conflict between Hebei and Guanlong.

Hebei is the most prosperous place in the world, but since the Qin and Han Dynasties, Guanzhong has been a rich place that once stood out from the crowd. Its basin terrain and fertile land provided strong support for various powerful lords. Especially after the Northern Zhou Dynasty destroyed the Northern Qi Dynasty, the Hebei gentry was once weak and not reused. When the Sui and Tang Dynasties ended the chaos and unified the world, they also reused the Guanlong Group.

The political demands of the Hebei region have never been met. Since the death of Dou Jiande in the early Tang Dynasty, resentment has reached its peak. Although most of the subsequent unrest was quelled, the people's hearts were unstable, or it could be said that the Hebei gentry were dissatisfied with Guanlong.

Under such circumstances, there would naturally be constant restrictions and suppression throughout the Tang Dynasty, especially after Emperor Taizong, many measures were intended to weaken the people's strength in Hebei.

During the Tianbao period, Hebei had heavy taxes and low salaries. Emperor Xuanzong restricted the local scholars in Hebei from taking the imperial examinations and recruited the Five Surnames and Seven Families to settle in Chang'an. He also imposed heavy taxes on the people east of Mount Xiao, established border towns in Hebei, and appointed Hu people as generals...

As a result of these measures, Hebei has had no hope of rising, and the influence of the gentry in the court and the army has become increasingly lower, and naturally they pose less and less threat to the ruling foundation of the Guanlong Group.

The results of these measures are naturally remarkable, but the people of Hebei are in a state of unrest that cannot be suppressed.

Under such circumstances, the Yingzhou Bad People branch came into being. Yingzhou is adjacent to several important towns and is only a hundred miles away from Zhuozhou (Fanyang). Any movement can be immediately reported to Tianting, which can be said to be the top combat force among the thirty-six branches.

At the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Yingzhou branch directly obeyed the Buliang General and had no leader. Its main purpose was to suppress Fan Yang for Yuan Tiangang, and it also had the purpose of monitoring the entire Hebei Province. Apart from the headquarters, its strength was secretly at the top of the thirty-six branches.

Xiao Yan also learned the secret of the Yingzhou Bad People's division from the old man and other eighth-generation bad people:

During the reign of Emperor Wu, Yuan Tiangang retired from his post as the Imperial Master and the Bad Commander. The powerful official Zhang Wulang controlled the government and wanted to usurp the throne. In order to kill Yuan Tiangang and eliminate this primary threat to him, he ordered the Yingzhou branch to go out in the name of the Bad Commander.

Although their plan ultimately failed, a glimpse of the strength of the bad guys in Yingzhou can be seen from this.

……

"The Yingzhou branch has always been very mysterious. Apart from the Hebei affairs, there is basically no movement."

Fu An, who was slightly behind Xiao Yan on horseback, added, "According to the old senior, the Yingzhou branch was almost removed from the list of the thirty-six branches after the Shenlong years.

However, according to some old people, the bad people in Yingzhou have always existed. When An Lushan and Shi Siming caused chaos, their shadows were often seen. After the An-Shi Rebellion, the court took many pacification measures in Hebei in order to win over the gentry in Hebei, and the bad people in Yingzhou gradually lay dormant..."

"In this way, they are indeed quite different from other branches." Xiao Yan said with a smile.

Fu An couldn't help but nodded: "I'm afraid he's not someone you can easily get along with..."

Behind, Feng Dao and Han Yanhui steered their mounts closer, and rode along with Xiao Yan on his left and right in the wind and snow.

"The disaster in Hebei started with Northern Qi. When Northern Zhou conquered Northern Qi, the population of Northern Zhou was only over 700,000 households, while Northern Qi had over 2 million households, almost three times that of Northern Zhou. Northern Qi's former territory was in Hebei and Shandong. Under such pressure, Northern Zhou would naturally consume the manpower of Hebei."

Han Yanhui was also from Hebei and was well aware of this period of history. He said, "In the last years of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Emperor Yang Jian of the Sui Dynasty inherited the Northern Zhou Dynasty and the Guanlong Group, and continued to suppress the former territory of the Northern Qi Dynasty. Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty conquered Goryeo several times, and he used manpower from Hebei in order to reduce the population of Hebei. Later, it was the Tang Dynasty..."

On the side, Feng Dao sighed.

“The Tang Dynasty was weak because Hebei was strong; the Tang Dynasty fell because Hebei was weak.

Although Hebei had been suppressed, the An-Shi Rebellion wiped out the Guandong prefecture and county troops and the elite northwest frontier troops controlled by the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, the three towns in Hebei began to form a de facto separatist regime. From then on, they relied on their powerful deterrent power to force the other ambitious vassal towns to obey the Tang Dynasty, so as to barely maintain the balance between the three parties. This is the "weakness of the Tang Dynasty".

However, since the Huang Chao Rebellion, Zhu Wen and Li Keyong have risen rapidly, crushing the three towns of Hebei, the various towns of Shandong, Hezhong, Henan and other towns. The three towns of Hebei were weak and could not hold Zhu Wen hostage. The Tang Dynasty center also had no spare power to call on the other towns. The balance was broken, allowing Zhu Wen to usurp the Tang Dynasty and establish himself... This is the "fall of the Tang Dynasty."

The few of them already knew each other well, and they did not show any extra respect to the Emperor of Zhu family in their words. Since Feng and Han had already recognized Xiao Yan as their leader, they would not be shy about addressing him in private, which made their words clearer and easier to understand.

Fu Anting, who was standing by, was confused, but Xiao Yan had to admire Feng and Han.

After all, they are still literati, and both of them are extraordinary literati of the time, and their views are indeed very advanced.

Feng Dao and Han Yanhui were able to point out the truth that others could not understand: the reason why Zhu Wen had the courage to establish his own regime in place of the Tang Dynasty was not because he was really incredibly powerful, but because he had the confidence to achieve a balance between the Tang Dynasty and the local separatist regimes.

If the three towns in Hebei were still strong enough to force Zhu Wen to maintain the name of the Tang Dynasty and unite the various vassal states, the Tang Dynasty would naturally continue to exist. However, Hebei was already weak, and the balance maintained by the Tang Dynasty had completely lost control. Zhu Wen would naturally take over and begin to inherit the "centralization" that the Tang Dynasty had always wanted to do after An Lushan but had never been able to do.

Even so, Zhu Wen was still wary of Hebei. He waged wars year after year just to eliminate the three towns in Hebei and Li Keyong. After all, Li Keyong lived in Hedong, which was also in Hebei, and was a major threat to the Central Plains. Only by completely eliminating Hebei could he sit securely on the throne.

In contrast, Zhu Wen never took the princes in Jiangnan and other places seriously from beginning to end.

Feng Dao lowered his voice and whispered, "The root cause of Hebei's troubles lies in the fact that there has been no powerful ruler in Hebei for hundreds of years... Although Zhu Wen dominates the Central Plains, he may not necessarily win the hearts of the people of Hebei. This chaos is your chance, my lord."

Xiao Yan nodded slightly. What Feng Dao said was right. In fact, it was true. The bad relationship between Hebei and Guanzhong did not end until several decades later, when Zhao Kuangyin, who was born in Hebei, became emperor and established the Song Dynasty, ending the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms.

Han Yanhui stroked his beard and said in a deep voice without reservation: "The land of Yan and Zhao has been full of generous and tragic people since ancient times. If a heroic lord can meet the accumulated resentment for hundreds of years, they will be able to take advantage of the situation and help the lord to win the world.

Hebei, which is controlled by Liu Rengong, has only one tenth of its strength. But if the lord can obtain it, he can look down on the Central Plains and purify the world! Achieve the story of Emperor Guangwu! "

Later, Fu An was dumbfounded. Listening to what the two said, he could not help but stare at Xiao Yan's back in amazement, his heart beating wildly.

What on earth was the Captain thinking...

Unexpectedly, Xiao Yan just smiled and said, "You two gentlemen are really worrying too far ahead. At present, I am the Jiedushi of Guide in Daliang."

After these words were spoken, both Feng and Han could not help but sigh.

The two of them naturally knew that it was not a good time for Xiao Yan to split off from Hebei. His foundation was too weak to represent the hearts of the people of Hebei. He could only do it slowly and gradually.

But if that 'Yingzhou Bad Man' is really as powerful as the legend says, he would be a great help in controlling Hebei.

They said nothing more and rushed eastward.

Outside a dilapidated and old temple, everyone dismounted. Xiao Yan walked in alone with his hands behind his back, entered the temple gate, and entered the central hall.

There is no Buddha statue in the central hall, only a faded paint chair.

Xiao Yan stepped forward and gently stroked the dust off the chair, remaining silent.

After a moment, two low and cold voices suddenly sounded out of nowhere.

“The Bad Guys have been disbanded for a long time.

The Tang Dynasty is dead.

Who summoned me, the bad guy from Yingzhou? "

(End of this chapter)