Chapter 117: Capturing the Military Supervisor
"I am Li Xuan, the deputy envoy of Longyou Jiedushi and the governor of Jiedushi. I command more than 70,000 border troops in Longyou, and control the county soldiers, miners, and Hu people. I heard that more than 200 laborers in Qiushan Iron Mine rebelled, so I came to ask the reason. Tell me what you know. If you dare to conceal it, I will punish you severely."

Li Xuan used both soft and hard tactics and spoke loudly to these laborers and craftsmen.

All together, there are only about 150 people.

How could it not be strange that most of the people died at once due to labor?
Li Xuan sounded very powerful, but the laborers were still afraid of Guo Dahu and dared not speak out. Because Guo Dahu had always claimed that his uncle was the most powerful in Longyou, and all the governors and generals had to act according to his uncle's mood. Moreover, his uncle was a popular figure in front of the saint.

"Whoever tells me the cause and effect of the rebellion will be pardoned, allowed to return home, and given money to go home."

Li Xuan offered even more tempting conditions.

"Do you really mean what you said?"

As soon as Li Xuan finished speaking, a strong man stood up.

The other laborers also became agitated.

"a man of his words."

Li Xuan smiled.

He would not break his promise for this.

"I've lived for a long time anyway, I won't linger any longer. Let me stay with the corpses in the ravine today!"

The strong man risked his life.

"This untouchable also wants to rebel. Come, arrest him."

Guo Dahu suddenly stood up and gave the order.

More than a dozen of Guo Dahu's diehard followers immediately stepped forward with their swords drawn.

"Shoot them!"

Li Xuan spoke lightly.

"Shhhhhh!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a dozen personal guards appeared behind him.

"Pfft! Pfft..."

Within twenty or thirty steps, all of these miners were hit by arrows in vital parts.

At the same time, Luo Xing led sixty cavalrymen with bows and arrows to guard against other miners.

Guo Dahu opened his mouth wide, unable to believe it.

The remaining miners quickly dropped their weapons, some of them had trembling legs and wet their pants out of fear.

The laborers and craftsmen were also speechless. It seemed that this general, who looked very young, could really control Guo Dahu.

"Using force in front of the Jiedushi is the real treason." Li Xuan said to Guo Dahu, and at the same time ordered the military commander: "Record this matter."

"As ordered!"

Dian Jun took the order, and he also lamented in his heart that Guo Dahu was too bold and even wanted to kill Li Shuai.

"Come here, you can speak now."

Li Xuan called the strong man to his side.

The sturdy man carefully told Li Xuan what he knew.

When he was halfway through speaking, Li Xuan grasped the clue.

He began to have his personal guards arrest and interrogate the accountants in the iron mine, Guo Dahu's confidants, and some mining soldiers' leaders one by one.

Li Xuan permitted torture to extract a confession.

The laborers at Qiushan Iron Mine did want to escape, but they had no choice.

During his time in charge of the Qiushan Iron Mine, Guo Dahu was extremely cruel. He would order the laborers and slaves to be whipped and caned at will. Whenever he was not satisfied with something, he would take his anger out on the laborers and slaves. He also often withheld food and sometimes even starved them of food as a punishment.

Every few days, a body would be thrown into a ditch two miles away.

Guo Dahu also said: We need to fill that gap within ten years.

A few days ago, a servant overheard General Guo Dahu secretly selling official iron to Hexi in exchange for gold and silver, and only took a small portion of the iron to hand over to Longyou.

The slave turned around and told the secret to the other laborers.

The naive laborers gathered together, hoping to use this as a threat to ask Guo Dahu not to beat them up at will and to treat them like human beings.

But who is Guo Dahu?

His uncle was the military inspector Guo Quan, so how could he indulge slaves and forced labor?
He publicly executed the slave who spread his secrets, and ordered soldiers to beat other laborers to let them know who was the king of Qiushan Iron Mine.

A group of lowly slaves and laborers had no right to negotiate with him.

The resentment of the laborers had reached a critical point, and Guo Dahu's final inhumanity caused the laborers to explode.

They desperately wanted to escape and leaked the secret of Qiushan Iron Mine to the government.

But the miners were armed with swords and spears, as well as bows and arrows. How could they be their opponents?

Guo Dahu, who was bloodthirsty, ordered all the slaves who threatened him to be killed. Even if some of them begged for mercy, Guo Dahu would kill them.

Only the faint-hearted survived.

In Guo Dahu's opinion, there were so many exiled criminals and slaves, and if one or two hundred of them died, a new batch of people could be replenished quickly.

The accountant, other soldiers and clerks could not stand the torture and confessed one after another.

They now sell 20,000 kilograms of official iron every year, and most of the gold and silver they earn in exchange are given to Guo Quan as a gift.

It can be said that Guo Quan knew about this matter from beginning to end.

Li Xuan asked them to sign and seal the case to make it an ironclad case.

What made Li Xuan feel a little relieved was that the Weirong Army was not involved in this case.

"You look like a human being, but your heart is as vicious as a snake or scorpion."

Li Xuan held a copy of the indictment and spoke to Guo Dahu.

"How could I have killed as many people as you, a great and powerful general?"

Guo Dahu retorted that he firmly believed his uncle could help him settle everything.

He will have the last laugh!
"I charge into battle and kill for the sake of fighting, but you kill for the sake of killing. It's a pity that you only have one life, otherwise, for your crimes, you would have died a hundred times."

Li Xuan was not a bloodthirsty person. After he finished speaking, he signaled Guo Dahu to sign.

"Don't even think about getting me to sign!"

Guo Dahu turned his head away.

"Hard talk? Well, let's see who is harder, your words or my whip."

Li Xuan asked Luo Xing to whip Guo Dahu.

"Clap clap clap..."

The sound of whips was loud at night, and Luo Xing stripped Guo Dahu's shirt off.

In a few strokes, Guo Dahu's skin was torn into pieces.

"what……"

Luo Xing's attacks became increasingly severe, causing Guo Dahu to pass out from the pain.

"what……"

Li Xuan ordered to rub salt into Guo Dahu's wounds. His shrill screams made the laborers and craftsmen of Qiushan Iron Mine feel very relieved.

The miners were even more afraid, as they had treated their laborers in this way before. Now their weapons were confiscated and they were waiting for Li Xuan's disposal.

"I sign..."

Guo Dahu finally couldn't hold on any longer and uttered two words weakly.

Faced with the accusations put forward by Li Xuan, Guo Dahu signed his name and put a fingerprint on it.

This indictment pointed all the blame at Guo Quan.

Li Xuan accused Guo Quan of selling 100,000 kilograms of official iron over the years, which was an unforgivable crime.

After learning from the clerks that the official iron had been sold to the Tibetans, Li Xuan pointed out that this was aiding the enemy and would allow the Tibetans to produce more armor and weapons to fight against the Tang Dynasty.

This has touched Li Longji's sore spot.

Li Xuan organized the entire case and wrote it down.

Together with these certificates, they were sent to Shanzhou City overnight, and then sent to Chang'an via the post station at an accelerated speed of 600 miles.

As long as he overthrows Guo Quan, he can establish his absolute authority and truly command the Longyou Army from then on.

The new military supervisor would never dare to make decisions again.

"General, what should we do with those miners?"

At dawn, Dian Jun asked Li Xuan.

"Guo Quan and Guo Dahu, uncle and nephew, are conspiring for treason. They knew about it but didn't report it, and they took human lives lightly. They should be put to death. But I have shown special mercy and spared their lives. They killed the laborers, and from now on, Qiushan Iron Mine will be mined by them!"

After weighing the pros and cons, Li Xuan decided to let these people fill the labor gap.

From then on, the Weirong Army sent soldiers to guard them.

"General An, I will appoint you as the commander of the Weirong Army. You will stay in the Weirong Army City and wait for the imperial edict to arrive. In addition, I think it is meaningless to build the Weirong Army here. I will apply to the court to recruit another 2,000 soldiers for the Weirong Army and station the Weirong Army in the Qinghai area in the future. I will mobilize 500 war horses for you from the Jincheng Pasture Supervisor and the Guangwu Pasture Supervisor to form the Weirong Army cavalry."

Li Xuan said to the yamen runner An Zhongzhang.

"Thank you, General Li. Within three months, I will be familiar with all the mountains and rivers leading to Qinghai and will be ready to obey your orders at any time to repay your trust."

An Zhongzhang bowed to Li Xuan.

He had been in office for less than a month when Li Xuan promoted him to military envoy.

After the expansion, the Weirong Army was no longer a small army.

He had no way to repay Li Shuai, so he just waited for Li Shuai to launch an offensive against Tubo, and he would lead the troops and make great contributions.

He would never disobey military orders like the previous military commander did out of fear of the military supervisor.

……

Changan.

"Oh!"

"Would Shichiro be such a person?"

Li Longji slammed the jade table, his face full of anger.

When he and Lady Yuhuan were having a good time, the eunuch quickly presented Guo Quan's secret letter to them, which ruined his good mood.

"What's wrong, Saburo?"

Yang Yuhuan turned and asked Li Longji.

"The military supervisor of Longyou secretly reported that Qilang was plotting rebellion."

Li Longji, who had high hopes for Li Xuan, was very angry.

"Pfft..."

"How could Qilang rebel? I've often heard that rebellion requires hoarding food, collecting money, and manufacturing weapons, which takes at least a few years of preparation. How long has Qilang been in Longyou?"

Yang Yuhuan chuckled. She had a good impression of the heroic and elegant Li Xuan. He didn't look like someone who would rebel.

"Makes sense!"

Li Longji nodded slightly and showed the secret letter to Yang Yuhuan.

"Sanlang, there is no evidence or reason in this letter, just a sentence of buying people's hearts and deliberately plotting rebellion. Do you want to kill Qilang?"

Yang Yuhuan took a look at the secret letter and threw it to Li Longji.

"What does Guo Quan mean?"

Li Longji was a suspicious person. Even though he felt that Guo Quan's letter was untenable, the doubts in his heart could not be shaken off.

At this time, Gao Lishi came to Li Longji.

"Saint, Shichiro has a letter for you!"

Gao Lishi actually received the letter yesterday.

Guo Quan treated him with great respect and often sent him rare items, which made him a little hesitant about the cause and effect of this.

Thinking that Huangfu Weiming had been in Longyou for more than three years, he went to ask Huangfu Weiming this morning about how Guo Quan was doing.

Huangfu Weiming had no choice but to admit that Guo Quan had ten thousand acres of fertile land in Xiping County and had also occupied military settlements.

Huangfu Weiming was not clear about the output of Qiushan Iron Mine. His subordinates reported to him that the mine was almost empty and the iron production was decreasing. Everyone knew that Guo Dahu was the nephew of the military supervisor Guo Quan, so it was difficult to investigate.

Gao Lishi had selfish motives, but his greatest virtue was his loyalty to Li Longji.

The embezzlement of state iron and the death of more than 200 laborers have already threatened Li Longji's rule. Even if Gao Lishi is optimistic about Guo Quan, he must tell Li Longji about this.

In history, the master and servant were forcibly separated by Li Fuguo. On his way back, Gao Lishi learned that Li Longji had passed away. He was so sad that he vomited blood and died immediately.

Only after Li Xuan knew this did he feel comfortable handing the letter to Gao Lishi.

Li Longji immediately opened the letter and looked through it.

But it was Li Xuan's memorial impeaching the military supervisor Guo Quan!
First, Guo Quan had tens of thousands of acres of fertile land in Xiping County and countless wealth.

Second, Guo Quan prevented the Jiedushi from leaving Huangshui City, making it impossible for the Jiedushi to carry out military orders.

Li Xuan also told Li Longji about his plan with Gao Xiuyan to lure the enemy deep into the territory, but because of Guo Quan, this plan was difficult to implement.

Third, Guo Quan stopped him from investigating the rebellion of more than 200 laborers at Qiushan Iron Mine. The general guarding Qiushan Iron Mine was Guo Quan's fake son.

Fourth, Li Xuan directly sued Guo Quan for embezzling state-owned iron and enriching himself with Guo Dahu. Over the years, Qiushan Iron Mine has lost at least 100,000 kilograms of iron.

Unlike the secret letter in which Guo Quan slandered Li Xuan, Li Xuan's memorial was well-founded.

Finally, he requested that Li Longji send the Censor-in-Chief and his trusted eunuchs to Longyou to investigate.

"Li Shi, this is the secret letter Guo Quan just sent! What do you think?"

Li Longji gave Guo Quan's secret letter to Gao Lishi for him to read.

"Qi Lang must have discovered Guo Quan's embezzlement of the iron mine, so he turned the tables and tried to trick the Saint into executing Qi Lang. Alas! This secret letter is full of loopholes. Qi Lang probably doesn't even have a grasp of the Lintao Army. Besides, from Qi Lang's poems, we can see that Qi Lang is loyal to the emperor and the country. Qi Lang has always handed over the treasures he has obtained. He will not do such a thing!"

Gao Lishi was so disappointed that he could not save Guo Quan. He had gone too far.

"Guo Quan, this beast, dared to embezzle the iron, dared to stop Qilang from making military achievements, and even wanted to kill my general. I will cut him into pieces!"

It’s clear who to trust.

Li Longji suddenly became enlightened because of this letter. Qilang had just been in Longyou for a few days, but he was already accusing him of rebellion. Isn't this slander?

"Saint, calm down!"

Gao Lishi helped Li Longji calm down his anger temporarily.

A few days later, Li Xuan's new memorial arrived in Chang'an again.

Coincidentally, before Li Xuan's memorial arrived at Xingqing Palace, Li Longji received another secret letter from Guo Quan.

"Guo Quan said that Qilang sent cavalry to control Huangshui City and had already rebelled."

Li Longji was once again caught in a dilemma.

"Sanlang, didn't you tell me a few days ago that Huangshui has no population, is not rich, and has no strategic points to defend. If Qilang really rebels, how could he occupy it? How many people in the army will support him? Besides, the Duke of Song and others are all in Chang'an. The day before yesterday, he came to the palace to apologize for making a typo in the article he sent to Sanlang!"

Yang Yuhuan was very smart. She cited many examples and argued that Li Xuan had no reason to rebel.

"Yuhuan knows what I am thinking, and I think the same way!"

Li Longji's knot was untied again.

"Oh!"

An hour later, when Li Xuan put all the evidence in front of Li Longji, Li Longji became furious again.

He sent his trusted eunuch Li Jingren, as well as the Censor-in-Chief and the Palace Censor, escorted by a hundred Yulin troops, to Longyou to confirm the case.

At the same time, Qi Baili urgently removed Guo Quan from his post as military supervisor and temporarily placed him in custody by Li Xuan.

The new military supervisor was a eunuch named Zhang Daobin. Before leaving Chang'an, Li Longji and Gao Lishi gave him a lecture.

Li Longji told him not to obstruct Li Xuan's military achievements, but only to report the battle situation to him in a timely manner.

Gao Lishi asked him to be honest.

This made Zhang Daobin realize Li Xuan's status in the hearts of the saint and Gao Lishi. After arriving in Longyou, he was very cautious, fearing that he would follow in Guo Quan's footsteps.

Li Linfu felt it was a pity and thought about taking the opportunity to kill Li Xuan.

But Li Xuan is not an easy person to deal with. He now knows that Li Xuan is not only loved by Gao Lishi, but also Yang Yuhuan has been speaking well of Li Xuan.

Even if he bribed Li Jingren and ordered the Censor to identify Li Xuan.

Li Xuan would certainly resist and use his omnipotent hands and eyes to present the letter to Li Longji.

Who knows, he might be implicated by then!

He even suspected that Li Xuan, this sinister little thief, was waiting to trick him!

It is illogical to say that Li Xuan is rebelling now.

To put it bluntly, even if there was a rebellion, it would not have been possible for him to rebel just two months after taking office.

What's more, Li Xuan's family is all in Chang'an.

……

Huangshui City.

After matters concerning the Qiushan Iron Mine were arranged, An Zhongzhang took charge of the Weirong Army and restored the iron mine to normal condition.

Soon after, Li Xuan will reassign accountants.

At the same time, Li Xuan asked An Zhongzhang to set a trap to arrest those criminals who bought iron.

If they were merchants, they were asked to pay back tenfold, and if they could not pay back, their property would be confiscated. If they were Hu people, all their assets would be confiscated, and if they did not have enough assets, their relatives would be asked to redeem them. If they were Tibetans, they would be captured for military merit.

To enrich the Longyou treasury.

Li Xuan kept his promise to the strong man who had confessed his crime to him before, pardoned his crime, gave him three strings of money, and allowed him to return to his hometown in Shu.

Li Xuan's actions in the Weirong Army soon spread to all the troops in Longyou.

Although Li Xuan's reasons were very sufficient, many generals did not dare to guarantee that they would listen to the military supervisor or the governor.

From the Jishi Military Commander to the Weirong Military Commander, all the generals knew that the military orders previously issued by Li Xuan were no joke.

If they make mistakes again, they may be the next to be fired.

When Li Xuan returned to Huangshui City, Guo Quan was still clamoring to kill Li Xuan without a burial place.

But after Li Xuan brought Guo Dahu back, Guo Quan's words became noticeably weak.

There was no way Li Xuan would let Guo Dahu go, and Guo Quan felt guilty.

He only hoped that the saint could make a wise decision and immediately send a special envoy to Huangshui City to execute Li Xuan after receiving his secret letter.

But he was destined not to live to see that day.

Seven days later, the imperial edict from Chang'an arrived first. Li Longji granted Li Xuan privileges and put Guo Quan in prison.

"Oh!"

Li Xuan brought his personal guards to Guo Quan's mansion and kicked the door open.

The personal guards, holding swords, filed in.

The Yulin Guards in Guo Quan's mansion wanted to stop him, but were scolded by Li Xuan: "According to the order of the Saint, Guo Quan embezzled state equipment and falsely accused the general. His military command is revoked, and his position as the military supervisor of Longyou is dismissed. He is temporarily detained in Huangshui and awaits the special envoy to come for trial."

When the Yulin Guards heard the imperial edict, they dared not move forward. Their duty was to protect the military supervisor.

But now Guo Quan is no longer the military supervisor.

"This is impossible!"

When Guo Quan appeared, he just heard these words. His face turned pale and he murmured: "I have served the saint since I was a child. How could the saint not trust me!"

"It must be fake. Li Xuan forged the imperial edict and arrested him."

Guo Quan suddenly looked up and yelled like a madman, pointing the staff in his hand at Li Xuan.

But the Yulin Guards remained indifferent.

The ones who moved were Li Xuan's personal guards. They held down Guo Quan who kept shouting, took away the saint's scepter, and presented it to Li Xuan.

Li Xuan weighed the staff and handed it to the assistant clerks at the back, asking them to take it to the government office and hand it over to the special envoy when he arrived.

There were many valuable items in Guo Quan's mansion, and he had over a hundred slaves.

But Li Xuan did not take any action. He handed the slaves over to Shangguan Qing, the governor of Xiping County, and ordered the soldiers to seal off his mansion.

This is irrefutable evidence!

(End of this chapter)