Chapter 8 Li Tang's New Deal

Wang Duo volunteered to go to Jiangling to command the Tang army to suppress the Huangchao uprising army. Unexpectedly, he was defeated by the rebels, and Wang Duo retreated to Xiangzhou. Soon, Wang Duo returned to Chang'an and was scolded by Li Qian. He was removed from the position of prime minister of Wang Duo and became a guest of the crown prince to work in Luoyang, Dongdu.

Lu Xi was ecstatic when he saw that Wang Duo was demoted. He took the opportunity to write a book and talked about his views on the conquest and suppressing of opposing forces such as Daqi and Sha Tuo, believing that it should be used to focus on caressing.

Li Jun read Lu's memorial and believed that it was reasonable. He put forward a policy of discussing and negotiating with Daqi. Li Tang Qunchen hoped to free up troops to eliminate Li Guochang and Li Ke's father and son's Shatuo soldiers first through peace with Daqi.

The edict first expressed serious concern about the issue of the civil uprising, and then confidently asserted that all "bandits" would definitely be quickly suppressed. Because the edict continued to put forward favorable conditions and official positions for the surrendered "bandits", this self-confidence in inevitable victory was reduced at that time. The edict pointed out how common the riots at that time were: "Jiangxi, Huainan, Song, Bo, Cao, Ying, or rob counties and resist the officers and army; or embarrassed merchants and captured them. Out of here, the birds pass away and drive away. The edict repeatedly stressed that failure is inevitable for criminals; it expresses the emperor's fatherly care for his subjects: "Hate is uneven food and clothing, and each causes *." However, for those who continued to destroy, the emperor vowed to "use troops without regret".

The Li Tang government put forward generous conditions for submission, and the leaders of the mutiny will be awarded official positions, titles and rewards. Of course, this only refers to formal ranks and nominal official positions. In the past century, the court has granted such titles to vassal officials who cannot be directly appointed to maintain nominal ties. The surrendered "bandit" leader will "reduce materials and clothing in Dafan Town". Generally, "bandits" will be sent back to the countryside for resettlement.

The edict instructs local officials to deal with "bandit" gangs that refuse to surrender. They should choose brave generals and soldiers and adopt flexible tactics to deal with the enemy. He can capture a "bandit" leader and his 500 generals, allow him to be super-apferred generals and reward thousands of people. Those who attack and kill bandits, recapture assets, weapons or collect intelligence will be awarded official positions and rewards according to their achievements. The government is fully aware that its generals refuse to fight hard, and the edict also includes a harsh warning: anyone who avoids the battle will be ordered to "survey the state road and be punished by military law." This can only mean the death penalty.

The last section of this edict may be meaningful. It instructs the urban and rural authorities to seek brave people who can lead farmers to fight against bandits, and they will also receive official positions and rewards.

Li Yan made up his mind to destroy the Huang Chao uprising army, so he began to work hard, and the Li Tang court was a little angry. The revival of the Li Tang government enabled it to establish an effective defense against the rebels starting from the Yellow River area. Luoyang was in panic because of the approach of the rebels, but at this time, the huge fortifications were ready, and more than 100,000 Tang troops were stationed around Luoyang. These preparations made it difficult for Huang Chao to attack Luoyang.

After receiving Li Tang's edict, Huang Chao smiled contemptuously and said to Daqi Wenwu, "Ha ha, Li Yong, a boy, played a peace game with me and focused on dealing with Sha Tuo soldiers. This time, I met Li Yan's wish, because Luoyang's defense was very tight, and our army simply changed its line. The main force did not gather in Luoyang, but went to Jianghuai to do its best to eliminate Gao Yu's main force!"

After the main force of Daqi pointed to the east, Li Tang Junchen celebrated with his forehead because he was far away from the capital, believing that the threat of Huang Chao seemed to be disappearing, and began to discuss the threat of the powerful expansionist Shatuo Turks from the north.

Just when Li Tang was in the idea of implementing the new policy, Lu had a sudden stroke. He couldn't afford to walk and asked for leave to stay at home to recover. Lu took the power of the eunuch Tian Lingzi inside, relying on Gao Yu's military power outside, and Tang Xizong was extremely fond of him, so he was autocratic, and political affairs came from his idea. Now that he is sick and in poor spirits, his political affairs are judged by his relatives Yang Wen and Li Xiu, and bribed the public. The prime minister, Lu Wei, has no talent and has always been attached to Lu. Another prime minister, Cui Yu, often has some suggestions on political affairs, which is often blocked by Lu Cing.

Soon, Li Zhuo, the commander-in-chief of Weishuo and other states, told the court that 2,000 Shatuo soldiers had come to surrender. At that time, Li Zhuo led more than 100,000 soldiers and horses stationed in Daizhou and fought against the Shatuo army with Li Keju, the governor of Lulong, and Helianduo, the governor of Tuyuhun. Li Ke sent General Gao Wenji to defend Shuozhou and led his army to Xiongwu to resist Li Keju. Helianduo sent people to lobby Gao Wenji to be attached to Li Tang. Gao Wenji arrested Li Keyong's general Fu Wenda, and surrendered to Li Zhuo with Li Youjin, the chief of Shatuo, Mi Haiwan, the governor of Sage, Shi Jingcun, the governor of Anqing, and opened the gate to welcome Li Tang's army.

Li Ke was shocked by the news and lamented: "This time, Li Tang and Daqi discussed peace and moved their main force north to deal with Shatuo. It seems that there must be a big war between Shatuo and Li Tang. If Shatuo defeats, he can save Daibei; if he is defeated, his previous achievements will be abandoned, and we will have no place to die!"