He shook his clothes and returned suddenly, only to see his shadow in thousands of mountains.
Fujiang River and Zhongling River share the same water.
——Excerpt from "Sending Monks from Jinshan Village Back to Sichuan to Open a Church" by Su Shi
…
Reports of the great victory in Heyang were sent to Chang'an, and Emperor Suzong was overjoyed.
On November 1st, the award from the imperial court finally came.
Li Guangbi raised the tent and ordered the generals with ranks above fifth rank in the army to enter the tent to receive the order.
The eunuch who delivered the decree read out the imperial edict from the imperial court in front of the generals of the three armies.
In the Battle of Heyang, Bai Fu bravely defeated all three armies, and his achievements were obvious to all. He was worthy of being the first pioneer of the Tang Dynasty.
Bai Fu was granted the title of "You Xiaowei Zhonglang General" by the imperial court, and his official rank was the fourth rank.
In order to prevent the rebels from advancing westward, the imperial court mobilized the Anxi and Beiting camps stationed in Jiangzhou and ordered them to garrison Shaanzhou. The imperial court appointed Bai Fu as the envoy of the Anxi and Beiting camps to take charge of this army.
Different from the fictitious title of You Xiaowei Zhonglang General, An Beiting Camp Soldier and Horse Envoy has real military power.
Bai Fu became a general in charge of the frontier army at a young age, making Shuofang's generals envious.
However, envy is envy, this is the military power that Bai Fu fought for with his life, and the generals are also convinced.
The other generals such as Li Baoyu, Bai Xiaode, Li Feiyuanli and other generals each received rewards, and the rewards were so generous that they were the envy of other Tang armies.
One person in this award seems to have little fame, but in fact he played a key role in the Battle of Heyang. This person is Dong Qin, the former governor of Puzhou.
At the beginning of Shi Siming's Southern Expedition, Li Guangbi patrolled Bianzhou and was extremely worried about the character of Xu Shuji, the governor of the Bianhua War Zone. Before leaving, Li Guangbi handed two secret letters in handwriting to Puzhou prefect Dong Qin and his general Tian Shengong.
As soon as Shi Siming arrived in Bianzhou, Xu Shuji surrendered to Shi Siming with Dong Qin, the governor of Puzhou, and his generals Liang Pu, Liu Congjian, Tian Shengong, etc.
Shi Siming appointed Tian Shengong as the pseudo-Yanpinglu military envoy. He also sent his trusted general Nan Dexin, Liangpu, Liu Congjian, Tian Shengong and dozens of others to go to Jianghuai to seize land.
Soon, Tian Shengong attacked Nan Dexin and beheaded him. Liu Congjian took advantage of the chaos to escape. Tian Shengong then led his troops to surrender to the Tang army.
Shi Siming treated Dong Qin, the governor of Puzhou, very favorably, but still kept Dong Qin's wife and children under house arrest in Changlu (today's CZ City, Hebei) as hostages.
But Dong Qin was in Cao's camp and his heart was with Han. He remained calm and lurked in Yan's camp according to Li Guangbi's order, secretly sending important information to Li Guangbi.
At the same time, Dong Qin also lost no time in instigating a rebellion against the pro-Tang generals in the Yan army. The Yan generals Li Riyue and Gao Tinghui who surrendered to the Tang Dynasty were indirectly related to him.
Whenever the Tang army came out of the city and launched a charge, Dong Qin would act as an internal response and take the opportunity to disrupt the Yan army's position and facilitate the Tang army's charge.
After the great victory in Beicheng, Shi Siming led the army to evacuate Heyang. Dong Qin led 500 close followers, cut down the wooden fence of the camp, broke through the encirclement, and defected to Li Guangbi.
Due to Li Guangbi's recommendation, the imperial court appointed Dong Qin as the eunuch of the palace, the military envoy of the Shaanxi Army and the Shence Army (these two armies were stationed in Shaanzhou at the same time), and named him Li Zhongchen.
…
After the celebration banquet, Li Guangbi summoned Bai Fu into the tent alone.
Li Guangbi walked to the handsome case. On the left side of the handsome case was a map of Hebei Road more than one foot wide, and on the right wall hung an exquisite tiger skin bag.
Li Guangbi looked at the tiger skin bag in solemn silence. He bowed deeply three times, and then respectfully took out a lacquer bow from the bag.
Li Guangbi was filled with emotion and said: "This lacquer bow is called 'Shooting Heavenly Wolf' and weighs one hundred and fifty kilograms. It is the bow worn by Master Zhongsi."
"Master Tadashi?!"
Bai Fu said in astonishment.
Li Guangbi smiled faintly and said, "General Zhongsi is also my master. Didn't he tell you that?"
Bai Fu couldn't believe it and didn't know how to answer.
Li Guangbi smiled and said: "Before you, General Zhongsi had one and a half apprentices. One was me and the other half was Ge Shuhan.
If what I have predicted is correct, you should be Master’s accepted disciple.”
Bai Fuqi said: "I have always been curious, how did the commander know that I am Master Zhongsi's disciple? Master never let me tell others about this."
Li Guangbi sighed and said: "Military disciples have had a bad fate since ancient times.
"When the birds are gone, the good bows are hidden; when the enemy's country is destroyed, the advisers are dead." This refers to the disciples of military strategists.
The art of war is the art of slaying dragons. Once you become famous and have the power of life and death in one hand, you will achieve great success, be hated by traitors, make kings jealous, and misfortune will follow.
Wu Qi, Bai Qi, Han Xin, Zhou Yafu and other military disciples almost all failed to die well.
Master's father, General King Zuo Jinwu, sacrificed his life for the country in his early years. When he was nine years old, Master was adopted as a fake son by the then emperor - today's Supreme Emperor. He was raised in the palace and even his name was chosen by the Supreme Emperor himself.
In the end, he did not avoid this disaster.
That's why Master doesn't let us tell others, so as to avoid giving evidence to others and being plotted against by those who talk sweetly but hide their swords.
During the battle at Xiangji Temple, from the way you modified the Anxi Army's Mo Swordsman's physical strength, fighting techniques, and armor, I suspected that you were a close disciple of the Master.
From then on, I have been paying attention to your every move.
In a series of battles such as the Qinghebei Ku point reinforcements, your understanding of the art of war has the shadow of the master's use of troops, which makes me believe this even more."
Bai Fu pondered for a moment and said: "So, first shutting me out and then reducing me to an ordinary soldier, was the commander's deliberate arrangement?"
Li Guangbi stroked his beard, nodded, and said: "Yes, real gold is not afraid of fire.
On the one hand, this matter is used to verify my judgment. If you were Master's direct disciple, you would definitely choose this way.
On the other hand, I have already said that I, Li Guangbi, will only promote soldiers who have emerged from the dead.
As far as this is concerned, even if you are my junior brother, I will not show favoritism!" At this point, Li Guangbi's pupils emitted a sharp light.
Master Zhongsi's voice and smile appeared before Bai Fu's eyes:
"Fu'er, if you miss the opportunity to fight and disobey military orders, even if you are my direct disciple, I will engage in military law against you and kill you without mercy!"
Bai Fu suppressed his tumbling emotions and nodded silently, the sadness in his eyes slowly emerging.
Li Guangbi smiled slightly and said: "Okay, now you can tell me where Master is now? Is he in good health?
Li Linfu told the world that his master died violently when he was the governor of Hanyang. I don't believe it at all.
Except for God, no one in this world can take Master's life.
There must be something hidden here."
Bai Fu couldn't bear it any longer, tears burst out of his eyes, and he burst into tears as he told the story of his encounter with Master Zhongsi one by one.
Several years have passed, and every detail of Lihentian seems to be right before our eyes.
When he heard the bad news about Master Zhongsi, Li Guangbi was as motionless as a stone sculpture, crying with sadness.
After a long time, Li Guangbi finally made some movement.
"Master!"
He howled and took his breath away.
Bai Fu hurriedly stepped forward and pressed the acupuncture points, and then Li Guangbi slowly woke up.
After a long while, Li Guangbi regained his composure. With tears in his eyes, he slowly recalled the past that had been forgotten for many years.
This was the first time Bai Fu knew many details about Wang Zhongsi:
In the year when Wang Haibin died for the country, Wang Xun was only nine years old. Xuanzong adopted him as a fake son, raised him in the palace, and granted him the title of Chaosan Dafu, the title of "loyal heir".
A tiger father has no dog sons.
When Wang Zhongsi grew up, he was a heroic man, steady and taciturn. He was familiar with military books and had excellent strategies.
Xuanzong often summoned him to discuss the art of war with him. Wang Zhongsi "deals with everything unexpectedly, vertically and horizontally". Xuanzong couldn't help but admire: "He will be a good general in the future!"
In the mid-Kaiyuan period, Wang Zhongsi entered the military world. Because he was brave and good at fighting, he repeatedly made military exploits and was victorious in many battles. As a result, "it was so quiet outside the fortress that the captives did not dare to enter."
Wang Zhongsi never fights an uncertain battle or an unprepared battle.
Before every battle, Wang Zhongsi would send out a large number of scouts and spies to go deep into the enemy's territory, get a detailed grasp of the enemy's military situation, formulate careful plans, and finally send out surprise troops to determine the outcome of the battle.
Careful planning allowed Wang Zhongsi's soldiers to suffer the least casualties and win every battle.
A few years later, Wang Zhongsi was promoted to Hedong, Shuofang, Hexi and Longyou Jiedushi due to his outstanding military achievements.
For a time, Wang Zhongsi "wears four general seals, controls thousands of miles, and has powerful troops and important towns under his control. This has not happened since the beginning of the country."
The young Wang Zhongsi prided himself on being brave, fierce, and good at fighting. However, as he grew older and more experienced, especially after serving as a military governor, he behaved calmly and solemnly, and became a military master who managed the country and brought peace to the world.
He often said to Li Guangbi and other generals: "When the country is at peace, I am just a general who cares for the people. I do not want to exhaust China's strength in order to gain fame."
During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong, Wang Zhongsi alone occupied four of the nine great military envoys of the Tang Dynasty. His prestige was at its peak, and he was expected to become a general or prime minister just around the corner.
Wang Zhongsi's illustrious reputation was resented by his chief assistant, Li Linfu.
However, Wang Zhongsi had outstanding military exploits and was very strict in running the army. He was also a moral model personally. He neither took bribes, perverted the law, nor deducted military pay. He was almost a perfect man, and was highly regarded by Xuanzong.
Li Linfu never found a chance to make a move.
In October of the sixth year of Tianbao, Xuanzong ordered Wang Zhongsi to capture Shibao City, the choke point of the Hexi Corridor at all costs.
The terrain of Shibao City is steep, and it is easy to defend but difficult to attack. If we want to attack it by force, at least tens of thousands of Tang army soldiers will have to sacrifice their lives, which is not worth the loss.
Wang Zhongsi pointed out his interests and was reluctant to take action.
Li Guangbi figured out the holy intention and tried to persuade him not to disobey the imperial edict. Wang Zhongsi said angrily: "If we attack the city with strong troops, tens of thousands of people will die, and then there will be nothing to gain. I am afraid that what I will gain is not as good as what I will lose... How can I do that?"
Can the lives of tens of thousands of people be changed by one official?"
Seeing Xuanzong's anger, Li Linfu lost trust in Wang Zhongsi, so he resorted to the strategy of "killing two birds with one stone" and took the opportunity to lead the disaster to the East Palace.
Li Linfu took the opportunity to instruct Jiyang Biejie Weilin to accuse Wang Zhongsi, saying that Wang Zhongsi once said: "I grew up in the palace and grew up with Prince Zhong (Prince), and we have a close relationship."
Wei Lin falsely accused Wang Zhongsi of wanting to support the troops to honor the crown prince and ascend the throne.
Xuanzong was furious and flew into a rage. He immediately issued an edict to remove Wang Zhongsi from military power and hand him over to the three departments for review.
Later, when Ge Shuhan entered the palace to meet the saint, he kowtowed and cried blood, expressing his grievance against Wang Zhongsi and willing to use his official title to atone for Wang Zhongsi's sins.
Xuanzong then opened his eyes and issued an edict to demote Wang Zhongsi to the post of Hanyang Prefect.
Two years later, the imperial court announced that Wang Zhongsi died violently while serving as the prefect of Hanyang.
But Li Guangbi firmly believed that Master Zhongsi was not dead, but had escaped into the world and was hiding somewhere.
…
After recalling the past, Li Guangbi handed the lacquer bow to Bai Fu and said quietly: "Junior brother, Master has always hidden this lacquer bow in his bag and never used it. It is to warn the three armies that he will never use force easily.
Today I give this bow to you in the hope that you will not be a militaristic butcher, but become a master of war with a strategic vision like Master.
As Master said, war is only a means to protect the country and the people. It is not the only purpose for men to join the army, nor can it be used as a tool to gain fame and fortune.
You have been promoted to the military envoy of the Beiting Camp in Anhui Province and are stationed in Shaanxi Province. You have become a frontier official who wears many hats. You must lead the army, appease the people, and protect the country from many aspects such as state affairs, wealth, military competition, and people's livelihood.
…
In this way, you will live up to Master’s painstaking cultivation!”