White Horse, Silver Spear, Grand Commandant Gao

Chapter 128 Brothers Fighting

"It is said that during the struggle for hegemony between Jin and Liang, Zhang Wenli, the military governor of Chengde Army, was originally a subordinate general of Liu Rengong. Later, he submitted to Zhao Wang Wang Rong, who bestowed upon him the name Wang Deming and ordered him to lead troops."

"After the Battle of Baixiang, Zhang Wenli often accompanied the Prince of Jin's camp. He was ambushed and defeated by Liang general Yang Shihou, and was transferred to the position of garrison commander of Zhenzhou."

The sixth year of Zhenming in the Liang Kingdom.

Zhang Wenli launched a mutiny, murdered Zhao Wang Rong and his son, and informed Li Cunxu of the chaos. He was then appointed as the military governor of Chengde, but he was still uneasy. He then allied with the Liang Kingdom in the south and the Khitan in the north.

Li Cunxu sent troops to attack, and Zhang Wenli died of shock upon hearing the news. His son, Zhang Chujin, continued to resist the city.

One day, Zhang Chujin sent more than a thousand soldiers to the Nine Gates to receive the grain supplies, and ambushed Li Sizhao at the old camp, catching him red-handed.

When the thieves arrived, they were ambushed and almost all of them were wiped out.

The battle was a great victory, with only three enemy soldiers remaining, hiding among the ruins. Li Sizhao did not allow his men to finish off the remaining enemy, but personally rode around and shot at them. Unexpectedly, the enemy launched a desperate counterattack and shot him in the head with an arrow.

Li Sizhao lived up to his reputation as a valiant general. When his quiver was empty of arrows, he pulled an arrow out of the enemy's head and shot him in the head, killing him instantly.

He returned to camp at dusk, but the wound continued to bleed, and he died that night from his injuries.

"After Li Sizhao died, the seven children refused to obey and led the thousands of soldiers left by their father to escort the coffin back to Luzhou."

Li Renrang shook his head and sighed: "The eldest son, Li Jichou, should have inherited his father's title, but because of his weak and unruly nature, the second son, Li Jitao, imprisoned him. Alas, they are brothers born of the same mother, why did it have to be this way?" (Note 1)

"Not only that, Li Jitao also betrayed his country and colluded with Liang Guo, sending his son as a hostage. If Li Sizhao knew this, he would probably be turning in his grave."

Li Renrang recalled: "Li Jitao defended the city and resisted orders, spending a lot of his family wealth to recruit heroes to join the army, and even caused a disturbance."

"Back then, there was a butcher named Zheng in the market of Luzhou City. He was strong and everyone was afraid of him. A soldier who had joined Li Jitao got drunk and asked for ten catties of lean meat, which he wanted to be chopped into minced meat, with no fat on it."

"Butcher Zheng chopped it finely, and the soldier wanted ten catties of fat meat, which he also chopped into minced meat, making sure there wasn't a single piece of lean meat on it."

Gao Huaide, puzzled, interjected, "What's the point of using the lean meat for wontons if we're using it for fatty meat sauce?"

"Butcher Zheng had the same question."

Li Renrang chuckled: "Unexpectedly, the soldier started cursing, 'Just cut it when I tell you to! It's not like I'm cutting your bird! Why are you asking?'"

"Butcher Zheng swallowed his anger and cut it up, but the soldier wanted ten catties of tender cartilage, which also needed to be chopped into minced meat, with not a single bit of meat on it."

Li Chuchou, Li Chuyun, Gao Huaide, and Gao Huailiang all laughed: "This man is clearly here to make fun of Butcher Zheng."

The soldier threw two packets of meat sauce at Zheng's face, like a rain of meat. Even the best-tempered butcher Zheng was about to get angry. He dodged to the side, didn't fight back, and instead tore open his shirt to expose his belly, asking: "Do you dare to stab me?"

Without a question, the soldier swiftly swung his knife and stabbed Zheng the butcher in the stomach, killing him.

Upon hearing this, the boys started chattering amongst themselves.

Some say that it's not heroic for the soldier to bully the unarmed butcher, so the story is changed so that the butcher, Zheng, is armed with a knife, and the soldier defeats him with a few punches and kicks, thus making him a true hero.

Some say that Butcher Zheng's name is not impressive enough. How can a nameless butcher be worthy of a hero's help? It would be better to call him Zhen Hedong, which sounds more prestigious.

Some people complained that the story lacked female characters, arguing that without romantic entanglements, the hero's true nature wouldn't be revealed, and that a scene of a hero rescuing a damsel in distress should be added.

Li Renrang watched with a smile as his two grandsons and the Gao brothers chatted animatedly, adding, "Back then, that soldier was about the same age as you, Chu Chou and Chu Yun, and he even had a bluebird tattooed on his neck." (Note 2)

Ok?

Gao Huaide remembered seeing such a person before, but thought it couldn't be that coincidental.

"He killed Zheng the butcher, and Li Jitao, out of pity for him being a man, forgave his crime. Now, no one knows where he is."

After the group had finished chatting, Li Renrang brought the topic back to the present.

"Unfortunately, Li Jitao misjudged the situation. Emperor Zhuangzong swiftly captured Bianjing and destroyed the Liang Kingdom, and the overall situation of the world suddenly reversed. He had no choice but to take the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver he had accumulated and go to the capital with his mother, Lady Yang, to beg for mercy."

Have you ever seen hundreds of thousands of taels of silver? It's a huge pile, like a small mountain.

Gao Huaide had heard his father say that the Yanzhou treasury held about 100,000 strings of cash, and that Li Jitao's family's private wealth was several times greater than the treasury's. He couldn't help but marvel at how much money officials could make.

"Thanks to the merits of his ancestors, bribes, and his mother Yang's earnest pleas to Empress Liu, Li Jitao managed to save his life. Emperor Zhuangzong ordered him to remain in the capital and not to return to his hometown."

"As a result, Li Jitao was not content with his lot. He sent a letter to Li Jiyuan, the seventh son of Li Jitao, in Luzhou, intending to incite a mutiny so that Emperor Zhuangzong would send him back to pacify the area. However, the secret was leaked, and Li Jitao suffered the consequences of his own actions. He and his two sons were beheaded south of Tianjin Bridge."

Li Renrang sighed and said, "It is said that Emperor Zhuangzong stroked the heads of his two sons and sighed: 'What use are you if you can help your father rebel at such a young age?' Then he issued an edict to execute the seventh son, Li Jiyuan, in Luzhou, and sent his head to the capital in a box."

"After Erwa and Qiwa died, the imperial edict summoned Dawa Li Jichou to the capital. He was weak-willed and not good at martial arts, but he was also greedy and lustful. He took all of his deceased brother's maids and playthings for himself and played with them every day."

"This angered Li Jida, the only half-brother among the seven brothers. He told everyone he met: 'My second brother was convicted of a crime, and his father and son were executed. My eldest brother is heartless and unmoved. He commits adultery with his wives and concubines and demands money from them. I am ashamed to face anyone. I would rather be dead!'"

"Li Jida wore mourning clothes, led several hundred cavalrymen to sit at the gate, and shouted: 'Rebel for me!' He then beheaded Li Jichou and threw his head inside the gate."

"What a pity."

Li Renrang added, "It's a pity. Li Jida has the air of authority, but he did not inherit his father's prestige and martial prowess. The deputy military governor gathered more than a thousand people from the city to attack the city. I, your grandfather, led a group of old brothers to join in, and we drove him away in no time."

"Knowing that things were hopeless, Li Jida killed his wife and children, gathered a hundred or so horsemen, and went out of the city to seek refuge with the Khitan. Before he had gone ten miles, his men collapsed, and he had no choice but to commit suicide by the roadside."

"It's pitiful that less than two years after Li Sizhao's death, four of his seven sons had already perished."

Li Renrang took a sip of water to rest, and everyone thought that was the end of it, but little did they know that the matter was not over yet.

"A few years later, their mother, Yang, died in Taiyuan. The fifth son, Li Jineng, and the sixth son, Li Jixi, went to attend the funeral. Before their loved one's body was even cold, new troubles arose."

"Li Jineng flogged the maid who was in charge of managing the household treasury for his mother. After questioning her repeatedly, he felt that the amount of gold and silver was much less than he had imagined. He didn't know his own strength and ended up killing her."

"Killing a servant wouldn't have been a big deal, but one of the family members was the maid's lover and reported her to the authorities, accusing her of inciting rebellion. This was a grave offense, and Li Jineng and Li Jixi were both executed."

Gao Huaide thought to himself that Li Sizhao was really pitiful. He had made so many contributions, but he died in battle only a few years later, and of his seven sons, only one was left.

But why did Li Renrang tell this story?

The old man slowly concluded, "As the saying goes, 'Brothers may quarrel within the walls, but they unite to defend against external threats.' No matter how bad the relationship is, when facing external enemies, they should still work together."

……

Gao Huaide felt that the old man's story seemed to have a deeper meaning, so he tentatively asked Li Renrang if he knew about his and his brother's identities.

"How can the son of the governor of this prefecture be kept secret for long?"

Li Renrang readily admitted, "Although I have retired, I still have many old friends and juniors in the government office. You can find out with just a little inquiry."

No wonder they were so friendly and polite to us, Gao Huaide thought with relief, but also with a slight sense of loss.

"If Shi Jingtang colludes with foreign tribes like Wang Du, he will surely meet a bad end."

When asked about the recent rumors of an invasion by the Khitans, Li Renrang made a definitive statement.

He then instructed his two grandsons: "I am over seventy years old and do not know how many more years I have left to live. You must never forget that your father died at the hands of the Khitans."

Li Chuchou agreed, while Li Chuyun gritted his teeth and said, "I will never forget the hatred for my father! I wish I could eat the flesh of the barbarians and drink their blood!"

The two brothers had completely different personalities: the elder brother, Li Chuchou, was gentle and kind, while the younger brother, Li Chuyun, was fierce and aggressive.

Gao Huaide thought to himself, "You're ruthless. Eating human flesh and drinking human blood is fine to express emotions, but don't actually do it."

After bidding farewell to Li Renrang and his grandson, Gao Huaide calculated the time on his way back home. According to the pattern of the past few months, his father should send a letter home within the next two days.

He looked up at the sky and saw a bright, full moon slowly rising; it was the fifteenth day of the lunar month again.

The next day, there was still no news, but Gao Huaide vaguely sensed something, like the last calm before a storm.

The next day, the servants at the post station reported that a rider was galloping from the north, carrying a wooden token called a "Qi Chuan".

The message, written in red ink with characters in blood, indicated an urgent military situation. It was then transported by express courier and sped off southward.

Gao Huaide's heart skipped a beat; it seemed there was already news from the front.

When faced with a truly serious situation, let alone a child who has just turned ten, many adults would not know what the correct course of action would be.

Lu Qian comforted him, saying that regardless of whether the military report indicated victory or defeat, the court would have its own countermeasures. He suggested that the young master inform his wife about the matter so that the family could make preparations in advance.

How can I bring this up with my mother and sister?

Gao Huaide began to struggle. He didn't actually know what was happening at the front, and he just let his imagination run wild, conjuring up all sorts of scenarios.

Torn between conflicting emotions, Gao Huaide didn't return home until the sun began to set and dusk fell.

I saw my mother, sister, and brother sitting around the table, their expressions complex. Unlike the anxiety they had felt a few days ago while waiting for news, their faces now showed worry and concern, with a hint of relief.

Gao Huaide was about to speak when his gaze sharpened as he noticed a piece of paper spread out on the table.

It turned out that Gao Xingzhou's family letter had arrived almost immediately.

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Place Name Comparison

Jiumen: present-day Gaocheng District, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province