Chapter 22 Reigniting the Beacon: The Rebellion of Pugu Wynn

As soon as the Tubo people left, Daizong Li Yu had to start to solve the problem of Pugu Huai'en. In the first month of the second year of Guangde (764 A.D.), Emperor Daizong ordered Yan Zhenqing, Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment, to go to Fenzhou to issue an ultimatum to Pugu Huai'en, ordering him to enter the imperial court. However, Yan Zhenqing refused to go. It wasn't that he was afraid of death, but that he knew it was useless to go now. As early as when Tubo occupied Chang'an and Daizong was in exile in Shanzhou, Yan Zhenqing offered to go to Fenzhou to force Pu Gu Huai'en to enter the dynasty on the grounds that the country was in trouble, but Daizong was worried that Pu Gu Huai'en would take the opportunity to rebel, so he insisted not allow.

From Yan Zhenqing's point of view, he was not sure of such a good opportunity at that time, and if he went to call servant Gu Huai'en to the court now, he would absolutely refuse to come, so it was useless to go.Yan Zhenqing said to Emperor Daizong: "When your majesty was in Shanzhou, if a minister went to Fenzhou and ordered him to serve the king on the grounds of the righteousness of the monarch and his ministers, he had no reason not to come; but now that your majesty has returned to Beijing, he has neither the service of the king nor the military power. Worrying about being cut, how could he be willing to come if he was called at this time? Moreover, only Xin Yunjing, Luo Fengxian, Li Baoyu, and Yu Chaoen were the only ones who insisted on Pugu Huai'en's rebellion. Wronged. I believe that the most appropriate way now is to replace Pugu Huai'en with Guo Ziyi, so that the potential rebellion can be eliminated without launching a war."

When Daizong was considering this suggestion, an official who was serving as a driver in Fenzhou suddenly returned to the capital, and Daizong immediately summoned him. This person is called Li Baozhen, and he is the cousin of Li Baoyu, Zelu Jiedu envoy. He knows that Li Baoyu and Pugu Huai'en are already at odds, and that Pugu Huai'en really has different ambitions, so he ran away quickly to avoid causing trouble. Murder. Daizong asked Li Baozhen how to deal with Pugu Huai'en, Li Baozhen replied: "Pu Gu Huai'en is nothing to worry about. Because Shuofang soldiers miss Guo Ziyi day and night, just like children miss their father and brother. Huai'en lied to them that Guo Ziyi had been killed by Yu Chaoen. If you believe it is true, you will obey him. If Your Majesty can use Guo Ziyi as Shuofang Jiedushi, then Shuofang soldiers will definitely break away from Pugu Huaien and attach themselves to the court."

Since everyone said so, Daizong had nothing to consider.Replacing Pugu Huai'en with Guo Ziyi is indeed a good strategy to draw salary from the bottom of the pot. However, before Daizong put this method into practice, shocking news came from Hedong. Pugu Huai'en started. Pu Gu Huai'en's primary attack target is of course Xin Yunjing, the envoy of Hedong Jiedu.He bought Li Jingcheng, the military envoy under Xin Yunjing's command, in advance, and prepared to attack Taiyuan with a combination of internal and external forces.Unexpectedly, Xin Yunjing's vigilance was very high, and he soon noticed Pugu Wynn's plot, so he beheaded Li Chengcheng, and stepped up to repair the fortifications to prevent Pugu Wynn from coming.

In the middle of the first month of the second year of Guangde, Pugu Huai'en learned that Li Jingcheng had been killed, so he simply raised the flag and ordered his son Pugu to lead his troops to attack Taiyuan.Xin Yunjing immediately went out of the city to fight.Because he had already made full preparations for war, with excellent weapons and soldiers working hard, he defeated Pu Guzhen in the first battle.Pu Guzhen was defeated and returned, so he had to abandon Taiyuan and attack Yuci (now Yuci City, Shanxi). As the aftermath of the Anshi Rebellion, the Pugu Wynn Rebellion broke out like this.

The war of the foreign invaders has ceased, and the flames of the civil war are reignited! Daizong Li Yu felt a deep helplessness. How long will it take for this kind of rebellion, such a situation of successive wars, internal and external troubles, to come to an end? On the 20th day of the first lunar month, Daizong officially appointed Guo Ziyi as the deputy marshal of Guannei and Hedong, and the Jiedu envoy of Hezhong.When Guo Ziyi left Beijing to take up his post, Emperor Daizong said to him with great expectation: "Father Huai'en and his son are deeply responsible to me! I heard that Shuofang's officers and men miss you like looking forward to the rain in a drought. The Lord is my town and Fuhedong, and the teachers of Fen Shang will not change. "(Volume Two Two Three)

In early February, Guo Ziyi was stationed in Hezhong (now Yongji City, Shanxi), preparing to attack Pu Gu Huai'en and his son.Pu Guzhen besieged Yuci for more than half a month, and sent people to urgently recruit Qi County garrisons, and the local guards hurriedly handed over the troops.The soldiers were forced to go on the road before they had time to eat, complaining and procrastinating along the way.The generals Jiao Hui and Bai Yu who were in charge of leading the support army didn't want to rebel with Pugu Huai'en and his son at all, but they were forced to go out due to military orders. When Gu Yu asked about the crime, he suddenly lost his temper, so he opened his bow and shot at the few soldiers who were walking in the back.

The soldiers complained one after another: "Why did the general shoot his own people?" Jiao Hui and Bai Yu said angrily, "If you rebel with someone now, you will die in the end. Anyway, if you die, what does it matter if you shoot yourself to death!" After arriving in Yuci, Pugu thought they were too late, so he pointed his nose and cursed.The Hu people in the army argued: "We rode horses at a very fast speed, but we were dragged down by those Han infantry." Pu Guzhen beat the Han soldiers indiscriminately.The soldiers who were beaten all gritted their teeth and said, "This kid only sees barbarians, and doesn't treat us Han people as human beings at all!"

After this incident, Jiao Hui and Bai Yu couldn't bear it anymore.That night, they summoned all the Han soldiers and told them that if they were to die anyway, they might as well fight to the death with Pu Guzhen, and maybe they could still make meritorious service for the court.The soldiers responded one after another, and immediately launched a mutiny under the leadership of Jiao Hui and Bai Yu, killing the defenseless Puguan. Pu Gu Huai'en never expected that his son died inexplicably at the hands of the rebels as soon as he raised the flag of rebellion. The death of Pu Guzhen caused at least three blows to Pugu Huai'en: first, it is one of the most painful experiences in life to send a white-haired person to a black-haired person; , is his most important right-hand man, and now he lost his arm just after the incident, which undoubtedly greatly weakened the military strength of Pugu Wynn; Mutiny, this is enough to prove that the hearts of Shuofang soldiers are still in Li Tang. Once they lose the support of this powerful army, how much chance will this rebellion have?

For this reason, Pu Gu Huai'en was worried and restless for several days. Pugu Huaien thought about it, and finally decided that the thirty-six strategy should be the best—leave Hedong, go to Lingwu (Shuofang Government Office), gather some Hu soldiers in the Shuofang army who are still loyal to him, and send people to Contact Huihe, Tubo and other foreign races, and ask them to send troops to jointly deal with Li Tang. Having made up his mind, Pugu Huai'en went to bid farewell to the old mother, but he was reprimanded by the old mother as soon as he entered the door: "I have repeatedly warned you that the country treats you well and must not rebel, but you just don't listen! Now The hearts of the people have been betrayed, and disasters may come at any time, what do you think should be done?"

Pu Gu Huai'en was speechless, so he knelt down and bowed again, kowtowed a few times, then got up and walked out quickly.His mother is also a barbarian, with a fierce nature. When she saw her son leaving without saying a word, she immediately became furious. She grabbed a knife and chased after him. !" Pu Gu Huai'en looked back, his face turned pale with fright, and he ran away immediately. Although the old lady is from the Tang Dynasty, she doesn't have her feet bound like the women after the Song Dynasty, but she is old after all, so after chasing for a while, she can no longer chase her, so she has to stop, but her mouth is still facing Pu Guhuai. En Yuanqu's back scolded endlessly. Pu Gu Huai'en left Fenzhou with only 300 soldiers under his command that day, crossed the Yellow River westward, and fled to Shuofang in a hurry. At that time, Shuofang's remaining general was Hun Shizhi, and Pugu Huai'en handed him an official letter in advance, claiming that he was ordered by the imperial court to lead the Shuofang army back to the town, and asked him to open the city gate and go out of the city to welcome him.At this time, Hun Shizhi had heard the news of Pugu Huai'en's rebellion, but had not yet received an official notification from the court, so he said to the left and right in doubt: "Pu Gu Huai'en probably lost the battle and fled here?" Hun Shizhi's lieutenant general and his nephew Zhang Shao has always been close to Pu Gu Huai'en, and immediately said: "That's not necessarily the case. Maybe Pu Gu Huai'en has repented and led the army back to the town. How can we close the door?" Menbuna!" Hun Shizhi hesitated.A few days later, Pugu Huai'en's striker had arrived in Lingwu, and Hun Shizhi had to open the door to accept him.Zhang Shao immediately told Hun Shizhi's doubts to Pugu Wynn's subordinates.After Pugu Huaien received the secret report from his subordinates, he immediately ordered Zhang Shao to design and kill Hun Shizhi, then handed over the command of his troops to Zhang Shao, and finally entered Lingwu in a grand manner. Of course, Zhang Shao is just a pawn in Pugu Wynn's hands.After Pugu Huai'en successfully entered Lingwu, Zhang Shao was useless.A few days later, Pugu Huai'en just found an excuse and ordered someone to break Zhang Shao's leg, and then locked him up.Zhang Shao cried out for being wronged, but Pugu Huai'en said to him with a sneer: "Hun Shizhi is your own uncle, if you can betray him, how can you be loyal to me?" After Pugu Huai'en fled Fenzhou, Shuofang general Zhang Weiyue, who was stationed in Qinzhou (now Qinyuan County, Shanxi Province), was overjoyed. He rushed to Fenzhou immediately, killed Jiao Hui, Baiyu and other mutiny generals, and put him to death. Chen's merits were kept for himself, and then reported to Guo Ziyi. Guo Ziyi immediately sent his general Lu Liang to Fenzhou to verify the situation, and Zhang Weiyue bribed Lu Liang with a lot of money.After receiving Lu Liang's reward, Guo Ziyi immediately went to the imperial court to ask for credit for Zhang Weiyue, and at the same time sent Pu Guzhen's head to the capital. At the beginning of February, Guo Ziyi led his troops to Fenzhou. Tens of thousands of soldiers from Shuofang rejoiced and wept with joy. Upon hearing the news that Pugu Yu was killed and Pugu Huai'en fled, all the ministers entered the palace to congratulate Daizong.Daizong Li Yu was displeased, saying: "I failed to uphold the sincerity and trust in my subjects, which has led to the people who have made great contributions to the country to this point. What is there to congratulate?" Afterwards, Daizong sent people to Fenzhou to take Pugu Huai'en's mother to Chang'an, and offered food and drink. Of course, Emperor Daizong Li Yu didn't want to help Pu Gu Huai En to fulfill his filial piety.Anyone with a discerning eye can see that this old man has become Daizong's hostage. Although the imperial court provided extremely generous treatment in all aspects of food and daily life, one can imagine the state of mind of the old man.A month later, Pugu Huai'en's mother died of an illness amid overwhelming depression and anger.Emperor Daizong ordered that he should be buried with honor and respect.When the ruling and opposition parties heard about this, they all felt sad for Pu Gu Huai'en. It is worth mentioning that at that time, it was not only Pu Gu Huai'en's mother who was politely invited to Chang'an by Daizong Li Yuke as a hostage, but also the mother of another hero who suppressed the rebellion. who? Li Guangbi. In the Tang Dynasty at that time, in terms of prestige, meritorious service and military talent, the only one who could be compared with Guo Ziyi was not Pu Gu Huai'en, but Li Guangbi.However, since Tubo entered the bandits, Daizong Li Yu's precautions and suspicions of Li Guangbi were no less than his suspicions of Pugu Huai'en some time ago. The reason is very simple. In Daizong Li Yu's view, Tubo invaded the country, and the imperial court issued edicts to Qin kings everywhere, but you, Li Guangbi, did not move from the beginning to the end. Is this just because the eunuch Cheng Yuanzhen was domineering and made you feel disappointed with the government? No, it's definitely not that simple. Li Yu thought, you, Li Guangbi, have fought in all directions over the years, thinking that you deserve more credit than Pugu Huai'en, but in the end the credit for pacifying Shi Chaoyi fell into the hands of Pugu Huai'en alone. In your heart, Li Guangbi, is there no Xin Yunjing style? of sour grapes?I'm afraid there are, right? Furthermore, in the final analysis, you, Li Guangbi, are also a Khitan, a member of a foreign general, and you hold a heavy army and dominate one side. In this sense, Xin Yunjing's suspicion of Pugu Huai'en can also be established in you, Li Guangbi.That being the case, of course I will take some measures to prevent you from becoming the second Pugu Wynn. Perhaps it was because of this idea that after Tubo withdrew, Emperor Daizong Li Yu immediately transferred Li Guangbi, who was stationed in Xuzhou, to Luoyang to serve as the eastern capital. As expected by Daizong, Li Guangbi's reaction was exactly the same as that of Pugu Huai'en back then.He stayed in Xuzhou all the time and refused to take up the post on the grounds of protecting the grain transshipment in the Jianghuai area. Protect Jianghuai grain transportation? How far-fetched is such an excuse! In addition to being disappointed, Daizong inevitably had deeper worries and doubts in his heart. At that time, Li Guangbi's mother lived in Hezhong (now Yongji City, Shanxi), so Emperor Daizong frequently sent eunuchs to "consolation" to put pressure on Li Guangbi, with the purpose of urging him to obey the dispatch.However, Li Guangbi was unmoved. Daizong was cruel, and resolutely took Li Guangbi's mother and younger brother from Hezhong to Chang'an. On the surface, he treated Li Guangbi's younger brother with great courtesy, and arranged for Li Guangbi's younger brother to take up a position in the imperial army, but everyone knew that this was a political bargaining chip held in the palm of the emperor. The purpose is to blackmail Li Guangbi and prevent him from rebelling like Pugu Wynn. Things have developed to this point, the relationship between Emperor Daizong Li Yu and hero Li Guangbi is actually in a state of high tension, and may break down at any time. Of course, Li Guangbi didn't feel good about this. All his life as a soldier, he was loyal to the emperor and the imperial court, he went through life and death for the country, and made outstanding achievements many times, but in the end he became a thorn in the emperor's side and a thorn in his flesh. How could he feel so bad? However, Li Guangbi was really not reconciled to letting Li Guangbi give up his military power and go to Luoyang to stay behind as a small Dongdu.What's more, even if he honestly went to Luoyang to take office, the emperor's suspicion of him might not be eliminated.What's more likely is that the lifting of military power is only the first step, the next step is to find a random crime and be relegated to exile, and in the end it is very likely to be a dead dog! Since ancient times, "the meritorious service is not rewarded" has been the inevitable outcome of almost every hero. How can he, Li Guangbi, be exempted? Therefore, Li Guangbi could only bite the bullet and fight Daizong to the death. After carrying this, he soon became ill. Moreover, the disease was so fierce that it knocked Li Guangbi down in one fell swoop.It is said in history that "Guangbi's imperial army is serious, and the world obeys his prestige. Every time an order is issued, the generals dare not look up. And fearing the harm of the imperial court (actually fearing the harm of Daizong), they dare not enter the court, (the general) Tian They did not obey their orders, but became ill because of shame." ("Old Book of the Tang Dynasty: Biography of Li Guangbi") Li Guangbi soon became terminally ill.Before he died, left and right asked him what his last words were, and Li Guangbi only said one sentence: "I have been in the army for a long time, so I am not allowed to support my mother. Since I am an unfilial son, what can my husband say!" Obviously, the thing that Li Guangbi regrets the most is that he has been loyal to the country all his life, but he cannot be filial to his mother; and the thing that Li Guangbi can't let go of the most is that he has fought for the court all his life, and in the end he caused his mother to become the emperor and the court. hostage! In July of the second year of Guangde, Li Guangbi passed away with many regrets at the age of fifty-seven.Of course, what happened after Li Guangbi's death was extremely tragic.Daizong not only quit court for three days, posthumously presented the Taibao with the posthumous title of "Wu Mu", but also organized a grand funeral for Li Guangbi.He sent eunuch Yu Chaoen to condolences at Li Guangbi's mother's house, and ordered Jingzhao Yin Wuqi to be in charge of the funeral.On the day of the funeral, Emperor Daizong also issued a special edict, ordering the prime minister to lead civil and military officials to escort Li Guangbi's coffin, and escorted it all the way to the gate of Yanping. Pugu Huai'en got rid of Hun Shizhi with the help of Zhang Shao, and then took care of Zhang Shao, taking all the Shuofang tribes who stayed behind in Lingwu under his command, and the army revived. Seeing that a war was imminent, Daizong was deeply worried. In order to avoid war, Daizong had to take a high profile, not only appease Pugu Huai'en's family members who stayed in Hedong, but also issued a special edict to praise Pugu Huai'en, saying that he "worked with honor in the imperial family and in the world" and so on. , also said: "The reason why the court and you have suspicion and misunderstanding is because some villains are sowing dissension, carefully inspecting Aiqing's heart, in fact, there is no intention of rebellion, and it is better to restore the righteousness and affection between the monarch and his ministers." Just as before! It’s just that since Hebei has been pacified, and Shuofang has new appointments, you will be relieved of your positions as Deputy Marshal of Hebei and Jiedushi of Shuofang, but officials such as Taibao, Zhongshuling, and Prince of Daning will be dismissed. Keep everything. I look forward to coming to Beijing immediately, so there will be no more doubts." Looking at this hypocritical edict, Pugu Huai'en sneered. It's already this time, and you still follow me?Do you think I'm a vegetarian? In August of the second year of Guangde, Pugu Huaien led a total of 100,000 Huihe and Tubo allied forces into the invasion, and the capital was shocked for a while. What should come is still here. When Daizong thought of the scene when the Tubo army invaded Chang'an last year, he still had lingering fears in his heart. Can Chang'an survive this time?