Chapter 3 Yang Xuangan's Rebellion

On the second day of the first lunar month in the ninth year of Daye (613 A.D.), an edict to recruit all the troops from all over the world to gather in Zhuojun flew out from Luoyang again, and immediately spread throughout the empire. Is the emperor crazy? Facing the edict, officials at all levels and ordinary people in the Sui Dynasty said in unison in their hearts.This war that exhausted all the power of the country and the wealth of the world has just suffered a disastrous defeat. Hundreds of thousands of imperial soldiers have just donated their corpses on the battlefield. Millions of people are on the verge of bankruptcy and death because of this war. After all this, you still want the tragedy to repeat itself? !

The people were outraged. More and more people joined the ranks of rebellion without hesitation.In addition to Wang Bo, Liu Badao, Zhang Jincheng, Gao Shida, and Dou Jiande, Meng Rang from Qijun (now Jinan City, Shandong), Guo Fangyu from Beihai (now Qingzhou City, Shandong), and Pingyuan County (now Shandong Ling County) Hao Xiaode from Hejian County (now Hejian City, Hebei Province), Personality Qian, and Sun Xuanya from Bohai County (now Yangxin County, Shandong Province) raised their own troops. There were hundreds of thousands of troops, and tens of thousands of troops, galloping across Shandong. , So that officers and soldiers everywhere were devastated.

The flames of rebellion were spreading rapidly, but Yang Guang didn't care. According to Yang Guang's understanding of history, Chinese politics has been a game played by powerful families for hundreds of years.As the saying goes, "the world is dominated by intelligence", the real political wisdom and political power have always been in the hands of a few nobles, and the mud legs are just insignificant supporting roles in this game, or they are just playing tricks, and they will never make a difference.Therefore, in Yang Guang's view, the so-called rebellion was nothing more than some poor and crazy mobs gathering to rob. After he destroyed the damned Korea, it would not be too late to deal with these little thieves later.

In the spring of the ninth year of Daye, Yang Guang once again marched in person, and led a million-strong army to Liaodong on the fourth day of March, opening the curtain for the second eastward expedition to Koryo.This time, Yang Guang still ordered Yu Wenshu and others to attack Pyongyang separately, while he personally led a frontal army to storm Liaodong.This time, the Sui army not only used large siege equipment such as flying towers, crash cars, and ladders, but also dug many tunnels, attacking in turn day and night.However, the Sui army continued to attack for more than 20 days and suffered heavy casualties, but Liaodong City was still impregnable.At the same time, Yu Wenshu and other ministries also encountered obstacles.When the war was at a stalemate, news of Yang Xuangan's rebellion suddenly came from the country, causing Yang Guangru to receive an electric shock.In June, Yang Guang had to order the withdrawal of troops.In a hurry, the mountains of military resources, equipment, food and grass were all too late to be transported away, so they had to be given to the Koreans for nothing.

If, in Yang Guang's eyes, the peasant uprisings all over the country were nothing more than mere gnats shaking trees, then Yang Xuangan's rebellion was tantamount to a political earthquake, which greatly shook the foundation of the empire's rule. Because Yang Xuangan is an aristocrat, the one most qualified to play politics in Yang Guang's mind. Yang Xuangan, the son of Yang Su, the founding father of the Sui Dynasty, was the Duke of Chu, and he was the Minister of Shangzhu Kingdom and the Ministry of Rites at that time. He had immeasurable influence in the political high-level of the empire.In Yang Guang's view, such a heavyweight rebellion will definitely have a terrible effect of "shoulders gather together with a wave of arms", and will undoubtedly trigger a huge political centrifugal force, making more powerful families have the ambition to seek the world !

Facts have proved that Yang Guang's worry is right. After Yang Xuangan raised troops from Liyang (now Junxian County, Henan Province), the Quartet responded one after another, and the number of troops quickly grew to more than 100,000.When Yang Guang was besieging Liaodong, Yang Xuangan had quickly arrived at the city of Luoyang. However, within a few days of the siege, more than forty nobles and sons of high officials in Luoyang city came out to surrender, such as Han Shiqi, the son of Han Qinhu, and Yang Xiong, the king of Guan (Yang Jian clan). Nephew), Yang Gongdao, son of Laihuer, Laiyuan, son of Laihuer, Zhou Zhong, son of Zhou Luohu (hou), Yu Rou, son of Yu Shiji, Pei Shuang, son of Pei Yun, Zheng Yan, son of Zheng Shanguo, etc.In order to win people's hearts, Yang Xuangan entrusted them with heavy responsibilities.

Of course, the joining of these second-generation officials is at best just to help Yang Xuangan support the facade, and it is impossible to play any practical role.At this time, there was another staff member under Yang Xuangan's tent, who was also the second generation of officials.Although this person is currently unknown, he will soon become an all-powerful figure in the troubled times of the late Sui Dynasty.It is no exaggeration to say that if all the dandies above are tied together, their energy is not as strong as this person. This person is Li Mi, the leader of the rebel army in Wagangzhai in the future.

Li Mi was the son of Li Kuan, Pu Shangong of Shangzhu State in the Sui Dynasty. Although his family was not as prominent as the Yang family, it was still famous for a while.Li Mi had great ambitions since he was a child, he generously donated money, liked to make friends, and served as an imperial guard in the palace in his early years.Once, when it was Li Mi's turn to be on duty, Yang Guang happened to pass by him, stopped in front of him suddenly, took a long look at him, and then told Yu Wenshu: "Just now there was a dark-skinned young man in the left guard. His eyes are different from ordinary people, it is best not to let him serve as a guard."

Li Mi lost his official position because of the emperor's words. Since then, he has been cut off from his official career and studied behind closed doors at home.He once rode on the back of an ox to read "Hanshu", as if there was no one else around, completely forgetting himself, met by Yang Su and regarded him as a strange person.Yang Su invited him to have a chat at home, and he was very appreciative. He said to Yang Xuangan, "Li Mi has far-reaching knowledge and extraordinary bearing. No one can match your brothers." Since then, Li Mi and Yang Xuangan have become friends.

Although the two are irreversible, but their status and status are very different, Yang Xuangan will still look down on Li Mi, a down-and-out aristocrat who has no official or job, consciously or not. Li Mi saw it, and one day he suddenly said to Yang Xuangan: "The most important thing in friendship is honesty. I will not flatter you today. To be honest, if the two armies are facing each other, decisively fighting, charging in the enemy's battle, I am not as good as you ; but if you want to encourage the world's virtuous men to settle down and do their best, you are not as good as me! In this case, how can you look down on scholars because of your high rank?" Yang Xuangan laughed when he heard the words, and he admired Li Mi even more .

After Yang Xuan felt the incident, he naturally cited Li Mi as his confidant and think tank.Before the siege of Luoyang, Yang Xuangan consulted Li Mi on the overall strategy: "You have always taken it as your mission to save the common people. Now that the time has come, what good strategy do you have?" Li Mi proposed to Yang Xuangan the three strategies of top, middle and bottom to win the world.He said: "The Son of Heaven set out to march far outside the Liaodong Great Wall, more than a thousand miles away from Youzhou (Zhuo County), with the sea (Bohai Sea) in the south, the Hulu (Western Turks, Khitan, etc.) in the north, and only one in the middle. The corridor is the only lifeline for the expeditionary force to connect with the country, and the situation is extremely dangerous. If you personally lead the army to the north, capture Jixian (the prefecture of Zhuojun) by surprise, and seize Linyu (to the east of Funing County, Hebei today), you will be able to control its dangers and control it. Its throat. In this way, the return route of the Eastern Expeditionary Army is cut off, and the Koreans are bound to attack from behind. Within ten months, the food, fodder (mo) and supplies will be exhausted, and the army will collapse without fighting. You can capture Yang alive without bloodshed. Wide! This is the best policy." Yang Xuangan pondered for a while, and said, "Tell me the middle strategy." Li Mi said: "Guanzhong has been a land of four fortresses and a land of abundance since ancient times. Although Wei Wensheng, the general of the Sui Dynasty, is guarding him now, he is not a cause for concern. If we lead an army to beat drums to the west, all the cities we pass will not be attacked, and we will take them directly. In Chang'an, accept its heroes, caress its scholars and people, and guard against danger. Even if the emperor is in charge, but the base has been lost, we will have enough time to plan carefully and make steady progress." Yang Xuangan thought for a while and said, "Tell me what to do." At that moment, Li Mi looked at Yang Xuangan thoughtfully.He predicted that Yang Xuangan would definitely choose the wrong strategy, and the worst strategy would definitely lead to his death. This premonition made Li Mi feel very sad.He looked at Yang Xuangan for a long time, and said slowly: "Send out the elite, gallop day and night, attack the Eastern Capital, and order the world! The problem is, if the soldiers from all over the world come from all over the world if it cannot be taken for a hundred days, the situation will not be as it should be." It is predictable. Therefore, this is the worst policy." "Mister's so-called bad policy is actually the best policy!" Yang Xuangan said categorically, "Now all the officials and family members are in the Eastern Capital, if they are taken first, it will be enough to shake the minds of the people and overthrow the foundation of the country!" Li Mi was silent.He knows Yang Xuangan too well, this is a son of a family spoiled by a smooth sailing fate, his conceit, vanity and arrogance are exactly the same as the emperor Yang Guang!In the pursuit of success, they all like to take shortcuts.But sometimes, shortcuts can also be expressed in another word-short circuit. Yes, the so-called shortcut to quick success is often the shortest path to death.In Li Mi's view, this sentence is applicable to Yang Guang, and it is also applicable to Yang Xuangan. As Li Mi expected, not long after Yang Xuangan led his army to besiege Luoyang, Yang Guang's eastward expedition army quickly returned to the Central Plains.Faced with the anti-siege formed by the army of the Sui Dynasty, Yang Xuangan made an unforgivable strategic mistake: he listened to the strategy of Li Zixiong, the Ministry of Trustees, and divided his small force into two groups, all the way to resist Qu Breakthrough, all the way to attack Wei Wensheng who came from Chang'an to help the Eastern Capital.However, Qu Tutong quickly broke through his line of defense, crossed the Yellow River smoothly, echoed Wei Wensheng's troops and Fan Zigai's troops stationed in Luoyang, and formed a front and back attack on Yang Xuangan. The end of Yang Xuangan is coming. It was only at this moment that he decided to implement the middle strategy proposed by Li Mi at the beginning-going west to Guanzhong and occupying Chang'an. On July 20th of the ninth year of Daye, Yang Xuangan reluctantly lifted the siege of Dongdu and led his troops westward to Tongguan.Yu Wenshu joined forces with Qu Tutong, Lai Hu'er, Wei Wensheng and others, and led the army to pursue desperately behind him. A few days later, Yang Xuangan went to Hongnong (now Sanmenxia City, Henan).Hongnong Taishou Yang Zhiji (nephew of Yang Jian) ​​said to the left and right: "Once Yang Xuangan's plan to take Guanzhong from the west is successful, it will be difficult to deal with it in the future. Let's find a way to entangle him now, so that he can't go west. Within ten days, it will be possible." Capture him alive!" Later, Yang Zhiji sent some elders out of the city to stop Yang Xuangan's horse, saying: "Now Hongnong's troops are weak and the defense is empty, so it is easy to attack." Yang Xuangan believed it and immediately came to Hongnong City.Yang Zhiji immediately went to the city to shout and curse, luring him to attack the city.Yang Xuangan was furious and immediately ordered the soldiers to attack. Facing such hopeless Yang Xuangan, Li Mi, who was almost desperate, advised him for the last time: "The way to use soldiers is speed, not to mention that the pursuers will arrive in a blink of an eye, how can they stay here? If you can't enter Tongguan, there is no danger of retreating." But if the army breaks up, how can you protect yourself?" However, Yang Xuangan couldn't listen at all.He led his troops to attack fiercely for three days, but Hongnong City remained motionless.When Yang Xuangan came back to his senses and was about to give up Hongnong and continue westward, Yu Wenshu's hundreds of thousands of troops had already overwhelmingly killed them.Yang Xuangan fought and retreated, and retreated to Dong Duyuan (now west of Lingbao City, Henan Province) on the first day of August.The army of the Sui Dynasty chased after them, and Yang Xuangan was forced to fight the Sui army here. The result of the battle can be imagined-Yang Xuangan's entire army was wiped out, and he fled to Shangluo (now Shangzhou, Shaanxi) with only a dozen cavalry.Before running far, even the dozens of soldiers fled separately, and the mount under Yang Xuangan was also shot to death, so he and his younger brother Yang Jishan fled on foot, and ran to a place called Jialushu (now Lingbao City) in a panic. southwest). Here, Yang Xuangan, who was exhausted and full of despair, stopped in his tracks.He said to Yang Jishan: "I can't accept other people's killing and insult, you take my life." When life and dignity are not available at the same time, nobleman Yang Xuangan would rather choose the latter. Yang Xuan feels dead.It took less than two months from when he started his army to when he was defeated. Although the rebellion was quickly put down, the wound it inflicted on Yang Guang and the Sui Empire was not so easy to heal.Yang Guang found helplessly that his political prestige had been severely weakened, and his popularity index dropped sharply to the lowest point since he took office. The furious Yang Guang decided to kill and frighten the world.He said to the ministers: "Yang Xuangan raised his arms and shouted, there are hundreds of thousands of followers! This is enough to prove that it is not a good thing to have too many people in the world. If there are too many people, they will gather together and become robbers. If the criminals this time are not thoroughly investigated , If you kill them all, there will be no way to alert the present and punish the future!" Afterwards, following the principle of "prefer to be wronged rather than to be persecuted", the imperial court began to pursue it extensively, and it was widely implicated - from the high officials of the court to the common people. More than 30,000 people were arrested and killed, and more than 6,000 people were exiled in one go.In addition, because Yang Xuangan had opened a warehouse to provide food during the siege of Dongdu, the imperial court buried all the people who received the relief alive at that time, and none of them were spared. So far, everyone who had the slightest relationship with Yang Xuangan has been wiped out, and only a very small number of people escaped the massacre. One of them is Li Mi. Long before Yang Xuangan's defeat, Li Mi had quietly left him, preparing to join other rebels, but was captured by the Sui army on the way.Li Mi bribed the guard with gold to make him relax his vigilance, then took advantage of his unpreparedness and fled again, defecting to Hao Xiaode in Pingyuan County. Li Mi's slipping through the net did not attract the attention of the court. During the chaos, the officials of the Sui Dynasty thought that what was missing was only a small shrimp.No one would have expected that in just a few years, this little shrimp would turn into a big fish!