Chapter 576: Disagreement Among Commanders

The explosion at the gunpowder warehouse in Lingyun Valley could be seen from dozens of miles away due to its flames, and its sound was audible even a hundred miles off—like an earthquake that shook the land. Entire Youzhou City was awakened; lights lit up in every household. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the streets, whispering among themselves as they stared at the massive plume of smoke. Soldiers from An Lushan’s camps were also disturbed; they left their barracks, staring in horror at the towering mushroom cloud rising slowly. Everyone felt weighed down by this cloud, with an ominous foreboding enveloping their hearts.

An Lushan, however, was not awakened. He slept deeply; even if thunder exploded beside his ear, he would not wake. It was his personal guards who woke him, reporting an explosion at the gunpowder factory. Without even putting on shoes, An Lushan rushed out of his room. The massive mushroom cloud left him stunned, and he suddenly realized the impact of this explosion on his gunpowder plans.

A searing pain overwhelmed him, and An Lushan roared in fury. He bellowed, “Go! Hurry and bring Shi Siming here!”

After shouting that, he collapsed to the ground, utterly exhausted. All traces of his commanding demeanor vanished. He even grinned and let out a howl…

Half an hour later, Shi Siming, fully armored, was brought before Prince Yan’s palace by soldiers. As the chief responsible for gunpowder weapons, unlike An Lushan who was awakened, he had immediately sent troops to assist as soon as the rescue beacon fires were lit on the hill. Yet he arrived too late. All he saw was the ruined gunpowder factory, corpses everywhere, and his six thousand troops demoralized. The Anxi Scout Army had already left quietly.

At that moment, Shi Siming’s emotions were complex—fear, anger, and admiration. He admired the Anxi Scout Army greatly. Not only had they managed to resist an army of ten thousand with just four hundred men using their powerful crossbow formations, nor only had they killed three thousand enemies without losing a single soldier, but more importantly, the six thousand troops had been severely damaged. The massive explosion had destroyed their will to fight. The Anxi Scout Army could have slaughtered those six thousand and created a miracle of five hundred defeating ten thousand. Yet they disappeared silently—this was the quality of a scout army that never stepped beyond its duties, which filled Shi Siming with admiration. He did not have such an army.

Shi Siming was brought before An Lushan. He knelt on one knee, clasped his fists in greeting, and said, “Your humble servant, Shi Siming, pays respects to the great commander!”

An Lushan was helped by his personal guards to sit on the command seat. He appeared extremely depressed, but Shi Siming’s arrival reignited his fury. Suddenly, he straightened up and pointed at Shi Siming, shouting, “You wretched thief! How dare you show your face before me?”
“Commander, I am innocent!”
A fierce anger surged within An Lushan. He glared viciously at Shi Siming—how dare he claim innocence? Suddenly, he grabbed the military seal from the command desk and swung it at Shi Siming’s head. With a loud crack, the heavy seal struck Shi Siming’s forehead, causing blood to flow instantly.
“Bastard!”
An Lushan roared again, “Dare you say you’re innocent one more time!”
The guards rushed forward to bandage Shi Siming’s wound, but he pushed them away and sighed, “I indeed made mistakes, but I believe the real reason lies in the commander’s excessive caution.”
“What!” An Lushan was furious—so it was his fault. In a fit of rage, he sneered, “Very well! Tell me then—where was I being too cautious?”
“I once suggested to the commander that having ten thousand troops three miles away was too far, but the commander said there might be danger. That’s one thing. But I repeatedly emphasized that at least three thousand troops should be stationed at the gunpowder factory. Yet the commander insisted on sending only three hundred personal guards, fearing the secrets of gunpowder would be exposed. This became the biggest weakness in our defense during the attack. Commander, I will take responsibility, but I believe you also share some blame.”
“I think you’re just impatient to die!”
An Lushan stared at Shi Siming darkly and said, “Since you want to die, I’ll fulfill your wish. Bring him here!”
The executioners responded immediately. At that moment, his advisor Gao Shang arrived. If there was anyone in the world who could persuade An Lushan, it was Gao Shang. He understood An Lushan’s temperament and knew about his hopes for the thunder weapons. Suddenly attacked by the Anxi scouts, how could An Lushan not be enraged? But no matter how angry he was, he couldn’t harm himself. He quickly tried to calm An Lushan, saying, “Commander, now is not the time to hold Shi Siming accountable. The Anxi scouts are still in Youzhou. What about the thunder weapons? Commander, let him handle these matters first!”
An Lushan wasn’t ready to kill Shi Siming yet. He just couldn’t bear to lose face. Gao Shang gave him an out, and he grunted heavily, “Very well! I’ll remember your head. I’ll settle accounts with you later. Get out!”

Si Siming withdrew in resentment, and only then did An Lushan let out a long sigh before saying to Gao Shang, “Sir, what shall I do now? All the gunpowder we managed to obtain has been destroyed. With an uprising imminent, this is a huge blow to us!”
“General, don’t worry. Although we’ve suffered a temporary setback, we now have the formula. That’s better than knowing nothing before. General, I’ll just start over from scratch.”
“It’s not that simple!”
An Lushan shook his head. “All the raw materials have been destroyed. I can make nitrate powder again, and charcoal isn’t a problem either. The key is sulfur. Hebei doesn’t produce sulfur naturally, and all the sulfur from the various counties in Hebei Province was seized by me. Now it’s all gone—what am I to do?”
“General, go buy it elsewhere. Didn’t you send people to Qingzhou? Then go to Jianghuai or Henan Province. Anyway, get some first, and then we can slowly look for sulfur mines.”
An Lushan pondered for a moment. Indeed, that was the only option. He nodded and said, “I’ll assign more people to search for mines. Besides, there’s one more thing—I want you to handle it personally.”
“General, please give your orders!”
An Lushan sneered and said, “This time, those 500 scouts from Anxi dared to penetrate Youzhou, acting with such brutality and precision. If they didn’t have an insider, I wouldn’t believe it. I ask you to personally investigate and make sure to find that insider and tear them to pieces!”
Gao Shang was overjoyed. This meant An Lushan was entrusting him with the intelligence work. He quickly bowed and said, “I will not disappoint you, my lord!”
“Sir, wait!”
Just as he was about to leave, An Lushan called him back. Gritting his teeth, An Lushan said, “It would be impolite not to return the favor! I also want Li Qingan to taste my strength.”
……
Not long after dawn, the atmosphere in Youzhou City suddenly became tense. The four city gates were slammed shut, and no one was allowed to leave. Teams of fully armed soldiers rushed through the streets and alleys. All inns, taverns, brothels, and other entertainment venues were closed. Soldiers searched house by house, registering all outsiders, and arresting anyone who seemed suspicious.
But Gao Shang focused his efforts on investigating the ten wealthy families in Youzhou City permitted to raise pigeons. This was his entry point. Through analysis of the timing, he concluded that the information about establishing a gunpowder factory in Youzhou couldn’t have been sent to Chang’an by land—there wasn’t enough time. It must have been sent via pigeon mail. Therefore, one of those ten families allowed to raise pigeons was likely Li Qingan’s intelligence hub in Youzhou.

Of course, this base might also be in another province. Intelligence could first be sent there, and then pigeons could be used to deliver it to Chang’an. But Gao Shang believed that given Li Qing’an’s domineering nature, he would surely establish the intelligence headquarters for Hebei in Youzhou—that suited his character best.

The first place they searched was Beiyan Madian, a horse shop run by Turks that also supplied warhorses to the military. They had been specially approved by An Lushan to raise pigeons for communication with their branches in the north. Gao Shang led his men to conduct a thorough search but found nothing unusual. Moreover, the shop owner had a close relationship with Shi Siming, so they left the horse shop alone.

Immediately afterward, Gao Shang led his men to the second establishment qualified to raise pigeons: Miaoshou Huichun Tang.

It was already noon when Gao Shang arrived at Miaoshou Huichun Tang. Long queues of patients still lined up outside the shop, with staff rushing back and forth, bringing patients inside. At that moment, hundreds of Yan troops rushed to the front of the shop, surrounding it completely. The patients were terrified and scattered in all directions.

Surrounded by a dozen soldiers, Gao Shang arrived at Miaoshou Huichun Tang. Looking at the shop sign inscribed by Pei Kuan years ago—“Kind-hearted and compassionate, with miraculous healing skills”—he nodded and ordered, “Do not disturb the shop. The army shall not enter without my orders.”

Miaoshou Huichun Tang had been operating in Youzhou for decades and enjoyed high prestige among the people. As a scholar, Gao Shang knew he couldn’t be too harsh on such a highly respected establishment. Yet an investigation was still necessary, so he had to use gentle tactics.

With that in mind, he turned to the Taoist priest Chen Zhudi, who was being held by two soldiers, and asked, “Have you been here before?”

Chen Zhudi hadn’t gone to the gunpowder factory because he had nothing to do with gunpowder, which saved him from disaster. But he was captured by An Lushan’s troops during his escape and briefly interrogated by Gao Shang. He confessed all the information. Gao Shang immediately realized that this Taoist priest might be the key to the leaks, and that wealthy young man surnamed Zhao was likely a spy for the Anxi Army in Youzhou. To uncover this mystery, he took Chen Zhudi with him as well.

Chen Zhudi glanced nervously at Miaoshou Huichun Tang and shook his head. “I’ve never been here before.”

“Take him away!”

At that moment, a clerk from the shop rushed over, bowed, and asked, “What does Lord Gao need from Miaoshou Huichun Tang?”

Gao Shang was quite famous in Youzhou, and many people recognized him as An Lushan’s advisor. The people at Miaoshou Huichun Tang were no exception. Gao Shang smiled faintly, bowed, and said, “I’m investigating on orders from Commander An. Please have your boss come see me!”