Chapter 5: A Time of Chaos (5)

Li Kuo suddenly felt a chill in his heart, accompanied by a sense of bitterness. An Lushan commanded as many as 200,000 elite cavalry—something ordinary local troops could never withstand. Even if Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing were renowned generals, it was doubtful they could gain any advantage in fighting against An Lushan. Moreover, the troops under their command were hastily recruited from Chang’an and Luoyang, whose combat effectiveness was practically negligible.
No wonder the Emperor had urgently summoned the veteran general Bi Sichen to Luoyang to relieve the siege. Had our great Tang Dynasty really reached such a desperate state in terms of military talent?
“General Li, General Li, please accept the imperial edict quickly!”
After reading the edict for a long time and seeing that Li Kuo was still dazed, Zhu Gui hurriedly urged him.
“Ah!”
Only then did Li Kuo realize he had been kneeling while listening to the edict read aloud. He quickly adjusted his clothes and said respectfully, “Your servant Li Kuo accepts the edict!”
Zhu Gui handed the edict written on yellow silk to Li Kuo, then cheerfully helped him up. “Oh, General Li, you’re truly fortunate! I truly envy you.”
He gently patted the dust off Li Kuo’s clothes. “I’ve served in the imperial court for many years, but I’ve never seen the Emperor value a junior officer so highly. To be honest, most of Tang’s young officers are merely sons of wealthy families who rely on their fathers’ influence to gain positions. Usually, that’s not a big deal—they just exploit their ancestors’ status to amass wealth. But in times of war, the difference becomes evident. Those wealthy sons can neither lead troops to defend the country nor devise strategies to avert crises. Can you blame the Emperor for being upset?”
After a pause, Zhu Gui continued, “But you’re different. You became the governor of Shule through your own merits—no one else can compare to your military achievements. Now that An Lushan has rebelled, the court is in urgent need of capable generals. The Emperor is willing to hire anyone who can help, so you have a great chance to rise to fame quickly.”
Since he had benefited from Li Kuo, he naturally tried to help him in every way. What he said was true—now all of Tang’s attention was focused on An Lushan’s rebellion. With the rebels gaining momentum, the court desperately needed an outstanding general to turn the situation around.
Among the older generals, such as Gao Xianzhi and Geshu Han, many were injured and unable to give their best. As for the younger generals, most were just sons of wealthy families who sought military honors through connections. Relying on them to take charge alone was nothing but delusion.

Outstanding young generals like Li Kuo, who rose entirely on their own merit, were probably countable in the entire Tang Dynasty. No wonder the Emperor placed great hopes on him.
Li Kuo nodded and said, “With more guidance from Eunuch Zhu, I am committed to serving the country. As for fame and wealth, I hold them in low regard.”
Zhu Gui chuckled twice and said, “General Li, aren’t you being childish? This honor belongs to you—why not strive for it? By leading the troops from Jianghuai to aid the emperor in Guanlong, you are repaying his kindness. Having repaid his kindness, you deserve rewards. If you refuse them, won’t it put the Emperor in a difficult position?”
As someone who had long been in the palace, Zhu Gui had a sharp eye for matters. With just a brief analysis, he pinpointed the core issue. “Besides, Hebei is in chaos right now. The Emperor urgently needs a prominent figure to set an example for those with ambitions across the land. Who else but you could take on this role?”
Li Kuo bowed to Zhu Gui and said, “What Eunuch Zhu says makes sense. But I’m not sure what exactly the Emperor means by ‘aiding the emperor.’ How many troops should I assemble, and where should I enter Guanzhong from?”
It wasn’t that Li Kuo was talkative—after all, the Emperor hadn’t specified these details in the imperial edict. If he misinterpreted the Emperor’s intentions and acted wrongly, it could delay crucial matters.
“Well, General Li, there’s no need to worry. The Emperor has also asked me to convey a message to you regarding this.”
Zhu Gui glanced around, deliberately casting a look at Dou Qing and the others before clearing his throat and saying, “Please ask everyone to step back, General Li!”……
At the Yangzhou Training Camp, on the drill ground.
Li Kuo was deep in thought, fretting over his next move.
If the imperial edict written by the Emperor was just a formal statement, then the message conveyed by Zhu Gui represented his true intentions. People in the bureaucracy often said one thing but did another—even the Emperor was no exception.
“The Emperor hopes you will enter the capital via the Duji Route, passing through Tangzhou, Dengzhou, and Shangzhou before heading west to Chang’an to protect him.” (Note 1)
Every time Li Kuo remembered these words spoken with a smile by Zhu Gui, he shuddered. With the Eastern Capital under siege, entering Guanzhong from Hedong was utterly impossible. So why abandon the Shannan East Route and take a longer path via the Duji Route?
In fact, entering through the Huainan Route and then the Shannan East Route, passing through Shangluo and Shangqiu to reach Lantian, would allow one to reach the Western Capital directly—much faster than taking the Duji Route. The Emperor surely knew this. The only reason he might make such a decision was that he didn’t trust Li Kuo!

Li Kuo unrolled the map of the Tang Dynasty’s territories brought by his personal guards and began marking it with a charcoal pencil. From the map, it was clear that the Duji Circuit was closer to An Lushan’s base in the Hebei Circuit, meaning it faced much greater pressure from An Lushan’s cavalry compared to the Shannan East Circuit. Most importantly, the eastern capital of Luoyang, located in the Duji Circuit, was currently under siege by 200,000 cavalrymen from Youzhou. At such a critical moment, the emperor had specifically ordered him to take a detour from the east—was he trying to have him assist Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing in battle?

It had been less than half a year since he began training the troops from the Jianghuai Regiment, and although their appearance had improved significantly, they still couldn’t match the strength of the border troops. Leading such an army, even if it numbered 20,000 or 30,000, would likely be no match for a force of 10,000 cavalrymen from Youzhou! The emperor, who loved military strategy, surely understood this truth—could he be trying to use someone else to carry out his own plans?

As soon as this thought crossed his mind, Li Kuo slapped himself hard. He mocked himself, saying that the entire country belonged to the emperor. If the emperor truly wanted his life, he could simply issue an order—why resort to such underhanded methods? Yet, this reasoning offered little comfort, and soon he fell back into suspicion toward the emperor and the court. His doubts were further fueled by Zhu Gui’s last words: “The emperor hopes you will send Deputy General Zhang Yanji to Anxi to fill the gap in military leadership there.”

At first glance, this seemed reasonable—after all, Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing had led many of their own generals eastward to rescue Chang’an, leaving a severe shortage of commanders in the four garrisons of Anxi. But upon closer consideration, this arrangement was riddled with flaws. Zhang Yanji had only participated in a few battles alongside Li Kuo in Anxi, and his experience was far inferior to that of the veteran generals who had served there for years. He might be suitable as a subordinate commander, but as the leader of an entire army or garrison, he lacked the overall strategic vision needed. Even if forced into the role, it would likely do more harm than good to the army.

Zhang Yanji was not suitable to be a military commander. Based on his understanding of Zhang Yanji, Li Kuo was almost certain it was a misunderstanding. Rather than sending someone unsuited to lead an army to Anxi, it would be better to promote some of the veteran generals from the Anxi army—this would save time and gain trust. Yet, the emperor’s reason was that Zhang Yanji had military experience in Shule. If that were the case, given the Tang Dynasty’s practice of rotating military commanders every three years, almost all high-ranking generals would have Anxi backgrounds.

Why did the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty focus his attention on such an unremarkable minor general? And why go to such lengths to transfer him to Anxi?
Li Kuo didn’t want to spend his energy planning or pondering such matters, but the emperor’s strange decision forced him to think more. In fact, even before being sent to Anxi, he had noticed a subtle change in the emperor’s attitude toward him. Before that, the emperor had highly praised him and treated him as a successor to Geshu Han and Gao Xianzhi. After he was sent to Anxi, although the emperor occasionally sent envoys to praise him under the pretext of rewarding the troops, the tone clearly revealed indifference.
The emperor didn’t have high hopes for him!
Li Kuo felt a chill in his heart. Though he didn’t want to think about it, he couldn’t avoid considering that possibility—and it was naturally related to the Imperial Concubine.
For some reason, after he became the concubine’s archery teacher and moved in and out of the palace, rumors spread in the markets that he had an affair with her. One of the main reasons he had left Chang’an for Anxi was that rumor. Now it seemed that this matter had likely turned into a scandal in the emperor’s eyes. He didn’t know who started the rumor, but it undoubtedly had a significant impact on his future.
Given the emperor’s temperament, although he might not say it outright, he probably already despised him. Such matters were hard to explain clearly; it all depended on the emperor’s attitude!
“Now, I guess I can only take things one step at a time,” Li Kuo sighed deeply, shaking his head with a bitter smile.
What else could he do? If he defied the emperor’s orders, he would surely be labeled a rebel right away. An Lushan had two hundred thousand elite troops to challenge the court—what did he have?
At this point, it seemed he had no choice left.