Chapter 421: The Third Column

Li Qing’an truly did not expect Li Qiu to visit him at this time. He knew that Li Qiu was a trusted confidant of the retired emperor Li Hen. So, what message might Li Qiu bring from Li Hen?
After pondering for a moment, Li Qing’an nodded and said, “Bring him in to see me!”
Soon, several bodyguards brought Li Qiu into the tent. As soon as he entered, Li Qiu bowed and said, “Li Qiu pays his respects to Prince Zhao!”
“You don’t need to be so formal, Prince. Just call me the Great General—that’s how everyone in Anxi addresses me.”
Li Qing’an smiled slightly and waved his hand. “Come, please sit down.”
Seeing that Li Qing’an was indifferent toward him, Li Qiu felt uneasy. He sat down, and Li Qing’an ordered a servant to bring him a cup of tea. Only then did Li Qing’an smile and ask, “Prince, did you come from Chang’an?”
Li Qiu’s heart skipped a beat, as if Li Qing’an had uncovered his secret. His eyes filled with panic, and he quickly replied, “The Great General is right. I indeed came from Chang’an.”
Li Qing’an noticed the panic in Li Qiu’s eyes but did not press further. Instead, he smiled calmly and said, “Your arrival tonight is truly unexpected. Could it be that the situation in Chang’an is too chaotic, so you’ve come to me for refuge? Or perhaps you’re concerned about Prince Qing’s well-being and want to visit family in Anxi?”
Li Qiu forced a laugh. “Neither. In fact, I’m just a middleman, sent by someone to make a deal with the Great General.”
“By whom?” Li Qing’an pressed further.
“Well… the Great General should know who it is!”
“No! I don’t know.”
After a long silence, Li Qiu sighed and said softly, “It’s the retired emperor.”
“What!”
Li Qing’an was shocked, his expression so astonished that it seemed his eyes might pop out. “What did you say? The retired emperor? I must have heard wrong! How is that possible?”
At that moment, Li Qiu wished he could rush forward and strangle Li Qing’an. How could he not know? He pretended to be confused. Li Qiu held back his anger and said, “Great General, don’t be surprised. I’m telling the truth. It’s indeed the retired emperor who sent me here.”
With that, Li Qiu took out a gold plaque and handed it to Li Qing’an. “This is the gold plaque the retired emperor gave the Great General when he was still the crown prince. Later, the Great General returned it to the retired emperor—this very Qilin Gold Plate. Do you still remember it?”
Li Qing’an took the plaque, touched it for a while, and sighed. “So many years have passed in the blink of an eye, yet those memories still feel like they happened yesterday. How nostalgic!”
After reflecting for a while, he asked, “Did the retired emperor leave any message for me?”

Li Qiu had been worried that Li Qingan wouldn’t acknowledge his relationship with Li Hen. Now that he finally admitted it, Li Qiu felt uplifted and quickly said, “Some things shouldn’t be put in writing. The Retired Emperor ordered me to deliver a message. If the General has anything to say, there’s no need to write it down; I can convey it to the Retired Emperor, so neither side will feel pressured.”
“That’s quite thoughtful. Alright! Go ahead, I’m listening.”
Li Qiu was about to speak but glanced at the guards beside him and hesitated. Li Qingan then smiled and said, “They’re all my trusted men. You can speak freely.”
“Well, the Retired Emperor asked me to convey his hope that the General will support him as he did before.”
“Support him?”
Li Qingan was truly surprised and took a while to respond. “Are you saying the Retired Emperor wants to ascend the throne?”
Even Li Qingan couldn’t believe his own conclusion. Could Li Hen really seize his son’s throne? Li Qiu shook his head. “That’s unlikely. The Retired Emperor is simply very dissatisfied with the Emperor’s actions. He believes the Emperor’s reckless decisions will lead to the downfall of the Tang Dynasty. He wants to establish a new emperor—probably the Emperor’s brother. It’s not clear yet, but the Retired Emperor hopes the General will support him. In return, he’ll agree to whatever conditions the General proposes.”
The sudden news caught Li Qingan off guard. He had been paying attention to the struggle between Li Yu and Li Longji, but never expected a third party to emerge at such a critical moment. It seemed that none of the three generations would rest—could it be that Emperor Suzong of Tang in history was really about to make his appearance?
Though extremely surprised, Li Qingan managed to stay calm. He knew Li Hen well—this man was extremely cunning and would never make empty promises. If he mentioned establishing a new emperor, it must be because he had some basis for it. What could that basis be?
Thinking this, Li Qingan frowned and said, “Although I have some strength, I’m still the governor of Anxi, far from Chang’an. I’m worried I might not be able to help the Retired Emperor and disappoint him.”
Li Qiu smiled slightly and said, “The General’s army has already occupied Huizhou. Isn’t that far from Chang’an?”
“Hehe! You’re really good at joking, young prince. I’m just worried that my strength is insufficient to help the Retired Emperor.”

Li Qiu understood Li Qingan’s intention—nothing more than trying to indirectly find out Li Heng’s strength. Before leaving, Li Heng had told him that some things could be said and others couldn’t. After some thought, Li Qiu said, “I won’t hide anything from the Great General. Prime Minister Wang Gong and Minister of War Chen Xilie have clearly stated their support for the Retired Emperor. There are also some former members of the Eastern Palace faction, such as the Great General’s father-in-law, who get along very well with the Retired Emperor.”

Li Qingan stared at Li Qiu for a long time. He believed Li Qiu was telling the truth, but before reaching an agreement with him, they wouldn’t reveal their true strength. If even someone like Prime Minister Wang Gong had spoken out, then who could be more powerful than him?

Only the army—only the army could be more powerful than the support of a prime minister. It couldn’t be An Lushan; with Li Qiu in his hands, An Lushan would never pay attention to an old man like Li Heng. So who could it be?

He asked calmly, “What about the army?”

Li Qiu shook his head and sighed, “It’s precisely because we lack an army that we turn to the Great General for help.”

At that moment, a name popped into Li Qingan’s mind. Recalling Li Qiu’s panic at first, Li Qingan seemed to realize something and chuckled to himself. It was him.

“Great General, what do you think? Can you consider it?”

Li Qingan smiled faintly and said, “This is a matter of great importance. Let me give it some thought. Next time, I will give the Retired Emperor a definite answer.”

……

Li Qiu took his leave, but Li Qingan was troubled. He paced back and forth in his tent with his hands behind his back. He hadn’t expected Li Heng to take action—this wolf had hidden so well. Nor had he expected his ambition to be so great. Of course, Li Qingan didn’t believe Li Heng truly wanted to reconcile with him. His own ambition was equally hard to conceal. Seeking his support was like bargaining with a tiger—clearly, Li Heng only wanted to use him and discard him afterward. So proposing long-term goals like immigration was undoubtedly unrealistic.

If he wanted to use him, why couldn’t he use him in return to achieve his own goals? Li Qingan’s purpose in coming here was also very clear. Besides reclaiming Hexi, he had deeper political ambitions. Everyone was eyeing that position, but with different methods and strategies. Li Qingan’s approach was methodical, with a long-term vision. He believed victory would ultimately belong to him.

In Chang’an, as the armies of the three military governors successively entered Guanzhong, the atmosphere there became even more tense—a situation no one could have imagined ten years earlier. All the military governors grew restless. An Lushan from Jiannan, Shuofang, Hexi, Longyou, and Fanyang in Hedong knocked at the gates outside Tongguan. Only Li Qing’an from Anxi did not join in the chaos. However, informed sources claimed that Li Qing’an also had not stayed put in Anxi; his army had crossed the Yellow River and reached Huizhou. In other words, it was only a matter of time before Li Qing’an entered Guanzhong.

Yet this outcome was expected by most people. With two factions vying for the imperial throne, the military inevitably played a decisive role. Thus, it was only natural for their armies to enter Guanzhong. The common people, however, suffered greatly. After a brief decline, grain prices in Chang’an soared again. Fear of war led households to stockpile food, sparking a frenzy to buy grain. Prices rose from 100 wen per dou to 300 wen per dou, and eventually to 1,000 wen per dou. It was not until the imperial court released 500,000 dan of grain at a low price that prices dropped to 800 wen per dou—still a record high. In the early days of the Tianbao era, grain cost only 10 wen per dou, but in just over a decade, prices had risen by 80 times. This indirectly proved that the Tang Dynasty was on the decline.

Of course, this was related to the war. Not only grain but also firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea all saw sharp price increases. Students lost interest in studying, officials lost interest in attending court, and taverns and brothels were always full. Many people wanted to enjoy life before chaos struck. Even the martial arts schools in Chang’an were overcrowded, as families sent their sons there to learn martial arts to protect themselves in troubled times.

In the afternoon, the bells signaling the end of court sessions in the imperial city and Daming Palace rang monotonously as usual, but few officials came out. Almost all were from key departments such as the Ministry of Revenue, Ministry of Personnel, Dali Temple, and Taifu Temple. Less busy departments like the Ministry of Rites, Ministry of War, Guanglu Temple, and Honglu Temple had even fewer staff. As for the offices of the Eastern Palace, there wasn’t a single soul in sight.

But in the imperial study of the Zichen Hall, Emperor Li Yu of the Tang Dynasty was almost suffocated by the tense situation. A battle had taken place at Tongguan—An Lushan sent 20,000 troops to attack it, while Wang Sili led 80,000 troops in defense. Although An Lushan’s forces failed to capture Tongguan and were forced to retreat, suffering thousands of casualties, the defending troops lost nearly 15,000 men. With one side defending and the other attacking, the defending forces suffered far more casualties than the attackers, which only showed the weakness of their combat strength. Li Yu was deeply worried. If An Lushan ignored his losses and launched several more large-scale attacks on Tongguan, it might fall. Or if An Lushan’s army crossed the Yellow River and pressed from the west, the situation in Guanzhong would also collapse.

Besides An Lushan, a small battle also took place in Hanzhong, with casualties on both sides but no impact on the overall situation. In fact, what Li Yu was most concerned about was the standoff between the three armies in Fengxiang. He never expected Ge Shu Han to send troops as well. With Ge Shu Han, Gao Xianzhi, and Guo Ziyi’s armies facing off, none dared to act rashly, creating an extremely tense situation.

What to do? How to break this deadlock? Li Yu was agonized, staring anxiously at his mentor Li Mi. But Li Mi was also undecided, as he did not know Ge Shu Han’s stance—the most crucial figure in this entire game of strategy in Guanzhong.

Just then, urgent footsteps were heard outside. A eunuch rushed in to report, “Your Majesty, urgent news! The officials in Yanzhou report that tens of thousands of An Lushan’s troops have crossed the Yellow River.”

“Ah!” Li Yu was shocked.