Chapter 687: Turbulence in Hebei (Part 1)

The night was deep, with thick dark clouds covering the sky—no moonlight or starlight to be seen. Objects could not be distinguished even a dozen steps away. In the darkness, the Yellow River was also hard to make out. After autumn, this mighty river no longer flowed as vigorously as in summer, resembling rather a calm, dim sea after a storm, though ripples still danced on its surface.
This was the best time of year to cross the river. Under the cover of darkness, a hundred-stone fishing boat sped northward through the undulating waves. Apart from three rowers, there was only one man in a gray robe, with a load beside him—apparently a merchant. Yet his resolute gaze and upright posture revealed him to be no merchant at all. A small trader wouldn’t have the means to hire a boat to cross the river.
He indeed was not a merchant. He was a scout for the Tang army, named Zhou Yuan, on a crucial mission. He crossed the river from Luxian in Jizhou to Bozhou on the other side. Although the river here was wide, its current was gentle, making it very convenient to cross. The boat had been sailing along the riverbank for most of an hour, and gradually, he could see the dark, wall-like silhouettes on the opposite bank—those were the forests. The sight of the trees meant he was already quite close to the shore.
“Damn it!”
The previously silent rowers suddenly cried out. The sound of oars could be heard in the darkness—they had been surrounded by two patrol boats, one on each side.
“Throw your oars into the water and kneel on the boat, or we’ll shoot!”
The two patrol boats were now ten steps away, each carrying a dozen soldiers armed with crossbows, aiming coldly at them.
“Follow their orders!”
Zhou Yuan said firmly, “Don’t worry. I’m here to meet them.”
Several oars were thrown into the water, and the rowers knelt, raising their hands high. Zhou Yuan also knelt. The boat jolted violently as several Wei Bo army soldiers jumped aboard. Without saying a word, they began searching the boat.
Torches were lit, one of which was brought close to Zhou Yuan, illuminating his face. A sharp knife was pressed against his neck as the man asked coldly, “Are you a spy from the other side?”
Zhou Yuan raised his hands calmly and said, “I’m just a messenger, delivering a letter to General Tian.”
With a “bang!”, someone smashed his back of the head with the handle of a knife, knocking him unconscious.
“Damn! He’s clearly a spy yet dares to lie to me! I’ll kill you!”
But the leading Wei Bo army officer frowned and stopped his companion from killing him. “Don’t be reckless. Search him first.”

The two men quickly searched Zhou Yuan’s body, and one of them shouted, “Found it!” He pulled out a letter from Zhou Yuan’s bosom and handed it to the officer, “Sir, take a look—could this be it?” Wei Bo knew a few characters; he took the letter, glanced at it in the firelight, and immediately stood up in fright. “Hurry, wake him up!” Moments later, Zhou Yuan was awakened by the soldiers, who pinched him and slapped his face. The officer returned the letter to him and bowed, saying, “I’m truly sorry. This was just routine procedure.” Zhou Yuan took the letter. Once his headache subsided a bit, he said, “Time is of the essence. Please take me to General Tian. Also, this ship has nothing to do with me—please release them.” The officer waved his hand. “Release the ship.” Zhou Yuan followed them onto the patrol boat. The two patrol boats soon moved away, disappearing into the thick mist. The small boat, now out of danger, set sail back.

…

Since An Lushan’s rebellion, through Shi Siming’s rise to power, to the Battle of Yizhou, more than a year had passed in Hebei. By now, Hebei was in ruins, with vast stretches of barren land. What was once a prosperous region with millions of people now had its population reduced to just 10%. The remaining people lived in a few areas such as Youzhou, Weizhou, and Yingzhou. Today, the consequences of the warlord conflicts were evident. For An Lushan, Shi Siming, and Tian Chengsi, the most important resource was no longer grain or iron—it was people. Without people, there was no grain, and without grain, their armies could not survive. Tian Chengsi had 60,000 troops under his command, and the three provinces of Wei, Bo, and Bei, which he controlled, had over 200,000 people. Clearly, these 200,000 people could not feed 60,000 soldiers. Left with no choice, Tian Chengsi ordered his troops to engage in farming. Moreover, he did everything possible to gather more people from various provinces and counties and implemented strict rationing. Yet the situation was becoming increasingly unfavorable for Tian Chengsi. An Lushan was defeated by Shi Siming, Youzhou changed hands, and An Lushan fled to Yingzhou. The temporary balance in Hebei was broken, and Tian Chengsi would now face Shi Siming’s onslaught head-on. These days, Tian Chengsi couldn’t sleep. Although he was known among the generals of Hebei as a cunning fox, even foxes eventually reach a dead end. Now, Tian Chengsi was cornered. Night had fallen, and the light in the room flickered, casting long and short shadows of his thin figure as he paced back and forth with his hands behind his back. Behind him stood a sand table displaying the entire terrain of Hebei. Tian Chengsi was deeply worried about his future.

Tian Chengsi was about fifty years old, tall and thin, with a slightly hunched back. His long, thin face and fox-like eyes gave him an appearance of cunning and scheming. He was a veteran Han general in the Fanyang army and one of An Lushan’s closest confidants. After An Lushan conquered all of Hebei, he ordered Tian Chengsi to lead 50,000 troops to guard the three key provinces of Wei, Bo, and Bei in southern Hebei.

Of course, he was no saint. As soon as he arrived in Wei and Bo, he confiscated all the grain and ironware from the residents’ homes and distributed rations on a daily basis, making it difficult for them to escape. He also gathered all the able-bodied men to work in the fields, issuing rations to their families based on their performance. If the men worked hard, their wives and children would get more rations; if they were lazy or disobedient, their families’ rations would be cut. This ruthless tactic forced nearly 100,000 able-bodied men to work like cattle and horses to supply his army with food.

Among the generals in Hebei, Tian Chengsi was known as the cunning fox. Throughout the turmoil in Hebei, his fox-like nature became evident. Cai Xide was defeated, Li Guiren was eliminated, and Shi Siming rebelled, but only Tian Chengsi managed to preserve his strength without being affected. He even quietly recruited many defeated soldiers, bringing his forces to 60,000.

In recent days, he had received two important pieces of intelligence: one was that An Lushan had been defeated and his remaining forces had fled to Yingzhou; the other was that the Southern Tang dynasty had fallen, and Li Qingan had completed the unification of the Tang dynasty except for Hebei. Li Qingan’s next target would surely be Hebei, and its recovery was only a matter of time. In fact, Tian Chengsi had long seen through Li Qingan’s strategy. Li Qingan had the strength to reconquer Hebei, but he delayed doing so to keep An Lushan as a threat hanging over the Tang people, allowing him to use An Lushan’s rebellion as an excuse for any action he took. Once he was fully prepared, he would then take control of Hebei.

Now that the Southern Tang had fallen, it meant Li Qingan was ready, and attacking Hebei was inevitable. The situation in Hebei had become clear—An Lushan and Shi Siming had become puppets, and the forces that had been lurking behind them finally came to the forefront. Shi Siming was backed by the Uyghurs, while An Lushan was supported by the Khitans. The reason these two could maintain a strong army despite the near-destruction of the Han population was that they received supplies from the Khitans and Uyghurs.

From the ethnic composition of their armies, there were hardly any Han people left. Shi Siming’s army was mainly composed of Turks and Uyghurs, while An Lushan’s army consisted of Khitans and Xis. The few Han soldiers in their armies also became military slaves. All Han armies were under the control of Li Huaixian and Tian Chengsi.

From an ethnic perspective, Tian Chengsi was undoubtedly on the same side as Li Qingan. Surrendering to the imperial court was his inevitable fate, and he was fully aware of this. But Tian Chengsi didn’t want to surrender to Li Qingan so easily. He wanted to maximize his own interests and see what Li Qingan could offer him. After Li Huaixian surrendered, he was granted the title of Duke of Beiping County and the position of General of the Right Military Guard. So what could Tian Chengsi get?

At that moment, footsteps were heard in the courtyard. A soldier reported outside, “Commander! The patrol soldiers caught a messenger sent by the Tang army.”

Tian Chengsi turned around, pondered for a moment, then ordered, “Bring him in!”

A short while later, Zhou Yuan, a scout from the Tang army, was brought into the room. Zhou Yuan bowed and said, “Zhou Yuan, scout officer of the Tang army, salutes General Tian!”

Seeing that this man knew how to be polite, Tian Chengsi nodded slightly and asked, “Do you have any message for me?”

The letter was already in the hands of one of his bodyguards. The bodyguard handed it over, and Tian Chengsi took it. His eyes flashed with surprise—it was a personal letter from Li Qingan.

“From Prince Zhao and Li Qingan, Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of the Realm, to General Tian Chengsi of Wei Bo,” Tian Chengsi suppressed his nervousness and opened the letter.

“Honorable General Tian of Wei Bo, the chaos in Hebei has persisted to this day. The barbarian tribes are eyeing the Central Plains. The Uyghurs and Turks are using Shi Siming to invade the Central Plains, while the Khitans and Xis are using An Lushan to seize Hebei and trample the Central Plains. Where will you go? Your subordinates are all Han people—would they really be willing to be driven by barbarian chiefs, killing their parents and raping their sisters? Once prosperous, Hebei is now a wasteland, with miles of barren land, exposed bones, and suffering people. As the supreme commander of the realm, Li Qingan cannot allow the Chinese lands to fall under the feet of barbarians. He wishes to lead the imperial army north to drive out the barbarians and restore the glory of the Tang Dynasty. Yet, unable to bear the sight of the Han people killing each other, he urges you to return to the Tang Dynasty. You will be granted titles for your wife and children and appointed as a high general. Do not remain stubborn, otherwise not only will your life be at risk, but you will also be labeled a traitor and infamous forever. Please think carefully. Sincerely, Li Qingan. Also, given the urgent situation in Hebei, protecting the people is of utmost importance.”

Tian Chengsi read Li Qingan’s letter three times, pondering the meaning of every word. What concerned him most was how Li Qingan planned to reward him. The letter made it clear—he would be granted titles for his wife and children and appointed as a high general. Titles for his family meant noble status, while being a high general meant a high position—similar to what Li Huaixian had.

Tian Chengsi glanced at the scout who delivered the message and asked again, “Does Captain Zhou have any other messages for me?”
“The message is just eight words: ‘Treat my people well, and your rank will surpass Huai Xian’s.’ I don’t understand what it means. Please, General Tian, figure it out yourself.”
Tian Chengsi nodded and ordered his attendants, “Take him away and treat him well.”
Zhou Yuan was taken away. Tian Chengsi slowly walked over to the sand table, pondering the meaning of those words. In other words, as long as he treated the people well, his future rank could surpass Li Huai Xian’s. Yet nearly three hundred thousand Han people in the three provinces of Wei, Bo, and Bei were under his control. He hadn’t persecuted them like Cai Xide or Li Guiren had; although their lives were hard, they could at least survive.
Tian Chengsi picked up the letter again and read the last sentence: “Also, with urgent matters in Hebei now, protecting the people is of utmost importance.” On the surface, it seemed Li Qingan had forgotten something and added it at the end. But Tian Chengsi knew that given Li Qingan’s status, he would rather rewrite the message than forget something and add it later. This was clearly intentional, a hint—what hint? It carried the same meaning as the message brought by Zhou Yuan.
What was Li Qingan hinting at?
Tian Chengsi stared intently at the sand table. Suddenly, an idea flashed through his mind like lightning. He slapped his own forehead hard—he understood. The refugees from the five provinces.
A few days earlier, he had received intelligence that about sixty thousand refugees from the five provinces of Mo, Ying, Shen, Ji, and Cang were fleeing toward Cangzhou under the leadership of Zhang Xun, the magistrate of Qiu County in Yizhou. Tian Chengsi had initially wanted to take advantage of these sixty thousand refugees, but he was worried about conflict with Shi Siming’s army, so he held back.
It turned out Li Qingan wanted him to save these refugees from the four provinces. The condition was that his rank would surpass Huai Xian’s. Tian Chengsi felt a surge of excitement. Li Huai Xian had been granted the title of County Duke; if he surpassed him, he would become a Duke of the State. Even if he didn’t become a Duke, he would still receive titles like “Imperial Minister” or “Vice Minister.”
Tian Chengsi knew that even if he surrendered, Li Qingan would gradually demote him in a few years. But by helping Li Qingan maintain his reputation for protecting the people, he would earn another merit. His prosperity in the latter half of his life might depend on this move.
Thinking of this, he grew anxious. He was worried that Shi Siming might already have sent troops to capture these Han people and hand them over to the Uyghurs.
“Someone!”
At his command, a messenger immediately stepped forward. “Please give your orders, Commander!”
“Pass my orders: The First and Second Armies must prepare to set out immediately. I will go north in person!”
……

The war between An Lushan and Shi Siming created an opportunity for Zhang Xun and others. They emerged from Baiyangdian and began organizing large-scale evacuations of the people. This evacuation took two months, during which countless people went from fear to following, from despair to hope, from children to the elderly, from just one person to 60,000. Eventually, a massive exodus force was formed—60,000 people from Mozhou, Yingzhou, Shenzhou, Jizhou, and Cangzhou. They realized that staying in Hebei meant only death, and their survival instincts led them to overcome their attachment to their homeland. They set off toward the coast of Cangzhou, believing that the imperial court would send ships to rescue them.

In mid-August, this massive exodus force finally arrived at Baishi Town, east of Qingchi County. This town belonged to Qingchi County and was the closest to the sea. Further ahead lay hundreds of miles of uninhabited marshland.

As agreed, the exodus force moved eastward along the waterways, with hundreds of large ships waiting at the sea entrance—this was everyone’s hope. But they didn’t know that Shi Siming’s army of 20,000 soldiers was already 80 miles away.