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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 106: The Governor's Son
Seven years had passed, and as the new year began, Li Jian Cheng started preparing for the emperor's visit. Once the emperor finished his tour of Jiangdu, he would take the Dragon Boat across the river into the Yongji Canal, heading straight for Zhuojun.
The emperor's decision to leave his beloved Jiangnan was solely to prepare for the campaign against Goguryeo. Yuwen Shu had already been ordered to rush to Donglai Haikou to construct three hundred ships.
The emperor believed that both land and water routes were necessary for the campaign. However, due to last year's lack of preparation, the urgency was now pressing. Yuwen Shu was not one to show mercy towards the common people; he only cared about fulfilling the imperial decree.
He strictly ordered subordinate officials to supervise labor, applying pressure at every level. By the time it reached the shipbuilders, they faced execution if they failed to meet deadlines.
Thus, the shipbuilders worked day and night in the water, daring not to rest. Prolonged exposure caused maggots to grow from their waists down, leading to a third or more of them dying as a result.
The emperor issued a decree in Jiangdu, summoning troops from across the realm. Regardless of distance or region, all forces were to converge at Zhuojun on standby.
He also commanded that ten thousand sailors and thirty thousand crossbowmen be dispatched from south of Jianghuai, along with another thirty thousand skilled craftsmen from Lingnan—each among the elite.
On their way to Zhuojun, five thousand war chariots were sent from Henan and Huainan to Gaoyang for transporting armor and supplies, while commoners were conscripted to support military needs.
Upon arriving at Zhuojun and settling into the Summer Palace, another decree was issued to requisition commoners and transport grain from various warehouses in Jianghuai and southward to Zhuojun.
Such numerous edicts and massive mobilization resulted in ships stretching over a thousand miles along the river, laden with weapons and siege equipment.
Hundreds of thousands of commoners traveled along these routes, crowding the roads day and night. Those who fell ill or exhausted lay side by side, their bodies strewn everywhere, filling the air with a foul stench—chaos reigned across the land.
No one cared whether the emperor could achieve victory as before; the people's endurance had been utterly shattered. Anyone stepping onto the official roads could see decaying corpses stripped bare, rotting away in plain sight.
The village elders of each county had no choice but to organize people to bury the dead every day to prevent the spread of disease. As they worked, a group of young men directly left, while others secretly conspired that whenever there was a call for conscription, they would band together and become bandits.
By autumn, Zhuojun had gathered over one hundred thirteen thousand people, with the Commoners being twice that number. Problems arose every moment, and Li Jian Cheng was so busy he was nearly worn out. Even Yang Guang couldn't help but urge him to take a break.
If Li Jian Cheng were just an ordinary Prefect, he would not have been able to handle these matters at all. Fortunately, his noble status and the assistance of many aristocratic youths allowed him to barely stabilize the situation and protect the local citizens of Zhuojun from oppression.
At this time, Shandong and Henan experienced severe flooding, submerging over thirty counties. Local officials requested the court to dispatch grain for disaster relief, but the emperor rebuffed them, telling them to find a way to solve it themselves.
They even requisitioned Commoners to transport rice, storing it in Lu River and Huaiyuan towns. Over sixty thousand porters were conscripted, with two men pushing three stones of rice each. The roads for transporting grain were treacherous; three stones of rice were hardly enough for the porters' sustenance. By the time they reached Lu River and Huaiyuan towns, the porters had no food left to pay with and could only flee in fear of punishment.
The farming season was lost across the land, fields lay fallow, and coupled with famine, grain prices soared—one dou of rice was worth a hundred coins. Consequently, banditry surged, with countless outlaws emerging.
In Changbai Mountain Eagle Nest Valley, a tall man clad in a red robe stood high above and sang down to the ragged citizens below: "Resist the soldiers! Resist the conscription! Every household must gather iron; collect iron to make guns! Let’s eliminate the tyrant and corrupt officials!"
"Resist the soldiers! Resist conscription!"
"Revolt! We will revolt!"
"Kill the tyrant!"
The voices of hundreds filled the valley as the man drew his sword and howled towards the sky. Although this sword was forged by himself, given his status he should not have been able to wield such a weapon; but now things were different.
The world could no longer tolerate the emperor, especially the common people. As a result, the citizens near Changbai Mountain responded to the call of the blacksmith Wang Bo, and within half a month, the number swelled to tens of thousands.
Wang Bo also gathered a few literate individuals under his command, who composed "The Song of the Unyielding Death in Liaodong" to present to him. Wang Bo immediately had it spread and sung.
"Before Changbai Mountain, the Young Master stands, adorned in red silk and brocade,
With a spear reaching for the heavens, and a wheel knife shining like sunlight,
Hunting deer on the mountain, grazing cattle and sheep below.
Suddenly hearing the Government Troops approaching, he brandishes his sword and charges forward,
Like death in Liaodong, what harm is there in beheading?"
Though it lacked the emperor's literary flair, its simplicity made it easy to understand; even those who could not read could grasp its meaning after listening twice. Consequently, more people regarded the Young Master as a great hero, and more flocked to join him.
Seeing this, Wang Bo composed three more poems, such as: "Do not go to Liaodong; the road is long and winding. My elderly parents lean by the gate waiting, while young wives guard empty homes. Fields remain untended, and who will take care of matters? Once gone, I know not when I shall return; as the sun rises over Longdui, I long for my hometown."
However, these did not resonate as well as the first. Realizing he could not rely solely on his poetry to gather a Million-Strong Army, Wang Bo began preparing to establish a foothold.
At this time in Pingyuan County, there was a treasure land named Bean Harbor, backed by the sea and surrounded by rivers, with deep and treacherous terrain. For centuries, it had been a gathering place for bandits.
At this moment, it had amassed around seventy to eighty thousand people. However, before any rebellion could begin, several conflicts erupted because no one was willing to submit to another; each had their own small factions.
However, after fighting back and forth, even if they won, they would soon be defeated by others. Out of mutual caution, they could only sit down for a consultation. In the end, a local strongman known as Liu Bad Dao emerged victorious. He had a long lineage of officials and a wealth of assets, with hundreds of guests during peaceful times.
For the bandits, such a background was already quite noble. Moreover, he was known for being more principled, not depriving or dividing the power of others, which led them to rally around him as their leader and officially rebel.
Meanwhile, in Wagang, Zhai Rang remained compliant and did not openly rebel; he was still waiting for Li Jian Cheng's orders.
However, he was not idle. Around High Mound, he built magnificent walls for his stronghold, which were quite impressive. He then recruited local heroes from the nearby prefectures. Even those unwilling to submit were promised refuge for their young men.
Although they had not openly revolted yet, the number of young men in the stronghold was increasing. They had to find a way to sustain themselves and could not rely solely on Li Langjun's supplies. Thus, he led people into Xingyang and Liang County to seize public and private vessels.
Others like Dou Jiande, Gao Shida, and Zhang Jincheng were also openly rebelling in various places, and news of these events continuously reached the emperor's ears.
Facing the arriving courtiers, the emperor smiled and said, "It's just a minor bandit problem. You need not worry; I have already issued orders for the Deputy Commander and Eagle-Soaring General to cooperate with the prefectures to hunt down the bandits—capture and kill them as they go."
Not long after the emperor's decree was issued, a pillar of the Yellow River collapsed, blocking the riverway and causing the water to flow backward for dozens of miles. This led more commoners to firmly believe that the Sui Dynasty's destiny had been lost, prompting them to rise up in rebellion.
………
(End of Chapter)
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