Chapter 1362: Surrender to Tang to survive

Chapter 1362: Surrender to Tang to survive

On both sides of the Yangjiang River in Gaozhou, there are many luxurious mansions, which look very grand. At a glance, it makes people feel as if they are in the prosperous area on both sides of the Qinhuai River in Jiankang City. There is no clue that this place is located in the wild land of Lingnan. Yangjiang.

This is the headquarters of the Feng family in Lingnan. These mansions located on both sides of Yangjiang River are the residences of the Feng family, their in-laws Xian family, and the various Dongli Liaoman chiefs who ruled under their rule.

Before accepting civilization, the tribes of Liliao lived a life of woodcutter, fishing and hunting, eating hair and drinking blood, and living in rock nests and caves. The leaders of each tribe also lived together with the people of other tribes. There was not much difference in their living conditions and material enjoyment.

However, as the contact with the outside world became more and more frequent, the materials available and the concepts accepted became more and more abundant, and the internal hierarchy became more and more strict. Especially those leaders who could still maintain a simple style and share the joys and sorrows with their tribesmen couldn't wait to change their past styles and lead a more comfortable life.

The terrain on both sides of the Yangjiang River in Gaozhou is flat and the scenery is pleasant. It is not only suitable for farming, production and material exchange, but it is also a very suitable area for living. In addition, the Feng and Xian tribes spared no effort to win over and show their goodwill, so the slang chieftains in the surrounding caves They walked out of the wilderness one after another and led their tribes to join the two tribes.

Today, there are nearly a thousand Liliao tribes under the control of the Feng and Xian clans, which is second to none even in the Lingnan region where there are many powerful chiefs. The reason why the two tribes have gathered such a huge force is, on the one hand, because the Gaoliang area they occupy is a place with relatively superior natural resources in the entire Lingnan, and on the other hand, it lies in the leader's outstanding personal ability.

The Feng family was born in the royal family of Northern Yan. After Northern Yan was destroyed by the Northern Wei Dynasty, they crossed the sea and came south. Therefore, they attracted more attention from the rulers of the Southern Dynasties. Their ancestors and grandchildren have been officials in Lingnan for generations. Such a background is not possessed by powerful chiefs in other places.

Feng Rong and Feng Bao, father and son, successively held important positions in Lingnan, such as the governor of Luozhou and the governor of Gaoliang. Especially when Feng Bao married the Xian family, the chief of Li Li, the two clans learned from each other's strengths and complemented each other's weaknesses, and their power has been greatly developed.

The current head of the Feng family is named Feng Pu, and he is the son of Feng Bao. He first served as the governor of Yangchun. After Chen Chang ascended the throne, he was named the governor of Gaozhou. It's just that Feng Pu is only in his teens now, so his qualifications and ability are naturally not enough to serve as the leader of a state. Now the person who really controls the state power in Gaozhou and is also the soul of the Feng Xian clan is Feng Puzhi. Mrs. Mu Xian.

Unlike other local tycoons who were domineering and eager to bully and annex the weak to strengthen themselves, Madam Xian was known for assessing the situation and being fair in dealing with matters. In her early years, she assisted her husband Feng Bao in helping Chen Baxian, the First Lord of the Southern Chen Dynasty, put down the rebellion of Li Qianshi, the governor of Gaozhou. She also helped Chen Baxian go north to King Qin. After the establishment of the Chen Dynasty, she was also the first local powerful force in Lingnan to express its surrender, so she was very popular with the Southern Chen court. courtesy.

When dealing with the Liao tribes around the territory, Mrs. Xian did not mainly annex them by force. Instead, she chose to recruit and induce them and develop them step by step. And because they are fair in dealing with things and strictly prohibit clan members from bullying the weak, the sphere of influence of the Feng and Xian clans is also a rare area in Lingnan where there is order and people's livelihood is prosperous. Many slang tribes are also willing to join, making Mrs. Xian's influence in the entire Lingnan area. They all have a very high reputation among the local officials.

Hou Andu chose to propose to the Xian family for his son, so naturally these were the things he valued. And when his suitor arrived at Feng's Manor in Yangjiang and stated his intention, it immediately caused quite a stir among the Feng family.

Judging from the overall situation in the world, Hou Andu is really not a big shot. He is nothing more than a defeated general who fled in embarrassment and was chased by the Tang army. However, there is little information in Lingnan, and people's horizons are not broad. In their minds, Hou Andu is still an outstanding and unparalleled founding hero and a founding father of the country. He is one of the few great heroes in Lingnan who can be famous all over the world!

Therefore, the entire Feng family was relatively happy about Hou Andu's proposal. Although they had also heard about some of the changes outside the ridge, Hou Andu's performance after returning home was still strong and outstanding, which made them deeply admired. .

They didn't care much about the Tang army that was about to invade Lingnan in the near future. After all, it was difficult for people to have any awe at a powerful existence that they had never seen with their own eyes. What could really convince them was the tangible thing before their eyes. People and things.

"General Hou is the father of the country and powerful in southern China. He defeated the Ouyang clan as soon as he returned home, which is really a blockbuster. Now he wants to visit my family to marry me. It is really a great blessing! If such a heroic family does not marry, , Whose family do you prefer?"

When talking about the marriage with Hou Andu, some members of the Feng clan couldn't help but look very proud and proud.

However, someone next to him frowned and said: "But I heard that General Hou returned home this time because he was defeated by a powerful enemy outside the ridge and had no choice but to retreat due to depletion. Moreover, the Beibei army has been raging in Jiangdong. They will probably invade Lingnan soon, and it is still unknown whether the Hou family can resist, so I'm afraid it would be inappropriate to marry him rashly at this time!"

"Outside the ridge is naturally outside the ridge, and south of the ridge is naturally south of the ridge. How can the two places be confused? The customs have been different for hundreds of years. Is it possible that there are no strong men outside the ridge? However, the tyrannical monarchs have always crossed the ridge to attack, whether they are attached or fighting, all based on I have a choice about my hometown in Lingnan. No matter how tyrannical the Northern Tang Army is, can they break the laws that have been established for hundreds of years? "

Immediately, another member of the Feng clan retorted, with a sense of pride in his words. After hearing this, other people nearby also nodded and said: "Yes, since ancient times, Lingnan has been willing to annex China's security. Hero, but in recent years, the first master of the Chen family has led the Lingnan heroes to conquer dangerous Jiangbo and create a national industry!

General Hou is one of the most talented people in Lingnan, but he may have suffered a slight setback abroad. But if the enemy is really powerful and invincible, can he not be killed outside the mountains, but can he return home smoothly? It can be seen that although the enemy is strong, he still has some unfinished strength and is not invincible. If we rashly go deep into Lingnan, there is no guarantee that we will not suffer defeat! "

People's experience may not be accurate in many cases, especially if the perspective from which they make conclusions based on experience is inherently biased, the conclusions drawn must be extremely fallacious, and they are at a loss due to their limited cognition. aware.

"Even though General Hou suffered a setback, everything he did after returning home was quite fierce. The Ouyang clan has been dominant in Lingnan for a long time, and its power spans all the states. However, it turned out that it was vulnerable to General Hou. This shows that the sword is precious. You can’t take the risk lightly! If you want to marry my family now, it may be a desperate choice, but if we can share the hardships, our friendship will be strong!"

Someone else's eyes were shining with excitement, and he said quickly: "General Hou is famous and talented, while my family has strong assets and many family members. If the two can match, we can take a peek at Jiangdong. The Ouyang clan has nothing to fear when retreating. If a strong enemy comes, Shannan will be the obstacle. Although it is very powerful, it will be difficult to use it after entering. If the world outside the Lingnan is determined by the Tang Dynasty, then we will. You can also sell it based on this risk!”

There is no one in this world who does not hope that his or her career will become bigger and stronger, but many times it is often limited by various subjective and objective conditions and makes little progress, and has been unable to break through the upper limit. Therefore, it is particularly important to know how to seize the opportunity and leverage the strength to make a breakthrough. Hou Andu took a fancy to the Feng Xian family's rich local assets, and the people of the Feng Xian family also valued Hou Andu's own ability, qualifications and prestige.

If these Lingnan chiefs had little imagination about speculation in the world before, then Chen Ba's deeds of first rising to Lingnan and then establishing Jiangdong's foundation undoubtedly brought them great shock and inspiration.

Hou Andu himself was born in Lingnan, and he was a capable general under Chen Baxian. He had brilliant achievements, and the methods he showed when dealing with the Ouyang family were still very sharp. Naturally, he gained the favor of these people and planned to do something with him. Place bet.

Lingnan is located in a remote area, and it is very inconvenient to attack by land or water. Therefore, these powerful chiefs developed the character of taking risks and disrespecting their superior country. They do not necessarily have to serve Hou Andu as their master, but the ability shown by Hou Andu can be used as a bargaining chip for them to ask for more benefits from the Central Plains Dynasty before they choose to surrender.

Feng Pu, the head of the state who was a young man, was very excited after hearing the discussion of the tribesmen. He quickly said: "If it is necessary to send my sister to Hengzhou to marry the beloved son of General Hou, I would like to personally guide her." Everyone goes there, hoping to have a glimpse of this great Lingnan hero!”

Regarding the marriage with Hou Andu's family, the main members of the Feng Xian family all agreed, and even began to discuss a series of matters such as the wedding date and dowry.

However, their discussion here was lively. After hearing their opinions, Mrs. Secondly, it is an honor for a girl from my family to be a match for you. If the general Hou sends his slaves to ask for money and food, I can give them according to my ability to help him. I don’t need to worry about success or failure.

But it is absolutely impossible to talk about the two together. My family is just a barbarian leader in Lingnan. The reason why we have some power is just that the heroes of the world do not regard this dangerous mountain and dangerous water as a must-win place. You can't see how powerful the Tang state is, so you don't attach great importance to it. But haven't you seen the power of the late Lord Chen? Such a hero who tried so hard to save the country from danger was severely suppressed by the people in Jiangbei, and General Hou was defeated and returned home. What is the plan for my family to fight against the enemy now? "

Compared to the optimistic thinking of everyone in the clan, Mrs. Xian is much more rational. First of all, the power of the Tang people is not without reference. The powerful forces that Chen Baxian organized in Lingnan can also make people realize that these so-called Fangyu powerful chiefs are really vulnerable to truly powerful people. But even Chen Baxian was suppressed in his heyday, so why do they think they can compete with such a powerful enemy?

Although Hou Andu had his strength, and Mrs. Xian did not want to offend him by refusing, she did not want to tie the entire tribe to Hou Andu too deeply through marriage. After all, their clan is now so powerful that they really don’t need to take risky gambles to gain wealth.

In particular, the changes in the general situation outside the ridge are beyond the understanding of the powerful chieftains like them, so Mrs. Xian does not agree with investing the entire family's assets in making huge bets on personnel matters beyond her own knowledge.

After being poured cold water on Mrs. Xian, the people of the Feng Xian clan were no longer as eager as before. Mrs. Xian asked people to prepare several thousand stones of food and some equipment, and sent the people to Hengzhou. She also said that although there were many women in the clan, there was no clear standard for whether they were virtuous or not due to personal preference, so Hou Andu Ruo If you want to propose marriage to your son, you can send him to Gaozhou to live for a period of time and let him make his own selection.

Madam Xian's attitude made Hou Andu quite satisfied. In his early years, he often heard the first lord Chen Baxian sigh that Madam Xian was a heroic woman who was not inferior to aspiring men, so he had a good impression of her and wanted to visit her family for his son's marriage.

If it was just a simple attempt to win over, his choice was not limited to Feng Xian. So after thinking about it, Hou Andu simply sent his son to Gaozhou and planned to continue discussing the marriage. Moreover, Hengzhou would become the front line of the battle next, so it would be safer to let his son go to the safer rear.

Because of Madam Xian's reminder and restraint, Feng Xian maintained a calm and bystander attitude towards Hou Andu's call, but other Li Liao chieftains were not as calm as Madam Xian.

Most of them also hold similar views as the Fengxian clan. First of all, they admire Hou Andu's toughness very much. Secondly, they hope to use Hou Andu to show the fangs of their Lingnan heroes. Even if they cannot force back the invasion of the Tang army, they hope that they will be afraid and take more gentle means to deal with the personnel problems in Lingnan.

So for a while, all the chieftains in Lingnan gathered in Hengzhou, and the momentum they created was so huge that it even surpassed the movement that Hou Andu had made in Kuaiji before. This also made Hou Andu very happy, and he sighed that in this time of crisis, the villagers were still reliable. Those short-sighted Wu people in the Three Wus were really hard to catch up!

Although his place was extremely noisy, the Ouyang clan, as the old overlord of Lingnan, was a little lonely. Ouyang He originally wanted to control Hou Andu, but his uncle Ouyang Sui was killed and Hengzhou was captured. He personally led the army to the place and lost again.

For a time, the entire Lingnan region lost its awe of the Ouyang family, and some people even deliberately wanted to laugh at their jokes.

Unfortunately, misfortunes never come singly. Ouyang He's father, Ouyang Xi, had been ill and bedridden for a long time. Recently, his condition suddenly worsened, so that Ouyang He could not care about the outside world. He served his father in the house every day without taking off his clothes. However, his father's condition was still getting worse.

When his body was dying, Ouyang Xi regained his clarity of mind for a short time. He knew why his son was worried recently, but he was no longer able to share his worries. He could only use his last strength to grab his son's wrist, sobbing and shouting: "Don't, don't fight with the marquis, surrender to Tang, surrender to Tang and you will live!"