Chapter 6

Zhang Xuan pondered to himself, it turns out he is surnamed Dou. What famous people surnamed Dou were there at the end of the Sui Dynasty? Zhang Xuan thought for a moment but could only think of Li Yuan's wife, Lady Dou, and the Hebei Heavenly King Dou Jiande, clearly neither of them had anything to do with the old man in front of him. Perhaps he was just an ordinary great scholar.

Zhang Xuan reined in his thoughts and smiled, "If we compare the central court to a flying eagle, then Guanzhong and Hebei are the two wings of the eagle. Since ancient times, whoever controls Guanzhong controls the world, and whoever controls Hebei controls the Central Plains. As long as these two strategic regions are firmly held, no matter how chaotic the world becomes, the central court will not easily be shaken. To stabilize Guanzhong, one must control Longyou and Hexi. To stabilize Hebei, one must control Liaodong. This is also the fundamental reason why Cao Cao attacked Liaodong after defeating the Yuan family."

Zhang Xuan almost gave an example of the consequences of the Ming Dynasty losing Liaodong, but fortunately, he reacted in time and bit his tongue hard.

The old man pondered for a moment and said, "Your point is that the current emperor's attack on Goguryeo is to control Liaodong, ultimately to stabilize Hebei?"

"Exactly, Lord Dou, haven't you noticed? After the current emperor ascended the throne, he first launched a war against Tuyuhun, recovering the Hehuang region and consolidating Longyou, all to ensure the stability of Guanzhong. Then he turned eastward. Goguryeo is ambitious and has designs on Liaodong. If Liaodong falls, Hebei will not be stable, and if Hebei is unstable, it will shake the foundation of the state. Therefore, the Goguryeo campaign must be fought."

"But is Hebei really that important? If so, why didn't the current emperor directly make Youzhou the capital, but instead made Luoyang the capital?"

Zhang Xuan sighed inwardly. He didn't know how to explain it. Over the two thousand years of history since the Qin Dynasty, the first thousand years were the era of Guanzhong and Chang'an, but the next thousand years were the era of Hebei and Beijing. Without the support of Guanzhong and Hebei, how could there be a great unification?

The old man laughed and stroked his beard, praising, "I was just joking with you. How could I not know the importance of Hebei? What you said is very insightful and enlightening. May I ask for your name and surname, young man?"

"My name is Zhang Xuan from Henei!"

...

Wang Bozhang had been sitting in a small room for almost half an hour, and the chairman had not yet summoned him. Thinking of Zhang Xuan still waiting, Wang Bozhang felt a bit restless and walked back and forth in the courtyard, hands behind his back.

At this moment, Wang Bozhang heard footsteps and quickly turned around. He saw a young man walk in. He was about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old, tall and slender, with fair skin, narrow eyes, and a long beard, looking very shrewd.

This young man looked very much like Li Mi, but he was younger and thinner, with a more scholarly and weaker demeanor, lacking the heroic aura of Li Mi.

Wang Bozhang was very familiar with him and hurriedly greeted him, "Jiancheng, when did you return to Luoyang?"

"Three days ago, I returned with my father to report. My father is going to Taiyuan to take up his post."

This young man was Li Jiancheng, the eldest son of Tang Guogong Li Yuan. He had not taken office and had always been helping his father, but he also held a position as a doctor in Wuchuan Prefecture.

Li Jiancheng smiled and asked, "Bozhang, you've been waiting for a long time, haven't you?"

Wang Bozhang sighed, "Yes! The old man is really not giving me any face, making me wait for half an hour."

"It's not his fault. I heard that someone from Chang'an has come."

"Oh—" Wang Bozhang finally realized why he couldn't see the old man. It was because someone from Chang'an had come.

"Is it your father?" Wang Bozhang asked tentatively.

"Not just my father, the head of the Dugu family has also come!"

Wang Bozhang was surprised. What had happened? Even the rarely traveling head of the Dugu family had come to Luoyang. Could it be because of Yang Xuangan's defeat?

"We'll talk about it next time. My father needs me, I'll go first." Li Jiancheng bowed and quickly left.

Wang Bozhang stood in front of a cluster of flowers, but his mind was on Li Mi. It was probably not just Yang Xuangan's defeat, but more importantly, Li Mi's death had disrupted Wuchuan Prefecture's plans.

At this moment, a young boy came running and bowed to Wang Bozhang, "Instructor Wang, the chairman asks you to come in."

Wang Bozhang's spirits lifted. After waiting for half an hour, the old man was finally willing to see him.

Wang Bozhang followed the boy into the inner residence. They entered a large courtyard, where four warriors stood with their swords, motionless like stone statues.

The boy led him to a three-story building, but did not go upstairs. Instead, he walked to a stone door at the back.

The boy showed a silver token to the warrior by the stone door and said to Wang Bozhang, "The chairman is waiting inside. Instructor Wang, please go in!"

This mysterious stone door was one that Wang Bozhang had only entered once in the past three years. It was the core of Wuchuan Prefecture, and any intruders would be killed on sight.

Wang Bozhang entered the stone door, which quietly closed behind him. Inside was a long corridor of blue stone, with oil lamps in the niches on both sides, making the corridor appear dim and eerie.

He quickly walked through the blue stone corridor, climbed a few stone steps, and entered the hall of another building. This building was entirely made of blue stone, with no windows. In the center was a square well, through which sunlight shone down, illuminating the spacious and empty hall.

On the stone platform in the center of the well stood a large bronze tripod, engraved with three powerful seal characters: "Wuchuan Prefecture."

Wang Bozhang's face was solemn as he knelt before the bronze tripod and bowed three times. Then he climbed the spiral staircase along the wall to the second floor.

He went up to the third floor and stood respectfully in front of a door, "Chairman, I'm here."

"Come in!" A hoarse voice came from inside.

Wang Bozhang pushed open the sliding door. The room was laid with wooden floors, completely empty and spotlessly clean.

But there were three people sitting in the room, apparently discussing important matters. On the right was a man in his seventies, tall and with a large lion nose, looking very imposing. This was the head of the Dugu family, Dugu Shun, the fifth son of Dugu Xin, the Grand Marshal of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and the Duke of Shu in the Sui Dynasty.

On the left was a middle-aged man in a purple robe, about fifty years old, with a fair complexion, but a very ordinary appearance, looking very gentle and kind. He was Tang Guogong Li Yuan, who had just returned to the capital to report.

Although Li Yuan was also one of the founders of Wuchuan Prefecture, he had been away from the capital for a long time and rarely came to Wuchuan Prefecture. Today, he was specially invited to discuss important matters.

In the center, sitting cross-legged on a mat was an old man with white hair and a long white beard. He wore a light yellow Taoist robe and was intently stroking a gleaming sword.

If Zhang Xuan saw him, he would be shocked. He had just been discussing the Liaodong campaign with this old man.

Wang Bozhang hurriedly knelt down, "I pay my respects to the chairman!"

This white-bearded old man was the chairman of Wuchuan Prefecture, named Dou Qing. He was the second-in-command of the Guanzhong Dou family. According to Wuchuan Prefecture's tradition, the chairman was changed every two years, and it was currently Dou's turn.

Speaking of which, the three of them had a deep family connection. Dugu Shun was Li Yuan's uncle, and Dou Qing was Li Yuan's father-in-law.

Dou Qing raised his eyelids, his sharp gaze fixed on Wang Bozhang, "I want to know if there was a wax ball among Li Mi's belongings?"

Wang Bozhang quickly took out a leather bag and placed it on the table, then took out the wax ball from the bag and presented it to the chairman.

Dou Qing took the wax ball, stared at it for a moment, then crushed it. Inside was a very thin piece of white silk, covered with tiny writing. He read it carefully and then asked Wang Bozhang, "Is there any other important news?"

"There is also the fact that Yang Xuangan was actually released by Yuwen Shu privately!"

This news surprised the three men. They looked at each other, and Dugu Shun sneered, "As I expected, Yang Xuangan's rebellion involved many aristocratic families and many court ministers who would like to see him dead to cover up their involvement. But Yuwen Shu, being cunning, kept Yang Xuangan alive. This way, countless powerful officials and nobles would come to flatter him, and he could gain huge benefits. Once he had enough, Yang Xuangan would be dead."

Dou Qing nodded, it was probably for this reason. However, this matter would be put aside for now, as they had more pressing concerns. Dou Qing asked, "Is there anything else?"

Wang Bozhang quickly replied, "There is nothing else. I have brought the messenger here, and he