On the fifteenth day of the seventh month of the first year of the Zhaowu reign of the Tang Dynasty, the Ghost Festival was celebrated.
The month-long "Youyun Mutiny" of the Tang Dynasty finally ended with the capture of its main culprit, Liu Ziyu, the Marquis of Wuyi.
Liu Ziyu and his deputy generals Li Meng and Dong Tianbao, along with other rebel commanders, ultimately failed to escape and were captured alive by former subordinates from the three prefectures of Gui, Shun, and Tan who had defected during the battle.
However, the newly appointed Great Khan of the Turks, Batel, seemed to be born like a cat, with nine lives. He managed to escape with his life once again, leading dozens of Turkic warriors in defeat at Juyong Pass and fleeing northwards.
After this battle, the young founding emperor of the Tang Dynasty, Chen Huai'an, swiftly quelled the rebellion of the border general of Youyun, who colluded with the enemy Turkic pseudo-Khan Batel, further enhancing his prestige as an emperor.
That night.
On the battlefield of Jiapigou outside Juyongguan, rows of newly erected graves stand alone on the vast plain, beneath which lie the remains of tens of thousands of people, including soldiers of Youyun who participated in the rebellion and imperial guards who died on the battlefield while suppressing the rebellion.
Originally, according to the opinions of the Ministry of War and the generals who participated in the suppression of the rebellion, the corpses of the Youyun rebels should have been left to rot in the wilderness for wild dogs to eat, in order to serve as a warning to those who would follow.
However, Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an ultimately overruled the objections and ordered the burial of all the soldiers who died on the battlefield of Jiapigou.
The reason is simple: these Youyun rebels were once part of Chen Huai'an's Longcheng Southern Expeditionary Army, and they had made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty in expanding its territory and establishing meritorious service.
After resting for several days at Juyong Pass, the imperial army that was suppressing the rebellion set off in four separate routes.
Three routes were led by generals appointed by the Ministry of War of the Imperial Court, heading to Guizhou, Shunzhou, and Tanzhou respectively to take over the city defenses and military affairs of these areas.
The other group, led by Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an, returned to Youzhou City to join forces with Duke Pang Xianchu of Jin, Minister of War Li Jingyu, and officials from the remaining six ministries of the court.
It is worth mentioning that Liu Ziyu, the rebel leader who was detained during this period, requested to see the current emperor Chen Huai'an several times, but was refused each time.
Left with no other choice, Liu Ziyu, as a defeated general, could only curse and swear in his cell every day until he was severely punished by the Jinwu Guards who came to interrogate him.
On this day, in Youzhou City.
The original garrison general's mansion of Luo Ping'an, the main general of Youzhou, has now become the temporary camp of Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an. A group of Tang generals and officials from the Six Ministries gathered in the council hall of the general's mansion to discuss how to deal with the rebel generals and soldiers in the "Youyun Mutiny".
As the former leader and helmsman of the Youyun faction, Zhao Wang Liu Xinwu, who single-handedly built the civil and military officials of the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun, also moved a stool and sat in the council hall, quietly listening to the opinions of all parties.
Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an has issued an order that all generals and officials of the Six Ministries may speak freely about how to deal with the rebels without any reservations.
The council chamber suddenly became noisy.
The first to speak was Li Jingyu, the Minister of War. He advocated executing all generals of the rank of 100 or above who participated in the rebellion, and demoting all the Youyun soldiers who participated in the rebellion to slavery, so that they could be sent to participate in the construction project of the dynasty's relocation of the capital to the north.
Li Jingyu said, "Your Majesty, as the saying goes, 'In times of chaos, severe punishments are necessary; in times of deep-seated problems, drastic measures are needed.' The handling of the generals and soldiers from various prefectures of Youyun who participated in this rebellion must not be lenient; only decisive action can deter all sides and serve as a warning to future generations."
"I propose that all officers of the rank of centurion or above who participated in this rebellion be executed, and that all their families be exterminated, including nine generations of their relatives."
"As for the other soldiers who participated in the rebellion, all of them shall be stripped of their military status in the Tang Dynasty and reduced to slavery!"
After a pause, Li Jingyu continued, "The Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Revenue have been complaining that moving the capital would be a waste of money and resources. We can take this opportunity to use these 100,000-plus rebel soldiers as laborers, which will save us a lot of money!"
"Lord Li is absolutely right!"
At this moment, Cui Sanyun, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, also stepped forward and expressed his opinion, saying, "Your Majesty, throughout history, those who rebelled and plotted rebellion have invariably ended up having their entire families executed."
"In my opinion, Lord Li's opinion is entirely in line with the methods used by successive dynasties to deal with traitors."
"only--"
Then, Cui Sanyun, the Vice Minister of Justice, continued, "How to deal with the soldiers from Guizhou, Shunzhou, and Tanzhou who surrendered to the court during the battle and participated in the rebellion still needs to be discussed carefully."
"In any case, the rebel soldiers in Guizhou, Shunzhou, and Tanzhou have all shown meritorious service in redeeming themselves, and the rebel leader Liu Ziyu was also captured by them."
After thinking for a moment, Cui Sanyun added, "Furthermore, given Liu Ziyu's special status, before dealing with him, should the King of Zhao issue a statement severing his father-son relationship with Liu Ziyu?"
"Of course, this King Zhao is merely Liu Ziyu's adoptive father; this is common knowledge in the court."
Cui Sanyun glanced at Zhao Wang Liu Xinwu, who remained silent with a gloomy face, and chuckled, saying, "However, we also have to consider the impact, don't we?"
"My suggestion is that it would be best if the King of Zhao could first announce to the world that he has severed ties with the bandit leader Liu Ziyu. This way, our Ministry of Justice will have no pressure when sentencing him!"
Upon hearing these words from Cui Sanyun, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, the entire council hall fell into complete silence.
Everyone instinctively turned their gaze to Zhao Wang Liu Xinwu, who was sitting silently in the corner.
Clearly, none of the people present were fools; they all understood the implication behind Cui Sanyun's words: if Zhao Wang Liu Xinwu did not sever his father-son relationship with Liu Ziyu, then Liu Xinwu, as the adoptive father, would also be included in the nine generations of Liu Ziyu's clan.
Furthermore, Empress Liu Shujun was also Liu Ziyu's sworn sister. If the entire family were to be exterminated, wouldn't the final punishment also fall on Emperor Zhaowu, Chen Huai'an?
Isn't this just making a fool of yourself?
Therefore, Cui Sanyun, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, suggested that Prince Zhao, Liu Xinwu, should first issue a statement severing his father-son relationship with Liu Ziyu, so that the Ministry of Justice could proceed according to regulations.
However, to King Zhao Liu Xinwu, these words sounded particularly harsh and hurtful.
Unfortunately, he didn't know how to refute Cui Sanyun, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice.
"Lord Cui, the matter of the Prince of Zhao severing his father-son relationship with the bandit leader Liu Ziyu can be put on hold for now!"
As the council hall fell silent, Duke Pang Xianchu of Jin suddenly stood up, bowed to Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an in the main seat, and then said unhurriedly, "Your Majesty, esteemed officials—"
"I have a different opinion on how to deal with the Youyun soldiers who participated in this rebellion!"
"In my opinion, executing all the generals of the rank of one hundred or above who participated in the rebellion, and exterminating their entire families (up to nine generations), is going too far."
"As for stripping all soldiers in the Youyun region of their military status and reducing them to slavery, that is even more inappropriate!"
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