Chapter 189 "Throwing the Cup as a Signal"
Hou Gang was invited to get on the carriage by Mo Zhedati.
Hou Gang is only a soldier in Qinzhou now, and is not among those invited by Li Yan. He rubbed his eyes and asked:
"Brother Mo Zhe, why are you attending the banquet so late at night?"
Mo Zhe Dati took out the words he had prepared long ago and said, "To be honest, Brother Hou, I contradicted Governor Li a few days ago. Brother Hou also knows the temper of our Governor Li, so I invited you to the banquet, just hoping that you would not be scolded by Governor Li in public."
Now Hou Gang understood that Li Yan was a very domineering person in Qinzhou. He treated Qiang leaders like Mozhe Dati as slaves and beat and scolded them at any time.
Mo Zhe Dati dragged himself to the banquet, using his face to avoid being scolded by Li Yan.
When he thought of this, Hou Gang immediately took the responsibility and said, "Brother Mozhe, don't worry. With me at the table, Governor Li won't be able to get angry. I'll take you to apologize to Governor Li after the banquet!"
Mo Zhe was overjoyed and said, "Thank you, Brother Hou!"
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Li Yan's house.
Facing the envoy of King Qinghe, Li Yan said reluctantly:
"Please rest assured, King Qinghe. From today on, I will definitely entertain everyone in Qinzhou and try not to cause any trouble during this period of time."
King Qinghe sent an envoy to Qinzhou without stopping to warn Li Yan not to continue causing trouble in Qinzhou.
These days, because of Princess Lanling's affairs, Prince Qinghe has been under tremendous pressure. Not only his political enemies, but even his own base, the Hedong gentry and the Jia clan, are very dissatisfied with him.
As for Li Yan's affairs, no one knew who had brought them up again.
This governor of Qinzhou, who was strongly recommended by the Prince of Qinghe, was so reckless while in office that all kinds of impeachments against him were about to overwhelm the Menxia Province.
Therefore, King Qinghe specially sent an envoy to Qinzhou, asking Li Yan to behave himself during this period, otherwise he would not be able to protect him.
Li Yan is not a fool either. Prince Qinghe is his backer in the court. He can be so domineering in Qinzhou only because of the support of his backer and family.
Although he was reluctant, Li Yan still decided to invite all the powerful generals in Tianshui City to visit the governor's mansion to appease these local powerful people.
Li Yan lived a very luxurious life. Emperor Xiaowen once issued a decree in Luoyang prohibiting the slaughter of oxen for meat in the Central Plains.
In fact, there have been such decrees in all dynasties. As a production tool, oxen are an important national resource, and only old and sick oxen can be slaughtered.
But Li Yan still eats beef for every meal, and he wants the meat to be freshly slaughtered.
In order to hold the banquet this time, Li Yan specially called a group of cooks. The kitchen was turned into a slaughterhouse, and a large number of live cattle were slaughtered in the kitchen to ensure that every guest could eat the freshest beef.
This time, Li Yan also put in a lot of effort to win over the local powerful people and stop them from causing trouble.
Mozhe Dati brought Hou Gang and his sons to the outside of Li Yan's mansion, and with him were fifty tribal warriors who escorted them.
In addition to Mozhe Dati, several large tribal commanders and fortress lords in Tianshui City also came, and they brought their trusted guards with them. These people blocked the road in front of the governor's mansion.
The steward of Li Yan's house was usually arrogant and domineering. When he saw these bumpkins blocking the road, he immediately drove them away and said:
"The governor only invited you, the heroes, to the banquet. Why did he bring so many people? Everyone else, leave immediately!"
The steward of the governor's mansion began to drive away the carriages of Mozhe Dati and others, which made the generals who already felt like they were attending a Hongmen Banquet even more panicked.
Mo Zhe Dati calmed down and winked at his son Mo Zhe Niansheng.
Mo Zhe Niansheng immediately understood. This was something they had agreed on long ago. After Mo Zhe Dati entered the Governor's Mansion, Mo Zhe Niansheng would guard the door with his trusted guards. If Mo Zhe Dati did not come out for a long time, Mo Zhe Niansheng would contact servants from other families and attack the Governor's Mansion.
These local heroes of Qinzhou could only get off the carriage and walk into the governor's mansion with one or two followers.
Mo Zhe Niansheng quickly established connections with these families, and everyone nominated him to be the leader of the troops. Once things changed, he would immediately rush into the governor's mansion to rescue people.
Mo Zheda dragged Hou Gang and they smelled a faint smell of blood as soon as they stepped into the governor's mansion!
Something is wrong!
Mozhe Dati was a veteran on the battlefield and was very sensitive to the smell of blood. He listened carefully and vaguely heard wailing and crying amid the chaotic sounds in the Governor's Mansion.
The source of the sound was from the backyard of the Governor's Mansion where the banquet was being prepared.
Mozhe Dati put his hand on the dagger hidden in his clothes, then looked at the entourage led by the governor's mansion and felt that these people were also very suspicious.
Don't come to the governor's mansion on weekdays. These servants are all bullies and will do bad things when leading you. If you don't give them bribes, they will take you around in circles in the governor's mansion.
Even when Li Yangang had just taken office, a steward deliberately led Hao Shuai, who had not bribed anyone, to the warehouse where the seals of the governor's mansion were kept. He was captured by the guards of the governor's mansion and was slandered for wanting to steal the seals of the governor's mansion for rebellion.
The handsome man spent all his wealth to redeem the man from prison.
From then on, Mozhe Dati and other Qiang leaders were extremely cautious and would bribe the officials when they entered the government office.
But today he skillfully stuffed the money in again, but these guys refused to take it!
There is definitely something wrong with this!
However, Mozhe Dati did not know that before the banquet began, Li Yan had summoned the stewards in the mansion and warned them not to blackmail the generals who attended the banquet.
Hou Gang looked at the lively banquet and said, "I think Governor Li has invited all the heroes from Tianshui City to come here today. I haven't attended such a big banquet since I came to Qinzhou."
Mo Zhedati was even more alert. Could it be that Li Yan wanted to capture all the heroes and generals in Qinzhou in one fell swoop?
In order to send Li Yan away this time, all the big and small families and tribes in Tianshui City contributed money. The secret must have been exposed!
The more Mo Zhe Dati thought about it, the more he felt that there was no good banquet. He glanced at Hou Gang beside him and said:
"When we get to Governor Li, Brother Hou will have to help me make the decision!"
Hou Gang said proudly: "Of course!"
The two continued to walk towards the back hall. Mozhe Dati smelled a stronger and stronger smell of blood in the air. He winked at several Qiang warriors who came to the banquet, and they all nodded in response.
Before the banquet, Mozhe Dati had made preparations. If Li Yan really ambushed the swordsmen, as soon as he launched the attack, everyone would immediately rush up to hold him hostage, then break out of the governor's mansion and join his cronies. They would immediately nominate Hou Gang as their leader, attack the governor's mansion, kill all the officials inside, and occupy Tianshui City to rebel!
At this moment, a servant of the governor's mansion accidentally slipped and fell to the ground while holding a package. The sound of metal collision was heard, and the sharp-eyed Mo Zhe Dat saw several shiny long swords flying out of the package.
A governor's official standing nearby immediately stepped forward and scolded the servant, "I asked you to sharpen the knife! Why have you been waiting for so long? Send it to the back quickly!"
Mo Zhe Dati held the dagger in his arms tightly and pulled Hou Gang into the back hall with the crowd.
In the kitchen, the servant just put the butchering knife on the chopping board. Today, the kitchen of the Governor's Mansion slaughtered too many cows, and the knife became blunt. The whetstones in the kitchen were not enough, so the steward ordered the servant to go to the armory and sharpen the knife with the whetstones used by the guards to maintain their weapons and then send it back.
Also because the knife was blunt, slaughtering the cattle was not so smooth. Some cows were stabbed but did not die immediately.
"Muffle the mouths of these beasts! Kill them quickly! Don't let their screams and howls disturb the guests at the banquet!"
The cow, whose mouth was stuffed with a chew stick, fell down with a wailing sound like a human. The smell of blood in the kitchen became stronger and stronger. The wind direction suddenly changed at night, and the wind with the smell of blood began to fly towards the back hall of the banquet.
The saying "a gentleman should stay away from the kitchen" does not mean that a gentleman should not cook, but that a gentleman cannot bear to see the scene of animals being slaughtered in the kitchen, which will affect his benevolence and righteousness.
After the frightened Mo Zhe Da took his seat, Li Yancai, the governor of Qinzhou, arrived late.
Originally, Li Yan should have said a few words to comfort and appease these local coaches and announced that he would no longer exploit them in the future.
But when he saw these people, Li Yan felt angry again.
He was born into a noble family and had everything he wanted since he was a child. He never bowed to anyone of lower status than him.
These Qinzhou bumpkins never obey me and never obediently hand over their money, treasures, and beauties. Every time I have to beat them a little before they give me some.
They also gathered together to cause trouble, asking King Qinghe to warn them not to continue to embezzle.
Thinking of this, Li Yan swallowed the words he had just prepared and decided to drink a few glasses of wine before announcing the news.
Mozhe Dati was also observing Li Yan. This governor particularly liked banquets and always had a smile on his face during every banquet, but today he had a frown on his face.
It was clearly Li Yan who called everyone to the banquet, but no one spoke when the meal started. There was not even the sound of stringed instruments at the banquet. This strange atmosphere made Mo Zhe Dati conclude that this was a Hongmen Banquet!
After confirming this, Mozhe Dati immediately communicated with his companions through eye contact. They all stared at the wine glass in Li Yan's hand. Once he "threw the glass as a signal", they would take the initiative!
After the banquet started, Li Yan drank alone, and the atmosphere in the back hall was extremely depressing.
Hou Gang also noticed that the atmosphere was not right. He picked up his glass to liven up the atmosphere, stood up and was about to toast Li Yan.
After Hou Gang was demoted to a soldier in Qinzhou, he would get drunk every time Mo Zheda invited him to drink. He was not young anymore and had developed a problem with hand tremors.
Hou Gang walked to Li Yan's side, but his hand shook so much that he accidentally dropped the wine glass. The wine in the glass splashed onto Li Yan's clothes, and Li Yan jumped up from the table.
"not good!"
Mozhe Dati heard the sound of a wine glass falling to the ground and saw Li Yan standing up. He thought it was a signal for him to send out the executioners!
Mozhe Dati was also a brave and heroic leader. He took out a dagger from his arms and pounced on Li Yan, who he thought was "preparing to escape"!
As the wine glass fell to the ground, Mozhe Dati jumped up, and the Qiang generals present also drew out their hidden weapons and blocked the entrance and exit of the banquet hall in the back hall.
Li Yan did not expect Mozhe Dati to pounce on him. He dodged instinctively, but was stabbed in the arm by the dagger in Mozhe Dati's hand.
Li Yan did not expect that Mozhe Dati would suddenly attack and injure people. He hurriedly shouted for help from the guards. Several guards at the door of the banquet hall rushed in, but they were all chopped to the ground by the Qiang warriors who were lying in ambush.
Mo Zhe Da Ti no longer had any doubts at this point, and thinking of Li Yan's old grudge, he directly picked him up, put a dagger on his neck and said, "You dog officer! Get your minions out of the way! Let us leave the house!"
Li Yan was a child of an aristocratic family. He had never seen such a scene before. He begged for mercy: "General Mo Zhe, please spare my life! We can discuss everything!"
Hou Gang on the side was completely dumbfounded. He stepped forward and tried to snatch the dagger from Mozhe Dati's hand to rescue Li Yan, but he stumbled and knocked both of them to the ground, and Mozhe Dati's dagger just cut Li Yan's throat.
Blood spurted out, and Mozhe Dati and Hou Gang were both covered in blood. Hou Gang was completely sober, and he looked at Mozhe Dati in horror.
Seeing that Li Yan had died, Mo Zhe Da Ti knew that the only way left was to rebel. He immediately held Hou Gang hostage and shouted to the guests present:
"Li Yan is dead. If we don't rebel, there will be no way for us to survive!"
Upon hearing that Li Yan was dead, the Han fort owners who were originally prepared to stand up and watch also stood up. If Li Yan was not dead, they still had room to turn around. If they watched Li Yan die without rescuing him, they would definitely be held accountable by the court.
Since there is no way out, we might as well rebel!
Qinzhou has had a hard time in recent years. Not only the Hu people, but also the Han people's fort owners have to bear a lot of taxes and military service.
Mo Zhe Dati held Hou Gang hostage and said:
"General Hou was originally an important official of the imperial court. He was demoted to Qinzhou by the evil queen and became a soldier. He saw Li Yan brutally oppressing the soldiers and civilians of Qinzhou and just killed Li Yan. I nominated him as the leader of the rebel army!"
Everyone present had heard of Hou Gang and knew that he had once been a high-ranking official in the imperial court. The leader of the rebellion also had to find someone with a good reputation, so everyone naturally accepted him.
Hou Gang had a dagger pressed against his back by Mozhe Dati, so he naturally did not dare to resist and could only follow the crowd to rush out of the governor's mansion.
Mozhe Dati knocked over the candlestick and set the banquet hall on fire to send a signal to his son outside the governor's mansion, and then surrounded Hou Gang and walked towards the back door of the governor's mansion.
Mo Zhe Niansheng, who was waiting for help in the governor's mansion, saw the fire in the backyard. He immediately led his personal guards to break through the back door and brought Mo Zhe Dati out of the governor's mansion.
Even Mozhe Dati felt that the "breakout" process was too smooth, what about the swordsman?
There was no time to think so much now. Mozhe Dati immediately ordered his son to control the Tianshui city gate. He also asked everyone to notify their families to rebel together, and then sent the rebellion manifesto that had been prepared long ago to the entire Qinzhou.
In August of the second year of Shengui, Hou Gang, the former general of the Left Guard who was demoted to Qinzhou as a soldier, killed Li Yan, the governor of Qinzhou, and raised the banner of rebellion.
The local Qiang leaders and Han fortress owners in Qinzhou responded one after another, and counties and prefectures killed officials in rebellion. Qinzhou fell in ten days!
Hou Gang was elected as the King of Qin, and Mozhe Da was promoted to the position of general and prime minister.
Zhang Changming, a soldier in the city of Nanqinzhou (now Cheng County, Gansu Province), revolted against Wei and killed Cui You, the governor of Nanqinzhou, in response to the rebellion of Hou Gang of Qinzhou.
For a time, war broke out in Guanzhong!
(End of this chapter)