Chapter 42 Gao Lishi Seeks Help

Pei Min had been troubled by a problem for some time. The prevailing political atmosphere in the imperial court held no deep hostility toward Tibet; instead, it viewed Tibet as a partner for trade. In their eyes, although the two nations had once been mortal enemies who fought numerous pitched battles, they were now allies who had long since buried the hatchet. Ever since the Tibetan Tsapo invaded ten years ago and was decisively crushed by Military Governor Chen Dacici, the two sides had not engaged in a single military conflict. The border between the Tang Dynasty and Tibet had enjoyed a decade of peace.

Especially four years ago, when Princess Jincheng was sent to marry into Tibet, the Tang and Tibet became marital allies. Their relations improved dramatically, and trade even began to flourish. Much like the earlier arrival of Princess Wencheng in Tibet, under the mutual cultivation of both realms, the relationship between Tang and Tibet felt as harmonious as milk mixed with water.

Because of this, Pei Min discovered that the vast majority of civil and military officials in the court harbored no guard against Tibet, and Li Longji was no exception. The current military strength of the Tang Dynasty was weak, and the political ideology required to build a strong army had yet to be fully implemented. Neither Li Longji nor the civil and military generals in the court wished to initiate military campaigns that would increase the burden on the state and its people. It was precisely for this reason that Li Longji attached extraordinary importance to the Tibetan envoys. His goal, naturally, was to hope that the two countries could continue to live in peace, waiting until the military strength of the Tang Dynasty had grown before undertaking military actions—which would not be too late.

The thinking of Li Longji and the full court of civil and military officials was not wrong. If Pei Min did not know the course of history, he might have held the same view, wishing that no one would rashly resort to weapons at this time.

Yet facts proved that all of this was mere delusion. Military conflicts between nations do not cease simply because you choose not to fight; on the contrary, the more you wish to avoid conflict, the more your enemies will choose that exact moment to launch an attack.

This was the true art of warfare. Since Tibet had risen to such prominence, how could it possibly be ignorant of this fundamental principle?

Previously, the Tang court had been plagued by internal chaos, and neighboring powers naturally watched with folded arms, enjoying the spectacle, developing themselves, and waiting to reap the fisherman's profit while the Tang tore itself apart from within. Now that the Tang Dynasty was returning to stability through Li Longji's rectification of chaos, how could Tibet and the Turks sit idly by and watch the Tang develop in peace?

Because of this, Pei Min intended to use this incident to shatter the peaceful delusions of Li Longji and most of the court officials, making them realize that even though the time might not be right, circumstances would not allow them to evade the war.

Returning to the Censorate, Pei Min summoned Wang Xiaobai directly.

Wang Xiaobai was an honest and steadfast person. Even after he was promoted to Deputy Censor-in-Chief, Pei Min still kept him by his side, taking orders solely from him. While his official title remained that of an imperial inspector, his status was vastly different.

"Lord Censor!" Wang Xiaobai had gained immense favor and success under Pei Min's patronage. Not only had his status and salary increased, but his childhood sweetheart neighbor had also agreed to marry him, making him blessed in both romance and career. Being an honest man without a crooked bone in his body, he did not know how to properly repay this kindness except through actions, and thus he worked exceptionally hard.

Pei Min nodded at him, his gaze falling upon Wang Xiaobai's lower limbs as he asked, "Xiaobai! Have you studied some martial arts? I can tell that your legs are exceptionally strong!"

Wang Xiaobai smiled rather sheepishly and replied, "It cannot be considered any proper martial arts. My great-grandfather was a elite vanguard officer under Duke Li Weigong. When the family later declined, our ancestors only passed down training methods by word of mouth. I've practiced them since I was a child. I don't possess any true martial arts prowess, but my legs were trained well. I can run extremely fast, and very few people can catch me. Originally, I was merely a petty ward bailiff, and it was solely because of my speed and ability to catch thieves that I was promoted to an inspector."

Pei Min had once heard Xue Ne speak of the elite vanguard troops. He remembered when Xue Ne lectured him on military formations, saying: "Our Tang Dynasty has produced countless famous generals, but when it comes to the art of deploying troops and arranging formations, no one surpasses Duke Li Weigong. Just as Marquis Huaiyin Han Xin once said regarding the employment of troops, 'the more, the better.' The greater the number of soldiers, the more it tests the commander's ability to dispatch and deploy them. The only one who could truly manage 'the more, the better' like the Marquis of Huaiyin is Duke Li Weigong alone. Duke Li's strategies were daring, and his military execution was meticulous. From upwards of one hundred thousand soldiers down to a mere hundred men, he could categorize and manage them with absolute clarity. Whenever he went into battle, he would invariably divide his forces into crossbowmen, archers, cavalry, leaping shock troops, elite vanguards, and combat infantry. Every single soldier and every single branch of the service was deployed by him with absolute precision, allowing each to exert its maximum advantage during a clash of formations without the slightest error or omission."

At the time, listening to this filled Pei Min with awe and admiration for Li Jing, the God of War of the Tang Dynasty. If his command capability hadn't been off the charts, how could he have wielded the characteristics of every single military branch as effortlessly as moving his own arms and fingers amidst a constantly shifting battlefield? He often thought how wonderful it would be if one day he could command thousands of troops like Li Jing and charge into battle to slay the enemy. Bearing in mind that the war between the Tang Dynasty and Tibet was fast approaching, Pei Min could not help but harbor a quiet sense of anticipation. Although he served in the Censorate, his heart did not lie there.

The elite vanguard was an indispensable winning gambit in Li Jing's army. The Military Strategy of Duke Li Weigong of the Tang states: "Generally speaking, out of every ten parts, three parts shall consist of elite vanguard forces." The requirement for these three parts of elite vanguards was that they could traverse mountains and waters as if walking on flat ground, capable of cutting into the enemy's weakest formations at any moment with the fastest possible speed to decide the outcome of the battle.

It was only natural that Wang Xiaobai, having trained according to the methods of the elite vanguard, possessed such formidable legwork.

"I have a task for you. Go to Chongren Ward and locate the residence of Grand General Yang Ju. Based on the contact method I give you, secretly make contact with someone named Sun Zhou. Find a place to stay nearby, and remember: the moment he contacts you, report back to me immediately. No matter what time it is and no matter what circumstances arise, you must deliver the message directly into my hands."

Wang Xiaobai slapped his chest with resolute determination, accepted the order, and departed.

Watching Wang Xiaobai leave, Pei Min realized that he had very few capable experts at his disposal. At critical moments, he seemed to lack trustworthy and competent assistants, and he began to ponder whether he should recruit some talent from the pugilistic world to serve him. Jianghu wanderers mostly possessed specialized skills; as long as they were loyal and reliable, they would be far more useful than training new confidants from scratch.

Pei Min could not afford to startle the snake in the grass just yet. The trap had already been laid; for now, he could only quietly await developments.

As Pei Min resumed handling matters for the Censorate, he heard Gao Lishi stride into his office, calling out anxiously, "Lord Censor! Lord Censor!"

Curiosity stirred within Pei Min. Gao Lishi's appearance usually represented Li Longji; he was welcome even in the residences of the chancellors. However, Gao Lishi was renowned for his caution and meticulousness, always patiently waiting to announce his presence whenever he sought an audience with someone. Bursting in unannounced was practically unheard of, especially since Gao Lishi's forehead bore a red, swollen mark, and his nose had a few abrasions—which was exceedingly bizarre. Gao Lishi was acknowledged as the number one favored confidant by Li Longji's side; who on earth could possibly injure him?

"Attendant Gao, what happened to you?" Pei Min rose to welcome him.

Gao Lishi said anxiously, "We can talk as we walk. The dignity of our Great Tang now depends on the Lord Censor to redeem it."

Puzzled and uncomprehending, Pei Min followed him anyway, yet could not resist asking once more, "And these injuries of yours, Attendant?"

Gao Lishi was consumed by a mixture of vexation and resentment as he replied, "They were inflicted by a Tibetan foreign monk."

Given Gao Lishi's status today, indeed no one would dare harm him casually. But when it came to martial arts sparring and friendly competition, fists and kicks have no eyes, which was another matter entirely.

Today, Li Longji had, as usual, arranged for the Ministry of Rites to entertain the Tibetan envoys, going together at noon to watch a Tang polo match. Li Longji's intention was obvious: he wanted to have a friendly match with Tibet to deflate their arrogance once again. Previously, it was also during a polo match shown to Tibetan envoys that the Tibetans had proposed competing against the Tang polo team.

At that time, the Tang polo team had been unprepared and was utterly routed by the Tibetans. Later, however, Li Longji, Li Yong, Yang Shenjiao, and Wu Yanxiu personally took the field. The four of them played against ten, completely stunning the Tibetan polo team and bringing great pride and elation to the Tang.

This time, Li Longji had made ample preparations, specially arranging ahead of time for several of his old "polo-playing companions" from his youth to undergo special training for today's match. Yet no one anticipated that the Tibetans would completely avoid mentioning polo, showing not the slightest inclination to compete in the sport with the Tang, rendering all their careful preparations utterly useless.

At the state banquet following the polo match, however, the Tibetan envoys declared their admiration for the divine might of Tang warriors and expressed the hope that Tibetan champions could match skills with the warriors of the Tang.

Although Li Longji had been caught unprepared, he did not believe that Tang warriors could be inferior to those of Tibet, and thus he consented.

As a result, the Tang dispatched two warriors, both of whom were defeated by the Tibetan monk, and utterly crushed without the ability to fight back, failing to even withstand ten blows. Li Longji's expression turned exceptionally grim. Unable to bear the sight and wishing to uphold the honor of the sovereign, Gao Lishi personally entered the arena to spar.

Gao Lishi was not the lowly and wretched figure often portrayed in theatrical performances; on the contrary, he was tall and robust, possessing considerable courage and martial skill. He fought fiercely against the Tibetan monk for twenty bouts, and initially, they were evenly matched. However, he did not expect the foreign monk to resort to trickery, suddenly sweeping out a low kick that sent him tumbling to the ground. Gao Lishi's injuries were not severe, but his face had struck the ground, leaving visible marks on his nose and forehead, which looked exceedingly startling.

Having suffered three consecutive defeats, the Tang naturally lost face completely, while the Tibetan envoys were immensely proud, mocking the Tang for having no capable men.

Li Longji cared deeply about his dignity and was so enraged that he was beside himself with fury. Yet, seeing that his own warriors were incompetent, he could only stew in silent anger.

Thinking of Pei Min, Gao Lishi had suggested to Li Longji that Pei Min be invited to deal with the Tibetan monk.

Pei Min had recently defeated famous martial arts veterans of Chang'an one after another, and even within the imperial palace, Li Longji had heard whispers of these rumors. Without the slightest hesitation, he directly dispatched Gao Lishi out of the palace to issue the invitation.

Hearing the full account, Pei Min flew into a rage. He held no fondness for the Tibetan villains, especially after just learning that these scoundrels had bloodlessly seized the Nine Bends of the Hexi region from the Tang, a fact that filled his heart with deep hatred. Now, hearing that Tibetan scum were looking down upon the Tang as a nation devoid of talent and making a show of arrogance at a state banquet, he could no longer contain his wrath. He declared angrily, "Attendant, rest assured! I will surely avenge this humiliation for you."

Gao Lishi held an exceptionally favorable impression of Pei Min, primarily because Pei Min treated him as an ordinary person—a normal human being, neither fawning nor discriminating. As a eunuch with physical disabilities, even though Gao Lishi maintained a very healthy mindset, a tiny trace of inferiority inevitably remained. His current status was extremely high, which could be considered achieving great success and renown. Yet, as a eunuch, while some discriminated against him and others fawned upon him, still others simply ignored him. There were very few who, like Pei Min, treated him purely as a normal person.

Gao Lishi cared little for the discrimination, flattery, or indifference of others; instead, he deeply appreciated Pei Min's normal attitude toward him. Seeing Pei Min now speaking up for him with righteous fury, he hurriedly said, "What do these minor injuries matter, so long as Lord Censor can defeat that Tibetan monk and restore His Majesty's dignity? Gao is endlessly grateful..." He paused for a moment before adding, "The Lord Censor must not take this lightly. That Tibetan monk is not the usual type of fierce warrior found in the imperial court; he possesses a rather distinct pugilistic style."