Chapter 24: Wu Xing Shen and Lanling Xiao

  Lingyun's eyes suddenly lit up in front of him, and he heard the tone behind the words.

  "Is Chen Xiong just a frontman, and the real collaborator is Wu Xing Shen?"

  The Shen family of Wu Xing originated from the south, and the Shen family of Wu Xing can be considered one of the top aristocratic families in the Southern Dynasty. They were known as one of the four great families along with Wang, Xie, Gu, Zhang, Zhu, and Lu, especially during the Sui and Tang dynasties. In fact, they were on par with the Xiao family of Lanling as a prominent clan in Jiangdong.

  Although the Chen family was once the ruler of Southern Chen, its founder Chen Baxian was originally just a humble commoner. The Chen dynasty had five emperors, and if we exclude the deposed emperor, two out of the four emperors' consorts were from the Shen family of Wu Xing. Both Emperor Wen of Chen and Emperor Houzhu's consorts came from this family.

  The Shen family of Wu Xing was a powerful clan with tens of thousands of households sharing the same surname, making them one of the top aristocratic families in Jiangdong. When the Southern Chen dynasty fell, the Chen family suffered a devastating blow and plummeted to the bottom. However, despite being affected by this event, the Shen family's status in Jiangdong remained extremely strong.

  As recorded in history, during the anti-Sui rebellion at the end of the Sui dynasty, there were three major forces in southern China: Du Fuwei, Chen Leng, and Shen Faxing. This Shen Faxing was from the Shen family of Wu Xing.

  In the tenth year of Kaihuang, in the midst of the great rebellion wave in Jiangnan, there were two branches of rebellious strongmen, Suzhou Shen Xuan and Wenzhou Shen Xiaochen, who were also branches of Wu Guang's Shen clan.

  "When Chen Yin was not allowed into the palace because his mother, Chen Xiong's mother, was a songstress, he was placed under the care of Shen Shi, the maternal family of Empress Shen. This sentence has already made it very clear that Chen Xiong is just a puppet on strings. He is only a young man in his early twenties, and although he is the son of the deposed crown prince of the Chen dynasty, he is merely an illegitimate child without any status or qualifications to be taken by the Sui dynasty to Guanzhong. Such a person, how could Gao Qianxue possibly look up to him as an ally? Now everything has become clear: the object of Gao Qianxue's cooperation was actually Wu Xing Shen Shi behind Chen Xiong. However, the powerful Wu Xing Shen Shi likes to do things in a roundabout way, likes to make things complicated and confusing, wanting to take advantage without getting into trouble. Therefore, they pushed Chen Xiong to the front and manipulated him from behind."

  Chen Xiong didn't have much to offer in terms of cooperation, he was a mere figurehead. But the Wu Xing Shen family was different, they had people and money, their reputation was extremely high, and in the local area, they were like local emperors. Moreover, these powerful families from Jiangdong had woven a dense network over many years, their power should not be underestimated. To say that uniting with them could overthrow the Sui dynasty is also unrealistic. After all, the huge rebellion of Kaihuang 10 was put down instantly. But Gao Qiu Xue probably didn't even expect to overthrow the Sui dynasty, they just wanted revenge and to cause chaos.

  It's just that Lingyun was puzzled as to why the Wu Xing Shen family, a powerful and influential clan, would be so skilled at observing the situation. Now that the Great Sui dynasty is in its heyday, with King Yang Guang of Jin stationed in Jiangnan for many years, he has already won over the scholars and common people of Jiangnan. The Shen family wouldn't fail to see the situation clearly, so why did they want to get in touch with Gao Shansheng and cooperate with them?

  "In fact, we have been cooperating with the Shen family for a long time, not just with Wu Xing Shen family, but also with many wealthy families in Jiangdong." Gao Qianxue's words were shocking.

  "How is this possible? What cooperation can they have with us?"

  "Smuggling!" Gao Qianxue whispered out two words.

  Gao Qiansheng is a princess of the Northern Qi, but only a princess of a fallen state. The Northern Qi was destroyed twenty years ago. However, as the princess of a former dominant power in the east, Gao Qiansheng has many supporters, including former officials of the Northern Qi, the aristocratic families of Guandong, and even the Hu people from outside the pass. In those days, Gao Mingyue's father, Gao Baoning, defended Longcheng outside the pass, persisting until the third year of Kaihuang, relying mainly on the support of the Khitan, Mohe, and even the Goguryeo. With this connection, although Gao Qiansheng and her sister were only members of a fallen royal house, they still controlled a considerable force over the years, relying on the support of some powerful families in Guandong and the Hu people outside the pass. They maintained secret contact with the Hu people and many aristocratic families in Guandong, thus grasping a smuggling channel and network, with channels for importing and exporting goods. They smuggled war horses, furs, medicinal materials, and other goods from outside the pass to inside, and then smuggled weapons, armor, iron tools, tea leaves, and other goods from inside the pass to outside. Using the money from smuggling, they maintained the operation of this secret force.

  Such smuggling is actually very profitable. Moreover, because of their good relationship with the Hu people, it is safer and more convenient than many merchants in the Central Plains going to smuggle themselves. And many aristocratic families, apart from occupying a lot of land, also operate a large number of shops, smuggling, which is also an important source of wealth for them.

  Jiangdong is rich in silk and porcelain, and it borders the sea, so smuggling from Liaodong by sea is a lucrative business.

  However, at the beginning of this year, Emperor Yang Jian of the Sui Dynasty issued a decree to Jiangdong, strictly prohibiting local private shipbuilding and going out to sea, with severe punishment for violators. This is a kind of sanction against smuggling in Jiangdong, which offended the interests of many wealthy families in Jiangdong, including the Shen family of Wu Xing. This is also why Gao Qianxue can now join forces with the Shen family. Perhaps the Shen family does not really want to rebel against the Sui Dynasty, but they must want to use the smuggling channels of the Gao family to continue their smuggling business, and even take this opportunity to increase their share of smuggling.

  "When Shen's family just wanted to use us."

  "Exploitation and being exploited, it has always been this way. So-called cooperation is nothing more than mutual exploitation. If there's no value in exploiting each other, then cooperation is out of the question. Yi Lang, don't you think so?"

  Lingyun couldn't help but be amazed by Shallow Snow's sharpness, this woman if born in a later generation, would absolutely be a business elite, presiding over a large group wouldn't be a problem. Penetrating through the surface to reach the essence, she not only had a woman's sensibility, but also possessed many rationalities that women didn't have.

  "By the way, that illegitimate child is not worth mentioning. Do you know who Xiao Shilue is, the one who saved Chen Xiong and the others?" Qianxue pulled down the gauze on her hat and covered her face. Although the red sun in the morning was beautiful, for a person with albinism, sunlight was always scorching, and even that not-so-strong sunlight would make them hard to bear.

  "Could it be Xiao of Lanling?"

  The Xie family of Lanling, a famous Chinese family and top-notch aristocratic clan. It rose to prominence from the Western Han Dynasty's Emperor Xuan's minister, Crown Prince Taifu Xie Wangzhi, and declined for over 200 years from the Eastern Han to the end of the Western Jin Dynasty. When they migrated south at the end of the Western Jin Dynasty, due to the family's greatness, the Sima clan settled them south of the Yangtze River, known as "Southern Lanling", still referred to as the Xie family of Lanling. They were one of the "Four Great Families" of the Southern Dynasties and were extremely prestigious. From the end of the Jin Dynasty onwards, this family became increasingly prominent, and according to Lingyun's knowledge of history, the Xie family of Lanling will continue to grow stronger in the future, becoming the top aristocratic clan under heaven and a thousand-year-old noble family.

  During the Southern Dynasties, they were the imperial families of the Southern Qi and Southern Liang, and during the entire Southern Dynasties period, the Xiao family produced more than 30 prime ministers. Now in the Sui Dynasty, the current emperor personally sought to marry a daughter of the Xiao family as a concubine for his second son Yang Guang, showing their noble status. Although the Xiao family suffered greatly during the Hou Jing Rebellion, after the founding of the Southern Chen, they still maintained a small court in Jiangling, and although they were eventually annexed by the Sui, due to their voluntary surrender, they received good treatment.

  Therefore, Lingyun thinks that this Xiao Shi is unlikely to be a person of the Lanling Xiao clan. Although the Xiao family took Lanling as their ancestral home, in fact, the Xiao family had long since moved to the area south of the Yangtze River, and after the fall of Southern Liang, they mostly escaped to the Jiangling area in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. After Sui unified Liang, these Xiao clan members also mostly moved to the capital city of Daxing.

  "Do you know Xiaomohe?"

  "Of course I know." Ling Yun replied immediately, Xiao Mohe's name in the Jiangdong region is well-known, this guy is the war god of Jiangdong, the first general of Jiangnan, it's hard not to know. Moreover, Xiao Mohe is indeed a member of the Langling Xiao clan.

  Xiao Mohe's father was the governor of Nanling, so he could be considered a noble son. He practiced martial arts from a young age. At 19 years old, he followed his uncle into battle and single-handedly defeated many enemies on horseback. Later, Xiao Mohe joined Chen Baxian, the founder of the Southern Chen dynasty, and became one of its generals.

  About 25 years ago, the Chen army launched a northern campaign against the Northern Qi dynasty, aiming to recover the Huainan region north of the Yangtze River. The Northern Qi was the strongest of the three kingdoms during the Northern and Southern dynasties period, with elite soldiers who were eight feet tall and possessed extraordinary strength. They also had a skilled archer from Western Regions who inspired fear in the Chen army.

  The commander-in-chief of the Chen army, Wu Mingche, said that if they could kill this Western Regions archer, the enemy would lose morale. He asked Xiao Mohe, "You have a reputation for being brave, can you kill this Yan Liang?" Wu Mingche personally gave Xiao Mohe a drink, and after finishing it, Xiao Mohe charged into the enemy ranks alone on horseback.

  The Western Regions archer emerged from the formation but hadn't even drawn his bow when Xiao Mohe had already reached him. With a single throw of his spear, he killed the archer. The Northern Qi army then launched a fierce attack, but Xiao Mohe fought valiantly and slew many soldiers, causing the Northern Qi army to suffer a great defeat.

  At that time, Xiao Mohe's name was known throughout the world and was called Guan Gong again. He was the number one fierce general of his generation. Unfortunately, when Sui Ping Nan Chen later, he defected to the enemy and surrendered without a fight. However, this peerless fierce general surrendered to Sui, but not without reason. The reason is that he fought for the country on the front line, while Emperor Chen Shubao took advantage of the opportunity to deal with Xiao's wife who had entered the palace to meet the emperor's concubine. Back and forth, the two also colluded with each other, and Xiao Mohe wore a green hat on his head, suffering from this great shame. How could Xiao Mohe be willing? Think about it, Xiao Mohe was a fierce general of his generation, following Emperor Chen Baxian, the founding emperor of Southern Chen, to fight for the country, making great contributions to the five emperors of Southern Chen. Emperor Chen Shubao treated him like this, so he naturally fought lazily on the front line, took the opportunity to surrender to the enemy, and counterattacked.

  However, after the decline of Sui, this fierce general's days were not easy to get by. Although he was granted the position of Kaifu Yitong Sancai, he was idle in the capital all along. This year, the King of Han went out of his fief, and was appointed by Emperor Yang as a cavalry general, following Yang Guang to pacify Bingzhou. At this time, Xiao Yu was already 66 years old, very old indeed.

  "What is the relationship between Xiao Shilue and Xiao Moluo?"

  Gao Qianxue smiled and said: "Xiao Shilüe is the second son of Xiao Mohe, but there are rumors that Xiao Shilüe was actually born to Chen Bubao and Lady Xiao."

  Wow, the Sui Dynasty also has Ba Gua, and it's so explosive. Chen Xiong is the illegitimate son of Chen Shubao's son, and if Xiao Shilue is indeed Chen Shubao's illegitimate son, then he would be Chen Xiong's uncle. This is really a family affair.

  "No matter whether Xiao Shilue was Chen Bao's illegitimate son or not, he is now nominally Xiao Mohe's son. Xiao Mohe has been surrendered to the Sui for nine years and is still under the command of the Han King. Why did Xiao Shilue take action? Is there any trickery involved?" This inexplicably complicated relationship made Lingyun wonder what to say. But he still felt that something was off, Xiao Mohe may not have done well in the Sui dynasty, but at least he was a general, his son Xiao Shilue had no reason to turn around and help them."

  "It's said that Xiao Mohe has never liked this son, and his brother Xiao Shilü is also said to dislike him. Otherwise, do you think Xiao Shilü would have stayed in Jiangnan?" Gao Qianshuang said, "Putting aside whether Xiao Shilü is Chen Shubao's son or not, how do you think we should treat this suddenly appearing Xiao Shilü?"

  Xiao Mohe's daughter was once the crown princess of Chen Shubao's son, Crown Prince Chen Yin. His wife later had an affair with Chen Shubao again, and it is also possible that his son was born out of Chen Shubao's affair with his wife. This situation is really complicated. Chen Shubao had an affair with the mother of his daughter-in-law, which means he messed around with his own relative. And if Xiao Shilue is indeed Chen Shubao's son, should he be called Chen Yin's brother-in-law or older brother? Should he be called sister or sister-in-law of the Xiao family?

  "Be more careful." Lingyun said with a shake of his head.

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