Yang Shidao, the youngest son of King Yang Xiong of Guande and the younger brother of Yang Gongren.
During the Daye period, he lived in Luoyang and was detained by Wang Shichong. He later took the opportunity to escape from Luoyang and went to Chang'an to join Li Yuan.
Brothers Yang Shidao and Yang Gongren had a close personal relationship with Li Yuan, and Yang Shidao was a clan member of the Sui Dynasty. Li Yuan was overjoyed by his defection. Not only did he appoint him as his superior, but also his widowed daughter Princess Guiyang in marriage to him.
This was exactly Zhuge Liang's clever plan to Li Shimin, using Yang Shidao to instigate Yang Gongren. Jiangling strangles the throat of the westward march to Bashu, and once changes occur, it will greatly disrupt the military morale of the Sui army in Bashu.
However, Yang Shidao was Li Yuan's favorite minister and Li Shimin had no right to transfer him. Therefore, he sent someone to Chang'an to explain the whole story. After Li Yuan nodded, he secretly ordered Yang Shidao to rush to Jiangling. This detour was a waste of time.
Hearing that Yang Shidao was coming, Yang Gongren, who always loved his younger brother, hurriedly ordered someone to invite him. He complained: "Now that the Sui and Tang Dynasties are fighting, how can you come to me so arrogantly? If anyone finds out, even I will escape." It doesn’t matter!”
"Then the elder brother will tie up the younger brother and send him to the government. This will help to clear the brother's innocence!"
Yang Shidao smiled slightly, stretched out his hands and said.
"You and I are from the same mother and we share a blood relationship, so why bother saying these foreign words."
Yang Gongren glared at Yang Shidao, waved his hand to signal Yang Shidao to sit down, ordered his servants to watch the tea, and then said: "What are you doing in Jiangling this time?"
Yang Shidao smiled but didn't answer.
Seeing that Yang Shidao was silent, Yang Gongren continued: "At that time, the world was in chaos, and we didn't know who would win and who would lose. I don't blame you for running to Chang'an to join Shude (characterized by Li Yuan). No matter which side of the Sui and Tang Dynasties wins, our lineage can win." Continuation. But now the situation is clear. Your Majesty has defeated the Turkic Temujin by pacifying Hebei and Youzhou, and Shude has not been able to leave Hangu Pass in the east for many years. Don't go back to Chang'an this time. I will wait for a while with the officials. I will let you serve as an official after just saying hello. Although you are married to Shude's daughter, you are still a member of the Sui Dynasty's clan, so Your Majesty will not embarrass you too much."
"Brother, do you really plan to work under that yellow-mouthed kid for the rest of your life?"
Yang Shidao sneered when he heard this and said disdainfully.
"what do you mean?"
Yang Gongren's expression changed, he looked around nervously, and said: "You are so brave, how dare you disrespect His Majesty!"
The disdain on Yang Shidao's face did not diminish at all, and he said lightly: "I am not his minister, so why should I respect him!"
Yang Gongren said with some displeasure: "Are you determined to follow Shu De? You are also a smart man. You also know the current situation. Li Shimin's army of hundreds of thousands stopped outside Jianmen Pass. Not only did they not capture an inch The land also lost General Li Jilong. And His Majesty’s army has driven out the Turks and will soon go south to Bashu. What good will happen if you continue to follow Shude?"
"Brother, if you follow that yellow-mouthed kid, there will definitely be a good end for you?"
Yang Shidao said coldly: "According to seniority, you are that child's uncle, but how does he treat his elder brother? Has he ever helped his elder brother in so many years? Zhang Juzheng, Yu Yunwen, Liu Bowen, a group of unknown people have climbed up one by one. On my brother’s head.”
"After all, we are still a clan!"
This incident also made Yang Gongren dissatisfied, and it took him a long time to speak.
"imperial clan?"
Yang Shidao sneered again and said, "Then Huangkou boy doesn't regard us clan members as his own? Brother, do you still remember King Xi?"
Yang Gongren was startled when he heard this.
Yang Qing, King of Xi, is the son of Yang Hong, King of Hejian. According to his seniority, he should be the brother of Yang Gongren and Yang Shidao.
Yang Qing served as the prefect of Xingyang during the Daye period. At that time, Li Mi occupied Luokou warehouse with great momentum. Later, when news of Yang Guang's death came in the Jiangdu rebellion, Yang Qing surrendered to Li Mi and changed his surname to Guo.
Yang Gao teamed up with Wang Shichong to destroy Li Mi, and Yang Qing fled to Luoyang to join Wang Shichong, married Wang Shichong's niece and changed his surname to Yang again.
Li Shimin's militiamen came out of Hangu to attack Luoyang. Yang Qing saw the elite Tang army and was afraid, so he changed his name to Guo and surrendered to Li Shimin.
The Battle of Luoyang ended with a complete victory for the Sui army. Yang Qing was reluctant to part with the property he had left in the Central Plains, so he wrote to Yang Gao hoping that for the sake of his and Yang Guang's seniority, he would be spared his life so that he could Live your old age in peace.
After Yang Gao heard about Yang Qing's deeds of surrendering after changing his surname several times, he couldn't help but became furious: "As a local official who is a descendant of the clan, I don't know how to serve the country loyally, but I changed my surname several times to surrender to the thieves. This is so unfaithful and unjust." You unfilial person, if I spare you, how can you still have the face to meet your ancestors!"
Yang Gao immediately issued an order to thoroughly investigate whether Yang Qing surrendered thieves and whether there was corruption and perversion of the law during his tenure in Xingyang. This investigation also found out that Yang Qing had sold military rations to Wagang in his early years. Yang Gao was furious and ordered Yang Qing was thrown into prison, his family property was confiscated, and Yang Qing was removed from the clan, allowing him to be Guo Qing for the rest of his life.
This incident aroused dissatisfaction among a group of Sui Dynasty clan members headed by Yang Gongren, but fortunately Yang Lin and Yang Ye, the most senior members of the clan, strongly supported Yang Gao's decision and believed that Yang Qing deserved his crime, so the clan stopped.
However, this incident did make Yang Gongren feel a little dissatisfied with Yang Gao. Yang Qing was Yang Gao's elder after all, so it would be too unkind to treat him like this.
"But now that the situation in the world is clear, what can I do?"
Yang Shidao's few words aroused Yang Gongren's dissatisfaction. Yang Gongren vaguely guessed Yang Shidao's intention, but he still said with concern.
"The situation in the world is clear, brother and little brother, but it may not be so!"
Yang Shidao shook his head and said with a smile: "That Huangkou boy is arrogant and ignorant and has made enemies on all sides. The Turkic Jurchen Goguryeo and the Japanese country hanging overseas are all fighting against him. If my brother is willing to abandon the Sui Dynasty and return to the Tang Dynasty, and send troops to help the King of Qin, The two sides will attack Ba and Shu. By then, all Jing and Xiang of Bashu will have returned to the Tang Dynasty, and the boy will be surrounded by enemies on all sides. It is still unclear who will win the battle!"
"This this..."
Yang Gongren stood up and paced back and forth in the room, but did not reply to Yang Shidao for a while.
Seeing this, Yang Shidao gave Yang Gongren another blow, and saw him saying hello outside: "Bring it in."
Yang Shidao's followers came in after hearing the news, took the baggage on their backs, and carefully untied it, only to see a seal ribbon inside.
"Brother!"
Yang Shidao took the seal ribbon and carefully handed it to Yang Gongren's hand. After taking it, Yang Gongren looked at the bottom and saw "Seal of the King of Chu" written on it.
"this..."
Yang Gongren raised his head and looked at Yang Shidao. Yang Shidao smiled slightly and said: "Brother, Brother Shude said that if the elder brother is willing to abandon the secret and turn to the light, he will be the King of Chu of the Tang Dynasty, and his descendants will inherit it."
"Brother, you have to think carefully. Brother Shude has a close relationship with you and me. Although the boy is related by blood to us, when did he regard his brother as one of his own? Is it possible that the noble King of Chu of the Tang Dynasty still has Not as good as this mere second-grade Shangzhou governor!"
