The word Hunan actually appeared very early. At least during the Dali Period of the Tang Dynasty, this place was called Hunan Road.
Of course, the Hunan Road at that time did not cover all of Hunan Province, only Changsha and Shaoyang.
Hunan formed the general state and county structure of later generations, and its origin actually dates back to the Ma Chu period.
In the hands of Ma Yin, Chu State took over Yuezhou, which originally belonged to the Eyue Observer Envoy, Langzhou (Changde), which belonged to the Jingnan Jiedushi Envoy, and Chenzhou and Jinzhou (Huaihua area), which belonged to the Qianzhou Observer Envoy.
At this point, Hunan Province in later generations basically belonged to one political power.
However, at this time, Ma Chu had only carried out a rough integration, because throughout Xiangxi, there were still a large number of ethnic minorities called Xidong Man or Tu Man, Beijiang Man, Nanjiang Man, etc.
Most of them were divided into Dong, Miao and Tujia in later generations.
At this time, among the Xidong barbarians in Xiangxi, the most sinicized were the Xidong barbarians in Langzhou.
Before the founding of Ma Chu, Langzhou Xidongman Leiman and his sons Lei Yanwei and Lei Yangong ruled Langzhou separately. They were granted the title of Military Envoy of the Wuzhen Army by the Tang Dynasty and became an upright vassal town of the Tang Dynasty.
Lei's Wu Zhen Army occupied the prosperous land of Langzhou, recruited Yang Xingmi and others from Huainan as reinforcements, and sent troops to attack Jingzhou, Yuezhou and Tanzhou (Changsha) many times. After more than thirty years of glory, it was defeated by the two great lords Gao Jixing and Ma Yin. Destroyed under attack.
After the fall of the Lei family, Peng Shichou, a Tuman lord located in Xizhou (Yongshun County, Hunan), began to rise again. During his most powerful period, he became the leader of the Tubar tribes in western Hunan and eastern Guizhou.
However, although Peng Shichou is called a barbarian, he should actually be a Han. His uncle Peng Gan and father Peng Yao were both from Jizhou (Ji'an), Jiangxi.
During the Huangchao Rebellion, these two men gathered troops to protect themselves and became warlords who ruled Jizhou.
Later, they were expelled by Yang Xingmi's forces in Huainan and fled to Ma Chu for self-protection. After arriving at Ma Chu, they were arranged by Ma Yin to move to the Xizhou area to appease the local Beijiang barbarians.
Therefore, Peng Shichou was not a Xidong barbarian, but although he was born in Jizhou, he grew up in western Hunan. He lived among the Xidong barbarians in western Hunan since he was a child, and gradually became their leader.
At that time, Ma Chu's rule over the Langzhou barbarians relied on the establishment of the Wuping Army Jiedushi in Langzhou, with the clan's nephews in charge.
In Chenzhou and other places, the Peng family was in charge and comforted. Peng Shichou's cousin also married the second-generation King of Chu, Ma Xifan, as his first wife, and she was the virtuous wife of the Chu Kingdom.
Mrs. Xianshun was ugly but managed the household well and acted decisively. Ma Xifan respected and feared her, so the territory of Ma Chu became very peaceful.
However, soon after Mrs. Xianshun passed away, Ma Xifan lost his restraints. In order to build a large palace in Tanzhou and live a life of wine ponds and meat forests, he began to allocate large amounts of gold and silver to the various streams and caves in western Hunan.
Peng Shichou was already growing in Xizhou and other places, so naturally he would not allow Ma Xifan to come to Xiangxi to collect taxes, and since he lost the communication channel of Mrs. Xianshun, the two sides immediately started a war.
First, Peng Shichou led tens of thousands of people from the three prefectures of Jin, Zhong, and Xi to march eastward and attack the Chu State. They captured Chen and Li prefectures belonging to Chu and burned and plundered the garrisons established by the Chu State in the two states.
Then Ma Xifan sent his subordinates Liu Qing, the military commander of Jingjiang, and Liao Kuangqi, the commander of decisive victory, to lead an army to conquer Xizhou.
The two sides fought in the Wangcheng area. Peng Shichou's barbarian soldiers were inferior to the Chu army in equipment and discipline. They were defeated and fled westward in panic.
The Chu army pursued Peng Shichou to Xizhou, his home base, forcing him to retreat to the mountain stronghold and rely on the natural dangers of cliffs on all sides to resist the Chu army.
When the war reached this point, it fell into a fierce tug-of-war.
On the Chu side, first the commander of the decisive victory, Liao Kuangqi, was accidentally ambushed and died. Then Peng Shichou was defeated by Liu Qing with a fire attack. He could not hold on to the stronghold and had to flee into the mountains. He asked Meng Chang, the Lord of Shu, for help. Rejected by Shu.
But at the same time, although Peng Shichou was a Han, he was already regarded by various Xidong barbarians as one of their own, and his prestige was not damaged by his defeat.
On the contrary, the Chu soldiers who came to attack were regarded as invaders, which provoked the various cave barbarians to resist continuously. As a result, the Chu soldiers beat Peng Shichou to hide in Tibet, but they could never eliminate him.
Seeing this situation, Peng Shichou, who was worthy of being a hero, took the initiative to surrender and sent his son to lead the subordinate chiefs Tian Hongbin, Qin Xingfang, Xiang Cunku, Luo Junfu, etc., with brocades, prizes, Xizhou seals, and maps to invite the Chu State. Surrender, take the initiative to step down for Ma Xifan.
Ma Xifan really couldn't fight anymore, so he agreed.
The two parties signed the historically famous Xizhou Covenant in Xizhou, which stipulated that Xizhou and other places would always be under the control of the Peng family.
Ma Chu officially appointed Peng Shichou as the governor of Xizhou. If Chu wanted to collect taxes and recruit troops here, it would need to be discussed with Peng and approved by Peng.
The Peng family summoned Mo Yanshu, the chief of Nanning Prefecture (now Huishui County, Qiannan Guizhou) and the Eighteen Villages.
Yin Huaichang, the chief of Duyun (now Duyun, Guizhou), and other twelve tribes of barbarians.
Zhang Wanjun, the leader of the Zangzhou barbarians, led more than 30 powerful barbarian chiefs from Dabozhou (Zunyi, Guizhou), Xiaobozhou (Zitong, Guizhou), and Yizhou (Fenggang County, Zunyi) to come.
They all made a blood alliance and surrendered to Ma Chu, respecting Ma Xifan as king, so that Ma Chu gained a large territory in western Hunan, eastern Guizhou, and southern Guizhou in name.
This is an extremely important event in Chinese history, marking that the various ethnic minorities in western Hunan, eastern Guizhou, southern Guizhou, and southeastern Henan returned to the country again after the fall of the Tang Dynasty.
The Xizhou Alliance also erected a large copper pillar, which existed until later generations. The inscription on the bronze pillar clearly recorded the status of the alliance between the two sides.
Since then, under the constraints of the Peng family, the barbarians in western Hunan, eastern Guizhou, and southern Guizhou have gradually accepted the Central Plains culture, and there has been no large-scale rebellion.
By the Ming Dynasty, the people of all ethnic groups in Xidong in this area even helped the Central Plains Dynasty send troops to quell the Japanese pirate rebellion in the southeast and resisted the Manchu invaders many times.
The natives in southeastern Chongqing still have the tradition of officially celebrating the New Year on the 27th and 28th of the twelfth lunar month. This is because they were drafted to the southeast to fight against Japanese pirates and had no time to celebrate the New Year, so they moved the New Year's Eve forward.
When the heroine Qin Liangyu in the late Ming Dynasty led the white-pole soldiers to the expedition, they were not all Shizhu soldiers. There were also a large number of Tujia soldiers from Youyang, Xiushan and other places in southeastern Chongqing.
Before Qin Liangyu, during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, various Xidong chieftains, mainly from Xizhou (Yongshun County, Hunan), often sent troops to the northeast and southeast to fight for the imperial court.
The Peng Shichou who is facing Zhang Yan now is the ancestor of the Yongshun Peng family chieftain family who has been passed down for more than 800 years and has gone through the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties until the sixth year of Yongzheng (1728) when he was repatriated.
To this day, among the Miao, Dong, and Tujia people in western Hunan, Guizhou, and southeastern Chongqing, Peng, Tian, and Xiang are all super surnames.
At that time, the son Peng Shichou sent out to actively seek peace was Peng Shisong, who came as a tribute envoy to ask for an audience with Zhang Shi.
Zhang Yan only summoned Peng Shisong for less than a cup of tea, and he immediately discovered that the person in front of him was one of the founders of the Peng clan chieftain in Yongshun.
Zhang Yan understood that his return to Kaifeng Mansion in Tokyo had to be postponed again.
This is the advantage of the time traveler, he knows who can be trusted and who cannot be trusted.
The Yongshun Peng family in front of him are his most trusted candidates to guard Xiangxi and Eastern Guizhou, and they are the local tycoons who can rely on them to integrate the entire Xiangxi and Guizhou.
Peng Shisong is not an ordinary person. When the Peng family was in danger, he dared to risk being killed by the Chu army and went down the mountain to seek reconciliation. How could such a person be incompetent?
Although this person is rough and does not understand etiquette and has a straightforward temper, he is indeed as Zhang Shaodi said, respectful and grateful.
The first thing he said when he saw Zhang Yan was to distinguish the Beijiang barbarians headed by the Peng family from the Langzhou barbarians headed by the Lei and Xiang families of Langzhou.
Because Peng Shisong knew very well that there was nothing wrong with Langzhou Man helping Ma Xi'e seize power. The Peng family would do the same if they had the chance, but looting and burning Tanzhou City would be too much.
This is a deadly feud! And in this way, whether after Ma Chu regains his strength or the imperial court takes control of Hunan, he will definitely be held accountable for this matter.
Zhang Yan nodded, indicating that he understood the difference between the two places. He smiled and asked Peng Shisong about the physical condition of his father Peng Shichou, and asked about ways to quickly stabilize Xi, Chen, Yi, Dabo and Nanning Prefectures.
Because the alliance partners of these states were King Ma Xifan of Chu and the State of Chu. Now that Zhang Yan was taking over the separatist regime of Ma Chu, he was bound to make a new alliance with these Xidong barbarians.
Peng Shisong was greatly shocked. He did not expect that Zhang Yan did not ask how to pacify Ma Xi'e, but instead asked how to pacify the barbarians in Xidong.
Of course, Peng Shisong was also very concerned about this matter. He took the risk of leaving his two sons in Tanzhou just for the future of the Peng family.
If the Emperor of China does not agree to and abide by the Xizhou Covenant, the war will ignite again.
Zhang Yan looked at the surprised Peng Shisong and said with a smile: "Ma Xi'e is not the heir of the Chu Kingdom, and he is cruel and unpopular. I need to send a general with fifty thousand armors. Killing him is like picking something out of a bag."
On the contrary, the various places west of Xi and Chen finally obeyed Wang Hua. If they were not handled well, they would return to the mountains and forests again and rebel against the court.
Didn’t the hundreds of thousands of lives injured in the bloody battle between the Erpeng family and the Ma family bleed in vain? "
When Peng Shisong heard what Zhang Yan said, he bowed his head and bowed to the ground.
"The saint really has the idea to treat the people of the stream caves in the south and north rivers equally with the Han people in Tan, Yue and other states?"
Zhang Gao helped Peng Shisong up and said, "Everything in the world is not the king's land, and the shores of the land are not the king's ministers. As long as you Chen, Xi and other state chiefs can abide by the laws of the imperial court and obey the imperial court's orders, why can't I treat you all equally?" Woolen cloth?
I have no intention of driving you all to death. After all, you don’t want to join the invaders every year and be surrounded and suppressed by the imperial soldiers, right? "
Peng Shisong stood up and pulled Zhang Yan's sleeves excitedly, "Except for the cruel chiefs of the stream caves west of Tanzhou, as long as they can be treated as equals by the court, they will not block trade or use salt. If you plunder sugar, iron and other things skillfully, you will never feel rebellious.”
Peng Shisong understood the implication of Zhang Yan's words, and Zhang Yan also knew what Peng Shisong was talking about, because the words used by both of them were "chiefs."
Zhang Zhang expressed his willingness to recognize the power of these powerful chiefs to command their people, while Peng Shisong was pursuing equal treatment for Xidong powerful chiefs and Han officials.
There is a term in history called "returning local officials to local officials". This was in line with the trend during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, but at this time, appointing local officials was the best choice.
The most important thing now is not to send officials to the lands of these ethnic minorities.
Instead, these ethnic minorities whose appearance, customs and even culture are similar to the Han people are brought into this big family.
First, let their tribal leaders get used to accepting the leadership of the imperial court and make them regard themselves as members of the imperial court.
The two sides continued to talk for a while, and Zhang Yan finally said, "I heard that Xizhou has beautiful mountains, clear waters, and outstanding people. If I have time, I really want to visit Xizhou."
Peng Shisong understood instantly and was extremely shocked at the same time. For many years, the Xidong barbarians west of Tanzhou had never received such attention from the emperor and the court. He immediately expressed.
"The name of my family is Xidongmantou, but I am actually from Jizhou. I have never forgotten my identity since my ancestor King Anding (Peng Gan) came to Xizhou.
If the emperor can visit Xizhou, it will be a supreme honor for our Beijiang and Nanjiang rivers and caves.
At that time, Xi, Chen, Yi, Nanning, Big and Small Bozhou, Duyun and other states will all offer the most beautiful girls and the strongest warriors in the clan to the saint to express our loyalty. "
Zhang Yan pretended to think for a while, and then nodded. Peng Shisong can't be the master of Xidongman yet. The master is still his father Peng Shichou, so he can only talk to Peng Shichou about some things.
"Well! After settling Tanzhou, I will go there. Your father is also a hero in China. He has done great service in recruiting the barbarians from various streams and caves for the imperial court. It would be a great event if we could meet him."
Peng Shisong was overjoyed. He even gave up his two sons, but now he finally got an unprecedented reward. The out-of-reach Emperor of the Central Plains was going to Xizhou.
He prostrated himself on the ground and said with tears of gratitude: "On behalf of the people of Xidong in Thirty-Seven Prefectures west of Tanzhou, I would like to thank the saint for his grace."
Seeing that Peng Shisong had reached an agreement with the emperor, Zhang Shaodi immediately came forward and said to Peng Shisong.
"Peng Erlang, the saint has given you such great honor to the Peng family, why don't you come up with some advice for the saint and get rid of that thief Ma Xi'e!"
Peng Shisong stood up with tears streaming down his face and said solemnly to Zhang Yan: "It is not difficult to get rid of Ma Xi'e. As the sage said, his cruelty is unpopular, and 30,000 elite soldiers are enough.
But in order to stabilize Chu State, there are three things that must be paid attention to.
The first is to prevent Ma Xi'e from escaping back to Langzhou. Langzhou is where Ma Xi'e resides. The local barbarians have just helped Ma Xi'e sack Tanzhou. If Ma Xi'e escapes back to Langzhou, he will be caught out again. That's difficult.
The second is Yuezhou. Yuezhou is the most prosperous prefecture and county in Chu region except Tanzhou and Langzhou.
Now Tanzhou is caught in the flames of war, and it will be difficult to recover. Langzhou Xidong is so barbaric that it may be over soon. Only Yuezhou is rich in products and has been an important town in Hunan since the Han Dynasty.
Wang Yun, the governor of Yuezhou, was the son of the famous general Wang Huan. Huan was a tiger minister of the Ma family. He was wise and brave and loved soldiers as much as his son. Therefore, many of the Yuezhou troops obeyed and died in Huan Ziyun's service.
In addition, Yuezhou's navy was named Yishengdu. It fought against Jingnan in the north and resisted the Tang Dynasty in the east. If the navy of Yishengdu was not able to capture the Chu land, it would be like entering Baoshan without success.
The third one is Ma Xizhan, the military governor of Jingjiang in Guizhou. Guizhou is the gateway to Lingnan. Ma Xizhan is the only Qilin'er who is wise and brave among the princes of King Wu Xin.
He has been guarding Guizhou for more than ten years and has won the support of the people. If the saint can treat the Ma family well and recruit Ma Xizhan to surrender, he can gain the land of the ten states in Lingnan and take the opportunity to peek into the Han Dynasty in Lingnan. "
It’s all useful information. This Peng Shisong is indeed a treasure. Zhang Yan is overjoyed!
Wang Yun, the governor of Yuezhou, was a rare navy general in Ma Chu. Historically, it was Wang Yun who defeated Ma Xihe.
But when he was almost captured alive, Ma Xiguang told him not to hurt my brother and let him go. This made Wang Yun so angry that he never supported Ma Xiguang again.
Guizhou is later Guilin. This city is to the Lingnan Pearl River Delta what Xiangyang is to the Jianghan Plain.
Once you master Guilin, you can rush directly to Guangzhou along the Lijiang-Xijiang River, just like Mount Tai.
In the north, Guilin can also reach the Yangtze River through the tributaries of the Xiangjiang River. Thousands of years ago, Qin Shihuang built the Ling Canal here to connect the Xiangjiang River and the Lijiang River.
Although the spiritual canal has long been blocked at this time, it is not difficult to clear it.
Zhang Yan rubbed his hands impatiently and asked Peng Shisong and Zhang Shaodi.
"I want to bring the Chu vassal state back to the imperial court, and Ma Xizhan will become the Chu royal family. Can he be cared for by me?"
"Okay!" Zhang Shaodi nodded affirmatively.
"It's a pity that Ma Xizhan has a son from a prostitute, otherwise he would definitely succeed to the throne of Chu.
He understands the righteousness well and has long been heartbroken by Ma Xi'e's atrocities. As long as your Majesty sends a court minister to accompany him south, he will definitely be able to appease him. "
Zhang Shaodi was right. Historically, Ma Xizhan was angered to death by the brothers Ma Xi'e and Ma Xiguang.
As soon as he died, Guizhou fell into the hands of the Southern Han Dynasty. It was indeed Ma Chu's talisman in Lingnan.
As long as Zhang Gao captured the Chu vassal, treated the Ma clan well, and summoned them with great righteousness, he would definitely be able to surrender.
Zhang was relieved and immediately appointed Zhang Shaodi as the governor of Langzhou and the supervisor of troops and horses in Langzhou, Peng Shisong as the governor of Hengzhou and the supervisor of troops and horses in Hengzhou. The remaining generals Li Yanwen, Liu Yantao and other generals each received rewards.
Then Peng Shisong volunteered to sneak back to Xizhou to recruit barbarians from various Xidong caves to help Zhang Gao.
Zhang Shaodi also asked for orders and was willing to go to Yuezhou to recruit Ma Chu, the governor of Yuezhou, and Wang Yun, the commander of Yishengdu, for Zhang Yan.
Zhang Zhi then sent Yang Jiye to carry the imperial edict to confer Wang Yun the title of Yueyang Bo and to prepare the Yuezhou Yisheng Capital Navy to be promoted to the Forbidden Army Yisheng Town.
In order to meet the leader of the Xidong barbarians and control the land of Ma Chu, Zhang Yan had to consider the issue of guarding the land of Hunan.
But now, he really doesn't have any generals available.
After much thought, Zhang Hao decided to take a little risk. He promoted Luo Shande, the general of the Zhonglang of Zuo Shenwei Guard who followed him south, to Pingzhang of Jianghuai Province and commander of Wuning Guard of Xuzhou Prefecture, and ordered him to go quickly. Xuzhou is in charge.
Then he summoned Guo Wei, who had just arrived in Xuzhou for more than two months, to Hunan.
Zhang Gao planned to appoint him as Pingzhang of Hunan Province and Military Envoy of Wu'an Army in Tanzhou to control Hunan on Zhang Gao's behalf.
In October, Zhang Gao ordered Zhang Zhaojiu (Ma Shacai) to lead 20,000 troops to the edge of Lishui River.
The frightened Ma Xi'e immediately sent his general Zhu Jinzhong to lead an army of 20,000 troops, and recruited 15,000 Langzhou Xidong barbarians to advance to the Li River. The two sides faced off at Xiaodukou Town, east of Lizhou City.
This place is located in Jinshi City in Hunan Province in later generations. Jinshi City is in the transition zone from the Wuling Mountains to the Dongting Lake Basin. The terrain uses Lishui as the natural dividing line.
The southwest bank of Lishui River is the remnant of Wuling Mountain, and the northeast bank is the edge of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River plain. The entire terrain slopes from south to northeast, and its position is extremely important. It is known as the Jiuli Gateway and is the northeast entrance to the Dongting Lake Plain.
However, Zhang Zhao's move was completely false. What he was most worried about now was that the Ezhou and Jiangzhou naval forces of the Southern Tang Dynasty would come to cause trouble for him. So before letting Zhang Zhao advance to Lishui, Zhang Zhao sent angels to Jiangning again.
But this time it's not the ruthless guy like Pai Wang Jiulang, but the moderate guy like Lu Yin.
While preparing to scold Li Jing for harboring Gao Baoxu and other rebels, Zhang Gao also gave Li Jing gems, spices, etc., and asked him to train his navy in order to help the imperial court attack Ma Chu's Yuezhou.
This appeased Li Jing and made him feel as if the demise of Nanping and Ma Chu had nothing to do with him.
Secondly, it gave Li Jing an illusion that the court still trusted him, and Zhang Shengren still had to rely on him to guard Jiangnan, thus dispelling Li Jing's determination to fight to the death.
But inside, Zhang Yan continued to train his navy in Jiangling. Once the Nanping navy was completely controlled by Du Lunchixin and Zhao Yanjin, Zhang Yan would dispatch warships southward into Yuezhou.
Of course, it would be best if Zhang Shaodi could persuade Wang Yun to surrender.
. . . .
In the Southern Tang Dynasty, Liu Renzhan, the governor of the Qing-Huai Army in Shouzhou, and He Jingzhu, the military governor of the Wuchang Army in Ezhou, were anxious because of Li Jing's hesitation.
As the staunchest resistance faction in the Southern Tang Dynasty, both of them believed that this was the last chance for the Southern Tang Dynasty.
If the navy could be used to control Jiangling and Yuezhou and prevent Zhou from establishing a powerful navy, the Southern Tang Dynasty could still support it.
If the Feihu Army in Nanping Jiangling and the Yishengdu Navy in Ma Chuyue Prefecture were both controlled by the Zhou Kingdom, the Southern Tang Dynasty would be doomed.
He Jingzhu followed General Li Jian of Yang Wu in his early years. Although he was not tall and ugly, he was brave and decisive, had superb shooting skills and was proficient in water warfare.
While he corresponded frequently with Liu Renzhan to discuss countermeasures, he also kept writing to Li Jing.
At the same time, he also actively started to take action. He sent his generals to risk their lives and enter Yuezhou, with the intention of recruiting Wang Yun, the governor of Yuezhou, to surrender Ma Chu for the Southern Tang Dynasty.
The key now depends on how Wang Yun chooses.
(End of chapter)
