In the early and middle periods of the Tang Dynasty, there were numerous famous generals. Although the country’s power declined in the later period, some famous generals still emerged, such as the last famous general Gao Pian. Some people may ask, how did Gao Pian become the last famous general of the Tang Dynasty after indulging Huang Chao in the north, not leading his army to serve the king, and cutting off taxes from the Tang Dynasty in an attempt to seize a territory? After his death, he was listed as a “traitor” by Ouyang Xiu? In fact, there are many issues worth rethinking here! Interested readers and history encyclopedia editors, let’s take a look together!
Gao Pian was born into a prominent family and has been a general for generations. His grandfather, Gao Chongwen, was a famous general during the reign of Emperor Xianzong of Tang and was appointed as the Prince of Nanping County. Although Gao Pian was a general of the Shence Army, he was very intelligent from a young age and enjoyed writing poetry and essays. Most of the people he interacted with were literati. During the reign of Emperor Yizong of Tang, the Dangxiang people in the northwest launched rebellions, but the court’s repeated conquests were unable to quell them. Gao Pian led ten thousand troops and unexpectedly won in one fell swoop, thus receiving promotion and commendation from the court.
At the same time, turmoil broke out in the south, and Nanzhao sent troops to the Annam region (now the northern and southern parts of Vietnam). With the cooperation of the local indigenous people, they expelled the Tang army. Tang Yizong sent troops to conquer multiple times, even with tens of thousands of soldiers and horses from the Eight Realms, but they did not achieve victory. In 864, Gao Pian was appointed as the Protector of Annam and led 5000 soldiers to his post. Due to the constraints of the supervising army, Gao Pian did not receive any reinforcements and only led 5000 troops to march south.
Gao Pian led his army to victory in numerous battles, while also pacifying the local indigenous people in Annan and concentrating his efforts on attacking the army of Nanzhao. In 866, Gao Pian launched an attack on Jiaozhi City, killing 30000 soldiers of Nanzhao and capturing two tribes that had surrendered to Nanzhao. More than 17000 people were captured. Throughout the entire process of conquering the south, Gao Pian defeated many with a small number of soldiers and defeated over 100000 enemies with 5000 soldiers, ultimately successfully recapturing the Annam region. Afterwards, he spent many years in Annam and achieved considerable political success, earning the title of “King Gao” among the locals.
In 874, Nanzhao launched a large-scale attack on Sichuan, and the court quickly sent Gao Pian as the military governor of Jiannan. Gao Pian shook the Southern Edict, and after he took office, he “spread the message to Yunnan, used troops to suppress the border, talked about honesty and peace, and (the Southern Edict) dared not invade. Afterwards, Gao Pian held various positions such as Jingnan Jiedushi and Zhenhai Jiedushi. It can be said that in the first half of his life, Gao Pian was the “fire brigade leader” of the Tang Dynasty, and whenever there was a problem, he would be allowed to appear. Later, Huang Chao’s rebel army moved to the Jiangnan area, and the court sent Gao Pian to garrison Huainan.
Gao Pian defeated Huang Chao multiple times, forcing him to switch to the Lingnan region.
But by 880, when Huang Chao went north again, his strength had greatly increased. According to the historian’s account, Gao Pian committed several major sins: firstly, he did not prevent Huang Chao from heading north; Secondly, there was no Qinwang entering the court; Thirdly, support the army with self-respect and cut off taxes from the court; Fourthly, employ alchemists and indulge in cultivation. In the late Tang Dynasty, there were long-term wars and conflicts, and the source of historical materials was a problem.
Both the “New Book of Tang” and the “Old Book of Tang” used the “Guangling Yaoluan Zhi” to record Gao Pian’s actions in the latter half of his life. But there is a problem with this book. The author Guo Tinghui was from the Five Dynasties period and lived in the north for a long time. He has never been to the Huainan area, so there are significant issues with the content of the book. Cui Zhiyuan, a native of Silla, lived in the Tang Dynasty for a long time and served as a “confidential secretary” under Gao Pian, responsible for drafting various documents.
After returning to China, Cui Zhiyuan sorted out his various works and compiled them into the book “Guiyuan Pen Farming Collection”. It detailed the actions of Gao Pian during the Huainan period. Gao Pian did not fail to stop Huang Chao, but he was defeated; The reason why he did not serve the king was because he received an order from the court to stop advancing; As for cutting off taxes, it is not a fact. Gao Pian did make mistakes in his later years, but if he is said to be a traitor of the Tang Dynasty, it is probably not the real situation.
