Tumeng: I am a national advisor in the Golden Family

Chapter 477: Jiangling Mansion surrenders, kill civil servants first
And the news that came next was the one that crushed the entire Jiangling area. The last straw for the Southern Song Dynasty army.

The entire Xiangfan defense system, Xiangyang City, the most important stronghold of the entire Yangtze River Basin defense line, known as the best city in the world, was actually broken by the Guanzhong army in half a month.

How is this possible! This is Xiangyang City, and it is where Marshal Meng is personally stationed. There are hundreds of thousands of soldiers inside Xiangyang City, and there are also troops from Fancheng to help.

If there was news of the fall of Yangzhou or the fall of other areas, he would not be surprised, but, how could it be Xiangyang? Why is it Xiangyang?

"What did you say? Say it again." Liu Zheng, the guard of Jiangling Mansion, said with disbelief on his face.

"General! A few days ago, Xiangyang City was captured by the bandits. Marshal Meng and other generals took thousands of deserters with them. Some of them retreated to Ezhou, and some of them came towards us." The soldiers who ordered the order knelt down. On the ground, he spoke.

"This, how is this possible? Marshal Meng has an army of 100,000! A whole 100,000 troops are stationed in Xiangyang! How can this be breached? Are you lying about the military situation?" A Southern Song general stood up and spoke with disbelief on his face. asked.

This is unacceptable! They cannot accept such a result!
In the Yangtze River Basin, they have been suppressed and beaten by the Guanzhong army, and even the entire navy was wiped out. Now Jiangling Mansion is also in crisis.

Now that Xiangyang City is lost again, how can we fight this battle?
According to the original defense system, Xiangyang City could hold off the enemy for at least several years. However, in just half a month, Xiangyang City was lost and the entire defense system was torn apart. With the large opening, the entire Jiangnan region was exposed to the Guanzhong army.

"What's the situation now with the Guanzhong army? Has it completely occupied Xiangyang City? What's going on with Fancheng on the other side?" Liu Zheng took a deep breath to calm down and asked.

"Report to the general. A few days after Xiangyang City was captured, the Guanzhong army surrounded Fancheng. What is the situation in Fancheng now? We don't know that Fancheng is already an isolated city." The envoy of the order army kneeling on the ground said.

After Xiangyang City was destroyed, Fan Chen lost all contact with the outside world and was surrounded by more than 200,000 Guanzhong troops.

"What can we do? What can we do! More than 200,000 Guanzhong troops are marching south, and there is no dangerous place that can stop them." A general from Jiangling Prefecture sighed and said.

What are they doing to stop the Guanzhong army now? What can we do to stop the Guanzhong army? A hundred thousand troops. The whole army was wiped out, and the Xiangyang army was wiped out.

Now their naval forces in Jiangling Mansion have been annihilated by Guanzhong, and now there are only 20,000 land troops left in Jiangling Mansion.

Facing the fierce Guanzhong army, their Jiangling Mansion has reached a critical moment of survival.

Originally it was only the rear of the great defense line, responsible for defending the Sichuan and Sichuan areas, and the troops from Baidi City in Chongqing Prefecture.

Unexpectedly, all the naval forces on his side were wiped out. In this case, the King of Guanzhong could even directly mobilize troops from Sichuan and Shu. Come and capture the entire Jiangnan region.

"How long does it take for Marshal Meng to arrive at Jiangling Mansion?" Liu Zheng asked.

Marshal Meng was not an incompetent person. On the contrary, he was the most capable general in the entire Southern Song Dynasty. Such people faced the King of Guanzhong and only defended Xiangyang for half a month with the help of Xiangyang, the largest city in the world. Can they really hold it?

"Reporting to the general, Marshal Meng, how many days will it take to reach your Jiangling Prefecture?"

"You will immediately send someone to inform Marshal Meng, telling him not to come to Jiangling Mansion but to go to Ezhou. Tell Marshal Meng that our navy in Jiangling Mansion has been completely wiped out by the enemy.

Now we are also facing the danger of being surrounded by the Guanzhong army. Moreover, there are only 20,000 remnant troops in the mansion. It is better to let him go to Ezhou and gather the army in Ezhou area. Liu Zheng said.

The situation in their Jiangling Mansion is also very bad now! Instead of doing this, don't let Marshal Meng come.

Even if Marshal Meng comes here, he will not have the Yangtze River navy for him to mobilize, nor will there be tens of thousands of troops under his command. Now the entire Jiangnan region is exposed to the attack of the King of Guanzhong. It would be better to go to Ezhou.

"You, you mean your Yangtze River Navy, our Song Dynasty Yangtze River Navy is gone?" The messenger raised his head, looked at Liu Zheng in disbelief and asked.

News of the fall of Xiangyang Mansion came from his side, and as a result, news from your side that the Yangtze River water was completely wiped out, right?
Was there any mistake? That was the Yangtze River Navy. How could the Yangtze Navy be annihilated by the enemy?
"Alas! You go back and tell Marshal Meng that the Guanzhong army has installed artillery on the ships, as well as very powerful flamethrowers and muskets. Our fleet has no chance of winning against them." A Jiangling The navy commander of the government said.

Now they, the generals commanding the navy, are the worst offenders. Before, they were the ace troops of Jiangling Mansion.

It is an important force in defending the entire Yangtze River defense line. They have three naval divisions in Dashun, but the Kyoto Navy can be said to be a decoration. The real main forces are the Canal Navy and the Quanzhou Navy.

All the naval forces in the entire Song Dynasty combined, there were more than 1000 people, fleets, and warships of all sizes, totaling more than ships.

But this time, near the Yangtze River, their Jiangling Prefecture Water Transport Division was basically wiped out. Now they are counting on the Quanzhou Navy on the Ezhou side of Jiankang Prefecture to be able to hold up the main beam.

"I won't hide it from you. The Guanzhong army from Chongqing Prefecture will arrive at Jiangling Prefecture in the near future. I estimate that after capturing Fancheng, the King of Guanzhong will also go south along the way. At that time, he will definitely attack Jiangling Prefecture first and then Changde Prefecture. , to cut off our retreat.

Therefore, it is useless for General Meng to come to us. It is best to go to Ezhou and mobilize the Quanzhou Navy in Ezhou and Longxing Prefecture in Jiangzhou to accumulate troops and defend against the invasion of the Guanzhong army. Liu Zheng said.

The messenger sent by Xiangyang's remnant army, the messenger nodded helplessly, and then spoke.

"General Liu! And all generals, I will report this matter to Marshal Meng, but it is not up to me to decide how Marshal Meng will deal with it."

"You go and report it first! Marshal Meng must know about this matter."

In the afternoon of the next day, the envoy immediately set off towards Meng Gong's remnant army.

After the envoy left, Jiangling guard Liu Zheng summoned all the generals of Jiangling mansion in his mansion that night.

A general from Jiangling Prefecture asked. :
"General Liu, why didn't you let Marshal Meng come to Jiangling Mansion yesterday? Marshal Meng should be able to bring thousands of remaining soldiers, which can also strengthen our Jiangling Mansion's defense."

"Everyone, we don't have many troops in Jiangling Mansion anymore. If we increase our strength, we will put the commander-in-chief of the army in danger. If Marshal Meng makes any mistake, the entire Jiangnan defense line will be completely destroyed." Liu Zheng said.

Hearing this, all the generals present were silent. after all. What General Liu said is true. Only by returning to Ezhou can reinforcements be mobilized again.

It's just that this time, I don't know what the court's actions are. The Song Dynasty court really didn't say anything about these generals.

The situation has gotten a little better in recent years. In the past, when you won a battle, you were given a symbolic reward and your official position was slightly improved, but what followed was all kinds of suppression from the civil service group. Every month there are three or four memorials for you.

What did the army under your command do today that was so outrageous? The soldiers under his command molested women from good families and robbed people of their cattle and sheep? Your son could be charged with such unwarranted charges as raping civilian girls and so on, and they were all said in a clear and logical manner.

After you win the battle, you will be suppressed by these civil service groups, and your official position will be demoted.

If you lose the battle, it will be even worse. The civil service group will accuse you of being incompetent.

One general is incompetent and the three armies are exhausted. All the reasons for defeat will come from you. You have to bear the blame whether you want to or not.

Therefore, the biggest wish of these Southern Song generals was not to fight, but to guard their nests safely.

If the world is at peace, then you can just receive a little salary.

But in this day and age, if you want to avoid fighting, it is impossible. After they moved south during the Song Dynasty. That is to fight non-stop, fighting a small war every few years, and fighting a giant war every few years or even ten years.

"Everyone! What do you think of the King of Guanzhong? Is the King of Guanzhong really just a charlatan sorcerer, a man who loves great achievements and flatters the Mongols, as the court said?" Liu Zheng asked.

When the generals of the Southern Song Dynasty present heard this, they all remained silent and lowered their heads silently. They thought that the King of Guanzhong was a charlatan, a flatterer, and a man who was very happy with his achievements. So who were these people in the Song Dynasty? Who is the emperor of their Song Dynasty? Over the years, the emperor of the Song Dynasty and the King of Guanzhong have fought countless times.

But what a result! I haven't won even once.

And now the situation in the whole world is different. In the past, the King of Guanzhong was just an ordinary vassal king conferred by Mongolia. He also occupied the land of Sichuan and Shu, the land of Guanzhong, and a small part of the territory of Xixia.

But now it has been almost twenty years since the King of Guanzhong was crowned king. The entire Guanzhong, most of Xixia. All the Tubo tribes, Sichuan, Sichuan, Central Plains, and Hebei have all been captured by the King of Guanzhong.

Now whether it is human, material or financial resources, the Song Dynasty is at an absolute disadvantage when facing Guanzhong.

"King Guanzhong, he is the greatest hero of the world, the greatest hero of the world!" A general from the General's Mansion took a deep breath and spoke boldly.

"Yes, he is the hero of the world, the hero of the world, and our Song Dynasty is far from his opponent."

"General, let me tell you the truth! Not long ago, the envoy of the King of Guanzhong contacted me secretly and made a bet with me." Liu Zheng said.

To be honest, he didn't want to surrender if it wasn't a last resort, and he didn't want to be called a traitor, but the reality was before him.

Last year, an envoy from Guanzhong secretly met with him, hoping to persuade him, the highest military commander in Jiangling, to surrender.

Liu Zheng did not agree to surrender to the Guanzhong army, but he did not do anything to the Guanzhong King's envoy. After all, it was difficult to say.

If he kills the envoy of the King of Guanzhong, he will be completely offended by the King of Guanzhong. He will be a complete and sworn enemy in the future, cutting off all escape routes, and also attracting some suspicion from the court.

He Liu Zheng is not like some other generals. If the court treats us well, it will trust us. Those who are kind will be rewarded, so they are naturally willing to serve the court.

But what did the court do? Whether these generals win or lose, they will be punished afterwards.

In this case, it would be better if there was no war. If there is a war and these civil servant groups are still lagging behind, then this war will not be fought at all.

So he still left a way out for himself and politely refused Guanzhong's offer of surrender, but he also left a contact information.

After the war started, the envoy from the King of Guanzhong came and told him, if you can completely annihilate your Jiangling Prefecture water transport navy and break through Xiangyang City, will the general be willing to surrender?

At that time, Liu Zheng directly agreed to the other party if the Guanzhong army could really break through Xiangyang City.

And he can also annihilate all his water transport divisions and defeat all the water transport divisions of Jiangling Prefecture. Then he will have no choice but to surrender when the time comes.

But the result was a slap in the face! In just over half a month, Xiangyang Mansion fell.

His own water transport navy and the entire Jiangling Mansion navy were all annihilated by the Guanzhong army, leaving no trace behind.

In this case, resistance is a dead end, and there is no benefit to resistance. All the heads of your family are tied to the tip of someone else's knife.

Therefore, after thinking twice, Liu Zheng finally decided that he would surrender to the Guanzhong army.

The reason why Meng Gong was not allowed to come to Jiangling Mansion before was because he wanted to prevent the other party from taking away his military power, and then leading Jiangling Mansion to continue fighting with the Guanzhong army.

The city defense of Jiangling Mansion is incomparable to that of Xiangyang, if they can resist to the end. There will definitely be heavy losses, and it will also be a disaster for the people of Jiangling Mansion.

In this case, it is natural to ask Marshal Meng to go to Ezhou.

"General, you, you, you have been in contact with the King of Guanzhong for a long time." A Jiangling guard stood up suddenly, pointed at Liu Zheng and said.

"Do you also want to continue to serve the imperial court? Do you want to work for his Zhao family? Just like what the King of Guanzhong said, this world belongs to the people of the world, not to his Zhao family.

Don’t you know how the Zhao family treats us generals? How many military generals were harmed by the civilian clique, and how many military generals were harmed by the emperor?
Do you want me to count them for you in detail? Why do local people hate the Zhao family so much? Why is there such discrimination? Don’t you know the reason? The local people are outcasts.

When they missed the old country, the old country instead called them thieves. General Xin Qiji also returned from the north. What was the final result? Liu Zheng said.

"General Liu is right. Even Marshal Meng, the most capable general in the Song Dynasty, was persecuted by their civil servants in various ways.

A few years ago, when the Mongolian army marched south, if General Meng hadn't killed Prince Kuochu of Wokuotai at the foot of Xiangyang City, the Mongolian army would not have been repulsed.

But what's the result? The imperial court did not reward Marshal Meng at all? instead. He was promoted and secretly transferred to other areas, and then he launched a so-called Northern Expedition, using some generals who were not very good and recommended by civilian officials, but failed miserably. "

"Now the situation in the whole world has become clear. The King of Guanzhong is already threatening to swallow up mountains and rivers. I can't wait to surrender as soon as possible."

"Now that Xiangyang Prefecture has been captured, the army of the King of Guanzhong will approach Jiangling Prefecture in the near future. By then, we will be surrounded whether by water or land.

In this case, why should we drag the whole city to the funeral? "A general from Jiangling Prefecture stood up and said.

In this situation, the Guanzhong army has already swallowed up the mountains and rivers. Xiangyang Mansion has been breached, which is a huge blow to them. Now there is no line of defense that can prevent the Guanzhong army. The change of dynasty may be about to happen.

"Everyone, for the sake of your wealth and life, I have a surrender document here. All of you must sign your names on it. Then I sent an envoy to deliver a letter to the King of Guanzhong, saying that our Jiangling Mansion is willing to surrender." Liu Zheng said. said.

"General Liu, we are willing to surrender to the King of Guanzhong with you, but what about some of the civil servants in the city? Do those supervisors still have envoys?" a military general said.

"All the military power of the entire Jiangling Mansion is in our hands. These civil servants used to be able to show off their power to us because the court supported them, but now no one supports them." Liu Zheng had a trace of murderous intent in his eyes and spoke. said.

"General, do you mean to imprison all those civil servants?"

"No! In order to avoid long nights and endless dreams, I will kill all those civil servants. I will leave no one alive." Liu Zheng said with a fierce look on his face.

"After what we did, we can only ensure safety by killing them. It will take some time before the Guanzhong army arrives at Jiangling Mansion."

"General Liu, we are willing to follow you. You can lead us to surrender to the King of Guanzhong, and then strive for a better future!"

"Brothers, since you are willing to follow me, I will definitely not disappoint you. This time we have to give the King of Guanzhong a big gift, a complete Jiangling Mansion and a naval base." Liu Zheng said. said.

"I would like to follow the general."

"General, just take us and do it!" More than a dozen generals knelt on the ground and said together.

Several generals who were undecided also sighed and knelt on the ground.

"Okay, generals, then we will gather all the troops tomorrow and attack these civilian officials first." Liu Zheng said,
If the civilian officials did not die, they would not be able to surrender.

(End of this chapter)