The gods began by supporting Guo Jing to become emperor

Chapter 188 Street Interception, Celebration Banquet
Xu Ding's gray hair was dazzling under the light. His upright figure suddenly became hunched. He looked like he had lost his soul and had aged many years. "The city has been broken!"

After waking up from the dream, Xu Ding had a bad premonition in his mind. He rushed to the city wall to strengthen the defense, but he was too late.

The strongest fortresses are often breached from the inside. Chang'an City is too big. Xu Ding wanted to gather the strength of the entire city to defend the city, but this was just wishful thinking on his part.

Even if Qiu Chuji had not been organizing people in the city, people in the city would still become disunited over time, and no one would be willing to die with him. He was loyal to the emperor, patriotic, and fulfilled his duties, but others did not think so.

Before the Jin people came, they were the wealthy here. After the Jin people came, they were still wealthy. If it was just for those little official positions and rights, why would they risk their lives? Qiu Chuji just put everything in advance.

As fellow Han people, Guo Jing would show mercy to them. Besides, Guo Jing had been governing the Three Jins for the past two years, and he was clear about rewards and punishments and rarely killed innocent people. In addition, Qiu Chuji's promise of the merit of following the dragon was enough for them to take a gamble.

If they win, the bicycle will become a motorcycle, and the family will rise to prominence overnight. If they lose, what can Xu Ding do to them? In the final analysis, they still have to rely on them to defend the city. These big families are not soft persimmons, and they really have soldiers in their hands.

If it were the Mongols attacking the city today, it wouldn't be so simple.

The black smoke from the beacon fires burning on the city walls could be seen here. People delivering messages kept coming and going in the courtyard. Xu Ding sat in his seat in a daze, sighing in his heart. Chang'an City could no longer be defended.

The people are not united, so even if he has tens of thousands of troops, he cannot defend the city.

Besides, it was a dark and windy night, so the transmission of information was hindered and the troops below might not be under his command. Even if he wanted to fight a street battle, it would be impossible.

Xu Ding was silent for a while, then cheered up. Even if he couldn't stop it, he would do his best for the Great Jin Kingdom!

He swept away the previous gloom and said to the messenger, "Immediately inform all the troops to defend on the spot and make sure to stop the enemy. If you can win this battle, the Chang'an treasury will be at your disposal, and all the generals will be promoted three levels. I will personally recommend them for their achievements!"

The messenger's panicked heart immediately calmed down, "I'll go right away!"

……

However, as time went by, more news came in. He had to open each battle situation report with trembling hands and then throw it on the ground. Each report recorded which unit was defeated and surrounded by the enemy. Within just one hour, the battle situation collapsed at an alarming speed.

Guo Kaiyuan led his men to raid the north gate and hurriedly opened the city gate. Then, the people he met were the two brothers of the Shi family who had fought with him during the day.

Leaving behind a group of soldiers to guard the gate, the Shi Tianni brothers followed Guo Kaiyuan to raid the city wall, hoping to take full control of this pass.

Many soldiers were awakened by the sound of war drums while they were still asleep. They immediately picked up their weapons and rushed out of the camp. Everywhere they looked was fire. Countless soldiers were running on the city wall. The next second, the running figures suddenly turned into corpses, and blood flowed over the parapet. A figure with a blade in his mouth climbed up the long ladder, and was then stabbed down by a spear. In the dark night, the siege had already begun on the walls of Chang'an.

A group of soldiers launched a sneak attack from behind, and the city wall defenses at the north gate were breached in a short time, and the entire defense system fell into chaos.

Arrows flew to the top of the city walls, pierced into shields, penetrated people's bodies, and nailed into the wood of the city walls. The so-called friendly troops and the so-called support troops were gone, leaving only thin bodies standing on the top of the city walls.

When they couldn't see anyone, they shot into the firelight. They ran out of arrows and their knives became blunt. It was chaos and disarray. Their confused minds saw only killing. They could no longer distinguish anything in the darkness. They could only clench their knives tightly, their hearts tense, and kill everyone in front of them, no matter if they were enemies or friends.

As expected, the Jin army’s camp was blown up!
An hour later, Guo Jing climbed up the north city wall. In his sight, Chang'an City was ablaze, with shouts of killing everywhere. The cold wind whistled past, making his mind clearer.

After watching in silence for a while, he raised his arm and said, "Pass the order. The army is entering the city. Soldiers from all units are to destroy the enemy and not harass the people. Those who violate the order will be punished according to the military order."

They rushed into the city with uniform footsteps. They held long spears and large shields and divided into teams to sweep along the streets one by one. The fleeing soldiers, the resisting Jin army, and the hooligans who took advantage of the chaos were all killed.

Along the way, soldiers warned the people in the city to close their doors and not go out or walk around at will.

The profit-making machine advanced step by step, and all resistance was in vain. In front of the organized army, the Jin army could not make any waves after the camp was blown up.

East gate.

When the Jin army garrison commander heard the commotion in the city, he wanted to send someone to investigate. However, as soon as the spies went out, they encountered the Han army. Looking at the Han soldiers standing ready in the streets with red cloth strips tied on their arms, he had no idea what was happening.

He stopped the soldiers from counterattacking and ordered them to lay down their weapons and surrender, and to hand over the city defense to him.

Chang'an is too big a place. Once the enemy opens the gate, it will be difficult to drive them out, not to mention it is a dark night. Resistance is futile.

……

Time passed slowly, and finally, the sky in the distance showed a fish belly white, and the sky shone on the courtyard. The old man was covered with frost, and the shadow of a person dragged on the ground. Someone hurried over and stepped on it, with a somewhat depressed tone: "Sir, let's retreat quickly, the troops can't stop us!"

Xu Ding put his hands behind his back and said in a hard and heavy voice, "Retreat? Where shall I retreat to?"

The general with blood on his body suddenly knelt down on one knee and said: "I will definitely help you escape. We can go to Luoyang, where there are still troops. If Chang'an falls, the court will definitely not ignore Luoyang."

The old man pursed his lips tightly and remained silent for a while. Then his body suddenly relaxed, as if he had let out a breath. He waved his hands weakly, "Well, Chang'an can no longer be defended. Luoyang must not fall into the hands of the enemy again."

The carriage had been prepared outside the mansion. When the old man went out, he saw the outer circle of his trusted confidants who were guarding him. The streets were crowded with countless pairs of hesitant eyes looking at him. These soldiers had blood and scars on their bodies, and it was obvious that they had experienced a difficult battle.

Xu Ding blamed himself in his heart, "Alas, if I had been careful, how could the city gate be opened by the traitor? It's all my fault!"

Below the city wall in the distance, there was a roar of fighting, and vaguely the sound of a city gate opening could be heard. Soon after, a huge whistling sound was heard.

Xu Ding stood on the carriage, his face changed, his mind went blank, tears streamed down his face, and he muttered, "I am ashamed of your majesty!"

Immediately, he was forcibly dragged onto the carriage by his personal soldiers. His trusted generals pulled the reins and told everyone to flee toward the west gate immediately. The shaft of the carriage rolled rapidly, and the old man kept lifting the curtain to look outside. In the distance behind the team, the sound of horse hooves roaring and the panicked shouts of the people could be heard on the street.

The more he looked at it, the more upset he felt. These things shouldn't have happened.

However, as the carriage sped along the street and turned the corner, it suddenly ran into a formation of Han soldiers who were ready for battle. The soldiers, dressed in iron armor, holding eight-foot-long spears and holding shields, lined up silently.

There was a solemn atmosphere on the streets.

Seeing this scene, the general who was fleeing in his car felt suffocated. There were so many enemies here?

In front of the army, Guo Jing, wearing the shining golden armor, shouted in a deep voice, "Master Xu, come out."

However, the carriage did not slow down, as if it wanted to force its way into the battle. Guo Jing remained calm, picked up a spear, flicked his wrist and threw it out.

"boom!"

The long spear, carrying a violent force, pierced through the horse's chest and penetrated its body, piercing the general driving the car behind him as well. The tip of the spear pierced through the curtain of the carriage and stopped only when it reached Xu Ding's eyes. Drops of blood fell from the tip of the spear.

"Tick, tick!"

Xu Ding looked at the gun in front of him, his mind went blank and he sat there in a daze, as if he was frightened.

"Bang!"

The warhorse was stabbed to death, and after rushing out more than ten feet away, its body fell to the ground with a loud bang, and the frame of the carriage also flipped and tilted. The shaft broke and flew off, and the whole carriage was still tilted and being dragged by the horse. The next second, it completely overturned on the street.

On both sides of the street, people saw this scene through the windows and were trembling with fear. Is this still a human being?
Immediately, the Han army stepped forward and pulled Xu Ding out of the carriage. Guo Jing looked at the gray-haired, dispirited old man and lost interest in talking to him. "Take him away and keep him under strict supervision!"

The capture of Xu Ding meant that the overall situation in the city had been settled. Fifty thousand Han troops entered the city, sweeping away the enemy while maintaining order.

When the sun rose, countless cheers and shouts of joy rang out from the top of the city. In the wounded camp set up outside the city, someone heard the shouts, turned his head with difficulty, and clenched his fists: "We won!"

A little further away, rows of houses stretched out. The people in the houses opened the windows and looked out for a moment, then looked at their loved ones beside them, and breathed a sigh of relief with sorrowful faces. After all, at least they survived.

The thick smoke rolled across people's field of vision with the wind and drifted into the distance. Human corpses were scattered on the city walls in various mutilated postures. The battle in Chang'an City was basically over after the city gates were opened and the cavalry was let in. Occasionally, some of those who resisted stubbornly were forced to fall off the wall and die, and some of those who were still alive dropped their weapons and surrendered, and were guarded in a corner.

On the top of the city wall, a large flag with the Chinese character "Guo" written in red on a black background fluttered in the wind. On the city wall, there was a commotion, with the survivors cheering and some collecting the property and blood-stained armor from the dead.

Although Chang'an City was captured, it did not mean the end of the war in Guanzhong. Although the surrounding counties had surrendered, troops had not yet been sent to the more remote areas, so there would be a lot of work to do next.

In the garrison mansion, Guo Jing was holding a celebration banquet.

He was wearing a black robe and a golden crown on his head. He exuded a strong and imposing aura, and was intimidating without even getting angry. Sitting in the hall were generals in armor.

"This battle is all thanks to you all. Come, let's drink to our victory!"

As soon as he finished speaking, all the generals in the hall raised their glasses and drank the contents in one gulp.

Then, he said to Lu Guanying on his left, "Guanying, take out 70% of the supplies from the Chang'an treasury to reward the army. Many brothers died in this battle, and their compensation must be delivered to each family. You will personally supervise this matter."

Lu Guanying stood up and saluted, "I obey your command!"

Then, he read out two names, "Shi Tianze, Shi Tianni."

"The end will be here."

Guo Jing said slowly, "After entering the city last night, some soldiers from your two groups harassed the people and have been punished by military law. Do you know about this?"

The two brothers felt something was wrong and looked at each other, "Please punish me, my lord!"

Guo Jing raised it high, but then put it down gently. "Since you two have done a great job in killing the enemy, I will not punish you. The rewards for the troops you two led in this battle will be withheld to see how you perform later."

What this sentence means is that there will be no punishment, and rewards will be given after they have made military achievements in the future. As for the subordinates, so what if they have some complaints? Isn't it their own fault?

Then, he pointed to the two people on his right and said, "Li Jiye, Guo Kaiyuan, the two generals have abandoned the dark and joined the light, and are the greatest heroes of this battle. Everyone, please recognize them. We are all comrades in arms from now on."

"Greetings, my Lord! Hello, everyone!"

As the two men stood up and saluted, the generals in the hall had different expressions, but they all returned the salute.

A celebratory banquet, both the guests and the hosts were delighted.

……

Next came the time of reckoning. Except for the dozen or so families that had surrendered to Guo Jing, the rest of the wealthy families were charged with colluding with the enemy, and all their houses and properties were confiscated, and their families became official slaves.

Pulling one group together and beating another group has always been the only way to gain power.

In addition, there were generals in the Jin army who defected to Guo Jing. He put aside his past grudges and recruited them for his own use. Now, he no longer had to be cautious. Even if they were Jin people, he could still recruit them for his own use.

Even if they were Jin people, as long as they had made contributions, they could become his subjects. In contrast, when he attacked the Three Jins, he killed almost all of the Jin generals in order to unite his men.

But now that his foundation has been established, he doesn't have to worry about these things anymore. As long as he has value in united front work, there is nothing wrong in keeping him alive and serving as a role model. It is worth a fortune to buy a horse's bones.

Guo Jing gradually came to his senses. He couldn't kill all the Jin people. As long as it was beneficial to his rule, there was nothing he couldn't use. The Han people could be used, the Mongols could be used, and the Jin people could also be used.

Of course, he also understood that the Han people were his base, and that people from other ethnic groups could be used but not reused.

A few days later, the streets in Caishikou, Chang'an City, had returned to their former prosperity and tranquility.

Thanks to the strict military discipline, the Han army did not harm anyone after entering the city, and had a very good reputation in the eyes of the people, which was very different from the Jin and Mongolian armies. After the army's violent machine advanced, all the intrigues in Chang'an City were cleared out. After the new order was established, Chang'an City became more stable than when the Jin people ruled.

Today is the day when the government executes criminals. At the entrance of the street, people line up around, creating a huge crowd.

Thousands of criminals were locked in prison vans and taken to the guillotine in rows. Among them were Jin people and Han people. People who were once high and mighty were now to be beheaded as a public display.

Among them, Xu Ding's family was the first to be taken to the guillotine. Guo Jing's sentence was to confiscate all their property and exterminate their entire clan to show that he was listening.

(End of this chapter)