Late Tang

In July of the first year of Zhenlong, King Li Jing of Qin passed Jingxing from Taiyuan, returned east to Zhenzhou, Hebei, and then went straight down the North Canal to Daming Mansion in Weizhou. state. On July [-]th, Li Jing met with Li Hanzhi and Zhang Quanyi in Heyang City, Mengzhou, and awarded Li Hanzhi the rank of brigadier general and the post of commander of Zuodu in Hebei Province.Zhang Quanyi was awarded Wen Sanjie from the third grade Yinqing Guanglu doctor, and he was actually the minister of the Ministry of Agriculture.He also gave rewards to the attached Heyang Army, some of the elite soldiers were reorganized into the Qin Army, and the rest of the troops were paid travel expenses and sent home.

On July 5th, Li Jing led [-] horses, under the escort of four generals Zhou Dewei, Guo Chongtao, Li Hanzhi and Zhang Quanyi, crossed the Heyang Bridge, reached the south bank of the Yellow River, and entered Jinyong north of Luoyang.Wang Chucun and Yang Shouliang of Luoyang City and other Luoyang generals came out of the city to meet them, while the defenders of Jinyong City surrendered in anticipation.

In Jinyong City, Wang Chucun and Yang Shouliang greeted them on their knees. Although Li Jing was not ashamed of these scumbags, he didn't show it on his face. He did a good job of superficial skills.Rewards were given to the [-] Luoyang soldiers who surrendered, and a list of official rewards to Luoyang officials who surrendered was read out in public. Qin Fan's official position is much more valuable than the official position in Chang'an.After receiving the reward, everyone finally felt at ease.Before they came, they were always worried that Li Jing would come across the river and tear down the bridge, and all the birds would hide, turning their faces and denying anyone.

The succession of Luoyang and Heyang's attachment made Li Jing's southward situation very good.In particular, the attachment of Heyang allowed Li Jing to break through the encirclement of the four towns on the outskirts of Luoyang, directly bypassing Fengling Pass in the river, Huguan and Tianjingguan in Zhaoyi.Luoyang's Wulaoguan and other fortresses.From Heyang to Luoyang.The water and land channels were opened up.Luoyang is completely in hand.Even the fall of Heyang allowed the Qin army to surround Zhaoyi Town on three sides, and encircle Xuanwu Town on four sides.

On July [-]th, Li Jing entered Luoyang City.

Like entering Taiyuan, on the day of entering Luoyang, Li Jing also let the Qin army perform a majestic entry into the city.

Qin army troops put on clean military robes and shiny armors.Regardless of the cavalry or infantry, they all rode clean, shiny, tall horses with the same coat color in each team, and they entered the city with high spirits.

Luoyang, the eastern capital of the Tang Dynasty, the capital of several dynasties, the capital of Shang, Western Zhou, Eastern Zhou, Eastern Han, Cao Wei, Western Jin, Northern Wei, Sui, and Tang thirteen dynasties, and even Wang Shichong's Zheng Guo and many other separatist courts. here.

In the Thirteen Dynasties Yanjing Luoyang was located in the north of Luoshui, because the north of the water was called Yang.Hence the name Luoyang, also known as Luoyi and Shendu.There are mountains and rivers in the territory.With the Qinling Mountains in the west, Songyue Mountain in the east, Wangwu Taihang in the north, and the danger of the Yellow River, and Funiu Mountain in the south, it has been said since ancient times that there are eight cities, surrounded by mountains on eight sides, and Luocheng surrounded by five rivers. , The shape is better than a armor in the world.It is known as the thoroughfare of ten provinces in the world, and it is called the center of the Central Plains.

There are no two places in the world, and there is no parallel hero in the four seas.

Luoyang is the place where the most dynasties were built in the entire Middle Kingdom. There were more than 100 emperors here to guide the country.The Silk Road and the Grand Canal of the Sui and Tang Dynasties meet here, and Luoyang stands between Heluo and the world.

Today, this great and prosperous capital has completely opened its doors to Li Jing.

The Sui Dynasty unified the north and the south, and Yang Guangguang made great efforts to manage Luoyang and build Luoyang City.After the establishment of Li Tang, especially when Wu Zetian was in power, he vigorously expanded the eastern capital and changed Luoyang to the capital of God.After ascending the throne, it was designated as the capital of Wu Zhou. Tang Minghuang lived in Luoyang for a long time.The Tang Dynasty lasted for more than [-] years. Among the more than [-] emperors, half of them often stayed in Luoyang, and the total time reached more than [-] years.

Similarly, after the Anshi Rebellion, the Tang Dynasty weakened, and Chang'an was breached several times. Although Luoyang also fell into the hands of the Anshi Rebellion Army and Huang Chao successively, in terms of damage, Luoyang suffered much better than Chang'an.Whether it was the Tianbao Rebellion or the Huangchao Rebellion, there was no major battle in Luoyang City, especially in the Huangchao Rebellion that ended not long ago, Huang Chao took Luoyang without bloodshed, and later the imperial court recovered Luoyang without bloodshed .The looting by rebels is not as powerful as in Chang'an.

When Li Jing rode into Luoyang City, he found that this thousand-year-old Yanjing was really well preserved. Although after the war, the population of this city in the Central Plains dropped sharply, and it was no longer the million-dollar home it used to be.But it is also far more than the general towns and cities, Luoyang City, which still maintains a population of nearly 40 at this time.

Especially when I heard that Heyang Town was attached to the Qin Fan, and after the Qin army finally arrived in Luoyang, many people in the nearby prefectures and counties who fled the war in the mountains also rushed to Luoyang City with their families and children.After the grand entrance ceremony, Li Jing's first order was to set up a list to comfort the people.

While posting notices to publicize the order system and decrees of the Qin army, they sent people to open warehouses to release food and help the people.While taking over the defense of Luoyang City and its surrounding areas, they quickly arranged a large number of officials brought in from Yanjing, Hebei, Shandong and other places to various yamen in Luoyang, allowing them to take over Luoyang City. As for the original officials, they were temporarily retained to assist The new officials will help them quickly sort out the prisons and appease the people.

In short.On the first day of the Qin army's arrival, all the soldiers and civilians in Luoyang felt a new atmosphere, a new atmosphere that made everyone happy.Grain boats entered Luokou from the Yellow River one by one, and then arrived at Luoyang City along the Luoshui River. Watching the loads of grain being transported into the warehouse, and the bags of salt unloaded from the boat, the things in the city and the city were quickly moved. Opening up, all kinds of commodities were put on display, and the most expensive grains, salt, fish oil noodles, etc. began to be released, and everyone cheered.No matter who becomes the master of Luoyang City, it is not very important to many people.The important thing is that there must be grain, oil, rice noodles, soy sauce, vinegar and charcoal in the market, and the price must be stable and cheap.

As soon as the Qin army came, emergency food was available, and the price of food was more than ten times cheaper than in the past.What's more, the benefits of the arrival of the Qin army are not limited to these. It turned out that many Luoyang people were conscripted into the army, serving as soldiers and civilian husbands, and now.As soon as Qin Jun came.Most of them were released home.Before leaving, he got a severance pay, two Sirius silver coins, twenty catties of corn, and a pair of shoes for each of them.Holding these things, the soldiers with various numbers and names tattooed on their faces, as well as the old, weak or immature civilian husbands, couldn't believe it.

Luoyang's [-] surrendered troops plus [-] civilian husbands and strong men.Overnight, [-] people were dismissed by the Qin army.In the end, only [-] soldiers and horses and [-] civilian husbands were retained.Even for those who stayed, the treatment was very different from the past. Those who served as soldiers had official numbers and stable food and wages, and even those who stayed as civilian husbands all had very good salaries. On the first day, staying The soldiers and civilians who came down.They had to get two sets of brand new clothes, shoes and socks for one person, and received a month's salary in advance.

Luoyang City.Guiyifang.

Yang Fuguang's mansion has now become Yang Fuguang's prison.

Yang Shouliang passed through numerous guards all the way, and stepped into the innermost small courtyard.

Yang Fuguang, who used to be the most powerful soldier in the world, now looks haggard, thin and out of shape, lying on the bed coughing non-stop, but there is no one around him to pour water.His eyes were cloudy and his face was pale.Hearing the sound of footsteps, he turned his head hard, saw that it was his adopted son Yang Shouliang, and snorted weakly in his mouth. He thought to himself that he was not mean to this adopted son, even far more than he was to Li Keyong, Zhu Wen and others. "Yizi", he didn't expect that he would be stabbed in the back by him in the end.

"What are you here for?"

Yang Shouliang looked at Yang Fuguang with a complicated expression. He did not deny that Yang Fuguang treated him very well, and he also admired Yang Fuguang's ability.However, he also knew Yang Fuguang very well. He was a persistent or stubborn person. He only wanted to protect the Tang Dynasty in his heart, but he saw that the Tang Dynasty was completely decayed and could not be supported at all.Yang Fuguang wanted to be a loyal eunuch, but he didn't want to die with him.It's stupid to know that you can't do it.Everyone can see that Li Jing will have the world, but Yang Fuguang insists on clinging to Li Tang.There was no way, he could only do this in the end.

"King Qin has entered the city!" Yang Shouliang said.

Yang Fuguang coughed a few times with difficulty, and said weakly: "Our family heard the shouts outside, the din was soaring, the mountains roared and the ground trembled, so we knew it was Li Jing coming." You can know how popular Li Jing is, or how good Li Jing is at winning people's hearts.No need to ask, he can also guess that Li Jing must be the same old way, giving officials money and food, exemption from military duties, tax exemptions, etc. Li Jing is rich and powerful, he has plenty of money, as long as he opens his mouth, this set of silver bullets will come down. , there were several people who turned away from him. "What official position did Li Jing give you?"

"Discuss the doctor!" Yang Shouliang replied.

Yang Fuguang sneered, he guessed right.Even if Yang Shouliang surrendered to Li Jing, Li Jing would never give him such an official position. It is said that a doctor is a fourth-rank official, who can wear deep scarlet official robes, and even give silverfish bags and hold ivory wats. But this is just a casual order. , apart from showing that he is a fourth rank, he has no real position and power.

Yang Shouliang also understood Yang Fuguang's sneer, but he didn't feel ashamed or angry.Although he had the title of a great general when he was under Yang Fuguang's subordinates, it would be good if he could save his life in Qin Fan, and he would be satisfied if he could get a fourth-rank rank.He has also seen through it, he doesn't ask for high officials and rich salary, he just wants to keep his family, family and property in this world-changing situation.Someone else might ask for more.But he knew that he was facing Li Jing, so he gave up that heart.

"Are you here to kill our family?" Yang Fuguang asked in a cold tone. His illness is getting worse and worse, and he will not live for a few days if he stays here with no one to look after him.He is not afraid of death, but very calm.

Yang Shouliang said: "Duke Yang, I have no orders from anyone, and no one wants to kill Duke Yang. I'm here to tell Duke Yang the good news. The King of Qin attaches great importance to Duke Yang, and he has already stated that he will let you go out soon." .I rushed over, just thinking that we had a father-son relationship, and came to persuade Yang Gong. He who knows the current affairs is a hero. It will surely sweep the world. Especially you should know that Li Jing is not Huang Chao. Li Jing has won the hearts of the people of the world and has won the hearts of the people. Wherever he goes, the people, soldiers and civilians will support him. Li Jing today, the times make heroes, and there is no one It can prevent him from replacing Li Jing and occupying the world. Yang Gong, why do you want to block the car with your arms? Wouldn’t it be better to obey the will of God and the will of the people?”

Yang Fuguang pondered for a long time, "You want to persuade him to surrender?"

"Mr. Yang, this is for everyone's benefit."

Yang Fuguang pondered.Think of one thing. "Is there any movement in Chang'an?"

"Indeed." Yang Shouliang nodded. "Chang'an doesn't know what conditions he promised, and now he has successfully negotiated peace with Chengdu and Xuanwu. Now, Chengdu and Chang'an, the two of them are united, and they are planning to fight against the King of Qin in the Central Plains."

Yang Fuguang was not very happy when he heard this.Although he didn't know it yet, Yang Fugong and Tian Lingzi had joined forces again due to Li Jing's momentum.And they also made peace with Zhu Wen.It can be said that the entire Northwest and Southwest regions are now united. Yang Fugong has assembled the towns in Guanzhong, and even used many means to force the four towns of Baoda, Dingnan, Zhenwu, and Tiande who were already neutral In the end, the towns each sent 1 horses to join the imperial army.

Yang Fuguang gathered soldiers and horses from the eight towns of Guanzhong in Tongguan, plus the two towns of Shanguo and Jinshang in Henan that are still under the control of the Chang'an court. A total of ten towns and horses, with a total of 30 troops, assembled in Tongguan.And in Hedong.Wang Chongrong and Meng Lifang also gathered all the soldiers and horses, a total of 10 horses.Form an alliance against Li Jing.

Tian Lingzi of Chengdu sent General Gao Renhou as the capital commander, commanding [-] soldiers and horses from three rivers, and arrived at Wuguan.Zhu Wen left behind a small number of soldiers and horses, assembled an army of [-], and arrived at Wulao Pass.The [-] defenders at Wulao Pass and its vicinity have all been transferred to Zhu Wen's command in accordance with the agreement between Chang'an and Chengdu.

In addition, Liu Jurong, the Jiedu envoy of Shannan Dongdao, was also conferred the title of Commander of the Jingnan Expedition by the Supreme Emperor of Chengdu and the Emperor of Chang'an.

Yang Fugong personally sits in Tongguan, with an army of 30 in ten towns.Gao Renhou led 10 soldiers from three rivers to gather under Wuguan City. Zhu Wen was the capital commander of the Jingdong camp, commanding [-] defenders including Xuanwu and Wulao, stationed at Wulao Pass east of Luoyang.Wang Chongrong and Meng Lifang led [-] troops from the two towns of Hezhong and Zhaoyi to the east of the river.Liu Jurong was the capital commander of the southern Beijing camp, and led [-] troops from five towns to assemble in Xiangyang.

The five-way army gathered around Luoyang. This is a giant, and the total number of the five-way army has reached 63.

Although there is a lot of water in the 63 horses, and the Fifth Route Army counts the civilian husbands they carry among the soldiers, the actual strength is still more than [-].Even if these soldiers and horses are not as elite as the Qin Fan, they are still amazing.

Yang Fuguang didn't know this, and he didn't want to know it at this time.He knew in his heart that no matter how the towns were forced to unite due to Li Jing's ferocity, their union was too weak. Even if the towns united, they would not have a unified arrangement and command. They would definitely be divided into several groups and each led.Such an alliance, not to mention the alliance of more than a dozen feudal towns, even if all the feudal towns in the southeast were called over, would be of no use.What's more, he already knew that Li Jing had already captured Heyang.

If Li Jing didn't get Heyang, then Luoyang might still be able to fight, lure Li Jing into a tight siege, and fight an inside battle.But now that Heyang is all lost, if he wants to fight this battle of Luoyang, then this battle may be blossomed by Li Jing's center and break through from all sides.

He sighed a long time in his heart, Yang Fugong has never fought a war, and he doesn't know how to fight at all, the situation has completely changed, but he is still acting according to the plan he had before he was captured, how can he be undefeated?If it were him, the only way to fight at this time would be to gather the elite from all the towns, not many, a hundred thousand or so would be enough.He fought a decisive battle with the Qin army outside Luoyang, stationed his soldiers and horses in Mangshan, and fought a field battle with Li Jing.Relying on the advantages of Mangshan Mountain and the advantages of soldiers and horses, the battle can be settled quickly.

Yang Shouliang just tried to persuade him a few words, but left without success.He came here today, but he was thinking about the father-son relationship at the beginning, and he did his best.

After he left, Yang Fuguang tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep again.Looking at the silent room, he couldn't help but shed tears. Li Jing really underestimated him back then.I thought that Li Jing would not dare to take that step within ten years, but now, everything shows that Li Jing is impatient and indeed has this strength.Li Jing, he finally tore off the mask of reverence for Tang that he had been maintaining all this time, revealing his true thoughts, he wants to usurp Tang and stand on his own, he wants to be the emperor!

In mid-July of the first year of Zhenlong, the Chang'an imperial court named Li Jing as the regent, and the governor-general restrained the world's soldiers and horses, and added Jiuxi.On the one hand, they united the towns and assembled the five-way army, a total of 35, known as the division of a million.They did not publicly claim to attack Li Jing, but only sent troops in the name of attacking Wang Chucun and Yang Shouliang, two rebels.

And at this moment, in the Ziwei Palace in Luoyang, the civil and military people who came from Taiyuan Xingyuan and Yanjing were sitting these days, shining stars and filling the hall with purple scarlets.

Zhu Wenwu came to Luoyang just for one thing, to persuade Li Jing to become emperor.

At this time, Qin Jun Wenwu, who had captured Heyang and Luoyang, felt that the time was ripe.At this time, Qin Fan no longer needs to maintain the banner of respecting Tang on the surface. Hebei has been flattened, Hedong has won most of it, and he has taken Heyang and Luoyang, occupying the center of the world. At this time, Qin Fan is indeed looking down on the world. , can completely change the dynasty.

Although there are still many vassals and towns that have not been pacified, the land in the southeast is probably a subsidiary of the Qin vassal. Hezhong and Zhaoyi in the east of the river can't last long under the offensive of the Qin army.Henan and Shannan have been broken by the Qin army, and it is difficult to hold on for a long time.At this time, Qin Jun no longer needs to use the banner of the Tang Dynasty. The sooner the banner is clear, the sooner he will give himself a justified name.

After the bell rang, it was neither the Chief Assistant nor the Prime Minister who represented Zhu Wenwu's first speech, but the Governor of Liaodong Province, Tong Ping Zhangshi and Taifu Cui Yunqing, who came from outside the pass.This Li Jing's teacher had served as the Prime Minister of the Qin Dynasty for many years. He has a high prestige and even more seniority. It is very appropriate for him to be the first to persuade him to come in at this time.

Cui Yunqing's gray hair and beard were combed meticulously today. She wore a purple robe and jade belt and wore a purple gold fish bag. Holding an ivory wat, she slowly stepped out of the line, and said loudly: "Your Highness Qizuo, now, all the heroes in the four directions have disappeared, far and near The hearts of the people will return to their hearts, and they will sincerely see where the destiny lies. May the title be established as soon as possible, so as to be the hope of the subjects."

Facing the teacher personally going out to persuade them to come in, Li Jing glanced at the ministers, and said slowly: "The trend of unification has not yet been achieved, and the road of the Quartet is still in jeopardy. "

In just one sentence, Li Jing rejected Cui Yunqing's persuasion.

As soon as these words came out, many people in the palace couldn't help feeling disappointed, and many generals even sighed.However, Cui Yunqing, who was rejected, didn't seem to be surprised at all. Even the cabinet scholars sitting below, the prime ministers of the political affairs hall, and the important officials in purple robes and jade belts all just smiled slightly, without any surprises.

The ceremonial officer in the palace quickly announced the end of the meeting, and Li Jing left the Zhengshitang and the cabinet members to hold a temporary imperial meeting.

As the rest of the civil and military forces left the palace, Li Cunxiao asked the smiling Gao Siji puzzledly on the way, "Why are you laughing so hard? Your Highness refuses to persuade you to come in. Why are you so happy?"

Gao Siji smiled at the fourth junior brother, "Who said King Qin refused."

"Didn't King Qin refuse in front of everyone just now?"

Gao Siji shook his head, amused by Li Cunxiao's ignorance, "You should read more books when you have time, otherwise people will laugh at you when you talk later. Today, the king of Qin did reject the Taifu's persuasion in person, but in fact, this is not counted. reject."

"why?"

"Because according to the etiquette system, before the emperor of the new dynasty ascends the throne, he can only ascend the throne after making three concessions. You know, today is just the first time that the ministers persuaded him to come in. How could the King of Qin accept it?"

Li Cunxiao opened his eyes wide and was stunned for a long time before he slapped his thigh hard and shouted, "I'm a mother, being an emperor is not about treating guests to dinner, so why do you have to give way."

His loud voice drew chuckles from many civil servants and generals nearby.

Under the patriarchal system of the monarchy in ancient China, before the new emperor came to the throne, there was a ceremony of three concessions.Especially those emperors who established new dynasties must put on a play before assuming the throne, saying that it is not my wish to become the emperor, but the destiny of the people, it is for the overall situation, and it is the result of everyone's joint election , I had no choice but to ascend to the emperor's seat.

According to etiquette, it is not acceptable to give in once, or twice. After three persuasions and three pushes, three times, with the support of all people, he reluctantly accepted everyone's support and became the emperor.

The three concessions are a gesture, in fact, they are used to show the legal surname of enthronement, and to publicize that the political power and the throne are entrusted to him by heaven, are supported by subjects, and are obtained reasonably and legally.

Although everyone knows that this is the most hypocritical set, but since ancient times, no one can get rid of it.

It is precisely because everyone knows this, that Cui Yunqing took the lead in persuading him today, but Li Jing refused. Those courtiers who are familiar with this matter all know it well, and only an ignorant general like Li Cunxiao is so anxious. . )