History of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms

Chapter 22: Defense of Chengdu

[Battle of Chengdu]

Although Lu Dan repeatedly sent envoys to seek a diplomatic solution, he was not pedantic. Peace would not come on its own and must be fought for with real swords and guns. Lu Dan was prepared for both diplomatic negotiations and military strikes.

Grasp with both hands, both hands must be hard.

In addition to actively deploying defensive fortifications in Chengdu City, Lu Dan also sent messengers to neighboring regions to seek reinforcements.

The day before the Nanzhao army arrived in Chengdu, 6,000 reinforcements from Xingyuan and 4,000 reinforcements from Fengxiang had already arrived in Hanzhou (Guanghan City, Sichuan Province). Coincidentally, Dou Pang, the former military governor of the frontier army, also led a total of 4,000 remnants of the Zhongwu Army and the Yicheng Army to flee to Hanzhou.

Lu Dan sent generals to Hanzhou to welcome reinforcements.

Fourteen thousand people, if they can unite against the same enemy, can still be very effective. However, one of them has a strange idea.

This person was none other than the defeated general - Dou Pang.

When Nanzhao entered the country, letters of war flew to the imperial court like snowflakes. The imperial court then realized that it had made a low-level geographical mistake before, so it tried to make up for its loss by disbanding the "Dingbian Army" and returning the seven states under its jurisdiction to the Xichuan war zone.

Dou Pang, as a commander, not only lost the battle, but also deserted the battlefield, and now he has lost his job... Losing his job is a small matter, but when the court comes to settle accounts, his head may be in danger. How can I make myself look less of a jerk?

Then... let Xichuan be occupied by Nanzhao as well.

In this way, it can be proved that it is not Dou Pang who is incompetent, but that the enemy is too strong. Even if I cannot completely absolve myself of the blame, at least I can drag Lu Dan down with me (I want to share the blame by letting Xichuan fall one after another).

Therefore, whenever reinforcements from the north arrived, he would tell them solemnly that the Nanzhao army was dozens of times larger than ours! You have crossed mountains and rivers, endured hardships, and traveled thousands of miles to come and die. What kind of spirit is this?
The generals of the reinforcements who came from afar believed it to be true and dared not move forward.

Dou Pang should have been hanged at that time, at least he could be considered a martyr. But now, he first became a deserter, and then single-handedly blocked thousands of reinforcements from the Tang Dynasty, making great contributions to the Nanzhao invasion of Chengdu.

In February, Nanzhao attacked Chengdu city.

Nanzhao used ladders and battering rams;
The Tang army dragged it to the foot of the city with iron hooks and ropes and set it on fire; Lu Dan recruited a death squad to attack the city, killing more than 2,000 Nanzhao people and burning more than 3,000 siege weapons.

On the first day of the siege, the Tang army won and their morale was high.

The Nanzhao army collected bamboo fences from the people, soaked them in water, and then wove them into giant battering rams. They also learned from the lessons of their ancestors' "rattan armor soldiers" and soaked them in water instead of tung oil to prevent fire.

The siege weapon was lengthened, thickened, and equipped with wings, waterproof, fireproof, and leakproof. The movement of this ram depended on laying sleepers, and then it was pushed under the city wall, and the barbarians hid in the ram to dig tunnels.

The Nanzhao army forgot one thing, they were attacking Chengdu. Hotpot and malatang are not just famous for nothing.

The defenders first used a very cheap defensive weapon (dung soup) to suppress the enemy's firepower. The specific method was to collect excrement in the city (hundreds of thousands of people, with sufficient stocks), then boil it, and then look down from a high place, like a fairy scattering flowers, "the barbarians can't deal with it." Then, they melted the scrap iron and poured the iron juice down, and the giant battering ram immediately turned into ashes. Fire overcomes wood, an eternal truth.

Nanzhao also planned to launch a sneak attack at night by relying on its advantage in numbers.

The defenders also made huge torches, put them in iron cages, and hung them high on the city walls, making the surroundings as bright as day. They became early searchlights, making it impossible for Nanzhao to launch a sneak attack.

After a fierce battle of wits and courage, the Chengdu defenders finally stabilized the situation and dragged the war into a stalemate.

This is enough to boost morale and strengthen everyone's belief in achieving final victory. At the same time, it can also increase bargaining chips for negotiations.

Nanzhao was not so arrogant as to think it could annex the Tang Dynasty; nor did the Tang Dynasty covet the remote land of Nanzhao. Neither side intended to truly destroy the other, nor could it destroy the other. Negotiation was the final way that both sides tacitly agreed on.

The current war is to gain the initiative and bargaining chips for future negotiations.

Taking advantage of the small victory, the peace envoy Zhi Xian quickly sent people to the Nanzhao camp, "Do you know how powerful we are? Want to talk to us?"

Nanzhao paused the attack, "The main reason is that our emperor is kind-hearted and does not want to hurt your lives... Then let's talk."

On February 2, Nanzhao sent envoys to welcome Zhixiang, and the two sides discussed the issue of stopping the war.

However, Yan Qingfu, the Left Divine General of the Tang Dynasty, was unwilling to reconcile. His younger brother, Yan Qingshi, died for his country at the beginning of the war. Yan Qingfu was burdened with national hatred and family feuds, and it was difficult to let go.

Now, Chengdu has resisted the momentum of Nanzhao, and a large number of reinforcements are gathering in Hanzhou in the rear. It is only a matter of time to destroy Nanzhao, so what is there to talk about?
So Zhi Xian used bureaucratic Tai Chi to say, "The order I received from the court is to negotiate at Dingbian Army, not in Chengdu Prefecture. I don't have the authority here, how about you go back and we can talk at Dingbian Army?"

Nanzhao was furious and felt that it was being played a trick by the Tang Dynasty.

On February 2, Nanzhao attacked the city again.

On February 2, Chengdu sent troops to counterattack, and Nanzhao was defeated and temporarily retreated. The Chengdu defense battle achieved a phased victory. However, the threat from Nanzhao had not been completely eliminated.

The court demoted Dou Pang to the position of Sihu of Kangzhou (Deqing County, Guangdong Province); and appointed Yan Qingfu, a pro-war figure, as the Jiedushi of Dongchuan and the commander-in-chief of Chengdu, and all reinforcements were under his command.

Yan Qingfu led his army to encounter the Nanzhao army and a fierce battle broke out. The common people in the Bashu area, holding sickles and sticks, helped the Tang army attack the Nanzhao invaders. The Tang army won again, killing more than 2,000 Nanzhao soldiers.

The Nanzhao army continued to gather tens of thousands of troops and surrounded Chengdu again.

Song Wei, the general of the Right Guard, arrived with 2,000 Zhongwu reinforcements and killed more than 5,000 Nanzhao soldiers. Nanzhao retreated, and Song Wei was stationed 30 miles away from Chengdu.

Song Wei served as the commander of the Northwest Army in the late stage of the "Pang Xun Rebellion" and made great military achievements. When he suppressed Pang Xun, Pang Xun was already at the end of his rope, so Song Wei was one of the few commanders in the four armies (first three and then four) who had only victories and no defeats. God made the final move and picked up heads.

At that time, Song Wei was ordered to garrison Mianzhu and Hanzhou, and was the second echelon of the reinforcements. As a result, Song Wei, with a small army, pursued the victory and arrived at the city of Chengdu earlier than the main force led by Commander-in-Chief Yan Qingfu. In the repeated battles with Nanzhao, Song Wei's contribution was the most among all the reinforcements.

On one occasion, Song Wei beat Shilong so hard that he almost committed suicide. "(Shilong) was running out of ideas and was about to jump into the water to die." At the critical moment, he was stopped by his subordinates, who advised him to struggle a little longer and fight to the death. If it didn't work, it wouldn't be too late to die later. Only then did Shilong temporarily give up the idea of ​​suicide.

Therefore, Shilong sent people to ask for peace as a delaying tactic.

Zhixiang straightened his back even more, "Let's talk about your ancestors! Xiao Chuanchuan, go back to where you came from, or I will let you die miserably in here!"

The morale of the defenders in the city was high, and they planned to join forces with General Song Wei to attack the Nanzhao army from both inside and outside.

However, Song Wei's achievements aroused the jealousy of his immediate superior, Yan Qingfu.

At dawn that day, General Song Wei, dressed in military uniform, sat on a tall horse, facing the rising sun and waving his whip to the south.

Behind him were the elite soldiers who had just had a hearty meal. They were full of energy and high morale. Under the leadership of General Song Wei, they repeatedly defeated the larger force with a smaller one, and made the invaders flee in panic. The defenders in the city also sharpened their swords and guns again and again. After being suppressed for so long, they could finally hold their heads up high. Together with General Song Wei, they cooperated inside and outside and chopped at the heads of the barbarians with their swords - go, hi!

The Nanzhao invaders trembled in fear. A lean camel is bigger than a horse. The Tang Dynasty was so weak that it should not be underestimated. Although they had some advantages by relying on the surprise attack, the situation of the war changed completely after the army of the Celestial Empire came to support them. The envoys sent to seek peace went back and forth more than ten times, but they never saw the smiling face of the Celestial Empire again... This General Song was so powerful, we are finished!

Victory is only a matter of one order to charge.

Song Wei slowly raised his arm. Seeing the command flag about to fall, the soldiers stared at it without blinking, fearing that they would not be the first to rush out.

"Report - urgent official document!" A fast horse messenger suddenly broke into the camp, "It's extremely urgent!"

Song Wei hurriedly took the official letter and unfolded it. It was an urgent official letter from his immediate superior, Yan Qingfu, the commander-in-chief of the aid to Sichuan and the commander-in-chief of the Chengdu Campaign: Comrade Song Wei was relieved of all his military posts on the spot and was ordered to return to Hanzhou immediately and wait for orders.

Just a few words, concise and to the point.

Song Wei looked at it for a long time, as if there were thousands and tens of thousands of words on the paper.

The atmosphere froze. A pot of boiling water dropped to freezing point in an instant, and the entire military camp became unusually silent. All the soldiers stared at Song Wei in silence and nervousness, while Song Wei frowned like a statue, staring at the document in his hand.

After a long while, Song Wei sighed, and his hands stopped shaking. He took one last look at the rising sun, feeling extremely lonely and depressed, and returned to the central military camp without saying a word.

Mission canceled.

The heroic Chengdu army and civilians still won the final victory, but they paid more sacrifices because they lost the best fighting opportunity. The Nanzhao invaders had a precious breathing space and made more adequate preparations for retreat.

This scene is not unique in the long river of history. How many heroes did not die on the way to charge, did not die under the swords and guns of the enemy, but were killed by their own people behind them.

As Chengdu was about to be relieved, Song Wei was urgently dismissed and transferred back to the second line. Yue Fei, who received twelve gold medals in one day, should have felt the same way when he read this history.

Yan Qingfu advocated the use of military means to resolve the border crisis, refused to sign unequal treaties that would humiliate the country, and used strong force to fight back against foreign invaders. It is undeniable that he did have some merit.

However, he was jealous of his subordinates' achievements. In order to prevent them from making contributions, he abused his power and removed the command of the meritorious generals. This is unforgivable. If the reinforcements failed and Chengdu fell, how would Yan Qingfu appear in historical records?
Fortunately, the Bashu army and the people worked together and finally won the Chengdu defense battle and successfully drove away the Nanzhao invaders. Yan Qingfu also made certain contributions in the following battles. Merits are merits and faults are faults. We are clear about right and wrong, objective and fair, and responsible for history.

History is very good at playing jokes. Yan Qingfu saved Chengdu but killed the Tang Dynasty.

He certainly didn't know about the "butterfly effect", and he had no idea that his abuse of power would sow the seeds of destruction for the Tang Dynasty.

This seed waits quietly, and when the next storm comes, it will bloom and bear fruit in time and swallow up the Tang Empire.

(End of this chapter)