Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 212 The Celestial Dragons' Perseverance
Jiankang.

Next to the Yuzhang Palace, which was built during the Liu Song Dynasty, stands the Tongtai Temple, which was built by Emperor Xiao Yan of Liang.

The temple features a nine-tiered pagoda that soars into the clouds, and its pavilions and halls are grand in scale.

Emperor Wu of Liang (Xiao Yan) was well-versed in Confucianism and Taoism, and promoted Confucianism in his early years before becoming a Buddhist. Tongtai Temple was an important place for Xiao Yan to promote Buddhism. He once held the Wuzhe Assembly here, and even renounced worldly life to become a monk here, personally lecturing on Buddhist scriptures.

The scent of pine resin filled the air, accompanied by the chanting of Buddhist hymns.

In front of the main hall, a general in white robes was waiting.

He was Emperor Wu of Liang's chess prodigy, and now he is Chen Qingzhi, a renowned general of the Southern Liang Dynasty!

This general, who came from a humble background, did not have the strong physique of a typical military commander; he looked sickly and somewhat thin.

However, this does not mean that the white-robed general is a simple character.

In the sixth year of the Putong era of the Southern Liang Dynasty, Yuan Faseng rebelled against the Northern Wei, and Pengcheng returned to Liang. Emperor Xiao Yan dispatched Chen Qingzhi to escort Xiao Zan to Pengcheng. At that time, Xiao Zan had already secretly communicated with the Northern Wei and took the opportunity to defect to the Wei army overnight, causing chaos in Pengcheng. After this battle, the Liang army lost seven or eight tenths of its troops, and only Chen Qingzhi was able to preserve his army.

After Chen Qingzhi first distinguished himself, Emperor Xiao Yan sent him to conquer Shouyang the following year. Chen Qingzhi lived up to expectations, captured Shouyang, seized 52 cities of Northern Wei, and took 75,000 men and women prisoner.

In the first year of the Datong era, the Battle of Woyang took place. Chen Qingzhi, under the command of General Cao Zhongzong, attacked Woyang, a city of Northern Wei. Yuan Zhao, the General Who Conquers the South and Prince of Changshan of Northern Wei, led 150,000 cavalry and infantry to reinforce the city, creating a stalemate with the Liang army. The battle raged for nearly a year, with hundreds of battles fought, large and small. Most of the Liang generals were considering retreat, but Chen Qingzhi remained steadfast in his commitment to fighting. Chen Qingzhi then employed a stratagem, leading his troops to capture thirteen cities built by the Wei army, taking over 30,000 prisoners and executing many others.

The war between the Southern Liang and Northern Wei had been going quite smoothly in recent years. After the Battle of Woyang, the Southern Liang even pushed its front line to Chengfu. After Erzhu Rong massacred the nobles, a large number of Northern Wei officials and generals on the front lines defected to the Southern Liang.

At this time, a desire to launch a northern expedition arose within the Southern Liang court.

Xiao Yan, however, seemed not to have heard of this and went to Tongtai Temple to worship Buddha.

Chen Qingzhi came from Stone City. This general, who had recently risen to prominence, naturally attracted attention with his every move.

Once the chanting had subsided, Zhu Yi strode down from the palace.

"What did your Majesty say?"

Chen Qingzhi asked, but Zhu Yi replied:

"Your Majesty said that Erzhu Rong is ruthless but decisive, Li Shengui is powerful but incompetent, the troops of the Six Garrisons are difficult to control, and Yuan Hao is in Ye, which will inevitably be lost sooner or later. At this time, the situation of Wei is unclear, the strength and weakness are not yet determined, and there are many people who are suspicious. It is not a good time for a northern expedition."

Chen Qingzhi listened and nodded slightly.

"In addition, the general should be wary of one person."

"who?"

"Li Shuang, General of the Cavalry of Wei and Duke of Tang!"

Zhu Yi did not persuade Xiao Zan to return to Liang, but after meeting Li Shuang, he achieved considerable diplomatic success.

"How does His Majesty evaluate this person?"

Zhu Yi said sadly:
"His Majesty only said two words!"

"Which two words?"

"How strange!"

……

After leaving Tongtai Temple, Chen Qingzhi rode his horse back to Stone City.

Jiankang City had a population of one million, making it a major city of its time, much like Luoyang. However, unlike Luoyang, which was built along a north-south axis, Jiankang City sloped towards the northeast and southwest. Its construction was adapted to the terrain, resulting in a highly irregular outline.

For a long time, the walls of Jiankang were made of bamboo fences. The regime that established its capital here was not worried about the city's insecurity, as this was not like the plains of the north, where the mighty Yangtze River outside the stone city was the best defense.

"General, what did His Majesty say?"

After Chen Qingzhi returned, the generals were filled with anticipation, but they heard him say:
"His Majesty said that now is not the best time for a northern expedition. In addition, he ordered the dispatch of numerous spies to the north."

"What?"

"Collect information on the life and military experiences of Li Shuang, the General of the Cavalry of Wei."
-
Luoyang.

Wei Qingbin Mansion.

Erzhu Rong slaughtered the officials and nobles of Northern Wei, and Wei Qingbin, also a member of the imperial court, was spared. This was because Wei Qingbin was Erzhu Rong's adopted father. Even though both Erzhu Rong and Wei Qingbin were initially unwilling, this relationship prevented Erzhu Rong's men from taking action; they even treated him with utmost respect. Wei Qingbin lay before Li Shuang. Though alive, he was utterly exhausted.

"You're something else, kid! You even got Yuan Ziyou to issue a self-reproach edict!"

Upon seeing Li Shuang, Wei Qingbin unusually showed a burst of energy.

"Look at what you're saying, Your Majesty is humbly accepting advice!"

Li Shuang chuckled, picked up a piece of fruit placed to the side, and was about to take a bite when he heard Wei Qingbin say:
"With what you've done, aren't you afraid I'll poison you to death?!"

"What have I done? I'm just trying to make a living!"

Wei Qingbin sat up straight, staring at Li Shuang. After thinking about it carefully, he realized that apart from being better at shaving than anyone else, making the northerners and Qihu people under Erzhu Rong's command envious, this kid hadn't really done anything outrageous.

On the contrary, merchants, canal workers, and laborers in Luoyang and Hongnong had a rather favorable impression of him.

Thinking of this, Wei Qingbin smiled.

"You're really something, aren't you? You've got all the benefits, but you don't want to take any of the blame, huh!"

Li Shuang took a bite of the fruit in her hand and said:

"This fruit is quite sweet, where did it come from?"

Wei Qingbin casually said:

"Those were cultivated in the Imperial Garden of Luoyang..."

Before Wei Qingbin could finish speaking, he suddenly realized something.

"You kid, are you serious? You don't even want these fruit trees?"

Li Shuang sighed:
"It was my oversight. I should have realized that Luoyang is so big, there must be some hidden gems. If I hadn't come here, I would have almost missed it."

Seeing that Li Shuang was about to leave, Wei Qingbin said:
What do you want to do?

"I plan to take people on another tour of Luoyang to check for any omissions or deficiencies."

"You even took the armillary sphere from the Lingtai altar! That was left behind by Zhang Heng during the Han Dynasty. What treasures could possibly be left in Luoyang?"

After speaking, Wei Qingbin coughed violently, but he did not harbor any ill will towards Li Shuang.

"Look at what you're saying, I won't even buy something that's not genuine!"

"You're only good at bullying those northerners and barbarians who've never seen the world!"

After Erzhu Rong entered Luoyang, Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei's Sinicization reforms were largely destroyed.

Wei Qingbin was furious, but there was nothing he could do.

Erzhu Rong's men were powerful in martial arts, but they were not particularly outstanding in other aspects.

Even Gao Huan, in his early years, relied on his wife's dowry to travel between Luoyang and Huaishuo, mostly making friends and being adept at social interactions. He had only heard about the extravagance and refinement of the people of Luoyang, but had never seen it firsthand.

Whether in the past or present, in the eyes of the Tianlong people in Luoyang, the northerners are no different from barbarians.

"I have important business to discuss with you!"

Seeing Wei Qingbin's serious expression, Li Shuang asked:
"What's the matter?"

"I have a batch of books here; you should take them back to Guanzhong as well!"

Upon hearing this, Li Shuang bowed respectfully.

Wei Qingbin said leisurely:

"The achievements of Emperor Xiaowen cannot end here! Otherwise, even if I die, I will have no face to meet the late emperor."

……

(End of this chapter)