Late Tang Dynasty: Descendants of the Imperial Clan

With Tang troops gathering in the capital region, Zheng Tian gradually deployed his troops.

In just ten days, the banners of the various circuits west of the capital slowly converged on Chang'an like a vast net:

Tang Hongfu led the Shuofang troops to recapture Liquan and advanced to the northwest of Chang'an; Wang Chongrong stationed troops at Shayuan, controlling the east side of the Wei River; Wang Chucun led 5,000 Baixu cavalry to Weiqiao, controlling the north bank; Tuoba Sigong and Li Xiaochang joined forces and stationed troops at Wugong, ready to advance eastward at any time to provide support; Zheng Tian led the central army and stationed troops at Zhouzhi, directing operations from the center; Cheng Zongchu and Qiu Gongyu advanced to Huxian, only a few dozen miles from Chang'an.

This net surrounded us from the north, west, south, and east.

Li Cenji and Song Wentong joined forces, with Li Cenji leading his own 2,000 troops and over 1,000 veteran soldiers from the Boye Army under Song Wentong's command, as the vanguard of the Fengxiang Army, advancing step by step towards Chang'an along the official road.

Since joining the army, Song Wentong has been respectful and cautious in everything he does. He personally attends the daily drills and has gradually become familiar with Zhou Ping, Chen An, and others.

His veteran Boye soldiers, seasoned in battle, quickly integrated with Li Cenji's Fengxiang troops after a few days of joint training, saving them a lot of time in getting used to each other.

When the vanguard arrived at the gates of Chang'an, Tang Hongfu, Cheng Zongchu, and Qiu Gongyu had already arrived a day earlier.

Even with the three armies combined, they numbered only about 20,000 men, while the rebel army in Chang'an still numbered in the tens of thousands. The city walls were high and the moats were deep and wide, so if they were to launch a direct assault, the outcome would be uncertain.

The four then discussed the matter in the camp:

Tang Hongfu came from the north and led the Shuofang troops to garrison north of the city to prevent Huang Chao from escaping from the north; Cheng Zongchu led the Jingyuan troops to guard the south; Li Cenji and Qiu Gongyu joined forces to guard the west.

When they parted, Li Cenji was still worried, so he had to use Zheng Tian's name to convey the old minister's message, instructing the military commanders that if they recovered Chang'an, they must strictly enforce military discipline and never lose the hearts of the people.

The three military commanders readily agreed, but Li Cenji didn't know what they were really thinking. He had no better options and could only do his best and leave the rest to fate.

The three camps each occupied a separate area, and the camps were set up very securely, complete with deer antlers, chevaux-de-frise, trenches, and arrow towers, with scouts constantly moving outside the camps day and night.

Even though Li Cenji knew in his heart that Huang Chao in history did not fight a decisive battle with the Tang army in Chang'an, but chose to abandon the city and flee eastward, he still dared not slacken his efforts in the slightest.

The river of history has taken many turns, and who knows what changes might occur this time?

Fortunately, the general trend of history did not deviate too far in the end.

Huang Chao did not take advantage of the Tang army's division of forces to launch a field battle outside the city; he dared not gamble.

Shang Rang's 50,000-strong army had been wiped out at Longwei Slope, and Zhu Wen and Huang Ye's 50,000-strong army had also been wiped out in the river. The tens of thousands of soldiers he had left were his last possessions in Guanzhong.

If he were to leave the city and confront the Tang army head-on, and were to be bogged down, by the time Wang Chongrong, Wang Chucun, Zhuge Shuang, and their allied forces arrived, he would have no chance of escaping.

The day after the Tang army was divided into three and one was missing, the sound of galloping hooves rang out outside Yanxing Gate on the east side of Chang'an City.

Huang Chao led his troops out of the city and eastward, their baggage trains and wagons stretching for miles, the dust obscuring the sun.

When Cheng Zongchu saw the garrison on the city wall gradually thinning out from the northern camp, and saw smoke and dust rising in the east, he immediately realized what was happening. He sent messengers to report to the various camps, and personally led the Jingyuan troops to rush straight to Yanqiu Gate.

The defending troops on the city wall had long lost their will to fight and were routed by a fierce attack from the vanguard. Yanqiu Gate was flung open, and the Jingyuan soldiers rushed in.

Tang Hongfu followed closely behind and also charged into the city from the north.

Li Cenji and Qiu Gongyu did not hesitate. They left a small number of soldiers to guard the camp, and then personally led their troops into the city.

The three armies advanced side by side through the streets of Chang'an, but encountered almost no decent resistance. The main force of the rebel army had followed Huang Chao eastward, leaving behind only abandoned old, weak, and disabled soldiers.

Some knelt down to surrender, some abandoned their weapons and mingled into civilian houses, and others took off their uniforms and disappeared into the market.

"They're imperial soldiers! They're government troops!"

It is unclear who first pushed open the gate, but soon one gate after another opened.

The people poured out of their dilapidated houses, cheering and vying to welcome the government troops.

The old woman, leaning on her cane, knelt shakily by the roadside and offered the last half-scoop of millet from her home to the soldiers.

Young men climbed onto the wall and hurled rubble at the backs of the fleeing rebel soldiers.

A woman picked up the arrows discarded by the rebels from the ground and handed them to the government troops with both hands.

The streets were filled with the sounds of crying and laughter. Some shouted "Long live the imperial court!", some shouted "The Tang Dynasty will never perish!", and some wailed and cried out the names of their fallen relatives. The clamor echoed for a long time in the twilight.

Li Cenji stopped his horse on the street and looked at this scene, his heart both warm and heavy.

He was thrilled that the people of Chang'an had been waiting for so long, and finally the royal army had arrived; yet he was also deeply troubled by a premonition that this joy would not last long.

As night fell, Wang Chucun arrived with five thousand white-clad elite cavalry.

The elite cavalry of the Righteous Army, with their hooves covered in grime, entered the city silently under the cover of night.

Li Cenji's premonition came true that very night, and within a few hours, the enthusiasm for the feast cooled down.

On the first night after entering the city, military discipline was no longer enforced.

The soldiers from the towns of Shuofang, Fuyan, and Jingyuan were the first to take action.

These people shed blood at Longweibei and ate dry biscuits outside Mei County.

Having finally broken into the dazzling world of Chang'an, seeing the shops lining the streets, the mountains of wealth, and the charming women, how could he possibly restrain himself?

First, they would break into empty shops in groups of three or five, and then they would smash the doors of residential houses.

The people who had welcomed them with arrows and wine during the day were now nothing more than fat sheep to be slaughtered in their eyes.

Gold, silver, and silk were dragged out of the house in large quantities, and courtesans and concubines were carried away on their shoulders. Any commoners who dared to resist were knocked to the ground with the back of a knife.

Cries, shouts, snarling laughter, and the clash of weapons echoed through the alleys, disturbing the entire night.

Wang Chucun did want to restrain them, so he ordered his soldiers to tie white silk around their heads as a mark to distinguish them from the unruly troops.

However, this order was exploited by the ruffians in the streets. They tied white silk around their heads and mingled with the soldiers to plunder the people. For a time, it was impossible to distinguish between the real and the fake.

Li Cenji, who was still packing up his camp outside the city, received the news just as dawn was breaking.

It turned out that some of his soldiers had secretly run away from the camp under cover of night to plunder Chang'an City. Now they were trying to return with the loot, but were caught on the spot by the patrolling soldiers.

Upon hearing this, Li Cenji abruptly stood up, his face so gloomy it seemed as if a layer of frost could be scraped off.

He immediately donned his armor, gathered his troops, and strode out.

On the open ground at the camp gate, a dozen soldiers were dividing up several piles of looted goods.

There were soldiers from Fengxiang and also the Boye Army under Song Wentong's command. They all wore intoxicated smiles, completely unaware of the impending disaster.

Li Cenji dismounted and slammed his lance heavily onto the ground.

The iron ferrule at the end of the spear struck the bluestone slab, sending up a trail of sparks.

The soldiers were startled by the noise and turned around in unison, their smiles freezing on their faces.

Li Cenji remained silent, simply walking forward step by step.

His gaze swept across each face, and every soldier he targeted involuntarily lowered their eyes.

He walked up to a soldier from Fengxiang carrying silk. The man was so frightened that his legs went weak, and he knelt down with a thud, stammering:

"I...I know I was wrong, I'll return the things right away—"

Before Li Cenji could finish speaking, his sword was already drawn.

With a flash of light, the soldier's pleas for mercy came to an abrupt halt.

The head rolled onto the pile of silk, and blood splattered all over the ground.

The camp gate was deathly silent.

The soldiers who had just been dividing the spoils all knelt down. Some kowtowed repeatedly, while others were so frightened that they couldn't even speak.

A captain from the Boye Army next to him mustered his courage and raised his head, his voice trembling:

"Please calm down! The brothers were just confused for a moment. Just return the money; there's no need for this—"

"Go back?"

Li Cenji turned around and looked down at him.

"The looted money and women can be returned. But the doors you broke down last night, the people you injured, the hearts of the people you've lost—can you ever get those back?"

The constable was rendered speechless by his question.

Li Cenji sheathed his sword, ordered his personal guards to tie up the soldiers who had been looting, and then ordered someone to beat the drum to summon all his troops.

The sound of drums boomed through the morning mist.

Before long, the two thousand men from Fengxiang headquarters and the more than one thousand Boye soldiers under Song Wentong's command lined up in battle formation on the training ground.

The soldiers looked ahead with unease in their hearts. In the center of the training ground lay several bloody, headless corpses, the very soldiers who had just been killed by Li Cenji himself.

Li Cenji ascended the platform, his gaze sweeping over the more than two thousand faces below. He remained silent for a long while before speaking, his voice not loud, but his guards behind him repeated it in unison, ensuring it reached everyone's ears steadily.

"How have I, Li Cenji, treated you all? Have I ever been late with a single penny of your military pay? Have I ever withheld a single cent of your rewards? Have I ever denied any of your merits?"

He paused.

"You've followed me for so long, you should know who I am. I eat what you eat, I train for as long as you train, and I'm always at the forefront in every battle. I, Li Cenji, can say with certainty that I've treated you well."

The audience was silent.

Some of the veterans lowered their heads.

"I'm open to discussing everything else. But this one thing is different—military discipline."

He emphasized those two words very heavily.

"It's not that I, Li Cenji, am heartless. Think about it yourselves. You are all refugees from Guanzhong. You know how badly the people have been ravaged by the rebels. Now that we have finally fought our way back to Chang'an, it should be the time for the people to welcome the government troops with food and drink. But you, in one night, have crushed that hope. Who will be willing to send us food in the future? Who will be willing to show us the way? Who will treat us like human beings?"

He turned around, looked at the area where the Boye army was, and said again:

"You are brothers brought by the Song army commander, and you haven't been with me for long. If you don't trust me, you can go and ask the old soldiers of Fengxiang you know, and see if I, Li Cenji, am worth following. I'll just say one thing here today: since you've come under my command, you are my people. I have only one rule: merit must be rewarded, and mistakes must be punished. I can give you a chance to correct other mistakes. But oppressing the people will not be a second time."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than someone in the Boye army suddenly shouted in a gruff voice:

"The governor's words sound nice! But last night it wasn't just our men looting! People from Jingyuan and Shuofang—the whole city was looting! The brothers are itching to get their hands on it. If the governor has the ability, go and persuade those arrogant and unruly generals. Why only restrain your own brothers!"

Song Wentong's expression changed drastically, and he strode up to the constable and shouted at him sternly.

The constable, however, stubbornly refused to speak, his eyes still filled with defiance.

Li Cenji laughed, but it was a forced smile.

He looked at the head constable and said, word by word:

"You're right. Simply restraining our own brothers is only treating the symptoms, not the root cause. Don't worry, I will personally go and reason with those military commanders."

He stopped sneer and turned to the entire army, saying loudly:

"Disperse, everyone. Commander Chen will stay behind to oversee military discipline. Anyone who violates the rules again will be treated the same, regardless of whether they are soldiers from Fengxiang or Boye. Xu Tai, come with me to meet with those military commanders."

The generals responded with a resounding roar.

Xu Tai quickly followed.

Li Cenji glanced at the simpleton beside him and said:

"In a moment, unleash your sharp tongue and say whatever you want. If those military commanders blame you, I'll take the blame for you."

Xu Tai patted his chest and laughed:

"Just you wait and see, I've got it covered!"

The two mounted their horses and, with dozens of soldiers in tow, galloped toward the market.

The chaos on the long street continued until dawn.

A group of soldiers from an unknown town were banging on the door of a tavern, spewing vulgarities.

Li Cenji's pupils contracted, and he slammed his knees against the horse's belly. The yellow horse neighed and charged towards the group of soldiers.

When the soldiers turned around at the sound of hooves, the spears were already upon them.

Li Cenji showed no mercy, slashing left and sweeping right with his spear. The two soldiers in the lead were swept away and crashed into the wall with a muffled groan before becoming motionless.

The remaining men then realized what was happening and drew their weapons in an attempt to resist.

But these scattered soldiers, who had even taken off their armor to make looting easier, were no match for Li Cenji.

After a few rounds of charging, they were beaten until they cried out for their parents. Some had their legs pierced by lances, some had their fingers cut off by swords, and the remaining few ran away when they saw that things were not going well.

"Trying to run away?"

Li Cenji gave a cold shout and spurred his horse to give chase.

The riotous soldiers ran wildly down the street, shouting as they ran:

"Tang army brothers! Stop him! Stop him! This guy is a rebel in disguise!"

Their shouts drew the attention of the other soldiers who were looting along the street. Seeing that a young Tang general was chasing someone, some onlookers gathered around.

Someone shouted angrily:

"Who came this greenhorn to meddle in my business!"

Someone called to their companion:

"Brothers, grab your weapons! Let's teach this kid a lesson!"

In the blink of an eye, twenty or thirty soldiers gathered together, swords and spears raised, blocking the way.

Li Cenji reined in his yellow horse and scanned the chaotic soldiers one by one.

They were dressed in armor from different towns and villages; some had their armor plates half-open, some reeked of alcohol, and some had colorful cloths they had just stolen from the people's homes, half of which were sticking out.

The way these people looked at him was either contemptuous, fierce, or indifferent, as if they were looking at a reckless young fool who didn't know his place.

"Which town are you from? What gives you the right to interfere in our affairs?"

A burly old soldier with a thick beard pointed his sword at Li Cenji, spitting as he spoke.

"Our brothers fought alongside the court to victory, what's wrong with getting a little money for their hard work? What the hell are you pretending to be, playing the saint!"