Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 460: Changes in the World
"kill!!"

Yang Jian rode on a war horse and escaped from the west gate surrounded by many knights.

The Emperor of Liang was very sensible. When Huang Fachu had just arrived in Anzhou, he had already fled and left Jiangling.

The emperor's concubines and other relatives also fled with them.

Therefore, it would not be so difficult for Yang Jian and others to escape now. After all, siege would give people in the city a chance to escape. Siege was the main purpose, and capturing was not so important. After all, the puppet emperor of Liang, who was most worthy of capture, had already run away.

The shouts of the Chen people were heard from the top of the city.

The two city gates had been breached and officially fell into the hands of the Chen people.

In fact, after the fall of the outer city, they could still continue to hold out through the inner city and resist for a long time. Even if the inner city was gone, they still had Emperor Liang’s royal city inside to continue defending. However, once they moved from the outer city to the inner city for defense, they would no longer have the chance to leave and could only fight to the death.

There were no reinforcements from outside at the moment, but the Chen people and their navy continuously provided them with rescue supplies.

In this situation, it is naturally impossible to continue to hold on and cut off your retreat.

Yang Jian did not hesitate. He took the elite troops in the city and began to break out and escape.

The Chen people did not have a strong desire to stop them. They just fired a symbolic volley and did not pursue them.

However, the cheers coming from Jiangling became louder and louder, deafening.

The cheers were like waves, one higher than the other. The elite soldiers of the State of Chen stood on the city walls, holding broken spears, and shouted heart-wrenchingly.

The State of Chen had not fought such a tough battle for a long time.

Chunyu Liang took over Jiangling City bit by bit, suffering heavy casualties.

But no matter what, Jiangling has now been captured, and the State of Chen once again stands in the north of Jing and has the qualifications to look around.

Chunyu Liang rode on a war horse and led many soldiers into Jiangling City in a mighty manner.

Even those generals who usually advocated an early retreat were shouting happily at this moment, feeling grateful for the capture of Jiangling.

After occupying the city, Chunyu Liang rewarded the army and personally hosted a banquet to entertain the meritorious soldiers.

The news of the capture of Jiangling naturally spread quickly to Jiankang.

"How dare you! How dare you disobey my order?!"

The victory report had not yet reached the capital, but the news that he had disobeyed the imperial order and continued the attack had already been delivered to Chen Xu by the messenger.

Chen Xu was furious.

He stared at the messenger in front of him and asked again: "Is he planning a rebellion?!"

The messenger lowered his head and dared not answer.

"Someone is coming!!"

Yuan Xian on the side hurriedly advised, "Your Majesty!!"

Some soldiers had already walked in. Yuan Xian signaled them to leave with his eyes, and then hurriedly said to the emperor: "What General Chunyu said is not unreasonable. If he did not have the advantage, how could the Zhou people be so polite? Taking Jiangling will indeed have great benefits."

"This is not a reason for him to disobey the imperial edict!"

"Disobeying the imperial edict is treason!!"

Chen Xu was furious at this moment, and Yuan Xian hurriedly said: "Chun Yuliang's behavior should be punished, but he has a large army in his hands and is fighting on the front line. If Your Majesty wants to send someone to punish him at this time, I am afraid it will be detrimental to the situation."

"Then what do you think we should do?"

"Let him capture Jiangling first, and then let him return to Jiankang to receive the reward. After he arrives in Jiankang, we will capture him and punish him for disobeying the imperial edict. Because of his merits, we will spare his life, but we can dismiss him from his post and let him stay at home to reflect on his mistakes."

Chen Xu's expression became increasingly ugly.

"First it was Hua Jiao, Ouyang He, then Huang Fachu, and now it is Chunyu Liang"

"I really don't understand."

Seeing the somewhat frustrated Chen Xu, Yuan Xian hurriedly encouraged him, "Your Majesty, there are still many great generals in the country who are willing to fight to the death for Your Majesty. The situation in the world is becoming more and more favorable to us."

"Han was bound to take control of Guanzhong, but it failed to destroy Zhou directly. Zhou retreated to Bashu and still had the strength to fight. The world situation was a three-way confrontation, which was more favorable to us. If Han wanted to attack Zhou, it would definitely be cautious. If it wanted to invade us, Zhou people would not sit idly by."

Chen Xu did not calm down because of Yuan Xian's words, he just felt a headache.

The envoy of Zhou State came to see him, spoke sincerely and explained the pros and cons.

He also agreed to cede the city, send war horses, weapons, and form an alliance to resist the Han army together.

Chen Xu was still very moved.

Although the Zhou people were cunning and capricious, everything was based on the current situation. Now the Han State was more powerful than the Zhou State. The local government was peaceful, the military was strong, and there were countless civil and military officials. Especially the exaggerated record of battles was even more terrifying.

In this situation, joining forces with the Zhou people to fight the enemy is the best option.

Moreover, Chen Xu also had his own ideas in mind. It would actually be a good idea to let the Zhou people guard Jiangling. The less area he bordered with the Han people, the less pressure he would face.

Jiangling will definitely become one of the main attack directions of the Han State in the future. Moreover, this is not what Chen Xu is most worried about.

What Chen Xu was most worried about was Chunyu Liang's changes.

When his elder brother was still alive, Chunyu Liang was very disobedient and made excuses not to come to the court. His elder brother sent someone to bring him back, dismissed him from his post, and asked him to stay in Jiankang and not go out. After Chen Xu promoted him, he behaved very low-key and respectful and never dared to make trouble again.

But now, he is becoming more and more like the Chunyu Liang of the past.

Arrogant, rude, and disobedient to the government.

Does this mean that she will relapse into old problems now that her brother is gone?

He now has a large army under his command, and if these troops have any ulterior motives

The more Chen Xu thought about it, the more panicked he became. When Yuan Xian was about to speak, Chen Xu stood up and said, "Mr. Yuan is a scholar and knows little about military affairs. There is no need to say more. You can leave first."

Yuan Xian had no choice but to bow to Chen Xu again and then take his leave.

After Yuan Xian left, Chen Xu summoned Zhang Zhaoda.

The two discussed many things secretly in the palace, and Zhang Zhaoda just left in a hurry.

Jiangling.

This dilapidated city was filled with the laughter of the enemies.

The people hid at home and dared not go out. Fortunately, Chunyu Liang was able to control his troops and prevent them from venting their anger on the people of Jiangling.

In the past, Chunyu Liang didn't care much about this matter, but recently, he suddenly became a little Huang Fachu. Among the many generals of the State of Chen, only Huang Fachu paid attention to this. After attacking the city, he would not harm the local people. He strictly enforced military discipline and would not harm anyone.

I don't know when Chunyu Liang started to imitate this.

Chunyu Cen, wearing armor, hurriedly jumped off his horse and walked quickly towards the government office.

The soldiers on both sides of the office also recognized him and did not dare to stop him, and they all saluted.

He walked all the way unimpeded to the outside of Chunyu Liang's house, where the soldiers finally stopped him and let him in after reporting.

Chun Yucen walked quickly into the house, his face showing an unconcealable joy.

"Father!"

Chunyu Liang was sitting on the bed at this moment, holding a book in his hands, without his usual sharpness.

"Ah."

Chunyu Cen took out a document from his bosom and then reported the situation in the surrounding areas.

Since they captured Jiangling, the defeated Zhou soldiers retreated to the surrounding areas, and the navies of both sides also fought several times.

Chunyu Cen told Chunyu Liang the information from various places bit by bit, but Chunyu Liang didn't seem to care that much.

After Chunyu Cen said this, he looked at his father quietly.

I had proposed to surrender to the Han Dynasty before, but my father said that the time was not yet ripe. But now, we have a large army and Jiangling has been taken. If I take Jiangling with me to surrender to the Han Dynasty, I should be able to make a great contribution, right?
When will the time be ripe?
He really wanted to ask, but was afraid of being scolded.

Just as he was hesitating, Chunyu Liang suddenly ordered: "Select some trustworthy old brothers to strengthen the personal guard."

Chun Yucen was overjoyed, "Father, is the time right?"

Chunyu Liang put down the book in his hand.

"What time?"

"Isn't it that I want to take Jiangling to the Han Kingdom?"

Before Chunyu Cen could finish his words, Chunyu Liang's face turned extremely ugly.

"presumptuous!"

"Do you want me to rebel?" "Am I such a villain?!"

Chun Yucen looked at his angry father and immediately lowered his head, "Father, I spoke out of turn."

"In troubled times, no one is trustworthy. Ministers beat the emperor, the emperor humiliates ministers, generals only think about rebellion, civil officials only think about collecting money, chaos and disorder, no morality."

"But it's different now."

Chun Yuliang said seriously: "The world will soon be unified. If we continue to do things according to the old ideas, we will not achieve anything."

Chun Yucen was somewhat stunned. "Although Zhou was defeated, its strength is still strong. The alliance between the two countries can still resist Han. Father, do you think Han will be able to defeat the two countries soon?"

"The current arable land and household registration of the Han State are already unrivaled by the other two countries. Fundamentally speaking, the Han State has more grain production, more iron production, and the largest population. This is the capital for the great unification."

"From the perspective of governance, Han's governance far surpasses the other two countries. Most of the local governors are honest and wise, there are many officials who are diligent, and the ministers in the court are extremely talented and capable. Its system absorbs the best of Zhou and Chen and forms its own system. Its generals are brave and good at fighting. The soldiers are well-armored, well-equipped, and well-trained. With such capital and such governance, within three to five years, the world will surely be unified."

"The king is kind to others, brave and invincible, broad-minded, decisive and courageous."

"The Han Kingdom has the right time, right place, and right people. Who can compete with it?"

"Whether we retreat to Bashu or occupy the river, it's just to delay a few more days and save our lives."

Chunyu Cen nodded gently, "Father, then why don't we just surrender to Han with Jiangling? Han wants to conquer the world, and Jiangling is the top priority. If we surrender with Jiangling and tens of thousands of troops, we will surely win the favor of the Heavenly King."

"No."

"If we present the city directly to the Heavenly King, he will certainly reward us, but he will not use us."

"It will be difficult for me to get a chance to be independent in the future. I am old, so that is not a problem. But if you are also criticized for this and cannot be reused in the future, what achievements can our family make in the future?"

"After the unification of the country, the spirit of moral governance will prevail. By that time, those who have beaten the emperor in the past or betrayed him without reason will probably be criticized by everyone. Those who are meritorious officials now will be traitors in the future."

Chun Yucen seemed to understand but not quite.

"Father, what should we do?"

"wait."

"When we can no longer gain a foothold in the State of Chen, we can go to the Heavenly King for help. Then, we can be grateful for the Heavenly King's kindness, work hard for the great unification, and take Jiangling for the Heavenly King."

On the country road, the old doctor and others were leading their horses, limping forward.

The only sound I could hear was the sound of the stream flowing in the distance. Apart from that, I couldn't even hear the sound of birds singing.

There were many towering trees on both sides of the path. The path was quiet and desolate. The bushes on both sides shook from time to time, which made them even more afraid.

The old doctor looked rather haggard.

Riding a horse is really not an easy thing. After riding for many days, the horse is fine, but the rider can't bear it anymore.

Especially the old doctor, his legs were in severe pain.

Sun Simiao led the horse and walked in front.

As they moved away from the war zone, the situation along the way changed little by little. There was no more black smoke rising into the sky and shouts of killing everywhere. Even the smell was pleasant and fragrant.

Several of the old doctor's disciples followed Sun Simiao and were talking about medical matters.

"stop!!"

Then they heard a loud roar from the front and were startled.

Sun Simiao hurriedly looked over and found two soldiers standing on the high slopes on both sides of the intersection.

One of them raised his bow and arrow, aiming at them.

They were neatly dressed and looked serious, and were obviously not deserters blocking the road.

Sun Simiao hurriedly said: "Don't do it! We are not thieves! "

The two soldiers slowly approached, one of them holding a short weapon, examining the people in front of him.

"The document is passed."

"We are the Zhou people and we don't have it yet"

"No? Is he an official from the Zhou Kingdom?"

"Ah, no, we are doctors, doctors."

The old doctor's disciple explained, and seeing the strong suspicion in the other party's eyes, he quickly took out some money from his pocket and said, "Look, this is all the money we have. Please let us go."

"Someone come here!! Great credit!!"

The old doctor was walking on the road. Several of his disciples were tied up. One of them had a black bruise on his face. Sun Simiao was among them.

The old doctor couldn't help but complain, "Why bother? You've already made me a spy right after I entered Han territory. Why do you keep thinking about bribing the soldiers?"

The disciple who caused the trouble lowered his head and dared not speak.

The group was escorted to a roadside inn and interrogated by officials.

They were dressed in unusual clothes, riding horses, and carrying large packages. They didn't look like doctors at all, but more like officials who had escaped.

Especially those young ones surrounding an old one, aren't they definitely dignitaries?
Facing the interrogation of the petty official, the old doctor was sweating profusely and the more he described, the worse the situation became.

After all, the old doctor was indeed an official of the Zhou State, and he did want to bribe the soldiers and bring people into the territory of the Han State.

After verification, the clerk directly handed them over to the local county government.

Just when the old doctor thought they were in big trouble, Sun Simiao found an opportunity.

The county magistrate looked at the young man in front of him in astonishment.

"Do you know Mr. Chu?"

"Yes, yes, I am a doctor. I used to be a royal doctor. I once studied medicine in the Han Kingdom. Mr. Chu knows me."

"Who knows Mr. Chu?"

A loud voice was heard coming from outside the house, and the next moment, a mountain walked into the house. It was much taller than anyone present, and its width was astonishing.

When the county magistrate saw this person, he hurriedly bowed his head and saluted.

Sun Simiao and the others also bowed to greet him.

"General, why are you here?"

"I heard that you have captured a royal doctor here, so I came to take a look."

Gao Yanzong said, his eyes swept across the people in front of him, and finally landed on Sun Simiao, "Do you know Mr. Chu?"

“Exactly.”

Sun Simiao was still somewhat shocked at this moment. He looked at the burly general in front of him and suddenly said, "General, you should go on a diet."

Gao Yanzong was stunned, and then laughed.

"It seems that he is undoubtedly a doctor."

"Okay, all of you go out, I'll talk to these people."

Gao Yanzong asked them all to sit down, and he sat in the upper seat himself, and then asked about the purpose of their visit and the reason for their leaving.

The old doctor slowly talked about the situation over there. When he mentioned that the emperor took the elixir despite his own dissuasion, his face was full of helplessness.

Listening to their stories, Gao Yanzong's eyes became brighter.

Is there such a good thing???
He quickly suppressed his inner joy and asked again: "Isn't the emperor's situation very dangerous?"

"Yes, there were only a few imperial physicians who followed the emperor to the battlefield. In this situation, we were the only ones who could temporarily treat the patient. Now that we are gone, I'm afraid Zhang Bin will no longer have any scruples. He really believes that his elixir is a magical elixir that can cure the dead."

Gao Yanzong asked someone to bring tea and asked the old doctor to talk more.

But the old doctor didn't know anything except the elixir. As for military and government affairs, he knew nothing at all.

But that's enough.

Gao Yanzong narrowed his eyes.

If this father-in-law had not lied, then the emperor of Zhou would really be dead!

Or was he murdered by the so-called golden elixir? Well, we must send someone to inform the grandfather immediately! !

He should know how to take advantage of this!!

(End of this chapter)