Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 443 Victory in the first battle
News of Yuan Hao training troops in Zhicheng and plotting to restore his kingdom had already reached Suiyang. Over the past six months, he had also sent envoys to privately contact Qiu Daqian and others.

Qiu Daqian and others had complex feelings toward Erzhu Rong. On the one hand, they hated him for ruining the country, but on the other hand, as military men, they felt very relieved that he had killed all the princes and civil officials.

Therefore, he neither agreed to Yuan Hao's request nor sent his envoy to Luoyang.

But now, Qiu Daqian was already terrified by Chen Qingzhi, and when he saw Yuan Hao send someone to persuade him to surrender, he readily surrendered.

At daybreak, Yuan Hao, carrying the regalia of a Northern Wei prince and escorted by white-robed soldiers, arrived at the walls of Suiyang.

Qiu Daqian led his troops out to greet him, and upon seeing Yuan Hao, they all wept uncontrollably, exclaiming emotionally, "Your Highness, you've finally returned..."

"The people of Great Wei yearn for Your Highness as if he were their savior!"

"We are sworn enemies with that treacherous dog Erzhu Rong!"

Yuan Hao's face remained tense, but inside he was overjoyed, feeling that his journey was truly ordained by fate and aligned with the will of the people.

On that very day, he ascended the altar to offer sacrifices to Heaven at the Huan River outside Suiyang City, and then became emperor, adopting the reign title 'Xiaoji'.

The soldiers of the White-Robed Army were also invited to attend the ceremony. Their battle robes were as white as snow, their armor was bright, and they were strong and powerful, exuding a murderous aura. They stood out among the surrendered Northern Wei troops.

"Little chicken, what year is this?" Chen Baxian couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

"It means to rebuild the foundation of the nation through filial piety," Ren Yuan said softly. "It's about emphasizing the purity of one's bloodline and setting things right."

"They really put thought into choosing this reign title," Yang Zhong nodded in agreement.

"To me, it sounds like a chick," Chen Baxian chuckled.

"As long as we encounter less resistance," Ren Yuan said with a nonchalant smile, "a small chick is fine."

Yuan Hao's coronation edict was a proclamation denouncing Er Zhu Rong. He was an excellent writer, and the edict was written with great passion and righteous indignation. He denounced Er Zhu Rong's perverse and outrageous actions, calling on all righteous people in the world to respond to him and jointly punish the traitor!
The Northern Wei soldiers felt extremely satisfied after hearing this, and they all shouted "Long live the Emperor!"
At that moment, standing atop the high platform, Yuan Hao truly believed himself to be the savior of the Great Wei...

~~
After ascending the throne, he naturally bestowed titles upon his officials. Chen Qingzhi was appointed as "Imperial Envoy, General Who Guards the North, Protector of the Army, and Grand Commander of the Vanguard Army." Even generals like Ren Yuan were appointed as various generals, their official ranks all significantly elevated.

"Damn it, if only this were an official position in the Great Liang Dynasty," said Song Jingxiu, the 'General Who Pacifies Bandits,' with regret.

"It was just for fun, why take it seriously?" 'General of Valor' Hu Longya said in a muffled voice, "Not only do you not pay my salary, but you also don't give me more soldiers."

"Haha, so this is 'General' going up?" Chen Qingzhi walked into the tent with a smile.

"Grand Commander!" The generals hurriedly rose to greet him, and the commanders all burst into laughter.

After laughing, Chen Qingzhi said seriously, "The Wei lord intended to give me a portion of Qiu Daqian's army, but I refused."

"Yes." Influenced by Chen Qingzhi, the generals also believed in the elite force strategy. How could they possibly win a battle if they were mixed up with Qiu Daqian's defeated and surrendered soldiers?
"Therefore, we still have to rely on ourselves for the next battle," Chen Qingzhi said in a deep voice. "I have discussed it with Lord Wei, and we will immediately march on Kaocheng and take down Yuan Huiye's 20,000 Imperial Guards!"

"Yes, sir!" the generals responded in unison and immediately led their troops to set off.

~~
It wasn't until the White-Robed Army marched out of Suiyang that Qiu Daqian realized Chen Qingzhi's forces numbered less than ten thousand; he had been tricked. But there's no going back. They had already surrendered, paid their respects to the new emperor, and accepted Yuan Hao's official position. Further resistance would never earn Erzhu Rong's trust; it was simply the end of it…

The soldiers of the White Robe Army didn't care what the enemy thought; under Chen Qingzhi's leadership, they had already reached the city of Kao, ninety miles away.

The city of Kao was garrisoned by 20,000 Imperial Guards led by Prince Yuan Huiye of Jiyin, who had come to support the front lines upon imperial decree.

Yuan Huiye did not lead his army to Suiyang, but stopped at Kaocheng. He ignored the army and only cared about food and drink, eating a sheep a day and a calf every three days.

Yuan Hao knew this relative very well, and he confidently told Chen Qingzhi, "My cousin is no ordinary person. He is generous and ambitious. In his youth, he liked to associate with notorious bandits and developed extraordinary skills."

"As I grew older, I began to focus on reading, exploring classics, history, philosophy, and literature, but I never read the works of Cao Cao and Ma Chao."

Chen Qingzhi immediately understood: the so-called "Book of Cao and Ma" referred to the writings of Cao Cao and Sima Yi. One can imagine what a member of the Northern Wei imperial family, who despised both of them, would think of Erzhu Rong.

Therefore, his actions can be understood... He was powerless to resist Erzhu Rong, but unwilling to obey orders, so he simply gave up.

But not everyone thought like Yuan Huiye. The families of the Imperial Guards were all in Luoyang. How could they dare to surrender without a fight?

Moreover, Kaocheng was surrounded by water on all sides and was well-defended, so holding out and waiting for reinforcements was not difficult. Therefore, upon hearing that Yuan Hao had led the Southern Dynasty army to conquer Suiyang, Pei Song, Yuan Huiye's deputy general, took over command. He urgently requested reinforcements from Luoyang while strengthening the city's defenses and preparing for battle.

On the other hand, Chen Qingzhi had already devised a plan to capture Kaocheng based on the information Ren Yuan had gathered.

Before attacking Kaocheng, the White-Robed Army first marched to Youhuang Valley, the bamboo forest where Xiao Zong had previously ambushed Ren Yuan.

Each soldier cut down several bamboo poles, tied them to their horses, and then marched towards Kaocheng in a grand procession. The dust they raised naturally made the Wei army, who were unaware of what was going on, quite nervous.

However, the main purpose of the bamboo was not to make a show of force. The soldiers came to the Maocao River that surrounded Kaocheng and threw all the bamboo into it.

Immediately afterwards, the Taoist priests in the army performed a ritual together, manipulating bamboo to instantly build floating fortifications.

The floating ramparts were four or five zhang high, even exceeding the city walls. The soldiers in white robes climbed the ramparts, positioned high above, and fired down close to suppress the defenders on the city walls.

The Wei soldiers on the city wall were stunned. They never expected that magic could be used in this way. They were driven away in panic and could not stand firm.

Seeing this, Pei Song quickly organized his own army's skilled warriors to launch a counterattack, hoping to destroy the Liang army's floating fortifications.

However, the Liang army had no shortage of skilled warriors, and they easily blocked the Wei army's offensive.

The white-robed soldiers were highly skilled and daring, one after another leaping directly from the floating ramparts onto the city wall! Like tigers among sheep, they chased after the Wei soldiers relentlessly, swiftly and decisively capturing the city wall.

Before nightfall, they had captured the entire city of Kao, annihilated 20,000 Imperial Guards, and taken the drunken Yuan Huiye prisoner...

Meanwhile, Yuan Hao, who had set off slightly later, had just arrived outside Kaocheng.

Looking at the banner bearing the character "Chen" fluttering atop the city wall, Yuan Hao felt a mix of emotions. He was pleased that the White-Robed Army was exceptionally elite and that the battle was progressing smoothly. Yet, he was also heartbroken that his own country's army had become so incompetent.
But overall, this is a good thing...

(End of this chapter)