The Legend of Shushan Xuanjian

Chapter 426 Siege of Suiyang
Defend a city, defend the world, fight with thousands of soldiers who will die every day, and fight with millions of troops who will grow every day, covering the rivers and Huaihe Rivers, and suppressing their power.

Who is responsible for the immortality of the world?
——Excerpted from "The Story of Zhang Zhongcheng" by Han Yu

……

While Bai Fu was meditating on Vipassana, suddenly there was a cramping pain in his chest, and an ominous premonition welled up in his heart.

"No, something must have happened in Suiyang!" Bai Fu was alarmed.

……

Just when the Tang army regained Chang'an and marched into Luoyang, Suiyang also reached its worst moment.

Seeing that the Eastern Capital was at stake, An Qingxu gave Yin Ziqi a deadly order to capture Suiyang, ordering him to open the road to the south at all costs.

At this time, the city of Suiyang had run out of ammunition and food.The officers and men of the Tang army proposed: abandon the city and retreat to the Jianghuai area.

Zhang Xun, deputy envoy of Henan Jiedu, Xu Yuan, prefect of Suiyang, discussed repeatedly with the officers and men, and finally came to the conclusion - stick to it.

All the generals agreed: Suiyang is the barrier of the Jianghuai River, once the defense is abandoned, the rebels will surely take advantage of the victory to pursue and drive straight in.Losing Jianghuai, the rebels can take the opportunity to go south. Not only can they escape the siege of the main force of the Tang army, but they can also plunder the important financial and taxation towns in Jiangnan, and the lives of Jiangnan will be ruined.At that time, the Tang army will lose its financial and tax supplies, and the time for fighting the chaos will be prolonged indefinitely.

What's more, Suiyang's soldiers were so hungry that they couldn't walk. Without the defense of the city wall, the soldiers were like unarmed civilians.Even if they retreat, they may not be able to break out of the encirclement and escape.

In addition, Zhang Xun and Xu Yuan still had a glimmer of hope for Shangheng of Pengcheng County, Xu Shuji of Qiao County, and He Lanjinming of Linhuai County, who held the army.

Even in the Warring States period, the hostile princes would come to the rescue in times of crisis. What's more, when Suiyang was attacked, the nearby Pengcheng, Qiao, and Linhuai counties would also face disaster.

Lips and teeth depend on each other, these three armies can't ignore death, they will definitely send troops, it is better to continue to stand firm and wait for reinforcements.

……

After eating the tea and paper, kill the war horse.

Killing the war horse means that there is no possibility of breaking through. If there is no reinforcements, it will just sit and wait to die.

After the horses were eaten, the soldiers climbed to the trees to catch the sparrows and dig the rats under the wall, and the sparrows and rats were quickly eaten up, and there was nothing to eat in the city.

Zhang Xun killed his concubine and let his soldiers devour her body.Xu Yuan also killed his domestic slaves and let the soldiers eat them all.

Next, the soldiers began to hunt down the women in the city and kill them all for cooking.After the woman finished eating, she ate the old man and the child.

Suiyang City seemed to be a hell.

At the same time, the Yan army has not stopped attacking the city.

Whenever the Yan army's offensive receded, fires would ignite in Suiyang City.The surviving soldiers gathered around the fire, tearfully eating the bones of their comrades...

From August to October, the Suiyang soldiers headed by Zhang Xun and Xu Yuan relied on the cruel method of "cannibalism" to survive and guard Suiyang.In the last two months, as many as 3 old and weak women and children were eaten by the Suiyang defenders.

Yin Ziqi also knew the situation of food shortage in the city. Every day, he slaughtered sheep and cattle under the city tower, and cooked bread and buns. The aroma overflowed and floated towards the city tower.

As long as you surrender, you will be entertained immediately with good wine and meat.

As long as you surrender, gold, silver and treasure will be offered immediately.

As long as you surrender, you will be well-clothed and well-fed immediately, promoted and rich, and soaring to the top!
If you don't surrender, you will definitely die!
But no matter how intimidating Yin Ziqi was, none of the soldiers in Suiyang escaped and betrayed Datang!

At the beginning of October, more than 1000 Suiyang defenders died in battle, and only [-] remained.To be precise, there are four hundred dying lonely ghosts left.

On October [-]th, when the Yan army attacked the city of Suiyang like a tide, the defenders were ill and could no longer raise their swords and guns.

Zhang Xun straightened his clothes, bowed in the direction of Chang'an, and shouted loudly: "The minister is exhausted, and the whole city cannot be used. There is no way to repay your majesty in life, and death will be a ghost to kill thieves!"

Suiyang then fell, and the Yan army captured Zhang Xun, Xu Yuan and others.Yin Ziqi stared at Zhang Xun with his single eye for a long time, staring at the only opponent he feared in his life.

Yin Ziqi said: "I heard that every time you fight, your canthus is cracked and your teeth are broken, why?"

Zhang Xun looked up to the sky and laughed wildly: "I want to swallow the traitor, but I can't hear it."

Yin Ziqi pried open Zhang Xun's mouth with a knife, only to see that there were only three or four teeth left.Yin Ziqi respected him spontaneously, and deliberately saved Zhang Xun's life and recruited him to surrender.

But the generals of the Yan army resolutely opposed it, saying: "This person values ​​integrity more than his life, and he will never be used by me. Moreover, this person has won the hearts of the army. If he is kept, it will be a trouble for the future."

Yin Ziqi remained silent for a long time, closed his one eye, waved his hand, and ordered Zhang Xun, Nan Jiyun, Lei Wanchun and other 36 people to withdraw from the gate and beheaded.

In Suiyang in October, the autumn wind is gradually rising, the mist is slightly cool, and the execution ground is full of chills.

The executioner raised the guillotine high, the knife was bright and dazzling.Zhang Xun's expression was not chaotic, calm and calm, just like usual.

Zhang Xun raised his head and looked at the sky. The sky was like washing, with chaotic clouds flying across.Zhang Xun turned his head and looked at Nan Jiyun who was always by his side.

Nan Jiyun looked like he had just met him back then, with piercing eyes, a beard like a halberd, and a dusty face, but he did not hide his chivalry at all.

Zhang Xun praised Nan Jiyun: "Nan Ba, the man is dead, don't be wronged for injustice!"

Nan Jiyun smiled freely, and replied: "If you want to be a general, you can do something. You have a word, how dare Yun not die?"

Zhang Xun looked around at the generals.The generals smiled at the corners of their mouths, and looked at Zhang Xun with a nod.

Zhang Xunhao suddenly became angry, and shouted loudly: "Suiyang is married, and he pledged himself to the country. There will be no regrets in this life! After 18 years, we will be brothers again!"

All 36 guillotines were cut down, and in the fog of blood, all the brothers laughed hand in hand and went to the underworld together!
Zhang Xun was 49 years old.

……

Prior to this, Li Mi learned the real situation in Suiyang from Bai Fu, and urgently ordered Zhang Hao, the Minister of Zhongshu, to concurrently serve as the envoy of Jiedu and interviews in Henan, and succeed He Lan Jinming.

In the eighth month, Xu Shuji, the prefect of Lingchang, was besieged by thieves, but the rescuers could not come, so he drove the crowd to Pengcheng.

Zhang Hao learned that Suiyang was in danger, so he rushed to help Suiyang.At the same time, Lu Qiuxiao, the governor of Qiaojun County and other theaters such as Eastern Zhejiang, Western Zhejiang, Huainan, and Beihai, was urgently recruited, and ordered them to send troops to support.

Qiaojun is the closest to Suiyang, and has enough soldiers and food.But Lu Qiuxiao has always been arrogant and arrogant, ignoring Zhang Hao's military order.By the time Zhang Gao led his troops to Qiaojun, Suiyang had been occupied for three days.

Zhang Hao was furious, and summoned Lu Qiuxiao, beheaded him first and then played, and beat him to death with random sticks.

……

The siege of Suiyang began in the first month and fell in October. The soldiers of Suiyang struggled for ten months, blocking half of the Jianghuai River and mountains.

In just ten months, there were more than 10,000 battles in Suiyang. Zhang Xun and Xu Yuan, with less than 12 people, resisted the [-]+ puppet Yan army, beheaded [-] enemy generals, and killed [-] enemies!With few enemies, many wins with few, the outstanding record will shine through the ages!

The puppet Yan rebels acted cruelly. Wherever they passed, they were like locusts crossing the border. They looted all the people's property, enslaved strong men, raped women, killed the old, weak, sick and young directly, and picked them on knives for fun.The prosperous Central Plains has become an uninhabited wilderness where wolves are called and no human population is cut off.

Suiyang is located in the middle of the Bianhe section of the Grand Canal. It is the gateway to the Jianghuai River, and the Jianghuai River is the wealth center of the empire.

At that time, Suzong's court, which was far away in the barren land of Lingwu, only had the support of taxes from the Yangtze River and Huaihe River basins. From preparation to counterattack, the army of King Qin of Luqin relied entirely on the support of Jianghuai River and Huaihe taxes.Once the supply of money and food from the Jianghuai River is lost, not only will there be no strength to regain the two capitals, even Suzong's court itself will be in danger of collapse.

If Zhang Xun had given up Suiyang early and fled to the southeast in defeat, or if he had become an isolated city with no support, had no food and was discouraged, and died to show his ambition, the whole battle situation would be different, and the imperial court would recover the two capitals in no time.

Suiyang defended for two years, contained hundreds of thousands of rebels, tried to protect the wealth and wealth in the southeast half of the Tang Dynasty, and protected tens of millions of people in the south of the Jianghuai River from falling into the desperate situation of hell.

From this point of view, Li Tang's world was preserved, all thanks to the bloody battle in Suiyang, and the soldiers donated their lives to die for the country.

……

Looking at the battered and devastated Suiyang city tower and the dead bones under the city, all the reinforcements of the Tang army were weeping. Zhang Hao wrote in a memorial to the court with tears: "In every battle, the soldiers may retreat and disperse, and stand on the battlefield. Therefore, the so-called general said: "I will not leave here, and you will pay it back for me. "Soldiers dare not return, fight to the death, and defeat the enemy. He also treats people with sincerity and hides no doubts. He responds to the enemy with endless surprises. The orders are clear, the rewards and punishments are trustworthy, and the people share the joys and sorrows, the cold and the heat, so they fight to the death."

……

(End of this chapter)