A thousand-year-old family that began with the Battle of Makino

Chapter 998: The wise and the heroic discuss the world, the advantage is in my heart
"Meng Gong is a wise man, a hero in the world, is he not aware of the great trend?"

"The Emperor of Great Xia is kind yet decisive, elegant yet brave. He is descended from the thousand-year-old Bai family and is a first-class wise ruler in the world. The ancient Yao and Shun were no better than him."

"The Crown Prince of Daxia is virtuous and respected by everyone, both inside and outside the country. He is a role model for the country. After a hundred years, he will inherit the throne, and Daxia will prosper for another thirty years."

"My Great Xia King Qin is intelligent and studious. He respects the wise and the humble, cares for the military and civilians, and respects the superiors. He is the heir apparent of the crown prince."

"With these three generations of wise men, Daxia can prosper for a hundred years or even a thousand years."

"Looking at the other countries in the world, the ruler of Tang is tyrannical, the ruler of Wu is powerless, the bones of the king of Chu are in his tomb, and Yue, Min, and Yin are small countries, not worth worrying about."

"You can see that the great unification of the world lies in our Great Xia, not in other countries."

"To act in a perverse way, to try to stop a chariot with a mantis arm, is not what a wise man would do; to bring disaster to the people of Shu out of selfishness is a heinous crime, and is not what a hero would do."

"Why not surrender the city as soon as possible to prevent the war in Shu and preserve the virtue of Lord Meng."

"Besides, my lord is kind and merciful. Lord Wang is a teacher and Lord Zhu is a guardian. With the examples of the past, Lord Meng does not have to worry about his life, and his descendants will be rich and noble in the blink of an eye."

"If we really wait until our lord's army arrives, the city will be destroyed, the people will die, the clan will be wiped out, and the people of Shu will despise us. Wouldn't it be too late to regret?"

The lengthy speech by the Xia envoy made the Shu rulers and ministers present feel like they were under tremendous pressure.

The Xia Kingdom is really too big.

It occupied the entire area east of Guanyu and south of the Yellow River, as well as half of Hebei and the entire Jingxiang region.

Now they have taken half of Shu from me.

Now nearly half of the world's core land is in the hands of the Xia Kingdom.

The power contained in this made the rulers and ministers of Shu feel despair.

Not to mention the upcoming hundreds of thousands of Xia army troops, which made them waver in their determination to strengthen the city of Chengdu.

Meng Zhixiang looked at the ministers in the hall who dared not speak, and sighed in his heart.

It was a pity that his ambition to be king and hegemon was cut off by the Xia Kingdom before it even began.

You have to know that he, the King of Shu appointed by the Tang Dynasty, has been in power for less than a year and is about to leave him.

"Your Excellency, you don't know. It's not that I don't want to submit to your country. It's just that my family is in Chang'an's hands."

"I am afraid that if I surrender to your country, it will bring disaster to my family."

Hearing Meng Zhixiang's ridiculous excuse, Envoy Xia couldn't help but sneer, "Today I know that Lord Meng values ​​his family so much."

"Then how come Lord Dong's family, who were originally Lord Meng's relatives, ended up being wiped out? Don't tell me that this was all done by the Emperor of Chang'an."

"Now, Mr. Dong's son, Dong Guangsi, is outside the city. You know the truth."

Meng Zhixiang smiled awkwardly.

Envoy Xia thought there was nothing more to say, so he gave a final warning: "Meng Gong's army is mostly from Guanzhong, but there are many people around him from Shu."

"When it really comes to that critical moment, who can we rely on? Don't let it be too late and follow in Wang Yan's footsteps."

"Farewell."

When Envoy Xia left, Meng Zhixiang subconsciously looked at the civil officials and generals, but he saw that they all lowered their eyes humbly and did not dare to look him in the eye.

Instantly, he felt a chill running from his tailbone along his spine to his forehead.

He seemed to have overlooked that he no longer had the power that truly belonged to him.

The assistants who originally helped him resist the Later Tang court's army and annex Dong Zhang's troops were all former people of the Later Tang.

Now he has lured many local Shu people into the shogunate, but this group of people has not yet completely surrendered.

Now that he was at a disadvantage, there was no guarantee that the Shu people would not take his head as a means of advancement in order to save their lives, just like Wang Zongbi during the reign of Wang Yan of Former Shu. There was also no guarantee that those military leaders would not hold him hostage and surrender to the Later Tang in order to save their lives.

Envoy Xia was right. It would be better for the enemy to fall into Bai Jian's hands than into Li Siyuan's hands. At least there would be protection.

The tenth year of Xia Chengqian, the third year of Changxing in the Later Tang Dynasty
August 13

King Meng Zhixiang of Shu sent an envoy to the Xia army camp to discuss surrender.

August 14

Meng Zhixiang held a banquet to arrest his cronies, including Zhao Tingyin, the military governor of Wude Army, Li Renhan, the military governor of Wuxin Army, and Zhao Jiliang, the military governor of Yongping Army.

He imprisoned them in the Palace of the King of Shu and sent his trusted confidants to command the troops in the city to prevent any accidents.

August th

Meng Zhixiang, together with the civil and military officials of Shu, requested surrender to Kang Yanxiao, the General of the Cavalry of Daxia, outside the north gate of Chengdu.

Kang Yanxiao accepted the surrender of the other side on behalf of the emperor, and immediately sent people into the city to receive the surrendered soldiers and guard the gates.

The next day, Kang Yanxiao sent people to escort Meng Zhixiang and other surrendered ministers and generals to Kaifeng.

August 23
All the prefectures and counties in Shu were conquered by the order.

When Bai Jian, who was on the road, learned that Meng Zhixiang had surrendered, he was overjoyed.

On the one hand, he slowed down the order to store grain in Xiangyang, and on the other hand, he appointed Kang Yanxiao as the governor of Xichuan and the inspector of Sikong, in charge of the military affairs of all prefectures and counties in Xichuan.

Zhao Lianglong was appointed as the governor of Dongchuan and the general of champion, responsible for the military affairs of all prefectures and counties in Dongchuan.
He also appointed Lou Xiu, the former governor of Yangzhou, as the acting minister of the Ministry of Personnel and acting governor of Chengdu, giving him full responsibility for the political affairs of all prefectures and counties in Shu.

The emperor also appointed the 19-year-old Sixth Prince Bai Yang as the King of Shu and appointed him as the prefect of Chengdu. When he finishes his studies next year, he will be sent to Chengdu to govern Shu.

In addition, Bai Jian also ordered the Ministry of Personnel to select officials and send them to various places in Shu as soon as possible to serve as provincial governors and county magistrates.

Take Shu into your own hands as soon as possible.

September 6
Just when Bai Jian was busy dealing with numerous requests from Shu, Meng Zhixiang and his party arrived in Kaifeng.

Lifting the curtain of the carriage, looking at the prosperity of Kaifeng city which is different from Chengdu and Chang'an, it feels like entering another city.

"Is this the kind of city that only exists in troubled times?" This was what Meng Zhixiang thought in his heart.

"It would probably be nice to spend the rest of my life here."

"Your humble servant Meng Zhixiang pays respect to His Majesty the Emperor of Daxia. May His Majesty live long and long."

"Meng Qing, please stand up. Since you have entered our Great Xia, you are a minister of Xia. You can recognize the current situation and wake up to save the people of Shu from a great disaster. Your merits are immeasurable."

"I am terrified."

"The Emperor of Daxia issued an edict: ...confer the title of King of Xing on Meng Zhixiang, with the same status as King of Qi Congyi, King of Yan Shouguang, and King of Jing Jian, and he is listed as a king of Daxia on a par with the others."

"Appoint Meng Zhixiang to the rank of General of the Cavalry in the Marshal's Office, Senior Pillar of the State, Inspector of the Military Affairs Commissioner, with a fief of 10,000 households and a real fief of 1,000 households..."

"I thank you for your grace. Long live the emperor."

Bai Jian looked at Meng Zhixiang, who was in tears and looked grateful, and said with a smile:
"Since you have entered Daxia, you must be loyal to the emperor and serve him. Do not have any thoughts that you should not have, which will cause suffering to the people and even more suffering to your family."

"Please keep this in mind."

"Oh, right." Bai Jian seemed to remember something and said, "I know your family is in Chang'an. I have sent an envoy to Chang'an to ask the Tang Lord to release them with a large sum of money. Don't worry."

Meng Zhixiang was stunned, then he knelt on the ground willingly, and said:

"I am deeply grateful for your majesty's grace."

(End of this chapter)