Northern Dynasties Imperial Industry

The news of the defeat of the Eastern Expedition Army soon spread throughout the city, and the soldiers and people in the city, who were already exhausted mentally and physically, suddenly became more discouraged and desperate.

After returning to Fucheng, Xiao Ju took a short rest. When his mood stabilized, he went straight to Xiao Ji Palace. When he came here, he saw that the original Wuling Prince's Mansion had no access control. People were constantly coming in and out, and they even openly moved their belongings to escape.

"Stop! Which of your subordinates dares to disturb the king's sect?"

When Xiao Ruo saw this, he was furious. The anger that had been suppressed for days also burst out at this moment. He directly ordered his subordinates to draw their swords and come forward to kill and expel him.

He had been an official in Bashu for a long time, and his prestige was second only to Xiao Ji. After seeing this, the rebels in front of the mansion did not dare to make any noise and resist, or they returned to their respective positions obediently, or they put down their belongings and fled, hiding their faces. Soon order was restored in front of the house.

When Xiao Ru walked into the palace, Xiao Yuansu, the young son of Xiao Ji who stayed behind in the palace, came up to him with a panicked look on his face. He pulled Xiao Ru's sleeves and asked in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, it is reported that the army in the city has failed. , my father has... is the news true? "

At the same time, Xiao Ji's wives and concubines in the Neiyuan also came forward one after another. They also looked panicked and asked Xiao Ru all kinds of questions.

Faced with everyone's inquiries, Xiao Ru just sighed. In fact, he also doubted the authenticity of the news. Perhaps it was fake news arranged by the Wei people to disguise and deliver it. However, seeing the panic caused when the news reached the city, it actually didn't matter whether it was true or false, because even if it was false, Yes, just looking at the chaotic situation in the city, it is difficult to hold on any longer. Unless the army can turn back at this moment, there is no way to save it.

He did not directly answer the inquiries of Xiao Yuansu and the female family members. He looked around and found that Xiao Yuanzheng was not there, so he ordered his servants: "Go quickly and invite King Xiyang back to the mansion."

At this time, it no longer makes much sense to hold on to the city defense, and it is time to discuss the way out.

Soon Xiao Yuanzheng returned to the palace from Shaocheng. Before he could speak after entering the hall, he saw Xiao Ru standing up and bowing deeply to the empty main seat in the hall.

Immediately, Xiao Ju stood up, looked at Xiao Ji's children and family members in the hall, and said: "Your Majesty, I have entrusted you with the foundation of your family and country, and I should swear to death to repay you. But now that we are surrounded by powerful enemies, I am a foolish person who cannot do anything." If we win, our willpower will be exhausted. The Eastern Expedition army is defeated at Xiakou, and Chengdu has no more reinforcements to look forward to. Therefore, the most important thing is to protect the family members of the Supreme Bloodline..."

"No, absolutely not!"

Xiao Yuanzheng's expression suddenly changed after hearing this, and he said loudly: "The Wei people are cruel and ignorant of etiquette. Even if they surrender, they may not be safe! What's more, there are thousands of elite soldiers in the city, and tens of thousands of people. The Wei army However, if there are tens of thousands of people who are sure of victory, why not attack immediately? How can I surrender to the enemy now that my defeat has not been revealed?"

Seeing that Xiao Yuanzheng was still so stubborn, Xiao Ru felt a little relieved, but he still sighed: "In today's difficult time, please don't act out of emotion. The general of Wei is a person who knows the military. Although his soldiers are not The crowd can win, but the tactics are exquisite and impeccable. The reason why we don't invite the crowd to attack now is probably because we are worried that strong troops will enter the city and loot it. This is also the opportunity given by the enemy. If we can't grasp it, it will be too late... …”

Hearing what Xiao Ru said, the other Xiao Ji family members present also nodded. They were now in panic and despair, and their only thought was to save their lives.

Because Xiao Yuansu was influenced by his father and brother, he didn't have much respect for this second brother who didn't have a deep relationship with him. He glared at Xiao Yuanzheng and said, "Second brother, don't act foolishly and show off your courage again. Since my father has entrusted the matter to Zheng Xi, you I should also obey! Everyone knows that the Wei army is fierce and difficult to defeat. If you really can match it, it is not too late to leave the city to fight. I am afraid that you will not only harm yourself, but also the lives of your whole family!"

After Xiao Yuanzheng heard this, he was extremely embarrassed. On the one hand, he did not dare to go out of the city to fight, but on the other hand, he was not willing to become a prisoner again. He grabbed his sword and shouted loudly: "You cowards You who stole my life, how could you have the dignity to rebuke me? Even Liu Chan, the empress of Shu, could raise the heroic bloodline of the King of the North. How could it be that my father's family education is not as good as mine? We must lead the loyal people in the city to fight elsewhere!"

As he spoke, he turned back to the outside of the hall, intending to lead the soldiers he had gathered in the city during this period to flee the city.

In his opinion, the Wei army only numbered more than ten thousand, and they only took advantage of the emptiness in Chengdu to steal the city. Even if Chengdu was conquered, it would be difficult to control the entire Shu, so as long as he left Chengdu and raised his arms, he would find the answer. They gathered together to form a force of their own, and could even drive the Wei army out of Shu, which was far better than surrendering directly.

But since Xiao Rui had already decided to surrender in his heart, how could he let Xiao Yuanzheng do whatever he wanted? He immediately winked at his close associates and at the same time looked at Xiao Yuanzheng's back and shouted: "Your Majesty, please stay. Is it possible that all The lives of the citizens of the city are not worth mentioning in the eyes of the king? Now the people are depressed and morale is low. If the Wei army comes to attack, it will be impossible to resist. If the king leads the people to flee, the Wei army will be angry and will definitely torture the people of the city! "

After hearing this, Xiao Yuansu shouted loudly: "Don't leave, don't leave! Stop him and don't leave the palace!"

Xiao Ruo's cronies were already blocking Xiao Yuanzheng's path, but following Xiao Yuansu's shouts, the guards in the mansion rushed forward one after another, apologized to Xiao Yuanzheng for being disrespectful, and then took him away. He was captured, and then under Xiao Yuansu's order, Xiao Yuanzheng, who kept yelling and scolding, was temporarily imprisoned in the inner room of the mansion.

After taking care of this annoying spirit, Xiao Yuansu looked at Xiao Ju again and said, "The lives of the whole family are all in the hands of the father. Please don't betray your father's trust!" As he spoke, he bowed deeply to Xiao Ru.

Upon seeing this, Xiao Ru hurriedly stepped aside, then nodded heavily and said: "Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will do my best to protect the family of the late king."

Now that the opinions have been unified internally, the next step is to discuss how to revise the table reduction. Xiao Ru then summoned Xiao Ji's old officials and appointed officials who were still in the city. After a discussion, he decided to surrender based on the Liang Emperor's specifications instead of Xiao Ji's old prince Wuling Wang.

Although they were just fooling around behind closed doors and did not gain universal recognition within Nanliang, and they were just beaten to pieces by Emperor Liang from the east who sent troops to block the door, they finally completed a series of claims. Imperial process, and the calculation time is earlier than Jiangling.

Of course, the most important thing is that the resettlement treatment that can be obtained by surrendering in this way will be better. After all, for enemy generals, just conquering an enemy force is far less impressive than the achievement of conquering and destroying a country.

Now that the matter has been decided, the next step is to send an envoy out of the city to the Wei army's camp to request surrender. In order to prevent the Wei army from launching an attack first, Xiao Rudang sent an envoy out of the city with a letter of surrender without further delay.

At this time, the atmosphere in the Western Wei Army camp north of Chengdu was also very lively, with laughter and laughter everywhere. With the news of the defeat of Xiao Ji's army, they no longer had to worry about the emergence of new enemies. They were already dreaming of rich harvests after they invaded Chengdu.

At this time, the atmosphere in the Chinese army's tent was even more lively. The generals asked for battle one after another. Some generals even fought directly with their competitors in order to get the chance to go first.

The soldiers of the Western Wei Dynasty did not have regular military salaries, and their gains depended entirely on what was captured on the battlefield. In particular, there are still many Liufang forbidden troops among the troops led by Yuchi Jiong this time into the middle of Shu. These soldiers are not well organized and cannot even enjoy the welfare subsidies from some Chinese and foreign governments. Therefore, they go rampant inside and outside the capital to obtain money. .

This expedition to Shu was not only a great achievement for them, but also a rare opportunity to make a fortune. Even if they had not known the wealth of Chengdu before, during the march, they heard many exaggerated descriptions of the Di and Qiang people who had surrendered, and their hearts were filled with expectations.

Now the morale of the defenders in the city was low, and some soldiers even went out of the city to surrender. The defeat was obvious. If you can start the battle first, you will be able to enter the city first. Not only will you get there first, but you will also be able to loot the city one step ahead. Therefore, all the generals were naturally unwilling to give up this opportunity and requested to start the battle.

Yu Chijiong looked at the lively atmosphere in the tent and smiled on his face. In the past nearly two months of siege, he was actually under great pressure. Since he did not have too many troops, he did not dare to attack the city by force. He could only exert pressure through siege, and he also had to worry about reinforcements from the east.

When the pressure was greatest, Yuchi Jiong even wanted to mobilize He Ruodun's troops, who were strictly ordered to be trapped in Langzhong City, to bring reinforcements. Fortunately, his previous persistence paid off. With the news of Xiao Ji's defeat, it was just a matter of time to conquer Chengdu. It's a matter of time.

The order of battle in the camp has not yet been decided. The envoy from Chengdu who requested surrender has already arrived at the gate of the camp. After he stated his intention, he was quickly ushered into the tent.

After hearing the news that the Shu people had asked to surrender, Yuchijiong suddenly smiled on his face, but all the generals looked disappointed. Because once surrendered, it meant that the city would not lose order due to war, and they would not have the opportunity to carry out plunder.

Therefore, all the generals said that now that the chance of victory was certain, there was really no need to accept the opponent's surrender. They should rush into the city with great force to kill the Shu people's resistance.

But Yuchi Jiong had a plan of his own. He looked at the generals and said in a deep voice: "Now I enter Shu alone. I can win the people of Shu and surrender in the city, which will strengthen the power of the army. I can seize the strong city without any bloodshed, and everyone near and far will be intimidated. But If we attack it, not only the soldiers will die, but also the rebels from all directions will cause trouble. I don’t know how long Bashu will be able to pacify.”

Yuchi Jiong was the nephew of the Prince Consort of the Western Wei Dynasty and Taishi Yuwentai. He had been in charge of the Imperial Guards for a long time and was quite prestigious in his own right. After hearing this, the generals still held a breath in their hearts and were a little unwilling to accept it, but they were unwilling to do so. Dare to object again.

When Yuchijiong decided to surrender and was discussing the surrender procedures with messengers in the city, a group of soldiers quietly entered the palace of Prince Wuling, where the people were disorganized and the defense was greatly reduced, and found the imprisoned Xiao Yuanzheng: "The general will be waiting to rescue him." King!"