Chapter 355: Refusing to Hand Over Power

Two days later, King Rong Li Wan led 40,000 troops from Hedong to Qingzhou, bringing the total number of troops at Li Longji’s side to 160,000. Meanwhile, the King of Bian sent word that the Uyghur forces had retreated north to the steppes, officially ending the threat to Shuofang. With this news, Li Longji no longer had any concerns. He immediately ordered his entire army to march north toward Lingzhou. By late April, the 160,000-strong army set off in great force toward Lingzhou, the seat of the Shuofang military governor.

Lingzhou is today’s Lingwu County in Ningxia, located near the Yellow River. The river is wide, with numerous tributaries, and the land is fertile, making it a renowned grain-producing area north of Guanlong. Lingzhou was also the largest city in northern Guanlong. Due to its abundant resources and large population, it became the location of the Shuofang military governor.

The departure of the Uyghurs did not bring any respite to the Shuofang military governor, An Sishun. On the contrary, the fear of impending doom kept him in constant anxiety. That afternoon, An Sishun received news that Li Longji had left Qingzhou, with over 100,000 troops marching toward his Lingzhou. The army would reach Lingzhou within two days at the latest.

In a dim room, An Sishun stared blankly at the ceiling. He had been locked in that room for two hours, making an extremely difficult decision—where should he go?

In fact, he already had a decision; what was needed now was the courage to act on it. An Sishun was in his early fifties. Decades of military service had shaped his decisive nature. He had made countless important decisions throughout his life, including the decision to ambush Li Qingan, which he made in just the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. A cup of tea was the maximum time he ever took to make a decision—his decisions were never longer than that. But this time, he had spent three full days pondering.

Raising an army and proclaiming himself emperor was something An Sishun had never considered, not even imagined. It would mean splitting the Tang Dynasty and making him a local warlord. Such a precedent had never existed in the over hundred years since the founding of the Tang Dynasty, yet An Sishun was about to take that first step.

After three days of reflection and two hours of deep contemplation, An Sishun gradually resolved to take that step. In truth, he had no other choice. If he did not act independently, he was certain to die.

Before An Sishun’s eyes was a map of the Guanlong region. He didn’t have a sand table yet; he had sent people to make one, but it wasn’t ready yet. In fact, he didn’t need a sand table either—he was extremely familiar with every mountain and river in the Guanlong region. Among them, he knew Hexi best, as he had served as its military governor for many years. Now, his gaze fell on the Hexi Corridor on the map.

Like Li Qing’an, he too saw opportunities in Hexi. Guo Shuhan had withdrawn all troops from there, leaving it defenseless—a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity. An Sishun’s gaze grew increasingly resolute, reflecting his firm determination. He smiled coldly out the window and muttered to himself, “Li Longji, this is you forcing me to do this. Don’t regret it!”

“General!” Gao Xiuyan’s voice suddenly came from outside, slightly panicked.

“What is it?”

“I just received news that scouts have spotted Guo Ziyi leading troops south from Jiuyuan, and he’s almost reached Anding County.”

An Sishun was shocked and asked urgently, “Is it east or west of the Yellow River?”

“It’s west of the Yellow River.”

An Sishun immediately grew anxious. Could Guo Ziyi have already discovered his plans? It was very possible; otherwise, there would be no reason for him to come from the west bank of the Yellow River. What should he do? An Sishun paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, quickly thinking of a strategy.

At that moment, Gao Xiuyan said again, “General, I have another matter to report.”

“Come in!”

The door opened, and Gao Xiuyan rushed into the room. An Sishun had already returned to his seat, staring at him indifferently. “Speak! What is it?”

Normally, Gao Xiuyan was his confidant, so he shouldn’t be treated so coldly. But in reality, he had realized that An Sishun wasn’t entirely loyal to him—this man had his own ambitions. Someone had informed him, and Gao Xiuyan had secretly moved his family and assets. Of course, An Sishun could understand his concerns. It wasn’t a big deal that he had moved his family and assets; the problem was that he hadn’t reported it to him, doing everything in secret. This showed that he no longer trusted An Sishun, which made An Sishun slightly dissatisfied with him.

Gao Xiuyan wasn’t aware of An Sishun’s coldness. He knew An Sishun must be extremely anxious and at a loss, as he had never seen him lock himself in a room for two hours.

He locked the door behind him, stepped forward, and said in a low voice, “General, have you thought of a way to retreat?”

An Sishun immediately felt a hint of wariness. He sighed subtly and said, “No, I really don’t know where to go.”
“General, I have a suggestion.”
“Hurry and tell me!” An Sishun straightened up immediately, looking at him with hope, his expression as if he had found a way out on a cliffside.
Gao Xiuyan perked up and quickly said, “General, after much thought, if you want to get through this crisis, there’s only one way. Have you thought of it?”
“I was thinking about turning to my brother An Lushan for help, but I just can’t bring myself to make that decision,” An Sishun tried to probe him.
Gao Xiuyan smiled and gave a thumbs-up. “General, that’s exactly what I meant. I believe your only way out is to seek refuge with the Prince of Dongping. In the whole world, only he can accept you.”
“But I’m also considering surrendering to Li Longji.”
An Sishun continued to test him. “I think that as long as I surrender voluntarily, although Li Longji won’t let me take command of the army again, at least he won’t kill me. With my experience, I could still serve as the governor of a province, which is pretty much the same as serving under An Lushan.”
“Has the General forgotten what happened to Wang Zhongsì?” Gao Xiuyan clearly grew anxious and advised him, “Back then, Wang Zhongsì refused to attack Shibao City, defying Li Longji’s orders. As a result, he was demoted to the governor of Jiujiang. Although Li Longji didn’t kill him at that time, Wang Zhongsì died suddenly a year later—definitely at Li Longji’s hand. He’s very good at this. What about Wei Jian and Huangfu Weiming? They were first demoted to make people think he was kind, and once no one paid attention anymore, he struck. Didn’t they all die mysteriously a year later? If you surrender to him, you’ll surely die a year from now.”
“Well… let me think about it more.”
“General, don’t think anymore. The Prince of Dongping is your cousin, both of us are from the An family. Only he can treat you well and preserve your strength.”
An Sishun glanced at him, then let out a long sigh. “Since when has it taken me so long to make a decision? Fine! I’ll follow your plan and go to Fanyang to seek refuge with my cousin An Lushan. I’ll write him a letter right now and send someone to deliver it.”
An Sishun quickly wrote a letter and handed it to his bodyguard in front of Gao Xiuyan. “Deliver this letter immediately using the fastest courier service. It must reach Fanyang within two days. If it’s a day late, bring my head to me.”

The bodyguard took the letter and left at a quick pace. Gao Xiuyan was secretly pleased and said, “General, Li Longji’s army is only two days’ journey away from here. If we wait for a reply from the Prince of Dongping before setting off, we might be too late. It’s better if we depart right away.”
An Sishun nodded. “My plan is to set off in the middle of the night. You should go back and get ready too!”
“Then I shall take my leave!”
Gao Xiuyan left the room. An Sishun slowly walked to the window and watched Gao Xiuyan’s figure disappear in the courtyard. With a cold smile, he said, “So you’re one of An Lushan’s dogs!”
He waved at the bodyguard in the courtyard, who quickly came to the window. “Please give your orders, General!”
“Keep an eye on Gao Xiuyan. Watch every move he makes. Report to me immediately if anything happens!”
…
Gao Xiuyan lived in the west part of the city. His wife and children had already been secretly sent to Luoyang. He was the only one living in the entire mansion. An Sishun’s guess was correct—he had indeed defected to An Lushan. Birds choose the best trees to perch on, and he also needed to consider his own future. Ever since An Sishun refused Li Longji’s order to step down, Gao Xiuyan knew An Sishun wouldn’t live much longer. Li Longji would surely target him first. And Guo Ziyi, who would succeed him, had a poor relationship with him. If he came to power, Gao Xiuyan wouldn’t have a good life. At that time, An Lushan sent someone to find him secretly, and Gao Xiuyan took the opportunity to join An Lushan’s side. An Lushan appointed him as the Commander of the Pinglu Troops, but on condition that he persuade An Sishun to come to Fanyang. If An Sishun refused to go, his position as Commander of the Pinglu Troops would be nothing but a dream.
Hard work pays off. An Sishun was indeed persuaded and agreed to go to Fanyang. Gao Xiuyan, unable to contain his excitement, rushed back to his mansion. He went straight to the backyard, where there was a pigeon cage in a corner containing five pigeons. These were messenger pigeons sent to him by An Lushan. Gao Xiuyan quickly wrote two identical letters, informing An Lushan that An Sishun would raise an army in the middle of the night and head for Fanyang, asking An Lushan to prepare to receive them.
He stuffed the letters into two pigeon messengers, then quickly went to the pigeon cage. He picked out two strong pigeons and tied the letters to their legs. After carefully checking that they were securely tied, he threw the two pigeons into the air. The pigeons flapped their wings and flew toward the distant Fanyang, carrying Gao Xiuyan’s dreams of promotion and wealth.

In the dead of night, drums suddenly rang loudly in the camp of the Shuofang army. More than 20,000 soldiers were awakened from their sleep. In a daze, they grabbed their weapons, hastily put on their armor, and rushed out of the tents.
“What’s happening?”
“I don’t know. Maybe the Uyghur army has attacked again!”
All sorts of rumors spread among the soldiers, but no one explained what was going on, nor did anyone give them any orders. There wasn’t even time to organize the troops, so they rushed in panic toward the banks of the Yellow River.
Lingzhou City was located right next to the Yellow River, less than ten miles away from its banks. The Shuofang army had over a hundred ferries on the river, enough to transport 20,000 people at once. By then, An Sishun and a dozen of his trusted generals had already arrived. An Sishun gazed at the dark river surface, lost in thought for a long time. He knew that Guo Ziyi’s troops were on the other side. If they crossed now, they would be intercepted before even reaching the shore. He absolutely could not cross the river here.
After pondering for a while, An Sishun thought that deception was always useful. It would be best to keep Guo Ziyi here while he crossed the river from Huizhou. With this idea in mind, he called one of his trusted generals and whispered a few instructions to him. The general left immediately. At that moment, Gao Xiuyan rushed up from behind, filled with fear. Wasn’t An Sishun supposed to go to Fanyang? To get to Fanyang, he should head east, so why was he trying to cross the river westward?
“General, aren’t you going to…”
“Don’t worry. I am going to Fanyang!”
An Sishun patted his shoulder and reassured him with a smile, “If I went east, I’d be caught by Li Longji’s large army. That’s why I need to head west first, then turn south to get behind Li Longji before heading east. Do you understand?”
“But…” Gao Xiuyan wanted to say that going north would be faster to reach Fanyang, but An Sishun didn’t give him a chance to speak, cutting him off with, “Get on the boat first. We’ll head south by boat!”
He gave a signal to a few of his bodyguards, who immediately surrounded Gao Xiuyan and led him toward the large boat. After a few steps, Gao Xiuyan suddenly realized something was wrong—An Sishun definitely wasn’t going to Fanyang.
“General An, what’s going on?” Gao Xiuyan shouted. He tried to break free from the bodyguards, but they were extremely strong and dragged him toward the boat by his arms.
“Help!” Gao Xiuyan cried for his own bodyguards. Before he could say another word, a soldier smashed his back of the head with the handle of a knife, knocking him unconscious.
With a flash of blades, the few bodyguards who had come with him disappeared into the darkness. What An Sishun wanted were Gao Xiuyan’s 3,000 troops. Otherwise, he would have killed this traitor long ago—after all, he had dared to secretly send messages to An Lushan.

“Great Marshal, the troops have all reached the shore. What should we do now?”
An Sishun stared coldly at the opposite shore. Suddenly, he turned around and ordered, “Order the main forces to turn south and march toward Huizhou. Tell the soldiers that the Uyghurs are attacking Hexi, and the Emperor has ordered us to rush there for rescue.”
In the darkness of the night, 20,000 troops from Shuofang turned south and set off in great numbers toward Huizhou. At the same time, 100 large ships left the shore—50 heading to the opposite shore, while the other 50 sailed northward. Guo Ziyi’s troops were coming from Jiuyuan in the north, so these 50 ships headed in the opposite direction toward Jiuyuan.
…
In Youzhou City, the pigeon message sent by Gao Xiuyan arrived the next night and was immediately taken to An Lushan’s desk. At that time, An Lushan was discussing military strategies with several of his generals and advisors. He had already decided to launch an attack. Initially, he planned to remain low-key and patient, aiming to be the last subject of Li Longji’s power reduction. But with the situation changing rapidly, he never expected Li Longji to transfer the main forces from Hedong to Guanlong, leaving only a small garrison in that area. This made An Lushan eager for action.
It could be said that since a few years ago, An Lushan had been eyeing Hedong. He had tried every means to become the governor of Hedong but never succeeded. Just as he was about to give up, an opportunity suddenly appeared: Hedong was unguarded.
“Generals, you all know my plan. Now I want to hear your opinions—should we take Hedong?”
There were seven people in the strategy room, all of An Lushan’s confidants: advisor Gao Shang, generals Shi Siming, Cai Xide, Tian Qianzhen, Li Guiren, Zhang Tongru, and An Lushan’s second son, An Qingxu.
Attacking Hedong was a major decision. An Lushan needed to consider not only the advisors’ suggestions but also those of his generals. Each of these generals was capable of leading troops independently and was a skilled warrior.
Advisor Gao Shang spoke first, “According to our intelligence, Hedong’s army numbers only over 10,000 men, scattered across different areas. The most concentrated force is in Taiyuan, the northern capital, with 5,000 soldiers. The next is the Jingxing Pass, with 2,000 defenders. It seems Hedong is within easy reach. The key is how we will take it—by force or under some pretext? I personally prefer to use a pretext.”
An Lushan nodded. He shared the same idea. Seeing that the generals remained silent, he grew impatient and said, “Speak up too. Don’t just stand there without saying anything.”

At this moment, Shi Siming stepped forward and slowly said to everyone, “Personally, I think whether it’s by force or by finding an excuse to enter doesn’t matter. What’s important is whether we can occupy Hedong in the long term. Also, once we have Hedong, what should be our next step? And if Li Qing’an has already taken control of Hexi, then we don’t need any excuse—we can simply send troops.”
The person Shi Siming was most concerned about was Li Qing’an. Over the years, he had never been able to shake Li Qing’an’s shadow; the humiliation from years ago had become a lifelong nightmare for him. He would often unconsciously bring up Li Qing’an, as it had become a habit of his. Everyone else was aware of this flaw in him and didn’t dare laugh at him.
Just then, Cai Xide was about to speak when An Lushan stopped him. “Xide, there’s no need to speak. I know your opinion.”
Cai Xide was someone who acted decisively—once he made a decision, he would act immediately, no matter how difficult it was. He wouldn’t stop until his goal was achieved. An Lushan naturally knew what he would say—he would definitely propose sending troops to seize Hedong overnight.
An Lushan then glanced at Tian Qianzhen, a general skilled in both civil and military affairs who had always been highly regarded by An Lushan. Tian Qianzhen’s nickname was Ahao, and he was very popular in Fanyang. Apart from Shi Siming, Tian Qianzhen and Shi Siming had no deep-seated enmity, which An Lushan was also aware of, so he tried his best not to assign them to work together.
“Ahao, what’s your opinion?”
Tian Qianzhen stepped forward and bowed. “Commander An, my view is the same as Mr. Gao’s. We must occupy Hedong, but the key is how to do it. I suggest finding an excuse, so that our action has a legitimate reason. Unless Commander An has already decided to announce to the world his intention to replace the Li family’s rule, it’s better to be cautious. As for plans after occupying Hedong, I don’t think they’re important. The situation is constantly changing. Just as the commander wanted to remain low-key a month ago, he now decides to send troops to Hedong. So plans aren’t crucial—what matters is staying aware of changes in the situation.”
After saying this, he glanced at Shi Siming out of the corner of his eye and snorted softly in his heart. Shi Siming remained silent, his face dark.
“Good point!”
An Lushan nodded in approval. Tian Qianzhen’s analysis suited his preferences. He then looked at the others—Li Guiren, Zhang Tongru, and An Qingxu—all agreed that they should occupy Hedong and become its de facto military governors.
Now, advancing on Hedong had become a consensus, without any doubt. The key was what excuse to use. They certainly couldn’t follow Li Qing’an’s example and use the pretext of suppressing bandits in Hedong—there were no bandits there to suppress.

Just as everyone was deep in thought, seeking an excuse, a bodyguard entered the room and quietly handed a pigeon letter to An Lushan. “General An, it was sent by Gao Xiuyan.” An Lushan was stunned. He opened the letter and saw that An Sishun indeed intended to defect to Hebei. At that moment, a brilliant idea struck An Lushan—he thought of a perfect excuse. “Gentlemen, since An Sishun wants to defect to Hebei, we should help the Emperor by intercepting him in Hedong. What do you think of this excuse?”
…
While An Sishun was withdrawing from Lingzhou, Li Longji’s army had already reached Qinggangling, the junction of Yanzhou, Qingzhou, and Lingzhou. The area was characterized by steep mountains and dense forests. It began to rain, and the rain grew heavier, making it extremely difficult for the army to move forward. Li Longji himself got soaked in the rain. Having indulged in pleasure with two newly acquired beauties night after night, he was already very weak. After being drenched by the rain, he soon fell ill. Li Wan immediately ordered the army to camp there until the heavy rain stopped before continuing on.
A slender figure appeared in the heavy rain. Li Wan, holding an oiled paper umbrella, slowly walked toward his father’s tent. A guard stepped forward and said, “Your Highness, His Majesty is not well and should not be disturbed.” “I know. I just want to take a look.” Li Wan slowly approached the tent entrance and listened carefully. From inside the tent, he could hear his father’s coughing and wheezing. His heart grew heavy—he knew his father would not live much longer. It seemed unlikely that his father would change his mind about choosing an heir. With Li Yuyu about to ascend the throne, Li Wan felt overwhelmed with despair.
Li Wan was Li Longji’s sixth son. He was known for his elegance and refined demeanor, enjoying high prestige among the noble families. He had always disdained power. Before becoming the governor of Hedong, he rarely thought about competing for the throne, believing it was beyond his reach. But people’s thoughts change with circumstances. After becoming the governor of Hedong and gaining real military power, he tasted the sweetness of authority for the first time, and his inner world underwent a dramatic transformation. He began to crave the throne. Did he have a chance? He had always held onto a glimmer of hope, and with that hope, he came to Qingzhou. But now, seeing his father’s health deteriorate day by day, he realized the chances were slim. His father would never risk chaos in the realm by changing the heir again.
Li Wan sighed secretly and turned to leave the tent. Just then, Li Longji’s weak voice came from inside the tent. “Is it Wan’er?”

“Yes! Your Majesty, it’s me.”
“You… come in!”
Li Wan entered the tent. Li Longji was lying on the bed. Instead of the two newly acquired women from Qingzhou by his side, it was Wu Xianyi, who had left the capital with him. At this moment, what he needed most was a woman who knew him well and could take care of his health.
“Your Majesty!” Li Wan knelt down.
Li Longji struggled to sit up and said, “I happen to have something to discuss with you.”
“Please speak, Your Majesty!”
“I’ve thought long and hard. The Shuofang army is also my army. I don’t want any fighting or killing with them. So I’ve decided to give An Sishun another chance. If he agrees to surrender to me immediately, I can reappoint him as the governor of Henan Province and spare his life. What do you think?”
“Your Majesty is merciful. This is An Sishun’s last chance. If he still refuses to reform, even heaven will not forgive him.”
“Hmm!” Li Longji nodded and smiled at her. “That’s why I’m thinking about who would be the best envoy for me. After much consideration, I think it’s most suitable for you to go!”