Chapter 678: The Fall of Southern Tang (Part 1)

Among the various factors that enabled Southern Tang to resist the massive attacks by the Northern Tang forces, geographical advantages gradually became its only reliance. To defend against them, Southern Tang spared no effort in deploying 80,000 troops across various strategic passes in northern Bashu. Alone in the three counties of Yinping, Jiemen, and Puan in Jianzhou, 50,000 troops were stationed there, with the Jiemen Shudao route in northern Jianzhou being the most critical defensive point.

It is said that during the Warring States period, King Hui of Qin sought to conquer Shu but struggled to find a way in. He falsely claimed to offer five golden oxen and five beautiful women to the king of Shu. Believing this, the king sent five strong men to cut through the mountains to welcome the women and transport the oxen, thus opening up this route, known as the “Golden Ox Road” or Jiemen Shudao.

Within the 30-mile-long Jiemen Shudao, Jiemen Pass was particularly formidable—a towering and impregnable stronghold. With one man guarding it, no army could breach it. Located amidst the rugged mountains of Da Jian Mountain, it blocked the main route from southern Hanzhong into Bashu.

During the Three Kingdoms period, Wei general Zhong Hui launched an attack on Shu. Shu general Jiang Wei led 30,000 troops to defend Jiemen Pass, holding back Zhong Hui’s 100,000-strong army outside the pass.

As history repeated itself, in modern times, Northern Tang general Li Guangbi led 100,000 troops along the Golden Ox Road in a massive attack on Shu. Yet his army was halted outside Jiemen Pass. Southern Tang general Chen Xuanli stationed 50,000 troops in the three northern counties, while he personally led 30,000 elite troops in Jiemen County, relying on the natural defenses of Jiemen Shudao to confront the Northern Tang forces.

The two armies had been locked in combat outside and inside Jiemen Pass for seven days, engaging in over a dozen skirmishes of varying scale, each causing casualties on both sides. It seemed the Northern Tang forces could not find an effective way to advance, and the stalemate continued indefinitely…

While Jiemen Pass remained in a stalemate, strange events unfolded in Langzhong County, about 100 miles southwest of Jiemen County. To counter the Northern Tang forces, Emperor Li Longji and his son Li Heng pursued a militaristic policy, conscripting 400,000 troops in Bashu. Seven or eight out of ten of the people’s resources and the country’s taxes were allocated to the army. These 400,000 troops were divided into two groups: 200,000 in Jingxiang and 200,000 in Shu. After the complete destruction of the Jingxiang forces, Southern Tang’s army was reduced to 200,000 troops. Excluding the 20,000 troops under Jia Chongguan from Nanzhao, there were actually only 180,000 troops left. Of these, 100,000 were stationed in Chengdu, while 50,000 were deployed in the three northern counties. The remaining 30,000 were stationed at various strategic passes, leaving almost no troops in the interior provinces and counties.

Langzhong County is the administrative center of Langzhou, located at the confluence of the Jialing River and the Dongyou River. With a mild climate and fertile land, it was once the capital of the Ba state. In the vast Bashu Basin, Langzhong County is a highly important county with a very high economic status, having always been a major source of taxes for Bashu.

Despite its high economic status, its military significance was average; there were no troops stationed there, and only over a hundred militia soldiers guarded the city gates. At night, darkness covered Langzhong County. It was already the third watch, completely silent, with the city gates long closed. The twenty-odd militia soldiers in the eastern part of the city were fast asleep. An old soldier woke up in his sleep, muttered something, and went outside to urinate against the wall. The night wind made him a bit more alert. As he was about to return to his room, a strange phenomenon caught his attention—he suddenly saw a long black dragon winding its way from afar at great speed. The ground began to tremble slightly as it got closer, and gradually he could see it clearly.

“Damn it, it seems to be cavalry!”
The old soldier jumped in fright and rushed to the bell tower, ringing the city bells loudly. The dull and shrill sound of the bells awakened the entire county. The militia soldiers rushed to the city walls, and the sight outside left them all pale with fear.

The cavalry outside had already lit torches, and flames spread in patches into the distance. There were as many as twenty thousand men, all cavalry. This force of twenty thousand cavalry came from the Northern Tang Dynasty via the Litchi Road, led by General Tian Qianzhen. They were originally part of the Anxi Army stationed in Turfan. After following Li Guangbi in battles in Longyou, they formed a new Longyou Army. This time, as Li Guangbi led fifty thousand elite troops from Longyou to Hanzhong, they were also among them.

According to Li Guangbi’s initial battle plan, he would lead the main force to feint an attack on Jianmen Pass, while his deputy, Tian Qianzhen, would lead ten thousand cavalry to launch a surprise attack on Chengdu. However, with the capture of Yiling and the early completion of the Jingxiang Campaign, Li Guangbi changed his plan. General Li Sheng would lead fifty thousand troops through Yiling into Shu to attack Chengdu, while Tian Qianzhen would lead twenty thousand cavalry via the Litchi Road, using their rapid mobility to flank Jianzhou and attack Jianmen from behind.

Tian Qianzhen marched swiftly, quickly crossing the sparsely guarded Litchi Road, and used surprise tactics to capture three outposts along the route. In Xuanhan County, the Southern Tang also had ten thousand troops stationed there. Instead of provoking an immediate response, Tian Qianzhen took advantage of the cavalry’s rapid mobility to bypass Dongxiang and Yongmu counties and enter Bazhou. After two days of marching, he arrived in Langzhong County.

The governor of Langzhou was surnamed Zeng. He had passed the imperial examinations in the third year of the Tianbao era and had originally been the magistrate of Langzhong County. He had been promoted to governor two years ago. A few days ago, he fell ill and slept heavily, while his wife sleeping beside him was suddenly awakened by the ringing of bells from the city walls.

“Sir! Sir!”

The governor’s wife shook her husband awake. In a daze, Governor Zeng asked, “What’s the matter?”

“It seems something has happened in the east city. I heard the bells. You should go take a look!”

“It’s so late. What could possibly be wrong? I have a terrible headache. Let’s talk about it tomorrow!”

Governor Zeng turned over, ready to go back to sleep, when suddenly there was loud knocking at the door.

“Sir! Sir!” Some officials were shouting in panic.

“What’s happened?” Governor Zeng asked irritably.

“Sir, there are tens of thousands of cavalry outside the east city. They want us to open the gates.”

“Ah! This is driving me crazy. Why are there more troops?”

The arrival of troops meant hardship for the people and financial strain, as well as an increase in crimes, which gave him a huge headache. Before he could react, he sat up, put on a robe, and opened the door to ask, “Where are these troops from?”

“Sir, they’re cavalry!”

Governor Zeng was instantly alert. How could there be cavalry in Southern Tang? He was terrified—these must be troops from Northern Tang. His first reaction was to hide under the bed, but his wife pulled him back.

“Sir, don’t be foolish. Go and take a look!”

His wife was from Qingzhou and knew that the Anxi troops had strict discipline and were not truly terrifying; it was only the Southern Tang troops that were dangerous.

Persuaded by his wife, Governor Zeng felt a little reassured. He put on his official robes and rushed to the east city wall.

Outside the east city, Tian Qianzhen had already led his troops there for a long time. They all brought their own food and generally did not enter the city to avoid disturbing the people. However, crossing the Jialing River required cooperation from the authorities, so Tian Qianzhen needed to discuss matters with the officials.

At that moment, a large number of officials and servants came to the city wall. Officials from both the prefectural and county governments arrived. The sea of flames outside the city was vast, terrifying all the officials.

“I am… Governor Zeng Yanshi of Langzhou. May I ask… which general is leading the troops below the city?”

“I am Tian Qianzhen, the governor of Lanzhou and General of the Cloud Flag. I am ordered by the imperial court and Prince Zhao to eliminate the puppet emperor of Southern Tang. I am passing through Langzhou. Please open the city gates quickly. I have matters to discuss with you.”

“May I ask… will the troops enter the city?”

“The troops will not enter the city, nor do we need food from you. But we need your boats—we will requisition all of them.”

The officials quickly discussed the matter. Providing ferries was not a problem; the key concern was fear that the army would enter the city. Eventually, Governor Zeng came up with an idea: they couldn’t hold the city anyway, so it was better to open its gates. Although the enemy said they didn’t need food, they still wanted to prepare as much dry food and cooked meat as possible to reward the troops. In short, they must not offend the enemy.

They divided their tasks—the county office prepared dry food and cooked meat, while the provincial office arranged for ferries. The city gates slowly opened. Governor Zeng led nearly a hundred elders from the city to greet them. They knelt in front of Tian Qianzhen’s warhorse. Governor Zeng raised the governor’s seal high and declared, “Langzhou is willing to surrender to the Northern Tang and pledge loyalty to the imperial court and Prince Zhao!”

Tian Qianzhen sensed the fear among the officials and common people. He dismounted, stepped forward, and helped Governor Zeng up. “Governor, please don’t do this. We are all subjects of the Tang dynasty; we are not bandits like An Lushan’s.”

He then spoke loudly to the over a hundred elders, “Dear fellow villagers, the Anxi Army has strict discipline and will not harm anyone. We will not enter the city nor extort the people. We are heading to Jianzhou. As the saying goes, a defeated army is like locusts—once the Southern Tang forces are defeated, they will burn, kill, and plunder, causing suffering to all living beings. We aim to block their escape southward, so that no area south of Jianzhou suffers from war. This is an order from Prince Zhao: those who kill will be put to death, those who injure or steal will be punished. Please rest assured, dear villagers!”

The elders became excited. Someone shouted, “Long live Prince Zhao!” The over a hundred elders followed suit, raising their arms and shouting. The officials and people on the city walls were also inspired, and together they cried out, “Long live Prince Zhao! Long live the Northern Tang army…”

Governor Zeng was deeply moved. He sincerely said to Tian Qianzhen, “The Southern Tang court is aggressive and imposes heavy taxes, causing great harm to all provinces and counties. I am willing to issue a call to the provinces and counties in Shu to return to the Northern Tang and resist the puppet emperor of Southern Tang.”

Tian Qianzhen was overjoyed. He bowed to him and said, “If you do this, you will be remembered for your great merit!”

…

Dawn was approaching. The officials of Langzhong gathered nearly a thousand boats of various sizes from the nearby areas. Langzhong was already the most important ferry crossing in the middle reaches of the Jialing River. The water here was calm and mirror-like, making it ideal for crossing the river.

In the morning light, 20,000 cavalry began to cross the river. By then, Tian Qianzhen’s words had spread throughout the city through the mouths of the over a hundred elders. Without any need for the county office to make preparations, tens of thousands of locals voluntarily came out of the city and flocked to the docks, bringing food and drinks to reward the Northern Tang cavalry. The scene was extremely enthusiastic. Tian Qianzhen led hundreds of officers to kneel and thank the locals, leaving over a hundred wounded soldiers in the city to recover.

By the afternoon, 20,000 cavalrymen finally crossed the Jialing River. The army, filled with enthusiasm, rushed toward the three counties of Jianbei, located a hundred miles away.