Chapter 695: The Death of Lü Shan

In Yingzhou, Hebei Circuit, as November arrived, the Bohai State and its surrounding counties were once again hit by a blizzard. This was the fourth blizzard since winter arrived early this year. Heavy snow fell in Yingzhou as well, covering both cities and villages with thick layers of snow, turning the world into a white expanse.

The streets of Liucheng County were sparsely populated. The severe cold made most people reluctant to go outside; instead, they stayed at home by the heated beds. Only those who needed to make a living were forced to go out to work.

Some job opportunities arose due to the snow, such as snow shoveling and selling charcoal. In just over a month, there had been four heavy snowfalls—a rarity in previous years. The thick snowload caused many old houses to collapse under its weight. However, it was difficult for one person to clear the heavy snow from rooftops. Families with relatives could ask for help, but those with few people could only pay others to do the job.

After winter set in, a group of snow shoveling laborers became active in Liucheng County. They were all strong young men who charged fair prices and even volunteered to do extra work for their employers, earning them the goodwill of the local people.

Needless to say, this group of snow shoveling laborers was led by Ji Sheng’s scout team. They had been in Yingzhou and Pingzhou for nearly a month. Their base was located in a manor at the border between Yingzhou and Pingzhou, the ancestral home of Jin Zhu, an official from the Ministry of War, where their horses were also kept.

This time, Ji Sheng brought sixty scouts in total. He led thirty of them to operate in Yingzhou and Pingzhou, while his deputy, Qi Yan, led the other thirty to Youzhou to monitor Shi Siming.

In the past, Ji Sheng would never have allowed his men to operate collectively in An Lushan’s core territories. But now he had discovered that An Lushan’s intelligence network had disappeared. Failing to evacuate from Youzhou in time, they were captured by Shi Siming. An Lushan’s intelligence chief, Gao Shang, was removed from his position, and although Zhang Tongru took over, a new intelligence network had not yet been established.

Moreover, it seemed An Lushan was no longer interested in Li Qing’an. He only guarded against Shi Siming. The soldiers patrolling the city only checked Turks and paid little attention to Han people. This was a clear sign of An Lushan’s decline—he no longer had the strength to confront Li Qing’an.

That’s why Ji Sheng allowed his men to appear openly in the city. In fact, Ji Sheng himself had little interest in An Lushan. He came to Yingzhou to establish an intelligence relay station. Li Baozhen would send him updates on the situation in the Bohai State, which he would then forward to Xiangzhou and finally to Chang’an.

At that moment, a small black dot circled above Liucheng County. It was a falcon, coming from the icy north, braving the severe cold to hunt for its prey. It was a messenger, destined to receive a feast only after completing its mission. After circling several times in the air, the falcon gradually landed in a residential house near the southern city gate—where Ji Sheng and his group were temporarily staying. The falcon perched on a wooden frame, its sharp eyes scanning the surroundings. Its owner was already waiting there, gently stroking its neck fur, taking the message pouch from its legs, and leading it inside. He placed several large pieces of fresh meat beside it; the falcon couldn’t eat outside, or the meat would quickly freeze. The scout rushed inside with the letter. The main room was filled with warm air as over a dozen scouts sat around two charcoal braziers, chatting quietly. Ji Sheng sat cross-legged on the heated bed, a wooden board on his lap, using a Turkic cipher to write a letter to Li Qing’an, reporting on An Lushan’s latest situation. The total military strength of Yingzhou was now less than six thousand, while the newly recruited thirty thousand troops had been taken to Pingzhou by An Qingxu and were no longer under An Lushan’s control. In fact, the father and son had split apart—most of An Lushan’s money and supplies were in Pingzhou, in An Qingxu’s hands. His other son, An Qinghe, had taken seventy thousand troops north to join the Khitans in attacking the Bohai State. The army was now trapped in the Khuhai Sea, and An Lushan, once commanding half a million troops, had become a destitute pauper. The door opened, and a gust of cold wind rushed in. The scouts laughed and cursed, “Lu Laoqi, can’t you come in faster? You’ve blown away all the heat we managed to build up.” “I’m delivering a letter to the boss! It’s important work. You guys just sit around enjoying yourselves without doing any work?” The scout laughed and handed the letter to Ji Sheng. “Boss, it’s from Bohai—latest intelligence!” Ji Sheng took the letter, opened it, and suddenly chuckled. “I was right! An Lushan’s son was killed, and the Yan army was conquered by the Khitans.” “Then An Lushan is really a pauper now!” The scouts all laughed. With just over five thousand troops left, what could he possibly do? “Boss! What’s the situation in Bohai?” asked one of the scouts. “Hmm! Let me tell you then!” Ji Sheng put down his pen and smiled at everyone. “The letter says that the Khitans launched dozens of attacks, but were repelled by the Tang army’s powerful bows and crossbows. They suffered heavy losses, and now there are less than forty thousand of them, trapped in Huzhou City by the Tang army…”

Before Ji Sheng could finish speaking, the scouts exclaimed in shock, “Dozens of attempts to break through—why are they in such a hurry?”
“They have to be in a hurry!” Ji Sheng laughed. “Their food supply has run out. They’ve been relying on killing horses to survive, but once those horses are gone, how will they leave Bohai State? If the Khitans become infantry, what will they use to fight against the Tang army when spring comes?”
“Head, if their food supply is exhausted, their horse fodder must also be gone! Can their warhorses hold on?”
“I guess things are pretty bad now. This Khitan army is finished. If they’re wiped out, so is Khitan.”
There was a hint of regret in Ji Sheng’s tone. He hadn’t been able to attend this ‘feast.’ By now, he had finished writing the letter as well. He folded it carefully, placed it together with the intelligence about Bohai, and handed it to the messenger, instructing him, “Send this letter to Xiangzhou immediately!”
The messenger took the letter and left. Ji Sheng jumped down from the heated bed and smiled at everyone. “Let’s go! Go out and gather some information.”
The scouts got up one after another, taking their shovels and heading out.
…
An Lushan’s Yanwang Palace was also covered in heavy snow. Hundreds of soldiers, under the command of San Taibao Bao Yongzhen, were busy clearing the snow and roads. Of An Lushan’s twelve Taibao, only three remained—San Taibao Bao Yongzhen, Wu Taibao Bao Qi, and Ba Taibao Bao Yuanguo. The other nine Taibao had died in battle one after another. These three Taibao were in charge of An Lushan’s last 5,600 guards. Among them, San Taibao Bao Yongzhen was the most important, as he supervised the 3,000 imperial guards tasked with protecting An Lushan.
“General, the commander wants you to come in!” A soldier ran to the door and called out to Bao Yongzhen.
Bao Yongzhen turned and entered the palace. He hurried to the courtyard where An Lushan was staying and heard An Lushan shouting angrily, “Get out of here! Tell that bastard I’m not dead yet! I’ll give him everything except him—make him give up the idea of killing me!”
Gao Shang ran out of the house, holding his head, and almost collided with Bao Yongzhen. Bao Yongzhen quickly supported him. “Sir, are you alright?”
Gao Shang sighed softly. “With traitors in power, how can one not fail?”
He shook his head and left quickly. Bao Yongzhen didn’t understand Gao Shang’s meaning. At that moment, he heard Zhang Tongru persuading inside the house, “My lord, you should kill him. Without him, An Qingxu can’t rise to power. It’s all him who’s instigating these actions behind the scenes.”
An Lushan remained silent. Zhang Tongru added, “Father and son are bound by nature. I believe the young lord never had any improper thoughts. It’s because of this man’s instigation that the relationship between the lord and his son has been ruined. If such a person isn’t killed, there will be future troubles. My lord, make up your mind!”

An Yongzhen was shocked upon hearing this. Just then, a soldier came over, and he quickly grabbed him, whispering, “Go and tell Mr. Gao to flee immediately; otherwise, his life will be in danger!”
The soldier turned and ran away at full speed. An Yongzhen, like all of An Lushan’s personal guards, hated Zhang Tongru deeply. Yet An Lushan would listen only to him. Everyone around An Lushan opposed sending troops north, but under Zhang Tongru’s instigation, An Lushan persisted in his decision. Many had heard that the Yan army had been completely destroyed, but Zhang Tongru told An Lushan that the Yan army had advanced into Silla, which filled the guards with anger and helplessness. No one dared tell An Lushan the truth, for doing so would surely result in death at Zhang Tongru’s hands.
Now many felt that An Lushan was not only blind but also confused, essentially becoming a puppet of Zhang Tongru.
Sure enough, An Lushan’s voice was heard from inside the room: “Pass my order: An Yongzhen must immediately chase after Gao Shang and execute him. If he escapes, bring his head to me.”
The guard rushed out of the room and happened to meet An Yongzhen. “General, the commander-in-chief orders you to chase after Gao Shang and behead him. You must have heard the rest of the order!”
An Yongzhen smiled bitterly, shook his head helplessly, and turned to set off.
In moments, three hundred cavalry rushed southward like lightning. Gao Shang, if he wanted to escape, could only leave through the south gate.
A narrow path had been cleared on the street leading to the gate, but outside the city, it was a frozen wasteland with no way to go. One could only move carefully over the ice and snow. An Yongzhen immediately spotted Gao Shang’s carriage, parked there, with several attendants supporting Gao Shang beside it. It seemed they were waiting for An Yongzhen.
The three hundred cavalry spurred their horses and chased after them. In moments, they surrounded Gao Shang. Gao Shang smiled slightly and said to An Yongzhen, “If I’m not mistaken, it was Zhang Tongru who persuaded Your Lordship to send you to kill me!”
“Sir, you are extremely wise. You’re absolutely right—it was indeed Zhang Tongru’s instigation.”
An Yongzhen sighed. “Actually, the person I wanted to kill was Zhang Tongru, not you. But since Your Lordship gave the strict order that if I didn’t kill you, I would have to bring my head instead, I’m sorry, sir. I really had no choice!”
“What about the young prince? Isn’t he a way out?”
Gao Shang had actually been waiting for him. He knew Zhang Tongru wouldn’t spare him, so An Lushan would surely order An Yongzhen to kill him. He pointed ahead. “The young prince has stationed his army ten miles away. Why don’t you go join him, General?”

“Has the young prince arrived?” An Yongzhen was quite surprised. The young prince’s army had already reached ten miles away, yet he hadn’t heard a word about it. After all, there were nearly two thousand troops from An Yuan Country led by Lao Ba right in front!

Gao Shang smiled. “The general of An Yuan Country has already defected to the young prince. General An Qi also said he’s willing to serve the young prince. Now only the army of General San remains. As you and I both know, the Yan army sent to attack Bohai Country has been completely annihilated. The Yan army is on the verge of destruction. Why do you still insist on your stubbornness, risking the prince’s life in the end?”

“Sir, you’re overreacting! How can it be considered killing the prince?”

“The prince is already under Zhang Tongru’s influence. Now that the army is in the young prince’s hands, he still refuses to cooperate with him. General San, think about it—would he have acted this way in the past?”

An Yongzhen thought for a moment. Indeed, in the past, the prince would have gone along with the situation, handed over military power to the young prince, and not resisted an established fact. But now he refused to relinquish power at all costs, which would surely lead to conflict between father and son. There must be Zhang Tongru’s influence at play. Clearly, the prince wasn’t only blind in sight but also in heart.

In fact, An Lushan wasn’t completely under Zhang Tongru’s control. Often, he made his own decisions. For example, sending troops north to ally with the Khitans had nothing to do with Zhang Tongru—it was entirely An Lushan’s own decision.

But An Lushan’s mistakes were not acknowledged by his close followers as his own folly. Instead, they blamed Zhang Tongru, insisting that An Lushan was under his influence. An Yongzhen also held such biases, which is why Gao Shang took advantage of his hatred for Zhang Tongru and his desire to save An Lushan to persuade him.

This persuasion was very effective, and An Yongzhen was convinced.

Seeing that he was swayed, Gao Shang continued to persuade him, “If the general could defect to the young prince, then the prince would have no basis to oppose him. That way, he would soften, give up worldly affairs, and focus on recovering. More importantly, the father and son wouldn’t fight each other. General San, the prince can’t see the situation clearly. Let’s help him. Isn’t that good?”

“This…”

An Yongzhen was tempted. Gao Shang’s reasoning made sense. It was like a madman wielding a knife, slashing around wildly. If you took away his knife and locked him up, without a weapon or freedom, the madman would gradually calm down.

That’s exactly the problem with An Lushan now—he’s been deceived by Zhang Tongru and has lost his sanity. If he were to lose control of his army, all the current crises would disappear. Handing over military power to the young prince would actually be helping the general. Thinking this, he nodded and said, “Let me think about this further. I’ll respond to you as soon as possible.” “Good! I look forward to your reply, General.” An Yongzhen turned his horse and headed back into the city. One of his subordinates asked in a low voice, “How will the General explain this to the prince?” “Just say we failed to catch up. The prince won’t really kill me.” As the cavalry troop gradually disappeared, Gao Shang watched their retreating figures and smiled with satisfaction. Even if An Lushan refused, he could still seize those last five thousand elite soldiers. He already had a plan—tonight. … Although it was icy and snowy, making travel difficult, an army of over ten thousand men arrived by the Bai Lang River, about ten miles south of Liu Cheng County. They set up camp there. Leading this army was An Qingxu, who had also received news from one of his subordinates in Bohai: An Qing had been killed, and the last twenty thousand Yan troops had been absorbed by the Khitans. This meant that only thirty-six thousand Yan troops remained in total. Of these, more than five thousand six hundred were stationed in Liu Cheng County—An Lushan’s direct guard force and the most elite cavalry in the Yan army. An Qingxu, on the other hand, only had thirty thousand new recruits. Of course, he wanted to bring those last five thousand elite soldiers under his control. Inside the tent, An Qingxu paced anxiously with his hands behind his back, waiting for news from Gao Shang. Gao Shang had already entered the city to see An Lushan. He hoped Gao Shang would bring back some good news. “Mr. Gao is back!” Suddenly, a report came from outside the tent. An Qingxu perked up and rushed out to greet him. “Sir, how did it go? Did my father agree?” “Half good news, half bad news.” Gao Shang entered the tent and sat down. He took the hot tea handed to him by a servant and took a satisfying sip to ward off the cold in his body. Then he smiled at An Qingxu, who was staring at him eagerly, and said, “Would you like to hear the good news first, or the bad news?” “Sir, tell me the bad news first.” “Hmm! The prince refused your suggestion without hesitation. He absolutely refused to hand over military power to you, saying it could be given to anyone but not you. That were his exact words. He even sent people to hunt me down.”

A hint of disappointment appeared in An Qingxu’s eyes. His father was so stubborn. It was only a matter of time before he took control of the military. To avoid a rift between them, he had sent Gao Shang to persuade his father, but to his surprise, his father still refused, refusing to give it to anyone but himself. An Qingxu’s heart ached, and he clenched his fists, gritting his teeth silently and saying, “Father, don’t force me. If you push me too hard, I won’t even acknowledge our father-son relationship!”

“Does the young prince not want to hear good news?” Gao Shang asked with a slight smile.

An Qingxu quickly snapped back to reality. He said hurriedly, “Please go on, sir. I almost forgot.”

“The good news is that An Yongzhen has already expressed his willingness to consider joining the young prince.”

Earlier, Gao Shang had lied to An Yongzhen. In fact, the other two imperial guards had not joined An Qingxu yet; they hadn’t even met him. The troops of An Yuan Country were stationed in the south, but when they came, they bypassed their camps. An Yongzhen didn’t expect this to be false news and had fallen for Gao Shang’s trick.

An Qingxu was overjoyed. An Yongzhen commanded three thousand troops, which were his father’s personal guard. If he agreed to join him, it would be a huge advantage. To be honest, his father’s remaining five thousand elite soldiers were very strong, and he wasn’t sure he could take them by force.

“This is a surprise gain for me.”

Gao Shang then detailed how he had persuaded An Yongzhen, concluding, “We can’t delay. Once he confronts An Qi, he’ll realize I’m lying and doubt the prince’s sincerity. We must act tonight to take control of An Yongzhen’s three thousand troops and seize power for the prince!”

An Qingxu nodded silently. He was equally impatient.

“We’ll act after dark. My men are on duty at the south gate tonight.”

……

November nights came early. There was no sun, and the sky was covered in dark clouds. As night fell, it became extremely dark—you couldn’t see more than a few dozen steps ahead. Under the cover of darkness, An Qingxu’s ten thousand troops set out in the bitter cold. They moved slowly, as the severe cold greatly slowed their progress.

It wasn’t until the hour of Hai that they reached the south gate of Liucheng County. In the darkness, someone went to open the gate. The commander on duty at the south gate that night was Cheng Xin, a lieutenant general under An Qi, one of the Five Imperial Guards. He had already been bribed by An Qingxu. An Qingxu had brought his troops to Yingzhou precisely to use him as an insider to enter the city and seize power.

It was his turn to lead two hundred men to guard the south gate that night. He had already received An Qingxu’s instructions during the day. Standing on the city wall, Cheng Xin saw An Qingxu’s massive army approaching outside and immediately ordered, “Open the gate!”

The city gates slowly opened, and An Qingxu’s army began to enter the city. Cheng Xin ran down from the city walls and knelt on one knee to pay his respects, “Your humble servant greets the young prince!”
An Qingxu smiled and nodded, then asked, “Did An Qi come on patrol tonight?”
“No, I just heard that the Fifth General seems to be ill.”
An Qingxu almost laughed out loud. Heaven was indeed on his side! Two of the imperial guards—one wanting to surrender, the other sick—so what suspense could there be tonight?
“Good! Pass my order: march straight to the Prince of Yan’s palace.”
In the darkness, an army of ten thousand marched boldly toward the Prince of Yan’s palace…
An Qingxu’s army entered the city at night, startling Ji Sheng and others living near the city gates. They peeked outside through the courtyard walls. Ji Sheng’s brows furrowed—he recognized it as An Qingxu’s army. He also knew that An Qingxu had absorbed thirty thousand new troops and had deep conflicts with An Lushan. Had the father and son reconciled? But if so, why enter the city at night? They didn’t even dare light torches, acting in secrecy.
Ji Sheng’s intuition told him that An Qingxu intended to seize power in the dead of night.
“General, shall we take advantage of the situation?” one of his men suggested quietly. Ji Sheng thought for a moment. The situation wasn’t clear, and it was uncertain what they could achieve, but it was indeed a good opportunity. Perhaps they could stir up conflict between the two sides. His heart burned with excitement—if there was a chance, he would never miss it.
He waved his hand, calling ten of his men to him.
“We’ll act separately. Luo Si, take seven men to the area near the Prince of Yan’s palace to look for an opportunity to set fire. Don’t force anything, and make sure you’re not discovered. The other two will follow me. We’ll put on Yan army armor and blend in.”
The ten scouts moved swiftly. Ji Sheng and two others put on Yan army armor and quickly mixed into the Yan army ranks. These were the Yan army’s new troops, mostly Han people. In the darkness, no one would notice three extra people among them.
…
At the Prince of Yan’s palace, ten thousand soldiers surrounded it. Only five hundred soldiers were on duty inside, while the rest were stationed in a camp west of the palace.
Although An Qingxu’s army had surrounded the palace, the camp remained silent—no troops came out to protect An Lushan.
The commander, An Yongzhen, had already decided to side with the young prince. He had received a personal letter from An Qingxu, stating that they would merely remonstrate with the prince and guarantee his safety. With this assurance, An Yongzhen ordered his troops not to act rashly and to stay in the camp.

Flames blazed in front of the Prince of Yan’s palace. Hundreds of elite soldiers blocked the entrance, watching warily at the young prince on horseback. Though he was just a prince, ten thousand troops surrounded the palace, which filled them with concern.
“The prince is here!” someone shouted. The soldiers stepped aside, revealing several guards carrying An Lushan’s seat as they came out of the palace, followed by Zhang Tongru, who looked extremely nervous. Fearing that An Qingxu’s troops might storm the palace, he persuaded An Lushan to come out and punish his rebellious son. Encouraged and deceived by him, An Lushan lost his temper and came out personally.
“Where is that traitor?” An Lushan demanded loudly as soon as he appeared. Unable to see what was outside, Zhang Tongru told him that An Qingxu had only brought five hundred armored soldiers into the city. But An Lushan immediately sensed something was wrong—it didn’t seem like just five hundred people. Worrying, he turned to Zhang Tongru and asked, “How many people are there outside exactly?”
Surrounded by his guards, Zhang Tongru didn’t dare lie to his face and said, “I’m not sure either. It seems there are many people outside. I don’t know which ones belong to the prince and which ones belong to the Third General.”
“Father!” An Qingxu, still on horseback, spoke up. He was quite close to An Lushan, only about twenty steps away. “I’ve come to ask Father to go to Pingzhou to recover. This is not only my wish but also that of all the Yan army soldiers. An Yongzhen, An Qi, and An Yuanguo all agree. Please pack up and come with me!”
An Lushan was stunned, then erupted in fury—how dare he surrender? “Where is An Yongzhen? Have him come see me!”
One of the guards reported, “Your Highness, the Third General is still in the camp and hasn’t come yet.”
“What?” An Lushan realized something was wrong and quickly asked, “How many people has that traitor brought?”
“Reporting to Your Highness, at least ten thousand, and they have already surrounded the palace completely.”
An Lushan was shocked. Ten thousand? That meant defeat was inevitable. His anger vanished instantly, and his first thought was how to save his own life. He began to feel afraid.
Ji Sheng stood in the second row, with an open space in front of him. The position he chose allowed him to see An Lushan clearly. An Lushan was surrounded by guards holding shields, with only his neck and above exposed.
Ji Sheng didn’t aim his crossbow, as that would draw attention from those around him. But he had another secret weapon—a miniature crossbow hidden under his cloak.

Li Qing’an had once used this crossbow at Mingde Gate in Chang’an, shooting it into a horse’s anus to give the arrogant Yang family a severe lesson. It was later improved several times and made from high-quality iron, becoming a powerful secret assassination weapon. Its three-inch-long arrows could be shot fifty steps away, with an effective killing range of thirty steps. It wasn’t the arrow itself that killed, but rather the deadly poison coated on it.

At that moment, he was about twenty-five steps away from An Lushan and could use the crossbow. He was ready, just waiting for the right opportunity.

Suddenly, he noticed flames appearing above the Eastern Prince’s mansion. His men had succeeded—this was his chance. He immediately gave a signal to the two men covering him. One of them immediately pointed eastward and shouted, “Look! The mansion is on fire!”

Everyone turned eastward and saw flames soaring above the mansion. The moment everyone’s attention was diverted, Ji Sheng acted. From the darkness of the crowd, he shot an arrow from the crossbow. The arrow was short, moving so fast it was hard to see—only a flash of green light was visible. With a “thwack!” the arrow pierced An Lushan’s thick neck.

An Lushan screamed and struggled desperately. His massive body rolled off the seat like a huge meatball, tumbling down the stairs and lying on the snow. He clutched at the snow in agony. Suddenly, he kicked his legs, and his grip on the snow loosened.

Silence reigned outside the mansion. Everyone was stunned, staring blankly at An Lushan’s body, which was gradually going stiff. No one dared approach to check—what had happened was simply too sudden.

An Lushan, a formidable ruler of his time, died under mysterious circumstances. But everyone believed he died at the hands of his son, An Qingxu.