Chapter 6: A Time of Chaos (6)

After light snow came heavy snow, and during the heavy snow season, real snow did fall.
As the twelfth lunar month arrived, temperatures in the northern provinces of the Tang Dynasty plummeted. A cold wave sweeping in from the northern steppes swept away all residual warmth from the ground, bringing intense bone-chilling cold. By the time the Winter Solstice passed, the land north of the Huai River was completely covered in snow.
“In the first nine days of winter, don’t move; in the second and third, walk on ice.” This year, the extreme cold in the Tang Dynasty was even more severe than usual.
Outside Yingzhou City, an army of about ten thousand cavalry was on the move.
Traveling under such harsh weather could only mean either an army or bandits. The former was compelled by orders, while the latter was forced by survival. To live always required a price—in this regard, bandits and armies were surprisingly similar.
Qian Yuanke, the governor of Yingzhou, paced anxiously on the city walls, his face filled with worry.
Ever since receiving reports from County Magistrate Jiang Zheng, he had been unable to sleep. An army of over ten thousand was rushing toward Yingzhou from the south and was likely to reach the city gates by afternoon.
News of An Lushan’s rebellion in Youyan had long spread throughout the Tang Dynasty’s provinces. With An Lushan in rebellion, the capital region and Henan region were hit hardest. Recently, the Eastern Capital had been besieged, leaving officials in Henan region panicked and seeking ways to escape.
Qian Yuanke was no exception.
Judging from their route, they must have come from Huainan region. Marching rapidly through wind and snow at this time could only mean imperial troops sent north to restore order. Under normal circumstances, Qian Yuanke would have welcomed this life-saving army into Yingzhou City with joy and treated them well. But now, his thoughts had changed.
What made him hesitate was, of course, one thing—the fall of the Eastern Capital!
On the thirteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, An Lushan’s army captured the Eastern Capital, Luoyang. In just 35 days, this barbarian had taken control of most counties in Hebei region, with some counties in Henan region also surrendering at the first sign of resistance.
The rebels seemed poised to march westward and seize Chang’an, defying fate itself!
The Tang Dynasty had enjoyed peace for a long time, and its officials had grown accustomed to a mundane life. Now, with a regional general suddenly rising in rebellion and seizing half of the Tang Dynasty’s territory, these officials, who once had great ambitions, were stunned.
As An Lushan neared capturing the Western Capital, they wondered whether to follow the Tang emperor to his doom or find a new ruler and side with An Lushan.

It was merely an extremely difficult choice. If they ultimately chose the Li Tang royal family, they would indeed gain moral support, but that would be as far as it went. The Eastern Region had already fallen, and the Yuzhou cavalry was sweeping through the counties of the Henan Region with terrifying force. It was only a matter of time before the remaining unyielding counties, lacking support, would bow to An Lushan.

After all, the central government’s troops had long been out of combat and were completely unable to match the Yuzhou cavalry. As for those hastily assembled local militias, they would likely be scattered with just one charge from the Yuzhou cavalry.

On the other hand, if they defected to An Lushan at the first sign of trouble, they would face immense pressure. After all, An Lushan only controlled parts of the Hebei and Henan Regions, areas that were insignificant compared to the vast territories of the Tang Dynasty. Though the rebels were currently on the rise, their momentum could not last forever. Moreover, it was deep winter, and An Lushan’s advance would surely be hindered. If he failed to seize Chang’an, the Western Capital, in one go, the situation remained uncertain.

With enough time, the imperial court could adjust its strategies to counter the rebels’ attacks and even calmly mobilize reinforcements from various provinces to defend the capital. By then, An Lushan’s advantage of launching a surprise attack would vanish, leaving him trapped in a siege by the local troops.

If the court pursued those who defected to the puppet regime, those officials would likely face confiscation of their property and even extermination of their families!

Qian Yuanke had already hesitated for over ten days regarding this matter.

In his view, An Lushan’s chances of victory were not high. After all, there was the formidable Tongguan Pass in the capital region. Even if An Lushan had 200,000 cavalry, it would not be easy for him to capture the city. Moreover, having seized so many cities in the Hebei and Henan Regions, An Lushan would need to divide his forces for defense, leaving him with no more than 100,000 troops available.

As long as the imperial court sent General Gao Xianzhi to firmly defend Tongguan and refuse to engage in battle, they could wait until spring to wear down the rebels’ morale. Then, the emperor could issue an imperial edict summoning all military leaders to the capital to aid in defending it. By then, An Lushan would surely be abandoned by all, and his rebel forces would collapse.

But his younger brother, Qian Yuanruo, who served as the governor of Xuzhou, did not share this view!

Qian Yuanruo believed that An Lushan was skilled in surprise attacks and would certainly not prolong the war until spring. The advantage of 200,000 cavalry lay in their mobility—how could An Lushan give up such a significant advantage?

If An Lushan was determined to storm Tongguan at all costs, he would eventually enter the capital region! Once Tongguan fell, the Western Capital would be within his grasp. With this in mind, Qian Yuanruo chose to side with An Lushan by joining his ranks.

Although he was not optimistic about his brother’s choice, Qian Yuanke remained silent.

In any case, the family must make as many choices as possible. Whenever a dynasty changes, it poses a test to the powerful families. To ensure their family remains unshaken, they assign different branches to ally with various forces. This way, no matter which faction ultimately takes control, that family will still have its lineage continued! It’s like distributing food and vegetables into different baskets—done purely to minimize losses! Though such choices may seem ugly and despicable, he still agreed to them. Only in this way could the Qian family of Yingchuan continue to thrive through generations! Whether An Lushan succeeds in seizing power or the Li Tang dynasty recovers it, the branch that sides with the opposing force will surely face destruction, but as long as the Qian family of Yingchuan has descendants left in the world, there will always be a chance for revival! Powerful families are like parasitic crabs that retreat into their shells during low tide to protect themselves and wait for the next high tide. The pain of waiting is undoubtedly great, but they don’t care about it. All they want is for their family to endure, and whether the shell protecting them bears the surname An or Li, they truly don’t care! “Old Jiang, order the city gates to be opened!” Qian Yuanke sighed deeply, looking at the cavalry not far below the city gates, and said softly. Since this rebellion was destined, he shouldn’t hesitate any longer. Success or failure lies in a single decision—seizing the present might be the most important thing. Another heavy snowfall… I wonder if I’ll still be able to witness such beautiful snowscapes in the years to come.