Chapter 50: A Long Howl (Ten)

Tongguan has fallen!
When Yang Yuhuan saw these four words, she collapsed onto the imperial bed, her face turning deathly pale.
Li Longji sneered twice, “I never thought that 180,000 troops couldn’t even hold a mere city like Tongguan! What’s the use of keeping these good-for-nothing fools? What’s the use?”
He pounded the bedsheet with his fan, his face filled with helplessness.
“Your Majesty, please don’t be angry. Perhaps there’s still a chance?”
Unable to bear to see Li Longji in such despair, Yang Yuhuan crawled over and whispered words of comfort.
“A chance? Yuhuan, do you really think there’s still a chance?”
Li Longji shook his head and pointed at the report, “Geshu Han led 180,000 troops out of the pass to fight the rebels at Lingbao Xi Yuan, but they fell into an enemy ambush and returned defeated. Less than 8,000 soldiers made it back into the pass. Soon after, Tongguan was captured by the rebels. How can there still be a chance? Cui Qianyou led only 20,000 men—maybe 30,000 including those who followed—and he still managed to rout my 180,000 troops. Hehe, hehe!”
After a pause, Li Longji continued, “What’s more serious is that once Tongguan falls, Chang’an will have no defenses left. Although that traitor An Lushan is busy claiming the throne in the Eastern Capital and hasn’t devoted all his forces to attacking from the west, once he’s established his position, he’ll surely march on Tongguan. What shall I do then?”
Yang Yuhuan finally realized the severity of the situation and said repeatedly, “Your Majesty, we must discuss this with the court officials as soon as possible. That wretch An Lushan is full of ambition. I believe he certainly won’t be satisfied with merely ruling a region as an emperor!”
These words were extremely disrespectful. Only coming from Yang Yuhuan would they be tolerated; if anyone else had said them, Li Longji would have ordered them executed on the spot.
“Then it seems there’s nothing else to do.”
Li Longji shook his head, his face filled with helplessness. …
In the Hanyuan Hall of Daming Palace, Emperor Li Longji of the Tang Dynasty sat upright in his ceremonial robes, overlooking the officials below. Though he tried to keep his back straight, he still couldn’t avoid feeling powerless. He was old—whether he admitted it or not, he truly was! In the past, sitting in court all day would not have caused him the slightest fatigue, but now, after less than half an hour, he already felt exhausted.
“Your Majesty, your servant Yang Guozhong has a report to submit!”
Yang Guozhong glanced at Crown Prince Li Hen before stepping forward with his court tablet in hand.

“I believe that once Tongguan falls, An Lushan will surely launch a full-scale attack on the Western Capital. Although there are still about 30,000 troops around Chang’an, most of them are imperial guards. Their combat strength aside, they are meant to protect Your Majesty and the royal family and should only be deployed in battle as a last resort. More importantly, if Tongguan falls, the defense commanders of Hedong, Huachao, Fengxiang, and Shangluo will abandon their posts, and the defending troops will scatter. Under such circumstances, the situation is truly perilous!”
After speaking, Yang Guozhong gave the crown prince Li Hen a triumphant glance, waiting for the emperor’s reply.
Li Longji, however, remained surprisingly calm. He nodded and asked, “So, according to Your Excellency Yang, what should I do now?”
Yang Guozhong bowed deeply and replied, “In my opinion, it would be best for Your Majesty to travel to Western Shu with the civil and military officials to temporarily avoid the rebels’ onslaught!”
These words immediately caused a great stir in the court.
“That’s not possible.”
“Yes, Lord Zhang is right. Prime Minister Yang’s plan is somewhat rash.”
“Yes, it is indeed rash.”
“…”
All the court officials whispered among themselves, but none dared to speak up.
Just as Li Longji grew annoyed and was about to silence their chatter, the censor Wei Chen stepped forward and declared loudly, “It’s unacceptable! Absolutely unacceptable. Chang’an is the foundation of our Tang Dynasty. As the legitimate emperor, Your Majesty must stay with the people and the country. If You Majesty remains in Chang’an, it will surely inspire the troops everywhere to resist the rebels, and defeating them will be only a matter of time. But if You Majesty goes to Western Shu, handing Chang’an over to An Lushan, the rebels’ morale will soar. Conversely, if the Western Capital falls, the morale of the troops in the surrounding areas will collapse, and the outcome will be decided without a battle!”
Pei Di, the head of the Dali Temple, also said, “I agree! Chang’an is the sacred land of our Tang Dynasty. If it falls, the rebels’ morale will soar, and the several armies sent to aid the throne will surely scatter at the first sign of trouble! Please, Your Majesty, prioritize the overall situation and stay in Chang’an with the people and the troops!”
Li Longji looked slightly displeased. With things having reached this point, they still hoped he would stay to boost morale! Of course he knew staying in Chang’an was in the best interests of the overall situation. But now that Tongguan had fallen, no one knew when An Lushan would send his army. If he tried to leave once the rebels were at the city gates, he wouldn’t be able to go.
“Crown prince, what do you think?”
Li Longji nodded at Li Hen and ordered loudly.
“Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, we should stay in Chang’an to inspire the troops’ morale!”

Li Heng paid no attention to Li Longji’s already darkened, purplish face and continued, “Although Tongguan has fallen, the situation is far from hopeless. Recently, the counties in Hebei occupied by the An Lushan rebels have risen up in rebellion against them. Yan Zhenqing, Yan Gaoqing, He Lan Jinming, and others have led local militias and imperial troops to capture several cities, gaining momentum. Generals such as Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi of the Shuofang Commandery have also led their troops out of Jingjing and repeatedly defeated the rebels. In the Battle of Jia Mountain, Guo and Li inflicted a crushing defeat on rebel leaders like Shi Siming, Cai Xide, and Yin Ziqi, killing 40,000 enemies, capturing 5,000, and seizing 5,000 horses. Shi Siming even fled in panic to Boling under the cover of night. At that time, more than a dozen counties in Hebei province beheaded rebel leaders to welcome the imperial forces. If His Majesty continues to rely on generals like Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi, Fanyang will fall soon.”

Prince Li Heng’s speech was passionate and well-reasoned, instantly reigniting the confidence of all the officials in the court. Indeed, with the rebel forces cut off in the north and their stronghold of Fanyang under threat, they only controlled a few provinces like Bian and Zheng. Once the imperial forces surrounded them, the rebels would surely be defeated.

But Li Longji saw it differently. What good was all the progress in Hebei? What use was it if generals like Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi captured more counties? As the saying goes, distant water cannot quench immediate thirst. Now that Tongguan had fallen, Chang’an was in grave danger. If the rebels, driven to desperation, abandoned Fanyang and attacked Chang’an from the west, how could he, as the emperor of the Tang Dynasty, handle the situation?

“Cough, cough, my lords, please remain calm. I think Minister Yang is right. With the rebels threatening Chang’an and at full strength, if I insist on staying in Chang’an, it will not only fail to produce good results but may also disrupt morale. It would be better to follow Minister Yang’s advice and temporarily go to Shu for an inspection.”

Li Longji looked expectantly toward the court, but after a long while, the scene he imagined—his ministers kneeling and shouting “Long live the emperor”—never happened. Instead, some insignificant people started arguing among themselves.

Li Longji had already summoned Yang Guozhong before the morning court, and what Yang Guozhong said was his own instruction. Thus, the so-called morning court discussions were merely a formality; he never intended to seek the opinions of these officials.

“I have made up my mind. No need for further discussion! Dismissed!”

Li Longji waved his hand and left in a huff.

“Farewell, Your Majesty!”

The officials were filled with sorrow and knelt down to watch the emperor leave。……

In the Jiade Hall of the Eastern Palace, Li Heng was pounding his forehead and closing his eyes in meditation.

“Your Highness, you must make plans soon!”

Seeing Li Heng still hesitating, Li Fuguo grew increasingly worried.

As soon as Li Heng returned to the Eastern Palace, he and Yu Chaoen rushed over upon hearing the news, intending to discuss the details with the Crown Prince. Who would have thought the prince would be so indecisive! It was truly frustrating!
Yu Chaoen also said, “Your Highness, you surely saw what happened during today’s court meeting. The Emperor currently favors only Yang Guozhong, and he won’t listen to you at all. It’s still better in Chang’an—although Yang Guozhong may be arrogant, he wouldn’t dare defy the emperor and try to harm you. But if we let him persuade the emperor to flee to Shu, everything could change. Don’t forget that Yang Guozhong first rose to power in Shu and even served as the military governor of Jiannan Circuit a few years ago. He has spent many years there and is far more experienced than Your Highness. I’ve heard that he’s been getting very close to Prince Yong lately; he likely already has rebellious intentions!”