April of the tenth year of Zhenguan.
News of Li Ke's capture spread everywhere.
After hearing the news, Zhang Xiao, who was leading his army to fight in the east, looked at the envoy who came to persuade him to surrender and was speechless for a long time.
The envoy was sent by Li Chengqian.
His purpose is the same.
It was nothing more than persuading Zhang Xiao to give up useless resistance and surrender to the court.
After all, these Shu troops under him are also Tang people, and he really doesn't want this war to continue.
But Zhang Xiao didn't react for a long time.
The envoy said directly to Zhang Xiao: "General Zhang, you must know that the crime of treason will be infamous for thousands of years."
"Even if you don't think about yourself, you should think about your family, your brothers and their families."
"Do you want your family or descendants, or your brother's family and their descendants, to have to bear this infamy for life after life?"
"Seriously, it's not fair, it's not fair to everyone."
The envoy looked directly at Zhang Xiao and said: "So, I still hope that you can think about it carefully and don't act out of emotion..."
Hearing this, Zhang Xiao couldn't help but smile bitterly.
The messenger was right.
Now that Li Ke has been captured, the power of Shu has been destroyed.
As coaches, they must find a way to survive for their brothers.
In such a war, if you want to survive, there are two ways to go.
One is to flee with his brothers to the ends of the earth to avoid being pursued by the imperial army.
The second is that the coach chooses to sacrifice himself to save everyone.
Obviously, the first path is not wise.
If they choose, there will be no turning back.
And their families are bound to be implicated.
Not to mention that everyone will be executed, but from now on I will definitely not even think about raising my head in front of the neighbors.
And their descendants will naturally not get better either.
What's more, there is more than one army outside now chasing them.
Whether it was Yuchi Jingde's pursuit or Gao Zhixing's pursuit and interception, they could not easily break through.
After thinking for a long time, Zhang Xiao slumped down on the chair as if his strength had been drained.
He raised his head and looked directly at the messenger, saying, "If I surrender, will I be the only one who will die?"
"this……"
The envoy pursed his lips and then said: "This still needs to wait for His Highness or His Majesty to make a decision."
"No one knows what the final outcome will be."
"And I don't want to deceive the general, so I can't make any promise to you."
"But one thing I can assure you is that as long as you have your avatar, the vast majority of your brothers will survive."
Hearing this, Zhang Xiao couldn't help but smile bitterly.
He shook his head and said: "I don't care, as long as the brothers can survive."
"I also hope you can fulfill your promise and let my innocent brothers live."
After saying this, Zhang Xiao stood up and walked towards the outside of the camp.
He shouted to those around him: "Give me the order, open the gate of the village immediately, and the whole army will surrender their weapons to the imperial court!"
Hearing this, the soldiers around him were dazed, confused, and angry...
Of course, I was more relieved.
This battle lasted for half a year, they lost for half a year, and the brothers around them died one after another.
Who wouldn't worry that he will be the one who dies tomorrow?
Under such circumstances, one can imagine how much psychological pressure they feel.
But now that I heard that Zhang Xiao surrendered, this war no longer needs to continue.
These soldiers also rarely showed a relaxed look.
it is finally over.
I can finally go home...
In the end, the rebels who were defending in the east announced their surrender under the persuasion of the envoy sent by Li Chengqian.
Zhang Xiao himself was escorted to Yizhou City to meet Li Chengqian first.
Later, the leaders of their group of rebels will also be taken to Chang'an City and handed over to Li Shimin and the people of Chang'an for trial.
Of course, Zhang Xiao didn’t come alone.
Also arriving at Yizhou City with him were Shang Yunxian and his vanguard Chen Fukuan, who were resisting the Liangzhou Army's southward march in the northern part of Shu.
In addition to them, there were also some scattered rebel generals in Shu.
When Li Chengqian sent the envoys, he tried to go to every place.
He also sent personnel to all the strongholds on the southern defense line.
After all, this war is different from foreign wars.
He was suppressing rebellion, not invading other countries.
Now that the rebel leader has been captured, as the court's counter-rebel leader, he must first appease the territories and personnel that Li Ke previously controlled.
Only if the other party remains stubborn can he send troops to continue the extermination work.
This also shows their affinity and tolerance to the outside world.
Only in this way can the people's hearts and trust, which are on the verge of being broken, be restored.
Like Zhang Xiao, there were many generals who chose to give up resistance directly.
After all, now that the leader is gone, it will be in vain for them to continue to resist.
Moreover, as the commander-in-chief of the army, they are also emotionally bound to the soldiers under their command. At this moment, they are willing to sacrifice themselves to protect everyone.
Li Chengqian also deeply admired their behavior.
Looking at the rebel generals standing in a row, he couldn't help but sigh.
These people were once the giants of the Southern Border of the Tang Dynasty, guarding peace for the Tang Dynasty.
But now it has ended up like this, which is really sad.
Li Chengqian stepped forward and stopped in front of Shang Yunxian: "You were the one who stopped me at Jianmen Pass and refused to let me come?"
"Exactly."
Shang Yunxian did not deny it.
"You kid can do it."
"After all, there are not many people in this world who can stop the Liangzhou Army's attack."
Li Chengqian first praised him a little.
Then, he changed the topic and said: "But as a general, a general of the Tang Dynasty, you should not betray the country and the people of the Tang Dynasty with your soldiers."
"Whether I betray the people or betray the country, I have done something about it."
Shang Yunxian shook his head and chuckled: "I am responsible for my own affairs. I just hope that the prince will not embarrass my brothers."
Although he has become the defeated general at the moment, he still maintains his face.
He is also aware of his situation.
Judging from the mistakes he made, he could not escape death no matter what.
That being the case, what else is there to be afraid of?
Therefore, even when facing Li Chengqian, he still showed no fear.
Seeing his appearance, Li Chengqian couldn't help but smile.
If this guy could talk things over easily, Li Chengqian would really be willing to have a good chat with him.
But what is his attitude? How about putting on a show in front of yourself?
He said directly to the other party: "Do you think you have the right to negotiate terms with me now?"
Hearing this, Shang Yunxian was suddenly startled.
He met Li Chengqian's eyes and his voice became colder: "What? Your Highness doesn't intend to fulfill his promise?"
"Whether I fulfill my promise or not has nothing to do with you."
"And you can't control me because of your status."
Li Chengqian stared at Shang Yunxian and said, "I just want to ask you one thing now, have you ever regretted anything you did in the past?"
When attacking Jianmen Pass, the Liangzhou Army also paid a heavy price.
And those people died because of this guy in front of them.
Even Li Chengqian himself wouldn't believe it if he said he had no hatred for him.
At this moment, he wanted to know whether this guy would regret killing his brothers...
