To the east of the city, tens of thousands of Han soldiers and civilians were ready to attack the city. Whether they were filling pits, pushing carts, shooting arrows or charging into the city, they all just needed an order to attack. A tense atmosphere has long been created, and the murderous intent has been condensed, just waiting to be released. However, when the white flag was raised on the top of Jinling City and the gate of Jinling City slowly opened, it was basically over.
"Li Yu, can't he surrender earlier? He insists on waiting for us to prepare everything before surrendering. Is this deliberately tormenting the soldiers?" On the siege front line, deep in the military formation, after sending someone to understand the situation, Zhao Yanjin was He said this to the people around him. Although he complained, his joyful mood was difficult to conceal.
Zhao Yanjin has studied a lot, and he has also experienced the troubled times of the previous generation and witnessed the tragedies of war. He knows that it is rare to win a city with one person intact. If a bloody fight can be avoided and casualties reduced, that would be a good thing.
The same is true for ordinary soldiers. After all, people will die in war. There are more than 100,000 people. Maybe death will not come to me so easily, but someone will always die. What if it is me? Because if you just participate in such a war, it is also acceptable to receive a reward from the court.
Today, in Xiang'an, not only the bureaucrats, nobles, landlords, businessmen, and common people, but also most of the soldiers. If they were not forced by the times and faced with the pressure of survival, how many people would be willing to lick blood from the knife edge all day long and live a precarious life? Woolen cloth?
Prince Liu Yang and coach Li Gu also gave a very positive response to Li Jingda's surrender. Li Gu ordered the three armies to suspend the attack and sent people to welcome Li Jingda into the camp to discuss the matter of surrender.
Li Jingda came here to negotiate terms on behalf of Li Yu and even the Li family. In this situation, he did not and did not dare to put forward any excessive conditions. He just hoped to imitate the Gao family and receive their treatment, while retaining property and protecting the family temple. not violated.
It can be said that this is the smartest choice Li Yu has made during this period, and it is not too much. However, Liu Yang and Li Gu, on behalf of the court, only gave two basic guarantees. One is the safety of their family. The second is to retain a certain amount of property. As for other more benefits, they cannot make the decision. They have to wait until they return to the court and the emperor will decide.
Such an answer was unsatisfactory, but it showed sincerity and was not a random promise. After thinking about it, Li Jingda, as the current head of the Li family, agreed on behalf of Li Yu. The matter of surrender is basically confirmed. As long as it is implemented, Li Jingda still needs to return to the city, return his orders to Li Yu, and bring back the Han army's requirements.
Li Gu had only one request: to hand over Jinling City completely to the Han army, as soon as possible, and the Han army would enter the city that day. Still tough, no room for retreat.
Once the surrender matter had begun, there was no difficulty in the subsequent handling. Li Gu sent Shi Shouxin as the first person in charge of taking over Jinling City. The first thing is to remove the weapons of the siege army. I am not afraid of any delaying tactics by Li Yu. Firstly, I believe that Li Yu does not have the courage. Secondly, if he dares to deceive or even fool the army, he will definitely arouse the anger of the people and suffer huge and heavy retaliation. Such consequences are not something that Li Yu can bear or dare to bear.
In fact, Li Yu's performance and every move before and after his surrender will be reported to Emperor Liu in detail. There is no doubt that this will be linked to the treatment he will enjoy in the future.
When the news of Jinling's surrender spread throughout the army, the three armies were filled with joy and shouts of victory for a long time. That was the cheers of the victors, and it also represented the official death knell of Southern Tang, the first country among the "Ten Kingdoms".
In the "History of the Three Dynasties", which is still under revision, the same period is also divided into ten kingdoms for the sake of rounding. Yang Wu, Southern Tang, Wu Yue, Fujian, Guangdong, Nanping, Ma Chu, front and back Shu, plus another Qi state that replaced the original "Northern Han".
There was also an episode on the issue of incorporating the Qi Kingdom. Someone proposed that the Yan Kingdom established by Liu Shouguang as emperor be included in the Ten Kingdoms. There was a debate at that time. In the end, it was because the "Jie Yan" existed for too short a time, and The reputation was too bad, and Qi State won.
It also means that after the demise of Li Tang, China's historical era of more than half a century has been defined: Three Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. Moreover, as the fifteenth year of Qianyou comes to an end, and as all the troubles in the south are gradually cleared up, this era will also be completely ended.
The surrender of Jinling will be an event of great historical significance. No matter how many problems the country of the Southern Tang Dynasty had and how incompetent its monarchs and ministers were politically, its establishment in the Jiangnan area was of positive significance. At least during the decades of constant turmoil in the north, it played a vital role in supporting people's livelihood and development. Economically, it has made a huge contribution.
This is why Emperor Liu valued Jiangnan so much and cared for it so much, for fear that it would be too damaged by war. It is easy to destroy but difficult to build. After decades of ups and downs, in an era when the north was devastated by war, it was not easy for the south to have such a fertile soil that was carefully cultivated.
Although in the last two years of Li Jing and Li Yu's rule, due to internal and external difficulties, economic development stagnated or even regressed, its foundation is still rich. As long as things change and chaos is brought to order, the entire Jiangnan society will be rejuvenated and continue to develop. .
The population, land, culture, economy, etc. of Jiangnan were all significant assets left to the imperial court by the Southern Tang Dynasty. Just like in official history, even after the hardships of the Li Yu era, after entering the Song Dynasty, it provided a solid foundation for the take-off of the commodity economy in the Northern Song Dynasty.
Of course, not only Jiangnan, but also Suzhou, Hangzhou, and Zhejiang. Raising the people and developing production in the south under the separatist regime were probably their most active role and contribution in the past era of the Great Split.
Now, it is Emperor Liu's Han court who is about to reap this benefit.
Compared to the cheers of the Han army, in Jinling City, when the news of the king's decision to surrender spread, it was a different scene. Officials, soldiers, and civilians all subconsciously relaxed and felt relieved.
However, what follows is regret for the destruction of the country. Some bureaucrats, some soldiers, and some people. No matter what, in the era of Li Min and the early days of Li Jing, the people of Jianghuai benefited more from it, and the earlier scholars , the people still have a sense of gratitude. Many people have experienced the stability in the past and the prosperity today. If the country is destroyed, it is inevitable to feel sad. This is the simplest value of many people. Compared with Liu Yuan of southern Guangdong, Li Yu, the leader of the country, may have more sympathy in the hearts of the people of Jiangnan in the future.
Just after the news of the surrender spread, some officials and people spontaneously knelt down in front of the Jinling Palace and cried loudly. Before the surrender ceremony officially began, some people had already begun to mourn for the destroyed country.
The other Jinling yamen and public offices, in accordance with the requirements of the Han army, maintained stability, each maintained their duties, kept files, and sealed the treasury, waiting for inspection and receipt. As for the defenders in the city, under the leadership of Zhu Lingyun, they piled weapons and armor in barracks and school grounds, waiting for the Han army to receive them and move them outside the city for resettlement.
Under Shi Shouxin's arrangement, more than 30,000 selected soldiers entered the city in an orderly manner, took over the city's defenses, occupied key points, and stationed themselves in various government offices. The only one they did not set foot on was the Jinling Palace.
Until the Crown Prince Liu Yang, the coach Li Gu and other important figures arrived at Jinling Palace, Li Yufang led his family, old and young, and Jinling civil and military personnel to greet him at the palace gate and formally surrendered.
The only episode that made Liu Yang and Li Gu a little dissatisfied was that when they accepted the surrender, Chen Qiao, the assistant to the Guangzheng Yuan, jumped from the palace city in front of everyone and used his own life to bury the Southern Tang Dynasty.
This kind of behavior is enough to show Chen Qiao's strength and loyalty, which is sad! What a shame! respectable! However, he did not expect that this would bring trouble to the monarch he was loyal to. This would help him achieve his own reputation and implicate his monarch.
Of course, such a desolate scene of national subjugation has a touch of blood, which may also add a strange luster to this period of history.
With the recapture of Jinling and Li Yu's surrender, it also means that the basic goal of the Jianghuai army has been achieved. Li Yu's surrender letter conveyed to the states belonging to Liangjiang that they would surrender and submit to the imperial court.
On the 14th, Li Yu surrendered.
On the 18th, Lu Jiang of Hongzhou also ordered to surrender after receiving Li Yu's surrender. After Cao Bin arrived in Nanchang, although he besieged the city and made preparations for the siege, he still held back after learning about the progress of the Jinling war. He also wanted to take credit for the whole city. After entering the city, he took similar measures to Li Gu. Strictly restrict military discipline.
On the 23rd, with the surrender of Chen Hui, the general guarding Jianzhou, the prefectures and counties under the Jiangnan regime were officially pacified.
