Standalone Northern and Southern Dynasties

Chapter 521 After the Coup
Xi Yi did not expect that the coup would be so smooth.

Yuan Ziyou was also an old master of coup d'état. He said to Xi Yi, "Mr. Xi, please take the traitor's head and take control of the Luoyang City Gate Guard immediately."

The City Gate Captain was the key force in Luoyang’s city defense. The most important thing was that Erzhu Rong looked down on the City Gate Captain who was responsible for maintaining public order, which caused his dissatisfaction.

Then Yuan Ziyou said to Gao Aocao:

"Gao Lang, I appoint you as the general of the imperial guards and take over the army of the imperial palace."

Gao Aocao immediately accepted the order.

Then Yuan Ziyou said to Yang Zhong:
"Yang Lang, you have served as a general in the Zhige area and are familiar with the defense of Luoyang City. I also appoint you as a general in the Zhige area to gather the heroes in Luoyang City to defend Luoyang."

Yang Zhong immediately accepted the order.

After everyone left, Yuan Ziyou said to Su Shun:
"Please ask the Queen Mother to go to the back hall to rest. Do you understand?"

Su Shun immediately said:

"I have already arranged everything. The Queen Mother's seal has been collected."

Yuan Ziyou nodded. Empress Dowager Hu, as an unstable factor, must be kept under strict surveillance in the harem and must not be allowed to cause any mistakes.

Now that he had the righteousness of the emperor and the empress dowager in his hands, and with the support of the nobles in Luoyang who were dissatisfied with Erzhu Rong, it should not be difficult for him to control the city of Luoyang.

The difficulty is whether Erzhu Rong in Jizhou will come back to fight? And Erzhu Dulu, the governor of Henan, who was sent by Yuan Tianmu to dredge the canal along the Yellow River.

In Yuan Ziyou's view, Erzhu Dulü was not a concern and could be killed by simply sending an envoy.

There is also a way to deal with Erzhu Rong. Chen Qingzhi had already given the answer when he was defending Luoyang.

As long as we hold Beizhong City, we can stop Erzhu Rong on the north bank of the Yellow River.

Everything came back to Erjudulü.

He was suppressing a rebellion in Henan and controlled the grain transport. If he did not defeat Erzhudulü, Erzhu Rong could use these ships to cross the Yellow River and attack Luoyang from the south bank of the Yellow River as he did last time. Yuan Ziyou would not be able to resist with the troops he had.

Next, relying on the two powerful generals Gao Aocao and Yang Zhong, Yuan Ziyou achieved quite good results.

The first was Gao Aocao. He quickly took control of the imperial palace guards. Some of these guards had already been infiltrated by Yuan Ziyou and Xi Yi. In addition, with Yuan Tianmu's death, the guards around him had surrendered. In fact, Gao Aocao did not have to spend too much effort.

Yang Zhong was also very fast. He once served as General Zhige when Chen Qingzhi controlled Luoyang. After Xi Yi recruited him, Yang Zhong contacted many of his old subordinates in Luoyang, and with the help of a group of bad guys he had recruited, he quickly took over the Luoyang City Gate Wei office and controlled the entire Luoyang city.

During these days, Erzhu Dulü's evil deeds also helped Yuan Ziyou a lot. Xi Yi came forward to appease the officials and listed the crimes of the Erzhu family in detail. He soon gained the support of the nobles in Luoyang.

Yuan Ziyou took control of Luoyang City within one day, and Yang Zhong quickly took control of Beizhong City by pretending to be Yuan Tianmu's order.

After controlling this important passage to cross the Yellow River and attack Luoyang, Yuan Ziyou felt much more at ease. Even if Erzhu Rong led his troops back to attack Luoyang, he would be able to hold out for some time.

Erzhu Rong was already short of food in Jizhou, and it would be impossible for him to besiege Luoyang for a long time. As long as he had some buffer time and managed Henan well, Yuan Ziyou believed that he still had bargaining chips.

According to Gao Aocao, many noble families in Hebei still miss the rule of the Yuan family, and the Wei Dynasty still has a base.

That evening, Yuan Ziyou climbed up the Luoyang city wall and spoke to the officials in the Southern Court, receiving their unanimous support.

At this moment, Yuan Ziyou finally felt what it was like to be an emperor. He said to Su Shun beside him:
"I finally understand what the Son of Heaven is."

Su Shun lowered his head. As a palace servant, he couldn't respond to such words.

After expressing his feelings, Yuan Ziyou asked again:

"Have the two emissaries been sent out?"

Su Shun said quickly:

"Already dispatched."

Yuan Ziyou also found a way out for himself.

He first sent an envoy to Guanzhong, namely Yu Jin who was stationed in Hedong County, expressing his willingness to abdicate in exchange for Su Ze's military support for Luoyang.

Of course, this was just a delaying tactic by Yuan Ziyou. His purpose was to lure the army of Hedong County to fight Erzhu Rong in the north of the Yellow River, and he could sit back and reap the benefits by guarding Luoyang City in the south of the Yellow River. In addition to sending a letter of surrender to Su Ze, Yuan Ziyou also sent an envoy to send a letter to Xiao Yan in Jiankang.

He also expressed his intention to submit and asked Xiao Yan for troops and food.

"How is Erjudulu doing?"

Su Shun said:

"General Gao has already led his troops in pursuit."

Yuan Ziyou thought of another thing, and said to Su Shun:

"By the way, Gao Huan is General Gao Aocao's cousin, right? He is in Liaodong now, right? Order people to spread the news of the relationship between Gao Aocao and Gao Huan among Erzhu Rong's army, and then send an envoy to enthrone Gao Huan."

"only!"

Gao Aocao was indeed a fierce general. He led 500 cavalrymen out of Luoyang and caught up with Erzhu Dulü along the Yellow River. Erzhu Dulü wanted to lead his troops to resist, but was killed on the spot by Gao Aocao.

The areas south of the Yellow River surrendered to Yuan Ziyou one after another, and the momentum was as great as when Chen Qianzhi launched the Northern Expedition.

Su Ze was also the first to get the news.

Su Ze could only sigh that Yuan Ziyou was indeed a born coup maker.

This decapitation operation against Yuan Tianmu can be said to have seized the only opportunity in a desperate situation, and dealt a major blow to the Erzhu Rong Group in a steady, accurate and ruthless manner.

Yuan Tianmu was not only Erzhu Rong's sworn brother, but also a rare political master in the entire group. He was an important figure who could coordinate Erzhu Rong's group and Luoyang.

The death of Yuan Tianmu found the key to break out of Erzhu Rong's tight network and earned a base for Yuan Ziyu.

But Su Ze didn't think Yuan Ziyu could change anything.

If such an emperor who was well versed in political tactics came to power when the world was just in chaos, he could have helped the Northern Wei Dynasty to survive for a few more years.

But now the Mandate of Heaven of the Wei Dynasty had long been severed, and Luoyang had changed hands several times, losing its influence and wealth as a capital city.

Although Yuan Ziyou's political tactics can play a certain role, in the end, everything will have to be determined on the battlefield.

What’s the use of all your conspiracies and tricks if you can’t win militarily?
Henan, Jingji, Qi and Lu, these areas were originally war-torn places, and were devastated by the turbulent times, with nine out of ten houses being deserted. The population and food in these territories could not support an independent political power.

Su Ze ordered a messenger to convey a message to Yu Jin of Hedong County, asking him not to pay attention to Yuan Ziyou's promise of an official title, but to immediately lead his troops north to attack Bingzhou!

Su Ze looked towards Jingxing Pass and ordered the entire army to launch a fierce attack!
This time, Su Ze can be said to have used the strength of the entire army.

The catapults continuously threw huge stones onto the city walls, breaking holes in the rammed earth walls.

The huge rocks not only fell on the city walls, but also on the military camp in Jingxing Pass and on the houses in the rear. Heba Yue was suddenly faced with enormous pressure and had to supervise the battle on the city walls all day long.

Three days later, Su Ze's offensive paused for a while. The soldiers on the city wall were very tired as they had just blocked an attack.

It was getting dark, but for the civilians like Guo Zhuang, this was just the beginning.

They needed to repair the damaged city wall overnight, and then wait until tomorrow night to rush up and repair it again.

It was like a cycle that repeated itself over and over again. The laborers were tired and hungry, with no way out.

Today Guo Zhuang has made up his mind. He has already contacted the laborers who are repairing the city walls and is ready to let Su Ze's vanguard enter the city.

Torches were lit on the city wall, illuminating the area near the wall. Just when Guo Zhuang was worrying about what to do, several sharp arrows flew through the air and shot down the garrison soldiers holding torches.

The city wall immediately fell into darkness, and Guo Zhuang immediately shouted:

"The enemy is coming! Run away!"

Following Guo Zhuang's loud shout, the laborers who were repairing the wall nearby immediately fell into chaos. They scrambled to flee backwards, and there was chaos near the city wall.

The soldiers defending the city also responded. Guo Zhuang and his laborers began to dig a gap in the city wall, followed by a burst of hurried horse hoof sounds.

Su Ze’s army is coming!
(End of this chapter)