Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 470 Destiny (Part 8)

It will be a success!

She conquered the world, her feet stained with the blood of her enemies and the lives of countless soldiers.

Pei Qinghe's eyes grew increasingly red, yet she refused to put down the list of fallen soldiers, stubbornly looking at each one. It was as if she wanted to engrave the names of all these fallen soldiers into her mind.

Accompanying Pei Qinghe were Pei Yun, Pei Yan, Mao Hongling, and Pei Feng and Pei Yue. Pei Wan, Pei Yu, Pei Lang, and other younger relatives stood guard outside the door.

Surrounded by her loved ones, Pei Qinghe no longer needed to maintain the dignity of an emperor. As tears welled up in her eyes, everyone around her also had red eyes.

War is so cruel, so many people have died! This list of the dead includes comrades, confidants, and their relatives.

Even the carefree and thoughtless Pei Yan burst into tears: "This Situ Xi died too easily! He should be executed by slow slicing, his bones and flesh ripped off, to relieve my deep hatred."

Pei Yun, her eyes red, continued, "He was, after all, a former general of the Southern Dynasty, and the ruler of the Southern Dynasty. A single stroke of the sword is enough. There's no reason to desecrate his corpse. Don't talk nonsense!"

Pei Yan wiped her eyes hastily: "Cousin Pei Yun, is your cousin Hong dead?"

Pei Yun said, "He was among the surrendered soldiers that day. Later, the emperor ordered that all the military officers among the surrendered soldiers of the Imperial Guard be killed. I personally cut off his head!"

“Such a despicable person is a waste of food if he lives; it’s good that he died!” Mao Hongling chimed in.

Pei Qinghe listened to their conversation, and her gloomy mood eased slightly.

Pei Feng wiped away his tears with his sleeve and asked in a low voice, "Cousin Qinghe, we won a great victory, the Imperial Guard has been completely defeated. Shouldn't we go to Luoyang next?"

Everyone looked over.

Pei Qinghe said slowly, "We must go to Luoyang, but there's no rush. First, send a message to Prime Minister Pang and Minister Qin, ordering them to come to Mocheng."

News of the Pei family army's great victory spread like wildfire throughout the north.

The civil officials who remained in Yan County were overjoyed.

Prime Minister Pang's old face relaxed, and his laughter was extremely hearty: "After this battle, no one will be able to stop Emperor Zhaoyuan. The North and South can also be completely united."

Minister Qin was also beaming with joy: "Prime Minister, the Emperor has ordered us to go to Mo City, so he must have important matters to discuss. Let's set off immediately."

Prime Minister Pang nodded with delight: "With Minister Meng, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, backing us up here in Yan County, we will go to Mo City together to see the Emperor. Also, please send a few more civil officials with us."

The civil officials appointed by Prime Minister Pang were all veteran officials who had escaped from Luoyang City years ago.

The eight civil officials set off from Yan County by carriage that very day, managing to compress the journey that would normally take more than half a month into just twelve days.

By this time, nearly a month had passed since the end of the great battle. The mound of corpses outside Mo City still stood, the stench of blood and the strong odor making one want to vomit.

Pang Chenglian didn't even cover his mouth and nose, and went up to look at it for a long time.

Minister Qin also dismounted from his carriage and stood in front of the mound of corpses for a long time: "The news of Emperor Zhaoyuan's great victory should have already reached Luoyang. I wonder how much turmoil has ensued in the Luoyang officialdom, and whether the people of Luoyang are eagerly awaiting news or filled with panic and unease?"

Prime Minister Pang remained silent.

The mere mention of Luoyang brought tears to his eyes, and they welled up with tears.

Minister Qin turned his head and wiped the corner of his eye with his sleeve.

Years ago, they fled Luoyang in disarray, fleeing to the north with the young Prince Zhangwu. Prince Zhangwu became a puppet emperor, and they, the civil officials, lived under the tyranny of the Zhang family. Later, Emperor Jian'an died, the Zhang family was killed, and they went to Yan County, where they enthroned Pei Qinghe as emperor.

Ten years have passed since they left Luoyang. Now, they can accompany Emperor Zhaoyuan to subdue the Southern Dynasty and return to their Luoyang. How could they not be filled with emotion and excitement?

"Let's go! We're going to see the Emperor." Prime Minister Pang finally calmed down and led Minister Qin and the others into Mo City.

The emperor and his minister had been separated for only two months, but upon meeting again, it felt as if they had been separated for a lifetime.

Prime Minister Pang bowed deeply and said, "Congratulations to Your Majesty on your great victory over the Imperial Guards, your execution of Situ Xi, your unification of the North and South, and your recapture of Luoyang!"

Pei Qinghe reached out to help Prime Minister Pang up: "Prime Minister, please rise. I summoned you here to discuss how to subdue Luoyang."

Prime Minister Pang's spirits lifted, and he exchanged a glance with Minister Qin. Then, together they bowed again: "Your Majesty, we are willing to accompany the Emperor to Luoyang!"

The other civil officials also bowed down.

Pei Qinghe smiled slightly: "Gentlemen, please rise and sit down to talk."

Then he ordered Pei Yan to bring him a map of Luoyang.

Luoyang was the capital of the Jing Dynasty, its most prosperous and wealthy city, and also the most famous and fortified city in the land. However, in the past ten years, Luoyang had changed hands several times, its city walls had been smashed and rebuilt repeatedly, and wealthy families had been repeatedly plundered. Even the most prosperous and wealthy capital could not withstand such devastation. Now, Luoyang is almost deserted, with nearly half its population gone.

Situ Xi led an army of over 100,000 to attack the northern lands, leaving only a few thousand old, weak, and disabled soldiers to defend Luoyang, along with a group of civil officials.

These were all obtained from the surrendered soldiers.

In other words, it will take some time and effort to take Luoyang.

Pei Qinghe pointed to the location of Luoyang City: "The wounded soldiers will remain in Mo City to recuperate. I will lead the army to Luoyang City and strive to take it in the shortest possible time."

The Pei family army suffered heavy casualties, and now has around 50,000 troops still available. That's enough to take Luoyang.

Prime Minister Pang suddenly cupped his hands and said, "This old minister dares to offer this advice. King Qiao is dead, the rebel army in Jiangnan has fled and is unlikely to pose a threat. Situ Xi has been beheaded, and the imperial guards have suffered a major defeat. Luoyang is left with only a bunch of civil officials and some old and weak soldiers. Why should we resort to violence again? This old minister is willing to go to Luoyang to persuade them to surrender!"

Pei Qinghe gave Prime Minister Pang a deep look: "If we can take Luoyang without bloodshed, that would be ideal. Only the Prime Minister is capable of this great task."

"However, there are risks involved in persuading someone to surrender..."

Prime Minister Pang quickly took over the conversation: "This old minister has lived for over sixty years and has long since had enough. This old minister is not afraid of death. I beg Your Majesty to grant this old minister permission to go to Luoyang to persuade them to surrender."

Pei Qinghe pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement.

The following day, Prime Minister Pang set off for Luoyang, accompanied by a thousand elite soldiers dispatched by Emperor Zhaoyuan.

Five days after Prime Minister Pang set off, Emperor Zhaoyuan led 50,000 elite troops, carrying ample provisions and supplies, to Luoyang. Mao Hongling remained to guard Mocheng, while Pei Yun, Pei Yan, and other military generals accompanied the emperor on the expedition.

When the news reached Luoyang, the people of the city were shaken.

However, after experiencing the devastating news and shock of General Situ's assassination, even the worst news seemed insignificant.

Prime Minister Pang arrived outside Luoyang and shouted slogans to persuade them to surrender. Soon after, Pei's elite troops arrived three hundred li outside Luoyang, and in a few more days' journey, they would be at the city gates.

Luoyang was once again thrown into turmoil.

Most civil officials favored opening the city gates and surrendering, but two military officers stubbornly refused to surrender. One of them directly drew his sword in court and killed the civil official who had strongly advocated surrendering.

The other generals worked together to capture and tie up the two men, and then opened the city gate.

(End of this chapter)