Chapter 36 Lonely Chang'an

Tongguan is actually not a pass, but a card. A domino. When it stands still, it will create an illusion, making Xuanzong's court think that there are still many cards in his hand.But when it crashed down, it would trigger a terrible domino effect, exposing some kind of cruel truth to Emperor Xuanzong in an instant. This kind of truth is that Li Tang's heart is broken. After the fall of Tongguan, almost overnight, the counties of Hedong (now Yongji City, Shanxi), Huayin (now Huaxian, Shaanxi), Fengyi (now Dali County, Shaanxi), Shangluo (now Shangzhou, Shaanxi) and other counties The defenders abandoned the city and fled, and the defenders from all over the country also fled.From east to west, from north to south, the military force capable of defending the capital has disappeared. There is only one imperial capital, Chang'an, standing alone on the huge Guanzhong Plain, looking like a gorgeous and empty banner...

On the day Tongguan fell, Ge Shuhan's generals fled back to Chang'an to report the military situation, but Xuanzong did not summon him immediately. Because he already guessed what happened. Although Xuanzong predicted that the Eastern Expeditionary Army was over, he still had the last sliver of luck - hoping that Tongguan would still be in the hands of the Tang army.Therefore, Xuanzong ordered Li Fude to lead 3,000 supervisors to rescue Tongguan that day. As long as Tongguan is defended, there is still time to organize a counterattack and a chance to turn defeat into victory. However, Xuanzong's last glimmer of hope was shattered in an instant.

From the moment Li Fude set off until the sunset of this day, Xuanzong climbed up to the high platform looking out at the "Ping An Fire" again and again, but until the dusk gradually blurred his vision, there was no fire on the eastern horizon. The cluster of flames waiting to be pierced. (According to the "Tang Liudian", the so-called "Ping An Fire" was a military early warning mechanism in the Tang Dynasty, that is, a beacon tower was set up every 30 miles. If there was no enemy, the beacon fire would be lit on time at dusk every day, otherwise it would not be lit. This early warning mechanism is exactly the opposite of what we are usually familiar with—the beacon fires in other dynasties were used for alarming, while in the Tang Dynasty they were used to report safety. Although the method is opposite, the nature is the same.)

Unable to see the Ping An Fire, Xuanzong felt a painful spasm in his heart. Obviously, Tongguan was lost. When he realized this, a boundless fear engulfed him like this dark night. On June 10, Xuanzong called the prime minister to hold an emergency meeting. There was only one topic: Tongguan was lost and Chang'an was in danger. What should we do? The other prime ministers looked at each other in awe, not knowing what to do.Only Yang Guozhong looked calm, and calmly put forward his countermeasures. His countermeasure is very simple, just one word - run. If there is a direction in front of this action, it is - run to the southwest.

To the southwest is Bashu, which was called Jiannan Road at that time.As we all know, Bashu has been a rich and prosperous place since ancient times, and it is also one of the most important sources of wealth for the Li and Tang courts. Therefore, once the Guanzhong is in trouble, it is of course the first choice of refuge for the exiled court.In addition, Yang Guozhong has been leading the Jiannan Jiedu envoy for a long time. Since the outbreak of the rebellion, he secretly ordered Cui Yuan to stay in Jiannan to make sufficient preparations in terms of clothing, food, housing, and transportation. You can run to Jiannan with Xuanzong at any time.

At this moment, besides fleeing to Bashu, does Xuanzong have a better choice? there is none left. Therefore, he immediately approved Yang Guozhong's escape plan without thinking. Of course, this is a top secret plan.Except for a few ministers of the prime minister, close eunuchs, favored concubines, and a few members of the royal family, no one else knew about it. If the emperor wants to escape, of course the fewer people who know about it, the better. In order to prevent the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty from realizing that the emperor and the prime minister were about to run away, on June 11, Yang Guozhong specially summoned all the civil and military officials to the court hall, pretending to be terrified and weeping bitterly, and asked everyone what to do. The enemy's strategy.At this time, the princes of the Li and Tang courts have already become frightened birds, who can have any countermeasures?They could only cry with mournful faces, and kept saying to Yang Guozhong: Everything depends on the prime minister.

After Yang Guozhong finished spraying the smoke bombs, he wiped a few dry tears from the corners of his eyes and said, "As early as ten years ago, someone sued An Lushan for rebellion, but the emperor just didn't believe it. The matter has developed to this point, it is really not the prime minister. fault." At this time, Yang Guozhong did not forget to shirk his responsibility.All the officials greeted his 18th generation ancestors in their hearts, but on the surface, everyone still had to submissive to him, because they all hoped that the prime minister in power could help them find a way out.

But the officials never thought that the emperor and the prime minister had already decided to abandon them completely. On this day, Chang'an, the imperial capital of the Tang Dynasty, turned into a city of terror. No matter officials, gentry or civilians, everyone ran in panic, not knowing how to escape the impending catastrophe.Chang'an, which was originally peaceful, prosperous and prosperous, now only has panic, chaos and depression. On June 12, the morning bell rang as usual, but there were less than one-tenth of the officials in the court.In order to stabilize people's hearts, Xuanzong also pretended to climb up the Qinzheng Building, and issued an edict announcing that he would personally conquer.

This is the third time he has announced that he will conscript himself since An Lushan raised his troops.If the subjects were still a little dubious about the previous two times, then this time, all Chang'an people basically listened to it as a joke. "Go up to the Yuqinzheng Building, and down to the system, and if you want to conquer it yourself, no one who hears it will believe it." (Volume 218) However, this joke does not make people smile or laugh, it only makes people feel deeply helpless and sad. At the moment when Xuanzong announced that he was going to conquer in person, the escape plan was already in full swing.On this day, Xuanzong urgently appointed Jing Zhaoyin Wei Fangjin as Yushi doctor and Zhidun envoy (equivalent to the logistics chief of the imperial court in exile), and promoted Jing Zhao Shaoyin Cui Guangyuan as Jing Zhaoyin and Xijing stay behind. On behalf of the dead ghost, at the same time ordered the eunuch Bian Lingcheng to be in charge of all the keys in the palace. This murderer who indirectly killed Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing was now also abandoned by Xuanzong.

On the same day, Xuanzong ordered Kuaima to go to Jiannan first with the edict, and ordered the local area to prepare for all reception work on the grounds that Ying Wang Li Yan (Xuanzong's son) was about to go to Jiannan to take up the post of Jiedu envoy.That afternoon, Xuanzong moved to a side hall in "Bei Nei".At that time, Taiji Palace was called "Xi Nei", Daming Palace was called "Dong Nei", and Xingqing Palace was called "Nan Nei".The so-called "Bei Nei" is probably the place near Xuanwu Gate.Xuanwumen was the garrison of the forbidden army, and Xuanzong moved here to live at this time, which obviously meant that he was about to flee soon.In the evening, Xuanzong ordered Chen Xuanli, the general of Longwu, to assemble the Six Imperial Guards, and rewarded the soldiers with a lot of money and silk. In addition, he asked Chen Xuanli to choose more than 900 fat and strong royal horses for running.

All these preparations were carried out under strict confidentiality.Except for a few people who participated, the vast majority of officials and people were kept in the dark. No one knows that Chang'an at this moment has turned into a luxury ship that crashed into an iceberg, and their captain has already quietly untied the lifeboat that escaped alone. After this night, most of the subjects will sink with Chang'an. This is perhaps one of the most significant "shipwrecks" in Chinese history.However, this was not the Titanic, and it was not the women and children who fled first, but the leaders. At dawn on June 13th, the most worrisome moment in Li Longji's life came. "Yuyang drums beat the ground, and the neon clothes and feathers are shocked. The smoke and dust in the nine-fold city tower, thousands of rides and thousands of rides go southwest..." (Bai Juyi) With his bloodshot eyes open, Li Longji walked out from the anxiety and uneasiness of sleepless nights, from decades of dreams of prosperity, and staggered towards the road with an uncertain future. In the carriage, embarked on a career in exile that the Taiping Emperor had never imagined.Overnight, the Merry Emperor really got old. As a seventy-two-year-old man, in fact Li Longji was already old, but the reason why he looked radiant and radiant before the outbreak of the rebellion was because of the aura of Sheng Shiweiye, as well as the magic of art and love nourishing.If people's physical age and mental age cannot be completely equated, then Li Longji's mental age can only be regarded as middle-aged at best.Therefore, although the tide of time will engulf everyone from birth, growth to aging and death, Li Longji's life river has obviously built a dam—the three of merit, art and love together constitute the great The load-bearing material of the dam has successfully blocked the tide of time for decades, thus effectively delaying the aging of life. At least psychologically, in terms of mental state, Li Longji managed to do this. However, when An Lushan violently smashed the dam of Li Longji's life in one fell swoop, when all the halos and magic power suddenly disappeared, the tide of time that had been blocked for many years had a "flood release" effect on Li Longji .As a result, the truth was exposed in an instant, and Li Longji, who had always refused to age, had to face an objective fact - he was already a seventy-two-year-old seventy-two-year-old man. The worst thing is that this old man is now forced to abandon his imperial capital, Chang'an, his nine palaces, his thousands of subjects, everything he pursued and managed in his life, and flee to the end of the world in desolation and panic! Is there anything worse in the world than this? Li Longji didn't know. But cruel fate will tell him right away——Yes. God not only wants to take away all these things, but will eventually take away his favorite—— Concubine Yang.