Chapter 21 Jiangdu coup

AD 618 is a peculiar year, because there were no less than 20 reign titles in the Sui Dynasty in this year, and it is likely that the statistics are still incomplete. This year is firstly the 14th year of Sui Yang Emperor Yang Guang's great cause, and also the Sui Gong Emperor Yang You's 2nd year of Yining, and later it was the first year of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan's Wude. In addition, Yang Yu, the king of Yue in the eastern capital, was also proclaimed emperor by Wang Shichong and others in this year, so it is also called the first year of Huangtai. In addition, those Caotou kings, big and small, also have their own names for this year: Xue Ju, the emperor of Qin in Longxi, called the second year of Qin Xing; Li Gui, the emperor of Liang in Hexi, called the first year of Anle; Liu Wuzhou, the emperor of Dingyang, was called the second year of Tianxing; Shuofang's Liang Emperor and Liang Shidu were called the second year of Yonglong; Xia Wang Dou Jiande of Hebei was called the first year of Wufeng; Xu Diyu Culture of Wei County was called the first year of Tianshou; It is called the second year of Mingfeng; Lin Shihong, the emperor of Chu in the southeast, is called the third year of Taiping...

It is dazzling! However, no matter how many year names there are in this year, history will only recognize one of them in the end. In other words, these era names that have sprung up like mushrooms are destined to be eliminated one by one. And the first one to be eliminated was Yang Guang's great cause. Daye was fourteen years old, and Yang Guang was fifty years old. Know the year of destiny. What is Yang Guang's destiny now? It's carpe diem. Now that everything is irreversible, what else can Yang Guang do besides enjoying himself in time, besides using alcohol and women to anesthetize himself?

If you have wine today and get drunk today, don't care where he wakes up tomorrow! This is the philosophy of life that Yang Guang practiced in his last days. He opened up more than one hundred exquisite courtyards in the Li Palace in Jiangdu, each courtyard is beautiful, and beauties live there all the time, and delicious food and wine are always available.Every day, Yang Guang let a courtyard be the host, and then took Empress Xiao and her favored concubines to feast and have fun in one courtyard after another, and got drunk with them every day. Yang Guang is proficient in astronomical phenomena and likes Wu dialect.On a certain spring night, the flower branches were full of spring, the heart of the sky was full and the moon was full. Yang Guang and Empress Xiao sat under the bright starry sky, quietly looking up at the sky.Suddenly, Yang Guang smiled brightly, and said to Empress Xiao: "There are many people outside, Tu Nong (me), but Nong is the Duke of the Great Wall (Chen Shubao), and Qing is Queen Shen (Queen Shen Wuhua of the Chen Dynasty). Let's have fun together." !"

Yes, the starlight is so beautiful, the years are so peaceful, why does Yang Guang have any reason to be pessimistic? Why don't you stay drunk in life, there is something in the cup!So what if the mountains and rivers are broken?So what if the country falls?As long as he can keep his title and wealth like Chen Shubao, as long as beauties, wine and beautiful scenery are always in front of him, he can live a peaceful and carefree life for the rest of his life! However, the most unbearable thing for Yang Guang is that no matter how drunk he is, there will be a moment of waking up. On those hangover nights, when Jiangdu's Li Palace was full of jade bodies and cups and dishes were messed up, Yang Guang sat alone in a daze, weeping at the candles, and his voice was even more muffled when he heard them.At such moments, the pain, melancholy and sentimentality that he had been suppressing so hard would surge like a flood breaking a bank, swallowing this confused emperor in one gulp.

How many more days would he be so melancholy and sentimental? Not much more. In the spring of 618 A.D., Yang Guang, who staggered while half asleep and half awake, knew that in his own life, not only happiness became more and more precious, but even sentimentality became more and more extravagant. So there were other dusks when the sun was setting, and many palace people saw their emperor in a short shirt, leaning on a cane, wandering alone among the pavilions and pavilions with carved beams and painted buildings like a troubadour floating in the world. He walks through them over and over again.

Never tired. Never get bored. No one knew that Yang Guang wanted to imprint these beauties on his heart deeply. No one knows, even if the god of death removes him from the world at the next moment, he will collect his own world at this moment. Yang Guang has always maintained a habit throughout his life, even in this bewildered and decadent spring.He often takes selfies in the mirror for a long time—gazing or even admiring the person in the bronze mirror for a long time. It's almost narcissistic.Unfortunately, in this spring, what Yang Guang saw was no longer the majestic and heroic emperor, but a middle-aged man with disheveled temple hair, swollen face, tired expression and empty eyes.

Although the man in the mirror has become strange to Yang Guang, he is not too disappointed.Because the person in the mirror still has a broad and full forehead, a straight nose bridge, and a slightly raised jaw. enough.Even if he loses everything, Yang Guang believes that he can still have the last nobility and dignity of an emperor! In the end, Yang Guang also seemed to take death lightly.One day he suddenly said to the person in the mirror with a smile that was not a smile: "Good head and neck, who should chop (zhuo) it?" Empress Xiao was shocked and asked him why he said such ominous words.Yang Guang smiled sadly, and said quietly: "The high and the low, the joys and sorrows, and the changes, how can it hurt?" (Volume 185)

In 618 AD, Yang Guang knew that he could no longer return to the war-torn Central Plains.The only thing he can do now is to keep Jiangdong. For this reason, Yang Guang plans to move his capital to Danyang (now Nanjing, Jiangsu) to prevent Li Mi's troops from crossing the Yangtze River. Yang Guang brought this matter to the court meeting for discussion, and the civil and military officials immediately had a fierce dispute.Ministers headed by Minister of Internal History Yu Shiji strongly agreed, saying that there was no better plan than this; but Youwuhou General Li Cai and others firmly opposed it, thinking that Yang Guang should return to Xijing immediately to stabilize the world.

In the end, Li Cai, who was outspoken, could not speak well of Yu Shiji, who was eloquent, and left the palace angrily.Li Tongke, the secretary of the sect, still insisted: "Jiangdong is low-lying and humid, the terrain is dangerous, and there is too little arable land. If you want to support the royal family internally and supply the armed forces externally, the people will not be able to bear it. I am afraid that there will still be chaos in the end!" The censors immediately impeached him, saying that he slandered the government. Opposition voices were completely suppressed.The ministers attached themselves to Yang Guang one after another, saying: "The people in Jiangdong have been looking forward to the holy car for a long time. Your Majesty went south to the Yangtze River to appease him in person. This is the work of Dayu!"

The proposal to move the capital was thus settled.Danyang County immediately broke ground and began to build the palace. However, Yang Guang is no longer blessed to enjoy this new palace in Danyang, because the army has long been separated from Germany. A Jiangdu coup that shocked the world is about to break out. At first, the soldiers only thought of defecting. Because they were all from Guanzhong, they were homesick, and seeing that Yang Guang had no intention of going west, they had no choice but to make thirty-six plans.Dou Xian, the general of the Forbidden Army Lang, fled westward first, but was chased back by Yang Guang's cavalry, and immediately beheaded Dou Xian for public display.

However, killing one can't warn the hundred.The phenomenon of soldiers fleeing is still unabated, and repeated prohibitions continue. Yang Guang never imagined that even his most trusted confidant generals had the heart to defect. This person is Huben Lang general Sima Dekan. Sima Dekan not only wanted to escape alone, but also wanted to incite everyone to escape together.He first sent out a test to his two friends.One is Huben Lang General Yuanli, and the other is Zhige General Pei Qiantong.Sima Dekan said: "Nowadays, every soldier wants to flee. I plan to report, but I am afraid that I will be killed by the soldiers first. If I don't report, once the incident happens, I will not escape the crime of extermination. What should I do? Also, listen Said that Guanzhong had fallen, and Li Xiaochang rebelled because he sacrificed Huayin. The emperor arrested his two younger brothers and prepared to execute them. Our family members are all in Guanzhong. If someone follows in the footsteps of Li Xiaochang, then we will be in great trouble. ?” Yuan Li and Pei Qiantong also looked fearful and helpless, they could only say sadly: "The matter has come to this, what should we do?" Sima Dekan stared into their eyes and said, "Flee with the soldiers!" Yuan Li and Pei Qiantong looked at each other, nodded heavily: "Good!" A large-scale escape plan was launched.More and more court officials and army generals couldn't wait to join them.These people include Yuan Min from Neishishe, Zhao Xingshu from Huyalang, Meng Bing from Yingyanglang, Li Fu from Fu Xilang, Niu Fangyu, Xu Hongren and Xue Shiliang from Zhichang, Tang Fengyi from Chengmen Lang, Zhang Kai from Yizheng, and Xun Shi Yang Shilan and others.Civil and military officials at almost every level and department were involved in this plan. Due to the large number of people involved, the escape plan gradually changed from secret to public.In the end, the generals did not shy away from discussing their defection, even in public.A court lady couldn't stand it any longer, so she had to report to Empress Xiao: "Everyone outside wants to rebel!" Empress Xiao said blankly, "Let you play it." The emperor was very angry, but the consequences were not serious. Because only one person lost his head, and that was the informant palace lady. Yang Guang thought it was her alarmist talk, so he cut her off without saying a word. Later, someone couldn't resist reporting it to Empress Xiao. Empress Xiao said: "As soon as the affairs of the world have come to this point, there is no one who can be saved. What's the use of saying it? It will only make the emperor worry!" Since then, no one is nosy anymore. Since Yang Guang insisted on being an ostrich, of course there was no resistance to his defection plan. Hu Yalang quickly told Zhao Xingshu about the plan to recruit him into the group. It was this person who caused the defection plan to escalate into a coup in an instant. He was Yu Wenshu's second son, Yu Wen Zhiji who was then the young prisoner. Sima Dekan and others originally planned to flee on March 15th, the 14th year of Daye, but Yuwen Zhiji told him: "Although the Lord has no way, his prestige still exists, and orders will be carried out. Once you flee, I'm afraid He will seek his own death like Dou Xian. Now that the heavens are about to destroy the Sui Dynasty, and heroes from all over the world are rising together, since there are already tens of thousands of people fleeing with one heart, why not make a big one, this is the career of an emperor!" Sima Dekan suddenly became enlightened, and after discussing with Yu Wenzhi and Zhao Xingshu, he decided to support Yu Wenzhi's elder brother, Yu Wenhuaji, who was then General Youtunwei, as the leader, and launched a coup to kill Yang Guang. Yu Wenhuaji is a typical dude, relying on his father Yu Wenshu's status in the court, arrogant and violent, corrupt and perverting the law, so he has been called a frivolous son by the people of Chang'an since he was a boy.When everyone revealed the coup plan to him, told him that it was the karma of the emperor, and hinted that he would replace Yang Guang as the emperor, Yu Wenhuaji's cold sweat flooded his forehead, nose and palms. The career of an emperor? Yu Huaji's heart was beating violently. It was a pulsation of fear mixed with excitement. The career of an emperor?This well-known frivolous son in the ruling and opposition parties never thought that he would one day be able to create an emperor's career in his life. is it possible? But everyone's eyes are so enthusiastic and earnest, and they are so confident and unquestionable. Yu Wenhua and a moving heart finally jumped back to their original positions after dancing wildly for a whole stick of incense.He gritted his teeth and stomped his feet for the last time, and said with all his strength—OK! This is the end of Yang Guang's life.