Chapter 340 Despair in Nanqian

Watching the brothers who had followed him for years fall one by one, Mao Biao felt a heart-piercing pain. He looked at Gao Yuan, who was firing arrows one after another from the periphery of the crowd, took a deep breath, and shouted,

"Duke of Yue, would you be willing to make a bet with me?"

Gao Yuan roughly guessed what Mao Biao wanted to do; it was nothing more than a duel to decide their fates. Although that would be quite satisfying, Gao Yuan had no intention of giving him that chance.

"You and I are both commanders of armies; how can we act like reckless brutes who only care for displays of courage? If you truly feel for your brothers, you should simply order them to disarm and surrender, rather than looking for a graceful exit even now."

Having his little scheme exposed by Gao Yuan's words made Mao Biao's old face flush with embarrassment. He felt tempted to simply order everyone to surrender, but his heart still harbored a trace of reluctance.

In the brief moment he hesitated, several more men were killed, falling to the ground with miserable screams.

Gao Yuan immediately shouted to Mao Biao,

"Mao Biao, it is precisely because of your hesitation that these men are throwing their lives away for nothing. They are all dying because of you. If you continue to hesitate, the sins upon your soul will only grow heavier."

Gao Yuan was no pushover either. If you dared to play schemes for a dignified exit, he would use moral kidnapping to force you into surrender, and a reputation-tarnishing one at that.

It was also the first time Gao Yuan realized his words had such strong inflammatory power; he felt that the way many Southern Qian Army soldiers looked at Mao Biao had begun to change.

Mao Biao sat on his horse, eyes bloodshot and teeth clenched, as a fierce struggle raged within him.

Reason told him that if he didn't surrender now, he could only wait for death, yet he truly could not accept it.

He thought back to over a decade ago when this now-formidable Duke of Yue had passed through his defense zone. Back then, he had carried gold, silver, and jewels, bowing and scraping to bribe him just to take a bit more supplies from the storehouse.

Truly, the tides of fortune turn; do not look down on a youth for being poor. That youth from back then had now become a titan of the region and had driven him into a corner.

With a long sigh, Mao Biao loosened his grip, letting the long blade that had accompanied him for years drop to the ground, and then announced,

"Stop! Everyone who doesn't want to die, stop at once! Surrender to the Duke of Yue!"

As those words left his mouth, Mao Biao felt as if a thousand-pound burden had been lifted, and his entire being relaxed. He whispered softly,

"It's over. It's finally over."

Without the soul-crushing despair or dejection seen in others, Gao Yuan looked at the relieved Mao Biao, walked over, and patted his shoulder.

"So, what are your plans for the future?"

Mao Biao was now nearly fifty, with graying hair at his temples. He smiled and shook his head.

"I have no plans. If I must say something, I'm preparing to go home to enjoy my grandchildren and live out my remaining years in peace."

"You don't plan to continue leading troops? I could arrange for you to go to Mughal; the people there are all foreign tribes..."

Gao Yuan was worried that Mao Biao didn't want to fight his own countrymen, so he made this suggestion.

After all, Mao Biao was a talent capable of commanding an army and holding his own.

Most importantly, he was an old official left behind by The Emperor and had no ties to the Powerful Families.

Surprisingly, Mao Biao didn't hesitate at all and shook his head quite decisively.

"No, no. I've fought wars my whole life; it's time for me to enjoy myself."

Since he was unwilling, Gao Yuan naturally wouldn't force him. He arranged money, grain, a residence, and businesses for him, letting him settle down in Panyu.

Of the more than two thousand soldiers who surrendered with Mao Biao, Gao Yuan selected one thousand to be incorporated into the Xuanjia Army, and the rest were given money and grain and disbanded.

Mao Biao's surrender meant that there was no longer a single Southern Qian Army left in the entire Southeast region.

At the same time, it meant that Zhu Song, who was mired deep in the mud at Jiangzhou, had also become an isolated force.

Upon hearing the news of Mao Biao's surrender, Meng Zhenshan didn't stay stubborn either; he led his men directly to Gao Yuan and chose to surrender.

Gao Yuan did not make things difficult for this fierce general who had lost an arm because of him.

He gave him the same treatment as Mao Biao and sent him to Panyu to be Mao Biao's neighbor.

With Meng Zhenshan's surrender, the last mobile force of Southern Qian vanished.

In the fifth month of the sixth year of Qiande, Northern Yan and Northern Liang, having come to their senses, stopped their internal strife and both began dispatching large armies southward.

In the sixth month, Guang State and Shouzhou were captured by Northern Liang, while Haozhou, Chuzhou, and Chuzhou were captured by Northern Yan.

In the seventh month, the provincial inspectors of Luzhou, Runzhou, Yangzhou, Changzhou, Suzhou, and Huzhou announced they would not recognize the false emperor Zhao You and chose to pledge their loyalty to the Prince of Yue, Zhao Xiyao.

In the eighth month, Shuzhou, Qizhou, Huang State, and other places announced their surrender to Northern Liang.

As the saying goes, 'When a whale falls, a myriad of things flourish.' The Southern Qian court in the Capital City was inevitably heading toward its end.

However, Gao Yuan was very unhappy. After all his hard work, others were reaping the benefits.

His long efforts had resulted in a division of the realm by the river, a result that left him very dissatisfied.

But for now, he had no mind to worry about that. Gao Yuan first had to consider taking the Capital City and consuming Zhu Song's troops.

Then there were the defense issues of the two circuits: Jiangnan West Circuit and Jiangnan East Circuit.

Jiangnan West Circuit had Wen Pin and Official Zhang Xun, so it should be fine. As for the candidate for Jiangnan East Circuit, Gao Yuan had a bit of a headache.

Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing were originally Gao Yuan's first choices.

But after communicating with them, Gao Yuan found that the two did not understand naval warfare, making them unsuitable to guard Jiangnan.

After thinking it over, there was only Liu Rengui. After all, in official history, he was the commander who had led the Tang army to victory in the naval battle of Baekgang.

Returning to the outskirts of the Capital City, Gao Yuan's appointment orders were sent out.

Mu Shun, being elderly, chose to retire and return home to live out his years, so Gao Yuan transferred Feng Changqing to take over the Diannan Corps.

Originally, according to the order of succession, it should have been Xian Chong; Gao Yuan had wanted him to take over the position of Governor last time.

However, Xian Chong knew his own abilities were average and thus declined the proposal.

Therefore, although Gao Yuan did not promote him this time, he promised him a guaranteed title of Marquis.

At the same time, the original Jiangnan Corps was split into two: the Jiangxi Army Corps and the Jiangdong Legion.

Half of the Jiangxi Army Corps' troops were separated to serve as the backbone for Liu Rengui to form the Jiangdong Legion.

After the surrendered soldiers from various places were screened, they were incorporated into the two corps respectively.

Of course, the prerequisite for all of this was first taking the Capital City and destroying Zhu Song's main force.

At this time, the people in the Capital City had no mind to think about the future like Gao Yuan.

Various regions had chosen their own paths, and not a single soldier could be found outside as reinforcements.

The only mobile corps was currently mired in the mud at Jiangzhou, unable to escape.

The Capital City could no longer see any hope.

The entire Southern Qian could no longer see any hope.

As Gao Yuan returned to the walls of the Capital City with the Xuanjia Army, which grew in number the more they fought, the sense of despair in the city intensified.

On the other side, in Xunyang City, the attack on this administrative seat of Jiangzhou had been going on for over three months.

Even though Zhu Song launched desperate attacks, Xunyang City remained as solid as a mountain of gold.

Now, Zhu Song and his men faced a desperate situation. After more than three months of siege, the Southern Qian Army's numbers had significantly dwindled, and the soldiers were extremely exhausted.

Most critically, the various types of grain and fodder they had stockpiled were exhausted, and as regions fell or surrendered one after another, they had nowhere left to replenish their supplies.

Seeing this opportunity, Wen Pin had already led the Beiwei Army out of Poyang and was advancing toward them.

The army had already begun slaughtering horses to satisfy their hunger.

Horse: Who ever considers my feelings!

If they couldn't capture Xunyang City within two or three days, they would truly have no way out once Wen Pin surrounded them.

Beneath the walls of Xunyang City, just as within the Capital City, all was filled with despair.