Live History Broadcast: Opening Ceremony Spoilers - Our Ancestor Was Enraged

Chapter 53 Battle of Xiangji Temple

Lin Ke: "When opinions clash, even a few words are unnecessary." Li Heng quickly made up his mind to recall Guo Ziyi, appointing him as the Deputy Marshal of the Armed Forces, commanding the entire army to retake Chang'an.

"Subsequent developments unfolded exactly as Li Mi had predicted. Li Heng never managed to recapture Hebei before his death, and throughout the Tang Dynasty, the various towns of Hebei were constantly surrounded by powerful enemies."

"Why didn't Li Heng recover Hebei? Perhaps there was a more important struggle in his mind—the struggle for the throne."

"Although Li Heng ascended the throne independently in Lingwu, his accession was ultimately illegitimate. Even though Li Longji expressed his approval in Shu, the criticism on this point never ceased."

"Li Heng was eager to recapture Chang'an to prove that he was the restorer of the Tang Dynasty, which was why he could sit on the throne for so long."

"Upon receiving Li Heng's order to recapture Chang'an, Guo Ziyi led a large army to comply, but unfortunately, they were unable to win."

"It's not fair to blame Guo Ziyi for being unable to win; he had already suffered two crushing defeats before him."

"What if we can't beat everyone? No problem, we have connections, let's call in reinforcements!"

Guo Ziyi suggested: "Let's borrow some troops from the Uyghurs!"

"Guo Ziyi raised this point because he was somewhat aware of the situation. He had previously cooperated with the Uyghurs in Shuofang, so he was fairly familiar with the bravery of the Uyghur soldiers."

"Moreover, the Uyghurs owe the Tang Dynasty a favor."

"Historically, it was under the rule of the Turks. In the third year of the Tianbao era, the Tang Dynasty and the Uyghurs cooperated to destroy the Turks, which is why the Uyghurs were able to establish their own state."

"The Tang Dynasty should be able to borrow troops from the Uyghurs at this time."

"Not long after, the Uyghur army arrived, led by their crown prince, Yabghu. Guo Ziyi prepared a feast to entertain them, but the crown prince said, 'Now that the Tang Dynasty is in peril, how can we only care about eating and drinking?'"

"Upon hearing this, Guo Ziyi thought, 'This man is quite good,' so he hosted a three-day banquet, and both sides were very happy."

"Guo Ziyi drew his conclusion a bit too early. These days, the one who borrows money is the boss, especially since the Uyghurs and the Tang Dynasty actually had an agreement."

"The Tang Dynasty promised that once Chang'an was recaptured, the Uyghurs would be allowed to plunder the city, and all children, regardless of gender, would belong to the Uyghurs."

"It's hard to imagine that this was negotiated by an emperor, who used his people as a gift in exchange for the Uyghurs' military intervention."

"And most importantly, the new emperor, Li Heng, is not without options; he is simply eager to seize the throne legitimately."

During the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty

Li Shimin's eyes became bloodshot. Just as he was about to fall to the ground, the imperial physician beside him, holding silver needles, was ready and swiftly inserted them into Erfeng's acupoints.

Seeing that His Majesty's emotions had calmed down, a group of ministers dared to approach.

Li Shimin was in tears. What wrong had these people done?

Li Longji was not a good person, and his son was no better!

Does this mean that our Great Tang Dynasty truly has no successors?

……

Lin Ke: "Guo Ziyi's allied forces of 15 men, including those from Shuofang, the Uyghurs, and the Western Regions, marched in a mighty force towards Chang'an."

"Having learned from his previous failure, Guo Ziyi chose to deploy his troops at Xiangji Temple."

"The reason is that the area around Xiangji Temple is full of lush ancient trees, making it difficult to traverse. This is not an advantage for the rebel cavalry, who are fierce on flat ground, but rather a disadvantage. This actually makes it easier for our army to ambush them."

"Guo Ziyi's plan was for the vanguard to engage the rebels head-on, while a detachment would ambush the enemy from the rear, attacking them from both sides. However, unfortunately, the rebel leader An Shouzhong had the same idea, so it all came down to whose ambush was more effective!"

"That said, the rebel vanguard chose an elite cavalry force led by General Li Guiren, while our side opted for an elite infantry force."

"But this infantry force has a remarkable history, dating back to the time of Li Shimin. It was designed by the legendary general Li Jing specifically to counter cavalry. Each soldier carries a 3.3-meter-long, 20-jin (approximately 10 kg) long sword, also known as the Great Tang Mo Dao (陌刀) Team, led by General Li Siye."

"The battle officially began at noon. The Tang soldiers, long accustomed to peace, were thrown into chaos by the fierce attack of the rebel cavalry. Seeing the dire situation, Li Siye roared: 'If we lose this battle, it's all over!'"

"Then Li Siye removed his armor, took up his broadsword, and fought his way through the rebel ranks. He truly lived up to his reputation as commander-in-chief; dozens of riders, both men and horses, died at his hands."

"Morale was boosted, and both sides fought with extraordinary ferocity."

"Before the vanguard set out, Guo Ziyi ordered men to scout out the enemy's ambush. Once the information was confirmed, he sent Uyghur soldiers to charge directly at the ambush."

"The rebel ambush was caught off guard and wiped out. Knowing their ambush was destroyed, the rebels' morale plummeted, they lost their composure, and the battle quickly became clear."

"Thus, Chang'an, which had been lost for one year and three months, finally returned to the Tang Dynasty."

"When the people of the Tang Dynasty saw the vast and mighty Tang army, they all wiped away tears and lined the streets to welcome them."

"But these people certainly don't know that they were sold to the Uyghurs by the emperor of the Tang Dynasty."

At this time, Li Jiao, the Grand Marshal of the Armed Forces, knelt before the Uyghur Crown Prince and said: "Please, do not plunder the people of Chang'an, and spare their children. Why don't we rob the people of Luoyang instead?"

Everyone in Luoyang, the Eastern Capital: ...

"Ye Hu and Li Jiao have been getting along very well these days, so he agreed."

"The poor people of Luoyang, who had just rejoiced at the news of Luoyang's recapture, have soon been plunged into hell."

"According to records: When the Uyghurs arrived in Tokyo, after the bandits were quelled, they committed cruel acts. The men and women were terrified and all went to the two pavilions of Shengshan Temple and Baima Temple to avoid them. The Uyghurs set fire to the two pavilions, killing tens of thousands of people. The flames continued for several weeks."

"The catastrophe was only quelled when Prince Li Yu and Guo Ziyi scraped together 10,000 bolts of silk from wealthy households to ransom the city."

After recapturing Chang'an, Guo Ziyi continued eastward, recapturing Tongguan, Huayin, and Hongnong. Then, cooperating with the Uyghur troops at Xindian, he decisively defeated the rebellion. An Qingxu, realizing that further resistance was futile, fled to Xiangzhou.

"From then on, the Tang Dynasty finally recovered the two capitals."