Starting with a Wei Wu soldier

Chapter 244 Jinling Surrenders

The devastating news of Luo Heng's execution and the annihilation of his remaining troops came almost simultaneously with the news of the complete annihilation of the Poyang Lake navy. Like two death knells, they crashed down on the crumbling city of Jinling and struck at the last line of defense of Prince Xiao Jingyan of Chu.

When the messenger horse, carrying the defeated soldiers of Poyang Lake, covered in blood, neighed and charged through the chaotic streets until it collapsed and died of exhaustion in front of the Chu King's mansion, the entire city of Jinling seemed to be gripped by an invisible giant hand, instantly falling silent. Panic, like an icy tide, engulfed every corner from the palace to the streets with unprecedented speed.

Inside the Chu Prince's residence, a deathly silence reigned. The once luxurious hall was now eerily empty, save for Xiao Jingyan, his hair disheveled, dressed in mourning clothes, sitting blankly on the throne. Scattered beneath the throne were torn military reports and a shattered jade cup. The air was thick with the stench of alcohol and the decaying scent of impending death.

Outside the palace, the faint sounds of hurried footsteps of officials rushing about, the suppressed sobs of servants, and even the gradually spiraling clamor and commotion in the distant streets could be heard. But these sounds seemed far removed from Xiao Jingyan. His eyes stared blankly in the direction of the palace gate, yet it seemed as if he saw nothing at all.

It's over. It's all over.

The navy, the army, the last elite forces, the last hope… all gone. Zhou Jun drowned himself in the lake, Luo Heng died in battle, and hundreds of thousands of troops vanished into thin air. The fire on Poyang Lake not only burned all the warships, but also consumed all of Xiao Jingyan's luck, dignity, and any possibility of turning the tide.

"Anti-Star Alliance"? Now it seems more like a huge joke. Those lords who once swore oaths, when the Star Army swept through Jiangnan with thunderous force, either surrendered at the mere sight of them or were struggling to protect themselves. Who would care about the fate of Jinling?

The palace door was gently pushed open a crack, letting in a faint light that illuminated the eunuch's deathly pale face, etched with fear. He trembled as he held a new document, his voice barely a whisper: "Your Highness... Your Highness, the Ministry of Rites... Vice Minister Zhang of the Ministry of Rites, along with several Grand Secretaries, Hanlin scholars, and... and several generals, are requesting an audience outside the palace..."

Xiao Jingyan's eyes flickered slightly, and a hoarse, bellows-like laugh escaped his throat, filled with self-mockery and despair: "Seeking an audience? Have you come to persuade me... to 'accept fate'?"

The eunuch fell to his knees with a thud, banging his head on the ground, too afraid to utter a word.

Xiao Jingyan slowly stood up, staggering slightly. He walked into the hall, bent down to pick up a sharp shard of porcelain, and toyed with it between his fingers; the cold touch brought him back to his senses. "Let them... all of them in."

A moment later, led by Zhang Zhao, the Vice Minister of Rites, a group of seven or eight civil and military officials, some with white hair and beards, others with complex expressions, filed in. They all bore traces of their haste; though their clothes were still relatively neat, the fear, the evasiveness, and even a faint... expectation in their eyes were all too obvious.

Zhang Zhao took a deep breath and was about to lead the group in salute when Xiao Jingyan raised his hand to stop him.

"No need." Xiao Jingyan's voice was hoarse and weary. He glanced around at the crowd, his gaze lingering on several familiar faces. "My beloved ministers, what brings you here? I... know the answer. Poyang Lake has been lost, Luo Heng is dead, and the Xingqi army will soon be at our gates. Jinling... cannot be defended, can it?"

A hush fell over the hall, broken only by suppressed breathing. Zhang Zhao and the others exchanged bewildered glances. Finally, an elderly Hanlin scholar stepped forward, trembling, tears streaming down his face. "Your Highness! It is not that we are disloyal, but... it is the will of Heaven that cannot be defied! The stars of Xingqi are powerful, and Chen Xing... indeed possesses the countenance of a ruler. Our elite troops have been wiped out, and the city's soldiers number less than ten thousand, mostly old and weak. Although our provisions are sufficient, the people's hearts are scattered. How can we defend it? If we wait until the city falls, I fear everything will be destroyed, and the entire city will be devastated! Your Highness! For the sake of the millions of people of Jinling, for the sake of preserving even a shred of life for the Southern Dynasty's ancestral temples and altars... this old minister... this old minister begs Your Highness... to surrender!"

The words "surrender and submit" were like a thunderclap, finally brought to the forefront. Upon hearing this, many people in the hall, though their faces showed sorrow, also breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiao Jingyan closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again, his gaze filled with a strange calm, or perhaps the numbness that comes with a dead heart. "Surrender...yes, what else can I do but surrender? Should I follow Zhou Jun's example and drown myself in the lake? Or should I have all the soldiers and civilians of this city die for me?"

He turned around, his back to the crowd, and gazed at the faded "Ten Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" painting on the screen behind the throne. After a long while, he slowly said, "Zhang Zhao."

"Your subject is here."

"You... are a learned man, well-versed in rituals. Draft a letter of surrender for me. Be earnest in your words, and place all the blame upon me alone. I only beg Chen Xing... to treat my Xiao clan members kindly and not to slaughter the innocent in Jinling."

Zhang Zhao bowed deeply, his voice choked with emotion: "Your subject... obeys."

"And another thing," Xiao Jingyan continued, his voice growing softer and softer as if all his strength had been drained, "send someone... to the treasury, to find... to find that thing, clean it, and send it out of the city along with the surrender document."

Upon hearing this, the high-ranking officials in the hall all trembled, their eyes flashing with complex and unfathomable light. They knew what Xiao Jingyan was referring to—the Imperial Seal of the State, which had been passed down through generations since the fall of the previous dynasty and kept secret by the Xiao family, symbolizing the rightful mandate of heaven. Handing it over meant surrendering the last vestige of legitimacy and utter submission.

"Your Highness..." someone wanted to say something more.

Xiao Jingyan waved his hand sharply and said in a stern voice, "Go now! Are we going to wait for the Xingqi Army to break in and search the place?!" This stern shout exhausted his last bit of strength, and he then coughed violently, bending over as if he were coughing up his internal organs.

Zhang Zhao and the others dared not speak further, bowed, and slowly withdrew from the hall. The hall doors closed again, locking Xiao Jingyan alone, surrounded by boundless silence and despair.

He slowly walked back to the throne, but did not sit down. Instead, he stroked the cold, gilded armrest with his hand, muttering to himself, as if asking the illusory ancestors: "Emperor Taizu, all former kings... your unworthy descendant Jingyan... cannot hold onto this empire... the Southern Dynasty... is finished..."

A single, murky tear finally slid from the corner of his parched eye, dripping onto the throne and disappearing swiftly.

Just as a tragic end was unfolding within the Chu King's mansion, undercurrents and overt currents were rapidly surging both inside and outside Jinling City.

The morale of the city's defense forces completely collapsed, and many mid- and lower-ranking officers and soldiers began to secretly conspire to "surrender the city" in order to save themselves and their families. Some wealthy families and merchants in the city had already made overt or covert contact with the Xingqi Army through various channels, and now they all took action, either donating money and food to "reward the army," providing intelligence on the city's defenses, or secretly protecting key facilities, all in the hope of preserving their businesses under the new dynasty, or even going further.

The influence of the Xingqi pacification team, led by Lin Wan'er, was now fully apparent. The seeds sown earlier—the Jiangnan gentry who had been persuaded to surrender, the released soldiers, and the literati inspired by the "royal influence"—had now become the best propagandists and liaisons. Through various channels, policies such as "only punishing the ringleaders, not those who were coerced," "those who open the city gates to welcome the royal army will be rewarded," and "protecting the borders and ensuring the safety of the people, without committing any offenses" were rapidly spread and amplified, further eroding the last vestiges of resistance in the city.

After a brief rest following the Battle of Poyang Lake, Chen Xing's main force, with Dian Xiong as the vanguard, Chen Wei as the commander-in-chief of the central army, and Shen Qing's naval forces patrolling the river to protect the flanks and intimidate the prefectures and counties along the river, advanced by both land and water, a mighty force heading straight for Nanjing. The prefectures and counties along the way surrendered without resistance. On the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, Chen Xing's vanguard had reached the Stone City fortress on the western outskirts of Nanjing. This strategically important fortress, controlling the Yangtze River, was surrendered without firing a single arrow by its defenders, led by their commander.

Jinling, the land of six dynasties and the last capital of the Southern Dynasty, was now completely exposed to the military might of the Xingqi Empire, like a helpless fallen leaf in a storm.