Chapter 135

Chapter 135

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Volume 4: The End of Zhongping, The Turmoil of Luoyang, Chapter 135: The Strategy to Take Liangzhou

Belonging to the book:


Can a strategist not ascend the throne?

Chapter 135: The Strategy to Take Liangzhou…

Opposite the Lantai, diagonally across from the Jiade Hall where Liu Hong once resided.

This is an especially interesting hiding place for the Imperial Seal in Qiao Yan’s view.

On the day of the palace coup, even Grand General He Jin believed that Zhang Rang would hide the Imperial Seal in a relatively remote palace to ensure he could keep the Imperial Seal in his hands and protect his own life.

But it was precisely this thinking that led Zhang Rang to choose to hide the seal in a place that seemed most likely to be searched.

Dong Zhuo has been in the capital for two months now, but he has not found the seal in the Southern Palace, undoubtedly due to the cleverness of the hiding place.

Qiao Yan’s mind raced, and she immediately decided to retrieve the seal first before looking for anyone.

If the allied forces from Suanzao were to arrive in Luoyang soon, then the time to find Yuan Ji and Liu Bian might be the only chance for Qiao Yan to openly enter the Southern Palace without arousing suspicion.

The palace opposite the Lantai is called A Ge, sandwiched between the Lantai and the Changqiu Palace. The front courtyard to the south is mostly occupied by the bamboo groves around the Lantai, and in the already summer weather, it is shaded by bamboo and trees, creating a cool atmosphere.

Or perhaps it would be more appropriate to say it has an air of decline and desolation.

When she pushed the door open, she didn’t know if it was because she had indeed chosen the right palace, running towards the Yutang Hall on the other side, or because she was increasingly clear about her desire to obtain the Imperial Seal, testing the mechanism of declining luck, her luck on the numerical panel dropped by five points.

“Why is it that when I made various decisions before, there was no such drastic change in numerical values, but the Imperial Seal can cause it?” Qiao Yan couldn’t help but ask the system, her eyes already scanning the dusty room.

[Perhaps because this is considered the lifeline of the dynasty, rational strategists would advise their lord not to touch this thing at the current stage, and it has also been predetermined as a standard for triggering a re-evaluation of numerical values.]

Just like how her intelligence value triggered a second judgment before.

The system couldn’t help but tear up at this point.

What rational strategist, she has already admitted she’s not a strategist!

But saying this now is meaningless, especially since when she questioned Dong Zhuo outside the Northern Palace, tempting him with benefits, whether her subordinates would choose to serve him, another achievement popped up on the system interface, which was [Persuading Lü Bu not to side with Dong Zhuo], making the system look at the panel for a long time, finally coming up with the idea of just letting it all go.

It seems, as she said, it’s not impossible.

Qiao Yan sighed, “Indeed, this is a national treasure after all.”

The furnishings inside A Ge are not many.

This place was once used as a cooling spot near the Yutang Hall. In this lightweight wooden building with open windows on all sides, only the bookshelves remain after the books have been moved, clearly not a place where things could be hidden.

She quickly walked around the small hall, not feeling any difference in texture underfoot that could indicate a hidden pit below.

If we consider the conventional hiding methods…

Qiao Yan instinctively looked up at the beams above.

The interior of A Ge uses the beam-lifting framework perfected since the Spring and Autumn period.

According to the palace structure, the three-layer beam frame rises step by step, with melon columns connected to the beams. The higher it goes, the more it is shrouded in the shadow of the roof, making it less distinct.

Her sharp eyes, enhanced by her improved physique, immediately noticed an obvious anomaly between the second five-beam and three-beam layers.

This doesn’t seem to be the place where a vertical melon column should appear!

After scrutinizing for a moment, she felt she wasn’t mistaken and moved a nearby stand to below the suspicious spot.

After climbing up, she could confirm that it wasn’t her judgment that was off, but that there was a special square wooden box stuck between the two layers of beams.

After moving the bookshelf back, she opened the wooden box to find a more exquisite sandalwood box inside, containing—

The Imperial Seal!

She carefully took it out.

This Imperial Seal made of Hetian jade, if it were after the chaos of the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, perhaps the original version would no longer be seen.

Because the descriptions of the material vary, and many monarchs, to show their legitimacy, could have three seals appearing simultaneously!

Fortunately, there’s no need to doubt this one now, as it is the same one that Ziying presented to Liu Bang after the fall of Qin, passed down through the generations of the Han Dynasty to the present.

Below this four-inch square Hetian jade seal are the words “He who receives the Mandate of Heaven shall have a long and prosperous reign.”

She initially thought that once she had the seal, she might look for some imperial edicts to stamp a few seals in advance, just in case, but considering how easily it could reveal that the seal was in her hands, she decided to abandon this plan.

After all, what she wanted to do didn’t need the help of other edicts.

She then turned to the system and asked, “Can I send a few bookshelves as additional gifts?”

[…?]

“If someone comes here later, they will only see the empty space left after all the bookshelves have been moved, and won’t suspect that something was hidden here. Since the opposite is a farming system, using bookshelves to hold crop seeds as shelves is also possible, consider it my free gift,” Qiao Yan said confidently.

Even if someone eventually notices the location of the wooden box between the two beams, they wouldn’t think that the person who took it was her, who entered with only a side sword, since there’s no such thing as qinggong in this world.

Besides, trading an Imperial Seal, not only delivering two layers of packaging but also a set of Han Dynasty bookshelves, there’s hardly a more considerate trading partner in the world than her.

Also…

No one knows better than her how to clear her own suspicion.

Apart from not entering the Southern Palace of Luoyang again, she also needs a witness to prove that when she left this time, it was absolutely impossible for her to have hidden the Imperial Seal.

And coincidentally, there are two such witnesses here.

When Qiao Yan walked out of A Ge, the Imperial Seal in her hand had already been sent out as a bargaining chip. Her luck, which had dropped by fifteen points, returned to its original state after the seal was sent out, and she continued to follow the almost undetectable traces, tracking all the way to the outside of Hanzhang Hall.

She hadn’t come to the wrong place.

As she pushed open the palace door, she faintly heard a sound coming from inside.

This didn’t sound like the noise a mouse would make when startled.

After she walked in, she went straight towards the only wardrobe in the hall that looked like it could hide someone.

The closer she got, the more she could smell a faint scent of blood in the air.

She raised her side sword and used the tip to open the wardrobe door, meeting a pair of terrified eyes.

Before the other person could scream in extreme fright, Qiao Yan bowed to him, “King Hongnong, the traitor Dong has been driven out of the capital, you are safe now.”

Hidden in the wardrobe of Hanzhang Hall was King Hongnong Liu Bian, and—

A Yuan Ji who had already fallen into a coma due to an arrow wound.

If Yuan Ji could have remained conscious, he would have tried to investigate the commotion outside after realizing it had quieted down, but unfortunately, he was hit by an arrow while escaping with Liu Bian in a donkey cart.

After the Northern Palace was breached, he mustered his strength to quickly move Liu Bian to avoid falling back into enemy hands as the battle fluctuated, but before he could explain, he fell into a coma.

In ancient times, such arrow wounds were extremely deadly, and he directly started to develop a fever.

Coincidentally, it was Liu Bian who was here, not Liu Xie.

In extreme fear, even though he was starving, he only maintained this curled-up position in the wardrobe.

Thus, it became a situation where Lü Bu and Xu Rong couldn’t find Liu Bian and Yuan Ji.

This King Hongnong really… really doesn’t have the makings of a Son of Heaven!

But this is clearly a good thing for Qiao Yan!

Yuan Ji, who she directly carried out of the Southern Palace, was immediately sent to the Imperial Medical Bureau for treatment, while King Hongnong followed her step by step out of the Southern Palace, quickly surrounded by ministers, being questioned while finally eating his first meal after more than a day of hunger.

Later in the day, Qiao Yan received news.

The arrow wound Yuan Ji suffered wasn’t that fatal.

But the subsequent infection and high fever without timely rescue were undoubtedly dangerous for him.

According to the doctors, even if he could wake up from the coma and recover, he would likely be greatly reduced in physical and mental strength, and could easily be taken by a simple illness in these times of rampant epidemics and frequent natural disasters.

“Only now do I feel that although my remaining two sons are somewhat mediocre, at least they don’t have the burden of having to do something just because they are the legitimate sons of a noble family like Yuan Shiji,” Ma Lun said after discussing Yuan Ji’s condition.

Yuan Yida and Yuan Renda did not follow their father in the task of rescuing King Hongnong, but instead hid in Empress He’s palace with Ren Hongchang, until they were rescued by Qiao Yan’s men.

At least Ma Lun’s efforts to save them were not in vain.

“What are your plans next?” Qiao Yan asked.

Of the four brothers Yuan Ping, Yuan Cheng, Yuan Feng, and Yuan Wei, the remaining legitimate descendants alive are Yuan Ji, Yuan Yi, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, and Ma Lun’s two sons, six nephews and nieces in total. Yuan Shao, who was adopted by Yuan Cheng, can also be considered legitimate.

If Yuan Ji dies, the political capital of the Yuan family would actually be divided among the remaining five, but in these times where strength speaks, just as Yuan Yi, who is Yuan Shao’s cousin, mostly follows his orders, age is clearly not the basis for distinction.

So as the mother of Yuan Yida and Yuan Renda, Ma Lun has some say, but how much exactly is hard to say.

Hearing Qiao Yan’s question, Ma Lun was silent for a moment.

Yuan Wei’s death at the hands of Guo Si was truly unexpected for her.

But perhaps because she has been mostly at the Lingtai in recent years, she only felt a momentary daze and didn’t find it hard to accept.

She then replied, “Previously, Yuan Zhuo had already gone to your Bingzhou under Deheng’s escort. Now that Luoyang doesn’t know when it will have peaceful days, if you don’t mind, I will also take those assistants and find a place at your Leping Academy, how about that?”

With the emperor’s power waning, the position of Grand Historian doesn’t make much difference whether it’s held or not.

But she doesn’t want to return to her original role as the lady of the house.

The laws of celestial phenomena, the natural patterns of solar and lunar eclipses, clearly give more motivation for life than those household chores.

It’s also a good time to take her two unremarkable sons away, so they avoid their father’s missteps but aren’t used as tools by Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu.

Sun Jian has already arrived in Luoyang, and Yuan Shu, who took the same route, though slower, has also arrived.

Ma Lun, as Yuan Wei’s widow, spoke a few words with Yuan Shu. With her keen political insight honed in the vortex of Luoyang, she intuitively felt that Yuan Shu had some small schemes after hearing about the capital’s upheaval.

In a sense, since Yuan Ji and Yuan Wei could be considered loyal ministers protecting the late emperor’s lineage, his ideas might indeed benefit the Yuan family.

But this game of smart people’s competition is better left to those who have the ability to participate.

She’s talking about her two sons.

She herself doesn’t want to get involved, so it’s better to choose a suitable support.

Qiao Yan in front of her is the first choice.

Qiao Yan was pleasantly surprised that Ma Lun no longer just saw her as an external ally. Even with Liu Hong and Ma Jun already under her command, it doesn’t change the fact that she has a high demand for a respected female official.

She also needs to rely on Ma Lun’s experience in management to complete the system for selecting and training female officials within Bingzhou.

If Ma Lun, who is already past sixty, were to serve under the Governor of Bingzhou, it would send a signal—

It’s never too late to build your own career!

But even with such an urgent need, Qiao Yan didn’t immediately agree, but seriously asked, “If it were earlier, I might have agreed without hesitation, but now I have to ask you again, if I were to turn against the Yuan family soon, could you still make this choice?”

Ma Lun didn’t hesitate and replied in her usual calm and tolerant tone, “My surname is Ma, not Yuan.”

So Qiao Yan’s choice isn’t a factor that affects her decision.

And the day after Ma Lun gave this reply, the Suanzao allied forces finally arrived.

At this time…








Luoyang is no longer the Luoyang controlled by Dong Zhuo, but the Luoyang guarded by the Bingzhou army, the Luyang allied forces, and the Northern Army Five Divisions, who have returned to their own side.

Yuan Shao felt no guilt for his late arrival, as he bore the “glorious title” of crusading against Dong Zhuo, and could still be considered a loyal minister of the Han Dynasty.

However, what he never expected was that as soon as he stepped into the city, a long arrow shot past, brushing past his temple and flying through the gaps of his soldiers behind him, embedding itself in the ground far away.

This astonishing control, meant only to intimidate and not to kill, left Yuan Shao, who was caught off guard, feeling a chill down his spine.

This is Luoyang! And it’s Luoyang just after the chaos has been quelled!

Who dares to shoot arrows at a noble family’s descendant like this!

But the next moment, he heard the sound of bowstrings being drawn from the eastern city wall of Luoyang behind him. Even without looking back, he could tell that countless arrows were now aimed at his position.

This was not just a threat from one person!

In front of him, Qiao Yan, riding on horseback, held a longbow in one hand and played with an unshot arrow in the other, her expression dark, exuding an unspoken killing intent.

Yuan Shao immediately shouted, “Qiao Yeshu, what do you mean by this?”

“What do I mean?” Qiao Yan sneered and sharply retorted, “I should be asking you what you mean! We agreed to attack on June 13th, no, to be precise, because of the danger at Chenggao Pass and the distance of over a hundred miles to Luoyang, I allowed you to start the attack two days early to ensure we arrived at Luoyang around the same time. Now, tell me, what day is it today?”

Yuan Shao was speechless.

Today was June 18th.

He was three days late!

This delay could not be explained by any minor mishaps during the march.

Yuan Shao’s forces were not limited to slow infantry; they could have ridden horses for speed. After all, the task of attacking Luoyang had not been assigned to Yuan Shao.

Before Yuan Shao could explain, Qiao Yan continued, “You said your army was short on rations? Fine! I even allowed you to repay the grain by next September and sent rations from Shangdang Commandery to you.”

“The Mengjin and Xiaopingjin fording points, separated by the Yellow River, I didn’t ask for your help, and I completed the river-crossing battle myself. So, I ask you, why could Sun Jian and I arrive in Luoyang on time, but you couldn’t!”

Yuan Shao: “I…”

“Let me explain this.”

“Lord Lu, you don’t need to speak for Yuan Benchu!” Qiao Yan interrupted Lu Zhi, her gaze still fixed on Yuan Shao. “Lord Lu didn’t borrow grain from me, but the one who agreed readily was this son of the Yuan family!”

Even with his thick skin, Yuan Shao couldn’t help but feel a burning shame.

How could he explain the process of capturing Xuanmen Pass?

Dong Zhuo fled in such haste that he didn’t have time to send word to Xuanmen Pass before leaving Luoyang on June 15th. Yuan Shao’s allied forces did indeed capture Xuanmen Pass legitimately.

But the failed attempts before the successful breach were due to Yuan Shao and his grain-borrowing allies taking command, citing majority rule and the fact that Hu Zhen was not a well-known general in Dong Zhuo’s army.

Some of their claims were not wrong.

Hu Zhen was indeed not a famous good general.

He even boasted about killing a high-ranking official to boost his reputation while defending Xuanmen Pass.

But because he faced the largest and most powerful of the three allied forces, he restrained his impatience and delegated much of his command to his subordinate Hua Xiong.

Thus, when Yuan Shao and his forces attacked Chenggao at night, they were ambushed from the rear by Hua Xiong’s troops.

Hua Xiong was a fierce general, and Hu Zhen’s impatience unexpectedly worked in their favor. The two hit it off and, after repelling Yuan Shao’s forces that night, charged into a corner of the allied camp, killing the leader who had been roused and then retreating.

This leader was none other than Qiao Zhao, the Prefect of Dong Commandery!

Even though Qiao Yan and Qiao Zhao were not on good terms, they were still of the same clan, giving her even more reason to question Yuan Shao’s actions.

Even if her actions seemed slightly extreme, she had another justification.

Fortunately, after this blow from the Xiliang army, Yuan Shao’s later wisdom and composure, which would make him a dominant figure in Hebei, were finally awakened. He immediately discussed with Lu Zhi to withdraw the entire army, feigning defeat.

Then, when Hu Zhen and Hua Xiong, having tasted success twice, underestimated the allied forces and gave chase, Cao Cao and Liu Bei led their troops in a counterattack.

Thus, Hu Zhen was killed by Cao Ren, whom Cao Cao had brought, and Hua Xiong, though he avoided Sun Jian, who was supposed to kill him, met his end at the hands of Guan Yu.

Anyone would say this was another twist of fate.

But it was also because of these two consecutive defeats and the feigned retreat that Yuan Shao and his forces spent a long time at Xuanmen Pass.

If Yuan Shao were to explain, this was something that could easily happen in battle, but when faced with a younger generation questioning him in the streets, he opened his mouth but couldn’t say a word.

“Yuan Benchu! I once thought you were a hero of the Yuan family, rising to prominence at a young age, known throughout the land, and bravely cutting ties with Dong Zhuo, deserving the title of loyal and righteous. But I never expected—”

Qiao Yan, without drawing her bow, pointed the arrow in her hand at him and said word by word, “You are power-hungry, outwardly fierce but inwardly timid, ambitious but foolish, fond of schemes but indecisive, a gilded exterior hiding rotten insides!”

This last sentence was the most scathing summary of Yuan Shao.

Though Liu Ji’s “The Orange Seller’s Words” had not yet been written, the identity of a descendant of the Yuan family of Runan, a family of four generations of high officials, was indeed a gilded exterior, not to mention Yuan Shao’s handsome appearance. As for the rotten insides… well, his recent performance spoke for itself.

Yuan Shao was almost set ablaze on the spot.

Even though Qiao Yan was persuaded by Lu Zhi and Cao Cao to stand down, as Dong Zhuo was still alive and internal strife was not advisable, Yuan Shao felt that walking through Luoyang, he was met with strange and inexplicable glances from all sides.

Yuan Shu, of course, was delighted by this.

This man, who would later say, “Why do the masses not follow me, but follow my family’s slave?” usually maintained a superficial relationship with Yuan Shao, but privately, his thoughts about Yuan Shao were no secret.

Now, at a critical moment when the Yuan family had to make a major decision, Yuan Shao’s reputation being damaged was a great boon for Yuan Shu.

He hadn’t arrived in Luoyang on time, but Sun Jian, who was with him, had intercepted Dong Zhuo’s forces midway, giving him a respectable position to speak from.

Since Yuan Wei, the youngest of the previous generation, had already passed away, and Yuan Ji, though awake, was still too ill to rise, and Yuan Shao was eager to escape Qiao Yan’s gaze to avoid another verbal assault, Yuan Shu—

became the representative of the Yuan family at this court gathering.

He solemnly said, “The situation is clear to all. Dong Zhuo has fled to Chang’an with the Emperor, an undeniable fact. Arguing over the timing of the Suanzao allied forces’ arrival is now meaningless. We should instead consider what we should do now.”

Seeing that Yuan Shu had brought Liu Bian to the hall, even though he paused briefly, those present could guess what he was about to say.

Yuan Shu continued, “Dong Zhuo has taken the Emperor to Chang’an, and with the Xiliang army as his backup, it’s hard to say whether he will summon General Huangfu to court or ally with Ma Teng and Han Sui.”

“If the Son of Heaven remains in Chang’an and issues another call for talents, countless people seeking advancement will flock there. If this continues, privately, it will encourage Dong Zhuo’s ambitions and set a precedent for others to follow. Publicly, it will be a disaster for the common people.”

“Chang’an is rebuilding its palaces, fortifications, and conscripting troops, with all decrees coming from Dong Zhuo. Since seizing power in Luoyang, he has been extorting and plundering excessively, and there is no chance he will repent in Chang’an.”

“Therefore, in my humble opinion—”

Yuan Shu pointed in the direction of Prince Hongnong, Liu Bian, “Prince Hongnong and the Emperor share the bloodline of the late Emperor, and Prince Hongnong is the legitimate heir born of Empress He. He is the rightful successor to the throne.”

“Now that the court ministers are all here, and Dong Zhuo is not present, if we support Prince Hongnong as the new Emperor, we can break free from Dong Zhuo’s control and, after his ascension, rightfully crusade against Dong Zhuo. This is the best choice!”

Yuan Shu then turned to Liu Bian and bowed, saying, “However, since Dong Zhuo still holds power in Chang’an, if we are to establish a new Emperor, we will need to ask the Emperor to temporarily leave Luoyang and find a stable location in the east to serve as a temporary capital. This will require some inconvenience for a while.”

Inconvenience?

No, no, this is not inconvenient at all!

Hearing Yuan Shu’s words, Liu Bian’s eyes lit up.

He was indeed timid and had been terrified by Dong Zhuo’s massacre of his maternal family after entering the capital, but if asked whether he wanted to be Emperor, he would definitely say yes.

But thinking of the psychological shadow Luoyang cast on him, especially the day he went hungry and hid in a dark closet, Liu Bian couldn’t help but hesitate.

Now, Yuan Shu had even solved this last concern for him!

If the new capital was not in Luoyang, and he could be crowned Emperor elsewhere, wouldn’t that be the best of both worlds?

Yuan Gonglu truly understood him!

In Zhao Yun’s earlier report to Qiao Yan, he mentioned that some of the officials arguing in front of the North Palace held the same view as Yuan Shu.

Whether these people had communicated with Yuan Shu before he spoke, Qiao Yan did not know. She only saw that as Yuan Shu finished speaking, they all responded in agreement.

Qiao Yan glanced around and saw many familiar faces.

For example, Yang Xiu’s father Yang Biao, Fu Shou’s father Fu Wan, and Wang Yun, also known as Wang Zishi.

Wang Yun had been falsely accused by Zhang Rang and dismissed from office, but He Jin had summoned him back to Luoyang as a Personnel Officer. Though he was still on his way back to Luoyang when He Jin died in the chaos, he was still considered He Jin’s former subordinate. Supporting Liu Bian, born of Empress He, was indeed the right stance.

But there were also those who opposed.

Lu Zhi had already spoken up to question, “May I ask, if we establish a new Emperor now, what will happen to the Emperor in Chang’an? Are you planning to force the Emperor’s death? Dong Zhuo has five Middle Generals: Niu Fu died at Mengjin Ford, Dong Yue at Taigu Pass, Xu Rong defected, Hu Zhen was defeated and died at Xuanmen Pass, leaving only Duan Wei. The once-feared Xiliang generals are now scattered, with many dead. If Luoyang could be taken before, why can’t we now march on Chang’an?”

“If we can find someone to act as an insider, ensuring the Emperor’s safety before the attack, it’s not impossible to bring the Emperor back to Luoyang and restore the Han Dynasty’s glory!”

Seeing someone about to rebut his suggestion, Lu Zhi preemptively declared, “If anyone thinks that entering Chang’an to protect the Emperor is too dangerous, I, Lu Zhi, am willing to do it! After all, I am old, and if I die for the Emperor, so be it!”

“Well said!” Qiao Yan immediately agreed.

Liu Bian instinctively looked in her direction, meeting her sharp, knife-like gaze.

Even though Qiao Yan was technically his savior, for some reason, Liu Bian felt a bit intimidated by her.

“If Lord Lu has the courage to be the insider, I will gladly lead the charge on Chang’an!”

“Yuan Gonglu!” Qiao Yan suddenly turned to Yuan Shu and shouted.

Before she could say anything, Yuan Shu instinctively worried that the words she had used to berate Yuan Shao would now be directed at him.

But Qiao Yan had no intention of using the same script twice.

“You speak lightly of deposing and establishing, abandoning the Emperor for Prince Hongnong. If Prince Hongnong doesn’t suit your fancy tomorrow, will you abandon him for Liu Youzhou or other imperial relatives? You talk of choosing a new capital, but how is rebuilding palaces and city walls any different from what Dong Zhuo is doing in Chang’an? Dong Zhuo took the Emperor to Chang’an, a mere eight hundred miles, and you dare not pursue. The iron backbone of the Han Dynasty, full of resolute men, is being ruined by people like you!”

These three sentences branded Yuan Shu as fickle, Dong Zhuo-like, and spineless, nearly causing Yuan Shu to explode in anger.

He suppressed his rage, remembering his purpose, and retorted, “A mere eight hundred miles? Then, Marquis Qiao, tell me, how will you transport rations and troops from Luoyang to Chang’an for the attack, and how will you avoid being exhausted and defeated by Dong Zhuo?”

The attendees’ eyes shifted between Yuan Shu and Qiao Yan, and they saw her pull an imperial edict from her sleeve with the momentum of an arrow leaving the bowstring, “How to attack? Since the late Emperor entrusted me with the task of crusading against the traitor, I will not disappoint him.”

“If marching west from Luoyang through Hangu Pass to Chang’an is impossible—”

“I will go straight from Bingzhou to Liangzhou, first quelling the rebellions of Han Sui and Ma Teng, cutting off Dong Zhuo’s recruitment path from Liangzhou, and then march south from Liangzhou to take Chang’an!”