On May 5th, Ji Province fell, Ping Province was in urgent danger, and the northwestern Tong and Yu provinces sought help from the Northern Yan army.
On May 12th, Ping Province was captured, the main general (the King of Shu) died in battle, and nearby counties were unable to resist. The enemy was only a thousand li from the capital, and the Tang Province army was instead confronting the capital garrison outside the city to force Sun Yunchun out of the palace.
On May 13th, the Ning Province army defected, and the northwestern defense line was broken.
The Datan and Zhe tribes advanced from the east and west, trapping the Northern Yan cavalry in the middle like an isolated island. The court was in complete chaos, unable to gather supplies or take inventory of battle preparations.
On May 15th, Fu Shen traveled day and night and finally arrived at the camp outside Yan Province. The Northern Yan soldiers guarding the camp almost cried when they saw him.
Fu Shen was exhausted from his journey, without the strength to even support himself. He casually found a tent to sit in and said concisely, “Bring me a cup of water, and tell me which general is in the camp to come and see me.”
As the soldier went to carry out the order, Fu Shen closed his eyes to rest. Dusty and haggard, he could shake off two taels of dirt from his sleeve with a simple brush.
Bohai State has always been well-behaved, and for so many years, they haven’t caused any trouble. Now, joining the Zhe tribe in an uprising, they must be at least ninety percent sure before making a move. The Tang Zhou military governor Yang Xiu had just been captured, yet they hastily abandoned the crown prince and turned to Prince Jin. Do you think they are deliberately putting on a show to fool this big idiot of a prince?
Yu Qiaoting agreed: “That’s right, he is a big idiot.”
