The loyal generals of the Southern Tang Dynasty killed their relatives with great righteousness

A.D. 957, the fourth year of Xiande in the Later Zhou Dynasty. At this time, it was still early spring and the weather was still bone-chillingly cold. Shouzhou City, an important town in Huainan, is a dangerous pass. For the Southern Tang Dynasty, Shouzhou could be attacked when advancing or defended when retreating. There is no doubt its importance in the northern part of the Southern Tang Dynasty.

Liu Renfan was the general who guarded Shouzhou City in the Southern Tang Dynasty. He was one of the few famous generals in the Southern Tang Dynasty. Since last spring, Zhou Dynasty Lord Chai Rong personally led the army to invade the Southern Tang Dynasty. Many states in Huaibei were successively captured by the Zhou army, but under the command of Liu Renfan, the soldiers and people of Shouzhou City defended the city. Even Chai Rong, the wise and powerful Zhou Shizong, and Zhao Kuangyin, who was brave and good at fighting, could not help him. So when Banshi returned to the court, he ordered Li Chong to besiege Shouzhou City and capture it.

The men came to report that Bian Hao, Xu Wenzhen and Li Chongjin had failed in the battle, and the camp guarded by Generals Bian and Xu had also been destroyed. Liu Renfan was very angry when he heard the news. He was both angry and worried. So, he wrote to King Qi Li Jingda, asking King Qi to let Bian Hao guard Shouzhou City. He might as well lead the troops to fight Li Chongjin to the death.

But the King of Qi, Li Jingda, replied to the letter and rejected him. Therefore, Liu Renfan felt annoyed, worried and depressed. In addition, before this, Liu Renfan had been defending Shouzhou City for more than a year, which was also more than a year after being surrounded by the troops led by the later Zhou Dynasty general Li Chongjin. In the city, the food for the soldiers and the fodder for the horses have almost been used up, and they will soon be unable to withstand it. Liu Renfan and the soldiers and people in Shouzhou City eagerly awaited the arrival of reinforcements. After waiting for a year and urging for a year, the reinforcements finally arrived. He never imagined that Generals Bian and Xu would be so inexperienced. You know, the number of soldiers and horses that came to the rescue was many times more than the number of soldiers and horses that besieged the city. If we cooperated inside and outside, it was very possible to make dumplings for Li Chongjin and his soldiers and horses, annihilate the besieging Zhou army in one fell swoop, and protect the Southern Tang Dynasty's dangerous place in Huainan. of.

However, now the hope is dashed. Li Chongjin took advantage of the arrogance of Xu Wenzhen, the military envoy from the Southern Tang Dynasty, Bian Hao, the military envoy, and Zhu Yuan, the regimental training envoy, who came to the rescue from the Southern Tang Dynasty. They relied on their large number of troops and did not care about it, and the defense of the stronghold was not tight. One cold night, Li Chongjin gathered his men, took advantage of the chilling cold wind in the middle of the night, trampled on the icy night frost among the grass and rocks, and quietly sneaked to the enemy's stronghold to prepare for a night attack. Everything was ready, and it was estimated that the soldiers in the stronghold were all asleep. With an order, the soldiers, wearing sharp armor and holding sharp blades in their hands, rushed into the stronghold with long-standing resentment and destroyed it. Liu Renfan was under the pressure of various critical situations at this time, and his suggestions were not adopted. He fell completely ill and gradually could not even get out of bed.

Under such circumstances, Liu Chongjian, Liu Rengan's beloved youngest son, thought about it and felt that his father was so ill that he might not survive. He was also worried that because his father was critically ill, the city would no longer be able to be defended. It would be better to sneak out and ask for surrender from the Zhou army, which would save the entire Liu family. After thinking about it, Liu Chongjian took advantage of the night and went out of the city, holding the boat and preparing to row to the other side of Huaibei, because the Zhou army was stationed there. But unfortunately, he was discovered and stopped by a small officer. He was not allowed to leave and was arrested and sent to the city.

Liu Renfan was still lying in bed recuperating when he suddenly saw a sergeant binding his young son to see him. Before he could ask any questions, the sergeant reported the situation. Liu Renfan personally asked his son, what was the purpose of going out of the city? Unexpectedly, the youngest son laid out his plan to surrender to the Zhou army as clearly as he poured beans. After Liu Renfan heard this, he was furious! He said: "You were born as a minister of the Tang Dynasty and died as a ghost of the Tang Dynasty. How could you betray the king and father and go out of the city to surrender to the enemy privately? My servants on the left and right will kill him quickly to repay me!"

Liu Rengan's personal guards did not dare to disobey his military orders, so they had to tie up Liu Chongjian and take him out to the school grounds to behead him. At this time, Zhou Tinggou, the supervisor of the army, saw it outside and quickly shouted: "Save someone under the knife!" He stopped the sergeant's knife that was about to cut down and ran quickly alone to rescue Liu Chongjian. However, he was still a step too late. Liu Rengan had already ordered the soldiers to close the middle gate to prevent Zhou Tinggou from entering. During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, the military supervisor was a permanent official position in the army, usually held by eunuchs. They are generally appointed by the emperor, and their power is not much different from that of the generals who command the army. Liu Renfan did this because he was afraid that Zhou Tinggou would use his power to prevent him from killing his youngest son.

Sure enough, after preventing Zhou Yangou from entering, Liu Renfan sent someone to tell him: "My rebellious son has broken the law and should be cut in half. If anyone intercedes for the rebellious son, he will suffer the same punishment." !" When Zhou Tinggou heard this, he cried and shouted loudly, probably to persuade him not to kill. He cried and shouted like this for a while, but no one came to open the door for him and let him in. So, he hurriedly sent someone to ask for help from Liu Rengan's wife Xue. He thought, your son is about to be killed by his father, how can you, the mother-in-law, not save him?

No, Mrs. Xue’s reply surprised Zhou Yangou. Mrs. Xue was embarrassed and very sad and said to the visitor: "Chongjian is my youngest son, how can I bear to put him to death? But since he violated the military order, his guilt is really intolerable, and the military law does not It can be broken because of him. As a minister of the Tang Dynasty, he cannot surrender to the enemy and destroy his integrity. If he forgives a Chongjian like this, then my reputation as a loyal and filial family will be lost, and we will lose all face. To face the soldiers with face.

"Mrs. Xue's words show that she and her husband are of the same mind. The couple understands the righteousness so well and kills their relatives with such righteousness. I have rarely heard of it throughout ancient and modern history.

Mrs. Xue just finished speaking, They even sent junior officials to urge Liu Renfan to kill his son quickly. Liu Renfan and his wife endured the grief of losing their son and started to hold funerals for the people in the city and the soldiers who defended the city. He cried in gratitude and said that Liu Renfan had so many orders that he did not even protect his own son, and his determination to defend Shouzhou City became even stronger. Even Li Chongjin was moved and impressed when he heard the news. idea.