Zhang Xun (Tang Dynasty) - During The Anshi Rebellion - Battle of Yongqiu

Battle of Yongqiu

Late in 755, while Zhang Xun was still serving at Zhenyuan County, the general An Lushan rebelled at Fanyang Circuit (范陽, headquartered in modern Beijing) and quickly advanced south to capture the Tang eastern capital Luoyang, where he declared himself the emperor of a new state of Yan. One of his generals, Zhang Tongwu (張通晤), advanced east from Luoyang and led to the submission of a number of Tang officials, including Zhang Xun's superior Yang Wanshi (楊萬石), the governor of Qiao Commandery (譙郡, roughly modern Zhoukou). Yang forced Zhang Xun to become his secretary general and lead a delegation to welcome Zhang Tongwu. Once Zhang Xun gathered the delegation, however, instead of following Yang's orders, he led the delegation to the temple of Laozi — whom the Tang emperors considered an ancestor and posthumously honored as Emperor Xuanyuan — and led the delegation in a tearful worship of Laozi, before declaring continued loyalty to Tang and opposition against Yan. Several thousands of officials and common citizens followed him. He selected 1,000 men and took them to Yongqiu, where fellow Yan-resistor Jia Bi (賈賁) had taken up position to defend against the Tang-official-turned-Yan-general Linghu Chao (令狐潮). (Yongqiu had been Linghu's outpost when he surrendered to Yan, but once Linghu left the city on a campaign, the city turned against LInghu and submitted to Jia.) When Linghu counterattacked, Jia died in battle, and Zhang became solely in command of Tang forces in defense of Yongqiu. He sent a letter submitting to the general in command of the Tang troops in the region, Li Zhi (李祇) the Prince of Wu, and Li Zhi bestowed him the title of imperial censor to give him official command of the forces at Yongqiu.

Linghu soon returned with a 40,000-strong Yan army, along with other Yan generals Li Huaixian, Yang Chaozong (楊朝宗), and Xie Yuantong (謝元同). Zhang Xun divided his 2,000 men into two groups — a defense group and an attack group, and as Yan forces sieged the city, he launched numerous surprise counterattacks and inflicted losses on Yan forces. Yongqiu was under siege for some 60 days, but Yan forces could not capture Yongqiu and were forced to withdraw.

In spring 756, Linghu returned and put Yongqiu under siege again, however, and during the desperate siege, six of Zhang's officers argued that they should surrender, pointing out that, by that point, Emperor Xuanzong had abandoned Chang'an and fled to Yi Prefecture (益州, roughly modern Chengdu, Sichuan). Zhang feigned agreement, and the next morning, he displayed a portrait of Emperor Xuanzong and led the soldiers in bowing to it, and then summoned the six officers and executed them. It was said that this affirmed the loyalty that the soldiers had for Tang. With Yongqiu not falling to him, Linghu was again forced to lift the siege and withdraw to Chenliu (陳留, in modern Kaifeng, Henan). Meanwhile, when another Yan general, Li Tingwang (李庭望), tried to pass Yongqiu and attack Ningling and Xiangyi (襄邑) (both in modern Shangqiu, Henan), Zhang attacked him and forced him to break off the attack on Ningling and Xiangyi.

In winter 756, Linghu, along with Wang Fude (王福德), again attacked Yongqiu, but was again repelled by Zhang. However, LInghu and Li then built a new fort north of Yongqiu to cut off Yongqiu's supply lines. With several other Tang-held cities in the region falling and Yang Chaozong again ready to attack Ningling, Zhang abandoned Yongqiu and withdrew to Ningling, rendezvousing with Xu Yuan (許遠) the governor of Suiyang Commandery (睢陽, roughly modern Shangqiu) at Ningling. They repelled an attack by Yang, forcing him to flee. Zhang was subsequently made the deputy to the military governor (jiedushi) of Henan Circuit, Li Ju (李巨) the Prince of Guo (who had earlier replaced Li Zhi), but when he requested aid from Li Ju, who was then at Pengcheng, Li Ju refused to provide material aid, only commissioning Zhang's subordinates with official titles.

By this point, An Lushan had been assassinated and replaced as the emperor of Yan by his son An Qingxu. After An Qingxu took the throne, he sent the general Yin Ziqi (尹子奇) to attack Suiyang (i.e., the capital of Suiyang Commandery). Xu, who had returned to Suiyang by that point, sought aid from Zhang. Zhang therefore left his officer Lian Tan (廉坦) in charge of defending Ningling and took most of his forces to Suiyang, defending the city together. They repelled Yin's attack initially, but Yin soon regrouped and put Suiyang under siege. Xu, citing the fact that he was a civilian official and not well versed in military matters, bestowed the command of their joint forces on Zhang and became only responsible for logistics, leaving the military matters to Zhang.