South China remained still unconquered. While Bayan was moving on Lin ngan invincibly, Alihaiya was advancing through Hu kuang and had laid siege to Chang cha. He attacked with such vigor that after some days the city suffered excessively. The Mongols delivered a general assault, won the rampart, and the fate of the place was decided; a part was on fire, and the fall of the whole was a question of hours at the utmost. At this juncture an official from a city of importance, who chanced to be there with two sons who had just come of age, made those sons put hats on their heads (the hat being a symbol of manhood). That done, he cast himself into the flames with them and his household; Li fu, the governor of Chang cha, honored greatly the memory of this visitor, and feeling sure that every official would be true to the dynasty, he summoned a certain Chin tsong and said to him: “I will not dishonor my blood by surrender; I ask you to despatch [[354]]all my family, and then show to me the same service.” In vain did Chin tsong strike the earth with his forehead, in vain did he beg of the governor to relieve him from such a terrible service. Li fu was unbending, and as he insisted, Chin tsong, weeping bitterly, agreed to obey him. Wine was given all who were ready to die, and while under its influence death touched them easily. When Li fu presented his head it was swept from him with one blow of a sabre. Chin tsong set fire to the palace immediately; then he ran to his house, where he slew his own wife and children; that done, he killed himself. All the officials, save two, and a great number of officers and people followed the governor; some sprang into wells, others hanged themselves, or took poison. On entering Chang cha the Mongols were astonished to find the place almost deserted.
Alihaiya then summoned the other cities of Southern Hu kuang; nearly all of them surrendered without raising a weapon to defend themselves. At the same time in Kiang si Sung tu kai made great progress. Eleven cities of this province submitted, and Fu chau also was taken. Bayan had been summoned to appear at Shang tu immediately. Sung tu kai told him at parting, that the Sung princes had assembled many troops in Fu kien and Kuang tung, and that they intended to enter Kiang si. Bayan enjoined on Argan and Tong wen ping, whom he left in command near Lin ngan, to leave those princes no time to strengthen their armies.
When the Sung princes, brothers of the Emperor, came to Wen chau from Lin ngan, the officers who followed or joined them, made Y wang, the elder, chief governor of the Empire, and associated with him his brother Kwang wang. These brothers entered Fu kien, where the two leading cities were on the point of submitting to Hoang wan tau, whom Bay an had made governor of that province very recently. The new governor had guaranteed to reduce the whole province. The Sung partisans seized arms immediately. The Mongol governor was defeated and driven out of the province; his troops deserted and joined the Sung forces.
The two princes arrived at Fu chau, the capital, and Y wang, who was nine years of age, was made Emperor with all needful ceremony. The sovereign had a numerous army divided into four corps, which were to operate in the south and along the Yang tse, on both sides of that river. At this juncture appeared Wen [[355]]tien siang, who had escaped from the Mongols during the second attack on the men who were taking the young Emperor to Shang tu. To him was now given the conduct of the struggle, and he strove to rally the Chinese, and rouse their love of country. A proclamation of the young Emperor stirred up the nation, and great levies were made, which disquieted the Mongols.
When Bayan obtained a command from the Empress, the Emperor’s mother, requiring every Sung subject to submit to the Mongols, At chu sent a copy to Li ting shi, who had tried to rescue the Emperor and who was defending Yang chiu with great stubbornness. Li ting shi answered from the ramparts, that he knew no command save that to defend the place assigned him by the Empress through a document from her own hand. At chu obtained a new command in still stronger language, and addressed to Li ting shi directly. Li ting shi discharged arrows at the man bringing this document.
At chu redoubled his efforts to cut off supplies from his opponent. In despair that he could not conquer one city, while Bayan had reduced a whole province so quickly, and with it the capital of the Empire, he tried other methods. He sent Li ting shi a letter in which Kubilai promised to grant every wish of his. Li ting shi burned this letter, and cut off the head of the man who had brought it. All other cities besieged in those regions had fallen by famine, if not conquered otherwise; hunger was reaching Yang chiu, but how closely was not known to the Mongols at that time.
At At chu’s request Kubilai wrote to Li ting shi as follows: “If you will obey even at this hour, I am willing to carry out former promises, and pardon the murder of my envoy.” Li ting shi would not receive this new letter, and learning that Y wang was Sung Emperor, he left the defence of Yang chiu to Chu hwan and set out with his colleague, Kiang tsai, and seven thousand men to join his new sovereign. Barely had he gone from the city when Chu hwan surrendered.
At chu sent a strong corps of cavalry to hunt down the two fleeing commanders. One thousand Chinese were slain in this labor, and Li ting shi was forced into Tai chiu, where he was surrounded immediately. Two leading officers in that city betrayed it to the Mongols. Li ting shi, seeing that his last hour was near, sprang into a pond which proved to be very shallow. He [[356]]was dragged out of it promptly and with Kiang tsai hurried back to Yang chiu. At chu left nothing undone to win these two men to Kubilai, but since both were unbending he killed them.
Tong wen ping and Argan made progress in Che kiang. They won a victory over the Sung army in Chu chiu, and in Fu kien took a fortress, called Sha u. These Mongol successes were followed by Chinese defections and the surrender of cities. This constrained the Sung court to think of its safety. Chin y chong and Chang shi kie assembled a very large fleet, and a considerable army. The Emperor embarked with his court and the army and sailed away southward to Tsuen chiu (the Zaitun of Marco Polo). This port was the seat of much commerce; the harbor was crowded with vessels at all times. The commanders now seized certain ships which they needed. These, as it seemed, belonged mainly to the governor, a very rich merchant. The governor was so greatly enraged at this action that he attacked all who landed, and even forced the fleet to sail out of the harbor; that done, he delivered his city to the Mongols.
Alihaiya had laid siege for three months, with great vigor, to Kwe lin fu, the capital of Kuang si, but failing to conquer the desperate resistance of the governor Ma ki, he tried softer methods. He obtained from Kubilai a diploma appointing Ma ki commander-in-chief of Kuang si, and sent him the document by an officer. Ma ki burned the diploma, and cut down the officer. Kwe lin fu, built at the meeting of two rivers, was exposed at one side alone, where the whole garrison could face any enemy. The Mongol general dug out new beds for the rivers and turned them; the city was assailable now upon every side and he stormed it. His army swept over the walls like a torrent, but Ma ki met the foe worthily. He fought from street to street, from one square to another, till at last, when covered with wounds, and bleeding his life out, that brave man was captured, but died shortly afterward. All the inhabitants were put to the sword without pity.