Taicheng

Biodata

Location and Defenses

Taicheng is the heavily fortified palace city within Jiankang’s inner city and serves as the political center of Xiao Liang. Its defenses include ten-ren-high walls, five-zhang-thick masonry, broad ramparts wide enough for three carriages, and nearby waterways connected to the Qinhuai River. 27

• Sima Gate — Exit used by Zhu Yuanzhang, Fu Qi, and Xiao Dong to leave Taicheng. 49
• Xuanyang Gate — A gate of Jiankang City beyond Taicheng; escapees attempting to pass through face Zahu guards and disguised Xianbei forces. 48 49
• Hualin Garden — A decayed royal garden within Taicheng, inhabited by the corpse of Consort Ding and dominated by a giant black eye. 40 42
• Tongtai Temple meditation quarters — The refuge of Faci, Fajue, and Faming; their Dao Sin turns the area into a site of blood tides and corpse manifestations. 31 32 38
• Grand Marshal Gate — The location where Faci’s remains manifest after his death. 38

History

Following Hou Jing’s rebellion, his army crossed the Huai River and marched on Stone City. With Xiao Zhengde’s assistance, Hou Jing’s forces broke into Jinling and eventually besieged Taicheng. A system cutscene records that Emperor Wu of Liang, Xiao Yan, ultimately starved to death there. 19

Taicheng initially appears impregnable: Hou Jing historically failed to capture it for more than a hundred days, and its walls are built to withstand conventional assault. Its true danger, however, lies not only in the siege outside but in the supernatural forces and political collapse within. 27 43

By the twenty-fifth day of the tenth lunar month, Hou Jing’s army has captured Jiankang and surrounded Taicheng. Palace servants, nobles, and refugees retreat behind its walls as panic spreads through the Xiao Liang court. 34

Secret History Role

Taicheng is the setting of the limited-time Secret History mission “Green Silk White Horse Comes to Shouyang.”

Zhu Yuanzhang is repeatedly forced toward Taicheng despite attempts to delay or avoid entering it; the system presents entry as the only path with any chance of survival. 27 28

Even after Zhu Yuanzhang, Fu Qi, and Xiao Dong leave through Sima Gate, the system continues to display the objective to leave Taicheng, suggesting that its boundary or the mission’s conditions are not straightforward. 49

Conditions During the Siege

Refugee Crisis and Collapse of Order

Taicheng absorbs large numbers of displaced Jiankang residents. Refugees crowd its roads in tattered clothing, while the city’s administration is so overwhelmed that even disturbances at Tongtai Temple receive little attention. 40

• Refugees suffer swelling, abdominal bloating, and edema after losing access to salt. 40 43
• Guards and eunuchs become scarce along the streets as civil order deteriorates. 40
• Hualin Garden, once opulent, has become overgrown, deserted, and sinister. 40
• Zhu Yuanzhang compares Taicheng’s conditions to a “giant concentration camp.” 40

Disappearance of Salt

Salt vanishes from Taicheng on a scale beyond an ordinary supply shortage. The afflicted display symptoms as though salt has been instantaneously removed from their bodies rather than depleted through hunger over time. 43

Zhu Yuanzhang suspects Emperor Wu of Liang is responsible and concludes that the deprivation may be selective: commoners are affected first, followed by princes, ministers, and finally soldiers. 43

Supernatural Threats

• Dao Sin of Tongtai Temple — Fajue and Faming lose control after remaining in Taicheng to suppress their Dao Sin. Their manifestations bring blood tides, warped corpses, and mass death. 31 38
• Faci’s White Bone Dharma Image — After Faci’s death, his remains manifest elsewhere in the city, including at Grand Marshal Gate. 38
• Consort Ding — The decomposed corpse of Crown Prince Zhaoming’s mother haunts Hualin Garden and kills Fu Qi in one failed attempt to retrieve Xiao Dong. 41 42
• Giant black eye — A colossal eye hangs over Taicheng, reflects the entire city within its pupil, and imprisons Prince Xiao Dong in its interior. 42
• Royal aura and dragon qi — Taicheng’s connection to Xiao Liang’s royal aura initially accelerates Zhu Yuanzhang’s cultivation after he consumes Xiao Tong’s blood essence, but that protection weakens as the siege tightens. 34 42

Notable Events