Liu Chengyou
Meanwhile, Liu Chengyou had summoned several prominent generals to the capital, including Liu Zhiyuan's half-brother Murong Yanchao, Gao Xingzhou, and Fu Yanqing. Murong immediately went to Kaifeng, and Liu Chengyou put him in charge of the imperial army. As Guo marched toward the capital, Hou Yi advocated defending the city without engaging him: he argued that because Guo's soldiers' family members were all in the capital, the government could prevail by having the soldiers' families urge them to defect from Guo. Murong, however, advocated engaging Guo's army, saying "Hou Yi is old. He is being a coward." Liu Chengyou therefore planned to engage Guo's army, but sent Hou, Wu Qianyu (), the defender of Zheng Prefecture (鄭州, in modern Zhengzhou, Henan), and Zhang Yanchao () the former military governor of Baoda Circuit (保大, headquartered in modern Yan'an, Shaanxi), with an army to head toward Chan. However, Guo got there first, and Li Hongyi submitted to him. Wang Yin merged his army into Guo's, and Guo then continued to Hua Prefecture (滑州, in modern Anyang, Henan), where Song Yanwo, the military governor of Yicheng Circuit (義成, headquartered at Hua), surrendered to him. Wang Yin again offered his army the option of beheading him and submitting to the emperor instead of fighting the emperor's army; they refused. Wang Jun then told them that when Kaifeng fell, they could pillage the capital, and they celebrated. By this point, Liu Chengyou had become worried and said to Dou Zhengu "Maybe I was being too frivolous." At Li Ye's suggestion, over Su Yugui's objection, he emptied the imperial treasury to reward the Imperial Guard soldiers at Kaifeng and also the family members of Guo's army, in the hopes that they would persuade Guo's soldiers to defect.