Song Xiu

Chapter 94 Shangdang Mutiny
Just as Li Shoujie was gradually changing his mind about surrendering because of his filial piety, the guards outside the door suddenly rushed in:

"Commander, some soldiers have arrived outside the mansion; they want to see you!"

Upon hearing this, Li Shoujie was so frightened that his lips trembled.

Is his worst fear about to come true?

Despite being filled with fear, Li Shoujie never considered hiding in the mansion.

If he doesn't want to maintain appearances, the soldiers outside the mansion will help him.

Fear drove Li Shoujie to move his trembling body toward the gate with difficulty.

As Li Shoujie approached the gate of the mansion, he heard a noisy commotion outside:

"Where is the commander? Come out here right now!"

"A formidable enemy is at our gates outside the city. Commander, please help us find a way to survive."

"If the commander doesn't come out soon, we'll go into the mansion to look for him!"

When the last harsh word reached Li Shoujie's ears, he was so frightened that he dared not hesitate any longer.

Suddenly, boundless strength burst forth from his previously limp body, instantly helping Li Shoujie reach the gate of the mansion.

Upon arriving at the gate of the mansion, Li Shoujie was increasingly horrified to discover that a large number of heavily armed soldiers were gathered outside his gate.

There are at least several hundred of them!

Is this what the guards reported, that some have arrived?
As Li Shoujie cowered in fear, the hundreds of soldiers outside the mansion fell silent upon seeing his figure.

An older general, slightly pointing his scabbard towards Li Shoujie, spoke first:

"The Song army decisively defeated the Han army, and the Marquis of Taiyuan's prestige shook Luzhou."

Tens of thousands of Song soldiers now stand guard outside the city, eyeing it menacingly.

We desperately hope that the commander will help us find a way to survive.

Unbeknownst to them, the soldiers in the city no longer called Zhao Dexiu by his given name, but instead began to address him by his noble title.

After the older general finished speaking, another general with a fierce face said:
"The Marquis of Taiyuan is a direct descendant of the Song dynasty. He was ordered by the emperor to punish the disloyal, and he was acting out of a sense of righteousness."

Our army numbers only a few thousand; how dare we defy destiny?

Although the general did not use weapons to subtly threaten him, his face was filled with undisguised malice as he spoke these words.

Li Shoujie vaguely remembered that on the day Li Jun raised his army, this general said, "The righteous cause lies with Zhou, and the Mandate of Heaven rests with Li."

The mutinies during the Five Dynasties period were like this.

Even the bloodiest things always have to be talked about with the guise of righteousness and destiny.

As for the greater good and destiny, who truly holds them?
Only the victors.

After hearing two threatening words of advice, Li Shoujie was so frightened that he looked like he was about to cry.

With a sob in his voice, he said, "We still have three thousand elite soldiers. The Song army is surrounded on three sides but lacks one. Why don't we break through and head to Zezhou?"

Under the threat of the two formidable generals, Li Shoujie knew that Shangdang was doomed.

But Li Shoujie still thought of leading his troops to surrender to Li Jun, so that he could at least be considered to be fulfilling his filial duty.

Li Shoujie's words, when they reached the ears of the soldiers below, only elicited cold laughter from them.

Looking at Li Shoujie, who looked timid, above the steps, and recalling Zhao Dexiu's heroic figure below the city today.

The contrast between the two situations made the soldiers feel even more sorry for themselves.

The Li family, father and son, are not worthy of their service.

Their future lies outside the city!
One of the soldiers could no longer contain his anxiety.

He drew his long sword from his waist and, in three quick steps, leaped over the steps to stand before Li Shoujie.
"Li Shoujie!"

We originally relied on tens of thousands of Han soldiers for reinforcements, but now all tens of thousands of Han soldiers have been wiped out by the Marquis of Taiyuan.

Even if we manage to break through to Zezhou, given the methods of the Marquis of Taiyuan, do you think we can escape defeat and death?

This concerns the lives of many; you'd better think this through carefully!

After the soldier finished speaking these blatant words, hundreds of soldiers outside the mansion drew their weapons and pointed them at the general's mansion in front of them.

Before Li Shoujie could react, hundreds of soldiers, armed with sharp blades, marched step by step into the general's mansion.

If you don't want to maintain your dignity, then your whole family should die.

For every step the soldiers outside the mansion took forward, Li Shoujie would involuntarily take a step back.

After taking three steps back, Li Shoujie finally couldn't contain his fear any longer and collapsed to the ground in terror.

"Don't go forward, don't go forward anymore."

I surrendered! I surrendered!

As he said this, Li Shoujie covered his face and wept bitterly.

In chaotic times, filial piety is worth only three steps.

Numerous laborers, under the command of the Song army, built fortifications.

Before the command tent was set up, Zhao Dexiu led his subordinates for a stroll in the newly built camp.

While inspecting the construction process of the camp, Zhao Dexiu received Lu Duoxun's military report.

Before even reading the military newspaper, Zhao Dexiu emphasized again:

"Military reports should be as concise as possible, but everyone's contributions should be clearly remembered."

Zhao Dexiu was imparting to Lu Duoxun the key points for writing military reports for him later.

When Lü Duan returned last time, he brought Zhao Kuangyin's evaluation of his military report to Zhao Dexiu.

"The writing is terrible."

After learning of this evaluation, Zhao Dexiu was depressed for a long time.

If you think my writing is bad, then I won't write anymore.

Originally, it was Ludosen's responsibility as chief secretary to write military reports for the defense commissioner.

Although he no longer writes the reports himself, he still needs to make the key points of his military reports clear.

The military report of the commander-in-chief is the life and death record of the soldiers in the army.

The life, death, promotion, and demotion of an army's soldiers are all contained within this.

After Zhao Dexiu stated the first key point of his military report, smiles appeared on the faces of his subordinates behind him.

As the saying goes, a ruler does not compete with his subjects for credit.

As the commander-in-chief of the Song army in Luzhou, Zhao Dexiu would naturally receive the greatest reward after the war was quelled.

But meat can't be eaten by one person alone. Did those others follow Zhao Dexiu through thick and thin for the sake of ambition?
Ambition is not off-limits, but it must be discussed within the framework of ensuring people have enough to eat and drink.

Rather than the so-called "treating soldiers like children," the key is to ensure that they truly enjoy the benefits.

Like Huo Qubing, a famous general of the Han Dynasty, his attitude towards his subordinates was far from good.

However, Huo Qubing's subordinates were extremely loyal to him.

The fundamental reason is that following Huo Qubing truly leads to great success.

After reading Ludosun's draft military report, Zhao Dexiu publicly pointed out its shortcomings:
"You have mentioned most of the generals' contributions."

However, the more than 1,000 Crane Control Army soldiers who remained at Huguan after our army advanced north also made contributions.

"If it weren't for those thousand-odd soldiers who guarded our rear day and night, how could I have advanced northward without any worries about my rear?"

When Zhao Dexiu pointed this out, the members of the Konghe Army who heard these words were extremely grateful to Zhao Dexiu.

The magistrate even remembers his comrades who stayed behind, so what do I have to worry about?

In an instant, the soldiers around Zhao Dexiu looked at him with excited eyes, eager to die for him.

Despite being publicly criticized for his shortcomings, Ludoson couldn't stop smiling.

Whenever Lu Duoxun thought about the words on the two big trees on Funiu Mountain, which were written by his own hand, he would often dream of the day when he would become famous.

If he hadn't followed the Marquis, he would never have this day!
What did it matter if the magistrate gave him a few pointers? Lu Duoxun was quite pleased with it.

While Zhao Dexiu and his ministers were enjoying themselves, Tian Chongjin approached Zhao Dexiu with an excited expression and reported:

"My lord, the gates of Shangdang are wide open; they have sent messengers to surrender!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Dexiu smiled.

Holding the military report, he looked at Ludosun and said:

"Li Shoujie surrendered in a single day, so swiftly."

His swift descent may cause you trouble.

This military report needs to be rewritten!

Zhao Dexiu's words caused the officials behind him to burst into laughter.

There's more and more hope for the future!
Amidst the jubilant laughter of the courtiers, Zhao Dexiu pointed to Shangdang City:
"Gentlemen, surrender with me!"

The drag marks left on the ground from the dragging of iron chains had not yet faded when the drawbridge of Shangdang City Gate was already lowered.

The city's commander, Li Shoujie, led a dozen or so generals, all carrying bundles of thorns, kneeling in unison outside the city.

Behind the generals defending Shangdang, the city gates were already wide open.

The generals of Shangdang did not have to wait long. About half an hour after leaving the city, a series of rapid hoofbeats sounded in front of them.

The neighing of the horse abruptly stopped a dozen paces in front of them, followed by a series of crisp footsteps.

Because they all had their heads slightly lowered, the generals could not see who the newcomer was.

Before they knew what would happen to Zhao Dexiu, the generals who had just been threatening Li Shoujie in the city dared not raise their heads to show any disrespect.

Being tough on the weak and soft on the strong has always been a valuable survival principle for soldiers of five dynasties.

The footsteps stopped abruptly in front of Li Shoujie.

Then the generals of Shangdang heard a gentle voice:

"Fellow righteous men, please rise quickly."

As he spoke, Li Shoujie's body was lifted up by a pair of broad, kind hands.

After hearing this, the other generals gradually looked up.

And who else was standing in front of them at this moment, besides Zhao Dexiu?
If Zhao Dexiu, who was just below the city wall, was like a sharp sword with its edge fully exposed, then he is now more like a gentle and warm spring breeze.

After helping Li Shoujie up, Zhao Dexiu personally removed the thorny branches from his back.

“I have said that if you righteous men open the city gates to welcome the king’s army, I will forgive and forget the past.”

"Since you are pardoned, why should you bear the burden of guilt?"

After saying that, Zhao Dexiu threw the brambles in her hand onto the ground.

The moment the bramble fell to the ground, the heavy weight that had been hanging over the hearts of the generals of Shangdang also lifted.

If Zhao Dexiu was so kind to Li Shoujie, then it goes without saying how kind they were to others.

Li Shoujie, who thought he was going to die, was moved to tears by Zhao Dexiu's act of releasing him.

"Your Highness, these are the household registration, tax and other records of various cities in Luzhou."

Having decided to surrender the city, Li Shoujie naturally made no reservations.

Zhao Dexiu was very satisfied with Li Shoujie's performance.

"Don't worry, after our army enters the city, we will seal up the city's treasury."

Our troops will not disturb the residences of the people within the city.

Upon hearing Zhao Dexiu's words, the generals of Shangdang all showed their delight.

Even after surrendering, they still had two lingering concerns.

One concern is that Zhao Dexiu will break his promise, and another is that the Song army will seize their interests after entering the city.

After all, as the defeated party, they were essentially spoils of war for the Song army.

As is customary, once the attacking forces entered the city, they would always plunder extensively.

Many generals had prepared themselves to shed blood, but Zhao Dexiu unexpectedly broke with the bad habits of the Five Dynasties.

Zhao Dexiu's guarantee greatly increased the sense of belonging to the Song Dynasty among the generals of Shangdang.

After making two assurances, Zhao Dexiu continued:

"Now that Shangdang has been pacified, recuperation and restoration are the top priorities."

After our army enters the city, we hope you will cooperate.

If anyone dares to violate military discipline during this time of unrest, I will execute him!
This strict order must be obeyed by all counties in Luzhou.

Zhao Dexiu's words caused all the generals in Shangdang to become solemn.

After bestowing favors, it is only natural to establish authority.

Most of the generals in Shangdang City have connections with the counties of Luzhou. If Zhao Dexiu can gain their support, it will greatly benefit his efforts to stabilize the situation in Luzhou.

Zhao Dexiu's tone was firm and left no room for argument.

With the added prestige of defeating the Han army, how could the generals of Shangdang dare to have any objections to Zhao Dexiu?
"I obey your orders!"

(End of this chapter)