The remaining bandits, seeing their leader dead, lost all courage to resist. They immediately dropped their weapons, cupped their hands over their heads, and squatted to the side obediently.
Li Changmin looked at Su Fan with surprise.
He had expected to lose some men even if they won this battle, but he hadn't anticipated Su Fan's tactic of a sweet carrot and a harsh stick to subdue them.
They hadn't lost a single man, yet they had annihilated nearly a hundred people from Feihua Village and captured dozens of bandits.
"What do we do with these people?"
Li Changmin asked Su Fan.
With so many people, the dungeon wouldn't be able to hold them all.
"Use them as new recruits. Disperse them into the army, provide food and lodging but no pay. Their sentence will be determined by the number of enemies they kill. Once they've killed enough, they can choose to stay or leave. Their merits will offset their crimes. Those who stay will receive normal military pay."
Su Fan had already decided how to handle these people.
He said to Li Changmin.
Li Changmin nodded.
He understood Su Fan's intention: to use bandits to fight bandits, thereby reducing the casualties among his own soldiers on the battlefield. If they could atone for their crimes, they could become regular soldiers in the future. It was a good strategy.
After collecting the spoils from Feihua Village, they returned to the camp.
News of Feihua Village's destruction quickly reached Shuiyue Village.
The chieftain of Shuiyue Village frowned.
Along with the news came the policy of pacification towards bandits implemented by the Bandit Suppression Camp.
Any village that surrendered would be dealt with leniently. As long as they were not leaders or individuals with heinous crimes, they could join the Bandit Suppression Camp and serve in the army, receiving generous benefits and pay in the future.
This information was, of course, delivered by members of the Bandit Suppression Camp.
Su Fan wanted to sow seeds of panic among them. If he could make them fall into internal strife without a single soldier being deployed, that would be even better.
"Chieftain, what should we do?"
The second-in-command of Shuiyue Village anxiously asked the chieftain.
"How should I know what to do?"
The chieftain of Shuiyue Village was also very troubled. Feihua Village had been annihilated by the Bandit Suppression Camp in just one day. Shuiyue Village was not much stronger than Feihua Village, and they were certainly no match for the Bandit Suppression Camp.
Moreover, with this news spreading throughout the village, his men were in a state of constant discussion, and some were undoubtedly considering surrender. If they were to fight, he would have to worry about his own men rebelling.
"Perhaps we should surrender too?"
To be honest, the second-in-command was also somewhat afraid and had begun to consider surrendering.
The chieftain of Shuiyue Village's eyes turned cold as he looked at the second-in-command.
"Are you brainless? Didn't you see that leaders and those with heinous crimes are not accepted? Do you think you are not a leader or that you are a good person?"
The chieftain of Shuiyue Village reprimanded the second-in-command, disappointed.
"I just thought, they might not know our identities..."
The second-in-command lowered his head and said softly, feeling wronged.
"Hmph!"
The chieftain of Shuiyue Village snorted coldly and ignored him.
The Bandit Suppression Camp might not know their identities, but did their own men? If even one of them exposed their identities, they would be finished. Therefore, surrender was absolutely out of the question.
"Send someone to deliver a message to King Kaoshan. We will seek refuge with King Kaoshan!"
He had no other choice. In this situation, perhaps only King Kaoshan could save them.
"Yes! I'll send someone to deliver the message right away!"
The second-in-command nodded and immediately found a subordinate to send a message to King Kaoshan.
The chieftain of Shuiyue Village felt uneasy. It would take time to send a message to King Kaoshan, and he didn't know if King Kaoshan would take them in.
However, by the time night fell, the Bandit Suppression Camp had made no move, which somewhat eased his mind.
That night, with anxious hearts, the chieftain and the second-in-command fell asleep.
In one of the bedrooms in Shuiyue Village, seven or eight people were living.
As bandits, their living quarters were limited. Most of the lower-ranking men shared rooms, like dormitories. Only the high-ranking members of the village could have separate bedrooms.
One of the bandits woke up all his companions.
"Brothers, there were too many people during the day, so I couldn't say much. You've all seen the news from the Bandit Suppression Camp today. Feihua Village was wiped out. I don't want to die. Surrendering to the Bandit Suppression Camp is our only way out. What do you say?"
He had decided to surrender to the Bandit Suppression Camp during the day, but he couldn't do it alone. He wanted to surrender with merit, so his crimes could be offset.
"That's what you say, but what if we get discovered?"
Someone among them still expressed concern.
"If we're discovered, the chieftain definitely won't let us off. He might make an example of us, killing one to warn a hundred!"
Their concerns were not unfounded. Since the news of the pacification policy from the Bandit Suppression Camp had spread, the brothers in the village were all in a state of panic. If anyone took the lead in escaping, they would become a target, and the chieftain would surely make an example of them.
"Staying in Shuiyue Village means death sooner or later. Why not take a gamble? I've already made a plan. As long as you follow me, I guarantee that once you reach the Bandit Suppression Camp, you'll join the regular army directly. Then we'll be soldiers receiving pay, and who would dare offend us!"
His words made the people present hesitate.
If they had a choice, they wouldn't want to be bandits, living every day with their lives on the line, with no security. Who would want to live like this, especially now with the threat of suppression?
"Damn it! Let's do it! Brother, tell us what to do!"
A slightly younger bandit gritted his teeth and decided to follow him. He even changed his address to "Brother," clearly recognizing the other as his leader.
After a period of internal struggle, the others also decided to take a gamble.
"Good! My plan is as follows..."
He briefly explained the plan to everyone.
"This... can it work? What if..."
Some people hesitated after hearing his plan, as it seemed too risky.
"How can you get opportunities without taking risks? If we just surrender now, we'll still have to fight on the battlefield to earn merit. If we take a risk now and go with merit, we might even get rewards. Do you want to fight on the battlefield later or take a risk now?"
He continued to explain to them.
After some thought, they found his reasoning sound, and the chances of success with his plan seemed high.
"Let's do it! Brother, you make the arrangements!"
The eight men immediately reached an agreement and decided to go through with it.
They all recognized the person who made the proposal as their leader.
"Bring out the sleeping powder."
The leader smiled slightly and said to them.
As bandits, things like sleeping powder and tranquilizers were naturally essential. They all had some on them.
They pooled their resources and managed to gather ten doses of sleeping powder, enough to incapacitate an elephant.
"Shh, keep it down. Four of you go to the second-in-command's quarters, and we'll go to the chieftain's room. Don't let anyone find out."
As the leader, he divided the sleeping powder into two portions and handed one portion to the other four.
Then, they headed towards the bedrooms of the chieftain and the second-in-command.