Poison! Damned poison, more venomous than a viper, insidious and vicious to the extreme!
As Murong Bulie stated his terms, Zhou Fugui inwardly cursed profusely.
Murong Bulie's condition was that the more than two thousand "rebels" captured by the Yan army yesterday, with the exception of a few leaders, were to be placed under Zhou Fugui's command. Zhou Fugui was then to lead them in attacking the city, and he must capture Guangling Commandery.
What difference was there between this and not pardoning them? If there was a difference, it was merely the difference between dying a few days earlier or a few days later.
Murong Bulie's right-flank army, numbering over two hundred thousand, had been besieging Guangling Commandery for nearly four months without success. For Zhou Fugui's mere few thousand ragtag troops to attack Guangling Commandery would be no different than sending them to their deaths.
Murong Bulie's condition, whether devised by someone else or his own idea, was a masterstroke of malicious cunning, a plan to kill two birds with one stone. It showcased the apparent magnanimity of Murong Bulie and his ilk, while simultaneously using these more than two thousand people as expendables, as cannon fodder, their fate sealed as death. The most vicious aspect of this stratagem was that it designated Zhou Fugui as the leader of these expendables, the captain of the suicide squad...
"Zhou Fugui..." Zhou Fugui, after much deliberation and hesitation, still had not agreed. Tang Qingsi then spoke to him in a low voice, "You were originally a mere soldier in the army, yet in such a short time, you rose from a private to a captain, then a standard-bearer, and now the Grand Commander has promoted you to Battalion Supervisor. While you have rendered some merit, it is insufficient to explain such rapid advancement. This is the Grand Commander's benevolence. Zhou Fugui, a rise like riding the clouds can also be a precipitous fall. Why do you still hesitate?"
The so-called Battalion Supervisor was the Assistant Commander of the Battalion, essentially a deputy battalion commander.
Zhou Fugui's promotion to deputy battalion commander was exceptionally rare and fast, enough to make others green with envy! However, Murong Bulie's current promotion of Zhou Fugui to deputy battalion commander was worse than no promotion at all. Promoting Zhou Fugui to deputy commander at this juncture clearly meant sending him and his men to their deaths.
The viciousness of this scheme also lay in forcing Zhou Fugui's hand. If Zhou Fugui refused, then, as Tang Qingsi had said, he would plummet like a waterfall three thousand feet, shattering into pieces, along with the lives of the White Tiger Banner and over two thousand men.
However, as Tang Qingsi also implied, if Zhou Fugui agreed, then perhaps in the future, Zhou Fugui would indeed rise like riding the clouds.
Murong Bulie, as the Left Virtuous King of the Great Yan, and the Grand Commander of Luo, Ji, Yan, and Yong, possessed the authority to appoint his subordinates, officers, and generals. However, this could also arouse suspicion from the court. This is a matter for later discussion and will not be elaborated upon here.
Thus, under duress, Zhou Fugui had no choice but to nod his assent. However, Zhou Fugui was not one to resign himself to fate. He gritted his teeth and said, "Grand Commander, your subordinate is willing to lead men to attack Guangling Commandery. However, your subordinate also has a request, which I implore the Grand Commander to grant, or else, even if your subordinate and his men are all executed, I will not be able to undertake this task."
"Hmm, state your request," Murong Bulie said, a mixture of amusement and exasperation on his face.
In the past, when Murong Bulie issued a military order, who dared to question it? All would obey with alacrity. Yet, Zhou Fugui dared to negotiate terms? The implication was quite threatening...
Zhou Fugui was indeed the first in the Great Yan army to act this way.
"Thank you, Grand Commander!" Zhou Fugui said loudly, chest puffed out, "Your subordinate and his men are few in number, our weapons are crude, and we are a motley crew. Therefore, your subordinate requires warhorses, swords, spears, bows, and arrows, and other equipment. I implore the Grand Commander to approve."
"Granted!" Murong Bulie readily agreed to Zhou Fugui's reasonable request.
"Under great rewards, there must be brave men. Therefore, your subordinate requires gold, silver, silk, money, cattle, and sheep as rewards!" Zhou Fugui added.
"Granted!" Murong Bulie nodded his assent and then smiled at Tang Qingsi.
"You are given warhorses, swords, spears, bows, and arrows, and other military equipment, so why worry about a little wealth?" Murong Bulie and Tang Qingsi thought in unison, shaking their heads.
As long as Guangling Commandery could be captured, Murong Bulie would spare no expense.
"When a general is in the field, he is not bound by the sovereign's orders. When your subordinate is in the field, he may not be bound by the Commander's orders. Therefore, I implore the Grand Commander to grant your subordinate the authority to make decisions as circumstances dictate!" Zhou Fugui continued.
This time, not only Murong Bulie and Tang Qingsi nodded, but even Murong Huiying secretly nodded in approval.
Zhou Fugui's request was deeply in line with military strategy and the principles of warfare. When a general leads troops in the field, he should not be unduly interfered with, lest he be hampered and his actions become constrained, often leading to disastrous defeats.
Murong Bulie, having led troops for many years, could not fail to understand this crucial point.
"Anything else? State it all at once. I shall not refuse," Murong Bulie said with a smile to Zhou Fugui.
Murong Bulie was increasingly impressed with Zhou Fugui, and he felt a pang of reluctance to send him to his death.
"You said you would agree to anything..." Zhou Fugui first cornered Murong Bulie verbally before saying, "Your subordinate's final request is..."
"Slap!"
"Zhou Fugui, how dare you be so audacious? This is simply... simply... utterly absurd! How can this be? You are truly a cunning fox!" Murong Bulie roared, slamming his hand on the table and pointing at Zhou Fugui after he spoke.
Tang Qingsi was dumbfounded. He had seen shameless people, but never anyone as brazenly shameless as this...
Murong Huiying, hearing her father call Zhou Fugui a cunning fox, couldn't help but want to laugh. Yet, for some reason, she looked at Murong Bulie with a hint of worry.
"Alas, alas, Grand Commander, you said you would agree to anything. That's what you said," Zhou Fugui said hastily as he sensed the situation turning unfavorable. "If you don't agree, that's fine too. We can discuss it."
After much deliberation, they reached an agreement. Zhou Fugui then took his leave from the golden tent.
As Zhou Fugui exited the golden tent, he looked up at the sky and took a deep breath of fresh air. The world inside and outside the golden tent felt like two different realms. Zhou Fugui felt as if he had been reborn.
However, Zhou Fugui also felt the sensation of going from life to death. These diametrically opposed feelings plunged Zhou Fugui into confusion.
"Deputy Commander Zhou..." Just as Zhou Fugui stood dazed by the entrance of the golden tent, a gentle voice suddenly reached his ears.
Zhou Fugui came to his senses, turned, and saw Murong Huiying standing gracefully behind him.
"My palace lacks a lady-in-waiting. Send one over," Murong Huiying said softly.
"Thank you, Princess Ziyue!" Zhou Fugui, overjoyed, bowed deeply with his hands clasped and said.
"Deputy Commander Zhou, do you care for or perhaps... favor this girl?" Murong Huiying asked seemingly casually.
"Not at all!" Zhou Fugui replied, shaking his head. "Your subordinate and she are both like duckweed on the water, fallen leaves in the wind; we share the same pitiful fate! Your subordinate merely regards her as a sister, would he dare have any other thoughts?"
"Hehe, Deputy Commander Zhou, don't be so melancholic," Murong Huiying suddenly laughed.
...
"Thud! Thud!"
The guards of the Fiery Camp suddenly struck down Li Li, a constable from Youzhou, and Tu Hai. Tu Hai died instantly. Li Li, however, still had a breath left, and he struggled to ask, "You... why are you killing me?"
"Does the Fiery Camp need a reason to kill?" A member of the Fiery Camp stepped forward with his saber, uttered this with a smile, and then severed Li Li's head.
...
"Dong... Dong... Dong..."
"Wuwuwu... Wuwuwu... Wuwuwu..."
In the Yan army camp, drums and horns suddenly blared. The drums rumbled, shaking the soul, and the horns sounded repeatedly, deep and far-reaching.
These were the drums of execution, the horns of impending death!
"Rebels sow chaos among the troops; their leaders shall all be beheaded!"
"Heretical monks mislead the masses; all shall be executed without mercy!"
Several Yan cavalrymen galloped past, loudly announcing Murong Bulie's ducal decree.
Following this, over a hundred monks and Han soldiers were brought to the execution ground by the army's executioners.
This was the result of Zhou Fugui's desperate efforts to save them. Otherwise, more than a hundred people would have been brought to the execution ground to die under torture.
Over a hundred monks and Han soldiers were to be subjected to horrific executions such as dismemberment, waist-cutting, and being torn apart by five horses.
The execution platform was temporarily erected from wood. Two executioners held one person each, slowly ascending the platform.
The hundred-plus monks and Han soldiers stumbled onto the platform, some even needing to be helped up.
Below, tens of thousands of Han soldiers and tens of thousands of Yan cavalrymen stood in silent attendance. Murong Bulie's order was for the entire army to witness the executions.
This included Zhou Fugui and his White Tiger Banner, as well as the more than two thousand "rebels" who had been pardoned and placed under Zhou Fugui's command.
The more than two thousand men were all ashen-faced, their gazes filled with gratitude towards Zhou Fugui. Without him, they would undoubtedly be kneeling on the execution platform as well.
However, there were also those who hated Zhou Fugui. Among them were many who did not understand the full picture. After Zhou Fugui's visit to the City God Temple, the Yan army began arresting "rebels," and subsequently, over a hundred leaders were brutally executed. Yet, Zhou Fugui was promoted. Was this not a betrayal of his comrades for personal glory and wealth? Especially the escaped leaders of the Lesser Vehicle Buddhism, such as Gong Yuanfo Mi Shi, harbored deep hatred for Zhou Fugui, and this would bring him endless trouble. This, however, is a matter for later discussion and will not be elaborated upon here.
The label of "Han traitor" on Zhou Fugui's head, or his reputation as a "Han traitor," had only grown louder. Zhou Fugui might not be able to wash it clean in his entire life.
This was the cleverness, or the maliciousness, of Murong Bulie and Tang Qingsi, making Zhou Fugui wholeheartedly loyal to the Great Yan.
"Execute!"
As the supervising official gave the order, gruesome scenes unfolded before Zhou Fugui's eyes. He could not bear to look, yet his eyes widened, his lips moved as if to speak, but not a single word could he utter.
Zhou Fugui considered himself a ruthless person, but compared to this, he was a mere novice. Zhou Fugui also considered himself a civilized person, yet the bloodshed, brutality, cold-bloodedness, and savagery of this world were repeatedly displayed before his eyes, and they would undoubtedly continue in the future, perhaps even more bloody, brutal, cold-blooded, and savage.
A gust of wind, carrying the scent of blood, blew past, making Zhou Fugui feel a chill. He then waved his hand, ordering his subordinates to return to the camp.