Tiger Guards

Chapter 663 Unaware of Fate
Jicheng has been besieged for three days.

The soldiers of Hengfang's three battalions, who have been stubbornly resisting in the city, have higher morale, while the rebels, having nowhere to go, have severely depleted their morale.

General Zhao Rong, who was suppressing the bandits, hid in the courtyard of the prefectural government office, drinking and getting drunk all day long.

When his messenger returned to the city with Zhao Ji's reply, Zhao Rong, drunk, chuckled and said, "The Zhao family he speaks of should dare to act, so how about we change our surnames?"

The envoy looked astonished and remained silent for a long time.

Jicheng is now in a precarious situation, and could be captured at any time with the help of both inside and outside forces.

The conditional surrender was merely an attempt to avoid meaningless killing and preserve the vitality of the Longyou people as much as possible.

The envoy also knew that Grand Tutor Zhao's decision to besiege the city without launching an attack was merely a ploy to incite Han Sui's rebellion.

Even if Han Sui did not launch an attack and remained in Zhang County to confront Ma Chao, the two armies were already close together. Any retreat by either side would turn into a major rout, and they would then be pursued and killed by the other side.

In such a winter, when the army loses its organization, it can only travel through the valley roads when it flees... Many more people will freeze or starve to death while fleeing in the wild.

Sometimes, when a large army is wiped out, it may not be completely annihilated on the battlefield. Often, the army is wiped out when it is in disarray, by the harsh natural environment, and the honest local farmers may also take the opportunity to make a little money.

Regardless of whether Han Sui takes the initiative to attack and seek a decisive battle, or remains stationary to observe the situation, as long as Zhao Ji completes the preparations for the attack, Han Sui is doomed.

The biggest difference between Han Sui and Zhao Ji was logistics; Zhao Ji could obtain the next round of supplies from Guanzhong.

Even if the supply train from Guanzhong and Sanfu arrived a little late, the wealth confiscated from the powerful families of Tianshui was enough to sustain Zhao Ji's fierce battle for several months, ultimately wearing down Han Sui!

Zhao Rong was too drunk to handle affairs, so the envoy could only leave it to fate.

If they were outside the city, with the army scattered and fleeing for their lives, they might be able to join forces with other like-minded comrades to ambush and kill Zhao Rong, and use Zhao Rong's head for their own purposes.

But inside the city, the messenger could do nothing.

Meanwhile, Zhao Pan, another envoy who returned with them, relayed Zhao Ji's refusal to Xin Pi.

Xin Pi no longer had the fervor and determination to avenge his brother. At this moment, Xin Pi was still able to withstand all kinds of pressure and maintain his composure, without needing to numb himself with alcohol.

Upon hearing Zhao Pan's reply, Xin Pi was not surprised. He had a vague understanding of Zhao Ji's attitude and simply said, "The Grand Tutor's bottom line is acceptable. He has never been fond of killing, nor has he ever abused men and women for his own amusement. His words about separating men and women and placing them in different places so that husbands and wives cannot see each other and families can reunite are just threats and cannot be believed."

Zhao Pan breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, but his face was still filled with worry: "This failure has severely damaged the vitality of all families in Longyou, and I fear it will be difficult to rebuild our family businesses in the future."

Xin Pi offered no comment or consolation, so Zhao Pan asked, "My lord, if we agree to relocate the four commanderies of Shuofang, does that mean Grand Tutor Zhao will allow our army to lay down its arms and surrender?"

Zhao Pan was not worried about being executed after surrendering, because Zhao Ji had never done such a thing, not even against Cao Cao's former subordinates whom he hated.

Zhao Ji also executed surrendered soldiers, such as Guo Si's former subordinates. Almost all of the core military officers who voluntarily surrendered were executed.

We cannot regard Guo Si's former subordinates as human beings; this has no normal reference value.

Therefore, what frightened Zhao Pan was Zhao Ji's relocation and resettlement plan after the separation of his wife and family, which could directly cause the so-called "gentlemen" of Longyou to decline.

After being separated from his wife and daughters, and losing his connections and servants, this would be a fatal blow to the powerful.

For example, Zhao Pan couldn't imagine such an outcome. He could endure a life of coarse clothes and simple food, and he could accept physical labor. Even if his concubines and maids were taken away, his servants were confiscated, he lost his oxen and horses, and he could only eat meat a few times a year... he could endure all of this.

However, if the original wife is relocated to a place thousands of miles away, she will most likely remarry another uncouth person due to the pressure of survival.

This was something Zhao Pan couldn't tolerate. If he could arrange for his wife to stay by his side after surrendering, then no matter how hard life was, he would have someone to accompany him. Besides, with his wife by his side, no matter how much suffering he endured outside, she could share some of the burden with him.

With his wife there to support him, Zhao Pan wasn't too afraid of relocating.

Compared to death, being alive means there's still hope. Seeing the change in Zhao Pan's expression, Xin Pi knew that the man had been terrified by Zhao Ji.

Xin Pi originally wanted to explain to Zhao Pan in order to comfort him.

In Xinpi's eyes, although Zhao Ji's threats were vicious, there was actually no environment in which they could be carried out.

It's not that Zhao Ji couldn't do it, but the price would be too high.

If the surrendered officials of Longyou were forced to migrate with their spouses separated and their families broken up, then the powerful officials in other regions would certainly fight to the death, which would exacerbate Zhao Ji's military difficulties.

Why would a wise man like Zhao Ji invite trouble just to vent his anger?
Xin Pi did not comfort Zhao Pan, but instead offered empty promises: "Zhao Zhichang has lost his will to fight, and the various tribes in the city are not willing to fight to the death. Now, the families in Longyou have already ruined themselves to repay the kindness of the Han Dynasty, and they owe nothing more. If each family can rise up to support the country and establish their families with loyalty and righteousness, there will surely be a day of restoration next year."

Hearing these words made Zhao Pan feel a little better.

As long as Grand Tutor Zhao doesn't break up his family, he can accept any relocation.

I also think Xin Pi's words make a lot of sense. In order to protect the Han Dynasty, the various families of the Longyou gentry have already paid a heavy price.

If things are not going well now, surrendering would be a wise and virtuous act.

Faced with a family so willing to sacrifice themselves to repay old kindness... when the new dynasty is established in the future, it will naturally encourage them. Even if it does not provide support, it will reduce their sentences so that they can return home as soon as possible.

Thinking about this relatively bright future, Zhao Pan's emotions gradually stabilized.

As for the various reasons for your previous uprising... when you lose your land, servants, and your life is in danger, you will naturally forget the great righteousness and calculations of fame and fortune you had when you first started the uprising.

After Xin Pi calmed Zhao Pan down, the situation in Liangzhou had deteriorated to such an extent that it was beyond saving.

Now he needs to figure out how to escape and save his life.

The current discussions with Zhao Ji are about how to deal with the officials and civilians who surrendered, but they have never touched on him, the core leader.

While Xinpi was pondering this serious question, the Ren clan, who had decisively abandoned their family business and fled west with their clan, finally reunited with Yan Xing.

By exchanging their valuables for meager supplies from Yan Xing's forces, the Ren clan managed to obtain what they could barely manage.

Yan Xing also took the opportunity to inquire carefully about what happened on the Tianshui battlefield. Gradually, he came to understand and privately told his younger brother, "Tianshui changed suddenly, and the troops of all sides collapsed too quickly. This is very similar to the military tactics of Grand Tutor Zhao."

His younger brother looked suspicious and unsure of what to do. When no one was around, he asked in a low voice, "With your great reputation, did Grand Tutor Zhao not send a messenger to persuade you to serve the court?"

"I have not seen any letters from the Grand Tutor."

Yan Xing spoke with certainty, then narrowed his eyes slightly: "I am also puzzled. Why wouldn't they send an envoy to persuade me to raise an army and change my allegiance?"

He was Han Sui's vanguard general, and his change of flag on the spot could directly shake the fighting spirit of Han Sui's various troops.

As long as fighting brings profits, his army truly doesn't care which dynasty it serves, nor does it care about the changing identities of its enemies.

As long as it's easy to grab something, and there's something to grab, then they're ready to fight; they're extremely skilled at combat!
Seeing this, his younger brother suggested a highly probable possibility: "Brother, you have a grudge against Ma Chao and his son. It must be the Ma family who are obstructing the messenger. In my opinion, you should write to Grand Tutor Zhao and explain our army's predicament."

"Dilemma?"

Yan Xing quickly realized what was going on and said, "The treacherous minister has the emperor hostage, and the empress is overseeing the country. The officers and soldiers in the army do not know who the Mandate of Heaven belongs to, so they are all in a panic and do not know where to turn. If Grand Tutor Zhao can enlighten us, we will naturally be willing to fight for the Mandate of Heaven."

His younger brother nodded repeatedly upon hearing this, and then exclaimed with emotion, "Indeed, everyone has their own version of events. We are unaware of the true situation in the Central Plains. If Grand Tutor Zhao can explain the truth, we will certainly fight for the Mandate of Heaven!"

(End of this chapter)