Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 412 Surrender, or Die (7,000)
“Once laws are made, they must be enforced.”

Inside the tent, Grandpa Mei Wu was still analyzing Li Er's actions over this period, his words filled with praise and recognition for Li Er.

"Among Li Er's subordinates, there was a general named Niu Mou, who was from the same village as Li Er and had been his childhood friend, forming the original core of his team."

"When Li Er attacked the county government, Niu Mou relied on his strong physique and basic martial arts skills to break through the blockade of dozens of constables by himself, so that Li Er had the opportunity to go straight to the county magistrate and cut off the magistrate's head with one stroke."

“Niu Mou was stabbed several times, but he made great contributions and was appointed as a general, commanding 800 soldiers to maintain the security of Liutang.”

“He was a rough and barbaric man. After being appointed as a general, he became increasingly arrogant. While patrolling the county, he saw a young and beautiful woman with a well-proportioned figure. He had evil thoughts and followed her to her house. He raped and abused her. When the woman’s husband and father-in-law returned home, they saw him and scolded him. Niu Mou was furious and suddenly got up and drew his knife to kill the three of them.”

"The woman's mother-in-law returned home late and was lucky enough to survive. She learned the truth from the neighbors, dressed in mourning clothes, and knelt before the county government. Li Er was furious and, with tears in his eyes, beheaded Niu Mou."

"From then on, military regulations were established; from top to bottom, no one dared to disobey them."

The night was still and quiet.

Originally, Song Yan only knew that Li Er of Liutang was a rebel leader who had carried out his rebellion with great success. He didn't know much else, since Song Yan's focus was on three things: revenge, the Yang family, and the foreign tribes. Song Yan was ruthless and cruel to the foreign tribes, but he always held a relatively tolerant attitude towards uprisings within Ningguo.

After all, in Song Yan's view, uprisings and rebellions, and even the wars between the four kingdoms of Ning, Chu, Zhao, and Liang, were matters for the Han people themselves. Invasion by foreign tribes was a completely different matter... Of course, in Song Yan's mind, traitors who colluded with foreign tribes to fight for the world were even more despicable than Xiao Rizi.

In some respects, it's perfectly acceptable to call Song Yan a nationalist or a Han supremacist.

Now, after hearing Grandpa Mei Wu's analysis, Song Yan's evaluation of Li Er has risen to a new level. Whether this Li Er of Liutang can achieve the same great feats as Li Erfeng of another time and space, Song Yan cannot be sure.

But at least in Ningguo now, with more than ten rebel armies of varying sizes, Li Er is definitely the most farsighted one.

Almost all the rebel leaders, in order to expand their own power, desperately recruited soldiers, promising them generous conditions such as far higher pay and provisions than the government army. Although they recruited soldiers in this way, their control over them was extremely weak. In order to gain the soldiers' support, they were almost completely unrestrained by their troops. Whenever they captured a village, town, or county, they would allow their soldiers to plunder wealth, rape women, and some even went so far as to order the massacre of the entire city to vent the pent-up violence in their soldiers' hearts.

Wherever they go, they often leave the land barren and desolate, even worse than a locust plague.

They also worried that their generals and soldiers would become disloyal, so even if their soldiers made serious mistakes, they dared not punish them, which led to their soldiers becoming even more lawless.

That can no longer be called an army; it is not even comparable to bandits or robbers.

The consequence of doing so was a complete alienation from the common people and a loss of support from the peasantry.

The Central Plains at present can be roughly divided into four classes.

The peasant class.

The landlord class.

The gentry class.

Aristocratic families and powerful clans.

To conquer the world, one must possess at least two of the four social classes.

These rebel armies, who killed peasants, landlords, gentry, and powerful families, offended all four social classes. Although they stirred up trouble for a time, they ultimately could not achieve anything significant.

However, Li Er of Liutang was different. He killed landlords, distributed grain and land, enforced strict military discipline, and strictly prohibited soldiers from bullying the people. This was how he won over the hearts of the peasants. He also issued a decree to recruit talented people from all over the country. This was how he won over the gentry.

At the same time, there were no powerful clans in Liutang County, and the conflicts between them and the established families had not yet reached an irreconcilable level.

The more Mei Wu analyzed, the more Song Yan admired Li Er... At this moment, he seriously suspected that Li Er's identity was problematic. How could an ordinary farmer have such insight and foresight?

Could it be that this Li Er is truly possessed by Li Erfeng?
Or perhaps they are fellow villagers from the same place?

Mei Wu was getting old, and his body had been through a lot of suffering. Although he had recovered, he was not as good as before. After standing for a long time, his legs would ache and go numb, so he would sit down on the ground. His withered fingers gently massaged his calves, and his face was solemn: "Killing Niu Mou to win over the people's hearts is only the first step that Li Er has taken."

"Li Er is well aware that the people's hearts are important, but the morale of the army is equally important. Corresponding to strict military discipline is to improve the treatment of soldiers."

"During the Warring States period, the Qin state promulgated a military merit system, which made Qin a terrifying war machine. If it weren't for the problems within the Qin royal family, it's likely that the Chu state wouldn't have been able to unify the world... Li Er then imitated the Qin military merit system, giving soldiers a way to climb the ranks."

"The military merit system has a rather complicated calculation method, and most illiterate soldiers at the bottom level cannot understand all of that. But they at least understand that under Li Er's command, killing enemies can lead to promotion. Therefore, the rebel army in Liutang did not become dissatisfied with the strict military discipline. On the contrary, their combat power increased. Even when they saw the Jibei Prefecture troops pressing in, they had no fear at all, as if they were just walking merits."

"If the people guarantee the logistics and the soldiers are fearless in the face of death, then we are invincible."

"By the time the Prefect of Jibei finally realized that Li Er was not right and reported it to the court, it was too late. Li Er had already taken advantage of this time to complete his initial development and had, to some extent, the ability to compete with the court. However, the court's various decrees required review, reporting, and approval, which was slow. By the time the Prefect of Jibei finally borrowed troops from the three surrounding prefectures, Li Er had already taken the opportunity to annex several surrounding counties, expanding his territory for the first time. His soldiers even outnumbered the government troops, and they were all fierce and brave, causing the government troops to suffer another major defeat."

This is Li Er's method.

After speaking in one breath, Mei Wu also felt his mouth was dry. He picked up the teapot, poured himself a cup of tea and drank it down in one gulp. He felt his cracked throat was moistened and the burning sensation was relieved.

Then Mei Wu looked at Song Yan and said, "Now we'll see how you intend to deal with Li Er."

"If it's about annihilation, then I suggest holding back."

“These counties in Jibei Prefecture are Li Er’s foundation. The hearts of the people and the army are unshakable. Your five thousand Japanese soldiers are well-armored, well-equipped, and well-trained, but it is unlikely that five thousand can shake Li Er’s twenty thousand... well, there may be thirty thousand rebel troops now.”

"When you attack the Jurchens and annihilate the Japanese pirates, the morale of your army will sag and your troops will collapse as you kill more people. But Li Er's side is different. His soldiers may not be familiar with military formations or coordination, but few armies can match their fearlessness in the face of death. Therefore, I suggest that at least 10,000 border troops be transferred from Pingyang to form an encirclement. Only in this way can we completely wipe out Li Er's rebel army and at the same time minimize our own losses."

Song Yan shook his head: "It's not about annihilation, but recruitment."

Mei Wu frowned, clearly disapproving of recruiting rioters.

"Why recruit these rebels?" Mei Wu pondered. He didn't consider the living conditions of the common people, but instead focused entirely on Song Yan's perspective: "Now you are the Marquis of Champion and the Prefect of Pingyang. When you encounter rebels, the only option is to annihilate them."

"If you recruit someone to collude with bandits, you will not be able to escape the charge; you also have many opponents in the court, and these people will seize this opportunity to impeach you, saying that you are suspected of plotting rebellion and disrupting the country."

The emperor values ​​the throne beneath him most.

Even though Emperor Ninghe favored Song Yan, he probably had some other thoughts in his heart.

In Mei Wu’s eyes, this was a rather unwise choice.

Upon hearing this, Song Yan simply smiled and said, "Pingyang's military strength is still too small. It can completely annihilate small Jurchen tribes, but if it encounters large tribes, it is inevitable that it will be able to defeat and rout them, but not be able to completely wipe them out. The Liutang rebels are brave and fierce, and are not afraid of death, which already provides the most basic conditions for becoming excellent soldiers. If we can subdue these rebels, Pingyang's military strength will instantly be upgraded to a higher level."

"Moreover, we are only facing the Jurchens now. What if we face the Xiongnu in the future..."

Song Yan didn't finish his sentence, but Mei Wu already understood. Pingyang's current military strength was insufficient to wipe out the Jurchens, let alone face the million-strong Xiongnu army. Even if they subdued the rebels under Li Er's command, it would still be far from enough. From Song Yan's words, Mei Wu sensed something different. He didn't refute her but fell into a brief moment of contemplation: "Yan'er, are you perhaps planning to launch a preemptive attack on the Jurchens this year?"

Song Yan pursed her lips, then nodded: "Yes."

"when."

"June, summer."

Mei Wu lowered his eyelids, as if he was seriously thinking about something. After a long while, Mei Wu opened his eyes and said, "If you want to take the initiative to attack the Jurchens, my suggestion is not to choose the summer, but the end of March."

Song Yan was somewhat surprised: "Why? In June, warhorses are in heat, and the Jurchen cavalry's fighting strength is severely weakened. Isn't this the best time to attack the Jurchens?"

“That is indeed the case in theory.” Mei Wu smiled and stroked his beard, his brows furrowed with admiration. It was quite remarkable that his grandson could consider this point at his age, but after all, he was still young and his thinking was somewhat lacking. “However, you only considered the warhorses, but you forgot that among the factors that determine the outcome of a war, the warhorses are only auxiliary. The most crucial condition is still the people.”

"Liaodong is bitterly cold, and the Haixi grasslands are even colder."

"I estimate that, given this year's climate, it will take at least until the end of March, or even the beginning of April, for the snow on the Haixi Grassland to melt. Although the Jurchen tribes raided Pingyang, the grain they collected will certainly not be enough to sustain them for such a long period of time. In other words, for a long time, the Jurchen barbarians will have to endure hunger, and their physical strength, willpower, and fighting ability will be severely affected."

"If the people have nothing to eat, let alone the warhorses. At the end of March, although the warhorses are just entering their mating season, they will inevitably lose weight after a winter, and their explosive power and endurance will be much less than before. Moreover, the snow has just melted, and neither the Jurchen barbarians nor the warhorses have had time to search for food to replenish their bodies. If we send troops out at this time, we will be facing a group of emaciated, weak, sick, and disabled people, and there is absolutely no possibility of losing. Even if the cavalry is not as numerous as the enemy, how far can the exhausted warhorses run?"

"If we wait until June, three months will be enough time for the Jurchen barbarians and their warhorses to recover, which will actually be a disadvantage in battle."

Song Yan nodded in realization.

As expected of a seasoned general, his grasp of timing was more meticulous and precise than that of the Luo brothers.

Luo Tianshu and Luo Tianquan only noticed the problem of warhorses, but Mei Wu took into account the timing, the people, and the warhorses.

After a brief silence, Mei Wu continued, "If you want to recruit people like Li Er, then you should try to be polite first and then resort to force. Send someone to deliver a letter explaining your attitude and sincerity in recruiting them."

"Then he ordered preparations for war."

"Li Er is not someone who surrenders easily. Even if Li Er wanted to surrender, the military leaders under his command might not agree. So, it's highly likely that a battle will still be fought. This battle must not only be won, but won spectacularly. Only in this way can the will of Li Er and his military leaders be shattered."

Song Yan nodded again.

He suddenly realized that with the old man around, military matters no longer required him to waste his brainpower; the old man would arrange everything perfectly. Even if Song Yan himself were to do it, he couldn't possibly do it any better. Of course, he didn't dislike this kind of thing. If it weren't for his lack of power and Mei Wu's advanced age, Song Yan would really like to appoint the old man as the General Who Guards the North, in charge of all military affairs in Pingyang Prefecture.

Having made his decision, Song Yan no longer hesitated. He found some white paper, and with a swift stroke of his brush, wrote several large characters, completing the letter of surrender. He then stuffed it into an envelope and handed it to the brothers Ji Gang and Ji Peng. As the two strongest members of the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Sect, even if something unexpected happened on Li Er's territory, their chances of escaping would be slightly greater than the others.

...Yu County.

It got its name from the many rivers and lakes in the county, which are suitable for fishing.

Li Er's current territory includes six counties, with Yu County being the one closest to the south.

At this very moment, inside the county government office of Yu County, dozens of burly men were gathered, clad in armor, exuding an aura of killing intent. They were clearly the highest-ranking and most outstanding generals in the chaotic army. At the head of the table sat a young man in his thirties. Although not exactly handsome, his face was chiseled, with sharp features, sword-like eyebrows, and bright eyes, giving him a certain air of authority.

On either side of Li Er were two scholars. Despite the late spring chill, they held folding fans and waved them gently, which was somewhat pretentious. However, the generals were already used to the two scholars' behavior. Although they looked down on such affected mannerisms, they admired the two men's cunning.

The success of this band of rebels is largely due to the advice and strategies of these scholars.

The sudden gathering of so many people had only one target: the government troops entrenched in Yuer Bay. Their appearance was abrupt, without any prior intelligence. Moreover, unlike the previous garrison troops, these government soldiers, according to scouts, were all strong and robust, marching in orderly formations without the slightest sign of disarray. Approaching them revealed their imposing presence; they were clearly the elite of the elite.

Therefore, although the enemy's numbers were far fewer, Li Er dared not slacken his efforts in the slightest.

He knew very well that his soldiers relied on a fearless courage to fight on the battlefield. They could easily defeat the cowardly soldiers, but when they encountered such elite troops, their attacks would be thwarted, and their accumulated courage would inevitably wane.

A major defeat for the current rebel army could completely shatter the morale they have painstakingly built up.

The county government office was in an uproar for a time.

Most generals were rough and bold, and many volunteered for battle, saying that the government troops were nothing but chickens and dogs, and that if they were given five thousand soldiers, they could break through the enemy camp and personally behead the enemy general. Then, in order to compete for the right to lead troops into battle, the number of soldiers quickly decreased from five thousand to four thousand, three thousand, and even to the current one thousand.

Rolled up.

Seeing that all the generals were red-faced and ready to fight, Li Er felt a headache coming on. If it weren't for his presence, they would probably have started fighting immediately.

This is the downside of the merit-based military system.

While the merit-based military system gave hope and fostered courage in the lowest-ranking soldiers, it also fostered greed. For the sake of military merit, everyone from generals to privates became extremely warlike.

In stark contrast, the scholars on both sides had their brows furrowed and their expressions were extremely solemn.

"Mr. Liang."

"Mr. Gao."

"What are your thoughts?" Li Er asked softly, his voice respectful. Whether it was feigned or genuine, his demeanor of humbly acknowledging talent was impeccable.

"My lord, have you considered that these five thousand government troops might just be the vanguard?" Mr. Liang exhaled slowly and spoke unhurriedly.

But these words caused everyone's expression to change drastically.

If the vanguard is the elite of the elite, how could the main army be any less so?
Once the main army is on the border, how can this chaotic army, which only occupies six counties, possibly survive?
Even Li Er's expression turned serious, his brows furrowing: "What does the strategist mean?"

"There are three options. The first option is to strike first, as it is better to strike later. Before the enemy's main force arrives, we should deploy superior forces to wipe out their five thousand men. The advantage of doing this is that even if the main force arrives later, we will be free from the threat of these five thousand men. The disadvantage is that we will completely offend the government troops, and once the main force arrives, they will definitely not give us any more chances."

"The second option is to surrender."

"The current situation in Ningguo is not good. It is surrounded by powerful enemies. Emperor Ninghe does not want to waste too much financial, human and energy resources on suppressing the rebels. Therefore, he mainly focuses on pacification and appeasement towards the rebels."

"We can also take this opportunity to accept the imperial court's amnesty and transform ourselves from rebels into officials of the court."

"The third option is to retreat."

"While we can escape Jibei Prefecture quickly before the elite troops of Ningguo have surrounded us, even if we are in a sorry state, we will at least have a chance to make a comeback in other places."

Many generals had somber expressions.

Begging to surrender?

retreat?

Are you kidding me?
They were all tough guys, and they simply couldn't bring themselves to do something as shameful as surrendering or running away.

These intellectuals are cowards. Didn't they ever consider that the enemy might only have five thousand men? Would everything be fine if they just wiped out all five thousand?

Perhaps only these five thousand elite warriors are truly capable of killing, while the so-called main force is actually just a bunch of good-for-nothings?
For a moment, the county government office was buzzing with activity as the many officials whispered among themselves, their faces filled with resentment.

"How about we hold out to the death?" Li Er pondered for a while before slowly speaking.

Mr. Gao and Mr. Liang shook their heads almost simultaneously: "No good. Holding out to the death is the worst approach. We don't even need the government troops to launch an attack. Just blockade the six counties we occupy and completely cut off all our contact with the outside world. Then, we won't need the government troops to do anything else. Our internal forces will collapse first."

"Report..."

Just then, a drawn-out voice came from outside the county government office. Soon after, a soldier hurriedly entered the office, bowed to Li Er, and then said, "Reporting to Prince Min, there is an envoy outside requesting an audience."

To rebel, one must have a flag.

Li Er's main claim was to speak up for the people and fight for a way out for the common people, so he called himself the People's King. However, the word "people" was never used in his title of king, so he added the word "king" next to "people", thus becoming the Min King.

However, the character "珉" resembles jade but is not jade. The Book of Rites states: "May I ask why a gentleman values ​​jade but despises 珉?" Therefore, the character "珉" also carries the meaning of humility or imperfection.

This perfectly describes Li Er in his current state.

Li Er frowned slightly: "The envoy? Let him in."

Not long after he finished speaking, footsteps were heard, and soon two figures entered from outside the county government office. A glance at their faces revealed that they were brothers.

They were all tall, strong, and powerful.

These two men were, of course, Ji Gang and Ji Peng.

Even after entering the enemy camp, and facing the hostile gazes of the chaotic army leaders from all sides, the two brothers showed no sign of panic on their faces. In fact, the corners of their mouths even curled up slightly, revealing a hint of disdain.

His gaze swept across the surroundings, completely ignoring the leaders of the rebel army. Finally, he fixed his eyes on the young man at the forefront, who was none other than Li Er. It was a pity that the Marquis wanted to recruit him, not annihilate him. Otherwise, if he had seized this opportunity to rush up and take Li Er's head, the Minwang rebel army would have been leaderless and disorganized in an instant.

This is absolutely a great achievement.

Who knows, we might even be able to get some antidote from those two women, Luo Tianxuan and Hua Lianyue.

Heaven knows, Song Yan was actually protected by two Grandmasters. If they had known this, the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Sect would never have accepted the mission to kill Song Yan.

What's even more unexpected is that these two grandmasters are even more petty than Zhenyan. All they wanted to do was surround and kill Song Yan, and they failed. Not only did they give Ji Peng and his group a good beating outside the Duke's mansion, but they also followed them all the way to the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Sect's mountain gate. Then, from the sect leader Ji Gang down to the janitors in the sect, everyone was poisoned and could only become Song Yan's lackeys from then on.

Is this justified?

Is there any royal law?
Just because you're a grandmaster doesn't mean you can do whatever you want.
As it turns out, a grandmaster really can do whatever he wants.

This was their first mission under Song Yan's command, and they had to do it flawlessly no matter what. They represented the Marquis of Champion, and even though they were in the enemy camp, they couldn't afford to lose face. Ji Gang pursed his lips. Although Li Er was sitting in the main seat, Ji Gang's gaze was quite condescending. He casually cupped his hands towards Li Er and said, "You must be Li Er from Liutang?"

These words, spoken with such disdain, instantly caused many generals around to change their expressions drastically. They felt a sense of humiliation and anger at being slighted. Many of the generals had already placed their hands on their waists, their fingers gripping the hilts of their swords, as if they were about to rush forward and tear these two arrogant fools to pieces at any moment.

Li Er remained calm and did not fly into a rage. He simply waved his hand to suppress the anger of the many military leaders: "That's right, I am Li Er. May I ask who you two are as messengers?"

"I am Ji Gang, the captain of the scout team under the command of General Pinglu and Marquis Champion." Ji Gang raised his head proudly, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth: "I have come here on the orders of the Marquis to deliver a letter."

The military leaders whispered among themselves, clearly unfamiliar with such a title. On the other hand, Mr. Gao and Mr. Liang's expressions changed drastically, and both of them even trembled violently, their faces turning deathly pale.

Marquis of Champion?
Could it be... could it be that champion Hou, the Jingguan fanatic?
How did we end up provoking this person?
It’s over.

It's over now.

The image of the towering mound of heads involuntarily surfaced in his mind, along with the countless human heads... Could it be that this Jingguan maniac is no longer satisfied with just piling up heads in Ningping, Dongling, and Pingyang, and is now preparing to wreak havoc on Jibei? Both pairs of eyes widened, their depths filled with unyielding horror.

Ji Gang paid no attention to the rustling noises around him. He raised his hand, and an envelope flew straight towards Li Er. This single move revealed his extremely high level of cultivation.

As the envelope reached Li Er, it seemed to suddenly lose its strength and leisurely floated down onto the table. Li Er's eyelids twitched. He picked up the envelope and opened it. Inside was only a blank sheet of paper. He unfolded it, and in the next instant, Li Er's pupils contracted sharply. On the white paper were several large, flamboyant characters:
"Surrender!"

"Or die!"

Iron strokes and silver hooks pierce the air with a resounding sound; wind and thunder from beneath the wrist shatter the white screen.

A slender dragon leaps in a startled, ink-black pool, its collapse sweeping away the verdant mountains!
These five words convey a sense of overwhelming power and dominance.

(End of this chapter)