Frost for a Thousand Years

Shiting City was completely occupied by Song Shi'an.

The drainage work took a full five days.

The original population of Shiting City was 80,000, but now only a little over 40,000 remain.

Moreover, women, children, the elderly, and the infirm made up a significant proportion of the population.

Only about 10,000 adult men capable of fighting remained.

All of these people were captured by Song Shi'an and taken to his military camp.

In the beginning, the barbarian coalition carried out a massacre when they were annihilating the Shamoy.

This kind of thing cannot be stopped.

Song Shi'an had no way to restrain him.

However, after his soldiers occupied the city, he immediately made a three-point agreement with the people.

From then on, any massacre was illegal.

However, there are still some issues in the city that have not yet been resolved.

Thus, escorted by Ran Jin, Song Shi'an, along with the Prince of Jiangling and other generals, personally entered the city.

Sun Jinhua was left in the military camp outside by Song Shi'an, firstly for safety reasons, and secondly as his secretary, so that she could help him receive some letters.

The Duke of Zhangping did not follow them into the city, even though he would later become the governor of this place.

All I can say is that this person is very sensible.

This expedition into southern Vietnam is a time to establish our authority.

Although he was the future ruler of this place, he did not compete with Song Shi'an for authority at this time, but let the people of Nanyue know that there was only one supreme monarch here, and that was Song Shi'an.

Then, he became Song Shi'an's manager here.

Such gestures of goodwill and weakness indicate that the Duke of Zhangping had no intention of vying for power; all he wanted was a good outcome.

As long as there is eternal wealth and honor, that's enough.

Indeed, contentment brings happiness.

"Duke, Sun Zun, who previously only surrendered to the Junior Grand Secretary and not to the barbarian kings, has arrived."

When Song Shi'an entered the palace and stood in the main hall, Ran Jin reported to him.

"Let him in," Song Shi'an said.

"Yes."

And so, Ran Jin left.

After a while, they brought in the man who was dressed in plain clothes, with disheveled hair, and looked quite embarrassed.

Upon seeing Song Shi'an, he knelt on the ground, prostrated himself, and bowed respectfully, saying, "This humble subject, Sun Zun, pays his respects to the young Grand Secretary."

"Why? Has she been abused?"

Song Shi'an looked at him and asked curiously.

When the barbarian army first went in to sweep through, they also attacked the Ba King's Mansion. However, the other side was very tough and refused to surrender to the barbarians. They demanded that the young Grand Secretary's imperial guards come over, and even if it was just a centurion, he would be willing to kneel down and surrender.

Upon hearing this, Song Shi'an, who was directing operations outside the city, readily agreed.

Then, all of his troops were taken over by Song Shi'an.

As for him personally, Song Shi'an was worried that he would be bullied by those barbarians. After all, they hated Sun Tuo very much, and this was Sun Tuo's cousin. They would inevitably take revenge. Therefore, Song Shi'an ordered his own people to watch over him at the Ba King's residence. Without his order, no one was allowed to act against him.

“Young Grand Secretary,” Sun Zun raised his head and said, “The country has fallen, and Nan Yue no longer exists. As a member of the Nan Yue royal family, I am already grateful for your mercy in being able to survive. I dare not call myself the King of Ba or wear royal robes anymore.”

“I see.” Song Shi’an nodded and said, “Sun Zun, I need to clarify something for you. Your little emperor was killed by Shamoyi. I originally wanted to spare his life.”

“Young Grand Secretary, this humble subject knows,” Sun Zun said. “Sun Tuo was also killed by the Shamo family. All of this was their doing.”

"And what is your attitude?" Song Shi'an asked in return.

“Young Grand Secretary may not believe it,” Sun Zun said. “Sun Tuo, myself, and Sun Hao are all from the Xiangyu faction and have never intended to invade the north. Those who say that those who are not of our race must have different hearts are just trying to better rule the people of Baiyue.”

“But the acts of plundering and killing our people upon entering the country are indeed true and cannot be easily forgiven,” Song Shi’an said.

He knew, of course, that Sun Tuozi's opposition to Yu was feigned, but in reality, he was close to Yu.

But you have to bear these grievances and helplessness yourselves.

You also bear responsibility for the poor governance of the country, which led to the usurpation of power by the empress's relatives, resulting in the current situation.

"Young Grand Secretary, it is all my fault as a commoner. Please punish me." Sun Zun prostrated himself again, apologizing sincerely.

“Sun Tuo has already atoned for your crimes. Moreover, your voluntary surrender and refusal to collude with Shamoyi is also a great achievement,” Song Shi’an said. “I will give you two choices: stay in Nan Yue, but your royal title will be stripped, and you can only live as a wealthy man. Or, come north with me to Sheng’an. You may not get an official position, but I can guarantee your wealth.”

"This humble citizen requests permission to go to Sheng'an."

Sun Zun did not hesitate at all and immediately spoke up.

There seems to be no attachment to this place.

His fate, of course, cannot be compared with that of Sun Hao.

Sun Hao's actions were those of someone who actively chose sides during the war. While this might not be considered initial investment, it still required a united front.

Sun Zun was merely a defeated king who surrendered after the city fell; to treat him so kindly already shows the heart of a bodhisattva.

“How about this?” However, despite his decisiveness, Song Shi’an did not keep his promise. Instead, he changed his mind and said, “You will remain in Nan Yue, right here in Shi Ting. Although you are no longer the King of Ba, I will appoint you as the Dianke of Jiaozhou. You will be responsible for education and Sinicization, so that the people of this land will wear Yu clothing and use the Yu character.”

This abrupt decision stunned Sun Zun.

That's right, Song Shi'an was just testing the waters.

While it may not be 100% accurate, it can at least reflect the other person's initial thoughts.

Both were stripped of their royal titles, yet he chose to go to Sheng'an instead of staying here, indicating that he had no ambition to make a comeback and restore Nan Yue.

If he chooses to stay here, then Song Shi'an will have to send him to Sheng'an.

"Young Grand Secretary, the people of Nanyue mostly dislike the Sun family. If I were to implement education and guidance, would they resist being disciplined...?"

That's not what Sun Zun is worried about.

His main fear was being killed by those barbarian kings.

“You’re an official. If they don’t obey you, kill them. If they don’t want to use the character ‘Yu’ or wear Yu clothing, kill them one by one,” Song Shi’an said casually. “This is Jiaozhou of Dayu, not Nanyue of Sun Tuo. I intend to make this place better. Those who don’t cooperate will only die.”

Song Shi'an's words sounded even more like those of a villain.

This is not the kind of statement a benevolent ruler should make.

But now, he has that power.

Because he has eliminated almost all the troublemakers.

If he so desires, his power can make the waters of a river flow backwards.

Why did Sun Zun have to be chosen for this role?

To put it another way, it's like after the Qing dynasty was overthrown, Puyi was made the ambassador for promoting Han culture in the former puppet state of Manchukuo.

Yes, it's about stirring up hatred.

As the ruling party, we must learn to shift the primary contradiction and only bear the secondary contradictions.

I made a mistake, but my mistake was in using the wrong people.

The idea above was good, but it was executed incorrectly.

The intention behind the implementation was to do it well, but some bad apples damaged public trust, leading to inaccurate implementation and a departure from the original intention.

Of course, I'm referring to the Great Yu Dynasty.

"Young Grand Secretary, this..." After struggling, Sun Zun still chose to obey. "I am grateful for your kindness, Young Grand Secretary. I am willing to serve you wholeheartedly, even at the cost of my life."

"it is good."

Song Shi'an nodded and said, "Go down. You will be protected. I will announce your official rank later."

"Thank you, Young Master Xie."

And so, he withdrew.

"Are those barbarian kings also waiting outside?" Song Shi'an asked.

“Yes,” Ran Jin said. “They are all wondering how you, Prime Minister, will fulfill your previous promise.” “These barbarians are straightforward and don’t beat around the bush,” Song Shi’an laughed. “I like that.”

"Then let's invite them in?" Ran Jin asked.

"General Ran, you are a general, you don't need to help with the relay. Although they are kings or princes, don't treat them like royalty."

With that, Song Shi'an walked up the steps, turned around, and slowly sat down on the dragon throne.

Ran Jin's heart tightened at the sight, but without thinking much of it, he stood beside him and said, "Yes."

"Let them in."

With his hands resting on the armrests of the dragon throne, Song Shi'an began to speak.

Immediately afterwards, a total of eight vassal kings entered Song Shi'an's main hall.

Upon seeing that the other party was already seated on the throne, they all knelt down and said in unison:

"Your humble servants pay their respects to the Junior Grand Secretary."

After they finished speaking, Wolf King Song Tu even took the initiative to say, "May the young Grand Secretary live ten thousand years!"

"May the young Grand Secretary live ten thousand years!"

Several people joined the tour group together, and they immediately elevated him to the status of a supreme figure.

Logically speaking, anyone would feel fear from such words, but Ran Jin found that Song Shi'an... completely accepted them.

He was not afraid of being too powerful and overshadowing his superiors.

"Get up," Song Shi'an said.

Several people got up one after another.

“As I said before, you will follow me, and we will divide up Nanyue together,” Song Shi’an said. “Now, the court has decided to change Nanyue to Jiaozhou. Apart from the Lang King, the seven of you, plus Qiu Juhuan, will be the governors of eight prefectures. Under your rule, the other kings can no longer call themselves kings, but can only be counts. They will also obey your orders, and if anyone disobeys, you can lead troops to punish them.”

Upon hearing this, the group was immediately satisfied.

Why is the king of Nanyue not of any real value?

Just because someone is human, they're all fucking kings.

Even a tribe of over ten thousand people would claim to be king.

Now, there are eight prefectures and eight kings.

At the same time, he was also a third-rank prefect of Dayu.

Their status would then rise dramatically.

He is undoubtedly a revered one.

However, one of the kings had a rather subtle expression on his face...

At this moment, Song Shi'an said, "By the way, King Wu, I promised you before that after this battle, Shiting would be yours."

"..." Wuwang raised his head with a joyful look, but after seeing the other party's majestic and domineering appearance, he quickly said, "Whatever the young Grand Secretary gives me, I will take."

"Would the prefect be suitable?"

"Yes, I am willing."

After witnessing Song Shi'an's true strength, Wu Wang would no longer harbor such wicked thoughts.

How dare I lay a finger on someone else's stone garden?

Even if he did give it to him, would he dare to accept it?

"Finally, Prince Lang," Song Shi'an looked at him, who had made the greatest contribution, and asked with a smile, "I'm going to fight Ji Yuan. Would you rather follow me or stay here as king? Of course, even if you go to Da Yu, I will retain your title of king."

"Young Grand Secretary, I am willing to follow you!" Song Tu said passionately. "I am willing to go north and help you deal with Ji Yuan!"

"Good, as expected of the Song family."

With a gratified smile, Song Shi'an clapped his hands and said in front of everyone, "When you go north, you should take your army with you. As for your tribe and your fief, they will remain in Jiaozhou. Although they are under the jurisdiction of the prefecture, they will not be under the orders of the prefect, but will only obey the orders of the governor of Jiaozhou."

It not only gave him the opportunity to start a business.

Moreover, it preserved the foundation for his triumphant return home.

This is the good end for those who act like Song Shi'an's lackeys.

The kings were green with envy.

Song Tu himself was moved to tears, and kowtowed deeply, saying, "Your subject Song Tu is willing to protect the Song family for generations to come!"

These people were thus assigned.

Just then, a soldier came in to report.

"Young Grand Secretary, Shi Ting has won a great victory, and Qiu Juhuan has sent congratulatory gifts!"

"Oh? Let the congratulatory gift in," Song Shi'an said with interest.

Everyone turned their heads in unison to look at the palace gate.

After a while, Samogi, dressed in red, barefoot, and with his hands bound, was brought in by ropes.

At this moment, she resembled a withered flower, possessing a poignant beauty.

Upon meeting Song Shi'an, she showed none of the domineering air of an empress dowager; instead, she displayed a timid demeanor born of complete submission.

Even though the man was very handsome, she didn't dare to flirt with him anymore.

When they were on equal footing, she could be charming and pretentious.

But now, she's nothing more than a prisoner. What reason does she have to fawn over Song Shi'an?

"You may leave."

Song Shi'an said it casually.

Everyone understood and left.

At this moment, only Ran Jin remained. He deliberately reminded him, "Prime Minister, this woman is extremely ruthless. Quite a few people have already died at her hands..."

"Don't worry, General Ran, am I the kind of mediocre person who is lustful?"

"Then this humble general will take his leave."

Ran Jin also left.

General San Gou is still with Qiu Juhuan, responsible for pacifying the area and representing Song Shi'an in bestowing titles and rewards.

Therefore, he no longer has such a talkative personal guard general by his side.

"come over."

Song Shi'an raised his hand.

Samogi walked over and stood in front of him.

Song Shi'an drew his sword directly, which startled her. She quickly lowered her head but did not retreat. Only after Song Shi'an cut the rope binding her hands with his sword did she dare to open her eyes and look at him.

“Shamoji, is this just an act of cowardice?” Song Shi’an asked jokingly. “How could a woman who can manipulate the politics of Southern Yue and stir up trouble across the world be like this? I think you should be more arrogant.”

“I dare not pretend.” Shamoji looked at him and said with rare sincerity, “I used to think that I could control the world. But after seeing the true Venerable One, the true ruler… I no longer dare to be arrogant.”

There's nothing we can do; we lost too badly.

From beginning to end, there was not a single chance to resist.

Before facing a true overlord, she was nothing but ignorant and arrogant foolishness.

After seeing it, they became obedient.

Song Shi'an extended his hand with satisfaction.

Shamogi knelt before him, obediently placing his cheek in the other's hand, and then looking up at the young Grand Secretary with a servile air.

"You're quite adorable."

After stroking and comforting her, Song Shi praised her.

Samogi lowered his head and took the initiative to undo Song Shi'an's belt.

Then, on her deceased husband's dragon throne, Song Shi'an unlocked various defeat CGs. (End of Chapter)