Chapter 495: The Conqueror Liu Chengyou

The four gates of Shouchun fell to the Han army one after another, yet the fall of the city did not mean the end of the chaos of war. In the tumult of battle, for a full shichen, disorder and confusion remained the true picture both inside and outside the city walls.

The Northern Han army had camped before the city for nearly three months, and the three armies had truly endured great hardship. Every officer and soldier, to a greater or lesser degree, harbored a bellyful of anger. Now that the city had finally been breached, many soldiers vented that anger upon the defending troops and the citizens within.

The moment a city falls is often when all order is shattered. The collapse of discipline invariably brings disaster, and this disaster was destined to be borne by the tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians of Shouchun. Moreover, too many Han troops entered the city, and the ranks were too mixed; among the various armies, disputes over merit also broke out for various reasons, prolonging the chaos in the city for nearly a shichen.

Although Han army discipline was strict, in a war of city-taking and state-founding like this, it was unrealistic to expect complete restraint. After all, in times of chaos, there was always the saying "the law cannot punish the multitude."

Upon learning of the situation in the city, Liu Chengyou issued another stern decree, ordering the commanders of the various armies to strictly restrain their soldiers and forbidding them from disturbing the people. He also appointed Tao Gu to act as Prefect of Shouchun, who entered the city to post the imperial proclamation and reassure the populace. Only then did the disorder begin to subside.

As the situation in Shouchun gradually stabilized, aside from leaving detachments from the Longqi, Husheng, and Xiaodi armies to guard the city and key strategic points, the remaining Han troops were all withdrawn and stationed outside the walls. The Tang soldiers, numbering some thirteen thousand captives, were disarmed and escorted to the military camps outside the city for detention and watch.

"Your Majesty, Shouchun city has been fully pacified, and the people are at ease. Secretary Tao has sent word that all preparations to receive Your Majesty are complete — you may move your carriage!" Inside the imperial tent, as Liu Chengyou was approving memorials one by one, Pan Mei came forward to report.

Liu Chengyou directly instructed: "Pass the order to Li Jixun — have him lead the Fengchen Battalion into the city as escort, that is all!"

"Yes!"

"Zhongxun!" Pan Mei turned to relay the order but was called back by Liu Chengyou.

"What is Your Majesty's command?" Pan Mei turned around again.

Liu Chengyou raised a finger and said: "Now that Shouchun has fallen, the time has come for our Han army to take cities and seize territory, sweeping through the prefectures and counties of Huainan! Zhang Yongde has already seized Hefei ahead of us. Clearly, after successive defeats, the false Tang has little strength left north of the Yangtze to block our great army or withstand our blade!"

From Liu Chengyou's words, Pan Mei sensed something and clasped his hands: "Please give your command, Your Majesty!"

Liu Chengyou had always appreciated Pan Mei's keen perception beneath his composed and prudent demeanor, so he directly instructed: "I am transferring five battalions of soldiers from the Fengguo Army, plus one thousand men drawn from the Huaide Army, to be placed under your command. You will head south to Hefei first. After arriving at Hefei, continue southward — Zhang Yongde will attack Hezhou, while you lead your force to take Shuzhou!"

"Your Majesty, your servant's seniority is still shallow. I have never before led troops independently, nor have I achieved even a single merit. How can I command an army alone? I fear it will be hard to win the confidence of the men!" Faced with such a weighty commission, Pan Mei showed no delight but instead asked cautiously.

Seeing this, Liu Chengyou said: "Do you think I cannot see your talent, Pan Mei? You have no merit, which is precisely why I am giving you this chance to earn it! A man of ambition in this world — why so hesitant and overcautious? Will you not be looked down upon? Let me ask you: do you have the confidence to take Shuzhou for me?"

"I thank Your Majesty for your trust! I will not fail the mission!" Since the Emperor had spoken thus, how could Pan Mei lack spirit? He immediately knelt on one knee and answered with deep emotion. For the Son of Heaven's promotion and trust, Pan Mei felt gratitude from the bottom of his heart.

If judged purely by seniority and merit, Pan Mei was certainly unqualified — the field headquarters was full of veteran generals. However, relying on the Emperor's trust, his fondness for promoting the young, and especially his record of service as a palace guard at Liu Chengyou's side, he had the qualifications.

Wang Hanlun, Zhao Kuangyin, Gao Huaide, Zhao Yanjin, Zhang Yongde — these young officers had all served as palace guards. Whether posted to govern a prefecture or given independent command of an army, in short, bearing the golden signboard of "Imperial Palace Guard" was enough to deflect the greater part of criticism. The rest depended on their individual performance.

And judging by the current situation, none of the guard officers were mediocre men.

"After I follow behind with the main army heading south, you shall serve as the vanguard of the three armies, sweeping through the prefectures and counties, shaking the two river regions!" Liu Chengyou looked straight at Pan Mei, calm yet not lacking in authority: "Take Ma Renyu along as well. I am giving him command of one battalion, and his troops can be selected from the Huaide Army!"

"Yes!" Pan Mei's single word was resolute and forceful.

At dusk, at Shouchun's north gate, the drawbridge was lowered, spanning the moat before the barbican that had been nearly filled in. The corpses above and below the walls had long since been separated and cleared away. Unlike the Han soldiers and civilians, who were collected, recorded, and cremated, the Tang soldiers — as the defeated — were simply thrown into a large pit dug to the left of the city for mass burial.

In the days prior, after his desperate breakout attempt had failed, He Jingzhu had prepared for a stubborn defense and simply sealed all four gates of Shouchun with sand, stone, and timber. This caused considerable trouble for the Han troops handling the aftermath, costing them much time. Only when the last of the sand and earth was cleared away by the laborers and replaced by the neatly arrayed soldiers of the Longqi Army...

Once everything was in proper order, Wang Jun, Murong Yanzhao, and Tao Gu led the ceremony to welcome the imperial carriage. A newly taken city could not be treated lightly, so Liu Chengyou chose to ride in a carriage, entering the city with composure, tightly guarded by the Inner Palace guards and the soldiers of the Fengchen Army.

The entire city could hardly be cleaned up in half a day; along the route, the scars of war were visible everywhere. The path of the imperial carriage was lined with Han sentries, and in the neighborhoods passed, many citizens could only hear the sound of carriages moving through the streets, keeping their doors and windows tightly shut, not daring to leave even a crack. The Han army had announced along the way that anyone who failed to close their doors and windows would be charged with attempted assassination of the Emperor.

Before the Shouzhou Military Governor's office, Liu Chengyou descended from the imperial carriage, formally setting foot on the ground of this stubborn Huainan stronghold that had held him back for nearly three months, in the capacity of a conqueror and victor. To say he was greatly excited would be impossible — aside from a slight relaxation, Liu Chengyou's heart was almost entirely undisturbed.

"You are Han Chongyun, aren't you!" Liu Chengyou looked at the Longqi Battalion commander standing guard before the office.

"Yes, this humble officer!" Meeting the Emperor's gaze, Han Chongyun felt a flash of surprise and delight, answering instinctively.

"The wall-climbing battle was fought well!" Liu Chengyou said no more, revealing a restrained smile as he strode ahead into the office.

Though it was only a simple word of praise, for Han Chongyun it was no less than sweet music, filling him with greater expectations for what lay ahead.

Entering the hall, he took the central seat and received the homage of the civil and military officials.

"Your Majesty, all the offices and granaries of Shouzhou have been placed under military guard. All the city's officials have surrendered, and the household registers and maps have all been received." Tao Gu rose to report on the city's situation: "Shouchun originally held nearly seventy thousand soldiers and civilians, but after this battle, excluding the captured troops and laborers, it is estimated that fewer than forty thousand remain. When I was pacifying the people, I found that all bore a hungry look and walked with unsteady steps.

After the siege began, the grain supply routes were cut off, and the city's rice could not withstand the consumption of the entire population. He Jingzhu also plundered the people's household stores to supply the army, causing many to die of cold and hunger since winter began.

After my inventory of Shouchun's official granaries, I found that there was little rice or grain remaining among the money, provisions, and weapons. Since ancient times, an isolated city is hard to defend, let alone one without food. In fact, within half a month, Shouchun would have run out of grain and fallen without a fight!"

After hearing Tao Gu's report, Liu Chengyou's face showed little emotion. After brief consideration, he instructed Tao Gu: "Take out all the remaining grain and cloth from Shouchun's treasury, set up shelters and tents, and provide relief to the people of Shouchun!"

"As commanded!"

Liu Chengyou was being generous with Shouchun's own resources — it looked quite magnanimous, and the story would spread as "the Han Emperor, upon taking the city, distributed the entire treasury to relieve the people." In fact, he barely needed to touch the main camp's grain supplies. And the effect of winning over the people would certainly not be poor.

"Your Majesty, when I inspected Shouchun's prison, I found over a thousand inmates, most of them people who opposed He Jingzhu's militarism and were unjustly imprisoned — among them many prefectural officials and wealthy merchants of repute!" Tao Gu added: "In my view, we might release them all to display Your Majesty's benevolence. After they leave prison, they can also spread word of Your Majesty's grace and authority!"

At Tao Gu's suggestion, Liu Chengyou frowned slightly. He first commended Tao Gu for his thorough handling of the prefecture's administration, then said: "Among over a thousand prisoners, surely not all are innocent — there must be some who broke the law. You should follow the Criminal Code, first distinguish the good from the bad, weigh the virtuous from the wicked: release the innocent, and add punishment to the guilty! Leave this matter to you, Minister Tao, to handle!"

To speak cynically, the people Tao Gu said He Jingzhu had imprisoned would, at any time, be troublemakers — the same under the Great Han. If a Han city were besieged, how would these people oppose militarism then? Therefore, Liu Chengyou held no fondness for them.

"Yes!" Seeing the Emperor's reaction, Tao Gu immediately responded: "Your Majesty's consideration is thorough — my thinking was not complete!"

"And what of He Jingzhu?" Liu Chengyou thought to ask.

At the question, Sun Li grinned, and as if presenting a treasure, produced He Jingzhu's severed head, offering it with reverence: "That old villain refused to surrender and killed himself. I cut off his head to present to you!"

Liu Chengyou glanced at it twice — bloody and somewhat gruesome. But he had seen plenty of cruel things; he was quite accustomed to them. White hair and beard stained with blood, the face was ugly, even terrifying.

Gao Huaide below could not help but rise and say: "Your Majesty, this humble officer has learned that He Jingzhu had long been afflicted with illness. He resisted stubbornly while sick, and on the day the city fell, he faced south and cut his own throat. Several dozen of his personal attendants guarded his body, fighting to the death. I believe that although this old general was foolish and obstinate, he was nonetheless a hero — I beg that his body be preserved intact!"

"His hero is my enemy!" Liu Chengyou's single sentence made Gao Huaide's expression change.

"However, Cangyong, your possession of such a benevolent heart is truly rare!" Liu Chengyou rose and said: "Before the city fell, I hated He Jingzhu to the bone and wished to grind his bones to dust. But after the city fell, hearing of his deeds, I cannot help but sigh in regret — a rare old general indeed.

Enough. The dead are paramount. Collect He Jingzhu's body, bury it in the outskirts of the city, and erect a hero's tomb for him to honor his loyalty and valor. Those several dozen Tang soldiers who guarded his body shall be buried with him. A thousand years from now, if later generations sing of this tale, it will count as a fine story.

Furthermore, once I have taken all of Huainan, when his descendants come under our governance, the local authorities shall treat them well!"

"Your Majesty is benevolent!" The civil and military officials in the hall immediately bowed in unison.

Liu Chengyou's arrangement was not merely to honor He Jingzhu's remains — more importantly, it was to proclaim the benevolence and virtue of himself, the Son of Heaven of the Great Han. This kind of display was quite necessary.

Just as he had said to Tao Gu earlier, he was already considering post-war matters. The Great Han's southern campaign had naturally brought war and slaughter to the people of Huainan, and there was no expectation that the Huainan populace would welcome the Han army.

During the war, it did not matter. But after the war, a thousand li of land, prefectures and towns, and a million households would all come under governance. How to turn the Huainan people into Han subjects was something Liu Chengyou had to consider.

Winning over hearts was not difficult — with a little benevolent governance, within a few years the common folk would forget the trauma of this war.