Chapter 136: Han Tuozhou

"Order three infantry divisions to relieve these three cavalry divisions from the siege of Ducheng; instruct them not to rush the attack, but wait until the headquarters of all major military commands have redeployed their forces, so that the Dabie Mountain Military Region and the Shandong Hills Military Region can launch their operations."

"Immediately launch campaigns to seize the property of local tyrants and redistribute their land; severely crack down on tyrannical gentry who train militia forces, confiscate their assets, and immediately hand them over to local courts for trial—this is especially critical for the land reform teams in Hebei, Henan, and Shandong regions; make sure the local people know we are fighting for their happiness."

"Lastly, the troops of the Mount Taixing Military Region must deliver a powerful strike against all invading enemies."

After issuing combat orders to the war zones, Zhang Chu'an's mood improved greatly; in this era, with his current resources, using telegraphs was still very difficult.

So he specifically exchanged for the Wang family's divine inscription method—this thousand-mile message transmission technique was crucial and convenient for deploying combat orders.

Within just one month, two hundred thousand troops emerged from Mount Taixing to encircle Ducheng and annihilate all Jin forces in Hebei; the Jin regime's core within Ducheng had become a fish in a barrel, unable to command or redeploy any of its armies.

During this period, the seven hundred thousand revolutionary troops of the Shandong Military Region could swiftly liberate all of Shandong; as a revolutionary base area, the Shandong Hills possessed broad popular support and could rapidly expand their forces to two or even three hundred thousand.

Meanwhile, the Song Chaoting, upon learning of the rebellion within Jin Chao and the encirclement of Ducheng, was overjoyed—Han Tuozhou, the Han Chengxiang, immediately received the negotiation envoy sent by the rebel forces.

Inside the Han Chengxiang's mansion, negotiations proceeded smoothly; though young, the revolutionary envoy showed no arrogance and gave full respect to this Han Chengxiang.

"My lord, our revolutionary army's leader has never declared himself king or emperor, only calling himself a Standing Committee member—precisely because we cherish the Great Song and long for the imperial army to march out; our leader has pledged that after destroying Jin Chao, we hope the Song emperor will grant us proper rewards."

"Let us enjoy the honor and wealth we deserve; our revolutionary army is willing to lay down our arms and surrender all territories we have seized to the Great Song."

After Zhang Haoran finished speaking, Han Tuozhou paused, then asked: "Your forces have advanced so swiftly—within a single month you've encircled Ducheng—why propose such humble terms?"

The low demands made him suspect whether they would honor their promises—but to his surprise, Zhang Haoran's eyes turned red and he burst into tears: "My lord, our rebellion against Jin Chao was purely because Wanyan Honglie launched a coup, imprisoned the emperor, and launched a crackdown on us—we were forced to rise up; our encirclement of Ducheng was only possible due to proximity. Now, Jin Chao has mobilized its entire army, yet we still cannot capture Ducheng. At this moment, our righteous forces are in mortal danger, facing imminent annihilation."

"This, Old General, what do you think of the envoy Zhang's words?" Han Tuozhou hesitated, turning to Xin Qiji, whom he had just summoned out of retirement.

"My lord, Envoy Zhang speaks without error. Though sudden uprisings can achieve astonishing results, the righteous armies' foundation is thin; internal traitors are easily born, and against Jin Chao's regular troops, they are merely rabble. Moreover, this opportunity—Jin Chao's capital encircled—is one we cannot afford to miss. When will we ever have another chance to wash away the humiliation of Jingkang?" Xin Qiji wept bitterly.

He had joined the rebellion as a youth; at twenty-three he returned to the Song Chaoting, waiting forty years for the northern expedition to wash away the Jingkang humiliation—now he knew his body could not wait much longer.

In his lifetime, he wished to see the imperial army reclaim the Central Plains.

Han Tuozhou rubbed his forehead; this old man was relentless—mention northern expedition and he'd get excited; whenever the imperial weight needed him to take a stance on military action, all he had to do was shout, "I want to launch a northern expedition."

After all, he could always later retract it by claiming lack of funds.

Yet a northern expedition was still vital for Han Tuozhou—he, a Han Chengxiang who seized power through a coup, needed a monumental military achievement to prove himself.

The glory of washing away the Jingkang humiliation would erase all his stains; now that Jin Chao was in turmoil and its capital besieged, could there be a better opportunity?

Moreover, the rebel leader was quite sensible.

"My lord, our righteous army is now under siege, and your imperial forces cannot reach us in time; I humbly beg the Han Chengxiang to provide financial and grain support to our northern righteous forces, and also—since we have just risen, we lack craftsmen to forge weapons," Zhang Haoran cautiously proposed.

"I, as Han Chengxiang, agree to this. The Great Song has always been wealthy; we have no shortage of military supplies, grain, or craftsmen. Tomorrow, take my personal edict to the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works to collect them," Han Tuozhou agreed without hesitation—after all, the rebels were separated from the Song Chaoting by Jin Chao's armies.

How much support could they possibly receive? As for craftsmen—ha, the Song Chaoting had plenty.

After concluding talks with Han Tuozhou, Zhang Haoran returned to his residence and scribbled down the details of today's negotiations; far away on Mount Taixing, Zhang Chu'an wrote "Good job" and paid no further attention to the Song Chaoting's affairs.

After all, he had no intention of honoring the promises he made to the Song Chaoting; moreover, the Song Chaoting's military strength wouldn't last until he destroyed Jin Chao. Didn't he recall that just one month before the Kaixi northern expedition began, Wu Xi, the Deputy Inspector of Sichuan, colluded with Jin Chao, plotted rebellion and secession, and dispatched guests to the Jin army to secretly agree to surrender the four prefectures beyond the pass—Jie, Cheng, He, and Feng—in exchange for being named King of Shu?

Then the Song was driven back step by step by Jin Chao; Han Tuozhou sought peace, but Jin Chao refused unless they handed over Han Tuozhou's head; Han Tuozhou, furious, funded the war himself—yet as expected, the surrender faction in court caused trouble again.

Under the orders of Shi Miyuan and others, Xia Zhen, Commander of the Central Army and Acting Director of the Palace Guards, launched a surprise attack on Han Tuozhou as he entered court, assassinating him in a hidden corridor of the Yujin Garden. Only afterward did they report it to Emperor Ningzong. With Han Tuozhou's assassination, military and political power fell entirely into the hands of Empress Yang and Shi Miyuan.

Soon after, they executed Su Shidan. The surrender faction fully complied with Jin Chao's unreasonable demands: they severed the heads of Han Tuozhou and Su Shidan, sent the envoy Wang Nan to deliver them to Jin Chao, and accepted all of Jin Chao's terms: increasing the annual tribute to three hundred thousand, paying three million taels in war indemnity, and withdrawing Jin troops from occupied territories. The Song Chaoting once again bowed its knee to Jin Chao, completing the "peace agreement."

So, Han Chengxiang, we, the revolutionary army, will forever remember your generous donation of supplies and craftsmen; after we destroy Jin Chao, we will destroy the Song Chaoting and execute every surrender traitor to avenge you.