Chapter 95: Urging Surrender

On the mass grave mound, several dozen men in gray cloth robes were gathered there, nervously gazing toward the town. Only a few of them had weapons in their hands; the rest did not even have a stick.

Their ages ranged from old to young — the eldest had hair already white, while the youngest looked as though his hair had not even fully grown in.

These men, including those holding weapons, were all uneasy at this moment. Their eyes, fixed on the direction of the town, did not dare move in the slightest, as if the least careless movement would cost them their lives.

On the tallest grave stood a thin, small man with a very long, pointed chin. Like the men below, his heart was also gripped by the slaughter in the town.

Only after he saw his own troops charge into the town did he finally let out a breath of relief, then excitedly jumped down from the grave mound and ran, gesticulating wildly, to the back of a burial mound.

Behind the burial mound, a burly man sat cross-legged, a roast chicken in his left hand and his right hand resting on a large blade. When the pointed-chin man arrived, the burly man was gnawing contentedly on a chicken leg, his appetite not in the least affected by the battle unfolding in the town.

"Boss Chen, the soldiers have charged in. Looks like there's no need for us to go up."

Because there was no need for his own side to fight and risk their lives, the pointed-chin man was quite happy. He sidled up beside the burly man and spoke, but his two eyes were fixed intently on the half roast chicken in the burly man's hand, his throat swallowing involuntarily again and again.

"You glutton!"

The burly man casually tossed the half-eaten roast chicken to the pointed-chin man. Amid the pointed-chin man's cheers, he suddenly swung a hand and slapped him, cursing: "They're soldiers — what the hell are you!

You're not even a goddamn thing! If you don't learn to remember, watch out or I'll tear your mouth off!"

"Yes, yes, this lowly one is not a thing, this lowly one is not a thing. This lowly one will remember. I won't dare speak carelessly next time. Boss, calm down, calm down..."

The pointed-chin man chuckled. Though his face stung fiercely, his smile did not change. While biting the half roast chicken in his mouth, he opened the wine flask beside the burly man and obsequiously leaned forward, flattering him: "Boss, come, have a drink to settle your stomach."

One does not strike a smiling face. The burly man glared at the pointed-chin man in exasperation, took the wine flask, and gulped down several mouthfuls with a "glug glug."

Then he stood, stretched lazily, and without avoiding anyone, loosened his trouser belt and urinated against the burial mound, swaying his head from side to side as he did so, his face full of contentment.

The pointed-chin man watched from the side and actually wore a stunned, dumbfounded expression. Though he said nothing, the burly man was greatly gratified by the sight.

Clearly, the burly man was also quite satisfied with his own equipment — even calling it "a fine specimen of a man" would not be overstating it.

Once he finished pissing, the burly man gave a nervous twitch, hastily tied his trouser belt, and clapped the pointed-chin man's shoulder with the same hand that had just handled his big bird, asking with a grin: "The Battalion Commander and the rest broke in?"

"They broke in. This lowly one watched carefully. The Qing dogs couldn't hold them off at all. Xinxing Town is ours!"

"Damn, how is the Green Standard this useless."

Hearing the pointed-chin man's confirmation, the burly man was not especially pleased, but rather somewhat disappointed. A few seconds later, he waved at his subordinates, whose hearts had finally settled, and barked: "Stop gawking.

The Battalion Commander has broken in, so your worthless hides are saved."

"The Battalion Commander is mighty! The Taiping Camp is mighty! Boss Chen is mighty!"

As if they had rehearsed it beforehand, the whole crowd of men, old and young, actually cried out the same words in unison. Had an outsider seen this, he would surely have been startled, for these men's reaction was truly well coordinated.

The burly man was very satisfied with his subordinates' response, and felt no embarrassment at the line "Boss Chen is mighty." After a deliberately dignified snort, he waved at the crowd: "Move out. Follow me into town to have a look!"

The crowd again answered in unison: "Yes, Boss Chen!"

After walking a few steps, the burly man suddenly turned back and swept his gaze over his subordinates, then glared at them fiercely and said: "All of you goddamn well remember — once we're inside, keep your hands and feet quick.

Don't get yourselves caught, and don't let anyone cry out. Take what's valuable, and leave behind what's hard to hide.

If any of you is clumsy and gets caught, dragging me into it, don't blame me for turning ruthless and giving him a white blade in and a red blade out! Do you all hear me clearly?!"

"Understood!"

Cowed by the burly man's long-standing authority, the men nodded and muttered their assent, none daring to show the slightest trace of dissatisfaction on his face.

The burly man swept his gaze once more over this band of subordinates he had drilled, then raised his hand and waved: "Move out!"

"Han do not kill Han! Brothers of the Green Standard, you have no road left to flee. My Battalion Commander has said that as long as you lay down your weapons and surrender, our Taiping Army absolutely guarantees your safety!"

"The time of one incense stick is almost up. If you do not come out and surrender, do not blame us for setting fire to the houses!"

The largest house in Xinxing Town was the mansion of Li Meng, a retired Ming official. After the Qing army occupied Guangdong, Li Meng was killed along with his entire family for refusing to shave his head and submit to the Qing, and his house was likewise seized by the Qing army.

After Zhao Shiyu moved his garrison from Zhaoqing to Xinxing, he took the Li house as the residence for himself, the Company Commander.

Because Li Meng had served in the Ministry of Works in Nanjing before his death, after retiring he had rebuilt his hometown house in the style of a Jiangnan garden, with hills and water, bamboo and flowers within the courtyard — extremely quiet and secluded.

After Zhao Shiyu usurped the magpie's nest, he spent nearly every day inside the courtyard indulging in wanton pleasure with two women he had seized in Guangzhou, and hardly ever left the residence.

All orders of the Green Standard were issued by him from within the mansion, and the soldiers under his command rarely ever saw the Company Commander emerge to make an inspection.

Now, however, Zhao Shiyu could not leave the mansion even if he wanted to. His hesitation and indecision had cost him the best chance to flee.

By the time he realized he had no choice but to go, the Taiping Army had already dealt with the Green Standard soldiers resisting outside, and, guided by captives, had directly surrounded the Li mansion.

The courtyard walls of the Li mansion had been built quite high, and there were as many as a hundred Green Standard soldiers who had retreated into the mansion. Moreover, Zhao Shiyu had a dozen or so armored soldiers under his command.

Relying on the cover of the courtyard walls, they put up stubborn resistance. A cornered dog will leap a wall, and a desperate rabbit will bite — the remnants of the Green Standard fought like trapped beasts, and for a time the Taiping Army could not break in.

Thus the scene of surrender negotiations came about.

While the surrender was being urged, Zhou Shixiang ordered Ge Yi, Jiang He, Shao Jiugong, and the other platoon commanders to lead their units in searching the whole town, and ordered Tie Yi's unit to seal off the roads in and out of Xinxing, ensuring that not a single Green Standard soldier slipped through the net.

Searching for Green Standard stragglers inevitably required entering houses to search. As a result, Xinxing Town was instantly thrown into turmoil, with chickens and dogs unable to rest.

The common people were already panicked, and the Taiping Army's breaking down of doors terrified them even more.

In the course of this, some commoners, not knowing what sort of troops the Taiping Army actually was or whether they would harm their families, took up farm tools, iron implements, even kitchen knives to resist the Taiping Army.

The result was that more than a dozen innocent ghosts were added to the town.

The surrender appeal had no effect whatsoever. After the appointed time arrived, the Green Standard soldiers inside the Li mansion still showed no intention of surrendering.

In his fury, Zhou Shixiang ordered the mansion set ablaze, and at the same time summoned a squad of engineers, ordering them to stand before the main gate of the Li mansion holding thunderclap bombs, ready to hurl them and blow the Green Standard soldiers to death the moment they charged out.