Chapter 137: 135 — Grand Filial Piety in Uproarious Laughter

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Before him, six captives knelt, bound tightly with ropes.

Zhao Han ignored the village braves entirely and looked toward that gentry scholar, sneering coldly: "Impressive — staging a night raid in silk clothes."

"Great King, spare my life! Great King, spare my life!" Zhong Xingpu was so terrified he kowtowed frantically.

Historically, this fellow became a jinshi in the sixteenth year of Chongzhen, surrendered first to Li Zicheng in the seventeenth year, then to the Manchu Qing, and eventually became Governor of Shandong under the Qing.

He did not seem to have very strong backbone.

Zhao Han spoke as if to himself, yet also as if addressing Zhong Xingpu: "What use is it, killing peasants? Even if you wanted a night raid, you should have killed the soldiers I sent."

Without any torture, without even an interrogation, Zhong Xingpu began confessing on his own: "The Great King's righteous army has strict discipline — one look and we knew they were not to be trifled with. And they had posted sentries everywhere. We feared the night raid would fail and we'd be surrounded instead..."

"So you attacked the villages along the river, killed a few peasants, and ran?" Zhao Han was already furious to the extreme.

Zhong Xingpu said: "It was Hu Zhengsong's idea. He said if we kill enough peasant households, make the peasants afraid, the survivors won't dare take the land."

Zhao Han asked: "Who is Hu Zhengsong?"

Zhong Xingpu betrayed his comrade without the slightest psychological burden: "Hu Zhengsong's home is in Baishui Village, Luling County. His family also had their land redistributed. He even wanted to lead troops on a night raid against the villages and towns of Luling County, but the distance was too great and the others were afraid they wouldn't make it back, so they just crossed the river and killed a few at random."

"Does Hu Zhengsong still have family in Luling County?" Zhao Han asked.

"Yes," Zhong Xingpu answered. "His father, his mother, his two nephews — all stayed behind in Luling County and didn't flee. Each was left twenty mu of land."

"So this is a landlord who voluntarily surrendered his land," Zhao Han said to those beside him. "Send orders at once: go to Baishui Village. All males of the Hu family aged twelve and above are to be sent to the mountains to burn lime. The womenfolk will undergo labor reform in town. The children will be raised to adulthood by the relief homes!"

Zhong Xingpu grew even more terrified as he listened, trembling all over, and kowtowed madly again: "Great King, spare my life! Great King, spare my life!"

Zhao Han asked: "How many troops are in Jishui county seat?"

Zhong Xingpu said: "Over a thousand village braves — all household slaves and sons of respectable families."

"How long have they drilled?" Zhao Han asked again.

"These thousand-odd village braves were recruited in batches," Zhong Xingpu answered. "Some have drilled for two months, some only a few days."

Zhao Han asked further: "Who is their leader?"

Zhong Xingpu said: "Zhou Ruixu. Last year he was a Director in the Bureau of Appointments of the Ministry of Personnel. This spring he returned home for mourning and is observing the funeral rites."

"What relation is Zhou Mengyang to him?" Zhao Han asked.

Zhong Xingpu answered: "His grand-uncle on the clan side. He died of illness last year."

Li Banghua had recommended several worthy talents to Zhao Han, and Zhou Mengyang was among them. The man was a water conservancy expert. Seeing that waterworks across the realm were in utter ruin, he had specially compiled the "Water Ministry Reference," which became essential reading for Ming water conservancy officials.

A pity — Zhou Mengyang had died of illness, and his grand-nephew was now leading the resistance against Zhao Han.

Zhao Han waved his hand: "Take these men back to Jishui for a public trial."

"Great King, spare my life! Great King, spare my life!" Zhong Xingpu was dragged out, scared out of his wits, tears and snot bursting forth.

Zhao Han smiled: "Leave this one here."

Zhong Xingpu collapsed limp on the ground, his crotch already wet, like a dog, lying there staring up at Zhao Han.

Zhao Han smelled the stench of urine, frowned, and said: "Take him outside and guard him well!"

Only his own people remained in the room.

Huang Yao knelt and said: "Regional Commander, I failed in my duty. I request punishment."

Zhao Han asked: "Where did you fail in your duty?"

Huang Yao answered: "I should have sent more men to stand watch along the riverbank."

"This is not your fault," Zhao Han shook his head. "The whole of Jishui has a long river shoreline — with your few men, how could you possibly cover it all? Go back and tell Chen Maosheng and Xiao Huan to form the Jishui peasant association as quickly as possible. Mobilize the local peasants of Jishui. Have every household send someone to keep watch along the riverbank. Day or night, even children can stand sentry by the river. We must rely on the common people — the common people are the foundation."

"This subordinate will remember," Huang Yao said.

Zhao Han frowned: "Stand up. Don't kneel at every turn. If you've made a mistake, you've made a mistake — what are you kneeling for? Right, leave five hundred men in Jishui. The rest will all follow me to attack the city."

"Attack the city?" Huang Yao asked, puzzled.

Zhao Han suddenly rose: "They slaughtered several hundred peasants — do you think this matter can just be let go?"

Two days later, Zhao Han personally led over two thousand troops, crossing by boat to the opposite shore outside Jishui county seat. The naval forces from Ancient Sword Mountain had also completely blockaded the docks.

County Magistrate Feng Zhang was terrified out of his wits, so frightened he nearly surrendered outright.

But this fellow could not make the decisions. Those now in charge of affairs were the gentry who had brought the village braves.

Just as Zhao Han came ashore, a great crowd of commoners surged toward him.

"Mr. Zhao, you must see justice done for us!" Countless commoners knelt before Zhao Han, and more and more kept gathering to kneel.

Zhao Han turned his head and asked Zhong Xingpu: "What is this about?"

Zhong Xingpu answered, bent at the waist: "Several dozen gentry families fled with their entire households to Jishui county seat, bringing their money, grain, and valuables. Outside the city wasn't safe — they had to stay inside the walls. There certainly weren't enough houses in the city..."

If there weren't enough houses in the city, then just drive the ordinary commoners out and borrow their houses for a few months!

These before him were all ordinary residents of the city, living perfectly fine lives until suddenly they were homeless.

Zhao Han said to Huang Yao: "For dwellings farther from the city, go door to door and knock. Have the refugees share houses with them. Pay full rent — we will pay the rent. Arrest anyone who makes trouble."

Huang Yao immediately led troops into action. In truth, the ones actually doing the work were the propaganda officers accompanying the army.

Atop the city gate tower, the gentry and village braves were observing the enemy situation.

Zhou Ruixu asked, puzzled: "What are the bandits doing?"

Li Chun'an watched for a while, then sighed: "Settling the common people."

All fell silent. Those who still had a shred of conscience felt their faces burn with shame.

The very commoners these rebels were settling were the ones they themselves had driven out of the city. But they had no choice — several dozen gentry, all great landlords, their family members alone were a huge crowd, plus countless stores of money, grain, and goods.

If they didn't drive the commoners out, where were they supposed to live?

Many gentry even felt wronged. They had always lived in grand mansions, and now they could only stay in ordinary commoners' houses. And to store the grain they'd brought, many rooms were packed full — two or three people had to share a room. What miserable, wretched days.

Zhou Ruibao, at this moment, was dazed and bewildered. He truly had been a good official — he had even lost his official post trying to relieve the disaster victims of Sichuan.

The night raid slaughtering tenant farmers had not been his idea. Swept up by the crowd's fury, Zhou Ruibao could only go along. But once he had actually killed and seen blood, he lost all reason and personally killed quite a few peasants.

After the killing and returning to the city, Zhou Ruibao grew calm again, but for many nights in a row he could not sleep in peace.

His inner torment wasted him to haggardness, his whole frame thinning by a circle. Now that the bandits were actually settling the common people, Zhou Ruibao's entire worldview shattered in an instant; he had no idea what had become of this world.

Hu Zhengsong's face was savage as he gripped his sword hilt and said, "Brother Zhou, the bandits have dared to split their forces and scatter into the streets and alleys. Why not seize the chance to sally out and strike them?"

Zhou Ruixu shook his head. "Holding the city is paramount. We have ample money and grain, enough to hold out until the Governor brings troops to our rescue."

Outside the city there was some disorder, but the soldiers quickly suppressed it.

With propaganda officers persuading them and full rent paid, the residents outside the city were willing to vacate rooms and let the refugees from within the city lodge with them.

Everything actually became orderly. Many of those refugees who now had a roof over their heads voluntarily gave their allegiance to Zhao Han, taking up crude weapons and planning to help assault the city. They wanted nothing else but to fight their way inside, reclaim their own houses, and slaughter those bastards and sons of bitches!

Seeing the common folk join the army of their own accord, Zhou Ruibao sank utterly into despair. He no longer understood what on earth he had been doing all these days.

In a daze he returned home — a modest little courtyard house that Zhou Ruibao had now commandeered.

The rooms in the eastern wing were all piled with money, grain, and valuables, the accumulated savings of the Zhou family over generations. A few trusted household slaves, who had not gone out to defend the walls, were all here guarding the house and watching the compound.

"Bao'er, are the bandits truly going to attack the city?" Supported by a maidservant, Zhou's mother came into the courtyard, her face full of terror.

Zhou Ruibao consoled her: "Mother, do not panic. The bandits cannot fight their way in."

After speaking for a while, Zhou Ruibao returned to his bedchamber. He dismissed the maidservants and pageboys and sat alone in a daze.

Zhou Ruibao murmured to himself: "Confucius said, 'Achieve benevolence'; Mencius said, 'Choose righteousness.' Only when righteousness is fulfilled is benevolence attained. Reading the books of the sages, what does one learn? Henceforth, perhaps I may be without shame."

This was Wen Tianxiang's "Death Verse."

Zhou Ruibao gave a bitter, mournful laugh. "Perhaps without shame? Perhaps without shame?"

Zhou Ruibao felt that the rioting people were wrong — they should not seize the landlords' fields. At the same time, he also felt the gentry were wrong — they should not have commandeered the residents' houses. He regretted even more the night raid that massacred the peasants, and that he himself had killed with reddened eyes. Ever since, not a single moment had passed without torment.

Everything was wrong — but where was what was right?

Zhou Ruibao abruptly ground ink and lifted his brush, writing a final letter, mainly exhorting his own younger brother to look after the family.

Then he undid his sash and hanged himself from a beam.

Ever since his worldview had collapsed, Zhou Ruibao's heart had long been dead; what had lived on before was merely a walking corpse.

The next day, outside the city.

Zhao Han used semi-coercive measures to persuade the residents closest to the city wall to leave. After compensating them with money and grain, he had the residents move away and then demolished the houses.

Seeing the rebels tearing down houses, clearly preparing to assault the city, the gentry and village braves on the wall grew even more terrified.

Yet they still dared not sally out to attack, only dropping rolling stones and logs to delay the rebels' demolition work.

The gentry quarreled in a tangle: some said to hold fast, some said to launch a night raid, some said to charge straight out and fight. They had too many leaders, and no one could command the scene. They even wrangled endlessly over which section of wall each should defend — Zhao Han had surrounded three sides and left one open, and everyone wanted to defend that open stretch of wall.

Night.

Li Musheng pleaded bitterly: "Elder Cousin, this county seat cannot be held. Once the rebels finish tearing down the houses below the wall, they will build siege engines. Governor Li's relief troops will likely not come until next year — what use are our village braves? Open the gates and surrender the city. Our granduncle is a high official among the rebels, and these rebels look like they can accomplish something. Let us all join the rebels; from now on, glory and wealth will surely be ours."

"Your father is a Secretary in the Bureau of Appointments of the Ministry of Personnel," Li Chun'an said with a cold sneer. "With such an important post, you dare join the rebels?"

Li Musheng lowered his voice. "The lives of our entire clan are at stake here. We can only… can only let Father down." Suddenly Li Musheng grew agitated. "I sent a household slave to the capital last year, and also wrote to the Censor serving as Regional Inspector of Jiangxi, but the court never took the rebel Zhao seriously at all. If the court had paid attention early on, how could the rebel Zhao have grown so powerful?"

Li Chun'an mocked: "You don't want your father — I still want mine. My father is a Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review!"

Li Musheng mocked back: "In your eyes there is only Father — have you no thought for Mother or Grandmother? Once the rebels break through the city, our whole household will surely die, our entire clan wiped out! Can these village braves hold the city? Before the rebel soldiers have even attacked, every one of them is half-dead with fright. Besides, that night when we raided the villages, our boat drifted off and was carried downstream by the river — we didn't kill a single peasant. Our hands are clean of blood, we have the great merit of surrendering the city, and our granduncle is a high rebel official. We will certainly be put to important use by the rebel Zhao in the future!"

"Let me think it over." Li Chun'an was also torn — should he choose his own father, or his mother and grandmother? And, of course, his own life.

"What is there left to think about?" Li Musheng said urgently. "If we delay any longer, the rebels will attack the city, and then our whole clan will be wiped out!"

Li Chun'an was argued into a headache. After hesitating a long while, he stamped his foot. "Fine, fine!"

For the sake of the clan — Father, you can go die.

(End of chapter)