Chapter 116: The Jin Prefecture Massacre: Mother and Son Perish Together

As he spoke, Centurion Li's voice had already turned harsh, his face full of disappointment, and he rose to leave.

This sudden change startled both Zhou Sizhao and Min Lian—if this man truly were a spy sent by the Tartars, he would never have revealed such genuine emotion.

"Centurion Li, please stay!" Zhou Sizhao hurried forward to block his path, slapping his own head in regret:

"Centurion Liu's family has lain dormant in Liaodong for generations; I know little of the Eastern Depot's affairs—my apologies, my apologies! When the Son of Heaven suddenly proved himself so wise, my lingering doubts were truly unavoidable; I hope Centurion Liu can understand!"

"General, say no more." Centurion Li turned back, and quickly reached out to stop the two men who were about to kneel in apology, speaking earnestly:

"The two generals must not bow to me. Once we return to the Ming, we shall all serve the same wise Son of Heaven, all of us ministers of the Great Ming—why draw lines between us, or rank one above another?"

Having said this, Centurion Li spoke with hatred: "That Dorgon, having first heard of Abatai's beheading, and now of the upheaval in Jin and Fu Prefectures, must be furious. I hear he is even now leading the Jianzhou barbarians' main army out of the pass to exact vengeance. Since he has not yet arrived, how could we let this chance to spare the two generals slip away?"

"General Liu is closer to Fu Prefecture and has his own messengers to reach him—General Zhou need not worry. While there is still time to prepare, the two generals should quickly lead everyone across the sea to Pidao. Regional Commander Huang Fei is already there arranging defenses, ready to receive your return to the Ming."

After rising, Zhou Sizhao pulled Centurion Li back down to sit. Hearing the earlier words, he first breathed a sigh of relief for Liu Chengren, but then shook his head with a sigh:

"Centurion Li does not know—though Jin Prefecture is back in our hands, many Jianzhou barbarians still live within the city, and righteous men in every quarter have answered the call. If I simply leave like this, they will surely suffer the barbarians' vengeance!"

Centurion Li's eyes went wide, and he spoke with the frustration of a man watching iron fail to become steel:

"What point have things reached now? How can you two be so irresolute? Since when has the world offered a path with both options intact? That Daišan has already sent the old villain Hong with troops to surround and intercept you—he will arrive any day now. When he does, you won't be able to flee, and you can't win a fight—you'll just be scooped up in one pot by those dog barbarians!"

Zhou Sizhao and Min Lian understood this reasoning well enough, yet every time Zhou Sizhao thought of the common folk who had suffered under the Jianzhou barbarians, and the hopeful looks in their eyes as they gazed at him, he could not bring himself to leave—he wished instead he could fight the barbarians to the death.

Moreover, Zhou Sizhao had always prided himself on loyalty and righteousness. Having been forced by circumstance to surrender to the Jianzhou barbarians all these years, though the wise Son of Heaven had chosen not to pursue the matter and even planned to give him new responsibilities, in his heart he still felt he had failed the Great Ming.

"Centurion Li, say no more!" Suddenly, Zhou Sizhao's expression turned resolute. With a 'bang', he slammed his fist onto the table, steeling his resolve:

"The people trust me, Zhou Sizhao—how could I bear to abandon them and leave? Even if the barbarians come, I will strike out with my fist and knock out two of their front teeth, so as not to have lived in vain as a Han man!"

Having said this, Zhou Sizhao raised a hand to cut off the protests of Centurion Li and Min Lian, turned his back, and spoke:

"Vice Regional Commander Min, take your men and leave with Centurion Li at once. Tell my old mother that since ancient times, filial piety and loyalty have rarely both been fulfilled—her son has been unfilial, unable to fully honor his duty to her... If there is a next life, I, Zhou Sizhao, will still be a minister of the Great Ming, and will still be a Han man!"

Since Zhou Sizhao's decision was made, Centurion Li, as an outsider, found it hard to say more. He could only be deeply moved by Zhou Sizhao's spirit of self-sacrifice for others. As time was pressing, he set off directly for the docks to arrange the ships.

Min Lian pleaded bitterly to no avail, and in the end could only gather the officers to discuss matters and plan their return to the Ming.

The men had all been completely in the dark about what lay ahead, but after hearing Min Lian's account, they were all wildly excited, each leading their subordinates and soldiers, dragging along their families, preparing to head for the harbor and put out to sea.

Zhou Sizhao remained alone in his room for two days. Just before the others departed, he suddenly issued one final order to Min Lian and his former subordinates—"Kill every Bannerman in the city."

Min Lian understood Zhou Sizhao's intent. Many had suffered oppression under the Jianzhou barbarians in Liaodong, and he himself gnashed his teeth with hatred for them. Releasing that pent-up fury before leaving was, in fact, a good thing.

Upon hearing these words, Min Lian did not hesitate in the slightest. He personally took up his blade and cut down a comely Bannerman woman who knelt on the ground begging for mercy—and with that, the prelude to the Jin Prefecture Massacre began.

This so-called 'Jin Prefecture Massacre' did not last long, but its impact spread far and wide.

The hatred the Han soldiers had suppressed for years was unleashed in full in that brief span of two sticks of incense. Everyone went door to door searching for Bannermen, and whoever was found—old or young, male or female—was killed without exception.

After roughly the time of two sticks of incense, Jin Prefecture City had in truth become a veritable ghost town. Nearly all the Han civilians had fled south with the troops; the streets and alleys stood empty, strewn everywhere with the pitiful corpses of slain Bannermen.

Min Lian had followed Zhou Sizhao for many years, and had also served Mao Wenlong for many years before that. He carried some prestige among the Han troops of the time, and thanks to him, the soldiers' withdrawal southward to the sea proceeded without incident.

They had expected Zhou's mother to resist, but unexpectedly, upon hearing the news, she remained very calm and obediently followed Min Lian's forces in retreat to the docks.

Yet things could not go entirely smoothly after all—and on the very day they were preparing to board the ships and put to sea, trouble arose.

A personal guard came rushing in panic to report that Zhou's mother had gone missing. Min Lian and Centurion Li were deeply shocked, and personally led the soldiers in searching nearly the entire dock area—but in the end, they found not a trace of her.

Zhou Sizhao stood atop the city wall, gazing toward the direction of the docks, smelling the thick stench of blood in the air, and murmured softly to himself:

"By now, Min Lian and the others should be out to sea."

In truth, when Zhou Sizhao gave that order, beyond letting the soldiers vent their rage, he had also meant to force everyone into an irrevocable break with the barbarians.

To be honest, Zhou Sizhao trusted his old subordinates who had followed him for years, but he was less confident in the local Han troops. This way, everyone would be thoroughly set against the Jianzhou barbarians.

When Dorgon saw this scene, he would never let anyone who took part in this massacre go.

Zhou Sizhao's heart was in turmoil—he had not even gone to see his own mother one last time. Guilt weighed on him, and staying atop the walls of Jin Prefecture now, quietly awaiting death, was for him, in a way, a kind of release.

"My son!"

Suddenly, Zhou Sizhao heard a familiar voice from behind him. He whirled around and saw his aged mother, with great difficulty, crawling toward him through the corpses.

"Mother, why have you come!?"

Zhou Sizhao hastily set his blade upright against the city wall, ran down to help his mother up, and seeing her body covered in blood, fell to his knees weeping:

"Mother, why didn't you leave? Why didn't you go back to Pidao with Lianzi? What are you doing here?"

Zhou's mother reached out with a trembling hand to wipe the tears from Zhou Sizhao's face, and said:

"My son, that you could return to the Ming fills your mother's heart with joy. Your father, who has passed on, would smile in the Nine Springs below if he heard of this."

Seeing Zhou Sizhao burst into bitter tears, Zhou's mother's heart ached for him. She hurriedly bent down and gathered him into her arms.

In that instant, Zhou's mother seemed to return to her youth, as if holding her newborn son once more. She gazed quietly at the barbarian banners rising on the horizon, and a faint smile appeared on her face.

"My son, do not weep. Your mother will soon be reunited with your father beneath the Nine Springs—this is a blessing. That you could return to the Ming fills both your mother and your departed father with pride. In this way, our Zhou family has fulfilled its loyalty to the Great Ming."

"Your mother has experienced everything in this life. If there is any regret left, it is that I could not live to see the day the Imperial Army sweeps away the Jianzhou barbarians."

"But your mother believes that day will surely come."