Volume 2 Chapter 22 Heavy Laws
On April 18, there was a civil strife in Xiangyang. Two generals under Fan Qiong's command, Han Li, commander of the left army, disappeared after ordering the entire army to surrender, while Wang Jun, commander of the right army, contacted Fan Qiong's direct guards to revolt, tied up Fan Qiong directly, and surrendered the city of Xiangyang.
That evening, Huyan Tong took the lead in leading his troops across the river in the rain, marched quickly into the city and controlled the city gate.
At this time, Liu Yan, the emperor's favorite general who had a troubled career, was brought to the west of the city 20 miles away along with General Xiao Xin because of the rising water level of the Han River. As if by some strange coincidence, he missed out on another great achievement.
Of course, these are irrelevant to the overall situation. Early the next morning, Emperor Zhao led the main force of the imperial camp to cross the river, and at noon, he gathered with Generals Liu Yan and Xin Yongzong to arrive at the city of Xiangyang. However, he let Generals Wang De and Fu Qing enter the city first to assist Huyan Tong in completely controlling the city defense.
By this point, Fan Qiong's rebellion was quelled in just sixteen days, which was extremely fast.
However, since the emperor has come in person, he will inevitably have to do some finishing work himself.
"Lin Qing had his trusted family deliver the letter early in the morning. I read it on the way and got a rough idea of what was happening in the city...Are these Fan Qiong's family members?"
At noon, Emperor Zhao arrived at Xiangyang City, but did not stay in the city. Instead, he rode through the city on horseback and found his trusted minister, Scholar Xiaolin, in front of a large pit on a higher ground in the south of the city. However, when he arrived here, he saw that the pit was full of corpses, especially the corpses of several young women, and he couldn't help but frown.
"I am ashamed..." When Scholar Xiaolin saw the emperor coming, he came back to his senses and bowed. "I really didn't expect Fan Qiong to be so perverse, first skinning people alive and then hacking to death his wives, concubines and daughters."
Zhao Jiu did not answer, but was attracted by the corpse closest to the horse's hoof... With the help of the sunlight that appeared and disappeared at noon, Zhao Guanjia saw clearly that the corpse was dressed like a rich girl of sixteen or seventeen years old. There were three or four wounds on the body, and they were all huge. Half of the body was stained with blood, and the other half looked dry and pale due to excessive blood loss. In addition, the goose yellow clothes on the other party were stained with dark brown mud and water underneath, which was really eye-catching.
"This is Fan Qiong's daughter..." Scholar Kobayashi became increasingly uneasy.
"He would kill the women in his own family at any time, killing both good and bad people, without caring that it was his own fault." Emperor Zhao looked at the corpse expressionlessly, but he couldn't help but sigh. "I finally met a man who is responsible and cares about his family, but he is a traitor... I heard that Fan Qiong is not dead?"
"Yes." Scholar Kobayashi, who was originally a little flustered, suddenly calmed down.
"It's understandable. Death is the only difficulty in the history. This is just like killing one's wife and daughter. It is a common thing for a man in history books. I see that the generals and Liu Canjun are not surprised. I think they have been used to such incidents in the past two years." Emperor Zhao looked at the huge pit in front of him thoughtfully. "What does Mr. Lin mean? I see that you seem to have something to say that you didn't say in yesterday's letter?"
"Yes." Scholar Xiao Lin bowed. "I still want to apologize in person. In fact, I should have dealt with Fan Qiong yesterday to avoid embarrassing the emperor. But Wang Jun was greedy and thought he could make a profit. I couldn't order him. I am really ashamed."
Zhao Jiu held the reins with both hands, looking a little puzzled: "Let's not talk about Wang Jun, why do you think that not being able to deal with Fan Qiong will make it difficult for me?"
"Since the Jingkang Incident, Fan Qiong has repeatedly committed evil deeds and deserves death. The emperor has always hated evil, but as an emperor, the correct way is to enforce the law and punish him..." Scholar Xiaolin said in an awkward voice. The people behind the emperor, such as Wang Yuan, Liu Yan, Hu Yantong, etc., also hurriedly reined in their horses. "I should have shared the emperor's worries and prevented him from bearing a bad reputation, but I am really incompetent."
"You're thinking too much." Emperor Zhao sighed and looked up at the bright sun above his head. "Who are you? You have a lot of Jinshi in your family, and you are a so-called poet. You have been born in a wealthy and prosperous family. Your behavior has surpassed countless people. As for me... Fan Qiong was the first to do such an unforgivable thing. Why should others blame me for being more ruthless? Besides, I am not a wise and brave king, nor do I want to be Renzong... Did you know that Liu Yu built temples for Chen Dong and Ouyang Che in Jinan? What reputation do I have?"
“…”
"But, is there really nothing you can say to fool people?" Zhao Jiufu lowered his head and asked with a smile.
"Yes." Scholar Xiao Lin had been looking down at the corpse at his feet. He was silent for a moment, then he looked up and answered with a firm voice. "The Book of Zhou says: 'To punish a chaotic country, use severe punishments.' Zheng Xuan, who was born in a chaotic era at the end of the Han Dynasty, commented: 'To use severe punishments, is to eliminate evil.' Just as the government said, since Fan Qiong did all kinds of evil things, it is no wonder that the government eliminated him!"
"In troubled times, severe punishments must be used... I thought it was a saying of Wei Wu, but I didn't expect it to be a Confucian classic?" Zhao Jiu suddenly remembered a low-end game that liked to sort data, and then thought of the operations in some high-end film and television dramas, but he couldn't nod. "Since the scriptures have said so, I won't be hypocritical... Don't bury these people first, get a coffin, and then bring Fan Qiong. Then, among the generals in the city, let Hu Yantong stay behind, and the rest come to watch the execution."
"Together?" Scholar Kobayashi was slightly stunned.
"Yes, all the soldiers in the imperial camp, from Wang De onwards, and all the surrendered soldiers, from Wang Jun onwards, are here to watch the execution."
Scholar Kobayashi heard it clearly and no longer hesitated. Instead, he bowed and took his leave, and went to pass on the orders and make the arrangements himself. Emperor Zhao sat quietly on his horse, not moving at all.
As for Liu Ziyu, Liu Yan, Wang Yuan and others who followed around, they had originally avoided the emperor because he was talking to Scholar Kobayashi. When they heard the order and knew that severe punishment was going to be used, they should have made some suggestions... But for some reason, when they saw the emperor standing alone among the pile of corpses without saying a word, they looked at each other and did not dare to step forward.
He waited for a while, perhaps because coffins were in short supply, or perhaps because the officers from various departments were slow to gather, it was a full half hour before Scholar Kobayashi returned.
However, since it was the emperor's oral order, how could the officers of various departments, especially the surrendered soldiers, dare to neglect it? So starting from Wang Jun, they all abandoned their weapons and lined up around the earth pit.
"The sun is setting," Zhao Jiu saw the coffin and Fan Qiong, who had already collapsed into a pile of mud, being carried in. He did not say anything extra, nor did he say anything about summoning, questioning, or giving a speech to the officers. He just gave the order directly. "Deal with this man quickly!"
"May I ask what kind of punishment the emperor is going to use?" At this point, Xiaolin scholar had no scruples and asked through gritted teeth. "The so-called heavy punishment is to use armor and weapons, which is what the emperor intends to use this time... The next best is to use an axe, and the medium punishment is a knife and a saw, and the next is a drill... Which one does the emperor intend to use?"
"These are inhumane and too bloody." Zhao Jiu shook his head repeatedly, as if he was not the one who said "not hypocritical" to the scholar half an hour ago. "As the Holy Son of Heaven, how can I use these? Not only that, Li Xianggong asked me to talk to him that day, saying that he would not kill him. If so, I must fulfill my promise, otherwise I will not be able to explain to Li Xianggong."
Scholar Kobayashi fell silent, while Fan Qiong, who was lying on the ground not far away, actually moved a little, and there was a commotion among the surrounding officers.
"Put him in the coffin, nail him, and carry him to the bottom of the pit." Zhao Jiu ignored the noise around him and continued. "Then bury his wives, concubines, children, and other dead people together, and cover them with soil and compact them!"
Scholar Xiao Lin was startled, but after a moment he immediately turned around and looked at Liu Yan behind him. Liu Yan's scalp was already tingling, but as the highest-ranking general in the imperial guard, he had no choice but to turn around and give orders.
Liu Yan was not the only one who felt his scalp tingling. Following Emperor Zhao's order, several soldiers stuffed the tightly bound but intact Fan Qiong into the coffin. Fan Qiong, who just came to his senses after being put into the coffin, kept crying but could not stop the soldiers from nailing the coffin shut. The coffin, which had made such a great noise, was covered by layers of corpses at the bottom of the pit until it gradually became silent. The surrounding generals felt cold all over, but no one dared to leave.
Even Commander Xiao Xin was helpless and trembling as he hurriedly threw his saved bald head into the battle.
Emperor Zhao was standing nearby, watching the entire process of Fan Qiong being buried alive. He became bored and without saying anything, he turned around and prepared to go into the city to rest.
However, Emperor Zhao, who was surrounded by many imperial guards and important officials, was about to ride in front of a general with his mouth wide open and gaps of teeth showing. He suddenly stopped his horse and asked in a friendly manner: "Are you Wang Jun?"
"Yes... I pay my respects to the emperor! Long live the emperor!" Wang Jun was obviously a little dazed, but after he came to his senses, he fell to the ground and kowtowed regardless of the blood and mud stains on the ground.
"I know all about your actions this time." Emperor Zhao looked at the man and said with a smile. "You have made great contributions to the fall of Xiangyang City without a fight. Tell me, what reward do you want?"
Wang Jun certainly wanted to continue to be the commander, and even wanted to continue to be stationed in Xiangyang City, because he had been here for more than half a year and had already married a concubine and bought property here.
In fact, the man with the gap-mouthed face was almost about to blurt out these words.
However, as soon as Wang Jun raised his head, he saw the official standing on his horse with his back to the light. Looking at the other party's slightly vague, half-smiling expression, coupled with Fan Qiong's inhuman howl at the bottom of the pit, he was suddenly startled, and then forced himself to swallow the words he had prepared.
Not only that, as if possessed by some mysterious force, he once again bowed his head in the mud, and when he looked up again, his face was covered in mud and he couldn't stop crying. He choked up with sobs, "My Lord, please know that I am a guilty bastard. I am obviously a minister of yours, but I followed the traitor Fan Qiong in many unjust actions... This is a great disloyalty! Although Fan Qiong is a damn bastard, I was promoted by him after all. Although I did not hesitate to surrender the city this time because of my loyalty to you and my concern for the lives of the people in the city, it is still not loyal enough! How can a person like me have the face to ask for a reward?! If your Majesty doesn't kill me, I will be extremely grateful!"
Zhao Jiu listened carefully to the man's leaky accent, without interrupting him the whole time. After he finished speaking, he looked down at him with a smile and said, "A meritorious official is a meritorious official. If you don't reward him for his merits and punish him for his mistakes, wouldn't that be dishonest and make the world laugh at you?"
The man with the gap-mouthed face on the ground just kowtowed and didn't dare to say anything more.
"It's like this. I heard from Scholar Lin that you have settled down in Xiangyang for a long time and don't want to leave. He also said that you are a man of integrity, a gentleman who knows loyalty and righteousness, and a rare moral gentleman... After seeing you today, it is indeed true." Emperor Zhao still spoke gently. "To be honest, Scholar Lin really respects you, and I really like you, so I want to deliberately promote you. What do you think?"
"I will obey the emperor!" What else could Wang Jun say? He could only kowtow again and quickly express his position.
"Mr. Lin." Zhao Jiu turned around and looked at Lin Jingmo beside him. "How about this? I have recently asked all military states to recommend talents for special use. I think Wang Jun is the most outstanding person in Xiangzhou. When I saw him today, I was particularly happy. So I wanted to make an exception and give him a background. I will change my official title to Wenzi so that he can be the magistrate of Xiangzhou. But I am afraid that there is no precedent and others will not accept it..."
"Congratulations, Judge Wang!" Wang Jun was still confused, but Scholar Xiaolin had already spoken behind the emperor at high speed. It can only be said that he is worthy of being a Yutang scholar, and his reaction is quick. "From now on, you are also a civil official in the same category as me. We must get close to each other."
At this point, Xiao Lin, a scholar, bowed to Emperor Zhao and said, "Your Majesty, do not worry about what others say. There are precedents of talented and virtuous people changing from military officials to civil officials... Da Su, a scholar, once strongly recommended He Qufei, a member of the Right Palace Guard, to become a civil official. This was praised as a good story. Although I am humble, I also want to emulate Da Su's elegance and recommend talents for the country!"
"Well said. There was Su Shi in the past and Lin Biao in the present. Scholars have broad minds and are naturally elegant." The official nodded repeatedly.
By the time Scholar Kobayashi turned around to talk to the emperor, Wang Jun had already realized the intentions between the monarch and his subject... Out of instinct as a military leader, he naturally wanted to refute, but at this moment he was at the mercy of others, and the tragic scene of Fan Qiong was still before his eyes, so how could he dare to say a word?
Moreover, in the Song Dynasty, where civil officials were valued and military officials were despised for hundreds of years, how could it not be considered a great favor to have Xiaolin make him a civil official, even though this meant that he would be deprived of his military power? !
For a moment, Wang Jun, who had always been clear in calculations, became confused.
"Wang Tongpan!" Just when Wang Jun was at a loss, Xiaolin scholar jumped off his horse with a plop, and helped Wang Jun up in the mud without paying attention to the dirt on the ground, and then said confidently, "Since you are a civil official, you should behave like a scholar-official. It is not appropriate to kneel down in front of the emperor! Hurry up and bow to the emperor to express your gratitude!"
Wang Jun opened his mouth wide, revealing a huge gap. He was actually caught by the powerless scholar Kobayashi. He bowed to the emperor in public to express his gratitude.
Since Wang Jun had finished his ceremony and received the reward in public, Emperor Zhao smiled and turned to go into the city, while Scholar Xiaolin quickly mounted his horse to catch up with him. The surrounding military officers did not dare to neglect this person who was specially granted the title of Tongpan by the emperor, and they all came forward to congratulate him. However, after congratulating him, when they rode their horses to catch up with Emperor Zhao to go into the city, they could not help but sigh, but it was unclear whether it was envy or ridicule.
Just like that, nothing major happened that day. Liu Yan first took 200 of the best cavalrymen from Fan Qiong's 700 cavalrymen and joined his own unit, and then selected 200 armored soldiers for Yang Yi Zhong. Then Wang De led the rest of the generals in the imperial camp and annexed the 10,000 troops of Fan Qiong's unit like dividing a cake.
The city was calm and everyone was happy, as if nothing had happened.
However, that evening, in the provincial government in Xiangyang City, Emperor Zhao sat in the corridor, looking at the letters and notes sent from Nanyang by candlelight for a long time, but suddenly he spoke to someone beside him and made trouble for no reason: "Defu..."
"I'm here." Liu Yan, who was sitting with a sword in his hand, leaned over hurriedly.
" What are you thinking about?" Emperor Zhao said with a half-smile.
"Nothing else, I was just distracted." Liu Yan shook his head quickly. "I am not as alert as Commander Yang, I am ashamed of myself."
"Come to think of it, do you still remember the night when you, Zhengfu and I met in Mingdao Palace?" Emperor Zhao put away the notes, leaned sideways on the chopping board, and asked, pinching his cheek.
"Of course I remember."
"Then are you wondering how the emperor who easily pardoned the rebels in the Red Heart Team back then could come up with such a cruel method today without making a sound?" Emperor Zhao asked casually. "And he was able to remain indifferent at night and stay in this room."
"I... dare not."
"That's it," Zhao Jiu couldn't help but laugh. "Compared to Zhengfu, you still can't speak."
Liu Yan became more and more flustered, but as the emperor said, he was not good at speaking and had no idea how to respond. In panic, the deputy commander of the imperial guards could only look for help from another person in the room, Xiaolin, who had been helping the emperor deal with the notes. However, Xiaolin, who was writing non-stop with his head down, ignored him.
"Don't panic." Zhao Jiu didn't pay attention to the other party's small movements, but sighed quietly. "In fact, when I came out of Mingdao Palace and came here all the way, I would occasionally ask myself late at night whether some actions are worth it, right or not... But today's matter is not one of them, Fan Qiong deserves it!"
"yes!"
"Jing Mo."
"I'm here." Scholar Kobayashi responded quickly.
"Write a letter... a private letter, not an imperial decree... to Li Xianggong in Yangzhou, clearly list Fan Qiong's deeds, and then ask him for me what he was thinking back then? In the chaotic times, he couldn't tolerate civil officials losing their integrity. Zhang Bangchang called for war and killing, but he never thought about the consequences of military officials losing their integrity? Why did he let this man go that day with such a ridiculous reason as the difference between civil and military officials?" Zhao Jiu said slowly. "The words should be more intense, and ask him what it means to lead beasts to eat people... Use Zhao Jiu from Cangzhou as the escort."
"I obey your orders!" Scholar Kobayashi accepted the order without hesitation.
Since the order had been given, Emperor Zhao did not hesitate and went straight back to the house where there were still some traces of killing to rest. Liu Yan and Lin Jingmo were speechless.
The whole night passed in silence, and Emperor Zhao also had a sleepless night in this house where who knows how many wronged souls were locked up.
