Tang Dynasty Mingyue Song Dynasty Pass

Chapter 805 Changing banners

As night falls, the campfire flickers gently, illuminating the resolute faces of the patrolling soldiers. They move steadily and orderly between the tents, guarding this rare tranquility.

As the night deepened, the camp fell silent, and all the soldiers fell asleep early due to the rigorous training during the day. In this era of scarcity, even the military camp was not immune to the disaster. Meat was scarce, and it was difficult to fill one's stomach. Hunger became a frequent visitor, quietly lurking in everyone's heart.

The soldiers' bodies looked thin due to lack of sufficient nutrition and meat. The high-intensity training day after day had exhausted their physical strength. Only by sleeping could they temporarily forget the gnawing hunger.

In the tent where Jin Hui lived with several personal guards, the dim candlelight illuminated everyone's tired yet determined eyes.

Among them, a guard named Li Tieshan, as the head of the team, always followed Jin Hui like a shadow, and this mission was no exception.

He lowered his voice and broke the silence in the tent: "General Jin, do you think that General Pan will follow the trend and surrender to the Wu army?"

Hearing this, Jin Hui's eyes became deep and his thoughts drifted back to the moment when he made his decision.

He believed that Pan Chongche was a reasonable and responsible general who would make a wise choice in the face of the overall situation.

"If he is undecided and refuses to surrender, will it be disadvantageous to us?" There was a subtle trace of worry in Li Tieshan's words.

"I don't think it will come to this! When two countries are at war, there are still exchanges of envoys. It is the rule since ancient times not to kill envoys. Besides, we all know what kind of person General Pan is. He is a man of trustworthiness and worthy of trust!" Jin Hui's words revealed his deep trust in General Pan.

Back then, he served under General Pan as a captain, and followed the army in battles over the country. After experiencing several years of hardships, he not only improved his martial arts, but also gained a deep understanding of General Pan's character.

Therefore, he firmly believed that General Pan would not do such a treacherous thing as killing the envoy.

"Then we can rest assured!"

Upon hearing this, Li Tieshan and others felt relieved and relaxed.

After all, if they really had to face the 50,000 elite soldiers on the periphery with their limited manpower, breaking out would undoubtedly be as difficult as ascending to heaven.

"Just rest and relax. Everything will become clear tomorrow." Jin Hui said calmly and composedly. He then lay down, closed his eyes, and quickly fell asleep.

His calmness undoubtedly brought great comfort and confidence to everyone in the tent.

.........

The next morning, drums rumbled in the Hejiangkou camp, shaking the sky. This was a signal to summon all the generals and military officers to the commander's tent for a meeting. After a night of careful consideration, Pan Chongche finally made up his mind - surrendering to the Wu Kingdom was the wisest choice under the circumstances.

Other paths, such as going to the southwest to establish oneself as a king, would not only require a lot of effort to raise territory and financial resources, but also consider how many soldiers are willing to follow him to death. To establish oneself as a king means to become a great hero, and to bear the risk and pressure of risking everything, which is not in line with Pan Chongche's character and ambition.

As for surrendering to the Northern Song Dynasty, it would undoubtedly be a long way from home. In comparison, surrendering directly to the Wu Kingdom seemed more practical and wise. Moreover, the Wu army commander Su Chen was very famous and he appreciated and respected Pan Chongche. How could such an opportunity be missed?

Pan Chongche also heard that Su Chen was now the regent of Wu, and his sister was the ruler of Wu, a young and promising female ruler. The reason why Wu was able to restore its country, gradually expand its territory, and defeat the Song army of Southern Tang was all due to Su Chen's bravery and foresight. It can be predicted that Su Chen will be able to ascend to the throne of the emperor of Wu in the future.

Joining Su Chen at this moment will undoubtedly pave the way for his own future. When Su Chen ascends the throne, he will be able to establish his merits as a follower of the dragon, realize more ambitions, and achieve great things.

After a night of tossing and turning, Pan Chongche finally let go of his worries and the entanglement in his heart disappeared. At dawn the next day, he ordered his subordinates to beat the war drums and summoned all his generals to the commander's tent to discuss important matters.

When dozens of deputy governors, deputy governors, and chief military marquises gathered together in armor and dignity, Pan Chongche did not beat around the bush and directly stated the core topic of today's meeting - surrender to the Wu army.

"The Han Kingdom is already shaky like a dead tree, and the day of its demise is not far away. If we still insist on serving the king and confront the Wu army head-on, we will all end up dying on the battlefield. I, Pan Chongche, have fought in the south and the north for more than 20 years, and I have never been afraid of death, but I am afraid that my death will be meaningless, or even that I will help the tyrant to commit atrocities and become a sinner in history."

As soon as these words came out, all the generals were shocked. They never expected that today's meeting would be about the important matter of surrendering to the Wu army. For a moment, all the generals had mixed feelings and different ideas. However, most of the generals still felt a little excited deep in their hearts.

Because they had not seen hope for a long time, if they continued to fight against the overwhelming Wu army, they would be doomed to die. But now, if they chose to surrender, they would not only be able to avoid death, but also have the possibility of being reused.

"Will the Wu army accept us?" a deputy general asked with concern, revealing a hint of worry between his brows.

"Our army has sent an envoy to persuade them to surrender, and brought a handwritten letter from Wu's commander Su Chen. It's right here!" Pan Chongche said firmly, and motioned Zhang Wu to show the letter to everyone. Zhang Wu took the order, holding the letter, and slowly walked in front of each general, allowing them to see Su Chen's handwritten letter with their own eyes.

After reading the letter, the generals saw that it was full of the intention of recruiting the surrendered soldiers and the local people, and promised to give preferential treatment to them. For a time, their resistance and worries were greatly reduced.

However, some people held opposing views: "General Pan, as people from Lingnan, where is our integrity if we surrender? As soldiers, no matter how the court treats us, as long as we have the responsibility of a soldier, we should defend the court. We would rather die with honor than live in disgrace!" The person who spoke was the proud Zhao Xiong.

"Zhao Xiong, you want everyone to die!" someone retorted, revealing dissatisfaction in his tone.

Zhao Xiong stepped forward, pointed at the generals, and made an impassioned speech: "No matter how corrupt the court is, it is our country after all. I am willing to fight to the death with the Wu army to show my loyalty!"

Upon hearing this, several Du Yuhou stood up and stood beside Zhao Xiong, expressing their willingness to advance and retreat with him.

However, dozens of other people also stood up one after another, with fierce looks in their eyes, which was completely different from the views of Zhao Xiong and others. They believed that Southern Han was no longer worth serving, and surrendering to Wu Jun was the wisest move.

For a moment, the atmosphere in the tent was extremely tense.

Seeing that an internal conflict was about to break out in the tent, Pan Chongche said in a deep voice: "No need to argue. If anyone is still willing to serve the Liu family Han court, they can take their people away and go to the Xingwang Palace to serve the king. And those who are willing to follow this general to surrender to the Wu army can stay, change their flags, and become a member of the Wu Kingdom from now on!"

"General Pan, we are willing to follow you to the death!" Many veteran generals expressed their opinions. They have followed Pan Chongche for many years, know him well and are willing to advance and retreat with him.

Pan Chongche nodded slightly. He already had an idea of ​​the current situation, and it was almost the same as he had expected.

Zhao Xiong looked around and saw that the situation was settled, so he dared not say anything more. He turned around and left with a few Du Yuhou beside him, returning to his own camp. After a thorough inventory, he left the Hejiangkou camp with two or three thousand people.

The departure of Zhao Xiong and others did not have much impact on the 50,000-strong army.

Pan Chongche signaled his men to lead Jin Hui into the big tent. After he stood still, he introduced him to the generals in the tent: "This man is called Jin Hui. He served as a captain under my command more than ten years ago. Because of his outstanding personal talents, he was later promoted to Du Yuhou and led his troops to garrison Kaishan Stronghold. Later, he chose to surrender to the Wu army and made meritorious deeds in the Wu army, and was promoted to a senior general. Now, he can stand on his own and lead the troops of a wing. This time, he came as a lobbyist for the Wu army. You can listen to his experience after surrendering, and perhaps you can get some inspiration from it."

When Jin Hui heard Pan Chongche's words, he knew that he was trying to win the confidence of the soldiers. He happened to have the experience of surrendering, so he answered truthfully: "Generals, I know that you still have some doubts in your hearts, worrying about whether you will be retaliated after surrendering to the Wu army, whether you will be reused, etc. I can tell you responsibly that after we joined the Wu army, Commander Su Chen treated us equally and did not treat us differently. On the contrary, he gave us many opportunities to make meritorious deeds and let us show our talents on the battlefield.

"General Su loved the people like his own children, treated the captives well, and did not criticize or abuse our Han army soldiers. He sent people to treat the wounded and gave money to the old, weak, sick and disabled soldiers so that they could return to their hometowns to farm. At the same time, he reorganized the rest of the army, equipped them with high-quality equipment, and built an elite division. After each city was captured, General Su strictly ordered the army not to harass the people in the city, and also issued notices to reassure the people and opened warehouses to provide relief to refugees. He implemented a new land policy and announced light taxes and levies, which can be said to be half of the taxes we have in the Han court now.

"Why do we join the army? Most of us join the army because our families cannot afford food and the corvée and taxes are too heavy, so we have to join the army to reduce the taxes and food rations for our families. Now that the Wu Kingdom is so upright, it is worthy of our submission and service. I believe that under the leadership of Commander Su Chen, we will be able to carve out a niche and realize our ambitions and ideals."

Jin Hui's heartfelt words, every word was sincere and true, and really moved the generals present. They nodded one after another, and their recognition of Wu Jun arose spontaneously, and their doubts disappeared.

Seeing that the time was right, Pan Chongche concluded: "Since all the generals have no objection, let's take a break and pass on the general's order. In the afternoon, we will start to move camp and meet outside Qingyuan City to formally submit to the Wu army."

"Yes!" The generals looked at each other, with a determined light flashing in their eyes, and they all clasped their fists in response.

Jin Hui heaved a sigh of relief when he saw this. He knew that his mission had been successfully completed and he could go back and report to Commander Su Chen perfectly.