By the end of the tenth month, General Tang Pidi led the Prince Ning’s army from Suzhou into Jingzhou, taking four cities in under a month without spending a single soldier or a drop of blood.
Surrendered commander Zhou Mu had been singled out for special trust by the General, promoted several ranks, and elevated to junior fourth-rank general.
The Prince Ning’s army camp. Inside the central command tent.
“General.”
Zhou Mu bowed. “I’ve come to make a request.”
Tang Pidi lifted his gaze from the map and looked at Zhou Mu. “What is it?”
Zhou Mu said, “I want to go over to the Lord of Destiny’s army.”
Tang Pidi was briefly taken aback, but quickly understood what Zhou Mu meant. He turned to face him directly. “Do you know how dangerous that would be?”
Zhou Mu said, “I do.”
Tang Pidi said, “Give me one reason why you must go.”
Zhou Mu paused for a moment before speaking. “General, when I was with the rebel army, I avoided being at the front in everything. If I could stay behind, I stayed behind — never taking a single step forward.”
He looked at Tang Pidi, and in his eyes was a brightness that had never been there during his time with the rebels.
“The rebel army committed countless atrocities. When they killed people, I hid. When they destroyed cities, I hid. When they burned villages, I hid as well… I also didn’t want anyone to know I was one of their commanders — it was nothing to be proud of. I joined the rebel army only to survive.”
“I never once thought, in all my time with the rebels, about risking my life for some future. I didn’t rise to commander by any intention of my own. On the battlefield, if you don’t kill the enemy, the enemy kills you — I just kept fighting until somehow I was a commander.”
“Back home I have a wife and a daughter…”
Zhou Mu said, “Before, I never imagined going back to my village in a rebel army commander’s armor to show off. But now, every day, every moment, all I think about is going back in the armor of a Prince Ning’s army general, so that everyone in the village can see…”
He looked at Tang Pidi, utterly earnest. “I have never in my life felt this urgently, this desperately, the desire to fight for my own future. I joined Prince Ning’s army late — to earn a marquisate and a generalship, I must achieve something extraordinary.”
Tang Pidi was silent for a moment before asking, “What if I refuse?”
Zhou Mu swept aside his robe and knelt on one knee. “I beg the General to grant my wish. The only real threat our army faces right now is Yang Xuanji alone. If I can infiltrate the Lord of Destiny’s army, I can find a way to steal their troop dispositions. If I can help the General defeat Yang Xuanji, that credit will reach the ears of Prince Ning himself.”
Tang Pidi shook his head. “I won’t allow it.”
Zhou Mu froze.
Tang Pidi reached out and helped Zhou Mu to his feet. “It has never been Prince Ning’s practice to send his own people to their deaths.”
Zhou Mu said, “But General — I am the one who wants to go. It is not the General’s arrangement…”
Tang Pidi smiled. “With your talents, if you don’t earn a marquisate today, you will accomplish great things in time. I have already recommended you to our lord. Perhaps before long, our lord will summon you to work at his side. Wait in the army and be at ease.”
Zhou Mu was shaken inwardly.
The General had promised that if Zhou Mu took one more city he would promote him to junior fourth-rank general, and would report his merit to their lord.
But Zhou Mu had not expected the General to recommend him directly to serve at Prince Ning’s side.
Tang Pidi clapped Zhou Mu on the shoulder. “Live well first — then earn your glory. Don’t let what comes home to your wife and daughter be a suit of general’s armor and a letter of condolence.”
Something stirred deeply in Zhou Mu. After a long moment, he bowed. “I will follow the General’s arrangement.”
Tang Pidi beckoned. “Come — I have something to ask you.”
Zhou Mu stepped forward at once and followed Tang Pidi to the map.
Tang Pidi pointed at the black marks annotated across the map. “Can you read it?”
Zhou Mu studied it carefully, and soon recognized the several county towns he himself had devised the plans to take — all marked by the General with charcoal pencil.
Something clicked in his mind. He looked at the other marked locations, and all at once it became clear.
“General — all these locations have Lord of Destiny’s forces garrisoned there. Large or small, they will all have some grain stores.”
Tang Pidi smiled. “Correct. So — can you see what strategy I intend to use in this campaign?”
Zhou Mu nodded. “The General does not plan to strike Yang Xuanji from behind while he attacks Daxing. Instead you plan to gradually tighten the net — taking advantage of the Lord of Destiny’s army being too occupied to split their attention, using a strategy of gradual encroachment to take these counties and prefectures one by one. By the time the Lord of Destiny’s forces realize what has happened, they will have no choice but to divide their troops.”
Tang Pidi gave a quiet sound of agreement. “I said your talents would take you far.”
Let the Lord of Destiny’s army attack Daxing — let them.
Zhou Mu continued, “I understand now. If we attack Yang Xuanji directly at this point, we would only be relieving pressure on the Dachu court. Better to let them keep fighting while we exploit the Dachu court’s defensive resistance to wear down the Lord of Destiny’s troop strength.”
Tang Pidi said, “Since you see it clearly, then go and handle this matter. Before our lord’s orders arrive, I’ll assign you ten thousand troops. I won’t interfere with how you fight — there is only one condition: do not take losses.”
Zhou Mu stood at attention and saluted. “Understood, General!”
Tang Pidi smiled. “Go then. You want your marquisate and your generalship — I’ll clear the proper path and lay the groundwork for you. You may use unorthodox methods, but when matters of life and death are at stake and there’s no necessity for it, don’t resort to them.”
Zhou Mu saluted again. “I will take this to heart.”
Before long, Zhou Mu set out with ten thousand troops of Prince Ning’s army. Their objective was to pluck away, one by one, the counties and prefectures already under the Lord of Destiny’s army’s control.
The Lord of Destiny’s army attacks Daxing; they attack the Lord of Destiny’s own backyard.
—
At the same time. Inside Daxing.
Prince Wu stood atop the city wall, watching the Lord of Destiny’s army that had just pulled back, finally able to let out a long breath.
The rebel forces had been mounting fierce assaults for days on end. Had the city not had a sizable garrison and adequate grain stores, holding off an army of a million would have been no easy matter.
The Emperor stood beside him. For multiple days running, the Emperor had remained on the city wall defending alongside the soldiers, never once going down.
Seeing the Emperor so changed, Prince Wu felt a measure of comfort.
Survive this ordeal, and as long as Daxing did not fall, Dachu would still have hope. But this ordeal…
“Royal Uncle.”
The Emperor leaned against the parapet and sat down, breathing hard. “Come and rest a moment — the rebels may be up again before long.”
Prince Wu sat down beside the Emperor, and only then noticed blood on the Emperor’s clothing.
Prince Wu was about to call for a physician, but the Emperor waved him off. “No need.”
He looked toward a corpse lying not far away, his eyes full of grief.
It was a young eunuch, no more than sixteen or seventeen years of age, not long in the palace at all.
He was a boy who should not yet have known the hardships of life — yet he had experienced every misery the world had to offer.
He had entered the palace because of poverty and died because of loyalty.
When the Lord of Destiny’s army had scaled the wall just now, this young eunuch had thrown himself forward to take a sword blow meant for the Emperor.
“It was Zhen Xiaodao who brought him up here — originally just to attend to my food and daily needs on the wall…”
Prince Wu sighed heavily.
He had never liked eunuchs — not one bit — likely because of the former powerful eunuch Liu Chongxin.
“I never learned his name.”
The Emperor closed his eyes.
“All those who die for me — I should know each of their names.”
Prince Wu said, “Your Majesty need not grieve too deeply. I will make arrangements for him to receive a proper burial.”
The Emperor shook his head and murmured, almost to himself, “A fine burial — what does it really accomplish… Being alive is worth more than anything.”
For a moment Prince Wu truly did not know how to respond. What the Emperor had said was too bleak.
“Royal Uncle, how many great enemies do I still have?”
The Emperor asked suddenly.
Prince Wu thought briefly before answering. “Li Chi of the Prince Ning’s forces, the traitor Yang Xuanji, Li Xionghu of the rebel army, and the Yuezhou bandit Zhai Li. Among those wielding independent military power, these are the only significant ones. The rest pose no serious threat for now.”
The Emperor opened his eyes and looked again at the corpse. “If the opportunity comes, I will use their heads as offerings in tribute to every soul that died for me.”
Prince Wu let out another long breath — again, he did not know what to say.
“Your Majesty, please rest a while.”
After a long silence, Prince Wu offered this one suggestion.
“Royal Uncle, there is something I have been thinking about.”
“Your Majesty, please speak.”
“I have been wondering — if the traitor Yang Xuanji does not withdraw, how much longer can we hold out?”
After the Emperor posed this question, Prince Wu again did not know how to answer.
The grain stores in the city were not yet critically low, but rationing had long since begun. Looking at current supplies, holding another two to three months should be manageable — but if the rebels had not retreated after three months, things would go very badly.
Prince Wu’s silence was itself the answer.
The Emperor said, “Royal Uncle doesn’t need to speak — I know. If the rebels have not withdrawn in another three months, by that count we will have passed another New Year. Three months from now would be the end of the first month. The city would be out of grain in the depths of winter… Royal Uncle has thought through all of this many times as well, I’m sure — how to resolve this situation.”
Prince Wu nodded. “I have, indeed.”
The Emperor asked again, “Then does Royal Uncle have a plan?”
This time Prince Wu answered quickly, for he had indeed long since worked out a plan — the only plan there was.
“To answer Your Majesty: if the rebels have still not withdrawn after three months, I will lead our army to cut through them, carving a path of blood so Your Majesty may break through.”
The Emperor looked at Prince Wu, and in his eyes was guilt.
He was no longer the man he once had been. His heart was no longer so rigid and extreme. The Empress had taught him how to read the hearts of others, and having done so long enough, he had learned to see things from their perspective.
“Royal Uncle, I am deeply grateful. But I cannot ask you to charge into battle again.”
The Emperor looked up at the sky, his voice low. “I have also thought of a plan. Royal Uncle will certainly refuse to hear it — but I want to try…”
Prince Wu was motionless. Those few words gave him a sense of foreboding.
“I am no longer afraid of anything now, and I am certainly not afraid of bearing any infamy. As long as the great Dachu can endure, I don’t care about a bad reputation — let posterity curse my name for ten thousand years, it makes no difference to me.”
The Emperor pushed off the wall and stood. “Royal Uncle, hear me out before you refuse. Think it through carefully, then tell me whether it’s feasible or not.”
He looked at Prince Wu. “We both know — we have no more reinforcements. Dachu has only this one capital city left. If no one comes to break Yang Xuanji’s siege, the capital will not hold. We have no reinforcements of our own, so we must find a way to use our enemies — and the enemies of our enemies.”
—
Two days later.
Yang Xuanji was resting in his command tent when a subordinate rushed in and bowed. “My lord, we have captured a large number of Dachu soldiers who tried to break through the encirclement last night. From last night until now, we have captured over four hundred.”
“Oh?”
Yang Xuanji’s brow furrowed. “A few hundred men breaking out — for what purpose?”
His subordinate said, “Every single one of them is carrying a letter — addressed to Prince Ning, Li Chi.”
Yang Xuanji’s brow furrowed more deeply. “Bring the letters to me.”
As the subordinate handed over one of the letters, he continued, “Last night, no fewer than a thousand men must have used ropes to lower themselves from the walls and scatter in all directions. We have caught four or five hundred, and the search continues — but… it is likely we cannot catch them all.”
As he spoke, Yang Xuanji had already unfolded the letter.
After reading it, his expression changed drastically. He shot to his feet and slammed his palm on the table. “He is the true traitor of the Yang family! What on earth is he trying to do?!”
After more than a year of the Dachu capital being besieged, Emperor Yang Jing had dispatched countless messengers to break through the encirclement and spread word across the realm.
He was willing to abdicate the throne in favor of Prince Ning, Li Chi.
He further declared that when Prince Ning’s forces entered the city, he would personally hold the imperial seal in both hands, lead all civil and military officials, and open the city gates to receive them.
—