Chapter 57 A Thief Never Leaves Empty-Handed

To facilitate the discussion of countermeasures, Liu Jiyuan chose to have Grand Chancellor Guo Wuwei and chief general Yang Ye accompany him to summon Liang Zhouhan. After both arrived successively, Liang Zhouhan—who had brought his own provisions to act as an accomplice to Zhao Dezhao—was finally led into Liu Jiyuan’s presence.

Meeting Liang Zhouhan once again, after a round of hypocritical and empty pleasantries, and in order to thank Zhao Dezhao for helping the military and civilians of Northern Han quell the plague, Liu Jiyuan very generously granted Liang Zhouhan a seat, allowing him to speak while seated.

Not only that, but after having a eunuch serve Liang Zhouhan tea, Liu Jiyuan condescended to proactively ask, "I wonder what brings Mr. Yuanbao here today?"

Liu Jiyuan asked straightforwardly, and Liang Zhouhan replied just as readily, immediately smiling and saying, "Your Majesty, then this humble subject will be direct. I have come by the order of my Prince to save your imperial court and the people of Jinyang from a crisis hanging by a thread."

Having seen and experienced much, Liang Zhouhan's common lobbyist trickery did not frighten Liu Jiyuan or Guo Wuwei. Even Yang Ye could not help laughing and said, "Mr. Liang has quite a large appetite for boasting. Hanging by a thread? How are our Han court and the people of Jinyang facing such a perilous situation?"

Liang Zhouhan did not answer directly, instead retorting, "General Liu, I have heard that you are hailed as invincible and are Northern Han's premier military commander. Logically speaking, you should have abundant battlefield experience, so why do you still fail to understand the current situation? Our Song army has already completely encircled the inner city of Jinyang, and your only savior—the Khitan Liao barbarians—have also been defeated like a collapsing mountain, abandoning their camps and fleeing in disarray. Is the General not afraid that once our Song army breaches the city, the inner city of Jinyang will face the catastrophe of war?"

Considering that the Song army had saved his son, Yang Ye did not resort to mockery, but merely smiled and said, "Mr. Liang, but the premise is: do you have the certainty to breach our inner city of Jinyang? Furthermore, can your food supplies last until that day? With such heavy snow, the Quechu Valley, the choke point of your supply lines, must already be snowed in, right?"

"General is brilliant, you guessed correctly. The perilous roads of the Quechu Valley are indeed snowed in. Although it is not enough to completely cut off the road, it still brings no small trouble to our food supply."

To the surprise of Yang Ye, Liu Jiyuan, and the others, Liang Zhouhan not only candidly admitted that the Quechu Valley area was snowed in, but even stated the blunt truth about the Song army's current logistical difficulties. However, after finishing this sentence, Liang Zhouhan suddenly changed his tone and said unhurriedly, "Yet, General Liu, how do you know whether or not my Prince has a way to take the inner city of Jinyang with effortless ease?"

"Prince Zhao has a way to easily take the inner city of Jinyang?" Yang Ye finally could not help laughing out loud and said, "Mr. Liang, then please pardon me for asking a question: since Prince Zhao is so miraculously powerful, why hasn't he deployed it until now?"

"Because my Prince is kind-hearted and full of compassion, and cannot bear to use such devastating and cruel methods to attack the city," Liang Zhouhan said with a smile. "That is why he has exercised great restraint and refrained from proposing that our Grand Marshal Li and Deputy Marshal Ding use such cruel methods to attack the inner city of Jinyang. Otherwise, this inner city of Jinyang would probably have become a living hell long ago."

Seeing that Liang Zhouhan was speaking earnestly, Yang Ye became even more curious. Guo Wuwei, Northern Han's foremost powerful official, asked directly, "Then may I ask, Mr. Yuanbao, just how cruel and devastating is this method mentioned by Prince Zhao?"

Liang Zhouhan did not rush to answer. Instead, he first picked up his teacup and took a sip of tea, then asked unhurriedly, "Chancellor Guo, you are well-read in historical texts; you must have read the *Book of Han* compiled by the Eastern Han famous minister Ban Gu and Grand Historian Sima Qian's *Records of the Grand Historian*, right?"

"Of course I have read them, so what?" Guo Wuwei retorted.

"Having read them is good," Liang Zhouhan nodded with a smile, and asked again, "Then let me ask Chancellor Guo: why did the renowned Western Han famous general Huo Qubing, who achieved fame across the world early on by sealing titles at Langjuxu, die a premature death at the age of twenty-four?"

"It was the work of that dog Zhonghang Yue!" Guo Wuwei, possessing a strong memory, immediately replied, "The Champion Marquis was ordered to campaign against the Xiongnu. The Xiongnu were no match for him and suffered repeated defeats. That dog eunuch Zhonghang Yue offered a scheme to the Xiongnu, having them deliberately put cattle and sheep that had died of disease into the water sources of the desert to poison them. The Han army consequently suffered a widespread epidemic, and the Champion Marquis unfortunately fell ill as a result, ultimately dying young."

"Chancellor Guo is well-read in history, I admire you," Liang Zhouhan flattered, before saying with a smiling expression, "Chancellor Guo, then are you not afraid that our Prince might follow this exact precedent and suggest that Grand Marshal Li use similar methods to attack the city?"

Guo Wuwei also laughed out loud and said, "Mr. Liang cannot possibly be joking, right? You also want to poison our water sources with cattle and sheep that died of disease? Does the先生 (sir) not know that the water source of our Jinyang inner city comes from the rushing Jin River?"

Liang Zhouhan smiled even more happily and said, "If our Prince truly wanted to use such a vicious method to attack the city, poisoning your water sources would be as easy as turning over a hand! He could even be more direct and simple: using catapults to hurl corpses carrying poison into the inner city of Jinyang. At that time, how does Chancellor Guo think you will defend against it?"

"But the question is, do you have that many poisonous corpses?" Guo Wuwei's expression remained very relaxed, showing utter disdain for Zhao Dezhao's so-called compassion.

"Who says we don't?!"

Liang Zhouhan suddenly changed his tone and said with a grim smile, "Has Chancellor Guo forgotten that a few days ago, when we casually took the Khitan camp, we captured tens of thousands of Khitan soldiers? And the majority of those people were patients suffering from smallpox!"

The golden imperial hall fell into instantaneous silence. Liu Jiyuan, Guo Wuwei, Yang Ye, and the others all dropped their jaws in speechlessness, as if they had already seen countless corpses of smallpox patients falling from the sky, plagues once again running rampant in the inner city of Jinyang, coupled with an overflow of corpse poison, leaving the military and civilians of Jinyang tormented by disease to the point where life became unbearable and nine out of ten homes were left vacant.

After smugly appreciating the terrified expressions of Liu Jiyuan and the others, Liang Zhouhan continued, "Furthermore, to not conceal it from Your Majesty and Chancellor Guo, in fact, as soon as those severely ill Khitan prisoners of war were captured, our Prince already thought of this vicious siege tactic. It is only because he is full of benevolence and mercy, unable to bear the thought of fellow Han compatriots suffering such agonizing torment, that he chose to remain silent. It is precisely because of this that our Song army has never used such a deranged method to attack the city."

Liu Jiyuan quietly breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly said with a sincere attitude, "I must trouble Mr. Yuanbao to report back to the Prince of your esteemed country, and say that on behalf of the people of Jinyang, I kowtow to thank him for his Bodhisattva heart. Once the war is over in the future, I will surely have every household in Jinyang enshrine a longevity tablet for the Prince, so as to express gratitude for Prince Zhao's immense grace and virtue."

"Pardon Your Majesty, but there is no longer any need for that." Liang Zhouhan sighed, turned to Yang Ye, and said, "General Liu, do you still remember General Kang Yenze, who was defeated by your ambush in Tuanbai Valley previously?"

"Of course I remember, what about it?" Yang Ye asked with great surprise.

Liang Zhouhan sighed again, and then said with a regretful tone, "It was precisely because General Kang suffered that accidental defeat earlier and harbored a fierce determination for revenge. Racking his brains, he also thought of this method. Therefore, this very morning, General Kang presented this vicious strategy of attacking the city using Khitan prisoner corpses to our Grand Marshal Li, and it won the support of many generals in our Song army, all of whom backed such an unscrupulous method to attack the inner city of Jinyang."

Liu Jiyuan and the others were once again dumbfounded. After finally recovering their wits, Liu Jiyuan hurriedly asked, "Mr. Yuanbao, what is Prince Zhao's attitude? With his Bodhisattva heart, he cannot possibly stand by and watch that general named Kang Yenze be so deranged and perverse, right?"

"Your Majesty is wise. Our Prince is full of compassion and naturally opposed such devastating means to the utmost, so he immediately raised objections." Liang Zhouhan first gave Liu Jiyuan a reassuring pill, then spread his hands with a helpless expression and said, "However, there is nothing to be done. Grand Marshal Li was ordered to attack Jinyang, and many generals under his command firmly believe that 'mercy does not govern an army,' strongly urging Grand Marshal Li to act according to the plan. Therefore, in the end, Grand Marshal Li and Deputy Marshal Ding still nodded, preparing to use the smallpox-infected Khitan prisoners to replace stone ammunition and hurl them into the city using catapults."

The complexions of Liu Jiyuan, Guo Wuwei, and the others changed drastically. Yang Ye clenched his fists tightly, hurriedly calculating countermeasures. Fortunately, Liang Zhouhan took the initiative to say, "However, Your Majesty need not despair either. Although Grand Marshal Li and the others adopted this suggestion, under the repeated persuasion of our Prince, Grand Marshal Li and the others still made concessions. They agreed that as long as your imperial court agrees to one condition from us, we will abandon the siege, voluntarily withdraw our troops, and return the lands and cities of your country occupied during this war."

"What condition?" Like a drowning person grasping at a straw, Liu Jiyuan hurriedly asked, "Mr. Yuanbao, may I ask what the condition is?"

"Submit as a vassal and offer tribute, plus pay a city-ransom fee, and our Song army will immediately withdraw," Liang Zhouhan replied very directly.

"Submitting as a vassal and offering tribute is fine; I can agree to it right now." Having already addressed the Khitan Emperor as father, Liu Jiyuan certainly did not mind calling Zhao Kuangyin an adoptive father. He quickly asked, "It's just... how much tribute should be offered, and how much is the city-ransom fee? I ask the先生 to speak plainly."

"Not much. Just offering fifty thousand strings of cash and three thousand fine horses as tribute to our Song dynasty every year will suffice, and furthermore, respecting our Song ruler as your paternal uncle." Liang Zhouhan did not bite off more than he could chew, saying it casually. "As for the city-ransom fee, three million strings of cash. Once we get the money, we will withdraw our troops immediately."

"Three million strings of cash?" Upon hearing this, Liu Jiyuan felt distressed and said with a mournful face, "Mr. Yuanbao, this city-ransom fee is simply too high. Our Northern Han is a small country with impoverished people; how could we possibly produce so much silver and cash on short notice?"

"Your Majesty, please do not fail our Prince's kind intentions," Liang Zhouhan sneered and said. "Whether our Prince is engaging in wild extortion or blackmail, you know best in your hearts. It is true that Northern Han is a small country with a sparse population, but it is not poor. The trading route of Yanmen Pass has always been in the hands of your Northern Han court. Just the commercial taxes from travelers across the grasslands every year—do you even know how much you collect? A mere three million strings of cash is probably less than the military expenses you spent on this war alone, right?"

Liu Jiyuan remained silent, rolling his eyes as he frantically calculated. Reading his expression, Liang Zhouhan continued, "Your Majesty, whether to preserve your life or your wealth, I ask Your Majesty to make a prompt decision. You must be very clear, Your Majesty, that if you choose to preserve your wealth, what kind of outcome will await you once the city is breached?"

Liu Jiyuan hesitated for a moment, but ultimately said, "Mr. Yuanbao, this matter is of great consequence. I must first discuss it with my court ministers before I can give a reply. I ask the先生 to go and rest first; once I have deliberated with the civil and military officials, I will definitely give you a satisfactory reply."

"Your Majesty, please do as you wish," Liang Zhouhan smiled very easily, and urged, "However, be quick about it. The generals of our Song army generally have fiery tempers."

Just as Zhao Dezhao had anticipated beforehand, the Northern Han court's deliberation resulted in making the correct choice. Fearing the vicious siege tactics proposed by the Song general 'Kang Yenze,' and even more afraid of the catastrophe that would follow the breaching of the city, the majority of Northern Han civil and military officials chose to support accepting the Song army's extortion. They would trade a huge sum of money to make the Song army voluntarily withdraw, leaving long-term plans to be considered later.

In the end, under the bitter entreaties of the Northern Han court's envoys, the compassionate Zhao Dezhao made certain concessions: he agreed to reduce Northern Han's annual tribute to forty thousand strings of cash and two thousand warhorses, and the city-ransom fee was also lowered to a mere 2.8 million strings of cash.

Just as Zhao Dezhao had analyzed, the Northern Han court, which monopolized grassland commercial trade, exhausted all its resources. Combined with voluntary donations from powerful nobles and wealthy merchants, they indeed managed to produce a massive sum of 2.8 million strings of cash within a mere two days to present to the Song army. Li Jiyuxun kept his word, immediately issuing an order to retreat, leading his troops back to the territories previously controlled by the Song army, and returning the southern territory of Northern Han—which had been plundered down to the bare earth—back to the Northern Han court.

It is worth mentioning that while issuing the order to retreat, Li Jiyuxun also issued an extremely cruel order: to execute all Khitan prisoners of war who had not yet died of disease. However, Zhao Dezhao once again displayed a soft heart, objecting, "Uncle, we cannot focus only on the immediate moment; we must consider the long term. The Khitan Liao barbarians are our mortal enemies, and we do not know how many battles we will fight against them on the battlefield in the future. If we issue an order to massacre the prisoners now, who among the Khitan Liao soldiers will ever dare to surrender to us in the future?"

"Then what should we do?" Li Jiyuxun retorted, saying, "We surely cannot bring these smallpox-infected Khitan prisoners back to the Central Plains, nor can we simply release them directly."

"Cut off the thumbs of both of their hands, and then release them," Zhao Dezhao said, truly being very benevolent. "In this way, when Khitan Liao soldiers fight against our Song army in the future, they will not fight to the death without surrendering."

"Cut off the thumbs of both of their hands?" Upon hearing this, Li Jiyuxun was baffled and said, "Without thumbs, it doesn't seem to affect their ability to hold swords and spears, does it?"

"But can they grip them firmly? Uncle, just imagine: without thumbs, how can those Khitan Liao soldiers hold their weapons tightly to go into battle in the future? How can they grip the reins to charge on horseback?"

Zhao Dezhao's smiling reply made Li Jiyuxun suddenly enlightened. Filled with admiration, Li Jiyuxun even gave a thumbs-up to his junior, Zhao Dezhao, praising him, "Your Highness, today is the first day old man has learned what it truly means to eat people without spitting out the bones!"