PFC Chapter 066 Shouldn't a person cherish their life?
Chapter 066 Shouldn't a person cherish their life?
"grown ups!"
When they rushed to the East Gate, Li Baihu was already waiting at the foot of the city wall.
The city gates were now tightly shut, with heavy bolts already in place, and the gate openings were piled high with sand, stones, and other debris. This was to prevent the city gates from being breached and allowing the enemy army to storm in if they attacked.
Upon seeing Qiao Daonan approaching from afar, Li Baihu hurriedly stepped forward and respectfully bowed.
"Has the rebel army attacked the city yet?" Upon seeing Li Baihu, Qiao Daonan grabbed his wrist and asked anxiously. As soon as the words left his mouth, he realized that the question was unnecessary.
There was no sound of fighting coming from the city wall. The city gate was tightly closed. Even Li Baihu's men were not on the city wall but below. If the rebel army had already started attacking the city, how could it be like this?
"The rebel army has not yet attacked the city, but..." Li Baihu didn't seem to care about the flaw in Qiao Daonan's words and shook his head in reply.
Qiao Daonan felt relieved and was about to ask Li Baihu why he had been summoned here, but then he saw Li Baihu wink at him.
Although Qiao Daonan was timid, he was not unintelligent, having passed the imperial examination and become a county magistrate. Li Baihu's demeanor clearly indicated that he had something to say privately.
He nodded slightly, and the two understood each other perfectly, so they went to a quiet spot to talk.
Their subordinates were all sent to the outer perimeter, a dozen steps away, so that even if they spoke a little louder, they couldn't hear each other clearly.
"Brother Li, why did you send someone to summon me?" Seeing that no one was around, Qiao Daonan lowered his voice. He had never been so polite to Li Baihu before. In the Ming Dynasty, civil officials were valued more than military officials. Not to mention a mere Baihu, even a Qianhu or a Commander would only address him as "this humble servant."
However, with the enemy army right outside the city, the defense of the city depended entirely on Commander Li, a fact Qiao Daonan understood. Without realizing it, he became polite and, for the first time ever, addressed the other man as "brother."
"My lord! Just now, the bandits outside the city shot a letter into the city." Li Baihu said in a low voice, reaching into his robes to take out a letter and handing it over: "After receiving the letter, I dared not open it in private. But now that the bandits are outside, I cannot leave my post without permission. Therefore, I had no choice but to humbly ask you to come."
"A letter from a thief?" Qiao Daonan was taken aback, and subconsciously took the letter, his eyes falling on the envelope.
The envelope was addressed in large characters: "To Qiao Daonan, Magistrate of Shenmu County!"
"Is this for me?"
"Exactly."
Clutching the letter in his hand, Qiao Daonan began to have doubts. It wasn't surprising that the bandit army outside the city knew his name.
These bandits had been stationed near Shenmu for some time, and Shenmu was not far from Fugu in the north. He had been the county magistrate for several years, so it was only natural that they would find out about him.
But what's strange is why they would write letters to themselves?
This is not right. What exactly are these bandits up to? Are they planning to try and persuade us to surrender before attacking Shenmu?
Thinking of this, Qiao Daonan couldn't help but frown.
He was a top-ranking scholar in the imperial examinations, a dignified magistrate of Shenmu County in the Ming Dynasty. How could he be coerced by the rebel army and surrender to the rebels? It's true that Qiao Daonan was cowardly and afraid of death, but as a scholar, he still had his integrity. Besides, in this day and age, under the clear sky, these rebels, no matter how powerful they are now, are no match for the imperial court.
The Ming Dynasty was vast, with tens of millions of people in its two capitals and thirteen provinces. Its army alone numbered in the millions. Moreover, since ascending the throne, the current emperor had swept away the negligence of his predecessor. He not only dealt swiftly with the infamous eunuch Wei Zhongxian, wiping out the corrupt eunuch faction that had wreaked havoc on the court, but also diligently governed, displaying every ounce of the qualities of a wise and benevolent ruler.
With such a holy emperor in power, coupled with the million-strong army of the Ming Dynasty, no matter how fiercely the rebels caused trouble, it would only be a flash in the pan, and they would eventually be wiped out.
Qiao Daonan isn't stupid. Why would he give up a perfectly good official position to surrender to rebels? Only someone with water in their brain would do that!
Besides, while he feared death, he feared even more the severe consequences of betraying his country. Once he took that step, even if he miraculously survived a few more days, he would still face the law once the rebels were defeated. Moreover, his family and clan would be implicated. How could Qiao Daonan possibly make such a choice?
He snorted coldly, concluding that it must be a letter urging surrender, intended to persuade him to open the city gates and surrender in order to reduce the bloodshed.
The problem is, Qiao Daonan would never betray his country and join the rebels. As for killing, the rebels have already attacked; what does he care? If Shenmu ultimately falls into the hands of the rebels, he would rather end his own life than bear the stigma of betrayal!
Instinctively, Qiao Daonan reached out to tear the letter.
But before he could exert any force, a thought struck him, and he stopped moving.
The letter is already in my hand... Why don't we take a look at what's written inside?
The thought crossed his mind, and he changed his action from tearing the letter to tearing open the seal. He pulled the letter out, his right hand trembled slightly, unfolded the letter, and looked down to read it.
But after only a couple of glances, Qiao Daonan's expression changed. Surprise, doubt, contemplation, hesitation, and indecision flashed across his face in turn.
"My lord..." Seeing that Qiao Daonan remained silent for a long time after reading the letter, just staring blankly at the letter, Li Baihu couldn't help but call out from the side.
Qiao Daonan snapped out of his daze and looked toward Li Baihu.
"My lord, in this letter from the traitor..." Li Baihu asked tentatively.
"Take a look too." Qiao Daonan hesitated for a moment, then reached out and handed over the letter.
Li Baihu quickly took it and looked down at it.
After reading the contents of the letter, his reaction was exactly the same as Qiao Daonan's earlier; he even opened his mouth slightly, looking utterly astonished.
"Brother Li," Qiao Daonan lowered his voice, "you are the commander of a hundred-household unit, and the defense of Shenmu is under your command. In your opinion, if this battle really breaks out, can Shenmu hold out?"
Li Baihu first folded and put away the letter in his hand, then looked around to make sure no one else was nearby before replying in a low voice, "Since you ask, sir, I will tell you the truth."
He paused, then spoke frankly, "Shenmu isn't a large county. Besides my 500 garrison soldiers, the only other forces in the city are the yamen runners, laborers, and soldiers you've gathered over the past few days. Add to that the able-bodied men drawn from the populace, and the total number is only about a thousand. This force may seem large at first glance, but it depends on who we're comparing it to. The soldiers are poorly trained, and their fighting strength is limited. If the number of bandits outside the city isn't large, and we hold out in the city, relying on the city walls, we might be able to hold out..."
He paused here, lowering his voice even further: "But the rebel army is currently very powerful, reportedly numbering in the tens of thousands. Just now, I observed from the city wall that what has arrived is only the vanguard of the rebel army, roughly estimated to be nearly three thousand strong."
"Once the main force of the rebel army arrives and the battle begins, the rebels will launch a full-scale attack on the city... It's not that I'm not trying my best, even if it costs me my life, but with the small number of defenders in Shenmu, we simply can't hold out for long!"
Li Baihu's words were frank and unvarnished. Although Qiao Daonan was not well-versed in military strategy, he knew the true state of Shenmu. With the limited garrison and defenses of Shenmu City, they could at best hold off the rebel army for a while, but they absolutely could not withstand a fierce attack. They might not even last a day. Once the rebel army reached the city walls and the city fell, the entire Shenmu, including himself, would be finished.
This is something that Qiao Daonan has always been worried about.
But with a knife already at his neck, even a chicken would struggle and thrash about, let alone a county magistrate.
Perhaps... if we can hold out a little longer, and wait for the government troops from the north to arrive and defeat the rebel army outside the city, Shenmu will be able to escape this calamity and save his own life.
The problem was, when would the government troops from the north arrive? And even if they did, would they be able to defeat the rebel army outside the city? Qiao Daonan had no idea.
This wasn't the modern era, with advanced communication where you could simply shout for help with a cell phone or walkie-talkie. Moreover, the rebel army arrived extremely quickly this time; they only discovered the city's defenses when they reached its outskirts. Qiao Daonan didn't even have time to send anyone out of the city for reinforcements; he could only hastily close the city gates and prepare defenses before the rebels attacked.
"My lord..." Seeing Qiao Daonan's conflicted look, Li Baihu hesitated for a moment, but finally forced himself to persuade him: "In my opinion, the things mentioned in the rebel's letter may... be worth discussing."
"You..." Qiao Daonan's eyebrows shot up, and he subconsciously wanted to reprimand Li Baihu, but he swallowed the words back.
If the rebels' letter had asked him to surrender, Qiao Daonan would absolutely not have done so. For the sake of his family and clan, and for the sake of his reputation after death, no matter how much he valued his life, he had no choice but to face death.
He would never surrender to a rebel, not even if it meant his death.
But the letter didn't ask him to surrender; instead, it made a request that he could fulfill.
This made Qiao Daonan hesitate. Although he was unsure whether the rebels' words were true or false, or whether there was any trickery involved, the enemy was at the gates, and Shenmu was in imminent danger. If the rebel army launched a full-scale attack, the city would fall in the blink of an eye.
Faced with such a desperate situation, even the slightest glimmer of hope was a way out for Qiao Daonan. Moreover, it wasn't about him surrendering to the enemy, and it wouldn't damage his reputation. If he could protect the sacred tree and prevent the city's people from suffering the ravages of war, it would be an immeasurable act of merit!
His gaze unconsciously drifted towards Li Baihu.
The expectation and urgency in Li Baihu's expression were clearly seen by Qiao Daonan. Li Baihu's thoughts were probably the same as his own.
As the saying goes, even ants cherish life, so how can humans not value their lives?