Chapter 70: Song Shi'an's Rebellion Declaration |
Your Highness, we can't execute nine generations of kin.
Xinyue has no nine generations of kin.
Huh?
"Let's go."
While Song Shi'an was still in a daze, Xinyue spurred her horse forward.
With no other choice, he could only quickly follow.
Forget about nine generations of kin—all that was external baggage!
When the two arrived, the soldiers on night watch quickly recognized them and immediately saluted with clenched fists: "Daren, Laoye."
Although Xinyue currently held no official position, no one dared to look down on her or slight her.
After all, after more than twenty days of marching, who didn't know that Xinyue was the Sixth Prince's right-hand woman?
Just like later on, everyone would know that Song Shi'an was the Sixth Prince's trusted confidant.
It was the same in any organization—whoever the big leader was close to became the untouchable favorite.
"Right now, summon the captain and chief clerk. Quickly," Xinyue ordered directly from her horse.
"Yes!" The soldier didn't hesitate and immediately went to carry out the order.
About a few minutes later, the chief clerk and captain emerged together, walking briskly toward them.
In ancient military campaigns, everyone had to sleep in armor, and even civilian officials in the army had to respond immediately to summons, with the discipline of "orders must be obeyed and prohibitions enforced" carved into their very bones.
If a lazy university student were thrown into that environment, they'd be beheaded within days.
"What's this about?" Qin Kuo looked at the two of them with some confusion, mainly at Song Shi'an.
"His Highness has ordered all personnel to assemble immediately. There's an important matter to announce," Song Shi'an said.
"Then His Highness...?" Zhu Qing was also very puzzled and asked, "Didn't he just go out earlier?"
"Yes, he'll be here shortly. You two hurry and assemble the troops," Song Shi'an said with extreme seriousness.
Although the two men didn't know what His Highness wanted to do, here he was the absolute commanding officer, and everything required obedience. Moreover, with His Highness's personal guard present, this had to be the Sixth Prince's own orders.
Subsequently, in this midnight hour, all the soldiers were roused and uniformly gathered at the riverside encampment, in the open spaces between the various tents, crowding together in a dark mass.
Everyone was utterly confused.
"Why assemble at this hour?"
"It's not time to march yet, is it?"
"Could it be that Wuwei City has already fallen and we need to rush to Shuofeng?"
Since they were still in the heartland, there was no possibility of emergency military action, so their speculation could only lean toward the war situation at the front.
At this moment, someone noticed that the young twenty-year-old magistrate Song Shi'an had climbed up to the watchtower beneath the "Wei" character banner.
Because there was a person at the only high point with a light source, everyone gradually turned their attention entirely to him alone.
Below the watchtower, guarding the crude ladder, Xinyue gripped her sword hilt with one hand, her expression extremely serious.
Zhu Qing and Qin Kuo standing nearby felt a trace of unease.
After looking around, Zhu Qing asked, "Where is His Highness?"
Xinyue remained expressionless: "He'll be here soon."
If he was coming soon, why had Song Shi'an climbed the tower?
Qin Kuo slowly raised his head, looking up at the platform.
Suddenly, Song Shi'an proclaimed in a loud voice: "His Highness has seized military authority over Langya and taken control of all grain supplies and provisions!"
Qin Kuo's eyes instantly widened: "!!"
Zhu Qing was dumbstruck, completely stunned.
And the soldiers below, after a collective moment of silence, immediately erupted in commotion.
"What does this mean?! Seized military authority?"
"His Highness went alone and took control of Langya?!"
"What is this supposed to..."
"This is a mutiny!!"
"Shi'an!" Qin Kuo, his face deathly pale, roared. "Get down here quickly!"
Zhu Qing charged directly toward the watchtower.
In the next instant, Xinyue's sword flashed out in a second, pressing against his neck, her tone icy: "Stand down."
"..." Biting his lips tightly, Zhu Qing raised his head, looking at Song Shi'an—the one Master Song had entrusted to his protection—and clenched his fists.
I wanted to keep him safe, but this kid is going to get me killed!
Facing the collective uproar below the platform, Song Shi'an continued in a loud voice: "Two hours ago, His Highness and I left the military camp. An hour and a half ago, we entered Langya City and used a secret order to lure out Prefect Luo Ting alone. His Highness forced him to surrender his weapons and then executed and concealed him. Subsequently, His Highness used the tiger tally to mobilize all provisions in the city and transport them to the water fortress."
Song Shi'an disclosed all the details of this process.
He even told a small lie: Luo Ting had been killed.
The purpose was to make the soldiers believe.
And furthermore, to set their minds "at ease" for the actions to follow.
"Ahhhhhhhh!!" Upon hearing this description, Qin Kuo completely lost it. "This is all madness! Why do such a thing? Why?!"
"Get down here, Song Shi'an!" Zhu Qing also felt trembling and shouted sternly.
And those soldiers all became dumbfounded, each showing expressions of shock and unease.
"Why launch a mutiny!"
"This is rebellion!"
"This is a capital crime that will result in the extermination of nine generations!"
"This matter has nothing to do with us—we absolutely refuse to be implicated!"
Seeing that the soldiers were beginning to show emotions of "mutiny," Song Shi'an immediately said: "Right! You're all correct! His Highness's mutiny is tantamount to treason. But His Highness would rather commit treason than let you all die in vain!"
"Mutiny means death! Death by our own people's blades!" A centurion completely rejected the manipulation and refuted sharply.
"Then can deserters avoid death?! Can going to defend Shuofeng avoid death!" Song Shi'an countered.
That one sentence left the centurion speechless.
The other soldiers also whispered among themselves, discussing animatedly.
"Defending Shuofeng is certain death! The Sixth Prince knew long ago that reinforcements are only our thousand men, the soldiers defending the city are only Zhao Xiang's remnant troops, facing Ji Yuan's hundred thousand army—going there directly, how is that different from suicide!"
Actually, all these soldiers knew this.
But they couldn't discuss it with each other, because that was spreading negative thoughts.
Disturbing military morale was the fastest path to execution.
"Soldiers should naturally take loyalty to the sovereign and serving the nation as their fundamental duty. Do not disturb military morale here!" Zhu Qing continued to rebuke.
But his words seemed unable to resonate anymore.
Because all the other soldiers had turned their full attention to Song Shi'an.
"Then Laoye, how can we not die!" one soldier shouted.
"Almost all the military equipment that can be mobilized in Liang Prefecture is in Langya. There are also over four thousand garrison troops that His Highness has transferred away. Adding Shuofeng City's original nearly ten thousand soldiers, as long as we defend the city with all our strength, as long as we can withstand the Qi bandits' assault, there's absolutely no possibility of falling into grain shortages or insufficient military equipment!" Song Shi'an's tone was firm.
He didn't say whether they could hold out or not.
He only said that fighting this battle, even if they died, they wouldn't die of starvation, wouldn't die from lack of arrows.
And the soldiers who could defend the city numbered at least four thousand more than originally.
"Everyone, think about it!" Song Shi'an raised his hand, pointing at the "Wei" character banner that suddenly fluttered and swayed in the strong wind. "Which campaign has ever distributed so much military pay to our families?"
This statement once again plunged the soldiers into silence.
That's right, no campaign had ever been like this.
"That was all His Highness donating his entire family fortune, exhausting his family wealth!" Song Shi'an said with full emotion.
Huh?
Xinyue froze, unable to help glancing up at him.
"I knew it! His Highness paid for that himself!"
"Yes, no one else cares about our lives!"
"Die defending the city, die as deserters, and implicate our families too. Might as well drag more people to die together!"
"No, defend together—as long as we can survive defending the city, everything will be wiped clean!"
The soldiers quickly came to their senses.
Yes, their fates were all bound together.
Under the grand narrative, the will of a thousand individuals, after resonating at the same frequency, was amplified to the extreme.
The instinct for survival drove them to make the most rational choice.
Seeing that his speech had achieved its effect, Song Shi'an began to use his final push: "Langya's four thousand garrison troops, Shuofeng's ten thousand plus, altogether over fifteen thousand men, but those aren't our own people. People who aren't our own, His Highness doesn't trust using them. So now, everyone is promoted at least two ranks—soldiers become squad leaders, squad leaders become centurions, centurions become captains, captains directly promoted to generals!"
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