Chapter 48

Tao Shuang was in his early fifties, and during the Jianyan period, he served as the司马 (military advisor) of Pingliang Prefecture. After the Jurchen troops captured Pingliang Prefecture, Tao Shuang surrendered to the Jurchens and was appointed as the Prefectural Chancellor, in charge of administrative affairs.

Today, he was escorting several thousand sheep to the Jurchen camp, and Wanyan Wuluo decided to let him enter the city to persuade the enemy commander to surrender.

Of course, if Wanyan Wuluo knew that the Song army commander was Chen Qing, who had killed Wanyan Lou, he would not have sent anyone to persuade him to surrender.

Despite his extreme unwillingness, Tao Shuang had no choice but to harden his resolve and head to the Arrow Pass.

A Song soldier blindfolded him with a black cloth and led him toward the camp.

Before long, Tao Shuang was brought into a room, and the blindfold was removed. The soldier said to him, "Please wait a moment. The commander is dealing with some matters and will be here soon."

Tao Shuang was indeed uneasy, but he felt a bit better than before. At least the commander was willing to see him and did not order him to be executed immediately.

At this moment, a young soldier entered with a tray, on which was a cup of water.

Tao Shuang looked at the cup in surprise; it contained only a small amount of water.

He asked in confusion, "Why is there so little water in the cup?"

"You should be grateful to have this much water," the young soldier said discontentedly as he placed the cup in front of him.

Tao Shuang did not dare to drink it, thinking that something unusual must be happening. How could a guest be given so little water? What if it was poisoned?

The soldier licked his lips and timidly asked, "Sir, if you don't drink it, can you give it to me?"

"Take it if you want to drink it!"

The soldier grabbed the cup and gulped it down in two swallows, looking thoroughly satisfied.

"Why, do you not have enough water?"

"It's a long story. We each get only this much water every day."

"Why?"

The soldier remained silent. Tao Shuang asked again, "How old are you, and where are you from?"

"I am fifteen years old, from Chencang County, Fengxiang Prefecture."

"You and my wife are from the same hometown! She is from Huangxi Township, Chencang County."

"That's right next to my home! I am from Fengwei Township."

"I've been there; there is a Fengwei Mountain with beautiful scenery, especially the river, which is crystal clear."

"My home is at the foot of Fengwei Mountain. The river you mentioned is called Cangshui, and it flows right by my house."

"Do you have any other family members?"

"My parents are both alive!"

"Your parents are alive, and you are so young, why did you join the army?"

The young soldier hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice, "My father fell ill last year and incurred a lot of debt. To pay off the debt, I joined General Chen's army and earn three taels of silver."

Tao Shuang suddenly saw an opportunity. He took out ten taels of silver and gave it to the young soldier, "Take this and use it to pay off your debt!"

"No! No! No! I can't accept it."

"Take it, I insist. My wife is from your hometown and might even know your parents."

"Thank you, sir!"

The young soldier tightly clutched the silver, his excitement barely contained, and quietly tucked it into his chest.

Tao Shuang saw all this clearly. He was well-versed in human nature and knew that the young soldier had been won over.

"Little brother, can you tell me why there is so little water?"

The young soldier sighed, "A few days ago, the Jurchen troops set fire to the city, and the warehouse was burned. Everyone fetched water to put out the fire, and the next day, we discovered that the spring had been cut off, leaving only half a pool of water. It will last us only seven or eight days. General Chen has been digging wells everywhere but hasn't found a single drop of water. Even the southern pine forest has no water. The general has sent people to Wujia Town to fetch water, but they won't get much. Today, another thousand people arrived, making the water situation even more tense, and everyone is complaining."

"What is your general doing? Why won't he see me?"

"Just now, the Jurchens threw in many letters. The general led people to search for them. All the letters must be turned in, and anyone who hides one will be executed!"

Tao Shuang understood; they were searching for the letters of surrender.

At this moment, a commotion came from outside. A general was heard angrily shouting, "I ordered all the letters to be turned in, and anyone who disobeys will be executed. You, as a head of a unit, should set an example, but you hid a letter of surrender. What do you think you're doing?"

Tao Shuang hurried to the door and saw several soldiers holding torches, with a Song army commander kneeling on the ground, his hands tied behind his back, and his helmet knocked off.

"Commander, I can't read, so I wanted to know what was written on it. That's why I hid one."

"Nonsense!"

The Song army commander angrily said, "Do you think I believe you? Bring him up!"

A scholar was brought up, trembling with fear.

The Song army commander asked, "Did he have you read the content of the letter to him?"

"Yes!"

"Hmph! What do you have to say now?"

The bound commander, having nothing to lose, shouted, "Everyone knows that Arrow Pass will eventually be captured. Now we don't even have water. Everyone has been urging the commander to retreat, but he refuses. Do you think we don't know what you're thinking?"

The Song army commander said coldly, "What do you want to say?"

"Everyone knows you want to use this to get a promotion, but you can't step on the bodies of your men to climb up!"

The Song army commander slapped him hard and ordered, "Drag him away and execute him!"

Several soldiers dragged the commander away, who struggled and shouted, "Chen, we are all raised by our parents. We have parents and children at home. The men don't want to die. You can't do this... Ah!" followed by a scream.

A moment later, a soldier brought a tray forward, on which was a human head, apparently that of the commander.

"General, Headman Hong has been executed."

"Hang his head on the city wall. Anyone who talks about surrendering will be executed as well!"

Tao Shuang was shocked and returned to the room, asking, "Is this your commander?"

The young soldier nodded, "You came to persuade him to surrender, didn't you? I advise you not to think about it."

"Why?"

"Wanyan Lou was killed by our commander. Do you think he will surrender?"

"Ah! He is Chen Qing?"

"Exactly!"

Tao Shuang was furious. After fighting for so long, Wanyan Wuluo didn't even know who his opponent was and still sent him to persuade the commander to surrender. It was really ridiculous!

At this moment, a soldier outside shouted, "The commander has arrived!"

The young soldier, frightened, quickly sneaked out.

Chen Qing strode into the room, and Tao Shuang hurriedly saluted, "Greetings, General."

"Did you surrender to the Jurchens?"

Tao Shuang sighed, "No one wants to surrender to the Jurchens, but if we don't, they will massacre the city. For the sake of the people, we had to endure the humiliation!"

"Hmph! All the officials who surrendered use this as an excuse. I've heard it many times. But whether you surrendered or not is none of my business. I can't control it. Go tell Wanyan Wuluo that if he has the ability, he should attack the city. Don't try these small tricks; they won't work!"

"Your subordinate will certainly convey the message."

"Also, I want to ask if there has been any movement from Liu Qi in Jingzhou?"

Tao Shuang shook his head, "No movement at all."

Chen Qing sneered, "I doubt that."

Without waiting for Tao Shuang to speak, Chen Qing waved his hand, "You can go now. Tell Wanyan Wuluo that if he has the ability, he can take the Jingyuan route to Guanzhong. If he wants to pass through here, it's a pipe dream!"

...

In the Jurchen camp, after listening to Tao Shuang's detailed account of the water shortage and the unrest among the soldiers in the city, Wanyan Wuluo was extremely pleased. He stroked his beard and said to the other generals, "Now you understand why I used fire attacks even though I knew the city was made of stone. It was to deplete their water supply. When they ran out of stored water, they realized their water source had been cut off. I can imagine their shock, ha ha!"

All the generals bowed and praised, "The general is wise!"

Wanyan Wuluo was flattered and continued, "However, we didn't expect our opponent to be Chen Qing. Gentlemen, his head is worth 100,000 strings of cash, and he can be enfeoffed as a noble. This is a reward from the Khan himself. This is a great opportunity for promotion and wealth, and it's up to you to seize it."

The generals in the tent were excited and shouted in agreement. Wanyan Wuluo glanced at Han Chang, who was silent and deep in thought, and said, "General Han, what are you thinking about that's different?"

His words implied a rebuke for Han Chang not following his lead.

Han Chang hurriedly bowed and said, "I was thinking why Chen Qing mentioned Liu Qi. Could Liu Qi be planning to attack Pingliang Prefecture? The general should warn General Chizhang Hui to prevent a surprise attack by Liu Qi's army."

"That makes sense. I will indeed warn Chizhang Hui. However, when Chen Qing mentioned Liu Qi, he was actually probing whether we intended to take the Jingyuan route. Later, he made it clear that he hopes we take that route, so he can step on the bodies of his men to climb up."

"What are your plans, General?"

Wanyan Wuluo was pleased with his