Zhao Wufu couldn't tell that Pang Gui, who was dressed like an ordinary bandit, was the bandit leader. After all, Zhao Wufu didn't know Pang Gui. He had only heard of this person's name in the past year. Pang Gui's body wasn't particularly sturdy. He belonged to the category of bandit with an average body. The bandit lying on the ground was indeed very burly. He seemed more like a bandit leader. It was easy for people to believe that he was the leader.
However, Zhao Wufu did not dare to doubt Ang Lee's words. This high-ranking official from the Tang dynasty was really a very powerful person. Since Ang Lee said that the real leader was the one who spoke just now, Zhao Wufu believed him to some extent. However, he was not 100% sure. After all, he thought that Ang Lee was not a god and could make mistakes.
No matter whether Pang Gui, who was dressed as an ordinary bandit, was the bandit leader or not, Zhao Wufu had to treat him seriously. He smiled slightly and looked at the thousands of bandits. He was ready to play a trick that would attract brave men when there was a big reward.
"Listen up. Whoever can identify Pang Gui will not only be pardoned but also be rewarded with a dou of food. If you dare to deceive me, you will be killed. Do you understand?"
Zhao Wufu shouted.
The other generals and officers also spread out to let the surrendered bandits identify the bandit leader by pardoning their crimes and rewarding them with food.
Normally, these bandits would not dare to identify the leader. However, at this time, they had been captured by the imperial army. In this case, there was no need to worry about identifying the bandit leader.
Not only were the ordinary bandits eager to make a move, but even Pang Gui's trusted subordinates were also tempted. That was because the crimes they had committed were very serious. If they could make a contribution and be absolved of their crimes, that would naturally be the best thing.
More than 3,000 captured bandits, but not all of them knew Pang Gui. Some were familiar with him, some barely knew him, and some had only seen Pang Gui from a distance. They only knew Pang Gui's figure but did not know his face.
"General, I'll tell you."
A bandit was the first to be tempted.
Zhao Wufu was overjoyed and said, "Tell me, who is Pang Gui?"
The bandit said, "General, I have only seen Pang Gui from a distance a few times. But judging from his figure, he is definitely not the one lying on the ground. He must be someone else."
Zhao Wufu was half happy and half worried. He was happy that Pang Gui was not the one lying on the ground. However, he was worried that the bandit did not recognize Pang Gui and only saw his back, which made him very unhappy.
However, at least, it meant that Pang Gui was not the one lying on the ground. Pang Gui, the one who said that the one lying on the ground was Pang Gui..
"General, he is the leader Pang Gui."
Pang was angered. Pang Wufu was furious.
He was was a man was a man was a man, who was, was, who was a trusted, who was betrayed him to save to save his own life. him betrayed him betrayed him., he betrayed him betray him. was betrayed be was betray betrayed betray was betrs was betrayed to be betrayed him......
"General, I can also prove that he is Pang Gui."
The rest of the bandit leaders hurriedly said.
However, they were one step too slow. Zhao Wufu could not pardon too many people. After all, these were bandit leaders who had committed heinous crimes. If he pardoned too many, he would not feel at ease.
"You are all ungrateful."
Pang Gui knew that no matter how much he explained, it was useless. At this moment, his fate had been determined. He was afraid that he was going to die. His heart suddenly surged with a very unwilling thought. He could be considered an ambitious person in the bandit world. He didn't expect that he would be finished like this.
Zhao Wufu was a man of his word. He rewarded the bandit and the first bandit leader who confirmed Pang Gui's identity. He also told all the bandits that as long as they told him everything they knew, part of their punishment would be offset.
"Assistant Minister Li, did I handle this properly?"
Zhao Wufu looked at Ang Lee and asked.
Ang Lee nodded with a smile and said, "Yes, the Five Ministers did a good job. We can't suppress these bandits blindly. It's necessary to be conciliatory, especially the ordinary bandits. There are too many of them. We can't kill them all!"
Zhao Wufu agreed. "Assistant Minister Li is right. These are commoners who have nowhere else to go. They became bandits because they had no food to eat. We should give them a chance to turn over a new leaf and let them start anew."
Zhao Wufu did not want to punish the people who were forced to become bandits. As for the bandits and their leaders, Zhao Wufu intended to kill them all to prevent future trouble.
Ang Lee felt that he could give these bandit leaders a chance. Even Pang Gui could be given a chance to perform meritorious deeds. After all, Pang Gui was a high-ranking bandit leader. He must know the situation of the other three groups. He might even know more secrets. If he pardoned Pang Gui as a condition, he believed that Pang Gui would be obedient.
"Assistant Minister Li, there are more than 200 people under Pang Gui. They used to be bandits. Do you really want to forgive them?"
Zhao Wufu felt that these 200 people were too many. He wouldn't be at ease if he didn't kill them. Once these guys suddenly agitated, the ordinary bandits who had surrendered would very likely follow them and rebel again. After all, these leaders and old bandits still had some ability, especially when it came to mobilizing people.
Ang Lee said with a smile, "Five Ministers are right. More than 200 people are too many. Just leave some of them alive. Interrogate them separately and make them confess everything they know. Then, leave 50 of them who are valuable and kill the rest immediately. Tell everyone that these people who were killed were those who did not want to tell the truth. The remaining 50 people will be absolved of all crimes and treated with good food. This will set an example for all the bandits who surrendered."
This move was the famous combination of kindness and authority. Killing three-quarters of the bandits was to intimidate all the other bandits, so that they would not try to play any tricks and seek their own deaths. Leaving behind fifty people as honored guests was naturally to pacify the hearts of the bandits, letting them know that as long as they were obedient, even if they were bandits who had done evil in the past, they would still be treated with courtesy. Thus, they would completely stop the bandits from continuing to cause trouble.
Those who performed meritorious deeds should be rewarded. Those who made mistakes should be punished. This was the most simple principle. Moreover, it had to be carried out strictly. It had to be a deterrent.
Soon, except for the 50 leaders and old bandits, the remaining 100 people were all killed on the spot. This shocked all the bandits.
In fact, almost all of these 200 bandits were very cooperative. They all expressed that they were willing to sincerely surrender. However, these were real bandits after all. Who knew if their surrender was sincere or not? If it was fake, these 200 people would still be very dangerous. In addition, if they did not kill a few more people, how could it be a deterrent? Finding an excuse to say that they were not cooperative and getting rid of them was killing many birds with one stone.
Sure enough, seeing the 50 people sitting down to eat meat and drink wine while the remaining 100 people were beheaded, all the bandits were frightened. They did not dare to have any other thoughts.
"Don't be polite. Since you are sincerely repentant and are willing to pledge loyalty to the imperial court, then you are one of us in the future. This is the treatment you deserve. You don't have to be suspicious."
Seeing that some people did not dare to eat meat and drink wine, Zhao Wufu comforted them.
It was natural for these bandits to be afraid. After all, three quarters of their old friends were beheaded on the spot. Their corpses were not far away. How could they not be nervous? However, since Zhao Wufu had made it so clear, it was worth it for them to bite the bullet and eat meat and drink wine. They were indeed hungry.
Zhao Wufu walked to the bandit who first pointed out Pang Gui. This bandit was so frightened that he quickly stood up.
"Don't be nervous. The few of you who pointed out Pang Gui just now have all performed meritorious deeds. However, you have all done evil. If the imperial court pursues you in the future, I'm afraid there will be some trouble. If you want to solve this problem, the only way is …"
Before he finished speaking, a few bandits could not wait to ask, "Only what?"
"Haha, of course it is to perform meritorious deeds. Haven't you heard of merits offsetting demerits? Pointing out Pang Gui just now can be considered a meritorious deed. However, this meritorious deed is not very convincing. I'm afraid there will be people in the imperial court who will not be convinced and insist on punishing you. When that time comes, you won't be able to escape three to five years in prison. "
Zhao Wufu said.
"General, please save us. We are also farmers. In our early years, we became bandits in the mountains to avoid our enemies. Then, things got out of hand. Actually, we are very regretful in our hearts."
A bandit leader said.
Zhao Wufu said with a look of understanding, "I understand. I naturally understand the difficulties in your hearts. However, if we can't perform meritorious deeds, even if I want to help you, I can't do it!"
"General, what do you want us to do? Please tell us."
A clever bandit leader said.
Zhao Wufu and Ang Lee looked at each other and smiled. He said, "You guys have more meat and wine. Go in and eat with Pang Gui! If you can persuade Pang Gui to cooperate with us, not only will you have performed meritorious deeds, Pang Gui will also have performed meritorious deeds. He was originally bound to be sentenced to death. If he performs meritorious deeds, perhaps eight to ten years in prison will suffice. If he performs meritorious deeds, three to five years, or even a complete pardon is not impossible. The specific circumstances will depend on his meritorious deeds. "
"This …"
The bandit leaders looked troubled. After all, they had just betrayed Pang Gui. Now, it was too embarrassing for this shameless person to go and persuade him to surrender. However, if they didn't persuade him to surrender, they wouldn't be able to perform meritorious deeds and would inevitably be imprisoned in the future.
"Guys, let's go and persuade the leader!"
A bandit leader carried two jars of wine and walked towards the tent where Pang Gui was imprisoned. The others also carried some good dishes and walked over. They had no choice. They had to go whether they wanted to or not.
"Assistant Minister Li, do you think these guys can persuade Pang Gui?"
Zhao Wufu looked at Ang Lee and asked.
Ang Lee said with a smile, "I don't have the ability to predict the future. After all, I'm not familiar with Pang Gui. I don't know what kind of person he is."
At this time, it was already late. The troops set up camp in the valley. The width of the valley was about two miles. It was a good time to set up camp. The clear river flowing by the side of the road was just right for the army to use.
After a period of recovery, the three thousand ordinary bandits who surrendered were no longer as nervous. They were in groups of three hundred and were being brainwashed by the imperial army. This was a method that Ang Lee had taught Zhao Wufu. They used continuous brainwashing to make the newly surrendered bandits submit to the imperial army and strengthen the imperial army.
In Li An's opinion, as long as they were brainwashed for a short period of time, these ordinary bandits could be incorporated into the army. However, during the organization, they naturally couldn't let the original small leaders become officers. The lowest level officers could be selected from these bandits, while the officers above the level of squad leader would all be selected from Zhao Wufu's logisticians. Although they were logisticians, they were actually second-class elites. Selecting two to three hundred of them to be officers was a piece of cake. Zhao Wufu even selected a dozen of his trusted subordinates to be the generals of these surrendered troops. For example, he naturally couldn't let people he didn't trust be high-ranking officers like chiliarchs.
Soon, a new army was organized. This army was made up of all the bandits who surrendered. Only the middle and high-ranking officers were appointed by the imperial army. The remaining few hundred bandits who were not incorporated into the army, as well as some injured bandits, were all incorporated into the supply camp. They were responsible for providing logistical services to reduce the pressure on the logistics. After all, the mountain roads were too difficult to travel. The logistical pressure was not small at all.
In the tent where Pang Gui was imprisoned, a few bandits who had just betrayed him were now putting food and wine on the table with smiles on their faces. Then, they bowed to Pang Gui apologetically. Pang Gui, who was nervous and uneasy, was confused. He did not understand what these traitors wanted to do.
"Leader, don't blame us. We have no choice. We are already fish on the chopping board. What better choice do we have?"
The first bandit who betrayed Pang Gui frowned and said.
"Leader, these are all good wine and meat. Have a taste."
Another bandit said.
Pang Gui felt a chill on his neck when he saw so many of his former confidants bringing him food and wine. He thought that this was his last meal. After this meal, he would be on his way. Pang Gui closed his eyes slightly as he recalled his glorious life.
Even if he died, he wanted to be a ghost with a full stomach. He wanted to be on his way with a full stomach. Thinking of this, Pang Gui did not stand on ceremony. He directly picked up the wine and meat and started eating and drinking. When these bandit leaders saw their leader eating and drinking, they quickly toasted and accompanied Pang Gui to eat and drink. They had to adjust the atmosphere first before they could talk about persuading him to surrender.
Pang Gui ate and drank and was soon full. He looked very satisfied. He looked at a few of his former confidants and said, "The wine has been drunk and the meat has been eaten. It's time to be on my way. Haha!"
Although he felt that he was about to die, he wanted to be a hero before he died. A hero should not be looked down upon.
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