Pang Gui was certain that he was about to be executed. As a former overlord, he naturally could not lose face before he died. Moreover, even if he groveled and begged for mercy, he might not be able to keep his life. There seemed to be no meaning in kneeling and begging for mercy. It would only make him a laughingstock and make his former subordinates look down on him. Therefore, the moment he saw the wine and meat being delivered, he had already made up his mind. He had to be firm before he died. Even if he died, he could not ruin his reputation.
Of course, this was a decision made on the basis that he was bound to die. If there was a glimmer of hope, he was still willing to beg for mercy. However, he thought that this hope was very slim. After all, he was the leader of the bandits. He had done so many bad things in the past and killed many soldiers. How could he be forgiven?
The few small leaders in charge of persuading Pang Gui looked at the former overlord, their hearts in turmoil. Whether or not they could persuade Pang Gui to cooperate was very important to them, because this was also a merit. Pang Gui's fearless appearance made them feel a little weak in their hearts. If their persuasion failed, their chances of obtaining merit would be ruined.
"Leader, as the saying goes, a wise man knows better than to fight when the odds are against him. Since we have already lost the war, why don't we surrender to the imperial court? Isn't it better to keep our lives? "
"That's right! Leader, as long as we surrender sincerely, the imperial court will not mistreat us. What's good is that we won't lose any meat.
"Leader, our comrades who did not surrender have been beheaded. As for those of us who are willing to surrender, our crimes have been pardoned."
A few of the leaders tried to persuade him.
When Pang Gui heard their words, he suddenly had a different feeling. He felt that these people were not here to see him off, but to persuade him to surrender. However, the crimes he committed were naturally different from those of these leaders. If they could really be pardoned, he would not mind surrendering to the imperial army.
"You are too naive. How can the imperial court tolerate the crimes we have committed? They might not know about your crimes. If they know, they will definitely not forgive you."
Pang Gui still did not believe them and said.
"Leader, you worry too much. How can the imperial army not know what we have done? They said that it doesn't matter if our crimes are serious. As long as we are willing to perform meritorious deeds, part of our crimes can be offset. If we perform meritorious deeds, we can offset all of our crimes and even receive many rewards."
One of the leaders said.
"Leader, we won't lie to you. We didn't kill that many soldiers. If a few hundred soldiers died because of us, it would be a great contribution!"
"Yes! Leader, we know some of the secrets of the rebel army. As long as we tell the imperial court, they will be able to prepare in advance and reduce the number of casualties by at least a few hundred. This way, our contributions should be able to offset our previous crimes. "
The two team leaders continued to persuade him.
At this moment, Pang Gui was deep in thought. From the previous battle, he could tell that the imperial army was too powerful. This had greatly exceeded his expectations. Now that Zhao Yong and his eight thousand men had been taken care of, how long could the remaining ten thousand bandits and the rebel army hold on? The imperial army's victory seemed to be set in stone.
He was very regretful now. If he knew that the imperial army was so powerful, he would never have joined forces with the rebel army. He had underestimated the strength of the elite imperial army. He did not expect the imperial army to be so powerful. With only two hundred soldiers, even his four thousand men could not do anything to them. This also made him understand that it was not the quantity but the quality of an army. An army that was scattered like sand had no fighting power. They would be finished if they were attacked by an elite army. The bandits under his command were a motley crew. Although the rebel army was slightly better, they were not on the same level as the elite imperial army that he had just fought. There was no hope of winning at all. This was Pang Gui's judgment. Therefore, as long as he could survive, he did not mind surrendering to the imperial army.
"What you all said is somewhat reasonable. However, if they are trying to deceive us, what should we do?"
Pang Gui said worriedly.
After all, they were once bandits. Even if they had made great contributions, they might not be recognized by the imperial court. If the imperial court suddenly turned hostile and wanted to execute them, they would have nowhere to cry for help. Even if they cried for help, they would not be able to get the imperial court's approval.
"Leader, we have no choice now. We can only trust them. If we don't agree with them, we will be executed immediately. But if we do, at least we can eat meat and drink every day. It is not a bad thing to eat and drink for ten days or half a month."
One of the leaders said.
When Pang Gui heard this, he felt that it was very reasonable. Now, they had no other choice but to believe in Zhao Wufu. The best ending for them was that they could be pardoned and even rewarded. The worst ending was that they would be executed a few months later. However, in these few months, they could eat and drink well. It seemed pretty good to be able to live for a few more months. Pang Gui also felt that in these few months, if he found that the situation was not right, he could find a chance to escape. As long as his disguise was very good and the soldiers let down their guard, there was a very high chance that he could escape.
Thinking of this, Pang Gui decided to cooperate well. He knew many secrets that even his confidants did not know. As long as he told these secrets to Zhao Wufu and Ang Lee, he believed that he could make a contribution.
"You are really my good subordinates. Persuading me to surrender should also be a great contribution!"
Pang Gui glared at several of his former confidants fiercely.
Several of his former confidants lowered their heads very guiltily, which was a tacit agreement.
Pang Gui sighed and said, "Although you betrayed me, after all, you have followed me for so many years and have some feelings. Since I have agreed to cooperate, I can let you make a contribution and reduce your punishment. Then let's do it! It can be considered as a reward for following me for so many years. "
Obviously, he did not want to die, but Pang Gui said it so righteously, as if he was really a person who cared about his subordinates. It was really too shameless.
However, his subordinates were not good people. How could they believe such nonsense? But on the surface, they still had to thank him and even knelt down in front of Pang Gui excitedly.
Once a person reached adulthood, their life was almost entirely dependent on their acting skills. This was especially true for the upper echelons of the society. If they did not have good acting skills, they would not be able to survive. Over time, almost everyone learned how to act and tacitly understand each other. Although the mountain bandits were rough and straightforward on the surface, that was only on the surface. They were also very cunning on the inside. They were also very good at acting and disguising themselves.
"Assistant Minister Li, this Pang Gui has finally agreed to cooperate. This old man is really not bad. He knows a lot about the rebel army. This will be of great help to us!"
After meeting Pang Gui and having a long talk with him, Zhao Wufu hurried to look for Ang Lee. At this time, it was already late at night. However, the excited Ang Lee and Zhao Wufu did not feel sleepy at all.
"It's good that he agreed. Looking at the Five Ministers, this Pang Gui knows a lot!"
Ang Lee said with a smile.
Zhao Wufu did not hide anything and told Ang Lee everything that Pang Gui had told him. This allowed Ang Lee to understand the situation of the rebel army and the mountain bandits, as well as the general power behind the mountain bandits.
The leader of the rebel army, Zhao Changkong, had been exposed long ago. However, there were still many accomplices behind Zhao Changkong in Gui Chang City. There were more than a hundred of them, but most of them did not have high status and could not cause much trouble. However, the existence of these fellows was still a threat. It was best to send back news and warn Gui Chang City to be on guard. In addition, Pang Gui also told Zhao Wufu about the rebel army's strategy and tactics, as well as some communication codes. This made Zhao Wufu very happy. With this information, it would be easier to deal with the rebel army. This was especially true for the communication codes, which would allow Zhao Wufu's subordinates to easily infiltrate the rebel army. Pang Gui also said that he could write to the rebel army and tell them some fake news. For example, a few thousand soldiers had been wiped out by him. This would confuse the rebel army.
As for the power behind the rebel army, although Pang Gui was not very sure, from the fact that the Duan Jianwei could easily transfer large amounts of food from Nanzhao, he could guess that this Duan Jianwei must be an important person in Nanzhao. Thus, this matter was most likely related to the King of Nanzhao. This further confirmed Ang Lee's previous judgment.
Li An thought for a while and said, "Fifth Minister, my suggestion is to have Pang Gui write a letter to the rebel army and tell them that most of the main force of Gui Chang City has entered Panlong Mountain. Three thousand of them have been wiped out, and the remaining four thousand have been trapped by two groups of bandits and can't get away for the time being. This way, the rebel army will be very excited and will rush to Gui Chang City day and night to take over the city."
Zhao Wufu frowned and said, "Then how should we deal with this? We can't really let the rebel army reach the city!"
Ang Lee smiled and said, "Of course not. We will attack from the front and back and wipe out all eight thousand of the rebel army and the mountain bandits. This way, the remaining two groups of mountain bandits will not be a threat."
Obviously, Ang Lee's plan was very simple. It was to wipe out the main force of the rebel army in one fell swoop and completely eliminate this biggest threat. Then, the remaining two groups of mountain bandits would not be a threat.
Zhao Wufu frowned and said, "The rebel army has a total of five thousand people, plus three thousand mountain bandits, a total of eight thousand people. Their strength cannot be underestimated. Now that we include the logistics troops and the newly recruited troops, our army has more than eight thousand, close to nine thousand. We have the strength to fight with the rebel army."
Zhao Wufu was very confident in the three thousand elites under his command. As long as he had these three thousand elites in his hands, he had nothing to worry about.
After that, Ang Lee assigned the battle tasks. He had Zhao Wufu lead three thousand elites, two thousand newly recruited soldiers, and a thousand logistics troops to quickly set off and return along the original path. They would block the exit of the mountain path that the rebel army would use to attack Guichang City. They would also set up traps and wait for the rebel army to enter.
Ang Lee would lead the remaining troops to ambush the rebel army from behind and cooperate with the troops in the front to eliminate the strong enemy in one fell swoop.
Zhao Wufu did not object to this suggestion. He felt that as long as Pang Gui's letter was delivered to the rebel army, they would definitely charge forward regardless of the cost. As such, he would face the most pressure and naturally had to prepare more troops. Ang Lee only needed a small number of troops.
Ang Lee now had three to four thousand troops under his command. Among them, close to two thousand were the original bandits. However, Ang Lee was not worried that these people would play tricks. He had enough methods to control these people.
Pang Gui and the fifty old bandits under his command were divided into two groups. Zhao Wufu took Pang Gui and thirty old bandits with him. The remaining twenty were left for Ang Lee. These people only had one mission, which was to persuade the rebels to surrender. They were responsible for persuading them to surrender on the battlefield and disrupting the morale of the rebel army and the bandit army. It was believed that as long as Pang Gui stood by Zhao Wufu's side, the strength of the rebel army would be greatly reduced.
After Zhao Wufu's troops rushed for a day, Ang Lee sent the person in charge of delivering the letter. This was to give Zhao Wufu more time to prepare. After all, if the rebel army came out before Zhao Wufu reached the exit of the mountain path, it would be very troublesome. If that happened, it would be a bloody battle where both sides would suffer losses. Ang Lee obviously did not want this to happen. It was better to minimize the casualties as much as possible. If both sides suffered losses, the vitality of Dongnu Province would be lost.
Ang Lee's troops set off half a day later. However, they still had the elite Dragon Martial Army at the front. Behind them were a thousand new recruits, followed by nearly a thousand bandit logisticians, and lastly, a thousand official logisticians.
This army was quite strange. There were only 1,300 soldiers in the main army, but close to 2,000 in the logistics department. This was also Li An's deliberate arrangement. The logistics department didn't have to fight at the back, but their existence could create a very good deterrent effect, making the army under his command look even bigger. More than 3,000 people formed a black mass, and it was very frightening to look at.
In the direction of the rebel army camp, the leader of the rebel army received Pang Gui's handwritten letter. He checked the handwriting and began to read it. When he saw that the main force of the official army was sent out but suffered heavy losses and was trapped in Panlong Mountain, he was so happy that he almost jumped up. This was great news, and it was enough to make him excited.
"What's the matter? Why is Brother Zhao so happy? "
Duan Jianwei quietly walked in. He was the first to receive Pang Gui's letter. He was very unhappy. Why did Pang Gui not write to him but to Zhao Changkong? After thinking about it, as long as Gui Chang City was breached, Zhao Changkong would be the king. Duan Jianwei was only a guest elder. How could he compare to the king? It was not a bad choice to show his loyalty early.
Zhao Changkong could not suppress the joy in his heart and told Duan Jianwei Pang Gui's handwritten letter.
When Duan Jianwei heard this, he also revealed a happy expression. A few days ago, Zhao Changkong's spies in Gui Chang City had sent news that a few thousand soldiers had secretly left. Their target was the south, and there were no less than 5,000 soldiers. Now that they saw Pang Gui's letter, they were naturally very detailed. The number of 5,000 soldiers was not too important. What was important was that the main force of Gui Chang City had left. As such, the number of soldiers left in the city would be much smaller. This would be very disadvantageous for Gui Chang City's defense.
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