allonlinenovel Chapter 292: Surrender or Not
Chapter 292: Surrender or Not
Looking at Jiang Zuo's smiling face, Pan Hou felt humiliated in his heart. He snorted and said, "It's my bad luck to fall into the hands of you Yan people today. You don't need to mock me anymore. I did want to humiliate your Yan envoys many times before. If you want revenge, please feel free to do so."
There was a lot of reluctance in his words.
Jiang Zuo still said kindly: "How could I seek revenge? These are all trivial matters. Now Guangning City has been recaptured by our Yan State. If Governor Pan is willing, he can also help our Yan State govern Guangning well."
After all, Guangning City had just been recovered, and the State of Yan wanted to rule it for a long time, not just occupy it temporarily.
For a Chen State official like Pan Hou who was in charge of Guangning City, saving his life would still be of great use.
But a man of integrity like Pan Hou would definitely not be willing to work for the State of Yan.
Jiang Zuo knew this, but he was not in a hurry to force it.
Sure enough, Pan Hou frowned and couldn't help cursing, "Bah, I would rather die than serve you Yan State. You shameless Yan people actually tore up the peace treaty and launched a sneak attack. You are so shameless!"
At this moment, Pan Hou's heart was filled with hatred.
Not only did the Yan people launch a sneak attack, but they also broke through the south bank that Pan Hou had been preparing for for many days in less than a day. Even the Guangning City with its high walls and thick walls was lost in less than half a day.
As the prefect of Guangning, Pan Hou could only transform his resentment at failure into hatred towards the people of Yan.
Jiang Zuo smiled and said, "Prefect Pan, we are not launching a surprise attack. We have already declared war on your Chen State before this, haven't we? Don't worry, our Yan army will not only recover the three states in Hudong, but also destroy the Chen State and unify the world."
Hearing this, Pan Hou sneered and said, "What wishful thinking! The imperial army is now gathering in the direction of Guangning City. You Yan army, don't even think about escaping!"
Before this, Pan Hou had already asked the court for help, but whether the court would send reinforcements to retake Guangning City was still an unknown. Even Pan Hou, the prefect of Guangning, did not know the movements of the court's troops.
Jiang Zuo said calmly, "Do you think the Chen army can defeat the weapons in the hands of our Yan army?"
These words suddenly made Pan Hou's body tremble violently, and the terrifying rumbling sound seemed to sound again in his mind.
What exactly is this terrible weapon in the hands of the Yan army?
Pan Hou remained silent, waiting for Jiang Zuo with an angry look.
But Jiang Zuo remained calm and continued, "Now Guangning City has returned to normal. If you, Prefect Pan, think it over, I can reinstate you. But you will no longer be an official of the State of Chen, but an official appointed by the court of our State of Yan. Think about it. There is no need to work for the corrupt court of the State of Chen anymore."
In Jiang Zuo's view, although Pan Hou was an official of the State of Chen, his spirit of preferring death to surrender still made Jiang Zuo admire him. Such a person could still be recruited.
Pan Hou snorted again and said, "Don't even think about it. Either kill me or don't even think about letting me serve your Yan State."
He seemed to have made up his mind and was not moved at all.
Jiang Zuo said: "Since Magistrate Pan doesn't appreciate it, I won't force it. Let's just leave it at that. I hope Magistrate Pan will think about it slowly and weigh the pros and cons."
Pan Hou remained silent, his heart filled with anger.
In his opinion, Jiang Zuo was not sincere and just wanted to humiliate him.
As an official of the Chen Kingdom for many years, he naturally refused to surrender to the enemy country after his defeat.
"This Magistrate Pan is our guest, so we must treat him well. Let him return to his home and stay for a few days."
Jiang Zuo said calmly, then turned and left.
The next day.
Guangning City returned to its pre-war calm.
Most of the people finally accepted the reality that Yan State occupied Guangning City and began to return to their lives.
Moreover, since the Yan army entered Guangning City, these people have actually gained a lot of benefits.
The Yan army distributed the food in their hands to the people in Guangning City one by one. Since they had received favors from the Yan army, many of the people naturally changed their views of the Yan army.
Inside the tavern, guests were talking non-stop.
"How long can this group of Yan soldiers stay?"
"I don't think they'll leave for another month or two."
Someone whispered.
"The Yan army invaded Guangning City in less than half a day. I heard that they have some powerful weapons in their hands. I think the imperial army will not be able to recapture Guangning City."
"I'm afraid that by then, when the imperial army recaptures Guangning City, life will be difficult for us common people."
"Now it seems that the Yan army is not a monster, and they treat ordinary people like us very well. It would be better for Yan to take over Guangning."
"Yes, the Yan army has only been here for a few days, and they are already distributing food to us civilians. Even the imperial court has never paid so much attention to us ordinary people before..."
"The people of Yan are giving us this kind of charity just to make us submit to their Yan State. Haha, they think that this little bit of profit can only buy people's hearts. It's a joke."
Among these guests, some were still dissatisfied with the Yan army.
In their view, the Yan army's occupation of Guangning City was only temporary, and they had reason to firmly believe that the Chen court would definitely send heavy troops to retake this important city of Guangning City.
"In the future, maybe you and I will both become citizens of Yan. There will be no need to win people's hearts."
"Do you really think I'm afraid of these Yan people? I'm just bowing my head because of the current situation. If the Yan army dares to bully us, I won't let these guys off."
Some people even made harsh remarks.
"Shh, you're risking your life, keep your voice down. If the soldiers of the Yan army hear this, you'll lose your head..."
The shopkeeper reminded the guests that after all, this tavern was his place, and if someone caused trouble here, he, the innocent shopkeeper, might be implicated.
There is chaos and war outside now, and ordinary people like him just want to live a good life and get by.
"What are you afraid of? Didn't the Yan army commander say that no Yan army soldier can oppress the people? If they break their promise, they will lose the people's hearts in Guangning City."
"Hey, you really take their words seriously. Maybe when the Yan army completely occupies Guangning City, they won't be afraid of treating us civilians like human beings anymore."
"I heard that Yan State is recruiting craftsmen with high salaries. I wonder if you will go to Yan State?"
someone asked.
"Of course not. I was born a Chen citizen. How could I lose my dignity for such a small amount of money..."
Even if they wanted to go, they couldn't compete with others now.
While the group was chatting animatedly, a few guests suddenly walked into the pub.
In an instant, the whole place fell silent.
The visitors were several soldiers from the Yan army.