Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Lushansi, located in the southern part of Guiyang Prefecture, was originally the territory of Lufan, one of the eight tribes (Buyi ethnic group) of Dingfan Prefecture. After Lufan Chief Lu Dayong surrendered to the Great Zhou Dynasty, it became the main base for Li Benshen, the governor of Guizhou, to suppress the remnants of the Guizhou Guard Army.

"Sigh~" A long sigh escaped his lips, revealing the deep sorrow in Admiral Li's heart.

"What troubles you, General?" asked Yu Youde, a trusted confidant and commander-in-chief, upon seeing this.

"What else could it be? It's all because of that slippery old mudskipper," Li Benshen said bitterly. The slippery old mudskipper referred to Ren Zhuan, the governor of Guizhou under the Great Wei Kingdom. This old man was over seventy years old, yet still vigorous, leading a small remnant of his defeated troops as they roamed the mountains of southern Guizhou. Li Benshen had led his troops to encircle and suppress him, achieving some victories, but he could never truly eliminate him. Every time the old man was defeated, he would disappear into the deep forests as if vanished into thin air. If one wasn't careful, he would occasionally come down from the mountains to harass the men who were besieging him, giving Li Benshen a real headache!

"General, there's no need to worry. The mountains are short of food and clothing. As long as we persist in our encirclement and suppression, we'll wipe out those mountain rats sooner or later," Yu Youde quickly reassured the commander-in-chief upon seeing his concern.

"Alas, Guizhou is all mountains. To encircle and trap that old mudfish, we need more troops. But the Weiguo army is pressing in. A while ago, Governor Luo (Luo Huijin, the governor of Guizhou) took some troops to the Sichuan-Guizhou border; then Governor Zhao (Zhao Tingchen, the governor of Yunnan and Guizhou) personally led a large army to Wujiang to set up defenses; not long ago, Governor Zhao ordered Shang Jianguo, the commander of Guizhou, to lead 3,000 garrison soldiers and 13,000 local soldiers to reinforce Jianchang. Now I only have a little over 20,000 troops at my disposal for the encirclement. It sounds like a lot, but when you put them in the vast mountains, it's not enough at all! Yesterday I received His Majesty's order, saying that the war in the north is not going well, and His Majesty wants to abandon Huguang and return to Yunnan. He strictly ordered us to wipe out the remnants of the Weiguo army in Guizhou as soon as possible. This task is really not easy to handle!"

Yu Youde sighed with Shangguan for a long time, then suddenly had a flash of inspiration and said, "Judging from the situation, the reason why the old thief Ren was able to escape our encirclement and suppression so easily was not because he himself was so capable, but because the local chieftains provided him with food and supplies and acted as guides. For example, the Long clan of Langdai, the Long clan of Puan Prefecture, and the Long and Shi clans of Bafan are all local tyrants in Guizhou. With their help, the old thief was able to escape."

"Do you need to tell me these things? I know them perfectly well," Li Benshen said, glancing at Yu Youde with annoyance.

Yu Youde pretended not to see him and continued, "Success and failure both depend on local bullies. Why doesn't the General think of a solution among the locals?"

"Hmm?" Li Benshen was taken aback upon hearing this, and slowly said, "Tell me your thoughts. If you can help me catch this old mudfish, I will remember your great merit!"

Yu Youde chuckled, “There’s no good way to deal with this, it’s just a matter of rewards and punishments. Please send an order to all parts of Guizhou: anyone who informs the Wei Army will be rewarded with a thousand gold pieces and reported to the court for a sixth-rank official position; anyone who dares to provide assistance to the Wei Army will have their entire family exterminated and their property confiscated.”

“Your method works well,” Li Benshen chuckled. “However, one more condition must be added: if any local officials assist the court in suppressing bandits, they shall be rewarded with mountains, forests, and fields according to the magnitude of their merits.”

Yu Youde's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed, "No local official doesn't want to expand their territory. General, you are brilliant!"

Li Benshen's military orders quickly spread throughout Guizhou, and the pro-Zhou chieftains were eager to receive rewards. Other rewards were one thing, but land was the lifeblood of these chieftains; how could they not strive for it? The chieftains who were loyal to the Zhou army felt immense pressure; the extermination of three generations and the confiscation of property were no joke, meaning that families that had been passed down for decades or even centuries could be destroyed in an instant!
Chieftain Xue Rong of Kangzuo was extremely anxious! Not for any other reason than that the remnants of the Guards Army, led by Ren Zhuan, the Guizhou Governor of the Great Wei Kingdom, and Danba Darijie, the Guizhou Commander, were currently hiding in the vast mountains of Kangzuo. Although called remnants, only about seven hundred of the actual Guards Army soldiers remained; the rest were local troops loyal to the Great Wei Kingdom. Two thousand might not seem like much, but for the small chieftain of Kangzuo, feeding the people and feeding the horses was a significant expense. Within a few months, Xue's granaries were empty.

Xue Rong did not actually want to get involved in the war between Wei and Wu, because either side could easily wipe out the Kangzuo Xue clan. However, the Kangzuo Xue clan had been loyal to the Langdai Long clan for generations, and the Langdai Pacification Commissioner Long'an was loyal to the State of David. Naturally, the Xue clan, which was loyal to the Long clan, also had to be loyal to David.

But the situation is deteriorating day by day. The Wei army's control over Guizhou is reduced to a small area around Kangzuo. Even the once invincible Long Xuanwei Envoy has only two hundred local soldiers left, while tens of thousands of Wu troops roam the mountains below. Xue Rong feels that continuing to follow the Wei state will inevitably lead to his demise. Admiral Li has declared that anyone who dares to provide assistance to the Wei army will have their entire family and property confiscated. If that happens, the Xue family of Kangzuo is finished!
Xue Rong grew increasingly anxious as he thought about it. After pondering for a long time, he steeled himself, picked up his pen, and wrote a letter of surrender to Li Benshen. He then summoned his servant Xue Gui and said, "Go down the mountain and deliver this letter to Admiral Li. Remember, you must deliver it to Admiral Li himself!"

Xue Gui sewed the surrender letter into the lining of his clothes and then went down the mountain to receive his orders.

"So you are the messenger sent by Xue Rong, the chieftain of Kangzuo? What is your purpose in requesting an audience with this governor?" Li Benshen asked, his eyes fixed intently on the man before him. "The false governor Ren Zhuan and the admiral Danba Darijie are currently hiding in the mountains of Kangzuo. My master has long wished to abandon the darkness and embrace the light, and has specially ordered me to inform you," Xue Gui said, taking out a letter from a hidden compartment in his clothing and presenting it to the emperor.

"The false governor Ren Zhuan and admiral Danba Darijie are currently hiding in the mountains of Kangzuo?" Li Benshen was shocked upon hearing this. He opened the letter and read it carefully. Xue Rong's letter was written humbly, expressing not only his admiration for him and his sincere desire to pledge allegiance, but also clearly describing the deployment of the guards in the mountains in the appendix.

"You audacious scoundrel! How dare you deceive this governor!" Li Benshen suddenly shouted, carefully observing Xue Gui's expression.

"I'm innocent! General! The patriarch's loyalty is as clear as day!" Xue Gui kowtowed to the ground, making a loud thud.

The morning mist shrouded the mountains of Kangzuo, and the Kangzuo chieftain Xue Rong stood anxiously at the entrance of the village, listening to the sounds coming from below.

"Master, they've arrived!" Xue Gui suddenly said. With this, groups of people appeared faintly in the thick fog.

"Quickly! Open the gate!" Xue Rong shouted.

Li Benshen's subordinates Li Fu and Wang Jian led 4,000 elite troops into the stronghold. Guided by Xue Rong, they marched straight towards the residence of Ren Zhuan, the governor of Guizhou under the Great Wei Kingdom. Behind them followed Yu Youde, the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Guard, Long Lu, the military commander of Duyun, Liu Xuezheng, the guerrilla commander of Anshun, Bu Shigong, and other troops. Commander Li himself led his army to surround the entire mountain.

Wu Jun's arrival was sudden, catching the guards on the mountain off guard. The chieftains Long Yitu, Long Feihan, Shi Wannian, and Long Zhengfei were killed in battle. Ren Zhuan, the governor of Guizhou, Long Anfan, the envoy of Langdai, and Long Jizhao, the local prefect of Puan Prefecture, were captured. Danba Darijie, the governor of Guizhou, fought desperately to break through the encirclement but was riddled with bullets by Wu Jun's muskets.

Li Benshen, the Guizhou Provincial Commander of the Great Zhou Dynasty, stared smugly at Ren Zhuan and the others who were being brought in. "Lord Ren, did you ever expect this day to come?"

Ren Xuan was filled with shame. "We each serve our own masters. Please don't take offense, Lord Li."

"Now that things have come to this, does Ren Gong wish to live?" Li Benshen asked jokingly.

"Now I am a prisoner, my life and death are in the hands of Lord Li," Ren Zhuan said hesitantly, his eyes filled with a hint of pleading.

“Alas, I did not want to kill Ren Gong, but His Majesty has ordered that Ren Gong be executed immediately upon capture, and his head displayed far and wide as a warning to others,” Li Benshen said, pulling out the edict written by Wu Sangui, waving it at Ren Zhuan, and ordering him to be taken away and beheaded. Wu Sangui’s order to execute Ren Zhuan and others was not out of spite, but because the Wu army had suffered repeated defeats and desperately needed a major victory to boost morale, so he thought of taking Ren Zhuan and his men’s heads.

Without a word, the attendants dragged Ren Zhuan, Long Anfan, and Long Jizhao away. Long Anfan, the Pacification Commissioner of Langdai, suddenly saw Xue Rong, the Chief Commissioner of Kangzuo, and roared, "You traitor, how dare you act like this!"

"Heh," Xue Rong sneered, "After you die, Lang Dai will henceforth bear the surname Xue!" (End of Chapter)