The prince is more stable

Chapter 693 Using Service as a Substitute for Killing
The sunlight in the courtyard was dazzling; it was the height of summer in July, the hottest time of the year.

Zhao Xiaoqian sat under a ginkgo tree in the courtyard, and despite the dense shade, he was still covered in sweat.

However, Zhao Xiaoqian did not feel uncomfortable at all. Compared to lying on the bed in the room where he could not move, he preferred the natural air and the sunlight shining directly on his face.

Turning to look at the maid, Zhao Xiaoqian gestured to her: "Remove my armor."

maid:"???"

"Remove your armor! Quickly, remove it!"

"???"

Chen Shou, who was standing nearby, couldn't stand it any longer and said in a deep voice, "Removing His Highness's clothes, can't you see how hot His Highness is? Who bought these maids? They are so ignorant! Your Highness, I will go to the slave trader and buy you two more obedient and well-behaved maids."

The maid was agitated; her almond-shaped eyes filled with tears and pleading as she looked at Zhao Xiaoqian.

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled faintly: "No need, let's go with her. She's a bit silly and clumsy, which is good. She's not cunning."

The maidservants hurriedly undressed Zhao Xiaoqian, and at his signal, they even removed his undergarments. Zhao Xiaoqian was now lying shirtless on the soft couch, with only a few strips of cloth wrapped around his body to treat his wounds.

Freed from the constraints of clothing, Zhao Xiaoqian felt refreshed and let out a heartfelt sigh.

"Another bowl of chilled plum juice would be even better..." Zhao Xiaoqian murmured.

Chen Shou hurriedly said, "This... really won't do. The young master is recovering from his injuries, and the doctor has instructed him not to eat anything cold or raw."

Zhao Xiaoqian glanced at him unhappily and said, "Then make me another bowl of brown sugar ginger soup and another sanitary napkin?"

"If a doctor can save me once, he can save me a second time. Will I die from drinking a bowl of chilled plum juice?"

Chen Shou shook his head firmly: "Even if Your Highness beats me to death, you must not drink anything cold today, not even think about it."

Zhao Xiaoqian was even more displeased: "Get out! All of you get out!"

Chen Shou and Jia Jiu left dejectedly.

Zhao Xiaoqian was lying under the shade of a tree, about to close his eyes and take a nap, when he saw Zong Ze walk into the courtyard.

Zong Ze stepped forward and carefully observed Zhao Xiaoqian's complexion before stroking his beard and smiling, "Your Highness looks much better today. It's fortunate that you were saved, otherwise all of us under your command would have had to slit our throats..."

Zhao Xiaoqian: "...Go and get me a bowl of chilled plum juice."

"Hehe, this humble general would rather die than comply." Zong Ze refused decisively.

"Damn it, none of them listen to reason!" Zhao Xiaoqian cursed angrily.

"Let's get down to business. What are you doing here? Get out of here after you've finished speaking."

Zong Ze sat down in front of him and slowly said, "After Your Highness was injured, this humble general and the 100,000 soldiers under Zhong Jianzhong avenged Your Highness. In recent days, the army has swept through Yanyun and killed countless Khitans. Although we have committed a lot of atrocities, we have also made most of the cities and towns in Yanyun submit."

"Currently, only a few cities in the west, such as Datong Prefecture, have not yet been taken over by Yanyun. In a few more days, they will probably be taken over."

Zhao Xiaoqian raised an eyebrow slightly: "How many Khitans have you killed in the past few days?"

"Nearly 10,000 people, including Khitans, Xis, Bohais, and Mohes, were killed by our army, and more than 300,000 were driven away from Yan and Yun. At the same time, our army also sealed off the Song-Liao border, and those Khitans who fled to the border will probably have to undergo another round of cleansing."

Zhao Xiaoqian frowned and said, "We've killed a bit too many people. Did we kill any Han Chinese?"

Zong Ze lowered his eyes and said, "With swords in hand, it's hard to hide the desire to kill. Some Han people do not submit to the king's rule and only recognize the Liao Kingdom as their master. Those who try to resist are also killed. Your Highness, this is unavoidable."

Zhao Xiaoqian was silent for a while, then said, "Pass down the order to give them some leeway. After Yanyun takes over, it will need people to farm and work. People are resources, and it would be a pity to kill them for nothing. It would be better to imprison the Khitans and people of all ethnic groups in Yanyun and use them for labor instead of killing them."

Zong Ze's eyes widened: "Using labor instead of killing?"

"Yes, to put it simply, if you want to live, you have to work as a laborer for the Great Song Dynasty. Although the handover of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun was mostly peaceful, many cities and houses were damaged by the war, and these all need manpower to repair them."

Zong Ze thought for a moment and said happily, "Your Highness has a good idea. Keep those Khitans and people of other ethnicities here. There's no need to pay them wages. As long as they don't starve to death, they can only work for our Great Song Dynasty if they want to survive. This will save a lot of money and grain."

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded and said, "After they've worked for three years, we'll send them back to Liao. We've probably squeezed these people dry by now, so let Liao handle the trouble."

Zong Ze clasped his hands and said, "This humble general understands. We should make the best use of people and resources. Killing them for no reason would not only be useless, but would also invite criticism from the world. It would be better to use them for labor instead of killing them, so as to show the benevolence and righteousness of our Great Song Dynasty."

Zhao Xiaoqian nodded: "That's roughly the idea. You're a bit thick-skinned, so you can talk about 'benevolence and righteousness' with a straight face, but I can't. I'm shy and introverted, and I'm too embarrassed to say it..."

Zong Ze: “…………”

Don't argue with seriously injured patients.

Zong Ze then whispered, "After Your Highness was injured, I sent Generals Di Zi and Zhang Rong, each leading 5,000 soldiers, to the west of Yanyun to search for and pursue the Liao general Xiao Chouwo. This morning, scouts reported that the two generals discovered traces of Xiao Chouwo's ​​remaining troops north of Datong Prefecture, and it seems they intend to escape back to Liao."

"It should be within the next two days that the two generals will be able to capture Xiao Chouwo and avenge Your Highness's great grudge."

Zhao Xiaoqian slightly raised his eyes, his expression unchanged: "What did the Liao Kingdom say?" "The Liao Kingdom sent a fast horse that could travel eight hundred li to deliver a personal letter from Yelü Yanxi..." Zong Ze reached into his robe and handed an unopened letter to Zhao Xiaoqian.

Zhao Xiaoqian opened the letter, glanced at it quickly, then put it away and sneered, "Sending an envoy to explain and apologize... Heh, do you think this matter can be resolved with just a few words of explanation? My life is so precious, how can the Liao Kingdom not pay the price?"

"Your Highness intends to..."

"The Liao envoy, Xiao Fengxian, is already on his way and will arrive in Xijin Prefecture in a few days. This time, I will drag my severely wounded and dying body to speak with Xiao Fengxian in person. I want the Liao envoy to be so ashamed that he will hang himself in front of me when he sees me..."

Zong Ze laughed: "This humble general can help them kick the chairs off..."

Zhao Xiaoqian said calmly, "I heard that Xiao Chouwo is the Imperial Son-in-Law Commandant of the Liao Kingdom?"

"Yes, nominally Yelü Yanxi's uncle."

"Xiao Chouwo led his army in a surprise attack to assassinate me. Apart from sending envoys to apologize, the Liao Kingdom had no other attitude?"

"A messenger from Liao has sent word that Yelü Yanxi has removed Xiao Chouwo from his clan, dismissed him from all his official posts, and declared him a traitor to Liao in court. He has also dispatched three thousand Pishi soldiers to Datong Prefecture to cooperate with our army in pursuing and killing Xiao Chouwo, and to offer his head as an apology to Your Highness."

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled: "Very good, that's a very proper attitude. I can't bear to rip them off anymore..."

After chatting for a while, seeing that Zhao Xiaoqian looked somewhat tired, Zong Ze said, "This humble general will immediately issue an order to have the soldiers put away their weapons and focus on capturing and imprisoning the Khitans within the Yan-Yun territory... Does Your Highness have any further instructions?"

Zhao Xiaoqian listlessly raised his eyes: "Yes."

"Your Highness, please give me your instructions."

"...Go get me a bowl of chilled plum juice."

Zong Ze chuckled and said, "Since Your Highness has not given any further instructions, this humble general will take his leave now."

After saying that, Zong Ze turned and left.

Zhao Xiaoqian said resentfully from behind him, "Hey, get me a bowl... Damn it, you think you're all grown up now?"

A teacup slammed into the armor on Zong Ze's back with a loud clang.

Zong Ze seemed oblivious, quickening his pace and disappearing in the blink of an eye.

…………

More than a hundred miles north of Datong Prefecture, Xiao Chouwo was leading his remaining troops in a hasty northward escape.

The direction they fled was naturally towards the Liao Kingdom. Once they crossed the border of Datong Prefecture, they would be in Liao territory to the north, and then he and his generals would be considered to have survived.

Xiao Chouwo himself did not expect that after the surprise attack on Zhao Xiaoqian, he seemed to have stirred up a hornet's nest. The Song army in Yanyun territory not only changed its attitude drastically, but also searched for him and his remaining troops like madmen.

Xiao Chouwo led his army through numerous dangers, fleeing in all directions with no discernible pattern. They charged left and right, nearly being discovered by the pursuing Song army several times. They hid in deep mountains, canyons, and ordinary rural dwellings, using every possible place to escape, which is how they barely managed to survive.

Over the next few days, the situation did not calm down; on the contrary, the Song army's pursuit became even more frantic, and the Song army's troop strength and search efforts near Datong Prefecture were significantly increased.

This was aimed at killing him without leaving a complete corpse.

Unexpectedly, merely injuring Zhao Xiaoqian completely enraged the 100,000 Song soldiers. Had Xiao Chouwo known this outcome, he should have thought more carefully before taking action.

In the end, he was rash and reckless.

Xiao Chouwo later learned that Zhao Xiaoqian only had four hundred imperial guards by his side. Yet, these four hundred men managed to hold off the attack of his three thousand elite troops, inflicting heavy casualties on his forces.

Of the more than three thousand men, less than a thousand remained. Their only achievement was severely injuring Zhao Xiaoqian, who, barring any unforeseen circumstances, should survive.

It was such a pity. Xiao Chouwo felt regretful just thinking about it, and at the same time hated the spineless people in the Liao capital's court.

If Shangjing had allowed him to launch a surprise attack on Zhao Xiaoqian, and if he had been given more troops, even just two or three thousand more, the outcome of that night's battle would likely have been different, and Zhao Xiaoqian would probably have lost his life.

With only four hundred imperial guards by his side, what a wonderful opportunity it was, one that one might not encounter even once in a lifetime. Xiao Chouwo seized the opportunity, but not fully grasped it.

After a night of fierce fighting, Zhao Xiaoqian was only seriously injured, and Xiao Chouwo failed to eliminate this major threat to the Liao Dynasty.

Of course, Xiao Chouwo finally experienced the Song army's firearms firsthand this time, and had to admit that the situation between the Song and Liao dynasties had developed to this point, and it was no wonder that the Liao dynasty was not to blame. With such powerful firearms, the Liao dynasty would not have enough soldiers to die.

He had to admit one fact: the fate of the Liao Dynasty... seemed to be truly heading towards its demise.

Even if Zhao Xiaoqian died, could he really reverse the situation between the Song and Liao dynasties?

Xiao Chouwo was unaware of this; he was merely a military general and couldn't think that far ahead.

Looking up at the distant mountains, Xiao Chouwo let out a soft breath and called out, "Brothers, quicken your pace! Once we cross the mountain ahead, we'll be back in the Liao Dynasty, and no one will be chasing us anymore."

(End of this chapter)