The Great Rebel at the End of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 091 Testing

Zhou Lun personally made a trip to Shenmu and met with Qiao Daonan, the magistrate of Shenmu.

When facing Zhou Lun, Qiao Daonan put on a very warm attitude and even specially invited Zhou Lun to the city, saying that he had prepared a banquet to welcome Zhou Lun back.

However, Zhou Lun refused outright.

He knew perfectly well that Qiao Daonan would never do anything to him, and even if he entered the city, his safety was completely guaranteed. After all, the matter of pacification hadn't been discussed yet, and besides, it was Zhou Lun who was coming, not Gao Yingxiang.

If it were Gao Yingxiang who came, it's hard to say.

After all, Gao Yingxiang's reputation as the "King of Rebels" was widespread, and everyone knew his status in the rebel army. If they could lure and kill Gao Yingxiang, perhaps even Qiao Daonan or Yang He would take the risk.

With Gao Yingxiang dead, the rebel army is leaderless. The remaining members, including Li Wanqing, Wang Er, Zhao Sheng, Zhou Lun, and even Gao Yingxiang's right-hand men Huang Long and Liu Zhe, might start fighting amongst themselves for the leadership, and internal strife is highly likely.

But it was Zhou Lun who came, and that made all the difference.

Qiao Daonan wasn't stupid. Even if he lured and killed Zhou Lun, it wouldn't have any effect; instead, it would ruin the whole thing.

Once Gao Yingxiang learns of Zhou Lun's luring and killing, he will be furious and will not let the matter rest, making any further attempts at appeasement impossible. Moreover, Yang He's appeasement efforts are not only aimed at Gao Yingxiang's forces but also at the various rebel armies under Wang Jiayin. If they discover that the government has gone back on its word, openly offering appeasement while secretly luring and killing, the consequences are predictable.

Even so, Zhou Lun had no intention of entering Shenmu County.

His purpose in coming here was simply to make contact with Qiao Daonan, or rather, to gauge Yang He's true intentions behind Qiao Daonan, and to assess the sincerity of the other party's offer of amnesty and the amount of leverage they could offer.

Therefore, Zhou Lun directly rejected Qiao Daonan's offer, and the two met in a small town thirty miles outside Shenmu County.

After meeting, the two chatted and laughed, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

If outsiders didn't know that one was an official and the other a bandit, they might have thought they were longtime best friends.

"Brother Zhou, I won't hide anything from you." After a few rounds of drinks, Qiao Daonan, slightly tipsy, said to Zhou Lun, "This pacification effort was decided by Governor-General Yang. I will be in charge of making the contacts on your side."

"Oh? Could you please explain in detail, sir?" Zhou Lun raised an eyebrow, showing great interest.

Qiao Daonan smiled and said, "Lord Yang is a high-ranking official of the court, and this time he has been appointed by His Majesty to take charge of the three border regions. Logically speaking, given your actions, you should be unforgivable. However, Lord Yang is different from others in the court; he has always loved the people like his own children and stood up for them. After arriving in Shaanxi, Lord Yang carefully investigated the reasons for your uprising. After learning the truth, he sighed with regret, saying that it shouldn't have happened... You are all citizens of the Ming Dynasty, subjects of His Majesty, why did you choose this path of no return?"

"Heh, does Lord Yang not know why we're taking this road?" Zhou Lun sneered and immediately retorted.

Qiao Daonan's smile froze slightly, showing a hint of embarrassment, but he quickly regained his composure.

He nodded and continued, "How could Lord Yang not know? As far as I know, Lord Yang was extremely angry at the time and cursed those corrupt officials in court for not caring about the people's livelihood and exploiting the common people, which led to this result. Brother Zhou, if those corrupt officials had not already been executed by you, given Lord Yang's nature of hating evil, he certainly would not have let them go."

He sighed and earnestly said to Zhou Lun, "Lord Yang pities you all for going astray and doesn't want to see you continue down this dark path. Heaven cherishes life, and His Majesty is a wise ruler, so Lord Yang is willing to give you a chance to turn back. Lord Yang said that as long as Chief Gao and Brother Zhou can pull back from the brink and return to the right path, their past actions will be forgiven. Not only that, Lord Yang can also vouch for you on behalf of the court, officially rewarding you and turning you from bandits into officials. Such a good thing is truly rare in the world!"

At this point, Qiao Daonan revealed a tempting expression and lowered his voice to Zhou Lun, saying, "Before coming here, I consulted Lord Yang. If Brother Zhou can persuade Chief Gao this time, Lord Yang has agreed to give Brother Zhou a not-so-low-ranking official position."

"Not low-ranking? What kind of official is he?" Zhou Lun picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks, put it in his mouth, chewed it, and asked with a smile.

"Commander!" Qiao Daonan revealed the answer with a smile: "Didn't Commander Lu Jinchun pass away before? Fugu is in dire need of this position. Lord Yang said that he can recommend Brother Zhou for the position of Commander. As for Chief Gao, as long as he is willing to accept the offer of amnesty and defect to the imperial court, Lord Yang is willing to recommend Chief Gao to also hold the position of Commander of a prefecture and be granted the title of Assistant General. In addition, the position of Centurion will be hereditary. What do you think?"

With this bait thrown out, Zhou Lun couldn't help but marvel at how much Yang He had invested.

Not only was he offered the position of commander, but he was also given the military rank of adjutant general, and the hereditary title of centurion was an even greater honor. These conditions were quite substantial.

Even though the Ming Dynasty now values ​​civil officials over military officials, and the official positions of military officers cannot compare with those of civil officials, the problem is that, no matter what, the position of a commander of a prefecture is a third-rank official.

As for the rank of Assistant General, there was no fixed rank in the Ming Dynasty because the military camps were not under the jurisdiction of the garrison system; it was merely a military post within the camps. However, the problem was that Yang He appointed Gao Yingxiang as Assistant General with the additional title of Commander, so his starting rank was also third grade. Furthermore, the rank of Assistant General allowed direct command of an army, making it far more powerful than that of a Garrison Commander.

As for the hereditary position of centurion, it goes without saying that this essentially provides future generations with a secure, pass-down job. In that sense, it's undeniable that the offer demonstrates genuine sincerity.

However, Zhou Lun remained unmoved.

What are commanders, lieutenant generals, or hereditary centurions? These are nothing to him.

The Ming Dynasty is currently in turmoil, and its demise is imminent. Under these circumstances, any imperial appointments or official titles are meaningless. Even if they accept them, what benefit would they gain?

Offering official titles and making promises is nothing more than a piece of paper appointing someone. The rebel army remains the same rebel army, the territory remains the same, and Gao Yingxiang remains the leader. Apart from having an official hat from the imperial court on his head, nothing has changed at all. On the contrary, he is now subject to the constraints of the imperial court, including Yang He.

Yang He's calculations were meticulous; did he really think he could win them over with just these measures? That was far too simplistic.

"That's all?" Zhou Lun asked with a half-smile.

"This is truly a glorious and honorable thing for our ancestors!" Qiao Daonan said sincerely to Zhou Lun, "Brother Zhou, think about it. In the blink of an eye, you've shed your bandit status and become a court official. From now on, we'll serve the same court, respecting the court and His Majesty, and working together for the country. Especially for you, as a military general, the country is in dire need of capable people right now. If you can achieve some merit on the battlefield, you might even be promoted and ennobled in the future! When you receive your meritorious service and His Majesty bestows upon you a title, that will be a military merit. In our dynasty, military merit is tied to the fate of the nation. Brother, this is truly remarkable!"

Qiao Daonan was quite eloquent, and his words were vivid and captivating.

Unfortunately, he was facing Zhou Lun. Zhou Lun was already used to the scheming and empty promises in the business world. Moreover, he knew very well that no matter how confident Yang He was or how eloquent Qiao Daonan was, this matter of pacification was at best an act of deception by Yang He, who acted first and reported later, keeping it from the court.

Although Zhou Lun was unsure whether the current emperor, Chongzhen, knew about this matter, he felt that Chongzhen most likely did not.

Although Zhou Lun wasn't an expert in history and knew little about the late Ming Dynasty, Emperor Chongzhen's personality had been the subject of much online discussion in later generations. In his spare time, Zhou Lun had watched a few videos; this emperor was stubborn, ambitious, and adept at shifting blame—hardly the qualities of a good boss.

Moreover, even at the end of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Chongzhen still lacked the courage to negotiate and appease the Ming. Otherwise, he would not have been driven to a dead end and ultimately hanged himself on Coal Hill.

Before coming, Zhou Lun had already carefully considered this matter. His idea was simple: to make contact with the other party, see what cards they were up to, and then decide how to deal with them accordingly.

What Qiao Daonan is saying now is nothing but empty talk and grand promises; there's not a single shred of substance to it.

This made Zhou Lun scoff at Yang He's offer of amnesty, and he was even less optimistic about it. If Yang He was truly sincere, he should offer tangible benefits in exchange.

Just like the captains in history, they pulled out real money and used it to knock people unconscious.

If Yang He could achieve this, then Zhou Lun would think more highly of him. After all, such courage is not something just anyone possesses. Moreover, the rebel army is a mixed bag; most people, including the leaders, are not of one mind and each has their own agenda. Under such a great temptation, the possibility of them accepting the offer of amnesty is extremely high.

Unfortunately, Yang He simply couldn't do it. Or rather, he was simply incapable of doing it.

Therefore, the strategy of appeasement was, frankly speaking, nothing more than a deception. And what good could come of it if it was a deception?