Chapter 5: The Whole Family is Executed

  Jiangzhou, Zhao Wei and Li Yi were checking the grain and fodder that had been requisitioned from various aristocratic families over the past few days when Pang Le suddenly burst in, beaming with joy: "Your Excellency, wonderful news, the most wonderful news!"

  "Oh, what's up?" Zhao Wei asked.

  Pong Le said: "Just now, Chengdu Prefect Yu An sent someone to report that three days later, Liu Zhang will personally go to Fucheng to welcome the lord into Chengdu."

  "How many soldiers and horses are following?" Zhao Wei asked nervously.

  "Only General Zhang Ren's 5,000 infantrymen," Pang Tong replied with a smile.

  "Heaven helps me." Zhao Wei was overjoyed: "Liu Zhang's time of death has arrived. When the time comes, I will lead 3,000 cavalry to go first, General Pang you lead the main army to follow, if Liu Zhang opens the city gate, I will take advantage of the situation and kill my way in, if he doesn't open the city gate, the main army will besiege it, and with my internal response in Fu City, Liu Zhang will surely die."

  At this time, Li Yi frowned and said: "Liu Zhang usually doesn't care about government affairs, why is he making such a big move today to welcome the lord to Fu City?"

  Zhao Yun said, "Liu Zhang thinks that by doing this, he can make me enter Chengdu. Such a foolish person is not worthy of being the master of Xichuan. It's time to replace him. General Pang, General Li, let's take stock of our troops immediately."

  At night, Liu Zhang summoned Zhang Ren to meet him.

  "Your humble servant greets you, milord." Zhang Ren bowed with his hands clasped together.

  "General Zhang, are the 5,000 elite soldiers I let you choose satisfactory?"

  "All packed and ready to go."

  Liu Zhang nodded and said to Zhang Ren, "Remember, the selected soldiers must be brave warriors who are willing to fight to the death. Equip them with strong bows and crossbows as much as possible. Take whatever you need from the arsenal in Chengdu, make sure they are fully armed."

  "Please be assured, milord," Zhang Ren said loudly, "these 5,000 soldiers were personally trained by me and there are no cowards among them. It's just...". Zhang Ren hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Milord, is it your intention that we will engage in battle when we arrive at Fu City?"

  Liu Zhang said: "That's right, going to Fu Cheng, Zhao Wei will definitely rebel. General Zhang, this time you may be 5,000 soldiers against 50,000 rebels. Do you dare to follow the official to Fu Cheng to kill the enemy?" The next day was the day to go to Fu Cheng, and Zhang Ren was a general who followed the march, so there was no need to hide it from him anymore.

  Zhang Ren was shocked, feeling grateful for Liu Zhang's trust in him. He said solemnly: "Zhang Ren vows to die loyal to the lord, and will share life and death with the lord. However, since the lord knows that Zhao Wei will rebel, why did he only bring 5,000 infantrymen? In this case, I dare not guarantee that we can resist the rebels, but I can only guarantee that I will die before the lord."

  Liu Zhang nodded, Zhang Ren was not like Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who would take charge of everything in any situation, as if his appearance alone could make thousands of troops scatter. Compared to these fierce generals, Zhang Ren was more rational. Liu Zhang nodded and said: "You don't need to worry about these things, just recommend a cavalry commander for me."

  "Let Lei Tong be the commander of the vanguard." Zhang Ren said without hesitation.

  "Lei Tong." Liu Zhang muttered to himself, but he didn't have any impression of it. After all, there weren't many capable cavalry commanders under his command in history. He said to Zhang Ren, "Alright, go back and prepare the troops. If we succeed in putting down the rebellion this time, you will be the General of Yi Province."

  "Thank you, sir." Zhang Ren bowed and backed out of the room.

  Liu Zhang beckoned to Wang Chong, and the two of them headed towards the large prison. Inside, Wang Fu was sitting alone, looking haggard. Seeing Liu Zhang arrive, he immediately seized the opportunity to rush forward and shout: "Your Excellency must not go to Fucheng, otherwise Western Shu will be doomed!" Wang Fu had already heard that Liu Zhang had decided to go to Fucheng, and for these past few days, he had been worried sick in prison.

  Liu Zhang said with his hands behind his back: "Wang Fu, don't you know your mistake yet? If you admit your error, I will immediately restore your original position. Otherwise, this official will let you spend the rest of your life in this great prison."

  Wang Fu listened to Liu Zhang's words, grasped the wooden pillar with both hands, and indignantly said to Liu Zhang: "My lord, even if Wang Fu has to spend his whole life in prison, he will still be loyal and speak straightforwardly. Zhao Wei is a wolf-hearted villain, and we must not go to Fu City."

  "Stubborn and unrepentant." Liu Zhang scolded loudly, ordering the prison guard to open the cell door, then dismissed everyone.

  Wang Fu looked at Liu Zhang in surprise as he walked into the prison, Liu Zhang glanced at Wang Fu and nodded: "Indeed a loyal and righteous man, Wang Fu, you have been imprisoned for three days by this official, do you have any complaints against this official?"

  Wang Fu cupped his hands and said: "I dare not."

  "How dare you, yet it's within reason. After three days in prison, the official already knows your loyalty. The official is prepared to entrust you with a heavy responsibility, taking on the position of Chengdu Prefect, responsible for all administrative orders and defense of Chengdu. Before I return to Chengdu, you will have the authority to mobilize all resources and soldiers in Chengdu. Are you willing to accept this order?"

  Liu Zhang promoted Yu An as Zhongzheng Congshi, which is the highest official under the state governor, in charge of military and political affairs. However, Liu Zhang let Yu An follow him, and Yu An had no real power to exercise, not even comparable to a Chengdu magistrate's actual position. Although it seemed like a promotion, he was actually being marginalized, and Liu Zhang left the position of Chengdu magistrate vacant, which was actually reserved for Wang Fu.

  "This..." Liu Zhang's attitude changed too quickly, and Wang Fu hadn't yet turned the corner.

  "Whether you're willing or not, it's all just one sentence." Liu Zhang said coldly.

  "Wang Fu is deeply grateful for your great kindness, and is willing to die in service." Wang Fu finally said loudly with a bow.

  Liu Zhang nodded and said, "That's good. Later, Wang Can will hand over the seal to you. After I leave for Fu City tomorrow, you'll take over the post. I want you to send troops to keep an eye on Yu An's family. If there's any news of war in Fu City, immediately behead Yu An and his whole family."

  "What?" Wang Fu exclaimed in great surprise.

  Liu Zhang let out a light sigh and said, "It's not that I, the governor, delight in killing, but there are too many turncoats among the officials of Yi Province. We must kill one to warn a hundred; otherwise, those who collude with Zhao Wei will be numerous, and Chengdu will also fall into great chaos. Do you understand?"

  Wang Fu felt a chill in his heart, it turned out that the lord had long been aware of Zhao Wei's intentions. The previous day was just an act, and colluding with rebels to slaughter the entire household was nothing unusual, it was just surprising to hear it from the weak-willed Liu Zhang's mouth. Wang Fu immediately bowed and said: "My lord can rest assured, I will definitely stabilize the rear for you."

  Liu Zhang walked out of the big prison, let out a sigh of relief, what needed to be arranged had been arranged, and the rest was up to fate.

  On the second day, Liu Zhang personally went to Fu City, accompanied by his attendants Zhang Song and Fa Zheng, as well as Zhang Ren leading 5,000 soldiers to escort him. They brought over a hundred carriages loaded with gifts for Zhao Wei's army, the creaking of the wheels echoing through the ground.

  Yu An looked at these big cars and couldn't help but feel delighted, thinking that Liu Zhang was really foolish enough to be sold out and still helped others count the money. When Zhao Wei's cavalry arrived, Liu Zhang didn't know how to cry, but looking at the 5,000 soldiers, each soldier had a full quiver on his back, Yu An felt a little more cautious.

  The army arrived at Fucheng, and the officials of Fucheng came out to welcome them. Liu Zhang entered Fucheng amidst the warm welcome, looking at the straight guards standing on the city wall and the prosperous streets of Fucheng. He said to Gong Zhi, the county magistrate of Fucheng: "Gong sir, this Fucheng is well-governed, with strong defenses and wealthy citizens. Bring me the name list of civil and military officials in Fucheng, I want to reward them."

  Liu Zhang saw that all the officials in Fucheng had temporarily prepared for his arrival, and the soldiers were carefully selected from the city guards. The streets they passed through had also been decorated, and the poor people had been isolated beforehand. As soon as Gong Zhi saw Liu Zhang's satisfaction, a smile bloomed on his face, and he immediately took out the name list of Fucheng officials and handed it to Liu Zhang.

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