“What? Grant me a grand fortune? Help me escape this cell and rise higher?” Zhao Chong looked at Li the Butcher with suspicion, then suddenly shrank back as a thought struck him. His voice trembled as he stammered, “Headman Li, the Governor isn’t planning to break me out of jail, is he?! That won’t do, absolutely not!”
If the pirates staged a jailbreak to rescue him, his freshly cleaned record of surrendering to them would be stained all over again!
Zhao Chong still clung to the fantasy that his surrender could stay buried forever, never to be uncovered.
“Bullshit! Break you out of jail? If we did that, wouldn’t the Governor’s whole plan go to waste?!”
Li the Butcher nearly launched into another tirade, but remembering the house and stash of gold, silver, and jewels Zhao had just offered, he held back.
“Then, then what do you mean by granting me a fortune, helping me escape, and rising higher?!” Zhao Chong asked, shrinking further, his voice quivering.
“You can submit a blood oath to the court, swearing to atone for your crimes with merit. Declare that you’ll retake Jiaxing City. It was lost under your watch, so you’ll reclaim it with your own hands. If you fail, offer your head to repay your damned emperor’s grace,” Li the Butcher said slowly.
“What? Me retake Jiaxing City?” Zhao Chong broke into a cold sweat at the words, retreating as he waved his hands frantically, “No, no, I wouldn’t dare! The city’s in the Governor’s hands now—how could I oppose him and try to take it back? I wouldn’t dare! I’m utterly loyal to the Governor, no second thoughts, I swear! Please tell him that, Headman…”
He thought this was a test—probing whether he harbored disloyalty or a desire to turn against them after his surrender.
If they deemed him unfaithful or a potential threat, they might silence him right here in the prison.
Such things weren’t unheard of since ancient times.
In fact, he suspected the pirates wanted him dead!
Look at the idea they’d cooked up—attack Jiaxing City? That was a death sentence! The city was held by the pirates, a ferocious bunch, and they had his surrender letter. He had no military talent to speak of—how the hell could he take it back? With that blood oath, wouldn’t the court just chop off his head when he failed?!
So he rushed to profess his loyalty, acting as if he were the pirates’ own son, devoted to his “pirate father” with unwavering fidelity.
“Quit yapping! If I tell you to write the blood oath, you write it! If I say retake Jiaxing, you retake it! Stop blabbering like a damn fool!” Seeing Zhao Chong’s face practically screaming “I’m scared to death,” Li the Butcher couldn’t hold back and let loose another round of curses.
Zhao Chong’s face crumpled as he whined, “Headman Li, the blood oath’s easy enough to write—I can pay the jailer for a bowl of blood and scribble it out in a moment with my hand. But after it’s written, what do I do? I don’t want to die yet! I want to keep this useful body to serve the Governor. Please, Headman, put in a good word for me with him. I’ll repay you handsomely later!”
“Keep this useful body to serve the Governor,” my ass—you’re just scared of dying.
Li the Butcher shot him a disdainful look but, considering the promise of future rewards, cut to the chase, “Relax, you won’t die. Not only will you live, you’ve got a bright future ahead. I’m telling you, when our Governor says you’ll retake Jiaxing, you’ll do it—and it’ll be a guaranteed success.”
“What? I’ll retake Jiaxing City and it’s guaranteed to work?” Zhao Chong didn’t catch on right away.
“Obviously! Jiaxing’s ours right now. If we say you can retake it, it’s as simple as a word from us. Don’t worry—just lead some troops to ‘reclaim’ it. You don’t even need to do anything. Set up camp outside the city, and by nightfall, we’ll slip away quietly. Come morning, you march in and take it.”
Li the Butcher clapped Zhao Chong on the shoulder, revealing the plan.
“What? Really?”
Zhao Chong’s eyes nearly popped out in shock and delight, and he eagerly asked again to confirm.
“Of course it’s real! Why would I lie to you?” Li the Butcher glared.
“Fantastic, fantastic! If that’s the case, I’ve got a two-hundred-percent chance of getting out of this cell, reclaiming my post, maybe even climbing higher!” Zhao Chong spun around in glee.
“Hmph, for your sake, our Governor’s going all out. We just took Jiaxing, haven’t even warmed the seats, and we’re handing it over to you. Don’t let him down,” Li the Butcher snorted, his tone leisurely.
“Headman Li, rest assured—as long as the Governor gives the word, I’d climb a mountain of knives or dive into a sea of fire without hesitation,” Zhao Chong hurriedly pledged his loyalty.
How could he not be loyal? His surrender letter was in their hands, along with his wife and kids.
“Good. As long as you behave, our Governor says he’ll never expose your surrender to us. You can keep playing the noble Ming official forever. We’ll even toss you some merits now and then to help you along. Heh, one day, you might even leave your name in the history books, Lord Zhao.”
Li the Butcher painted a glorious future for him.
“Headman Li, don’t worry—I’ll follow orders to the letter. If the Governor says east, I won’t dare go west,” Zhao Chong thumped his chest repeatedly.
“Alright, the message is delivered. Get to it quick. If you mess up the Governor’s plans, don’t blame us for killing without blinking.”
After dangling the carrot, Li the Butcher threw in a harsh threat.
“Headman Li, I’ll write the blood oath right now,” Zhao Chong said hastily, then looked at him awkwardly, his face flushing, “Ahem, could you trouble yourself to call the jailer? I need to borrow a bowl of blood…”
Li the Butcher twitched his lips, summoned the jailer, tossed him a silver ingot, and told him to “borrow” a bowl of blood from another prisoner.
As Zhao Chong spread out some paper to write, Li stopped him, “No paper. Tear a piece of your prison garb and write on that. It fits the scene better—more moving.”
“Headman Li, brilliant!”
Zhao Chong instantly grasped the intent and couldn’t help but praise him. With Li’s help, he ripped off a piece of his prison clothes, dipped his fingers in the blood, and began writing:
—
“Blood Oath of the Guilty Official Zhao Chong:
Days ago, I, the guilty official Zhao Chong, fought the pirates but was outmatched. As the city fell, I broke through the encirclement at great risk to seek aid from Zhejiang Governor Li Tianchong. Not only did he refuse reinforcements, he unjustly threw me in jail.
I fear not imprisonment, but failing to save Jiaxing’s hundreds of thousands of people and repaying His Majesty’s gracious favor.
Now, I submit this blood oath, staking my head on retaking Jiaxing to wash away my shame and serve the court.
Once Jiaxing is reclaimed, I’ll return to this cell to await the court’s judgment. If I’m incompetent and fail, I’ll offer my life in atonement.
Guilty official Zhao Chong submits this in blood. Long live, long live, long live our Emperor!”
—
