When Zhao Siwan was still a teenager, she went to the retired Forbidden Army general Li Su's family to find a job as a slave in the general's mansion to earn a living. General Li Su interviewed him and came to the conclusion on the spot that this kid must be a traitor in the future! The reason was that his eyes were confused and his words were absurd, which meant that Zhao Siwan's eyes were erratic and his words were absurd.
Appearances come from the heart, the mouth is the door to the heart, and the eyes are the messengers of the heart. When applying for a job, the interview mainly examines not professional skills, but character. You can judge a person's knowledge and accomplishments by looking at his eyes and expressions when he speaks, as well as the content of his speech.
Li Su asserted back then that Zhao Siwan would definitely be a big disaster in the future, just like Zhuge Liang asserted that Wei Yan would definitely rebel. Therefore, Li Su planned to shut him out.
This Li Su is the son-in-law of "Healing Master" Zhang Quanyi. His wife Zhang advised: "It is better to offend a gentleman than a villain. Since you know that he is a greedy and evil villain, don't be so ruthless and unjust."
"In Madam's opinion, what should we do?"
"You have to refuse, but you have to give him more gold, silver, silk and satin, and kind words to comfort him."
"That makes sense!"
So, Li Su gave Zhao Siwan a huge sum of money, "Sorry, the small temple cannot accommodate the eminent monk, and the pond cannot hide the dragon. Please find another job!"
When Zhao Siwan occupied Chang'an, Li Su lived in Chang'an City. Zhao Siwan visited Li Su many times, kowtowed to Li Su, thanked him for his kindness to her, and treated Li Su with great respect and courtesy.
Li Su turned around and said to his wife Zhang: "This guy has come to see me again and again, and he is very respectful. I think he intends to ask me to serve as an official and be his political vase. I would rather die than fight with the traitors." You are complicit!" After saying that, he was about to hang himself from the beam.
Zhang quickly hugged him and said, "Instead of committing suicide, it is better to persuade him to return to the central government. It can save his life, save his life, and also do a great good thing for the country. Why not do it?"
"That makes sense!"
Behind a successful man, there must be a virtuous woman.
Li Su found Zhao Siwan's aide Chen Ranneng, and the two hit it off. Chen Renneng had always wanted to persuade Zhao Siwan to return to the central government.
Zhao Siwan was in trouble like a lost lamb. He wanted to defect to Hou Shu, but he wanted to resist and wait and see, and he wanted to surrender to the court...
He was just about to ask his benefactor Li Su to show him a clear path. Li Su and Chen Rangneng were like angels, appearing at the crossroads of his life. Chen Rangneng was able to analyze the pros and cons for him:
"You have no deep enmity with the Later Han Dynasty, but it's just because you are Zhao Kuangzan's subordinate, and Zhao Kuangzan and his father Zhao Yanshou both accepted false orders from the Khitans. This is a matter between the Zhao family and the imperial court. What does it have to do with you? You were just afraid of being implicated.
Now the three battlefields of the imperial court are blooming at the same time, and the pressure is high. If you repent and express your submission at this time, then the imperial court will definitely not treat you badly. If you persist in your stubbornness, I am afraid you will have to wait for death. "
Zhao Siwan nodded frequently and thought it made sense.
At this time, the besieging troops also learned that Zhao Siwan's army was out of food and had to rely on cannibalism to survive. The general Guo Congyi also sent an envoy to persuade Zhao Siwan to put down the butcher's knife and become a Buddha immediately.
Zhao Siwan finally agreed to surrender and sent an envoy to Bianzhou to meet with Liu Chengyou to express his willingness to surrender.
To peacefully liberate Chang'an, there is no greater good! Liu Chengyou was very happy. He immediately appointed Zhao Siwan as a post of the Huazhou Zhenguo Army, and appointed his general Chang Yanqing as the governor of Guozhou. He also gave them special permission to go directly to Bianzhou to express their gratitude.
Letting the rebel generals move to town and leave Chang'an, the revolutionary base, and at the same time dividing the forces of their direct lineage, this is a common operation for surrender. Letting them take up their posts directly without coming to the capital was also to appease their emotions and show that the court trusted them and had no intention of using the Hongmen Banquet to solve the problem.
This condition is more in line with Zhao Siwan's expectations.
The two sides began to negotiate terms in May, and it was not until July 3 that Zhao Siwan formally disarmed, left Chang'an City, and knelt to receive Liu Chengyou's pardon edict.
Guo Congyi took over the south gate of Chang'an City, sent Zhao Siwan back to the city, and asked him to pack up his bedroll and get out in a dignified manner.
Zhao Siwan proposed to return his personal security force (Yabing), and Guo Congyi agreed;
Zhao Siwan proposed to return the weapons and armor of the tooth soldiers, and Guo Congyi agreed;
Zhao Siwan proposed to leave a few days later because there were still many trivial things to arrange, but Guo Congyi agreed...
In this way, Guo Congyi agreed to a series of unreasonable demands made by Zhao Siwan that violated the principles, just to show him the court's sincerity.
And what is Zhao Siwan busy with? A thief never leaves empty-handed. Since he is about to leave, he will take away everything he can. He openly launches an army to plunder and loot the people of Chang'an City, hoping to squeeze out the last drop of oil from the people of Chang'an. Because they were busy looting the people, the departure date was changed three times in a row, but they still delayed and refused to leave.
On July 9, one of Zhao Siwan's subordinates named Cao Yanjin secretly reported to Guo Congyi that Zhao Siwan planned to lead 500 direct subordinates to flee to Houshu overnight at midnight on July 11.
Early the next morning, Guo Congyi once again urged Zhao Siwan to hit the road. Zhao Siwan replied that she would wait until midnight today before leaving. Sure enough, it was the same time node as Cao Yanjin said.
Prior to this, Guo Congyi had reported the reception process of Chang'an to Commander-in-Chief Guo Wei, especially emphasizing Zhao Siwan's hesitation and shirk, and asked Guo Wei for instructions if he insisted on not going on the road, if we could help him get on the road.
Guo Wei replied, asking him to act easily. Depending on the actual situation, just decide what to do and be flexible.
Therefore, Guo Congyi and the supervisor Wang Jun led their troops into the city, first took control of each city gate, and then held a banquet in the headquarters building, saying that it was a farewell party for Zhao Siwan, and notified him to come to the banquet. Then a total of more than 300 party members, including Zhao Siwan and his right-hand general Chang Yanqing, were arrested, taken to the market, and beheaded in public display.
According to historical records, when Zhao Siwan was tied up by Wuhua Da, he already knew his fate. He did not beg for mercy or put up a useless struggle. Instead, he calmly asked: "How are you going to kill me?"
The soldier replied: "I heard that he will be punished by being nailed."
Historical materials do not explain the execution method of "stacking", but it is estimated that it is similar to "nailing donkeys", or like the traditional method of Xichuan, where people are nailed to the wall until they die. In short, it is a very humiliating method of execution for the victim.
After hearing this, Zhao Siwan was furious and said sternly: "Speak to Mr. Guo for me: my death is not enough to satisfy the blame, but the nail is so ugly that a strong man is ashamed! Fortunately, I did it falsely."
Scholars can be killed but not humiliated.
Guo Congyi agreed to him and finally adopted the execution method of beheading, which preserved the last bit of dignity for Zhao Siwan and allowed him to go on his way with dignity.
