I just saw a story about the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, and suddenly understood what it means that "the cruelest sword is not the one in your hand."

During the three days when Kaifeng city was broken in 947, Zhang Yanze led Khitan iron cavalry into the city, doing things that could make your scalp tingle. Looting, killing, arson—bodies piled up like mountains, blood flowing through the streets. Historical records state that more people died in those three days than in the previous months of war. Zhang Yanze was a killing machine; the first thing he did after entering the city was to stab to death the Later Jin chancellor Sang Weihan, even treating the emperor’s concubines as playthings, and more ruthlessly, turning living people into minced meat as military rations. This is not some wild historical fiction; it’s written in black and white in the "Old Five Dynasties History."

But the interesting part comes later. A few days afterward, Yelü Deguang entered the city and saw that the entire city was filled with resentment. The common people wished they could swallow Zhang Yanze alive, and the civil and military officials all gritted their teeth in anger. Yelü Deguang was very clear in his heart: to secure his position, he must gain the support of the Han people. So Zhang Yanze became the scapegoat.

Yelü Deguang found a reason—killing Sang Weihan without permission, relocating the emperor, and plundering—then directly ordered his execution. On the day of the execution, the people of Kaifeng went completely crazy. All the family members and common folk who had been harmed by Zhang Yanze, holding wooden sticks and crutches, cursed and beat him, until his body was shattered and his bones unrecognizable. Zhang Yanze loved to beat others into minced meat in life, and in the end, he became like that himself. It was a cruel irony.

Many people, seeing this, thought Yelü Deguang was wise. But in truth, the one who was truly ruthless was Feng Dao. This guy was the most resilient among the Five Dynasties, surviving four dynasties and over a dozen emperors, living more comfortably than anyone. On the day the city fell, the Later Jin emperor Shi Chonggui was forced to kneel outside the city and call Yelü Deguang "Father Emperor," almost all the nobles were there, even Zhao Kuangyin was present. But Feng Dao did not go.

Feng Dao’s absence was a silent protest. He saw through better than anyone that for Yelü Deguang to rule the Central Plains long-term, he must have the support of Han officials. Killing Zhang Yanze was just the first step; Feng Dao and others piled all the evidence of guilt onto him, forcing Yelü Deguang to kill. That blow was like cutting off his sharpest sword himself, and it completely ignited the disloyalty and discontent of the Han people.

What was the result? Within a few months, chaos erupted across the Central Plains. Liu Zhiyuan declared himself emperor in Jin Yang, establishing Later Han, and old generals, righteous armies, and common folk rose up in rebellion. Large groups of tens of thousands, small groups of hundreds, attacked prefectures and counties, killing Khitan officials. Yelü Deguang couldn’t hold on; with the heat, plagues, and rebellions coming together, he hurriedly retreated north, and on the way, he suddenly died in Luan City. He never understood that he lost because of the hearts of the people.

In nearly a hundred years of the Five Dynasties, the rites had collapsed and music had fallen into chaos; people's hearts had long since dispersed. The Later Jin, established by the Shatuo, relied on submitting to the Khitan to stabilize, but Shi Chonggui refused, and in the end, he played himself to death. Those rebellious generals like Du Chongwei and Zhang Yanze thought that defecting would lead to instant success, but in the end, one was marginalized, and the other was turned into minced meat. It’s the same throughout history— for long-term stability, sacrifices must be made first.

Feng Dao saw through this. He was low-key and unobtrusive, unlike Sang Weihan who died with integrity, or Liu Zhiyuan who directly raised armies. He simply refused to surrender or submit, maintaining a shred of Han official dignity, and by doing so, he fueled the fire even more. Modern historians say that Feng Dao’s "curve resistance" was actually the greatest way to preserve the continuity of the Han bureaucratic system in chaotic times. Many criticize him as lacking integrity, but if he had truly been willing to die for every principle, the Central Plains would have been completely rootless long ago.

The blood rain in Kaifeng, on the surface, looked like a Khitan victory, but from the moment Zhang Yanze was turned into minced meat, the outcome was already decided. Yelü Deguang took away Shi Chonggui and his concubines and daughters, but he could not take away the hearts of the people in the Central Plains. And Feng Dao? He continued to serve as a Han official, watching as Later Han and Later Zhou gradually moved toward the Northern Song.

In chaotic times, the cruelest is never the one wielding the sword.