Chapter 257 Hell on Earth

Lu Chenyang knew that the situation in Huai'an must be very bad, so even Ji Ping was hit like this.

The two of them immediately set off back to the military camp. When the Lu family soldiers saw the big banner with the word "Lu" on it, they knew that Lu Chenyang had returned and were slightly excited.

Lu Chenyang was so exhausted that he had no time to rest and went straight into the general's tent.

Gao Ming was also very excited when he saw Lu Chenyang coming. God knows, he was just a civilian, how could he have been on the battlefield? This time, he bravely led his troops here, fearing any mistakes. He stepped carefully, and even lost a lot of hair. Finally, Lu Chenyang came.

Gao Ming looked at Lu Chenyang with tears in his eyes: "Your Excellency is finally here." The next sentence was: "Your Excellency, please save these people."

Ji Ping also looked at Lu Chenyang with anticipation, just like a lost child who finally found his mother.

Lu Chenyang rubbed his forehead and felt that the current situation was not good.

Lu Chenyang said in a hoarse voice: "Tell me, what's the situation now."

He hasn't had a good rest these days, and the hot weather has caused him to get a sore throat and become hoarse.

Gao Ming was the first to speak, saying, "A month ago, the Fourth Prince and Yuan Kuishan decided to withdraw their troops. News of their withdrawal didn't spread widely, and they left overnight. At the time, the Yanhui Army thought they were planning a battle, but halfway through, some soldiers realized something was amiss. They were planning to give up Huai'an, but some immediately disagreed. Their leader was a captain named Dong Zhe. Dong Zhe led the unwilling Yanhui Army back to Huai'an. However, by then, the Tatars had already discovered the Yanhui Army's departure, and they... broke into the city."

There was obvious pain in Gao Ming's eyes and he clenched his fists.

Gao Ming said in a deep voice, "At that time, Huai'an City was like a living hell. The bodies of Han people were everywhere. They didn't even spare the children... They even used the Han people's corpses as... as food."

Lu Chenyang's eyes suddenly widened. The Tatars were so cruel.

"Dong Zhe only brought back less than 10,000 men, and was no match for the Tatars. They could only notify nearby villages and cover the civilians' retreat." Gao Ming continued, "Fortunately, Dong Zhe was familiar with the terrain and risked his life to protect some civilians. The Tatars had just occupied Huai'an and were planning to recuperate, so they didn't send most of their troops to pursue them. However, the Tatars sent troops to nearby villages to plunder property and food, and Dong Zhe led his troops to fight guerrilla warfare against them. Until... I received the news."

Gao Ming said this and looked at Lu Chenyang: "Actually, Dong Zhe also asked for help from our Lu family army at that time, but at that time..."

Lu Chenyang understood that the Lu family army deployed troops on the border of Huai'an mainly for deterrence, because Lu Chenyang was in the capital at the time, and the purpose was to prevent Emperor Qianyuan from killing Lu Chenyang.

Maybe Dong Zhe had heard of Lu Chenyang's reputation, so he chose to ask for help from the Lu family army.

However, the generals leading the troops at that time had not received any military orders, so they naturally did not dare to act rashly.

The one leading the troops at the time was Chen Ce, a member of the Chen Song clan, so it wasn't his fault. The Lu family army was stationed there at the time, and it was a sensitive area. Lu Chenyang was fine, and if the Lu family army had rashly sent troops, it would have been very disadvantageous to Lu Chenyang.

The Chen family is now loyal to Lu Chenyang. The rise and fall, honor and disgrace of the entire Chen family depend on Lu Chenyang. Of course, Chen Ce would not do anything that would be detrimental to Lu Chenyang.

If the Lu family army took any rash action, Lu Chenyang would inevitably be blamed, so Chen Kuan ignored Dong Zhe's request to send troops.

"But fortunately, Chen Ce is not someone who doesn't know how to adapt. He didn't send troops openly, but he secretly helped Dong Zhe a lot, providing him with a lot of support and food. Otherwise, Dong Zhe wouldn't have been able to hold on until now." Gao Ming finally said, "Chen Ce's actions were not wrong. My Lord, please don't blame him."

Lu Chenyang nodded. He certainly wouldn't blame Chen Ce. Chen Ce had done a very good job. Under that situation, it was completely understandable that he didn't send out troops.

Lu Chenyang asked, "Where is Dong Zhe now?"

Gao Ming quickly said, "I met him once when I first arrived, but unfortunately, he went out to collect civilians a few days ago. I wanted to send troops to accompany him, but he refused. He said that he had few troops now and was suitable for guerrilla warfare. We should keep our troops to capture Huai'an City."

Lu Chenyang nodded, "Have you attacked the city in the past few days?"

Ji Ping replied, "When I arrived, I led an attack on the city. But that was to protect Dong Zhe's escape. The Tatars were very fierce and skilled in fighting. Our men suffered heavy losses the moment they engaged them."

Ji Ping felt a little ashamed when he said this. He had been holding his breath, wanting to get back at his former self and avenge his compatriots. However, once he entered the battlefield, he was caught off guard by the enemy.

This wasn't Ji Ping's fault. Who had the Lu Family Army fought against before? The Yilin Army and the King of Nanyang. The Yilin Army was just a bunch of ragtag people, a bunch of hungry and struggling civilians. How could they possibly have any fighting power?

The Nanyang King's troops were quite strong, but at that time the Lu family army was united and their morale was high, so they did not find it difficult to fight.

But the Tatars were not like that. They were all tall and strong, and they knocked Ji Ping unconscious as soon as they met.

Lu Chenyang said, "You don't understand the Tatars, so it's normal for you to underestimate them. The Tatar soldiers are indeed very capable, but we are not weak either. Our Jianghu soldiers are also very skilled, not to mention that our weapons and equipment are better than theirs. I don't believe we can't defeat them."