Chapter 319
After a while, he beckoned to Yelü Jun, a half-smile on his face and a playful look in his eyes.
Yelü Jun hesitated for a moment, then walked up, bowing his head.
Upon hearing Duan Gan's whispered words in his ear, his eyes widened in shock as he stared at Duan Gan. "General, isn't this too risky?"
"If anything goes wrong, I fear that the general will be in a dangerous situation and may not be able to protect himself."
Duan Gan leaned back and said casually, "I know what I'm doing. Just leave some men to cooperate."
Seeing his resolute manner, Yelü Jun hesitated for a long time before finally nodding, "Alright, we will definitely cooperate fully with the general."
Since he's going to do this, I can't stop him.
In Yelü Jun's heart, his own king was number one, and Duan Gan was number two, because the young lord always regarded this war god of the Central Plains as his role model.
Upon receiving Duan Gan's letter, the King immediately dispatched him to support General Dingyuan, even amidst the internal turmoil within the Liao Kingdom.
This is enough to prove how much the king valued Duan Gan.
Moreover, he believed that Duan Gan and the King were on the same side, and he would never do anything without certainty.
Following his instructions, Yelü Jun led his men to hand over the city gate soldiers, replacing most of the Central Plains soldiers with his own men.
The action was swift, and the replacement was completed in no time.
It was so fast that the messenger who arrived at Yuquan Pass couldn't figure out what was going on.
He pulled on the reins, looking around warily. There were traces of gunpowder damage all around, and even more horrifying were the charred remains of limbs and bones.
They all tell the story of a fierce war that took place here.
Moreover, he had just passed through the camp where the Turkic army was stationed, and he was also covered in wounds and his blood stained the white snow.
But those foreign soldiers are still there, which means the Turks really succeeded in their sneak attack?
That's why the people on the city wall have changed.
The messenger, realizing this, was terrified, as if facing a formidable enemy, his heart pounding wildly.
The dignified Grand Councilor, the Regent, and the once invincible general, has actually been defeated?
The soldier rubbed his eyes, still unwilling to give up, and stared intently at the unfamiliar faces on the city wall.
They didn't have the faces of people from the Central Plains, nor were they wearing their armor.
The more I looked, the more my heart pounded, and the more frightened I became.
It's all over! The Celestial Empire is truly doomed this time!
He clutched the letter to his chest, pulled on the reins, turned the horse around, and galloped back home without stopping.
He returned to the border town at dawn the next day, and without even having time to drink water, he rushed into Wu Lei's room.
At that moment, Wu Lei was having breakfast. He had only taken a bite of his steamed bun when he stared wide-eyed at his panting subordinate.
"What happened? You're back so soon?"
"But does the envoy have something to tell me?"
As he spoke, he put down the cornbread in his hand, his eyes full of anticipation, and eagerly stepped forward to grab the soldier's hand.
The soldier's pale face and hesitant manner alerted Wu Lei that something was wrong.
His expression changed drastically, and he gripped the man's shoulder tightly, his voice booming, "Speak! What's going on? I'm asking you a question!"
The lieutenant had just arrived when he saw the scene before him and hurriedly stepped forward, saying, "General, please don't worry."
"It might be good news."
As soon as he finished speaking, the soldier looked distressed and choked up, saying, "Yuquan Pass has fallen, and the area under the city walls is full of gunpowder and severed limbs!"
"On that city wall...on that city wall..."
He stammered, and Wu Lei, an impatient man, was extremely anxious. "What's wrong?"
"Speak your mind straight!"
Seeing his expression, Wu Lei broke out in a cold sweat; even going to the battlefield wouldn't cause such panic.
He was afraid, he was afraid that something would happen to the adults. If even Duan Gan, the sharpest weapon of the Celestial Empire, were to be harmed, then the fall of the Celestial Empire would be imminent.
Seeing his flushed face, the soldier was terrified, and his voice trembled.
"The city walls are full of Turks! There are no one of ours left!"
"I'm afraid it's the Grand Envoy himself..."
He didn't dare to say anything more.
Wu Lei stared in disbelief, his eyes bloodshot, frozen in place as if he had suffered a fatal blow.
The lieutenant glanced at Wu Lei with concern, then stepped forward to confirm again, "Are you telling the truth?"
"Did you see clearly? Aren't those people on the city wall really ours?"
The soldier nodded firmly and emphatically, "It's true! I swear on my life, I saw it with my own eyes, there's absolutely no falsehood!"
Wu Lei gritted his teeth and said, "Shan Qiutang! Immediately gather all troops, except for the brothers guarding the city, the rest of you follow me into Yuquan Pass to rescue the Commander-in-Chief and the people!"
After saying this, he turned around, put on his armor, and was eager to annihilate the enemy who occupied Yuquan Pass and rescue Duan Gan.
Several years ago, he and Duan Gan escaped death several times.
This time was no different; he couldn't believe that the once mighty General Dingyuan had died just like that.
It must have been that Turkic dog who used some kind of trickery to make Duan Gan fall into the trap.
At this moment, Deputy General Shan Qiutang hesitated. He reached out and blocked Wu Lei's path, saying, "General, please think it over!"
Wu Lei shouted angrily, "Get out of the way!"
Not only did Shan Qiutang not move aside, he continued, "In my humble opinion, our most important task now is to guard this place well."
"When the envoy was alive, he instructed us to guard the border well. If Yuquan Pass is lost, the Celestial Empire can still discuss countermeasures if it has some leeway."
"If even this place is gone, the border of the Celestial Empire will truly be wide open, allowing enemy troops to come and go as they please. At that point, it will be truly irreversible!"
Wu Lei clenched his fists so tightly they cracked, his face contorted with tension, and his eyes were red-rimmed, clearly caught in a deep dilemma.
On one side was Duan Gan, who had risked his life for him and shown him great kindness; on the other side was the country he was determined to defend to the death.
He found it hard to part with either side.
Shan Qiutang and the other soldiers knelt down with a thud. "General, the situation is unfavorable for us now. The most important thing is to get this message to the capital."
"Let the capital send reinforcements to our aid and protect the territory of the Celestial Empire, so that we don't wait until it's too late and the border falls."
Wu Lei closed his eyes and finally nodded, agreeing with his idea.
“I will write a letter immediately, and you can arrange for someone… no! You must personally return to the capital and deliver the letter to the Regent’s wife in person.”
"The Regent's Consort?" Shan Qiutang asked in confusion.
Wu Lei nodded emphatically, his attitude firm. "Yes, that's right. There's no one trustworthy in the capital. The young emperor is irresponsible, the empress dowager is unreliable, and she might even be happy for the envoy to get into trouble."
"After all, with the regent gone, she can seize all power."
"Therefore, only the Princess is of one mind with the Envoy. I believe the Envoy will not misjudge her."
After saying that, he went to his desk, picked up his pen and wrote down the border situation, explaining in just a few words the perilous situation the border defense was facing at that time.
He picked up the still-wet letter, blew on it to dry it, then put it in an envelope and wrote four words: "To the Princess."
Then he handed it over to Shan Qiutang, repeatedly instructing him, "Remember, don't trust anyone, you must personally hand it over to the Princess."
Seeing his general's solemn and serious expression, Shan Qiutang returned the same level of attention.
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