Chapter 238 Traitors in Chaotic Times (14) How to Become a Super Strategist...
"Smack!"
The foreman's whip struck Song Jing squarely, causing him to curl up in pain, gritting his teeth and refusing to utter a sound.
In those fragmented memories, Song Jing was a tall and cheerful young man. But only two years later, he had been worn down in the army to this pitiful state.
"Oh, I didn't realize you were such a tough nut to crack!" The foreman was furious at the sight and raised his whip to strike again.
Song Ce's gaze sharpened, but before he could make a move, Chu Xiaoer raised his hand to stop him.
"My lord, you mustn't!" Chu Xiao'er advised in a low voice, "There are many guards here. If you expose your whereabouts, not only will we be unable to rescue your brother, but we ourselves will also be in danger!"
Song Ce nodded and said calmly, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. Waiter, cover your mouth and nose and don't breathe."
Chu Xiaoer was taken aback at first, then did as he was told.
Song Ce smiled slightly, took out the prepared medicinal powder from his sleeve, and used the darkness to spread the light blue powder with the wind of his palm.
Chu Xiao'er only felt a faint smell of bitter grass wafting to his nose. He hesitated for a moment and asked in a low voice, "Sir, what is this...?" Before he could finish speaking, he saw the overseer not far away sway, and the whip in his hand slipped to the ground.
In the short time it takes for an incense stick to burn, all the supervising soldiers and laborers in Tu Hui Mountain staggered and collapsed to the ground, and the once noisy camp fell silent.
Chu Xiao'er's eyes widened in astonishment at the sight. As a well-trained bodyguard, he had never seen such a potent bewitching incense. After a long while, he lowered his voice and exclaimed in amazement, "My lord, this powder of yours is truly miraculous!" He had been worried that this trip would cause some trouble, but he never expected his master to have such amazing abilities.
Song Ce made a shushing gesture, and after gazing at the deathly silence ahead for a moment, he signaled Chu Xiaoer to follow him into the camp.
Under the moonlight, the two quickly walked to Song Jing's side.
At this moment, Song Jing was curled up on the ground, fast asleep. His coarse prison uniform was covered in dirt and bloodstains, a sight that made one's heart clench. Chu Xiao'er quickly squatted down and put Song Jing's arm on his shoulder.
"Sir, over here!"
Chu Xiao'er determined the direction and waved towards the dense forest behind the camp. That was the escape route he had scouted out at noon; the trees there were so thick that it was easy to hide.
"Waiter, take my brother back to Shiguan first. I have other matters to attend to."
Chu Xiaoer stopped abruptly and said urgently, "Sir! This place is fraught with danger. It's too dangerous for you to stay here alone! Why don't I accompany you? That way, we can look after each other."
Song Ce smiled faintly, raised his hand and patted his shoulder, "No need, Song Jing's injuries are not serious, he needs to return to the city as soon as possible to see a doctor for treatment, I can only trouble you with this matter." He paused, his gaze sweeping over the unconscious soldiers on the ground, "I'll be right back, it won't take too long."
Chu Xiaoer wanted to persuade him again, but met Song Ce's calm and deep eyes.
"...Alright, then please be careful, my lord. I'll be going now!"
Chu Xiaoer gritted his teeth, said no more, picked up Song Jing and turned to leave.
Under the moonlight, Song Ce moved smoothly through the camp, and after a while, he arrived outside the tent on the north side of the camp.
Before coming to Tu Hui Mountain, he had already scouted the location. The inconspicuous tent on the north side actually contained secret correspondence between spies sent by the King of Liang to various powerful forces.
As for why the King of Liang placed the secret letter here, it was all just a little trick to deceive others. Now that I'm here, I might as well present this King of Liang with a grand gift!
The tent flap was covered in mud, and inside were some rusty weapons and soldiers' uniforms scattered about. Anyone who saw it would think it was just a place to store junk.
Song Ce smiled and slipped a pre-prepared "secret letter" into the package. It falsely claimed that the new Emperor Wei Shaosu of the Dali Dynasty had secretly ordered General Qu to assemble 100,000 troops outside the capital to encircle the Wu army, which was splitting up in the south. The imperial army, unskilled in waterways, could use the small path through Tu Hui Mountain to encircle the Wu army.
It should be noted that Tu Hui Mountain is located in the northern part of Liang's territory. Two days' journey south would take you to Xin Ding, where the Liang king had just moved his capital. The Liang king was a suspicious man by nature and extremely afraid of death. When he saw this "secret letter," he would certainly hesitate about whether to continue staying in Xin Ding.
Not only that, Song Ce also forged a letter of surrender for Liang Wang's two chief advisors, Guo Xiaotian and Li Shizheng. At that time, Liang Wang would not say anything, but he would definitely become suspicious and distrustful of his subordinates. The morale of the army would be unstable, and his decision-making would only become more chaotic.
After finishing these tasks, Song Ce quickly went to the main tent in the center, swept the documents off the table, and deliberately rummaged through it haphazardly, making it look as if someone had sneaked in and hastily searched for something.
After confirming that everything was alright, Song Ce quietly left the tent and, under the cover of the dense forest, hurried back the way he came.
Six days later, outside Shiguan County.
Gao Chengfeng, clad in the black armor of a Lieutenant General, stood atop the city wall, his brow furrowing slightly as he gazed at the grand procession slowly approaching from afar. Judging by the time, the Lord and Chu Xiao'er should have returned from Tu Hui Mountain by now, but no news had arrived, causing him some worry.
"General, in half an hour, Lord Wu's entourage will arrive at the city walls," a red-robed lieutenant beside him whispered.
Gao Chengfeng took a deep breath, then said in a deep voice, "Open the city gates and come with me to welcome them!"
"yes!"
As the city gates of Shiguan County slowly opened, Gao Chengfeng personally led more than ten county officials out of the city to welcome them.
After the carriage stopped, an elderly man in his sixties, dressed in a purple robe, slowly stepped down from the carriage with the help of his attendants—it was none other than Wu Gongyuan, the current Chancellor of the Imperial Secretariat.
"Master Wu, you've come from afar, you must be tired." Gao Chengfeng stepped forward and bowed.
Wu Gongyuan nodded slightly, stroked his beard, and glanced at Gao Chengfeng for a moment before chuckling, "General Gao, there's no need for such formality. Where is Magistrate Song? Why hasn't he come to receive the imperial decree?"
Gao Chengfeng's heart tightened. After hesitating for a moment, he explained, "Your Excellency, Lord Song has been overworked these past few days and has caught a cold and is bedridden. Therefore, he was unable to come to greet me. I hope Your Excellency will forgive him." He did not dare to tell the truth. If word got out that Song Ce had gone to the Liang army camp alone, it might bring him unnecessary trouble.
A hint of doubt flashed in Wu Gongyuan's eyes, but he did not ask any further questions. He always maintained a certain level of patience towards this newly favored minister of the emperor.
"In that case, let's go back to the city first! It won't be too late for me to read out the imperial edict after Magistrate Song has recovered from his illness."
Upon hearing this, Gao Chengfeng hurriedly led Wu Gongyuan into the city, saying amicably, "Yes, thank you for your consideration, sir, please!"
After settling Wu Gongyuan and his party in, Gao Chengfeng was about to send someone out to investigate when he saw Chu Xiaoer, whom he hadn't seen for many days, returning with a sallow-faced man.
"Waiter, what's going on?"
Before Gao Chengfeng could finish speaking, Chu Xiaoer interrupted him decisively, saying, "Chengfeng, we'll talk about this later. First, help settle the master's elder brother; he's injured."
"Alright, take the person to the east wing first, and I'll go fetch a doctor."
Before long, the old doctor, covered in sweat, was dragged over by Gao Chengfeng. After the old doctor changed Song Jing's dressing, the two of them were called to the outer room.
“My lords, this young master’s bones have been misaligned for too long and are now deformed. Even if he can get out of bed, I’m afraid he will never be able to walk like a normal person again. Moreover…”
Chu Xiao'er immediately became anxious upon hearing this, "Stop being so wishy-washy, and what else?"
The old doctor hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice and said, "Young master, you have old wounds on top of new ones, and there... it seems you've also been injured there. You need to rest and recuperate properly."
The men present immediately understood the doctor's unspoken meaning.
Gao Chengfeng and Chu Xiaoer exchanged a glance, then took out a silver ingot from their pockets and handed it over, saying, "Doctor, please do your best to treat this person."
"Sigh, fine!"
After Gao Chengfeng saw the old doctor off, Chu Xiaoer turned around and pushed open the door to the inner room, only to find that Song Jing had woken up at some point and was leaning against the headboard, gazing absently at the scenery outside the window.
"Brother Song, you're awake."
Upon hearing this, Song Jing slowly turned his head, his gaze falling on Chu Xiaoer with a hint of confusion. His lips moved, and he said in a hoarse voice, "Thank you, young master. May I ask who you are?"
"My surname is Chu, and I am a subordinate of Lord Song." Chu Xiaoer softened his tone, trying to make his voice sound gentler.
“Lord Song…” Song Jing murmured, his eyes suddenly welling up with tears. “The Lord Song you’re talking about… is…”
"It is your younger brother, Lord Song Ce."
Song Jing froze, his hand trembling slightly as it rested on the blanket. The next second, he abruptly looked up. "Is it A-Ce? Is he...is he alright?"
Seeing this, Chu Xiaoer quickly pressed down on his shoulder and gently advised, "Brother Song, don't worry, the master is fine. He still has some things to take care of right now, and he'll be back in a couple of days. You still have quite a few hidden injuries, so you need to rest and recuperate."
Hearing Chu Xiaoer's words, Song Jing gripped the bedding tightly and nodded with tears in his eyes.
"It's been two years, and I thought I would never see my family again... I never expected that it would be A-Ce who saved me in the end."
Seeing Song Jing's state, Chu Xiao'er felt a pang of sympathy. He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture and said in a low voice, "Brother Song, the lord has always been concerned about you. This time, he risked everything to save you..." He didn't elaborate further, only vaguely saying, "Just stay here and rest to recover. When the lord returns and sees you've recovered, he'll be overjoyed!"
Song Jing responded softly, then, as if remembering something, hurriedly asked, "Was A-Ce injured? Those Liang soldiers stationed at Tu Hui Mountain are very fierce. How could a weak scholar like him dare to go to such a dangerous place alone?"
Upon hearing this, Chu Xiao'er smiled and reassured him, "Brother Song, don't worry, the master is very capable!"
Song Jing's Adam's apple bobbed, and his eyes welled up with tears again. He remembered that when they parted, A-Ce was still a frail scholar in a long robe, unable to even carry a bucket of water. How could he now dare to lead men into Tu Hui Mountain, which was guarded by Liang soldiers? He must have suffered a lot these past two years!
Thinking of this, Song Jing felt both bittersweet and warm inside.
For two years, he suffered humiliation and torment outside, thinking he would die quietly. But unexpectedly, he was able to reunite with his family. Heaven truly has eyes!
"Alright, Brother Song, I will personally come to inform you when the master returns. It's getting late, you should rest as soon as possible!" Chu Xiao'er said.
Song Jing nodded, said nothing more, and lay down as instructed before falling into a deep sleep.
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Author's note: Another night of overtime. It's being fixed, I'll replace it later [crying][crying] (kneeling and sobbing)
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