Chapter 57: Quick Travel Guide to the Soldier King (Fifteen)
"How could this happen?"
I looked at the blood-stained battle report in my hand, my eyebrows furrowed, "When did the Qing army become so brave and good at fighting?"
Yun Tao looked solemn. He dismounted and pointed to a fortress on the map. He said in a deep voice, "Look, the Qing army broke through our three lines of defense one after another and is now approaching Suzhou Prefecture. This place is easy to defend but difficult to attack, but it was lost in just one day..."
"One day?!" I exclaimed. "How is this possible? Unless..."
A terrible thought suddenly flashed through my mind, and my face changed drastically, "Unless... they know our deployment very well!"
A cold light flashed in Yun Tao's eyes, "You mean... there is a traitor?"
I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down. "I can't think of any other explanation except this one. Yuntao, do you remember the sheepskin map we found in the cave? It detailed the military deployment in the Jiangnan area. If it fell into the hands of the enemy..."
Before I could finish my words, I heard the sound of hurried horse hooves in the distance. A soldier covered in blood stumbled over. When he saw Yun Tao and I, his legs went limp and he fell to the ground. He said in a trembling voice, "Report... Report to the general, Wu... Wu Ergou... he... he led the Qing army... to kill us..."
"Wu Ergou?!" Yun Tao and I looked at each other, and both saw shock and anger in each other's eyes.
"How could it be him?!" I clenched my fists, my nails digging deep into my palms. "Aren't there heavy troops ordered to guard Shanhaiguan? How could he be here?"
The soldier burst into tears and said, "It was Lord Liu... He opened the Shanhai Pass and let the Qing army in. Now... Now he has led his army to Jiangnan..."
The soldier's words were like a bolt from the blue. Yun Tao and I were stunned. The name "Lord Liu" was like a huge rock, weighing heavily on our hearts. How could he rebel? He was the one who let us out of the mountains!
"Impossible! This is impossible!" I muttered to myself, unwilling to believe this cruel fact.
Yun Tao held my shoulders and said in a deep voice: "Zi'ang, now is not the time to be sad, we must come up with a solution as soon as possible!"
I took a deep breath and forced myself to calm down. Yes, at this moment, sadness and anger are useless. Only by finding a solution as soon as possible can we save the crisis.
We rushed to Suzhou Prefecture overnight. Along the way, defeated local soldiers came like a tide. All of them had fear on their faces and kept shouting, "The Qing army is coming," "Wu Ergou is coming"... These words gnawed at my heart like a poisonous snake, making me feel despair.
Outside Suzhou City, the two armies were facing each other. I stood on the city wall, looking at the dark and oppressive Qing army in the distance, and a sense of powerlessness surged in my heart. Over the years, we have fought countless battles with the Qing army, but we have never been so passive as today.
"Yun Tao, look!" I pointed at the Qing army's formation under the city, my face solemn, "Why does their formation look so familiar?"
Yun Tao followed my gaze and frowned, "Indeed, this formation is clearly..."
He paused, his face turned very ugly, "This is a formation commonly used in our army!"
My heart suddenly sank, and a terrible thought came to my mind, "Could it be..."
In order to verify this conjecture, we deliberately changed the battle plan, set a trap and, as expected, the Qing army led by Wu Ergou fell into the trap and suffered heavy losses.
"It was him!" Yun Tao gritted his teeth, "This traitor actually leaked our military secrets to the Qing army!"
My heart is filled with anger and grief. Liu Xing, are you worthy of the trust of the court? Are you worthy of the people of Jiangnan?
This news exploded in everyone's heart like a thunderbolt. Anger, fear, despair, all kinds of emotions intertwined together, making it almost impossible for me to breathe. Liu Xing, how dare he? ! How could he have the heart to betray his country and his compatriots? ! Or did he want to kill us by letting us go out?
"I want to go to the capital, I want to meet the emperor!" I stood up suddenly, my tone firm, "I want to expose Liu Xing's true face, and ask the emperor to send troops to support me!"
Yun Tao grabbed my hand and looked worried. "Xiao Yu, the capital is a long way away. It's a chaotic place right now. You, a woman..."
"Yun Tao, I know you are worried about me," I held his hand with my backhand, my eyes firm, "but now, I am the only one who can go to the capital, and I am the only one who can convince the emperor. Jiangnan is our home, we can never sit and wait for death!"
Yun Tao was silent. He knew my determination and that I had to do this. He finally nodded and hugged me tightly. "Be careful. I'll wait for you in Jiangnan."
I rode a fast horse, rushing to the capital day and night. Along the way, I saw countless refugees, they were pale and thin, ragged, and their eyes were full of confusion and fear about the future. My heart was as painful as being stabbed by a needle, and I secretly swore that no matter what, I would protect this land and these innocent people!
When I arrived in the capital, I was exhausted. I didn't even have time to rest, I immediately asked to see the emperor. However, the palace gates were as deep as the sea, how could I, a small Jiangnan city guard, easily see the emperor?
Just when I was feeling discouraged, a familiar voice suddenly rang out, "Mr. Feng, why are you here?"
I looked up and saw that it was Master Sima Kongxian! Why was he here? Without thinking too much, I hurriedly told him about Liu Xing's rebellion and asked him to introduce me to the emperor.
Sima Kongxian was also shocked after hearing this. Liu Xing was now a popular figure around the emperor. He immediately expressed his willingness to help me. With his help, I finally met the Chongzhen Emperor Zhu Youwen. I reported Liu Xing's conspiracy and the critical situation in Jiangnan to the emperor in detail, and asked him to send troops to support immediately.
Zhu Youjian was furious after hearing this. He slammed the dragon chair and roared, "I have treated Liu Xing, the traitor, well, but he dared to do such a treasonous thing!" He immediately ordered the execution of Liu Xing's entire family, and mobilized the army to prepare to lead an expedition to the south of the Yangtze River.
I was delighted and was about to thank him when I suddenly heard hurried footsteps outside the door. Then, an eunuch ran in in a panic, knelt on the ground, and said in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, it's bad, it's terrible..."
"800 miles south of the Yangtze River, hurry! Wu Sangui has broken through Huanghua Pass, and the main force of the Qing army is heading south of the Yangtze River!" The eunuch's words were like thunder from the blue sky, exploding in my ears. Without time to think about it, I stood up suddenly, disregarding the etiquette between the emperor and his subjects, and rushed to the eunuch and snatched the letter from his hand. The bright red seal and the familiar handwriting were all ruthlessly announcing - south of the Yangtze River is in danger!
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