Chapter 60: Quick Guide to the Soldier King (XVIII)
Li Zicheng, he actually betrayed the alliance! Furious, I threw the map on the table to the ground, "This despicable villain!"
Bi Yuntao held me up as I was about to fall. "Zi'ang, calm down! Now is not the time to get angry. The most urgent task is to quickly mobilize troops to resist Li Zicheng's attack."
The flames of war instantly spread across the entire Jiangnan region. The originally peaceful land was now filled with smoke and shouts of killing. Bi Yuntao and I put on our armor and led the army to the front line to fight a desperate battle with Li Zicheng's army.
"Kill! Fight for the country!" Bi Yuntao led the way, his long sword flying like a silver dragon, and wherever he passed, the enemy fell to the ground. I was not to be outdone, swinging my long sword and killing a bloody path among the enemy.
However, Li Zicheng's army was large in number and well-trained. Although we fought hard, the situation became increasingly serious. At this time, a piece of bad news came. Sima Kongxian was unfortunately hit by a stray arrow in the battle and was seriously injured!
"Sir!" I was extremely anxious and hurried to the back, only to see Sima Kongxian, pale and weakly lying on the bed. "Sima Kongxian is a lucky man, nothing will happen to him." I held his hand and prayed silently in my heart.
"Zi'ang, cough cough..." Sima Kongxian opened his eyes with difficulty, "Li Zicheng has evil ambitions, you must be extremely careful..." I held back my tears, nodded, and ordered Hua Mucao to lead a team of elite soldiers to ensure Sima Kongxian's safety.
I had only met him a few times, but he treated me like an old friend. A civilian officer followed me to the battlefield, and he was like my mentor. I felt sad.
On the battlefield, the deafening shouts of killing, the clash of metal, and the screams of dying soldiers mixed together, like a purgatory on earth.
I wielded my long sword, mechanically harvesting the lives of my enemies. The warm blood splashed on my face, but it did not stir up any emotion in my heart. Mr. Chen Zilong's words kept echoing in my ears. Li Zicheng's betrayal was just the beginning. The real threat was the main force of the Qing army that was about to march south. Everything we did now was just a futile effort.
"Zi'ang, what are you thinking about? Cheer up!" Bi Yuntao's voice rang in my ears, pulling me back from my confusion.
He knocked down an enemy soldier who rushed over with one shot, turned around and looked at me with a worried look in his eyes, "You are absent-minded today, but what happened?"
I pulled myself together and shook my head. "Nothing. I'm just worried about your injury."
"Sir, you are blessed by heaven, and everything will be fine." Bi Yuntao comforted him, "You don't have to worry too much. Although we are at a disadvantage now, we are not without the ability to fight. As long as we work together, we will be able to repel Li Zicheng and defend Jiangnan!"
His words were full of confidence and strength, like a shot of adrenaline, which gradually calmed my originally shaky mood. Yes, now is not the time to despair, we still have Bi Yuntao and countless loyal and brave generals, we still have hope!
I took a deep breath, trying to calm my surging emotions, and my eyes gradually became firm. "You're right, we can definitely get through this!"
I swung my sword again, killing an enemy soldier who was trying to sneak up on Bi Yuntao. However, before I could catch my breath, more enemies came like a tide. Their armor was bright and their swords were sharp. It was obvious at a glance that they were the elite troops under Li Zicheng.
On the other hand, most of our soldiers were ragged, pale and thin, and the weapons in their hands were mostly broken copper and iron. Compared with the enemy, they were like beggars.
"We can't go on like this, we'll be exhausted to death!" I said to Bi Yuntao anxiously, "We must find a way to break out!"
Bi Yuntao also realized the seriousness of the problem. He nodded solemnly and said, "Pass the order down. The entire army retreats eastward!"
However, it was too late.
Li Zicheng's troops had surrounded us, and the sound of the retreat horn was drowned out by the deafening shouts of killing, and could not be heard at all. Our troops were in low spirits and were losing ground. Many soldiers even abandoned their armor and fled in all directions.
"Hahaha, Feng Ziang, surrender!" Li Zicheng's voice came from a distance, with a hint of pride, "As long as you agree to my conditions, I promise not to harm your life, and I will also make you a male concubine and keep you in my harem, how about it?"
"Pah, I just feel disgusted"
I was so angry that I wanted to rush up and cut this treacherous and shameless person into pieces. However, reason told me that now was not the time to act rashly. I had to calm down and find a way to deal with it.
At this moment, there was a sudden commotion on the battlefield. Li Zicheng's troops stopped attacking for some reason, and the soldiers looked at each other, as if they had received some order. Then, they retreated like a tide, leaving behind only corpses and a devastated battlefield.
"What's going on?" I looked at the incredible scene in front of me in astonishment, and for a moment I was unable to react.
A soldier ran forward, holding a letter in his hand, "General, Li Zicheng left a letter and then led his troops to withdraw!"
I took the letter and opened it. Li Zicheng's handwriting was full of flying dragons and dancing phoenixes, revealing an indomitable arrogance. In the letter, he first praised me, calling me a "young hero", and then changed the subject, saying that he went south not to be my enemy, but to unite with me to fight against the Qing army, but there were so many tigers and wolves that it took some acting.
He also promised that as long as I was willing to hand over control of Jiangnan to him, he would fully support me in my fight against the Qing Dynasty and would never interfere in Jiangnan’s internal affairs.
After reading the letter, I felt mixed emotions. Li Zicheng's words seemed sincere, but I didn't dare to believe them easily. I knew exactly what kind of person he was.
He is an out-and-out opportunist who will do anything to achieve his goal. Now that he is at the gates of the city, he suddenly asks me to cooperate with him. There must be something fishy going on!
"What do you think?" I handed the letter to Bi Yuntao, wanting to hear his opinion.
Bi Yuntao read it carefully, frowning, "There must be something wrong when things are out of the ordinary. Li Zicheng definitely doesn't really want to cooperate with us. I'm afraid he wants to use us to contain the Qing army, so that he can reap the benefits."
I nodded in agreement. At this moment, a messenger came in and reported, "General, the Qing army's vanguard has arrived in Suzhou, less than a hundred miles away from here!"
When the news came, everyone present took a deep breath. The main force of the Qing army finally arrived!
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