Chapter 662 As expected, it’s Xu Yu…
The battle of Chuzhou was obviously not easy to fight.
Fu Kun knew that the troops under his command were not as strong as the rebels led by Xu Yu, so he did not dare to look down on them in the slightest.
Xu Yu did not want to cause too much killing and was afraid to act rashly.
In addition, the weather was extremely bad with heavy snow. Both the defenders in Chuzhou City and the Lingnan army not far from Chuzhou City tacitly chose to stay put.
When the news of the developments here reached Kyoto, Emperor Yongshun, who had been in a gloomy mood for a long time, finally smiled triumphantly.
Continuous defeats, successive loss of territory and the rebels approaching Kyoto, coupled with the previous disastrous defeat of Qiu Zheng and others, the two names of Lingnan rebels and Xu Yu have become an unquenchable anger in the heart of Emperor Yongshun.
Emperor Yongshun sneered, holding the delicate beauty in his arms, "As long as Fu Kun can kill Xu Yu on his horse and severely dampen the rebels' spirit, I can temporarily let go of his previous unauthorized mobilization of troops."
The person who heard this bowed his head and praised the emperor's wisdom, then whispered, "But Your Majesty, the news of General Fu forcibly conscripting a large number of young men into the army has spread, and now people outside are saying..."
"So what if he catches me?"
Emperor Yongshun waved his hand nonchalantly and said lightly, "All under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people are his subjects. Now is the time to recruit people. These lowly common people should sacrifice their lives for my country without complaint."
"To have the opportunity to die for me is a blessing that even a lowly person could never hope to obtain in several lifetimes. Who dares to speak nonsense?"
The person who had spoken did not dare to mention it again, and only followed the Emperor Yongshun's words of comfort and said: "Your Majesty is absolutely right."
"Although General Fu's troops have been temporarily replenished, they are still no match for the elite rebels. Most of them are ordinary farmers and civilians. The two sides are currently in a standoff, so we can't see anything happening. But if a fight really breaks out, I'm afraid they will suffer."
"Then add more people. It's not impossible to win by numbers."
Emperor Yongshun said absentmindedly, "My kingdom is vast, my people are numerous, and wherever there are people, I can certainly muster an astonishing million-strong army."
"Let Fu Kun handle this matter. Tell him that he can only win and not lose. Otherwise..."
"Don't blame me for being rude to him!"
Upon hearing this, the minister immediately knelt down, thinking of the benefits Fu Kun had given him. Without hesitation, he said, "Your Majesty, rest assured. General Fu has the Emperor's protection. The army he leads will surely be invincible. Good news will be reported back soon."
Emperor Yongshun waved his hand contentedly, signaling his ministers to leave. But then, as if suddenly remembering something, he said unhappily, "Have the people from the Qiu and You families been held accountable?"
Qiu Zheng and You Hai are really useless.
He led an army of 100,000 to fight against the rebels, and it turned out that these two people were the biggest among the rebels.
No wonder Qiu Zheng was so active in seeking opportunities to go on the expedition, and You Hai also volunteered.
These two people are heading to surrender to the enemy!
As soon as the news that Qiu Zheng and You Hai had colluded with the enemy and rebelled by joining the Lingnan rebels without a fight was reported, the entire Qiu and You families were thrown into prison, awaiting execution.
"To answer the emperor, today is the day of execution. If nothing unexpected happens, all nine members of the Qiu and You families would have been beheaded by now."
Emperor Yongshun finally felt relieved, closed his eyes and said, "This is very good."
"With the precedents of Qiu Zheng and You Hai as a warning, I want to see who else dares to collude with the traitors in Lingnan!"
"By the way, how's Chen Nianhe doing?"
The person being questioned was even more cautious, pausing before saying, "It's said General Chen's condition hasn't improved. Several experts from the Imperial Hospital have visited him, but their pulse diagnoses haven't been good."
Anyone who is not stupid can see that Chen Nianhe’s illness is fake.
But who can blame them for pretending to be so serious?
Moreover, Chen Nianhe only claimed to be sick and could not go out, and had no other faults. Even if Emperor Yongshun wanted to hold him accountable, it would not be a good time to take drastic action.
Emperor Yongshun snorted and said coldly, "Then let him stay sick."
Once the rebellion in Lingnan is resolved, he will slowly deal with these rebellious people!
The minister who was sent out listened to the beautiful woman's laughter coming from the inner room, pulled the corners of his mouth with a strange expression, lowered his head and walked out of the palace.
When news of the execution of the nine clans of the Qiu and You families reached the Chen residence, Chen Nianhe, who had been concentrating on pretending to be sick, raised his eyebrows slightly and said in a complicated tone, "As expected of Xu Yu..."
If you don't take action, it's fine. But if you do, you will kill the entire family.
If Qiu Zheng and You Hai were still alive, they would probably be regretting and hating why they accepted the order to go to war.
They were able to keep a low profile in Kyoto and protect the lives of their entire family. They were quite impressive when they went on the expedition, but now that their souls have reunited in the afterlife, these two men probably don't have the face to see their families again.
Chen Tai's heart skipped a beat as he was shocked by the blood that splattered across Kyoto today. He paused and whispered, "Father, did Qiu Zheng and You Hai really defect to the enemy?"
The two families together had hundreds of people, and the nine clans involved nearly a thousand people. These people died silently, but the blood-stained street could not be washed away even by half a day's heavy rain.
Is this such a shocking case true?
Chen Nianhe lowered his eyes and said slowly, "Now that things have come to this, whether it's true or not doesn't matter anymore."
When a person dies, it is like a light going out. Once dead, they are dead.
The Yongshun Emperor personally ordered the killing of the person, and the notoriety of cruelty and ruthlessness also fell on the Yongshun Emperor's head. How could it be related to others?
Chen Tai was speechless.
Chen Nianhe stirred the dark medicinal juice in the bowl and had an idea in mind.
Due to the cold weather, the rebel rebellion that was previously in full swing was forced to stop temporarily for a while.
This news should have been good news for the anxious people in Kyoto.
But it’s not the same for the Chen family.
If Chen Nianhe wants to escape from the muddy waters of Kyoto, the chaos outside must not be stopped.
If the mouse stops making trouble, how can the cat trapped in the cage have a chance to be released?
Chen Nianhe thought of the Northwest Camp where they had safely sheltered from the winter wind and snow, and a faint light gradually flashed in his eyes.
The world cannot remain peaceful like this...
Chen Nianhe closed his eyes and said, "I heard that Fu Kun, who was defending against Xu Yu in Chuzhou, captured many local people and sent them to the army as exiles."
Chen Tai nodded quickly: "That's what happened."
"I've been paying attention and making inquiries. There's been a lot of criticism from officials in the court and the public, but the Emperor... doesn't seem to care much."
"The Emperor is high above and has lived in the Holy Temple for a long time. Of course, he doesn't care about the lives of the ants under his feet."
If there was even one person in the Kyoto royal family who still cared about the lives of the people, the army of Lingnan would not have been able to advance so quickly and with such momentum.
Chen Nianhe quickly concealed the sarcasm that flashed across his lips and said slowly, "Get some pen and ink. I want to write a letter to an old friend."
Fukun's inhumane and cruel behavior is likely to arouse public anger, and this may be an opportunity.
It all depends on whether Xu Yu, who is far away in Chuzhou, can catch him...
When Chen Nianhe's handwritten letter was delivered to Xu Yu, it was New Year's Eve.
During the New Year's Day, both sides temporarily ceased fighting and did not mobilize their troops. The ice and snow covering the ground were knee-thick in places that had not been cleared. However, although they had to sleep in the wilderness, no one in the camp froze to death.
Xu Yu handed the secret letter in his hand to Jiang Yubai.
Liang Ren, standing below, lowered his head and said, "Everyone gets a bowl of ginger and sugar water every day. Plus, we have thick tents and warm clothes. Quite a few soldiers in the camp get frostbite, but they all just need some medicine to recover. It's not serious."
The inevitable cold winter was the first severe challenge facing the Lingnan army.
Although Jiang Yubai thought of preparing enough supplies to keep warm from the beginning and made a lot of preparations for this, in the end, the fact that the soldiers everywhere could spend the cold night safely was ultimately due to the contribution of Sang Zhixia.
Sang Zhixia had lived in the northwest for several years and had more experience in resisting terrible cold waves.
When Wu An and others were at a loss and had not found a chance to take action, Sang Zhixia had already pointed out a clear way for them with practical actions.
Most of the cold-resistant items prepared by Wu An and others were sent to the scholar and the monk, because half of the soldiers on Xu Yu's side were using the ones sent by Sang Zhixia, which were thicker than those from anywhere else and they didn't have to worry about anything.
Jiang Yubai thoughtfully stuffed the secret letter back into Xu Yu's pocket. After Xu Yu threw it into the brazier and burned it, he slowly said, "Is there enough medicine in the camp?"
"More than enough."
Liang Ren said respectfully, "The items that the young prince ordered to be sent to us have not been opened yet. The ones we are using now can last for at least another month. There are also enough common cold medicines, without any mistakes."
Jiang Yubai exhaled calmly, smelled something in the air, sniffed, and asked curiously, "What did the camp do today?"
"dumpling."
Xu Yu took over the conversation with a calm expression: "After all, it's a festival. There's no war going on, so let's celebrate."
"dumpling?"
Jiang Yubai said in disbelief: "What was that batch of things my sister-in-law sent the day before yesterday?"
"It's the flour and meat used to make dumplings."
It's snowing heavily here, but the sun is shining brightly in Lingnan. The meat sent from far away has been marinated in advance to ensure that it will not spoil on the road.
Once it's delivered to the camp, put it in a snow pit, wash it casually, brush the surface with salt and marinade, chop it up and mix it with various side dishes soaked in hot water to make the stuffing.
The big bag of white flour is just right for rolling out the dough.
Jiang Yubai, hands in his pockets, looked at the stove built in the snow, which was now steaming and emitting billowing white smoke, and said, "You call this dumplings?"
Xu Yu: “…”
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