Chapter 73 He Escapes, He Chases
The beacon fires illuminated the long night, making Baishi City seem like a city that never sleeps.
The weather in the north was already quite cold after the Mid-Autumn Festival, but the city was scorching hot from the firelight. The Northern Yan soldiers were like ants on a hot pan, shouting as they rushed toward the city gate.
Flames leaped up the city wall, and the Yan soldiers guarding the city disregarded everything else, quickly tying ropes together and jumping out of the city.
Outside the south gate, the captain's face lit up with joy. "If we had used ladders to scale the city walls, we would be the ones crushed into mincemeat by giant logs and burned alive by pouring wine on us. General, your move to set the city ablaze and force the enemy to engage in battle is truly brilliant!"
"It was all the strategist's idea," He Zheng said, feigning humility to distance himself from the situation.
"The strategist also said that this move is against the natural order and should never be used in ordinary battles."
First, indiscriminate fire attacks would damage the reputation of a righteous army and easily alienate the people. Second, warfare is about conquering cities and seizing territory; if everyone is burned to death and towns are reduced to ruins, what use is a hundred miles of scorched earth?
The reason for this military campaign, which involved taking a risk due to local conditions, was twofold: First, the Yan army had first slaughtered the soldiers of Daliang and abused the people of Sangyang, and it would be unforgivable not to avenge this; second, Baishi City, true to its name, was a place where no fertile land could be found within a hundred miles, only sand and rocks everywhere. This place was not suitable for habitation, and setting it on fire would not cause much damage.
Seeing the Northern Yan troops routed, the captain's eyes lit up, and he shouted into the distance, "Keep the catapults going!"
The flammable fire pot, filled with flammable material, instantly turned into a shooting star and crashed into the city ahead.
The city gates were wide open, and the Yan army was forced to leave the city to meet the enemy. They rode their horses at full speed, their blood and sweat flying everywhere.
Amidst the dazzling chaos of the army, He Zheng recognized Liang Feng at a glance.
A surrendered general, still riding a sturdy warhorse with great pride, shamelessly hid behind shield bearers, protected by Yan soldiers within the army formation.
"Liang Feng! You have betrayed the Emperor's grace, abandoning the city twice and fleeing, leaving the people in danger and abandoning your comrades! You treacherous and cowardly coward, if you still have a shred of manly courage, stand up and fight me!"
Liang Feng was a contemporary of the current emperor of Liang, He Xiao, the Earl of Anyuan. He had spent half his life on the battlefield and made many military achievements. He had never been insulted by a mere youth! Anger rose in his heart, and his eyes burned with raging fury.
"With your chicken-like physique, you dare to challenge me! Kid, you're arrogant!"
With a roar, Liang Feng spun his halberd in mid-air, pointing it directly at He Zheng, ready to charge out of the army formation and fight him.
The lieutenant urgently shouted, "This sounds like a provocation tactic by the Liang army! General, you must not act rashly!"
Liang Feng tightened his grip on the reins, paused for a moment, then suddenly relaxed, and the halberd spun again before landing heavily on the ground.
"rational."
"Hold the battle in place, we must wait for the King to send reinforcements!"
This action was observed by the soldiers of Daliang from afar, and a burst of contemptuous laughter erupted from the crowd.
The captain gritted his teeth and cursed, "You eunuch's son, you spineless coward! You swallowed your threats after making them! This coward was once a high-ranking official in my Great Liang, he is a disgrace to the Great Liang!"
"If he doesn't fall for it, then so be it." He Zheng had expected this and sneered, "Once our army has crushed these remnants, we'll take Liang Feng's head."
The captain responded, then roused himself and raised his arms to shout to those behind him, "Soldiers of Daliang! Follow me to break through the enemy lines and kill them!"
A battle cry shattered the sky as the elite troops of the Great Liang, clad in armor, charged towards the enemy formation. The clash of weapons produced a resounding clang.
A glint flashed in He Zheng's eyes. Seizing the opportunity, he spurred his horse and charged forward diagonally.
"Wipe out the Yan bandits!"
The Northern Yan forces stationed in Baishi City were not weak, but they suffered heavy losses due to the fire attack by the Liang army. At this moment, the remaining troops were demoralized and fearful. Even with their numerical advantage, they were no match for the Liang army, which was eager for revenge.
Seeing his brothers bleeding profusely from being stabbed by the Liang men's spears, the lieutenant almost wept blood.
Liang Feng switched to a bow and arrow, squinted his eyes, and drew the bow to its full extent. The sound of the bow cutting through the air passed by everyone's ears, and he shot down a Liang army officer.
The lieutenant shouted excitedly, "Good lads of Northern Yan! The King's reinforcements will surely arrive before dawn! Heaven protect us, follow me to defeat the Liang people, and send these Central Plains bastards back south!"
After some encouraging words, the morale of the Northern Yan army improved slightly.
Upon seeing this, He Zheng merely smiled sarcastically, realizing that the Northern Yan King's reinforcements were unlikely to arrive.
As the sun rises, the clouds and the earth are both a dazzling crimson.
The Northern Yan army gradually became exhausted from fighting, frequently glancing north during engagements, but the reinforcements they longed for never arrived. They went from fighting with high hopes to fighting with utter despair, and at this point, they could no longer muster the determination to fight the Liang army to the death.
Liang Jun's spear pierced the chest of Yan Jun's deputy general, and warm blood was flung along the red tassel towards the rolling sand and stones.
The lieutenant's eyes were bloodshot, he gritted his teeth and gripped the gun barrel in front of his chest, trying with all his might to fight the other side again, but the captain easily flicked the barrel and turned the gun, and a spurt of blood gushed out from his heart.
His knees buckled, his hand, which had been scraped and chafed, suddenly fell to the ground, and he collapsed straight down, his eyes, which refused to close, staring in the direction of the royal court.
The captain sheathed his gun and sighed, "He's a real man." Without another glance, he turned and charged at the next remaining Northern Yan soldier.
Liang Feng watched his deputy fall with his own eyes. His heart tightened, and he made a decision in a moment. He threw down his bow and arrows, picked up his halberd, and said to the soldiers in front of him, "Protect me to break through the encirclement!"
Someone in the distance saw the Northern Yan banners heading west and rushed into the chaos, shouting to He Zheng, "General! Liang Feng is trying to escape!"
"Running away again! Is he a rabbit reincarnated?!" the captain cursed, knocking down three enemies in front of him with a single shot.
He Zheng's eyes darkened, and he reined in his horse, turning it westward. "I'll go after them."
The captain was shocked and looked through the crowd. "How can a general commanding three armies put himself in such danger!"
Without a response, the conspicuous man and horse had already ridden far away.
The captain was extremely anxious and shouted to the squad not far away, "Aren't you going to follow them!"
Liang Feng's army formation had long since collapsed. He forced his way out and broke through the Liang army's encirclement. When he escaped into the valley, only a few soldiers remained.
Before they could catch their breath, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from behind. He Zheng and his Liang army seemed to be haunted by spirits, wielding long spears as they caught up with Liang Feng's squad.
The surviving soldiers' expressions changed drastically, and they instinctively protected their commander.
He Zheng approached step by step, loudly mocking, "The one you're protecting was nothing more than a stable boy given to the eleventh prince by the Zhang family thirty years ago. He's cowardly by nature, lacking courage, strategy, and integrity! How could such a traitorous general be entrusted with an important position by the Yan army? The King of Northern Yan really doesn't hold grudges when it comes to choosing people."
The Yan soldiers exchanged glances but did not move.
He Zheng laughed and said, "This man is a general who only knows how to sacrifice your lives and shed your blood. When the situation is not good, he runs away faster than anyone else! You are all warriors of Northern Yan. Do you really want to lose your lives here for this coward?"
Liang Feng's eyes turned red with anger, and he cursed, "He Er! Stop spreading your lies and bewitching them! They won't listen to you!"
"Is that so?" He Zheng's smile deepened. "I, He Xingzhao, admire the warriors of Northern Yan. You should leave immediately. Today, I will only take Liang Feng!"
Upon hearing this, the Yan soldiers on the left and right sides slowly lowered their weapons, glanced at Liang Feng, and turned to run away.
Enraged, Liang Feng brandished his halberd, intending to kill the deserter. Unexpectedly, the soldiers beside him suddenly turned against him, kicking his brown horse and fleeing while the horse was startled and kicked in place.
He Zheng slowly stepped forward, and only then did fear finally appear in Liang Feng's eyes.
"Young General He!" Liang Feng forced a smile that was more like a grimace. "Your father and brothers are old acquaintances. Twenty-three years ago, on this very road, I even saved your father, the Earl of Anyuan's, life! For the sake of that friendship, please spare me..."
“If I let you go, where do you plan to go? Will the King of Northern Yan still want you? Would he dare to use you?” He Zheng looked directly into his eyes, which kept darting away. “Be dignified, dismount and surrender, and come back to Chang’an with me to confess your crimes.”
Liang Feng took a step back. "General He, it is not that Liang Feng is putting up a desperate resistance, but that I have failed the Emperor's grace and have no face to face him!"
"Now you realize your guilt?" He Zheng took two steps closer. "His Majesty has treated you well, bestowing upon you the imperial surname, granting you the title of Pillar of State, and ordering you to guard a region. How have you repaid him?"
“I have followed His Majesty to Youzhou for twenty-five years now. General He, you are right. I am but a lowly stable boy. How could I have ever pursued such fame and fortune?”
Liang Feng took another step back and suddenly stopped.
"From beginning to end, all I wanted was to find a wife, have a son, and live a peaceful life with my family. Is that wrong?"
The man before him suddenly unleashed a surge of murderous intent. He Zheng was prepared, dodging a halberd and then raising his spear to block the blade coming straight at him.
Liang Feng glared and gritted his teeth, using all his strength to force out a sentence that seemed to be squeezed out of his nose: "He Zheng, you should have expected this moment when you drove me to the brink of despair. A common man's anger can cause him to bleed five steps away!"
He Zheng ignored his harsh words and focused on countering his moves, seizing the opportunity to retaliate.
The soldiers behind him snapped out of their daze and charged forward, but Liang Feng feinted and tried to escape again.
He Zheng cursed and chased after Liang Feng against the wind, swinging his gun to smash it into Liang Feng's head.
The wind howled fiercely, and Liang Feng dodged sharply, hanging sideways on his horse for several miles before having to distract himself to fight the person behind him.
"You little brat, you're asking for it!"
As the sharp blade came hurtling towards him, He Zheng leaped into the air and then slashed hard at the front hooves of the brown horse beneath Liang Feng. With a neigh, the horse fell forward.
Liang Feng rolled around in the sand and gravel, then, not to be outdone, launched a vicious attack on He Zheng's mount. He Zheng, anticipating this move, had already tightened the reins and turned the mount around.
The spear that flew towards them was blocked by the halberd, and Liang Feng's huge body was able to somersault in place and kick the spear shaft in He Zheng's hand!
The violent tremor threw him backward, and He Zheng dismounted and turned to attack Liang Feng a second time.
His movements were extremely fast, and his strength was far greater than Liang Feng had imagined, making him seem nothing like the playboy who was rumored to be good at everything from eating and drinking to indulging in pleasure.
Liang Feng's moves relied entirely on brute force, and the longer the stalemate lasted, the more disadvantaged he became. At this point, he was at his wit's end, and his only option was to deliver a final, all-out attack…
With a few clanging sounds, the world fell silent.
The sharp blade at the tip of the halberd barely grazed the top of He Zheng's arm guard, leaving a few dark red marks.
Ke Hezheng's spearhead pierced Liang Feng's forehead.
He swiftly sheathed his gun, glanced at the eerie smile on the man's lips, and turned to his arriving subordinates, saying, "Take this man's body back and send it to Chang'an."
"yes!"
He Zheng whistled, summoning his weary warhorse, which swayed back to the camp.
At this time, Baishi City had been captured by the Liang army, but because the city was in ruins and there was no place to settle down, the Liang army still set up camp outside the city.
The victorious soldiers hummed off-key war songs as they sat together and ate heartily.
Jinghong won back his husband, but before he could even offer his congratulations, he immediately noticed the bloodstains on his left arm.
The dark red blood had now turned a deep black, and he immediately exclaimed, "My lord is injured!"
"Minor injury."
As soon as He Zheng finished speaking, his eyelids suddenly drooped, and he fell straight forward.
Jinghong was shocked and caught the person who had fallen, shouting at the top of his lungs, "A military doctor! Summon a military doctor!"
…
In the chilly autumn air of Guiyi, Yu Mingshu awoke with a start to find himself drenched in a cold sweat.
He sat quietly, exhaling a few breaths of stale air, his heart still pounding. The image of that person being assassinated flashed before his eyes again and again... Was it him?
Could it be He Zheng?
On the battlefield, swords and spears have no eyes; even a commander-in-chief can be injured.
If He Zheng were to encounter danger, the imperial court would surely receive an urgent report. It is a pity that she has left Chang'an with the Crown Prince to inspect the post-flood repair work in Gui County and cannot see the reports from the front lines immediately.
Yu Mingshu calmed his abnormal heart rate, took the copper basin and went out to fetch some clean water. He then gritted his teeth, wiped away the sweat stains, and changed into clean clothes.
When she went out to get some water, she saw that Liang Yuanjun across the room had also opened her door.
The Crown Prince has woken up; it's time to go out.
"I'm going to check on the Yanghe River embankment today. Yu Qing stayed up late last night, so you should stay at the inn to rest."
Hearing her considerate concern, Yu Mingshu shook his head and said, "Your Highness, I will go with you."
Skipping work without a reason is not her style. Besides, she has nightmares as soon as she falls asleep, so she can't rest well in the inn. It's better to go out for some fresh air.
Liang Yuanjun glanced at her and didn't try to persuade her any further.
The group, accompanied by officials led by the county magistrate, went down to the Yanghe River embankment. As soon as they got off the carriage, they saw grayish-yellow waves crashing onto the shore, the river water splashing up and landing on the stone tablet.
"Why is there a stone tablet here?" Yu Mingshu squinted, trying to see the inscription on the tablet.
The magistrate, who had been speaking eloquently just moments before, suddenly fell silent, giving Yu Mingshu a strange look before glancing at the minor official beside him.
“Back then, this place also experienced days of heavy rain, and the entire Guiyi County was flooded. Imperial Censor Yu was ordered to come and assist in disaster relief and supervise the workers to build dams. Unfortunately, he was killed by the flood and died in the line of duty. The people of Guiyi County remember Imperial Censor Yu’s merits and erected a monument here to commemorate him.”
It turns out this is the place where her father died in the line of duty... No wonder the Crown Prince advised her to rest at the post station.
Perhaps it was because this body was connected to Yu Zhui by blood, but looking at the name on the tombstone, she felt a tightness in her heart and subconsciously took two steps forward.
“Minister Yu, be careful. The rapids have not receded, and this place is dangerous,” the magistrate warned.
“I understand, I’ll just take a look at the stone tablet,” Yu Mingshu said.
The stone tablet was about twenty paces from the riverbank, which was considered safe, so the magistrate said no more. He then saw Prince Liang Yuanjun also heading in that direction, and his heart tightened; he quickly followed.
The stone of the stele was very rough, and the inscriptions on it were far inferior to those she had seen during her travels in her previous life. She raised her palm and placed it on the stele, her soft fingertips brushing against the sharp edges of the stone carvings, taking away the gray dust and leaving behind a bright blue luster.
Liang Yuanjun also noticed the somewhat rough inscriptions and asked, "Who carved this inscription?"
The magistrate said, "It is not the work of a famous calligrapher; it was done spontaneously by the people along the river. Every single character on it was carved by hand by the people who received the favor of Imperial Censor Yu."
Liang Yuanjun pondered and said, "Serving the country and the people as an official is why he is respected by later generations and his name is commemorated for generations to come. Yu Yushi's life can be regarded as a model of a virtuous minister."
Seeing that the Crown Prince was interested in Yu Zhui's deeds, the county magistrate catered to his interests and then remarked with emotion: "At that time, the dam had not yet been built, and a few villagers lived scattered along the riverbank. The flood destroyed their houses, and Imperial Censor Yu personally evacuated the affected people to disaster relief shelters in the city, providing them with porridge, rice, and new clothes."
As he spoke, he seemed to remember something, and his tone suddenly became louder, "Oh, right, there was a family where all four members perished in a disaster, with only a seven-year-old child surviving. It was Imperial Censor Yu who personally rescued him from the mud with a rope. Imperial Censor Yu was kind-hearted and took the child under his care for more than half a month. The child always remembered Imperial Censor Yu's teachings, studied diligently, and was admitted to Liangzhou Academy two years ago."
Yu Mingshu suddenly turned around, "What's this child's name?"
The magistrate racked his brains for a long time, his brows furrowed. "This... I can't remember. The villagers of Guiyi all call him Dunzi."
Yu Mingshu expressed his understanding and did not ask any further questions.
Liang Yuanjun glanced at her, then instructed the county magistrate to lead the way elsewhere.
After inspecting the river embankment and returning to the city by carriage, with no outsiders around, she asked Yu Mingshu, "Are you interested in the child that Imperial Censor Yu saved?"
Yu Mingshu was stunned, and it took him a while to realize that the Crown Prince still remembered his conversation with the county magistrate at noon.
"I was just asking casually."
Liang Yuanjun turned her head to stare at Yu Mingshu's expression, clearly preoccupied. Since he wouldn't reveal anything, she didn't press him, speaking casually about other things.
Yu Mingshu did have a question in his mind.
When Yu Zhui met his demise, the floodwaters had already receded, and the water level was dropping. Workers began constructing dikes, indicating that the riverbanks were relatively safe at the time, and even though the current was swift, it wouldn't sweep people off the banks.
Even the workers repairing the dike were unharmed, so how did Yu Zhui get into trouble?
The magistrate said that Yu Zhui had taken Dunzi with him, so Dunzi should know best what had happened to him and what he had experienced.
If she has the chance to go to Liangzhou, she wants to see this mound.
…
Two days later, Guiyi was hit by another round of rain. The county magistrate, wearing a raincoat, rushed to the post station. He was almost completely soaked, and his eyes were so wet from the rain that he could only squint through them.
He said anxiously, "Your Highness! The rain is too heavy, and the upper reaches of the Yang River have released floodwaters. I'm afraid it will affect Guiyi. Please move your carriage to a safe place immediately!"
Liang Yuanjun pushed open the door, and Yu Mingshu and Yang Leyi were already packing their things behind her.
Have all the residents of the city been evacuated?
"Evacuation is underway, Your Highness, please rest assured!"
The group hurriedly left the inn and moved towards higher ground.
The night was deep when someone shouted, "It's collapsed! The Yanghe River embankment has collapsed!"
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