The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 740 When disaster strikes, we all fly away

The setting sun shone on the banner, horses neighed and the wind howled. The decisive battle, which had been brewing for many days, finally broke out. The booming of cannons, the loud gunfire, and the tearing sound of arrows piercing the air were chilling.

Looking down from the sky, one could see that in the east of the city, the Beijing army's position had dozens of cannons lined up in a row. The Shenji Battalion was bombarding Wang Ziyong's position with fierce artillery fire, truly a bombardment from all sides, causing people to fall and blood to fly everywhere.

The situation was similar in the south of the city. Gao Yingxiang's and Li Zicheng's positions were both subjected to fierce artillery bombardment, with arrows raining down from the sky. Although Zhang Xianzhong's camp was also attacked, the intensity of the fighting was much lower, and it was more bark than bite.

Looking at Shen Yi Kui's position in the west of the city, it was completely different from the south and east of the city. There was no fighting here, the water was still and the river was flowing. Lu Xiang Sheng's 15,000 government troops were just facing each other from a distance, and no one knew what they were planning.

At first, Shen Yikui was also confused and could only remain still to observe the situation. However, as the battles in the south and east of the city intensified, Shen Yikui gradually realized what was going on and couldn't help but curse loudly: "Jia Huan, I'll f*** your mother! You're too treacherous, you're just bullying honest people, aren't you?"

Before the government troops launched their attack, rumors circulated within the rebel army that Shen Yikui had secretly surrendered to the government troops. Now, the government troops have launched fierce attacks on the camps of Gao Yingxiang and Wang Ziyong, but they have not attacked Shen Yikui's camp. What are Wang Ziyong and Gao Yingxiang supposed to think?
Naturally, they were even more convinced that Shen Yikui had betrayed them and defected to the enemy!

After Shen Yikui understood Jia Huan's sinister intentions, he couldn't help but gasp, and then flew into a rage. "Damn it, you're not going to attack, are you? Do you think I won't take the initiative?"

So, in order to prove his innocence, Shen Yikui gave an order and led his troops to charge into the government army's position. Heh heh, this was the moment Lu Xiangsheng had been waiting for. It was just like the saying: "You have a way to heaven but you don't take it, you have no way to hell but you insist on coming here!"
Lu Xiang-sheng had 15,000 men under his command, 10,000 of whom were elite troops assigned to him by Jia Huan, including 1,000 cavalry and 1,000 musketeers. The remaining 5,000 were militiamen that Lu Xiang-sheng had organized himself in Yan'an Prefecture. Their fighting strength was enough to crush Shen Yi-kui.

If Shen Yikui had held his ground with his back to the city wall, he might have been able to put up a fight against Lu Xiang-sheng's 15,000 men. But now, abandoning his advantageous position and launching a preemptive attack is undoubtedly courting death.

Bang bang bang... Boom boom boom!

Gunshots rang out like popping beans, and arrows whistled like tearing silk. In just one exchange, Shen Yikui's troops suffered a devastating blow, with heavy casualties.

At this moment, Shen Yikui finally woke up as if from a dream and hurriedly ordered a retreat to defend the position. Unfortunately, he had already lost the initiative. Lu Xiangshan was proficient in military strategy and had extremely rich combat experience. Seeing the enemy soldiers retreating, he immediately commanded the cavalry to charge.

Suddenly, a thousand-strong cavalry force charged out from the rear of the government army. Their hooves thundered like lightning as they pounced on the enemy's center. Like an incomparably sharp longsword, they cleaved fiercely into the enemy ranks, unstoppable and leaving a trail of blood and flesh in their wake. Heads rolled and corpses littered the ground.

The bandits were terrified and their spirits were broken. They scattered and fled in all directions. Their defeat was like a landslide, and no matter how hard Shen Yikui shouted, he could not control them.

At this moment, Lu Xiang-sheng had already ordered the infantry and cavalry to advance in unison, pressing forward like an overwhelming tide. Spears were like a forest, swords like a sea, and banners blotted out the sky. The overwhelming momentum completely shattered the enemy's psychological defenses. Some fled in panic, while others desperately squeezed towards the city gate. The crowd trampled each other, resulting in countless deaths and injuries.

—Report!

"Lord Lu has defeated Shen Yi Kui's forces and is now fighting for the city gate!"

—Report!

"Lord Lu has already stormed the city!"

Inside the central command tent, Jia Huan was the first to receive Lu Xiang Sheng's report of victory. Just then, the sun was setting, and the cool afterglow slanted into the camp gate, bathing Jia Huan's entire body in a pale gold light.

"Well done, Lu Jiandou is truly remarkable!" Jia Huan couldn't help but applaud.

Before the battle, Jia Huan specifically instructed Lu Xiang Sheng to surround the city without attacking, in order to create the illusion that Shen Yi Kui had secretly surrendered, and to use this to deceive Gao Ying Xiang and Wang Zi Yong, increasing their psychological pressure. Unexpectedly, Shen Yi Kui turned out to be so incompetent, and was defeated by Lu Xiang Sheng first. However, this was also good. With Shen Yi Kui defeated, the battles in the south and east of the city should be more or less decided.

Just then, a warrior, fully armored, rushed in. It was Man Gui, his eyes bloodshot and his face full of resentment.

Dong Dao and Fan Jian, along with other personal guards, immediately stepped forward to stop him, shouting, "How dare you, Man Gui, trespass into the commander's tent! What are you trying to do?"

"Get out of my way! This humble general wants to see the commander-in-chief!" Man Gui roared.

Dong Dao and Fan Jian's faces darkened, and they drew their swords, coldly rebuking, "Man Gui, this is not a place for you to run wild. If you dare to take another step forward, don't blame us for being impolite."

Seeing this, the supervising officer Duan Yong's eyes flashed, and he quickly stood up to smooth things over, saying, "We're all on the same side, let's talk things out and not hurt our harmony." At the same time, he shouted sternly, "Bold Man Gui, why aren't you recuperating in your own tent? What are you doing here?"

Jia Huan waved his hand calmly and said indifferently, "Dong Dao and Fan Jian, step back and let him come forward!"

Dong Dao and Fan Jian exchanged a glance and retreated to Jia Huan's side as instructed, but their eyes remained warily fixed on Man Gui. Man Gui, empty-handed and unarmed, knelt before Jia Huan, her expression filled with grief and indignation, and said, "Although I have made mistakes, I have served you faithfully for many years. Even if I have not rendered any great service, I have certainly put in a lot of hard work. Why does the General treat me so cruelly and ungratefully?"

Jia Huan frowned and said angrily, "Nonsense! How have I treated you harshly and ungratefully? If you can give me a reason, that's fine. Otherwise, I'll punish you today for trespassing in the commander's tent and offending your superior!"

Man Gui gritted his teeth and said, "This humble general has made a mistake, causing the deaths of thousands of brothers. He deserves to die a thousand deaths and has already been punished. The commander-in-chief also clearly stated that he would give this humble general a chance to redeem himself. So why is this humble general not used in today's decisive battle? Tie Hu, Shi Tou, Niu Ye, and even Lu Er Ye have all led their troops into battle to reap the rewards, but this humble general has not even had the chance to drink soup!"

Jia Huan slammed his fist on the desk in a fit of rage and cursed, "What a load of bull! It's not that I don't want you, it's just that I'm afraid your injuries haven't fully healed yet. You've taken my kindness for granted! You're really infuriating me!"

Man Gui was scolded mercilessly, but instead of being angry, he was pleased and said with a forced smile, "General, please calm down. It was a misunderstanding on my part. My injuries are no longer serious. I have come to ask for permission to fight. Please grant me your permission!"

Jia Huan seemed to still be angry, and said coldly, "I'm already grateful that I haven't punished you. If you still want to fight, get out of here!"

Man Gui kowtowed repeatedly and said, "General, please give me another chance, considering the years of service I have served you. If these three largest bandit groups are wiped out, I will have no chance to make merit in the future. When Tiger and Stone eat meat, at least leave me some soup."

Jia Huan frowned deeply, and finally sighed, saying, "Very well, then I will give you one more chance. Immediately lead a thousand men to guard Tongchuan Bridge."

Man Gui was initially delighted, but then muttered, "Tongchuan Bridge is to the south, fifty li from Huan County. What's the point of guarding there? I won't go. I want to assist Tie Hu in attacking Gao Yingxiang."

Jia Huan's face darkened, and he was about to lash out when Dong Dao gave him a subtle signal and shouted, "Man Gui, don't be ungrateful. The commander-in-chief has his reasons for ordering you to guard Tongchuan Bridge. At a time like this, you still dare to be picky."

Fan Jian interjected, "That's right, Tongchuan Bridge is the only way to escape south. If the thieves are fleeing south, they will definitely pass through Tongchuan Bridge. If they are lucky, they might catch a big fish and then get credit."

Man Gui was overjoyed upon hearing this and quickly bowed, saying, "Your subordinate obeys!"

Jia Huan snorted coldly, pulled out a command arrow and threw it over, shouting: "If the thief escapes from Tongchuan Bridge, the punishment will be doubled!"

Man Gui accepted the order, patted his chest, and said, "General, rest assured, if even a single fly escapes from the Tongchuan Bridge, you can take my head." After saying that, he led a thousand men away from the camp.

Duan Yong glanced at Jia Huan thoughtfully and said, "Does Lord Jia think the bandit leader will flee south?"

Jia Huan said calmly, "Just in case. Besides, that brat Man Gui keeps bothering us, so we have to find him something to do, so he won't keep making noise here and it'll annoy us!"

Upon hearing this, Duan Yong smiled knowingly and teased, "I see. Well, it's just as well. We can't be of any help here anyway. Rather than causing trouble, we might as well go with Guerrilla Man to guard Tongchuan Bridge."

Duan Yong was just joking, but Jia Huan nodded and said, "It's not impossible. If Eunuch Duan doesn't mind, you can lead a thousand men to help Man Gui guard the bridge. If the bandit leader breaks out and escapes south, you and Man Gui will be able to help each other."

Although Duan Yong was joking, he actually wanted to take this opportunity to get closer to Man Gui, so he smiled and said, "Then I will do as you command."

So Duan Yong also led a thousand men to chase after Man Gui. Anyway, since he was the one who would get credit for the victory here, why not hide in a safe place in the rear to watch the show and take the opportunity to completely subdue Man Gui?

Leaving aside Duan Yong's personal motives for now, let's talk about how Lu Xiang-sheng, after defeating Shen Yi-kui, pressed his advantage and successfully stormed into Huan County. Meanwhile, fierce battles were still raging in the east and south of the city.

In the east of the city, Feng Ziying led 20,000 elite troops of the capital to attack Wang Ziyong's forces. Wang Ziyong was about to be overwhelmed when news came that the west of the city had fallen and the government troops had broken through the city walls.

Wang Ziyong was greatly alarmed. He knew that his camp was built against the east wall of the city. Once the city was occupied by the government troops, they could launch an attack from the top of the city wall. He would be attacked from both sides and would be doomed.

Seeing that the Beijing garrison's offensive was getting more and more urgent, Wang Ziyong weighed the situation again and again and finally decided not to hold out any longer. However, this guy still had some sense of morality. He first sent someone to inform Gao Yingxiang in the south of the city before breaking through to the north, trying to escape beyond the Great Wall.

That was it. With Wang Ziyong's troops withdrawing, Shen Yikui's troops were also defeated, leaving Gao Yingxiang and his group as a lone force fighting the government troops in the south of the city.

Of course, Wang Ziyong's troops also suffered greatly. Although there were no troops blocking their way to the north, Feng Ziying led the elite troops of the Beijing Garrison in hot pursuit, causing heavy casualties among his men. Even when they fled to the foot of the Great Wall, they were still unable to shake off their pursuers.

(End of this chapter)