The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 742 Killing someone with a borrowed knife

Tongchuan Bridge is located on the Huanhe River, about 50 miles south of Huan County. If you want to go south, this bridge is the only way to cross. Of course, if you are a good swimmer, you can hold onto a plank or something and swim across. As for the main group, it is best to cross the bridge.

Meanwhile, Man Gui and Duan Yong each led a thousand men to guard Tongchuan Bridge. That night, they camped on both sides of the official road at the head of Tongchuan Bridge, with Man Gui's camp in front and Duan Yong's camp behind, about three miles apart. They simply set up some deer antlers and barricades on the official road.

It was clear that both Man Gui and Duan Yong believed that the rebels were unlikely to escape south, so they were quite careless in their defensive fortifications.

It's already mid-November, deep winter, and the weather is extremely cold, especially at night, when it's bitterly cold.

Duan Yong was very sensitive to the cold, and the wind by the river was particularly strong, so after setting up camp, he hid inside his tent and didn't come out. He was wearing a mink coat, warming himself by the campfire, and there was a small low table next to him with several dishes of wine and food. He waited for Man Gui to arrive.

At this moment, a young eunuch came in and reported, "General Man has arrived."

Duan Yongxin said happily, "Please come in quickly!"

A moment later, Man Gui entered with a gust of cold wind, bowed and said, "This humble general greets the supervising officer. May I ask what business the supervising officer has summoned me for?"

Duan Yongxu smiled and said, "Brother Mangui, there's no need to be so formal. It's just a casual get-together in our spare time. Regardless of rank or status, come, come, sit down and have a couple of drinks with us."

Man Guilian said he dared not, took off his boots, and sat cross-legged beside the low table. A soft, warm blanket was laid on the ground, which was very comfortable.

Duan Yong's trusted eunuch, Xiao Yuezi, knelt beside him and poured a cup of warm wine for both Man Gui and Duan Yong.

Duan Yong smiled slightly and said, "Although this Shaoxing rice wine is not expensive, it is rare to find in the wilderness. Brother Mangui, have a cup to warm yourself up."

Man Gui hesitated and said, "I am busy with military affairs and it is probably not appropriate for me to drink. Please do as you please, sir."

Duan Yong laughed and said, "It's cold, a couple of drinks are just to warm up, it won't interfere with military affairs. The Governor himself drinks too, what are you afraid of? Besides, with me, the military supervisor, here, do you think anyone will report you?"

"This humble general is not afraid of anyone... Well then, since the supervising officer has so kindly invited me, this humble general will drink it." Man Gui said, picking up his wine cup and drinking it all in one gulp.

Duan Yong smiled and said, "That's right. It's freezing cold, why treat yourself badly? Besides, this place is fifty or sixty miles away from Huan County. Do you really think that bandits will escape here? Jia Huan just thinks you're too noisy and sent you here to sit on the sidelines."

Man Gui said in a deep voice, "Why do you say that, Supervisor? I am a close subordinate of the Commander-in-Chief. The Commander-in-Chief would never treat me like this."

Duan Yong sneered, "In Jia Huan's eyes, I'm afraid only the brothers Tie Niu and Tie Hu, and Xing Wei are his loyal followers. As for you, Brother Man Gui... hehe, your achievements are no less than those of Tie Hu and Xing Wei. You only suffered a defeat by chance, and Jia Huan wanted to kill you to establish his authority. If it weren't for everyone pleading for you, you would have been dead long ago. How can he treat his own loyal followers like this?"

Man Gui's face gradually turned ugly. He drank the wine in his cup in one gulp, lowered his head and remained silent, even the muscles in his cheeks seemed to tense up.

Duan Yong personally picked up the pot and poured another cup for Man Gui, continuing to fan the flames, saying, "Brother Man Gui is brave and skilled in battle. It's a pity he couldn't participate in the battle this time. Otherwise, he would surely have displayed his great prowess, captured and killed the bandit leader, and made outstanding contributions."

Man Gui's face grew increasingly grim. He grabbed the wine pot and drank wildly from the spout until the pot was empty. Then he wiped his mouth and angrily said, "Jia Huan is going too far! But I am of humble birth and have no backing, so I can only let him bully me!"

Duan Yong was secretly pleased upon hearing this. Seeing that the time was right, he extended an olive branch, saying, "Brother Mangui, don't be discouraged. With your skills, why worry about not being valued by the Emperor?"

Man Gui's eyes flashed, and she stood up, knelt on one knee, cupped her hands in a salute, and said, "If I am honored by your kindness, I will be eternally grateful. I will do my utmost to serve you in the future!"

Duan Yong smiled and helped Man Gui up: "Brother Man Gui, you flatter me. Please get up quickly. Come, let's continue drinking. With your talent, Brother Man Gui, you will surely have a place to use your skills. I guarantee that you will shine brightly in the future and make Jia Huan look at you with admiration."

Man Gui was overjoyed and said, "Thank you for your kind words, sir. I would like to offer you a toast."

The two raised their glasses to drink together, looked at each other and laughed, drinking until they were both very drunk before parting ways.

Duan Yong personally helped the drunken Man Gui onto his horse, and instructed him, "Little Yuezi, escort Brother Man Gui for a while."

Man Gui waved his hand and said, "No need. It's just a few catties of yellow wine. How could it make me drunk? Please go back, sir!" With that, he spurred his horse and rode off towards his own camp, swaying from side to side. Xiao Yuezi said with some worry, "Sir, Man Gui is completely drunk. What if some bandit army really escapes from the south and comes here?"

Duan Yong was also quite drunk at this point, and said dismissively, "We've wiped out the bandits in the south, who would dare to flee south? At worst, they'd just flee north to the border and suffer from the sandstorms. Don't worry, even if a few stragglers do flee south, our two thousand troops and Man Gui's are enough to handle them. At worst, we'll run to the south of the bridge, burn it down, and the bandits won't be able to get here even if they had wings."

Xiao Yuezi thought it made sense and felt relieved. Duan Yong yawned, went back to his tent, and fell asleep immediately.

As for Man Gui, he rode his horse swaying away from Duan Yong's camp, as if he could fall off at any moment. His personal guards carefully protected him nearby. After walking about a mile, Man Gui suddenly stopped swaying, sat up straight, and his tiger eyes shone brightly in the darkness. He showed no signs of being drunk at all.
After returning to the camp, Man Gui immediately summoned his officers and instructed them: "Everyone must be on high alert these two days. If any enemy soldiers are fleeing south, they will definitely pass through this place. If there is any disturbance, you only need to guard the camp. No one is allowed to leave the camp without my order."

The officers under his command were all his confidants, and naturally obeyed Man Gui's orders without question. Despite having doubts about the arrangements, they still solemnly agreed!
After making his arrangements, Man Gui returned to his tent and slept fully clothed. His waist knife was placed to the side, within easy reach. His intuition told him that a big fish would definitely pass by tonight, but he didn't know which big fish it was!

At this moment, Zhang Xianzhong, who had successfully broken through the encirclement, was leading about five thousand bandits in a hasty escape south. Apart from tripping and falling in the dark, everything went surprisingly smoothly, so smoothly that Zhang Xianzhong became a little uneasy.

Fortunately, after traveling south for about thirty miles, they encountered no resistance or pursuers. Zhang Xianzhong and his party breathed a sigh of relief and rested for half an hour before continuing their journey. To avoid attracting pursuers with their firelight, only those leading the way were allowed to light torches, while the others followed one by one, advancing in the dark.

After traveling another ten miles or so, the eastern sky began to lighten, indicating that dawn was approaching. Zhang Xianzhong ordered the torches to be extinguished and continued on their way by the faint morning light.

“Godfather, I remember that Tongchuan Bridge is not far ahead. Once we cross the bridge, we will be completely safe,” said Li Dingguo, one of the adopted sons, pointing ahead.

Zhang Xianzhong nodded, but a sense of unease inexplicably welled up in his heart!
Just as feared, the scout who had been exploring ahead suddenly ran back in a panic to report: "General, something bad has happened! Two groups of government troops have been spotted guarding the Tongchuan Bridge."

Zhang Xianzhong was shocked. "It's over! No wonder the journey has been so smooth. It turns out that Jia Huan had already sent troops to guard Tongchuan Bridge and block the way to the south. Damn it, I should have known that Jia Huan was not someone to be trifled with!"

At this point, Sun Kewang remained relatively calm and asked, "How many troops does the government army have?"

The scout replied, "About one or two thousand men!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xianzhong felt a glimmer of hope and led his four adopted sons to sneak ahead and investigate from a distance. At this moment, the eastern sky was brighter, and looking into the distance, they could see two government army camps set up on both sides of the official road in front of the bridge. Judging from their size, there should be one or two thousand soldiers, and both camps were quiet, as if they were still fast asleep.

Zhang Xianzhong was both suspicious and pleased. He was pleased that the government troops were few in number, but he was suspicious that since Jia Huan had thought of blocking the Tongchuan Bridge, why did he only send so few people and not even build any defensive fortifications, showing such negligence?

Liu Wenxiu, the adopted son, said in a deep voice: "Although Jia Huan is powerful, his generals may not be without their fools. It is normal for them to be complacent and careless. While they are still asleep, this is the perfect opportunity for us to seize the bridge and cross the river. Father, please give the order to act quickly. Hesitation will only lead to more trouble!"

Sun Kewang, Li Dingguo, and Ai Nengqi all nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Zhang Xianzhong made up his mind and immediately ordered the entire army to march at full speed, heading straight for the Tongchuan Bridge. They had only been about half a mile away when they were spotted by sentries, and immediately gongs were sounded: "Enemy attack!"

Man Gui was half asleep when he heard the gong. He immediately drew his sword, leaped up, and rushed out of the tent, shouting, "Defend against the enemy!"

The guards quickly brought over a mount, and Man Gui leaped onto it, gathering his men as fast as he could.

By this time, Zhang Xianzhong's troops had already rushed close. More than 5,000 bandits were coming all over the mountains and plains, their eyes bloodshot and filled with murderous intent. They were clearly prepared to fight to the death in order to seize the bridge and save their lives.

Man Gui was actually quite excited when he saw this. The commander was really generous, letting so many bandits come over. It would be enough for him to have a good meal.

Man Gui immediately issued an order that no one was allowed to leave the camp, and they were only permitted to defend against the enemy within the camp area!
Therefore, the soldiers simply stayed in the camp, relying on simple fortifications to shoot arrows or fire guns at the enemy.

The rebel army surged in like a tide, initially charging desperately at Man Gui's camp. After being repelled several times, they gave up because they found that the government troops in the camp dared not come out at all. So they passed by each other on the official road and headed straight for Tongchuan Bridge.

Duan Yong's camp was about three miles away from Man Gui's camp, located right at the head of the Tongchuan Bridge, so he was not so lucky and was immediately hit by a tidal wave of bandit troops.

Duan Yong had drunk seven or eight parts drunk the night before and slept soundly until dawn. Upon hearing that the bandit army was approaching, he was so frightened that he was completely sober. He hurriedly changed his clothes and rushed out of the tent. At this time, the bandit army, which covered the mountains and plains, had already reached the front of the camp. Duan Yong's legs went weak, his vision went black, and he almost collapsed.

(End of this chapter)