The Red Chamber begins with a bastard

Chapter 743 The Inspector Dies in Battle
Because Man Gui's first line of defense failed to effectively intercept them, the rebel army quickly reached Duan Yong's camp. With almost no buffer, and Duan Yong being complacent and too lazy to even build simple fortifications, the rebel vanguard easily stormed into the camp. Many of Duan Yong's soldiers, who had just woken up from their sleep, became victims of the enemy's blades.

"We can't hold them off any longer! Father-in-law, quickly cross the river and destroy the bridge!" Xiao Yuezi screamed a warning.

Duan Yong suddenly realized what was happening and had no time to consider why Man Gui's first line of defense had failed. His priority was to escape. He immediately ran towards the bridge, surrounded by dozens of his personal guards, without even having time to mount his horse.

——Whoosh!

A stray arrow shot out and struck Xiao Yuezi squarely in the back of the heart. Xiao Yuezi fell to the ground on the spot, screaming in agony. Duan Yong was terrified when he saw this.

"Father-in-law, save me!" Xiao Yuezi clung to Duan Yong's leg, spitting blood as he pleaded.

Duan Yong gritted his teeth and kicked Xiao Yuezi away. He scrambled across the bridge and ran quickly to the other side.

"Fire arrows quickly! Don't let them run to the other side and destroy the bridge!" Sun Kewang shouted. Immediately, a volley of arrows came from behind, killing several of Duan Yong's personal guards on the spot. Duan Yong was also hit in the calf by an arrow and fell to the ground in pain, howling.

Ouch! It hurts so much! That arrow must have pierced into the shinbone; it's truly excruciating pain.

However, the strong will to survive kept Duan Yong crawling forward, the blood gushing from his calves leaving a bright scarlet trail on the wooden planks of the bridge.

Duan Yong's personal guards tried to run back to rescue him, but in the blink of an eye, seven or eight of them were shot dead by arrows. The rest were too frightened to look back and fled to the other side of the river.

Whoosh...

Another wave of arrows came, and the unlucky eunuch Duan was hit by two more arrows. He finally lay there motionless and was soon swallowed up by the tide of bandits surging onto the bridge.

At this moment, Man Gui finally led his men out of the camp, slashing and hacking at the enemy troops from behind, seizing the perfect opportunity. The enemy soldiers were only thinking about crossing the bridge and escaping, and had no will to fight, so Man Gui and his men harvested lives almost as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

The failure to arrange for someone to cover the rear was undoubtedly Zhang Xianzhong's biggest oversight, and it was fatal!
The Tongchuan Bridge was just a simple wooden plank bridge, with a rushing river below. For safety, horses had to be led across the river, so the bandit army crossed very slowly. It would probably take half a day for more than 5,000 people to cross completely. To make matters worse, Man Gui was charging and killing them from behind.

Who isn't afraid of death? Everyone's life matters, so the bandit army pushed forward in a chaotic manner, trying to be the first to cross the river. The wooden bridge wasn't very sturdy to begin with, how could it withstand hundreds of people standing on it pushing and shoving?

With a loud crash, the bridge collapsed, and hundreds of bandits who were crammed on it fell into the river like dumplings being dropped into boiling water, and were swept away by the swift current in an instant.

Man Gui was overjoyed at the sight, thinking, "This is truly heaven's help!" He then unleashed his divine power and fought with increasing ferocity.

The bandits crowded together, but despite their numbers, they couldn't mount any effective resistance and were slaughtered one-sidedly. In their terror, they desperately pushed forward, and countless bandits were pushed into the river and drowned.

Zhang Xianzhong was also unlucky. His four adopted sons who led the charge had already crossed the bridge, but he, as the father, was left behind. He was caught in the middle by his chaotic subordinates, unable to shout or run away. What a miserable situation!
However, Zhang Xianzhong was ruthless enough to pull out a dagger and stab several bandits to the ground, shouting sternly, "I am Zhang Xianzhong! Follow me downstream! Do not push forward! Anyone who disobeys will be killed without mercy!"

As soon as Zhang Xianzhong's name was called out, the surrounding bandits dared not push forward any further and turned to move downstream.

Man Gui relentlessly pursued the enemy, giving them no chance to catch their breath. Zhang Xianzhong could only flee in panic amidst the chaos of the enemy.

Although this river wasn't a large one, it was still thirty or forty meters wide, and the current was rapid. Zhang Xianzhong's four adopted sons on the opposite bank could only watch anxiously, unable to help at all.

Man Gui noticed that the bandits who had escaped to the other side were hesitating and instead running downstream, seemingly trying to meet up with the bandits on this side. He couldn't help but think that the "big fish" hadn't crossed the bridge yet and was still on this side. Otherwise, there was no way to explain the actions of the bandits on the other side.

Thinking of this, Man Gui pursued even more fiercely. Zhang Xianzhong fled desperately amidst the chaos of the soldiers, but gradually became exhausted and could no longer run. He slipped and fell in the swamp by the river, instantly turning into a muddy mess and looking utterly pathetic.

Just then, a reed bed appeared ahead. Zhang Xianzhong had a sudden inspiration and took advantage of the chaos to rush in and hide. Whether it was because the pursuers were careless or because Zhang Xianzhong was destined to survive, no one discovered him.

Zhang Xianzhong hid in the reeds for most of the day, until the pursuers were far away and he could hear the sounds of fighting. Only then did he cautiously emerge from the reeds. Although the sun was shining brightly, Zhang Xianzhong, soaked to the bone, was shivering with cold, his teeth chattering.

Zhang Xianzhong glanced at the wide river, his face full of helplessness. Although he could swim a little, he could only doggy paddle for a bit. Moreover, he was tired and hungry at the moment, and it was undoubtedly a pipe dream to swim to the other side of the river.

Left with no other option, Zhang Xianzhong trudged away from the riverbank, intending to find a house to take refuge in. After all, if he continued like this, he would either starve or freeze to death. Meanwhile, Man Gui chased after the rebels for over ten miles, completely scattering them, but failed to catch any of the so-called "big fish," leaving him extremely frustrated. However, Man Gui soon learned through interrogating prisoners that Zhang Xianzhong had indeed not crossed the river, but had remained hidden among the rebels.

Hehe, there really is a big fish!

Man Gui was overjoyed and immediately sent people to identify the prisoners one by one. At the same time, he turned around and searched carefully. The reed marsh where Zhang Xianzhong had been hiding became a key search area, but unfortunately Zhang Xianzhong had already left by then.

After working for most of the day and finding nothing, Man Gui was even more frustrated. He had no choice but to suspend the search and begin cleaning up the battlefield. At the same time, he sent someone to order nearby villages and towns to assist the government troops in searching for Zhang Xianzhong's whereabouts, and offered a reward of one hundred taels of silver.

One hundred taels of silver was an enormous sum for ordinary people, so the people in the nearby villages and towns were very enthusiastic. They mobilized their entire families to search all over the mountains and fields, even digging up rat holes to check them out.

After Man Gui finished cleaning up the battlefield, he retrieved the bodies of over a thousand bandits from the river and finally pulled Eunuch Duan out as well. None of the eunuchs serving Duan Yong survived!

Man Gui was naturally filled with grief and indignation. On the one hand, he ordered people to collect Duan Yong's body for burial, and on the other hand, he sent someone to report to Jia Huan that the death of the military supervisor was no small matter.

"—Report! The Manchu guerrilla encountered Zhang Xianzhong's remnants at Tongchuan Bridge, killing over two thousand and capturing over five hundred. Inspector Duan unfortunately died in battle, sacrificing his life for his country!"

"What!" Jia Huan jumped up in shock, knocking over the bamboo tube containing the command arrow. All the soldiers in the command tent were horrified.

Jia Huan stood there for a long time before collapsing back into his chair, slamming his hand on the table. He cried out in grief and indignation, "How hateful! How hateful! Pass on my order: have Man Gui capture Zhang Xianzhong at all costs! I want to see him alive or dead!"

…………

Xu Ergou lives in Kongjia Village, about five or six miles from the town. He became an orphan when he was eleven or twelve years old. Later, he developed a gambling addiction and squandered the few acres of meager land his parents left him. Now approaching thirty, he still hasn't found a wife and currently makes a living by dealing in medicinal herbs. He often goes hungry and lives a miserable life. However, he is still incorrigible. As soon as he saves up a little money, he immediately goes to gamble. His addiction is extraordinary.

That day, Xu Ergou sold some medicinal herbs and saved up twenty coins. He immediately ran to town, but when he excitedly arrived at the gambling den, there wasn't a soul in sight. None of his usual gambling buddies were there. It was really strange.

Without any gambling buddies, he couldn't very well gamble by himself, could he? So Xu Ergou left feeling quite disappointed. But as soon as he stepped out onto the street, he ran into a gambling buddy. Overjoyed, he grabbed him and exclaimed, "Damn it, finally caught one! Let's go, let's play a couple of rounds!"

The gambler, carrying a pitchfork, pushed Xu Ergou aside and said, "Let's play a few rounds, I'm busy making money."

"What kind of wealth?" Xu Ergou asked curiously, "What's easier to get rich than gambling?"

The gambler scoffed, "Even if I win all of your money, Er Gouzi, I'll only get a few dozen coins at most. But if I catch Huangmianhu, I'll get a hundred taels of silver as a reward. Hehe, I won't have to worry about the rest of my life."

Xu Ergou sneered, "Tiger? A tiger has come to our town? You're really a tiger, trying to catch a tiger? With your skinny body, you're not even enough to fill a tiger's teeth."

"Pah! The 'yellow-faced tiger' I'm talking about isn't a tiger, it's the bandit leader Zhang Xianzhong! Forget it, I'm not going to waste my time arguing with you!" The gambling friend strode away, carrying his pitchfork.

"Zhang Xianzhong? Why does that name sound so familiar?" Xu Ergou scratched his head and saw many people passing by holding "weapons" and looking ready to fight. So he stopped one of them and asked for details, and finally understood what was going on.

It turns out that a notice was posted in town yesterday, saying that the bandit leader Zhang Xianzhong, nicknamed Yellow-Faced Tiger, might be hiding in this area. Anyone who reports his whereabouts will receive ten taels of silver, and anyone who turns him over to the authorities or presents his head will receive a reward of one hundred taels of silver.

When Xu Ergou heard this, he was thrilled. Why gamble? This was like a windfall! He quickly went to find someone, thinking that a hundred taels of silver might just fall into his lap. So he grabbed a straw spear and went out to try his luck.

Unfortunately, Xu Ergou wandered around outside all day and didn't encounter a single yellow-faced tiger, let alone a yellow-haired dog. He had no choice but to go home dejectedly.

Xu Ergou kicked open his dilapidated wooden gate, threw his straw gun into a corner, and cursed, "What yellow..."

Xu Ergou's words were abruptly cut off, as if he had been frozen in place, staring in horror at the knife tip thrust beneath his nose...

(End of this chapter)