Jiuxi

Chapter 671 669 [Rain is still dripping on the eaves]

Heluo City, the garrison.

Wu Yanshu looked at Pu Cha, who was covered in military uniform and praised him, "This time our army has dealt a heavy blow to the Feiyu Army of Southern Qi. I will personally report to Your Majesty and ask for credit for the general and the soldiers."

Pucha said humbly: "This battle was made possible by your Excellency's planning and strategy, and by the bravery of our soldiers. I dare not take any credit for it."

"General, there is no need to be too modest."

Wu Yanshu smiled slightly and said gently: "Lu Chen of Southern Qi is indeed extraordinary. He was able to detect the strangeness and rush to help in time. The general was not blinded by victory and retreated decisively at the last moment. This is a great achievement."

Pu Cha secretly thought he was lucky. In fact, he was just extremely afraid of Lu Chen because of the defeats in the past two years, so he did not press on the victory to pursue him.

Wu Yanshu asked again: "General, have you made follow-up arrangements? The troops in the south need to be prepared for Lu Chen to make a surprise attack."

Pu Cha nodded and said, "I have also considered this, so I ordered the troops to set up more sentries to strengthen defense, so as to prevent Lu Chen from finding any flaws and causing trouble."

Wu Yanshu immediately felt relieved and at the same time he had a higher opinion of Pucha. Although this man was not good at strategizing, he had a calm and steady temperament. It might be difficult for him to act on his own, but he was a very qualified deputy.

He picked up the military newspaper brought by Pucha on the table, opened it and read it carefully.

"In the three battles, a total of more than 3,500 Southern Qi Feiyu soldiers were killed, and the number of wounded is unknown. Our army lost 6,423 people and the total number of wounded was 2,651."

Wu Yanshu read out the string of numbers softly, his expression still gentle.

Pucha looked ashamed, and hesitated to say: "Sir, this..."

Wu Yanshu put down the military report and said calmly, "Our army's casualties were nearly 3,000 more than Qi's, and this battle was an ambush set by our army. On the surface, it seems that our army suffered a great loss, but this account cannot be calculated in this way. Our casualties are mainly concentrated in the cavalry led by Yan Hu. This was the bait you and I threw to the Qi army. In terms of strength, it is not top-notch, and most of the losses of the Southern Qi Feiyu Army are elite. For our army, this deal is very cost-effective."

Pucha finally felt relieved.

Wu Yanshu continued, "Besides, even if we exchange one elite cavalry for another, we still have the advantage. Our dynasty has many horse breeding sites, so it is not difficult to replenish cavalry, but Southern Qi does not have such conditions. After so many years, Southern Qi has only accumulated about 30,000 cavalry. This family foundation is not strong and cannot withstand a few twists and turns."

Pucha felt more and more happy, and said with a smile: "Your Excellency is right. If we can come a few more times, the Southern Qi border troops will have no choice but to retreat to the city passes."

"I'm afraid there won't be any chances in the future. If Lu Chen is stupid enough to repeat the same mistake, he won't be able to get to where he is today."

Wu Yanshu took a sip of the teacup and said calmly, "No matter what, you and I can finally give an explanation to His Majesty and the court, and it is worth His Majesty's respect for you and me."

Hearing him mention the emperor, Pucha also became serious and said slowly: "Sir, I wonder if the court is stable recently?"

Wu Yanshu gave him a meaningful look, as if he wanted to get closer to him, so he sighed softly, "On the surface, it's naturally stable, but... I have also heard from others that some officials think that since the Changshan County Prince has resigned as the Marshal of the Southern Court, he should not continue to be in charge of the Xiashan Army and the Fangcheng Army. Someone reported to Your Majesty and suggested taking back the military power of the Changshan County Prince and only leaving 10,000 or 20,000 direct troops in the County Prince's Mansion."

Pucha's expression suddenly changed, and he looked surprised.

The Nine Armies of Dajing have a long history. The reason why the Qingyu family can firmly sit on the first position after the royal family is due to the two elite armies, Xiashan Army and Fangcheng Army.

Qing Yugong could accept being dismissed from office, but who would dare to attack those two armies? You know, they were the lifeblood of the Qing Yu family.

Thinking of this, Pucha frowned and asked, "Who is so bold?"

"They are just a few minor officials. Your Majesty will not listen to such slander. You should directly demote them to commoners and never employ them again."

Wu Yanshu put down his teacup and narrowed his eyes slightly. "I think your Majesty knows very well that there must be someone behind those people, otherwise how could they have the courage to point their spearhead at the Prince of Changshan. There are many different opinions in Dadu. Some say that it was Marshal Sagai of the North Court who took advantage of the situation, and some say that it was the civil servants in the court who tried to figure out the emperor's intentions. In short, it's a mess."

Pucha just felt very uneasy. Now the world has not been unified yet, Qing Yugong is still indispensable to Dajing, but there are constant disturbances in the court. He just hoped that the emperor would not be deceived by the villain, otherwise there would be civil strife.

Wu Yanshu studied his face and said calmly, "Since the news has reached Nanjing, Southern Qi must have heard about it. This is an opportunity for them. You and I need to be extra cautious and must not let down our guard just because of the results of this battle."

Pucha quickly responded: "I will remember your teachings."

Wu Yanshu nodded and said, "Very good, you have worked hard during this period, go back and rest for two days."

Pucha agreed, then stood up, bowed and took his leave.

Looking at his departing back, Wu Yanshu stroked the teacup, his expression slightly solemn, and whispered to himself: "Your Majesty, do you really believe in Qing Yugong's loyalty?"

……

An autumn rain came unexpectedly.

The hazy rain mist gently caresses the pink walls and black tiles. Pedestrians hurried on the streets holding oil-paper umbrellas. The small town seems to be immersed in ink and wash.

The drizzle flowed down the roof, drop by drop falling on the steps. The sound of rain penetrated the wooden lattice window, gently waking up the woman lying in bed.

She slowly opened her eyes, and then she was overwhelmed by heavy fatigue and pain. The candle on the table emitted a soft light, illuminating the scene in front of her.

This is a simple and clean house.

She turned her head with some difficulty and saw a man sitting on the armchair beside the bed, supporting his chin with his left hand, and seemed to be sleeping.

Seeing this familiar figure, her tense mood caused by being in an unfamiliar environment couldn't help but relax.

Memories came flooding back.

In accordance with the agreement with Huangfu Yu, she led the main force of the Feiyu Army to the battlefield, successfully surrounded and strangled thousands of enemy troops. However, while the mantis stalks the cicada, the oriole is behind. This time, the Jing army was more thoroughly prepared and even mobilized all the cavalry in the Heluo area, just to wipe out the Feiyu Army in one fell swoop.

The battlefield, charging, swords and guns, blood, and death, scenes after scenes emerged in her mind.

Those loyal subordinates who had lived with her day and night fell one after another and were buried in that homeland.

Two lines of tears slowly slid down her cheeks.

She wanted to raise her hand to wipe it, but a piercing pain came over her and made it impossible for her to raise her hand.

The figure sitting beside the bed suddenly woke up when he heard the slight noise, turned his head to look at her, and said hurriedly with concern: "You finally woke up."

Although it was just five short words, she could sense a strong sense of fear.

Looking up, she saw Lu Chen's eyes were hunched and his face was haggard. At this moment, she was in a state of confusion and said with difficulty: "I..."

But I don’t know where to start.

Lu Chen took out a handkerchief and carefully wiped her tears, saying, "The doctor said that your injuries are very serious, and your internal energy is almost dry. Fortunately, you are not in danger of death. You have seven injuries this time, especially the gunshot wound on your left shoulder. If it moves down an inch, it will hurt your heart. But don't worry, the doctor I brought with me is the eldest son of the old doctor Xue. He is absolutely sure that he can cure you, but you will have to lie in bed for a while."

Li Bingxue listened quietly, then asked, "How long have I been unconscious?"

Lu Chen sighed and said, "Two days and one night."

"Where is this place?"

"Teng County. I originally wanted to take you back to Ningling, but Doctor Xue said that your injuries couldn't be shaken, so we stayed in Teng County temporarily."

There were still traces of tears on her pale face. Lu Chen had never seen Li Bingxue look so weak.

After a brief silence, Li Bingxue said softly: "The Jing army retreated?"

Lu Chen put the handkerchief back to its original place and nodded, "Pu Cha is a very cautious person. When he saw me leading a large army to rescue them, he knew that there was no guarantee of victory, so he withdrew at that time. Now both sides still maintain the status quo, and the Jing army has not made any other moves."

Li Bingxue lowered her eyes and said slowly: "Lu Chen, how many casualties did the Feiyu Army suffer?"

Without a doubt, this is what she cares about most.

Lu Chen hesitated for a moment. What she needed most right now was to have a good rest and recuperate, especially to avoid drastic emotional fluctuations.

Li Bingxue looked at him and said, "Tell me, okay?"

Lu Chen looked at her dim eyes and could only speak gently, "In this battle, 3,643 Feiyu soldiers were killed and another 3,112 were injured. According to preliminary statistics by the military doctors, the wounded can basically recover, but 217 people may have to leave the army."

Li Bingxue had a blank expression and said nothing.

Seeing this, Lu Chen said, "I have issued a Grand Commander's Order. All the Feiyu Army soldiers who participated in the battle and made meritorious contributions will be rewarded with the highest amount. The casualties will receive double compensation. I will also properly resettle those soldiers who were forced to leave the army due to injuries. In addition, according to post-war statistics, the Feiyu Army killed more than 6,500 enemies in this battle, and at least one 10,000-man cavalry unit of the Jing Army was wiped out."

Li Bingxue listened to the sound of rain outside the window, her eyes showing extreme pain, and she said slowly: "They died because of my recklessness."

Lu Chen couldn't help but remain silent. In fact, he had many things to say to comfort her, such as the Jing army cavalry suffered more heavy losses in this battle, and the men in the army should die on the battlefield.

But he knew that the self-blame in Li Bingxue's heart would not be alleviated by these consolations, but would instead become heavier.

He could only gently hold her cold palm and said, "Bingxue, I am the Grand Commander of Dingzhou. You are just following my military orders. The biggest responsibility for this battle lies on me. I know it is difficult for you to let go, but you can't doubt yourself because you still have a long way to go."

"But... they didn't have to die."

After Li Bingxue said this, tears filled her eyes again.

(End of this chapter)