Xie Ming

Continuing from the previous article
The story continues in Jinan, Shandong. Huang Degong's troops from Chuzhou held out for over a month, but the city fell and many died without any reinforcements.

With no other option, and in order to leave a glimmer of hope, Huang and Tian led their remaining troops in a desperate breakout and fled eastward.

In an instant, Shandong's fate was sealed.

Later, the two Lius defected to the Qing court in Jining and Lanling respectively.

In an instant, Dodo's military might grew even stronger, and with one burst of energy, he charged straight south.

In early May, the right wing army, together with the troops in Fengyang, northern Anhui, broke through Gaojinku's route again.

They turned around and gathered the surrendered soldiers, and their army had grown to tens of thousands. They swept through the enemy and advanced to the border of the Yangtze River.

As for the main force, led by Dodo, along with the left flank army and Liu Zeqing's troops, they headed straight for Yangzhou.

Yangzhou, a place of wealth and power, was Liu's stronghold.

It should be noted that the Qing army coming from the north was so powerful, attacking cities and seizing territory for months, advancing rapidly and aggressively, and their morale was high.

However, after all, they had advanced rapidly, covering more than a thousand miles south in a short time.

With the battle lines stretching so far, if this continues, logistical difficulties will become a major problem, which is truly a taboo.

Therefore, strategically, seizing Yangzhou, a place rich in money and grain, has become an urgent and pressing matter that cannot be ignored.

If we're talking about suffering, it's only Liu Zeqing, Liu Da Nao, who has it.

When a dog defectes to the enemy, it is considered a traitor. Since the person has already become a disloyal subject and a surrendered general, he is already subservient to others.

Now things are really messed up; even their stronghold will be hard to protect. It's truly a case of losing both their wife and their army.

He tried to steal a chicken but ended up losing the rice instead; he was a complete innocent victim and deserved it, so there's no need to elaborate.

Then, after arriving in mid-May, facing west, the right wing army was besieging Fengyang.

On the east side, at the front of the left flank of the army, within Liu Zhifengyang's unit, Ye Zheng was secretly making his way across the border, each harboring their own ulterior motives. They were traveling at night, their horses galloping swiftly, secretly sending messages to Yangzhou.

Meanwhile, regarding the military situation to the north, if we were to ask who would be the first to know the whole story of the matter, it would undoubtedly be the military leaders and officers within Liu Zeqing's own army.

Urgent reports from the north poured in, and they were the first to panic and fall into chaos.

Those who enrich themselves for personal gain will face imminent disaster and live in constant uncertainty.

Now that things have been forced to this point, none of those officers are thinking about defending the city or upholding their integrity.
They flocked to the city, pulling strings and seeking powerful connections to seize assets through cunning and force.

They planned to seize the last opportunity to embezzle funds for their own escape.

These messages, however, cannot be discussed openly in the short term, so few of their implications are clear.

In the military, where intelligence is readily available, the most notorious and decadent place in Yangzhou is Yunxiang Tower.

This brothel was located inside the Yangzhou Customs House. Because this area was a hub for merchants, it was never short of pleasure.

At the same time, there were many military figures coming and going, so this topic was discussed, which was also part of the conversation.

On the night of the sixteenth of that month.

It wasn't just anyone; it happened to be Ma Weimin, who had been promoted by Xiao Jingchuan last year and was now the grain commissioner of Yangzhou. That old rascal was also enjoying himself at Yunxiang Tower.

This man was drunk and infatuated when he overheard his lover casually mentioning that a military officer was reselling land and assets, which aroused his suspicion.

Ma Weimin followed the clues and was startled awake. He was half-sober and after much coaxing, he finally understood.

Upon receiving this news, I carefully investigated it and was greatly alarmed. I no longer had any intention of staying here.

Once he got the information he wanted, he took off running and forcefully pushed open the door to the second-floor room.

With his legs wobbling and his expression panicked, he could no longer pay attention to anything around him and stumbled and shoved his way down the stairs.

Come here now, where the night is filled with romance and pleasure, a place of intoxicating beauty and debauchery.

Yunxianglou is never short of customers who want to get drunk and have fun.

In the hall, his commotion up and down the stairs alerted the madam, who was guarding the center of the flower hall. She rushed forward to find out what was going on.

"Hey-"

"Hey, Lord Ma, where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"

"Miss Qiaoyun, it's been a long time since you came all this way. How can you leave after only being half-drunk?" "If there's anything I haven't done well, please let me know."

"One should not greet a smiling face. You are so generous, please do me the honor."

"If you have anything to say, say it to me. Just come up with a plan, and I'll work on it for you."

The middle-aged woman, a vulgar and materialistic madam, was clearly angered by Ma Weimin's expression. Fearing that he might offend this powerful figure, he hurriedly came forward to apologize and smooth things over.

But Old Ma had no time to waste arguing with him right now.

Seeing her madam coming to cause trouble, he shoved her aside, clearly impatient.

"Oh dear, go away, go away."

"I have urgent business to attend to, so please don't bother me."

"Make way, make way."

Right now, Ma Weimin, disheveled and embarrassed, rushed out of the embroidery room, his inner shirt still open at the front.

He was short and stocky, with his belly showing, and there were a few patches of rouge on his cheeks and neck.

No wonder the madam mistook him for the annoying guy who kicked the door.

Little did he know, he had just been in a bad mood, trying to escape the brothel madam's clutches.

Right after him, behind the main pillar in the main hall, amidst the bright lights and bustling crowd, another person suddenly appeared, grabbed the staggering and disheveled Ma Weimin, brushed off the madam's advances, and walked out with him, sticking to him.

"Hehehe, her third aunt, you should go now, you're not interested in this matter."

“Master Ma has urgent business to attend to, so please leave it to me.”

As they were speaking, a pale-faced merchant dressed in a blue satin long gown, a melon-shaped hat on his head, and cloud-patterned shoes came over to flatter them.

Ma Weimin was anxious and flustered, unable to distinguish things for a moment. After being supported by his arms, he took a few steps and then turned his head to see clearly.

"Uh-huh?"

"Huang San'er?"

Ma Weimin straightened his tangled thoughts, spotted the person, and recognized him.

This young man is a member of the Huang family, one of the three major families of the Yangzhou Hui Merchants Association: Shen, Jiang, and Huang.

Because of the close ties between officials and merchants in Yangzhou, where I had worked as a comprador in the past, I had many interactions with them, which is why I remembered it so well.

Instead, he observed the immediate reaction of the man surnamed Huang. Seeing that it was Master Ma who agreed with this statement, he cleverly smiled and greeted him with a very obsequious and hypocritical expression.

"Oh my, even with all his busy schedule, Uncle Ma still remembers his little nephew."

"Just a couple of days ago, my dad told me that he had received two baskets of fresh lychees picked from old trees."

"Knowing you enjoy this, I was eager to send it to you as soon as possible."

"They told me to bring people with me."

"It's just that I, your nephew, have little experience and I never finish what I start."

"I came to your residence, searched around for a long time, but could not find anyone I knew to talk to."

"I asked the gatekeeper, and he said that you, old foreigner, are on official business and cannot return home for a while."

"There was nothing I could do, so I went back dejectedly."

"When I got home, my dad yelled at me and scolded me severely."

"Today, I, your humble nephew, have stumbled upon Uncle Ma. Fortunately, you still remember me, Father."

"Having met you today gives me something to talk about when I get back."

"Even if you keep me locked up, you still know how to care for me."

P.S.: I'm back! I'm back!

I just got home today, I apologize for keeping you all waiting!
Let's cut the small talk and get back to the main topic!
Green Hills Returns to Their Position; More Exciting Stories Ahead (End of Chapter)