Chapter 18: Seizing the Gate (Continued)

  Liu Zongmin was Li Zicheng's left and right arm, the most powerful assistant, and also the vanguard of the attack on the capital. He led his men to kill from Zhengyang Gate. All the way very smoothly, the Ming army fled in the wind.

  Just as Liu Zongmin was going crazy with killing, a team of hundreds of people suddenly appeared in front, bringing more than 20 horse-drawn carriages and fleeing. After seeing this, Liu Zongmin rushed up immediately.

  This group of people was none other than the British Consul Zhang Shize, who after seeing Gu Zhenhua's flyers became so frightened that his soul left his body and he ran out with all his servants.

  It was also the misfortune of this British dog, who happened to run into Liu Zongmin, a jinxed star. The two groups of people suddenly clashed and killed each other. Compared with Liu Zongmin, who crawled out of the mountain of corpses and sea of blood, Zhang Shize was just an inexperienced child, unable to withstand a single blow.

  Liu Zongmin swung the saber in his hand, chopping melons and cutting vegetables, and the family soldiers fell down one after another. The Dashun Army was like a wolf, rushing forward fiercely, Zhang Shize's family soldiers were crying out in disorder, and they fled in all directions. Zhang Shize also wanted to escape, but Liu Zongmin caught up with him from behind, raised his knife and chopped it down, and the head of this British dog fell to the ground.

  "Mr. Liu, take a look at this."

  Liu Zongmin heard the shouting of his soldiers, and hastily turned around to see that they had already overturned these horse-drawn carriages. The carriages were loaded with large and small wooden boxes, and when one was casually opened, it sparkled with treasures, dazzling the eyes.

  Silver is silver, gold is gold, pearls the size of dragon eyes, crystal clear jade, calligraphy and painting, top-grade silk, precious jewels from overseas... dazzling to the eye, resplendent with color.

  The treasures collected for over two hundred years dazzled Liu Zongmin's eyes, and what made Liu Zongmin's blood boil was the women in the carriages in front.

  The men all ran away, and these little-footed women became the spoils of war for the Great Shun Army. Those old and faded Liu Zongmin couldn't even bear to look at them. But on the third horse carriage, there were three lovely girls who instantly caught his eye.

  The three girls were squeezed tightly into one corner of the carriage, with two maidservants' faces covered in tears and looking terrified as they desperately tried to shield their mistress. However, their frail bodies could do nothing.

  Liu Zongmin reached out and grabbed the arms of the two women, pulling them over. He took a closer look and his mouth began to water. It turned out that these two maids were identical, they were twins! It was as if heaven had eyes. Liu Zongmin grinned from ear to ear and burst out laughing.

  Looking further inside, my eyes widened instantly. I saw a 16 or 17-year-old girl tightly leaning against the corner of the carriage. Her pale blue long dress covered her figure, and only her profile was visible. However, her fair skin was like sheep fat jade, delicate and vulnerable. Her long eyelashes were wet with tears, her nose was straight and elegant, and her ears were cleverly shaped, forming the most moving side profile in the world. The black clouds on her head had scattered a bit, and amidst the dishevelment, there was an even more lethal charm.

  "Gulp! Liu Zongmin couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva, and suddenly turned his head to shout: 'Take good care of these three women for me, you bunch of bastards dare to move a finger, I'll twist your heads off!'"

  "Old Liu, you've got your eyes on her, the brothers wouldn't dare to be presumptuous!" A military officer laughed and said: "There are plenty of good women in the capital, at worst we can just snatch a few more!"

  "That's right, everyone follow me and charge forward. I'll make sure you all become the groom tonight!" Liu Zongmin laughed wildly.

  Liu Zongmin, who was infatuated with wealth and women, abandoned the Forbidden City and instead targeted the fleeing officials. He killed the men, took their wealth and women. Along the way, he didn't know how many people he had killed or how much wealth he had plundered. Liu Zongmin felt that his whole life had never been so exhilarating, with all his blood burning with excitement.

  As they approached Chaoyang Gate, Liu Zongmin suddenly raised his head and saw a procession of over a hundred horse-drawn carriages ahead. Liu Zongmin's eyes turned red with envy; he had seized so many, but only British public Zhang Shizhe had twenty or thirty carriages. Now, there were at least a hundred carriages before him - what kind of status was this?!

  Liu Zongmin didn't think much, and immediately charged over on horseback, his soldiers also swarming up like a beehive. However, he didn't know that this time he had kicked an iron plate, and this troop was led by Gu Zhenhua.

  Actually, Gu Zhenhua was also startled when he heard that the other party was Liu Zongmin. This was Li Zicheng's most ferocious and brave general, absolutely not easy to deal with. However, at this point, there was no choice but to face the challenge head-on. Even if Li Zicheng himself appeared before his eyes, he would still have to charge forward!

  Gu Zhenhua's situation was not good at this time, with a hundred horse-drawn carriages forming a long string, making it easy to be attacked. Once they were broken through, it would be difficult to reassemble them. Moreover, the people and goods on these carriages were all irreplaceable, Gu Zhenhua gritted his teeth.

  "Third Brother, withdraw your troops, I'll go and stall Liu Zongmin."

  Gu Zhenhua said, and then urged the war horse, leading the vanguard soldiers, to charge forward towards Liu Zongmin without hesitation. Xue Biao and Xie Bin looked on with concern, as the opponent was a general who had breached the camp, and if they were not careful, there would be a risk of losing their heads. Gu Zhenhua was staking his life!

  They did not disappoint Gu Zhenhua's thoughts, Xue Biao and Xie Bin gave orders separately, and the 100 horse-drawn carriages quickly formed a circular array, making preparations for battle.

  At this time, Gu Zhenhua had already clashed with Liu Zongmin, the iron spear and the chopping knife collided, sparks flew everywhere, Gu Zhenhua only felt his arms shake, the iron spear almost fell out of his hands.

  What a great force! Gu Zhenhua was also secretly shocked, Liu Zongmin was indeed a fierce general. Of course, Liu Zongmin was even more surprised, since he had entered the capital, he had not encountered any decent resistance, and the Ming army had all fled in disarray.

  It just so happened that this group of people dared to confront him head-on, and the guy in front of him was not very old, but his strength was astonishingly powerful, both of his arms were numb. Unexpectedly, the great Ming Dynasty still had such a brave general, Liu Zongmin also gained spirit and fought together with Gu Zhenhua.

  At this time, the soldiers under his command also rushed together. Liu Zongmin's subordinates were all the most elite soldiers in the camp, and they were all crawling out of piles of dead people, with terrifying combat effectiveness. Although Gu Zhenhua's subordinates were also elite, after all, they were just a makeshift team, plus being at a disadvantage, their morale was weak. As soon as they clashed, several people were cut down under the horse. The soldiers of the camp shouted and screamed, pressing step by step, with more and more casualties.

  "Kid, your martial arts skills are pretty good. The Ming dynasty is already doomed anyway, so you might as well surrender to the rebel leader. With my recommendation, a life of wealth and glory is right in front of you!"

  "Haha, Liu Zongmin, you'd better take good care of your head!"

  As Gu Zhenhua spoke, a gun pierced towards Liu Zongmin's chest, and just as it was about to pierce him, Liu Zongmin's face revealed a triumphant smile. Gu Zhenhua suddenly became alert, but it was also a bit too late.

  Liu Zongmin dodged to the side, avoiding a bullet. Gu Zhenhua was too late to pull back his spear, which happened to pierce a soldier of the Qing army. Gu Zhenhua wanted to withdraw his spear, but unfortunately, the tip had become stuck in the bone and he couldn't pull it out at once.

  Liu Zongmin sneered, this little white face was quite skilled, but after all, he was still a rookie, and his battlefield experience was too lacking. He suddenly charged forward, swinging his knife at Gu Zhenhua's head, fast and ruthless, clearly intending to split him in two with one slash.

  Gu Zhenhua hastily threw away his spear and drew his waist knife to parry. Liu Zongmin's knife chopped past Gu Zhenhua's shoulder, cutting off a piece of cotton armor, and his shoulder suddenly felt like it was on fire.

  Liu Zongmin showed no mercy, wielding his sword and continuing to launch attacks. Gu Zhenhua could only grit his teeth and fight back with all his might, but the people around him were dwindling in number, while the Da Shun army was growing larger by the minute.

  Suddenly a severe pain in the ribs, just as Liu Zongmin's knife tip swept past, fresh blood flowed out, and the situation became even more precarious. Just then, Xue Biao's voice suddenly came over.

  "Fourth brother, retreat quickly!"

  Gu Zhenhua felt a great sense of relief upon hearing this, as competing against Liu Zongmin, a seasoned veteran, was still too challenging for him at the moment. Gu Zhenhua gritted his teeth secretly, determined that he would not lose to this era's brave general if given some time. He suddenly threw the waist knife in his hand towards Liu Zongmin, who hastily dodged it. Taking advantage of this brief opening, Gu Zhenhua quickly turned his horse around and spurred its belly with his stirrups. The dark green horse let out a pained whinny and leapt forward, bursting out of the encirclement.

  At this time, Xie Bin's loud shout was heard: "Release!"

  Thirty rifles fired at the same time, and on the narrow street, the Dashun Army had nowhere to hide. Instantly, a large number of them fell down. At this moment, the second wave of riflemen rushed up, their black gun barrels aimed at Liu Zongmin.

  "Let go!"