Chapter 48: Fierce Battle at Shanhai Pass

  "General Kou, you and Zhongyongbo escorted the crown prince out of the capital, achieving an eternal merit. But in front of our commander, you slandered Zhongyongbo, which doesn't seem quite right!"

  "General, you don't know the whole story. Gu Zhenhua is a treacherous man with ulterior motives. In the capital city, he killed Chengguo Gong Zhu Chunmin, and after leaving the city, he took the crown prince hostage and acted recklessly. His title of Zhongyong Bo was conferred by our family's suggestion to the crown prince, but he actually dispersed all the palace guards, weakening the imperial power, with malicious intentions."

  Taijian is indeed a bit twisted. At first, it was Kou Gui who killed Zhu Chunshen with his own hands. When they left the city, it was he who begged Gu Zhenhua to bring them out.

  But in the blink of an eye, this guy had put a chamber pot on Gu Zhenhua's head, and he didn't even blush. To be honest, after Kou Gui left the city, he was marginalized, especially after Gu Zhenhua reorganized the troops, he completely became a cleaner. In the Guanning Army, Gu Zhenhua was highly respected, while he was ignored by everyone.

  In Kou Gui's view, they were both meritorious officials who protected the crown prince, so why was he looked down upon? His anger all shifted to Gu Zhenhua.

  Wu Sangui frowned and said coldly: "Lord Kou, the military situation is urgent, you'd better discuss these matters with Zhongyongbo, see him off!"

  Kou Gui was frightened out of his wits, how dare he talk to Gu Zhenhua? That's asking for death. He also saw that Wu Sangui didn't care about these things at all. Two soldiers had already rushed up and grabbed Kou Gui's arms, ready to drag him outside.

  "General, wait a minute! Gu Zhenhua has plundered a large batch of gold and silver treasures in the capital city, worth several million taels, all hidden away by him."

  As soon as he heard about the silver, Wu Sangui's heart skipped a beat - he was in dire need of money.

  "Bring him over!"

  Kou Gui returned to Wu Sangui's presence, with a sly expression on his face, saying: "General Wu, at the time when Beijing was in chaos and many officials were fleeing, Gu Zhenhua escaped from the city and looted dozens of horse-drawn carriages, as well as various gold, silver, and treasures. The total value is at least over 2 million!"

  "Ah!"

  Wu Sangui was also shocked by this number, as it was almost half a year's worth of expenses for the Guanning Army. Wu Sangui, who had been worried about paying his troops, suddenly showed a greedy glint in his eye.

  "Is everything you said true?"

  "It's absolutely true, Gu Zhenhua had his sworn brother hide all the treasures."

  Wu Sangui spun around twice on the ground before looking at Li Jibei, who was sitting calmly and steadily. He hastily asked: "Master, what should we do?"

  Li Jibo calmly placed the teacup on the table and said slowly, "Chang Bo, money is only money when it's in hand; otherwise, it's just a painting of a cake."

  "Right, Master's wise decision!" Wu Sangui turned his head and stared at Kou Gui: "Where did Gu Zhenhua hide the treasure?"

  "Shun Yi." Kou Gui said without hesitation: "There are more than 300 people leaving the city, and they will be divided into troops in Shun Yi."

  Li Jibei smiled slightly: "Shunyi is just under the eyelids of Beijing, and Li Zicheng's army has already arrived. Within ten days, they will reach Shanhai Pass. Zhang Bo, are you confident that you can get past Li Zicheng's army and transport back tens of thousands of catties of goods?"

  "No!" Wu Sangui also involuntarily shook his head.

  "Let's focus on the current situation, if we can withstand Li Zicheng, everything will be fine, but if we can't, everything will become an illusion. The 2 million taels of silver are not worth worrying about for a commander-in-chief like you."

  Wu Sangui listened and also deeply agreed, respectfully giving Li Jizhong a bow: "Thank you, Master, for your guidance. Wu has learned from it!"

  "Come on, take this old eunuch away!"

  Several soldiers dragged Kou Gui away without saying a word. Wu Sangui then called over another trusted subordinate: "You go tell Guo Yunlong to keep an eye on Gu Zhenhua too, this guy actually still has a trick up his sleeve with our commander, I'll make sure he gets what's coming to him in the future!"

  Watching Wu Sangui's arrangement, Li Jibei didn't say a word, but in his heart he was secretly saying: Gu Zhenhua, Gu Zhenhua, if it weren't for me coming over, you little devil would be in danger!

  "Master, the grain and supplies at Shanhai Pass are insufficient, and the people's hearts are unsettled. It is really difficult to resist Li Zicheng. In my humble opinion, I fear that... I fear that..."

  "I'm afraid we'll have to ask for help from the Qing court?"

  Wu Sangui felt a bit guilty, but still nodded: "Sangui knows that Li Xue was injured by the Qing dynasty, with deep hatred and resentment. However, at present, there really is no other choice."

  Li Jibo's thin face showed no expression, and after a long while, he slowly said: "Chang Bo, the Manchu Qing are wolves with wild ambitions. When cooperating with them, be extremely cautious!"

  "Three Guizhen understood that the current prince is in my hands, it's just right to ask for help from the Qing dynasty and borrow troops to eliminate the bandits. If successful, I will reward silver and land, thank the Qing dynasty, and both sides can be brothers."

  "If Manchu is still not satisfied and wants more?"

  "Wu Sangui was taken aback, and after a long pause, he forced himself to say: 'In an emergency, I had to take drastic measures to preserve the honor and wealth of my tens of thousands of brothers.'"

  Li Jibei suddenly understood that Wu Sangui had already thought of surrendering to the Qing dynasty, and it was exactly as he had expected. If it were in the past, the old man might have scolded Wu Sangui severely and then died for the country. However, after cooperating with Gu Zhenhua, Li Jibei had more options.

  The old man smiled and said, "Zhang Bo, you handle the affairs of Manchu yourself. I'll give you an idea to solve your immediate problem. Arrest all the wealthy merchants in the city, interrogate them one by one, and let them contribute military funds."

  "This, this will probably affect the morale of the troops!"

  "Haha, these people are all fair-weather friends, still that old saying, as long as we win, nothing else matters!"

  Wu Sangui thought for a moment and nodded vigorously: "I'll follow Master's orders, have them all arrested immediately."

  Scholars and officials were the cornerstone of Ming society, offending them would have very serious consequences. Li Jibei casually buried a landmine, the old fox's skills were indeed astonishing. After discussing city defense with Wu Sangui for a while, Li Jibei bid farewell.

  ……

  Gu Zhenhua took a look at the secret letter sent by Li Jibo, and his back broke out in cold sweat, his clothes were soaked through, and his fists clenched with a cracking sound.

  "Eunuchs should all be killed!"

  It's no wonder Gu Zhenhua was furious, Kou Gui had sold out all his old bases to Wu Sangui, if the big traitor was momentarily greedy, he might have been caught and beheaded!

  Not waiting for the Battle of Shanhai Pass, he became a dead ghost in a muddle. It seems that running to Wu Sangui's place to take refuge was indeed rash. Fortunately, there is an old fox helping, and Gu Zhenhua values his cooperation with Li Jibei more and more. For now, the fewer people who know about their relationship, the better. Gu Zhenhua could only express his gratitude in a return letter to the old man and wrote some recipes for nourishing food to help Li Xu recover his body.

  Time flies, and ten days have passed in the blink of an eye. Gu Zhenhua, who was still asleep, suddenly heard a horseshoe sound and quickly got up.

  "The general has an order, the whole army retreats into Shanhai Pass and defends the city to the death!" The messenger shouted loudly.

  As soon as he heard this order, Gu Zhenhua's heart was clear that the Battle of Shanhai Pass had finally arrived. The moment that would decide the fate of China and also his own fate had finally come.

  "Wu Sangui, let me show you the power of ants!"

  Gu Zhenhua made a silent vow in his heart. He and Li Jibo had already set up the plan, just waiting for it to be implemented as scheduled!

  After the army withdrew into the city, at noon, dust filled the air in the distance, and a sea of people rushed over as far as the eye could see. Li Zicheng personally led the 100,000-strong Dashun Army to finally arrive at Shanhai Pass.

  Gu Zhenhua had also never seen such a large army before, a vast and dense mass that filled the entire space between heaven and earth, with people surging forward like a tide, while Shanhai Pass was just a reef in the midst of this sea, which could be engulfed by the great waves at any moment.

  By April 21, Li Zicheng's general offensive finally unfolded, and the main force of Dashun Army launched a fierce attack on the Shih River line, while also sending troops to encircle Shanhai Pass from behind.

  At that time, Dongluo City, Xiluo City, and Beiyue City were all plunged into the flames of war. Although the Dashun Army was not as well-equipped as the Guanning Army, their frantic momentum and reckless attitude made the Guanning Army also feel a chill in their hearts.

  In front of Shanhai Pass, corpses piled up like mountains, the sound of cannons, shouts of killing, and wails merged into one piece. Every moment, someone fell down, fresh blood thoroughly dyeing the ancient pass city red.

  Just outside the pass, a large army was rushing over quickly. The leader of this army was none other than Dorgon, the regent of the Qing dynasty!

  By Dorje's side was also a civil official, namely the famous Fan Wen Cheng.

  "The Prince Regent, Wu Sangui, has sent his younger brother Wu Sanrong to ask for help. Let our Eight Banners' brave warriors go and assist him in dealing with Li Zicheng!"

  "Haha, dealing with Li Zicheng is not difficult, but first we must surrender to the Qing Dynasty and let me serve as the vanguard for entering the pass!"

  Fan Wen Cheng burst out laughing: "Regent King, Wu Sangui also said that the Crown Prince is in the army and wants to form an alliance with the Qing Dynasty in the name of the legitimate rule of the Ming Dynasty!"

  Dorgon heard this and frowned slightly: "Mr. Fan, this crown prince is a **nuisance**, he absolutely cannot be kept!"

  "The Regent said, I've already had a way!" Fan Wencheng said with a sly smile at the corner of his mouth!