Chapter Fifty-Three: Rush to the Bottom

  "It's you!"

  Wu Sangui caught sight of Gu Zhenhua at a glance, and his eyebrows furrowed into a knot.

  "Aren't you dead yet?"

  "Haha, you're dead, Benju won't die." Gu Zhenhua laughed and said: "To be honest, your younger brother Wu Sanrong is waiting for you in the underworld, why don't you go keep him company?"

  "Are you looking for trouble?"

  Wu Sangui was so angry that his lungs were about to burst. Wu Sanrong was his trusted aide, yet he had died at the hands of Gu Zhenhua. This vendetta could not go unavenged. With both hands gripping the Seven Stars Sword tightly, he charged towards Gu Zhenhua with a fierce momentum.

  Gu Zhenhua, although seemingly calm and composed on the surface, was also being extremely cautious. Regardless of Wu Sangui's character, this guy led dozens of family soldiers to break through the Qing siege and rescued his father Wu Xiang, he is absolutely a fierce general.

  Gu Zhenhua tightly grasped the knife in his hand, facing Wu Sangui's Seven-Star Sword, and chopped forward. In a brief moment, the weapons clashed three times, the sound was deafening, sparks flying everywhere.

  The two men went all out, Gu Zhenhua was shocked that his arms were numb and he could hardly hold the knife in his hand.

  Since arriving in this time and space, Gu Zhenhua has never encountered anyone who can match himself in terms of power. Wu Sangui is the first one, and this big traitor really has some skills!

  Wu Sangui was also shocked, his tiger's mouth had cracked open a slit, and fresh blood seeped out.

  Since you have Yu, why bother with Liang!

  Gu Zhenhua's wisdom, mind, vision, and demeanor are all top-notch, especially his ability to stir up several thousand Ningxia troops to rebel against Wu Sangui in such a short time. His personal charm should not be underestimated either. With his exceptional martial arts skills, he is definitely a formidable enemy!

  Wu Sangui gritted his teeth secretly, this deadly enemy must be eliminated!

  The general rushed forward, but in reality, he had to follow some close guards for protection. It was impossible for one person to fight dozens of rounds alone on horseback. After Gu Zhenhua rushed forward, he directly collided with Wu Sangui's family soldiers. Gu Zhenhua showed no mercy, swinging the chopping knife in his hand and killing every enemy in front of him.

  These family guards were also exceptionally desperate, but they were far inferior to Gu Zhenhua and not even a match for him. The knife swung like a white cloud, the family guard's weapon was knocked flying instantly, with a casual slash, the person was split in two, even the horse and rider were both killed.

  Gu Zhenhua's body was stained with fresh blood, as if possessed by a killing god, with only one thought in mind: to charge forward!

  Finally chopped down the last house servant in front of him, Gu Zhenhua suddenly turned his head. At this time, Wu Sangui also rushed through the soldiers behind Gu Zhenhua, and the two people were like mad beasts, their eyes were red!

  "Kill!"

  Two people almost simultaneously let out a loud shout and rushed towards each other.

  Both sides fought more and more fiercely, Li Xu's eyebrows furrowed as he watched from behind. He also saw the problem, although Gu Zhenhua was very brave, but he was still a bit unfamiliar with the battle at hand. Moreover, because the officers and men of the Guanning Army he led did not dare to confront Wu Sangui head-on, they were all timid and fearful, so Gu Zhenhua gradually fell into a disadvantage.

  "Dad, I'll go help Lord Gu!" Li Xu was a hot-headed and competitive guy who couldn't bear to stand by and watch such a fierce battle.

  "Little ancestor, do you want me to die without an heir?" Li Jibai grabbed him in one swift motion.

  "Father, you can't be too selfish, are you going to watch Lord Gu lose?"

  Li Jibei furrowed his brow, rolled his eyes and said: "Your injury hasn't recovered yet, going up there will only cause trouble. Listen to your father, across this street, there is a temporary storage warehouse for military explosives, you ignite the explosives, Wu Sangui will definitely be panicked!"

  Li Xu suddenly gave a thumbs up: "Dad, you're really awesome!"

  "There's no need to say more." Li Xu turned around and led his men to seize the gunpowder, while Li Jibei called Yue Poxiu over and told him something in a low voice. Yue Poxiu nodded hastily and also turned around to lead his men out.

  ……

  "Gu Zhenhua, your efforts are not bad. If you follow me and surrender to the Qing dynasty, you might even be able to become a prince. Isn't that much better than risking your life for the already fallen Ming dynasty?"

  Gu Zhenhua panted and laughed: "Wu Sangui, I don't know if you're really stupid or pretending to be stupid. Anyone who has read a little history knows that Han Gaozu Liu Bang killed the White Horse Alliance and only made those with the surname Liu kings. Since ancient times, kings of different surnames have never had a good ending, let alone a king of a different ethnicity. For the sake of wealth and glory that is within sight but cannot be reached, you sold out your ancestors. You won't get fame or fortune!"

  "Come and take my life!"

  Wu Sangui wanted to persuade Gu Zhenhua, but unexpectedly touched his most painful spot. Infuriated, Wu Sangui swung his large broadsword and chopped towards Gu Zhenhua, who also hastily parried the attack.

  No good!

  As Gu Zhenhua's sword was just raised, Wu Sangui's mouth corner revealed a hint of a triumphant smile. His treasured sword suddenly changed its angle and chopped towards Gu Zhenhua's shoulder.

  Don't underestimate the slight adjustment of the angle, as the saying goes, losing by a hair's breadth and being wrong by a thousand miles. The point of force was completely changed, Wu Sangui's treasured sword happened to be chopped on Gu Zhenhua's knife tip, which is also the weakest position.

  Crack!

  A cracking sound, Gu Zhenhua's knife tip was chopped off by Wu Sangui. The great traitor seized this precious opportunity and stabbed a sword at Gu Zhenhua's weak point in the moment when the two horses crossed each other.

  This move was precisely the killing trick that Wu Sangui had honed in countless battles, with a speed that was astonishing. Gu Zhenhua only felt that in an instant, his entire body was enveloped by the killing aura, and his nerves were highly concentrated.

  The knife tip was chopped off, and it was no longer possible to use the knife to block Wu Sangui. In a flash of lightning, Gu Zhenhua suddenly raised the quiver and blocked it under his ribs.

  The treasured sword chopped into the quiver, and the dozen or so arrows inside were all cut off. Gu Zhenhua also felt as if he had been struck by a hammer under his ribs, and a sweet and fishy taste surged up in his throat.

  Two horses parted ways, Gu Zhenhua also gritted his teeth secretly, as long as he could escape from Shanhai Pass, he would definitely hone his horseback fighting skills.

  Wu Sangui rushed towards Gu Zhenhua with his family servants at the fastest speed, showing no mercy.

  At this moment, the sound of wailing rose and fell on both sides of the street.

  "Wu Sangui, traitorous dog, exchanged his ancestors for the title of Pingxi King. Pingxi King, won't last long, a windbox's waste with two busy ends!"

  "Betraying one's parents for a wife, rebelling against the king, surrendering to the Qing dynasty, and abandoning one's father and mother!"

  ……

  The loud "Numerical Treasures" spread far and wide, with more and more people singing it, like a spell, attacking Wu Sangui.

  The Han traitors are shameless, but they haven't reached the point of spitting on their own faces yet. Especially with the spread of children's rhymes, the people of Shanhai Pass are also getting restless, panicked and increasingly chaotic. Those officials and bureaucrats are fleeing everywhere. The impression left by the Qing court is really too terrible. If these ferocious beasts rush in, they will absolutely not have a good ending.

  It's easy to boil a frog in warm water, but once it gets hot, the frog will jump out.

  The situation in front of us is the same. Wu Sangui originally surrendered to Qing with the banner of "uniting with the barbarians to destroy the bandits", which was very misleading. Moreover, it wasn't until after the Battle of Shanhai Pass that he officially shaved his head and changed his clothes. As the saying goes, once the overall situation has been decided, even if someone opposes it, there is no way to change it.

  But now the situation is vastly different, the war is still ongoing, and the outcome is uncertain, people's hearts are not yet with Wu Sangui, so when they heard the children's rhymes, they were completely thrown into chaos.

  Of course, all of this was arranged by Li Zhibo. This old fox had evil intentions, and Wu Sangui was no match for him. As a result, the city became increasingly chaotic, and Wu Sangui's mind also became confused.

  Just then, a loud explosion shook the ground, and the majestic Shanhai Pass was trembling. After shaking several times, a deafening roar was heard, with dust flying everywhere in the distance, like a yellow dragon rising from the ground into the sky.

  Those who were in a fierce battle were all frightened, and some little soldiers simply lay on the ground, trembling with fear, thinking that heaven had descended thunder.

  Wu Sangui wasn't stupid, he immediately understood that someone had blown open the city wall. The Han traitor's eyes narrowed into a sharp gaze, staring at the enemy army across from him, gritting his teeth and saying:

  "Master, you've taught your disciple another lesson, flattering the master for personal gain!"

  "Haha, after all, it's better than selling out the country for personal glory. Wu Sangui, do you still have any humanity left? How could I have taught such an unfaithful and unfilial disciple like you!"

  "I'll kill you!" Wu Sangui's eyes reddened as he charged towards Li Jibei.

  Suddenly a shout of killing came from outside the city: "The city is broken, kill into Shanhai Pass, and capture Wu Sangui alive!"

  "Advance into Shanhai Pass and capture Wu Sangui alive!"

  The shouts of "Long live" rose and fell in waves, Wu Sangui's face suddenly changed color.

  "General, let's hurry." Yang Ming reminded in a terrified tone.

  Wu Sangui's teeth chattered with a "ka-cha" sound, and no matter how fiercely he struggled, he could only manage to save his life.

  "It's not that easy to run!"

  Gu Zhenhua had already withdrawn his troops at this time. He drew out three arrows from Gu Yunlong's quiver, raised his hand, and the three arrows were shot almost simultaneously, all of which were aimed at Wu Sangui's head. With Gu Zhenhua's strength, as long as one arrow hit, Wu Sangui's head would surely be shattered.

  Gu Zhenhua was also full of hope, but just as he was about to shoot Wu Sangui, the big traitor suddenly turned his head, two arrows fell empty, and another arrow rubbed against his face and passed by.

  Gu Zhenhua only heard a mournful cry, but Wu Sangui did not fall off his horse. Instead, he continued to gallop wildly under the protection of his family guards.

  At this time, Li Xu brought people back, haha laughed: "Dad, it's just a fuse, no wonder, I directly moved to the city wall gap, and blew up the city wall. How about this?"

  "It's all over!" Li Jizhong exclaimed: "The bandit king's army can come in and kill, they won't distinguish between Wu Sangui or us, they'll definitely take action together."

  Li Xu was also stunned, but Gu Zhenhua was nonchalant: "Old Li, you're being foolish. Can't we just pretend to surrender to Li Zicheng?"

  Gu Zhenhua smiled and said: "Many people in the Dashun Army know me, so let Brother Li take care of it. Tell the Dashun Army that those with white cloth tied around their arms should not be killed!"

  "Alright, I'm going!" Li Xu was also convinced by Gu Zhenhua's cleverness and urged his horse to run.

  "Old Li, what do you think we should do next?"

  "What else can we do? Run!" Li Jibo said in surprise: "Gu Zhenhua, you don't want to rob things again, do you?"

  "Mr. Li, you're absolutely right! I'm the one who's been taken advantage of. I'll fight to the end and won't give Wu Sangui a single inch!"