Chapter Fifty-Five Mutation

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  Li Zicheng and his imperial army finally crossed Changping, breaking through on the 16th. In order to destroy the ancestral tomb of the Ming dynasty, he tacitly allowed his troops to burn down the Twelve Tombs.

  However, when it was time to go, I realized how vast the Twelve Mausoleums were.

  They went in with great fanfare, but in the end they only set fire to a few outer halls and had to abandon their plan to dig up the tomb.

  In the 15th year of Chongzhen, Emperor Ming allowed Mi Zhi County Magistrate Bian Daxi to dig up the ancestral tomb of Lao Li's family. Today there is this report, and it is also a matter of mutual recrimination, so it cannot be said who is right or wrong.

  But with the big fire raging on, blocking out the sky and sun, the smell was also very foul. From Changping, Li Zicheng and his imperial guards were all relieved.

  Li Zicheng wore a white felt hat, which was different from the standard red hat of the Ming army. Moreover, because he believed in the new dynasty being water-based, Li Zicheng only held a small yellow umbrella behind him to indicate his identity, and his clothes were still blue arrow robes. This attire remained unchanged until his death.

  He was followed by the most elite Imperial Guards, led by his adopted son Li Shuangxi and young generals such as Zhang Tai, hundreds of skilled archers, and 3,000 cavalrymen who had been with him for many years, protecting him on all sides.

  When they arrived halfway, Li Shuangxi, who had been scouting ahead for military information, rode back to report, saying: "Your Majesty, there are several Ming dynasty eunuchs riding horses towards the Ju Yong Pass, saying that they have urgent matters to request an audience with Your Majesty."

  "Didn't General Liu see them?"

  "No, Liu said he didn't like dealing with eunuchs."

  Li Zicheng knew Liu Zongmin's temper, the general leader of the army, was fierce like fire, and disliked the Ming dynasty officials and these useless goods the most. So even though he led the troops in front, not seeing these people was also reasonable.

  He smiled and said, "He doesn't want to see him, does he? Last time I saw that Du Xun, saying he wanted to enter the capital and ask Emperor Ming to surrender. I had no choice but to see him and encourage him a bit. What new idea is this person coming up with this time? I don't want to see them, take them to see Prime Minister Niu instead."

  "Return to the Emperor!" Li Shuangxi laughed and said: "I've come for Du Xun!"

  "Huh?" Li Zicheng was taken aback, thought for a moment, and waved his hand: "Bring him here, he's not willing to see me, but now he must."

  Dudu Xun knelt at the horse's head, Li Zicheng was already impatient, but he knew that these Ming dynasty eunuchs were cunning and easily intimidated, so his tone was as gentle as possible: "What is it? Is Chongzhen surrendering? Speak quickly and let me hear."

  "Slave, there is an urgent matter..." Du Xun dared not raise his head, but instead knelt on the dusty road, recounting to Li Zicheng the analysis of Wang Dehua and others, as well as the changes at each gate.

  By the time he finished listening, Li Zicheng's face had turned iron-gray. He was extremely anxious and at this moment, there was no need to ask for anyone's opinion.

  Down said in a loud voice to Li Shuangxi: "Tell Xiaohuzi not to bother with that cavalry team, let Tangtong and the others handle it. Bring the Yuanying soldiers and horses too, you go too! However, all the soldiers and horses are unified under Luo Hu's command, leaving only a few hundred riders by my side, most of them will be taken away by you, Xiaohuzi has one or two thousand elite cavalry, tell him to hurry up, before tonight, he must arrive at the foot of the capital city!"

  "Yes, Your Majesty. I will dispatch the order immediately." Li Shuangxi bowed to acknowledge the command, but seeing the red cherry blossom on his helmet looking like blood, he began to stir up his war horse and led his troops in a swift advance forward.

  Behind him, under Li Zicheng's military order, banners were waving and bugles were sounding. Countless veteran cavalrymen who had been through a hundred battles began to urge their war horses forward, galloping towards the direction of the capital.

  ……

  ……

  "Hey Wei Da, come and take a rest."

  After a bitter fight for several days, the isolated army of the Crown Prince's inner troops stationed in the area of Guyuan Pass and Changping finally had a chance to breathe.

  Hiding in a desolate and uninhabited village, everyone got off their horses, scooped up a handful of well water, and washed the dust from their faces.

  The originally magnificent and beautiful armor had fallen into dust, with scars of knife cuts and arrow shots on everyone's body. The battle robes were covered in bloodstains and gray dust, looking extremely worn out.

  This small lone army, with over a hundred iron cavalrymen, stirred up the 700,000-strong surrendered troops of Li Zicheng and Tang Tong, making it impossible for them to rest. They would take advantage of any opportunity to attack, killing anyone who was alone, and retreating when the main enemy force approached. When pursued by enemy cavalry, they would grit their teeth and fight to the death... After several days of this, every single one of them looked like a living ghost who had crawled out from hell!

  Wei Yue's clothes were not as dirty as others, after several days of riding and fighting without rest, others were exhausted and slumped in their saddles, but this man still stood straight, his eyes though bloodshot, remained extremely sharp.

  Handing water to him, it was Wei Xun, who was beaten the most in the team training, seeing that this was his own family, Wei Yue also smiled: "Why don't you take a rest yourself, you can't sleep without being beaten with a military stick?"

  Wei Xun just smiled and narrowed his eyes, saying: "We've rested here for half a time, is there any movement around us? Wei Da, why do I feel that something is off?"

  Wei Yue hesitated without answering, but someone else hastily replied: "Tang Tong's scouting horse was frightened by us."

  "Wei Da just beheaded five people, that group of Jie Town's nighttime... most deceitful and fearful of kindness, never dared to kill the Tartars, every time the Tartars invaded they hid in the fort, when others left, they went to cut off civilians' heads to take credit, not a single good thing about these shameless thieves!"

  "I also feel that something is wrong... The thieving cavalry has been biting at our heels, and more than a dozen brothers have fallen in the fierce battle with them. How come it's been half a day now, and not a single cavalryman from the rebel camp has been seen?"

  "It's not right...... However, the grain team and the husband team are still moving towards the capital, just now we also flashed past five or six teams of infantry...... But, I haven't seen any cavalry in formation!"

  "I'm afraid they've had enough? Yesterday's fierce battle, our hundred or so men against their five hundred plus, we killed each other in a seesaw battle, and I'm afraid they're also scared of raiding the camp."

  "Hey, it's just as well they didn't come. Let's take a break and then go find that damned grain team to make some money."

  "Haha, you're absolutely right!"

  The men below were all exhausted, and at this time, they were chatting idly while half-reclining on the ground. Although there were 70,000 to 80,000 Tang soldiers surrounding them, including the troops of Tang Tong who had been pursuing them relentlessly, these men had become as tough as iron from constantly fighting in the army. At this moment, they had finished feeding and grooming their warhorses and were too lazy to move, but as soon as the scouts on the periphery sent in a warning signal, these men would spring back to life like dragons and tigers, mount their horses, and continue fighting!

  This is the iron man who spent half a year's hard work, eating big fish and meat every day, plus more than five hours of practice time. The original kung fu doesn't need to be mentioned, let alone perseverance, loyalty, kung fu, and even tactical understanding, which are far beyond what ordinary officers can compare with.

  "They're all the darlings of Master Xiao..."

  Wei Yue was well aware that these people in front of him were the backbone of the Crown Prince's future military power, and any one of them would not have a low status if released.

  But at this moment, it's not the time to conserve strength!

  He swept his gaze over the crowd, his eyes cold as electricity, and his words carried a hint of a metallic tone: "Stop guessing wildly, something has changed in the capital, and the vanguard has directed all the cavalry towards the capital."

  "Mother-in-law's, Wei Da is right!"

  "What's going on here?!"

  The officers present were also trained by Zhu Ciyan, who spent more than an hour every day explaining military tactics in the Shouhuang Hall. At this point, Wei Yue suddenly understood, and the cavalrymen present also fully comprehended the situation through subtle signs and intelligence analysis.

  "We should immediately lead our troops back to the capital to help the young master escape."

  "Yes, General Wei will give the order."

  "When we return and encounter the enemy, from Chaoyang Gate onwards, we will no longer avoid them. We'll charge forward at all costs, fight to the death!"

  "Yes!" The crowd responded in unison, all saying: "We will fight to the death!"

  As the crowd mounted their horses, Wei Yue held back Wei Xun and stared into his eyes, saying in a low voice: "Wei Xun, are you willing to risk your life for me?"

  "Of course I dare!" Wei Xuan angrily said: "We are all wealthy and noble, all bestowed by the young master's own hands. At this time, we're still afraid of death? Are we even human?"

  "Hmm, you have this kind of heart, that's good." Wei Yue nodded and said: "I'll wait for the heavy armor to move, even if it's fast, there's a limit. You took off your armor, riding alone in a hurry... right, do you have any acquaintances at the city gate?"

  Wei Xun smiled and said: "We are the military officers of the Imperial City, yet we're discussing whether there's an insider at the city gate... isn't this a huge joke?"

  "Good!" Wei Yue took a deep breath, but the corners of his mouth still curled up into a smile. He said: "The vanguard won't be faster than you, after all they are cavalry troops marching in large groups. You need to get ahead of them before the army arrives and the city gates are heavily guarded. Don't make any noise, sneak into the city and find Young Master to report this matter... This is a matter of life and death, can you do it?"

  "As long as I have a breath left in me, I will definitely deliver the message."

  After agreeing, Wei Suon took off his heavy armor and changed into a set of arrow robes. He only had one horse knife at his waist and didn't even bring a bow and arrow. At this time, it was just past noon, and with the fast horse galloping, he would definitely arrive in the capital before nightfall.

  He bid farewell to the crowd and galloped all the way along the official road. Originally, most of the people who ambushed the army were hiding in villages and taking shortcuts, rarely taking the official road. At this time, with swift horses and urgent whips, they couldn't help but reveal their tracks. Not long after they got on the main road, they could see the smoke columns rushing straight to the clouds behind them, and faintly hear the sound of gongs and drums when the rebel army was acting.

  The 80,000-strong army was also marching in haste, with a murderous aura filling the sky, banners and flags like a forest, countless pairs of straw sandals, cloth shoes, and leather boots trampling on the land of Yan and Zhao, drums beating loudly, spears and halberds like a forest. This battle-hardened elite force had its sights set on the nearby capital of the Ming dynasty!

  ……

  ……

  "Who is it down there? If you don't give your name and dare to move forward, I'll order the shooting of cannons and arrows!"

  Under the Chaoyang Gate, suddenly saw a dozen or so people coming in the dark, with five or six lanterns in their hands, looking down from the city tower, just like will-o'-the-wisps, flickering non-stop.

  "Is it open, old brother?"

  On the city wall, there was a sense of shock and tension, but below, it was all smiles and nonchalance. An old man with white hair and beard, wearing a crimson robe and black hat, with a jade belt and court boots, which was originally the attire of a civil official, but now had his robes tied up and a precious sword inserted at an angle at his waist, looking utterly out of place.

  "Is it Old Meng?" The person upstairs was also startled and hurriedly said: "The people from your esteemed residence left by carriage in the evening, so didn't you leave with them, Old Meng?"

  "Never been."

  Someone upstairs had already come to welcome them and brought Li Banghua and others up to the city gate. Among this group of people, there were not only one or two who wore official robes and carried swords. The Li family's sons and nephews had several officials among them, all carrying swords and knives as they followed Li Banghua here.

  "I've come to lend Brother Mei a helping hand."

  On the city wall, there were actually only a few hundred people, among whom half were Beijing camp soldiers, more than half were civilians recruited by Wang Jiafan, and also young nephews and servants from his own family. Li Banghua brought a dozen or so men, but they could only play a psychological role and had no practical effect.

  "Alas, why must it be so?" Wang Jia Yan naturally had to complain a bit, but as they were both well-read men, they knew that advising was useless. So they simply stood together, looking out at the dark city outside, each thinking to themselves: "But when will the Crown Prince arrive, and will the Emperor leave or not?"