The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 108 The Night Battle at the Dock: Reality or Fake?
Tu Chengyu chose to trust Ma Yizhen and assigned her her first task: to cover the escort of the guards who were sending the account books back to the capital and to help them leave the vicinity of the dock.

Tu Chengyu also wrote a letter to Ma Yizhen, asking Ma Yizhen's servants to swim back, and of course, a guard carrying the account books would accompany him.

After they left, Tu Chengyu sent men to guard the side of the boat, keeping a close watch on the direction of the post station.

Not long after, he saw the agreed-upon signal coming from Ma Yizhen's side.

Tu Chengyu also sent the attack order to Quan Xu, who was hiding in the distance and waiting.

Actually, the plan was devised during the day, before anyone else noticed this place.

Quan Xu had already brought dozens of soldiers from the Beijing garrison, who were hiding far away outside.

As darkness fell, Quan Xu had been keeping a close eye on Tu Chengyu, and now he finally received his orders.

He then led these few dozen soldiers, who had changed into their usual clothes, and attacked from their hiding place.

They split into several teams of several dozen people, shouting loudly all the way, making it seem like there were hundreds of them.

Ma Yizhen, upon learning of Tu Chengyu's plan, cooperated fully.

When Quan Xu led his men over, he pretended to be frightened and panicked, immediately ordering the soldiers at the post station not to move out and to prioritize the protection of the post station.

The soldiers at the post station did not come out, and there was no other force around that could stop them.

Therefore, Quan Xu led his men to the dock where the official ship was located without any hindrance, and then they fought with the guards led by Su Xuanbao.

On this pitch-black night, actors are acting, and spectators are watching.

Only those who are unaware of the truth are filled with various worries.

Among these worried people was Zheng Shiyi, a squad member from the Jining Garrison Battalion.

He witnessed the entire process of a group of unidentified people running from a distance into the darkness and attacking Prince Su's fleet.

He was not only worried about the safety of Prince Su's fleet, but also very worried about his own safety.

It wasn't because he was particularly loyal; it was simply because he had been sent by his superior to maintain order and protect Prince Su's safety while the prince was docked at the pier.

If something happens to Prince Su in the end, he might have to take responsibility.

Therefore, when he saw that the Prince of Su's fleet was under attack, his first thought was to go and help.

But before he could take any action, the prefect of Jining ordered him to stay put and protect the post station, citing the difficulty of distinguishing friend from foe after dark.

If Shi Yi were a seasoned veteran, upon hearing such an order and knowing that someone was holding the line, he would naturally be very willing to stay at the post station.

But Shi Yi was still young, and he didn't want to get into trouble because of this.

More importantly, the person attacked was a prince. If he could go and save him, he might even catch the prince's eye.

So when he first saw that someone was going to attack Prince Su's fleet, he was a little excited, thinking that the opportunity had finally come.

Now that his superiors are preventing him from sending troops, he is worried that Prince Su will cause trouble after the attack, and he is also worried that the credit he has just gained will slip away.

This made him very anxious, and he stood at the entrance of the medical station, constantly trying to think of a solution.

Seeing that the attackers had already engaged with Prince Su's guards, he still hadn't come up with any useful solutions.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and decided to go all out.

He beckoned, summoning all his trusted brothers to gather around him.

He said, "Brothers, I'm going to take you guys on a gamble for riches. Do you want to go?"

Among the crowd that gathered, a quick-witted man immediately guessed Shi Yi's fighting plan and asked, "Is the captain planning to rescue Prince Su?"

Shi Yi nodded and said, "That's exactly what I'm planning. Prince Su was attacked right under our noses; we can't just leave him unattended."

The man said, "But the prefect has issued an order that we should protect the post station first. If the captain wants to go, he will be disobeying the order."

Shi Yi said, "Those people came for Prince Su. They had no intention of attacking the post station. So what is there to protect?"

"Besides, fortune favors the bold. Compared to the merit of rescuing Prince Su, what is disobeying the prefect's orders?"

Hearing Shi Yi say this, everyone was somewhat tempted.

Seeing this, Shi Yi continued to encourage them: "Soldiers like us spend our whole lives guarding remote and impoverished areas, and we rarely even have the chance to meet someone like the prefect."

"Now, however, there is an opportunity to rescue the current prince. If we can act in time to help Prince Su repel the invading bandits."

"This will make Prince Su look at us differently. As long as Prince Su takes care of us, why should we worry about our future? With such immense wealth and honor, what are you still hesitating about?"

Upon hearing this, these people thought, "Yes, being able to rescue a prince of the current dynasty is such a tremendous achievement, what is there to hesitate about?"

So one by one they rushed to express their opinions:
"Captain, I'll listen to you."

"I, Lao Yang, am willing to work with the team."

"Captain, give the order quickly, or the enemy will have already finished their attack."

Seeing that his twenty-odd subordinates all agreed with his idea, Shi Yi didn't waste any more time and immediately issued the order.

He said, “There are only about twenty of us, and it’s so dark now. If we rush over rashly, it might cause the Prince of Su’s men to misunderstand us and think we are also the attackers.”

"If that's the case, not only will we not be of any help, but we will also cause even more trouble for Prince Su."

"Therefore, we cannot rush in recklessly and start fighting. Instead, we must think of other ways to help Prince Su."

One of his men said, "Squad leader, you don't need to explain to the brothers. Just do as you say."

Upon hearing this, Shi Yi said, "Alright, I'll arrange it right away."

“Old Yang, I remember you know those boatmen who pull the boats. Now, you take two men and go ask them for help. When we charge, have them shout a rallying cry for us to cheer us on.”

Old Yang said, "Squad leader, I'm afraid I can't persuade them."

Shi Yi said, "Tell them that as long as they stand up and shout a few times later, I will give each of them ten large coins after this is over."

There are quite a few people pulling boats along the riverbank. If each of them were to give ten coins, even if Shi Yi sold himself, he still wouldn't be able to raise enough money.

Old Yang couldn't tell for a moment whether the team was talking nonsense or serious.

Seeing that Lao Yang was still standing there, Shi Yi said angrily, "We're risking our lives to gain merit, and you're still worried about a little money? Hurry up and go."

Startled by Shi Yi's sudden outburst, Old Yang didn't have time to think about anything else and quickly led two men toward the boatmen resting on the shore.

After Lao Yang left, Shi Yi quietly led the remaining people out of the post station. Then they slowly approached the dock.

When he was still a dozen or so feet away from the dock, he hid and waited for Old Yang's signal. At the same time, he secretly observed the battle situation on the dock.

Although he was only a dozen or so feet away from the dock, it was too dark for him to see the specific fighting scene clearly. He could only judge the intensity of the battle by the sounds of fighting.

This relieved Shi Yi. Otherwise, if he had risked disobeying orders and rushed over only to find that the fight was over, it would have been a huge loss.

With the dim light, he could barely make out the positions of the hands on both sides by looking at the clothes.

Once he had memorized the location and given instructions to his men on how to attack the enemy, he was ready to proceed.

Then they saw Old Yang lighting torches at the boatmen's resting place not far away, and they knew that Old Yang had persuaded the boatmen to help.

Without a second thought, he waved his hand, ordering all his men to stand up.

After standing up, they didn't rush forward immediately, but instead shouted together:
"The Jining Garrison is here; thieves, do not act recklessly."

After the dozen or so of them finished shouting together, the boatmen waiting not far away also started shouting in a chaotic manner.

For a moment, it truly seemed as if all the soldiers of the Jining Garrison had arrived.

Such a grand spectacle naturally alerted the others nearby.

Tu Chengyu, who was watching the battle from the boat, had a high vantage point and a wide view. He noticed Shi Yi and the others as soon as they shouted their first words.

So Tu Chengyu asked Quan Wenwei, who was standing next to him, with great confusion, "Mr. Quan, where did this person come from?"

Quan Wenwei was also full of doubts. He stood on tiptoe and listened carefully to the shouts in the distance.

Then he said to Tu Chengyu, "Your Highness, the gentleman doesn't know where they came from either, but judging from their voices, there are quite a few of them."

"The students are worried that someone has seen through the prince's scheme and wants to take advantage of the situation."

"Just in case, Your Highness, please have the two generals stop fighting and protect Your Highness first."

Tu Chengyu understood Quan Wenwei's concerns, but if he made Su Xuanbao and Quan Xu stop acting, wouldn't all their previous plans come to nothing?

He thought it over and over, and finally said, "Let them continue performing. I don't believe they have the guts to do anything outrageous here."

Just as Tu Chengyu and Quan Wenwei were talking, Ma Yizhen, who was hiding in the post station, was also startled by the commotion outside.

He rushed out of the room in a few strides and saw Xin Shitiao hurrying in from outside. He asked anxiously:
"Mr. Xin, what happened?"

Xin Shi, breathless from running, said intermittently, "It was the captain of the garrison. He disregarded the Lord's orders and led his men to rescue Prince Su."

Ma Yi asked incredulously, "How dare he, a mere squad leader, be so bold?"

Xin Shidiao said, "Nobody knows what suddenly made him go crazy. He just led his twenty-odd men and rushed over."

Ma Yizhen said, "With such a large commotion, how could there only be twenty people?"

Xin Shidiao said, "Those who shouted the loudest were not the soldiers of the garrison, but the boatmen pulling the boats. They only shouted a few times along with them."

Hearing this, Ma Yizhen felt relieved and said, "Send someone to call them back."

Xin Shidiao said, "Master, it's probably too late to call them back now. Besides, now is not the time to pay attention to them. Master can't just sit and wait as originally planned."

Ma Yizhen asked, "What does Mr. Xin want me to do?"

Xin Shidiao said, "The soldiers of the garrison have rashly set out, which has already violated the agreement between Dongweng and King Su."

"If Dongweng were to remain at the post station doing nothing as we had previously agreed, others would certainly become suspicious of him."

"Therefore, in order for Prince Su's plan to continue, Dongweng must step in quickly to make it appear that the garrison's unauthorized actions were carried out under Dongweng's command."

"In this way, no matter what Prince Su does next, Dongweng has left Prince Su with room to maneuver."

Upon hearing Xin Shitiao's very reasonable analysis, Ma Yizhen immediately said:

"Alright, then gather everyone immediately and come with me to rescue the prince."

Meanwhile, during this fake ambush, Su Xuanbao and Quan Xu, the main actors, felt somewhat lost and confused.

They were ordered to fight on the docks, and were having a great time when an unexpected force suddenly appeared.

If their battle is real, one side will surely be happy to hear that a third party is coming.

But right now they're just performing a fight scene, and this sudden appearance of a third party is a real headache.

Quan Xu asked Su Xuanbao, dumbfounded, "What should we do now?"

Su Xuanbao didn't know what to do either. He said, "How about we wait for the prince's order?"

Quan Xu looked at the people rushing towards him, whose route he couldn't even determine, and said anxiously, "Waiting for the prince's order is probably too late."

Su Xuanbao also saw those people and said, "I think our performance has to end early. You should quickly take your men and escape as originally planned."

Quan Xu realized that this was the only way, so he immediately took a step back and shouted, "They have reinforcements, retreat with me quickly!"

The soldiers who were disguised as bandits, upon hearing the order, swung their weapons haphazardly a few times and fled with Quan Xu without looking back.

So when Shi Yi and his dozen or so men rushed over in fear, they could only see the thieves running away faster than they could.

He wanted to give chase, but seeing that he only had a dozen or so men and that Prince Su's men seemed to have no intention of pursuing, he gave up the idea.

He turned and walked up to Su Xuanbao, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "This humble officer, Shi Yi, commander of the Jining Garrison, greets the General."

Su Xuanbao, unsure how to deal with the captain who had interrupted his performance, simply said:
"Stand here and wait."

After saying this, he hurriedly returned to the ship and went to report to Tu Chengyu.

Shi Yi originally thought that even though he was late, he had come to save Prince Su, and even if he had no merit, he had still worked hard.

However, seeing the Prince of Su's men speaking coldly to him and leaving him standing there in the cold, his heart sank.

However, that wasn't the worst of it. What truly chilled him to the bone was that Prefect Ma had also arrived with his men.

Prefect Ma came over, looked at the garrison commander in front of him, and glared at him fiercely.

He then took a few steps forward and shouted loudly towards the ship, "This humble official, Ma Yizhen, arrived late for the rescue. Please punish me, Your Highness."

After Ma Yizhen called out, she received no response for a long time, which made her feel a little uneasy.

Unbeknownst to them, Tu Chengyu was standing on the boat observing them.

The reason he didn't answer Ma Yizhen's question was to give others the impression that he had a problem with Ma Yizhen.

(End of this chapter)