The Ming Dynasty: Starting with the border troops, it was overthrown and the Qing Dynasty was destro

Chapter 59 Yu Chengye

Yu Chengye took a deep breath:

"Sir, I'll climb over from this side and lure those guards away, then you can bring my sister out!"

"After you get out, don't run around. Find a dark ice cellar to hide in. Don't just rush out and get yourself killed!"

Upon hearing this, Yu Chenglin's eyes welled up with tears, and she clung to him tightly, refusing to let go.
"Brother, no, you'll get killed if you go out!"

Yu Chengye shook his head and spat fiercely:
"So what if I die? I'll be a hero again in eighteen years. What's the big deal!"

"Listen to me! You're going with Grandpa Ma to Yan'an Prefecture!"

After saying that, he resolutely climbed over the courtyard wall, and deliberately knocked over a flowerpot, which attracted several guards to chase after him.

Yu Chengye was quick and agile, and with the good food he had been eating these days, he ran incredibly fast, almost leaving the guards behind.

The dark alley became his cover; he would leap over low walls and climb over piles of firewood, and the guards behind him could not touch him at all; if they wanted to shoot an arrow, they could not see his figure at all.

However, there were many officers and soldiers. When the soldiers on the perimeter saw him rush out, they quickly gathered their men, and in the blink of an eye, dozens of people gathered around, forming a dense and impenetrable net.

No matter how fast Yu Chengye ran, he couldn't escape the encirclement and was eventually trapped, unable to move.

"You bunch of bandits! Let me go!"

Yu Chengye was held down by several soldiers, but he still managed to curse them as he struggled.

Upon seeing this, Zheng, the leader, sneered, drew his waist knife, and slammed it down hard on Yu Chengye's abdomen with the hilt.

Yu Chengye groaned, knelt on the ground, curled up into a ball, like a cooked shrimp, his body arched and twitching uncontrollably.

Zheng Baihu grabbed his hair and dragged him in front of Song Lao Er:

"Take a closer look, isn't that the thief?!"

Song Lao Er nodded hurriedly: "Yes, yes, it's him, sir!"

Commander Zheng narrowed his eyes, turned to look at the guards beside him, and asked in a deep voice:

"Weren't the thieves supposed to be a brother and sister? What about the other one?"

The guards exchanged glances, a sense of foreboding creeping over them.

"Damn it, we were so focused on chasing this thief that we forgot about the other one!"

Left with no other option, and in order to avoid punishment, they had to bite the bullet and tell a lie:

"Sir, we only saw this one escape; the other one was probably burned to death."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Baihu had no doubts. He drew his knife, turned around, and was about to kill Yu Chengye and Song Lao Er, then cut off their heads to claim credit and reward.

Just as the blade was about to fall, a furious shout came from afar:
"Wait! What are you doing!"

Zheng Baihu put down his sword, turned around and saw Commander Wu Ze walking over, covered in dust and panting.

Wu Ze ran for his life and saw flames soaring into the sky and thick smoke billowing from Majia Village in the distance.

As soon as he entered the village, all he saw were ruins and corpses strewn everywhere.

Seeing the mess, Wu Ze immediately understood what was happening. He led his remaining soldiers toward the crowd and ran into Zheng Baihu, who was about to make a move. He quickly shouted to stop him.

After figuring out what had happened, Wu Ze was furious. He raised his hand and slapped Zheng Baihu hard across the face.

"You bastard, are you trying to kill me?"

Zheng Baihu covered his face, his eyes wide with astonishment, not understanding what he had done wrong.

Wu Ze was so angry that he was panting heavily. He had just suffered a defeat at Wangzhuang, and his men had been almost completely wiped out.

They still needed the help of officials and gentry in the prefectural city to cover it up when they returned. Even the prefect Zhang Nian had to ask these officials and gentry to donate grain and fodder to gather militia to defend the city.

The Ma family is a prominent family in Yan'an Prefecture. If they knew their old house had been burned down, wouldn't they fight Wu Ze to the death?

Thinking of this, Wu Ze quickly ordered his men to put out the fire, but it was too late. The fire was too big, and he could only watch helplessly as the Ma family's house was engulfed by the flames.

Wu Ze stood outside the fire, his face ashen, pondering how to smoothly smooth things over.

At this moment, Zheng Baihu, rubbing his face, cautiously spoke up:

"Lord Wu, can we pin the blame on these bandits?"

“That little thief just ran out of the Ma family mansion, we even have witnesses!”

Upon hearing this, Wu Ze hurriedly ordered someone to bring Yu Chengye and Song Lao Er up.

He stared at Song Lao Er and asked in a deep voice:
"Are you sure this is a thief? Not an ordinary citizen?" Song Lao Er nodded repeatedly: "He's definitely a thief, sir! I'd stake my life on it!"

Wu Ze pondered for a moment, then had an idea and gave the order:

"Let's go! Take this thief and the witnesses back to Yan'an Prefecture!"

Right now, he just wants to find an excuse to get away. Now that he has a witness, Wu Ze can make excuses and say that this little thief was desperate and burned down the Ma family's house.

Thinking of this, he breathed a slight sigh of relief and led his remaining troops back to Yan'an Prefecture in a dejected manner, where he stayed behind closed doors.

Prefect Zhang Nian received the news the following morning.

"What?! Wangzhuang has fallen? The entire Jingbian Battalion has been wiped out?! Lieutenant General Zhao Hongbin has died in battle?!"

"Yan'an Garrison, out of four thousand troops, only seven or eight hundred managed to escape?!"

Inside the prefectural government office, Zhang Nian listened to the series of bad news, his face turning ashen, wishing he could smash the table to pieces.

"Trash! It's all trash!"

When Eunuch Wang, who rushed over later, heard the news of the fall of Wangzhuang, his eyes rolled back and he fainted instantly.

Zhang Nian snorted coldly:
"Where's Wu Ze? Tell him to get over here and see me!"

Before long, Wu Ze arrived at the main hall with trepidation. Facing the furious Zhang Nian, his heart pounded.

Zhang Nian glared at him and shouted sternly:

"Wu Ze, what are you good for?"

"I assigned you several thousand elite troops to suppress the bandits, and in just one night, only seven or eight hundred defeated soldiers returned? How am I supposed to explain this to the imperial court?!"

He stood up abruptly and roared.
"Even with four thousand pigs, the rebels would still be killing for three days!"

Wu Ze swallowed hard and quickly spoke up to defend himself:

"Lord Zhang, you are unaware of the truth. We were ambushed, which is why we suffered such a crushing defeat."

"Zhao Hongbin of Jingbian Battalion is a complete incompetent. More than two thousand border troops were guarding Wangzhuang with their backs against the city wall, but the rebels captured it in just a few hours."

"We traveled day and night, hoping to encircle him, but he's done it! He's even lost the city!"

"If Lord Zhang doesn't believe me, he can ask someone."

Wu Ze shifted all the blame to Zhao Hongbin, who had already died in battle. Since there was no way to verify the truth now, whatever Zhao Hongbin said was the truth.

Zhang Nian was so angry he gritted his teeth. Zhao Hongbin died in the chaos of battle, and now even his body couldn't be found. Who was he supposed to ask?
There was nothing he could do but grit his teeth and suppress the matter.

But the matter wasn't over yet; Zhang Nian continued to berate him:

"You, Wu Ze! You failed to suppress the bandits, and now you're even allowing your men to plunder the villagers!"

He lowered his voice:
"Have you lost your mind?! You dared to burn down the Ma family's house? Ma Qingjiang is a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Rites, a fifth-rank official in the capital!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Ze hurriedly denied it:

"I'm innocent, Lord Zhang! Ma Family Village has been occupied by Jiang Han for more than half a year; it's a den of bandits!"

"When my subordinate Zheng was clearing out the remaining bandits, he discovered a fugitive who had escaped. As a result, the bandit, cornered as a dog, set fire to the Ma family's house!"

After hearing this, Zhang Nian sneered and stared at Wu Ze without saying a word, clearly not believing his nonsense.

Seeing this, Wu Ze braced himself and continued:

"It's true, we caught a petty thief in Majia Village. According to the villagers, he's one of those rebels, and he set the fire!"

"There are witnesses and evidence!"

Zhang Nian squinted:
"Very well! In that case, bring the person up here. I will interrogate him personally!"

Wu Ze was prepared and immediately ordered his men to bring Yu Chengye and Song Lao Er to the court.

Just as Zhang Nian was about to interrogate Yu Chengye, an urgent report came from outside:

"Your Excellency! Something terrible has happened! The rebel army has already besieged Ansai County. The county magistrate has specially sent me to Yan'an Prefecture to request reinforcements!"

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(End of this chapter)