New Song Dynasty: My Wife is an Imperial Princess

Thirty li outside Chuzhou City.

Yue Fei personally led a small team of several dozen men to ambush in the dense forest beside the official road.

According to the news sent back by the scouts, a Jin army was approaching from the north. However, the enemy was neither a supply convoy nor a combat force rushing to Gaoyou. For a moment, Yue Fei was unsure whether he should launch a surprise attack.

Just as they were hesitating, a figure flashed through the dense forest, and the deputy general Zhang Xian appeared beside the commander-in-chief: "We have found out that the people who came seem to be two prisoners who were taken to the Jin Kingdom during the previous battle of Tokyo."

"A prisoner? How do you know?"

"When I was in Tokyo in my early years, I met one of them. He was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the fifth year of the Zhenghe era. His name was Qin Hui. After Tokyo fell, the Jin army captured more than 3,000 members of the Song imperial family and officials of various ranks. I heard that he was also on the list of prisoners. I don't know the other one, but I feel that his eyebrows are quite similar to those of the city lord. He looks to be about forty years old. Could he be Tang Qian's father?"

Yue Fei frowned slightly: "That's quite possible. Is the Jin army planning to use filial piety to force Tang Qian to open the city gates and surrender?"

In the silence, their eyes met, and they both saw a trace of fear and unease on each other's faces: "Filial piety is the most important virtue. If we are right, Tang Qian really doesn't know how to deal with himself."

Surrendering the city is disloyal, abandoning one's father is unfilial. No matter what choice Tang Qian makes, he will be condemned by future generations and infamous for eternity.

"Why don't we charge in and kill them both to end this once and for all?"

Everyone was fighting to defend the Song Dynasty. Rather than making Tang Qian face such a difficult choice, it would be better to attribute his father's death to a small-scale skirmish between the two armies in the field.

Judging from their neat and capable attire, these two men did not resemble prisoners of war at all. They must have already surrendered to the Jin Dynasty and had come here to persuade Tang Qian to surrender.

Even if it was his own father, a traitor to the Song Dynasty, killing him would not be unjust.

"Don't make a move." Seeing Zhang Xian about to charge out with his long axe, Yue Fei grabbed his arm. "I heard General Zong Ze say that Tang Huan, the Vice Minister of Revenue, once angrily rebuked the Emperor in the main hall for only knowing how to submit and protect himself, and not knowing how to fight back. He must be a loyal and patriotic man. How could such a loyal and courageous person be willing to act as an envoy for the Jin Kingdom and persuade Tang Qian to surrender?"

"Does the general mean that Vice Minister Tang was coerced by the Jin army? Then what should we do?"

If he could catch the Jin army off guard and rush in to kill the two men, Zhang Xian was confident that he could do it with the men he had at hand. If all else failed, he could simply throw two thunderbolts at them and the problem would be solved.

However, if the goal is to rescue someone from the other side, the difficulty increases significantly.

Their force, which was ambushed behind enemy lines, was already small in number and could not be replenished. No one wanted to see any casualties unless absolutely necessary.

If they rush out to rescue people now, facing an enemy force several times their size and unable to use explosives, casualties will be unavoidable.

"We have to try, no matter what."

Since the visitor was Tang Qian's father, Yue Fei had no reason not to help. Even if Tang Huan had indeed surrendered to the Jin Dynasty, he would still have to be tried by the court later. Now, he had to take action.

With Chuzhou on the horizon, the Jin general, who had been on edge, began to relax his guard, so much so that he was completely unaware that danger was quietly approaching.

A sudden explosion rang out at the front of the column, startling several shouts from the cavalry. Accompanied by the horses' neighing, the once orderly procession immediately descended into chaos.

As the Jin soldiers were still pulling on the reins in an attempt to control their frightened mounts, another explosion rang out at the rear of the column, making the already chaotic formation even more disorderly.

It wasn't that these Jin soldiers were cowardly or panicked when attacked; it was simply that they had never witnessed the power of explosives.

With two loud bangs, several warhorses were blown to pieces. Two of the colleagues who were riding on horseback were crushed to death by the falling horses. Several other horses reared up in fright, and three more colleagues who were thrown off their horses were trampled into a bloody mess by the chaotic hooves.

How could such a terrifying scene not leave them speechless?

What's most terrifying is that they didn't even notice the Song army suddenly attacking them.

The leader shouted something in the Jin language, and everyone calmed down. They surrounded Tang Huan, whose face was gloomy, seemingly to protect his safety, while the other Song official, who was already terrified, was left outside their encirclement to fend for himself.

Witnessing this scene, Zhang Xian was about to leap up, grab his axe, and charge forward to end Tang Huan's life with a single blow: "I told you this scoundrel couldn't resist the temptation and surrendered to the Jin Kingdom, but you didn't believe me."

If those two grenades had hit Tang Huan and Qin Hui, they would have been seriously injured even if they hadn't died. Now, not only have they alerted the enemy, but Tang Huan is also heavily protected. If they were to draw out the Jin army stationed in Chuzhou City, they would have no choice but to retreat, and they would have no chance to get rid of this treacherous minister.

Yue Fei didn't know what to say.

It is said that like father, like son. Tang Qian was facing off against the Jin army in Guangling City. He thought of every possible plan to fight the enemy, but he never considered surrendering. This was also the reason why he was willing to obey the orders of the Guangling City Lord's Mansion. However, he never expected that such a loyal and righteous man, as General Zong Ze had described, would choose to betray his country for wealth and glory.

"Everyone has their own ambitions. Tang Huan was ultimately just a scholar. He couldn't withstand the cruel tortures of the Jin people, and it's possible that he was forced to surrender to them."

"So, shall we just leave it at that for today? Or, before the Jin army arrives in Chuzhou City, let's send them on their way."

"We don't have many thunderbolts left. Those were meant to deal with the Jin army's supply train, otherwise the situation in Guangling would be much worse."

As for these two traitors, what harm is there in letting them live a few more days?

Those who betray their country will one day be punished by Heaven.

Suppressing his anger, Zhang Xian waved to the soldiers lying in ambush behind him. After a rustling sound, dozens of Song soldiers quietly withdrew from the position, leaving only the Jin soldiers who had escorted Tang Huan and Qin Hui south on the official road looking around in fear like headless flies.

Only when a large cloud of dust rose in the distance and hundreds of Jin soldiers came out of the city to greet them did the fear on the faces of these people subside.

Is this the new firearms of the Song people? It seems that what Guolun Hulubojilie said in his battle report was true.