Chongzhen Sunset Song

?one

"Do your best and obey the destiny. Whatever the result is, it is the destiny. Lord Yang, don't blame yourself." Outside Daming City, in the Ming army camp, Lu Xiangsheng comforted the frustrated Yang Tinglin with good words, "Master Yang did this for Lu. At this point, Lu doesn't know how to thank Mr. Yang."

"If Mr. Lu mentions the word "thank you" again, I will really feel ashamed..." Yang Tinglin's eyes were red, he slumped on the chair discouragedly, and waved his hands weakly.

"But His Majesty has issued an order to urge you. If you still can't get this soldier back, what should you do?" Yang Lukai spoke bluntly without any scruples, and Lu Xiangsheng gave him a hasty look, signaling him not to say any more.

"Your Majesty issued an order to urge you? Are you urging you to march into Julu?" Yang Tinglin was taken aback when he heard this.

Lu Xiangsheng nodded: "Not long after Master Yang left."

"It's the lower officials who are incompetent." Yang Tinglin was even more annoyed, and he cupped his hands at Lu Xiangsheng, "But with these five thousand remnants, it is absolutely impossible to go out into battle. Right now, I have to ask Mr. Lu to hold back the troops for now, and the lower officials will find a way to entrust others. Report this matter to His Majesty."

"Hey... Mr. Yang's kindness is understood by Mr. Lu, but as the governor, with the emperor's mandate on his shoulders, it would be difficult to just stand still..." Lu Xiangsheng sighed, and several people were full of worries and were speechless for a while.

At this moment of silence, there was a sound of horseshoes from far to near, and it stopped not far away, and the sound of footsteps approached the tent, only to hear the loud voice of the person outside the tent:

"Here is His Majesty's handwriting, please Governor Lu Xiangsheng come out of the tent to accept it!"

Is it a handbook again? !Lu Xiangsheng's shoulders shook, and he couldn't bear to think about it, so he hurried out of the tent.Yang Tinglin and Yang Lukai stayed in the tent to watch Lu Xiangsheng leave, unable to guess whether this sudden emperor's order was good or bad, their hearts were pounding in their throats.The people outside the tent didn't talk too much, just said a few words on the occasion, then handed the letter to Lu Xiangsheng, got on the horse and left in a hurry.Yang Tinglin and Yang Lukai waited for a while longer before they saw Lu Xiangsheng lift up the curtain and walk in, holding a handwritten note in his hand.

"What did your majesty say?" Yang Tinglin went forward, staring at Lu Xiangsheng's face, trying to see something from his expression.Lu Xiangsheng didn't answer, just handed the thin papers to Yang Tinglin, and sat back on the main seat.Yang Tinglin unfolded it and looked at it, only to see that it was written in white, with black letters and red seals, and there were only a few sentences, but each sentence urged his life:

"It's been a long time since Qing has been stationed in the army. I hope that you will attack Julu as planned as soon as possible to stop the Qing army. Don't delay any longer and miss the opportunity."

"Your Majesty has always been very patient. Why did you urge your Excellency several times for no reason this time?! It must be Yang Sichang's fault!" Yang Tinglin closed his hand, raised his eyebrows, and said loudly.But Lu Xiangsheng leaned on the chair and said nothing in silence, his head was slightly raised, his eyes didn't know where to focus.

"Your Majesty Lu, don't take it to heart. The so-called general is out, and the emperor's order is not acceptable. Your Majesty doesn't know the real situation on the front line, otherwise, how could you force Mr. Lu to fight this inevitable battle!" Yang Tinglin folded the handbook, carefully Put it on the table in front of Lu Xiangsheng, "It's not too late to discuss the matter of marching after the Xuan Dajun is transferred back in the future."

two

"My lord hasn't slept yet." It was late at night, and Yang Lukai saw that Lu Xiangsheng's tent was still glowing with candles, so he leaned into the tent and said, "Are you hungry, my little one, go to a hot spot for supper."

"No need, I'm not hungry." Lu Xiangsheng recovered from his contemplation and waved to him, "Come, sit down."

"Your Excellency, are you still troubled by His Majesty's order?" Yang Lukai obediently stepped forward and sat down next to Lu Xiangsheng, "Your Excellency is right, that...will be outside...you will not accept your order," he thought for a while and said "Even if His Majesty blames Your Excellency for disobeying the emperor's order for a while, he will definitely forgive Your Excellency when he knows the reason in the future."

"No, I'm just thinking about the past." Lu Xiangsheng smiled at Yang Lukai, his eyes were as warm and soft as candlelight, "I think of you when you were young, when you just came to my side, you were as skinny as a girl , but you only like to wield that heavy knife and gun, telling you to sit quietly and read a book is even more difficult."

"That's right. The villain's eyes are dizzy when he sees the densely packed words, but it's really not the material for reading." Yang Lukai smiled honestly, "When I was young, I loved watching adults practice martial arts. It’s good to be that powerful.”

"Do you still remember the time when you secretly played with the cast-iron knife I practiced, but the blade was too heavy for you to hold, and you accidentally dropped your foot?"

"The villain remembers that this smashing made the villain unable to walk for two months, but he was so bored."

"Hehe." Recalling the past, Lu Xiangsheng's smile was particularly bright, "It's been 12 years...you have grown up, and I have grown old too."

"Not old, not old!" Yang Lukai raised his eyebrows and said hastily, "Your Excellency is not yet forty, how can you be old! Now Your Excellency is using a big sword, and it is three points more powerful than in the past!"

"Really?" Lu Xiangsheng smiled warmly, stood up, and walked slowly in the tent, "Forty... It's only three months away from forty. Isn't 40 years of life considered enough?" gone."

"...What do you mean by my lord...?" Yang Lukai's heart was shocked, his hands and feet stiffened immediately, and he froze on the spot.

The candle flame danced lightly, and a drop of wax liquid rolled down and condensed on the candlestick in a blink of an eye.Snowflakes fell outside the tent at some point, and it was so quiet that no one noticed it.

"I think tomorrow, I will march into Julu." Lu Xiangsheng stopped, his expression calm like a lake of still water.

"what!"

Lu Xiangsheng's voice hadn't died down yet, and Yang Lukai's face turned pale with shock. He jumped up and grabbed Lu Xiangsheng's sleeve: "Your Excellency, please! We only have [-] soldiers, and [-]% of us can't fight at all. If we really send troops to Julu, I'm afraid there will be no return!"

"You're right. This battle is indeed more dangerous than good." Lu Xiangsheng said indifferently, "So pack your bags tonight, and leave for Changzhou early tomorrow morning. I have written a letter here. After you return to Changzhou, write the letter Give it to the second brother and the others, they will definitely treat you kindly."

When Yang Lukai heard this, he knelt on the ground with a plop, and tears burst out instantly: "No! The villain will never leave the adult even if he dies! The villain's life is given by the adult. Wherever the adult goes, the villain will go. The villain is not afraid of being hacked into pieces by the knife! But the villain can't just watch the adults go to die!"

"The two orders are here, and there is no way for me to retreat." Lu Xiangsheng shook his head helplessly, "I, Lu Xiangsheng, have been loyal to the king for the first time, how can I easily disobey the emperor's order at this time."

"Then let's go to Jize right now and take the soldiers back!" Yang Lukai's face changed urgently, and his voice changed his tone, "My lord, you have Shangfang's sword, you can cut it first and then play it. Let's go and kill Gao Qiqian." Donkey, rescue General Chen and the others, so why worry about taking the soldiers back!"

"Stupid child, how can a sword be such a fetish that can make one's wishes come true." Lu Xiangsheng said with a wry smile, "The sword is given by your majesty, and the power is given by your majesty. It is called to kill those who are willing to beheaded by your majesty." If you get what you want, beheading someone your majesty doesn't want to behead is called abuse. What's more, Gao Qiqian is the one who came here to supervise my army for your majesty, and no one can be beheaded by this sword."

"Then... is there really no way out..." Yang Lukai bit his lip, raised his head and stared closely at Lu Xiangsheng's eyes, hoping to find a glimmer of hope from those deep eyes.But I don't know if he has seen through this dark and muddy road ahead, Lu Xiangsheng's eyes are like a deep pool with no waves, no sorrow, anger, loss, nor any light.

"Should I have told you about Yuan Chonghuan and Governor Yuan?" Lu Xiangsheng helped Yang Lukai who was kneeling on the ground, and said slowly, "The powerful ministers can easily deceive His Majesty's eyes and ears. No matter how hard we struggle, I'm afraid it will be in vain. The matter has come to this, instead of struggling to survive, and finally being executed by His Majesty with unclear charges like Governor Yuan, it is better to die calmly, so as to achieve the name of loyalty and live up to the country. Sheji, living up to the teachings of our ancestors is the perfect strategy." Lu Xiangsheng paused, turned his gaze to Yang Lukai, and patted him on the shoulder, "But you are still young, and you will have a bright future, so don't show off your temper just for me. You said I gave you your life, and I won’t allow you to risk your life, so how can you commit suicide at will? Be obedient, take the letter, and go back to Changzhou for the time being, and improve your martial arts in the future, and then look for opportunities to serve the country.” Lu Xiangsheng got up from the table Taking out the letter, he couldn't help but stuff it directly into Yang Lukai's hands.

"My lord..." Another tear slipped out of his eyes, and Yang Lukai's hand holding the letter became tighter and tighter. Suddenly he raised his head, strode to the candlestick, and stretched out his hand to light the letter.

"Lu Kai! You...!" Lu Xiangsheng was startled, but before he finished speaking, he was taken away by Sheng: "My lord, don't persuade me any more, Yang Lukai has made up his mind!" The young attendant turned his head, his eyes revealed The brilliance of perseverance is exactly the same as that of Lu Xiangsheng at a certain moment, "The villain has no father, no mother, no one to rely on since childhood, and the adult is the only family member of the villain. Let the villain abandon the adult when his life is at stake. , Forgive me, I will never die! Now that the adults have decided to fight, the villains have no reason to back down. No matter where the adults go, the villains will be the guards. In this battle, even if you are smashed to pieces, you must protect the adults! comprehensive!"

The unopened letters curled up on the ground, and were burned to ashes little by little by the tiny flames. "Lu Kai..." Lu Xiangsheng's heart warmed up. Facing the determination of the man in front of him, it was hard to say the words to drive him away. "Okay! Since you are determined to do so, I will not say any more. You will order the whole army tomorrow morning, set off in the evening, break out of the camp and go north, marching overnight to Jiazhuang, south of Julu, and wait for the opportunity to burn the food and grass hoarded by the Qing army. This battle If we don’t confront the main force head-on, by taking surprises and using darkness to light, we may still have a chance.”

"Yes! Your Excellency!" Yang Lukai was overjoyed, and quickly bowed down to accept the order.Maybe it was the four words of lifeline that ignited Yang Lukai's fighting spirit to protect the Lord with all his strength, or the fiery words warmed Lu Xiangsheng's already cold heart. The two flattened the map and seriously discussed the tactics of sneak attacking Jiazhuang, as if this The thousands of battles in the past were usually nothing more than an ordinary one, no matter who it was, they never mentioned the matter of life and death again.