readsfreenovel Chapter 248 Retreat
Chapter 248 Retreat
Li Chengdong had just calmed down a little when Jin Shenghuan's letters for help were delivered to him one after another. In the end, Li Chengdong was almost angry. Jin Shenghuan's panic showed that the situation was extremely dangerous. Li Chengdong looked towards Fuzhou and sighed helplessly.
Although Li Chengdong was unwilling, he could not watch Jin Shenghuan being destroyed. Li Chengdong also knew the truth that if one side loses the other, the other side will be in danger. In desperation, Li Chengdong ordered the looting of Zhangzhou City and the seizure of all the wealth in the city. Fortunately, Li Chengdong did not massacre the city, but in just two days, thousands of people in the city died in the chaos. Afterwards, Li Chengdong left 10,000 people to garrison Fenshui Pass, an important place in Fujian and Guangdong, and the rest of the army all headed north.
Jin Shenghuan's many letters asking for help also described the current situation clearly. After the decisive battle between Jin and Meng in Nanling City, Jin Shenghuan was defeated, but Meng Jun did not personally lead his troops south to Jiangxi. He only sent his general Lin Shiqi to lead the expedition. His troops had no more than 40,000 people, and Lin Shiqi was approaching Shangrao at this time. Jin Shenghuan vowed that he had stationed 10,000 troops in Shangrao, which should be able to delay Zhou's army for half a month.
Hearing that Meng Jun did not go south in person, Li Chengdong felt relieved unconsciously. He did not know why. Perhaps it was because of Meng Jun's record of defeating Bolo and killing Lekedehun, or because he defeated Jin Shenghuan in one battle. Facing Meng Jun, Li Chengdong might have to be more alert. However, as for Lin Shiqi, Li Chengdong snorted coldly and said to his subordinate Wu Wenxian, "He is just a small soldier, not worth mentioning!"
Wu Wenxian was not so optimistic. He just cautiously advised: "Your Majesty, since Lin Shiqi is valued by Meng Jun, he must have some extraordinary qualities."
Upon hearing this, Li Chengdong glared at Wu Wenxian and thought to himself, doesn't he know that he shouldn't underestimate the enemy? He just said something to boost morale, why are you, Wu Wenxian, pouring cold water on me? Then he waved his hand and told him to get out.
Thinking back to the past, he was also a veteran general, while Meng Jun was just a fledgling who had been fighting for three years. If it weren't for his negligence, how could Meng Jun become such a powerful leader now? Thinking of this, Li Chengdong was extremely jealous and wished he could replace him. He muttered to himself, "First, defeat Lin Shiqi, then subdue Jin Shenghuan, unite Guangdong and Jiangxi, enter Fujian, swallow Zhejiang, and then enter Nanjing!"
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Xinghua, Fujian.
The local gentry Lin Congxiao was sitting in the hall at this time. He waved his hand to signal the servants to leave. Lin Congxiao was chatting with his close friend Chen Jueyan. Lin Congxiao shook his head with a wry smile, and then said with a sigh: "Since ancient times, it has been said that Fujian is a place that is not fought over by military strategists. Why is it that until now, in just a few years, the flags on the city walls have changed three times? Unfortunately, even so, the war still continues, and Li Chengdong has entered Fujian again!"
Chen Yuyan lamented, "Li Chengdong slaughtered many Fujian gentry in the past. I'm afraid there will be another disturbance when he enters Fujian this time!" Then he asked hesitantly, "Brother Lin, can we ask the court to order Li Chengdong to stop?"
"Ning'an (Chen Yuyan's pen name), the Ming Dynasty may be in a state of despair. The emperor is hunting in the west, and the western bandits are controlling the court. My friend has sent a secret letter from Kunming. Now the court's orders come from the Western Palace, and the emperor has no soldiers. The court, people at large, quarrel over trivial matters all day long, and no major national affairs can be decided. The emperor discusses matters with the cabinet ministers, and discusses proposals, but the western bandits never allow anything. This shows how domineering the western bandits are. The emperor can't even protect himself, so how can he control Li Chengdong!" Lin Congxiao shook his head and said.
Chen Yuyan slapped his thigh and sighed, "Alas, we finally drove away the Tartars, but why didn't the imperial court fight back? We united to recover the old capital, restore the country, revive the Ming Dynasty, and accomplish great things. How could we end up like this?"
"The imperial court has long lost its prestige. Even the former emperor was unable to control the warriors. How much less now, if the current emperor wants to do something, there is only one way!"
Chen Yuyan's eyes lit up, and he asked anxiously, "What's the solution, Brother Lin, please tell me!"
"The Qing court was in internal strife, the Western bandit died suddenly, and King Zhou died suddenly. Even so, there is still a glimmer of hope for the Ming Dynasty." Lin Congxiao said coldly.
"This..." Chen Yuyan smiled bitterly. How could this be possible? The hall was silent. After a moment, Chen Yuyan slowly said, "Then in Brother Lin's opinion, who in the world today can challenge the importance of the tripod?"
Lin Congxiao shook his head and said, "The Qing court still has a 40% chance of conquering the world. King Zhou has 40% and the Western bandits have 20%. If King Zhou can advance to Guangdong and Jiangxi, there will be great potential!"
At this moment, the housekeeper rushed in, shouting, "Master, good news, good news, Li Chengdong has retreated, King Zhou has defeated Jin Shenghuan, Jin Shenghuan's 300,000-man army has been routed, routed!"
The two stood up in surprise, then looked at each other, and then Lin Congxiao said excitedly: "The destiny has been decided, I will rush to Fuzhou immediately, meet Han Tongzhen, and offer him a strategy to stabilize Fujian!"
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孟浚
The weather in July was extremely hot and humid. The army was sweating profusely as they marched. Qian Biao held up an old palm-leaf fan and fanned it vigorously in an impatient manner. However, the weak cool breeze could not relieve the heat in his heart at all.
At this time, he looked at Li Wendao who was not far ahead. He saw that he was wearing a straw hat and a loose Taoist robe, which rose and fell with the movement of the horse. Qian Biao's eyes rolled, and he drove the horse forward with a bright smile on his face. He flattered Li Wendao: "Master, I see that you don't feel the heat at all in such a hot day. Do you have any tricks? Can you tell me the tricks?"
Li Wendao said slowly without turning his head, "If you are calm, you will feel cool. General Qian, your heart is not calm enough!"
Qian Biao was stunned. Why am I not quiet enough? However, looking at the appearance of Li Wendao, the master, he remembered that he prayed for the fallen soldiers. His posture was not ordinary. Then he smiled and said, "Master, you are so good at fortune-telling. Can you take a look for me?"
Li Wendao looked back at Qian Biao carefully, and asked about his birth date. He moved his fingers slightly, and after a moment, he slowly said, "General Qian's fate is that of a wealthy family. According to fate, he should make a living by slaughtering livestock, have no worries about food and clothing, and live a stable life."
After hearing this, Qian Biao's face turned pale. He had always wanted to secure a duke's position for his descendants, but how come this idiot told him that he would have to make a living by slaughtering pigs? This was all bullshit, it was all a lie to fool the villagers and foolish women. Thinking of this, Qian Biao was so angry that he turned his horse around and didn't intend to pay any more attention to Li Wendao.
But Li Wendao's voice came again: "However, General Qian's face has changed. In the past, he was more resolute than flexible. Now, there are subtle changes."
Qian Biao was delighted when he heard this, and asked hurriedly, "Sir, please tell me, why did your face change?"
Li Wendao smiled slightly, twirled his fingers gently, and said: "You have a broad forehead, and there is a hint of purple air coming from the east between your eyebrows. This is a sign of meeting a noble person. Also, you have a straight nose and high cheekbones, which show the character of a duke."
After hearing this, Qian Biao was overjoyed and asked anxiously, "Master, when can I become a duke?"
"The secret cannot be revealed, but I expect that there will be good news within three years." Li Wendao smiled and comforted.
Hearing this, Qian Biao was so excited that he immediately thanked him: "Thank you, Taoist priest! You are a real genius!"
Qian Biao then turned his horse back, and Guo Hu beside him hurriedly asked, "Tongzhen, what did that bull nose say?"
Qian Biao had an unfathomable look on his face, and said to Guo Hu indifferently: "What a bull nose, what you said is really rude, be more respectful to Taoist Li in the future, Taoist Li's divination is unpredictable!"
Guo Hu: “……………………”