Chapter 293: The Old Prince of Fu and Han Li

Qin Liangyu had expected a fierce battle and was fully prepared—if the Ming army showed signs of weakening, she would go up to help; if it was a complete rout, she would turn and flee.

But the scene before her was something Qin Liangyu had never imagined.

The rebels were being mowed down like leeks, and the smaller force, instead of holding a defensive formation, was steadily advancing forward.

The three-row alternating firing design ensured an unbroken stream of firepower; the impact of the cannons made it impossible for the rebel formation to consolidate.

Axe-and-sword men and heavy infantry on the flanks continuously protected both wings, while crossbowmen filled in any gaps.

The repeating crossbows fired at a very fast rate with remarkable accuracy, so the battle showed a one-sided trend from the very start.

The army kept pressing forward, and the rebels who charged up all died on their assault route—barely any managed to reach the Ming army's front lines.

The entire battlefield resembled a hellish slaughterhouse, with rebels continuously charging forward and continuously falling to the ground.

This assault did not last long. She Chongming's rebels were not particularly brave either—even if some were fearless enough to die, they were only going up to throw their lives away.

After wave after wave of chargers died, the rebel formation fell into chaos. As the Ming army kept pressing forward, the pressure only grew greater.

Someone retreated first, and then the entire rebel force began to fall back. Once the retreat started, there was no stopping it—men and horses began pulling back on a massive scale.

Seeing this, She Chongming's face turned ashen. He knew this battle could not be won. Though he still had plenty of troops behind him, with morale unstable and the front collapsing, even throwing every man into the fight would yield nothing good.

After thinking it over, She Chongming gritted his teeth and said, "Retreat!"

Although retreating now would let the Ming army harry them, making it relatively difficult and potentially costly, continuing to charge forward would cost even more.

The main force around She Chongming had not yet lost its formation, so an orderly withdrawal was still achievable.

If the Ming army pursued at their heels, She Chongming could greet them with arrows. So he chose to retreat—the front became the rear, and they withdrew directly toward the back.

Seeing this scene, Sun Chuanting was also taken aback.

"This She Chongming is truly decisive." Sun Chuanting said slowly.

The subordinate standing beside Sun Chuanting asked, "Sir, should we pursue? Now that they are retreating, it is the perfect time for us to chase them down."

"Their formation is not broken and they have many men—what would be the point of chasing?" Sun Chuanting waved his hand and said.

"Our main purpose in coming here is to lift the siege of Chongqing and retake Sichuan. We only need to follow behind, steadily pressing forward, and force them to retreat to Chongqing. If they choose to fight us a decisive battle beneath the city walls, that would be ideal."

After saying this, Sun Chuanting walked directly over to Qin Liangyu and said with a smile, "General Qin, the army is about to move forward. Will you come with us?"

Glancing at Sun Chuanting, Qin Liangyu nodded.

This young general truly had nothing to be faulted!

Qin Liangyu agreed readily: "Alright!"

She Chongming's army kept retreating, and Sun Chuanting followed unhurriedly behind.

The rebels dared not stop—the moment they halted, the Ming army would latch onto them. So they could only withdraw quickly, not daring to pause for even a moment.

Inside Chongqing city.

Governor Xu Keqiu was pacing anxiously back and forth.

As the Governor of Chongqing, Xu Keqiu's days of late could be described as extremely difficult. Ever since She Chongming had rebelled, Xu Keqiu had not enjoyed a single peaceful day.

The surrounding areas had long been lost, leaving only the isolated city of Chongqing. There was not much grain left in the city either—if things dragged on like this, they probably could not hold out much longer.

Both military and civilian morale were already unstable, and Xu Keqiu had no good solutions.

Just then, a figure hurried in from outside.

The man was in his fifties. Upon seeing Xu Keqiu, he said in a flustered tone, "Sir, She Chongming's rebel army has returned!"

Hearing this, Xu Keqiu was startled and asked hesitantly, "Are you sure you saw correctly?"

"This subordinate saw correctly." The newcomer said hurriedly, "A few days ago, She Chongming transferred away a large number of troops, leaving only twenty thousand rebels outside the city. You assigned me to investigate the situation and see if there was an opportunity for us to devour those twenty thousand men outside the walls. I dared not delay and have been watching them the whole time."

"Just now, She Chongming brought his men back!"

"Come, let's go up to the city wall." Xu Keqiu said hastily.

The two quickly ascended the city wall.

By this time, She Chongming had already retreated to his camp.

What Xu Keqiu and the other man did not expect was that She Chongming did not stop at all—he directly chose to withdraw.

Watching the army leave Chongqing, Xu Keqiu and the other man still could not figure out what was happening.

After exchanging a glance, Xu Keqiu said, "What is going on?"

The civil official beside him suddenly grew excited and said directly, "Sir, this does not look like one of She Chongming's ruses to lure us out—it looks more like he was forced to retreat. Could our reinforcements have arrived?"

These days Chongqing had been besieged and no news could get through, so they could only make such guesses.

Hearing this, Xu Keqiu grew excited too and said in disbelief, "Could reinforcements really have arrived?"

The moment the two finished speaking, another force indeed appeared in the distance.

A large banner led the column, with a name embroidered on it in bold characters.

Beside it were two smaller banners—one bearing the character Sun, the other bearing the character Qi.

Although Xu Keqiu and the other man had never heard of these two banners and did not know who had come, the arrival of reinforcements was enough to make them both happy.

The siege of Chongqing was finally lifted.

Among the reinforcements, Qi Yuangong looked at the retreating She Chongming army and said hesitantly, "Lord Sun is just letting them go?"

"Isn't this fine?" Sun Chuanting said with a smile. "As long as we take Chongqing, we can gather the surrounding troops, reorganize the army, and then attack again."

"Don't worry—our territory will only grow larger and our forces more numerous. As our territory expands and our numbers increase, their living space will shrink. By that time, they will be fish in a barrel—unable to escape even if they want to."

"Alright, then I'll follow Lord Sun's lead." Qi Yuangong said with a smile.

Qi Yuangong had nothing more to say about Sun Chuanting's strategies and schemes—he knew he was certainly no match for the young Lord Sun, so he might as well obediently follow orders.

Qin Liangyu looked at Sun Chuanting, her face full of admiration and curiosity alike.

This young Lord Sun gave the impression of being arrogant and overbearing, but the facts proved he truly had the ability. Even when he held the advantage, he did not greedily seek glory or rush ahead recklessly—he knew how to fight steadily and securely.

This was truly a man of talent!

It had to be said, the Great Ming truly was blessed with an abundance of talent!

After arriving beneath the walls of Chongqing, Sun Chuanting said, "Let the army make camp below the walls. Send someone to inform those atop Chongqing's walls that reinforcements have arrived, and have them open the gates to welcome us."

"Yes, Lord Sun." Qi Yuangong hurriedly acknowledged and went off at once to handle the matter.

Meanwhile, in the capital, within the Western Park.

Zhu Youxiao finally rose from his bed.

Glancing at the two consorts, Zhu Youxiao smiled and took their hands, saying, "Come have breakfast with Us."

"Yes, Your Majesty." The two answered timidly.

Zhu Youxiao knew that the two of them still found him somewhat unfamiliar—even though they had already slept together last night, nothing had changed.

The impression he had left on them before was probably too deep; this would take time to slowly change.

Zhu Youxiao did not press the matter. After having breakfast with the two consorts, he looked at Chen Hong, who was attending him, and said, "Take Us to see the Imperial Uncle."

"Very well, Your Majesty." Chen Hong hurriedly acknowledged.

Having said this, Chen Hong led the way.

Zhu Changxun had long since risen by this time. He felt some regret in his heart—how had he fallen asleep last night?

Zhu Changxun wanted to go out for a stroll, but he was stopped at the door; the guards simply would not let him move.

Glancing at the old Daoist sitting cross-legged in the courtyard chanting scriptures, Zhu Changxun felt somewhat helpless.

Zhu Changxun knew a little about the matter of His Majesty keeping a Daoist in the palace.

Zhu Changxun had never imagined that he would meet him under such circumstances.

Han Li's gaze toward Zhu Changxun was filled entirely with pity.

This Imperial Uncle of His Majesty was probably going to be set up for a fall, just like he himself had been back then—otherwise His Majesty would not have brought him here.

Better to keep one's distance from such a person, lest when the imperial wrath descends, one gets hurt as well.

Han Li had no intention whatsoever of speaking with Zhu Changxun; he simply stayed quietly off to one side by himself.

Just at this moment, a commotion suddenly arose outside.

First Chen Hong walked in from outside, then several eunuchs entered; finally, Zhu Youxiao walked in from outside.

Upon seeing Zhu Changxun, a smile immediately spread across Zhu Youxiao's face, and he hastened to say, "Imperial Uncle, did you sleep well last night?"

Zhu Changxun dared not be remiss; he quickly stepped forward and said, "Many thanks for Your Majesty's concern. Your subject lost his composure before the throne; I beg Your Majesty's forgiveness."

"Imperial Uncle must not say such things—we are family, so let us not speak as strangers." So saying, Zhu Youxiao made to take Zhu Changxun by the hand and lead him outside.

Walking along, Zhu Youxiao said, "Has Imperial Uncle partaken of the morning meal yet?"

"Not yet." Zhu Changxun said somewhat awkwardly.

He had drunk too much wine last night, and his stomach was indeed feeling rather uncomfortable now; he did want to eat something.

But no one here paid him any attention at all. He could not even walk out if he wanted to, so naturally no one prepared food for him—he was still hungry to this very moment.

"Very well then, We shall have someone prepare a sumptuous breakfast." Zhu Youxiao said with a smile, and at the same time instructed Chen Hong: "Have someone prepare it at once—We wish to take the morning meal together with the Imperial Uncle."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Chen Hong hurriedly acknowledged, though a question arose in his heart—had His Majesty not just been with the two ladies?