Chapter 297

Moreover, when this young man arrived, a beam of white light appeared in the sky.

Could it be that Your Majesty truly summoned the immortals of the world down from above?

Hearing the words of that middle-aged man in the distance.

Su Qiao could not help but be stunned.

Zhu... Zhu Youjian?

Did I transmigrate again, damn it?

Su Qiao's throat involuntarily bobbed up and down.

Then, looking at Zhu Youjian, he asked,

"Your Majesty, what do you need of me?"

Zhu Youjian said leisurely,

"The Jianzhou Jurchens are causing chaos in Liaodong, and within the passes, everything awaits restoration. My virtue and talent are shallow, so I made a vow to Emperor Taizu, requesting Mr. to come to our dynasty to lend me a hand!"

Jianzhou Jurchens?

Jurchens?

Hong Taiji?!

Su Qiao's entire body trembled involuntarily; after a long while, Su Qiao finally spoke leisurely and asked,

"May I ask Your Majesty, where did the Great Ming imperial clan fall in battle?"

Hearing Su Qiao's question, Zhu Youjian was clearly stunned as well.

Then he said in a low voice,

"Liaodong, Xingshan."

As soon as Zhu Youjian finished speaking, Su Qiao could not help but slowly close his eyes.

Ultimately, these two hundred thousand people died because of Su Qiao.

"May Your Majesty allow me to go burn a stick of incense?"

Zhu Youjian seemed to have anticipated Su Qiao's words.

He immediately said decisively,

"I will accompany Mr. there!"

Wang Chengen was stunned upon hearing this.

He immediately stepped forward, wanting to dissuade him.

But he was interrupted by Zhu Youjian.

"Chengen, prepare the carriage and horses; there is no need to make a great commotion. Just bring some Embroidered Uniform Guard."

Seeing Zhu Youjian say this.

Wang Chengen had no more objections.

He could only prepare the carriage and horses.

One shichen later.

Su Qiao saw several carriages in the distance.

Zhu Youjian, being even more considerate, looked at Su Qiao and said,

"Mr. Su, I will be in the carriage behind. I know Mr. Su prefers quiet, so I will not disturb Mr."

Having said that, Zhu Youjian sensibly boarded the carriage behind.

Su Qiao, with empty eyes, boarded the carriage.

Soon, the convoy slowly drove out of the capital.

Looking at the scenery outside the carriage window.

Su Qiao's inner heart suffered a tremendous shock.

This was the first time Su Qiao truly witnessed such a scene of an apocalyptic era.

Even the Hongwu era was among the top few prosperous ages in the vast five thousand years.

But the Chongzhen era was completely opposite to the Hongwu era.

The desolate official road formed a sharp contrast with the official roads of the Hongwu era.

The official road, where one could originally see a tea stall within less than five li, now showed only the imperial grain transport convoys and emaciated refugees fleeing into Shanhai Pass along the roadside.

Even on the roadside, one could see many frozen corpses.

Admittedly.

Zhu Youjian, following Su Qiao's methods,

stabilized the footing of Great Ming.

He gathered vast amounts of grain and stabilized the border warfare.

But ultimately.

The Chongzhen reign was still the end of the dynasty.

Natural disasters and plagues ran rampant.

Gazing at this scene before him, Su Qiao could not help but take a deep breath.

"Sigh."

Until this moment.

Su Qiao truly understood why the ancients always said, "Better to be a dog in peaceful times than a man in chaotic times."

........... 0

The great victory in Liaodong.

A great victory in the northwest.

It is merely the glorious achievements of emperors and generals.

It has nothing to do with the corpses lying by the roadside.

Liaodong has won.

They will starve to death.

Liaodong has lost.

They will still starve to death.

Su Qiao and his party of over a hundred people.

Having traveled for only a day and a half, they arrived at the so-called number one pass under heaven—Shanhai Pass.

The moment they stepped out of Shanhai Pass.

Su Qiao finally realized.

He had been wrong before.

He thought the common people inside the pass were already miserable enough.

But Su Qiao never expected.

That outside the pass was even more miserable than inside!

Inside the pass, occasionally encountering passing nobles or wealthy gentry, they would drop some grain on the road, allowing these refugees to barely survive.

But the refugees outside the pass did not have such good luck.

If they could not use their last bit of strength to escape into the pass.

Then starvation awaited them!

Not long after.

The caravan slowly stopped at the foot of Xingshan.

Su Qiao, who had just stepped down from the carriage.

Bit his teeth and looked at Zhu Youjian in the distance, asking.

"Your Majesty, why not provide relief to the refugees?"

Zhu Youjian seemed to have anticipated Su Qiao's question.

Then he whispered.

"Mr., do you think that without relief from the imperial court, those refugees could survive until they reached inside the pass before dying?"

Su Qiao himself was stunned, standing motionless on the spot.

The problems of Chongzhen's reign.

Are no longer a matter of distribution.