Chapter 171: Sudden Upheaval

Soon, everything returned to peace.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu hurriedly ran down from the city wall to check Tu Tu Kesiluo's injuries, seeing only that he was covered in wounds, his face deathly pale, yet still barely standing; only then did Jiang Jiang Mingyu feel relieved.

"Thanks to my lord's foresight in shooting down the life-saving arrow!" Tu Tu Kesiluo smiled weakly, and Jiang Jiang Mingyu also let out a long sigh of relief.

The situation was perilous, nearly resulting in total annihilation! Fortunately, Tu Tu Kesiluo fought to the death to repel the enemy forces.

This victory made Jiang Jiang Mingyu breathe a long sigh of relief, and he immediately ordered his men to shoot arrows to kill the struggling enemy soldiers.

Only the sound of whistling arrows grew loud, raining down like a dense storm, piercing the ground as if it had grown the spines of a hedgehog; the fallen enemy soldiers were pierced through with arrows covering their bodies, splashing a large patch of blood on the ground, releasing a nauseating scent of blood.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu took one look and felt the world spin, shivering directly before vomiting.

At that moment, Tu Tu Kesiluo was seen grabbing a dead enemy soldier to use as a flesh shield, catching his breath while crouching to dodge the arrows. Jiang Jiang Mingyu urged the soldiers shooting arrows to continue firing again and again; soon, over a thousand more enemy soldiers fell to the ground, toppling one by one like withered crops in a wheat field, lying in a chaotic mess all over the ground.

Finally, Tu Tu Kesiluo adjusted his breathing; he raised his blade, leaped high like a fierce lion, and roared, "Come on, brothers, charge with me!" A group of Shangmu soldiers roared in response and surged forward; the remaining enemy soldiers, seeing the tide had turned, threw away their armor and helmets and fled in panic, running faster than rabbits, clutching tightly to the lives they had barely survived.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu hurriedly called out to Tu Tu Kesiluo to stop, telling him not to pursue.

Only then did Tu Tu Kesiluo calm down; his blade tip hovered slightly before he stumbled and collapsed into the blood-red snow.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu hurriedly ran over to check his injuries; the moment he saw Tu Tu Kesiluo's blood-soaked face, his heart felt as if it were being cut by a knife.

This man, to protect himself, disregarded his own life and fought the enemy forces to the death.

For every wound on his body, Jiang Jiang Mingyu felt a corresponding gratitude. He was his savior, his comrade-in-arms, and his brother.

Recalling the battle just now, Jiang Jiang Mingyu still felt a lingering fear.

Fortunately, although Tu Tu Kesiluo suffered heavy injuries, he was still alive, which finally put Jiang Jiang Mingyu's mind at ease.

He immediately ordered his men to count the casualties and handle the aftermath, first leading the wounded back into the city.

Half an hour later, the statistical results were out.

The subordinate reported, "My lord, in this battle, our army suffered 872 dead and wounded; the rebels from Dongping were completely annihilated, and over 1,200 soldiers from Luosha also died."

This meant Tu Tu Kesiluo had single-handedly killed over two hundred people in half an hour; he was simply a killing machine!

With a grim expression, Jiang Jiang Mingyu ordered, "Send men immediately to search for and capture the remaining rebels in the city; they must be wiped out before nightfall, leaving no future trouble. Also notify Regional Military Commissioner Yasmo to send another thousand men from the Goudanzai Sect to garrison Dongping." The round trip would take two days, but the enemy was already approaching the gates of Yasmo, which made Jiang Jiang Mingyu extremely anxious.

Even more critical was that sending a thousand men meant the garrison at Yasmo would be reduced by another thousand!

At this moment, the still-weak Tu Tu Kesiluo interjected, "My lord, why not leave our two thousand men here to prepare to deal with Wang Hao from Luosha and take revenge, would that be good?"

I smiled bitterly and said, "It is hard to say if it will be enough, but currently we can only gather these few thousand men. You know the situation at Yasmo; Ruan Chen has an army of one hundred thousand, and every extra thousand adds a fraction more to our chances of victory."

Shen Shen Yulong, listening nearby, was greatly shocked; he had not expected that Jiang Jiang Mingyu, who seemed to be at the height of his power, was actually in such a difficult situation.

But now he was tied to the same boat as Jiang Jiang Mingyu; if the Prince of Qi learned that he had privately handed the county seal to Jiang Jiang Mingyu, the consequences would be unimaginable.

He hurriedly said, "My lord, please rest assured; although Luosha has slightly more manpower, it is at most forty or fifty thousand. Having just suffered a defeat with heavy casualties, they will not dare to cause trouble in the short term. Please, my lord, do not worry at all!"

I looked into Shen Shen Yulong's eyes and nodded, "Thank you for the reminder; it seems I was too pessimistic about the problem. With you here, I do not need to worry about rear threats for now, and I feel much more at ease."

Shen Shen Yulong then said again, "My lord, please leave some money and grain behind; I will recruit more soldiers to prepare for unexpected needs." Jiang Jiang Mingyu had originally wanted to transport all the money and grain back to Yasmo, but now he could only smile bitterly, "The garrison in the city is all staying in Dongping; I also wish to take the money and grain back, but alas, I cannot. Very well, I will leave the matter of recruiting soldiers to you. Once Tu Tu Kesiluo recovers from his injuries, we will rush back to Yasmo to prepare for the final battle with Ruan Chen."

The words had barely fallen when a soldier covered in wind and snow suddenly rushed in, gasping for breath, "My lord, terrible news!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu's heart tightened, and he hurriedly asked, "Has Ruan Chen come to besiege the city?" The soldier nodded vigorously, "Replying to my lord, Miss Zhang's intelligence was wrong! Before I left, Ruan Chen's main army had already reached a place only fifty li from the city! I have been traveling day and night; now Ruan Chen's army has probably already surrounded Yasmo!"

Hearing the soldier's words, Jiang Jiang Mingyu felt as if the sky were collapsing.

Ruan Chen's army of one hundred thousand was already about to attack Yasmo; how could this be possible?

Did they grow wings and fly over? Did they possess some secret treasure that allowed instantaneous movement?

Jiang Jiang Mingyu hurriedly asked, "Are you sure you did not see wrong? Is Ruan Chen's main army really only fifty li away?"

The soldier nodded hurriedly, his expression terrified. "This humble one did not see wrong; this humble one personally saw Ruan Chen's great banner and iron cavalry. They are chasing right behind us; this humble one was almost discovered by them."

Jiang Jiang Mingyu's heart sank; this was disastrous.

He had originally thought Ruan Chen's main army would still take some time to reach Yasmo, which was why he dared to split his forces to attack Dongping.

He never expected they would arrive half a month early; this was something he had never anticipated.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu immediately thought of Zhu Ge Yu and Li Goudanzai in Yasmo, as well as the families of Liu Liu Yifei, Liu Ximen, and Zhang Zhang Junhao.

They were all his close relatives, his brothers, his pillars of support.

If Ruan Chen broke through Yasmo, what kind of disaster would they suffer?

Jiang Jiang Mingyu dared not imagine; he only felt a chill rising from the bottom of his heart, making his whole body tremble.

He looked again at Tu Tu Kesiluo's weak appearance and felt unable to bear it.

He had suffered heavy injuries to protect himself, yet now he still had to travel the road with him.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu said to him, "Tu Tu Kesiluo, you rest well here for a while; I will go to Dingtao to find Lord Lord Murong and Zhang Zhang Jiani; they may have already captured Dingtao City. This war has reached its most critical moment; we can no longer delay."

Saying this, Jiang Jiang Mingyu was about to rise and leave.

But Tu Tu Kesiluo grabbed Jiang Jiang Mingyu's sleeve and shook his head vigorously.

He gritted his teeth and said with difficulty, "My lord, we cannot separate. Yasmo is our home, our foundation; we cannot let Ruan Chen succeed. As long as we can rush back, we still have a sliver of hope for survival."

Saying this, he struggled to stand up, leaned on the shoulder of the messenger soldier, and walked toward the door.

His steps were unsteady, but his eyes were firm beyond compare.

Watching his back, Jiang Jiang Mingyu was deeply moved.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu let out a long sigh and did not try to persuade him to stay again.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu knew his character; once a decision was made, it would not be easily changed.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu said to Shen Shen Yulong, "Magistrate Shen, you stay in Dongping to guard the city. This is our rear base; you must be careful in defense. Additionally, I will leave money and grain behind, but I must take a portion to recruit soldiers to prevent the unexpected."

Shen Shen Yulong hurriedly nodded in agreement, "My lord, rest assured; this humble official will do his utmost. I wish my lord a smooth journey and an early pacification of the chaos!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu nodded.

"Magistrate Shen, we shall meet again!"

Having spoken, Jiang Jiang Mingyu took Tu Tu Kesiluo and one thousand elite soldiers, hurriedly left Dongping City, and headed toward Dingtao.

The heavy snow outside had stopped, but a thick layer of snow still covered the ground. Their horses galloped across the snow, splashing up patches of white snowflakes. The biting cold wind blew against their cheeks, making them feel the fragility and impermanence of life.

But they had no thought of stopping to rest. They knew time was pressing; every minute and second of delay could affect the fate of Regional Military Commissioner Asmo.

They galloped on, leaving a string of deep hoofprints on the snow.