The emperor stared blankly at them. His gaze swept over the Imperial Guards, and he saw not the slightest indignation on their faces. Instead, they skirted around the pile of mangled flesh on the ground, their eyes full of revulsion.
When he looked at the others, aside from himself, no one showed even a trace of grief over Wang Zhen's death. Even the eunuchs merely trembled in terror, showing fear but no anger or sorrow.
The emperor stared blankly. Did they hate Wang Zhen that much?
Why?
Did they hate Wang Zhen, or did they hate me?
The emperor looked dazed.
But the Duke of England had already given the order to immediately reorganize the great army and prepare to break out.
The emperor suddenly came back to himself and was about to object when Fan Zhong, the guard general beside him, had already hauled him to his feet and shouted, "His Majesty, this subject will protect you!"
The emperor hurriedly seized his hand. "Wait, wait. The great army has only just made camp and is exhausted. Wouldn't breaking out now mean sending weary troops into battle?"
The Duke of England did not even need to explain before Fan Zhong said, "His Majesty, the encirclement has not yet taken shape. This is the best time to break out. If we wait any longer, we will be sealed inside like an iron barrel."
The situation was urgent. The time spent killing Wang Zhen had already delayed them for a while.
Since the scouts had made their report, the four Oirat armies had drawn considerably closer.
At the Duke of England's command, all the civil and military officials sprang into action. They abandoned the baggage outright, crowded around the emperor, put him on a horse, and fled.
The Duke of England directly