Meanwhile, a dozen or so riders galloped down the muddy road, led by Chen Guowei. He crouched low over his horse's back. The fine rain obscured his vision, but it could not obstruct his resolve to carry out his mission.
In the rainy night, the faint twang of a bowstring came from somewhere. Chen Guowei's heart tightened. "Watch out!" he shouted, tilting his head as an arrow skimmed past his cheek.
He heard men and horses falling behind him. Chen Guowei reined in and turned. Five or six of his brothers had been struck by arrows, though he could not make out their injuries in the darkness. He scanned their surroundings. Blurred shadows flickered through the night, gradually closing in around them.
"They're Tartar scouts!" Chen Guohui's household servant shielded him, watching the figures moving before them.
"Engage!" Chen Guowei raised a hand to wipe his face. A faint sting shot through his fingertips as they brushed his cheek. He looked down and saw blood on his fingers.
Chen Guowei snorted coldly. With a clang, he drew the broadsword at his waist and charged toward the Jurchen scouts.
Everyone wheeled their horses around and followed Chen Guowei, raising their blades to meet the enemy.
There were only a dozen or so Jurchen scouts. Taking the initiative with an ambush, they had shot five or six men from their saddles. Judging by the direction Chen Guowei's party was traveling, they had assumed these were spineless wretches seeking refuge with Gao Qiqian. Who would have thought that, without exchanging a single word, the men would raise their blades and charge straight at them?
Where had these Ming soldiers come from?
In that instant of bewilderment, one man had his head hacked off by Chen Guowei's broadsword. Blood sprayed, mingling with the rain as it splashed onto Chen Guowei's face. The severed head landed on the ground, its eyes wide open, as though still unable to believe what had happened.
Chen Guowei did not check his momentum. His blade rose and fell, never missing its mark. Behind him, his soldiers followed closely in their commander's footsteps, not one showing any intention of retreating.
After several exchanges, fear took hold of the Jurchen scouts. They had come through the pass to seize spoils, not throw away their lives.
But by then, it was too late to flee. Watching the men around him die one after another at the hands of the Ming soldiers, one scout cried out in panic, "Don't kill me! I'm Han Chinese! Don't kill me!"
Chen Guowei's hand paused. His expression was fierce as he looked at the man with contempt. "Why are you here? What are the Tartars doing?"
"I'll talk! I'll talk!" The man threw his sword to the ground and dropped to his knees in the mud. "Prince Cheng-ptui! That Tartar Dorgon led his troops on a night raid against Governor Lu. He ordered me to stay here to stop Gao Qiqian from sending reinforcements!"
It was exactly what the Night Patrol had discovered!
The Tartars had already gone to raid the camp. He had to move faster, too. Otherwise, how could Governor Lu's twenty thousand men withstand forty thousand Tartars?
"General! Whatever else you want to know, I'll tell you! Please don't kill me!" The kneeling man trembled, kowtowing over and over as he begged for mercy.
The contempt in Chen Guowei's eyes deepened. "Spineless coward. Surrendering to the Tartars makes you worse than pigs and dogs, and all the more deserving of death. Here's a word for you-"
The man raised his head and stared blankly at Chen Guowei. He saw his lips move, but why could he no longer hear what he was saying?
"Be a decent man in your next life!" Chen Guowei's blade swept around the man's neck. Then he sheathed it and shouted, "Move!"
As chief military supervisor, Gao Qiqian should, in fact, have obeyed Lu Xiangsheng's orders. But with Yang Sichang backing him, he had grown increasingly brazen.
An advocate of peace negotiations, he had not only transferred Lu Xiangsheng's Heavenly Hero Army to protect himself, but had also stood idly by several times when Lu Xiangsheng faced the Jurchen.
He was waiting-waiting for Lu Xiangsheng to be demoted for defying His Majesty's decree against "Reckless Warfare," and waiting for the Jurchen to agree to peace talks.
Compared with Lu Xiangsheng's camp, Gao Qiqian's had an air of extravagance. Torches lit it brightly. Two guards stood at the gates, listening to the decadent music drifting from nearby, and could not help spitting in disgust.
"Treacherous eunuch. Governor Lu is fighting on the front lines, while he spends every day drinking and making merry. When we return to the capital, I'll damn well submit a memorial impeaching him!"
"That rootless thing thinks of nothing but his own wealth and glory. What else could you expect him to do?"
The gate guards were Lu Feng and Wang Shi, two mobile-force generals of the Heavenly Hero Army. After transferring them here, Gao Qiqian had ordered them to guard the gates. Though resentful, they had no choice but to obey him as chief supervisor.
"Someone's coming!" Hoofbeats sounded in the distance. Lu Feng narrowed his eyes and peered into the night. Soon, a mounted party came into view. "Looks like Commander Chen! Has something happened to Governor Lu?"
Lu Feng hurried forward a few steps. When the riders reached him, he asked, "Commander Chen, what brings you here?"
Chen Guowei dismounted. "I need to see Gao Qiqian. Where is he?" Then he heard the music coming from nearby, and his expression turned cold. "Heaven must truly be blind to have made him military supervisor!"
The emperor had decreed the military supervisor's appointment, but Chen Guowei dared not criticize the emperor, so he could only blame Heaven.
"The Jurchen are raiding the camp tonight. Take me to Gao Qiqian!" Chen Guowei told the two men.
Wang Shi immediately opened the gates wide. "I'll go announce you. Please wait a moment, Commander Chen!"
Though Wang Shi was anxious too, he could not disregard military regulations. He strode toward Gao Qiqian's tent, with Chen Guowei following behind. Both walked briskly, their haste betraying their anxiety.
When they reached the tent, several graceful figures cast shadows against its walls in the candlelight. Chen Guowei's anger flared even higher. With difficulty, he suppressed it and stood outside to wait.
Wang Shi's report sounded from within. The music did not stop. A shrill voice merely replied, "I know!"
Unable to restrain himself, Chen Guowei turned to look, his piercing gaze seeming ready to shoot straight through the tent. Inside, Wang Shi was still arguing his case when a cup suddenly crashed to the ground. "How dare you! Didn't you hear the chief supervisor say he knows? Get out!"
"Damn it! This is going too far!" Chen Guowei flung aside the tent flap and strode in.
"Who are you? How dare you barge into the chief supervisor's tent! Guards, drag him out and behead him!" Inside, a heavily bearded man pointed at Chen Guowei and shouted as he entered.
The bearded man held a cup, with exquisite delicacies spread across the table before him. Two disheveled women clung to his arms. How was this a military camp? Calling it a brothel would hardly have been an exaggeration.
Chen Guowei snorted coldly and turned his gaze toward the seat of honor. Chief Supervisor Gao Qiqian looked as though none of this concerned him. He did not even lift an eyelid.
"Chen Guowei, regional commander of Ji Town, pays his respects to Chief Supervisor Gao!" Suppressing his resentment, Chen Guowei cupped his hands in salute.
"What is all this commotion?" Gao Qiqian set down his wine cup and glanced at Chen Guowei. "The regional commander of Ji Town... Did Governor Lu send you?"
"Yes." Chen Guowei looked down at the tips of his boots, trying to keep his voice steady. "The Jurchen are raiding the camp tonight. I beg Chief Supervisor Gao to send reinforcements!"
"Where did you hear this? It may well be a false report. Moving troops is a serious matter. What if this is a Jurchen trick? Who will take responsibility if something goes wrong?"
Gao Qiqian's refusal was unmistakable. Chen Guowei pressed his lips tightly together, veins standing out on the fists clasped before him. Wang Shi glanced sideways at him. Afraid he might do something rash, he hurried forward and pleaded:
"Chief Supervisor, we cannot delay this matter. If it is true, Governor Lu will be in danger. Why not let Lu Feng and me lead troops to his aid?"
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