The wind rises at the end of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 322 Luo Rucai

To the west of the Bawu River, two red and black waves are constantly surging back and forth on the river beach.

The shouts of killing were deafening, resounding through the canyons and rising up the rivers.

Luo Rucai stood in front of the formation with a big gun in his hand, thick blood slowly flowing down the edge of his helmet.

The blood dyed Luo Rucai's clothes and armor red, and also dyed Luo Rucai's face red.

His armor was covered with scars caused by swords and guns.

At his feet were countless Ming army soldiers lying on the ground.

With the shouts that echoed through the sky, the Ming army's formation guarding the riverbank completely collapsed.

The midday sun shone on Luo Rucai's body, and the scarlet blood under the sunlight made Luo Rucai look as terrifying as a devil crawling out of the underworld.

On the river beach, all the Cao soldiers were crying with joy.

They broke out of the siege and ran for more than two hundred miles. They escaped from the encirclement of tens of thousands of Ming troops and ran to the east of the Bawu River. However, there was a battalion of Ming troops guarding here.

They tried all their methods and strategies but could not cross the river.

The Ming army gathered up most of the boats that could cross the river, and gave them very few tools to cross the river. The Bawu River was in spring flood, so crossing the river was extremely difficult.

The pursuers followed closely. Although the troops at the rear were left behind, the Ming army was now at its peak, and the troops at the rear could not hold on for long.

So they could only attack Bawu River.

The storm lasted for two days. They organized numerous waves of attacks but ultimately failed.

The pursuers chasing them all the way from Badong were only forty miles away from them.

The place Luo Rucai chose to cross the river was the place where the current of the Bawu River was the slowest. However, this place was also a dead end. The enemy only had to overwhelm them. There was really no way to the sky and no way to the earth.

But now they finally crossed the Bawu River and defeated the Ming army guarding the beach. The joy of surviving the desperate situation made them cry with joy.

Luo Rucai stood among the corpses scattered on the ground, holding a spear, his eyes as calm as autumn water.

Successfully crossing the Bawu River did not make him feel half happy.

Just to cross the Bawu River, those old brothers who followed him and fought for thousands of miles fell many times.

"Commander."

Yang Mingqi, who was also covered in blood, waded through the blood pool with difficulty and walked to Luo Rucai.

Yang Mingqi's position in the army was the same as Liu Zhe's in Gao Yingxiang's army. He was the general manager of the army and Luo Rucai's most trusted confidant.

Just when Yang Mingqi was about to report to Luo Rucai about the follow-up troops crossing the river, he heard Luo Rucai shout softly.

"Hold me..."

Luo Rucai's voice was very soft, but it was like thunder in Yang Mingqi's ears.

Yang Mingqi was greatly shocked, but he did not dare to show any expression on his face. He took a step forward and held Luo Rucai's hand that was not holding the gun.

Luo Rucai was injured, and the injury was serious. Yang Mingqi didn't see it when he was far away, but when he got closer, Yang Mingqi could clearly see Luo Rucai's injuries.

There was a wound caused by a spear on Luo Rucai's waist. The armor outside was tattered, and dark red blood was flowing out of the wound.

"Commander, we won, we won!"

Yang Mingqi calmed down, shouted loudly with a smile on his face, and celebrated the victory with the surrounding soldiers.

But no one knew that Yang Mingqi's heart was already filled with fear at this time.

Now that there are pursuers behind, the future is uncertain. If everyone knows that Luo Rucai is injured, the morale of the army will be weakened, and even the fighting spirit will be completely lost.

All along, it was Luo Rucai who led them, walked in front of them, and led them forward.

Countless times of desperate situations, countless times of turning defeat into victory, countless times of escape, Luo Rucai stood in front of them forever like a needle that fixed the sea...

Without Luo Rucai... where would they go...

Following Yang Mingqi was Luo Dayen.

Luo Dayen's armor was also soaked with blood. He was Luo Rucai's uncle and was in charge of the most important center camp.

When Luo Rucai led his troops to charge, he was naturally among them.

"Uncle, you go and direct the following troops to cross the river, and ask the Guards to bring the wooden table and the map. I want to see where to go next."

"Yes, handsome!"

The victory in Hetan made Luo Dain quite excited. He responded and then left with Luo Rucai's military order.

Although Luo Dain is Luo Rucai's uncle, he clearly distinguishes between superior and inferior. He knows very well that his abilities are not as good as his nephew's.

Because of Yang Mingqi's cover-up, Luo Rucai's strangeness was not seen by outsiders, and Luo Dain did not see Luo Rucai's weakness.

Not long after Luo Dain left, the people from the Guards Department had already transported all the pattern tables. At the same time, the carriage that Luo Rucai usually rode was also transported.

Luo Rucai contracted a fever in the Xing and Gui mountainous areas. Many times, his body was as hot as fire and he felt unbearable. He searched for doctors but could not find a solution. Therefore, he did not march on horses but in carriages.

Now this carriage has become a cover for Luo Rucai's injuries.

This is also the reason why Luo Rucai did not lead his troops to charge at the beginning, but waited for the next day to lead his troops across the river in person. He went into battle to fight, but came to support his sick body.

Luo Rucai walked to the clean ground with the help of Yang Mingqi. The armored soldiers of the Guards Division had already arranged tables and chairs, and a large map was placed on the table.

This map is about the map of Kuizhou Prefecture. Not only the towns everywhere are clearly recorded, but also the mountains and rivers. It was Luo Rucai who spent a lot of money to acquire it from a business in eastern Sichuan when he was in Fang County. Come.

Luo Rucai received a total of four drawings like this, and the most detailed and clear one is the current one.

A group of personal guards surrounded Luo Rucai and covered him.

Luo Rucai persisted until this moment and then put down all pretense.

All the guards looked solemn, but they had followed Luo Rucai for a long time and knew the seriousness of the matter. They didn't say anything else and quickly began to treat Luo Rucai's injuries.

After the personal guard brought a silk cloth to dry Luo Rucai's face, Yang Mingqi realized that Luo Rucai's face was as white as paper.

"Commander..."

Yang Mingqi knelt on the ground and supported Luo Rucai's arm, tears already streaming down his face.

"My husband doesn't shed tears lightly."

Luo Rucai grinned and even comforted Yang Mingqi.

"Wipe your tears, we have shed enough blood and tears."

"It's just a gunshot wound. How come I haven't suffered any trauma along the way?"

"God never thought of accepting me."

Seeing that Luo Rucai's life was safe, Yang Mingqi's expression turned ferocious and he cursed angrily.

"Without the help of the commander-in-chief, Zhang Xianzhong would not be able to leave Shaanxi and Henan alive." "Zhang Xianzhong is a son of a bitch. I will chop off his head when I encounter him!"

"It was originally agreed to divide the troops to lure the Ming army, and then go to eastern Sichuan and then return. Now he has fled into Sichuan himself, leaving us here to be surrounded and suppressed by the Ming army."

Yang Mingqi gritted his teeth, his eyes were red, and he wanted to cut Zhang Xianzhong into pieces with a thousand knives.

"When I met Chen Wang and Qin Liangyu, I didn't even dare to fight. They didn't even send a messenger!"

They were surrounded by as many as 40,000 to 50,000 Ming troops in Huguang, and Zhang Xianzhong fled all the way to central Sichuan. Chen Wang blocked the road in Taiping. It is understandable that Zhang Xianzhong did not dare to fight Yang Mingqi.

However, Qin Liangyu's army of only eight thousand soldiers and horses still came all the way from Shizhu, and Zhang Xianzhong's tens of thousands of elite troops did not dare to fight.

Moreover, Zhang Xianzhong did not even send a letter. The reason why Cao Ying was able to learn this news was because he interrogated it from the captured Ming army.

Zhang Xianzhong's behavior was tantamount to using them as bait to attract the Ming army so as to protect himself.

Yang Mingqi's words made Luo Rucai's eyes suddenly sharpen, and overwhelming murderous intent poured out of him.

But soon, Luo Rucai restrained the murderous intention in his heart.

Luo Rucai's face was cold. He had always felt that Gao Yingxiang was right.

There are frequent natural disasters and endless wars. All of them are just looking for a way out.

The imperial court is powerful, but their power is weak. Only by uniting can they gain a way out.

Luo Rucai has always done this. He has only served two people in his life.

One is Wang Jiayin and the other is Gao Yingxiang.

Therefore, he has always followed the creeds of Wang Jiayin and Gao Yingxiang.

Thieves should be united if they do not kill thieves.

But at this moment, the creed that Luo Rucai had always believed in was shaken.

Zhang Xianzhong's betrayal led to the encirclement of the main force of the Ming army, causing heavy casualties to the soldiers under his command. It is not an exaggeration to say that his heart was cut like a knife.

Luo Ru restrained his murderous intent and his expression returned to calm, but he was not calm inside. The scale that had always been flat was slowly falling to the other side, sliding towards his other side.

"Zhang Xianzhong entered Bazhou from Xidazhou, Kuizhou Prefecture. After failing to attack Bazhou, he turned to Jianzhou."

"He entered Sichuan from the north road and entered Baoning Mansion. Qin Liangyu's troops followed Zhang Xianzhong from Wanxian County to pursue him. Shao Jiechun should have mobilized heavy troops to attack Baoning Mansion at this time."

The injuries on his body did not affect Luo Rucai's thoughts. He was trapped in Xingshan and Guizhou for a long time. The channels for obtaining information were extremely limited. In many cases, he could only obtain it through captured prisoners.

However, Luo Rucai could synthesize these trivial information and deduce the general situation of the current situation.

"We pass through Dazhou and go southwest. If we don't go all the way with Zhang Xianzhong, we go to Shunqing Mansion."

"This time we broke through the encirclement, which was beyond the expectations of the officers and soldiers. Now the remaining officers and soldiers in Sichuan Province should be attracted by Zhang Xianzhong. The province must be very empty. There are no soldiers in Sichuan now, so it is impossible to block our front."

Luo Rucai spoke firmly. He knew very well the habits of officers and soldiers, as well as the situation of civilian officials.

Civil officials are afraid of losing their city and territory because they must hold them jointly and severally responsible.

This time Zhang Xianzhong fled into Sichuan, the governor of Sichuan would definitely mobilize a large army to surround him on all sides. When he entered Sichuan at this time, there were no extra troops to stop him.

In just a short moment, Luo Rucai already had a perfect plan.

He explained the plan to Yang Mingqi, gave him a few more instructions, and then got on the carriage.

"When the Hunshi King Wu Ziqiang crosses the river, let him lead his elite cavalry to search along the river, find the ships hidden by the Ming army, and burn them all..."

Luo Rucai's face regained a little color, but his wound simply stopped the bleeding. Because it was protected by armor, the wound was not big or deep.

But Luo Rucai had to remove his armor before he could be treated. Naturally, he couldn't remove his armor in the wild at this time. Fortunately, the fever was covered by a carriage, so he could hide it for a while.

Just as Luo Rucai was telling Yang Ming to get up, a huge cannon sound suddenly came from the east bank, followed by sharp and harsh trumpets accompanied by the roaring river wind.

Luo Rucai held the carriage's shaft with his hand and turned his head sharply to look towards the east bank.

It was this glance that almost made Luo Rucai unsteady and almost fell down. Fortunately, the bodyguard beside him had quick eyesight and quick hands to support Luo Rucai.

Just to the north of the east bank, on the distant horizon, the crimson tide was rising and falling, and a dull roar sounded from the horizon. One after another, crimson flags appeared in front of Luo Rucai's eyes.

"The officers and soldiers are here!"

On the east side of the Bawu River, everyone cheered and cheered. Cao Bing, who was crossing the river along the pontoon bridge, was panicked at this time.

The fighting spirit raised by winning the fierce battle on the river bank collapsed the moment the Ming cavalry appeared.

A large number of soldiers who wanted to cross the river crowded together on the river beach, and the southeast of Bawu River instantly turned into a mess of hot porridge.

You squeezed me, I squeezed you, and from time to time, unlucky soldiers were squeezed into the raging Bawu River.

Luo Rucai clenched her teeth, her face turned pale, and the restored blood color disappeared again.

The house leaked but it rained all night, the boat broke and there was a strong wind.

His mind was shaken. The intelligence clearly showed that the officers and soldiers were still forty miles away to the east. This was the information that came half an hour ago.

Even if the officers and soldiers had wings, they would not be able to fly to the east of the Bawu River!

But the cavalry of officers and soldiers just showed up!

……

Chen Wang held the reins and whip, leading the bay-red horse, and slowly climbed up the high slope in the northeast on the east bank of the Bawu River.

Chen Wang could see the gurgling Bawu River and the crowds of heads on the east and west banks of the Bawu River.

The troops sent by Yang Sichang to pursue Luo Rucai were indeed still dozens of miles away and had no way to come.

But what appeared in the east of Bawu River was not the cavalry under Yang Sichang, but Chen Wang, who was marching all the way from Yunyang Mansion.

"It's actually coming to an end."

Chen Wang's eyes swept across the chaotic river beach in the distance.

Cao's soldiers stranded on the east bank numbered about a thousand.

Chen Wang's original intention was just to show his loyalty and make Yang Sichang feel at ease with him.

When the news of the civil uprising in Henan reached Yang Sichang's ears, Yang Sichang was relieved to transfer him to Henan.

"Press up and kill them all."

With a flick of Chen Wang's riding whip, the lives and deaths of thousands of people had been decided by him.

Although the cavalry under his command were already at the end of their strength after marching all the way, Cao's soldiers on the east bank were equally exhausted, and their morale was extremely low because of their appearance.

Chen Wang had no reason not to accept such military exploits.

All the military exploits won will make Yang Sichang value him more and more, and will bring him more power.

　I don't know if it's influenza A, a common cold, or Yang or something.

　　Today is the worst. My body temperature is extremely high. I just took antipyretic medicine and it has subsided. I only have 4,000 words today, and I may not be able to make up for it in a while.

　　(End of this chapter)