Chapter Fifty-Three: Fight to the End

“It’s you!”

Wu Sangui spotted Gu Zhenhua at a glance, and his brows knotted into a deep furrow.

“You’re still alive?”

“Hahaha! Even if you died, I wouldn’t.” Gu Zhenhua threw back his head and laughed. “To tell you the truth, your cousin Wu Sanrong is waiting for you in the underworld. Why don’t you go keep him company?”

“You’re courting death!”

Wu Sangui’s lungs nearly burst with rage. Wu Sanrong had been his most trusted aide, yet he had died at Gu Zhenhua’s hands. Such a grudge could not go unavenged. Clutching his Seven-Star Sword in both hands, he charged straight at Gu Zhenhua.

Though Gu Zhenhua appeared calm on the surface, he was taking every possible precaution. Whatever Wu Sangui’s character might be, a man who could lead a few dozen retainers through the Qing encirclement and rescue his father, Wu Xiang, was unquestionably a fierce warrior.

Gu Zhenhua gripped his saber and swung it at Wu Sangui’s Seven-Star Sword. In the briefest instant, their weapons clashed three times. The ringing was deafening, and sparks flew in every direction.

Both men had put forth all their strength. The shock numbed Gu Zhenhua’s arms, and he could barely keep hold of his saber.

Since arriving in this era, Gu Zhenhua had never encountered anyone who could match him in sheer strength. Wu Sangui was the first. This great traitor truly possessed some skill!

Wu Sangui was equally astonished. The web of his sword hand had split open, and blood seeped through.

Why should there be both Yu and Liang?

Gu Zhenhua’s strategy, cunning, vision, and bearing were all superb. In particular, he had managed, in such a short time, to stir several thousand soldiers of the Ningyuan Army into rebelling against Wu Sangui. His personal charisma was by no means ordinary. Add to that his formidable martial prowess, and he was unquestionably a great enemy.

Wu Sangui secretly ground his teeth. This grave threat had to be eliminated!

When generals clashed, they normally needed bodyguards nearby. A lone rider fighting dozens of rounds against an opponent was hardly possible. After charging forward, Gu Zhenhua immediately crashed into Wu Sangui’s retainers. Showing no mercy, he swung his broad saber and cut down every enemy before him.

The retainers fought with desperate ferocity, but they were far too inferior to Gu Zhenhua to stand against him. His saber swept through the air like a bank of white cloud. The retainers’ weapons were knocked flying in an instant; with a casual stroke, he cleaved a man in two. More than once, horse and rider were killed together beneath a single blow.

Blood covered Gu Zhenhua. He seemed possessed by a god of slaughter, with only one thought in his mind:

Charge!

At last, he hacked down the final retainer blocking his path and wheeled around. At that very moment, Wu Sangui also broke through the soldiers behind Gu Zhenhua. The two men resembled maddened beasts, their eyes burning red.

“Kill!”

They roared almost simultaneously and charged at each other once more.

The battle grew fiercer by the moment. Watching from behind, Li Xu frowned. He, too, saw the problem. Gu Zhenhua was incredibly brave, but he was still somewhat inexperienced in mounted combat. Moreover, the Ningyuan soldiers under his command did not dare confront Wu Sangui head-on. All of them held back, fearful and hesitant. As a result, Gu Zhenhua was gradually losing the advantage.

“Father, I’m going to help Lord Gu!”

Li Xu possessed extraordinary strength and was no man to admit defeat. Faced with such a bloody battle, he could no longer restrain himself.

“My little ancestor, do you want me to die without a son?” Li Jibo seized him by the arm.

“Father, you can’t be so selfish. Are we really going to stand by and watch Lord Gu lose?”

Li Jibo knitted his brows and rolled his eyes thoughtfully before saying, “Your wounds have not yet healed. If you go up there, you’ll only make matters worse. Listen to me. Across this street is a military depot where gunpowder is temporarily stored. Set it alight, and Wu Sangui will certainly lose his head.”

Li Xu immediately gave him a thumbs-up. “Father, you truly are brilliant!”

“As if I needed you to tell me.”

Li Xu turned and led his men off to seize the gunpowder. Li Jibo then summoned Yue Polu and whispered a few words to him. Yue Polu nodded hurriedly, then turned and ran off with his men.

...

“Gu Zhenhua, your skill is impressive. If you surrender to Great Qing alongside me, you might even win yourself a princely title. Wouldn’t that be far better than throwing your life away for the already fallen Great Ming?”

Breathing hard, Gu Zhenhua laughed. “Wu Sangui, I don’t know whether you’re truly stupid or merely pretending. Anyone who has read even a little history knows that Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang, once swore an oath over a white horse: no one who was not of the Liu clan could become a king. Since ancient times, kings of other surnames have met no good end—let alone a king appointed by a foreign people. You sold your ancestors for wealth you can see but never possess. In the end, you’ll gain neither fame nor fortune!”

“Then die!”

Wu Sangui had still hoped to persuade Gu Zhenhua, never imagining that his opponent would strike directly at his deepest wound. Enraged and humiliated, he swung his great sword down at Gu Zhenhua, who hurriedly raised his weapon to block.

Not good!

The instant Gu Zhenhua lifted his saber, a smug smile touched the corner of Wu Sangui’s mouth. His sword suddenly changed angle and came slashing toward Gu Zhenhua’s shoulder.

A slight adjustment in angle could not be underestimated. As the saying went, a hair’s breadth of error could lead a thousand miles astray. The point of impact changed completely. Wu Sangui’s sword struck the very tip of Gu Zhenhua’s saber—the weakest point.

Crack!

With a sharp snap, the tip of Gu Zhenhua’s saber was sheared away. Seizing this precious opening, the great traitor thrust at Gu Zhenhua’s ribs in the instant their horses passed one another.

This was Wu Sangui’s killing stroke, honed through countless battles, and its speed was astonishing. Gu Zhenhua felt killing intent envelop his entire body in an instant, and every nerve in him went taut.

With his saber tip gone, he could no longer use the weapon to block. In that flash of lightning, Gu Zhenhua abruptly lifted his quiver and held it across his ribs.

The sword struck the quiver, slicing every one of the dozen arrows inside in half. Gu Zhenhua felt as though a hammer had smashed into his side, and a sweet, metallic taste rose in his throat.

As their horses separated, Gu Zhenhua gritted his teeth. Once he escaped through Shanhai Pass, he would have to train seriously in mounted combat.

Wu Sangui was the sort who never let up once he gained the advantage. At top speed, he led his retainers in another charge at Gu Zhenhua.

Just then, voices began to rise from both sides of the street.

“Wu Sangui, treacherous cur! You traded your ancestors for the title of Prince of Pingxi! The Prince of Pingxi won’t last long—a rat in a bellows, scurrying from one side to the other!”

“For a woman, you betrayed the Rebel King; you surrendered to the Manchus and forgot both father and mother!”

...

The loud, rhythmic street chant carried farther and farther, with more and more voices joining in. It swept toward Wu Sangui like wave after wave of a demonic curse.

The great traitor was shameless, but he had not yet mastered the art of letting spittle dry on his face without reaction. As the nursery rhyme spread, the people of Shanhai Pass grew restless. Panic seized them, and disorder worsened by the moment. The gentry and officials fled in every direction. The Manchus had left such a terrible impression that if those savage beasts broke into the city, none of them would meet a good end.

A frog can easily be boiled in warm water, but once the fire grows fierce, it leaps out.

The same was true of the situation before them. Originally, Wu Sangui’s surrender to the Qing had been cloaked in the slogan of allying with the barbarians to destroy the rebels, which gave it considerable power to deceive. Moreover, it was only after the battle for Shanhai Pass that the people were formally ordered to shave their heads and adopt Manchu dress. Once the outcome had been settled, even opposition could no longer reverse it.

But now the situation was entirely different. The battle was still raging, and victory or defeat remained undecided. The people’s hearts had not yet turned to Wu Sangui. Once they heard the nursery rhyme, everything descended into chaos.

Naturally, all of this had been arranged by Li Jibo. The old fox was full of schemes, and Wu Sangui was no match for him. Sure enough, the city grew more disorderly by the moment, and Wu Sangui’s thoughts became equally confused.

At that moment, a tremendous explosion suddenly thundered through the air. The earth itself seemed ready to split apart, and the mighty Shanhai Pass trembled. After shaking several times, it was followed by a succession of thunderous booms. In the distance, dust billowed upward like a gigantic yellow dragon soaring from the ground into the sky.

Everyone locked in combat was startled. Some of the lesser soldiers simply threw themselves flat on the ground, trembling as they believed Heaven had sent down thunder.

Wu Sangui was no fool. He understood at once that someone had blown a breach in the city wall. The great traitor’s eyes narrowed to icy points of light as he stared at the opposing formation and spoke through clenched teeth:

“Master, you’ve taught your disciple another lesson: betray your lord in pursuit of glory!”

“Hahaha! It is still better than selling out your country for honor. Wu Sangui, do you possess even a shred of humanity? How did I ever teach such a disloyal and unfilial wretch?”

“I’ll kill you!”

Eyes bloodshot, Wu Sangui was about to charge at Li Jibo when a world-shaking battle cry rose from outside the city:

“The walls are breached! Storm Shanhai Pass! Capture Wu Sangui alive!”

“Storm Shanhai Pass! Capture Wu Sangui alive!”

The cries of the Great Shun soldiers rose and fell without end, and Wu Sangui’s expression changed violently.

“Commander, we must leave!” Yang Ming urged in terror.

Wu Sangui’s teeth clacked with rage. No matter how furious he was, preserving his life had to come first.

“Trying to run? Not so fast!”

By then, Gu Zhenhua had withdrawn to the military formation. He snatched three arrows from Guo Yunlong’s quiver, raised his hand, and sent all three flying almost simultaneously toward Wu Sangui’s head. With Gu Zhenhua’s strength, a single hit would have shattered Wu Sangui’s skull.

Gu Zhenhua was filled with hope, but just as the arrows were about to strike, the great traitor suddenly turned his head. Two arrows flew wide, while the third grazed his face.

Gu Zhenhua heard only a scream. Wu Sangui did not fall from his horse, however. Protected by his retainers, he continued galloping away.

At that moment, Li Xu returned with his men, laughing loudly. “Father, setting off the gunpowder alone was no fun. I carried it straight to the breach in the wall and blew the whole thing open. What do you think of that?”

“Not much!” Li Jibo snapped angrily. “The Rebel King’s army has already broken in. They won’t distinguish between Wu Sangui’s men and ours. They’ll kill us all together.”

Li Xu was dumbfounded. Gu Zhenhua, by contrast, looked unconcerned.

“Old Li, you’re the one being foolish. Can’t we simply feign surrender to Li Zicheng?”

Gu Zhenhua smiled. “Many soldiers of the Great Shun know me. Brother Li, do me the favor of telling them not to kill anyone wearing a white band tied around the arm.”

“Right away!”

Impressed by Gu Zhenhua’s quick wit, Li Xu spurred his horse and galloped off.

“Old Li, what do you think we should do next?”

“What else can we do? Run!” Li Jibo said in astonishment. “Gu Zhenhua, you’re not thinking of looting the city too, are you?”

“Master Li, you’ve guessed correctly. Am I the sort of man who accepts a loss? I intend to loot everything and leave Wu Sangui not a thing!”