Chapter 125: The Attackers
This was an army that was not actually an army; when chaos erupted, it truly beca disorganized.
Jin Chunzhong and Qingting had already awakened so people. Still, when the shouts of killing outside the camp began, these militian were not well-prepared. Those who had been startled awake from their dreams were in a state of panic. So ran in all directions, others lay motionless on straw mats, and even so sat down, wailing loudly.
Only a few thought of picking up their weapons.
Jin Chuiduo changed from walking with large strides to running with quick, small steps. She shouted at every person she encountered, Follow ! Grab torches! Fool, take your blades!
The effectiveness of her bow and arrows in her hands surpassed her spoken words. No one noticed that she only had one arrow left; they only rembered that the Empress had once killed eight bandits in a row, and her arrows never missed.
Follow the Empress!
Soon, a long string of volunteers caught up behind Jin Chuiduo. She turned angrily, causing those people to tilt backward in fear. Afterward, they called her Empress even more excitedly.
Jin Chuiduo had no choice but to ignore them and continue running forward. She collided with her elder brother Jin Chunbao, Zhang Yanghao, and others. Imdiately, she drew her bow and shouted sternly, Kneel down!
Jin Chunbao was already dizzy, thinking that the attackers outside were reinforcents secretly sent by the Weary Marquis. Feeling extrely guilty, as soon as he heard Jin Chuiduos command and saw the bow and arrows in her hands, he didnt hesitate. All five of them knelt down simultaneously. Yan Dong, who had killed Chao Yongsi before, knelt down even faster than the others.
Tie them up, Jin Chuiduo commanded, continuing to run forward. Soon, so volunteers ca forward to use hemp ropes to bind the five individuals.
A number of cavalryn rushed in from outside the camps main gate, tossing torches everywhere. Jin Chuiduo aid at the nearest one and shot an arrow, hitting accurately. The horse ran off with its rider still in tow. Jin Chuiduo habitually reached for another arrow in her quiver, only to find it empty. It was then that she rembered she had only one arrow left.
Miss! Qingting, who had sohow caught up, handed over a bundle of arrowsfour or five in total, all obtained from the volunteers.
Jin Chuiduo took them and placed one arrow on her bow, holding the others between her fingers. She aid at a cavalryman and shot another arrow, imdiately loading the third arrow.
The one hit by the arrow fell off his horse.
Jin Chuiduos strength was sowhat weaker, and she couldnt shoot very far, especially at night. She could only target those within about ten paces.
Qingting cheered and ran over to pull out the arrow. The man was not dead, but pulling the arrow out hurt more than being shot. He scread in pain, rolling on the ground. Militian who arrived later restrained him.
Jin Chuiduo only fired two arrows, but the impact was significant. Originally tailing at a distance of about ten paces, a large group of militian now closed in. They had dared to join the rebel army, showing courage, but they lacked training, and so were easily panicked when faced with a crisis. Once they had a rallying point, their courage quickly recovered. Wielding knives and spears, they charged towards the cavalry intruding into the camp.
This was a typical ambush. In reality, there werent many intruders. As soon as things went wrong and it seed like the people in the camp were prepared, the intruders turned and fled.
As the sun rose, the battle ended, but the chaos continued for a long ti. No one knew what to do.
Jin Chuiduo ran back in astonishnt. She found her second brother Jin Chunzhong also tied up, kneeling next to her elder brother. She angrily exclaid, Who tied up my second brother?
Several volunteers chuckled and said, Empress, it was us
Jin Chuiduo drew her bowstring taut, Who let you release them quickly!
The militian hastily untied them, blaming each other for misunderstanding the Empresss intentions. It turned out that they were only supposed to tie up the eldest brother, not the second elder brother.
Jin Chuiduo turned around in place, Where are the others?
Of the five originally tied up, only Jin Chunbao remained. Zhang Yanghao and the others were nowhere to be seen. The volunteers looked at each other, clueless about what had happened.
Jin Chunbao, in a sorry state, spoke, There were still a dozen subordinates of Prince Donghai in the camp. They rescued them
Jin Chunbao had received no help from them. During the chaos, those people were also mbers of the rebel army, so they faced no opposition.
Jin Chuiduo stomped her foot in frustration and told her second brother, Gather everyone together; dont run around.
Jin Chunzhong nodded, about to leave, but then extended his hand, Give
a command arrow.
Jin Chuiduo handed him an arrow, watching her second brother and a group of militian walk away. She approached her elder brother and whispered, Who killed Chief Clerk Chao?
Jin Chunbao was startled, It wasnt ; it was Yan Dong. I told him not to kill, but he didnt listen
Why would he listen to you? Jin Chuiduo couldnt contain her anger. Still, since it wasnt her eldest brother who had kill Chief Clerk Chao, she relaxed a bit. Where did the attackers co from?
I dont know. We originally planned to kidnap the Weary Marquis. I didnt expect soone to attack the camp. Could it be reinforcents secretly brought by the Weary Marquis?
Definitely not. Jin Chuiduo felt that everything was inexplicable. Biting her lip, she thought.
Jin Chunbao was extrely fearful, pleading, Sister, save
Untie him. Jin Chuiduo ordered. With no one else around, Qingting obeyed imdiately, untying the eldest Jin son.
Go find Father; we cant stay here. Lets leave quickly.
Yes, yes, we should leave quickly. But where do we go? Jin Chunbao was completely at a loss.
Lets take it step by step. With what youve done, how can the Jin family stay in the camp?
Jin Chunbao left with a flushed face. Jin Chuiduo, feeling restless, told Qingting, Fetch those horses and be ready to leave.
No matter what the Eldest Young Master has done, Miss, you saved the entire camp. Even if the Emperor doesnt
Enough talk. Jin Chuiduo looked up. Her second brother Jin Chunzhong was commanding well, and the militian were generally getting organized. They were busy reinforcing defenses, extinguishing flas, and assessing casualties.
While Qingting fetched the horses, Jin Chuiduo sighed lightly, unable to shake off the guilt in her heart.
The eldest brother Jin Chunbao returned alone.
Jin Chuiduo frowned, Does Father not want to leave?
Jin Chunbao vigorously shook his head, gasping for breath before saying, Father Father is missing. His three wives and concubines were all killed.
What? Jin Chuiduo was greatly shocked.
Jin Chunbao, in a daze, said, They were stabbed to death. This was definitely done by Zhang Yanghao and the others. But why?
Jin Chuiduo reacted faster, No, they didnt kill you at that ti. Why would they kill them and take Father away? It must be those attackers; they
Jin Chuiduo glanced around, running towards a group of militian, loudly asking, Where are the captured prisoners?
The militian shook their heads in confusion. Jin Chuiduo questioned several groups of people until she finally found the captive who had fallen off the horse from her arrow.
The captive, hands and feet bound, lay on the ground groaning, a large patch of blood soaking his shoulder.
Jin Chuiduo raised her bow, sternly asking, Who sent you to attack the camp? Why did you capture Marquis Guiyi?
The captive, opening his eyes and seeing the arrowhead close by, was terrified. He had almost lost his breath from panting, but now he spoke quickly, rcy, Your Ladyship, we were sent by the Chai family to capture Marquis Guiyi as revenge for Little Marquis Chais death.
Jin Chuiduo was dumbfounded.
The eldest brother Jin Chunbao had been following behind his younger sister all along, unable to imagine that it was because of his family that Prince Donghais grand plan was disrupted. Poor Zhang Yanghao and the others thought that the Weary Marquis was prepared, so they fled in panic.
Jin Chunbao had long lost his wits, quietly asking, What should we do?
Co with
to rescue Father.
Just the two of us? Shouldnt we gather more people
Jin Chuiduo gave him a stern look, and Jin Chunbao dared not speak further. Currently, no one knew that he had betrayed the rebel army last night. Asking the militian for help would only bring a sense of guilt to his heart.
Qingting brought all five horses. Since the camp had not yet returned to normalcy, and being a person by the Empresss side, she faced no opposition.
Jin Chunbao and Qingting arranged the saddles, and Jin Chuiduo instructed soone to call her second brother, Jin Chunzhong. You stay behind to guard the camp. Eldest brother and I will go to rescue Father
What happened to Father? Jin Chunzhong still didnt know what had occurred.
Ill tell you later.
Just you and elder brother? Ill co too, and we should bring more people
No need. Jin Chuiduo refused, raising her voice to the nearby militian, Listen to , all of you!
Everyone naturally listened to the Empresss words, and many militian turned their attention.
Be careful guarding the camp. Dont slack off again. Rember the lesson from last night. If you fall asleep, and he falls asleep, in the end, everyones lives will be lost!
The militian felt ashad; they were not yet true soldiers. Even in a perilous situation, it was challenging for them to understand the necessity of staying vigilant. The more people there were, the more lax they beca.
Jin Chuiduo mounted her horse, pointing at the injured captive, Help this person onto a horse.
I cant ride a horse right now
No one cared about the captives feelings. The militian clumsily pushed him onto the horse.
Anyone with command arrows, hand them over. Jin Chuiduo ordered. Imdiately, soone stepped forward, handing the command arrows he had received the previous night to Jin Chunzhong, who then passed them to the Empress.
Jin Chuiduo kept three arrows for her second brother and held onto ten. Without saying more, she spurred her horse towards the camps main gate. She didnt need to sneak away; no one stopped her. Jin Chunbao and Qingting followed, leading the groaning captive, with one horse left behind.
Jin Chunzhong watched his sisters figure, feeling a bit confused. However, there was too much happening in the camp for him to dwell on it. He continued to give orders and tidy up the aftermath.
The hundred or so governnt troops who were captured the day before had a chance to escape, but they were too terrified and hadnt dared to move. Now, with the reinforced defenses by the militian, they beca even more obedient.
The body of Chao Yongsi was discovered, and everyone thought he was killed by the attackers during the chaos. No one suspected him to have died before the attack on the camp, and that his death was connected with the eldest son of the Jin family.
After the camp stabilized, Jin Chunzhongs unease reached its peak. His sister had a bad temper and sotis acted without considering the consequences. Relying on those few people, how could they possibly rescue their kidnapped father? But besides sending people out to gather information, there was nothing he could do.
The camp had no boats, making it impossible to inform the Weary Marquis. The rebel army could only wait.
Shortly after noon that day, the fleet from the north returned, carrying a group of people with their own concerns.
The militian following the Weary Marquis were bewildered, and the newly joined pugilists were half in doubt. The fate seer Lin Kunshan felt more and more that sothing was wrong. Although he was an expert in deception, he couldnt shake off the feeling of being deceived.
Han Ruzi was thinking about how to solve the problems that had arrived one after another. The armys food was about to run out, so how could they reach the Northern Frontier?
Prince Donghai remained silent, eagerly anticipating that once he returned to the camp, he could use Zhang Yanghao, Marquis Guiyi, and others to reverse the situation.
The situation had indeed reversed, but they were all unaware of it.
If you are reading this on an aggregator site, do consider visiting / to support this translation project by leaving a comnt.
CH 124
Reviews
All reviews (0)