Chapter 4: The Imperial Star is Drifting

Chapter 4: The Imperial Star is Drifting

Chapter 4: The Imperial Star is Drifting

The Mongolian knights ordered the city gates to be opened and rode their horses through the streets late at night, straight to the county government office.

Magistrate Wen was awakened from his sleep, and a knight read out the military order.

"The monk king ordered the ministers and imperial envoys to take charge of the defense of the capital and to act at their discretion.

I am now transferring Shunyi County Magistrate Wen to escort the grain and grass to the Baliqiao Army and to set out immediately."

The dried meats, dried fruits and other supplies for the front line had been prepared long ago, and were originally scheduled to be shipped to Dagu in a few days.

Now they have to transport food to Baliqiao. It is obvious that the original food and grass have been lost along with Dagu, and the new front line urgently needs food transportation.

The military situation was urgent, and County Magistrate Wen did not dare to delay. He called up the able-bodied men who were ready, and set out overnight with only a few newly promoted personal soldiers.

The next morning, the chief jailer reported in panic that the wanted prisoner Skywalker had escaped from prison, but he found that the master had already gone out to fight. He was in a state of panic, not knowing how the master would punish him when he returned.

As dusk approached, the jailer felt relieved.

Two of the personal soldiers returned with injuries, and the third horse was carrying the body of Master Wen.

When the Magistrate of Wen County was supervising grain to Baliqiao, he happened to witness the defeat of the Seng King and ran head-on into the Anglo-French Allied Forces.

County Magistrate Wen was shot and died for his country. Two of his personal soldiers fought desperately to retrieve the master's body.

Now that the British and French allied forces are advancing towards the empty capital, the imperial court is about to be destroyed, so naturally no one will pursue the matter of the escaped criminal.

The chief jailer was just rejoicing that he had escaped, but was shocked to find that all his colleagues had already fled.

This place is too close to Tongzhou and the capital. The foreign devils have already attacked Tongzhou, so who knows if they will make a slight turn and attack Shunyi?
The two bodyguards who escaped back had a lot to say about it. The British devils killed people in Zhangjiawan. The fields were full of corpses. Two thousand women nearby committed suicide to avoid being humiliated.

This foreigner is so fierce, why don’t you run away?

What? Fight against the foreign devils? In Shunyi County, there are only two injured soldiers besides the yamen runners. The monk king's tens of thousands of troops were defeated, and the capital is about to be lost. Can this place resist?

When the legal advisor, the county magistrate, the chief clerk, the registrar, the registrar, the sixth office, the third shift, and the subordinate officials heard the news, they immediately fled north with their families. The chief jailer and two somewhat loyal bodyguards were the last to run away.

Even the local maids had run back to their hometowns with their families. In the huge county government office, only Miss Wenxiu and her daughter were left, guarding the corpse of the master, crying and wiping their tears, not knowing what to do.

Seeing the country destroyed and the family ruined, the two women who usually lived in luxury did not even have servants to cook for them. They had lost their order.

"Dangdang!"

The door leading to the back yamen from the county government office was kicked open, and the sound of "teng teng teng" footsteps was heard.

Wenxiu was shocked. Everyone had run away. It was getting dark. Who could come at this time? Could it be a gangster who took advantage of the situation?
Wenxiu pulled out the hairpin from behind her head, held it in her hand, and gestured at her neck twice, but she couldn't bring herself to do it no matter what.

Mrs. Wen hugged her daughter and burst into tears.

As footsteps approached, Shao Quanzhong strode in with his hand on the handle of the oxtail knife.

Behind him, the burly Zhang Ershazi followed closely with an iron rod in his hand.

Seeing that it was an acquaintance, Mrs. Wen was still not reassured.

In times of war and chaos, no one can be trusted.

If these two grown men broke into the county government's backyard with evil intentions...

Shao Quanzhong knelt down on one leg, "Madam, don't panic. I am here to protect you and the young lady!"

Mrs. Wen was delighted, thinking that a loyal servant is known in times of trouble. It was not in vain that the master promoted this handsome young fellow villager when he was alive.

"You didn't run away?"

"I have received great kindness from Master Wen. How can I abandon my master at this critical moment? I cannot do this.

Madam, Shunyi City is not safe right now. I think the most important thing for now is to carry the master's coffin back to his hometown and leave this troubled place."

This is the truth, but - "Now that everyone who can run has run away, can this be done?"

"It's hot now, a little advice..."

"Everything is up to you, Quanzhong."

White cloth was found in the back hall, and all four people present wore mourning clothes.

Shao Quanzhong found the carriage pulled by three donkeys that Magistrate Wen's family usually took when going out. He and Zhang Siwen worked together to lift Magistrate Wen onto the carriage. Zhang Siwen drove the car while the three of them walked to the nearby Todaiji Temple.

The monks in the temple did not run away. The flames were blazing, and the mother and daughter cried out in grief. Shao Quanzhong also kowtowed with Zhang Siwen, sending Master Wen, who had sacrificed his life for his country, to heaven.

The difficult-to-move coffin was turned into an easy-to-carry urn. The four of them returned to the county government office, and Shao Quanzhong began to make arrangements calmly.

"The mistress and the young lady, please pack up your belongings quickly. Siwen, go cook, and then guard the mistress and the young lady in the back house.

We rushed here as soon as we heard the bad news, but the house was still empty.

We are leaving for Taizhou tomorrow morning. I will go home and pack my things and come back. We will leave at daybreak."

With Shao Quanzhong as the backbone, everyone acted separately.

Shao Quanzhong pulled the horse that had carried Magistrate Wen's body back and rode to his own shabby house outside the city.

There is nothing else valuable there that you need to take, just one thousand taels of silver. I guess Zhang Ershazi will have finished cooking by the time he gets back.

…………

There is a Longwan Cave outside Longwantun, Shunyi County. The cave is warm in winter and cool in summer. Once you enter the cave, you will find a large space that can accommodate thousands of people.

At this moment, the cave was crowded with people, including more than 500 heroes from all over the place within a hundred miles.

The heroes came from very complicated backgrounds. There were remnants of the Tianli Sect, believers of the Baiyang Sect, heroes of the Bagua Sect's Jingji Kan Gua branch, members of the White Lotus Sect who were purely seeking the incarnation of Maitreya, and several gangs of robbers from Shentang Valley, Tatar Valley, and the Three Pools, Six Caves, and Twelve Streams in Shunyi.

These heroes usually do their own things, but today, they were called together by an emergency order from the gangster "Skywalker".

In the past, these heroes only numbered about 200 people, which was not a big deal.

Now that the foreign devils have invaded, officials in counties around the capital have been killed or fled, order has collapsed, and many ruffians who took advantage of the situation have also come along, and the momentum is very huge for a while.

Skywalker stood at the top, having regained his majestic appearance with a beard, holding a ghost-head knife in his hand, and behind him stood a dozen fellow apprentices who were learning Baguazhang.

Dong Haichuan, the founder of Baguazhang, was an undercover agent sent to the capital by Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan. For this purpose, he did not hesitate to mutilate himself to become a eunuch and work in the Prince Su's Palace.

"Skywalker" Tian Xing is a lone thief who worships Yang Luchan in the Prince Su's Palace as his martial arts master.

Yang Luchan and Dong Haichuan fought to a draw, but the two of them had a mutual respect for each other. Dong Haichuan's disciples could also be considered Tian Xing's junior brothers.

Tian Xing had connections with various rebels, had been a guest of the Heavenly King Hong Xiuquan, and knew Dong Haichuan's background.

Now that he wanted to do something big, he called all of Dong Haichuan's disciples to help him. All these heroes were quickly recruited by these junior brothers.

"Brothers, I saw with my own eyes yesterday at Baliqiao how the foreigners defeated the monk king and the heavy troops guarding the capital were completely destroyed.

Someone has advised me that the Tartar emperor is going to flee north to Rehe and will pass by Shunyi tonight.

The Tartar emperor fled in a hurry with few soldiers around him. This is a great opportunity for us.

When the Tartar emperor escapes, he will definitely take away a lot of gold, silver and jewelry. Everyone will become rich, have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of their lives, and even become a founding hero of the new Han dynasty—"

Tian Xing knew very well the character of the gang of thieves he had gathered. He explained the righteousness to them and lured them with benefits, which immediately made these lawless traitors and bandits so angry that their eyes sparkled.

"Brothers, let's kill the Tartar emperor, wipe out the Qing demons in one fell swoop, and restore the Han people's clothing. Tonight, follow me to kill the Tartars!"

"kill!"

(End of this chapter)