eurekapd Chapter 404 Die together
Chapter 404 Die together
Before leaving Huizhou, Prince Yong led a group of about twenty men to join the relief team of two thousand men.
Li Hai rode forward, his expression obsequious: "Your Highness, you've finally arrived! Suppressing those restless rebel armies must have taken a tremendous toll on your efforts; you've truly worked hard."
Yun Shang sat quietly inside the carriage, casually flipping through a book in his hand. Listening to Li Hai's fawning voice, a hint of undisguised mockery appeared on his cold face.
Hard?
It was really tough.
There were a total of 5,312 rebels. Prince Yong killed 5,300 to 1,000 of them. The news came that Prince Yong's sword was worn down from all the fighting. How could he not have suffered?
Outside the carriage, Li Hai followed closely behind Prince Yong.
With a beaming smile, he continued to flatter, "These scoundrels are wicked by nature. I was worried that Your Highness would be entangled by them and unable to act freely. But I did not expect Your Highness to be so powerful. Those rabble were no match for you. You dealt with them in no time."
Prince Yong's lips curled into a faint smile, and he glanced at the carriage out of the corner of his eye. Although there was a smile on his face, there was no warmth in his eyes.
"They're nothing but a bunch of insignificant rabble. What trouble can they possibly cause if I take action?"
Upon hearing this, Li Hai seemed greatly encouraged and became even more energized, continuing his flattery:
"Indeed, indeed! Your Highness's suppression of this rebellion was truly swift and decisive, displaying immense power and prestige."
From now on, it is likely that no one in Huizhou or even the entire south will dare to harbor any disloyal thoughts.
In this way, Your Highness's fame will surely spread far and wide, and the Emperor, upon learning of this, will be overjoyed and rely on you even more!
This is precisely why Li Hai was so eager to curry favor with Prince Yong.
Although he was loyal to Prince Qi, there were countless ministers who had pledged allegiance to him, so how could Prince Qi easily notice such a nobody as him?
So he secretly thought that he might as well make a good impression on His Highness Prince Yong and show off his face.
If His Highness Prince Yong can remember him, then why would he have to worry about not having a bright future?
Prince Yong listened to Li Hai's extremely flattering words, glanced at him indifferently, and said with a half-smile, "I never expected that Doctor Li would be so eloquent."
Upon hearing this, Li Hai was secretly delighted, feeling that his opportunity had arrived. He became even more obsequious, his demeanor almost like that of a dog wagging its tail and begging for mercy from its master.
Yun Shang felt that if the Prince of Yong wanted Li Hai to bark like a dog, Li Hai would do so without hesitation.
As darkness fell and there were no inns or towns nearby, the group had no choice but to rest in the wilderness for the time being.
Yun Shang alighted from the carriage, stretched his limbs from sitting for so long, and swept his cool gaze over the fawning Prince Yong and Li Hai before turning to look around.
This is an open space by the river, with a babbling stream in front and steep mountains behind. There are only two narrow paths on the left and right for passage.
If the two side paths are blocked, the only chance of survival is probably to jump into the water.
As was customary, the accompanying guards began to prepare the meal in an orderly manner.
Before long, wisps of smoke slowly rose from the chimney.
Just when everyone was most relaxed, countless torches suddenly lit up in the mountains and forests behind them!
"Ah—an ambush!"
Li Hai originally wanted to find a dense thicket to relieve himself, but before he could even pull up his pants, he looked up and met countless pairs of dark eyes.
He screamed and ran away before he could even pull his pants up properly.
Upon hearing the scream, the guards who were cooking immediately went on alert, quickly protecting Prince Yong and Yun Shang's entourage in the middle as they retreated to the left.
However, before they had taken more than a few steps, a series of chaotic footsteps came from the path on the left.
Soon, a group of people dressed in rags and carrying crudely made weapons appeared in everyone's sight.
Li Hai, his face as pale as paper, pulled up his trousers and swallowed hard in terror, stammering, "These...these people are..."
"They are remnants of the rebel army!" Prince Yong's face was so gloomy it seemed water could drip from it. He gritted his teeth and said, "It seems I was too merciful and didn't kill them all!"
However, as Li Hai watched the approaching people, he felt that the truth was not as the Prince of Yong had said.
These ragged people were not young adults; most of them were the elderly, women, and children.
Thinking of the methods Prince Yong used to suppress the rebel army, Li Hai felt a chill run down his spine. He looked at Prince Yong hesitantly, "Your Highness, this..."
Prince Yong didn't even glance at Li Hai, but stared at the ignorant commoners and coldly ordered, "What are you all standing there for? Kill all these ignorant fools for me."
However, when the Prince of Yong gave the order, only his twenty-odd personal attendants moved.
The remaining two thousand guards remained motionless, as if they hadn't heard anything.
Prince Yong was taken aback, realizing that something was amiss.
"Where's Xia Mu? Where's Xia Mu?!" He anxiously scanned the area, only to be shocked to find that none of the guards in front of him were familiar faces!
He's not stupid; how could he not react by now?
Prince Yong's gaze was like a sharp knife, fiercely shooting towards Yun Shang. His originally gentle face instantly turned ferocious and terrifying. He roared, "Did you do this?"
Faced with Prince Yong's questioning, Yun Shang remained calm and unhurriedly replied, "What makes you say that, Your Highness?"
"I have been working day and night on the flood relief efforts in Huizhou, so busy that I have no energy left to think about anything else."
His voice was calm and steady, without the slightest hint of panic. His cool gaze met the Prince Yong's angry stare without any fear.
His gaze swept over the ragged people without leaving a trace.
These people were all family members of the rebels who were directly killed by Prince Yong.
Most of them were pale and emaciated, their eyes filled with grief and despair.
They gripped their crude and simple weapons tightly, their hands trembling, yet they still adopted a posture of fearlessness in the face of death.
Among the families of the rebels, the leader was an elderly man with white hair and beard, and a hunched back.
The old man leaned on a tattered wooden cane and took a difficult step forward. His body was hunched over, and he could barely stand, as if a gust of wind could blow him over.
Even so, he still glared at Prince Yong with all his might, and cried out in a trembling voice, "Our lives are as worthless as grass, but we are still human beings. No matter how cheap our lives are, they are still lives."
“My son’s uprising was forced upon the people by the officials. When the imperial army arrived, my son led his people to surrender without harming a single imperial soldier. But how did the imperial court treat them?!”
Of the 5,312 people, only 12 survived by sheer luck.
"Five thousand people! Prince Yong, you have slaughtered five thousand innocent civilians!"
"Prince Yong, you will not leave Huizhou today! We lowly people will risk our lives to drag you down with us!"