It was already afternoon when Xie Zhu returned home to Jinling. Sister Qiu had been waiting for her father in the courtyard for a long time. She deliberately collected some questions from books and wanted to ask her father to answer them - of course, this was just an excuse. In fact, she was worried about the situation in Lidu Mansion and wanted to ask what the situation was now.
Not long ago, she was saddened and shocked by the news of her sixth cousin's death. Before, she was immersed in the world of calligraphy and painting, deliberately escaping from the cruel war, always thinking that she and her family could turn danger into good fortune every time. Only when death came to the living sixth cousin did she suddenly realize that Wake up in the peach blossom garden.
It seemed that no one was immune, and the war was all around her.
Sister Qiu, who had always been introverted, began to go out frequently to listen to rumors and news from outside. Although she couldn't do anything, there was nothing wrong with knowing more and understanding the situation more clearly.
Her father is an important minister in the court, but he never likes to talk about political affairs after returning home, so she can only ask insinuating words.
"By the way, father, I went outside today and heard people talking in the streets about the battle to defend the city of Lidu Mansion. Will the imperial court send reinforcements?"
I am afraid that the long morning meeting today is also for this matter. Sister Qiu waited nervously for her father's answer, but she vaguely caught a glimpse of something strange on his face. She lowered her eyes and noticed that her father was holding a fold in his hand, with a yellow background and cloud patterns. This was something used by the royal family. It must have been a fold written by an official.
"This matter has not yet been decided, and we have to wait for the officials to consider it clearly," Xie Zhu replied vaguely, "My daughter's family, please don't ask about these things."
But Sister Qiu felt that her father clearly had the answer, but he refused to reveal it. There has always been something strange about my father lately. When he learned about the death of his sixth cousin, he was filled with grief and anger and cursed "useless thing." She didn't know who she was scolding. It was obviously not Qi Ren, and it couldn't be her sixth cousin.
She naturally knew that there was no need for her father to reveal everything to the women in the family.
The brief suspicion was quickly put away. She wanted to go back to the backyard, but her mother stopped her and asked her to send some supplements to her father in the study.
Xie Zhu probably didn't expect Sister Qiu to come to the study, so he threw the folded book he brought back into the brazier.
Sister Qiu happened to be standing in the corridor and saw this scene. She was so shocked that she took a few steps back. Why did her father burn the government documents? On second thought, maybe it's something that burns after reading?
Then why not bring it out in the palace? Why bring it home and burn it?
Sister Qiu did not dare to think too much. Her father always had his reasons for doing this, but she also kept it in mind and asked the envoy to send the supplements. She pretended not to see anything and left quietly. .
Little did they know, this letter swallowed by the flames contained the method that Xu Zhou relied on to break the situation.
Xu Zhoujiao secretly sent his handwritten letter to Song Muchuan. He wanted to let Song Muchuan take Xie Queshan to Beijing to clarify the rumors before the rumors got out of control, inform the ministers of the true situation of Lidu Mansion, and then lead the reinforcements back to the city to relieve the difficulties of Lidu Mansion.
However, this handwritten letter will never be seen by Song Muchuan again.
——
Lidu Mansion is still calm. Everyone in the army knew that the mysterious military advisor was Xie Queshan. He had led everyone to win several battles, and his deeds were obvious to all. Most people expressed deep admiration after hearing about his undercover deeds, and his identity as an undercover agent was steadily changing from dark to bright.
However, the good times did not last long. The Qi people were stationed in Luyang Town. The people in the town had surrendered long ago, but the Qi people suddenly went back on their word and killed all the people and soldiers in the city.
This is a show of force and intimidation. The strong can crush the weak without restraint. This is the fate of those who disobey.
There is only a Xieyang Valley between the two places. Many people in the city have relatives and friends in Luyang Town. Fear and sorrow spread quietly in Lidu Mansion. Immediately afterwards, rumors about Jinling's new dynasty not sending troops first spread among the people.
It was said that the Lidu Mansion was actually under the control of the traitor Xie Queshan, and the previous battles were all staged for the new dynasty, in order for the court to send troops here to annihilate them in one fell swoop. The imperial court had seen through Qi Ren's trick and knew that Lidu Mansion was a huge trap, so it refused to send troops.
Lidu Mansion has long been in the possession of the Qi people, and resistance is useless.
Half-truths and half-falsehoods are consistent with the facts. In the eyes of people who don’t know the full picture, they seem to become very reasonable. In today's turbulent Lidu Mansion, rumors can cause some waves if they have some basis.
At first, the military did not take these nonsense to heart. But if you talk to too many people, it is inevitable that someone will hear it. The battle was in vain, and the defense of the city was in vain. Who could bear such a result?
But as soon as such remarks came out, some soldiers spontaneously argued with others and defended Xie Queshan. Heroes still have weight in Erlang's heart, and the people naturally believe that the court will not abandon them, and reinforcements will come sooner or later. Song Muchuan was worried that something might happen at first, but he felt a little relieved when he saw that the army was generally sensible. The army is the most important line of defense. If the people here lose their moral support, I am afraid it will be self-destruction.
Song Muchuan felt as if he was facing a powerful enemy. He was afraid that he would come to disrupt the morale of the army, so he ordered his troops to guard the area near the camp.
With this kind of preparedness, the army indeed caught a spy who sneaked in at night.
Xizuo carries a secret message, which is for Xie Queshan. The secret letter stated that when Yu Chao's reinforcements enter the city, I would like to thank you for pretending to pursue them, but in fact you are catching a turtle in the urn, and then the whole division will go south. After the completion of the mission, I will immediately pay homage to the right prime minister.
Such a clumsy frame-up made Song Muchuan so angry that he screamed that it was ridiculous, but he couldn't help it because some people believed it.
Coupled with the fact that there was no news from the reinforcements day after day, the soldiers' will to defend the city was being defeated, and some doubts were rampant in the city and in the army.
Those who once defended Mount Xie Que can no longer stand up. They believe that just a nihilistic thing, a light thing, can quickly tip the balance to the other side. Their support in the past has become the reason for them to become even more angry now. Their passion was defeated by the facts, and their anger became more intense.
People can only see what they can see, and ignorance can sometimes be a weapon.
The enemy knows very well that a successful siege begins to disintegrate from within.
The conflict became increasingly acute, and some sergeants even wanted to rush into the camp on Mount Shecho to force him to confess his crimes.
"My family is all in Luyang Town! Even if I die here today, I will avenge my family!"
"Tell me, was the massacre of Luyang Town the result of a traitor like you?"
"If he is not a spy, why is he hiding and not daring to come out!"
"What do you mean by hiding? The military advisor is discussing matters in the camp!"
The soldiers led by the Yucheng Army stood firmly outside, preventing the chaotic and angry soldiers from rushing in. The two waves of people met each other and were about to start a fight.
"Since he has no evil intentions, let him come out and die to apologize!"
"He is clearly innocent, why should he die?!"
Loud noises entered the camp, but there was silence in the camp.
Xie Queshan sat with his hands down, seemingly careless, but he listened to every word in his heart. After a while, he raised his head. The spirit of galloping on the battlefield in the past few days had dissipated, and his expression could not hide his loneliness.
"I will leave the military camp first to avoid the limelight, so that you can have an explanation."
Song Muchuan didn't answer, although he knew that this might be a way to temporarily alleviate the conflict. But he didn't want Xie Chaoen to always be the one to bear the infamy in the end. He did not want to see the Spring Shock happen again. The generals who could not get reinforcements could only save themselves by surrendering. Xie Chaoen eight years ago and Xie Queshan eight years later seemed to be facing the same dilemma.
Ying Huai looked at Song Muchuan hesitantly, hoping that his smart mind could come up with some comeback plan, otherwise, there seemed to be no choice at the moment.
"I don't agree," Song Muchuan said forcefully, "I don't know how to fight, and Ying Huai has no experience in leading troops in a big war. If you leave the military camp, the situation will only get worse. The biggest problem now is that reinforcements will not come, and people's hearts will There is turmoil. But the officials will not abandon Lidu Mansion, so I will personally go to Jinling to ask for troops."
Xie Queshan opened his mouth, but in the end he couldn't say anything.
His chest is still full of passion, and he wants to fight his way through the war and serve his country more than anyone else.
But his identity has become a weakness that Qi people use to make a big fuss. Starting from the death of teacher Shen Zhizhong to the rumors that are coming one after another now, this is a trap that has been woven long ago. No matter how strong he is, He is weak and will eventually run into this net.
While the three of them were silent, a shout suddenly came from outside: "There's an accident at the ferry! Come to the ferry to save people!"
This sound immediately dissipated the smell of gunpowder in front of the camp, and everyone turned around and rushed to the ferry.
The city was already in chaos. Originally, some wealthy families took their families to the south to seek refuge. But as soon as the rumor came out that the court would not rescue them, the people who firmly defended the city also abandoned the city and fled south, regardless of whether they had bought a boat ticket or not. , all crowded towards the boat, as if just getting on the boat would save their lives.
Such a frenzied escape finally resulted in a loss of life - a boat packed with people was only three to five miles out of the river when it capsized due to the deep draft. All the people on the boat fell into the water, and some who were good at swimming reluctantly swam back to the shore. Those with poor water resistance struggled to sink to the bottom of the river.
Song Muchuan quickly rushed to the scene with his soldiers to rescue the people who fell into the water. But even the danger before them could not stop the people from escaping for their lives, and many people were still rushing to board the ship. In order to maintain order at the city gate and ferry and reduce unnecessary casualties, he had to order the exits to be strictly guarded. No one could leave the city without official inspection.
With this order, the people who had been on tenterhooks for days became even more out of control, and protests continued.
"Why! Do you want us all to die in the city?!"
"That's right! Even if I drown in the river, I don't want to be trampled by the Qi people!"
What's more, he pointed at Song Muchuan's nose and cursed: "You colluded with that thief Xie and betrayed the Lidu Mansion! You are not worthy of being an official!"
Song Muchuan was surrounded by an angry crowd and tried his best to explain: "Those are rumors spread by the Qi people to alienate the people! If everyone believes it, then they are following the Qi people's ways! Please unite and believe us, Lidu Mansion I will definitely be able to hold on——"
"Why should I believe you! If you are really sincere, you will kill the traitor Xie!"
Xie Queshan stood on the street corner where no one was paying attention, watching the indignant crowd almost drowning Song Muchuan.
He struggled to move around in the crowd, but his shouts were drowned out by the waves, leaving him in vain.
A helpless disappointment arose in Xie Queshan's heart. He was not a sinner, but his existence was criticized by thousands of people and should not be tolerated in the world.
The world he loved did not love him.
He did everything he had to do, and he clearly had a clear conscience. But at this moment, his string has collapsed to the extreme. He, like everyone else, is a loyal citizen of this land. Why is it that God is unfair and all the suffering comes only to him?
He was a little tired. This city was intertwined with the selfishness and righteousness of tens of millions of people. When the people's hearts went to the extreme that he could not control, he could not shake it even half a cent with his own power. At this moment, anything he said was just trying to cover up, and he was already on the pillar of shame.
He really wanted to leave.
"Thank you San—Thank you San!"
In his daze, Xie Queshan seemed to hear someone calling him. When he turned around, he saw it was Mrs. Gantang.
"Second sister." He reluctantly came back to his senses, his tone still a little absent-minded.
Unexpectedly, a figure came out from behind Mrs. Gantang and hugged him warmly.
"Second sister specifically asked me to lead the way to you!" Nan Yi said easily and carefully, and glanced nervously at Mrs. Gantang.
It was obviously Nan Yi who called Mrs. Gantang here. She knew that his family would always be his softest place.
The noise over there shouting "Kill the traitor Xie" filled the sky. Mrs. Gantang seemed to have heard nothing and said nonchalantly: "Go home, grandma misses you and said she would call you no matter what today." Come back and have dinner together."
The second sister also made an excuse and cautiously tried to give him a hand.
Everyone knew he was on the edge.
Xie Queshan knew it well, but he didn't expose it. He just smiled and said hello.
It seemed like the most ordinary way home.
