The Emperor Reigns Them All

Chapter 214 The Troubled Times (4)

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Staring at the woman, Zhu Wen hurriedly asked, “Are you the daughter of the former Songzhou Inspector General?”

Raising her head, the woman barely glanced at Zhu Wen and said yes to him.

Zhu Wen was overjoyed. He quickly supported her to sit down and waved everyone off. The generals didn’t figure it out, but they didn’t ask anything as they saw Zhu Wen’s expression, so they left with suspicion. They also took away the rest of the women as they left.

The woman did not dare to sit down, trembling with fear like a frightened little elk. With her face full of tears, she looked at Zhu Wen in fear. Seeing the look on her face, Zhu Wen hurriedly explained, “Don’t be afraid. You and I are the fellow-townsmen. The sudden disaster of the war must have frightened you a great deal, but you don’t need to worry about it anymore, as you’ve come to my place. I’m here, so no one can hurt you!”

While saying that, Zhu Wen immediately told his trusted soldiers outside the door to prepare clean clothes and food.

The woman was flattered and immediately said thank you to him. Zhu Wen became more easygoing and his voice became softer. He asked, “I wonder if you still have any family members? If any of them is in Tongzhou, tell me. I promise to reunite you with them!”

The woman’s surname was Zhang and her name was Zhang Hui. She didn’t know that Zhu Wen was her fellow-townsman and that’s why he knew her. She was the Inspector General’s daughter, so the people who knew her outnumbered the people she knew. Besides, Zhu Wen had no need to lie to her. She said timidly, “My father has passed away, and I was separated from my mother. I followed the villagers here. I didn’t expect that I would meet you.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Wen was stunned for a while. And then he asked his trusted soldiers to find her mother after he asked about Zhang Hui’s mother’s physical features.

Seeing Zhu Wen’s behavior, Zhang Hui didn’t doubt him anymore. She looked up at him and found that he was valiant and manly. Although he looked like a boor, he could be regarded as a true man, making people fear at only one glance.

Zhu Wen sat down beside Zhang Hui. Rubbing his hands, he giggled. He had missed Zhang Hui for years. Now, she was sitting in front of him, and they met under this circumstance. Zhu Wen was excited and felt that it was the happiest time in his life.

Facing the charming beauty, Zhu Wen kept staring at her without saying anything until Zhang Hui ducked her head shyly.

As a member of the army, Zhu Wen was straightforward, so he said directly, “To tell you the truth, in the first year of Qianfu, I saw you in Songzhou. I was deeply impressed by you, so I followed your carriage along the way. I already fell for you at that time. Later, I joined the army, so I couldn’t do things at will and had no time to see you. When I became a general in the army, I learned that you were no longer in Songzhou. I have been inquiring about your news, but I got nothing. I once made a vow that I would never marry anyone else except you in my life. I have been fighting throughout the country during these years, but I’m still unmarried without any wife or concubine. It’s destiny for me to meet you today. It’s worthwhile for me to wait for you for so many years!”

Zhang Hui couldn’t stand Zhu Wen’s straightforward words. She blushed, burying her head, and dared not say anything.

Her look aroused Zhu Wen’s pity. Zhu Wen was very satisfied and thought she was his perfect match. But he didn’t continue to say anything and asked a maid to take Zhang Hui to the courtyard for placement.

Two days later, Zhu Wen found Zhang Hui’s mother. When Zhang Hui saw her mother, they hugged each other, crying. They thanked Zhu Wen very much.

In front of Zhang Hui’s mother, Zhu Wen directly expressed his feeling for Zhang Hui instead of reciting a polite formula. Zhang Hui and her mother were homeless, so they didn’t turn Zhu Wen down. Therefore, after a period of time, Zhu Wen married Zhang Hui, holding a grand wedding ceremony on a good day.

Newly married, Zhu Wen and his wife were very intimate every day and lived a good life.

Before, when Zhu Wen made a living in the marketplace and had yet to join the army, his ambition was to be an Imperial Guard and to marry someone like Yin Lihua. Now, Zhu Wen was the Inspector General in Tongzhou, which was better than the Imperial Guard, and he also had married Zhang Hui. All his dreams had come true, so he was very pleased.

However, before long, Huang Chao ordered Zhu Wen to attack Hezhong Commissioner Wang Chongrong.

Although Zhu Wen was unwilling to leave, he couldn’t disobey a military order. Moreover, Huang Chao dispatched someone to supervise the army, so he had to prepare food and grain, bade farewell to his wife, and went out to attack Hezhong with his troops.

“Hezhong Commissioner Wang Chongrong had surrendered to the Qi Empire, but he finally betrayed the Qi Empire because he was tired of His Majesty’s continuing to send him to fight. This time, allying with the nearby vassal states, Wang Chongrong said he supports the Tang Empire. In fact, he heard that Li Ye was going to join forces with Li Keyong.” On the way, his trusted advisor, Xie Tong, found an opportunity to tell Zhu Wen the cause of the battle.

Zhu Wen’s face darkened. He remained silent. No one knew what he was thinking about.

...

“Zhu Wen surrendered?”

“Yes!”

In the camp, after listening to Song Jiao’s report, Li Ye couldn’t help laughing. He knew that Zhu Wen would surrender sooner or later, but he didn’t expect that Zhu Wen would surrender so quickly.

Li Ye asked Song Jiao to take a seat. Then he turned to face her and asked with great interest, “How did Zhu Wen surrender?”

Song Jiao sneered. “At every time, there has never been a shortage of good ministers and famous generals in the world, but not all the emperors are able to make them submit themselves. Many people have experienced what happened to Zhu Wen today, including your father.”

After sighing with emotion, Song Jiao began to talk about the reason slowly. “Zhu Wen was unwilling to attack Hezhong. Moreover, the inspector, Yan Shi, intervened in the military affairs, so Zhu Wen couldn’t arrange his troops properly. On the way, he encountered Wang Chongrong’s troops. They fought each other, but Zhu Wen was defeated and fled in panic. Wang Chongrong took the advantage to advance and stationed his troops at the Wei River, across the river from Zhu Wen. Zhu Wen suffered heavy casualties, while Wang Chongrong had a powerful army. He knew he was unable to fight against Wang Chongrong, so he asked Huang Chao for help. “He submitted his requirement more than 10 times. However, Huang Chao didn’t dispatch any reinforcements. Instead, he rebuked Zhu Wen for having a large number of troops but not trying his best to win the battle. Zhu Wen was furious.”

After Song Jiao finished, she waited for Li Ye to answer, looking at him.

Li Ye smiled and said, “Zhu Wen was furious, but he couldn’t rebel because of this.”

Song Jiao snorted. Her words didn’t baffle Li Ye, so she continued, “Afterward, Zhu Wen found out the cause of the matter and knew that Lieutenant Meng Kai secretly slandered him to Huang Chao. In fact, Zhu Wen and Meng Kai had no hostility toward each other. But after Zhu Wen occupied Tongzhou, Meng Kai asked Zhu Wen for bribes, relying on his position in the Central Government. Zhu Wen didn’t give him bribes, so he bore a grudge against Zhu Wen.”

Li Ye nodded. “He fought on the battlefield, but the emperor didn’t trust him, so his position of general would come to an end. And then?”

Song Jiao said slowly, “Zhu Wen’s advisor, Xie Tong, told him, ‘Huang Chao emerged from the grassroots and took advantage of the Tang Empire’s decay to enter the border and invade Chang’an. He became the emperor, not because of outstanding merit. His empire came easily, but it was bound to fall quickly. Now the emperor of the Tang Empire is in Sichuan and all kinds of troops are willing to serve him. Although the Tang Empire has declined, it still has the support of the people, so it won’t perish so easily. Besides, you try your best to fight outside, but the dirty dogs slander you inside. In this case, your achievements will come to naught, and if you don’t make any achievement, it will become a big mistake. Sooner or later, you will have trouble. It was wise for Zhang Han to betray the Qin Empire and surrender to the Chu Empire. General, please think twice’.”

Li Ye took a sip of tea, opened the folding fan, and waved it. Although it was autumn, it was still quite hot in the camp. He smiled. “Xie Tong was right, and Zhu Wen was a wise man, so he knew what to do.”

Looking at Song Jiao, Li Ye smiled more brightly. “Who on Earth are you arranging around Zhu Wen? How could he even know such a dialogue?”

Song Jiao proudly raised her delicate chin. Presuming on her seniority, she said, “The Black Office will know everything if they want.”

“I thought all those things could no longer be kept from the public after Zhu Wen killed the inspector, Yan Shi, and determined to surrender to the Tang Empire. Xie Tong’s important advice was adopted, so he would naturally boast about it to show his talent and status,” Li Ye said quietly.

Song Jiao glared at Li Ye. Obviously, what Li Ye had said was right, so she couldn’t arouse his curiosity anymore. She said angrily, “Do you know everything? Do you still want the Black Office to handle affairs? If you don’t, then I will go back!”

Li Ye was amused by Song Jiao. This beauty wasn’t young, she was mature and charming, and she always ogled at Li Ye to flirt with him, but she was cute when she was angry. Her angry look was like a little girl’s.

Zhu Wen wrote a letter to his wife, Zhang Hui, before he took action. Zhang Hui strongly supported his decision, so Zhu Wen had no worries. He immediately killed the inspector, Yan Shi, and passed his head throughout the army. He called on his troops to be loyal to the Tang Empire, and then he wrote a letter to Wang Chongrong, asking him to report to the imperial court.

When Wang Duo learned that, he was very excited. He immediately vouched for Zhu Wen. These two memorials to the throne reached Chengdu. After Li Yan read them, he was very happy. He said to the people around him, “This is the brave general that God gave me!”

A few days later, Li Yan anointed Zhu Wen as the general of the Left Imperial Guard and the vice-commissioner of the Hezhong camp and gave him the name Quan Zhong.

So Zhu Wen changed from the general of the Qi Empire to the general of the Tang Empire. He was really promoted to a higher rank.

From then on, Zhu Wen and Wang Chongrong joined forces to attack Huang Chao.

When Huang Chao got the news of Zhu Wen’s rebellion, he trembled with anger. He threw the memorial, pushed over the table, and killed some maids. He kept scolding Zhu Wen for being ungrateful for several hours in the emperor’s audience hall.

Outside one of the walls of the Weiyang Palace, several Taoists of Zhongnan Mountain used the secret method to pass the news to the Taoist sect of Zhongnan Mountain timely.

After receiving the news, the Taoist sect of Zhongnan Mountain immediately informed the master and the chief elder who garrisoned Tongguan.

A few days later, the Taoists of Zhongnan Mountain, who gathered in Chang’an, received the news from the Taoist sect: “Leave Chang’an and turn to Zhu Wen.”

Firstly, Zhu Wen conquered Dengzhou and then he wiped out Fengxiang, Binning, Xiasui, and other states. Finally, he conquered Danzhou, Fengling, and Tongzhou. He made remarkable military exploits. Although he was defeated by Li Ye, his exploits outweighed his defeats. He was the most valiant general in Huang Chao’s troops, but he was also one of the worst. His surrender had a great influence. Moreover, he surrendered because of the dirty dog’s slanderous talk.

Zhu Wen’s surrender to the Tang Empire became a turning point of the war. Although it didn’t bring an immediate follow-up effect on the big picture, the vassal states all over the world knew that Huang Chao didn’t win support from the people and was not far from defeat.

Moreover, Li Ye’s more than 100,000 brave soldiers were going to ally with Li Keyong’s 200,000 troops.

Therefore, when the Vassal State Armies from four sides fought against Huang Chao’s troops, they became braver and more fearless.

When Li Ye finished talking with Song Jiao, a scout came to report that Li Keyong’s messenger had already arrived outside the camp.