novelinnhs Chapter 220
Chapter 220
The sequence of events, from Sun Chu throwing the rat to Zhao Chengyu being taken hostage, happened in the blink of an eye.
By the time everyone realized what was going on, they immediately drew their swords and pointed them at Sun Chu.
Zhao Chengyu's subordinates turned pale with fright and roared, "Where did you come from, you ignorant thief? Release the First Prince at once, or your entire family will be exterminated!"
Sun Chu tightened his grip, and the sound of neck bones grinding could be heard.
Unable to breathe, Zhao Chengyu's face turned the color of pig liver, feeling as though his neck would snap in the next second.
His subordinate dropped to his knees with a thud. "Whatever you want, just say it. Do not harm the First Prince."
Seeing Zhao Chengyu's eyes rolling back from the chokehold, Sun Chu slightly loosened his grip.
Thin air rushed into Zhao Chengyu's nose, bringing the nearly unconscious man back to life.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
The hoarse voice squeezed through his teeth, trembling with fear.
Sun Chu looked at the dead vole lying on the ground and said, "I come from Dayang Town to return this rat to its rightful owner."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone backed away from the vole, except for Zhao Chengyu, who was still being restrained.
The panic in the eyes of Zhao Chengyu and his subordinates practically overflowed.
"Quickly throw the rat out and burn it, or we will all catch the plague."
At the mention of the word "plague," the soldiers stationed in the camp immediately retreated from the tent to report the situation to their commander.
The army stationed in Bingzhou consisted of nearly ten thousand men, densely packed together.
If the plague were to spread, no one would be able to escape it.
Looking at the trembling Zhao Chengyu, Sun Chu punched him squarely in the face.
Two of Zhao Chengyu's teeth were knocked out.
"Scared? When you ordered your men to release plague-carrying rats into Dayang Town, did you not think the commoners would be scared? Do you want me to throw those dead rats into the capital, into the imperial palace, and wipe out your entire Zhao family?"
After saying this, he kicked Zhao Chengyu hard in the back of the knee.
"You are worse than a beast!"
Zhao Chengyu fell heavily to his knees, feeling as if his kneecaps were about to shatter.
"I don't know what you are..."
Before he could finish his denial, his back collar was forcefully yanked backward.
The tightening around his neck once again choked off his breath.
"Help... save me!"
Seeing Sun Chu about to deliver a killing blow, Zhao Chengyu's subordinate immediately attacked.
Sun Chu did not dodge.
Instead, when the subordinate's sword swung toward him, he used Zhao Chengyu as a shield.
The subordinate hastily pulled back his sword.
Sun Chu curled his lips into a wicked smirk and pushed Zhao Chengyu forward, the tip of the sword striking right in the center of his chest.
Clang!
Terrified, the subordinate let go of the hilt.
The sword fell to the ground, making a crisp sound.
Seizing the moment, Sun Chu stepped on the tip of the blade.
As the sword bounced up from the pressure, it changed direction.
He kicked the hilt, sending the blade straight into the subordinate's heart.
The man and the sword flew out of the tent together, dead on the spot.
The wound on Zhao Chengyu's chest was not deep. Blood gradually seeped out, dyeing his pale gold brocade robe red.
He stared blankly at the wound, looking completely dumbfounded.
Sun Chu threw Zhao Chengyu to the ground, picked up the vole, and stuffed it into his mouth.
The foul stench made Zhao Chengyu gag.
The sheer terror of contracting the plague caused his eyes to roll back, and he fainted.
Sun Chu kicked Zhao Chengyu right in the crotch.
"Ah!"
When Zhao Chengyu woke up screaming in agony, a ring of firelight had illuminated the outside of the tent.
The garrison commander ordered, "Burn it!"
The moment the words fell, soldiers began pouring oil over the tent.
They intended to burn both the tent and the people inside.
A crippled prince was certainly not as important as ten thousand garrisoned soldiers!
Seemingly oblivious to the danger, Sun Chu poured himself a cup of warm Longjing tea.
Watching the entire tent being drenched in oil, he finally set down his empty teacup and gave a soft chuckle.
That single chuckle sent chills down the spines of the garrison troops.
"You are at death's door. What are you laughing at?"
"I am laughing at your sheer stupidity. Since I made the trip here, how could I possibly bring only one diseased rat? If you kill me, you are cutting off your own escape route."
"What do you mean by that?"
Sun Chu grabbed the agonizingly pained Zhao Chengyu and walked to the entrance of the tent.
"It means that the military camp in Bingzhou is already infected with the plague. If you want to live, go to Dayang Town and find Ye Chutang. She has the cure."
With that, he lifted the flap of the tent.
"Now, do you still want to burn me to death?"
Unsure whether Sun Chu was telling the truth, the garrison commander naturally dared not ignite the tent.
He waved his hand at his subordinates, "Fall back."
The commander's sharp gaze locked onto Sun Chu, brimming with murderous intent.
"Why did you release the plague into the camp? Do you know how many people will die?"
Sun Chu sneered, "You consider yourselves human, but are the people of Dayang Town not human? Do they deserve to die of the pestilence, the plague, and smallpox?"
The orders the garrison commander received were to assist the First Prince in resolving the pestilence issue in Dayang Town.
However, he was unaware of the specific details.
"What pestilence, plague, and smallpox?"
Sun Chu was somewhat surprised that the garrison commander did not know of Zhao Chengyu's plan.
He kicked the wretched man beside him.
"Tell them your detailed plan of poisoning Dayang Town, trapping the exiled prisoners, and burning the city."
Zhao Chengyu's crotch was in excruciating pain, and he was drenched in cold sweat.
Of course, he would not admit that he intended to sacrifice an entire town of civilians just to annihilate the Qi family.
"I don't know what you are talking about!"
Sun Chu had long guessed that Zhao Chengyu would not confess.
He looked at the garrison commander. "If you do not want your entire army to perish, escort the First Prince and me back to Dayang Town to get the antidote."
Unwilling to risk the lives of tens of thousands of his men, the commander nodded.
"If you are deceiving me, I will tear you to pieces!"
"You have to be capable of doing that first!"
The garrison commander did not engage in a battle of words with Sun Chu. He looked back at his deputy.
"Thoroughly search every corner of the camp and find the diseased rats. If I do not return before dawn, lead the troops to Dayang Town and leave no one alive!"
"Yes, General!"
The garrison commander selected a hundred of his personal guards to "escort" Sun Chu and Zhao Chengyu to Dayang Town.
Meanwhile, in Bingzhou, Xie Yi of the Imperial Directorate of Astronomy gazed up at the starry sky above the camp.
"The light of the Star of the General has finally brightened again."
Ever since they left the capital, the Star of the General seemed to have vanished, its light too faint to be seen.
Fortunately, Xie Yi's divination skills were strong enough to calculate its approximate direction.
The Emperor's shadow guards escorted him on the surface, but in reality, they were monitoring him.
The group traveled intermittently until they arrived in Bingzhou.
Upon hearing his words, the shadow guard beside Xie Yi immediately took out a map.
"Mark the location!"
Hearing the commanding tone, Xie Yi did not show any displeasure.
Using a charcoal pencil, he drew a circle in the direction where the Star of the General was flickering.
Seeing that the circled location was within the borders of Bingzhou, the shadow guard promptly brought out a detailed map of the region.
"This location is the military camp in the northwest of Bingzhou."
Each province divided its garrisoned troops into several camps based on terrain and direction to ensure the safety of the region.
Bingzhou had five military camps. The number of soldiers in the northwest camp was not large, but they were quite elite.
"Lord Xie, are you certain the Star of the General is here?"
Looking at the circle drawn with charcoal, Xie Yi said, "I can only say it is currently here."
The position of the Star of the General was not fixed and was very difficult to track.
This was the first time it had clearly manifested since its initial appearance.
Thinking of this, he once again looked up at the sky.
Only to find that the dazzling star had vanished once again.
The shadow guard knew little of the garrison troops stationed in Bingzhou, but he was absolutely certain of one thing: the Qi family was currently in Dayang Town.
"The Star of the General is not Qi Yanzhou!"
With that said, he summoned the prefect of Bingzhou and ordered him to lead the way to the military encampment in the northwest.