Chapter 005: Pursuit

Shoot

Ah!

Panzi, dive down with me

The Qing army lieutenant on the shore, seeing that the archers could not find a target, became somewhat anxious. Unable to let his subordinates jump into the river, he was at a loss for what to do when he noticed another lieutenant rushing over with a group of men. Overjoyed, he pointed at the river and exclaimed something. The other lieutenant was equally decisive; with a wave of his hands, nearly a hundred Qing soldiers armed with bird guns lined up behind him and unleashed a barrage towards the river. The thunderous roar of the bird guns made everyone's eardrums buzz, instilling fear in the young Wu soldiers hidden in the woods.

After Wu Si and Wu Da exchanged glances, they revealed knowing smiles. The young men of Wu Jun in the surrounding crowd also wore smiles on their faces, just like them. However, before the smiles could fade, their expressions suddenly froze in place, for they saw the Qing soldiers by the river joyfully calling out.

After the black smoke cleared, the Qing soldiers on the shore widened their eyes, searching for something on the river surface. The young men of the Wu army in the forest had hearts that were pounding, as if they might leap out of their throats at any moment. Each of them stared intently at the river, fearing that a single blink would cause them to miss a spectacular show.

The term "the green camp troops who later joined" mentioned by Wu Da and Wu Si refers to the local Han generals and soldiers who responded to Wu Sangui's uprising in Hubei and Hunan. This was part of the Qing court's strategy of "using Han to control Han," which established the green camp. Within the Wu army, these Han troops who joined after the uprising were referred to as "later joiners," while those who came from Yunnan were called "old camp." After the defeat of the Wu army, many of the later joiners from the green camp were taken along with the old camp troops to be enslaved beyond the pass. Since most of them were from the fertile regions of Huguang, they were skilled in water activities, which is why Wu Da believed that the four fleeing men were from the later joiners of the green camp.

Shoot them, shoot them

I do not know, let's take a look

The three people behind him, upon hearing his shout, wanted to respond but struggled due to their lack of swimming skills. As soon as they opened their mouths, river water rushed in, so they had no choice but to tightly close their mouths and swim forward with vigorous arm strokes.

Elder brother, have those two brothers gone far away?

This situation caused the faces of the young Wu soldiers in the forest to change, and Wu Si was even more anxious, striking the ground with his fist, his face filled with pain and reluctance. Zhao Qiang's heart skipped a beat; the river was both cold and swift, and the two Wu soldiers who had been shot and sunk were certainly not going to survive. Now it depended on whether the other two could escape. If these two could manage to flee, it would still serve as encouragement for the young Wu soldiers present. For them, as long as one of the four could safely escape, it would be worth taking the risk.

The four individuals in the river, upon hearing the leader's shout, were so frightened that they paddled desperately forward. The middle-aged man at the front swam while calling back, "Brothers, swim quickly, or we will be shot dead by the Tartars in the river!"

The Qing army's assistant leader, who led the troops to the riverbank, saw four individuals jump into the river and immediately called out to a dozen Qing archers behind him without any hesitation

God bless, these two brothers have finally escaped

Zhao Qiang, Wu Da, and others realized that the Qing soldiers were about to shoot arrows, and they all understood the gravity of the situation. The four of them were only a few dozen zhang away from the shore, making it easy for the archers to hit them. They instinctively clenched their fists, silently praying to the heavens for protection, hoping that the Qing soldiers would not hit them.

Wu Si nervously scratched his head, swallowed, and uncertainly asked Wu Da beside him

Zhao Qiang also beat the drum, unsure whether those two individuals had been hit by the bird gun. After waiting for more than ten seconds, as no bodies floated to the surface of the river, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that those two individuals must have swum to another location.

The middle-aged man at the front was also struck by an arrow on his shoulder, but it did not injure any vital areas. Seeing that the Qing soldiers on the shore were about to shoot arrows again, he grabbed the only remaining companion beside him and dove into the water. As a result, the Qing archers could not find their target, and a flurry of arrows landed in the water. Witnessing this situation, Zhao Qiang and those around him let out a sigh of relief, and some of the young Wu soldiers even showed signs of joy on their faces, occasionally lowering their heads to whisper to their companions, while a few bolder ones began to observe the surrounding Qing soldiers on guard.

A dozen Qing archers had already run to the riverbank. At the command of their leader, the bowstrings were released in unison, and the arrows flew straight towards the four individuals. At this moment, the four were not far from the riverbank, and several arrows whizzed past them. Suddenly, two cries of "Ah!" were heard, and the river surface was instantly stained with blood. The young man at the back did not have time to scream before being swallowed by the river, while another man, struck in the back by an arrow, gritted his teeth and swam forward for another ten feet before finally sinking helplessly.

These Wu soldiers, who have been numb for over a year, have mostly resigned themselves to their fate in their hearts. However, the tragic life and the deaths and injuries of their companions cannot help but provoke some thoughts. Now that someone has jumped out to escape, it is certain to move them. The Qing army's deputy general leading the troops seems to understand what these young Wu soldiers are thinking. After a cold laugh, he waved to summon a subordinate officer, whispered a few words to him, and that officer immediately ran with his men towards the riverbank

After the four men ran to the riverbank, they glanced back and saw that the Qing soldiers were still more than twenty meters away. One of the younger men turned pale at that moment. Noticing that his companions had already jumped into the river, he disregarded the cold water and with a splash, jumped in as well

Therefore, whether these four individuals can successfully escape not only determines their own fate but also the fate of the young soldiers of the Wu army present. If they succeed, it is highly likely that another group of four, forty, or even four hundred individuals will join the ranks of those attempting to flee. Of course, if they fail to escape, the two thousand people present may very well permanently extinguish any thoughts of fleeing in their hearts

The four fleeing men were still several dozen meters away from the riverbank, and all the young men of the Wu army in the forest were watching them. Although no one spoke, Zhao Qiang had been living with these people for over a month and had a clear understanding of their state of mind. He knew that although these individuals appeared to have no reaction, they were certainly hoping that the four escapees would successfully get away. Prior to this, Zhao Qiang had not heard any news regarding the escape of the old Wu army, so the actions of these four men undoubtedly served as a signal to the Wu soldiers present, suggesting that if life became unbearable, it was better to flee.

As for the Rakshasa people mentioned by Pan Changqing, Zhao Qiang can confirm that they refer to the old Russians of Tsarist Russia. When he read Jin Yong's "The Deer and the Cauldron," he had a strong impression of the Rakshasa women. It is now the twenty-first year of the Kangxi era. Historically, the Russian army had already occupied some territories in the Far East at this time and had engaged in several small-scale skirmishes with the Qing army. It was not until the twenty-fourth year of Kangxi that the First Battle of Yaksa broke out. During these three years, the Russian army in the Far East only made tentative incursions into small areas and did not dare to engage in large-scale confrontations with the Qing army. This was partly because their forces in the Far East were limited, totaling only a few thousand men; and partly because the Far East was still an undeveloped region, with very few Russians willing to come here due to the cold climate, thus they lacked the capacity to continue their southward expansion into Qing territory.

Seeing several Qing soldiers approaching, Zhao Qiang hurriedly reminded Pan Changqing and the Wu brothers to refrain from speaking. The group then fell silent, quietly watching the riverbank.

Wu Dachao glanced at the river surface a few times and said with some certainty: "It must have drifted far away; otherwise, if it were hit by a bird gun, it would have surfaced long ago." After saying this, he looked at Zhao Qiang beside him: "What does Brother Zhao think?"