Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 817: Crossing the River
At this moment, Li Zicheng felt the difficulties that Xiang Yu, the King of Western Chu, had faced. It would not be difficult to escape alone, but if he escaped alone, what would happen to his brothers, his troops, and the foundation he had worked so hard to build? He couldn't just abandon all of them, could he?

Without his troops and his brothers, Li Zicheng would not be able to make a comeback no matter how capable he was. Would he have to hide his name and live as an ordinary citizen? But even if he was willing, the imperial court would not allow it! Once they knew that Li Zicheng had fled to Hebei, the Ming imperial court would search the whole world to find him. Although the world was big, there was no place for Li Zicheng.

"But there are so many brothers..." Even ants are greedy for life, let alone Li Zicheng? But facing such a situation, Li Zicheng still couldn't make a decision.

"King Chuang! When doing big things, it doesn't matter what the details are. It's worth giving up some things as long as you can escape. The situation is critical now and there is not much time. Please make up your mind quickly!" Tian Jianxiu advised from the side. The situation now is very clear. If you don't leave, you will die. Instead of wasting time here, you might as well cross the river early. Just cross as much as you can. Escape from danger first, and you can't take care of other things anymore.

Li Zicheng looked at Hao Yaoqi, as if asking for his opinion. On normal days, Hao Yaoqi would have said to fight the government troops without thinking, but the situation was different now. They were surrounded on three sides, and relying on bravery was of no use at this time. Even if he was a good fighter, could he really fight against the government troops armed to the teeth alone?

Seeing Li Zicheng looking at him, Hao Yaoqi opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't say it. His eyes seemed a little evasive. Seeing him like this, Li Zicheng understood what he was thinking better and sighed helplessly.

"So... cross the river!" Finally, these two words came out of Li Zicheng's mouth with difficulty. After saying them, Li Zicheng's spirit seemed to be drained out of his body along with these two words, and he felt extremely depressed.

When they heard that Li Zicheng had finally made up his mind, they were completely relieved. Why wait here to die when they could escape? No matter what happened in the future, they should run away first. As long as they were alive, everything was still possible. Once they lost their lives, there would be no chance of turning things around.

Because there were too few boats, Li Zicheng could not take many people with him when he crossed the river. Li Guo, Liu Zongmin, Tian Jianxiu and Hao Yaoqi had to go with him. They were not only his capable subordinates, but also great generals in the army. Li Guo in particular was his nephew, so he would never give up.

As for the others, it was a bit difficult. Li Zicheng calculated that if everything went smoothly and they hurriedly crossed the sea, at most only a few hundred people could cross the sea. In this case, he could only take the closest and most important people with him. In addition to the four men under his command, there were also a few old brothers who had followed him for a long time, who were trustworthy and capable of fighting. As for the others who could not be brought with him, there was nothing he could do. He could only let them fend for themselves. When the government troops arrived, it would be up to them to figure out whether to resist or surrender.

In addition, if Li Zicheng wanted to cross the river, he would have to abandon his army, and this news must not be spread. Once the army knew that he was going to escape, they would definitely mutiniate. Once so many people got into chaos, it would be a big deal. By then, Li Zicheng and his men would not even be able to cross the river.

After making a plan, Li Zicheng immediately discussed with everyone. On the one hand, he blocked the news, and on the other hand, he determined the personnel to cross the river, as well as the property to be brought, etc. Military horses and the like could not be brought, as they could not be installed on the boat. Weapons could be brought, but the key was the property.

After so many years of rebellion, Li Zicheng had accumulated a lot of wealth, and his subordinates had also gained a lot. But now he was escaping, and it was impossible to take all the wealth with him. At best, he could only take gold and silver, and most of it had to be abandoned.

After discussing for more than half an hour, Li Zicheng and others finally came up with a plan. They asked Li Guo, Liu Zongmin, Tian Jianxiu and Hao Yaoqi to go and appease the troops separately and never leak the news of crossing the river. Then they would quietly take the people around them to the ferry to assemble after stabilizing the troops, and then board the ship and leave. As for what to do with the troops after they left, they would not care about it.

Just like that, except for Li Zicheng and his men, dozens of loyal and capable trusted subordinates made preparations quietly that night. When it was dawn, Li Zicheng and others left the camp, abandoned their subordinates and ran to the ferry. When they arrived at the ferry, the guards who had arrived here earlier were ready, and a dozen boats were waiting. Seeing this, Li Zicheng boarded the boat first without saying a word, followed by Li Guo and others.

When half of the people had boarded the boat, there was a sudden commotion from the camp not far away, and then it seemed that many figures were running towards the ferry, shouting something loudly as they ran.

"Oh no! We've been discovered, run! Run!" Li Zicheng's face changed drastically upon seeing this. The news that they had abandoned the army and crossed the river was leaked somehow. The army in the camp suddenly lost its commander and other generals, and they became chaotic in an instant, especially when they saw the figures flashing over there at the ferry. The smarter ones had already understood what was going on. How could they hold back?

"Hurry! Hurry up!" Liu Zongmin shouted loudly, his forehead covered with sweat. As the figure running in the distance became clearer and clearer, it would be too late if he didn't leave now.

There are only a few boats, and they cannot carry so many people. Once they swarm in, no one will be able to leave.

As Li Zicheng and others shouted anxiously, the boatman was forced to untie the ropes and set sail without caring about the few people who had not yet boarded the boat. At this time, the few people who had not yet boarded the boat also became anxious and jumped onto the boat desperately. They also knew that only by boarding the boat could they escape. If they could not cross the river, staying would be a dead end.

But the boat is too small, and the Yellow River is bumpy. Even if you jump on the boat normally, you have to be very careful. If you jump directly onto the shore, what if the boat shakes and capsizes? Wouldn't everyone on the boat fall into the water and become turtles?
Seeing that the situation was not right, Li Zicheng and others could not care less and hurriedly picked up weapons and bamboo poles to stop them from jumping off the boat. But how could the people who jumped off the boat be willing to stay? They were unwilling to give up at all. In this way, the boat and the shore were instantly in chaos. The boat that Li Zicheng was on was better because the boat was full and ready to leave the shore. Seeing that the situation was not right, the boatman quickly paddled the boat and pushed it towards the river. The boat that Hao Yaoqi was on was in trouble. This boat was only halfway on the boat. Seeing that the boat was about to leave, the people on the shore who had not had time to get on rushed. Although Hao Yaoqi wanted to stop it, he was powerless. As these people rushed to jump on the boat, the people who jumped on the boat and the people who pulled the boat pulled the boat, the fishing boat, which was not big, shook violently. Suddenly, with a cry of surprise, the whole boat suddenly capsized. Hao Yaoqi and several guards on the boat had no time to react. As the fishing boat capsized, they all fell into the Yellow River like dumplings. “Help... Gulp Gulp... Help... Gulp...” Watching Hao Yaoqi and others fall into the water, Hao Yaoqi, who could not swim at all, struggled twice on the surface of the river. He only had time to shout for help before he was drowned by the surging Yellow River.

After a few turbid waves hit, Hao Yaoqi's figure was no longer seen, and even the other people who fell into the water disappeared without a trace.

"Yaoqi...Hi!" Li Zicheng felt heartbroken. He never thought that Hao Yaoqi, who had charged into battle fearlessly, would die here, and he could only watch helplessly.

Under the power of nature, no matter how heroic a person is, he cannot resist. A person who was full of energy one moment could be dead the next. Li Zicheng couldn't help but shed tears.

"Uncle!" Li Guo felt uncomfortable as well, but this was not the time to think about these issues. They had not crossed the river yet, so they could wait until it was safe to do so.

Li Zicheng nodded silently, but his right hand grasping the side of the boat was extremely strong, and the veins on his arm were bulging.

Li Zicheng and his companions left the shore in a boat, heading eastward along the direction of the Yellow River, and gradually went farther and farther away. On the shore, there were still a dozen people who had not had time to get on the boat and stood there blankly. When Hao Yaoqi's boat capsized just now, they were lucky not to have gotten on the boat, otherwise they would not have survived if they had fallen into the water.

Soon after, Li Zicheng's subordinates who had been running from afar also arrived here. It was too late for them by then and they could only watch the ships of Li Zicheng and others gradually go away.

"Li Zicheng! You bastard! I'll fuck your ancestors for eighteen generations!"

"Chuang Wang? Chuang your mother! Get back here! I'll teach you a lesson about my power!"

"Wuwuwu... King Chuang! Why did you abandon us... Wuwuwu... What should I do..."

"Come back! Grandpa Chuang Wang! Come back! You can't abandon your brothers!"

"Go to hell! You treacherous and cowardly fellow! You will not die a good death! God will punish you!"

Everyone was talking at once, some were cursing, some were crying, some were jumping up and down in anger, and some even took out their bows and arrows and shot at Li Zicheng's boats, but how could they hit it? The arrows cut through the river surface and fell into the river not far away, and were swept away by the waves in an instant. Li Zicheng, who was watching this scene on the boat, had an extremely ugly face, and no one knew what he was thinking.

As Li Zicheng and his men escaped alone and crossed the river by boat, the abandoned Li Zicheng troops were filled with anger and complete despair.

Even the commander and generals like Li Guo had all fled, so how could they possibly escape? Seeing that they were completely surrounded by the government troops, with no way out, how could they still resist to the death?
If Li Zicheng was still in the army, they might have had the courage to resist. But as Li Zicheng and his men fled, not only did they lose their courage, but they also carried with them immense anger and resentment towards Li Zicheng. When the various Ming armies gathered here, ready to start a war and annihilate Li Zicheng's army in one fell swoop, this group of rebels not only did not resist, but instead sent people to the government army to express their willingness to surrender.

At first, the government troops thought that the other side was cheating, but they soon learned that Li Zicheng and other main generals had abandoned their troops and fled across the river. It was because of the escape of Li Zicheng and others that his troops completely lost the idea of ​​resistance. Moreover, this incident made the army extremely angry towards Li Zicheng and others, so they surrendered voluntarily.

The government troops were overjoyed and hurriedly sent people to accept the surrender. The rebels cooperated very well and surrendered to the government troops. Just like that, Li Zicheng's troops surrendered without even arriving. While accepting the surrender of Li Zicheng's troops, the government troops who had received the news that Li Zicheng was leading his men across the river were also busy looking for boats to cross the river and pursue him. At the same time, they sent the news to the north bank of the Yellow River, asking the government troops on the north bank of the Yellow River to search for the whereabouts of Li Zicheng and others. They must catch this bandit.

(End of this chapter)