My father, King Chu, was besieged at Gaixia

Chapter 44: Being a King or a Dog
Just as the battle between the Han and Chu armies reached a climax on the battlefield stretching for 20 to 30 miles south of Gaixia City, the situation in the rear camp of the Han army, more than 30 miles west of Gaixia City, was much more relaxed.

The fierce fighting on the battlefield did not affect this place at all. Although the soldiers in the camp were wearing armor and holding swords, and patrolling and guarding were strict, there was not much tense atmosphere of war. Instead, there was an unexpected sense of quiet and peace.

In the southeast of the camp, three soldiers from the baggage battalion were driving a small wooden cart, one pulling and two pushing it. Pulling two large wooden barrels, they said hello to the soldiers guarding the wooden gate of the camp, and inconspicuously left the camp to fetch water from a small river not far away.

There is a dense forest on both sides of this winding river. After entering the forest and walking a short distance, I suddenly heard the chirping of magpies on the branches.

The sturdy soldier in his thirties who was pushing the cart looked up, his eyes lit up, and he licked his lips and said, "Damn it, the breakfast you had was worse than dog food, just a handful of beans and millet. I didn't expect there was a piece of good meat here, which can fill my stomach."

He took out a bow and arrow from the wooden cart, aimed at the magpie on the branch and shot an arrow, and the magpie fell to the ground.

The other soldier pushing the cart ran over, picked up the magpie and threw it into the cart.

The three of them were smiling and walked quickly to the creek, throwing away the wooden cart and the wooden barrel. The strong soldier carried the flower magpie to the river, and was reluctant to dig out its belly and throw it away, so he just wrapped it with a thick layer of wet mud. The other two, one picked up a pile of firewood, and the other used a flint to light a fire.

A column of black smoke rose from the dense forest beside the river, throwing a thick, wet ball of mud into the fire and burning it. The three men cursed and took the wooden barrels from the wooden cart and started walking to the river to fetch water.

After drawing two buckets of water and loading them onto the cart, the soldiers sat by the river and chatted for a while. Then they began to take out the hardened mud lumps from the charcoal fire, put them on the cart, and then pushed the wooden cart quickly back to the camp.

After chatting with the guards for a few more words, the soldiers pushed the wooden cart into the camp gate smoothly. The guards did not notice at all that there were three soldiers when they went out, but only four when they returned.

Entering the camp, the newly joined soldiers frowned slightly when they saw the dark and dirty tents all around, the smelly and messy ground, and especially the cow and horse manure mixed with dirty water.

The wooden cart stopped, and two of the soldiers stepped forward to unload the wooden barrels, intending to carry them to the ox and mule shed, pour them into the trough, and give water to the livestock. In the past, these livestock would go to the river to drink water, but now the battle at Gaixia was raging and the livestock were not allowed to leave the camp, so the drinking water they needed fell on the soldiers.

The two wooden barrels were filled with water and were extremely heavy. The two soldiers were exhausted and complained to the new soldiers: "When have we ever done such rough work before? But when we arrived at the Han army camp, we were thrown into this baggage camp and became grandsons. Not only do we have to eat rough boiled and fried beans, live in such rotten tents, repair equipment, carry military supplies, and work like slaves. We also have to do all kinds of dirty and hard work, and there is no one to serve us."

The people who followed Xiang Ju to surrender to the Han Dynasty, apart from Xiang clan members, were the close guards and trusted generals of Xiang Chan and Xiang Ju father and son. In the Great Chu, they were all high-ranking people, with piles of maids and servants serving them.

When they arrived at the Han camp last night, they were treated coldly because Xiang Chan had died and Xiang Ju was not important enough. This morning, the cavalry general Guan Ying was ambushed and killed, but they were taken out on by the wrath and were kicked directly into the baggage camp to do hard labor.

This was undoubtedly a world of difference in treatment, and those who followed Xiang Ju to surrender to the Han Dynasty naturally felt extremely resentful.

"All those who followed Xiang Ju to surrender to the Han Dynasty have now been demoted to coolie labor?" the tall soldier asked in a deep voice.

"They were all thrown into this cowshed, feeding cattle and mules, carrying and repairing things, and working like oxen and horses." The strong soldier was full of resentment, and then looked at him eagerly with hopeful eyes.

These people, who are used to being the superior people with fine clothes and delicious food, cannot survive such a life of slavery for even a single day!

The tall soldier nodded and whispered to the two soldiers, "Gather the rest of the people, and then do this and that, and this and that..."

The two soldiers' eyes lit up, they gritted their teeth, swore and promised to complete the mission.

The strong soldier glared at them and gave them a few harsh words, then he held the mud ball and led the tall soldier out of the dirty camp and walked towards the depths of the military camp. The two soldiers looked at the two figures with hope, and when they looked at the big wooden barrel in their hands, they became angry again, threw it to the ground, and went their separate ways excitedly.

The strong and powerful soldier led the tall soldier walking in the military camp for a long time, gradually leaving the dirty and smelly camp and entering a quite clean camp with yellow sand on the ground. The tents also became clean and spacious. The soldiers coming and going were all in full armor and in high spirits.

The sentries became denser, and at the critical pass, soldiers were often seen standing guard. However, he seemed to recognize this strong soldier, and after a cold glance, he ignored him.

The two soldiers carried the black ball of mud and successfully came to a medium-sized cowhide tent. The strong soldier lifted the door curtain, looked inside, and found a young general kneeling on a mat in a daze.

Two soldiers lowered their heads and went in. The strong and powerful soldier stood guard at the entrance. The tall soldier took two steps forward and stood in front of the young general, saying with a sneer on his face:
"Xiang Ju, you look unhappy after surrendering to the Han army. Why did you go from being a royal relative of the Great Chu to an insignificant nobody in the Han army? Do you feel a little uncomfortable with this gap? Haha, you can't blame anyone but your damn father!"

This young general was naturally Xiang Ju, the son of Xiang Chan who surrendered to the Han army. And this tall soldier was Xiang Chang, the eldest son of the Chu State who had a grudge against Xiang Ju for killing his father!
Xiang Ju surrendered to the Han Dynasty. Zhang Liang was quite warm to him because of his father Xiang Chan's previous achievements. But he was used by Xiang Chang last night and indirectly plotted against Liu Bang, which directly led to the ambush and killing of the cavalry general Guan Ying and the annihilation of the 5,000 most elite cavalry. If Zhang Liang had not protected him, the angry Liu Bang would have killed him.

As a result, he was driven out from Zhang Liang's side and thrown into this tent at random. As for his relatives and guards, they were also stripped away and thrown far away to the baggage army as slaves.

Xiang Ju looked up and his face changed drastically. In horror, he opened his mouth and instinctively wanted to scream, but then a sharp and cold sword was pressed against his throat, forcing him to swallow the scream back before it could be uttered.

Xiang Ju looked up and froze in place again. The one who pointed the sword at him was Xiang Gou, a man he trusted immensely and who had always served as their father and son's personal bodyguard!

"You, you..." Xiang Ju didn't know whether he was angry or afraid. His whole body was trembling. He stared at Xiang Gou and couldn't speak.

Xiang Gou seemed to be a little ashamed, and he grinned bitterly and said, "Sir, my wife and children are all under the control of the eldest son. Last night you and the Minister of the Chancellery were ready to surrender to the Han Dynasty, and the eldest son found me. If I don't obey your order, then... and I, I don't want to surrender to the Han Dynasty..."

Xiang Chang leaned over and grabbed Xiang Ju's hair in an extremely rough manner, staring at him fiercely from above:
"Xiang Ju, you don't need to blame them. After all, they still know that they are Chu people. They have great righteousness in their hearts and are unwilling to be dogs with you. It has been a day since you surrendered to Han. How does it feel? You have felt it, right?"

"Hmph, I don't need to tell you, I'm sure you know that the Han army is fighting fiercely with the Chu army right now, and they can't take care of you. When Liu Bang is free, do you think he will let you go? Not to mention you, even your father is far less important to Liu Bang than Guan Ying. But because of you, this cavalry general was ambushed and died. Think about it, will Liu Bang chop you into pieces and make you into meat sauce?"

Facing Xiang Chang, who was as threatening as a devil, the horrific scene of him shooting his father to death with an arrow last night reappeared in front of him. Not only did Xiang Ju not have the slightest thought of revenge in his heart, but he felt a sense of fear and his body couldn't help but tremble slightly.

Xiang Ju wanted to be angry but didn't dare to. She was almost crying with frustration. Her eyes were dazed and she murmured, "It's you, it's you who made me suffer..."

Xiang Chang undoubtedly saw through Xiang Ju. He was not as ruthless and iron-blooded as his father Xiang Chan. In essence, he was a weak and cowardly person.

"Stop talking nonsense. I just want to ask you, do you want to continue to be a noble son of the Great Chu, the Prince of the Xiang family, or continue to be a lowly dog ​​in the Han army? Hmm?"

Facing Xiang Chang's coercion, Xiang Ju was very clear in his mind: if he answered that he was a lowly dog ​​of the Han army, he was afraid that there would be a bloody hole in his throat the next moment...

After thinking it over again and again, he said dejectedly: "Do I, do I still have a choice?"

Seeing Xiang Ju in a low mood, lowering her head like a sheep and obeying orders, Xiang Chang showed a satisfied look and grinned.

(End of this chapter)