  At daybreak the battle was resumed; and with such terrible bravery did the troops of Woo-san-Kwei and his ally the Tartar king fight, that before noon the rebels fled in all directions; the main body, under Li himself, retreating into the province of Pe-tche-Lee, where for many weeks they were followed by the Tartars; and although the latter beat Li in every engagement, and slew vast numbers of his troops, he managed so cleverly that he reached Pekin; which city being well fortified and manned by his adherents, he held out till the Tartars were reinforced by many thousands of their brethren, who, now that the ancient barrier of Leao-tong had been broken, flooded the empire like a mighty torrent. Then Li, brave and able as he really was, saw the necessity of retreating from the capital. To do this with profit to himself, the artful rogue placed the whole of his troops upon and before the northern walls; by this means he kept the soldiers employed and the enemy at bay at least eight days and nights, during which time his more immediate friends and faithful followers were engaged in carrying from the imperial palace the vast treasures of jewels, gold, and silver, collected by the Ming Emperors during the preceding two hundred and eighty years, with which they escaped to Si-gnan, in the province of Chen-si. Then, when the Tartar army entered the capital, although terribly chagrined at the loss of so much treasure, they did but follow Li-Kong a short distance, when they gave up the pursuit and returned to Pekin, greatly to the vexation of Woo-san-Kwei, who, as you will see, soon found that his new friends were as bad as his old enemies. No sooner was Li-Kong expelled, than Woo-san-Kwei proclaimed the Prince Yong-Li Emperor, and offered to pay the Tartar king an immense sum for the use of his army, at the same time respectfully begging he would withdraw his troops from the empire, as it was contrary to the sacred books that so many foreigners should remain in the sacred capital; to which polite request the Tartar made an equally polite reply: "We do not," said he, "think it fit to leave yet, for there are many unsubdued thieves who may cause as much trouble as this Li-Kong; moreover, this arch-rebel is himself established in his province, and would doubtless return if he found that we, whom alone he fears, had quitted China; therefore, O noble Woo-san-Kwei, we are resolved to follow up our victory, and exterminate every rogue in the land, so that you may deliver the empire to Yong-Li in full peace and prosperity; as for the payment for our services, we are not poor, and can wait till the kingdom be settled. In the mean time, however, that which we chiefly desire is, that the great Woo-san-Kwei shall recruit his army from our own, and proceed to Chen-si to destroy the dog Li, while we, with our brave Tartars, will endeavor to sweep from the southern provinces the rogues and thieves who are now settled therein." Deeply chagrined that he had replaced dogs with tigers, Woo-san-Kwei could do nothing but obey—for in reality it was a command; and so he proceeded into Chen-si, accompanied by Nicholas, where, after a campaign of many months, he succeeded in destroying the power and army of Li-Kong; as for the rogue himself, as his body was not found, it was supposed that he had been killed, while endeavoring to escape in the disguise of a private soldier. Throughout the campaign in Chen-si, Nicholas had fought with terrible energy, for he had hoped that when they took possession of Li-Kong's palace, he should obtain at least some clue to the fate of the princess and Chow, both of whom, if alive, he believed to be in the power of the rebels. As, however, notwithstanding the highest rewards and the most vigorous search, he failed in gaining the slightest clue, he felt greatly pleased when they returned to Pekin, where he was not without hope that the princess might be concealed, and if so, she was safe; for doubtlessly, by the time they reached the city, their Tartar allies would, according to their promise, have proclaimed her brother, the Prince Yong-Li, Emperor. So great and popular had been the successes of Woo-san-Kwei in Chen-si, that as he rode toward Pekin the people came out, and falling upon their knees, almost worshiped him as the restorer of peace and order. About midway between Chen-si and Pekin, they were met by the great officers of the Tartar king, who brought with them a vast body of troops, in order to augment the state of the general's triumphal entrance into the capital. Now this was very gratifying to Nicholas, for seeing the Tartars pay so much respect to the great Ming general, he doubted less than ever that, like faithful friends, if they had not already done so, they would speedily restore Yong-Li to his throne—a gratification which was considerably heightened, when, at the gates of the city, they were met by a procession of great officers, both Tartars and Chinese, who, in the name of the Emperor, greeted Woo-san-Kwei with the title of King of Chen-si; so with difficulty the procession passed through the masses of people, whose hoarse voices clamored, "Long life, ten thousand years, to the Emperor." "This, then," thought Nicholas, "is indeed a fortunate day; for not only have these brave Tartars restored the Prince Yong-Li to his right, but the amiable prince commences his reign by an act of gratitude; for, forgetting his quarrel with Woo-san-Kwei, he rewards his great services with the kingdom of Chen-si." Thus they rode onward till they came to the palace, where the Emperor was waiting to do honor to the great general. Then, as Nicholas passed through the courts of the palace, he stared with surprise, not unmixed with indignation, at the disproportion of the numbers of Chinese to those of the Tartars. Yet again, surely it was but gratitude on the part of the young Emperor to reward those who had restored him to the throne of his ancestors; still a strange fear crept over him, and he said, almost in a whisper, "Truly, O illustrious prince, these barbarians have taken possession of the empire." "It is as wise, O youth, to make a virtue of necessity, as it is childish to resist the decrees of fate," said the general; and then a pang of disappointment shot through the youth's heart; his illusion vanished; moreover, he would have given his life to have avoided the scene before him. They had entered the great hall of audience; there, upon the golden dragon throne, surrounded by the warrior princes and chiefs of Mantchouria, sat the Emperor. The Emperor, indeed! not Yong-Li, but a Tartar child of six years of age. Heartsick, enraged, he would have spoken. The general perceiving his misery, clutched his arm. Nicholas checked his impatience, but nevertheless muttered, "Surely the heavens will fall, for the great Woo-san-Kwei has proved a traitor." |
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