The pungent smell in the air grew stronger, and the warhorses became increasingly restless.
On the front wall of Anling City, the Wei soldiers had already occupied more than half of it and were desperately climbing up the ladders. Above the city wall, the Jin soldiers were strenuously moving massive stones, which fell along the wall and crushed some of the climbing Wei soldiers, creating a gruesome scene. Witnessing this, many Wei soldiers began to hesitate.
“Attack with all your might. If anyone manages to open the city gate, they will be promoted to vice-general,” declared Sun Hua fiercely from his war chariot.
On the city wall, Qin Yue’s expression grew increasingly grave. They had run out of prepared stones, and if they didn’t take action soon, they might not be able to stop the Wei soldiers from breaching the city.
“General!”
Qin Yue clenched his teeth. “Order the archers to prepare.”
“Yes.”
The Jin soldiers who had been throwing stones retreated, while numerous archers and soldiers holding torches took their positions along the wall.
“Report!” A swift horse approached from behind the Wei army, with a ragged figure kneeling before Sun Hua with a thud. Sun Hua felt a sense of impending danger.
“What’s happened?”
“There has been a betrayal among the Qi army. When the five thousand elite troops were en route to Zhao Pass, they were ambushed, and only a few hundred managed to escape.”
“What?” Sun Hua widened his eyes, but at that moment, another guard came rushing. “General, hurry back! The supply depot is on fire.”
“What? Wasn’t there someone guarding it at all times?”
“The guards were knocked unconscious, and by the time we discovered it, the fire was out of control,” the messenger lamented. “Furthermore, we’ve found that a group of Jin soldiers has appeared in the rear hills of Fufeng City.”
“Why would Jin soldiers appear in the rear hills of Fufeng City? Damn it, the rear hill granary!” Sun Hua’s face turned dark, and he gritted his teeth. “No wonder the Jin army was so feeble tonight; it turns out this little devil Qin Yue had set a trap for me.”
Sun Hua glanced resentfully at Anling City, which was well within his grasp. He gritted his teeth. “Order the retreat. We’re heading to the rear hills of Fufeng City.”
…
“You want to leave?” Qin Yue sneered, and the third flare rose into the sky. Qin Yue waved his hand backward. “Ignite and release the arrows. It’s time to show them our Jin hospitality.”
The arrows, soaked in oil, were ignited, and the flames blazed fiercely. With Qin Yue’s command, a rain of fire shot toward the Wei soldiers.
The flaming arrows landed on the ground, swiftly igniting the surface.
“Retreat! There’s oil on the ground!” Sun Hua realized something was amiss, jumped off his chariot, snatched a nearby horse, and fled to the rear. However, many of the Wei soldiers were already too late to retreat.
Boom—
With a blast of heat, the place where they stood was blasted into a large crater, and flames instantly engulfed the entire battlefield.
The relentless fire created a fiery wall, becoming another barrier between Jin and Wei, trapping those inside the flames, and preventing anyone from crossing the fiery boundary.
“It’s scorching.” On top of the city wall, a vice-general instinctively wiped his sweat with his sleeve, forgetting that he was wearing armor, and the iron armguards had become uncomfortably hot due to the widespread blaze.
Qin Yue watched the figures falling one by one into the sea of fire below with a solemn expression. He felt some reluctance, but he knew that if he couldn’t stop the Wei army today, it would be the people of Anling who would suffer in this sea of flames.
“The general and the prince had a brilliant plan. Firstly, it caused significant casualties to the Wei army, and secondly, it cut off their food supply. In the short term, Wei won’t have the resources to pay attention to Anling.”
“It’s a pity that such a massive fire also blocks us. If we could catch up with them and take advantage of their weakness, we could further weaken the Wei army.”
The fire outside Anling City burned all night. The rear hill of Fufeng City also burned for a day and night. Years of accumulation turned into ashes. Sun Hua was so angry that he spat out blood and fainted on the spot.
However, that wasn’t the end of it. Qi, believing that Wei deliberately broke the alliance and killed Qi’s reinforcements, sent its forces against Wei.
A rumor spread within the Northern Qi army, suggesting that someone in Northern Qi had conspired with the second prince of Wei to assassinate the third prince of Wei. After the third prince was attacked and furious, he deliberately leaked the location of the Qi reinforcements to the Jin army, leading them into an ambush, and resulting in the slaughter of fifty thousand Northern Qi elite troops.
The rumor gained momentum, and although it was uncertain whether it was true, it served as a convenient excuse for Northern Qi to break the alliance with Wei. Regardless of the rumor’s authenticity, as long as it could be used as a pretext to tear up the alliance agreement, it was sufficient.
Wei Chao, who had already returned to the Wei Imperial Palace to recuperate, received a giant pot that had seemingly fallen from the sky, inexplicably.
…
Outside the gates of Anling City, although the fire had dissipated, the air was still heavy with the smell of smoke. On the city wall, Zheng Er, who had already returned to Anling, kept looking into the distance.
Qin Yue pinched his nose, and suddenly, he caught sight of several black dots approaching from afar. His expression immediately relaxed.
“The Lord has returned!” Qin Yue hurriedly ran down toward the city wall. “Quickly, open the city gates.”
Qi Heng held the reins and his warhorse’s front hooves lifted off the ground before settling down. He didn’t dismount because his horse was covered not only in blackened soil but also with countless white bones.
“My Lord!” Qin Yue rode his horse rapidly to Qi Heng’s side, his face filled with joy. “You’ve returned safely. You haven’t been injured on the way, have you?”
“Let’s get inside the city first,” Qi Heng shook his head. He wasn’t injured, but his clothes were stained with the blood of Qi’s soldiers, making them smell unpleasant. “By the way, have someone clean up this place. Since they’ve already passed away, let’s give them a proper burial.”
A smile cracked on Qin Yue’s face. “It seems that my Lord and I were thinking the same thing.”
“How were the casualties on our side?”
Qin Yue replied, “We had 1,432 people injured, but they were all minor injuries with no fatalities.”
“It’s thanks to the strategy you provided, allowing us to lead Sun Hua into a trap. He was blindly confident and thought he had the upper hand, chasing us all the way here.”
As they spoke, they arrived at the city gate.
“Master,” Zheng Er, who was waiting at the city gate, immediately bowed.
Qi Heng dismounted and tossed the reins onto the horse’s back. He and Zheng Er walked to a more secluded spot. “What’s the matter?”
“The Emperor has issued an imperial decree, commanding the Lord and the Crown Prince to return to the capital with all haste,” Zheng Er said in a hushed tone. “The decree is marked as ‘urgent’ and must be delivered within 800 li1around 400 kilometers. It’s estimated to arrive in the next two days.”
Qi Heng had long anticipated this and was not surprised in the least, for he knew that Emperor Jin Yuan’s illness could no longer be delayed.
The poison had penetrated deeply, and his internal organs were withered. Even the detoxification pills made by the Snow Chantarelle, which were said to have been crafted over a century, could not save him.
As Zheng Er had mentioned, two days later, the imperial decree indeed arrived in Qi Heng’s hands. The eunuch delivering the decree saw that Qi Heng accepted it without a word and then casually mentioned that the Lady of the House, who was now staying in the palace, wanted to dispel any thoughts of rash actions in his heart.
Only the Crown Prince, with a pale face, showed joy. On the day the war began, he had sneaked to the city wall and had been terrified by the raging fire outside. He would have nightmares of the countless white bones outside the city whenever he slept.
Now, he was finally leaving this cursed place. Qi Shao was so moved that he almost wanted to cry. He vowed never to come to this place again in his life.
The main army couldn’t leave for the time being, so only a thousand elite soldiers marched back to the capital, along with Qin Yue, Qi Heng, and Qi Shao. The journey was much quicker and simpler than their initial arrival.
…
Inside the dimly lit Hall of Diligent Governance, Emperor Jin Yuan’s trembling hands slowly placed a scroll of bright yellow silk into a brocade box. His palms rested on the scroll, motionless.
“Your Majesty,” seeing Emperor Jin Yuan motionless for a long time, the chief steward, Lin Dahai, called out with concern.
Emperor Jin Yuan coughed violently, and Lin Dahai, disregarding everything else, hurriedly stepped forward to help him catch his breath.
Emperor Jin Yuan wiped his lips with a handkerchief and then clenched the handkerchief tightly in his hand. “Where is Prince Chen?” he asked.
“Your Majesty, have a sip of water,” Lin Dahai held a teacup and offered it to Emperor Jin Yuan. “General Qin’s message says he’ll be able to enter the city early tomorrow.”
“Lin Dahai, what do you think of Prince Chen?”
Lin Dahai knelt down hurriedly. “I dare not speculate, Your Majesty.”
“I asked you to speak, so speak,” Emperor Jin Yuan’s expression remained unchanged. Even after serving him for many years, Lin Dahai couldn’t discern his current mood and had to tread carefully. “The Prince has won a great victory, and many outside are saying that he possesses exceptional wisdom. He repelled the enemy without expending a single soldier.”
“Exceptional wisdom,” Emperor Jin Yuan said as he sat on the dragon throne. He wearily waved his hand. “Lin Dahai, you may leave. I wish to be alone for a moment.”
Sensing the fatigue in Emperor Jin Yuan’s voice, Lin Dahai quietly bowed and left.
Emperor Jin Yuan opened his palm, and the handkerchief lay quietly in the middle, stained with a dark red bloodstain.
The oil had run dry, and the lamp had flickered out.
Inside the Hall of Diligent Governance, there was a sudden noise. Lin Dahai, who was guarding outside, cautiously called out, “Your Majesty?” but received no response.
After waiting for a moment and calling out again with no reply, Lin Dahai, in his anxiety, pushed the door open.
“Your Majesty!”
…
A gust of wind blew, and news of Emperor Jin Yuan’s collapse quickly reached Qi Heng. Despite the two more days of travel that lay ahead, they arrived overnight, thanks to the swift horses.
Qin Yue, Qi Heng, and Qi Shao stood outside Emperor Jin Yuan’s bedchamber as Lin Dahai carefully closed the door behind him and walked hastily to the three of them.
“Your Highness, His Majesty wishes to see you,” Lin Dahai bowed, and Qi Heng nodded. He then walked briskly into Emperor Jin Yuan’s bedchamber.
“What about me, Lin Dahai?” Qi Shao inquired repeatedly, “Is Father’s health stable? Did he mention seeing me later?”
Inside the chamber, fragrant incense wafted through the air. Court ladies and eunuchs stood to the side, and Emperor Jin Yuan lay quietly on the dragon bed, his face pallid. Qi Heng stopped three steps away from the dragon bed and spoke, “Imperial Brother.”
“You’ve returned,” Emperor Jin Yuan slowly opened his eyes.
Qi Heng said, “The imperial decree was issued. As your younger brother, I hurried back as fast as I could.”
“I don’t have much time left,” Emperor Jin Yuan suddenly spoke, and the eunuchs and court ladies nearby immediately knelt down, their faces pale, refraining from speaking.
“As the emperor, Imperial Brother will naturally have good fortune,” Qi Heng replied.
“Stop,” Emperor Jin Yuan interrupted Qi Heng, “Do you know why I urgently summoned you back?”
“Your younger brother is not aware,” Qi Heng replied with lowered eyes, his tone calm.
“You don’t know,” Emperor Jin Yuan’s tone grew heavier. “Let me ask you, do you understand the responsibilities of a monarch?”
