Chapter 205

Chapter 205

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Volume 6: The Tiger’s Roar in Two Provinces, The Silk Road Reopens Chapter 205: The Chang’an Incident

…

Li Jue, no matter how much he relied on Jia Xu for advice, couldn’t help but think in this moment that it was highly possible Jia Xu wasn’t just turning around somewhere, but that he had run away!

But why would he run?

What if Duan Wei and Zhang Ji attacked Chang’an?

Li Jue believed he hadn’t gone so mad as to use Dong Zhuo’s family to threaten these two into retreating.

If anything, it would be better to use Dong Zhuo himself as a hostage.

Furious, Li Jue followed his subordinates to where Dong Bai and her great-grandmother were previously held, only to find the secret tunnel entrance under Dong Bai’s bed had been discovered.

But this tightly sealed iron entrance couldn’t be opened without the corresponding key, making it impossible for them to simply break in.

Despite Dong Zhuo’s somewhat nouveau riche taste, he didn’t skimp on craftsmanship where it mattered.

Seeing this, a sudden realization flashed through Li Jue’s mind.

He grabbed the subordinate guarding the place and shouted, “Has anyone gone missing here before?”

The subordinate stammered, “N-not really… I didn’t pay much attention before, since you said they were just some insignificant people.”

Under Li Jue’s glare, the man’s voice trailed off.

Li Jue was furious!

Now he understood how Duan Wei and Zhang Ji had arrived.

These two had no reason to return to Chang’an recently, and even if they had sent subordinates, the defenses around Chang’an shouldn’t have revealed anything. Yet, they reacted faster than Li Jue had anticipated.

There was only one explanation.

Someone with enough credibility had informed them.

Jia Xu probably knew about this.

So he hid first, and to repay Dong Zhuo’s kindness, he also hid those who might be targeted by Li Jue.

But what a mess!

Li Jue still believed Jia Xu was the good strategist who had always given him effective advice, but now he had made some mistakes due to personal bias. Just like Dong Zhuo still thought Jia Xu was the loyal minister who had given him a chance to turn things around and protected his family.

However, Li Jue soon had no time to ponder Jia Xu’s whereabouts.

Duan Wei’s attempt to rescue Dong Zhuo, though thwarted by Yan Xing’s ambush on Zhang Ji, forced him to retreat to Chiyang.

But while some could be convinced by Li Jue’s claim that Duan Wei’s actions were treasonous, others couldn’t.

Especially the Xiliang troops truly loyal to Dong Zhuo.

Jia Xu’s “restoring order” rhetoric, if scrutinized, had many flaws.

It was fine for temporary忽悠.

But with Duan Wei attacking Chang’an and declaring his intent to rescue Dong Zhuo, the Xiliang troops began to see something was wrong.

No matter how much Li Jue claimed to restrict Dong Zhuo’s decision-making, with troops already sent towards Liangzhou—

Shouldn’t the Prime Minister have shown up by now?

Keeping him detained was suspicious.

These troops decided that since their goals were already achieved, rescuing the Prime Minister was the right move.

As Li Jue stared at the tunnel entrance, plotting how to pry it open, a subordinate rushed in, shouting, “Bad news! A group is heading towards Weiyang Palace, demanding to see the Prime Minister!”

With most of his forces diverted to besiege Chiyang, Li Jue had inevitably relaxed the defenses within Chang’an’s palace.

This was indeed possible.

His face changed.

Faced with the critical matter of Dong Zhuo regaining freedom, he no longer cared about his strategist’s disappearance.

More importantly—

Dong Zhuo was held in a side hall of Weiyang Palace, while the main hall housed Liu Xie, the puppet emperor they used as a figurehead!

If Dong Zhuo took Liu Xie away, everything would be lost.

All his previous efforts would be in vain.

Compared to Jia Xu, Dong Zhuo’s first target upon regaining power would undoubtedly be him!

Worse news came as he rode towards Weiyang Palace.

The untamed nature of the Xiliang troops was evident.

When blocked, they didn’t wait for Li Jue to negotiate but killed the guards along the way, freeing Dong Zhuo directly.

Dong Zhuo, of course, wouldn’t let go of Liu Xie, the perfect pawn, and took him along.

Faced with the crisis of losing Liu Xie, Li Jue’s mind worked faster than ever.

He knew that if Dong Zhuo contacted his other subordinates, he would have no chance to resist.

Unless he could find another force to support him, block Dong Zhuo’s messages, especially prevent him from issuing edicts in the emperor’s name.

Was there such a force?

Indeed, there was!

Since he was already a step behind Dong Zhuo, rushing to Weiyang Palace was pointless. Li Jue immediately turned his horse towards the government offices.

In such times, he could only rely on the court officials.

Though Li Jue was no saint, Dong Zhuo was even worse.

They wouldn’t want the young emperor to fall back into Dong Zhuo’s hands, right?

The first person Li Jue approached, Wang Yun, was startled by the news but quickly replied, “Release Lu Zhi from prison. If anyone can represent the regency’s authority and prestige, it’s Lu Zhi. He might just turn the tide against Dong Zhuo’s control of the emperor.”

Li Jue immediately rejected, “Impossible!”

If Lu Zhi took command of the army, it would be clear who was in charge and who relied on whose power.

He wasn’t that foolish.

Following Wang Yun’s suggestion would only mean an early or late death for him.

Wang Yun cursed inwardly, thinking Li Jue was being smart at the wrong time.

But more concerned about the emperor’s safety, he said, “Fine, Huang Ziyan and I will join you in leading the troops to rescue His Majesty first!”

Wang Yun and Huang Wan had some military experience, making them less of a threat to Li Jue than Lu Zhi.

He agreed, “Let’s do it!”

To reduce the influence of Dong Zhuo holding the emperor, Li Jue came up with a shocking idea—

Since few had seen the emperor up close, an “emperor” supported by court officials in his hands would be more credible than the one Dong Zhuo held. The palace had spare dragon robes; why not create a new symbol!

Wang Yun almost cursed upon hearing this absurd idea.

But Li Jue, pressured by Jia Xu’s disappearance and Dong Zhuo’s sudden counterattack, didn’t care and went to fetch the spare dragon robes.

When Wang Yun tried to stop him, Li Jue glared, “I tell you, only by diminishing the emperor’s significance can we more easily defeat Dong Zhuo. If you want to save the emperor, you better act convincingly.”

But when Li Jue planned to have his son impersonate the emperor, he faced another obstacle.

His wife cried, “You’re confronting Dong Zhuo, and in this chaos, don’t tell me impersonating the emperor is a great fortune. I suggested taking our son to Liangzhou for some fame, but you refused. Now you want him in such danger?”

She wiped her tears and pointed at their daughter, “If you must take someone, take her!”

Li Jue needed a compliant figurehead to avoid trouble, so whether it was his son or daughter didn’t matter.

He decided, “Fine, take her!”

After all, it was just a fake招牌!

Inside and outside Chang’an, with Duan Wei’s attack and Dong Zhuo’s escape, a three-way混战 ensued.

At Mei Fortress, however, the battle was one-sided.

When Qiao Yan’s troops, stationed outside Mei Fortress for a day, launched their attack, the defenders, tense from continuous shifts, only realized the situation had changed when the catapults’ stones came flying.

Xun You’s suggestion of a slow attack, as he said, wasn’t really slow but a strong attack after麻痹 the enemy.

In this day, Qiao Yan’s troops not only fully rested from the march from Chencang to Mei Fortress but also prepared the catapults and siege engines.

When the attack horn sounded, dozens of stones flew towards Mei Fortress.

Simultaneously, countless crossbow arrows shot towards the battlements.

Under the火力压制 on the battlements, the攻城云梯 assembled the previous day was pushed towards the walls.

Mei Fortress’s sturdy and high walls showed their advantage.

Though the outer walls were too dangerous for defenders to stand due to the arrows, the second line of defense still covered the battlements and the ground.

Qiao Yan’s side consumed far more arrows than the enemy.

She shielded her eyes from the sun and looked towards Mei Fortress.

After the initial panic, the defenders lived up to their reputation of having strong walls and good leadership.

Even though Duan Wei wasn’t there, the order he had instilled in the troops remained.

But unfortunately… they were facing her攻城队伍!

Their temporary应变 couldn’t fundamentally change the battle.

As orders were given, when the攻城梯 reached the battlements, heavy infantry掩护着弓箭手 advanced to within two hundred paces.

For a moment, arrows rained down on the battlements.

The heavier,近乎抛落的弩箭 and the斜向上射出的普通箭矢, with orders to宁可射入城中也不能落在墙外, formed a dense箭网.

The副将 in charge of指挥 was frantic.

If possible, he would rather固守城关, letting the enemy pass to minimize losses with insufficient守卫.

But anyone with military experience knew that even if he promised this, the enemy likely wouldn’t believe it.

Facing the risk of an attack from behind, taking out Mei Fortress was safer.

But偏偏, they couldn’t even stand on the battlements to drop狼牙拍 and滚石.

How to fight!

He shouted at the soldiers on the瞭望塔, “Their arrows and crossbow bolts are limited; they can’t all be used on our small city! Use every arrow wisely. If anyone climbs the battlements, shoot them immediately.”

“Think of Gaoping City. If you want to live, defend this city!”

News from Liangzhou couldn’t all reach Guanzhong.

To strengthen his troops’ loyalty, Dong Zhuo only spread tales of Qiao Yan’s杀戮.

Her接纳羌人过冬, 行教化劝导之事, 建立经济秩序—he certainly wouldn’t mention that.

The only thing he could say was one event.

Her first battle upon entering Liangzhou was to彻底清剿 the Qiang in Gaoping City.

Eight thousand Qiang in Gaoping City died in that battle.

Given Mei Fortress’s status, they might face the same fate.

To survive, they had to defend with all their might!

But though they knew城破必死 wasn’t an empty threat.

Physically, they couldn’t help but feel increasingly dizzy and tired under the enemy’s箭雨.

Under Qiao Yan’s强势打击, those who charged onto the battlements with shields were shot down within moments.

Seeing this, their hands holding the bowstrings began to tremble.

At that moment, they heard a clear gong sound.

This wasn’t the signal to retreat.

The gong, still激昂进取, caused the arrows in the air to pause.

The indiscriminate箭雨 suddenly vanished.

But as the threat receded, it was replaced by the先登营 climbing the battlements!

Before they could站稳, iron pieces flew towards the defenders!

“I heard Xu Gongming, after assembling the先登营, specifically asked Commandant Yao about the use of梭标?” Guo Jia asked, looking towards the battlements.

Qiao Yan replied, “You could say he prepared a special set of equipment for the先登营.”

It was hard to say if this habit was formed in Bingzhou.

Just like Qiao Yan’s Bingzhou army had a systematic急救包, Xu Huang, upon taking charge of the先登营, considered this.

Besides their锁子甲 offering better防御力, in this month he thought about how to efficiently climb walls and站稳.

With limited time,过多的装备 was more of a burden than a benefit.

So he considered three things.

One was the Qiang’s梭标.

In this moment of climbing the battlements, the先登营 smoothly threw the梭标 at any visible enemies.

The梭标 required no reloading or drawing, so Yao Chang carried them when attacking Ayang.

Now, facing Mei Fortress’s双层城头, they were同样 effective.

Before this round of梭标 ended, the second item, the窝弓手弩, was quickly loaded, launching a second round of attacks at the archers on the瞭望塔.

The手弩’s short range was usually a drawback, but in this situation, it was perfect for close combat on the battlements.

The先登营’s efficiency was unmatched, and soon they had a foothold on the walls.

The defenders, overwhelmed by the sudden assault, began to falter.

Qiao Yan watched as her troops gained the upper hand, knowing that victory was within reach.

The battle for Mei Fortress was far from over, but the tide had turned in her favor.

At this moment, it was undoubtedly an advantage.

Crossbow arrows rushed into the watchtower, more lethal than the previous round of javelins.

Of course, while they were attacking the defenders of Maiwu, the defenders could also launch an attack on them.

The lightweight chain mail they wore not only reduced their burden while climbing but also gave these vanguard soldiers the opportunity to wear heavier helmets and wrap leather armor around their limbs for protection.

As a result—

“How is it so hard to penetrate!”

A defender of Maiwu carefully dodged the javelins and crossbow arrows, then drew his bow and aimed at one of the vanguard soldiers, trying to shoot him down.

But the arrow, fired at close range, merely struck the soldier’s chest and bounced off.

To be precise, the arrow failed to penetrate the gaps in the chain mail and had already fulfilled its duty.

The only exposed part of this vanguard soldier seemed to be his eyes.

The next moment, the defender saw the soldier use a grappling hook to latch onto the edge of the city wall and quickly descend using the rope.

He looked like an impenetrable iron shell, rolling down to the inner side of the wall without any close-range resistance.

He wasn’t the only one doing this.

Their target was the iron bolt behind the city gate!

As the hundred or so best-equipped soldiers stepped onto the city wall and cleared out a batch of enemies in a series of continuous actions, the less well-equipped soldiers behind them swarmed in, cooperating with each other to firmly establish their position.

Xu Huang swung his sword at the soldiers rushing toward the city gate, trying to stop them from opening it.

His past experience as a bandit and his battles against the barbarians on the Yinshan frontlines gave his sword strikes an astonishing explosive force.

The vanguard unit he led was clearly not just about defense.

In terms of offense, they were also at the top level of the Bingzhou army.

The defending general in the city felt a tightness in his heart as he saw this.

He clearly knew that if they managed to open the city gate, it would be a point of no return.

However, the enemy’s efficiency wasn’t just limited to the vanguard unit’s capture of the city wall. Before he could command his ground troops to head for the city gate, the gate was violently smashed open with the help of a battering ram.

What couldn’t be seen from inside the city was that the heavy infantry had already pushed the front line closer to the city wall when the vanguard unit succeeded.

So, as the city gate opened, they formed a flood rushing into the city.

Near the city gate, there were still soldiers who had been killed by arrows and stones, as well as those who had fallen in battle with the vanguard unit.

Now, with the addition of the heavy infantry, the overwhelming momentum that left no room to breathe became even clearer to everyone.

Qiao Yan’s side spent a day from arriving at the city to launching the attack.

But the swiftness with which they broke through the city gate after launching the attack was enough to send chills down anyone’s spine.

The defending lieutenant felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

He thought of how Duan Wei had entrusted this place to him with great care before leaving, and now it had been breached less than seven days after Duan Wei’s departure. He felt he had truly failed the general’s trust.

However, just as he was about to fight to the death and die for the city, he heard the overwhelming sound of the enemy soldiers entering the city.

“The Lord has ordered, lay down your weapons and you will not be killed! Do not harm civilians!”

“The Lord has ordered—”

Wait! The situation didn’t seem as bad as he had imagined?

When he was brought before Qiao Yan and learned that Li Ying, Fan Chou, and others, along with their soldiers, had either died or surrendered in the Wei River Valley, he couldn’t help but look at Qiao Yan with even more awe.

Seeing that Qiao Yan’s soldiers, except for those controlling the city’s defenses, remained outside the city, truly as she had stated in her military orders, only detaining the disarmed soldiers and not harming the civilians, his gaze also held a bit more respect.

So, who had described her as a ferocious demon before?

Just as he was pondering this, he heard Qiao Yan say, “Tell me everything you know about the situation in Chang’an.”

He quickly replied, “General Duan and General Zhang, upon receiving word from Lady Wei, decided to join forces and march toward Chang’an to rescue Prime Minister Dong. If the operation went smoothly, they should have succeeded by now.”

Thinking of this, he felt a bit troubled.

If General Duan were to return, which side should he fight for?

If he sided with General Duan, given the strength of Qiao Yan’s soldiers, any hint of rebellion might cost him his head.

But if he sided with Qiao Yan, whom he had just surrendered to, he would feel guilty for betraying General Duan’s trust.

Qiao Yan saw the conflict on his face but didn’t point it out. Instead, she pondered the situation in Chang’an.

Lady Wei… that was Dong Zhuo’s granddaughter.

It was a bit surprising that she was the one who had contacted these two forces.

But there was no need to dwell on the messenger’s situation now.

Qiao Yan had a feeling that what the defending soldier had described as a sure victory might not go as smoothly as they thought.

Li Jue couldn’t have seized power from Dong Zhuo all by himself.

The chaos in Chang’an must have had Jia Xu’s hand in it.

So, before news of her arrival reached Chang’an, Jia Xu probably wouldn’t let Dong Zhuo easily return to his former position.

However… no matter how many unexpected events or human interventions tried to prolong the battle, in a place like Chang’an, it was hard for the fight to drag on indefinitely.

Qiao Yan wouldn’t allow such a situation to happen!

From the moment she led her troops into the Guanzhong Plain, this fertile land, sheltered by mountains to the north and south, along with its population, had already become part of her plans.

If the fire that had once been confined to the North Palace in Luoyang were to spread to Chang’an due to the conflict between these two sides, that was not something she wanted to see.

“Fengxiao!” Qiao Yan immediately called out, “You, Gongming, and Wenxian will lead the troops to hold this place. The rest will follow me east to Chang’an. The cavalry will go with me first, and Gongda will lead the infantry behind.”

No more rest! Let’s move out immediately!

By the time Qiao Yan made this decision, Chang’an had already experienced its most chaotic day.

After freeing himself and taking control of the Emperor, Dong Zhuo immediately summoned his generals, intending to quickly eliminate the traitor Li Jue from Chang’an.

Whatever reason Li Jue had used to seize power from him, Dong Zhuo would now use the same method to take it back!

But what he never expected was that while he had Liu Xie in his hands, the other side claimed that he was merely using a child of similar age to impersonate the Emperor, trying to justify his rebellion.

In Li Jue’s version, just look at which side the court officials were on to know who was telling the truth.

This infuriated Dong Zhuo.

Liu Xie had indeed been taken by Li Jue when Li Ying and others set out, so many people had seen him.

But in this era, commoners naturally held a sense of awe toward the Emperor, and few dared to look directly at his face. Those who could participate in the battle between Li Jue and Dong Zhuo were even fewer.

On the other hand, more people recognized ministers like Wang Yun and Huang Wan.

During their two years in Chang’an, they had worked hard to improve the lives of the people, often personally handling matters due to a lack of manpower.

As a result, while Dong Zhuo’s Xiliang army and other subordinate troops grew in number, so did the people rallying under Li Jue’s banner of protecting the Emperor.

After a brief battle, a north-south standoff formed.

From the walls of Chiyang, Duan Wei looked south and keenly noticed that many of the soldiers surrounding the area had withdrawn.

He immediately informed Zhang Ji and Dong Bai of this.

“According to General Duan, there might be some special changes in Chang’an right now?”

Dong Bai rested her chin on her hand and pondered, “If you ask me, this probably isn’t a trap set by Li Jue to lure us out of the city.”

“Li Jue doesn’t need to do that! We have far more cavalry than infantry on this mission, and we’re only staying in Chiyang temporarily to rescue my grandfather. If things go south, we can retreat to Maiwu, which is a better place for long-term defense.”

“If he had the means, he would have sent more troops to trap us in Chiyang.”

Duan Wei replied, “That’s exactly what I mean. So I want to ask Lady Wei for her opinion. Should we…”

Before he could finish, Dong Bai decisively replied, “No need to hesitate. Let’s head to Chang’an as soon as possible to support my grandfather!”

Opportunities are fleeting.

If my grandfather truly had the upper hand, Li Jue would have already withdrawn all his troops, not just a portion.

So, Li Jue must still have a slight advantage.

We can’t let him expand that advantage. We must strike quickly to prevent the situation from changing.

They made this decision as night fell.

With the idea of crossing the Wei Bridge under cover of darkness, they didn’t dare to rest and quickly reorganized their forces.

In the late-night darkness, they broke through the defenses outside Chiyang and headed straight for the Wei Bridge leading to Chang’an.

The Wei Bridge, which had been a roadblock earlier, could no longer hinder Duan Wei and Dong Bai now that Li Jue had shifted his focus to Dong Zhuo.

The cavalry, arriving outside Chang’an in the early morning, quickly chose a vantage point to observe the situation based on Duan Wei’s assessment.

Upon receiving clear news that Dong Zhuo had escaped and was engaged in a standoff with Li Jue, they were overjoyed and made their next decision—

Send word to Dong Zhuo while launching a surprise attack on Li Jue’s camp!

By the time Dong Zhuo arrived with his troops, the place had turned into a chaotic battlefield.

Li Jue hadn’t expected Duan Wei and the others to attack so quickly.

But his side had the numerical advantage, and Wang Yun and Huang Wan were closely monitoring the camp’s defenses.

As a result, the sudden clash turned into a stalemate, with both sides holding their own advantages.

The close-quarters combat of the cavalry and the neighing of warhorses filled the entire camp.

Li Jue was deeply troubled, especially when he saw Dong Zhuo leading his troops from afar.

His mind raced, knowing he couldn’t let the two forces unite, putting him in an even more passive position.

He had to defeat Dong Zhuo quickly and seize the real Emperor from him.

Otherwise, the fake would remain fake and would eventually be exposed.

In this moment of crisis, he coldly ordered his guards to fire arrows into the chaotic crowd, regardless of whether they were allies or enemies.

As long as he could wipe out Dong Zhuo’s reinforcements, and as long as his claim of having the Emperor remained unchallenged, his troops wouldn’t mutiny.

Days of sleepless nights had left Li Jue’s eyes bloodshot.

His guards almost thought he had gone mad, but they had no choice but to obey his orders.

When Dong Zhuo galloped closer, he saw a scene that made his blood boil.

In the chaos of battle, his granddaughter, who was as skilled in horseback archery as many girls in Liangzhou, was struck by an arrow through her right shoulder. In the ensuing hail of arrows, her horse was also hit.

She was thrown off her horse.

The sight of horses and men falling wasn’t limited to Dong Bai, and the dust kicked up made it impossible for Dong Zhuo to confirm her safety.

The arrow wasn’t fatal.

But when she fell, the still-active hooves around her could easily crush her neck!

What made Dong Zhuo’s heart leap into his throat was seeing Li Jue send a cavalry unit to finish off those in the arrow-stricken area.

“Traitor, how dare you!” Dong Zhuo roared, spurring his horse toward Dong Bai.

But the layers of obstacles created by the clashing armies were too much for an old man like him to break through.

Even with his subordinates’ help, he couldn’t reach Dong Bai’s fallen position as quickly as the enemy.

Regret flooded his mind, and countless thoughts flashed through his head.

Perhaps it was his reckless behavior in Luoyang that had forced his granddaughter, still in her youth, to risk her life for his safety, now on the verge of death.

But regretting his past actions was meaningless now.

Just as those he had killed, like Wu Qiong and Zhou Bi, the He family he had wronged, and the commoners of Luoyang whose lives and property he had plundered couldn’t come back to life, he couldn’t save his own family either!

Yet, in this moment of despair, a white-feathered arrow suddenly appeared in his slowed-down vision.

The arrow shot through the crowd with terrifying force, piercing the chest of one of Li Jue’s generals.

The power of a three-stone bow, combined with the relatively short distance, allowed the arrow to tear through the armor’s protection.

It was also an arrow Dong Zhuo found eerily familiar.

Two years ago, on the walls of Luoyang’s North Palace, an arrow just like this had grazed his head.

Even after two years, he would never forget it.

And as this arrow appeared, another sound suddenly joined the already boiling battlefield.

It was the sound of cavalry entering.

But it was a cavalry that didn’t belong to either him or Li Jue!

Dong Zhuo turned toward the sound and saw a group of cavalry charging into the fray.

The leading general’s eyes lit up as they met Dong Zhuo’s gaze.

But the change in his expression wasn’t because he had found someone to rescue.

As the general, wielding a Fangtian Huaji, charged toward Dong Zhuo, his unstoppable momentum carried both the aura of a peerless warrior and an unmistakable killing intent.

The helmet obscured his face, making it hard for Dong Zhuo to recognize him at a glance, but Dong Zhuo recognized the horse he was riding.

Red Hare.

The very horse he had once gifted to Qiao Yan as a gesture of goodwill!

Could Qiao Yan’s general be here for a friendly chat?

No, he was here for Dong Zhuo’s head!