Strong Winds Return Home

The news that the Yan army was about to attack the city quickly spread to every street.

The news that Huang Wangxiang was killed by Yuan Zong at the city gate also spread to everyone’s ears.

The combination of the two events was enough to shake the hearts of the entirety of Sanshui City. From the beginning of this large-scale war, Huang Wangxiang’s three characters were used as a banner. But now, the banner suddenly fell, not on the battlefield, but on the city wall before the battle arrived.

Even people with no military knowledge knew that this was definitely not a sign of victory. At the same time, other news was quietly circulating in the city. It was said that the Qingyang City tragedy was not caused by the Yan army, but the defenders were unreconciled to defeat and aimed their butcher’s knives at the common people.

Truth and lies, chaos on top of chaos.

Miao Changqing took Liu Xian’an and walked on the street together. He was also one of the great generals. Either Yuan Zong didn’t care about him, looked down on him, or was thinking about their past friendship. In short, after ascending the throne, he didn’t attack this old fellow for the time being, so the rest of the rebels did not dare to touch the two of them, and only watched from a distance.

Outside the city, the golden drums were beating, and all the rebels lined up and ran across the long street. Preparing to fight against the defenders, the common people also took up their knives and guarded the gates of their homes. Some of them wanted to run to the gates of the city, but Liu Xian’an stopped them: “Cheng Dacai, where is your daughter-in-law!”

The young man who was questioned by him replied: “At home.”

“Take her to the ruined temple.” Liu Xian’an found a high platform and stood on it, shouting, “Gather all those who cannot protect themselves at the ruined temple. The rest who can hold a sword are responsible for guarding the temple gate. We have to go to the same place together, running around here and there in such a way is not going to protect our families.”

“But in case the Yan army breaks into the city…..”

“Then what if someone wants to kill your wife before the Yan army breaks into the city?” Liu Xian’an didn’t talk to him further, but called to more people, “Quickly! Take your families and follow me!”

Some people chose to listen to his words, and moved their parents, wives, and children to the ruined temple. The sick and weak stayed in the innermost part, and the young and middle-aged stayed outside with weapons. In addition, many people shouted along the street, saying that the ruined temple was protected and everyone should go there. Miao Changqing led a hundred of his men to guard the outermost perimeter. The old man had a white beard and hair, just like the gatekeeper general in the New Year portraits.

More and more people took refuge, and the ruined temple couldn’t fit them all, so they scattered to the houses in this area, and Miao Changqing formed teams of youths with swords to guard every intersection. Such commotion finally attracted Yuan Zong’s attention, and he asked in displeasure: “What does Lao Miao intend to do?”

The officer who came to report said: “General Miao is holding His Majes……Huang’s sword, and he’s obeying that doctor’s orders.”

The military advisor next to Yuan Zong said in a nonchalant way: “The Emperor still can’t see his intentions?”

Yuan Zong himself was full of longing for the throne, so he felt that others should feel the same way. His face was livid as he said: “Tell Lao Miao to quickly bring his people over, as well as all the young and middle-aged men who can fight. If they refuse, if they refuse to come—”

The military advisor completed the second half of the sentence for the new emperor: “Those who resist the decree and do not obey will be killed without mercy.”

Three streams of fiery arrows streaked across the sky, bringing with them a sharp sound.

The Yan army’s attack on the city had already begun.

Liu Xian’an also stood with Miao Changqing, watching an army come from the other end of the smoke-filled street with swords in their hands. Before the people arrived, the leader had already ordered loudly: “The Emperor has commanded that General Miao and all the young and middle-aged men will go out of the city to join the battle without a moment’s delay! Go quickly!”

Liu Xian’an asked: “If the young and middle-aged are gone, who will protect the old, young, sick, and weak? We won’t leave.”

The response he received was the rattle of swords. A-Ning stood bravely in front of his young master: “What, do you intend to kill someone?”

“I almost forgot, if you don’t go out by yourselves, the military advisor ordered that others can live, but Liang Shu’s spies must die!” The leader pointed at Liu Xian’an. “Someone come and arrest him!”

A group of soldiers rushed forward fiercely, and Miao Changqing said angrily: “Who dares! Back off!”

But this old general obviously didn’t have much authority anymore, or perhaps had been dismissed by Yuan Zong. Seeing that Liu Xian’an was about to be taken away, the surrounding young and middle-aged people stepped forward to stop it one after another, and a small-scale commotion broke out at the scene. The leader became even more dissatisfied at the sight: “Arrest them all for me! Those who disobey will be punished as spies!”

“The battle is imminent, yet you won’t go out of the city and just stay here to threaten the common people, calling them to fight and kill!” Wang Fan swept away the person in front of Liu Xian’an with a single blow, and said coldly, “I’ll see who dares to touch my doctor!”

“You oppose us!” The leader drew his sword and slashed, but he was no match for the Wang family brothers. He rolled off his horse awkwardly and lost his composure, shouting: “Whoever stands with them, kill them all, so as not to shake the morale of the army!”

Miao Changqing’s eyes widened in fury: “You’re crazy!”

He tried to ride a horse to find Yuan Zong, but the horse’s legs were cut by random blades, and Wang Fan pulled him to a safe place. At this time, the rebels were already killing like madmen. The young and middle-aged men raised their blades to resist, and some of them shouted, saying they were willing to go out of the city and fight, but what they got in exchange was the cold glint of a blade. Some people saw the signs and called: “They just want to kill us!”

Miao Changqing was already injured. Liu Xian’an tried to help him, but he almost tripped over. With sharp reflexes, Wang Fan picked him up and said: “Young Master, don’t panic. The prince has already sent many people into the city to deal with the current situation.”

He did? Liu Xian’an looked around, and sure enough, he found that among the common people, there were many masters mixed in, and it would be impossible to count them on two hands and two feet. Flying back and forth, they were even more dazzling, so he asked: “When did they all enter the city?”

“As long as you are willing to spend money, no matter how long the queue is, you can get to the front,” Wang Fan said. “This mob is far from being the opponents of our army. You just wait and see, the prince will definitely break through the city within three days.”

The people in the ruined temple worked together and quickly killed all the rebels. Liu Xian’an walked over the mountain of dead bodies, and after finding the leader who had been shouting for their deaths just now, he picked up a knife beside him and cut open his shirt.

Puzzled, A-Ning asked: “What is the young master doing?”

“His behavior just now was too abnormal. It was as if he didn’t come to urge the common people to go to the battlefield at all, and just wanted to find a pretext to kill people. But it stands to reason that the battle has just begun, so there is no need to be so anxious even if they want to massacre the city.” Liu Xian’an said, “If something goes wrong, there must be a culprit. I suddenly thought of the Baifu Sect, but he doesn’t have any tattoos on his body.”

“He is not a member of the Baifu Sect, but that does not mean that there are no people from the Baifu Sect standing on the city gate,” Wang Fan said. “As Young Master says, it really is possible.”

“If it is the cult, it is even more important to protect the common people.” Liu Xian’an took out Huang Wangxiang’s sword from under the statue. “Right now, there is a fierce battle at the city gate, and Yuan Zong can’t take care of this end. Let’s hurry and send everyone out of the city through the small northwest gate.”

Wang Fan nodded: “All right. Young Master, come with me.”

. . . . . .

At the front of the battlefield, blood stained the sky.

Liang Shu adopted the most violent and direct method of attack. Thousands of troops roared like ferocious beasts as thunder filled the dark sky. Fire bombs and boiling oil could not force the attacking forces back. Heavy logs hit the city gates again and again, causing the bluestone city wall tens of zhang high to shake. Yuan Zong’s face was as pale as paper.

He had thought that all of Dayan’s troops were like the ones he encountered earlier, the kind that could be easily defeated, corrupt and unable to bear one strike, so his ambition swelled all the way. He had felt that the whole country was crumbling, and he only needed to tug lightly to change who was sitting on the throne. But now, he personally experienced what a real army was, tens of thousands of cavalry with black armor and long swords. Under Liang Shu’s leadership, they looked so uniform, brave, and invincible. Their bodies and strength of will were like cast steel as they advanced and retreated in an orderly manner, far from the disintegration and collapse of a dynasty.

This was an undefeated master.

“Your Majesty!” A soldier hastened to report, “The city gate will soon be overwhelmed.”

“……Line up, go out of the city to fight!” Yuan Zong clenched the sword in his hand, almost unable to stand steadily. He was already starting to regret that he couldn’t wait to ascend the so-called throne, but he had to stand firm. “Call everyone, go out of the city!”

“Yes!”

“Your Majesty,” the military adviser reminded, “The people who went to look for General Miao have not yet returned.”

“You go have a look.” Yuan Zhong was flustered internally and just gave a casual order, not taking it seriously.

A military division trooped all the way through the city, and at the same time, Liu Xian’an had already led the common people through the northwest gate to hide in the dense forest outside the city. Nobody spoke, they just held their breaths and walked deep into the dense forest, trying to find the safest shelter from the wind before night fell.

The entirety of Sanshui City had almost become empty. The small gate to the northwest was open, and no one was on duty. The military commander’s face was livid, and he ordered: “Go with me out of the city to search!”

The sun gradually sank.

One the battlefield, blazing torches burned, and the city gate collapsed. The Yan army rushed into the city in an unstoppable wave and fought with the rebels. Yuan Zong’s eyes were blinded by the bloody mist, and his horse was also injured. He hadn’t even been able to see Liang Shu at close range. The combat power of the two sides was truly different, whether in terms of combat strategy or the armies themselves.

In a great panic, the new emperor escaped from the city overnight through a side door, surrounded by a group of subordinates, but before he could take two steps, he was blocked by a team of militia.

“Huang Wangxiang.” Gao Lin looked at the man wrapped in a bright yellow robe before him. “Only now do you think of fleeing. It is too late. Surrender.”

Yuan Zong breathed heavily. On top of his initial emotions, another humiliation was added. He had originally thought that the army of the Dayan Dynasty knew of him, and that he was a frightening existence, but facts proved that the other party didn’t even know his own name.

He gave a loud cry, drew his sword, and went forward to kill.

But there was not half a chance of victory.

This small group of rebels was quickly subdued by the Yan army, and one of them, likely in order to survive, took the initiative to inform them: “He, he is not Huang Wangxiang!”

When he heard this, Gao Lin was truly shocked. He thought the other party was playing tricks in a crafty escape plan, so he grabbed him and asked: “Where is Huang Wangxiang!”

The other party said tremblingly: “Dead. Already dead, killed by General Yuan, Yuan Zong!”

Gao Lin asked again: “Where is Yuan Zong?”

Yuan Zong who was right next to him: “…….”

Of course, Gao Lin figured it all out in the end, and the Yan army also found Huang Wangxiang’s body inside the city.

It was completely dark.

Deep in the dense forest, Liu Xian’an was huddling with the common people to keep warm. Because it was not yet clear how the battle outside was going, they didn’t light camp fires, and could only make use of one another’s body heat to resist the cold. Nobody made a sound. The young and middle-aged people scattered around, and after a while, someone suddenly ran back to warn: “There are troops ahead!”

The atmosphere became tense at once.

A-Ning asked softly: “Is it the prince’s army?”

“Not likely,” Wang Fan said. “Everyone, be vigilant.”

Everyone held their breaths, wondering what would happen next. And at this moment, there happened to be a little child who cried “wah-wah.” The clear voice cut through the silent night sky, causing countless hearts to contract sharply!

The woman hastened to cover the child’s mouth tightly, but it was too late. The sound of chaotic footsteps was getting closer and closer, and before anyone arrived, dozens of flaming arrows were already shot over!

“Careful!” Wang Fan swept away the falling arrows, picked up Liu Xian’an, and placed him on the other side. Dozens of others immediately surrounded him to protect him in the middle. Torches were lit all around. It was the rebels, and someone shouted: “Kill them!”

Miao Changqing drew his sword out of its sheath: “Follow me to protect the common people!”

The young and middle-aged people quickly gathered around him, and the silence in the dense forest was broken, half with crying and half with killing.

The military leader stood at a high place, looking through the crowd, and his gaze landed directly on Liu Xian’an. And Liu Xian’an was also observing him. With high cheekbones and a short face, he didn’t look like the common people of the central plains.

“Brother Wang, go and catch that person!” Liu Xian’an said, “It’s better to keep him alive.”

Wang Fan recruited three people and flew up to the high ground. That military adviser also flew backwards, and his martial arts were more than ten Yuan Zongs combined. 

Liu Xian’an stood on the tips of his toes: “Don’t let him get away!”

There was an odd, grotesque smile in the military advisor’s eyes. He dodged to avoid Wang Fan and the others, but did not run further away. Instead, he suddenly turned and rushed toward Liu Xian’an, and a hidden weapon bathed in blue light flashed out of his hand.

Clank, bang. There was the sound of metal colliding and bone and flesh breaking.

All of the hidden weapons were wrapped up together in a big black cloak, and the military advisor was also twisted by the neck and thrown heavily into a tree.

Liu Xian’an said happily: “Your Highness!”

He immediately ran over with no care for what he was stepping on, and slipped with a whoosh: “Ah!”

Liang Shu opened his hands without changing his expression, and took that person firmly into his arms.