Unparalleled Evildoer

Chapter 114: No Relatives in Those Mountains and Clouds

Wuzhan thought for a moment and said calmly, "This is not a good idea. I am just risking everything and taking a risky move. I wonder if the general can trust me?"

Meng Tian stroked his silver beard and said with a smile: "Meng Yi has become a brother to the Taoist priest. We are all family members. Why bother to believe it or not?"

"If the general is trustworthy, can you temporarily hand over the military power to me?"

Meng Tian frowned slightly when he heard this, his face was solemn, and he was in a dilemma. According to the laws of the Qin Dynasty, military power was appointed and dismissed by the emperor, and the army had to be mobilized with the tiger seal as proof. The tiger seal was controlled and issued by the emperor, and military power could not be transferred privately, otherwise it would be considered treason. Although Meng Tian believed that there was no obstacle, how could he dare to do such an important thing easily? After thinking for a while, he asked, "Is it really necessary?"

Wuzhan said: "I have learned a few magic arrays, which may be able to confuse the Xiongnu and delay time, so that the general has enough time to defeat the Donghu and Xianbei who invaded Liaoxi. If successful, the situation can be reversed, but the array requires a large number of soldiers. If the soldiers are not obedient, it will be difficult to perform."

Meng Tian thought that if the Xiongnu formed a siege, the 200,000-man army would be annihilated. By the time the court mobilized the army, the northern counties would have been occupied, and it would be difficult to recover them. Meng Yi had already described Wuzhan's intelligence in detail in the letter. Now, after listening to his analysis of the situation, there was no need to doubt Wuzhan. He thought to himself, "If I can save the Qin Dynasty, what's the harm in putting all the blame on me!" He immediately said, "Okay! I'll hand the tiger talisman to the Taoist priest now!"

Wuzhan said: "That's not necessary. I just need the two trusted lieutenants under the general to obey my orders. The soldiers will still be led by them. In this way, the general does not need to worry about those responsibilities."

Meng Tian smiled and said, "My lieutenant has been with me in battle for many years. Taoist Priest, don't worry. I can definitely do it."

"General, how many cavalry do you think we can defeat the Donghu and Xianbei?"

Meng Tian thought for a moment and said, "Eighty thousand will be enough!"

"Then how about you lead 100,000 cavalrymen to fight against the Donghu and Xianbei, and leave the remaining 100,000 to me?"

Meng Tian said: "Eighty thousand is just a safe number for me. We need a lot of troops and horses to resist the Xiongnu. Leaving 100,000 to you is not enough. I will take 60,000 and you will lead the rest!"

Wuzhan said: "The general brought 100,000 troops because I hope that the general can make a quick decision and turn around to support me. I don't need to engage in a head-on battle with them. The lack of 20,000 troops will not affect the battle situation."

"Okay, let's follow the Taoist's arrangement!"

After the two men discussed the specific matters on the city wall, Meng Tian led Wuzhan back to the military tent and summoned the generals to discuss matters. After introducing them, he issued several military orders, leaving the cautious and steady General Fan and the brave and mighty General Xu to guard Yanmen, and privately instructed the two of them to obey Wuzhan's command and not to act without authorization.

Meng Tian selected 100,000 cavalrymen and rushed to Liaoxi at night to fight against the invading Donghu and Xianbei.

……

The sun rose and the morning mist lingered. The Huns learned that Meng Tian had rushed to Liaoxi and only left 20,000 soldiers to guard Yanmen. They quickly assembled and arrived at the foot of the city, intending to launch a general attack on Yanmen.

Standing on the top of the city wall without any obstacles, gazing at the undulating mountains outside the pass, looking for the lost greatness and the gentleness beside him, he sighed in his heart, "It's been more than ten years!"

General Fan walked up to the city wall and came behind Wuzhan to report: "Everything the Taoist priest ordered has been done!"

Wuzhan said in a deep voice: "General, please give the order to open the city gate!"

General Fan was stunned for a while after hearing this, and seemed to have concerns. He asked, "Master, isn't this a bit risky?"

"Don't worry, General. I know what to do. Just do as I'm told!"

General Fan no longer hesitated and ordered: "Open the city gate!"

"Squeaky..." The city gate that had been closed for more than ten days was slowly opened.

Seeing that there were only a few people on the city wall, Touman was about to order an attack on the city, but he never thought that the Qin army would take the initiative to open the city gate. Are they going to surrender? While he was wondering, he heard the sound of a zither coming from the city wall.

The sound of the zither was melodious and lingering, making people sad and arousing longing. The Xiongnu's momentum gradually faded. Touman suddenly glared at the Taoist priest in white playing the zither on the city wall. This scene was so similar to the scene more than ten years ago. It was the greatest shame in his life. How could he forget it? He didn't expect that this stinky Taoist priest would also insult him. He shouted angrily: "Qiyan Batu, lead the troops to charge in, and leave no one alive!"

The prime minister beside him advised: "Great Khan, be careful of fraud, we should follow the established plan and attack the city first."

"It's a bird trick, not to mention this stinky Taoist priest. Even if Meng Tian is here, this Khan is not afraid. Besides, the city gate is already open. Why are we attacking the city? Prime Minister, you are worrying too much!"

Qiu Linshan was also beside Touman, and advised: "Great Khan, this Taoist priest should not be underestimated. General Xu Ketuo and General Huyan Lieri died in his tricks. He alone is better than 100,000 cavalrymen." Touman angrily shouted: "How can a defeated general talk about courage? This Khan does not believe in evil. What magical power can he have to stop my 300,000 troops with only 20,000 soldiers? Qiyan Batu, go!"

Qiu Linshan hurriedly shrank back, wishing he could bury his head in the ground. Prime Minister Bi knew that he could not dissuade him, so he said nothing and stared at the peaceful figure on the city wall.

"Understood!" Qiyan Batu leaped into the front of the battle formation like a black leopard, holding a meteor hammer, looking majestic and awe-inspiring, and shouted, "Leopard Division, listen to my orders, follow me to charge into Yanmen Pass and slaughter the Qin soldiers!"

As soon as the order was given, people shouted and horses neighed, and 20,000 cavalrymen followed Qiyan Batu, rumbling towards the wide city gate, raising dust as they entered in a line.

Twenty thousand cavalrymen rushed into the pass, shouting and killing for a while, but there was no trace of the Qin army left behind. Qiyan Batu stopped the black leopard, raised his hand and shouted, "Stop!" The sound of killing stopped, the soldiers tightened the reins and looked around.

The melodious piano music continued. Looking back, I saw that there were no more than a thousand soldiers on the city wall, but they were frightened and trembling.

Qiyanbatu chuckled and ordered his soldiers to fire flares to inform the people in the city that everything was fine. As soon as the flares were fired, there was a loud bang from the city gate, which fell heavily to the ground. The loud bang seemed to ring in their hearts, causing the Xiongnu soldiers to tremble.

"Hehe! I will cremate you right now!" A green-faced Taoist priest sat on the city wall at some point, crossed his legs, and laughed teasingly.

Qiyanbatu said contemptuously: "Shoot down that stinky Taoist who speaks so arrogantly!" After hearing the order, the cavalry were about to draw their bows and draw their arrows. At this time, a "boom" sound came from three directions, and they saw war horses pulling thousands of chariots loaded with kerosene, dry firewood, and weeds, burning with blazing flames, rushing over.

Qiyanbatu felt bad. The city gate was sealed and there was no way to retreat. The only thing he could do was to break through the flame chariot. Thinking of this, he swung the meteor hammer and shouted, "Follow me!" He rode on a black leopard and rushed towards the chariot that was hitting him head-on.

The Xiongnu cavalry wanted to follow Qiyan Batu, but the horses they were riding were afraid of fire and refused to move forward no matter how they were driven. The flame chariot crashed into them in an instant, and the men and horses fell to the ground, screaming in agony. The fierce flames immediately surrounded the Xiongnu cavalry, and they had no choice but to retreat to the city.

At this moment, several iron chains broke out of the ground, trapping the cavalry under the city. The Qin soldiers on the city suddenly laughed and stood up. More than 20,000 people suddenly shouted, "Whoosh! Whoosh!" and dropped a dense number of kerosene barrels, all of which fell into the Xiongnu cavalry. The flames immediately exploded, and the city was a sea of ​​fire. Smoke rose to the sky. The people and horses, all covered in flames, howled and screamed, rushed around, rolled over and over, and turned into charred bones in an instant.

Although Qiyan Batu rushed out, few of his cavalrymen made it out. Looking at the 20,000 cavalrymen buried in the sea of ​​fire, his heart was torn and he howled in anger. He could not change this result.

"Hey, I'll take you in too!" Jin Xingzi suddenly appeared behind Qiyanbatu, his green face suddenly puffed up, and with a "puff", he spewed out a huge fireball and pounced on Qiyanbatu.

Qiyan Batu was furious. When he saw Jin Xingzi appear, he swung his meteor hammer and smashed it at him. He was not prepared for the fireball that was coming towards him. Before the iron ball could hit Jin Xingzi, it was hit by the fireball. Flames immediately ignited all over his body and he rolled to the ground, feeling extremely hot. He rolled on the ground quickly to try to put out the flames.

Jin Xingzi leaped up to avoid the meteor hammer, and seeing the black leopard roaring and rushing towards him, he freed one foot and shouted, "How dare you come and bite me!" With a "bang", the black leopard was kicked away by him and fell into the sea of ​​fire. Jin Xingzi rubbed his feet, turned to look at Qiyan Batu who was rolling on the ground, and the iron sword in his hand flashed, and with a "swish", Qiyan Batu's head fell to the ground.

The sound of the piano continued. When Touman saw the gate fall, he knew he had fallen into a trap and regretted not listening to the prime minister. He immediately ordered an attack on the city. In an instant, several huge rocks flew up and smashed into the Qin soldiers on the city wall. Several giant ramming machines rushed towards the city gate with a loud bang and crashed into the city gate, leaving many cracks on the gate. The stone bricks above fell down with a crash. Hundreds of ladders were placed side by side on the city wall, and the Hun soldiers, holding shields, climbed up quickly like a group of ants.

The Qin soldiers had already drawn their arrows and were shooting arrows in a rain of rain towards the city. Logs and rocks were whistling down and countless Xiongnu soldiers were crushed to death, shot to death, or fell to death. Some soldiers who climbed up were stabbed down by the Qin soldiers' spears.

At this moment, Jin Xingzi came to the top of the city wall happily, carrying the head of Qiyan Batu. He used brute force to throw the head down in the direction of Touman.

The head drew a parabola in the air and fell right in front of Touman's horse. When Touman saw it, he was heartbroken. Three of his four elite cavalry units had been destroyed. He gritted his teeth and glared at Wuzhan who was still playing the piano on the city wall, wishing he could eat his flesh alive.

When Prime Minister Bi saw this, he shook his head and sighed. When other soldiers saw this, their blood boiled and they were eager to give it a try.

……

The music finally stopped. Wuzhe slowly stood up, his eyes moist, and said to General Fan beside him: "It's time, we should retreat!"

General Fan knew that the gate could not be defended and was about to be broken open. It would be too late if he did not leave now, so he ordered: "Withdraw!"

All the passages beside the city gates had been blocked. More than 20,000 Qin soldiers followed Wuzhan and General Fan and walked a long way before they got down from the city wall. They joined up with the 30,000 Qin soldiers who were ambushing in the city and burning the Huns, and left quickly.

The Xiongnu soldiers who climbed up the city wall saw that the Qin army was leaving the city, so they did not rush to pursue them. Instead, they stood on the city wall to guard. The hinges of the city gate had been cut off and the gate could not be opened. However, the city gate was soon knocked down, but the raging fire that was still burning prevented them from entering.

The Qin soldiers walked a long way when they heard a loud "boom" behind them. Looking back, they saw thick smoke and flying bricks. Many of the thousands of soldiers guarding the city gate were killed in the explosion.

(End of this chapter)