The King of Western Liang turned his head to look at the young general who had occupied his barbarian-style bed.

Everything happened suddenly. A night attack, fierce and swift, but at the time he hadn’t thought much of it. He had walked out to see which fool had come to die, but before he could see clearly, a blood-covered young general with disheveled hair appeared beside him, seeming to rise from the ground, or perhaps a corpse that had been lying there.

After that, his vision was filled only with flying flesh and blood. He saw nothing else clearly, and then the young general stood behind him with a long blade across his neck.

The cry that the King of Western Liang had been captured tore through the night.

What followed was wave after wave of people falling, then wave after wave of people emerging like a dense forest to surround the area.

He was bound tightly, and the young general behind him had left.

When he saw the young general again, day had broken. The young general was wrapped in bandages, his hair tied up, revealing his face, younger than he had imagined.

And quite handsome too.

“You remind me of Chu Wei,” the King of Western Liang said as his first words.

The young general touched his chin: “I’m quite similar to him, but General Chu killed your father. Now the one who’s killed you is me. You can remember another name.” He emphasized again, “Xie Yanlai.”

He was a rather proud and boastful young man, afraid others wouldn’t remember his name. The King of Western Liang laughed heartily, repeated it, and nodded.

“Xie Yanlai,” he said. “Killing me doesn’t necessarily mean victory. What you should do now is release me. Otherwise, you’re certainly dead.”

Xie Yanlai chuckled: “I’ve never understood—” At this point, he hissed twice, seemingly in severe pain, and called out a name through gritted teeth, “Xiaoshan—”

The King of Western Liang saw a young man standing beside him rush to the barbarian bed, holding what appeared to be half a medicinal pill, about to stuff it into Xie Yanlai’s mouth, but hesitating.

“Young master, you can’t take any more,” he said softly.

Xie Yanlai snatched it from him and stuffed it into his mouth: “I know my limits.” After swallowing the pill, he continued what he’d been saying, his voice somewhat muffled, “You powerful figures, once captured, still threaten others. I don’t know if that’s clever or foolish—no, it’s too arrogant.”

He lay back, swallowed the pill, and took a deep breath to ease the pain.

“You think your importance matters, but once in someone else’s hands, what importance remains?”

“Since I dared to come capture you, I came prepared to die together. If I die, so be it. If I feared death, why would I come here?”

The King of Western Liang said: “What good does it do for you to die with me? If I die, I still have sons.” At this point, he smiled arrogantly. “Would you believe that the moment they learned I was captured, Western Liang already had a new king? I am nothing now. You can’t use me to threaten Western Liang. Even if Great Xia’s reinforcements arrive, it won’t help. You and Great Xia will gain nothing—”

Halfway through his speech, the young general on the barbarian bed called for water. The soldier named Xiaoshan hurriedly gave him some to drink. After a few sips, Xie Yanlai complained it tasted bad and refused to drink more, also grumbling that Xiaoshan wasn’t gentle enough, unlike his maidservants.

“When we return, I’ll learn properly from young master’s elder sisters among the maidservants,” Xiaoshan repeatedly promised.

The King of Western Liang didn’t mind the interruption. After they finished drinking and talking, he continued: “So, Xie Yanlai, what you should do now is release me and negotiate properly. I’ve already sent a peace proposal to Great Xia. Since you’ve captured me, I’m willing to make further concessions during negotiations. That way, both you and Great Xia will gain something—”

“Enough, Your Majesty, you needn’t say more,” Xie Yanlai interrupted lazily, waving his bandaged hand. “Who says I’ve gained nothing? So what if Western Liang immediately has a new king? Killing you, the King of Western Liang, is my greatest achievement. My life has been worthwhile, my name will go down in history—that’s what I’ve gained. As for whether it affects the war situation or what Great Xia gains, that’s not my concern.”

The war situation and Great Xia weren’t his concern? The King of Western Liang laughed incredulously. Had he come here to die just to leave his name in history?

“You—” he was about to continue.

But this time, as soon as he opened his mouth, Xie Yanlai commanded: “Gag him.”

The soldiers standing guard immediately tore some rags and gagged the King of Western Liang.

Xie Yanlai grunted: “So noisy.”

This remark should have been accompanied by a cool turn to face the wall, but unfortunately, he was now wrapped like a wooden doll. Though he wanted to turn over, before he could even put his leg down, he pulled some wound and let out a muffled groan.

“Young master—” Xiaoshan had been watching him closely and immediately rushed over, looking him up and down anxiously. “Where does it hurt? How are you? Is there any other medicine you can take?”

Xie Yanlai had put one leg down while the other remained raised. His upper body had turned, but his lower body still lay flat. He closed his eyes briefly: “So noisy! Shut up! Help me turn properly!”

Only then did Xiaoshan notice Xie Yanlai’s position and hurriedly helped move his leg over—

“Young master, your wounds are better if you lie flat,” he said again. “Why lie on your side?”

Xie Yanlai snorted: “Because it looks better.”

What difference did it make how it looked? Xiaoshan scratched his head in confusion.

“Alright, stop staring at me. Go watch outside,” Xie Yanlai said, his back to him.

Xiaoshan acknowledged but stopped before leaving, asking softly: “Young master, are you still all right? Can you hold on?”

“You’re talkative. If things outside can’t hold, what does it matter whether I can hold on or not?” Xie Yanlai said impatiently, but still answered, “I can hold on.”

Having received his answer and reassurance, Xiaoshan happily acknowledged and left.

Xie Yanlai lay motionless, facing inward, biting a sachet in his mouth. He bit so hard that the sachet seemed about to be crushed.

The sachet wasn’t fragrant anymore. The almond scent was gone, and the ink fragrance of the letter paper could no longer be smelled. His nose and mouth were filled only with the scent of blood—

During the battle, his robes had been soaked in blood, and the sachet hidden close to his body inside his collar hadn’t escaped either.

He bit tightly on the sachet so that each time he was about to fall unconscious and release it, he would suddenly awaken.

This way, he could stay conscious.

Although he might die soon, until the moment of death, he remained the master of victory.

Xiaoshan stood outside the tent, watching the night about to envelop the land, his face growing somber.

“Is the young master all right?” a soldier asked softly.

Xiaoshan sighed: “He’s in so much pain he can barely drink a few sips of water, and can’t even move.”

The soldier remained silent.

Another soldier came hurrying over but hesitated when he saw their expressions.

Xiaoshan looked at him and asked: “What is it?”

The soldier said: “The west side is surrounded now, too.”

Xiaoshan’s face darkened: “They came quite quickly.”

“This means we’re surrounded. Even if our reinforcements arrive, it will be difficult for us to break through,” the soldier said softly.

They had too few men.

The three looked out at the twilight. Outside the king’s tent, circles of soldiers surrounded them, like an Eight Trigrams formation, yet different. If someone looked down from above, they would see what resembled a flower about to bloom.

This was the battle formation the young master had devised, giving it a beautiful name: the Six Petals Formation. (Note 1)

When armies charged from all sides, it would bloom strangely and beautifully.

Then fall and turn to mud.

Xiaoshan snorted, folded his arms, and raised an eyebrow: “Break through? Since we came, we never planned to break through. We came to kill the King of Western Liang. Accomplishing that, we are content.”

The messenger soldier laughed and said sincerely, “Brother Xiaoshan, you don’t resemble the young master at all when you imitate him. The young master is taller and more handsome than you.”

Xiaoshan spat and kicked at him: “Go back to scouting.”

The soldier jumped away, laughing as he ran off.

That night, Xiaoshan kept watch outside. Although he was extremely concerned about Xie Yanlai, he was determined not to return to the king’s tent. If these Western Liang soldiers had a new king, and the new king ordered them to charge and flatten everything, he would hold the last line for his young master.

As the night gradually faded and dawn’s light appeared, there seemed to be commotion all around.

Xiaoshan, who had been sitting against the ground, suddenly straightened up, his bloodshot eyes looking sharply toward the source of the noise.

But there were no sounds of battle. In his view, a group of people came galloping.

“Report—Western Liang envoy has arrived—”

Western Liang envoy? Xiaoshan frowned. Previously, some Western Liang prince or official had sent envoys, but Xie Yanlai had said that with the King of Western Liang here, others had no right to send envoys. Those who came weren’t envoys and were beheaded directly.

After several such incidents, those people had not dared to come again.

Why had they sent someone now? And why had they been brought in?

“What’s going on?” Xiaoshan shouted, watching the approaching troops.

Besides Great Xia soldiers, people were wearing ordinary robes as well as Western Liang clothing—

“Report to General Xie, these are envoys from Western Liang City brought by the reinforcements,” the guards shouted.

This sentence contained two pieces of information. Reinforcements? The reinforcements had already arrived? Xiaoshan’s gaze fell on two men wearing ordinary robes.

“Are you the reinforcements sent by Commander Zhong?” he asked.

The two men shook their heads, then nodded.

How confusing—were they or weren’t they? Xiaoshan frowned. The guard had already approached and showed him a token: “They do carry Commander Zhong’s division tokens.”

Xiaoshan glanced at it, confirming it was genuine, then looked at the Western Liang envoy. An envoy from Western Liang City—so sent by the new king?

“Let him see the King of Western Liang,” the man in ordinary robes raised his chin. “He has something to say to the King of Western Liang.”

This man didn’t look like a soldier at all. Xiaoshan thought to himself but trusted Commander Zhong and asked no more questions, leading the Western Liang envoy into the king’s tent.

“Your Majesty—”

As soon as the Western Liang envoy entered, he fell to his knees with a thud, kowtowing and crying loudly, startling both Xiaoshan and the drowsy King of Western Liang.

The King of Western Liang opened his eyes, his gaze fixed on the envoy.

“Your Majesty,” the envoy raised his head, “the royal city has been looted by bandits—”

Looted by bandits?

For a moment, the King of Western Liang thought he was still asleep and dreaming. How could he hear such an absurd thing?

Where did bandits come from in Western Liang’s royal city? What bandits could loot the royal city?!

“It’s true, Your Majesty,” the envoy cried, taking out a jade ring from his bosom. “The Crown Prince… was killed by them—”

The King of Western Liang felt as if struck by lightning. His ears buzzed, and his vision contained only the jade ring held up by the envoy.

Of course, he recognized this jade ring. It was passed to him by his father, and he had just passed it to the Crown Prince before setting out on the campaign.

“Untie his gag,” Xie Yanlai, who had somehow turned over on the barbarian bed, suddenly said.

Xiaoshan came to his senses, rushed over, and tore off the cloth covering the King of Western Liang’s mouth. Piercing howls immediately filled the tent.

“I don’t believe it! I don’t believe it! This is impossible!”

Watching the always-composed King of Western Liang howl and tremble like a collapsing mountain, Xie Yanlai, lying on the barbarian bed, raised an eyebrow and chuckled: “Nothing is impossible.”

What could be impossible? He had met a girl named Chu Zhao while delivering dispatches. What else in this world could be impossible?

After saying this, he looked at Xiaoshan.

“Xiaoshan, go ask Commander Zhong to ask the Third Prince if he wants to become the King of Western Liang now that the Crown Prince is dead.”

…

…

Note 1: Created by the famous Tang Dynasty general Li Jing.