The soldiers who had been guarding the city for years could naturally tell from experience that such floating dust clouds were not from a large group of horsemen approaching. By rough estimation, it wouldn’t be more than three people, or at most just one.
Therefore, although they remained vigilant and immediately notified their superiors, they weren’t overly concerned. As the sound drew closer, they gradually determined it was just one person. Soon after, the tower’s firelight illuminated Geng Liangcheng, who was already nearly at the base of the city wall.
“Open the gates quickly!” Geng Liangcheng shouted at the top of his lungs before even reaching the city gate.
The archers positioned on the wall tower were ordered to stand down by their commanding officer. These men all recognized Geng Liangcheng, and after confirming with tonight’s gate commander that this was indeed General Geng Liangcheng, they took it upon themselves to open the city gates. The gate commander, who had once received Geng Liangcheng’s favor, personally went to the gate to welcome him.
As the gates opened and he had barely stepped out, before Geng Liangcheng could ride forward, several arrows shot out from the darkness with terrifying precision. Not a single arrow missed its mark – they struck both the man who came to welcome Geng Liangcheng and the two junior officers partially hidden by the doorway who had opened the gates.
At the same moment, dust clouds rolled in waves, the ground trembled, and thousands of Tujue soldiers charged forward in a killing formation.
“Close the gates, close the gates quickly—” a commander shouted from the wall tower.
But Geng Liangcheng hadn’t yet entered the city. He spurred his horse forward at full speed, and just before the heavy city gates could fully close before they could be secured, they were hit with a violent impact. This strike quickly forced the gates open, and with an incomprehensible shout, the Tujue broke into Jingzhou city.
Strangely enough, these Tujue soldiers bypassed Geng Liangcheng, seemingly ignoring him completely as they charged into the city, their numbers growing from few to many.
The soldiers at the city gate quickly gripped their weapons and tried with all their might to block the invasion, but it was like eggs striking stone. The Tujue soldiers came with overwhelming force and killing intent, easily breaking through into the city gates.
They advanced like an unstoppable force, but unexpectedly, once inside the gates, there were no sudden lights from nearby houses, no panicked citizens fleeing in all directions. The silence was so eerie it sent chills down their spines.
A unit of Han soldiers suddenly emerged from outside the city gate, swiftly attacking from the rear, while inside the city, large numbers of troops swarmed out. The Tujue army suddenly found themselves surrounded from front and back, with most of their forces trapped at the city tower. The number of archers on the tower had multiplied several times over, and arrows rained down as fighting erupted on both sides.
Geng Liangcheng was caught in the middle, still uncertain and confused at this point. Remarkably, neither the Tujue nor the Han armies had raised a blade against him. His mind was blank, unable to determine whether the Tujue Khan had used him or if his conspiracy with Xiao Juesong had been discovered.
Regardless, to protect himself now, he would have to fight fiercely against the Tujue.
However, before he could act, another group of people emerged from somewhere, striking down the Han soldiers who were blocking outside the city gate. They appeared to be anxiously searching for something, and upon finding Geng Liangcheng, immediately shouted: “General, let’s go quickly!”
Geng Liangcheng was bewildered – he didn’t recognize any of these people.
These men were trained by Xiao Changtai over the past year. With his vast wealth, Xiao Changtai could easily raise a sizeable army in a year if he wished. Though they might not become a major force, Xiao Changtai only required them to be brave and capable of fighting one against three, rather than being as well-coordinated as a regular army.
Xiao Changtai’s plan was simple: use Geng Liangcheng to open the city gates, let the Tujue attack, and then have his men strike like a mantis catching a cicada while the oriole waits behind. By pretending to be Geng Liangcheng’s men, they would confuse the Jingzhou army’s perception. Almost all of this was within Xiao Huayong’s predictions – in front of everyone, Xiao Changtai would establish Geng Liangcheng’s guilt of conspiring with the enemy and betraying the country!
The sounds of battle echoed inside and outside the Jingzhou city gates. Under the silent night sky, sparks flew as swords and blades clashed.
At this moment, the two commanders who had gone to infiltrate the Tujue camp to rescue Geng Liangcheng caught up. They were burning with rage, especially upon seeing the mysterious private army helping Geng Liangcheng. The two fought their way through, approaching Geng Liangcheng to capture him.
Geng Liangcheng wouldn’t surrender without a fight. He fiercely resisted, seized a long spear, and engaged in combat with the two men beneath the city gate. Xiao Changtai’s men, using the excuse of protecting Geng Liangcheng, continuously pressed forward. The Han soldiers, still unclear about the situation and maintaining their respect for Geng Liangcheng, chose to give way to these men who were shouting about protecting him, focusing instead on fighting the Tujue.
With help from Xiao Changtai’s men, the two commanders were no match for Geng Liangcheng. Xiao Changtai’s men restrained one commander and raised a blade to slash at his neck.
Geng Liangcheng cried out in horror: “No—”
His voice hadn’t finished when an arrow whistled through the air, piercing clean through the neck of the man who was about to kill the commander.
A lone rider wielding a long spear charged forward on horseback.
His black clothes were like ink, fluttering in the wind.
Though the two armies were so tightly packed at the city tower that not even water could flow through, he managed to force his way through powerfully. With his handsome and resolute face, and sharp and deep eyes, he twirled his spear and several Tujue heads fell to the ground.
Swift as an arrow, he charged through with unstoppable force.
It was none other than the missing Shen Yun’an!
While others were still stunned, the commander who had just escaped death reacted with exceptional speed, immediately swinging his blade at the traitor Geng Liangcheng.
Geng Liangcheng couldn’t dodge in time, and his arm was severely cut, flesh torn open. The sight of blood instantly enraged him – he had consumed some doctored food at dinner, substances that Xiao Huayong’s people had added, designed to make one easily angered and agitated.
Stimulated by his wounds and the sight of blood, Geng Liangcheng’s attacks against the two commanders became nearly lethal with every strike.
The two commanders quickly became covered in wounds, but Geng Liangcheng remained relentless. It was at this moment that Shen Yun’an broke through the encirclement and arrived before Geng Liangcheng. From horseback, he extended his spear to block Geng Liangcheng’s blade that was about to pierce a commander’s heart.
“Young Master, Geng Liangcheng conspired with the Tujue, we both witnessed it! He’s trying to kill us to silence us!” the two commanders shouted.
Hearing this, Shen Yun’an raised his spear and quickly pressed toward Geng Liangcheng. The drugs in his system were taking stronger effect – though Geng Liangcheng wanted to explain, his hands seemed to act of their own accord, meeting Shen Yun’an’s restrained attacks with lethal force at every turn.
Shen Yun’an retreated again and again, sustaining multiple minor wounds from Geng Liangcheng in the process. Finally, when Geng Liangcheng raised his blade to strike at Shen Yun’an’s head, and Shen Yun’an appeared to be cornered with nowhere to dodge, only then did he fight in earnest. His spear twisted around, and before Geng Liangcheng’s blade could fall, the spear pierced Geng Liangcheng’s heart. Geng Liangcheng’s blade stopped at Shen Yun’an’s forehead, its edge breaking the skin and leaving a thin, long bloody mark between his brows.
Geng Liangcheng died by Shen Yun’an’s hand in self-defense, killed only after Shen Yun’an had shown repeated restraint and was finally forced to act, all witnessed by many eyes.
This explanation would suffice.