Insects chirped faintly in the distance as sunlight, filtered through the leaves, gradually slanted lower. The group crossed mountains and ridges swiftly and silently, and only as the sun began to set did they finally stop in a sparse patch of forest in the mountains. A brief camp was made, the atmosphere grim and tense.
Yan Qing sat by a rock beneath a tree, eating dry rations with water, watching the sky and the surrounding terrain. Nearby, his men huddled together, eating and murmuring quietly among themselves; some cleaned their weapons, but no one made much noise.
Where this latest shift in direction was headed had not been clearly explained to most people, but in truth, an eerie, grim atmosphere had already settled over the entire group along with the unusual movements of the past couple of days. In the murmured whispers passing among them, everyone sensed that the leadership was preparing to make a major move now.
A man who wasn’t ruthless couldn’t hold his ground. Among Liangshan’s current ranks were many willing to risk their lives, especially given the clear purpose and clean execution of their movements these past few days, which had brought back some of the old spirited pride from Liangshan’s founding days of brotherhood. Although many things remained unclear, the signals coming down from above suggested that everything was proceeding smoothly.
Taking county towns, dragging the government troops around in circles, forcing them into awkward positions—amid all this, exactly what this “major move” would be had almost become secondary. In short, the attitude of “if you’re not afraid, we’ll be even more ruthless,” combined with the precise and effective agitation of the past few days, had stirred up morale and left people with a quiet sense that a great battle was coming.
As for what exactly it was, even Yan Qing wasn’t entirely sure at this point. Since leaving Raoping County, Song Jiang and the others had led the group forward swiftly, with a fairly clear objective—originally it seemed they were aiming to take the lightly defended Fucheng County, or possibly even to slip into the prefectural city amid the confusion in the Wurui Camp’s movements, making a desperate gamble. But partway through, the route had begun to feel subtly off.
As a leader himself, Yan Qing could always pick up bits of information from others’ conversations. Among the group, there were occasionally people somewhat familiar with the local terrain who would mention a place they were passing through. Yan Qing sketched a map in his mind, trying hard to piece together an impression of the surrounding area. A fellow leader came over and greeted him quietly; he responded with a few words, and suddenly a thought struck him.
That was probably… the most likely conclusion, only, if that were true…
He turned his head to look toward where Song Jiang, Wu Yong, and the others were likely gathered. The shadows of the trees were sparse, but figures moved among them. By the custom of the moment, everyone kept their own men gathered together and avoided wandering about except for occasional contact. Yan Qing frowned, uncertain whether what he was thinking could really be true, and undecided on whether he should go find out. The glow of the setting sun slanted across his face, and for a moment he couldn’t make up his mind.
A bird cried out once, then flew away from the treetops.
…
“…We’re now only two ridges away from Zhanjia Hollow. No more fires. Fortunately, most of us have already sensed something’s coming and are mentally prepared—victory or defeat, it all comes down to this one time…”
The grass was sparse, with a few flowers scattered on the ground; though the foliage wasn’t particularly dense, in this late-summer, early-autumn season, the leaves nonetheless gave off their most vibrant, lively feeling. Beneath that tree, Song Jiang, along with Wu Yong, Zhu Wu, and the others, held a small map, pointing things out and speaking in low voices.
“…We’d originally overthought this. Strike while they can’t react in time—this kind of thing has to be decided fast…”
“…The nearest Wurui Camp forces need two hours to make a round trip. We showed up in Raoping yesterday, and with all sorts of rumors flying about, once word reaches them today, they’re bound to hesitate over whether it’s a diversion. So we should have three hours, maybe more. If we raid their camp at night, even if we can’t throw them into full chaos, as long as they manage to form up a defense line, we can still easily cut right through it…”
“…Thinking back to the battle at Dulong Ridge—if I had decided to press the attack at the time, things wouldn’t have come to this…”
“Ah, Military Advisor, there’s no need to blame yourself. No one could have foreseen what followed back then. Liangshan… we brothers stand united, and united we can cut through metal. Yesterday’s defeat may well be today’s chance at victory. As long as we get through this, our Liangshan can rise again—and when that day comes, we’ll make sure that man pays back everything he’s taken, in full.”
“It must be so… They’re on the move every day, and their nighttime camp defenses are bound to be insufficient—but we still need to be careful, we can’t afford the slightest carelessness…”
After they finished discussing the matter, before long, several scouts led personally by Dai Zong finally returned and reported the situation to Song Jiang.
“…It’s confirmed… Zhanjia Hollow…”
…
“Zhanjia Hollow…”
Yan Qing traced his finger lightly across the ground, brow furrowed. The setting sun had already burned into its final crimson glow at the horizon, pouring down like blood, staining everything in sight red.
Fengping, Raoping, and Fu’an counties formed a rough triangle. Before the attack on Fengping, the position of the Dulong Ridge forces, the positions of the various Wurui Camp units, everyone’s position when they’d appeared at Raoping, and every possible route of advance since then.
If the movements of the Dulong Ridge forces during this time had two purposes—first, to keep close on the trail of this group, and second, to help complete the Wurui Camp’s encirclement—then right now, they were most likely positioned somewhere between Fengping and Fu’an counties. Zhanjia Hollow… was one of the possibilities.
With rumors flying everywhere, the Wurui Camp forces on both sides might well hold their positions, and even if they did move, it might take slightly too long. For the past half month, this group had never dared to fight the army head-on, because they truly couldn’t afford to be worn down further—but if they turned around and made their first strike a burn-the-boats, all-out gamble…
And their target might not even be the men of Dulong Ridge.
A certain answer was already forming, half-spoken, in his mind. As the sun sank lower, orders gradually came down forbidding fires or noise, telling everyone to rest in place and prepare. As Yan Qing stood up, he saw, in the distance among the trees, Song Jiang speaking quietly with a group of soldiers, and once he finished with that group, moving on to another…
…
“…Given the special circumstances, Song Jiang cannot speak loudly—please forgive me, brothers… Since I rose up in rebellion, I have been fortunate to receive all of your trust and support; I have accomplished little, and feel deep shame for it… Now we have been pushed to our limit, but this is also the moment of our turning point… Our advisors have planned with all their hearts, all for the sake of seizing this one chance…”
The sunlight sank further, and in the sky, a crescent moon, missing a sliver, had already risen, casting its glow down over the land. A bird flew past above the trees. Song Jiang walked among the ranks, rallying the spirits of group after group of soldiers.
“…We have lost many brothers; some of you have lost family. For all of this, there is only one man to blame… His schemes are vicious, his heart cruel and merciless—as long as he lives, we will never know peace… But I, Song Jiang, promise you all, brothers: our chance is coming very soon. I cannot speak of it plainly just yet, but eat well, rest for now, and before long, you will understand…”
“We will avenge our brothers, avenge our families… The mastermind behind all of this—before long, you will see that man weep, see him die! And sooner or later, we will go to Jiangning again, and send this man’s entire family… down with him. When that day comes, be it his wife, his children, his friends and kin—we will spare none of them. Only then can we truly pay tribute to the souls of Liangshan’s fifty thousand brothers in heaven… Wait just a little longer, get your blades ready, you’ll see it soon…”
“They think we’ll keep running forever, think all we want is to stall! But we’re about to show them—our Liangshan… is one that fights its way through!”
…
The low murmurs among the men were being hushed one by one by the various leaders. But throughout the forest, as people cleaned their blades, every exchanged glance and every brush of contact between bodies carried an unmistakable killing intent. Under the sparse stars and bright moon, everything was grim, still, and silent.
Yan Qing stood among the crowd, letting out a breath, the hand at his side opening, clenching, opening, clenching again…
That Ning Liheng—he’s formidable…
He might well be prepared for this…
Even if Dulong Ridge only has a little over two thousand men, they might well be able to hold…
Liangshan has already been driven to the edge of ruin…
What comes next isn’t something for me to do—what he asked of me, I’ve already done…
Wu Yong and the others already know there’s a mole among the leadership; there’s no way they haven’t prepared for it. I could be exposed, and there’s a chance that acting too clever might complicate things further…
But as long as they’re not certain it’s me, they’ll have no way of discovering a covert move, and even if they did find out, I might already be gone by then…
Don’t take the risk…
Can’t just sit by and do nothing…
His mind fell into deep hesitation. He looked up at the moonlight filtering through the gaps in the trees, and shook his head.
No matter how he looked at it, it felt like…
There was no need.
Live or die by my own choices—Ning Liheng, a man as clever as you, surely you wouldn’t be caught unprepared…
My lord, oh my lord, I’ve kept my promise. That should be enough…
…
Time passed, and hidden within the peaceful stillness of the night was something like the edge of a sharp blade, its force still quietly gathering, growing keener still under that silent pressure. Putting on armor, tying back sleeves, wiping down blade edges, again and again…
With a swift motion, at the edge of the camp, a figure slipped into the underbrush like a wildcat, moving silently through the moonlight.
The scenery before him kept unfolding and parting. He didn’t need much time—just enough to raise one warning would be sufficient. It was only unfortunate that, given the constant flight of these past days, he had no signal flares or the like on him—but the direction of Zhanjia Hollow wasn’t too far from here.
If that man died, everything would fall apart at the final step—even the young lord back in the capital might never truly be exonerated or live well again. If Liangshan’s fate hinged on this one battle, then he would have to take this risk once more himself.
Grass, trees, rocks, darkness—all slipped silently aside beneath the swift movement of that figure. But it was in the midst of this very rush that the wind of an attack suddenly bore down on him!
…
In the forest, leaders exchanged greetings and hand signals with one another, one, two… and finally all three thousand figures rose silently and began to move.
Where Yan Qing’s men were, Zhu Wu had already come over, appearing before the group. A moment later, they merged into the advancing column, surging forward like a silent flood…
…
With a slap, a clash broke out in the darkness, followed by several soundless exchanges of blows, a blade thrust out silently and landed on empty air. Two figures leapt apart in different directions.
“Warden Dai…”
“Fine skill indeed.”
The blade slipped back into Dai Zong’s sleeve. Two zhang away, Yan Qing turned, and right in the direction he was facing, from the higher ground, figures came forward—one, two… until an unsettling, oppressive presence had gathered. The man at the front, his gaze deep and heavy, looked at him and shook his head.
“Yan Qing, oh Yan Qing—so it was you all along, in the end. This truly pains me!”
Under the moonlight stood Song Jiang, already prepared to kill—a dark hero of the underworld, never simply someone who dealt kindly with all. Behind him and beside him, Wu Song, Guan Sheng, Chai Jin, the Ruan brothers, and more than ten Liangshan elites had all gathered as well. But perhaps the most conspicuous among them, pale-faced from the long flight and isolation, sickly in appearance, was Xi Junyu. At this moment, he clapped his hands, finally able once more to stand as an important strategist beside Song Jiang.
“Fortune favors those aligned with heaven and earth; when fortune turns, even heroes lose their freedom. After all this time, all our scheming, it seems we’ve finally managed, just once, to get ahead of that man. Brother Yan, in truth, Young Master Lu is still alive, isn’t he… how wonderful, truly.”
The voice, somewhat weak yet touched with delight, unhurried and at ease all the same, drifted quietly through the night air…
…
Before long, on that final ridge, the first silhouette finally emerged silently, and then the men surged forward like a swarm of ants rising together. Among the crowd, someone reached out a hand, pointing toward the not-too-distant, poorly defended camp below—two thousand men strong.
Zhanjia Hollow. The assault came crashing down like a flood!