Chapter 704: Storming the City

Only moments earlier, Qian Liansheng had received word from the Song court that the Yan army had buried six hundred thousand sons of Song alive. He realized he had been played by Yan. What damned negotiations? The deaths of those six hundred thousand men filled him with grief and fury he had nowhere to vent. He immediately rushed over to demand an explanation from Shang Jianxiong, only for Shang Jianxiong to refuse to see him.

Not long before, they had dragged him into negotiations. Now they would not even meet him. Tong Mo, who had been responsible for the talks, did the same. Officials throughout Yan avoided him.

Since that was how things stood, Qian Liansheng cast propriety, righteousness, integrity, and shame aside and began hurling abuse outside the palace gates.

He had little choice. As Song's envoy, he had taken part in negotiations yet failed to save those six hundred thousand sons of Song, so some measure of responsibility would inevitably fall on him. All he could do now was make as great a spectacle of the matter as possible. The better it would be if word of him standing outside the Yan imperial palace and cursing them spread beneath Heaven.

His grief over the six hundred thousand dead was genuine, but this deliberate loss of decorum was also for his own sake. He needed something he could point to back home as proof that he had not failed for want of trying.

At first, the palace guards ignored him, while the officials responsible for such matters hid behind the walls and refused to show themselves. But Qian Liansheng cursed without end, and the abuse became uglier and uglier. At last, the palace sent out a squad of guards to drive him away.

Qian Liansheng refused to give up. Each time they chased him off, he came running back, like a shrew cursing in the street.

With no other choice, the palace guards finally arrested him. They did not actually harm him. When two states were at war, not killing envoys was a tacit rule. More importantly, many ministers at court were also urging that the Song envoy not be killed.

Those ministers had selfish reasons of their own. If they killed Song's envoy, they feared even harsher retaliation once the city fell. None of them wanted to push matters to the absolute limit. They still hoped to leave themselves one final path to survival.

And just as Qian Liansheng was being detained, drums and horns began sounding one after another outside the city.

The Song army had begun its assault.

The din was so tremendous that even people inside the palace could faintly hear it. The consorts and concubines of the inner palace fell into panic.

Standing high atop the palace steps, Shang Jianxiong's palms were clammy with cold sweat. He was equally frightened and uneasy, not knowing whether the city could be held.

Meng Xuan, who was stationed in the palace, stood atop a high pavilion and gazed into the distance. Several large flying mounts descended from the sky and landed inside the palace grounds. The three major sects were also preparing for evacuation in case the city fell, ensuring that the most important people could be withdrawn in time.

Outside the city, the Song army had not sat idle during the siege. To pressure Yanjing, they had already cut timber from the surrounding hills and forests and built siege engines. At the time, it had mostly been for show. No one had expected the equipment to truly be put to use.

The great army surged toward the city like a tide, carrying scaling ladders as the shouts of battle shook the air. Siege engines rolled forward at the same time.

Soon, archers on both sides were exchanging rains of arrows, and screams broke out everywhere.

In this respect, the defenders were at a disadvantage. There was not enough open space atop the walls to deploy archers in formations large enough to match those outside.

Song cultivators seized the opportunity and flew forward, trying to reach the battlements and open a path for the army. A group of Yan cultivators flew out from the walls to intercept them. The two sides fought amid the human tide surging toward the city, while the soldiers swarming forward like ants paid no attention to the danger created by the cultivators' battle. Those who fell, fell. Those still standing cared only about pressing the attack.

Scaling ladders slammed against the walls. Song soldiers climbed desperately while the defenders above used long forks to push the ladders away. Every ladder that toppled sent a string of men crashing backward into the masses below.

With heavy thuds, steel bolts from siege crossbows sank into the city wall, creating ready holds for the attacking soldiers to climb.

Scalding oil was poured down from the walls, drawing wave after wave of screams.

Once the stone-throwing engines moved close enough, rocks began whistling toward the battlements. Stones and arrows that cleared the wall crashed into the civilian laborers assisting with the defense inside the city, sending up more screams. Terrified men broke and ran in every direction. Only after the defending commander ordered several of them killed did the rest steady themselves.

Fire arrows were lit along the walls and aimed at the siege engines below.

At the city gate, a group of Song soldiers pushed forward a massive timber ram. Before they could smash it into the gate, they were sprayed with incendiary oil. The great log caught fire, forcing the soldiers pushing it to scatter.

As the battle for the walls raged at full intensity, a group of Song cultivators rushed forward, intent on breaking through the city gate.

With a flash of steel, Ga Miaoshui drew the gleaming flexible sword from his waist atop the wall and shouted sharply, "Men, follow me! Kill!"

He was the first to leap down. His cloak billowed behind him like a great hawk diving toward the earth.

A group of eunuchs drew their swords and jumped after him. They took position before the city gate and met the charging Song cultivators head-on.

They might have been eunuchs, but there was nothing hesitant about them. Their fighting strength in particular was formidable. Under Ga Miaoshui's command, they held back wave after wave of attacking cultivators, making it impossible for the enemy to reach the gate.

At the attacking general's command, one group of cultivators withdrew. Archers advanced together with siege crossbows, preparing to smother Ga Miaoshui and the others before the gate in a devastating covering attack.

Ga Miaoshui and his men instantly tensed.

With a sweep of his cloak, Ga Miaoshui struck a palm into the flames. The burning ram that had been pushed up to batter the gate swung crosswise, and the eunuchs threw themselves down behind it.

Just then, thunderous hoofbeats rolled in from the distance.

"The Yingyang and Wulie Guards!"

"It's the Yingyang and Wulie Guards!"

"The Yingyang and Wulie Guards are here!"

The defenders atop the walls suddenly erupted in cheers. A moment later, the rear of the Song assault force dissolved into chaos.

Ga Miaoshui rose from behind the burning flames and looked up, but still could not see clearly. With a sweep of his cloak, he flew back onto the wall and stood there with sword in hand, staring into the distance.

A large cavalry force, led by a great banner bearing the character "Shang," had smashed into the Song army's rear. It swept across the formation like a gale, immediately throwing the Song attack into complete disorder.

The Song assault collapsed. Its commanding general hurriedly redirected the siege troops to resist the cavalry striking from behind. Those who had already reached the foot of the walls and could not retreat in time were simply doomed to die.

After sweeping across the battlefield, the cavalry did not become entangled with the larger Song force. It came and went like the wind, swiftly breaking away.

Once it had withdrawn some distance, the cavalry re-formed and watched the Song army like a tiger watching its prey.

Beneath the great "Shang" banner, Shang Chaozong rode forward, saber held crosswise as his warhorse neighed beneath him.

Under Meng Shanming's arrangements, Shang Chaozong was not supposed to take part in defending the capital. He was to wait until Luo Zhao's army began its withdrawal, then harass it along the road, slowing and exhausting the retreating Song forces, delaying them and draining their provisions in preparation for dealing with them afterward.

But once Shang Chaozong received word of the attack, he could not simply stand by and watch. He could not ignore the Song army attacking Yan's own capital. As a member of Yan's imperial clan, and especially as Prince Ning's son, he could not tolerate an enemy army running rampant inside Yan without teaching it a lesson.

His tactics were simple. He would not fight the Song army head-on. He would harass it and make sure Yanjing could not be taken easily.

That was exactly what followed. Whenever the Song army attacked the city, his cavalry came and went at speed, choosing weak points in Song's formation to strike. The Song army was unable to concentrate its full strength on the siege.

For the moment, the sounds of assault died away. Then came the cheers from atop the walls.

"Prince Ning's Yingyang and Wulie Guards are here!"

The people inside the city erupted as well. The cheers gradually swept across all of Yanjing. Shang Chaozong's single attack brought tremendous confidence to everyone in the capital that the city could be held.

Hearing the uproar from within the city, Ga Miaoshui stood on the walls with blood staining his cloak. He looked back and listened to the cheers for a moment, then turned again toward the Nanzhou troops facing the Song army in the distance. His expression was extraordinarily complicated.

"Shang Chaozong's Nanzhou forces attacked the Song army?"

Inside the imperial palace, Shang Jianxiong stood beneath the eaves atop the steps and asked the question in obvious surprise.

Tian Yu, who had brought the report, nodded. "Yes. The Song army's first assault has already been suppressed by the forces under Shang Chaozong. Faced with attacks from the Nanzhou army, the Song forces no longer dare act rashly."

Shang Jianxiong's cheek twitched. His expression was equally complicated.

Tong Mo, Shang Yongzhong, and Gao Jiancheng stood nearby, looking at one another.

On the high pavilion, Meng Xuan gave a soft "Oh?" when he heard the news. He seemed rather surprised, and a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

The Song force here numbered five hundred thousand. Facing Shang Chaozong's one hundred thousand cavalry, it truly did not dare disperse its strength recklessly.

But after this stalemate dragged on, the enormous threat that had been approaching finally arrived.

At dawn the next day, the main body of Luo Zhao's Song army reached Yanjing.

Three million troops assembled in a vast host. Their scale and presence alone were terrifying. When the entire army shouted in unison, the defenders atop the walls felt their courage falter.

Luo Zhao, wearing silver armor and riding a white horse beneath a white cloak, personally inspected the situation outside the city and listened to the vanguard commander's report on the assault.

He then moved around to inspect the one hundred thousand Nanzhou cavalry facing the Song army. After looking them over, he could not help praising them. "Nanzhou's army truly is extraordinary. Faced with my three million troops, they do not show the slightest fear. They are nothing like those rabble armies of Yan."

Even so, one hundred thousand troops looked pitifully small beside three million.

The vanguard general said, "Shang Chaozong's hundred thousand cavalry keep harassing our rear. They advance and withdraw too quickly. They are a serious nuisance."

Luo Zhao turned and ordered, "Have the army rest in shifts. Order every unit to send men into the nearby mountains to fell timber and build siege engines. At midnight, attack Yanjing from all sides at once."

He had more than enough troops to do it.

The general looked puzzled. "Attack the city in darkness?"

Luo Zhao said, "When the assault begins, have the forces in the rear extinguish their lights. Shang Chaozong will not be able to see how our army is moving. Fearing a trap, he will not dare make a reckless move."

The general immediately understood.

The plan proved effective. Later, Shang Chaozong could see the battle raging at the foot of the walls, but he had no idea what was happening among the Song forces farther back. He truly did not dare launch another charge. The enemy army was simply too enormous.

Toward evening, Tong Mo left the palace and returned briefly to the Grand Minister of Works' residence.

His steward, Tong Ming, met him at the entrance and ushered him inside, saying quietly at his side, "Master Yan has arrived. She is waiting for you in the study."

Tong Mo's eyes brightened, and he immediately quickened his pace.

When he entered the study, he saw a bright, captivating woman half-reclining in a chair, a book in her hands as slender fingers turned the pages. Sandalwood smoke curled beside her. Luxurious clothing set off her alluring beauty, while her brows and eyes carried a trace of cold severity.

The "Master Yan" in question was this woman: none other than Yan Baoru, ranked second on the Golden Core Ranking, behind only Ximen Qingkong of Tianwei Residence.

The moment Tong Mo saw her, he hurried forward and cupped his hands in greeting. "Master Yan, at last you are here."

Yan Baoru raised her eyes to look at him, set down the book, and stood with a faint smile. She nodded. "Grand Minister Tong."

[End of Chapter 704]