Chapter 136: A Sudden Betrayal in the Blink of an Eye

By the time afternoon drew near, the rolling dust-dragons in the distance were already visible to the naked eye — the Ming army had long since spotted them too.

By now, even if Mao Wenlong wanted to retreat, it was already impossible. Tong Shouyue, his heart finally settled, watched clearly from atop the wall: Mao Wenlong had begun to show a trace of anxiety, and the warhorse beneath him was pacing restlessly.

Unable to break the city in his haste and equally unable to retreat, Mao Wenlong simply abandoned any thought of letting the army rest and eat, driving them to assault the city with relentless urgency.

Even the trusted favorite general he called "Zhongming" received several lashes of the whip.

Tong Shouyue, now brimming with confidence, saw it plainly: these Han dogs clearly had no road left to run; only by fighting to the death could they have a sliver of hope to live.

Overjoyed, Tong Shouyue now abandoned any kite-fighting tactics and directly sent men to pass the word, loudly proclaiming that reinforcements had arrived, to beat back the Ming barbarians' siege army.

Sure enough, the Jianzhou barbarian defenders, receiving word that reinforcements were near, were overjoyed. Seizing the moment when the Ming assault faltered, they rallied and drove the Ming troops off the wall.

Seeing that not a single Ming soldier remained on the wall, Tong Shouyue shouted directly at Mao Wenlong: "Filthy barbarian! You said you'd take this old man's Tongyuan Fort — now take it and show your grandpa!"

Mao Wenlong's face was so dark it could have been wrung out. Suddenly he snatched up his horsewhip and brought it lashing down, head and face, upon that trusted general called Zhongming who had returned to report, cursing as he struck: "I'll flog you to death, you bastard!

What did you promise me? Now the Jianzhou barbarians' reinforcements are about to arrive, but where is Tongyuan Fort?

Still in the barbarians' hands!"

The general called Zhongming dodged as best he could, shielding his vitals, while protesting: "Grand General, it is not that your subordinate failed to give his all — the Jianzhou defenders fought to the death too.

They lack no siege-defense equipment, but we lack the tools for assault. In your subordinate's humble view, it would be better to withdraw for now and come back another day."

Mao Wenlong turned a deaf ear, still lashing and cursing: "Are you fucking blind? Geng Zhongming, open your dog eyes and look — the Jianzhou reinforcements are almost here. Leave? Where the hell do we go now? Go on, show me how you'd leave!"

Hearing this, Geng Zhongming looked beyond Tongyuan Fort. Seeing the two dust-dragons rolling in, his face instantly paled. In a trembling voice he said to Mao Wenlong: "Grand General, judging by this, the Jianzhou reinforcements are likely no small force. What do we do? Withdraw now?"

Mao Wenlong shot Tongyuan Fort another hate-filled glare and said bitterly: "Withdraw? Too late.

Tell the brothers: take Tongyuan Fort, and we hold out by the stronghold — there's still a thread of survival. Otherwise, today we become ghosts under the Jianzhou barbarians' blades, and we'll come back to claim their lives another day."

Geng Zhongming, however, said: "Grand General, why not let us leave first?"

Mao Wenlong flew into a rage and lashed out with another whip-stroke: "Bullshit! You want me to abandon all these brothers?

You must know these brothers were all brought here by me from Dongjiang. If I can't bring them back, I stay with them!

If you fear death and dare abandon your comrades to run off alone, I'll deal with you by military law first!"

Tong Shouyue, who had been watching Mao Wenlong's side closely, had in fact only faintly caught the sound of Mao Wenlong's furious shouts — probably just a few words like "reinforcements," "take," "run," "military law."

Before Tong Shouyue could string these words together and sort out their connection, he saw Mao Wenlong and Geng Zhongming below the wall put on quite a show.

First Geng Zhongming let out an angry roar, then threw himself bodily from his horse at Mao Wenlong. Caught completely off guard, Mao Wenlong was tackled to the ground.

Before Mao Wenlong's personal guards could rush to his aid, Geng Zhongming drew a utility knife from his person and pressed the blade against Mao Wenlong's throat, shouting: "Nobody move! Or I'll kill the Grand General first!"

Mao Wenlong's guards, hearing this, moved to go rescue him, but Geng Zhongming's guards crowded in around Geng Zhongming, forming an impenetrable ring. Both groups had blades drawn — a bloody clash was imminent.

Geng Zhongming, however, bellowed: "Stop! Anyone who doesn't want the Grand General dead, stop first!" Then he shouted at his own guards: "All of you, fall back! They're our own brothers — what are you doing!"

Seeing Geng Zhongming's guards all step back, Mao Wenlong's guards also slowly retreated a little, though they still kept their weapons at the ready.

Only now did Mao Wenlong recover his wits. He roared: "Geng Zhongming! You son of a bitch, what are you trying to do? You're courting death! When His Majesty learns of this, he will surely exterminate your nine degrees of kinship!"

Geng Zhongming sneered: "Grand General, it's not what your subordinate wants to do — it's that your subordinate does not want to die like this. Your subordinate wants to find a way out for the brothers."

Mao Wenlong said: "You dog-fucker, you talk pretty — you're just surrendering to the Jianzhou barbarians!" Having cursed, he directly ordered his guards: "Kill him! Forget about me!"

Geng Zhongming, however, tightened the knife in his hand. Sure enough, Mao Wenlong's guards opposite him no longer dared make a rash move.

Seeing this, Geng Zhongming shouted loudly: "The Great Jin Kingdom's grand army is about to arrive! Following Mao Wenlong is a dead end for you brothers — better we surrender to the Great Jin and seek wealth and glory!"

Seeing the many Ming soldiers around him all looking rather hesitant, Geng Zhongming was overjoyed. As long as they didn't just draw their blades and come hacking at him, the matter was already half done. He immediately began retreating toward Tongyuan Fort, holding Mao Wenlong hostage.

Once he reached the foot of Tongyuan Fort's wall, Geng Zhongming shouted: "I wish to abandon darkness and turn to the light! This Mao Wenlong is the gift I offer to the Great Jin Khan! Open the gates at once and let me in!"

Tong Shouyue, however, was a cautious man — how could he not know of the ruse of false surrender?

Although he had witnessed the clash between Geng Zhongming and Mao Wenlong with his own eyes, and the mutual hostility between their personal guards did not seem feigned, he still feared a trick. For caution's sake, he shouted down from the wall: "That Ming general!

It is not that this general will not let you in, but there are too many Ming troops below the wall. Once my Great Jin troops arrive, it will not be too late to let you into the pass!

Then you too shall have high office to hold and fine horses to ride!"

Geng Zhongming desperately wanted to enter the pass immediately but could not for the moment, and his heart grew increasingly frantic. Fortunately, it was not long before the Jianzhou barbarians' reinforcements came galloping up at full speed.

The Jianzhou commander was a sturdy man in his thirties. He led his troops to first surround the Ming army, then barked orders for the Ming soldiers to lay down their weapons.

Seeing this, Geng Zhongming hurriedly shouted: "General! I wish to surrender! I have captured Mao Wenlong alive!"

Hearing this, the Jianzhou general hurried over. Seeing that the uniform of the Ming general held hostage in Geng Zhongming's arms was indeed far superior to Geng Zhongming's own, he was overjoyed.

Without warning, Mao Wenlong spat a mouthful of thick phlegm at him. The general jerked his head aside, and it flew past his ear.

The Jianzhou general was not angered. He merely chuckled: "Grand General Mao? So you have your day too. I just wonder how my Great Khan will deal with you? The blood debt of Liaoyang City — you'll repay it today!"

Having spoken, he paid Mao Wenlong no further attention, devoting himself entirely to directing his troops to confiscate the Ming army's weapons. After dividing and surrounding them, he finally came to the foot of the wall, yanked off his helmet, and shouted up: "Open the gates for this old man!"

Though he did not recognize the Jianzhou reinforcement general, the money-pigtail queue on his head could not be faked. Tong Shouyue was instantly overjoyed and immediately shouted: "Right away!" With that, he trotted off to open the gates and go down to receive him.

When he reached the gate, the Jianzhou general watched Tong Shouyue trotting over and laughed: "A fine day today — we've struck it rich, struck it rich."

Tong Shouyue smiled obsequiously: "It is all thanks to the General arriving in time that we captured this dog barbarian Mao Wenlong. This time the General is certain to be promoted in rank and ennobled. Your subordinate congratulates you in advance, General!"

The Jianzhou general chuckled: "Good! Well said. When this old man gets his rewards later, I won't forget your sweetener either."

Hearing this, Tong Shouyue was overjoyed and poured out another string of auspicious flattery, massaging the Jianzhou general's ego until he was thoroughly comfortable.

After the grand army had entered the fort, the Jianzhou general finally said to Tong Shouyue: "Have someone bring that Han dog and the barbarian Mao Wenlong over. This old man wants another look."

Tong Shouyue, who had been thinking exactly the same, immediately ordered someone to summon Geng Zhongming. Seeing that Geng Zhongming was still holding Mao Wenlong at knifepoint, Tong Shouyue was delighted and said: "Not bad, you've done well."

Then he turned and cursed Mao Wenlong: "Filthy barbarian! Today you neither broke the city nor got away! This old man wants to see what else you have to say!"

I'll check in a bit whether the average subscriptions will drop below three thousand. If posting another chapter won't affect the average, I'll post one more.

If it would drop below three thousand, I'll wait until tomorrow to post, so as not to affect the average — dropping out of the premium tier would be too embarrassing. Come to think of it, this is already the fourth update, right?

Also, to those reading pirated copies, using book-stealing apps — We won't say much, since not everyone is willing to read the official version. But please, shut your noble mouths. Don't freeload and still run your mouths. Others may indulge you, but We will not.

(End of Chapter)