Chapter 15: Siege Battle

In the capital, no noble or meritorious family is completely clean; they all have some problems, to varying degrees.

Some bully people with their power, some interfere in lawsuits, some accept bribes and pervert the law…

This is the norm of the feudal society; as a martial merit, you are truly that clean,

yet the emperor does not trust you and dares not let such a clean person command the troops.

Only when you have some leverage does the emperor feel comfortable using you.

So, the minor flaws of the Jia Mansion are insufficient to bring it to a final confiscation.

Only by choosing the wrong side in the political struggle over imperial power would the Jia Mansion, a top‑ranked noble holding two dukedoms and whose fate is tied to the nation, meet such a bleak end.

This is also reflected in the flagship figures of the four great families, Yuan Chun and Wang Ziteng: the dead die, the exiled are exiled,

their failure in the political game dragged down their families' standing.

In the past two years, Jia Jing has gained some self‑preservation ability and has come to recognize the Jia family's power within the army,

in Liaodong, many founding‑line martial merits have looked after him; they never seized or concealed his military achievements, and he no longer harbors the earlier desire to break away from the Jia family.

He realizes that as long as one holds office in the Da Han Empire, one cannot completely sever ties with the Jia family, unless one resigns and retreats to the mountains.

After all, his relationship with the Jia family is too close,

he is not a collateral branch nor a distant relative, but a legitimate grandson of the Duke of Rong, a direct descendant of Jia She; this blood tie cannot be washed away.

A simple declaration of leaving the family or being removed from the genealogy does not clear the relationship or avoid collateral damage.

To put it bluntly, if Jia She rebels, he would be the first to be implicated and punished.

Therefore, as long as he remains in officialdom, he cannot fully detach from the Jia Mansion.

Thus he must consider how, if he stays within the Jia family, he can avoid the fate of confiscation.

The first rule is to become the Jia family's spokesperson, the representative in dealings with various political forces,

and even become the flagship figure of the four great families, gaining a voice and leadership.

This way he can avoid picking the wrong side, reform the Jia clan, and even turn the Jia clan into a crucial support behind him.

He originally planned to handle this after returning to the capital, but who could have known that Jia She at this moment dealt him a "fatal blow".

Jia Jing could not possibly support the retired emperor,

not to mention that he was originally promoted and employed by Emperor Jing Sheng Di, naturally standing on Jing Sheng Di's side.

Even if we cite the retired emperor's reckless campaign that annihilated three hundred thousand elite troops of the Da Han Empire, made him a "door‑calling emperor", and nearly destroyed the Da Han Empire's fortunes, Jia Jing could not support such a person reclaiming power.

Needless to say, the Embroidered Uniform Guard inadvertently gathered evidence in Liaodong of the retired emperor's secret dealings with the Manchu Qing, showing his despicable methods and lack of any bottom line.

Such a person is a traitor, still dreaming of restoring himself as emperor—how ridiculous!

Jia She's current actions have stepped over Jia Jing's bottom line.

"Then directly assign people to act in the name of the White Lotus Sect…"

Zhu Que whispered a question, simultaneously making a beheading motion with his hand.

He is Jia Jing's absolute confidant and understands Jia Jing's thinking.

"Hmm, don't kill them outright; keep them half‑dead, leaving them breathing, so they can't cause trouble again."

"After all, I won't have time to rush back for the funeral any time soon! The battle with the Qing Army is imminent, and I cannot let him ruin my major affairs."

"Be careful in your actions; don't let the Imperial City Office and the secret guard catch any trace!" Jia Jing thought for a moment and reminded him.

"General, rest assured: when it comes to intelligence and assassination, the Embroidered Uniform Guard are their ancestors! Not a single after‑effect will remain…"

Zhu Que slipped away through the passage.

Jia Jing trusts Zhu Que's abilities; the current Imperial City Office and secret guard have become corrupt over the years and cannot match the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Boom—

Slash—

As the two spoke, a sudden clamor erupted outside.

"Report! The Qing Army has begun the siege again; Deputy Officers Feng and Han of South City can no longer hold, and enemy troops have entered the city…" a soldier rushed into the hall to report.

"What are Feng Ziying and Han Qi good for? Two thousand men can't even guard a city gate!" Zhu Que shouted angrily.

"No wonder them! South City has been under the fiercest attacks for days; their two thousand men have not rotated for two consecutive days."

"The Qing Army is waiting in ease while the enemy's forces are more than five times theirs; a breakthrough is inevitable."

"It's surprising they have held out this long, that's beyond my expectation!" Jia Jing said, unperturbed, and chuckled lightly.

Feng Ziying and Han Qi are old acquaintances of the Jia family; Feng Ziying is the legitimate son of the divine‑might General Feng Tang, and Han Qi is the legitimate son of the Marquis of Jinxiang.

Since Jia Jing rose to fame on the battlefield, receiving several promotions and merits, he has served as an excellent exemplar among the founding‑line martial merits.

The direct descendants of the founding line number at least a few hundred,

Naturally, not all are prodigal like Jia Baoyu; ambitious ones such as Feng Ziying, Han Qi, and others have also flocked to Liaodong to enlist.

Among them, Feng Ziying and Han Qi are skilled in martial arts and have close ties to the Jia family,

so they were assigned under Jia Jing's command; after a year of fierce fighting, they are now both sixth‑rank officials.

This time Jia Jing assigned the two to defend the South City Gate.

The South City Gate is the enemy's most intense line of attack,

Jia Jing's reason for assigning them, and only allocating two thousand men to the defense,

is first to temper the two,

and second to give the Qing Army a taste of hope, making them think the city will fall soon, drawing all their attention to the siege, thereby allowing the Xuanjia Army to appear silently behind the enemy.

Of course, this balance is hard to gauge,

If Jia Jing had not placed people to monitor the South Gate constantly and ambushed two thousand elite troops beneath the city, he would not dare act rashly.

After all, if the Qing Army actually broke the city, it would be a loss after a failed ploy!

"Zhu Que, hold the interior of the city well; don't let the Qing Army slip in. I'll handle the South City side, so no need to worry!"

Jia Jing also didn't dare to delay; after giving an order,

He immediately picked up the Longdan Bright Silver Spear at his side and hurried toward the South City.

Jia Jing arrived outside the gate, where a personal guard had already brought a white horse,

He stepped forward quickly, pulled the reins, exerted a little force, mounted the war horse, and clamped his legs against its belly.

A surge of invincible heroic spirit welled up within him—this was the gain he had reaped over two years on the battlefield.

Zhao Yun's martial arts had already been perfected by his real‑world combat; with a long spear in hand and a white horse by his side, there was no enemy under heaven he could not defeat!

With a pull of the reins, beneath the shrouding mist, Jia Jing rushed toward the South City Gate like a ghost.

Under the South City Gate, Feng Ziying and Han Qi wore grim expressions, their armor battered, fresh blood covering the old stains—some their own, some the enemy's.

On the city wall, Qing Army troops kept pouring in, the battle cries deafening, yet the two fought to the death without retreating.

On the city wall, corpses drenched in blood from both sides were continually thrown down, landing on the streets inside the city.

On the city wall, the Han Army's banner was also tattered beyond repair, yet the defending Han Army soldiers still bore in their eyes the fierce resolve of those who had survived a hundred battles.

"Hold off these dog barbarians for me, Commander! Today there is only death or no life—I'll fight these damned barbarians to the death!"