Chapter 208: Feint to the East, Strike to the West

That night, the moonlight was hazy, pedestrians on the streets were sparse, and Jiang Jiang Mingyu, clad in armor with a veil covering his face revealing only a pair of cold eyes, waved his hand lightly and whispered, "Set out." Eighty thousand troops quietly bypassed the county town, disappearing once again into the darkness.

After five days of hiding by day and traveling by night, on the deep night of the sixth day, an exhausted Jiang Jiang Mingyu finally arrived outside Dingdong City. Beside him stood his trusted general, Tu Tu Kesiluo, a foreigner from the Western Regions with a tall stature, dark skin, and long golden hair fluttering in the wind. Tu Tu Kesiluo looked around vigilantly, and only after confirming there was no movement nearby did he quietly ask, "Big Brother, what do we do now?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu gazed toward the city, a trace of resolve flashing in his eyes, and after a moment of contemplation, he spoke: "Listen to me..."

Before he could finish, a rustling sound suddenly came from the jungle. Tu Tu Kesiluo frowned, his long sword already unsheathed: "Who goes there?" A figure leaped out from thirty paces away, and Tu Tu Kesiluo's sword swiftly pressed against its neck.

That person hurriedly whispered, "General Tu, I am a scout sent by our Lord, just returned from Xiawei." As he spoke, he produced his waist token, prompting Tu Tu Kesiluo to withdraw his sword. "What's the situation?" The scout wiped his sweat and whispered, "My Lord, I have investigated clearly; Zhong Nianyu is not in Dingdong. He has taken ten thousand troops to Xiawei to assist in the battle."

The corner of Jiang Jiang Mingyu's mouth curled slightly: "Excellent." He rejoiced inwardly: Zhong Nianyu's fifty thousand troops should be split with roughly twenty thousand each in Dingdong and Xiawei. With him taking ten thousand to Xiawei, Dingdong's garrison is left with only over ten thousand. Thus, Jiang Jiang Mingyu's eighty thousand troops facing ten thousand with an eight-to-one ratio holds an overwhelming advantage.

A cold glint flashed in his eyes: "Tu Tu Kesiluo, you take forty thousand men to attack the city gates, while I lead forty thousand to assault the city walls. Taking advantage of this dark and windy night, break the city for me!" Tu Tu Kesiluo nodded: "Got it!" He turned and roared at the soldiers behind him: "Listen up! Tonight is our chance to turn the tables! Follow Big Brother and me! Wipe out these damn southerners! Charge!"

One quarter-hour later, gazing at the brightly lit East Gate of Dingdong, Jiang Jiang Mingyu swept his wide sleeve.

"Beat the drums."

After the earth-shaking drumbeats, Jiang Jiang Mingyu's tens of thousands of troops pressed down upon the foot of Dingdong City.

The dark mass of soldiers and horses instantly made the defenders on the tower extremely nervous.

"Enemy attacking the city, send the signal, send the signal quickly..."

In their urgency, the voice of the shouting soldier cracked.

As three signal arrows shot into the sky, all of Dingdong's defenders surged toward the East Gate.

At the same time, Wang Wang Leyuan, ordered to stay behind and guard the city, also climbed onto the ramparts, panting heavily.

The troops, seeming to have fallen from the sky, made him extremely nervous.

"You... who are you people?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu below the city spoke coldly.

"Jiang Jiang Mingyu from Cangzhou."

Jiang Jiang Mingyu?

As a neighbor, Wang Wang Leyuan had heard this name more than once.

"Our waters do not mix with yours; what business do you have coming to my Dingdong?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu chuckled and spoke loudly, then calmly scanned the defenders on the wall and cut straight to the point: "Commandant Wang, Jiang Mou has taken a fancy to your Dingdong City today; if you open the gates and surrender, I will spare your life."

Wang Wang Leyuan secretly clenched his fists; this man was too arrogant! Suppressing his rage, he strove to keep his tone calm: "Jiang Jiang Mingyu, Dingdong is not a place you can come and go as you please. I will not pursue this matter today; you should quickly take your people back to Cangzhou!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu could not help but sneer; how could this man easily let him go? Unyielding, he continued: "Commandant Wang, I think you are still indulging in wishful thinking! If you want to save your entire family's lives, hand over the city; otherwise, tomorrow you will be kneeling on your way to the Hall of Yan!"

Wang Wang Leyuan's eyes widened; this fellow truly intended to put him to death! Gritting his teeth, he shouted: "Jiang Jiang Mingyu, this is a threat! Dingdong is the territory of the Zhong Family Army; I, Wang Wang Leyuan, will fight you to the death!"

Watching Wang Wang Leyuan's flushed face, Jiang Jiang Mingyu knew tonight's battle was inevitable; he slowly drew the precious sword from his waist and said to Li Goudan beside him: "It seems we must do this the hard way; order the soldiers to prepare for the siege!"

"Jiang Jiang Mingyu, you are just a pig's snout stuffed with green onions; who do you think you are? If you break my Dingdong tonight, I'll call you Grandfather!" Wang Wang Leyuan shouted arrogantly from the ramparts at Jiang Jiang Mingyu opposite, his voice full of disdain and mockery.

He believed that with a hundred thousand troops and a fortified city, even if Jiang Jiang Mingyu were formidable, he was nothing but trash; he did not regard Jiang Jiang Mingyu in the slightest, treating him merely as a pig-headed fool seeking death.

But just as he finished speaking in high spirits, a soldier suddenly came rolling and crawling up from below, his face filled with terror and despair.

"Commander, it's bad! The North Gate has been breached by Jiang Jiang Mingyu!" the soldier said, panting, his body covered in blood and dust.

Upon hearing this, Wang Wang Leyuan felt as if the sky were collapsing; he grabbed the soldier by the neck and screamed hysterically: "What the hell are you saying? The North Gate breached? Get a grip! Isn't Jiang Jiang Mingyu right in front of us? How could his people appear at the North Gate?"

The soldier trembled all over in fear and hurriedly replied: "This subordinate does not know either; Jiang Jiang Mingyu's people seemed to descend from the heavens; they moved too fast!"

"Before our brothers could react, a rain of arrows felled many; then, a dark-faced man somehow climbed onto the ramparts, slashed dozens to death, and opened the city gates."

"Jiang Jiang Mingyu's troops inside the city, led by a woman, instantly killed over a thousand of us; that woman was quite beautiful, but her methods were too ruthless! With a single torch, she ignited our grain depot and armory; the entire city is now filled with firelight and explosions."

"This subordinate barely escaped to bring news; Jiang Jiang Mingyu's people have already killed their way into the city; Commander, what should we do?" the soldier said with a tearful face.

Hearing this, Wang Wang Leyuan wished he could slap this good-for-nothing to death; his mind was in chaos, and he did not know what to do; turning to look at Jiang Jiang Mingyu opposite, he saw him still standing in place, watching him expressionlessly.

Wang Wang Leyuan suddenly felt he had been played; it turned out this Jiang Jiang Mingyu was merely bait, and the real attack was launched from the North Gate; recalling his words from earlier, he felt like a joke.

"Quickly, take men to the North Gate to repel Jiang Jiang Mingyu!" Wang Wang Leyuan shouted instinctively, but he had already lost confidence in his heart; he knew he had lost.

Just as Wang Wang Leyuan kicked a soldier to the ground, he heard Jiang Jiang Mingyu below shout loudly: "Commandant Wang, why are you so foolish? Did you think that by idling with me here, there was nothing else happening?"

"I guessed long ago that you would shift troops to guard this broken city, leaving the North Gate unwatched; so I sent Tu Tu Kesiluo and Zhang Zhang Jiaqi with men to cause trouble there, and they opened the city gates in an instant."

He sneered and said: "Did you really think I wanted to recruit your surrender and be friends with you? You are too narcissistic; that was merely my tactic to buy time!"

Only then did Wang Wang Leyuan understand, but it was too late; Tu Tu Kesiluo had already breached the North Gate and by now had likely killed his way to the East Gate.

If he led troops to rescue it, Jiang Jiang Mingyu outside would certainly seize the opportunity to attack; in this situation of being attacked from front and back, even if Wang Wang Leyuan had eight heads, he could not save it.

Sure enough, the sounds of Tu Tu Kesiluo and Zhang Zhang Jiaqi's army arriving already came from behind.

Wang Wang Leyuan looked despairingly at the city filled with firelight.

Hearing the shouts of battle reaching his ears, Wang Wang Leyuan's heart jumped, and he quickly looked toward the city gate; he saw a large hole had been smashed into the gate, and amidst a sea of fire, a group of enemies in iron armor was charging in; he immediately recognized that dark-faced man and that beautiful woman—they were Jiang Jiang Mingyu's two great experts, Tu Tu Kesiluo and Zhang Zhang Jiaqi.

The two of them killed people like cutting hemp, their blades and spears waving continuously, each strike taking a life; Wang Wang Leyuan watched with a pounding heart, knowing he was finished.

A small soldier kneeling nearby was also terrified out of his wits and urgently advised: "My lord, there is no hope here; surrender quickly, or we little soldiers will die without a burial place."

After hesitating repeatedly, Wang Wang Leyuan decided to seek a way to live; he shouted loudly: "Hey, Jiang Jiang Mingyu, stop killing! If Laozi surrenders, can you spare the brothers in the city?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu also stopped his earlier mockery and replied loudly: "Jiang Mou likes clear-headed people the most; if you are truly sensible, I naturally will not make things difficult for you."

Wang Wang Leyuan, as if granted a great pardon, immediately waved his hand: "Men, open the city gates! We surrender, we surrender!"

With a creak, the city gates opened; Jiang Jiang Mingyu stood high upon his horse and shouted into the city: "Brothers, go, enter the city!"

A crowd of Jianghu folk holding knives and spears surged into the city like a tide; Wang Wang Leyuan had long since knelt on both knees, surrendering and begging for mercy; Jiang Jiang Mingyu, triumphant, scanned this city that had changed hands, thinking that later he must thoroughly plunder it to expand his military supplies.