Chapter 338: Blood Battle at the Western Xia Royal City

Jiang Mingyu snapped his head up and saw a figure leap from a hidden spot on the wall—it was Zhang Jiaqi. She held a longbow, her eyes glinting with hatred; she had fired that arrow.

Zhang Jiaqi’s eyes were blurred with tears, the arrow nocked and drawn. She knew regret was useless. “Jiang Mingyu, we are now enemies—today, this ends!” Her voice brimmed with venom as she released the taut bowstring.

Jiang Mingyu gazed up at the wall and suddenly spotted a flash of deadly light—“Watch out!” shouted those beside him. He barely moved to dodge when the arrow sliced through the air, hurtling toward him. *Clang!* A personal guard had thrown himself between him and the arrow.

“Commandant!” Everyone cried out, rushing to support the fallen warrior, arrow buried in his forehead. Jiang Mingyu’s face darkened. He growled, “There’s a traitor on the wall—strengthen the left flank!” He stared up at the wall, sneering, “Zhang Jiaqi, could you really bring yourself to strike such a blow?”

Zhang Jiaqi choked back sobs. Though the arrow had missed, her heart was dead. “Jiaqi, that arrow of yours hurts Jiang Mingyu more than if it had struck him,” Tuoba Jiqian remarked with cruel delight.

It was Zhang Jiaqi’s strategy that had secured her control over Northern Xia’s power, making her queen. In the end, she had submitted to him, becoming the Queen of Xia.

This massive assault on Dajiang served both Tuoba Jiqian’s ambition and Zhang Jiaqi’s vengeance.

At first, it was merely a transaction. But soon, Tuoba Jiqian had genuinely fallen for this woman who seemed forever cold. To win even a single smile from her, he had unhesitatingly executed Cao Lun and unleashed this bloody storm.

Since invading Northern Xia, Jiang Mingyu had won three battles in a row. Northern Xia’s forces retreated step by step, suffering heavy casualties. Yet Tuoba Jiqian felt no resentment. If Jiang Mingyu died now, not only would Northern Xia’s lost territories be swiftly reclaimed, but the wealthy Dajiang would fall entirely into Tuoba Jiqian’s hands.

Zhang Jiaqi’s earlier arrow had severed every tie to her past. With Jiang Mingyu, her greatest threat, gone, she could finally drop her guard and fully embrace Tuoba Jiqian.

Everything was unfolding exactly as planned—how could Tuoba Jiqian not wear a triumphant smile?

Jiang Mingyu, die! Your days are numbered.

Below the wall, Lu Yi roared, “Charge!” A sea of soldiers surged toward the gate like a tidal wave. Boiling oil and fire rained down, horrific to behold, yet Lu Yi only turned to shout, “Follow me! The gate is right ahead!” Wounded soldiers gritted their teeth and pressed forward, inching closer to the towering wall.

“Up! Get up!” Lu Yi brandished his great sword, leaping onto the scaling ladder first amid arrows and falling stones. “Brave man!” Jiang Mingyu beat his war drum from afar. From the wall, Tuoba Jiqian bellowed, “Hold the line!” Dozens of warriors rolled boiling oil down. Lu Yi fought through thick smoke to the ramparts, slashing a general to death. “Charge—!”

The two armies clashed in chaotic, deafening battle. Jiang Mingyu frowned, his mind filled with the images of the fallen guard and Zhang Jiaqi. “Between us, only one can live...” he murmured.

“Zha Wenhua, lead your troops to reinforce Lu Yi—break through the East Gate at once!” Jiang Mingyu’s gaze was resolute as he gave the order. After careful thought, he had realized: since Tuoba Jiqian likely moved his main force north to meet the threat, he might as well strike hard now. If fresh troops breached the royal city, Tuoba Jiqian would be forced to recall his forces—and the crisis at the East Gate would vanish.

“Yes, my lord!” Zha Wenhua tightened his brow, eyes blazing with battle-lust. He raised his spear high, his voice ringing across the heavens: “Brothers, follow me!”

Eighty thousand troops answered the call with fierce resolve. Amid the thundering war drums, elite reinforcements stepped forward in orderly ranks, forming a vast assault formation. Braids whipped in the cold wind, hooves thundered like rolling drums, spears held across chests, arrows packed in quivers—they surged across the snowy plain like tigers roaring into battle.

Just as Zhang Jiaqi’s arrow missed, Jiang Mingyu had narrowly escaped this sudden death—this enraged Tuoba Jiqian deeply. His brows knotted; unprecedented anxiety gripped him—this enemy he had long seen as a thorn in his side was still alive and breathing!

Zhang Jiaqi’s face darkened slightly. She had seen that fatal arrow inches from Jiang Mingyu—only to be blocked by his guard. Now that shield was in place; killing Jiang Mingyu would no longer be easy.

Worse still, reinforcements from Jiang Mingyu’s army kept pouring in. She anxiously glanced toward the North Gate, knowing that if Gao Qiang failed to crush Tuxesuo and stabilize the situation, the East Gate would not hold.

“Shoot! Suppress the Northern Xia archers!” Jiang Mingyu spotted the moment the enemy line wavered and gave a calm command. He understood: the fiercer his own assault, the more he would distract Tuoba Jiqian’s forces—and the less pressure Tuxesuo would face.

At his order, Dajiang’s archers turned and drew their bows, strings pulled taut. *Woo-woo!* Arrows screamed through the air, forming a storm of ten thousand shafts that rained down like a northern gale. Instantly, countless archers on the high ramparts fell, tumbling from the walls in gruesome heaps.

Northern Xia defenders scrambled for cover, dodging the arrows. Feng Shen seized the moment, his voice booming like thunder: “The Emperor’s command—full assault! Kill them all!”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Dajiang’s siege engines groaned into motion. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers surged forward like a tidal wave, roaring toward the East Gate of the Northern Xia royal city.

“Quick! Bring the oil cauldrons to the wall! Fire attack!” Tuoba Jiqian, seeing the enemy’s ferocious advance, realized the gravity of the situation. He slashed his sword upward, ordering his men to hold the gate at all costs. Dozens of massive oil pots crashed down from the towers, scalding oil splashing onto the attackers. Soldiers by the river had no time to dodge—screams rose in a chorus.

“Hold your lines! Do not let these southern barbarians breach the walls!” Tuoba Jiqian roared, forcing his troops to maintain formation. “The rest—disguise yourselves as civilians, slip out through the side gates, and ambush the enemy from behind!”

A small contingent of Northern Xia troops quickly changed into peasant garb, slinging pitchforks and shovels as they slipped out through hidden gates, waiting to strike Dajiang soldiers from behind. Above, the two armies fought to the death. Corpses tumbled from the high walls; the ground below was a sea of blood, thick with the stench of death.

The sun sank lower, yet the brutal siege raged on. Soldiers clashed atop the walls; the ground below was littered with the dead. The setting sun bathed this field of life and death in a crimson glow. Many warriors were spent, fighting on their last breath. Inside and outside the city, wails and cries echoed endlessly.

Jiang Mingyu stood high above, gazing at the devastated wall. Moments ago, it had been a stage of bloody heroism; now, it lay silent. He exhaled slowly. The assault had been exhausting, yielding no real progress—he must withdraw for now.

“Send word to Li Goudan—order him to retreat temporarily and return to camp for rest.” Jiang Mingyu gave the order. He was utterly drained from overseeing the battle. With no arrows, no food, further assault was pointless. The soldiers needed rest and sustenance. Besides, Li Goudan still held the West Gate—if the East Gate had not fallen, the West Gate surely hadn’t either. Otherwise, Tuoba Jiqian would not be so calm.

Jiang Mingyu’s troops, hearing the order, finally relaxed their taut nerves. They dropped their heavy siege equipment and slowly withdrew, supporting the wounded. On the wall, Northern Xia defenders also regrouped, carrying their fallen comrades down from the ramparts.

Tuoba Jiqian exhaled deeply, color returning to his face. The relentless waves of assault had terrified him—if he hadn’t moved his main force north in advance, the East Gate would have fallen long ago! He owed this to Zhang Jiaqi’s foresight—her decision to redeploy troops had saved the royal city.

“Quickly inspect and inventory our weapons and grain!” Tuoba Jiqian shouted. Jiang Mingyu would return tomorrow—he must reorganize his defenses for even fiercer battles ahead. Most urgent: the city’s grain stores were nearly gone. He must find a solution quickly. Even if they repelled the enemy, internal collapse would still doom them. This critical problem must be solved soon—or the outcome would be unthinkable...

All these burdens weighed on Tuoba Jiqian’s mind; his furrowed brow betrayed his deep anxiety. At this moment, he needed wisdom and resolve more than ever.

Zhang Jiaqi wiped blood from her whip, watching Tuoba Jiqian’s pensive back, her brow furrowed in silence. She understood the gravity—the outcome of this battle determined not only his fate, but her own. If all was lost, she would abandon this man who only dragged her down and forge a new path without hesitation.

Though her mind was already made up, she must still give her all to help Tuoba Jiqian through this crisis—for now, their interests still aligned. As long as Xia stood, she could still wield this power to fulfill her ambitions.