Chapter 398

"General! The east gate... the doorpost is split!" a blood-soaked personal guard stumbled to Luo Feng, his voice choked with tears.

Luo Feng had no time to think further, he turned his head toward the east gate.

Sure enough, under another heavy impact of the battering ram, the massive timber bracing the gate snapped cleanly in half!

"Block it! Use anything you can! Sandbags! Stones! Corpses!" Luo Feng roared, and he himself charged toward the east gate.

But before the Ming Army could react, the battering ram struck again, completely bursting the gate open, and countless Xiliang soldiers erupted in earth-shaking cheers!

"The gate is breached! Xiliang troops are coming in!"

"Damn it, the enemy on the wall keeps growing!"

"Brothers, hold the line! We cannot lose!"

Luo Feng watched this scene, gripping his spear tightly with both hands, and shouted: "Brothers! Forward! Let the Xiliang army see what our Ming Army is capable of!"

As soon as his words fell, Luo Feng led the charge into the crowd, beginning a merciless slaughter.

The soldiers behind him followed suit, launching an assault and engaging the Xiliang in close-quarters combat.

At this critical moment, a horn blast suddenly came from the east outside the city!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Following it came the sound of war drums, and the increasingly near thunder of hooves!

Both sides fighting on and beneath the wall, at this moment, unconsciously slowed their actions, looking dubiously toward the east.

The Xiliang army feared it was Beijiang reinforcements arriving, while Luo Feng feared it was a second wave of Xiliang reinforcements.

Under the pounding hooves, a cloud of dust billowed, and within the dust, black banners rose up!!

Beneath the banners stood a neat, uniform formation! At the very front, an extraordinarily large dark commander's flag flew high, its golden thread embroidered with a huge "Ming" character that glittered in the morning light!

Under the commander's flag, a senior general gripped a long halberd; though his face was indistinct, his aura was fiercely sharp, enough for everyone to recognize who he was.

The Prince of Beijiang, Ming King, Jiang Jinshi! Personally leading a hundred-thousand-strong army, he finally arrived at the very moment Chang'an was about to fall!

"It's the lord! The lord has come! Reinforcements have arrived!"

On the walls of Chang'an, no one knew who first let out a heart-rending shout, mixed with wild joy and excitement.

The next moment, all the Beijiang garrison troops burst into a deafening cheer!

"Lord! It's the lord!"

"Reinforcements! Our reinforcements have come!"

Luo Feng stared blankly at the eastern horizon where the dark "Ming" banner grew ever clearer, at the endless black ranks, and at the familiar, towering figure beneath the commander's flag.

Since ancient times, nothing surpasses the merit of rescuing the emperor—but what if the emperor comes to rescue you?

Luo Feng suddenly raised his weapon and roared toward the sky:

"Subordinate Luo Feng! Greetings to the lord!!!"

He, Luo Feng, did not disappoint the lord's expectations; he held on until the very last moment.

And his lord never betrayed the loyalty of his subordinates!

Below the city, the Xiliang army fell into great panic.

Murong Ke and Tufa Shujinlon's faces turned ashen; they never imagined the Beijiang main force would arrive so swiftly, so opportunely, precisely at the instant the gate was about to break and the battle's outcome hung in the balance!

"Form ranks! Meet the enemy! Quickly!"

Murong Ke, indeed a renowned general, swiftly recovered from shock and issued a stern order.

Tufa Shujinlon also had no time to linger over the soon-to-be-captured Chang'an; he hastily gathered his troops, turned eastward, and prepared to face this sudden foe.

Yet, with the city on the verge of falling, they were blocked below by the enemy reinforcements; their side, after days of fierce assault, was exhausted, while the opposition was rested and brimming with vigor.

With one side waning and the other waxing, the Xiliang formation showed obvious signs of wavering.

Jiang Jinshi gazed afar at the stubborn banner still flying atop Chang'an's walls, and at the Xiliang troops below in disarray turning about; without the slightest hesitation, he raised his halberd and shouted:

"Soldiers! Before us are the Xiliang barbarians who trap our comrades and invade our lands! Behind us are our brothers who have bled for days, long awaiting us! Target! Beneath Chang'an's walls, annihilate the enemy and rendezvous with General Luo Feng!"

"All units, advance! Crush them!"

"Kill!!!"

A hundred thousand Beijiang elites erupted in a roar, like mountains and seas overturning, charging toward the chaotic Xiliang ranks below Chang'an.

And atop Chang'an's walls, Luo Feng was equally stirred: "Brothers! The lord has arrived! Victory hangs on this moment! Open the gate! Follow me out! Join with the lord inside and out, and exterminate the Xiliang dogs!"

"Charge out! Kill!"

Faced with the sudden Ming Army, Murong Ke wanted to fight but was powerless; he did not yet know how many troops Jiang Jinshi had brought, but from the current situation it was clear the enemy outnumbered them at least two to one!

Moreover, that madman Luo Feng had opened the gate to coordinate a pincer with Jiang Jinshi; if truly encircled, this force would likely be wiped out here!

Thinking this, Murong Ke began trying to rally his troops, relying on the camp and some siege equipment to resist, then later seek a chance to withdraw.

Chang'an today certainly cannot be taken; preserving existing strength is what Murong Ke ought to do!

"There are Ming cavalry on the west flank, requesting support!"

"Luo Feng's unit at the gate has also sallied forth!"

"Jiang Jinshi's forces in the front are too many; we may not be a match!"

Before the Ming Army's overwhelming numbers and high morale, their efforts appeared feeble and futile.

Their battle formation was scattered, their camp breached; after losing their speed advantage, the cavalry found it hard to act against Beijiang infantry's tight spear lines and the Ming cavalry's flanking envelopment.

The fierce battle lasted from morning to afternoon; Tufa Shujinlon himself took several arrows, and after his personal guards died shielding him, he fled the field in disarray, whereupon the Xiliang resistance collapsed completely.

Murong Ke realized the tide had turned, and ordered a full retreat to the west.

The Xiliang troops discarded helmets and armor, abandoned nearly all siege equipment and baggage, like stray dogs, fleeing desperately toward Tongguan.

The Ming cavalry pursued them for dozens of miles, slaying countless, only then reining in their horses.

In this battle, the Xiliang forces lost over thirty thousand beneath Chang'an's walls; Tufa Shujinlon was severely wounded, rescued by his personal guards who fought to the death to save him.

Murong Ke's relief force also lost nearly ten thousand, its vitality greatly sapped.

As for the Beijiang side, although they also suffered casualties, especially the troops under Luo Feng's command, almost every soldier was wounded, and the number of dead reached several thousand, but the main force remained intact; moreover, in one fell swoop they routed the strong enemy, lifted the siege of Chang'an, seized countless spoils, which can be called a splendid and thorough victory.

After the victory, Jiang Jinshi did not order an entry into the city, but instead set up a large camp outside the city, and at the same time sent troops to sweep the battlefield, gather prisoners, and treat the wounded.

After Luo Feng simply bandaged his wounds, he immediately went out of the city to pay his respects.

"This humble general Luo Feng pays his respects to the lord! This humble general... this humble general failed to defend the city adequately, causing heavy casualties among the troops, and Chang'an almost fell; I beg the lord to punish me!" Luo Feng knelt on one knee before Jiang Jinshi's central commander's tent.