NOVPUBLiu Biao, after fleeing to Jiangling, did not command the Jiangling troops but secluded himself in a room for self-reflection for three days. Before Yuan Shu’s army approached Jiangling, Liu Biao finally emerged.
"Lord! Trouble is afoot, and almost all of the regions north of the Yangtze have fallen under Yuan Shu’s onslaught, and there are uprisings rampant in Jingnan," Kuai Yue anxiously reported to Liu Biao as soon as he stepped out of the room.
"Why fear! Jiangling stands still, and I am yet to die, victory and defeat are but transient!" Liu Biao said coldly, brushing off the decadent aura of a noted scholar and transforming into a person filled with sharp decisiveness.
"Jingzhou is full of talented individuals, the Han Dynasty prevails, and for Yuan Gonglu to think he can defeat me is premature! Issue my general’s order, summon Liu Pan and Huang Zhong from Jingnan to Jiangling, take all the elite troops with you, and completely abandon Jingnan!" Liu Biao didn’t seek any intelligence upon his appearance, issuing his first command directly.
"What!" exclaimed Kuai Yue, shocked by the seemingly self-maiming decision. Without the forces of Liu Pan and Huang Zhong, Jingnan, already in the throes of insurrection, would instantly fall from Liu Biao’s control.
"Understood!" Kuai Liang, who had been silent beside them until then, smiled at Liu Biao’s order, recognizing the Liu Jingsheng he had once admired. The one from before in Xiangyang had clearly decayed from overindulgence.
"Big brother!" stammered Kuai Yue, startled.
"Follow the Lord’s command!" Kuai Liang said calmly.
Kuai Yue, who knew his brother appeared dull but possessed profound depths, took confidence from his approval and nodded in agreement without further hesitation.
After leaving Liu Biao’s residence, Kuai Yue couldn’t resist asking, "Big brother, why must the Lord call back the troops from Jingnan? Without Jingnan, we’ll have no escape route left."
"A back-to-water battle, should we win, the turn of feng shui; should we lose, everything comes to nothing. Jingnan is no more than wall-top grass; should we lose the battle of Jiangling, even a hundred thousand elite from Jingnan could not salvage a retreat. But if we win, the rebellions in Jingnan will be mere passing clouds," replied Kuai Liang, his eyes gleaming with a cold light.
"I hadn’t expected the Lord to still possess such resolve; I thought his life as a pleasure-seeking scholar had drained all his ambition!" Kuai Yue was taken aback but quickly regained his composure, realizing he was not foolish, only a bit impatient.
"He had become useless, but this wake-up call has jolted him back to awareness. I was planning to offer the city and surrender to Yuan Gonglu for a good price, but that’s no longer necessary. If the Lord still harbors such spirit, let’s have Yuan Gonglu die under the walls of Jiangling City," Kuai Liang said with a glint of cold determination, revealing a ruthless nature. Without Liu Jingsheng worth serving, he would have effortlessly switched allegiance, but now that Liu Jingsheng had sufficiently impressed him, he wouldn’t mind dealing Yuan Shu a formidable blow.
"What’s the plan?" Kuai Yue, feeling a chill at the coldness in his brother’s eyes, knew all too well the danger his brother posed, seldom speaking but lethal when he did.
"The rainy season is close at hand!" Kuai Liang said with a smirk.
"..." Suddenly, a shiver ran down Kuai Yue’s spine; Jiangling was backed by the Yangtze River, which flooded annually. If Kuai Liang interfered, a disaster for tens of thousands was no joke—turning Yuan Gonglu into a drowned ghost wasn’t mere talk.
"This plan must not be used!" Kuai Yue immediately objected.
"We have not reached that point yet, I visited Yuan Gonglu’s arrangements, and he has not defended against the possible flooding," Kuai Liang reported that he had already scouted the area personally. Even though he had considered surrendering the city earlier, he could not afford to lose face. n𝚘𝚟𝚙𝚞𝚋.𝚌o𝚖
"Good," Kuai Yue cautiously wiped off a bead of cold sweat. Based on his understanding of his brother, Kuai Liang had likely already started preparing.
Every day, Yuan Shu ordered his men to strut arrogantly under Jiangling City, and this time, he finally stirred up a hornet’s nest. Liu Pan and Huang Zhong, who had been stationed in Jingnan, brought the remaining elite forces of Jingzhou to Jiangling. The military strength of the two sides was now roughly equal.
Yuan Shu himself came from Yuzhou with over sixty thousand elite troops. Having gathered reinforcements along the way to Jiangling, his forces had more than doubled. When Liu Biao consolidated what was left of the elite troops of Jingzhou at Jiangling, his forces also just reached a hundred thousand.
However, the situation was not looking good for Liu Biao; Yuan Shu’s momentum was like a rainbow, while Liu Biao’s morale was low. If not for the protection of Jiangling City, a direct confrontation would have seen Yuan Shu make Liu Biao run for his life. But now, with the city, Liu Biao had hope for a turnaround.
Huang Zhong stood atop the city walls, his eyes coldly observing the Yuan Shu army below, especially the challenging general with icy eyes.
"Zhongxing, you stay here. I’ll go kill a few enemy generals," Huang Zhong turned to Liu Pan and said. Even though Liu Pan was the leader in Jingnan, he revered Huang Zhong for his martial prowess and tactical wisdom, often putting him in charge. However, Huang Zhong had been in decline for the recent years; his son was critically ill, turning him sullen, his hair now white, and he rarely appeared in the military camps. But out of desperation, Liu Pan had to relocate Huang Zhong’s family, and now Huang Xu was barely breathing.
"Please be careful, Hansheng," Liu Pan said with a forced smile, clearly aware of Huang Zhong’s current state of mind as he saw his son nearing death without a grandchild, lost in despair.
"Crack..." The gates of Jiangling City laboriously opened a crack, and Huang Zhong rode out on his Blue-Maned Horse, leading two thousand men through the city gates.
"Hahaha, Jingzhou has run out of soldiers, sending an old soldier..." Before he could finish, a flash of blade light passed, grinding the man into dust. Then, with an air of cold determination, Huang Zhong leaped out first, heading straight for Yuan Shu’s grand army.
"Kill!" The valor of the general inspired the troops. Huang Zhong’s shocking display of strength instantly gave his subordinates—who had thought they were heading to their deaths—the courage to follow him shouting towards Yuan Shu’s camp.
"The Command Banner?" Huang Zhong coldly drew his Precious Bow and aimed at the Command Banner, still a mere speck in the distance. A streak of glinting teal light flashed, and the Flag Guard Officer, along with the Command Banner, was ground to dust.
"Kill!" Huang Zhong’s blade light was as flowing as water, mercilessly crushing through Yuan Shu’s forward camp. Unlike Lyu Bu and Guan Yu’s fierce might, Huang Zhong’s blade light started small and gradually grew larger and more numerous until he was plowing through with eight paths of blade light, stunning all the Jiangling defenders on the walls. When had they in Jingzhou ever had such a mighty warrior?
"Boom!" A loud crash as Huang Zhong’s massive, petal-like eight spinning blades of light met resistance, followed by a huge Sky Piercer Halberd smashing towards Huang Zhong—it was a kind of greeting.
"Lyu Bu?" The lonely Huang Zhong spotted the flamboyant figure wearing a Trident Purple Gold Crown, dressed in a West River Red Cotton Hundred Flower Robe, draped in Beast-faced Devouring Head Chain Armor, and cinched with an Exquisite Lion Barbarian Belt; carrying his bow and arrows, wielding a Halberd, mounted on the Galloping Red Hare Horse. A name naturally came to mind—Lyu Bu.
As Huang Zhong observed Lyu Bu, Lyu Bu also scrutinized him; the power of the earlier eight paths of blade light made Lyu Bu realize his opponent was a master. But when the dust cleared, what he saw was an old man with graying hair, wearing armor that was half-new and half-old, with a long sword showing spots of rust, and a Blue-Maned Horse under him that looked forlorn and neglected. Yet, such a man could unleash that kind of power. (To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to cast your recommendation vote or monthly vote at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
