A Step into the Past

Book 16 Chapter 11 - Avenging The Great Enmity

Xiang Shaolong and Shan Rou started their ferocious attack. From their vantage point up in the roof, they rapidly shot down more than ten men before Teng Yi and the rest forced open the gates and rushed into the manor.

The two were puzzled when they did not see Tian Dan escape from inside the building. They rapidly climbed up the roof and entered the room through the skylight. There, they quickly found a secret tunnel that Tian Dan and his men used to escape. They plunged in immediately, giving chase.

The tunnel was wide and straight, reinforced with wooden pillars and rammed earth panels. It even had ventilation ducts, demonstrating its meticulous construction.

The two of them did not dare to light a torch and could only grope forward using the wall as a guide. They soon reached the other end of the tunnel, realizing that it actually emptied out info the fringe of the forest grove. Right outside the grove stood the little wharf. The fishing boats had long been scuttled. Ten over human shadows were escaping upriver along the bank.

Xiang Shaolong fired a signal rocket before the two of them gave chase.

After a mad sprint, six of the opponents fell back, drew their swords and attacked towards them.

How would Xiang Shaolong have the patience to dicker with them? He drew out his flying needles, waved his hands and shot out the needles under the cover of night. The six men fell to the ground en masse.

The remaining seven enemies did not anticipate that their six comrades could not even delay them by one second. With a shout of command, they left the river bank and scattered towards a small hill and the jungle by the river.

Xiang Shaolong fired another two needles, instantly felling two more enemies.

Shan Rou's bloodlust was kindled and she threw her flying dagger. An enemy who had just started climbing the hill was hit in the back and tumbled down. At this moment, Shan Rou recognized one of the men racing up the hill as Tian Dan. Strength surged into her legs from God knows where as she overtook Xiang Shaolong, flying up the hill like an arrow, catching up with the enemy.

Xiang Shaolong feared for her safety and gathering his energy, chased up the hill.

The sound of clashing blades rang out. Shan Rou's delicate shouts interspersed with the enemy's blood-curdling shrieks. However, peace and tranquility was quickly restored.

By the time Xiang Shaolong reached the hilltop, the two fighters had already separated. They were both covered with blood. Fresh blood flowed from Shan Rou's left arm and right shoulder.

Tian Dan was holding a long sword facing Shan Rou. His diaphragm was heaving up and down. His face was pale as a corpse under the moonlight.

Tian Dan took a glimpse at Xiang Shaolong and laughed bitterly, saying: "Bravo, you have finally caught me!" Shan Rou said vehemently: "Tian Dan, do you know who I am?" Hoofbeats sounded. Teng Yi and the rest arrived with torches, surrounding the three people in a circle.

Zhao Zhi shrieked and flew down her horse, viciously shouting: "When you put the three generations of my family to death, did you ever think there would be this day?" Shan Rou said icily: "He is mine. I want to kill him with my own hands!" Xiang Shaolong went to Zhao Zhi's side and whispered: "Let your Sister Rou do it!" With a "Hua" sound, Zhao Zhi leaned into Xiang Shaolong's shoulder and started crying agitatedly.

Tian Dan remained calm and laughed loudly, saying: "I Tian Dan have killed countless people in my lifetime. How can I remember whom I have killed before? Xiang Shaolong, you are good. I Tian Dan submit to you!" Reversing his blade, he slashed his neck and fell backwards, dying instantly.

Shan Rou's entire body began to shiver and she knelt down.

Zhao Zhi rushed over and held her tightly.

The two women cried bitterly on each other's shoulders. Their cries resonated through the whole forest.

This category defining, ruthless and ambitious person had finally perished.

Teng Yi jumped off his horse, cut off Tian Dan's head and shouted mightily: "Let us go!" Xiang Shaolong was numb in his heart.

It was a feeling that was hard to describe.

On the one hand he was pleased that Shan Rou, her sisters and Teng Yi had avenged the extermination of their family.

He had also accomplished an impossible goal himself.

But seeing this historically celebrated character committing suicide in front of him gave him a sense of loss.

Still, this had all become an unchangeable piece of history.

When Xiao Pan ascends the throne and the evil Lu Buwei had been killed, he would leave this warring central plains and live the peaceful secluded life he had always dreamed of. He would never again return to the central plains.

(Can't help but think of RWX in the Dongfang Bubai movie…. where there is man, there is strife…. where can you retreat to?)

They returned to their ships and set sail back to Shouchun.

That evening the whole party drank themselves silly and slept all day the next day before waking at different times.

Xiang Shaolong came to the cabin with a hangover. The three ladies were chatting in a low voice. They looked happy and at ease.

Zhao Zhi gleefully called out: "Shaolong, Sister Rou is willing to return with us to Xianyang!" Xiang Shaolong was extremely pleased and replied: "That day you really were lying to me!" Shan Rou displayed an unreasonable yet lovely look and said: "Told you I was bluffing long ago. I'm still angry when I think about it. You were totally unaffected."

Ji Yanran laughed and said: "Sister Rou should not be angry. Our husband keeps everything in his heart. His words are hard but his heart is soft. You must not blame him!" Shan Rou replied disdainfully: "He is your husband, what does that have to do with Shan Rou?" She then giggled lovably and gave him a sweet smile.

Everyone knew her disposition and naturally nobody took her words for real.

They sailed upriver. The ship moved slowly. They took a day more returning than they did setting out, eventually reaching Shouchun.

Xiang Shaolong did not stop but continued sailing towards Chengyang as he had promised Madam Zhuang that he would visit her for few days as he passed by Dian on his way home.

After disembarking, they rendezvoused with their special forces troops and headed South towards Dian.

Madam Zhuang and her son was accompanied by the freshly minted General Dong Luzi. He commanded eight thousand Chu soldiers and had recovered most of the territory occupied by the rebel army. As the people of Dian found out that Zhuang Baoyi had returned, they revolted in large numbers and joined the new Dian army. This army grew to about twenty thousand people and they joined hands with the Chu army. They were presently besieging the Dian capital Gaoze.

Gaoze sits on a plateau with its back against a mountain, truly an impregnable stronghold. Since the city had adequate water and food, the allied army had not been able to defeat the defenders and had even lost close to a thousand men.

Witnessing the demise of the Yelang King, all the vassal states dispatched armies in the restorative effort. The Qielan King even led the soldiers himself, forcing entry into the Yelang capital and setting up a new ruler before returning in triumph. From then, Yelang people were never again strong enough to bully the neighboring vassal states.

As Xiang Shaolong and his men reached the allied army camp at Gaoze, the besieging soldiers had just suffered a defeat. Casualties littered the field, piled on one another.

When Lou Wuxin and Madam Zhuang knew that Xiang Shaolong had come as promised, they were overjoyed at the unexpected news and ushered everyone into the camp.

Lou Wuxin wanted to organize a feast to welcome the party from their journey but was refused tactfully by Xiang Shaolong. They held a meeting immediately at the commander's tent, looking for ways to defeat the city.

After listening to Lou Wuxin detail Gaoze's terrain and environment, Xiang Shaolong calmly said: "The most formidable characteristic of the city is that it is set against the mountain. We will use this to our advantage. I can guarantee that we will be in the city within three days."

Madam Zhuang, Lou Wuxin and the rest of the high-ranking officers all bugged their eyes in disbelief.

That night, Xiang Shaolong and his party marched through the night and arrived at the rocky mountain behind Gaoze before setting camp and organizing his soldiers.

The next morning after Xiang Shaolong and Teng Yi had thoroughly reconnoitered the mountain, they identified five routes of approach and sent men up to install metal hoops at regular intervals and to deploy climbing equipment.

These were all basic techniques taught to all the elite special forces. With the installations complete, at nightfall, Xiang Shaolong and his party used the climbing equipment and specially installed rock steps to quickly ascend to the undulating and overgrown mountaintop.

The seven to eight mile long Gaoze city wall stretched in both directions from beneath their feet.

Lou Wuxin was marshaling his army, besieging the city night and day, drawing the attention of the rebel army.

War cries and the sound of stone piercing projectiles rang out unceasingly.

Ji Yanran and the two ladies also reached the summit at this moment. They crouched beside Xiang Shaolong and Teng Yi while delicately catching their breath.

Where they were, it was only about seven hundred feet from the bottom. The average person would be shocked when looking down, but it was child's play for the elite special forces who regularly trained on the moon reaching mountain near the Wu family ranch. That mountain was three times the height of this mountain.

Teng Yi issued a single command and the four especially skilled men Jing Shan, Wu Shu, Wu Ji and Dan Quan immediately abseiled down using the climbing equipment. After finding a foothold, they hammered in an iron loop and installed a new climbing apparatus.

Their equipment was built according to the designs of twenty-first century climbing experts. Resting on the overlapping loops at their waists, they glided down as fast as lightning and as easily as if they were playing a game.

The four men quickly reached the undergrowth at the foot of the mountain. They were only separated from the South-facing rear wall of the city by a moat.

The sentries on top of the wall had all gone to the other three wall segments to help in defense. Only the few sentry towers were manned. Moreover, it was difficult for the sentries to see into the pitch black area beneath the walls.

Teng Yi issued another order and the Wu family special forces followed their usual drill, sliding down under the cover of the hillside trees as well as the darkness. At this moment, Jing Shan and the rest of the four men had installed the device to traverse the moat.

Ji Yanran gazed at the ant-like civilian conscripts in the city and said: "From a cursory glance we can tell that this regime is maintained only through military force. The residents are all being forced into labour with whips."

Everyone looked closely and realized it was just as Ji Yanran had observed. The city residents were merely carrying materials under close watch and the threat of whips. They all had an expression of bitter resignation.

This moment, a mounted patrol came from one end of the wall. The patrolmen were carrying wind lamps scanning the bottom of the wall and the mountain.

Everyone had a fright and hurriedly hid themselves. Jing Shan and other others crouched at the foot of the wall. What was most worrisome were the four moat crossing contraptions. As long as the other party was alert, they would surely spot them.

Even though the contraptions had been camouflaged with a dark non-reflective grease, but they were not invisible after all.

Xiang Shaolong was born quick-witted. As the patrolmen's lamplight was almost on the contraptions, he puckered his lips and emitted a shrill sound like a night owl.

The patrolmen naturally raised their lamps towards the mountain, but were unable to see anything unusual. When they turned back, they had passed the contraptions and rapidly rode away.

Everyone was covered in a sheet of cold sweat.

Shan Rou came over and said: "At least this chap has some creative methods!" Jing Shan and the rest shot out their grappling hooks, clasped onto the wall and climbed up rapidly, agile as monkeys. They split up to take care of the sentries in the towers.

The Wu family warriors crossed the moat and started climbing the wall in groups. Their movements were nimble and quick, demonstrating astonishing efficiency.

Seeing them, Xiang Shaolong felt a sense of pride. Even the twenty-first century special forces may not be at this level.

By this time, close to a thousand men have descended to the foot of the mountain. Those who had crested the wall took out their crossbows and guarded the parapets.

(I am guessing that when they rendezvoused with the soldiers near Shouchun earlier, it was with the main body of their army, not just the three hundred men that Teng Yi brought to Shouchun.)

Teng Yi chuckled softly: "Second Brother is itching for a fight. I will go first."

Xiang Shaolong replied: "Lets go together!" When Xiang Shaolong and his party had reached the top of the wall, the thousand plus Wu family elite warriors had split into four groups, preparing to attack the wall in both directions and also towards the city center.

Teng Yi fired a signal rocket to notify Lou Wuxin that they had penetrated the city successfully.

After Xiang Shaolong had assigned people to defend all the entry points on the wall, he led the three women and five hundred soldiers towards the city center.

Teng Yi was responsible for capturing the wall.

Bugles sounded.

All of a sudden, the warriors shouted as one: "The city is breached! the city is breached!" The conscripted defenders in the city were startled. The sound of killing rose to the heavens. Looking to the back wall they saw a large flag atop a tall post inscribed with the word: "Zhuang". Several hundred soldiers flew down from the walls in attack.

Those residents who were forced into labour cried out at the same time and threw down the firewood, stone and other materials that they were carrying. They dispersed and escaped, even echoing: "The city is breached! The city is breached!" The breakdown in order and discipline spread like an epidemic.

Xiang Shaolong and his contingent swarmed down the stairs on the city walls like locusts. Crossbow bolts flew like rain. The enemy soldiers fell to the ground in droves. In the blink of an eye, they had obtained control of the rear city gate and the nearby square and buildings.

Xiang Shaolong ordered his men to open the city gate and let down the drawbridge. At the same time, he commanded men to lay out a defense grid on the rooftops of buildings.

The enemies who rushed forward were all driven back in a hail of bolts.

Their own men flowed in endlessly through the city gate. They even brought with them lances, tall shields and other heavy weaponry.

Teng Yi took advantage of the enemy's chaos and swept through each section of the Northwestern wall.

Lou Wuxin's besieging troops attacked the East gate with all their might, concentrating the enemy's attention there.

The soldiers who had occupied the Northwestern wall used their superior ground to shoot down the enemy soldiers who were rushing about trying to hinder the attackers.

Xiang Shaolong saw that the timing was opportune and waved his arm in a signal.

Row after row of Wu family warriors raised their lances and advanced towards the three gates in the East, West and North under the cover of archery fire. The battle was pitched and desperate.

The Wu family warriors on the wall shouted loudly once again: "Those who abandon their weapons and squat on the ground are not to be killed, those who abandon their weapons and squat on the ground are not to be killed!" Repeating endlessly. This was of course a scheme that Xiang Shaolong came up with based on modern psychological warfare techniques he had learned.

Many of the residences were on fire. Raging flames rose from the rooftops, spreading to the surrounding buildings. The whole city was bathed in the orange glow of the fire. Thick smoke covered the sky. The moon and stars were obscured and dim.

The defending soldiers discarded their weapons in large numbers. They joined the city residents in squatting at the corners of the city walls, squares and thoroughfares. Their morale had dissipated.

The insides of the city had turned into a chaotic battleground. The Wu family warriors organized themselves in tight units and continuously expanded the ground under their control.

The warriors up on the city walls progressed even more swiftly. The resisting enemies were slaughtered until their blood ran like rivers. Corpses littered the parapets.

The wounded were rapidly moved to the South wall to be treated by medical specialists. The entire operation was clear and orderly.

This is the first time the special forces have demonstrated their prowess in a large scale campaign. It was truly out of the ordinary.

Under the cover of a company of archers and shield men, Xiang Shaolong led the three ladies and the eighteen guardians towards the inner castle. At this point, the West and North gates had fallen into their control. The gates had been opened and the horses and men of the allied army were rushing into the city.

The enemy soldiers defending the inner castle resisted bitterly. Xiang Shaolong and his party threw themselves into attack, rushing left and slashing right. They broke through the inner castle gate shortly, and attacked towards the palace.

The enemy soldiers knew they had lost and discarded their weapons, surrendering by the lot.

Xiang Shaolong instructed his men to concentrate the surrendered enemy soldiers in one location under guard. Lou Wuxin and Zhuang Kong were leading a thousand elite troops and they rushed in. Once the two armies met up, they swept through the city even more quickly. In less than the time it took for a cup of tea to cool, they had attacked into the palace.

The interior of the palace was a mess, and cries of grief shook the heavens. The palace women and children were huddled in a group, trembling and asking for forgiveness. The garrison soldiers were all kneeling in surrender.

Xiang Shaolong took pity on them and found men to console them and look after them.

"Peng!" The door of the main palace hall was forced open. They saw about thirty enemy officers and soldiers in a circle with their swords raised, protecting a youth wearing royal robes and a crown. The situation was bleak.

The sounds of crying and killing outside gradually subsided. It was clear that Gaoze City had fallen into the hands of the besieging soldiers.

Xiang Shaolong and his men gathered in front of the enemy soldiers in large numbers. More than ten crossbows were aimed at the enemies at the center of the hall.

Zhuang Kong bellowed: "Surrender immediately or be killed without mercy!" Lou Wuxin moved close to Xiang Shaolong and whispered: "This kid has done much evil, raping countless women. Death is too good for him."

That youth in royal robes raised his head and yelled back: "I am Li Ling's son Li Qi. I will die before surrendering!" Xiang Shaolong forced a smile and said: "You know my preference. I'll let you take charge of this!"

Heaving a big sigh, he ushered the three ladies back out of the hall. Behind them, the sound of concentrated crossbow fire rang out along with the sound of wretched cries before gradually becoming silent again.

It had taken three days to recover Gaoze. Xiang Shaolong took his leave of Madam Zhuang, her son, the You sisters and others, all unwilling to be parted. They then hurried back to Xiangyang.

It could be said that this trip to Chu had yielded them good results. Not only did they manage to kill Tian Dan, they had also helped Chu and Dian in big way. Nonetheless because Xu Xian's status was unknown and also because Prince Dan had been captured in Xianyang, everyone's feeling of triumph was greatly diminished.

As they went through customs, their old friend An Gu personally invited them into the official building.

Xiang Shaolong saw that the Qin soldiers were all wearing a white sash on their arms and knew that things had turned for the worse.

Sure enough, An Gu said in grief: "Premier Xu was seriously injured in an ambush and died en route back to Xianyang."

A torrent of hate welled up in Xiang Shaolong and gushed towards heaven. Lu Buwei was certainly more malicious than a ravenous wolf. Just for a little personal gain, he had forgotten about Qin's overall situation. He would unscrupulously get rid of anything or anyone who got in his way.

The two of them originally had no cause for enmity, only favor. Yet he wanted to kill him just because King Zhuangxiang, Zhu Ji and Xiao Pan were close to him.

Now he had used such a despicable method to kill Xu Xian, it made him gnash his teeth in pain and hatred.

An Gu sighed and said: "It has been confirmed that this was perpetrated by Lord Chunshen. The Chu people have sent over Lord Chunshen's head and even offered to cede five cantons to parley for peace. But how could we let this go like this?" Xiang Shaolong rode along with him, saying in pain: "If we proceed like this, we would have succumbed to Lu Buwei's evil designs. Precisely he is now using this critical situation to expand his powers. The true culprit for Premier Xu's murder is Lu Buwei. Lord Chunshen was but a puppet under his strings!" An Gu's countenance changed and he exclaimed: "What?" The next day, Xiang Shaolong set off immediately for Xianyang.

It was now three days into Winter and the weather was bitter cold. Without realizing it, they had been away from Xianyang for five months.

Eighteen days later, Xianyang finally appeared before their eyes.

The elite special forces automatically returned to the Wu family ranch while Xiang Shaolong, Teng Yi, Ji Yanran, the women and the eighteen guardians braced their weary bodies and returned to Xianyang.

As they entered the city, they heard another piece of bad news: Lu Gong had fallen ill.

The illness was caused by anger.

The moment Xu Xian's body returned to Xianyang, Lu Gong had cried violently over the corpse, collapsing on the spot. Since then he has been ill and has not risen.

As one wave subsides another rises.

Xiang Shaolong and his party rushed towards the commander-in-chief's residence.

The moment he stepped in, he knew that something was wrong.

The residence was filled with Wang Ling and other high ranking officers, ministers and Lu Gong's family. The sound of weeping permeated the place.

While Xiang Shaolong thought that Lu Gong had already passed away, Wang Ling pulled Xiang Shaolong into the inner hall and said in deep grief: "Quick, go see the commander-in-chief one last time. He's been waiting for you, unwilling to take his last breath until you arrive."

Hot tears flowed from Xiang Shaolong's eye sockets.

He suddenly realized that in reality, he not only looked upon Lu Gong as a venerable friend and superior, deep within his heart he had also started to treat Lu Gong as a close relative. He had developed the intimacy and reluctance to part as if a son to a father.

Lu Gong was lying on a couch, his complexion as white as paper. His two eyes were tightly closed, and he breathed with difficulty.

Xiao Pan stood at his side holding his hand. His expression was shockingly calm.

Lu Dan'er knelt on his other side weeping bitterly. Two noblewomen who must be her seniors were looking after her.

Jing Jun, Lord Changwen, Lord Changping, Lu Buwei, Guan Zhongxie, Li Si, Lao Ai and the rest were all there, standing outside the door.

Everyone let out a happy expression when they saw Xiang Shaolong.

Lu Buwei also displayed an appearance of happiness and embraced Xiang Shaolong's shoulder, softly saying: "Its good that Shaolong is back. Quickly go in and see the commander-in-chief one last time."

Xiang Shaolong really felt like slaughtering him then and there. As he was about to wrest himself out of the embrace, Lu Buwei released him.

Jing Jun rushed forward holding his brows and called out "Third Brother" and couldn't help turning hoarse and crying bitterly. Those who heard could not help but feel sad too.

Xiao Pan's imposing body started and looking over, he saw Xiang Shaolong. His eyes emitted a look of profound emotion but his expression was extraordinarily serene. He unhurriedly said: "Grand Tutor, please hurry in!" The Lu Gong who was leaning on the couch let out an "Ah" sound and awakened.

Xiao Pan gravely ordered: "Please help Miss Dan'er outside!" Lu Dan'er stood up and was about to protest when her legs gave way and she fainted into the bosom of the two noblewomen. Jing Jun rushed over and carried her out.

Xiang Shaolong came to the side of the couch. At this point only Xiao Pan and Xiang Shaolong were in the room with Lu Gong. As Xiao Pan had not given permission, the others did not dare to enter. The only one who would dare to rush in was Lu Buwei, but he had his own motives and chose to remain outside.

Lu Gong ferociously opened his eyes and swept over the men. His face blushed red and he unexpectedly struggled to sit up.

Xiang Shaolong and Xiao Pan glanced at each other, both fearing the worst. They knew that he had seen Xiang Shaolong and was using his last gasp of life. It would be hard to hold on after this.

The two people helped him sit up.

Hot tears flowed from the corners of of Lu Gong's eyes and he rasped: "Was Xu Xian killed by that treacherous thief?"

Xiang Shaolong nodded distressedly, his own tears falling uncontrollably.

Lu Gong grasped their hands, one in each hand. With a trembling voice, he said into their ears: "Protect the Crown Prince. Kill the traitor. Avenge me and Xu Xian. Remember this, remember!" He then breathed his last, let go of their hands and passed away.