"Have everyone disembark! I didn't expect that by sheer luck, we'd run into this!" Qin Longyang, now aware of the situation, hurriedly turned to give orders to the generals behind him.
He then quickly leaped off the ship. As his feet touched the solid ground again, he took a deep breath, savoring the long-lost scent of earth.
Qin Longyang felt as if his soul, which had been wandering for days, had finally returned to his body.
Soon, as the fleet aligned along the shore, tens of thousands of soldiers began disembarking in an orderly fashion.
Many who had looked pale during the voyage immediately regained their normal color once on land. Of course, there were also those who, after disembarking, knelt down and vomited violently.
Seeing that Qin Longyang's army bore no hostile intentions, the garrison soldiers finally relaxed. Lei Zhen, the port commander, ran up to Qin Longyang, intending to kneel in gratitude, but Qin Longyang quickly reached out to stop him.
"Many thanks to General Qin for your righteous assistance!" Lei Zhen's eyes were red with emotion, clearly touched by Qin Longyang's gesture.
Qin Longyang patted his shoulder and said, "General Gongsun and I both serve the Han. Now that foreign invaders threaten our land, how could I stand by and do nothing? There's no need to thank me, General Lei. Please, rise."
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Liao Hua and Zhao Yun began organizing the troops, and within no time, tens of thousands of soldiers were lined up in formation not far from the port.
Qin Longyang noticed the garrison soldiers watching in awe, their eyes wide at the sight of his massive army. Smiling with pride, he waved his right hand with authority.
Sun Lang, who was overseeing the troops, understood the signal immediately. He raised his arm and shouted, "Our lord orders—advance on Right Beiping and exterminate the Xiongnu rebels!"
"Exterminate the rebels! Exterminate the rebels!" The roar of tens of thousands of voices was like a thunderclap, so loud it seemed to push back the waves crashing on the shore.
Among the garrison, some soldiers trembled in fear, but Lei Zhen's eyes were filled with hope. Seeing Qin Longyang's mighty army, he felt a deep sense of relief.
"With General Qin's formidable force, what is there to fear from ten thousand Xiongnu bandits?"
"Hahaha!" Qin Longyang laughed heartily. At that moment, Zhao Yun led over his horse, and Qin Longyang swiftly mounted it, taking a long sword from the saddle and weighing it in his hand for a moment.
"General Lei, we seem to have fate on our side. I'd like to give you this sword as a token. If you're willing, why not join my army in this campaign against the Xiongnu and earn immortal glory, rather than spend your life in obscurity at this small Tangyuan Port?"
As he spoke, Qin Longyang tossed the sword to Lei Zhen. Lei Zhen was stunned at first, but then quickly caught it with both hands.
For a moment, he looked at Qin Longyang in disbelief. Finally, Lei Zhen gripped the sword, knelt down, and saluted Qin Longyang with a resolute voice, "Honored by your trust, my lord! I, Lei Zhen, vow to follow you through fire and water, never to retreat!"
"Excellent! I could tell at a glance that you are a loyal and brave man. With your assistance, it's like having thousands more soldiers!"
Qin Longyang said, pulling on the reins. "Lei Zhen, hear my command! Lead a detachment to scout ahead. The entire army will advance on Right Beiping and annihilate these Xiongnu rebels!"
"Kill!" The army erupted in a deafening battle cry as they marched forward...
Meanwhile, on the other side, after the battle at Changcen Port, Gongsun Du had surrendered to Qin Longyang.
The two then parted ways, each leading their own forces. Although Gongsun Du's army hadn't suffered significant losses, he was devastated by the death of his favored general, Liu Yi, who had taken his own life at sea.
After landing, Gongsun Du, along with his son Gongsun Kang, led their troops back to Xiangping, awaiting Qin Longyang's next instructions.
Although it seemed nothing had changed after this campaign, for the first time, the once-arrogant King of Liaodong felt the weight of the saying, "There's always someone stronger."
As they passed through Daifang, they encountered the reinforcements led by Wang Lie, the governor of Lelang, who had come upon hearing the news.
Seeing that Gongsun Du was uninjured, apart from looking a bit weary, Wang Lie was relieved and hurriedly knelt before him.
"Forgive me, my lord! I arrived too late! When I heard that you were slightly outmatched by Qin Longyang at Changcen, I immediately set out with reinforcements. I didn't expect to meet you here—so the enemy has been defeated?"
Wang Lie's words, spoken in ignorance of the true events, stabbed at Gongsun Du's already pained heart. Gongsun Kang, noticing his father's helpless expression, impatiently waved Wang Lie away, "General Wang, say no more. Let's return to Lelang City to rest and restore morale."
Even a fool could understand the implication in Gongsun Kang's words. Wang Lie quickly nodded in agreement and led Gongsun Du and the thirty thousand troops back to Lelang.
...
"W-What? Defeated! The king actually...?" Later that night, when Wang Lie finally learned the full story from Gongsun Du, he was so shocked his jaw nearly hit the floor.
If it weren't for Gongsun Du's well-known aversion to jokes, Wang Lie wouldn't have believed that Gongsun Du's army of thirty thousand had returned intact, not only defeated but also surrendering to that young upstart Qin Longyang, pledging allegiance to him from now on!
Gongsun Kang then recounted every detail of the battle at Changcen Port, painting the scene vividly for Wang Lie. After listening, Wang Lie fell silent, finally understanding how Gongsun Du had been utterly defeated.
"It turns out that all of this was just part of a grand scheme devised by that young Qin Longyang. We were nothing more than pawns in his game..."
Wang Lie finished speaking, downed a cup of wine, and looked at Gongsun Du, who seemed utterly defeated by Qin Longyang. He set down the cup and continued.
"My lord, hear me out! Qin Longyang only managed to outsmart us with some cunning trickery. As it stands, not an inch of Liaodong's territory has been lost, and your forces remain intact. "
"From my perspective, you can absolutely make a comeback. The people of Liaodong still recognize you as their king—what can Qin Longyang possibly do against that?"
Gongsun Kang, energized by Wang Lie's words, nodded enthusiastically, "Yes! Father, Qin Longyang's so-called cleverness was nothing more than a cheap trick. "
"Now that the traitors hidden within our ranks have been purged by him, why don't we rebuild our strength and stand against him as equals?"
The two spoke passionately, but Gongsun Du remained silent, watching them prattle on. After a long pause, he finally sighed and spoke slowly, "If Liaodong's leadership consists of men like you two, we will never be able to defeat Qin Longyang."
"What..." Gongsun Kang and Wang Lie were left speechless, staring at each other in confusion.
Gongsun Du sighed again and explained, "Kang'er, you only see that Qin Longyang returned all thirty thousand troops to us. But let me ask you this—do you remember the faces of all thirty thousand men?"
"I..." Gongsun Kang was at a loss for words. "If even half of those men are truly mine, I'd already find it hard to believe."
"And General Wang, it's true that Xi Zhicai and Gao Lan were removed by Qin Longyang himself. But can you guarantee that there aren't more like them among Liaodong's generals?"
"This..." Wang Lie fell silent, lowering his head in realization.
"After battling Qin Longyang, I feel like I was nothing but a puppet, forced onto the throne by those around me, a monkey dressed in royal robes."
"Among the so-called loyal ministers and valiant generals standing beneath my throne, countless invisible eyes are watching my every move. I've had enough of this. "
"The saying goes, 'Heavy is the head that wears the crown,' but for someone like me, Gongsun Du, who came from nothing, this burden feels like the weight of a thousand boulders!"
"But Qin Longyang is different. Although he's young, his strategies and cunning are unmatched in the world today. If he were to sit on the throne while I stood by his side, only then would I feel a sense of peace I've never known."
"Father, you..." Gongsun Kang looked at his father, who suddenly seemed like a stranger, his mouth agape but unable to find the words. Wang Lie, too, remained silent, deep in thought.
Gongsun Du gave the two of them a meaningful pat on the shoulder, "When we return to Xiangping, I will issue one final decree as the King of Liaodong."
"If any governors or generals do not wish to serve General Qin alongside me, they may surrender their military seals and retire. From this day forward, Liaodong will have only one lord, and that is Qin Longyang!"
...
In Liucheng, in Western Liaodong, Liu Bei and Zhang Fei had been stationed with the ten thousand troops given to them by Gongsun Zan for half a month.
Since receiving the last message that Qin Longyang's forces were approaching Liaodong, they had heard nothing further, leaving Liu Bei uncertain about when to deploy his troops.
Then, after a few more days of waiting, the next military report brought alarming news: "Xiongnu forces have launched a surprise attack on Right Beiping, and the garrison is struggling to hold them off. Reinforcements are urgently needed."
Liu Bei sprang to his feet, "This is bad! Right Beiping is in danger. We must rush to their aid immediately. If Right Beiping falls, Gongsun Zan's entire supply line will be severed!"
Zhang Fei, equally alarmed, began preparing, "Brother, if we take all ten thousand troops with us, who will keep an eye on Gongsun Du's movements in Liaodong?"
"We can't afford to worry about that now," Liu Bei shook his head. "Gongsun Du should be tied up with Qin Longyang at the moment. We need to seize this opportunity to relieve Right Beiping's crisis, and then we can deal with the rest!"
As the first force to receive Yan Gang's request for reinforcements, Liu Bei's troops immediately set out toward Right Beiping without delay.
Meanwhile, in Beiping, Gongsun Ji had only the three thousand injured and weary soldiers that Tian Yu had brought back. He was in no condition to send any reinforcements himself, being in a desperate situation.
Further away, Gongsun Zan was still a full day's march from the capital city of Ji when he received the urgent message. By this time, Tadun had already arrived at the gates of Right Beiping, preparing to lay siege.
"What! Xiongnu?!" Gongsun Zan grabbed the messenger by the collar, incredulous. "How did the Xiongnu slip past our scouts and into Youzhou?"
"I... I don't know. All I know is that the ten thousand Xiongnu troops are already besieging the city. If you don't return to reinforce them, General Yan Gang won't be able to hold out much longer!"
"Damn it!" Gongsun Zan flung the messenger aside. They had just reached Lucheng, not far from Ji City, when this unexpected Xiongnu force appeared at such a critical moment!
Guan Jing and Tian Yu, both frowning deeply, understood that the Xiongnu must have been secretly colluding with Liu Yu to launch this attack.
Given this, it was almost certain that this was not the only Xiongnu force in Youzhou. The fact that others hadn't yet revealed themselves could only mean one thing: ambushes had likely been set along their retreat route, waiting for them to turn back for reinforcements!