"Yun Wenfang, order your men to withdraw, or I will kill her as a sacrifice to the battle flag." Xiao Heng had the Old Princess Consort brought out and placed in front of him as a shield.
The Old Princess Consort's hair was disheveled, her pearl hairpins long since scattered and lost, leaving no trace of her former nobility. She appeared no different from an ordinary old woman. Pushed into the midst of flashing blades and clashing swords, she could not help but let out a terrified scream.
Although Xiao Heng had earlier reassured her that taking her hostage was merely for show and that he would not truly harm her, the Old Princess Consort no longer dared to trust his words.
Yun Wenfang narrowed his eyes and raised his hand. Instantly, both sides in the conflict halted their weapons.
Seeing his threat had worked, Xiao Heng breathed a sigh of relief and spoke to Yun Wenfang in a condescending tone, "Yun Wenfang, no matter how powerful your Yun Family may be, you are nothing more than a dog of the Yanbei Prince's Mansion. Rather than getting entangled in the power struggles of the mansion, it would be wiser to remain neutral and wait for the situation to unfold. Only the clever survive longer. Otherwise, if anything happens to the Old Princess Consort of Yanbei Prince's Mansion, ask Xiao Yan if he will spare you! Now, take your men and withdraw!"
Yun Wenfang watched Xiao Heng calmly, his pitch-black eyes revealing no emotion. After listening to Xiao Heng's words, he suddenly smiled. Then, under Xiao Heng's astonished gaze, Yun Wenfang took a bow and arrow from one of his subordinates, drew the bowstring taut like a full moon, and aimed the arrow at Xiao Heng.
Yun Wenfang's arrogant attitude both shocked and enraged Xiao Heng, who grabbed the Old Princess Consort and pulled her in front of him as a shield. "Yun Wenfang, how dare you! Look clearly at who stands before me!"
Yun Wenfang's response was to release the bowstring with lightning speed. The arrow sliced through the tense atmosphere of the battlefield, whistling through the air before striking its target in the throat. The sound of the arrow piercing flesh sent a chill through everyone present.
Xiao Heng was thrown from his horse by the force of the arrow, his back slamming hard against the ground with a dull thud. Warm, sticky liquid sprayed across his face, and in his ears, he heard a sound like a broken bellows—"hah... hah..."
For a moment, Xiao Heng thought he had been shot and was about to die, trembling uncontrollably in terror. But when his guards pulled him up from the ground, he saw that it was not he who had been struck by the arrow, but the Old Princess Consort, whom he had used as a shield. She had been pierced through the throat.
The Old Princess Consort raised her hand, trying to touch her throat, but before her fingers could reach the arrow, she breathed her last. Her wide-open eyes were lifeless, yet the pupils still held a lingering trace of terror.
Xiao Heng swallowed hard, staring at Yun Wenfang in disbelief. "You... you... you killed..."
Yun Wenfang's eyes showed no emotion, but the corners of his mouth curved upward. He calmly declared, "The Old Princess Consort has been murdered by Xiao Heng. Soldiers, heed my command! Kill all the rebels and take Xiao Heng's head to console the Old Princess Consort's spirit in heaven. Kill—"
With Yun Wenfang's command of "kill," his hundred-plus men charged forward without hesitation, cutting down Xiao Heng's personal guards like vegetables. The air grew thick with the scent of blood.
Xiao Heng's forces were no match for Yun Wenfang's hundred battle-hardened elite soldiers and were forced to retreat step by step under the relentless assault.Xiao Heng gritted his teeth and shouted, "Yun Wenfang, you killed the Old Princess Consort! The Yanbei Prince's Mansion will not let you get away with this!"
Yun Wenfang laughed. "It wasn't me who took the Old Princess Consort out of the mansion. By killing you, I can avenge her."
"You—"
Xiao Heng's words were cut short as Yun Wenfang's men charged forward. He was slashed in the shoulder, blood gushing out. If not for someone beside him blocking the blow, his head might have already been severed.
A calm young man beside Yun Wenfang leaned in and whispered, "General, that was the Old Princess Consort of the Yanbei Prince's Mansion after all. If you shot her dead with an arrow like that, what if the Prince seeks retribution later..."
Yun Wenfang replied calmly, "She had to die! Otherwise, Xiao Heng could threaten me into stepping aside today, and tomorrow he could use her to threaten others into opening the city gates. With so many people in Yunyang City, must they all be sacrificed for her alone? Is she worthy?"
The calm young man opened his mouth but could not speak.
In truth, Yun Wenfang's words were not without reason. If the Old Princess Consort had not died, Xiao Heng could have used her to threaten the Yanbei Prince's Mansion. What if he demanded that the Yanbei Prince's Mansion open the city gates to let the imperial army in? Would the Yanbei Prince's Mansion agree or not? It was worth noting that Xiao Heng had managed to escape unscathed from Yunyang City earlier precisely because he had the Old Princess Consort as a protective talisman.
Now that Yun Wenfang had shot and killed Xiao Heng's protective talisman, the Yanbei Prince's Mansion would have fewer concerns.
Yun Wenfang glanced at the young man and smiled. "I was the one who killed her. If the Yanbei Prince's Mansion ever holds anyone accountable, I will bear full responsibility. Don't be afraid."
The young man hurriedly said, "General, that's not what I meant. I just... General, history has always been written by the victors. I only meant that since it's already done, we shouldn't leave any survivors."
Yun Wenfang couldn't help but laugh heartily at this. He patted the young man's shoulder. "Well said." With that, he led the charge back into the fray, and the young man immediately followed to cover him.
The battle did not last long. Seeing that only a few dozen of his men remained combat-ready, Xiao Heng wanted them to hold off the attack while he made his escape.
Yun Wenfang spotted his intention from afar and curled his lips slightly. He then drew his bow and shot an arrow. Despite the many human shields blocking the way, Yun Wenfang's arrow found a gap and aimed straight for Xiao Heng's back. Hearing the whistling sound of the arrow, Xiao Heng was startled and bent down to dodge. However, just as he lowered himself, two more arrows followed, this time targeting his buttocks and the horse's hindquarters. Xiao Heng and his horse were unable to evade in time and were both struck. The horse, in pain, went berserk, and Xiao Heng, unable to stay seated, was thrown off.
After being thrown to the ground, Xiao Heng tried to get up and flee, but he found he couldn't muster any strength in his legs. He couldn't stand.
Yun Wenfang leisurely rode his horse over to Xiao Heng, looking down at him with a sneer. "Aren't you of noble blood? How is it that you can't even defeat a mere dog under your command? Doesn't that make you worse than a dog?" Young Master Yun had always been one to repay every slight.
Xiao Heng looked up at this handsome young man towering above him, meeting his emotionless eyes, and felt a chill run down his spine. It was only then that Xiao Heng realized he was afraid of death.
"You can't kill me!" he muttered.Yun Wenfang raised an eyebrow and said leisurely, "Oh? Why can't I kill you?"
Xiao Heng, propping himself up with his hands as he retreated, replied, "Because I bear the surname Xiao! Even if I have committed a wrong, I should be dealt with by the Yanbei Prince's Mansion. You cannot kill me arbitrarily, or you will be showing contempt for the Xiao Family!"
Yun Wenfang fell silent for a moment before suddenly letting out a low chuckle. The laughter sent a chill down Xiao Heng's spine, stirring a deep-seated fear within him.
Yun Wenfang's voice, tinged with amusement, sounded above Xiao Heng's head: "Do you know? Someone once said the same thing to me. He told me I should be grateful for bearing the surname Yun, or I wouldn't have lived to this day. At the time, I was young and arrogant, so I scoffed at his words. But now, I find myself somewhat agreeing with him. This is what it means to share the same fate but not the same destiny."
Xiao Heng couldn't help but breathe a slight sigh of relief, thinking he had escaped death.
However, Yun Wenfang continued, "It's just a pity that you still have to die."
Xiao Heng looked up in terror as Yun Wenfang swung his sword down, cleanly severing his head. Xiao Heng didn't even have time to cry out before his life ended.
Expressionlessly, Yun Wenfang used his sword to lift Xiao Heng's head, wrapped it in his own cloak, and hung it from his horse's head.
He curled his lips slightly and murmured, "Because the person who said those words is the one I despise the most. It was because of that surname, the same as yours, that I lost the most important person in my life."
With Xiao Heng dealt with, Yun Wenfang's subordinates behind him swiftly concluded the battle. Although Xiao Heng's men were not mere rabble, they still met with total annihilation. Yun Wenfang's men, though not entirely unscathed, had achieved a victory worthy of their pride.
As Yun Wenfang returned with Xiao Heng's head, the composed young man gave a few orders to the men below. The elite soldiers then dispersed to deliver finishing blows to the fallen enemies.
Yun Wenfang said indifferently, "Don't bother with these worthless ones. There are more important matters to attend to." With that, he turned his horse and headed toward where the imperial army lay in ambush.
Seeing this, the young man quickly issued a few more orders, leaving a dozen men to clean up the battlefield and arranging for the Old Princess Consort's body to be sent back to the city. He then followed Yun Wenfang himself.
A force of just over a hundred men facing an army of several thousand was akin to a moth flying into a flame—utterly overestimating their capabilities. Yet Yun Wenfang was unafraid. Leading his elite soldiers, he charged through the imperial army's ranks. No one had expected the attackers to come not at night but at dawn. The soldiers were having breakfast at the time, caught completely off guard.
Most of these soldiers, nurtured by the imperial court with favorable conditions, had never truly experienced war. In recent years, the northern and western borders of Great Zhou had been defended by the Yanbei Army. Thus, Yun Wenfang's hundred-plus men cut through the enemy camp as if traversing unguarded territory.
After scattering the enemy ranks, Yun Wenfang did not linger in battle. Instead, he charged out from another side. The imperial troops quickly regrouped, organizing four to five hundred men to give chase. Unfortunately, their horses were no match for the fine steeds of the northwest. In the end, Yun Wenfang, leveraging his knowledge of the terrain, led them into a canyon.The canyon was narrow and long, so no matter how many people there were, they couldn't gain an advantage. In the end, those four to five hundred troops could only be passively slaughtered by Yun Wenfang's men.
Yun Wenfang had never intended to face those thousands of troops head-on. He only relied on ambushes and guerrilla tactics, keeping the enemy forces running in circles.
However, a method that works once or twice loses its effectiveness when used too often.
Cough, can this still be considered noon... 〒_〒.
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