Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 88

Chapter Twenty-Two, Despicable Thoughts

Consort Shen instructed Shen Yu to invite "Director Lai," referring to Lai Zhen, who was serving as the Director of the Palace Guard, acting Prefect of Shanzhou, and concurrently the Military Governor of Shan, Guo, and Hua Prefectures. Upon hearing this, Li Ji secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to himself, "That's exactly what I meant."

Although he had decided to risk going to rescue Nan Jiyun, how much use could he be if he went alone, even if he could fight against ten thousand men? Therefore, he made sure to explain his determination to Consort Shen, hoping that he could meet Lai Zhen through Consort Shen and borrow some manpower.

Lai Zhen's command of the troops in three prefectures naturally included the Shence Army stationed within their borders. Li Ji was familiar with many of the Shence Army generals, and having defended against the barbarians in Longyou, he had naturally picked up some of the northwestern dialect, especially their swear words… He believed they could get along well. Crucially, the Shence Army was brave and fierce, especially skilled in cavalry warfare. Li Ji thought to himself that if he had three to five hundred elite Shence cavalry, they could certainly play a role in battles between the two armies.

So he thanked Consort Shen and followed her into Shan City, resting temporarily in the backyard of the county government office. Sure enough, not long after, Shen Yu invited Lai Zhen to come and pay his respects to Consort Shen, kneeling and bowing. Consort Shen inquired about the situation at the front and then asked Lai Zhen to allocate a force to accompany Li Ji to rescue Luoyang.

Lai Tian glanced sideways and saw a burly man standing beside Consort Shen, carrying two heavy maces on his back. The maces were easy to carry on foot or at a leisurely pace, but they were not very convenient when running at full speed. Therefore, before leaving the capital, Li Ji finally listened to Qin Huan's advice and changed to carrying them crosswise on his back. Lai Tian then cupped his hands and asked, "Are you Li Erlang from Longyou, the Defender of the Barbarians?"

Li Ji clasped his hands and said, "Greetings, Supervisor. This humble official is indeed Li Ji."

Lai Zhen then asked, "I heard that Erlang has taken up a post in the Yingwu Army. Is there an imperial edict to go east and rescue Luoyang?"

Li Ji shook his head and said, "There is no imperial edict. I have taken a long leave to go to Luoyang to handle some private matters..." I believe that Lai Zhen, seeing him standing next to Consort Shen, will naturally understand what the so-called "private matters" refer to—"Since we have encountered rebels, we cannot help but feel our blood boiling. How can we not fight them when they are right in front of us? I earnestly request that Supervisor Lai grant my request."

Lai Zhen nodded: "Indeed, he is a brave general who can be a pillar of the country..." Then he shook his head: "However, I am ordered to command the troops of three prefectures. Without an imperial edict and military order, not a single soldier can move without permission. I hope that you, Second Prince, will..." He clasped his hands towards Consort Shen: "Do not make things difficult for me."

Li Ji advised, “If Luoyang is not lost and Li Sikong is stationed in Heyang, the rebels will not be able to advance westward to Shanzhou. I, Lai Jian, will have tens of thousands of troops but will not achieve anything. If Luoyang falls, Shanzhou will also be attacked. Given its terrain, it will be difficult to defend, and we will have no choice but to retreat to Tongguan. I urge you to think carefully about the pros and cons.”

Lai Zhen shook his head: "How could I not know the meaning of 'if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold'? But without the Emperor's command, I cannot command even a single horse without authorization..."

Li Ji pleaded repeatedly, and Consort Shen chimed in from the side. Lai Zhen seemed determined, but refused. Li Ji almost wanted to pounce on him just like he had when he kidnapped Xu Shuji.

However, Lai Zhen was different from Xu Shuji. He came from a military family and earned his fame purely through battlefield combat, one sword and one spear. Although he was over forty, judging from his physique and build, Li Ji really didn't have the confidence to defeat him in one move... Besides, what Lai Zhen said made sense. How could troops be mobilized without military orders? Did he think the army was his own property? Even if Li Ji subdued Lai Zhen, what could Li Ji do if the other party was not afraid of death and refused to change his mind? Kill him with a single blow? That would make him a great sinner who disrupted the army and brought disaster to the country.

Left with no other choice, he could only sigh and say, "Perhaps the prison can provide some equipment and allow me to recruit righteous men in the city to rescue Luoyang in the east—I will never forget your great kindness and virtue, and if I survive, I will surely repay you one day!"

Lai Zhen stared at him for a while before stroking his beard and saying, "There's no need for that." He then said, "Minister Li has sent an envoy who says that the army is short of provisions and has ordered me to search the granaries of the three prefectures to provide some relief. I am about to send a troop to escort the provisions to Heyang, and you may accompany me, Erlang."

Li Ji was overjoyed upon hearing this, thinking to himself, "You should have said so earlier! All that talk was for nothing..." However, judging from Lai Zhen's intentions, firstly, she wanted to test the sincerity of his desire to rescue Luoyang, and secondly, she was deliberately keeping him in suspense to ensure the favor was fully appreciated. "It doesn't matter," he thought, "if Nan Jiyun and the others can truly be saved, I will be deeply grateful for your kindness. I will never break my promise to repay your kindness!"

So he bid farewell to Consort Shen again. Consort Shen knew she couldn't keep him, so she repeatedly urged him, saying, "Changwei, you must take care of yourself and not be reckless—you can't defeat 100,000 rebels by yourself."

Immediately, Lai Zhen ordered someone to escort Li Ji to the drill ground. The messenger went inside to report, while Li Ji waited outside. Before long, a loud shouting was heard, and a soldier rushed out and punched Li Ji in the chest: "You scoundrel, what are you doing in Shanzhou?!"

Li Ji looked closely and exclaimed, "Oh my, it's someone I know!"—it was none other than "Old Jing" Jing Jiang.

Jing Jiang originally served in the Imperial Guard, but he couldn't stand the leisurely days of clocking in and standing guard with a halberd every day. So he wrote to his old superior, Wei Boyu, requesting that he be transferred back to the Shence Army. Just before Li Ji returned to the capital at the beginning of the year, Jing Jiang left Chang'an, and the two missed each other.

However, Li Ji also heard a rumor that Lao Jing had actually taken a liking to a prostitute in the Pingkangfang alley and had even saved up money to buy her freedom. Unexpectedly, the woman had already redeemed herself and married a young man as a concubine. Lao Jing was heartbroken and resentful from then on, and thus refused to stay in that sorrowful place of Chang'an any longer…

In short, when Lao Jing returned to the Shence Army, he planned to find another opportunity to go to the front line, but then the defeat at Xiangzhou occurred, so he had no chance to make any contributions... Therefore, when Lai Zhen was to escort a batch of grain and supplies to Heyang, Lao Jing took the lead in volunteering, and even used his fists to suppress his colleagues, and finally managed to get the assignment.

The army in Heyang was short of food, and in fact, Shanzhou did not have much surplus grain either. Therefore, Lai Zhen managed to gather a total of 1,000 hu of old grain, which was loaded onto more than 100 carts and escorted by Lao Jing with 100 cavalry and 300 infantry.

Li Ji then joined the group, riding alongside Lao Jing, reminiscing about their time apart and reminiscing about the past—but when asked about the prostitutes in Pingkangfang, Lao Jing vehemently denied it, even saying he would beat the guy who spread the rumors to death.

After leaving Shaanxi City, they hadn't gone far when a voice called out from behind, "Brother Li, slow down! Wait for me!"

Li Ji thought to himself, "Here we go again? Why aren't you going back to Chang'an to report to Cui Guangyuan? What are you doing here causing trouble?" He immediately waited, and sure enough, not long after, Cui Qi caught up with him. Before Li Ji could question him, Cui Qi spoke first, "Shen Dajia was worried about Brother Li and sent me to look after him."

The term "everyone" generally refers to the master or mistress of the house. Cui Qi didn't want to reveal Consort Shen's identity in public, so he used this form of address. Li Ji immediately glared and said, "Why would I need your care?!"

Cui Qi put on a sincere face: "Back in Luoyang, if it weren't for my help, would Brother Li have been able to enter Shengshan Temple alive? Don't you remember? Back then, Brother Li didn't even have a beard..."

Li Ji thought to himself, "Stop! This past act of impersonating a eunuch is a major stain on my life. If you dare to say it, I'll kill you!" He quickly replied, "This journey will inevitably involve fighting the rebels. Why take such a risk?"

Cui Qi said, "It was Master Shen's order. If you don't want me to go with you, Brother Li, you should go back to Shanxian and refuse him. I can ride a horse and wield a sword, so I'm not a burden and won't hinder your plans. Master Shen is just afraid that if you see the rebels, you'll rush in without thinking and lose your life for nothing. That's why he sent me here. At least, I can help you collect your body."

Li Ji thought to himself, "Do you really think I'm that reckless?" Despite repeated attempts to shoo him away, Cui Qi resolutely refused to leave. In desperation, Li Ji could only say, "Then you shall stay close to me. If you want to steal, you must first escape for your own life... Hide well and don't encounter any danger, as I cannot explain this to Cui Gong."

While the two were talking, Lao Jing had been observing coldly from the side. Only when he saw that Li Ji had left Cui Qi behind did he come up and ask, "Who is this...?" Li Ji replied perfunctorily, "My good friend Cui Cuo, is... an old friend and family member."

They continued their journey. Cui Qi didn't say much, simply riding behind Li Ji. Li Ji, however, couldn't help but frequently turn around to see what the little girl was doing. Old Jing rode closer, suddenly nudging Li Ji's waist with his elbow, and chuckled in a low voice, "So you like this kind of virgin..."

Li Ji quickly clarified, "She's just a maid from an old friend's household, sent to look after me. Actually, I..."

Old Jing was taken aback upon hearing this. He glanced back at Cui Qi before exclaiming, "A maid? She's actually a woman?!"

Li Ji was completely shocked. He thought to himself, "So you didn't realize she was a woman? Then what you said earlier... Damn, this guy has such thick eyebrows and big eyes, who would have thought his thoughts were so filthy!"

Quickly changing the subject, he asked Lao Jing, "Isn't it inconvenient to have a woman in the army?"

Old Jing laughed and said, "According to the law, women are not allowed to get close to the army, but... which army doesn't have one or two women? As long as you don't make a fuss, no one will bother you."

Li Ji thought to himself, "Military discipline, military discipline... In this day and age, the discipline of a feudal army, no matter how good, is still like this..."

That day, they camped at Xiashi. The next morning, Zhang Xun again urged the laborers to set off. After traveling a short distance, probably near the Xiaoshan Mountains, they encountered many refugees fleeing from Luoyang. Inquiring with them, he learned that four days earlier, the rebel army had captured Xingyang and was advancing towards Sishui. Zhang Xun hurriedly arranged for officials and civilians to evacuate the city.

Li Ji and Lao Jing exchanged a glance, both secretly surprised—the rebels had arrived so quickly!

If Li Guangbi had followed the original plan and withdrawn his troops to defend Heyang, it is estimated that there would not have been many troops left to defend the cities east of Luoyang, and the rebel army would have been able to advance unimpeded—it is estimated that they would have already entered Luoyang by now!

Old Jing said, "Even if Doctor Zhang remains in Luoyang, and Minister Li is stationed in Heyang to contain the rebels, his vanguard will likely bypass the city and head west, possibly reaching the walls of Xin'an. We should move quickly. Tonight we'll rest at Quemen, and tomorrow morning I'll lead the cavalry east to scout and see which road is passable..."

Li Ji nodded: "I will go with you."

Quemen, located between Mianchi and Xin'an, is merely a small market town. Xin'an lies thirty li to the east, and it is the first defensible county west of Luoyang. Given that the government forces in Heyang have not yet been defeated and Luoyang has not been completely captured, even if the rebel cavalry were to bypass Xin'an and travel too far, Quemen is, for the time being, safe.

But what happens next is uncertain. This small grain transport team will certainly not be able to pass through Luoyang and head to Heyang along the main road. It is hoped that the main force of the rebels will come along the way. The area along the Yellow River and Hengshui in the north is still relatively peaceful. If the reconnaissance is correct, they can take a detour to reach their destination.

So the next morning, just as the sun rose, Lao Jing led a hundred Shence cavalrymen, leaving the main force and heading towards Xin'an—Li Ji naturally followed beside him, while Cui Qi insisted on staying right behind him. Li Ji then asked Cui Qi, "Besides flying swords, what other weapons do you know?" Cui Qi replied, "I can wield a knife too." Li Ji asked someone to lend Cui Qi a knife, but perhaps seeing that this "half-grown boy" was too thin and weak, fearing he wouldn't be able to wield a horizontal sword, the person ultimately gave him a shield-shaped sword.

Li Ji repeatedly instructed him: "If you encounter the enemy, you should avoid them first..." Cui Qi rolled his eyes at him: "I will protect my own life—a real man shouldn't be so long-winded, like a common woman in the marketplace!"

The group rode slowly, and just as they approached Xin'an City, the first scout was shot and returned in disarray. Old Jing asked in alarm, "Have the bandits reached Xin'an?" The knight nodded repeatedly, but whether from exhaustion or the pain of being shot, he was speechless for a moment.

Li Ji said, "Since we can return with arrows, there may not be many bandits. Let me go ahead and scout." He flicked the reins, gave the horse a kick with his legs, and charged forward.

Cui Qi remained silent and immediately spurred his horse to follow.

Old Jing hurriedly ordered one of the squad leaders, "Quickly, catch up with Military Advisor Li, find out how many bandits there are, who is leading the troops, and report back immediately." The squad leader agreed and led his ten riders away at full speed.

Li Ji spurred his horse and galloped for just over a mile, barely catching sight of the Xin'an city wall, when he ran headlong into the rebel scouts. The enemy, also a group of ten riders, saw that there were only two generals facing them—the Shence cavalry were still lagging behind—and immediately circled around them from both sides, charging straight at them.

Without a word, Li Ji took his lance from his saddle and charged towards the leading enemy rider, thrusting forward with a dizzying thrust. The enemy parried with his own lance, but unexpectedly, the lance in Li Ji's hand seemed to twist like a venomous snake—actually an illusion caused by the speed of the thrust—and pierced straight into the rider's body along the shaft. Then, with a flick of Li Ji's wrist, a hole appeared in the enemy rider's chest, and he immediately screamed in agony, falling from his horse and dying.

Then, two enemy riders approached from the left and right, wielding their spears simultaneously. Li Ji let the left enemy go first, then flicked the right enemy away with a spear. When he turned his hand back, he saw that the left enemy had dropped his spear, clutching his throat with both hands, his eyes wide open like eggs... Li Ji hurriedly glanced back and saw that Cui Qi was very close, so he asked, "How many flying swords do you have?"

"Killing this whole gang should be enough."

Li Ji nodded and smiled at her, then immediately brandished his lance again, seeking out and fighting the thieves. After years of hard training, he had become proficient in horsemanship and spearmanship—it was just a pity that he was still lacking in the skill of the horse lance, and dared not easily take it into battle—in addition, he was very strong, and in the blink of an eye he killed two more enemies, and no one could last a single round against him.

Of course, it was also because the enemy was few in number and difficult to truly encircle them. No matter how fierce Li Ji was, he was not a thousand-armed Guanyin. If a dozen or so spears came from all sides at once, he would most likely not be able to withstand them. Moreover, Cui Qi would occasionally unleash flying swords from behind, each time aiming straight for the enemy cavalry's throat. He would kill two people with three sword strikes, which terrified the rebel soldiers. So, before the group of Shence cavalry could catch up and provide support, the remaining four riders turned their horses around and fled in panic.

As the Shence bandit leader caught up, he shouted, "Second Brother, capture a prisoner alive and interrogate him about the enemy's situation!" Li Ji agreed and spurred his horse to give chase. Cui Qi, unable to stop him in time, clicked his tongue and scoffed—you still dare to say you're not reckless?

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Chapter Twenty-Three: An Enemy of Ten Thousand

Leading the cavalry westward, patrolling to the city of Xin'an, were the rebel generals Li Riyue and Yu Wenjing.

Shi Siming had three mid-level generals under his command who were the bravest in the army and were highly valued. Shi Siming once boasted: "In the past, Liu Bei had two men, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who were capable of fighting ten thousand men each, and thus he was able to occupy a corner of the country for decades. Now I have three men who are capable of fighting ten thousand men each. How can I not conquer the world?!" These three men were named Gao Tinghui, Li Riyue, and Yu Wenjing.

Li and Yu, both leading Khitan and Xi cavalry who had pledged allegiance, were always at the forefront in battle, slaying generals and capturing flags with unparalleled skill. At that time, Shi Siming was already in Luoyang, fearing that the Tang army in Shanzhou would come to his aid from the east. So he ordered the two generals to lead their troops westward and instructed them: "If Xin'an is undefended, you may attack and capture it; if it is already defended, plunder the city walls to frighten the enemy and to alert the western enemy for us."

So when Li Ji arrived at the city of Xin'an, the two generals were showing off their power and ordering the city's generals to surrender. Yu Wenjing heard from the scouts that two Tang generals were extremely brave and had killed several people and were in hot pursuit. He looked around and said, "They are probably Lai Zhen's Western soldiers. They must be the vanguard. Let me kill them to demoralize the enemy."

So he led his troops out and ran into Li Ji, Cui Qi and others.

At this moment, Cui Qi was grabbing Li Ji's horse by the head, urging him to turn back. Li Ji thought to himself, "Don't really think I'm reckless. If I don't want to retreat, with your horse's strength, you can't catch up with me at all. How could you possibly grab my reins?" But he said aloud, "I must first see the enemy's flags and assess their numbers before I can report back..."

As they were talking, the sound of horses' hooves clattered, and dozens of banners were instantly upon them. The Shence cavalrymen were somewhat terrified at the sight—firstly, the enemy outnumbered them, at least several hundred, and secondly, they were well-equipped and their banners were brightly colored, indicating that they were mostly elite troops, making them a formidable opponent… The captain hurriedly said, “Second Brother, retreat quickly, I will cover your retreat.”

Li Ji smiled faintly at him: "Since I am here, how can I let others cover the rear?" Then he turned his head and glared fiercely at Cui Qi—the little girl involuntarily loosened the reins.

Li Ji instructed the gang leader, "Please escort my brother back safely, and I will be grateful." He spurred his horse forward a few steps, stood in the roadside with his spear across his face, and shouted, "Li Erlang of Jingzhao is here! Who dares to fight me to the death?!"

His left hand kept waving behind his back, as if to say: You guys better get out of here, so I can run away.

Cui Qi gritted his teeth, raised his hand and whipped the leader's horse: "You all hurry up and call General Jing to come and rescue us!" He then somersaulted off his horse and darted away into the bushes by the roadside.

Hearing the shouts, Yu Wenjing spurred his horse forward and pointed at Li Ji: "What Li Er? Never heard of him? I am Yu Wenjing of Youzhou. Those who know my name, why don't you dismount and surrender immediately?!"

Li Ji raised his eyebrows: "What kind of clown or devil is that? I have no idea!"

Both were furious. The key issue was that one was involved in a rebellion in Hebei, while the other had achieved merit in the western frontier. In those days, there was no radio, television, internet, or Weibo, leading to a complete lack of communication and neither knowing the other's name. Li Ji thought to himself, "My lord's name is renowned throughout both capitals! How could some country bumpkin or peasant have never heard of me?" Yu Wenjing thought to himself, "I am personally bestowed the title of 'Enemy of Ten Thousand' by the Emperor of Great Yan! Who in the Tang army doesn't know me? What are you pretending to be stupid for?!"

Once I capture you alive, you won't dare to act so arrogantly anymore!

He was particularly envious of the fine horse from Longyou that Li Ji rode. Yu Wenjing originally had two northern steeds, but one had fallen ill and couldn't be taken this time, and the other had been wounded by an arrow during the attack on Zhengzhou and forced to retire… His current mount, while quite valiant, was clearly inferior to Li Ji's. Therefore, he thought to himself, "Is this a gift from heaven, a special present for me? How can I refuse?"

He immediately spurred his horse, brandished his spear, and charged straight at Li Ji.

Yu Wenjing looked down on Li Ji, firstly because he was confident in his martial prowess, and secondly because, judging from his attire, he was just an unknown junior general, so what was there to fear?

The key point is that Li Ji didn't bring his own armor with him on this eastward journey—who could have predicted that Luoyang would be under attack so quickly? Even knowing Xu Shuji was unreliable, no one could have guessed he would surrender so instantly. In Shanxian, he temporarily borrowed a set from the Shence Army, the same as the uniforms of ordinary ten or fifty-man commanders. On the contrary, he noticed Yu Wenjing wearing a phoenix-winged silver helmet and fine-scaled iron armor, clearly of high status; especially the iron spear in the other's hand, with its long and thick blade, almost matching Nan Jiyun's weapon… In these days, anyone who can still wield a horse spear must be a brave warrior!

Thus, when the two horses clashed, Yu Wenjing underestimated his opponent and was careless, while Li Ji was cautious and meticulous. The difference in strength became clear in an instant. Yu Wenjing couldn't help but frown, thinking to himself, "Where did this Li Er come from? He's so formidable!" He immediately mustered all his strength and thrust his spear straight at Li Ji's heart, concealing various deadly moves, hoping that Li Ji could resist and compete with him.

By comparing physical strength, Yu Wenjing was confident that he was second to none in his time.

Li Ji indeed parried with his spear, and the two weapons clashed with a "crack," causing their wrists to tremble violently. Yu Wenjing realized he had no chance of winning in a contest of strength and finally began to panic—the key was that he had underestimated his opponent earlier, and one wrong move led to another, making it difficult to regain the initiative. He wanted to call his men to attack, but feared it would damage his reputation, so he used a trick, taking advantage of the moment when the two horses passed each other, he turned and fled.

Li Ji shouted, "You're talking big! Do you think you can just walk away?!" He spurred his horse and gave chase.

In truth, Yu Wenjing was feigning defeat, secretly drawing his bow and arrows, intending to turn and shoot that despicable Li Er off his horse. Li Ji, however, wasn't truly in pursuit—there were several hundred men on the other side; chasing them would be suicide. But the prey on the other side was truly tempting; if he could kill or capture it alive, it would greatly weaken the enemy's momentum, and perhaps those hundreds would scatter in panic… He thought, "I'll chase for a dozen paces; if I can catch up, all the better. If not, my horse's speed will increase, and I can use the momentum to turn, leap off the road from the side, jump over the ditch, and run into the wilderness…"

In an instant, Yu Wenjing turned around, the bowstring twanged, and an arrow shot forth. Unexpectedly, Li Ji's horse was fast, and he caught up, sweeping his lance horizontally across the enemy's bow. The arrow went astray and flew off to who knows where.

Startled, Yu Wenjing didn't have time to pick up his spear again. He was forced to throw down his bow, put his arms together, and grabbed the incoming spear—thankfully, the spear tip was only an inch or two away from his face.

He intended to try to disarm Yu Wenjing, but Li Ji instead pushed the spear shaft forward, causing Yu Wenjing to stumble on the saddle bridge. Li Ji thought to himself, "I'm used to disarming people, how could I possibly be outmaneuvered like this?" Taking advantage of the situation, he freed his right hand, drew an iron mace from behind his back, and with a "whoosh," struck down on Yu Wenjing's head.

Seeing the situation was bad, Yu Wenjing hurriedly let go and crouched down. The mace just grazed his helmet and landed heavily on his shoulder. He couldn't help but cry out, lay on the saddle, grabbed the horse's neck with both hands, and fled in panic.

Overjoyed at his victory with a single blow, Li Ji immediately charged forward, mace in his right hand and spear in his left. Just as he had predicted, the hundreds of Khitan and Xi cavalry, though elite, had always revered their commander, Yu Wenjing. Now, witnessing Yu Wenjing's defeat, they were all terrified. Who would dare challenge Li Ji's might? They turned their horses around and scattered in disarray, following their commander.

Li Ji pursued them for an arrow's distance, stabbing two more riders to the ground. Just as he was about to call it a day, he suddenly heard a drumbeat from nearby. Immediately afterward, it seemed to be Yu Wenjing's loud cry: "Brother Li, save me!"

Li Ji thought to himself, "Hey? Which Brother Li are you calling? Damn this common surname, there are people with the surname Li everywhere in the world."

A general, wielding a lance, galloped through the defeated soldiers and blocked Li Ji's horse—it was Li Riyue, another "enemy of ten thousand men" in the rebel army.

Li Riyue happened to arrive nearby and, seeing the situation, let Yu Wenjing go and went to fight Li Ji. The two horses clashed, their spears clashed, and both were startled: What immense strength!

Li Ji thought to himself, "I really shouldn't be so arrogant and underestimate the heroes of the world. Look at me, in less than half an hour, I've encountered two formidable generals, each only slightly inferior to Nan Jiyun and Lei Wanchun. Is it because Nan and Lei are guarding Luoyang that Shi Siming has sent out his most capable warriors first?"

Li Riyue was also surprised and couldn't help but exclaim, "What a brave warrior! That's why you were able to defeat my brother Yu. Seeing that you're not useful in the Tang family, why don't you surrender to my Great Yan? I'll guarantee you a deputy military envoy position!"

Li Ji uttered foul language, spitting in Li Riyue's face, "You filthy scoundrel, I am a civil official!" At the same time, he felt a chill. Wait, this is Lao Jing's tone. Have I been influenced by him to become vulgar these past few days? His hands didn't stop, he used both mace and spear to fight Li Riyue.

In truth, Li Riyue's physical strength was slightly inferior to Yu Wenjing's—if it were Yu Wenjing instead, Li Ji would ultimately be wielding a spear with only one hand, and would probably be at a disadvantage in the very first move—but his proficiency in spear fighting and horsemanship was far superior. The two men circled each other on horseback, and in a short time, they had gone through six or seven rounds. Li Ji encountered danger repeatedly and was starting to feel the strain.

He thought to himself, "I'd better stop with the fancy tricks. I'll just throw away the mace in my right hand and fight with both spears." If he continued like this, not only would his chances of winning be slim, but once the enemy soldiers had a chance to establish a foothold and saw that he couldn't defeat this general, they would all surround him, and then he wouldn't even have a place to run!

But the thought of throwing the mace stirred something within him, and he recalled a deadly move that Qin Huan had taught him.

According to folklore, Qin Shubao was skilled with double maces, and had a special technique called "the throwing mace," which could hit its mark every time within ten paces, killing instantly. Li Ji asked Qin Huan about this, but Qin Huan said, "Using the throwing mace to strike someone is merely a fancy trick used out of necessity. Even within five paces, it's only meant to dazzle the eye, with a hit rate of less than 30%. However, since you want to learn it, I will teach you."

The key to this move is to find a suitable release point when the mace is swung in the widest circle, and then use centrifugal force to launch it. However, the mace is heavy and cannot travel far, and its flight speed is slow. If the enemy is skilled in martial arts, it is virtually impossible to be hit. But what if the enemy is unfamiliar with the moves? Then there is no need to throw the mace at all.

At that moment, Li Ji thought to himself, "Since I'm going to throw the mace anyway, I might as well unleash it with a 'last-ditch' attack." So, seizing an opening, he mustered all his strength in his right arm and hurled the mace straight at Li Riyue's head. Li Riyue remained calm, slightly shifting his body to the side and raising his spear to parry—

Although he was a highly skilled martial artist and a veteran of countless battles, he had never seen such a move before, and therefore his response was somewhat ineffective. In fact, he only needed to observe the trajectory of the incoming mace and dodge it by sidestepping; there was no need to parry. However, he had just retracted his spear when he instinctively swung it to the side, striking the mace squarely. The mace, which was already spinning, was suddenly struck, and using the spear shaft as a fulcrum, its end instantly tilted upwards. Startled, Li Riyue hurriedly shrank his neck and leaned his body backwards.

As soon as Li Ji threw out his right-hand mace, he immediately grabbed his spear with both hands and thrust it forward. Just then, Li Riyue leaned back, and the spear tip was only a few inches away from his breastplate, so he couldn't hit him. But as he leaned back, his vision instinctively shifted, and Li Ji seized the opportunity to change his move, swinging the spear shaft horizontally and lashing it hard at the neck of Li Riyue's horse.

The warhorse, in pain, twisted its neck and galloped sideways. Li Riyue swayed on the horse's back for a moment, and just as he freed his left hand to rein in the horse, a flash of white light appeared before his eyes, and a flying sword grazed his nose!

Blood trickled from Li Riyue's nose, and he was greatly alarmed. He hurriedly turned his horse around and fled along the road. Li Ji gave chase, and Li Riyue shouted, "They actually had crossbowmen lying in ambush! How shameless!"

—That white light was so close and fast that he didn't see it clearly and mistook it for a crossbow bolt.

Before Li Ji could reply, several arrows came flying at him, forcing him to parry with his spear.

Both Yu Wenjing and Li Riyue considered themselves invincible warriors, so when they fought one-on-one, their soldiers dared not interfere or rush to their aid, or launch sneak attacks, when the outcome was uncertain. But now Li Riyue was clearly defeated, especially since it seemed he was forced into this by a sneak attack. Could his cavalry continue to stand by and watch? Several of the braver ones immediately drew their bows and shot arrows at Li Ji.

Li Ji paused for a moment, watching as Li Riyue was about to escape. He thought to himself, "I'm really unlucky. I've defeated two enemy generals, but I can't catch either of them..."

Just as he was about to turn back, still lamenting, "Judging by this situation, I'll never get my 'Azure Lotus Four-Sided Mace' back..." Suddenly, a loud shout rang out, and with the sound of bells, a troop of soldiers galloped out from the flank. A general at the head of the troop raised his eighteen-foot-long spear and charged straight at Li Riyue. Caught off guard, Li Riyue was pierced through the side and immediately fell from his horse, dying instantly.

Li Ji looked closely and realized that the person who had come was none other than Lei Wanchun, whom he had just met!

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After Shi Siming surrendered to Xu Shuji and Dong Qin, opening the eastern gate of Henan, he immediately marched straight in. When the vanguard of the rebel army reached the outskirts of Luoyang, not only had Zhang Xun not been able to completely evacuate the soldiers and civilians, but even Li Guangbi, who personally gathered oil, iron, and other supplies from the city to escort to Heyang, was still unable to escape.

At that time, Li Guangbi led 500 cavalry to cover the rear, while the rebel guerrillas had already reached the stone bridge east of Luoyang. The generals asked for orders: "Should we go out from the north of the city or from the east, following the original plan to cross the stone bridge?" Li Guangbi gave the order without hesitation: "Cross the stone bridge." So, under the cover of darkness, they carried torches high and moved slowly. The rebels, fearing a trap, dared not advance rashly and could only pursue them.

Li Guangbi immediately retreated to Heyang with 20,000 troops and only enough provisions for ten days. Shi Siming seized the opportunity to attack Luoyang, and Zhang Xun led his 5,000 troops to defend the palace. The rebel army looted extensively within the city but gained almost nothing. They wanted to advance on the palace, but were intimidated by Zhang Xun's reputation and feared Li Guangbi's intervention…