Chapter 95: Retribution (3)
Due to the active intervention of a single soldier, the tide of battle turned rapidly.
Splat!
Another imperial guard fell, but no one understood how it had happened. There had only been a mirage-like distortion in the air for a brief moment.
The core experts of the imperial guard were losing their lives one by one without even realizing why. Those who died could not even utter a scream.
Before long, only one person capable of releasing sword qi remained. It was Chief Escort Administrator Zhao Chong. He warily scanned the surroundings with a look of disbelief and shouted, “Who are you, you bastard?!”
There was no reply. Instead, a dark shadow leaped up from his own shadow.
“Hiiek!”
Startled, Zhao Chong initiated a defensive maneuver with all his might.
Clang!
A sharp pain shot through his wrist, as if his hand were being severed, and his posture was instantly thrown off.
Stumbling, he saw a thick, white mist rising around him. As a bright streak of light flashed within the mist, he unleashed his sword qi in desperation to deflect it.
Clang!
“Kh!”
But that was only the beginning. The streaks of light flashing from within the mist grew increasingly faster. He could not even tell where the attacks were coming from.
Clang! Clang!
Zhao Chong had once been a training instructor for the imperial guards. His wealth of experience had allowed him to hold out until now. But that was the limit of his luck.
Slash!
“Aaargh!”
That was the trigger. Stumbling, Zhao Chong was ruthlessly sliced by the light within the mist.
Slash! Slash!
The white mist soon turned into a red mist as blood sprayed into the air. When it cleared, a soldier holding a straight saber stood in the center.
His movements were perfectly restrained, and his eyes, sharp and cold as blades, were those of a consummate assassin.
The peerless assassin of the Murim, the Lord of Assassins Baek Ri-hyeon. His gaze swept across the battlefield.
With their core experts dead, the remaining imperial guards were surrounded by the opposing soldiers and were being overwhelmed. There was no need to watch this fight any longer.
About a hundred feet away, General Huang Yu was leading a hundred elite troops, charging toward the imperial carriage.
With a shift of his footwork, Baek Ri-hyeon’s figure stretched forward like a ghost. Before long, he was running along at the rear of Huang Yu’s charge.
Meanwhile, the court ministers witnessing this scene were terrified. They scattered in confusion, creating utter chaos.
“H-How can this be…?”
“W-What do we do now?”
The Emperor also cried out to Qin Hui in panic, “Prime Minister, do something!”
Qin Hui maintained his composure. He still had a card up his sleeve.
“Fang Miao.”
At his quiet call, a dark figure emerged from his shadow. It was a spine-chilling figure wrapped in bandages from head to toe. Seeing him, the ministers’ faces filled with surprise and anticipation.
“The Shadow-Chasing Soul-Piercer?”
“So the rumors were true?”
The Shadow-Chasing Soul-Piercer. It was the title of the legendary assassin raised as a guard for the Qin family. Among the ministers, his existence had only been whispered about as a rumor.
Revealing his cold eyes through the bandages, he asked, “Your command, my Lord.”
“Can you eliminate them all by yourself?”
“It is impossible. There is one person among them against whom I cannot guarantee victory.”
A look of surprise crossed Qin Hui’s face. The only opponent Fang Miao had ever backed down from was Han Shizhong.
‘Fang Miao’s judgment must be correct. Otherwise, the imperial guards would not have been slaughtered so miserably.’
Qin Hui glanced at the Emperor.
‘This is all due to your incompetence and perverted greed.’
With the enemy soldiers approaching, they had to move quickly. If he fled with the Emperor, the mysterious expert would likely pursue them. Having made up his mind, Qin Hui spoke to Fang Miao in a heavy voice.
“It is time to leave this place.”
“Then… excuse me.”
The Shadow-Chasing Soul-Piercer picked up Qin Hui and darted away, choosing to flee rather than fight. Seeing this, the ministers cursed in fury.
“What a bastard!”
“Do you still call yourself a Prime Minister?!”
“You absolute scoundrel!”
Even the Prime Minister, their last hope, had fled. The Emperor stood trembling in terror, speechless. General Huang Yu and his hundred soldiers then closed in on them.
“Slaughter the corrupt traitors who ruined this country!”
As Huang Yu strode toward the Emperor, a voice echoed in his mind via sound transmission.
I have helped you, so I have one request. The court ladies are innocent children who were dragged here by force. Do not kill them; send them all to Hanzhong.
It was a request he had no reason to refuse. At that moment, Huang Yu’s thunderous voice echoed across the field.
“Do not touch the court ladies!”
As his command fell, a vengeful slaughter began. The fleeing court ministers were cut down by their own country’s soldiers, screaming as they fell. Most of them were too fat to run.
Amidst the massacre, Huang Yu walked toward the Emperor. The Emperor stammered in panic, “S-Spare me! I will name you the Grand General! N-No, I will even make you the Prime Minister if you wish!”
His pathetic behavior only infuriated Huang Yu more.
“To think I served such a beast. Shut up and face the anger of the people, you bastard!”
Thrust!
“Aaargh!”
The Emperor shrieked in pain for the first time in his life. The golden dragon robe, the symbol of his authority, was stained red with blood.
“An emperor must share the suffering of his people. The citizens you abandoned suffered far worse.”
Huang Yu had no intention of killing him quickly. He began to butcher the pig before him slowly.
Meanwhile, about a hundred feet away, a pair of eyes flashed from the shadow beneath the carriage, staring in the direction Qin Hui had fled.
‘The Shadow-Chasing Soul-Piercer… We will settle this next time.’
The highest state of assassination was to eliminate the target without using one’s own hands, as it left no evidence. He had completed his contract perfectly.
***
In Jang-yang’s office, two guests were drinking tea with him. They were Lieutenant Yang Yeon-jeong and So-mu.
Holding his teacup, Jang-yang looked worried.
“I told him to return if it proved too difficult, but I still worry about sending him alone. I was too hasty.”
So-mu smiled and shook his head.
“You do not need to worry. If he decides to flee, no one in the world can catch him. But how did you convince him to act? He is someone who will refuse even ten million gold if he does not feel like accepting a contract.”
The Lord of Assassins would not move unless he accepted a contract. So-mu was curious about what Jang-yang had offered as payment.
“The reward for the contract… was a bowl of chicken porridge.”
To think the life of the Emperor, who had ruled over millions, was worth a bowl of chicken porridge. Although the mood was solemn, So-mu could not help but chuckle. Lieutenant Yang Yeon-jeong also flushed, barely holding back her laughter.
After calming down, So-mu asked the question on his mind.
“But why did you say we must spare Qin Hui?”
“How could I want to spare that traitor? But if the Emperor dies, the country risks fracturing. Even if Qin Hui loses all his claws and becomes a puppet, having the symbolic figure of the Prime Minister will help sustain the nation for a little longer.”
Yang Yeon-jeong asked warily, “Is it really alright if the imperial family disappears?”
“The imperial family lost its function long ago. What difference does it make if there is no Emperor? Even here in Hanzhong, nothing will change.”
Public sentiment in Hanzhong toward the imperial family was already at its worst. The citizens might actually welcome the news.
“But I worry about the other regions.”
“In the early days of our Song Dynasty, the governors-general of each region were granted control over the military, finance, and administration. If the central government ceases to function, the country will revolve around them once more.”
“If the power of the central government, which was controlled by traitors, is decentralized, isn’t that a good thing?”
“It might be for now. But if this state continues, someone will eventually covet the throne, and if the governors-general do not recognize them, the country will fracture.”
“While the risk of the entire country falling to the Hui Dynasty is gone, a new problem arises.”
“For now, we can only watch. We must simply do what needs to be done.”
Yang Yeon-jeong looked at the map and asked, “When will the operation to reclaim Chang’an begin?”
“As soon as the weather warms up, we must start immediately. Before that, there is something I wish to discuss. That is why I called you both here today.”
“Please, speak.”
“I was thinking of organizing a civilian relief squad to accompany us during this campaign.”
A relief squad was an unfamiliar term. No organization with such a name had ever existed in the history of the Central Plains.
So-mu asked with interest, “Is it an organization to provide aid to the people?”
“Precisely. The citizens of northern Shaanxi and Chang’an are starving and suffering. The relief squad will arrive in the areas secured by our army to help them. What do you think?”
“It is an excellent idea. We cannot afford to split our military forces to provide aid during battle. If it is a secured area, civilians can contribute significantly.”
Yang Yeon-jeong also agreed with a bright face.
“That sounds wonderful. Without help, it will not be easy for the people there to stand on their own feet again. How should we prepare the relief supplies?”
“Do we not have the military farm grain that has not yet been sent to the imperial court?”
Twenty percent of the military farm harvest was to be paid to the imperial court as tax. This year, because the Hui Dynasty attacked immediately after the harvest, they had been unable to send it. Since it was midwinter, the matter had been delayed. As it had been a year of bumper crops, the amount was astronomical.
“Now that the capital has fallen, there is no need to pay the imperial court. And if we add the relief grain stored in our military warehouses, the amount will be substantial.”
“Indeed. But that alone will not be enough. Providing food is important, but they will also lack medicine, clothing, and everything else. We will need a considerable amount of funds. Do you have any ideas?”
The cities captured by the Hui Dynasty had been completely devastated. The population had decreased drastically, and economic activity had ground to a halt. It was not a problem that could be solved by food alone.
While everyone fell into thought, So-mu broke the silence.
“Why don’t we encourage the wealthy and the merchants to donate? If we promise to guarantee better commercial rights in Chang’an to those who contribute significantly once we reclaim it, many will participate.”
Jang-yang’s face brightened.
“Haha. That is a brilliant idea. For Chang’an’s economy to recover quickly later, the wealthy must invest, and it is our job to create that environment.”
Yang Yeon-jeong also nodded and said, “Hanzhong’s population is already saturated. Once we reclaim and stabilize Chang’an, many citizens will migrate there. Since we can secure the funds needed for immediate relief, Commander So-mu’s idea seems best.”
The method for securing relief supplies and future plans were beginning to take shape. The remaining matter was recruiting civilians for the relief squad.
“I will have the clerks post recruitment flyers in the streets. But I worry about how many volunteers we will get for unpaid work.”
“Why don’t we do some promotion to encourage active participation?”
“What do you suggest?”
Yang Yeon-jeong smiled and replied, “Do we not have the commander of the Wolf Fang Squad, who is highly popular among the people, right here?”
“Hahaha. That is a great idea. Can the Wolf Fang Squad help us with this?”
So-mu chuckled. It was not a difficult task. He would just need to wear his uniform and take turns showing his face at the recruitment center.
“Understood, General.”