Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 45 The massacre begins!

The commander felt a chill run down his spine, and his back was instantly soaked with cold sweat.

He had followed Tian Ergeng for many years and knew the commander's methods well, but such a clear order to massacre without leaving any survivors still made him feel a chill.

"Yes, sir!" He dared not hesitate for a moment and immediately bowed to accept the order.

Tian Ergeng nodded in satisfaction. He slowly drew the Embroidered Spring Blade from his waist. The blade was long and narrow, reflecting a chilling glint in the faint starlight.

He pointed the tip of his knife at the vermilion gate of the Fan family mansion, which was made of high-quality ironwood and covered with thick iron sheets.

"Collide."

He said only one word.

This single word, like a judgment from the depths of hell, marked a bloody beginning for Zhangjiakou's fate tonight.

"boom!"

A deafening roar, like a thunderclap from a clear sky, instantly shattered the tranquility of Zhangjiakou Fortress.

The massive gate of the Fan family mansion, powerful enough to withstand ordinary bandits and even small groups of marauding soldiers, groaned in agony as it was struck by a small battering ram with an iron-clad front end, operated by a dozen muscular New Army soldiers. The entire gatehouse trembled violently.

"boom!"

The second impact followed immediately, heavier and more violent than the first.

The thick copper nails on the door were shaken loose and fell off by the enormous force, and huge spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the solid door panel, with wood chips and dust falling down.

Inside the bedroom, Fan Yongdou was awakened from a deep sleep by the violent tremors and loud noise.

He sat up abruptly, the brocade quilt slipping off his obese body, revealing his pale skin from excessive indulgence.

Fan Yongdou's face was first blank, then replaced by rage.

"What's going on?! Was it an earthquake?!" He roared at the door in his habitual commanding tone, "Someone come here! Where have you all gone?! What are you bunch of useless trash for?!"

Before the words were finished, the bedroom door was violently pushed open from the outside, and the usually composed old butler scrambled in, his face filled with unprecedented fear.

"Master...Master! Something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened!" He knelt on the ground, his voice shrill and distorted with extreme horror, "Soldiers...soldiers! Soldiers! So many soldiers! They've surrounded our mansion...the entire eastern part of the city!"

"Soldiers?" Fan Yongdou was stunned, and the anger on his face instantly froze.

His first reaction wasn't fear, but absurdity.

The arrogance that came from long-term control made him feel that the word was utterly ridiculous.

Officers and soldiers?

In Zhangjiakou, in this Shanxi region, which army would dare to surround the Fan family's residence?
Are they soldiers from Xuanfu Town?

impossible!
At a banquet not long ago, Tian Shichun, the military commander of Xuanfu, had been servilely toasting him, addressing him as "Brother Fan" repeatedly, his obsequiousness almost making him nauseous.

"Did you see clearly?" Fan Yongdou jumped off the bed, his obese body trembling slightly from the sudden movement. He grabbed the old butler by the collar and lifted him up from the ground, demanding sternly, "Where are these soldiers from? What banner are they flying? Who's leading them?"

"I...I didn't see the banners clearly, it was too dark..." The old steward trembled with fear, his teeth chattering. "But...but, those people at the front, they're wearing...wearing flying fish robes! They're...the Embroidered Uniform Guards!"

Jinyiwei? !

These three words were like a black lightning bolt descending from the heavens, striking Fan Yongdou hard on the head.

His mind went blank for a moment, as if it had just gone "buzz".

Just moments before, my mind was foggy from being drunk, but in this instant, extreme fear washed over me and made me incredibly clear-headed.

A chill that seemed to freeze to the bone ran wildly from the soles of his feet up his spine straight to his head.

They weren't local soldiers.

They're from the capital!
He's the emperor's man!
He knew about the crimes he had committed.

They colluded with the Later Jin dynasty to smuggle ironware, grain, and cloth.

Bribing court officials, from Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet to border soldiers, wove a network of interests covering most of northern China.

The sheer number and superior equipment of his private army were enough to put the officers and soldiers of a garrison to shame... Any one of these crimes alone would be enough to have his entire family executed and his three clans wiped out!
He always thought he had done the perfect thing.

With the Grand Secretaries and Vice Ministers in the court, and the military commanders and guerrillas on the frontier protecting him, he could rest easy and build this business into an unshakeable legacy.

That young emperor, far away in the capital, was nothing more than a puppet controlled by the eunuch faction and the civil official clique, a pathetic wretch who had nothing but the title. But now, Fan Yongdou knew he was wrong.

That's utterly wrong!

That was not a puppet at all.

That was a fierce tiger that had been patiently enduring in the darkness and lurking in the abyss!
And now, this young and hungry tiger has finally bared its fangs at him, fangs sharp enough to tear everything apart!

"Hurry! Hurry!" Fan Yongdou, like a wild boar whose rear end had been scalded by a red-hot iron, burst out in a hysterical frenzy from a brief moment of stunned silence.

He shoved the butler aside, then hopped barefoot on the cold floor, roaring, "Blow the horn! Ring the bell! Summon all the guards! Go to the armory! Grab the best weapons! Hold them off! Hold them off!"

Despite his extreme fear, Fan Yongdou calmed down.

He knew very well that since the Embroidered Uniform Guard had already taken action, there was absolutely no chance of survival. Surrender meant death, and being captured meant death as well!

His only chance of survival lies in putting up a last-ditch resistance!
As long as we can make a big fuss and prevent this bloody conflict from being easily covered up.

The news will eventually spread, reaching Xuanfu, Datong, Taiyuan, and the capital!
His meticulously woven, vast network of relationships bound together by countless amounts of gold, silver, and interests would be completely shaken.

Those generals, governors, ministers, and vice ministers who received countless benefits from him will certainly use all their resources to save him in order to protect themselves and avoid being implicated in his scheme!
"Yes! Hold on! As long as we hold on, we still have a chance!"

In Fan Yongdou's eyes, there was a frenzy, the kind of madness that comes from a gambler betting their last chips before losing everything.

As he hastily threw on his clothes, he roared at the terrified butler, "Go! Hide all the ladies and young masters and ladies in the innermost secret room! Now!"

He didn't even have time to put on his shoes before staggering towards the study connected to the bedroom.

He was going to burn that most crucial and fatal ledger.

"Boom——"

With a deafening crash, the sturdy gate of the Fan family finally collapsed completely under the continuous impact, with the two heavy door panels falling inward and kicking up clouds of dust.

Holding a brocade spring knife, Tian Ergeng was the first to step into this luxurious yet sinful mansion.

He was met with dozens of sharp arrows shot from behind the courtyard wall and the artificial hill.

"Puff puff!"

Arrows pierced the night sky, carrying the whistling sound of death, shooting towards the gap in the doorway from all directions.

Tian Ergeng remained expressionless, without even blinking.

Several Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) officers around him immediately raised their specially made small shields, which were smaller than ordinary shields but extremely sturdy, forming a mobile shield wall that firmly protected him behind them.

Most of the arrows were deflected crisply by the shield, sending sparks flying.

A few arrows that slipped through the net only struck the breastplates and helmets of the new army soldiers behind them, making a clanging sound, but they could not penetrate the carefully forged standard armor and could only fall helplessly to the ground.

"A bunch of...suicidal ants!"

Tian Ergeng squeezed out these words through gritted teeth.

Beside him, a centurion in charge of the new army immediately understood.
"Archers! Suppress the courtyard!"

The officer's orders were clear and ruthless.

"put!"

As the officer waved his command flag, the bowstrings of the first rank twanged loudly, followed by the second rank, the third rank…

In an instant, a dense barrage of arrows rained down on the courtyard walls, indiscriminately covering the area.

Arrows rained down.

Although the Fan family's guards numbered nearly a thousand and were usually ruthless and vicious outlaws in Zhangjiakou, they were ultimately just a motley crew. Their ferocity was based on the fact that their opponents were ordinary people or scattered soldiers.

They had never seen such a military-level saturation attack before, the kind that only occurs on the battlefields where two armies clash.

Screams erupted instantly, drowning out the sound of the wind.

One guard after another was struck in the face, neck and chest by arrows. Before they could even utter a sound, they fell from the walls and behind the artificial hills like broken sacks.

The massacre has begun!

(End of this chapter)