Han Ji

"The West Gate has fallen! The West Gate has fallen!"

This time the shouts traveled even faster.

Zhang Liang was on the south gate tower, directing the throwing of logs. Hearing the shout, the command flag in his hand paused for a moment.

"General! The west gate has been breached," said the adjutant beside him, his voice hoarse.

"Understood." Zhang Liang put down the command flag. "It must be Liu Bei."

"How did the general know it was him?"

"Lu Zhi is at the south gate and cannot spare any troops. The only force capable of attacking the west gate is Liu Bei's vanguard." Zhang Liang turned around and ordered, "Assemble your personal guards." As the two sides continued to clash, Liu Bei's reputation began to circulate in the battle reports of both armies.

"General, are you going to send reinforcements?"

"I'm not going." Zhang Liang walked down the city wall. "I'll go to the North Gate."

The lieutenant was stunned: "North Gate? There are no government troops at the North Gate, General..."

"So we'll go through the north gate."

"Shall we leave?"

Zhang Liang stopped on the stairs and turned to look at his deputy: "The city can't be defended anymore. Once the west gate falls, Liu Bei will attack into the city, and Lu Zhi will attack the city walls. Within half a day, all four walls will fall."

"But... General..."

"No buts." Zhang Liang continued downstairs. "Order all battalions: reinforcements are arriving; defend the city to the death. My personal guards, follow me."

The personal guard was already waiting below the city, 120 men, and their horses were ready.

Zhang Liang mounted his horse, sheathing his twin swords on his back: "Follow me, take the alleys, not the main streets."

The cavalry disappeared into the alley.

The alley was narrow, allowing the horse to trot. The doors of the houses on both sides were closed, but eyes peered out through the cracks. Zhang Liang ignored them and kept going.

As they reached the second intersection, shouts of killing came from ahead.

It was Liu Bei's elite suicide squad, advancing along the street to force the remaining Yellow Turban soldiers to surrender. The two groups bumped into each other.

Zhang Liang reined in his horse.

Liu Bei also saw him.

The two men stared at each other across a pile of corpses. The corpses had just died; blood was still flowing, trickling down to Zhang Liang's horse's hooves.

"What a coincidence," Zhang Liang said.

"It's no coincidence," Liu Bei said, pointing his sword at him. "I've been looking for you for ages."

"Then you've wasted your time looking for this."

Zhang Liang drew his sword and spurred his horse forward.

He wasn't charging at Liu Bei, he was charging at the street corner. The personal guards understood and followed suit. The horses sped up and crashed into the suicide squad.

The suicide squad had no horses, but they were fearless. They set up their lances, butts planted on the ground, tips aimed at the horses' chests. The first horse charged, the lance piercing its neck, the horse neighing and falling to the ground, the rider tumbling down and being hacked to death.

But then the second and third horses crashed into us.

The gun formation was broken.

Zhang Liang, riding swiftly, charged through the gap, slashing left and right with his twin swords, felling two assassins. His personal guards followed, forcefully creating an opening in the assassin squad.

"Go!" Zhang Liang shouted to the guards who could still move.

Twenty-odd personal guards fought their way out and followed Zhang Liang northward. The rest held Liu Bei back, using their lives to buy time.

Liu Bei gave chase, but was blocked by the corpses and horses, and was a step too late.

Zhang Liang was familiar with this city.

He led his men through a dye house, broke through the back wall, and crawled into a drainage ditch. The ditch was dry enough for horses to pass through. When they emerged from the ditch, the north gate was already in sight.

The Yellow Turban soldiers guarding the north gate saw them and exclaimed in surprise, "General? Isn't the south gate..."

"Open the city gates quickly," Zhang Liang said, panting.

"But there are government troops and cavalry outside..."

"Open it quickly!"

The city gates opened.

Outside was a plain, and there were indeed government cavalry patrolling in the distance, but not many, only twenty or thirty riders. When they saw the city gate open, they paused for a moment, then blew their horns and charged this way.

"Quick, get out of here!" Zhang Liang shouted.

More than twenty riders rushed out of the city gate and galloped north. The government troops' scouts met them, their arrows striking first, felling two of their personal guards. Zhang Liang, lying prone on his horse, used his twin swords to cut down a nearby government soldier, and continued on his way.

They rushed over.

The officers and soldiers were few in number and dared not pursue too far. They fired a few arrows and then went back to report.

Zhang Liang kept riding without stopping. After running for five li, he looked back and saw that Yingtao City had shrunk, and smoke was rising from the city, black smoke.

"General," a bodyguard said, "the pursuers haven't come."

"Don't worry about what's behind you." Zhang Liang wiped his face; his hands were covered in blood, whose it was unclear. "Keep going, towards Guangzong."

The group of more than twenty people continued north. Some of them were bleeding from their wounds, staining their saddles red, but no one said to stop.

At noon, they arrived at a grove of trees.

The horse was exhausted and foaming at the mouth. Zhang Liang dismounted, sat down against a tree, tore open his water bag, and took a sip. The water tasted bloody; perhaps the bag had burst, or perhaps his teeth had loosened.

"How many of us are left?" he asked.

The captain of the personal guards counted: "General, there are seventeen left."

There were 120 when they set off.

Zhang Liang closed his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, he said, "Rest for fifteen minutes, then continue walking."

"General, some of the brothers can't hold on any longer."

"Those who can't hold on, stay here." Zhang Liang stood up. "Brothers who can walk, come with me."

Finally, eleven people stood up.

Zhang Liang looked at the six people sitting down. They were seriously injured. One of them had a ruptured abdomen, which was plugged with clothing, and blood was still seeping out.

"Find a place to hide," Zhang Liang said. "Try to survive."

"General," the bodyguard with the ripped belly laughed, "kill a few more of these traitorous officials and soldiers for us."

Zhang Liang nodded silently, turned around, and mounted his horse.

The eleven riders continued north.

As evening fell, they came to a river. The river wasn't wide, but there was no bridge. Zhang Liang dismounted and led his horse across. The water reached his chest; it was very cold.

After crossing the river, it got dark.

They found a sheltered spot on a hillside and started a small fire, careful not to be seen. They dried their clothes and ate horse meat. The horse meat was freshly slaughtered; there was no need to leave horses for the six cavalrymen who were waiting to die.

"General, can we reach Guangzong tomorrow?" a young bodyguard asked.

"Probably the day after tomorrow," Zhang Liang said. "Our horses are worn out, so we'll have to slow down."

The young guards fell silent and lowered their heads to gnaw on their meat.

Zhang Liang looked at the fire and thought of his men in the city. They were probably all dead or had surrendered by now. He didn't know which was better.

"General," the captain of the personal guards whispered, "Will the Heavenly General punish us?"

"have no idea."

"That..."

"We still have to go back," Zhang Liang said. "We've lost the city, but we're still alive. Our lives are still useful. The old order is dead; a new order shall rise."

The captain of the personal guards nodded and added a piece of firewood to the fire.

It was late at night, and everyone except those on night watch was asleep. Zhang Liang was awake; he sat there, looking south. In the direction of Yingtao City, the sky was a little red, and he couldn't tell if it was the sunset or if the city was still burning.

He stared at it for a long time.

Then lie down and close your eyes.

Inside Yingtao City, Liu Bei stood on the north gate tower.

When Guan Yu returned, it was already dark. He shook his head: "Brother, we didn't catch up. Their horses were very fast; they fled north."

"The north is the direction of Guangzong," Liu Bei said.

"Zhang Jiao is there."

"So Zhang Liang went to deliver a message." Liu Bei leaned against the battlements. "Good, let him deliver it. Zhang Jiao will only come out once he knows."

"Does the eldest brother want him to come out and fight us?"

"Otherwise what?" Liu Bei turned to look at Guan Yu. "With 100,000 troops holed up in Guangzong City, how long will it take us to fight?"

Guan Yu thought for a moment and nodded.

"Is the inventory finished?" Liu Bei asked.

"It's over. Over four thousand were beheaded, and twelve thousand were captured. Our casualties... three thousand seven hundred."

"A suicide squad?"

"There are still ninety-three alive."

Liu Bei remained silent.