The Three Kingdoms: Rise of the Western Liang Cavalry

The city gate slowly opened, and a group of soldiers pushed out several large carts.

Inside the carriage, there was steaming hot meat porridge and clean linen clothes.

There were no words of persuasion to surrender, nor any threats.

"The captain has ordered that all who come are brothers."

"Eat your fill first, then change into clean clothes. If you have something to say, speak slowly."

An officer's voice was gentle and steady.

The rich aroma of the meat porridge, like an invisible hand, instantly shattered the last psychological defenses of the fleeing soldiers.

They dropped their weapons, howling and scrambling, wolfing down the scalding porridge.

Many people ate while shedding tears, not from being burned, but from the release of emotions after surviving a disaster.

Qin Lie stood on the city wall, quietly watching this scene.

Once they have eaten and dressed warmly and their emotions have calmed down, the screening process officially begins.

A burly man with a face full of scars, after eating and drinking his fill, patted his chest and boasted about how much grain he had robbed in the village and how he had killed several peasants who dared to resist.

Before he could finish speaking, two guards stepped forward and placed cold blades against his neck.

"Drag him out."

Qin Lie's voice came from the city wall, as cold as ice.

"Anyone who lays hands on unarmed civilians is not worthy to be a comrade-in-arms of my Xiliang army."

"Considering we were once comrades, I will spare your life."

"roll."

The burly man was stripped of his newly donned clothes and driven out naked, disappearing into the twilight.

This scene sent a chill down the spines of all the routed soldiers.

Immediately afterwards, a team leader with a thin face was brought forward.

His expression was somber as he spoke up.

"Captain, our troops were scattered by Lü Bu. General Guo ordered us to 'eat along the way,' but I... I couldn't stop my men, and two villages were destroyed."

"But I swear to God, I have never killed a single civilian, nor stolen a single penny!"

"What's your name?"

Qin Lie asked.

"Zhang Heng, a petty man."

Qin Lie raised an eyebrow slightly.

Zhang Heng, a colonel under Dong Zhuo, was known for his integrity and enjoyed considerable prestige within the Xiliang army.

Historically, he ultimately died in this civil war.

"If you didn't kill anyone, why didn't you stop your men?"

Qin Lie's voice remained stern.

Zhang Heng gave a bitter smile, his face full of dejection and helplessness.

"Captain, military orders are absolute. General Guo's order is to slaughter."

"I am of low rank and insignificant position; I cannot stop them, nor can I persuade them."

"I can only... I can only take care of myself."

"If the captain believes I am guilty, Zhang Heng will have nothing to say."

"very good."

Qin Lie nodded.

"If you can manage yourself, you are a hundred times better than those who follow the crowd."

"From this day forward, you will be my military supervisor, responsible for identifying and incorporating all the defeated soldiers who come to surrender."

"I grant you a power—to execute anyone who has committed heinous crimes and whose character is utterly corrupt, without prior notification!"

"The soldiers I need are warriors who can fight on the front lines, not wolves who bully the weak!"

Zhang Heng was stunned; he couldn't believe his ears.

He raised his head and looked at the young yet majestic figure on the city wall, his eyes gleaming with disbelief.

He suddenly knelt on one knee, his voice hoarse but firm.

"This humble general, Zhang Heng, is willing to die for the captain!"

The power of example is endless.

With Zhang Heng as a benchmark, the process of screening and incorporation immediately became smooth.

In the following three days, Xiliang soldiers who had been routed from the Chang'an battlefield poured into Meiwu.

The brutality of Li Jue and Guo Si chilled their hearts, the pursuit of Lü Bu filled them with fear, and Qin Lie became their only hope.

Three days later, Qin Lie had more than 2,300 remnants of the Xiliang army who had passed the strict selection process.

They were all dispersed and incorporated into various battalions, with Zhang Heng and Chen Wu jointly in charge of training and discipline.

What pleased Qin Lie even more was that, after learning that the army here had not only not looted but had also killed bandits, some of the bolder village elders, along with the able-bodied men of the village, came to reward the army with cartloads of grain and vegetables.

Their words were simple and sincere.

"As long as General Qin can hold off those damned bandits, we lowly souls would gladly give up everything we own!"

Qin Lie stood on the towering wall of the village, watching the several ragged, dark-faced village elders, supported by their guards, tremblingly perform a grand salute.

Behind them, the equally simple young men no longer had the numbness and fear in their eyes; instead, there was a light called "hope" that had been suppressed for too long.

The will of the people is never just two cold words in history books; it has warmth.

It is a bowl of piping hot meat porridge, a clean set of clothes, and the faint but real light in the eyes of the villagers at this moment.

Qin Lie did not speak, but simply returned the deep bow to the crowd below the wall.

This land has been neglected for far too long.

However, this brief peace and warmth is like the last rays of the setting sun before a storm, brilliant yet foreshadowing a deeper darkness.

The sixth day, early morning.

Even from a distance of a hundred miles away, the sky in the direction of Chang'an seemed to be covered with a layer of thick, indissoluble ink; it was not clouds, but lingering smoke.

The wind carried not only the smell of burning, but also a strong, nauseating stench of blood, as if the entire city of Chang'an had become a giant slaughterhouse.

A scout charged into Mei's Dock like a madman. His warhorse collapsed from exhaustion after crossing the drawbridge, foaming at the mouth.

The scout rolled on the ground, scrambling towards the commander's mansion, his voice hoarse, tinged with blood and tears.

"Captain! Captain! Chang'an... Chang'an has fallen!"

The atmosphere inside the main hall of the Marshal's Mansion instantly froze.

All the senior officers, including Chen Wu, Dian Wu, and Zhang Heng, were present.

The scout knelt on the ground, trembling like a leaf in the wind, his eyes unfocused and filled with extreme fear.

"Explain yourself clearly, speak slowly."

Qin Lie's voice remained calm, but the knuckles of his hands, which were pressed against the map, had turned white.

Five days ago... Li Jue and Guo Si's army besieged the city and cut off Lü Bu's supply lines.

"Lu Bu... Although Lu Bu was brave, the soldiers in the city were disloyal, and a general opened the city gates... Lu Bu led several hundred cavalrymen, fought his way out of the encirclement, and headed east."

The scout was panting heavily, as if he were coughing up all the air from his lungs.

"And then...and then those beasts went into the city!"

"They've entered the city!"

"Kill anyone you see, rob anything you see!"

"The entire city of Chang'an was... was covered in fire and blood!"

His voice suddenly rose, turning into a mournful wail.

"Wang Yun... Situ Wang Yun, his entire family was executed in the marketplace!"

"Countless officials...countless officials have died or been wounded!"

"The palace...the palace was also stormed by the mutinous soldiers; palace maids, eunuchs...the corpses piled up like mountains!"

"Those aren't human, they're devils!"

"They're demons crawled out of hell!"

"Bang!"

Dianwu slammed his fist into the pillar beside him. The Qiang leader's eyes were bloodshot, and he growled through gritted teeth.

"They're insane! How dare they!"

Zhang Heng's face was ashen. He had once been an official of the imperial court. Although he later submitted to Dong Zhuo, he still harbored complex feelings for Wang Yun and the Han court.

His lips trembled as he murmured.

"It's over...it's all over..."