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墨書 Inktalez
The city is easy to defend but hard to attack. For hundreds of years, it has never been breached, making a quick siege quite difficult.
San Chun rode around the city, observing the massive and sturdy walls that towered high. It would indeed be challenging to launch a direct assault. If only there were a way to scale the walls and act as an inside informant.
She was just casually thinking when suddenly this method seemed brilliant. However, under the long-standing dominance of the Chu Kingdom, the walls of Bangcheng were not only tall but also treated with Tung Oil every year, making them incredibly smooth. Even a fly would slip off, let alone a person.
Climbing up was no easy task; was there any way to quickly ascend the walls? After pondering for an entire night, she actually came up with an idea. It wasn't anything particularly new—just a grappling hook attached to a rope that could be thrown upward to catch onto the edge of the city tower, allowing one to climb up using leverage.
If she could make several hundred of these and scale the walls under the cover of night, perhaps they could open the city gates and let the troops in.
Similarly, Dong Dong had one; she had seen him climb up a wealthy household's estate with incredible speed, as if aided by divine intervention, which inspired her idea. However, crafting such a grappling hook was not easy; only skilled artisans could create it.
Since ancient times, Yan Kingdom had many skilled craftsmen. San Chun returned to the military camp and gathered several blacksmiths. She showed them a drawing and asked, "How feasible is it to make something like this?"
One craftsman replied, "My lord, while Yan has plenty of fine iron, creating something like this is not so simple. Look at this claw; it has joints that interlock. I fear no one has yet managed to craft something like this."
San Chun understood it wouldn't be easy. Making an exact replica of Dong Dong's was too difficult given the time constraints. She modified her design to have only three claws instead. This made it easier to produce, and she handed it over to the craftsmen. In just a short while, they managed to forge one hundred of them.
San Chun paired these grappling hooks with ropes and had someone test them out. Indeed, movement became much easier; however, the walls were still too high. Throwing them up accurately was quite challenging—if they were thrown off or lacked sufficient force, they wouldn't work at all. Additionally, the walls were too slippery; she needed a way to make shoes less slick. Initially, she thought about tying cloth strips around her feet but later switched to wooden strips. While this did improve grip significantly, it still didn't meet her expectations completely. To scale the walls without issues would require some practice.
She took these items to meet Dong Cheng.
Dong Cheng examined each item closely and couldn't help but exclaim, "You have quite the ingenuity! Coming up with such an idea could indeed allow us to organize a team of raiders."
San Chun said, "Take these to Lord Jun as our contribution from Yan Kingdom."
"Of course," Dong Cheng replied with a smile as he looked over her work multiple times. Was it just his imagination? He felt she resembled that beauty he had seen before.
He asked, "When did you return?"
San Chun said lightly, "Haven't you already seen me?"
Dong Cheng exclaimed, "Ah," just as he was about to ask when he had seen her, San Chun had already turned and walked away.
He shook his head and went to see Zhong Xue, deliberately panting and pretending to be very tired.
Zhong Xue glanced at him and asked, "What are you doing?"
Dong Cheng sighed, "That's something you should ask your sweetheart. Why do you ignore such a beautiful woman but have a soft spot for an ugly one? Is there something wrong with your taste, or are you just too devoted?"
Zhong Xue snorted coldly, "If that's all you have to say, you can leave."
Dong Cheng naturally wouldn't leave; he had trouble walking and couldn't bend his knees. He smiled and said, "I'm here to deliver something to you, and I'll leave soon."
"What are you holding in your hand?"
"Flying claws." He explained the function of the item, and Zhong Xue was indeed a bit intrigued. No country had ever used this method to attack a city on the battlefield before; it was quite novel.
However, this method could only be used once. If it failed, it would be useless once defenses were set up on the city walls.
He said, "Order a few hundred skilled individuals to practice with it."
"How do they practice? Those soldiers aren't thieves; I don't think this is easy to learn."
Zhong Xue lightly huffed, "Don't worry, This Lord will find good people to teach them." Since it was a thief's tool, who could be a better teacher than a thief?
Dong Dong arrived at the military camp three hours later. He didn't know how Zhong Xue found him; it seemed that no matter where he was, she had the ability to track him down. It made him suspicious that someone had put a spell on him, as those people could find him by following his scent.
When he saw Zhong Xue and learned that he was supposed to teach people how to be thieves, he couldn't help but laugh uncontrollably.
"Are we, the thieves, going to elevate our profession to the point where even the esteemed Lord Jun wants to become a thief?"
Zhong Xue shot him a glare. "Aside from climbing high, you don't need to teach them your thieving skills."
Dong Dong wholeheartedly agreed; if he taught everyone else, what would he have left for himself?
He spent seven efforts teaching them the art of climbing walls, and also improved the flying claws and shoes, truly training a group of skilled soldiers adept at scaling walls and rooftops.
After watching the drill, Zhong Xue was very pleased and rewarded Dong Dong with a considerable amount of gold and silver, then instructed Dong Cheng to prepare for the siege that night.
Dong Cheng said, "Isn't it a bit too early to attack the city?"
"It's not early; this Lord's patience has long run out."
The night fell like a gray net, quietly descending and enveloping the entire land.
At that moment, flames erupted before the gates of Bangcheng. One hundred selected soldiers climbed up the city tower. As soon as they reached the top, a second wave followed them up, totaling three hundred. Once inside the city, they charged straight to the city gate.
For over ten consecutive waves of troops, there was no movement at all. The city guards were no longer as strict as before; people tend to become complacent after maintaining a state of high tension for an extended period. Their bodies simply couldn't hold up. The day Zhong Xue chose was precisely when the guards were exhausted. The main army lay in ambush nearby, waiting for the signal from the city gate to rush in together.
The battle ended swiftly; by dawn, it was already over.
The Wei Army stormed into the city and charged straight into Chu Palace.
The Yan Army also rushed in. In situations like this, where they could seize wealth and gain benefits, everyone ran as fast as they could, wishing their parents had given them two more legs and two more arms.
San Chun followed them in and saw many civilians being mercilessly killed along the way. She felt deeply pained. Although she had never experienced the pain of losing her country, witnessing such hellish scenes made her suddenly understand what it meant to lose a nation. If there were one, Yan State would also face such a catastrophe and perish. As a Yan person, what should she do?
She couldn't figure it out and didn't dare to think about it; it felt like a nightmare to her—too terrifying.
The Wei Army maintains strict military discipline, and in the cities they pass through, there is no burning, killing, or looting. In contrast, the Yan Army does not have such good discipline; they kill anyone they see and rob any wealth in sight, leaving devastation in their wake like locusts.
San Chun continuously ordered the soldiers, but they did not listen to her. Even when she was the Crown Prince, she could not command everyone's obedience. This shows that she truly cannot compare to Zhong Xue in this regard.
Zhong Xue has the ability to make all those who follow him submit.
Seeing that she could not stop them, San Chun decided to let them go. As she walked along the long street, she looked around; this place was extremely unstable and required constant vigilance.
One never knows when someone might emerge from somewhere to attack.
She was not heading to the Chu Palace but rather looking for Yan Ping. After enduring so much suffering under him over the years, she had to find an opportunity to repay him. Moreover, this guy was notoriously cunning and had a knack for escaping the soldiers' pursuit. If he were allowed to remain free, he would eventually become a threat.
Yan Ping lived in the Chancellor's Residence. As soon as the city gate opened, there was no one left in his mansion; it was empty inside. She found a few servants who had not yet fled, but Yan Ping had long since disappeared.
Could he have left so quickly?
If he had left, then so be it; it wasn't essential to kill him.
Perhaps it was also time to meet Zhong Xue. By now, he should be sitting on the Dragon Throne in the Chu Palace, reminiscing about how he had been humiliated here in the past.
Zhong Xue indeed sat on the Dragon Throne; he had never occupied a royal seat before. It felt quite different from the chairs in his residence and was rather refreshing to sit on.
He caressed the throne, savoring this supreme glory. Throughout history, countless people have been willing to risk their lives for a chance to sit in this position. Indeed, sitting here felt great—high above everything, looking down on all.
Dong Cheng entered and smiled, "Lord Jun must think this position is quite nice?" He nodded, "Not bad." "Then why not return to your country and take that one down? You can sit here yourself."
"That wouldn't be impossible." After being Lord Jun for so many years, he was somewhat tired of it; perhaps being called king would feel nice too.
Seeing Dong Cheng chatting with him as if nothing were wrong, he couldn't help but ask, "How did things go outside?" "Those palace guards who needed capturing were caught; those who needed killing were killed. However, Song Ren wasn't caught, and that Chancellor Yan Ping also escaped."
"Then hurry up and chase after him."
Dong Cheng smiled and said, "There are plenty willing to serve Lord Jun. As for me, a person with no strength to tie a chicken, going out to create chaos is not as good as staying here and chatting with Lord Jun to pass the time."
Zhong Xue lightly snorted, "I think you're just afraid of getting chopped up, aren't you?"
"Lord Jun understands me well." He was indeed afraid of danger; there were still many palace guards who had not surrendered, and it would be troublesome if one of them suddenly appeared and took a swing at him. It was better to stay with Zhong Xue; there was no place safer than being by her side.
While they were talking, a soldier came in to report, "Reporting to Lord Jun, the King of Chu, Song Ren, has been captured."
Liu Cheng quickly asked, "Who managed to capture him?" "It was a Yan person."
Zhong Xue said, "Bring the King of Chu in."
A group of soldiers pushed in a plump man.
Seeing Song Ren, Zhong Xue almost burst out laughing. It hadn't been long since they last met, yet he had gotten so fat. Where was the graceful demeanor of Feng Lingjun from back then? It seemed that as a king, he had been indulging himself and wasting food quite a bit. (To be continued)
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