Chapter Thirty: Fall
Three days later, at noon.
In Ye Pei’s small courtyard, the scout disguised as a beggar was still waiting.
“Any news today?” Ye Pei asked as soon as she entered.
The scout bowed and replied, “Young General, this morning I pretended to beg at the Chen residence and saw what looked like servants packing up luggage and loading it onto carts. But before I could get closer, I was chased away.”
Ye Pei’s expression grew stern; beneath her furrowed brows, her eyes flashed with suspicion and cold light. “There really is something wrong. All right, keep watching them. I’ll head to the barracks and arrange for more men to keep a close eye.”
The scout bowed again and left. Ye Pei mounted her horse and rode to the Ye Army camp outside the city, informing Mo Feng to assign five additional scouts to monitor the Chen family’s movements.
With these orders, even though Mo Feng and the scouts did not know the full story, their sense of urgency was heightened, and they worked with redoubled effort. In the eyes of Ye Pei and her subordinates, not only was the battle at the front lines raging, but hidden currents surged here as well.
Ordinary people, of course, felt none of this tension. To them, the good news from the front was constant, the Yan campaign was nearing its end, and with the God of War Ye Linhui presiding over the army, they believed the crisis facing Wangmai was all but over.
...
The green woods and vast sea are dyed with hot blood; loyal soldiers and valiant generals are true heroes.
Half a lifetime spent on this fertile land, asking not for a name, but to remain blameless.
The Qin King fought life and death a thousand times, the Xuanwu’s edge determined the heartland.
For soldiers, their only reward is yellow earth; may the memory of heroes linger under the city’s moon.
Two days later, the decisive battle at Luoshui was about to begin.
Ye Linhui had long since led ten thousand cavalry to hide in the northern mountains of Luoshui City. For five days, he and the generals of the Ye Army kept their plans secret. Only that morning did the Chen brothers learn that Ye Linhui was planning a surprise assault. Scouts had been sent two miles south to watch every shift on the battlefield.
On the front lines, Xiao Ming, long sword in hand, commanded the central army, with 140,000 troops deployed in layers. Yet, for reasons unknown, a trace of reluctance and struggle flickered in Xiao Ming’s eyes. Duan Xingyun sat astride his warhorse, a faint smile on his lips as he looked out at the Yan army.
The drums of the Xia and Xue alliance thundered, and Xiao Ming gave the order to attack. Not to be outdone, Lin Yufei on the opposing side ordered the Yan army’s drums to sound as well, and the two armies, in perfect formation, began to advance step by step toward one another.
Once battle was joined, the soldiers of Wangmai all sensed the same thing: the Yan army seemed to lack fighting spirit, and soon after the clash began, they started to fall back in defeat.
Xiao Ming raised his sword and, his voice trembling, commanded, “Transmit my order—the central army is to press into battle!” The messenger by his side noticed Xiao Ming’s shaking voice and was puzzled, but assumed it was excitement at impending victory, so he hurried to deliver the command. Duan Xingyun, sensing the change in Xiao Ming, whispered so only the two could hear, “Commander Xiao, think of your family.” With that, Xiao Ming withdrew to the rear, and the central army pushed forward. Among them were Duan Xingyun and the Chen brothers.
In the mountains, Ye Army scouts reported that the alliance had seized the advantage on the main field. Ye Linhui wasted no time and gave the order to charge. Ten thousand lightly armored cavalry burst from the mountains, thundering straight for the Yan army’s banners and war drums on their left flank.
On the front lines, the valiant General Chen Qingwei and the hotheaded Duan Xingyun raced ahead, leaving the central army far behind as they charged at the enemy.
As Ye Linhui and his cavalry drew ever closer to the battle, Xiao Ming, watching from the rear, grew visibly more tormented. As Ye Linhui’s forces cut into the ranks, nearing the war banners and drums, Lin Yufei suddenly ordered a volley of flaming arrows.
At such close quarters, arrows should have been useless for fear of friendly fire. As expected, the volley landed in the open ground between the Wangmai army and the rear guard.
Seeing the flaming arrows, Xiao Ming knew that if he did not act, his family’s lives would be forfeit. Iron-willed general though he was, tears streamed from his eyes. He lifted his sword and shouted, “Sound the retreat!”
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On the battlefield, the drums signal advance, the gong signals retreat. At this command, even Xiao Ming’s own messenger stared in disbelief, daring to ask, “Commander Xiao! Why the retreat order?”
Again, tears ran down Xiao Ming’s face as he roared, “When did you get the right to question my orders?!”
Shaken, the messenger bowed and choked out, “I... would not dare.”
The order was relayed, and the sound of the retreat gong echoed across the fields. Military orders could not be defied, especially from the nation’s marshal. The Xia troops, though confused and suspicious, began to pull back. The Xue troops knew that Marshal Ye had already broken into the Yan flank; how could they retreat now?
“Xiao Ming! What the hell is this bullshit order?!” Many Xue soldiers cursed furiously, not one of them willing to fall back.
By Xiao Ming’s arrangement, most of the Xue army had been left as the rear guard for the sake of “smooth command,” leaving fewer than thirty thousand Xue troops on the field. The rest, in the rear, were alarmed, glancing toward Xiao Ming, and even prepared to storm the field in defiance.
Xiao Ming took down his long spear, silent, tears now mingling with blood. He whispered, “Go!” to his horse, which trotted forward.
Suddenly, Xiao Ming gave a great shout that nearly broke his throat: “Go!” Alone, he charged forward, the blood tears streaming from his eyes staining the earth already soaked with blood for ten months.
His messenger stared after him in a daze. Loyal to the core, he understood Xiao Ming’s decision—an order that was clearly a trap for Ye Linhui. His fists clenched white-knuckled. Drawing his sword, he roared, “Commander Xiao! Wait for me!” and galloped after him.
As Xiao Ming broke through his own lines, the Xia soldiers watched in confusion, some even turning their horses to follow him back to the front. Xiao Ming shouted as he rode, “Retreat! All of you, get back!”
He knew that if the army turned and charged, Ye Linhui would likely break the enemy’s banners and drums, and victory would be theirs. But such a victory would doom his family. Having given such an order, Xiao Ming, who had spent his life in arms, felt he could not live with himself, nor face the people of Wangmai. He charged forward gladly seeking death.
Behind him, many Xue soldiers defied orders and tried to push forward, but the withdrawing Xia troops blocked their way.
At the front, Duan Xingyun and Chen Qingwei ignored the recall order. Amid the chaos, no one noticed their failure to fall back. Both tied a bright red ribbon around their horses’ necks; upon seeing it, the Yan soldiers let them pass, and the two quickly reached Lin Yufei’s position.
Xiao Ming and his messenger had reached the melee. The remaining Xue troops were baffled by the strange turn of events.
With the Xia army retreating, the outnumbered Xue troops were quickly surrounded, their situation dire.
Meanwhile, within the Yan army’s center—
“Marshal Ye! The main force is retreating!” Ye Linhui’s lieutenant reported in shock.
Ye Linhui was stunned. “What? Weren’t we winning?”
Xiao Ming and his messenger, having entered the battle, fought their way toward Ye Linhui, but they were not with the main Xue force and were still some distance away. In the press of battle, the messenger fell first.
“Marshal Xiao... I go before you...” The mortally wounded messenger, missing limbs, gasped his last words—whether Xiao Ming heard, no one knew—as his eyes closed.
Though a master of war, Xiao Ming was soon unhorsed, bleeding from countless wounds, barely holding on.
“Ye Linhui! I, Xiao Ming, have wronged you! I have wronged Wangmai!!”
With this final shout, Xiao Ming charged once more at the Yan soldiers, and was soon engulfed by their numbers.
Ye Linhui, fighting still, heard Xiao Ming’s last cry and understood that there must have been some bitter reason behind the retreat order. Yet, as a marshal, he could only sigh deeply. “How misguided...”
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Family or country—which should one choose? This question has troubled humankind since ancient times. Many have gone against their own beliefs for the sake of loved ones. Others, for the nation, have sacrificed their families, leaving wives and children scattered, homes destroyed. Without family, can there be a nation? Or without nation, can there be family? In such matters, right and wrong are no longer clear. Merit and fault, right and wrong, are little more than bittersweet flavors steeped in the tea of later generations.
On the battlefield, Ye Linhui suddenly saw Duan Xingyun and Chen Qingwei charging towards him, and at once he understood everything. Swinging his spear to clear the Yan soldiers around him, he shouted, “You two traitorous scum, come speak if you dare!”
In that instant, to the two men, Ye Linhui was not a defeated general struggling to survive, but the same awe-inspiring commander of old.
“Marshal Ye, is it true? Has Lin Yufei truly won this battle?” Lin Yufei had also ridden over.
“Hahaha...” Ye Linhui laughed long and loud, then roared, “My defeat today is not at the hands of you, greenhorn, but at the hands of these two traitors! No matter how one guards against the enemy, one cannot guard against traitors from within. Even if you kill me today, Lin Yufei, it will change nothing!”
Lin Yufei smiled. “When Wangmai loses you, who will stand against my Yan army?”
Ye Linhui spoke no more. He spurred his horse forward, murderous intent blazing, his spear aimed straight at Duan Xingyun and Chen Qingwei.
The over twenty thousand Xue soldiers on the periphery could not break through to save Ye Linhui. At this point, the Ye Army’s commander, Mo Lei, knew that if they did not withdraw, these elite troops would be wasted here for nothing, with no hope of vengeance, and the Xue nation would be left unable to mount any major resistance in the future.
Mo Lei wiped the blood and tears from his face and shouted, “By my order—withdraw!”
The Ye Army soldiers, filled with grief and rage, knew they had disobeyed the commander-in-chief’s orders, but now their own general’s command had to be followed. Besides, many had realized the situation. Looking toward Ye Linhui, they each cut a lock of their hair, vowing revenge for him, then broke out toward Luoshui City.
The Yan soldiers could not stop the desperate retreat of the Ye Army; after a token resistance, they watched as twenty thousand men escaped.
“Die!”
With Ye Linhui’s furious roar, both Duan Xingyun and Chen Qingwei were run through with his spear, though Ye Linhui himself was pierced by many Yan weapons in the process.
He coughed up blood, his face as pale as paper. “Duan Yaoqi, to have a son like you—what a disgrace to generations of loyal service from the Duan family!”
In his final moments, countless faces flashed through Ye Linhui’s mind, but at last his thoughts rested on his son.
“Hmph... Wangmai... with my son still here... cannot fall!”
...
“Elegy for My Father”
by Ye Pei
Upon this crimson earth, alone, the long spear stands by,
The hero’s solitary shadow, wandering the ends of the earth—where is refuge to be found?
Undefeated through years of war and mountain passes,
Only resentment left, loyal brothers-in-arms scattered.
When battle steeds cry and blood stains the Luo River,
The pride of the past seems almost within reach.
Heaven may weep blood, the sea shed tears,
Flowers wait to bloom, snow will melt away, no blade can long claim supremacy.
My father, unwilling to turn away, gazed back—
Upon this son’s stone-like face.
Should a guest one day inquire,
With a furious horse and a black lance,
It is not for the nation’s glory—
But still with the heart of tiger and wolf.