Hidden Shadow – CH 240

Chapter Two-Hundred-Forty: Life or Death on the Brink

General Ling Ziyue quickly delivered the message to Bianjing and then entered a period of intense preparation for war.

Summer was fast approaching, and the Liao Kingdom was unlikely to abandon its livestock for the sake of war. If they recklessly went all in, a defeat would mean utter ruin, a gamble the Liao Kingdom could not afford.

The Hebei camp was on high alert, but what worried Ling Ziyue was the lack of news from Bianjing.

On the twenty-third day, news finally arrived: the troops were on their way and would soon arrive at the Hebei camp.

Just then, the Liao army launched an attack.

None of the Song scouts returned; they were all killed by the Liao army. Fortunately, the pastures were not yet lush, and the horses kicked up clouds of dust as they galloped.

Before they had gone within twenty li, the Song soldiers on the watchtower saw the clouds on the horizon and immediately sounded the alarm.

An Jiu stood before the central command tent, watching the troops assemble in a tense atmosphere.

The two women, dressed in ordinary soldiers’ armor, stood among them. They were neither disguised nor masked; they were two exceptionally beautiful women, one stunningly beautiful, the other elegantly graceful. An Jiu suddenly recalled Zhao Ling’s question, “You are such a beautiful woman; why have you chosen this path?”

Just as she thought of him, An Jiu saw him standing pale-faced at the entrance of the supervisor’s tent, gazing at the neatly arrayed army.

Zhao Ling watched for a while, then returned to his tent.

A short while later, a cough came from inside the tent.

An Jiu glanced at Gao Dazhuang standing not far away, but seeing that he seemed not to have heard, she ignored him.

This surprise attack came without warning, giving the Song army no time to breathe; from assembling the ranks to engaging in battle, only a quarter of an hour had passed.

A deafening battle cry rose into the sky.

An Jiu and the others tensed up.

Chu Dingjiang, arms crossed, leaned against the door. Seeing her reaction, he said, “Let’s go, let’s go take a look.”

At his command, even Gao Dazhuang followed him out of the camp.

Several figures moved with lightning speed, rushing towards the battlefield.

Zhao Ling was coughing up blood in his tent, but none of his guards paid him any attention, which made him even more uneasy. Only the thought of Ling Ziyue’s presence brought him some peace of mind.

Two months without rain, and the dust and smoke from the battlefield almost completely obscured the figures.

Daytime was not a good time for a surprise attack. The Song army thought this way, which was why they were caught off guard by the Liao army and were at a disadvantage from the very first engagement.

Over the years, almost every village along the Song border had been “taken care of” by the Liao army, leading to a sharp decline in the border population. Now, there were no more people, livestock, or supplies to plunder, so the Liao army began to extend its reach to the major cities.

Ling Ziyue did not possess extraordinary abilities; he could not protect many scattered villages, but he defended several major cities impregnably. The Liao cavalry could not cross his lines, and after several unsuccessful attempts, they changed their strategy and began directly attacking the Hebei camp.

The Liao army’s goal was to flatten Ling Ziyue, this obstacle.

In other words, this was going to be a tough battle.

Gao Dazhuang had clearly considered this as well. “Everyone, go to General Ling’s side and protect him.”

The men obeyed and rushed to Ling Ziyue’s side.

Chu Dingjiang grabbed An Jiu. “They do not need you.”

Even without the Konghe Army, could Ling Ziyue not protect himself? Their presence would only add another layer of protection; one more or one less would not make a difference.

“Ling Ziyue! Coward! Come out and fight me!” In the chaos, a Liao general roared in Chinese.

As the commander of the Hebei camp, Ling Ziyue could not afford to fail, so he mostly commanded from behind, rarely leading troops himself, much less acting as the vanguard.

The man’s words were a provocation, clearly underestimating Ling Ziyue. Given his temperament, how could he be swayed by a few words?

An Jiu narrowed her eyes. Through the smoke, she could vaguely make out that the Liao army leader was a burly man. Chu Dingjiang’s height was relatively normal, but this man was like a small mountain; his physique was easily one and a half times that of Chu Dingjiang. The Liao general who had spoken was beside him.

An Jiu clicked her tongue expressionlessly. “Poor horse.”

Chu Dingjiang smiled, “He is Xiao Zhenning, a fierce general from Empress Dowager Xiao’s maternal clan.”

An Jiu saw the towering Xiao Zhenning speak, and the Liao general beside him fell silent.

Having fought for many years, he understood Ling Ziyue better than anyone.

“Blue-fire crossbows!” An Jiu whispered.

Chu Dingjiang’s expression also sharpened. He looked towards Xiao Zhenning’s direction, and sure enough, there were ten black-clad men with crossbows, their weapons aimed at Ling Ziyue! Xiao Zhenning’s expression was also grim. He would much rather defeat Ling Ziyue with his own strength than face this situation, but he had been given top-secret weapons and orders to kill Ling Ziyue, and he had to obey.

Death was imminent.

Ling Ziyue saw it too, but if he turned and fled now, his commander would escape, and the Song army would be defeated.

The short stalemate felt like decades to Ling Ziyue.

Faced with this situation, Chu Dingjiang’s expression was unusually heavy. He stared at the blue-fire crossbows, his dark eyes deep, as if waiting for something.

Ling Ziyue wore the same expression, fine beads of sweat already forming at his temples.