Chapter Twenty: The Bloody Battle at the City Gate

After settling their families, Sun Cheng and Lu Yong led their men back to Chaoyang Gate, intending to rendezvous with Gu Zhenhua and facilitate his escape from the city. By then, however, the gate had descended into utter chaos.

Li Zicheng’s general, Gao Yigong, had led his troops to storm the gate, only to collide with a massive throng of nobles and high-ranking officials who were desperately crowding the area in a frantic bid to flee.

Cornered like a dog jumping over a wall, the nobles realized that the Chaoyang Gate was their final path to survival; if it fell to the rebel king, their hope of escaping the city would be extinguished forever. In this desperate situation, the dormant martial spirit of the aristocracy seemed to ignite, and they clashed fiercely with Gao Yigong’s army.

The fighting grew increasingly savage. Bodies fell by the second; amid the shouting and slaughter, blood stained the gatehouse red as both sides fought for their last chance at life. Sun Cheng and Lu Yong watched the carnage without a shred of pity—to them, it was merely dogs biting dogs, and the more who died, the better. Their only true concern was Gu Zhenhua.

"Big Brother, it’s already past midnight. Why hasn't Fourth Brother emerged yet?"

Sun Cheng’s brow was furrowed. "Fourth Brother is no fool. I trust he will make it out."

"Ah, that may be, but if we wait another hour or two, dawn will break. By then, the rebel king's forces will have fully converged, and we won't just be unable to escape—we might all end up captured by the rebels."

"Regardless, we must wait for him. If he doesn't come out, we don't leave!"

At that moment, Li Yan arrived with his troops. Having discovered Gu Zhenhua’s leaflets, Li Yan had realized the gravity of the situation and hurried to petition for the capture of the mastermind.

Upon entering the city, Li Yan was immediately struck by the dire state of affairs. The streets were choked with the carriages and belongings of fleeing officials, and the common people were scattered in a panicked flight. With the order of the capital completely collapsed, Li Yan recognized the severity of the crisis.

Li Zicheng had only brought about twenty thousand soldiers, while the capital held a population of a million. If chaos truly took root, it would be a disaster. Li Yan immediately ordered his men to post notices to calm the populace and organized soldiers to sing folk songs to soothe the public mind:

"Slaughter cattle and sheep, prepare the wine and grain, open the city gates to welcome the Rebel King, for when he arrives, there will be no taxes to pay!"

"Begging for a pint at dawn, begging for a handful at dusk, the poor can barely survive these days. Open the gates early to bow to the Rebel King, and all, young and old, shall rejoice."

...

Li Yan’s plan was sound, but it was just a little too late. Panic acted like a contagion; once it spread, it was not easily contained. The people saw the rebel soldiers and fled in terror, paying no heed to the songs being sung.

The populace surged like an avalanche, and Li Yan was left utterly overwhelmed. It was then that Li Guo arrived. Having been wounded by Gu Zhenhua, he had nearly lost his life; after the military surgeon finally bandaged his wounds, he was left seething with resentment and humiliation.

To have been wounded by a nobody—where was his honor? Ignoring his pain, Li Guo had led his men through the city in search of Gu Zhenhua, eventually running into Li Yan.

After hearing the situation, Li Yan grew grave. "Report this to the Rebel King at once. I suspect there is a faction in this city deliberately causing us trouble."

"What should we do then?" Li Guo asked.

"Seal the gates immediately and pacify the people. Once the situation is stabilized, we will have no trouble finding them!"

Li Yan dispatched messengers to Li Zicheng while he led his men to the various gates to relay his orders. When he finally reached Chaoyang Gate, the fighting was at its most intense. Gao Yigong was locked in a bloody struggle with the retainers of the nobles, and the ground was carpeted with corpses.

Seeing this, Li Yan ordered his men to charge. Though his force was small, the element of surprise was on their side. They attacked from within the city, while Gao Yigong’s forces pressed from the outside, trapping the retainers in a pincer movement.

The retainers were already poor combatants, relying only on their numbers to hold their own against the Great Shun army. Now, caught in a pincer, they collapsed quickly. Forget the titles of dukes or marquises—their lives were worth more than any treasure. Seeing the tide turn, the retainers fled, grabbing whatever valuables they could carry as they ran.

As the lines broke and the Great Shun army gained control of the gate, Li Yan ordered them to shut it. But just then, a cavalry unit charged out of the darkness and slammed into the rebel soldiers.

It was Sun Cheng and Lu Yong. Seeing the battle at the gate ending and the rebels preparing to seal it, they realized Gu Zhenhua had still not arrived.

The two men’s eyes were bloodshot. If the gate closed, those inside would be trapped like turtles in a jar. They could wait no longer.

"Second Brother, it’s time for us to show them what we’ve got!"

Sun Cheng and Lu Yong’s men swept toward the gate like a whirlwind. Fifty paces out, they dismounted, each gripping a Lumichong matchlock musket, all pre-loaded.

Flashes of fire erupted, followed by the crackle of gunfire. A dozen rebel soldiers attempting to close the gate were struck down instantly. After firing, Sun Cheng and Lu Yong tossed aside their muskets, leapt back onto their horses, and charged the rebels!

Gao Yigong, a veteran general of the rebel camp, was enraged to see someone daring to ambush his men. "You rats, you’re asking for death!"

Gao Yigong swung his heavy blade at Lu Yong. Lu Yong parried, and the two began a desperate duel. The narrow passage of the gate offered no room to dodge; every blow was lethal, and any hesitation meant death.

"Die!" Lu Yong roared, swinging his blade at Gao Yigong’s neck. Gao Yigong sneered, dismissing the strike. With both hands on his hilt, he knocked Lu Yong’s blade aside and countered with a vicious slash at his head.

The strike was lightning-fast. Lu Yong barely twisted away, but the edge of the blade grazed his shoulder, leaving a searing trail of pain as a strip of skin was carved away.

The pain only fueled Lu Yong’s fury. He swung his blade again, locking weapons with Gao Yigong. Sparks showered down. Lu Yong was skilled, but compared to a general forged in the fires of constant slaughter, he lacked combat experience.

Before long, Lu Yong had taken two more wounds—one in his side and one in his thigh. Though shallow, the blood flow was sapping his strength.

"Kid, I respect you as a man. Just surrender to the Rebel King, and I guarantee you'll live a life of luxury!"

"Go to hell!" Lu Yong spat. "A bandit never changes his nature. You might even die before I do!"

Seeing his refusal, Gao Yigong abandoned all restraint, his strikes becoming increasingly lethal. Lu Yong’s situation grew precarious.

Just then, Sun Cheng charged into the fray. His previous arrow wound had not fully healed, but in the heat of battle, he ignored the agony. The two brothers double-teamed Gao Yigong, hacking and slashing. Gao Yigong, however, was no pushover and held his ground.

As they fought, the rebel soldiers recovered from their confusion. Li Yan personally directed a counterattack against Sun Cheng’s men. Though skilled, the bodyguards were gradually pushed back, their casualties mounting.

Time ticked away. Both Lu Yong and Sun Cheng were drenched in blood. Sun Cheng had taken a slash to the shoulder; with his old and new wounds combined, his arm was nearly useless, yet he continued to fight one-handed, refusing to retreat.

Lu Yong was in even worse shape. A gash on his forehead bled profusely, blinding one eye with crimson. Both men were at their limit, but they held on through sheer force of will.

They had sworn an oath as brothers—they would not retreat a single step!

"Kill!"

Seeing Gao Yigong swing his blade, Sun Cheng did not dodge. He lunged forward, swinging his own sword at the general in a desperate, mutual-kill maneuver.

At that exact moment, a thunderous roar erupted from the distance:

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

Gu Zhenhua had finally arrived with his men. Charging at the forefront, followed by Xue Biao and Gao Hongtu, they struck like a spearhead, slamming into Gao Yigong and the ranks of the Great Shun army.