Chapter 137 “Sixth Prince, take action, kill…”

Chapter 137 "Sixth Prince, it's time to act, kill..."

The rebels jeered, eager to attack. The remaining Xianbei Imperial Guards shouted in panic, "We're under attack!", "Defend quickly!", "Rebellion!"...

Upon noticing the anomaly, they immediately gathered forces to resist, but against hundreds or even thousands of rebels, a few dozen guards ultimately failed to hold the line.

Hundreds of fire arrows arced gracefully through the sky before landing on the tents, igniting the felt coverings. The entire tent instantly turned into a blazing inferno, turning night into day.

"Hahaha! Let’s see where you can escape now."

Yet, as the tent was nearly consumed by flames, no one was seen fleeing from inside.

Were they already dead? So easily?

A few rebels grew suspicious and were about to charge in when a scout rushed in.

"The adjacent tent is empty."

"Empty?" A Shi Na Wu Jiu barked. He ordered another search, but indeed, no bodies were found. His face twisted in rage, and he swung his long blade. "We’ve been tricked! That Han woman is truly cunning. Go, find her!"

Just as the rebels were about to move, screams erupted from the periphery, accompanied by the hiss of arrows piercing the air.

"Ambush!"

"The enemy is outside!"

"Block the arrows!"

...

"What’s happening?" A Shi Na Wu Jiu snarled.

"We seem to be surrounded," a subordinate reported.

The night was too dark. Even with the light from the burning tents, the distant scene remained unclear. The rebels only felt a sinister feeling in the dark, as if countless hidden arrows were aimed at their heads.

His men shifted uneasily. A Shi Na Wu Jiu snorted coldly. "This is just that Han woman’s trickery. The royal court has no troops left—where would she get so many men to surround us? Forward! Attack!"

Bolstered by their leader’s words, especially after realizing the enemy might indeed be bluffing—the hail of arrows was weakening—the rebels’ morale surged. They roared and charged ahead.

Having seen through the ruse, Jiang Congyan’s forces broke off quickly, barricading themselves into various workshops.

The workshops were fortified buildings built with thick earthen bricks for warmth, complete with courtyard walls. Their defensive capabilities far surpassed those of tents, making them crude but defensible strongholds.

A Shi Na Wu Jiu never imagined Jiang Congyan would foresee his moves and prepare in advance, foiling his assault on the royal court.

Furious at being outmaneuvered, he relied on his overwhelming numbers and ordered, "Kill them all! Show no mercy to any Han!"

Though Jiang Congyan had prepared, time was too short, and fearing leaks, she couldn’t protect everyone.

While her people had barricaded themselves in the workshops, their forces were too few to hold out indefinitely.

At that moment, a report came in.

"Khatun, the rebels couldn’t find you. They’re setting the royal court ablaze."

Jiang Congyan’s eyes turned ice-cold.

"Have they gone mad? Apart from us, there are mostly their own Xianbei people in the royal court. Are they planning to kill everyone indiscriminately?" Si Zi cursed angrily.

Jiang Congyan fell silent for a moment before finally saying, "Light the beacon."

The people in the royal court were the Xianbei who had interacted with her the most and were closest to her. Many herders owed her their livelihoods and had come to accept her rule. There were also the families of Tuo Baxiao's trusted subordinates. To the rebels, these Xianbei deserved death as well.

"My lady!"

Jiang Congyan calmed her with a look. "We wouldn’t have been able to hide for long anyway. They would have found us sooner or later."

The Imperial Guards followed her orders and lit torches. Sure enough, the rebels soon spotted Jiang Congyan.

"She’s here!"

Jiang Congyan was hiding in a newly built residence, its walls still fresh and not yet painted or decorated. The surrounding courtyard walls were ten feet high, enough to hold off the enemy temporarily, but they were no match for the height of city walls. Rebels began scaling the walls, trying to jump in, while fire arrows rained into the courtyard.

The Imperial Guards divided their forces—one defending the walls, the other engaging rebels who breached the walls, extinguishing the fire arrows they shot. Fortunately, the interior had only walls and no flammable materials, averting a blaze.

Jiang Congyan stood in the main hall, with Si Zi, A Chun, A Fei, Gan Luo, and Zhang Fu by her side.

Everyone stood frozen, eyes locked on the chaos beyond.

The courtyard was small, and the Xianbei Imperial Guards were limited in number. As the rebels launched wave after wave of increasingly fierce attacks, the gate splintered under the assault, and more and more rebels jumped in, trying to kill Jiang Congyan.

At one point, one rebel lunged for the doorway before an Imperial Guard beheaded him. The head tumbled inward, blood splattering across the floor. Though the guard quickly kicked the gruesome head back out, the maids shrieked, their faces pale.

"We’ll be fine," A Fei muttered, gripping A Chun’s arm tightly. Terrified, she’d never faced such horror.

During last year’s ambush, they had only stood by, not joining the battle. This was different.

A Chun wordlessly clasped her hand tighter.

Outside, A Shi Na Wu Jiu grew increasingly frustrated that Jiang Congyan’s scant few hundred guards could hold him off for so long. He shouted toward the residence, "The royal court has already fallen to my men. Surrender the Han bitch now, and I’ll spare your lives."

Hearing this, Si Zi and the others tensed even more—what if someone decided to betray them?

Beyond Jiang Congyan’s location, the royal court descended into bedlam.

The nobles residing in the royal court had nearly all emerged. At first, they hadn’t known what was happening, only roused by the uproar outside. But then the rebels stormed in.

Some immediately realized something was wrong and hurried to gather their men.

"Kediyan, are you rebelling?" He Rangan was the first to organize his forces. Seeing the flames near the royal tent, he rushed there, only to encounter Kediyan. The truth dawned on him.

"Kediyan, you treacherous snake! When the king returns, he’ll have your head!"

Kediyan sneered. "When the king returns? He won’t be coming back. And what kind of king is he? He’s betrayed the Xianbei! Look at what he’s done this past year—he handed Chancellor’s position to that Han woman, letting her and the Han rule over the Xianbei. He wants to turn the Xianbei into a second Liang State. And yet, you still fight for him!"

He seethed with false righteousness, as if everything he said was true—as if he wasn’t rebelling for personal gain but to save the Xianbei.

A few of He Rangan’s ranks wavered.

"Lies!" He Rangan roared, pointing his blade at Kediyan. "This is about your wounded pride! Five years ago, it was the king who led the Xianbei warriors to resist Wudati Hou. Under his rule, the Xianbei have grown stronger. Even if you succeed in your rebellion, could you even hold our borders?"

Kediyan’s jaw clenched at the accusation. "Don’t try to scare me with your words. Tuo Baxiao fell into your ambush—he’s not coming back. The royal court will fall to my men sooner or later. Kneel now, and live. If you stand in my way, you’ll die."

"So it was you behind all this."

With no room for negotiation, neither side held back, and steel met steel in the fray.

Apart from He Rangan, similar scenes unfolded across the royal compound, as the rebels led by Kediyan launched attacks on workshops, granaries, and Tuo Baxiao's loyalists.

Some, like He Rangan, remained resolute, while others, seeing the tide turn, were coerced or tempted into defecting.

From afar, the royal compound was engulfed in flames, the din of battle—curses, wails, screams—filling the air.

Rebel forces from various tribes poured in. Seeing that the defenders were overwhelmed, Jiang Congyan's position was completely cut off. One by one, the Imperial Guards fell, and more rebels swarmed over the walls. It was only a matter of time before they broke through.

"Why hasn't Lan Zhu arrived yet? My lady, I must join the fight!" Si Zi could wait no longer and rushed forward.

A Chun quickly grabbed her. "Don’t be reckless! If you leave, who will protect the lady personally?"

Just as the courtyard gate buckled under the assault, two thundering hoofbeats finally echoed from outside the royal compound—one from the west, the other from the north.

"Reinforcements! Our reinforcements are here!"

Kediyan and A Shi Na Wu Jiu noticed as well, their expressions darkening.

The northern force was nothing to fear, but the western one...

"Find out immediately—whose troops are coming from the west?"

Moments later, a scout reported, "It's the forces from Tumochuan."

"Tumochuan?" Kediyan scowled.

It hadn’t even been three days since news of Tuo Baxiao's ambush reached the royal compound. Tumochuan was over three hundred *li* away—even a fast rider would take half a day to deliver the message, and gathering troops would require at least another day. Marching the army here would take yet another day. How’d they get here so fast?

Had this Han woman deduced the rebellion the moment she received word of Tuo Baxiao's plight? If so, she had to be eliminated no matter what.

But no matter how clever she was, he had spent months plotting in secret—how could he not have a backup plan?

He Zhou arrived with the reinforcements, and the Xianbei rebels outside the courtyard were finally repelled.

Ruo Lan bolted to her side. "You okay?"

She had received Lingxiao's message at dawn the previous day, thinking it was just routine. To her shock, the letter ordered her to gather forces and rush to the royal compound at full speed, warning of possible rebellion.

She had been terrified upon reading it, wishing she could fly to Jiang Congyan's side. Instead, she had to suppress her panic and follow orders, rallying troops from all directions.

Jiang Congyan let her inspect her for injuries. "I'm fine, Auntie. Don't worry."

The Tumochuan reinforcements clashed fiercely with Kediyan's rebels, yet Lan Zhu, who should have arrived by now, was still missing.

No one saw this coming. Jiang Congyan’s stomach dropped.

Only much later did Lan Zhu finally stagger in on her horse.

"Ah Yan sister, He Lanhu and the others are gone. I could only bring barely a thousand men."

"Gone? Did they defect too?" Si Zi gasped.

Lan Zhu could only shake her head tearfully—she didn’t know.

This was bad. Really bad.

Their original plan had been to dig in at the workshop until Lan Zhu and the Tumochuan reinforcements arrived to fight back. No one saw this coming.

If they were just lying low, that was one thing—but if they had joined the rebels... They were screwed.

During Tuoba Xiao's reign, the Xianbei territory was calm as if everyone was willing to submit to him. But once news of his ambush spread, those with ulterior motives surfaced like drowned spirits one after another.

He had weakened the power of the tribal leaders and enforced the adoption of Han script within the clan, completely infringing upon their interests. The rebel forces were far larger than Jiang Congyan ever anticipated.

Tumochuan sent plenty of reinforcements, but they were not elite troops. Many had been farming just before and had only been trained by Ruo Lan for a short time—no match against the rebels.

General Modolou... General Modolou might already be on his way, but he was too far away. Distant water won’t put out a fire nearby.

"Abandon the royal court and retreat to Tumochuan," Jiang Congyan ordered decisively.

She had originally intended to hold the royal court, but now it seemed impossible.

Leaving the royal court meant the enterprises she’d built through sweat might be destroyed, but given the current situation, staying alive came first.

If the rebel forces from various tribes kept pouring in endlessly, her forces wouldn’t last.

"They're trying to escape—stop them!" A Shi Na Wu Jiu saw them mounting their horses and, ignoring all else, gathered all available forces to surround her.

The Xianbei Imperial Guards and reinforcements around Jiang Congyan closed ranks around her as they fought their way westward.

Just as they were about to break through the rebel encirclement, another large force suddenly appeared behind the rebels, the ground quaking under their hooves—at least five thousand strong.

When the newcomers arrived, in the flickering firelight, their leader emerged—

Tuoba Wuxi!

"Brother!" Lan Zhu's heart trembled violently. "Did you turn traitor against the King?"

"No wonder I couldn't find He Lanhu—you reassigned him, didn't you?" she shouted accusingly.

"Betrayal? The throne is the Sixth Prince’s by right. And you, as his sister, are actually helping outsiders," Chancellor stepped forward from the crowd.

His long game had finally paid off—this was the day he had been waiting for.

Once the Sixth Prince ascended the throne, he would remain the unchallenged Chancellor of Xianbei, wielding even greater power than before.

He scanned the surroundings—soon, the entire royal court would be under his control.

Lan Zhu longed to cut Chancellor down with a single stroke, her eyes red with fury. "It was you! You poisoned my brother's mind!"

"Brother, don’t listen to him! He’s just using you. The King will be fine. If you harm Ah Yan, the King will never forgive you!"

Chancellor's expression darkened, fearing the Sixth Prince might be swayed by her words. He urged, "Sixth Prince, act now. Eliminate them."

"Eliminate them, and the Xianbei crown is yours."