Chapter 160 She Had No Way Back…

Chapter 160: There Was No Turning Back for Her Now...

The hall went dead silent.

Zhao Bian instinctively clutched his chest, looked down in disbelief, and saw the short arrow embedded there—it wasn’t an illusion. He snapped his gaze up at Jiang Congyan, his eyes wide with rage.

"You... you actually... hah—" The excruciating pain in his chest robbed him of coherent speech. He gasped desperately for air, but it was no use—his face turned purple. In seconds, he blacked out, unable to hold on any longer, and collapsed onto the table before him, sending dishes clattering to the ground.

"Father!" Zhao Cuo, shaken out of his stupor, lunged forward. When he saw the arrow’s fatal placement, his entire body trembled.

One shot, instant kill.

As a military officer, he knew every vital point of the human body. This hit was a death sentence.

Everyone present had been lost in the beauty’s enchanting dance mere seconds ago—only for their commander to be struck down the next?

Staring at the scene before them, they couldn’t believe their eyes. Was Zhao Bian really shot? Was he really dying?

This was insane! Impossible! A seemingly frail noblewoman had managed to assassinate a seasoned warrior right under their noses at a banquet.

Their gazes toward Jiang Congyan shifted entirely. The fragile, innocent demeanor she had displayed earlier was nothing but an act. This icy, lethal version of her was probably the real deal.

But where’d she learn to shoot like that?

Jiang Congyan stood motionless, slowly lowering her right arm as her wide sleeves fluttered.

They would never know she had once learned archery from Tuo Baxiao—who had even praised her accuracy.

Tuo Baxiao hadn’t just been flattering her, she realized. She’d gotten damn good with that wrist-crossbow, though until tonight, she had only ever shot targets. This was her first time aiming at a person—her first kill.

Back when she’d had a heart condition, she had obsessively studied anatomical diagrams, weirdly obsessed with pinpointing the position and condition of every person’s heart. She knew precisely where to strike for an instant kill.

In times like these, you had to be ready—to learn survival skills. Wasn’t that right?

But the wrist-crossbow couldn’t pierce armor. She had to wait for the perfect chance.

Tonight’s banquet provided it: Zhao Bian wore no armor, they were mere steps apart, and all the city’s commanders were gathered. It was the perfect chance.

It was do or die.

Zhao Bian wheezed out a few last breaths, each weaker than the last, until they ceased entirely. His face turned corpse-purple.

Zhao Bian was dead.

Zhao Cuo, trembling, checked his father’s pulse. It took him a long moment to accept the truth. When he finally looked up at Jiang Congyan, his eyes were bloodshot, his expression twisted with fury.

"I’ll kill you!"

He sprang to his feet, drawing his sword, and charged at her with pure hatred.

"Stop!"

Si Zi rushed forward, shielding Jiang Congyan. She grabbed a nearby table and hurled it at Zhao Cuo with all her strength.

Too furious to react, Zhao Cuo took the hit and was knocked to the ground.

That just pissed him off more. Scrambling up, he pointed his sword and roared, "Men! Attack! Kill her!"

"You dare?!" Jiang Congyan’s voice cut through the air at the same moment.

Her aura was too intimidating, and having just killed Zhao Bian, for a moment no one dared move.

"Chen Qi, Dong Yao, stop Zhao Cuo now!" Jiang Congyan commanded urgently.

Both Chen and Dong froze—was she issuing orders to them? Did she even grasp the situation?

"Are you going to stand by and watch the entire Liang army be destroyed by Zhao and his son? If I die here today, do you think you’ll survive Tuo Baxiao’s slaughter?" She pressed urgently.

Chen and Dong froze, finally grasping the gravity of the situation, and shouted, "Zhao Cuo, stop!"

All hell broke loose—dancers screamed and fled, tables overturned, and plates and cups smashed to the ground.

Si Zi was skilled in martial arts, but while she could fend off Zhao Cuo alone, she couldn’t hold off so many men.

Jiang Congyan dodged as best she could, ducking behind a wine table, but Zhao Cuo still managed to slash her arm, bright blood staining her white sleeve.

Zhao Cuo sneered viciously, raising his sword to stab at her heart—but Chen and Dong intervened just in time, knocking his sword aside.

Furious, Zhao Cuo barked, "Chen Qi, Dong Yao, you dare stand in my way?"

Dong Yao retorted, "She has a point. Tuo Baxiao’s Xianbei army is still outside the city. We can’t risk it."

Ultimately, the threat of Tuo Baxiao was too great—they couldn’t gamble on the consequences.

Zhao Cuo didn’t care. With a wild slash of his sword, he snapped, "What does Tuo Baxiao matter? Sooner or later, I’ll kill him too."

When Chen and Dong refused to back down, Zhao Cuo ordered his men, "Attack!"

Zhao’s men rushed in, forcing Chen and Dong to rally their own subordinates. The officers instantly split into two opposing sides.

Swords raised, neither side backed down.

Just as tensions peaked, battle cries rang out outside the governor’s hall.

"Now what?"

Before they could ponder long, the clamor swept into the hall.

"General! Dou Tian has betrayed us—he’s leading men here!"

A guard rushed in to report, only to be struck down by an arrow from behind. The next moment, a large force burst through the gates.

To everyone’s shock, a shock arrival appeared—Zhang Yan.

Zhao Cuo’s face twisted in rage. "Why are you here?!"

Zhang Yan didn’t bother answering. The moment he fought his way in, he searched for Jiang Congyan, finally spotting her in the chaos, shielded by a tense Si Zi.

Blocked by the crowd, he could only see her face—not her wounded arm. Relieved her life wasn’t in immediate danger, his panic eased a little. At least he hadn’t arrived too late.

"Ah Yan!"

Jiang Congyan turned her head and let out a relieved breath.

The assassination attempt had been perilous, but she had no choice—only Zhao Bian’s death could break the generals apart.

The day before, Jiang Congyan had visited Zhang Yan and secretly slipped him a firestarter and a thin copper wire—pulled from a hairpin. Bound in chains, he had to find a way to free himself to make his move.

Fortunately, unless the chains in such prisons were specially made, their locks usually had common mechanisms. Zhang Yan had seen many of these in Liangzhou. When they were children, the siblings had even gathered to study lock-picking. Though his skills weren’t as refined as his third brother’s, they were enough to handle this lock.

An hour earlier, he secretly picked the lock with the copper wire while the guards were slacking off and gathered around the fire, but pretended to still be locked up, lying listlessly on the ground. The guards, as expected, noticed nothing unusual.

Then he waited.

In his heart, he didn’t want Ah Yan to take such risks, but he knew she was likely to do so. If it really happened, he could only do his utmost to assist her.

*Italics*Lingxiao!*Italics*

This was their agreed-upon signal.

It was time.

He used the fire starter to ignite the dry straw in the cell while shouting "Fire!" to lure the guards over. When one opened the cell, Zhang Yan took advantage of his unpreparedness, strangled him with the chains, snatched the keys to free He Zhou and the others.

The situation with He Zhou’s group was similar. In addition to the fire starter, Jiang Congyan had secretly slipped them a small blade. He Zhou quietly cut a few ropes, using the crowd as cover. Upon hearing Zhang Yan’s signal, he immediately freed the rest.

There were just enough guards on duty, but the imprisoned Imperial Guards had regained their freedom. The guards never expected these men to suddenly break free, and before they could summon backup, they were killed.

By the time those outside noticed the disturbance, it was too late. He Zhou and the others escorted Zhang Yan as they cut their way out. *Italics*Lingxiao*Italics* landed before him, and Zhang Yan retrieved the message tied to its leg. Knowing what he had to do next, he headed straight for Li Xiang and Dou Tian under the protection of the Imperial Guards.

Meanwhile, Lingxiao sped toward the city walls with another letter.

Though Li and Dou were serving in the Southern Army in Chang’an, their families hailed from Beidi Commandery. Last year, when the Xiongnu attacked, it was the timely arrival of the Liangzhou Army that saved their entire clans. Though they couldn’t escape the Xiongnu’s ravages this year, they hadn't forgotten this life debt. Later, when Zhao Bian transferred them under Zhang Yan’s command to fight the Xiongnu, though their time together was short, they held deep respect for Liangzhou's young general. If possible, they wished to follow him rather than obey Zhao Bian’s orders.

Now that Zhang Yan had come to them, the two didn't take long to agree.

"General, I've got nothing left to lose but this one life. I entrust it to you," Dou Tian said.

"Good. Thank you!"

Wasting no time, Zhang Yan quickly made his arrangements. They divided their forces—Li Xiang led men to the city gates, while Zhang Yan took Dou Tian to attack the Governor’s residence.

The guards at the Governor’s residence had no idea Dou Tian had defected to Zhang Yan, so when Dou Tian and his men struck without warning, they were taken completely by surprise and quickly overrun.

The once evenly matched sides now tilted in favor of Zhang Yan’s side.

"Dou Tian! You'd betray your own brothers?" Zhao Cuo roared in fury.

Dou Tian remained silent, standing behind Zhang Yan.

His men blocked the entrance to the Governor’s residence, hemming in the front courtyard. The assembled officers had only one or two personal guards each, while their opponents were fully armed with bows and arrows. Outgunned, they were forced into another standoff.

Zhang Yan finally reached Jiang Congyan and saw the wound on her arm. Though he couldn’t see the injury clearly, the blood had already soaked half her sleeve.

"Ah Yan! Are you alright?" Zhang Yan exclaimed.

"Just a flesh wound, don’t worry, Brother," Jiang Congyan reassured him.

Perhaps the rush of battle had numbed the pain—she truly didn’t feel it at the moment.

Zhao Cuo, still unwilling to concede, pointed at Jiang Congyan. "She’s Tuo Baxiao’s woman and openly killed a high-ranking general of the court! By helping her, are you all turning traitor?"

Chen Qi retorted, "If not for the mess you and your father made, how would we have ended up in this situation?"

"What’s done is done. We're all in this together now. Given Tuo Baxiao’s temper, even if you return the city and the woman to him now, he won’t spare any of you."

Hearing this, many faces darkened, since he had a point.

"This whole affair is your father's conspiracy—why drag others into this?" Just then, a clear female voice cut through the night air, reaching everyone's ears.

Jiang Congyan stepped forward and addressed the people behind Zhao Cuo. "Are you blind to the situation? Continuing to follow Zhao Cuo means certain death."

"The Gu Yuan disaster lies entirely with the Zhao father and son—it has nothing to do with the rest of you. If you kill me on his orders, Tuoba Xiao will surely raise an army in retaliation. You really think you can defeat his Xianbei cavalry? Besides, look around you—do you even have the ability to kill me? On the contrary, if you stop being his lackeys, I promise Tuoba Xiao will not slaughter the innocent. What do you say?"

Her offer was dangerously tempting.

Zhao Cuo was seething. He never imagined that some fragile woman could so easily dismantle his forces.

Yes, Jiang Congyan was indeed just a delicate woman, but behind her stood Tuoba Xiao. Especially after Zhao Bian brought her onto the city walls and Tuoba Xiao withdrew his troops for her sake—this proved beyond doubt her importance in Tuoba Xiao's heart to the world. They couldn't ignore her now.

"Zhou Hong's thirty thousand troops will arrive soon. When they do, we can attack Tuoba Xiao from both sides and catch him off guard. No man's invincible—what is there to fear?" Zhao Cuo continued trying to persuade everyone.

He had to do this. The others still had a way out, but he did not. If he couldn't win, he could only die.

"Keep your bullshit to yourself. We've all fought battles—do you really not know the gap between the Liang army and the Xianbei Army? Even if you outnumber them, you're no match for the Xianbei on the battlefield," Zhang Yan spat loudly.

The standoff dragged on for a long time. Deep into the night, fierce shouts and the clamor of battle suddenly rose again in the distance.

"What's happening now?"

Just then, a huge white raptor appeared in the sky, circling above the rooftops.

"Yo!"

Jiang Congyan looked up and smiled. "Lingxiao."

Everyone gaped momentarily at the bird, but soon a city gate guard swallowed hard and said, "Li Xiang has defected. He took the West Gate and let the Xianbei Army into the city."

"What?!"

"The Xianbei Army is inside the city!"

The blood drained from every face, with Zhao Cuo's expression turning the ugliest.

It was over. With the Xianbei Army in the city, he had no way out now.

His eyes locked onto Jiang Congyan. Driven to desperation, he no longer had any restraint. In a blind rage, he raised his sword and charged at her.

Though Jiang Congyan was surrounded by layers of guards, Zhao Cuo's speed and strength were too overwhelming and abrupt—he actually managed to break through to her.

Zhang Yan reacted instantly, met him blade-to-blade.

The two clashed in combat.

Zhang Yan's martial skills were originally far superior to Zhao Cuo's, but after days of imprisonment and starvation, he was no longer at his peak. Combined with Zhao Cuo's desperate, frenzied resolve, the two were evenly matched for a time.

As soon as Zhao Cuo struck, his loyal followers also attacked. He Zhou led the Xianbei Imperial Guards to engage them, and all hell broke loose again.

Zhao Cuo had completely lost his sanity—his eyes saw nothing but Jiang Congyan.

He had underestimated her, never imagining he would be brought to such a state by a woman.

Zhang Yan clashed fiercely with him for thirty or forty rounds, but in the end, Zhang Yan outmaneuvered him and seized an opportunity, plunging his blade into Zhao Cuo's heart.

Zhao Cuo's maddened expression locked on his face.

Zhang Yan withdrew his sword, and blood sprayed out, drenching Jiang Congyan.

Zhao Cuo was dead.

His corpse collapsed to the ground, his head still facing Jiang Congyan, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His bulging eyes stared fixedly at her, as if to say he died with unfinished business.

Faced with such a scene, those faint of heart might have fainted from fright.

Jiang Congyan wasn’t easily frightened, but she still felt uneasy, a wave of nausea rising within her.

In the brief moment of Zhao Cuo's madness, a group of riders closed in on the governor's mansion.

The heavy, urgent pounding of hooves echoed ominously. The next second, Xianbei cavalry poured in, among them a towering figure standing out prominently.

Tuo Baxiao, riding the Li Eagle, arrived at the governor's mansion frantic with worry. His sharp eyes swiftly scanned the crowd until they finally found her.

At first, he relaxed, but then he saw the blood covering her, and his gaze instantly turned homicidal, an uncontrollable fury spreading through him.

"Yan Yan!" He shoved through the crowd and charged toward her, leaping off his horse just before reaching her.

"Are you hurt?"

He desperately wanted to crush her to him, but at the sight of the blood on her, his hands trembled, and he dared not touch her, only staring blankly.

Jiang Congyan simply shook her head, her eyes burning into his.

Though they had only been apart for just over half a month, it felt like ages. Reflecting on everything that had happened in these past weeks, it seemed like a lifetime had passed.

Only now, seeing him, did the strain she’d carried since her capture finally ease.

With that release, her legs weakened, and she staggered.

Tuo Baxiao quickly steadied her by the shoulders, then raked his eyes over her. Blood splattered on her was easy to distinguish from actual wounds, but he noticed the slash on her forearm.

"Who did this?" His voice was deadly calm.

"Zhao Cuo."

"I'll cut him apart limb by limb!" The man turned, ready to kill.

"He's already stone dead." Jiang Congyan smiled through tears, pulling him back and pointing at the corpse.

Tuo Baxiao noticed Zhao Cuo's body—indeed, stone dead. But even so, his rage remained unquenched.

Raising his saber, he lopped off his head with a single stroke.

"I'll carve his corpse into chunks and feed it to the dogs."

After decapitating Zhao Cuo, Tuo Baxiao swept his gaze over the others present, and everyone instinctively stepped back.

Chen and Dong watched as the endless stream of Xianbei cavalry surrounded the governor's mansion, sealing it off completely. At last, they realized their mistake—they had initially thought only Zhang Yan was involved in the rebellion, believing that even if they broke with the Zhao father and son, they could negotiate an escape after resolving tonight's crisis. At worst, they could return Guyuan to Tuo Baxiao. But they never expected him to charge in himself.

Li Xiang must have been turned by them as well.

Thinking back to what happened earlier, Zhang Yan and his men gained the upper hand after storming the governor's mansion but didn’t act immediately. Instead, the two sides were locked in a stalemate for a long time—it was all a ploy to buy time for the Xianbei Army.

All the high-ranking generals of the city were cut off from outside news, leaving them unaware of the situation beyond the walls. They had no idea Li Xiang had secretly opened the city gates to let the Xianbei Army in. By the time the truth came to light, the Liang army’s fate was sealed, especially since they themselves were now trapped inside.

After piecing together everything that had happened that night, the two men looked at Jiang Congyan with an odd gleam in their eyes.

How the hell had she pulled this off?

Zhao Bian had only invited her to the banquet on a whim, yet she, a lone woman, seemingly defenseless, had precisely orchestrated Zhang Yan and the Xianbei Army’s movements, capitalizing on this fleeting chance.

Seeing Tuo Baxiao still intent on killing to vent his fury, Jiang Congyan grabbed his hand. "Hold off for now."

Tuo Baxiao felt her fingers icy cold and instinctively wrapped his hands around hers. "You're injured. I’ll have someone take you to treat your wounds."

Jiang Congyan shook her head. "No, this is far from over. The Liang troops in the city—"

"They all deserve to die," he growled, his whole body thrumming with bloodlust.

"Don’t go doing something stupid," Jiang Congyan scolded sternly.

Tuo Baxiao didn’t argue, but his gaze stayed murderous, clearly unwilling to let it go.

If the Zhaos were the masterminds, then these men were accomplices.

That day, when he saw her being dragged onto the city wall, no one could fathom the terror and rage he felt. In that moment, he swore that if anything happened to her, he’d slaughter every soul in Liang State.

Jiang Congyan turned to Generals Chen and Dong and the others. "Generals Chen, Dong, and all of you, the Xianbei Army has already entered the city. The Liang army camp is caught off guard, and the battle is already lost. You are no match for the Xianbei. Fighting on will just get your men killed for nothing. Surrender."

Chen and Dong hesitated.

As she said, the battle is already lost. Moreover, they were trapped like animals in a cage. But still...

"And after surrendering? Will Tuo Baxiao simply slaughter us all?"

If that’s how it is, we might as well go down swinging.

"Do you trust me?" Jiang Congyan asked.

"Well..."

"My earlier promise stands. The Zhao father and son have been executed. I won’t harm the innocent. As long as you surrender, I guarantee the Xianbei will not massacre the city."

The men studied her, gauging how much they could trust her.

If they fought, as she said, they didn’t stand a chance against the Xianbei, and resistance would further provoke Tuo Baxiao, and might get us all wiped out. But if they surrendered...

"Can we trust the princess’s word?"

"Of course."

"We also want the Prince of Mobei to personally pledge this."

Tuo Baxiao’s face darkened, but he stayed silent.

Jiang Congyan turned back to look at him.

"You’re seriously just letting them walk?" The man still wasn’t having it.

Jiang Congyan said, "This matter was indeed instigated by Zhao Bian. They were not active participants, and the soldiers below had no say in the decisions. Let them live."

The man remained reluctant, but suddenly felt her fingers trace his palm lightly, then noticed the meaningful look in her eyes.

In the end, Tuo Baxiao also promised not to slaughter surrendering generals indiscriminately. Chen and Dong finally agreed to surrender.

Tuo Baxiao sent men to accompany them to the city walls and encampments. Seeing their commanders had surrendered, the soldiers below stopped fighting, dropping their weapons.

Once again, Guyuan fell overnight.

There were still many loose ends to tie up afterward. Tuo Baxiao adamantly refused to let her neglect her injuries any longer and took her inside, calling for a medic to bandage her wounds.

However, before that, she issued another order—to lock down all news from Guyuan.

As soon as the order was given, realizing what it implied, Chen and Dong went pale.

"Zhou Hong!"

Zhou Hong's thirty-thousand-strong army was marching toward Guyuan, unaware that the city had already fallen.

"What is the princess planning?"

The two demanded to see Jiang Congyan, but Tuo Baxiao had already given orders not to allow any disturbances. No matter how loudly they shouted, no one paid them any heed.

Jiang Congyan knew full well what this order signified. She did not hesitate—from the moment her arrow pierced Zhao Bian's heart, there had been no going back for her.