"Impossible!"
Pei Gan and everyone else slammed their palms on the table, disbelief etched on their faces.
"The Marquis of An Guo's army is truly here!!" the messenger guard exclaimed, his face flushed with urgency.
"Could Jian Ge have fallen..." Pei Gan's hand trembled violently as he dropped his chopsticks and rushed towards the city walls.
Upon seeing the magnificent sight of seven thousand Great Gan Town Guards in the distance, Pei Gan and the defenders on the wall felt their courage crumble!
What a formidable army!
Though the Great Gan Town Guards and Nan Jiyun had lost dozens of pounds since their campaign, their imposing presence remained undiminished.
Nan Jiyun and Liu Fan had acquired a few horses from Jiang You. The two of them rode to the front lines and, gazing at the sparse defenders on the city walls, felt immense joy.
Just as Jiang You's commander Chen Hui had said, Fu Cheng was also critically short of troops. This was because the area was considered safe, with Jian Ge serving as a natural barrier!
"My Lord Governor! The enemy has several thousand men. Our army consists of three thousand regular soldiers, and with the new recruits, we have a total of six thousand. With the city walls and the rolling stones and logs, we are more than capable of defending ourselves!"
A captain on the city wall spoke with great confidence, urging Pei Gan to hold the city at all costs.
Pei Gan finally regained his senses and stammered, "Hao Ping, don't you understand yet? Those are the banners of the Marquis of An Guo. This could merely be the enemy's vanguard!"
Captain Hao Ping frowned, "I don't know where they came from, but Jian Ge still has tens of thousands of our Lord's defenders. It's impossible for it to have fallen! As long as we wait for reinforcements, we will surely annihilate them!"
Just as Pei Gan was about to argue, an urgent report came from the ramparts: "My Lord! An enemy envoy requests entry for a parley!"
A rope ladder was lowered from the city wall, and Liu Fan, as he had wished, ascended to the top to meet Pei Gan. Following the same strategy, he urged Pei Gan to surrender in Liang Xiao's name.
"Chen Hui of Jiang You has already surrendered?" Pei Gan asked, his face a mask of shock.
"Facing our Marquis, and with a hundred thousand royal troops, can you not see the situation clearly?" Liu Fan retorted.
"Are you the vanguard?" Pei Gan asked urgently.
"Precisely!" Liu Fan replied without hesitation.
Pei Gan's heart pounded, and he reluctantly turned to scan the crowd.
Hao Ping exclaimed angrily, "If Jian Ge was defeated, how is it that no defeated soldiers have returned with news! They must have used some trick to bypass Jian Ge and launch a surprise attack here. As long as we defend the city for a few days, they will run out of provisions and retreat without a fight! Governor Pei, our Lord has always treated you well, even granting you the position of governor. If you surrender the city, when our Lord returns to counterattack, we will all be exterminated by him!"
Pei Gan's breath hitched, and he looked at Liu Fan.
At this moment, Chang Feng, a personal guard recently recruited by Pei Gan, contradicted him, "Captain Hao, can't you see the situation? Perhaps the Jian Ge forces have been completely annihilated, and even our Lord has perished in battle. Our governor, facing the elite of Great Gan, was forced to surrender to protect everyone, which is understandable."
Pei Gan's eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly, "Well said. The enemy is at the city gates, the situation is dire. I am doing this to protect everyone!"
"Utter nonsense!" Hao Ping was both shocked and enraged. He turned and called out to his subordinates, "First, kill this envoy, then we will discuss defending the city!"
As soon as he spoke, the four soldiers closest to Liu Fan surged forward, charging at him, intending to hack him into pieces.
Liu Fan's expression changed, and just as he was about to retreat, a figure darted forward, and in a flash, two of them were felled by a swing of his blade.
It was Ye Xiao, a personal guard recently recruited by Pei Gan!
The remaining two lunged at Ye Xiao, but with a series of swift movements, Ye Xiao's blade flashed with lightning speed, aiming directly for their throats.
Within a few breaths, Ye Xiao had dispatched all four of Helian Heng's elites!
Simultaneously, Chang Feng suddenly attacked, drawing his sword and charging at Hao Ping.
Before anyone could react, Hao Ping's head had already hit the ground, his eyes wide with shock.
Liu Fan, regaining his composure, shouted, "The Marquis of An Guo orders that only the ringleaders will be punished! Those who surrender will be spared!"
As his words fell, Hao Ping's subordinates, who had been contemplating resistance, saw the astonishing prowess of Chang Feng and Ye Xiao and knew they were outmatched. They lost all will to fight, threw down their weapons, and begged for mercy.
Pei Gan finally breathed a sigh of relief, patting Chang Feng on the shoulder with gratitude, "You truly live up to your reputation as my intended son-in-law. Without you, I fear I would have been in grave danger..."
Liu Fan also looked at Chang Feng with curiosity, "And who might you be?"
Ye Xiao leaned in and whispered into his ear, "Mr. Liu, you don't recognize me?"
Liu Fan suddenly startled, and upon looking closer at Ye Xiao, he realized with a jolt, "I remember now!"
The captain of the Shadow Wolf Guard, Sima Jing's most cherished disciple, Ye Xiao!
The two had both been in Yan Province, and Liu Fan had met Ye Xiao a few times. Even with Ye Xiao's altered eyebrows and shaved beard, Liu Fan had almost not recognized him.
"That man is the Sword Saint's most esteemed disciple, the renowned swordsman of Mount Tian, Ren Changfeng!" Ye Xiao whispered.
Liu Fan suddenly understood, filled with surprise and joy.
Ye Xiao was undoubtedly arranged by Liang Xiao. As for Ren Changfeng, he was likely arranged as well?
Regardless, he was safe, and Pei Gan was willing to surrender!
The surrender of Fu Cheng was far smoother than Nan Jiyun had imagined, even surprising Nan Jiyun himself.
It was only when Liu Fan and Ye Xiao explained that Nan Jiyun finally understood.
It turned out that Pei Gan, unlike some, had not completely lost his humanity. He was similar to Chen Hui, a competent but generally cowardly official. His versatility and adeptness in handling matters had earned him Helian Heng's favor, and his entire family resided in Fu Cheng.
When Helian Heng was in power, Pei Gan was naturally his man. However, faced with the sudden arrival of the formidable Great Gan Town Guards, their disciplined formation, and their seemingly unstoppable momentum, coupled with the fact that half of the city's defenders were unwilling conscripts, Pei Gan's opportunistic nature was laid bare.
In any case, Fu Cheng had been taken without incident.
"Did the Marquis of An Guo anticipate that we could take Jiang You and Fu Cheng so easily, which is why he allowed me to take such a risk?" Nan Jiyun couldn't help but ask Liu Fan.
"Does this require foresight?" Liu Fan scoffed.
However, in his heart, Liu Fan was equally bewildered.
Nan Jiyun marveled.
When Nan Jiyun was distributing rewards, Ren Changfeng was nowhere to be found.
Ye Xiao explained, "He said his actions were for the Sword Saint, the people, and the Marquis of An Guo, but he still has a vendetta to settle. He has taken some travel funds and departed. Years ago, Ren's entire family was sent by Helian Heng to be sacrifices to the Spring Rejuvenation Sect. Only Ren narrowly escaped and later met the Sword Saint, thus surviving."
Nan Jiyun sighed for a moment and said, "The Marquis of An Guo will surely avenge Master Ren! For now, our army must hold Fu Cheng and Jiang You firmly, allowing no enemy to breach the pass."
Liu Fan said, "We need to dispatch a loyal and righteous individual, bearing Governor Pei's plea for help, to Jian Ge. We must trick Helian Heng into sending reinforcements to alleviate the Marquis's pressure on the siege!"
"That must be me!" Ye Xiao said without hesitation.
Thus, Ye Xiao, taking three horses and switching between them, rode at breakneck speed towards Jian Ge under the cover of night.
After taking Fu Cheng, Nan Jiyun did not mistreat Pei Gan, but he did appoint Liu Fan to oversee affairs in Fu Cheng and dispatched two thousand Great Gan Town Guards to reinforce Jiang You.
Having secured his family's safety, Pei Gan also breathed a sigh of relief. He actively cooperated with Nan Jiyun in propaganda efforts and released those conscripted into service.
Much like in Jiang You, these young men, fearing Helian Heng's return and the city's fall, requested to temporarily join the defense. Nan Jiyun assigned them to fortify the city walls, promising fair wages.
Meanwhile, Helian Heng, who was desperately trying to hold off Zhuo Ying's army from the south at Jian Ge, was as restless as an ant on a hot pan, hoping that his hastily conscripted troops could repel the forces from Jiangnan.
Two days later, Ye Xiao galloped to Jian Ge, his face dejected, and presented Pei Gan's plea for assistance.
"What?! Jiang You has fallen, and Fu Cheng is in critical danger?!"
Upon reading the document, Helian Heng's vision went black!