Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

The sun was setting, and gravel and sand splattered beneath the horses' hooves. The fight between Wei Yan and Yan Liang had reached a fever pitch. After fifty rounds of fighting, Wei Yan's hand gripping the black iron blade was cracked, and dark red blood dripped slowly along the blade's lines, staining the handle a sticky ochre. Meanwhile, Yan Liang's yellow steed galloped with the wind, his wind-splashing blade wielding with ferocious force. Each blow carried the momentum of splitting mountains and shattering rocks.

"Xiliang boy, do you still have some strength left?" Yan Liang shouted, his blade flashing a cold light several feet long, aiming straight for Wei Yan's throat. Wei Yan grunted and dodged, his arms numb from the shock of his hasty block with the blade's back, nearly losing his grip on the weapon. He watched the fierce fighting spirit in the other's eyes grow stronger, and he was secretly afraid: If this continues, he will surely lose!

"What a brave general!" Wei Yan suddenly shouted, feinting his long sword in his hand. Taking advantage of the moment when Yan Liang returned to defend, he clamped his legs on the horse's belly and turned to flee. "Where are you going!" Yan Liang clamped his legs on the yellow horse and pursued him relentlessly, his long sword pointed directly at Wei Yan's back. "All soldiers, listen to my order! Follow me to crush Xiliang!" Suddenly, a deafening cry of killing erupted from the Yuan army. Over ten thousand cavalrymen raised a cloud of yellow dust, sweeping towards them like a surging black wave.

The Xiliang cavalry quickly formed their battle array to support the advance. The clang of swords and spears, the neighing of horses, and the roars of soldiers intertwined into one. Wei Yan, fighting and retreating, caught a glimpse of Li Ru anxiously looking out from the top of the city wall. With a startled look in his eyes, he suddenly pulled the reins and shouted at the top of his lungs, "The enemy is strong! Retreat immediately!"

The walls of Chang'an erupted in an instant. Li Ru stumbled, clinging to the parapet. His gilded feather fan clattered to the ground, and he screamed in a trembling voice, "Quick! Retract the drawbridge! Don't let Yuan's army seize the city!" With the creaking of the capstan, the heavy drawbridge slowly rose, carving a ruthless chasm across the moat.

"Li Ru! What do you mean?" Wei Yan's eyes widened with anger, and he slashed his blade fiercely on the huge rocks on the river bank, sparks flying everywhere. Li Ru leaned half of his body out, his face full of panic and anger: "A defeated general has invited a wolf into the house! If we lose the city, can you bear the responsibility?"

"Good! Good Li Ru!" Wei Yan laughed heartily, his laughter filled with endless resentment and unwillingness. "Today's vengeance will be avenged tomorrow!" He swung his sword fiercely and led the remaining troops into a gallop towards the dense forest on the left side of Chang'an. Behind him, the cheers of the Yuan army were deafening. Yan Liang reined in his yellow horse, stroking his beard and laughing as he watched the gradually disappearing enemy figures. The setting sun cast a golden red on him, and the endless banners behind him fluttered in the wind, as if all of Chang'an was under the control of the Yuan army.

Dusk bathed the camp, the bonfire casting a crimson glow across Yuan's tent. Yan Liang untied his blood-stained cloak. The neighing of his yellow horse, mixed with the cheers of his soldiers, drifted from outside the tent. Yuan Tan personally filled the luminescent cup, the amber wine rippling through the copper vessel. "General Yan's impressive display in Chang'an today has truly boosted our army's morale!"

"They're just some chickens and dogs!" Xin Ping laughed, stroking his beard. The jade belt hook at his waist swayed slightly with his movements. "Ma Chao took away the elite troops, and Li Ru, old and confused, didn't even dare to take in the defeated army. Xiliang's fate is over!" Suddenly, a loud echo echoed in the tent, the sound of armor clashing and flattering laughter intertwined into a wave.

Xin Ping stepped forward, fanning himself with his hand. The golden cloud patterns on his brocade robe shone in the firelight. "General, you are a brave man. Wei Yan is nothing but a piece of shit under your sword!" Before he could finish his words, Yan Liang waved his hand and rapped the table with his bloody knuckles. "Mr. Xin, you are wrong."

The tent suddenly fell silent. Yan Liang lifted his wine cup and drank it all in one gulp, the remnants spilling out as his Adam's apple rolled. "Although Wei Yan is unknown, he was able to hold out against my sword for fifty rounds before showing signs of defeat." His gaze swept across the stunned faces of the crowd, his sharp eyes resting on the flickering candlelight. "Although I pride myself on my strength, if my opponent were someone like Lu Bu or Ma Chao, I wouldn't be completely confident. Although this boy was defeated by me, he was able to hold out for fifty rounds. With more training, he will surely become a great warrior."

Yuan Tan was stunned at first, then he clapped his hands and laughed: "General Yan is neither arrogant in victory nor discouraged in defeat. He has the courage of ten thousand men and a heart that cherishes talent. He is truly a famous general!" He stood up and walked to Yan Liang's side, patting him on the shoulder. "Once we capture Chang'an, I will definitely recruit this fierce general into my army!"

"What the eldest master said is absolutely right!" Yan Liang stood up suddenly, slamming the wine cup heavily on the bronze table, and the splashing wine left a dark mark on the sheepskin map. "Since Li Ru has chilled his heart, it is a good opportunity for our army to recruit him! If such a good general can be used by Lord Yuan, why worry about the unrest in the world?"

The cold wind howled outside the tent, but it couldn't blow away the heroic spirit that filled the tent. The generals looked at Yan Liang's sharp profile and marveled in their hearts - this fierce general not only possessed courage unmatched by ten thousand men, but also had the wisdom to know how to appoint the right people. No wonder he was able to sit firmly at the head of the Four Pillars of Hebei.

The night was as dark as ink, and the torches atop the Chang'an city walls flickered in the cold wind. Li Ru leaned against the mottled battlements, gazing at the flickering bonfires of the Yuan army camp twenty miles away. A meaningful smile curved his lips. Those scattered, star-like flames, in his eyes, were nothing more than the dying struggles of a trapped beast.

"Just defend the city with all your might." Li Ru carelessly stroked the gilded feather fan in his hand, his bony fingers scratching the fan surface with a small sound. He yawned twice, and his body swayed slightly under his brocade robe, as if he was really overcome by sleepiness. "Looking at the bright moon and sparse stars tonight, I don't think it will snow."

Several Black Mountain generals exchanged bewilderment, their sword-gripping palms dripping with sweat. The shouting of Yuan's troops outside the city still echoed in their ears, the battle atop the city walls still felt as if it were still before their very eyes, yet the military advisor seemed completely oblivious. One of the lieutenants couldn't help but take a half-step forward: "Sir, that Yan Liang..."

"Noisy." Li Ru waved his sleeves impatiently. As he turned around, his wide sleeves blew a cold wind, making the nearest torches flicker. "Guard it well. If anything happens, bring your head to me." Before he finished speaking, he had already walked slowly towards the depths of the tower. His black boots with dark embroidered patterns made a rhythmic "clacking" sound on the blue bricks.

A chill wind blew fine sand across the empty city walls, leaving only a few Black Mountain generals standing there in shock. Gazing at Li Ru's receding figure, they suddenly felt that the mysterious aura surrounding this military advisor was even more elusive than that of the Yuan army outside the city.

The next morning, leaden clouds hung low. Yan Liang, clad in golden helmet and armor, rode majestically atop his yellow horse, sneering at the closed Chang'an city gates. Unable to contain himself, Yan Liang shouted, "Old scoundrel Li Ru! If you've got what it takes, come out and fight!" His only response was the fluttering of the large banner with the word "Liang" on the city wall, billowing in the wind like blood-red clouds.

As the Yuan army drew near, the hum of bowstrings echoed from the city walls. A dense barrage of arrows pierced the air, like a torrential downpour. Yan Liang raised his sword to block, the iron arrows striking the blade, sparks flying, and the sound of "clang" continued. His eyes widened in anger, and he shouted, "Set up ladders! Forcefully attack the city!"

As the command flag waved, Yuan's army swarmed toward the city walls like ants. Shield bearers formed a tortoise-shell formation and advanced slowly, followed closely by ladder soldiers carrying ladders several meters long.

The drums roared like thunder, and the siege-squadron soldiers, carrying ladders several feet long, swarmed forward. Shield bearers formed a tortoise-shell formation and advanced slowly, but as they neared the moat, they were met with a torrent of arrows. Arrows pierced rattan shields, armor, and flesh, sending screams cascading down. As the front row fell, the back row stepped on their comrades' bodies and continued their charge.

Atop the city walls, the Black Mountain generals roared with bloodshot eyes. Scalding gold poured from jars, gleaming fiercely in the sunlight, scorching skin wherever it touched. Rolling logs and rocks fell like meteorites, shattering ladders and splattering soldiers' brains. One general personally picked up a barrel of scalding pitch and, roaring, hurled it at the climbing Yuan army. He was struck in the throat by a stray arrow, his blood splattering on the masonry of the city wall.

Yan Liang brandished his wind-splashing blade, beheading several retreating soldiers: "Dare to retreat again? I'll execute you!" The Yuan army charged again, but as they neared the city walls, they were met by the hook-and-sickle spears of the Black Mountain Army. They hooked necks and arms, yanking with force, sending blood and flesh flying everywhere. The moat had already been dyed red, streaked with bloated corpses, and the smell of blood mixed with gunpowder filled the air.

From dawn to noon, the corpses piled beneath the city walls almost reached the level of the moat. Yan Liang gazed at the battle flags still flying overhead, at the blood-soaked Black Mountain soldiers fighting to the death, and for the first time, felt a flicker of unease. His yellow steed, trampling over the shredded flesh and limbs, slipped, and nearly toppled him. This brutal siege proved to be a formidable barrier, imprisoning his army.

The dusk was blood-red. Yan Liang gazed at the layers of corpses floating in the moat. Drops of blood from his wind-splashing blade dripped onto the mane of his yellow horse, staining the original golden color a dark red. "Sound the horn!" He gritted his teeth and waved his arms. The drums abruptly stopped, and the remaining Yuan army stumbled back like the receding tide. This was the seventh siege. The broken stumps of ladders and the broken limbs of soldiers mixed together, forming a stinking hill under the city walls.

In the days that followed, every charge turned into a bloody rain splattering from the city walls. The Black Mountain generals fought like trapped beasts, scalding gold poured down on the Yuan army climbing the walls. Screams, mixed with the smell of scorched flesh, reached the sky. Hooked spears hooked around the soldiers' necks, and a single tug sent a bloody mist swirling through the air. Yan Liang watched as his personal guards, finally leaping onto the city walls, were stabbed and thrown back by a flurry of swords, tumbling onto the sharp, antler-shaped barriers. Bloodshot eyes nearly seeped out.

Li Ru stood deep within the tower, his fingertips stroking a yellowed military manual. He watched the gradually slowing pace of the defense on the city walls, a sneer curling his lips. When Yuan's ladders finally reached the parapet, the Black Mountain Army lost their previous fearlessness. Instead, they deliberately exposed weaknesses, only to push the enemy back at the critical moment. This near-miss, yet still unrelenting, defeat, like a blunt knife cutting through flesh, gradually wore away Yan Liang's patience.

"It's almost there." Li Ru watched Yan Liang pace anxiously back and forth below the city walls and placed the cold teacup heavily on the table. Days of unsuccessful sieges had left the fierce Hebei general's armor stained with blood, and the pride in his eyes had faded, leaving only madness and anxiety. Whenever the siege failed, he would wield his sword to cut down several retreating soldiers, but the splattering blood could not quench the rage in his eyes. And this was exactly what Li Ru wanted—to make the enemy completely lose their mind amidst the recurring cycles of hope and despair.