My Sims of the Eastern Jin Dynasty

West City Wharf.

As Deng Jing and his personal guards retreated to this spot, a group of people surged in and blocked their way.

The leader was a Xianbei general with a burly, bear-like physique; this man was none other than Chigan Hun, a fierce general under Murong De.

Chiganhun's face turned ashen, and he pointed his horsewhip at Deng Jing.

"General Deng! Where are you headed?! General Murong's orders are to capture Qu County!"

The hundreds of Xianbei cavalrymen following behind him also stared intently at Deng Jing and his men.

Deng Jing was already furious because the situation was out of control, and now he was being questioned in public by this brute.

He raised his hand to stop the guards who were slowly lining up behind him, and met Chigan Hun's fiery gaze.

"General Chigan is indeed loyal and dutiful, but I wonder if your General Murong Yan could even besiege Tan County? I was only responsible for launching a surprise attack here; whether you can hold it or not is your own business!"

"you--!"

Chigan Hun was so enraged by these words that his blood boiled. He was a direct descendant of Murong De and was of the same blood as Murong Yan. How could he allow Deng Jing, a Han general, to belittle him like this?

"Stop trying to brush me off with those excuses!"

Chiganhun suddenly drew his curved sword from his waist, its cold light pointing directly at Deng Jing.

"If you dare to retreat without authorization tonight, causing the loss of Qu County, I'd like to see how you explain yourself to Gao Yanggong! Clear the way! Take your men and follow me back to the city to wipe out the remaining enemy!"

As he moved, hundreds of Xianbei cavalrymen behind him shouted in unison, brandishing their swords and spears, and took several steps forward, exuding intense hostility and killing intent.

Deng Jing's personal guards were not to be outdone. Although they were fewer in number, they were all battle-hardened elites. They also drew their swords and formed a tight formation to protect Deng Jing. The atmosphere instantly became extremely tense, with swords drawn and ready to strike at any moment!

"I am the son of General Deng Qiang, and I am acting on the orders of Duke Gaoyang (Fu Fang). I have my own strategies for doing things. Have your men make way!"

Deng Qiang's name made Chigan Hun's scalp tighten, and he realized that the young general in front of him was someone even Murong De couldn't afford to offend.

Seeing that his words had an effect, Deng Jing sighed deeply.

"The salt fields were burned down due to your unit's negligence in defense. More importantly, Xiao Heng may have already left Tan County, and Han Yong is one of his fierce generals. You should report this as soon as possible!"

Having said that, Deng Jing said no more, as if it had just been a routine instruction. He lightly flicked the reins and said to his guards:

"Let's go."

This time, Chigan Hun froze on the spot, his lips moved a few times, but he could no longer utter a single word of obstruction.

Deng Jing's personal guard cavalry calmly passed through the gaps left by the Xianbei cavalry and quickly disappeared into the night leading south.

Chiganhun stared in the direction they had disappeared, then suddenly came to his senses, his face drained of color.

He grabbed the scout captain beside him and roared.

"Quickly! Pick the fastest horse and head to Tan County! Report to the general that Qu County has been attacked, the salt fields destroyed, and Xiao Heng... Xiao Heng may have already come east! Request his immediate support!"

Just after giving the order, Chigan Hun seemed to have thought of something else.

"No...that's not right!"

He suddenly shook his head.

"Lord Gaoyang wants salt! General Murong wants salt too! Losing a city can be excused by the unruly populace, but losing the salt fields is utter incompetence! As long as the salt fields remain in my hands, there's still room for maneuver!"

"Regroup the army and retake the salt fields!"

After saying this, Chigan Hun took the lead, leading the remaining hundreds of cavalrymen, and turned to charge towards the salt fields outside the city, where flames were raging.

This unexpected turn of events plunged Xu Xianzhi and the people of the city into utter annihilation.

The Xianbei people who arrived at the salt field did not find the regular army of the Jin army.

Chigan Hun also realized what was happening and pointed at the chaotic city, giving an order.

"Kill them all! Leave no one alive!"

The Xianbei cavalry that entered the city quickly degenerated from an army into a group of armed thugs driven by rage.

They no longer distinguished between the Jin army and civilians, or between those resisting and those fleeing.

Anyone who appears in our field of vision and is not of our kind may be killed and plundered.

The Xianbei people marched all the way from the north of the city and happened to run into the group led by Xu Xianzhi.

A close-quarters street battle unfolds in an instant.

Upon seeing the appearance of the Xianbei people, they were met with resistance from regular troops on the front lines.

Initially, it was just a few scattered civilians hiding in houses, witnessing their relatives being killed and their property being taken away. Driven by extreme fear and anger, they grabbed harpoons, machetes, and even stones, and pounced on the lone Xianbei soldiers or those with their backs to them through windows and rooftops.

These sporadic counterattacks quickly spread.

More and more desperate people joined in.

They may not understand battle formations, but they are familiar with every alley and every corner.

They emerge from unexpected places, attack in the most primitive way, and then quickly disappear into the complex streets and alleys.

However, the flames not only give rise to the courage to resist, but also to boundless evil thoughts that take advantage of the chaos.

Zhou Laosi escaped, but his gang of ruthless outlaws, who were used to risking their lives, did not completely disperse.

Some of them, seeing the situation completely out of control and the distinction between officials and bandits blurred, revealed a murderous glint in their eyes.

This group quickly dropped their last pretense. They stopped attacking the Xianbei people and instead turned their swords and looting towards their weaker and more unsuspecting compatriots and neighbors.

They kicked open the doors of shops not frequented by the Xianbei, robbed their valuables, and humiliated women and children. Their cruelty sometimes surpassed that of the Xianbei themselves.

A true apocalyptic scene descended upon Qu County.

In the firelight, resisters, killers, looters, and fleeers mingled together.

Xu Xianzhi felt his heart breaking at the sight of this hellish scene, but he did not stop walking.

Time has lost its meaning, and people around me keep falling down.

When a pale white finally appeared on the eastern horizon, dispelling some of the thick smoke and illuminating the ravaged city, less than a hundred people remained standing around Xu Xianzhi.

The alleyway was almost entirely filled with corpses and rubble, belonging to Xianbei people and ordinary civilians...

It wasn't until someone reported that Han Yong had been found.

Xu Xianzhi finally found those familiar figures near the dried-up irrigation ditch.

He pushed aside the shield blocking his way and staggered forward.

Han Yong leaned against the cold earthen wall, his head drooping limply to one side, his face covered in bloodstains, making his features almost unrecognizable.

The tattered armor, and the ring-pommel sword he clutched tightly in his hand even in his unconscious state.

The bandages wrapped around his chest and abdomen were already soaked with blood.

A few steps in front of Han Yong, facing the alley entrance, lay Chen Jiao's body, almost completely covered in arrows.

The ground beneath him was a pool of dark brown, almost black, blood that had long since congealed.

Xu Xianzhi rushed to Han Yong's side, placed his fingers on his neck, and let out a choked sob that was hard to tell whether it was a cry or a laugh.

"It's good that he's alive! Commander Han is still alive! Quickly!"

The surviving veterans rushed over and tried to lift Han Yong up with the gentlest possible movements.

Xu Xianzhi slowly walked to Chen Jiao's side, squatted down, and looked at the dark face pressed against the ground.

He reached out and gently brushed a speck of dust from Chen Jiao's cheek. Then, extremely slowly, he broke off one by one the most conspicuous and glaring arrow shafts on Chen Jiao's back.

After he finished doing all this, he stood up and glanced across the small area.

Besides Han Yong, there were dozens of other veterans from the Northern Army who were either unconscious or seriously injured; they were Han Yong's last remaining asset.

None of the salt farmers Chen Jiao brought with him were still standing there.

Forcibly calming himself down, Xu Xianzhi quickly gave the order.

"Take a headcount, collect all usable armor, arrows, and especially wound medicine."

"..."